\| Divided Paths |/ - Chapt. 3 - Resolute - Biome (IC)

"You assaulted me!" said Azra. "Do you think money is enough to compensate for that?"

"Hold on a moment, Azra," began Haslin.

"Don't tell me to hold on!" snapped the Markovan. Then he regained his composure. "Perhaps you are unfamiliar with Markovan laws and traditions. When something like this happens as has happened to me, be it an assault or a mere insult, then the injured party has the right not so much for compensation but what we call Honor Restoration. By assaulting me like she has, this assassin has not only assaulted me, but my honor as a Markovan warrior."

He looked Fluffly squarely in the eye with the eye he had left. "Once the Liirlith has been dealt with, I will have a duel with you. No one else will be involved. You will be free to use the melee weapon of your choice."
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Nazzi cautiously showed her head, but no one fired at her.

"You must have got him," she said. Helping Straus over as best she could, they found the Liirlith lying in a growing pool of red, gasping in pain. His eyes, darting from to the other, had lost none of their sly look, however.

"Technically the Liirlith was the one pulling the strings so arguably she was the one responsible for stripping you of your honour. Besides you'd never even hit me in that clunky armor."

"I'm afraid we intend to be taking her into custody once this is over." Said a Felinite guard. "She has committed many crimes against our people including this incident. She must be rehabilitated."

"This 'clunky armor' allows more speed and freedom of movement than you think," said Azra. "Still, we'll see what becomes of you."

The preparations were soon made.

"Well," said Haslin, "all we have to do now is wait for our reptilian friend to fall into our trap."

"You know ambassador. I won't be dueling you over this. There is absolutely nothing to be gained from it and it sounds like a waste of my time. So how about you just take up my offer and save yourself the humiliation."

"We'll see," growled Azra. Then an alarm sounded.

"It looks like our trap has been sprung," said Haslin. He looked into a scanning panel, and his mouth dropped open. Not just one ship had been launched from the hangar, but every last one.

The tech room was crazy. There were flashing read warning messages and pads flying everywhere. The team wasfrantically trying to figure out what went wrong and how the Liirlith managed to take control of all the ships at once. Krim was trying his best to keep everyone calm.
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Fluffy smirked. "Well this is a nice bit of chaos. I'm going to see what the tech dorks have done."

Haslin groaned. "She could be on any of those ships." He turned to Krim.

"Should we initiate the dampening field now? Do you think it could handle this many ships at once?"

"You guys got here quick" Krim exclaimed. "We have the field in place already. It seems to be working and it should be able to hold the ships. The big problem here is that once again we don't know where she is."

Krim thought for a moment. "I there any way to disrupt her cloak or power down its energy source?"

Skeleton Crew
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Prologue

Three of them dead, all fallen over into a heap. I looked at my own weapon. Purple blood had spattered back onto it.

"Soldier."

A voice neared me. Someone approaching from my flank. I turned around quickly to see it.

"Sir." It was my section commander.

"Excellent work, I'm glad you've taken such an initiative." He said to me, all the while surveying the bodies of those I had just killed.

I didn't feel... anything.
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10,030

The Eternal Devotion

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"Awake. Awake, and listen." A booming metallic voice said. It was reflected by the silver walls of the interrogation room, a seamless, featureless box.

"Good." The voice said.

"You have been recruited for our cause. You will serve us now."

This message was played for each of the recruits individually, and after playing, a rectangular exit appeared in the room, a door having slid open, almost unnoticeably.

Outside, guards waited to grab hold of them, and lead them to their new quarters, where they would wait to be further informed of their situation.

Avlex had been thrown into his quarters. He laid on the ground dazed and confused. He tried to lift his right arm but couldn't because his robotic sleeve was taken from him. It took some effort but he eventually sat up and looked around.

"Where in Xion am I?"

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Upon entering his room The Survivor was looking for a way out. He eventually determined the only way out was the door. He walked up to the door and tapped on it trying to find some weakness. He didn't care if there was a camera watching him. He was sure he could not be stopped. When he found a weak part he reached for a weapon but found none. With a small grunt he pulled back his robotic left arm and attempted to untangle it but it failed. He looked and saw a suppressor attached to it. With an angry growl he sat on his cot and slowly moved his arms fingers so he could speak in his deep tone.

"I'll play your game for now you weaklings but I swear by the Terrors that I will break out of here. You can not keep me here."

He said eventually staring up at the spot where the camera was. Hoping his threat was heard.

Haslin shook his head. "None that we know of."

He was suddenly interrupted as a laughing voice came over the comm lines.

"Foolssssss! Did you really think I could be sssso eassssily captured? I wassssss sssstanding right next to you the whole time that you were making plansssss to capture me. I heard everything. Don't worry, I'll get away from thissss placccce. I have my waysssss."

The comm went silent.
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Nazzi stepped up to the dying Liirlith, with Tissin's sword in hand. Najii smiled at her.

"Ssssso, your bird friend got me."

"It's over, scum," she said. "It is over. Tissin is now half avenged. He will be fully avenged when your accomplice is dealt with as well."

Najii made a guttural sound. It took a moment for Nazzi and Straus to realize that he was laughing.

"Do you. . . think it issss. . . over?" he said, now having increasing difficulty speaking. "It'sssss. . . jusssst beginning! My people have ssssseen the. . . sssssituation of the Confederacccccy. It isssss. . . crumbling. . . from the insssside. . . out. All of the major. . . Confederate powersssss. . . are starting to breach, and we. . . will take full. . . advantage of it. It playssss into our handssss. . . perfectly. You cannot. . . sssstop ussss. We are. . . everywhere. . . alwaysssss watching. Sssssoon the Confederacccccy. . . will fall apart. . . and we shall be free to make our move. Our plansssss. . . cannot be sssstopped. The mighty. . . realm of. . . the godsssss. . . will live. . . again!"

With one last croak, he died.

Nvarn maintained a stalwart silence as he forced Velsen forward, retracing his steps towards Straus, Nazzi, and the dead Liirlith, though he had been able to hear what was said. Keeping the Jorro'kil prisoner secure, he observed the creature that had been slain upon the floor. "What despicable things, the Liirlith," He growled, glaring at the Purist. "I will protect this CENSORED Confederacy from scum like him and you if it's the last thing I do."

He turned to Straus, examining his medical condition quickly before speaking. "We must pursue any remaining radical Purists. If you are injured, it is fine - I can handle the threat by myself. However, we do need someone to deal with this raknuul and deliver him to justice."

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Immediately upon waking and hearing the message, panic and worry burst forth in Corena's mind. Imprisonment and confinement was her greatest fear, having tried to establish freedom in her life for as long as she could remember. It was the reason she had abandoned the Federation, seeking a new life, and resisting anything that would try to take that privilege away from her. This was Corena's everlasting nightmare incarnate.

"Do not worry," An artificial and soft voice spoke. "The situation may seem forlorn, but we will find a way out of this."

The words startled Corena, and she looked down to see that her metallic vest was still in place, and the Wreae AI she had named Mischief present within. Relief surged over her body, and a sly smile crept to her face. "Mischief," She spoke quietly, eyeing the guards through the open door. "Where are we?"

"A Jorro'kil ship. I'm still trying to find a way into its systems to we can obtain more information." Corena's worry flared up again. Had the Confederacy caught up to her? "It's improbable this is the Confederacy, however. The ship seems to be a couple decades old, and the Confederates would not do something like this."

"What are our options?" Corena implored.

"We do not have many. First of all, complying with these Jorro'kil."

"That's not an option."

Mischief paused. "We can attempt to escape with force. As you know, I was programmed for warfare. Combat is my specialty." It hesitated. "The chances that we escape alive in that case are extremely slim. A stealthy approach would be equally trivial. We should comply until we gather more information."

Corena shook her head, but agreed with the AI. The Ryun walked outside, silently approaching the guards and waiting for them to do something.

Lucean's eyes snapped open, her yellow irises brightening with life as she was awoken by a metallic voice booming from the intercom. If one had been watching Lucean, they would have noticed as she slept that there were strips of flesh on her scaly skin that seemed to be a shade lighter than her normal dark blue skin tone, and as she awoke, these parts of her skin lit up, brightening the area around her as the luciferase in her body began doing its job of creating light.  She remained silent, listening to the message on the intercom before letting a sly smile appear on her lips, though the lines that had appeared on her forehead from a raised brow showed her feelings of anxiety that were hidden behind that smile.

Were they really wanting to use her as one of their soldiers? Though she didn't know who "they" was, she did know one thing- whoever it was must be pretty desperate to have to stoop a low as to capture a different race's soldier to fight for them. And not just any soldier- a Nevalrok. Lucean was proud to have the right of being part of the species- don't get her wrong- but she knew her race was newer than most to this space travel deal- they didn't know as many species as most races in this final frontier of a species' growth. They were still expanding their borders, having but a few star systems, and to think that one of them was captured for another army's use... Lucean found the situation almost laughable. Even so, she couldn't shake the worry of exactly what race it was that had captured her- she had met and heard of several groups that are known to capture other armies' soldiers, and hasn't heard many good things about those groups. But then, they ha only said she was being recruited- they might not be using her as a soldier. Lucean hoped this was the case- it would be humiliating to be used to fight against those of her own kind should they ever encounter whatever race this is and battle them.

Lucean slowly stood up as an exit appeared in the room, still deep in her thoughts.

There were soldiers outside the room, of course. How did Lucean choose to react to this, she gave them all a toothy grin, before letting it fade to a smirk as she spoke, her voice clear and strong despite her anxiety and the discomfort she felt gripping her stomach. "Lead the way, good sirs." Lucean chose to act strong and confident at this moment- she had decided that even if she was overpowered and pretty much imprisoned, that she was going to act as if she had the upper hand in things and not let whoever her captors were think that she was willing to bend to their will easily. As she walked with the guards, Lucean cast them each an observing glance. If she had seen them before while commanding her fleet, she didn't remember them. This gave her no knowledge of their technology, weapons, or anything...

... Technology.... Ugh, now she really wished she had her rod weapon with her. It would be perfect for this situation- a close-combat metal stick that could change in attack styles by twisting it or holding the item in different ways. She preferred using the setting most of her kind used, which was allowing it to have electricity course through the rod, electrocuting those it touched. Of course, there were other settings for the weapons, used for if they ever faced an opponent that was immune to electric shocks, but so far that one setting had been proved to be very effective.  She would be using it on these guards right now if she had I- wait. No she wouldn't. This is their territory, for crying out loud. What sort of idiot would try to escape from this place by themselves without knowing where all the workers are, along with the exits and exactly WHERE they are? Lucean inwardly sighed. She already knew that all she could do was cooperate until escape is a possible and probable option.

Flanking the doors, two tall, slim, avian guards, dressed in gold and blue, ribbed armor stood waiting to escort each recruit to their quarters.

Both of them were seven feet tall, towering above most the recruits, and because of this, the deckhead was also very high, roughly nine feet upwards. Their arms, legs, torso, chest and neck were not visible, being covered in a durable nanocomposite undersuit, beneath the aged Power Armor that they wore. Their hands were visible, and one would notice that they seemed to be of a dark tan color. The skin appeared to be very rough, being slightly wrinkled and dry-looking on the outer side, though it was smoother and softer on the palms. If one were able to see any of the rest of their bodies besides their feet, head and beaks, no skin would be visible at all, as they were covered in small, tightly-woven blue feathers.

Their beaks were a light tan, though only the tips were visible, as both of them wore roughly triangular helmets. On the sides and tops of said helmets, smooth, blue rails enabled the guards to see, giving them holographicly generated layouts of their environment, all in first person view. The signal rail at the top provided information on the armor's status, and relayed it to the two at the sides, enabling the wearer to see the functionality and endurance levels of their armor.

Despite such capability, the armor itself was rather outdated, and it lacked the energy shielding strength of newer models. It was composed of an older titanium alloy, as well, though this played an insignificant role in its strength.

If one doubted the guard's individual strength, even without the Power Armor, they were all incredibly strong. This was due to a special organ, a sack, partially exposed at the back of each Jorro'kil's neck. As Jorro'kil mature, the sack releases calcium and nutrients into the bones, increaing their overall strength and rigidity, as the compact bone is especially affected. This would enable them to efficiently subdue any of the recruits, and help when dealing with any outbursts of violence.

Each of the aliens were led to their quarters, bare rooms having only a hard bunk, and a sink. They were stark grey, standard colors for living quarters aboard Jorro'kil ships.

Roughly twenty minutes afterwards, all of them were called into a hallway, and each recruit was accompanied by two Jorro'kil guards, all of which wore the same power armor.

As they were gathered together, another Kil appeared. He was dressed not in power armor but in an officer's uniform, a form-fitting outfit with semi-circle "patches" adorning the shoulders and thighs, along with full cuffs at the ankles and wrists. All of these features were gold, while the uniform itself was a very dark blue.

He stood infront of the recruits, and began; "You have all been allocated from your homeworlds, your normal ways of life." He said.

"We are the Jorro'kil Federation. Years ago we fought a war, and it devestated us. We are the only survivors of our.. faction. We cannot continue alone forever, so you will all be trained. In our doctrine, in our ways of life, until you will serve whole-heartedly."

"You will all be assigned to the tasks which fit you best, always under guard, until you have gained my trust. If you fit no specific task, then you will be trained in one." He paused for a moment, before finishing. "If any of you have specific physical needs, you are.. obliged to inform us, or you will do without."

"Dismissed." He said, prompting the soldiers to lead each of the recruits back to their rooms.

Alvex was confused as to why these aliens captured him and after that speech he felt sick to his stomach. He looked around the room to see the other "recruits" and was surprised to see his brother among them. How The Survivor of all people got captured is strange. Nether the less Avlex shook his head and spoke to one of the guards.

"Ahem, I am in need of my robotic sleeve that was taken from me. Without it I will be unable to preform even simple tasks with my right arm."

Avlex does not know what else he can do but what he does know is that if he wants to escape his only chance is to trust that his brother will think of a way.
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The Survivor payed no attention to the speech or really anything going on. Instead he took time to examine the armor of the guards. He has never seen it before but it was easy to find flaws. He also took the time to examine the others that have been captured. Mostly aliens but the fact that his brother was captured surprised him little but allowed him access to the available skills he had so far. He needed to know about the others though. But would these guards allow them to converse with the other prisoners? Only time would tell he guesses but it better be soon. The Survivor is ready to test out these guards.

Lucean ha enough time in the room the soldiers had led her into to compose herself. The twenty minutes it took, in fact, left her a bit anxious to leave the bunker. This being said, when the soldiers returned to take her to another area, Lucean obliged.

She had already gone through everything in her mind- she had still found going along with whatever was happening was the best option. And so Lucean followed the guards to another area, keeping her back straight and chin up as a way to attempt showing them that she wasn't afraid, even though Lucean still couldn't shake the nagging feeling of fear that was gripping her stomach.

When they arrived in the room, Lucean looked around curiously, seeing other beings approach the way she had- surrounded by guards. She remained silent, however, until a being that looked seemed to be the same species of the guards, only in different attire, approached. So they were the Jorro'Kil? The name sounded vaguely familiar.

Even so the name of the species wasn't the point, right now- this Jorro-Kil Federation being just said that she was going to have to work for them because they apparently need help. She inwardly scoffed, trying to get past the fear that had now grown in her stomach. How pathetic... Kidnapping rather than asking for aide. Really, such an idea should have had more thought put into it.

Lucian's eyes began looking at the other captured beings, as well. They were each to be assigned a job that is determined by their skills? This received an apparent wince, now. If they were to do such a thing, this could mean that she would end up serving the Jorro'Kil military. That would be humiliating for her- a captain for her race getting kidnapped and sent to work for another.

Lucean finally spoke up as the group was dismissed. "For physical needs," she began, surprising herself with being able to keep a steady voice, "I require more water than a regular species, and meat is preferable for consumption. Also if you acquired a metal rod whenever you took me, I would like to have that back." She had a feeling the last request was probably not going to be met- after all, who would give their captives weapons? A small smirk appeared on Lucean's face, though just as earlier it masked worry. Then again, these Jorro'Kil were apparently very desperate to gain soldiers, considering they kidnapped a captain.

K'æo Kal Dolsuul was very quiet throughout the whole introduction, possibly because of the sudden shock of finding that he'd been kidnapped by Jorro'kil with little exclamation for the reason. He had wanted to lash out, to destroy these Kil like a true warrior would, but something stopped him. Common sense (seeing as he was a rookie and that he was outmatched in everyway possible), mostly. Even a rookie like him could see that.

Keo, at this time, was beginning to express his anger. He paid little mind to the aliens who also happened to be kidnapped; not that he would want to speak to them. There was a later time for this. By the time he was escorted to his room, was shaking. The door closed behind him, yet he did little to stop it.

"Kongaa uki ammi!" He exclaimed, throwing himself onto the uncomfortable bed. "My people will have your heads!"

There's no way they'd just let me go like that.

During the speech by who appeared to be an officer of sorts, Corena and Mischief remained silent, though the Ryun could tell that her AI companion was quietly poking through the systems aboard the ship. Corena didn't recognize any of the species present aside from the Jorro'kil and the Vil'Nolwikkan, though she was surprised that they hadn't kidnapped other Confederate races. She was certain that these had to be insurrectionists or separatists of some sort - The legitimately recognized government of the Jorro'kil was the Free Absolute, not the Federation, and even then, the actual Jorro'kil military had more modern technology and ships. Besides, the Free Absolute military would not pull off something like this - It would violate their "honor."

As they were dismissed and the duo were led back to their room, Mischief sent Corena a text based message on the personal HUD on her eyes, displaying vital signs and being able to take local private messages from certain receivers. The HUD was a permanent implant, and the Jorro'kil would have been unable to surgically remove it without making Corena blind. "I found several pieces of information," It read.

Corena neurologically sent response back to the Wreae through the communications device. "Are you sure this is a secure channel? They could be listening in on us."

"I would assume not, the signals we are using to communicate are based off of Ryun-Wreae technology." Mischief's response read.

"So what did you find?"

"First of all, this ship, the Eternal Devotion, entered service 23 standard galactic years ago in the Jorro'kil fleet of High Justice. However, the entire ship is not that old - according to this, many parts have been scavenged more recently. According to this, this vessel recently docked with another, possibly what brought us here. However, much of the rest of the information is blocked by higher security, and when I'm within the system I'm continually spammed with these... journals."

They arrived in the room, and Corena sat on the bed, activating a holographic display in her vest. In front of her, the image of an actual Wreae stood, the machine before it had invaded Corena's personal ship and she was able to take it down. "What did they say?" She inquired, making sure her tone was very quiet.

"They ranted continually against the rule of Emperor Xyrus VN Whoster, who, as you know, was killed in combat approximately a decade ago. They also praised a Jorro'kil named Xavez K'roneques, though I can't find much else information about him. The odd thing is that these are written in the present tense, as if Emperor Whoster were still alive."

Corena's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Keep searching, Mischief. I'll try to find a way to talk to the other prisoners. Perhaps they know something that we do not."

A Jorro’kil female stepped out of a shadowy alley, stopping to button up her yellow flight jacket. Just as she stepped out from the alley her face was blank as a polymer mannequin, but before one could be sure she had the normal, a little tired look that every commuter was wearing on their face. Dolos had troubles holding it’s disguise together, not only because it had lost most of its nanobots in the battle but also because it had stared to have thoughts. Above all it was disappointed that the plan with the Purists had failed so utterly. Part of the disappointment was originating from the Astan Character. If Dolos’ escape protocols had not taken control Dolos would have turned on its tail and attacked the Cyber-Krathuninan. Or more precisely Astan would have done it. Now Dolos was trying to suppress the Astan character while maintaining the recently stolen mind of this female crewmember of a soon leaving cargo ship. Between those two personalities there was very little space for The Dolos.

Dolos jumped off the public transport and continued to the spaceport, letting the loaned mind of this female Jorro’kil to lead it through the staff doors and different gates. Dolos continued through the facility, opening doors and occasionally showing the pass or responding to greetings until it found itself standing in front of a large cargo ship standing on a landing pad. Last containers were just being loaded to the hold, and Dolos quicly headed towards the ladder leading to the cockpit. Dolos climbed up to the cramped crew compartment and took the seat of a deckhand, being the last one of the six crewmembers to take the seat.

After a while the ship finally got the clearance to take off and rose up to the space. It was an old but robust vessel, transporting many needed supplies towards the fringe worlds’ new colonies. The last thing Dolos wanted to do was to go back to the fringe. Last time it took years to infiltrate to the inside words. But there was no choice. Dolos had to leave quickly, and only ships going to the fringe words were light enough in security to be infiltrated on the run. Problem was that ships coming back from the fringe had all the security that the ones going opposite way were missing.

Fluffy scoffed. "I will get you you lying mistrifilin!"

Krim scowled. "Is there really any need for that kind of language?"
"Yes. You had your chance Krim and you failed so I'm taking over from here. That transmission looks easy to trace but as soon as we get to her location she will likely leave and we will never find her then.
Now I have a fair bit of biological information on her race that I have managed to collect in my time here and I'm willing to bet I can find a way to subdue her. After all she only has a cloak."

Haslin had already gone to a small panel. "I'd say that that transmission came from the radio tower room." A cold lump formed in his throat. "Even cloaked, she couldn't have just sent a transmission from there without getting caught, unless. . ."

Grimly, the group came to the room. Nira gave a sob of horror. The two Felinites that had been on duty there were both lying in grotesque positions on the floor, eyes glazed, lips swollen and curled back from their teeth, dead.

"Perhaps there's a thing or two you still don't know about Liirlith biology," Azra said to Fluffy with a humorless smile. "They carry some pretty deadly venom with them in their claws, and they aren't afraid to use it."

 
Straus, who by this time had removed his helmet, and limped over to stand above the Liirlith's body, glanced at Nvarn as he came forward with Velsen.
 
He listened silently as the Krathunian spoke. With a slight nod, he replied. "I'll take zis vun back vith me.. and zhat." He looked down at the dead Najii, though didn't dare to kick the body, for fear it would disappear.
 
Straus remained silent for a few moments. He looked back at Tissin.. and he remembered the dead Krathunians.
 
What he said next was enough to surprise anyone that knew of the Jorro'kil.
 
"It never stops.. does it? Ve go and on.. zhe slain are compiled into lists.. the dead become more numerous.. ve never stop to consider it, all zhat could have been prevented. Ve try not to.. for fear zhat it vould overvhelm us."
 
Straus looked more solemn than one would think possible. Had he broken? He wasn't sure... only that he had said what needed to be said.

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It was another half hour before the recruits were called out into the hallway again. Lucean had been given an extra supply of purified water, and Avlex recieved his robotic arm, albeit in a dirtied condition, and with an energy dampener attached to it. Clearly, the recruits were not trusted.

Instead of being given more information on the situation, each of the recruits were sent up to the mess hall in a specialized elevator, where two guards stood behind a glass wall on one side, watching the recruits with unemotional stares. One by one, they were allowed to eat. There were a variety of foods, including meats, vegetables, and, not unusually, nuts. The guard did not lift, and the soldiers, although slightly more distanced and relaxed, kept a vigilant guidance over the aliens.

They were given twenty-five minutes each to eat, and afterwards, were sent back to their quarters. It was some time after this, that they were again escorted to another room, though this one on the same deck.

Captain Xavre J'kol, the same kil that had spoken to the recruits in the hallway earlier, stood on a podium infront of five rows of five chairs each. The room in which all this sat was the same dull silvery color, with highlights of grey or dark blue here and there. It was roughly 25 meters long, and 30 meters wide, with a height of three and a half meters.

The Jorro'kil guards followed each of the recruits to their seats, and formed a restrictive perimeter around them.

Once everyone was seated, Xavre began to speak.

"Everyone here has been requisitioned to serve aboard this ship. I will assign you your cadet ranks based upon your skills.. or you will be trained into a skill. I will tell you now, it will go well for you to collaborate with us. I have allowed for you to read some of our literature and history, you will find the ship's library on the same level as your cabins, just down the hallway. You will be accompanied by a guard initially, but if you earn my trust, this hand-holding will cease.. if you misuse my trust, however, I will see to it that such accompanyment will never cease, and certain privileges will be withheld. Life can be quite pleasant here, if you make it." He paused for a moment.

"Once I leave the room, a holographic screen will appear, and icons for the various departments where you may serve will appear. Choose one by tapping it, and your guards will lead you to the training area."

With that, he stood staring at them for a moment, and then left the podium. The screen appeared just as he said it would, with the sections labeled as the following: Deck department, Engineering, and the Steward's department.

Ariz min Darrin gazed darkly around himself. He had not been noticed by Corena earlier due to his size; he had been hidden by the others. But he had been there. He hadn't said anything. But he had little thought of loyalty. He never served anyone he felt was dishonorable, and these Jorro'kil had given him little reason to see them as otherwise. But there was little to be done. His sword and gun had been taken from him, and he didn't know where they were; unaided, he wasn't as strong as his guards. Just let me have my weapons, he thought, and I will show them how a Markovan goes down; fighting to his last breath. Not being forced into slavery.

He closed his eyes and bowed his head. A slight bit of moisture appeared at the corner of his left eye. As if his desertion of the Markovan Empire had not been shameful enough, now he was a prisoner. To be captured was amongst the most disgraceful things that could happen to a Markovan warrior.

How can I ever live this down? I cannot. The only way is to sell my life in combat. I have no other purpose in life now.
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Nazzi spat at the dead Liirlith. Then went over to Tissin. She placed his sword in his hand, and carefully composed him. "We'll retrieve you later, my friend," she said sadly. She then went to Gettrav, who was starting to come to. Quickly taking his gun from him, she rammed it into his back. "Get up, and don't try anything funny, traitor!" She growled.

Gettrav glared hatred at her, but did as he was told.

Survivor followed along to the dinning hall. He sat away from others and ate his meat. Eating was difficult for him because he had to move his arms fingers for that too. After he was finished he stared around looking for more escape advantages. Some air vents and several soldiers. They really want to keep him and the others here.

After that they were all sent back to their Quarters. There Survivor attempted to remove his dang power suppressor. However it was stuck on there. Eventually the door to his room opens and he lead to another room with the others. He ends up sitting through yet another very boring speech. After the officer leaves and the screen goes up Survivor begins to access the different jobs.

While the engineering one could help me get access to the information I need...Of course it does not matter if I can't get off this ship. Hmm..Deck Department might be my best bet.

Survivor then picked Deck Department and awaited to be escorted by the guards.

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Avlex was thankful that he had his sleeve back even if he can't have it at full power. He followed the guards to the mess hall and ate his diet of meat. He didn't really know what to say to the others so he kept quiet. When he returned to his room he cleaned the sleeve a bit.

Suddenly all the "recruits" were called to another room. Another speech was given by the commanding talking about departments. When he left a screen came up. Avlex saw deck department and figured it was his only way to get through this. He selected that and waited for the guards. But to his surprise his brother choose that as well.

Lucean actually found the meal, strangely enough, enjoyable. They had given her extra water as requested, and there had been plenty of meat for her to eat. She found it surprising, actually- they were being treated pretty well for some aliens that had just been captured and couldn't really be trusted.

After eating Lucean believed she felt as good as she could in this place- of course, she was still definitely not pleased about being force to be a soldier for the Jorro'Kil, and she was still planning on finding a way to escape... But she was well fed and that was something one should find good- if it were another race or another ship, they probably wouldn't have been offered food so willingly and also sparingly.

When she was sent to another room with the other aliens, Lucean silently listened as they were once again told about what they were going to be doing- feeling angered by this, but still she chose not to say anything- she just plastered a sly smile on her lips as she listened. They were going to w able to choose the department they will serve in... Well this is easy. As soon as the list appeared, Lucean almost immediately chose te Deck Department. It only made sense. when she was captain- no, she still was. She had just been captured and is currently unavailable as a captain for her race- she was in charge of the deck department along with Travelers captain of the ship. She may have been more focused on empire interaction, true, but at least she learned some things about navigation. As for combat... She had earned an unusual fighting technique compared to other Nevalrok, that used their guns in fighting more than the metal rods each was given. She mostly chose to use close combat, however, and even she wasn't sure why.

Lucean noticed two bug-like (if I read the empire description right I think they are bug-like, at least) aliens that also chose the department. She noticed that both seemed to rely on robotic things for moving- one actually had robotic parts and the other appeared to be wearing a sleeve-like device. She smiled at them as she spoke up deciding that she might as well try to make an ally or two, "Looks like we'll be working together, hm?"