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

The Eternal Devotion

The Bridge

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

Jex supervised as Lucean relayed the power fluctuations several levels below, as Ariz finished his work and Survivor neared completing his task. As the deck cadet became more familiar with her assignments, she improved, becoming faster, and the Third Mate noticed this.

Only a few officers were present on the bridge, and Jex outranked them. He suspected the Second and First Mates were speaking with Captain Xavre, most likely on matters such as the droid the ship's medic had just disabled, which left him with an opportunity to speak to Lucean unsubdued.

"Do you remember where you were?" A vague question asked from behind the Nevalrok, issued from a rather withdrawn beak, continuing a refined stature possessed of his overall body. His narrow, avian eyes reflected the aqua glow emanating from slim light panels situated on the walls and the deckhead.

"Where you were before being requisitioned for work here."

No Kil turned to look, not even at this statement from one of their own; Xavre would consider it a breach in security, would want it reported, but the bridge crew were too fastened to their duties to follow this directive.

"I can be a friend to you." Jex said.

Lucean's golden eyes widened when Jex spoke to her, her lights brightening slightly in attentiveness combined with surprise, but not enough to be that noticeable. Be a friend to her?

Her eyes glanced at Jex for a second before glancing at everyone else on the deck, then back in front of her. This wa an unexpected turn of events... Depending on how it was played out, it could be a good one. The question was whether or not the situation was real, however. It could just be a way to test her loyalty to Xavre and the others. Or, even if it weren't, who is to say Jex was not going to use it as a way to blackmail her or use her?

Lucean silently swallowed, thinking of a what to respond with. They wouldn't be testing her loyalty so soon, right? It is quite obvious none of the beings that were recently "recruited" would be after being taken from their homes. So she chose to, for a moment, drop the cheerful attitude she had held so often on the ship to ask her next question- in all honesty with how much she had been smiling it felt good to do so.

"Do you believe trust right now is that high between us two?" She quietly hissed. "Prove why I should trust you."

Keo was silent for a few minutes afterword, once again returning to autopilot.

"Avlex," He finally said, "I need friends here." He tried to wink without any guards noticing, but it ended up looking like a twitch. Keo continued, trying to win Avlex over, "We can help each other out. If the captain will allow us, I may be able to get your disease checked out, okay? I believe that there's a chance that something... could be done." He tried to wink again, accidentally scaring himself when it turned out to be noticable. He didn't think anyone else noticed.

Ariz woke again with a start. He looked around him, examining all the walls, reliving in his mind that awful feeling he had had when he had first been captured: despair. His life was over, he was disgraced forever. He had nothing to live for.

He frowned savagely. He had nothing to lose. He would free the other prisoners and bring this whole ship down on its owners if it was the last thing he ever did. It would be the last thing he ever did.

In a savage outburst of rage, he took the cloth he had been using as a bandage and ripped it to shreds with his claws. For a moment he stood breathing heavily, then, regaining his composure, he went to the sink and gave his injury a rinse, washing away the dried blood. He then took a seat on his cot, noting with discomfort that it clearly wasn't designed with long-tailed species in mind. Oh well, such things didn't matter anymore. He would wait for his next assignment, and use it as an opportunity to look for more potential weaknesses to use. There was planning to be done.

Dolos, once reactivated, would find himself magnetically attached to a strong metal alloy, more specifically a table designed for dissecting and surgery. A high-pitched, crackling sound drew near to the nanobot compartment on the Infiltrator's wrist, and touched it, in the form of three glowing prongs. Plasma rippled down the length of each one, and began to cut away at the nanobot storage. Once this process of precise mutilation was complete, the crew overseeing Dolos would attempt to bring him back to machine 'consciousness.'

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________


"You've overestimated the opposition to our meeting. I know most of the patrons here." Meris said. "It is a common courtesy to keep business meetings discreet."

He reached for a capsule on his grey-and-cobalt belt, opened it, and drank the water inside. Some of spattered on the edges of his mandibles, which he promptly wiped away. "I don't order drinks during business, either." Placing the capsule back on his belt, he folded his hands on the table, and glared at Gettrav.

"We have a proposition for you."

Annives

The Chrysalis was a truly beautiful ship. Even when simply hovering over the ruined city, it cast an air of divinity that even the gods themselves couldn't match. Annives always thought that the beauty concealed was the one most desired, but this star ship was proof to the opposite. Though not the biggest, or packing the most firepower, it was by far the fastest. Speed was its greatest weapon, slicing through enemy vessels like a blade through flesh. Not even a devourer, with armour thicker than a anything practical, could stand up against the sheer power and velocity the Chrysalis had behind it. The knack was in the lining up. It wouldn't do to cut a ship vertically, you had to do horizontal, coming perpendicularly at high speed. But its captain, the beautiful commander Xiaia, had mastered the art of ramming to a degree attained by few others.

Glistening in the faintly brown sunlight, the ship cast an unusual light down on the world below it. Shaped like the a crossbow bolt, with fletching at the end and a sharp point at the prow, it was built from a highly reflective metal found only on three known worlds. It was as strong as titanium, but kept the shininess that most metals lost. Light played off of the ships ridges and rivulets like dancing butterflies, mingling with the light from the reinforced windows and the pale blue glow of the engines. Even the bridge, with rose hill like from the top fletching on the aft would sparkle in the light.

But the ship paled in comparison to its captain. Even underseer Olygria, who had once claimed to be unswayed by any seduction, was fond of her. The common Kar stood no chance. She walked with a fluidity and grace that turned every step into a temptation. Her eyelid fluttered like starlight, making everyone feel indebted to her. Even her voice, harsh and cold, had a certain strength and attractiveness to it. This woman was in no way pretty. She wasn't a powdered girl or an easy prize, she was a challenge, an Everest of beauty. She did not peak interest or attract fleeting glances, but drew stares and created obsession.

So naturally, when she stepped from her drop-ship, stark white cloak swirling behind her and outfit so tight in all the right places, every eye in the crowd was on her. Annives' crews gazed at her without tact or subtly, open in their affection. Even the captains, normally so cold and uncaring were taken aback. Her footsteps were like the crunch of snow and her breath was soft and supple. Behind her followed a small retinue of sentinel drones, armoured to the reactor, a bundle of officers and technicians and an architect, clad in loose fitting robes and a three tiered hat that added a foot to his height. Most of these went unnoticed, partly due to the fact that the commander was a head taller than each and mostly due to her stunning, never ageing beauty.

The stout procession walked between the ranks of crewmen and guard drones, towards Annives and the captains on a small stage at the end of the parting. It was a walk finished to quickly, as it cut the idolisation short.
"Commander." Annives said in honest courtesy, falling to one knee. The rest of his men knelt as well, falling in a wave of respect. "I am glad you arrived so quickly."
"You are too kind Annives." Her voice was that of a dominatrix. "I see you have been industrious in your choice of headquarters. Though you led me to believe you had conquered more than one planet."
"Just so," he said rising "each of my captains has taken a world for their own, at my instruction. Seven planets in total, my lady, along with a scavenger station that fired upon us." She didn't say anything for an age.
"You were detected?"
"As far as I know, no. Though I cannot he certain, there may be whispers of our presence but we have not encountered any major empires."
"That is good. You have done well, I always knew I could trust my loyal captain." She patted him on the shoulder and glanced at the slave pen behind him. Without hesitation, Annives explained,
"Gifts, my lady. Additions to your collection. Some are the last of their kind, others are completely unique. I hope they are pleasing to you." He did the equivalent of a smile.
"Oh, they are. Have them sent to my ship as soon as possible. For now, we have urgent matters to discuss. I came ahead of my main fleet, they will arrive presently, however. The coming weeks will be bloody and some of us will not survive. Please, let us retire to your chambers, my friend."


The architect did not much like this world, Annives could see. It didn't take much to understand why, a freshly annexed city was anarchic, disordered and chaotic but architects were used to order and logic and cable management. This was as far from those as possible, a take and make do world of ruins and wastelands. He bristled at every street corner, grumbled at impractical or illogical facilities and generally was a bit miserable. Though as they climbed the ruined towers that made Annives' HQ, Lon'Vor the architect became more and more at ease. When they reached the makeshift war room, he was practically contented. Of course, he still growled at the messy cables and crumbling walls but now at least he didn't hiss and whine.

He was not the tallest of creatures, this Lon'Vor, nor was he particularly muscular, but he had that air of intellect that was impossible to fake. It was not inconceivable that all he saw in the world were equations and atomic structures. But it was not hard to discern why Vortei had sent him. In the few sentences Annives had heard him utter, he came across as utterly brilliant. Few things missed his attention and he seemed to be a repository of knowledge scientific, historical, cultural, religious, anything you could think of. And when talk in the hexagonal war room turned to war, he flourished.

Xiaia stood alone on one side of the hex table, staring at the holographic star map Annives had set up. It displayed only the local area, about a hundred star systems around their current position. Lon'Vor was at her right hand, and Annives was directly opposite. The captains of his small fleet made up the rest of the council, Kars of all colour and creed, ranging from stout station dwelling aristocrats to planet-siders with their slurred voices and vicious faces. Captain Vargr was one such planet-sider. The most merciless of the captains, but one of the most successful. Perhaps there was a lesson to be learned there.

Foraxis was mild by comparison, but still brutal in the eyes of other races. He didn't take slaves like Vargr, which was merciful in itself. A foreign slave was treated even worse than the Kar'Numericals, who were pretty abused themselves. Any captive Foraxis took was jettisoned into space as a mercy. He respected someone who surrendered rather than choose to die needlessly, so gave than a comparatively clean death. The other four captains were rather generic, either calling for immediate battle or waiting for reinforcements.

The commander seemed to agree with the latter.

"The rest of my fleet will arrive shortly, once we have a strong presence the underseer will bring the rest of our offensive forces to aid in our conquest. But that shan't be for a while yet. I have been authorised by his eminence depot Vortei to forge alliances to aid in our coming war, though we first must get a clear idea of he political landscape now. It has been a long time since we were present in this galaxy and things will inevitably have changed. For the time being, we will wait and watch. Take a few minor worlds if you get bored but under no circumstances are you to engage any major empires. Annives, you will be second in command once the rest of my fleet arrives. I have around a thousand ships en route but the underseer has nearer fifty thousand so we must keep ourselves hidden for now."

Then the architect spoke up, his words eloquent and calculated.
"The Despot sent me to test a range of drone prototypes in the minor skirmishes, as you all know. Though I realise my presence may not be as welcome as I would have preferred, I would request that you allow me to accompany you when necessary." The captains kept their distaste quiet and simply exchanged glances. "Also, even less fortunately for you I'm afraid, I must request some specific conquests for my research. Though I by no means wish to command or disrespect you, I'm afraid the Despot has given me special authority to make certain requests of you."

"Why would he give someone like you authority?" Vargr growled and gave the stare that made entire species cower. Lon'Vor, to his credit, didn't even stumble. In fact, he matched the captain stare for stare.
"You are aware of my lineage, correct?" Lon'Vor asked in complete casualty. "My grand father was Underseer Alletrivis, my father is commander Ixcillis of the captain of the dreadnought Death's Ascent, and my ancestor was emperor Havlok the great. I do believe leadership is in the family." Commander Xiaia chipped in then,
"Lon'Vor has proved himself a capable commander while in my company. There are few people I think are as ingenious as him. In the twelve days I have known him, he has more than earned my, and your, respect." And that was the end of that. It seemed every captain was so besotted that now her opinion was not dissimilar to the word of god.

Annives, in an attempt to save this wreckage of a war council, spoke again.
"The planet is made brighter by your presence, lord Architect. We will do all in our power to assist you in your research. But for now, I have had the scouts lay out a selection of planets for conquest. They are as varied as they are populous, you will be pleased to know. These ten star systems should be ours by the end of the week." Ten more stars turned red on the blue star map. With your consent, commander, we shall begin conquest by morning."
"Good." Xiaia said brightly, unconcerned by the billions this small conquest would kill. "You have my consent, captain. I shall remain here and set up colonies on the other planets in this system. I'm afraid this ruin you have commandeered will not be enough to house the coming fleet. I will leave this world under your rule, do not fear. Every man who serves me well in the coming days will be greatly rewarded.

"A storm is coming, my friends. We shall unleash fury on this galaxy, the like of which none has ever seen."

"So serious," said Gettrav, clicking his tongue. He waited for his own beverage to arrive, and took what seemed an agonizingly long period of time on the first draft. Smacking his lips, he extracted another cigar, shook it and lit up, taking a long slow pull from it. All of this was done without hurry, in such a way as one might find incredibly irritating. Such was Gettrav's intent. Let them think he was a fool. All the better. Let them be angry. Still all the better. It had been the Markovan's experience that, when someone was angry at him, it gave him power over him. All that was required were a few well-chosen words, and the person, spurred by their own fury, could do anything he wanted them to.

After what seemed an eternity to Meris, Gettrav turned to him with a look of boredom on his face, although his eyes scrutinized the Jorro'kil intently.

"Pray tell, what sort of proposal?"

Avlex looked at his robotic sleeved arm then back to Keo with a determination in his eyes. "I know that the medics won't be able to do anything about my arm Keo but there is no need to worry. The other of my species that is here. We need to get in contact with him because I know he is coming up with a plan. He will get us all out. Even if it is the most unorthodox plan ever."

(The following is done with Vipera's permission)

Meris extracted a data pad from a nearly indistinguishable pocket in the upper left corner of his uniform's shirt section, and slid it across the table to Gettrav. Alien symbols scrolled across the screen, but would transform into a recognizable script if touched by the Markovan.

"That contains details on the task we have chosen to require you to undertake." By reading the text, Gettrav would learn that the mission they had for him was relatively simple, though perhaps dangerous. Infiltrate United Chimerosu Nations territory, under the alias of an official from the Markovan Empire, and observe, record and report of all trade vessel passage, military ship patrol, and unusual orbital activity of the listed planets.

"I will accompany you on this mission." Meris said, his tone almost that of contempt. A flicker of a sneer flashed across his avian features. "And," He said, "Don't enquire of the reasons behind the mission."

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________


The Eternal Devotion

Bridge Room

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

"You have no reason." Jex said. "You also have no pride to loose. No friends - yet. No fear to hide, or so it.. seems." He smiled at this. To a humanoid like Lucean, it probably would have looked more like an odd grimace, because of the beak used to form it. Relaxing his features, he looked down at the Nevalrok. "Is it difficult to consider, that exceptional recruits may be given exceptional circumstances?"

"I won't make you decide now, but please think on it."

"You are quite ambitious," Silus mused, grinning and eyeing the Councilor with an air of confidence. He rapped the table, each impact coming in quick succession. On command, the ceiling above them parted, revealing an advanced hologram generator. The window overlooking the supernova darkened, as to allow those viewing the images to see better. Relthar, knowing what was coming, chuckled.

"Let us begin."

____________________________________

"Hello, General Borghild."

The Red Scimitar. That was what they called the Krathunian that stood before Nvarn, albeit in hologram form. Borghild Draluntus was feared and respected among the enemies of the Covenant, known for his combination of cunning and brute, sheer strength on the battlefield. The nickname was derived from his signature crimson armoring, which was unique among the silver and black hues of most troop's personal fortifications.

"Sentinel." He responded with a rather gruff and gravelly voice. "Where exactly are you?"

Nvarn glanced around the perimeter. Borghild would be able to make out his surroundings, a spaceport bustling with activity along with several elite soldiers guarding him. "Mivra," He responded. "It's a Jorro'kil Barrier World.”

Borghild’s fiery orange eyes narrowed. “Ekest?” He asked. One couldn’t help but note a troubled and anxious tone about him.

Nvarn answered with a solemn nod. “Anyhow, General, what is this about? I believe you said it was urgent.”

“I’m not sure how to say this,” Borghild replied grievously. "It's... Sentinel Miral. She's dead."

Nvarn's eyes widened, and the armored guards broke from their vigilant watch and turned to the hologram, shock plastered upon their faces underneath the black and silver helmets. "W-w-what?" Nvarn stammered, becoming overcome with grief. "How?"

"She was assassinated," Borghild sighed, his eyes downcast. "A sniper, posing as a guard to the Capitol building, shot her twice. The first shattered her shields and the back of her helmet, and the second ended her life." He hesitated. "We caught the killer, but he activated explosives within his armor and killed several more soldiers and civilians. A suicide bomber."

"Krathun," Nvarn whispered. It was all he could muster.

"We also found a... note, sent to her HUD. You may want to see this, sir." Borghild paused from his speaking, gazing forward blankly. He was simply neurologically sending what had been found to the Sentinel. Once it was received, Nvarn read it over carefully to himself.

With pleasure and grace to The Convergence of the Intragalactic Krathunian Covenant of Sethega,

Here lies the body of Sentinel Miral Yvenuis. It is not often that one finds corpses on the stairs of the Capitol, nor the bodies of such esteemed individuals. Know, friends, that Miral did not die in vain. She was taken from the grasp of the Spirits with purpose. Two sniper rifle rounds to the back of the head pulled her away from the warm hands of life, but why? Miral was an unknowing and unwilling martyr, a symbol. Change is coming. The foundations of the old are being ripped apart. It is inevitable. Keep out of the rain.

-S. Koluntus

"S. Koluntus..." Nvarn muttered to himself, thinking. "As in Silus Koluntus? The Alkisuns were behind this?"

"I'm afraid so," Borghild responded in a quiet tone. "Something's going on. They would never dare attempt something like this normally. The Alkisuns are based upon making a profit, they're not politically motivated." Nvarn nodded, and was about to speak, but the General cut him off. "There's one more thing, sir. The Convergence has already met and have voted upon a replacement Sentinel. All they need is your approval."

"Oh? Who is it?" Nvarn inquired, pain from the loss riddled into his voice.

"Me, sir." Borghild would have used a more excited tone had it not been for the grave situation.

Nvarn pondered this for a while, turning his back to the hologram. After this, he rotated back and saluted the general with one fist straight forward. "I hereby designate and name you as Sentinel of the Intragalactic Krathunian Covenant of Sethega. You are to be the bulwark, the shield, of our grand nation." In response, Borghild saluted in return.

"Thank you, sir." The newly appointed Sentinel responded. "I shall fulfill my duty with great honor and justice within my mind."

____________________________________

Ilinya put on a mask of astonishment and amazement, though on the inside she didn't quite see the machine as so breathtaking. Indeed, for such a small empire it would be very impressive, and the eagerness of the Emperor almost made the Ryun feel the same way, but at the same time, the RWF had many orbital defense mechanisms that could be considered more advanced or more powerful. However, none were quite the same as this, and did not have a beam with a half-mile diameter, and for that alone it could be somewhat impressive.

"That is... awe-inspiring." The Commander responded, smiling. "Your grand civilization is most incredible. Is there anything else you would like me to know?" She was half hoping that Tilus would not ask about the Federation, being so large and powerful in comparison to the Silonians.

_____________________________________

Corena was not very surprised at Xavre's threat. Mischief had been poking around the Eternal Devotion's network for most of her time on the ship, and had gathered quite a bit of useful intelligence. Even so, she wasn't about to jeopardize such a useful tool... or her friend. Due to this, she nodded at the request and said simply, "He's out." However, the potential for punishment was not over. Corena was led by the guard holding the plasma cutter to an evaluation room of sorts, with cobalt and silver coloration, likely to be questioned on Mischief.

Lucean looked at Jex, an intrigued expression on her face before closing her eyes and smirking slightly. He had made quite a few valid points, she had to admit. She had thus far made no progress to be close to even hoping of leaving this dreadful ship. To do so she would need to make allies, and Jex was practically offering his help to her on a silver platter. Of course there was still the matter of trust, but even if an event were to occur... What did she have to lose?

After several moments of silence, Lucean responded, back to having the smiling mask on that she had began to wear a lot on the ship- maybe this one was genuine, however, considering the sudden change of events. "Very well. I'll think about it."

(Bleh post. I'm in a rush, so... Yeah. Lo siento)

Gettrav flashed a debonair smile at Meris. "Of course not," he said. "That's your own business, I'm sure."

He scanned the data with an air of languid boredom, though he was really reading it quite carefully. "The UCN, eh? I've heard of them. Not much to be said for them, really. Only a few planets to their credit, no big empire or anything. Hmmmm, something about some joint mission between them and the Confederacy of Vathoris. Not much to them, either. Still, it might be interesting to figure out what this about, if time allows."

He flipped the data pad back to Meris, crossed one leg over the other, and took a pull at his mug, but still watching Meris out of the corner of his eye.

"You're an awfully young looking chap. This your first mission?"

Jex folded his arms, and paced around the bridge rather deliberately. His boots, which were a deep gray, had a silver wash; in earlier days the floor would have reflected the gleam produced from this, when in union with the lighting slats positioned around the room. Now the floors were scuffed and unforgivingly unaesthetic and metallic.

He kept a watch on Lucean's work as he passed by her, seeing that nearly everything had been completed. Only one room remained, and it had to be manually activated. The guards in that area would do this.

As soon as she put her headset down on the console and stood up, Jex was there to escort her to his room, having asked that they eschew with the normal guards. Characteristically of the (sparse) bridge crew, no-one cared.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________


One of Survivor's guards walked over to an adjacent wall, and placed his hand upon a cobalt panel which had an indentation shaped like a Jorro'kil hand. When it met the bioscanner fully, the room came alive with holographic displays. It was a sparring room. Much like the training courses the engineering cadets had had to undergo earlier, sections of the holograms would respond accordingly whenever a hand or arm or other body part passed through an invisible scan within the holographic images, correlating with either the deckhead or the floor.

The guard walked out, and joined his cohorts. They said nothing as they left.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________


"No." Meris replied, folding the talons on his hands. "We will embark on this mission within a few days. Your ship is already on this planet, and you will be given its location as soon as my overseer decides it is appropriate."

"I serve the Krathunians faithfully, and now you will be tested." He said this quite severely, and only moments afterward departed from the bar, leaving Gettrav with the datapad.

The entire time she had been working, Lucean's thoughts had been elsewhere- specifically, Jex's proposal that they work together, in a way. By the time she had finished her work and placed her headset down, Lucean had made her decision and Jex was already approaching her. He asked that the guards be sent off, making her raise an eyebrow, and they headed off for his quarters.

As they walked, Lucean lowered her voice in order to speak with him. "I have chosen to accept your offer if that is what you are taking me to another room for." The lights that decorated her skin lowered slightly as she spoke, as though imitating her voice.

(SORRY ABOUT SUDDENLY STOPPING THIS MY SISTER IS NAGGING ME TO GIVE HER THE LAPTOP SO YEAH I FAIL AT LIFE)

Survivor stared at the holograms and sighed before moving his fingers to speak.

"So to solve my question of sparring you give me holographic simulations that can be eventually predicted and beaten every time? Unless these things can learn this will be boring but either way I need this power suppressor off of me if I can properly spar."

Gettrav finished reading the datapad and then put it away, chuckling as he did so.

"Test away, my friend," he said, calling for a refill. "Test away. I'll do what you want me to, but only because it suits me to do so."
___________________________________

"Holograms do not make the best sparring partners to be sure," said Ariz in response to what Survivor said. The Markovan had just been escorted into the room; he had made no mention of his injury.

"I don't suppose any weapons will be provided," he said to the guards present.

Jex halted abruptly. He turned to Lucean, and met her gaze. This lasted only moments as quickly he shifted his attention to the next corridor, altering his course without warning. He paused, and beckoned to the Nevalrok to follow. Footsteps rebounded off of the walls, isolated and metal, much like the hallways themselves.

Nearing a large aperture marked with alien warning symbols, Jex touched a control panel, and then lent his eye to a retina scanner. Gaining access to the specialized room, he waited for Lucean to walk in ahead of him. Inside, a viewing screen showed something Lucean would not have seen anywhere else. Stars, in their distant, gleaming brilliance, parted by the endless blackness of space. Past this, and less noticeably, a monotonous solid cobalt screen seperated this chamber from the curiously active communications array. If one were to step inside the chamber, harmonic waves would pass over the individual, producing for most species a calming effect, the angelic hum being very refined.

Jex cautiously and discreetly activated the array.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________  

"First." The Councilor said, raising a hand, "There is one remnant of a failed past that must be dealt with. A ship, specifically, which poses some kind of a threat to our plan. It is also a blemish on what will soon be perfection." He relaxed in his chair, and began to unfold a new story.

"Twenty-three years ago, there was a ship known as the Yearning Solace. A prestigious vessel. It was hijacked and taken by one Xavez K'roneques- whom you know to be dead." His expression readjusted into a smirk; then was once more indifferent.

"After the war colloqially referred to as the "Mirror War" this ship was never found, and declared lost with all hands. Mostly to ease the minds of its seekers."

He leaned forward slowly, his officer's apparel making no noise as it creased, and looked Silus straight in the eye. "The ship was not lost, and still remains active with most, if not all hands. But it is hidden, and only I know where it is. I want it found by your violently gratuitous assistant." He glared at Relthar expectantly.

"It, not directly under my influence, has started to recruit new.. staff, to substitute its aging crew and heal its certain atrophy. This must not be allowed to happen. And one last thing; the vessel has been renamed 'The Eternal Devotion.'"

Relthar returned the Councilor's glare with an almost apathetic glare, though on the inside he was rather excited at the prospects of the entire plan. He slowly walked around the Councilor until he stood next to the seated Silus, placing each step carefully. He knelt once he was opposite the Jorro'kil so he could see eye to eye with him.

"I gladly accept," Relthar grinned, though he knew that Silus wouldn't have given him a choice in the matter anyways. "However, I do have a few questions. Firstly, the location of this... Eternal Devotion, at the very least relative. Secondly, I need the vessel's description, specifications, and layout, if they are available to you. Only a fool would walk into this blindly. Thirdly, is there anybody you would like extracted from the ship? Also, how much force should be necessary?" Relthar narrowed his eyes and smiled, almost as if he were having fun. "I apologize for so many questions, Councilor, but they are necessary."

Two sentries now stood outside the door, having just allowed Ariz to enter the sparring room. They heard Survivor's complaint, and one, who happened to have escorted the Xliveien earlier, held a remote deactivator in his wrist armor. He pressed on it firmly, and the clamp on Survivor's arm fell off, dampening the energy flow no longer.

One of the guards stepped inside a moment, and shifted a switch on the wall. An energy barrier acquiesced immediately, creating a vertical tide of flowing blue energy, which acquiesced into a wall. It was within reach of both Ariz and Survivor, but could cut one off from the other, or trap them in the same half of the room. The guard deactivated it, and the energy subsided just as passively as it had formed. The Kils left, shutting the door to the sparring room behind them. Survivor could certainly kill the Markovan, and the Captain would not have wanted such a situation created so soon. But it was becoming apparent that the guards had less and less care for what the Captain wanted.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________


Captain Xavre walked into the examination room in a very refined fashion, and went to sit down next to the relaxed Corena, whom the guards had told to lie down on a shifting table, which could move its shape to fit the spine of whoever was sitting in it. Two lights shone indirectly on Corena's face.

"For the past two curfews and dayshifts, we have noticed our COM system and data collating programs have had unusual interference, to the point that an intelligent agent must have been involved. I tracked it to you, or rather, the companion who resides in your chest. Now, I realize the usefulness of this artificial intelligence, so I will give you a chance to comply, before we decide your companion must be removed."

Following this, J'kol rattled off an organized list of questions, including the maximum functionality of Mischief, and its designation. He hadn't cared about any of the names of his recruits, but wanted to make sure he was given as much information as possible. Anything to give him a vantage point. During this, a sentry, no different from the others, as he was encased in silver and cobalt Power Armor, slipped into the examination office very discreetly. He exchanged a whisper with another guard.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________


"I have the answers to all your questions." The Councilor's voice had a hint of amusement, as if he longed to see this last request carried out.

"The location of the Eternal Devotion, its complete structure map and finished image will be given to you personally, in this small chip." He handed the data carrier over to Relthar, expecting him to insert the device into his HUD.

"Relating to the crew, you need extract only one member: Jex Kavel. It would be convenient to take any aliens aboard the Devotion as well, to prevent any misplaced grudges. I know the empires I will take, but to provoke the unknown is too foolish to risk. As for force... use as much as you want on the ship after retrieving Kavel and any xenoforms, rip it apart or completely annihilate it. But make it spectacular."

Ariz turned to the Survivor and took up a stance, legs apart and bowed, tail lashing, and fists up, his eyes scanning Survivor's face.

"Any details on that plan of yours?" he asked in a quiet voice. "If it involves as much damage as possible to our captors, so much the better."

Survivor laughed and walked over to the door moving his robotic fingers.

"Put your fists down Ariz. Now that my dampener is off there is no need to spar"

Survivor then untangled his robotic arm. Each untangled limb had a drill like bit on the end. He then slammed the bits into the door and started to rectangle his arm allowing the bit to slowly rip the door out.

(Whoster if you have a problem with this tell me and I will change it)

Ariz looked at the work Survivor did with satisfaction. "Good work!"

He quickly chanced a look out, and then drew his head back in.

"It looks like the coast is clear. Shall we?"

Relthar nodded, his excitement masked by the face of a solemn businessman. Technically speaking, everyone in the upper echelons of the Alkisuns were businessmen, though their means and methods of creating profit varied greatly. Relthar's was with calculated, cunning, yet brutal and chaotic violence, and he was very effective at it. "It will be done," He stated, the dead star's light creating a glint in his eye.

Silus smiled, and stood, reactivating the hologram display despite the overpowering luminescence of  Aeltrycus. Despite the powerful display outside of the Fist of Iasphen, it was still possible to see the hologram. It did not show anything yet, as Silus was currently  "Relthar, I will be providing you with a small fleet to accomplish this. The Eternal Devotion is no threat, and I have no doubt that you could easily slaughter the crew members with very little resistance. However, patrols have increased as of late in all sectors of the galaxy due to the wars, and we must be more cautious until the reckoning our friend here has described," With this, he motioned to the Councilor, and continued. "It will be headed by your personal cruiser, the Steel Torment. This will be accompanied by four frigates and a number of fighters. I've made some changes to your personnel as well, though Veralka will still be present." At the mention of his longtime assistant, Relthar grinned. He and the female Krathunian had been through many a battle, and it would only make sense that the leader of the Alkisuns would like to see their continued success. At this point, the fleet was now assembled on the hologram, and the Alkisun's knack for original shipmaking was on display. The ships retained a Krathunian identity, though they had a much more industrial and practical architecture about them. The Steel Torment in particular was a beautiful ship.

"Thank you, sir," Relthar exclaimed. He inserted the Councilor's data chip into a small compartment in his left gauntlet, and one could tell it was connected to his HUD systems. He turned and begun walking towards the exit of the meeting room, gesturing for two of the guards standing post to follow him, as they were assigned personally to him. Before he left, however, he turned back to the pair.

"I will return when the Eternal Devotion is in flames."

____________________________________

Despite the pressure of the entire situation at hand, Corena remained calm, cool, and collected. She had been in plenty of worse spots in her life, which included having to disarm and fight a fully capable Wreae soldier. That same AI's life was again at stake, and she had to make sure that neither of them would be punished severely. She was not about to betray the others, either, and the information Mischief had obtained was not at risk - After all, she had memorized most of it, and the memory banks in the Wreae's AI would be incredibly difficult for anyone to access even with a lot of skill in that line of work, though Corena could with ease. However, that was all assuming she made it out of this without serious repercussions.

She began to speak to the interrogator, making sure to choose her words properly. She explained her history and friendship with the Wreae, though she decided to lie and say that much of Mischief's knowledge on combat had been erased as a precaution to her. She also didn't care to mention the copies of these files and such stored within her HUD. Even without a body, Mischief could be a cunning tactician. She went on to explain that what she was doing with the AI was not sabotage, but merely obtaining information on the ship and its crew. But, again lying, she told the Jorro'kil that they hadn't found much useful information. The less that the crew thought she knew, the better. She went into detail telling them about Mischief's functionality, but throughout the whole thing did not once mention the other recruits. The seeds of a rebellion would grow more quickly under the cover of deception.

Corena's disappointing response was the instigator for what came next. Two soldiers stepped forward, and laid hands on Xavre's shoulders. He stood up, and turned to face the two, unsure of their motives. "What is it?" He asked.

"Sir, you must come with us." One of them replied. Another two in the room gained an anxious look underneath their helmets.

"For what reason?" He inquired. They stood still for several moments, simply staring at him. "Your interrogation has produced less than.. desired results. We will handle the methods now." The other said sternly.

"You will do no such thing.. and whose desire has not been met?" He said, challenging their tones.

"We insist you come with us." The guard's reponse was final. They grabbed his arms, and faced him toward's the chamber's doorway. Two others held up their assault weapons. "Take your hands off of the Captain." One said, shifting his aim from one sentry to the other. "Stand down." Was the response he recieved, along with a plasma pistol pulled from its magnetic clamp at the side of the other guard's thigh armor. "Our Captain will not be treated this way." One of the loyals said. His opponent in the conversation lowered his head, looking disappointed, and replied; "You're a fool. Xavre is unfit to lead. Infact he is insane. Recruiting aliens to repopulate the ship. Our cause is dead, We should be looking to escape."

Xavre's avian face twisted to form an expression of solemn realization. He slouched slightly.

"You should join us."

The loyals simply raised their weapons. Shots were fired inside the chamber, and one of the loyals fell dead, along with the newly revealed rebels. The Captain did not escape the fire exchange unharmed, and suffered a plasma burn to his right leg. Limping as fast as he could, he scrambled out of the chamber and down a corridor. Catching a glimpse of their former commanding officer, two other sentries on the opposite end of the corridor opened fire on him, but missed, narrowly. The other loyal emerged from the interrogation room, and shot at the insurgent guards. He wounded one, hitting him in the shoulder, but was soon cut down in a hail of ballistics and plasma. The mutineers ran into the interrogation chamber to make sure Corena remained where she was.

Xavre's situation had changed drastically from control to survival. A shipwide COM alert ordered insurgents to find and capture the Eternal Devotion's Captain; one recipient of the call was Jex.

Ariz peered around the corner. The coast was clear. With a quick beckoning movement to Survivor, he slid carefully made his way down the hall.

"All we need to do is find some of the others and then get to our ships. You can then do whatever it is you had in mind."

Ariz didn't mention, however, some personal plans of his own. He had no intention of escaping himself. His life was meaningless to him now. The only thing that mattered to him now was to die bringing this ship and its crew down around him.