Aether's Ends Chapter 1

[Kabyt]

Dawn was lighting the windows of her circular dome room. Bright heterochromia eyes opened as the light poured into the room from the circular windows on the ceiling. A hand lifted from her floating hammock to clasp at the beams of light. One blue eye and one golden yellow eye focused sharply on that ray of light and she sat up slowly feeling it's warm fall on her face, pale skin drinking in the sun she could feel energy pooling in her chest. She could eat and eat all day but nothing filled her like this light did. A different hunger she felt they didn't understand it yet, but surely their studying would figure it out soon enough. Nonetheless she would drink her fill as the daylight hours reigned down on her.

Little did Aceia the star child realize that today would be different, her caretaker would be nervous, unsteady and worried about things that would happen before he came to tend to her examination for that day. He was a lowly tech seemingly, but a brilliant one none to shabby. You had to be to get on this experiment. But he'd never expected to receive a tape that threatened, no black mailed him into the action's he would preform today.

The video chip had come simply enough, through the mail and innocent note or message until opened to show the snake that it truly was. A shadowed and hooded figured claimed their evidence against him and bid him to give the Star Child enough Ketazin to knock her cold as death. She of course would not die. He was to replace her though with a decoy. She the original was to go in a suitcase. He shuttered at the thought of what would happen to her, a secondary courier and guardian was to get her out from there. Did he have help was it even a he? Hell the poor tech felt his life hung in the balance if he didn't do this his life was as good as over anyways.

So backed into a corner the nervous man entered Aceia's rooms with his gadgets and widgets getting ready to check her vitals and what nots but something about him made her pause in approach. "Aceia come please." He said again she shivered and shook her head no pointed ears twitched and her eyes seemed to glow. "I said come!" He clicked a button on a tiny remote and in response an electrical current ran through a collar strapped about her neck The pulse gave her a sting and made her fall from the hammock like bed. She whimpered from the ground her nails retracked a little and she tried to scoot away. The Tech only advanced and suddenly a plunger ran home as the needle pierced her neck and darkness invaded the rainbow colored young woman mind and she passed into a deep sleep.

Sure enough she fit easily folded in a ball like a child asleep into the suit case and off he went heading underground to the lower levels of the facility. Straight past security, right beyond the red line zones. He was in the Plumbing levels he would guess when his nerve nearly drove him to take her back. No he must do this. Halting in the tunnel's and sub corridors entrances he waited for this Guardian this Courier. Aceia tucked away silently like a package waiting to be delivered.​

 

[Uneasy Goat]

The faint glow of the cigarette illuminated his face for a moment, the smoke escaping his muzzle in a beautiful blue-gray cloud with the sweet burning aroma of tobacco lingering for a moment after. As he burned into the filter, he took one last drag before reaching a paw up and tossing it onto the cement floor and extinguishing the cinders with a heavy metal boot. He could see the other hours on the floor, the other smokes he'd stomped out, and opening his pack with a furred paw, he saw that he only had precious few left. Flatheads weren't easy to get here, it'd cost him significantly more than he would've liked to get this pack. Sighing softly, he pressed off against the wall and maintained his own sense of balance, looking down the dimly lit hallway awaiting his "package".

The quickened footsteps perked his ears, the sound of someone breathing heavily and walking faster than they should be. Oz growled and his fur began to bristle as he prepared for whatever was coming, his paw ready to draw at any moment. The shadow appeared, formless but fast at the end and his rifle was out nigh instantaneously, claw to the side of his trigger ready to twitch at any moment. His heartbeat began to slow, his breathing almost stopping completely... And then he saw him. A squirrely looking scientist, his blond hair too thin for his age, carrying a large case like he was caught between a walk and sprint. Oz stepped forward into the light, maintaining his red dot at the center of mass, still untrusting but not intimidated. The lights reflected off of his Coalition Standard Issue M142-C1 Pulse Rifle, the holographic ammunition display turned off to maintain his shadow.

Reyes didn't know what to do, the case weighed heavy in his hand and he almost dropped it as the beast stepped from the darkness. His armor was Coalition, but worn to hell. The paint was almost non-existent and there were marks and scratches covering the plates, not to mention the little splashes of personality drawn and etched on the shoulders and chest. The fur was hard to discern from the armor, but the brown (almost auburn) color of his ears poked up through his helmet and the ends of his paws were exposed to keep his weaponized claws at the ready. This was all seen through a quick split-second, as the only thing Reyes could focus on was the rifle pointed at his chest.

Oz didn't know what was going on at this point, as the man he saw had simply frozen stiff. He glanced down at the case and then back up, speaking through grizzled tones, "Place the case on the ground and step back. If you move, I will put you down. If you scream, I will put you down. If you make any movements aside from what I specifically tell you, I will put you down. Understood?"

"Y-y-yes," Reyes squeaked as he began to lower the case onto the floor, "I understand." he backed away slowly, only taking two steps before a sudden bark halted his footsteps.

"Enough!" Oz began to walk forward, keeping his target centered and his footsteps light. He didn't want to kill this man, not truly, but if it came down to it he'd shred him to pieces with his claws rather than draw attention with an active firearm. One shot could destroy everything he'd worked so hard to plan, and he couldn't risk that. He lowered his rifle and placed it against the magnetic clamps on his lower back before reaching and pressing a seal against his neck. The air hissed from his throat as he removed his helmet and attached it to his side, his vision no longer obstructed and his face exposed to the cold air of the lower level Coalition bunkers. He offered a wry smile and extended a paw to the squirrel in human form, gripping hard on the tiny hand the man offered and pulling him close.

"You know what will happen if you cross me," he stated coldly, losing the smile and closing the distance between them, "Reyes, Malcolm."

"I won't!" he whimpered, trying to remove his hand to no avail, "I promise!"

"I know."

 

[Kabyt]

Reyes' eyes were wide and he was holding as still as still could get at the orders from Oz. He was slightly confused, what this man who he was supposed to meet? Or was he simply Coalition trash coming to take his ass in. Didn't matter, he had the damned gun. Reyes felt still after dropping the case upon the concrete and slide it over to Oz as gently as he could. He knew what cargo lay within but was unsure if he'd been caught or was in with the right man. Further examination of the case wouldn't be needed either way. And after Oz's display of dominant aggression the smart Scientist that he was he kept his fucking mouth clamped.

Attached to the case was the NEXT VID CHIP that would be needed on this quest for escape for the facility. Reyes was unsure if he should click it now or not so finally clearing his throat and trying not to whimper once again Reyes said "You have to be careful with her..." He blinked "Play the Video Chip if you are who I think you are. If you are here to help her let us be done so I won't get caught away from my lab and offices. Our time is limited...." Finally he couldn't stand it he leaned over and clicked the tiniest of buttons on the vid card and suddenly a holographic display projected and a cloaked feminine form was speaking.

VID...
I'm glad to see you Both made it this far. Now for the next step Dr. Malcom I'm sad to inform you that you will be returning to your office and remaining in you current position within the Coalition. I know we promised you an out by now. But this is how you pay us forward. We need to you to keep tabs on all actions within this Facility. If they come after the girl, if they are close to finding answers about the girl, if they have completed the GXS. All these things and more I'm sure your brilliant mind will catch up on now leave the Courier his Package and go." The speaker on the message waited and Malcom simply stood there dumb founded for a moment looking utterly defeated but knew he couldn't argue with a recording. But at least SHE would be getting out of this place and away from their experiments. He finally found resolve in his situation and looking up at Oz nodded turned on heel and hauled ass as a quick step back the way he'd come; leaving Oz the Case and the Hologram.

Only after Malcom was gone did the Holograph start again. "Good now that we are alone Mr. Oz we need you to push some distance between you and the case and the sensory system that runs this Facility. Once you are in a low enough level of the basement levels we want you to open the case and hand over the second small package we sent you with our first channel to you. We understand we are asking alot and but you must Not allow for them to take the package back. Terminate package if you feel you cannot escape. " The channel went dead and Oz was left with a case and the first package they'd sent to him when they started this jolly ass adventure. What he did or didn't do next was strictly up to him.