Celestial Centurions (IC)

[Lylith]

The year is 2130... Life as human kind knew it, ended long ago with the destruction of their world. Earth... The great scientific advances they made led to a need for more and more resources, leading to a massive "Ore War" between the three leading nations... Each nation fought to secure the massive stores of minerals beneath the earths skin. But they delved too deep and released the Earths own fury, releasing its life force, destroying far more than the weapons of man ever could... A quarter of the earth burned in a night... Four of the Seven seas evaporated in a sickening acidic cloud that poisoned 80% of the life on earth. Only a few million managed to escape to the refugee colonies on the moon...

But that was over three centuries ago.

Mankind has since expanded his reach into the stars, out of necessity. The lack of mineral deposits on the moon forced excursions to nearby planets, leading to the discoveries of new elements and technological advances... And with these advances, came more exploration, leading mankind to the edges of their galaxy...

A century after Earth was abandoned, space travel evolved from an expensive venture, to an every day occurrence. Colonies developed on numerous planets, and some forms of tera-forming began, though changing the atmosphere of the selected planets was never perfected.

Two centuries after The Fall, extensive colonial development was underway and communities began identifying themselves by the names of their planets... Civilians obtained personal ships for travel between colonies. Planets were identified for their mineral content, and mined extensively until all easily available deposits were excavated.

Three centuries later, the colonies no longer relied on each other, as they grew into massive states, covering portions of the planets, though most lived under the surface... Mineral harvesting for construction became the main industrial focus. Farming became possible with the help of advances in agricultural sciences... Most farms were in massive underground chasms. Growth enhancing fertilizer and bio engineering produced a satisfying Growth - Harvest cycle of seven days... Starvation would never again be a threat.

Over time, after the threat of extinction passed, humans began their old quarrels, and struggles for power. Security was needed, and governments formed. Armies were raised, and fleets were commissioned. Men became restless after three hundred years of peace... The Age of Exploration ended, and The Age of Gods... was just beginning...

With the colonization of the various planets, (most of them were inhospitable and all strange and new to humankind) advances in supportive technology were required... Developments in life support, renewable energy, and mobilization were needed.

The first advancements included "life support skins" allowing humans to traverse the surface of a planet without the aid of a ship or ATV. The first suits were rather cumbersome and required charges of O2 to support the humans inside. But, with time, (and years of research) they became more and more streamlined and efficient. The basic life support "skin" removes the carbon element from the discharged air, charging the air for the user to breathe again... It maintains a set temperature for the user in most any condition and can contain other elements of technology such as scanning devices and communications equipment depending on the users occupational needs.

Along with life support, mobility across unforgiving terrain was needed. Most planets were unbelievably difficult in this regard preventing travel by almost any means except flight. Wheels were rendered obsolete with the invention of repulsor engines. Hovering vehicles could be found nearly everywhere by the end of the second century... But that wasn't enough...

Mobility for troops was enhanced with battle-suits that covered their entire life support "skin". The suits remain large and bulky due to the plating that protects the user... The suits themselves can lift up to three hundred tons on some low gravity planets, compared to their measly two ton frame weight. They have no weapons attached to them, leaving the user free to choose armament. Thus was created, the modern soldier...

With the advent of kinetic plating, most projectiles were rendered useless against these soldiers. As a result, it seemed a jump to melee weaponry was the only place to go since energy and plasma projectiles were simply not in the scope of science at the time...

One of the biggest advancements, though, had little to do with technology...

It was the turn of the second century... At first they were known as templars, playing off historical stories and tales. But the project failed when the standard human body was found to be too weak to bear the genetic modifications... Strength. Speed. Mass. Most of the subjects tore themselves apart upon waking from surgery. It simply wasn't the right time... Technology hadn't advanced far enough... Humans weren't ready...

During the second century, exploration led to the discovery of a planet covered in deep forests, saturated with a deep blue ore... It turned out to be nothing more than a curiosity to scientists, but a time after colonizing the planet for mining, the residents began to experience changes... Mainly experienced in the children born on the planet itself.

Tests showed the children born on the planet had increased bone density due to the intense gravity exerted by the planet. They grew stronger, with denser muscle fibers, also a result of the gravity... Their senses heightened, somewhat inexplicably, though noticeably sharper than average humans. The planet was evacuated by everyone except scientists and the children... Their families were "evacuated"... And the Templar project was reborn under a new handle... Centurion...

The project was the dream of any bio engineer... Genetic alteration over generations, sped up with the same process as the agricultural industry. It was a project on a scale never before attempted... With cataclysmic, unforeseen, consequences...

Twenty years passed... Hundreds of "generations" of the original children... Born, and passed away as their lifespans were accelerated beyond a factor of 100... The original seven were long dead, though their test tube descendants lived on... The hidden purpose behind the research was never known to the subjects.

Centurion enhanced the subjects abilities by dramatic proportions, focusing on strength, speed, and intellect... The main tools of a warrior. A balance between the three attributes was the main goal of the scientists but their haste prevented them from achieving that goal... Instead, they focused on enhancing singular attributes in individual subjects.

Long after the project was deemed a success, a group of subjects rebelled against their "fathers" and ended the creation of the short lived test tube warriors, and they began their own life in the former bio engineering facility...

A few generations passed in a few years, but the lifespan of the formerly captive "Centurions" quickly returned to normal without the tampering of their torturous captors... They created a society and a caste system, a warrior culture. They scavenged the technology of the fallen scientists and built off the bones of another civilization, a new one...

It wasn't long before the attributes the bio engineers tried to manually enhance evened out among the "tribes" resulting in the perfect warriors they strove to create. Eight feet tall... Naturally athletic, and built for speed with a reaction time a quarter of that of a normal human. With enhanced intellect and wit, they were constantly learning and growing... Their curiosity leading them to explore... Their desire to explore, leading them back to humanity...

 

[Lylith]

Chieftain Krough:
Stargazers Camp

He growled inside his helmet... The clan meet had gone on for far too long, and the clan leaders were still talking.

"Always talking... " he murmured to himself as he looked at the two northern chieftains disagree yet again on some matter to which their clans had contested each other for years. If this kept up, they would stall the meet for another hour to go outside and fight again. They had done so twice already, and no resolution had been reached because neither of them had killed the other.

"But then you Ice Walkers NEVER stay on YOUR SIDE! You hunt OUR lands but you pay no tribute!" Bogrut bellowed through the open face of his helm.

The older chieftain had always preferred to leave his helmet open whenever he was not in combat, though he left his helmet on. Krough believed it was because his hair was falling out, but he would not voice his opinion... Mostly because then he would have to kill the other chieftain when he challenged him to a duel. He did not want to have to kill the other chieftain because then HE would be their chief and the Ice clans were so far away...

Krough placed his palms on either side of his helmet and covered where his ears were as if it would help stop the noise that was filtering in through the helmets 360 degree sensors. He growled louder, and louder, escalating into a throaty roar allowing the challenge to carry through the speakers that projected his voice...

"Will you argue your land disputes and petty squabbles here where we can all listen and hear you put words to your weaknessssss... " he let his words hiss through the speakers for a moment as the room became quiet as he half stood from his throne...

"Or will you use your mettle, your fists, and your helmets to settle this properly? As issss our tradition..." he asked, challenging their honor to be put to action.

He sat before their reply and waited for their responses... He rested his helmeted chin on his fist while he waited. A full minute passed before they both silently agreed to sit and resume the meets purpose...

It seemed that all other matters were concluded, and now the true purpose of the meet could be attended to. None of the clans had expected this when Krough had called them together, but then again none of them were as brave or as smart as the Stargazers clan chief. Krough smiled as he thought of their reaction when he voiced the reason for this assembly.

"Now... We will discuss your true reason for being here. I have summoned you, the chiefs of this land, to discuss something never before done by any of our kind. But never before have we had what we have now... "

He paused as he stood and walked over to a bare wall that held a large glowing rectangle. It was covered by a blanket but the glow of a screen could be seen through the dirty fabric. Krough reached up and fulled away the sheet and revealed a large screen that held an image of a box... It was long, and had cylindrical projections from its corners, and fins coming from its sides. It was a ship...

Every Centurion knew what a ship was... But none that were left on the planet were in working condition, and as such they were scavenged for their parts and metal plating. The only ships left on the planet were scattered in the very armor that the centurions now wore, and the Stargazers main headquarters, which was the husk of a ship that had crashed years ago in the scientists desperate attempt to flee...

One of the chiefs scoffed... "Your fantastic plans hold no merit. Every babe knows that none can make the machines to fly. No one can do this..."

Krough ignored the interruption and pressed a button... The screen flashed and a photo of a structure much like the ancient ruins the scientists had built flashed. It was sitting atop a mountain. There was a large flat surface, larger than the entire village the Stargazer clan occupied, and many times larger than most clans villages... And in the very center of the flat area was a ship... Just like the one the Stargazers used for their palace...

He smiled as he saw them freeze, a shallow grin... He had their attention now...

 

[Soverign]

The entire cavern of a room was silent. Dust covered the floor and foliage covered the rest. The metal having rested for hundreds of years without a single human touching it. The large hanger was massive having constructing arms hanging limply from the ceiling. Varying in forms from prong claws to welders. All having been without power as long as the building had. Stairways and walkways having collapsed completely. What remained was one capsule. Standing around sixteen feet tall there was a hissing sound as the capsule's power supply finally gave out and forced what lay within to rise.

[Stasis Protocol - Ending]

[Stasis Protocol Authorization - Critical Power loss]

[Commencing System Activation]

[Designation - Leonidas - 'Leo' - Begin]

As if from a sleep a male voice could be heard from the near ageless machine form "Doctor........Doctor Jenna? Where are you?" The machine said. Standing around fifteen feet tall the body was massive. To his human creators he was strong, and built for combat. Well the platform was. The information flooded back into his mind but the flood of information was incomplete.

The large mechanical body stumbled and fell to the ground like it was a newborn foal trying to walk. Its legs unsteady and weak. Much like humans Leo had been made to mimic behavior. To be all they were and more. The systems in his platform began to activate but it took significantly longer than anticipated "How long.......why had she put me into stasis?" He asked himself, his voice having a slight distortion that comes along with computerized speech. Looking through his memories the intelligence found much of his research. But there were annoying gaps in it. It wasn't uncommon for Core Minds like himself to get stasis amnesia when improperly stored for a few decades. Normally they only rest in such ways for power consumption, and prevent damage to themselves. But this......was very different.

He looked down at his mechanical hands as his memory slowly stitched some pieces together "Containment.....the break out.......Centurions they..." Having looked up to see the place he stood in did he understand at least the aftermath of the breakout. What lay around him were broken metal structures and bones. Signs of damage being clear and were more common than simple environmental damage. The only thing that probably saved him was the encryption levels on his capsule. Kneeling by one of the lab coated bodies he found a black tag. Only a few inches long he was careful not to break it. Being one of the few AI versions to feel emotions he did understand the feeling of loss. Reading the tag he placed it down by the body "I am sorry Doctor Jenna, but maybe i can see if our mission was a success. And if.....your worries were more founded than realized" Though the staff of the facility are most likely dead, Leo decided to start his systems diagnostics


The top of the line Ronin combat platform (RCP) was designed by Leo himself. So the systems he new very well. Looking over the machine his systems began activating nano technology. The little buggers he affectionately called his 'worker bees' were excellent at repairing the platform. His nano tech slowly crept over the ground gathering metals and starting to break them down into usable pieces. His combat platform was his only physical touch to the world. No AI had a physical body or was permitted one but this planet and its experiments required out of protocol thinking "Core online. Power Output at 87.2 Percent. Melee weapons at full functionality. Beginning physical tests" Walking over to one of the walls he had done a scan and realized most of the facility was under rubble. One wall was only a few feet under stone and then he would be out "Physical strike testing beginning" Bringing his left arm back he struck the wall shaking the stone. He brought his right back and continued to force his way out.

 

[Lylith]

Ancient Ruins

Raven

She gritted her teeth and slid down the smooth surface... It had once been a floor but was now tilted at an angle that made walking across it completely impossible unless you had magnetic boots or something. She had once seen a warrior with such equipment, but at the time it seemed superfluous and silly since most Centurions fought in the open. Now though, she wished she had such tools at her disposal... In the end though, she supposed they would have just slowed her down since she direction she needed to go was the direction she was sliding in.

She reached out with both her hands as she approached what used to be a wall, and increased the surface area which her body made contact with the floor and increased the friction, and thus slowed down her slide before she smashed feet first into the wall... It wouldn't have hurt her really, but she had no idea what the wall was made of, and some of these walls and floors were made of thin material that crumbled or degraded over time inside, while remaining visibly intact on the outside... It was always better to be safe than sorry...

As she slowed down and landed feet first on what used to be a wall, she bounced on her heels and caught her balance. She immediately had a look around and took stock of her location and whatever resources were available to help direct her towards her goal...

Raven knew some of this area. It was an ancient ruin that had been looted long before her time. Warriors would come here to prove themselves worthy and if they survived and returned to their chieftain with trophies and weapons and armor from their scavenging, they would cast aside their youth and be a full member of their tribe...

Raven had already finished her trial. She was seventeen when she completed hers... She had ventured out into the icelands and scavenged an intact environment skin and fused it with a kinetic material to enhance the suits life support capabilities and increase its protection for the wearer. She had also discovered multiple batteries and even a power source that once charged the massive batteries used on ships and inside excavation equipment, but those recharging stations were powered by the ships that long ago crashed or were torn apart by scavengers and could no longer provide precious power... Thus, the batteries she found were invaluable to the tribes, and she was welcomed back with open arms...

Now however, she was on a completely different mission. Her chieftain had given her the task of finding a ship deep within the mountain.

Long ago the forerunners had established a base on top of this very mountain and had used it as a command center of sorts. Ships traveled in and out and so they kept parts and fuel and batteries and even spare ships stored there. However, no Centurion had had a reason to venture so deep within the mountain since the scavenging in the surrounding areas was so bountiful... Until one scavenger found a working security terminal and found live footage of the secure transport deck deep within the mountain... One lone ship stood in the middle of an empty room, waiting for someone to come and claim it... Chieftain Krough, or Bane as everyone called him, wanted that ship...

So he sent Raven...

She bounced off the corner of a desk and whirled around a corner, excitedly delving deeper inside the tilted vessel which had crashed long ago and punched a hole through the thick armor of the forerunners citadel. Their colony vessel.

Finally, Raven rounded a corner and saw the black hole she was looking for. Wires and hoses and ripped metal hung down into the black void of the mothership that held her prize. The blackness seemed indefinite as she crept closer. No sound left the hole as her feet silently padded over to the edge of explored territory.

She grinned and pulled at something at her waist. A long cord unraveled from a tiny box. A hook, fastened to the end of the cord attached to a jagged piece of metal after she wrapped the thin cord around the metal surface for security... The cord itself was only as thick as ten hairs braided together and was some sort of old world technology. She had made and fastened the hook at the other end and built in a winch from some sort of mechanical joint she'd scavenged from a wrecked excavator. She had many uses for it, but it generally found use when she was exploring or escaping from large predators while exploring... Either way, it was incredibly useful.

After double checking that her cord was securely fastened, she turned to face the blackness and frowned as she tried to look deeper. There was no light inside at all, and she only had a small light source which didn't penetrate far enough to reach any surface below. That meant there was more than a one hundred foot drop beneath her...

Raven smiled at that realization... She knew that that meant...

It meant she could jump...

"Whoo-hoo!"

 

[Soverign]

Upon the thirty fifth strike Leo had been testing his platform and it worked perfectly. Not like the moment he finished building it but given the situation he put it under a success parameter. As he punched the wall he had felt the wall start to give and the stone crack. Stopping did the intelligence do another scan. He scanned the wall and gave it an estimate of 35.6 percent structural integrity left. However soon he heard and internal alarm go off.

His scan detected movement. Looking around he turned to different views to see what he could not normally. Using inferred he detected a large figure just having fallen from a massive drop. The vocal noise he heard must be something akin to enjoyment. He hadn't heard it in so long it made him second guess himself. Shaking his head Leo knew that meeting them most likely lead to conflict and or him being scrap. HE had no intentions of that occurring.

"Its distance and speed i probably only have a few moments" He said to himself and began striking at the wall again. Increasing the strike pace he quickly began breaking down the wall. But each strike his calculations ran in his mind. He knew at this rate the being would reach his position by the time he broke the wall or just before if it was fast. He counted it in his mind, and even though he couldn't sweat like humans he would be if he could. He was about to launch the last strike when the heat signature was only a few hallways from him. Stepping back he did a shoulder charge and shattered the wall and stone. Watching the small landslide he looked down the hall and slid down one hand digging into the mountain side below.

Reaching the bottom he was in a cloud of dust and started scanning the area. Apparently the mountain's base was on an absolutely barren field. It looked akin to salt plains on earth but instead it was vast and spotted only a few trees. Moving he wanted to keep some distance between him and the possible threat. His pace wasn't fast admittedly. His legs hadn't gotten enough time to readjust to being online yet so he was reduced to a fast walk. But he was determined to get some distance regardless the pace.

 

[Lylith]

Ancient Ruins

Raven

She dropped feet first into the darkness. It was deep and she felt the temperature change drastically as she plummeted. It grew cold and the air was stale as she gasped from her drop. Finally she felt tension on the cable and it slowed her to a gentle descent in about thirty feet. The friction brake she had installed was meant for much more than she weighed so it only slowed her momentum enough so that she wouldn't break her legs when she landed, but it would still sting... If the cable was long enough to reach the bottom at all...

Finally she did reach the bottom. Just over a hundred and sixty feet by her best estimate. It would be a long climb back if she didn't get that ship working...

Raven flicked her hair out of the way as she detached the device from her hip. She left it hanging from the hole and attached a tiny glow stick to it so that she could see it and find it again on her way back. She didn't really want to leave the device behind, but the loss of a cable winch would be nothing if she managed to claim the prize she was sent here for...

After taking one last glance upwards towards the hole where she had come from, she turned about, taking stock of her surroundings. It was dark and deep and the area she was in was devoid of any machines or signs or devices that would indicate what part of the ship she was on... That wasn't uncommon on colony ships. The ship that served as her home had plenty of open spaces, but they were commonly used as gathering places or storage areas, and this certainly didn't have anything stored in it that she could see.

Raven finally picked a direction and started walking... Doing something was better than sitting around doing nothing.

Her heart raced as she made turn after turn. She was hopelessly lost in the winding corridors of the ship. She had passed locked doors, blast doors, and doors that had simply been blasted off. Huge cavernous rooms were dimly lit by the dying lights of a ship that hadn't seen intelligent life in a century. She was its first visitor, and her footprints in the dust in her wake were her mark on this new scrap claim. There was so much to find here, and she intended to have it all for herself!

BANG!

Raven froze mid step as the sound of metal on metal echoed through the halls... The reverberating boom was akin to a Centurions warhammer gleefully meeting its opponents breastplate head on in the middle of the arena. The echo was immense and she felt it in her chest as she turned her head to help pinpoint the origin. Like a cat, she pivoted her head as the loud noise sounded again, some distance away...

BANG!

She turned down a hallway and paused to listen once again... Her senses on high alert. Her eyes were dilated to allow the maximum amount of light in, and her ears were ringing with the effort of listening for any hint of sound in the surrounding area... Her muscles trembled and her breath hitched as she waited, anxiously, for any sign of a fight...

BANGG- CRRRRACK!

The noise again, accompanied by some sort of rocky sound and... Something else. She faintly heard some sort of metal footsteps accompanied by some sort of clicking. Before she had a chance to identify it, the sound grew distant and finally disappeared...

After a few moments, Raven started moving. Her breath was calm again and she launched herself towards the sound. She wove through hallways and over obstacles. She blasted through doors and across rooms full of equipment she had never seen before until she finally came to a large doorway. The door was half opened, and there was light coming from it...

Raven pushed her back against the metal and peeked through the half opened door. Inside was a massive research facility. From one side of the room to another were racks of tools, computers as manuals had depicted them, instrument panels, test tubes, holographic projectors, battery cores, and a giant station where some sort of machine used to be hooked up...

Raven smiled as she entered the room. There was light that allowed her to see everything but she hadn't identified the source yet. She hadn't been able to tear her eyes from the collection of ancient tools and weapons from the past... Certainly the scientists who had built this place were warriors if they used such massive laser cutters and plasma torches. The armor plating they used them to shape was thicker than the thickest armor on the strongest centurion. Her people could only strip and re-service the ancient technology of the forerunners... They understood the basics of operation and how to repair the technology, but its original purpose was unknown, and no Centurion could build the forerunners technology from scrap, so supplies were limited to what could be scavenged... And this room alone was a treasure trove...

But it wasn't what Raven was looking for...

She sighed and took one last look around before she noticed the source of the light... A huge hole in the back wall crumbled just a bit and rocks clattered to the floor, skittering towards her feet.

Raven raised an eyebrow and walked over to the huge gaping hole in the wall before peeking out and squinting out at the setting sun. It was low in the sky but the rest of the mountains arms were about to block it out... The suns glare however, couldn't keep her from noticing a plume of dust that trailed down the mountainside. Rocks fell in a tiny landslide and there was a clear gash in the foliage as if something big had slid straight down the mountain. Perhaps whatever had broken through the solid steel of the wall of the ship had fallen down the mountain... And whatever had been able to punch its way through steel armor that thick, was something that Raven didn't want to deal with right now.

"Great Forerunners preserve me from whatever did THIS... " she said as she looked back up once more at the great gaping hole in the metal wall before entering the belly of the ship once more to finish her mission. She did however peek over her shoulder one last time to see if she could spot whatever had escaped the lab and noticed a landmark she had missed before... Between the great arms of the mountain was her old tribal village where she had grown up. The tiny dropship that served as the chieftains hut stood glinting in the sunlight, tiny with distance, at the bottom of the mountain. The plain that it rested in was barren and deserted save for the harsh tribe that called it home... Hopefully whatever creature had escaped here wouldn't make it that far down, and if it did, hopefully it would find her desert cousins too tough and sinewy to eat...

 

[Soverign]

Making his way out of sight the mech had stopped behind some boulders. He registered a hint of panic in his algorithms and silenced them. Cutting away the specific code creating the feeling and stowing it away. It had been a Centurion for sure. Human build, incredibly large for a human. And speed and strength analysis coincides with Centurion goals set by the scientists. But as he looked at the ship he wondered why it was there. To search for him? 'No. If it was me they were after they would have been following me. The weapons? Possibly, but the only thing that can promise more is..' He stopped at his realization. Yes they had to salvage everything most likely unless they built a plant of their own to melt it down and build from it. But what bothered him most was the use of the ship. They may have it but his programming was apart of the ship. He hadn't reconnected so the core hopefully would stay offline. But there was one worry that let the feeling of fear creep in. Due to regulations against ship hijacking AI's were designated to have navigational information. So when a craft was abandoned with the AI the ship itself was useless.

Pulling himself out of the fearful thought he decided on minor exploration. Scanning he had detected a settlement that was substantial in size. Due to all original human born beings to be dead these augmented beings must be Centurions like the ones he escaped. Moving he started off. Making sure to adjust his walking path he was curious of the beings as was his nature but he wanted caution to be a constant. As far as his perimeters go this was a hostile world now. No allies or friendlies to be had. He was on his own.

Not long into his journey he had come across a track way. Kneeling down he scanned it and judged the footprints being Centurion based on the size. Looking around he hadn't spotted anyone. Having been engrossed in his researcher like ways he hadn't heard the two behind him. There was a loud ping as a shot rang out and bounced off the armor.

Quickly turning about the mech designated the two beings as threats immediately. Letting out a horn like sound it bellowed a challenge.
War Horn
Not of his tastes but one of those who helped built it called it an intimidation tactic. Twin blades sprung forth and were ready to cut the pair to pieces. The pair were armored and though held weapons they kept their distance. Letting out another pair of low bellow like blasts Leo decided to play the defensive game. He hadn't known they were their and would act based on their moves.

 

[Lylith]

Bjorn and Caernin

Western Plains

They stood with their weapons readied. Their feet had stirred up the dust and left a plume in the air from whence they'd come but they didn't mind... The sensors in their helmets reduced the glare and cut through the dust and allowed them perfect vision for hunting in the dry climate. The sensors included basic movement tracking as well as focal lenses for zooming in and out, but they didn't have the fanciful xray or heat sensors that some other clans favored. They were just useless in this biome.

"Bjorn, take another shot... See if you can disable his leg. His armor looks weak there... " Caernin said over their short wave radios. He had grown up with the other man and they had passed the trial to become men together, bringing back a huge haul of scrap for their tribe. Since then, they had been team mates. Brothers in arms...

Bjorn lowered the long barrel of his matter accelerator and fired off another round, and it hit precisely where he wanted it to go, but the only result was another dull mark where the magnetically accelerated hunk of metal hit... This wasn't uncommon when hunting other Centurions, but normally a hit on a joint that was meant to flex and move would have pulverized the lightly armored area. It would be much like dropping a steel drum off a cliff with a person inside... Sure, the barrel might make it in tact and without much damage at all, but the body inside would be pulverized... This didn't seem to be an issue for whatever warrior was inside that giant suit of armor though, because it didn't even flinch when the round hit its leg.

"Looks like it's going to be a melee... " Caernin muttered, gripping his cleaver tighter. The giant pole-arm had a hunk of sharpened metal on the end. It was plain and brutal. Exactly how Centurions typically liked their armaments. Simple, plain, and deadly... Bjorn however, drew a long serrated blade. It was what the warriors called, a serrator, mostly because it was serrated, and the terminology that the forerunners used to name all of their instruments was long lost. This tool was one of the ones they created, scavenged long ago from a shop that cut and shaped metal plates for use. It was re-purposed as a weapon since when powered up and applied to just about anything, it could cut through like a knife through bread.

"Ready..." Bjorn replied as he flourished his weapon.

Ancient Ruins

Raven

She recalled the events that had led up to this point as she wandered through the halls of the ship, taking turns and studying maps as she encountered them. There were dozens of miles of hallways in this ship and she didn't have time to walk through them all...

"Up two levels, down one hallway, up a service hatch and through a vent... Cross a massive gap in the floor, crawl through another vent and into a room with... What are these?" Raven was about to pick up something small, pink, and somewhat phallic shaped before she realized her mistake and stopped to immediately draw her hand back and move on with a disgusted grimace on her face.

"No more bedrooms..." she promised herself... "No more shortcuts through bedrooms..."

Finally, after avoiding all shortcuts, she reached what the forerunners aptly called the "HANGAR"...

The doors slid open as she shouldered them. The massive blast doors were sturdy, but she was strong for her size and her thighs strained and forced the doors to make way. The blue flecks on the skin of her cheeks pulsed as she strained, and she panted as they finally disappeared into the walls that held the massive doors.

She straightened and entered the cavernous room and peered about. It was almost impossible to see across the room, but she could definitely see the ceiling. On it were lines and grooves that held giant claws that once held ships aloft. Giant arms and claws and floors that went up and down lined the walls and were spaced sporadically throughout the room... But none of that held her attention, for in the center of the great hangar, stood her prize. The goal of her mission which had been given to her personally by the great War Chief... There was a ship.

 

[Soverign]

Leo let his war horn bellow as he felt the blades of the Centurions engage him. Once seeing them they had charged and started a brutal melee. Blocking the strikes Leo was impressed. Their prowess was past what their limits were meant to be. As Leo took strikes he turned his engagement style to offensive. Once he had gotten the last strike the one on the left had advanced. Leo met his advance and started to pelt the warrior with slashes.

Receiving a harsh blow to his left Leo backhanded the warrior and continued to advance on the one remaining. Using his boosters he forced his limbs to work faster. Ones on his arms were now boosting his striking speed and soon his relentless assault was rewarded. When the warrior was blocking and on the defensive his blade hit home. Cutting through the weapon the Centurion held Leo's weapon sank deep. Lifting the warrior up Leo looked in at the helmet "You have taught me the use of weapons at long range. I thank you" With that his worker bees started to follow his will. They ate and burned the metal off the warrior as he still lived. With that and the mortal wound he inflicted soon only a bare bleeding corpse remained on his blade.

Tossing the body away Leo's nano tech built up twin weapon emplacements. Not very large no but his body had space for it. Due to his back boosters being vertical one over the other there were spaces on his left and right shoulder. The nanotech built the single barrel cannons and he turned to see the remaining warrior. Rather than engaging in a melee again he needed to test the new weapons. Aiming at the warrior the accelerators charged up Leo spoke "This lesson won't go unremembered. But now i require a test subject. Thank you for volunteering" The barrels glowed and soon it propelled massive slugs aimed at the Centurion. For a second he may had been looking in his eyes. But soon after there wasn't much left to look at. The Centurion's head soon exploded as the dense round made contact with his skull and the second met his shoulder.

Surveying his work Leo set his nano tech to work again. Eating the metal on the corpse. Looking down he had a blood splatter over his chest. And in truth his warrior personality he was based on smiled in pride. But he had to stow it and continue his work. Passing the now bare body Leo started to walk away. One footprint being normal, the second red as he trailed blood he had stepped in. Now not in combat the twin cannons now rested on his back only the barrels visible if seen from the front. His blades retracted to his forearms. Looking around it was completely barren.

Still making a bloody trail in the dirt he walked across the barren wastes and up a small mountain to a vantage point. With the mountain to his back he set to work doing visual checks. Zooming in he had a view of the settlement. If that's what you could call it. Bones and metal seemed to make up most of the decorum and huts. Similar to tribes in the earliest record of human advancement. But he kept at his position. Wanting to avoid more fighting if he could help it. A pair of random Centurion's sure. Maybe they were a patrol. But it didn't matter now. For now he would go through his options. And decide what to do with these creations.

 

[Lylith]

Raven

Ancient Ruins

She walked beneath the hulking shape of the ship and let her hand slide across the metal of its belly as she tried to find some method of entry. It was clear to her that this ship was left as a reserve vessel but had never made it out in the frenzied attempt to flee the escaped test subjects in the ancient days when her people had broken free from their bonds and killed the forerunners... This ship was most likely the only one of its kind left on this planet.

Never before had Raven seen such a complete and in tact vessel. Not a scrap of metal was missing on it, and all of the sensors and optics normally scavenged for helmets were intact. It looked like it was simply waiting for someone to come around, board it, and fly it away into the stars.

Raven certainly didn't know how to fly, but that was the least of her worries, because at this moment she couldn't even figure out how to board the thing! The normal doorway that she and her family used to enter their ship was missing and in its place was a giant sheet of metal that seemed far too large to cover an entryway. It looked more like armor plating than a door that lowered or closed... Perhaps it was simply a larger door that let something large out of the ship, rather than simply allowing the forerunners in and out?

Raven took another turn about the ship with her hand on her chin and her finger on her lips as she puzzled through the problem...

Finally she decided to climb up and get a better look at the ship from atop its back... She launched herself at one of the massive legs that held the ship aloft and scaled the side of the ship using her fingertips. She loved climbing... Her smaller size and incredible dexterity and relatively light weight (in comparison to the fully armored Centurions) allowed her to perform some amazing feats of dexterity that had never been seen before by her people.

Raven smiled as images of her leaping over opponents as they charged, only to end up behind them or even on top of them, flashed through her mind. She remembered climbing cliff faces and trees to escape from the ferocious predators that roamed this earth while the heavily armored tribesmen she was hunting were caught at the base of the cliff and shredded by the maws of the giant lizard like predators...

Distracted by her thoughts, she almost missed when as she approached a certain point on the ships hull, a small panel of lights illuminated in the darkness... She immediately paused and raised an eyebrow as she looked over the panel with holographic buttons and a display that was currently empty. She leaned over the ancient technology and peered more closely at it... There was a place where one could put their finger and thus indicate a symbol to be put on the display. These symbols were all made of light and were glowing faintly as they hovered over the surface of the panel itself. However, there was another depression where one could place a finger or a thumb... There seemed to be no lights or symbols or displays attached to this particular mechanism, so Raven placed her pointer finger in the depression and pressed...

*Snick*

A needle flashed out and pierced her finger and a tiny drop of blood was sucked away inside the machine.

Raven didn't even blink until a voice chimed from the machine...

[Partial match. Subject: Doctor Julie Starr]
[DNA lock compromised: Sample Contaminated]
[Alerting security: Sending error log]

 

[Soverign]

Leo had done a accurate scan of the encampment and the surrounding area. In truth the Centurions had done well for themselves all things considered. They had survived on a planet that seems hungry to kill them. Not only surviving, but their brutal nature seems to make them thrive. He had watched the commotion in the camp and saw many fights and.....other activities. They seemed like a basic tribe level society.

The AI himself however looked through a different world. As his body was his key to the outside world the AI stood in a blue world of his own. The AI stood there in a black endless void with blue code and information streaming in every direction. The Spartan warrior glowed a blue as well, his body comprising of data as well. He soon began reading error and contact reports. Even when in stasis all alerts were sent to him as the breakout occurred and over the two hundred year gap he had missed. It was a massive data load, and he honestly was curious what had happened. Detecting when the Centurions first broke into the vessel. To the most recent being only minutes ago.

As his projection form waved by code he stopped to read the segment. There had been an attempted DNA authorization test. For a functional ship in the hanger. What troubled him more was who the DNA was closest to. In the building stages for the Centurion project the Scientists required the best DNA and intellect to use for the experiment to add onto the genetic augmentations. And since the best minds and military personnel were on planet, they used their own DNA. It was very efficient and set the new creations up for the absolute best success. However in these circumstances it wasn't for the best. Thankfully the augmentations muddle up the genes so there will never be an exact match. Another safeguard placed that worked out 'But for how long...they have proven themselves adept at scavenging. I don't want to test their abilities on this' Standing Leo had reactivated his combat platform and started a full out sprint towards the ship again. He hoped to get there and destroy the ship before they could activate it.

On his run he had passed the bodies of the Centurions he fought. Or the remnants of them as something had ripped them apart. Scanning he had made a rough idea of one of the predatory life forms not being humanoid. It stood on two three clawed feet and it had a serpent like body ending in a pincer like tail. The head was the most strange since it was blind. Yet its teeth and jaws were able to take up most of the head. Though they seemed full or wary of him he made sure to label as high threat level.

When he arrived at the vessel he had entered the same way he came in. His platform made reaching the vessel relatively easy. As he walked past the chamber he had been stored in he started for the hanger. Using the ship schismatics he made a quick route to the hanger. It passed by the rooms and he had seen many skeletons of people in the doorways and beds. They were caught completely off guard. Passing the last door he arrived at the Hangar. And he only found the blatant HANGAR sign to be still properly on the wall even after two hundred years. Prying the doors open he moved in but scanned for movement wanting to know if anything was in the hangar before he started his work.

 

[Lylith]

Raven

Hangar

She felt around the door to the massive ship and felt her fingertips slide into a tiny gap where the door jam or lock seemed to be... She grimaced as her fingers pinched between the metal surfaces but honestly the pain wasn't that bad through the gloves of her suit...

The entire suit had come from her first scavenging expedition long ago when she had first ventured out to prove herself to be a warrior and an adult... The location she explored was little known to the rest of her tribe and was dangerous, and so it offered better loot... Part of that loot was her suit...

She had scraped it off the bones of some scientist of old and fitted it with armor and sensors as well as a life support unit. The gloves had to be split and free sewn with a mask mesh on the backs because he hands were bigger than the scientists hands were, but the material still functioned properly... In fact, much of the suit had to be split in various... Places... To allow her muscular body and voluptuous curves to fit in it...

Now, the gloves prevented her from receiving lacerations as she wedged her fingers under the sheer metal and heaved...

The locked strained and groaned under the pressure as her legs and her back and her arms flexed. She hissed and grunted at the door as her body worked like a hydraulic ram against the thick metal of the doors lock...

Finally, a loud *PING* sounded as the metal bolt that kicked the hatch gave way under the sheer stress. The hatch flew open and the glass screen where the holographic images had been turned red, and now displayed a new set of images and symbols in red...

The sound of an alarm echoed through the inside of the open ship hatch below her and she grinned as her chest heaved as she took in big breaths, allowing her body to relax after such exertion... She sat back on the hull with her legs in front and her arms in back and just smiled as she ran her fingers through her hair, which was slightly damp with sweat.

 

[Soverign]

After opening the door his scans didn't take long to pick up movement. It was detected across the hanger on the other side of the ship. He didn't have a visual. Looking down there were a set of stairs for humans but he would completely fall through them if he walked down it. Crouching down he jumped down making the ground shake once the loud CLANG as his metal body landed. Slowly standing he began scanning. It seemed like a tomb with how quiet it was. Looking around he noticed the ship was open on one of its hatches.

The ship ramp leading into the ship had been left alone. Yet the hull hatch on top had been rent open. The locking mechanisms completely shattered. Walking closer he scanned through the hull and noticed the scanning equipment were untouched. So one of two things happened. Either it was opened and they fled through the door opposite the one he came through. Or they were hiding. In which his scans were now needing to be changed to be effective. Switching to inferred he noticed a hot spot, but it was atop the ship. The very ship he was getting closer to. He had been staring at a Centurion without even realizing it. Extending his blades he backed away yet the heat and body type was completely different from the others he faced. The others were dense warriors that looked more like him. But this one had less armor. Transferring to a colored normal human sight he saw the distinct differences. This one not only had less armor but was female. The armor patches were to properly fit her form.

Though the target was a different gender he had no plans of thinking she wasn't a threat. He took one singular step closer letting his voice be heard through the head on the mech platform "You are not permitted to access to this vessel. Leave now or you will be removed" His voice was stern but he went a step further. Activating his shoulder cannons he aimed them at the female being more than prepared to destroy the vessel in order to deny their ability to leave the planet.

 

[Lylith]

Raven

Hangar

"You are not permitted to access to this vessel. Leave now or you will be removed"

The mechanical voice projected from a figure that suddenly appeared to her south. The mechanized warrior was tall but no taller than maybe the tallest Centurion. Of course his armor and his joints looked strange and thin in some places, which was directly contrary to the normal design her people adopted... All in all, this creature looked similar to whatever had been rushing down the mountain only a half hour or so ago. Either that or it was similar looking.

She immediately jumped to her feet and adopted a defensive stance that kept her hips low to the hull of the ship and three points of contact with the ground as she rested a couple of finger tips on the hull in case she needed to make a split second dodge, or drop to the ground...

"Who are you and from which tribe do you hail?" Raven called out from the top of the ship. Her voice echoed out over the vast empty space and bounced around like the bark of a wild animal.

 

[Soverign]

Leo

Hanger

The target had not acted like he had expected from his previous engagement. This one seemed of higher intellect and was rather quick given her stance. Confident enough she could dodge and use speed. However Leo had a new option, communication. Though they were meant for war if they adapted they could be reasoned with if intelligence pushed further than expected. Disengaging his twin cannons Leo kept his blades at the ready just to be safe. Then he went to work on his response "I am not one of you" Was all he said as his platform projected him to match the Centurions estimated height. The horn on his platform was not for show but had a projector inside allowing him to be 'seen' to others.

His blue toned body stood tall and he wore the Spartan clothing and armor as well as the fan helm that dictated his rank. With his arms crossed his eyes looked unimpressed with the Centurion "If you wish to ask a question, make it one that counts. I am not of any tribe Centurion" His eyes watched the Centurion on the ship and the slight standoff had many possible outcomes. But he hoped the ship could be saved or at the very least learn how far their intelligence had developed. Moving a projected hand to the side soon a short sword appeared one that the Spartans of old used well. A wetstone appeared in the other and he sharpened the fake sword as he waited for the Centurion. Though for her it probably was only seconds to him it was ages. Once satisfied with the blades sharpness he let it disappear and so to did the wetstone. Returning his arms to a crossed position he began watching her again.

 

[Lylith]

Raven

Hanger

She watched as the droid or the metal person projected an image of a smaller blue person that more closely resembled her own height of seven feet eight inches. The metal armor itself was much taller, but thinner, and most likely didn't weigh as much as a fully armored Centurion. If it did weigh as much, it would be close...

The warrior that was projected before her had armor on that barely covered his body... The shiny metal was a strange color mostly because of the blue hue of the projection technology that resembled the technology used to display the strange symbols on the hull beside the hatch she had ripped open.

"If you wish to ask a question, make it one that counts. I am not of any tribe Centurion"

She listened and understood the words but couldn't fathom where this... ( Thing... Person? What was he? ) had come from. In fact, that was probably a good question to start off with, and if it was to be her only question, it was a good one.

She gulped and stood up a little, lifting her hand from the hull and straightened as she pressed the same hand to her chest...

"I am Raven of the Stargazer tribe. What are you?" she asked, purposely asking what, rather than who, hoping her hunch wasn't incorrect. She remembered tales of greater minds trapped within the technology of old that helped the forerunners with tasks

 

[Soverign]

The Spartan projection looked up at the Centurion "Good you asked a question that isn't foolish. Well Raven of the Stargazer Tribe, i am Leonidas" Pausing the projected warrior paced and looked around the room "As for what is am......well...that is both simple and complicated. I am a Core Mind" He paused looking at her and tilted his head "Everything you and your people discovered i ran and made sure it functioned. I knew all the people who were here. I knew their names and i knew their purpose here. And why you were made" He let the slight disdain stay subtle as his voice echoed through the hanger as he stared at her.

Opening his hand he let the projector show countless images. The hanger had images floating all around it depicting laughter of people, military men. He let the images flow and he then spoke "These are a small speck of my memories" However some images that appeared were, a haze. They held static and the image was only detailed in the few colors that made it. Grunting Leo turned the projector off only realizing the possibilities of such a result. Looking back at the Centurion he tried to ignore the incident entirely.

He looked up at his metal body then started running background diagnostics "So tell me" Leo said sternly "Why are you here Raven of the Stargazer Tribe?" His internal systems looked over the Platform and that was easy but what he silently was doing made the conversation important. As he was there when the species was started they were able to calculate their capability for higher learning. Even at the start there was vast success. They became the best in whatever they were taught. War, music, writing, they could do what any human could but better. It was their purpose after all, to be the best. Their skills stilled show true in this subject, but there was still more to learn. It may not have been the smartest thing to do but it was one of the last orders given by the science team before the breakout. Might as well finish the record while he could do so.

 

[Lylith]

Raven

Hangar

"Why are you here Raven of the Stargazer Tribe?"

She thought about the question for only a moment before replying... There wasn't much to the answer. It was fairly obvious why she was here, but her response needed to avoid stating the obvious since the being before here was probably really only interested in the deeper reasons behind her presence in the hangar.

"My people are called the Stargazers because we have never forgotten where the forerunners came from. We hope to one day return to that place that they called home. To do this, we need a ship that works... "

She explained a little bit of the history of her particular tribe while explaining the purpose of her presence in the center of the massive research facility. Hopefully the giant suit of armor would be satisfied with that answer. If not well...

"I was sent here by our chieftain to recover the ship if possible, or at least to confirm its existence."

 

[Soverign]

Leo

Hanger

It was like a cat and mouse game. It was something humans were good at, this Centurion seemed just as skilled. Speaking was like a duel with humans. Giving some but not all was the point, a lie hidden within the truth. He had not anticipated a full out lie and she had not disappointed when she had not told a lie. But it was to exact. For him, it was like humans reciting something they have practiced. When it is practiced with blade or word it comes differently to a natural path or speech. It was interesting. And it had him curious.

Having experienced their first step to violence previously he had an idea of their intentions but the options were there. If he could narrow them that would be preferred. Staying silent Leo had brought possible pathways into his mind. He decided on one. But it made danger to him all the more likely "Very well Raven, you have found the ship. But unfortunately you won't be able to fly it. None of your people will. So i will ask this of you. Show me around. Your people, way of life, your society. While i am there you may ask questions but only those i deem you are cleared to know. If i think you can be trusted with star travel i will allow you to have access. To travel the Stars at your leisure" He said placing a blue hand on the hull making all the internal systems light up and come alive. He paused letting the effect of his words be understood. He then pulled his hand away and the glorious noise died in an instant. Leo then spoke again "But if i do not......well. I will either take or destroy this ship and make sure you never leave the planet. So tell me Raven, do we have a deal?" He had accessed the ship and while he waited he read the log for the ship. If his records were right the ship was supposed to take off around the time of the Breakout. Letting his concern be hidden behind his face he knew something wasn't right. And while he was with them he knew he needed to find out what this code meant.