Mike closed his eyes as he listained to his crew, remember his own experiences of being in Mercenary crews, that listaining to everyone opinions would be the best course of action plus it gave him time to calm his own beating heart, still beating hard from his almost transformation into his unchained form.
Sure, he was aware that there was still doubt about how powerful he was, among this crew of powerful beings but that was always his logic, keep them guessing about how powerful you truly are and never hint at your true level of power.
Once he was confident and had heard everyone opinions, he open his eyes and let his commanding tone come out. "I think Azeal plan is sound, those of you that reacted badly to just a taste of it, means that the real thing will be even more deadly to you, hell, there's even the potential of it leading to an even worse problem, so its safer to keep you away from the real thing" Mike told them.
He then answer the discussion on what actions should be taken against the SPA members. "I would rather avoid killing any member of the SPA, if possible, I would rather non lethal takedown of members, but only if you can see no alternative. If you can trick them using words only, that's a good move" Mike said calmly. "As for disguise, I will be using my people occult magic to disguise us with Clarrisa help"
E.D.I would appear before Qingshe and Alice as she said "I will gladly accept both your help for true countermeasures to the gems but unless we have the true gem in our possession, most of these countermeasures are simulation which are not 100% accurate, plus the data was corrupted so I've been rebuilding what I can with the captain help". Her system then looked at the others "Lady Navir and Weapon Expert Azeal, the pilot is ready to began the mission when your infiltration team is ready, please let us know when you are done and we will send the ground team as well during the blackout"
Mike cracked his knuckles and then said "Anything else we need to discuss regarding the mission or is everyone ready to move out?".
"No further concerns remain unaddressed here."Izaroth would state as he took the virus chip in hand, carefully scanning it with his optics as to avoid the possibility of infection himself. Finding the internal viruses fit for purpose, he would need to return to his quarters to implement a delivery method that didn't put his own systems at risk. Odds are he'd probably have to replace one of his wrist-mounted shotguns, but that's something he'd have to figure out once he was there. Non-lethal methods would also have to be taken into consideration as to merely stun or knock out the wildlife and any SPA operatives on the ground. The wildlife were simply doing what their instincts dictated, and the SPA were simply doing their jobs.
He would also likely see about having his back flight units fitted in the event a quick escape was needed once he was there, and maybe see about swapping out his current armor configuration for something more concealing among a natural landscape. Bright red and white, paired with green glows from certain points certainly would not allow him to remain hidden for long. But until then, courtesy would dictate that he'd need to remain seated until such time the group was dismissed from the meeting.
Either way, the android had a plan in his mind, and it was too late to turn back to Blue Garden now anyway. All he could do was simply hope that they got in, retrieved their target object, and got out as swiftly as possible before they were discovered or worse. As to whether or not there was a genuine possibility of running into other such gem seekers, that could not be ruled out, but he could only hope that if such were the case, they did not elect to draw unnecessary attention to themselves.
Qingshe listened quietly, as the twins added their own contributions to the matter at hand -meager as those seemed to be. At least Lloyd managed to weasel out from Mike that "non-lethal" was the preferred way they should operate in regard to the SPA. That was slightly inconvenient, but hardly unmanageable or undesirable; it's not like she carried any malice for them, after all. She restrained the urge to roll her eyes at Holly's conclusions about how the team was split; numbers had nothing to do with it, as Azeal and Mike had clearly stated. The team compositions were entirely at the mercy of who could resist the siren call of the Gems, leading them to, in fact, be rather imbalanced, role wise, given the allocation of every single tech specialist onto the ground team. Oh, sure, Azeal was good with weapons, but that was a specialty in weapons, not generalized tech manipulation. The distraction team had little option but to go loud.
Glancing back at Clarrisa, Qingshe nodded, tapping the table with her faux claws. "Mmm, just be sure that subroutine of yours is only implanted in the 'quiet' virus. The 'loud' one is meant to distract from its fellow, and having it attack other areas blatantly will draw attention from those under threat from the far more important and subtle saboteur." Her slitted, golden gaze drifted to Izaroth, one brow raising questioningly in anticipation of what he might also add to the viruses, only for the android to wordlessly leave the room, presumably to prepare. Ah, well, I suppose he has his own affairs to see to. Meanwhile, the serpentine woman's bubbling shadow burbled forth from underneath the arm she had rested on the table, as a thin strip of the ooze spread out to stop within casual arm's reach of Clarrisa. "Anyhow, once you're finished, just give the data chip back to my shadow. If you wouldn't mind, I'd like to ensure there are no compatibility issues between our directives, before the result is given to Azeal's team. Oh, and duplicate the results, of course, so everyone has a chance to play~."
Leaning back in her chair, Qingshe took in the talk of disguises and pondered what she might do for her own part. She was loathe to rely on magic for a disguise, especially in the case that the SPA had any form of disguise or magic disruption defenses below. Even if the chance they did was small, Qingshe preferred not to rely on chance if she had the luxury. Not to mention... Well, her abilities were extremely distinctive, unique as far as she was aware. A disguise really wouldn't do much to conceal who she was if she didn't go out of her way to limit herself... which seemed irresponsible, considering the stakes. Yet, it seemed similarly irresponsible to not even make an attempt at a disguise; there was no reason to make the crew's lives harder unnecessarily by proxy if they were attached to a serious offense like this... not to mention if anyone discovered what they had been here to acquire.
Well then, it seemed that was that.
Tilting her head, Qingshe's expansive mind whirred with potential, images and code flying across the back of her consciousness. Old blueprints and long-prepared designs had the metaphorical dust shaken off of them, as she browsed her library of templates, the work of decades of experimentation, tweaks and alterations spanning a vast breadth of life-forms. No small number of those templates -if one could see them- were clearly variants of the scientist's own body, which was only natural, right? After all, whose DNA had she had access to from the moment her psychic potential awoke? Whose genetics has she been teasing apart, dissecting and understanding from practically day one?
Why... who else?
It was only natural that the being she was most familiar with in this entire galaxy, the entity she most fully understood how to alter and rebuild from the ground up was herself. Compared to anyone else, modifying herself came almost trivially to her. Even then, of course, she preferred to test things on a proper lab rat, but if she could succeed with a trial subject, then it became a near certainty she could do the same with herself... adjustments for conflicts with her preexisting modifications aside, of course. It sort of balanced out in the end.
Hmmm... Options, options~.
Qingshe was self-aware enough to understand that she was a vain person... at least to a point. Even in her pursuit of evolution and survival above all else, she had gone out of her way to ensure her outward beauty was not disturbed and had largely been successful. This was hardly a contradictory pursuit, of course, as above evolution, she more specifically pursued improvement in all things. To sacrifice her looks for power was to compromise that ideal; she did not cut corners in her goals. The only path that she would be proud of walking is one that made as close to zero compromises as she could manage, no matter how unrealistic or impossible the endgame. For in the end, the "impossible" was merely something that hadn't been understood yet, as had been proven historically time and time again.
Which was all a rather roundabout way of saying that not a single one of the "blueprints" she was browsing wasn't striking or eye-catching in some way, a vision of feminine beauty and grace in some shape or form. Qingshe was a vain creature, who reveled in being able to explore every possible combination of features as her whims took her, and even the process of choosing a disguise was a laborious endeavor that took the equivalent of hours in her mind, thoughts and considerations flying far faster than any measly mundane brain.
Tall, short, curvy, lithe, athletic, supple, beautiful and menacing. All these options and more were considered and discarded if even the slightest aspect disagreed with her whims. She paused briefly on a familiar figure, a flood of nostalgia swelling in her chest... before discarding it like the rest. If the purpose was to not be traced, then using a face that was on any sort of record could be detrimental. Instead, Qingshe turned her gaze towards those options of a more "original" bent, those she had personally crafted from the ground up, not templates or copies of anyone else as far as she was aware.
Eventually, her metaphysical gaze landed on an option that finally spoke to her for the occasion. Not too loud, but not too subtle either. There's a certain contradiction to it as a concept that she found deliciously enticing, one that brought a wide, sly smile to her face. A few tweaks to the manner of dress, and voila~!
Standing from her seat at the meeting table, Qingshe spread out a small puddle of her shadow beneath her feet and then dropped into it like the ground had stopped existing underfoot. Her shadow didn't waste a moment in getting to work, her biological form being teased apart and morphed, compacted and smoothed out. When Qingshe emerged from her shadow shortly after and gave a satisfied stretch, her entire body had been changed wholesale, not a mere illusion or flesh suit, but a full transmogrification of her physical form. She was confident now, by going this far, that there would be no issues with her true form being revealed by the unfortunate presence of anti-magic or the like.
"Hiii~!" She waggled deceptively delicate fingers at the group, grinning incessantly, before cupping her chin with the same hand and resting its elbow on the other arm she folded under her chest. Her voice had definitely changed, amongst other things, higher and bell-like, dripping with faux purity and sweetness to go with the pious image of a young nun of some indeterminant faith. She was a little shorter and generally gave off the image of someone barely into adulthood. Long, brunette hair now accompanied golden eyes, pupils -at least as long as she concentrated- remaining round and human compared to her usual reptilian slits. Her nun's habit nonetheless contained a few salacious liberties, showing some skin and conforming to her figure enough to leave little to the imagination; she really couldn't help indulging the urge to show off her work in as many ways as possible.
Another giggle escaping her throat, her eyes crinkled gleefully, as she folded her hands at her waist, golden eyes wide and doe-like, a smile on her lips like butter wouldn't melt in her mouth. She shot a sly wink Mike's direction. "Ready to go when you are, Captain~!"
Perhaps it's because he was a demon, a creature already infamous to the Federation due to the holy war - and a high-ranking one at that - but the thought that Izaroth pointed out regarding painting a target on them for their attempts at distractions didn't phase him. In his mind, as long as Navir, Holly, and Lloyd cover him, he didn't mind the possibility of taking care of the more rowdy actions and be painted as SPA's public enemy number one, making sure everyone got away at his own expense. That said, he originally intended on disguising them to keep that worst case scenario from happening, sure it was still risky but then again so is going to a Class-X planet like Fubakfem uninvited to begin with. It was a chance he was willing to take to make this mission a success without issue.
Fortunately, Qingshe and Clarissa had an idea that would make their day so much easier, a computer virus capable of screwing with them would be able to fuck up SPA's systems would be a lot more covert than whatever he could think of to actually pull the distractions. All his team would have to do is implant it, and then keep themselves out of sight and let it do its work. ...He chooses to ignore the part where Clarissa basically became a completely different person - with a different face, personality and even a different psychic vibe - and how she managed to get a giant spider under the table without them noticing while stating she's added a subroutine to the virus. Speaking of, he also noticed how Qingshe dropped into her own shadow, and popped out as a creepy nun as a form of disguise.
Alice was listening to Qingshe's explanation of the situation and giving the virus to Azeal, while noticing the Twins eyeing her Guitar. Seems they have an affinity for music, though she can probably guess what kind just by their demeanor and personality.
"Maybe I'll give them a nice concert if they do this job right." She thought. She then noticed Qingshe jumping into her shadow and popping out as a nun. It certainly helps hide her identity, although...might be a bit inconspicuous to see a sister wandering a jungle. Still, Qingshe had the right idea. Alice couldn't access some hammerspace dimension to change her appearance like Qingshe could, but she did have another way of doing things just in case. Cracking her knuckles, she began slowly strumming the strings of her guitar, disappearing from sight, but with the melody still heard as if she was there, the speed of the rhythm increasing more and more as if building into a climax, before falling silent, and a now green-haired and cyan-eyed Alice holding the same guitar steps into the room from the entrance.
"Doctor Vimungo is in and ready for departure, Cap'n!" She says with the same sense of energy she always had. This was now the third woman on the team who has decided some stange way of changing their appearance.
"Why are the most useful ones always the wierdest to work with?" He thought.
That's when the Twins chimed in with their two cents. Honestly, perhaps it would be more in character to everyone's eyes that Azeal would be shocked that these two were actually saying something smart and cautious for once, especially Lloyd. However, Azeal knew their talents from the moment he met them. While they are seperately about as stable as a split-atom in their own unique ways, once they're synchronized in their focus, they're about as competant as any other member of this ship. In part, it's precisely why he's always as harsh with them as he is when they fuck up so much and so badly, he knows they're better than that, even Lloyd.
"Actually, all three questions are pretty important. So I'll go in order. First, the timetable: We have until the A team is ready, then we'll likely have to go simultaneously. Hopefully we'll get to our destination before they can land on theirs. As for how long it'll take, That's up to the Captain and his team. Whatever time he feels they need, we're gonna have to provide by drawing their attention, one way or another." Azeal said to them, generating a map on the table showing the planet's orbit, and creating arrows of red and blue signifying Teams A and B respectively.
"Luckily, the Virus should help with that, which leads us to Question two: Our new mission is to infiltrate the space station and infect SPA's computer mainframe with the virus. It's not gonna be easy though. The vast majority of SPA's members are essentially natives of Fubakfem, effectively meaning we're dealing with plant and potentially animal people. Either way, we stick out like a sore thumb. Pretending to be a part of them isn't going to fly, so we're gonna have to be more...creative in our approach. Our safest bet is probably to pretend we're someone else from the Federation, who has a job to do on the station itself. For example, maintenance inspectors. In that regard, I propose we follow Navir's lead. She has a lot more sense of proper etiquette than any of us; if we go under the pretense we're from the government, she'll be the most believable one of us all. As for specific roles, well, seeing as we don't know much about the space station's interior, we'll have to improvise roles when we get there." Azeal then said, zooming in on the Space station in particular, and showing images of the anthropomorphic plant and animals, residents of Fubakfem.
"Lastly, as far as I know, there hasn't been a legitimate demon attack in this area since the Holy War, so there should be no reason for them to carry anti-demon weaponry. Even if there was, I doubt they have any weapons against the angels, so you two at least should be protected. That said, we're not completely immune to normal weaponry either, and even if they don't have them on hand, it's possible they have anti-demonic weaponry on standby somewhere, so we shouldn't take any chances. In summary, if all goes well, this should be an easy in-and-out mission. It won't be easy getting the virus into their computers, but once its done, it should be enough cover for the A team, so we'll high-tail back to the ship and await the Captain's orders. ...If there's no other questions, I'll go see lil Carol and tell her where to drop us off." Azeal closed off his briefing, exiting the room and heading for the bridge to see one Caroline Campbell, the Fenrir's Pilot.
--------------------
Fenrir - Bridge
While everyone was meeting for their next mission, it was Caroline here who was riding the Fenrir to the Jungle planet in question. There wasn't much to be said about her, other than that she was probably the only normal everyday human in this entire crew. In a way, this made her feel like sort of an outsider from the rest of them, she couldn't do even half of what they're capable of on her own. But even so, that was okay, she came to this ship because she admired the Captain, and the potential pay wasn't half bad either, considering the more dangerous missions they're usually on. Besides, what she lacked in sheer physical capability or supernatural powers, she gained with a gift for navigation across these stars, one of most important things a crew, let alone a pilot, needed above all else to make it in the life of a mercenary. This particular mission she heard the gist of from the Captain himself, listening in to the Mission Briefing going on as she made her way to Fubakfem.
Azeal walked into the bridge, taking a look out into the planet and the space station that was orbiting it.
"Got us here faster than expected, Carol."
"There wasn't a lot of traffic from the Captain's home to here. I'm guessing we're the first to find whatever this gem is we're looking for, but that won't last long." She responded, her words contrasted with a somewhat gentle tone of voice.
"Yeah, you're probably right. We should get this done quick before other would-be gem miners show up make things annoying. Looks like Ed suggested we go in first to disarm their eye in the sky. Any chance of finding an opening before they find us?"
"Why hide our approach? We're just inspectors doing a routine look-around, ...right? ...EDI, mind making some badges for them? I'll relay a federal signal asking for landing, so we're gonna need them quick." She said.
"Well, look at you, so on the ball. Finally getting used to this life, eh? ...Let us know when we've docked, we'll head immediately." Azeal said, a smile on his face as he walked back towards the ship's halls.
I am online all the time, my sleeping schedule is fixing itself good enough. (The Online all the time might change. Since I need to start working Part Time Jobs.)
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As the conversation was winding down, Holly heard Clarissa in agreement with the assignments between the Fenrir's Maw Crew. Holly saw Clarissa completely change everything about her in an instant by using a spell to change her appearance. She didn't quite understand how a spell like that worked since the spells from the Enigmatic Sect Dimension on a fundamental principle is based on the person's desires and wants. It shows that others have different perspectives and magics compared to her and her brother's. Her shapeshifting is limited to her human form and her angelic forms, however, but it's the same with her brother's limitations. It caused her to realize that staying in the angelic form would probably make her a greater target.
Internally, Lloyd was quite pleased with how the conversation at the Meeting Room was winding down, thankfully, more people were onside with the crew assignments. Lloyd despite his quiet behavior when it deals with his sister, but he didn't like how Clarissa transformed so quickly like nothing was stopping her. He was unnerved only because he knew his limitations better than anyone, but that was like a snap of Clarissa's finger and wala she was an entirely different person. However, it wasn't like this crew was filled with giants in Reskhold Galaxy compared to the two of them. Specifically, those who you don't want to fuck with or they'll sequence your genome just because it's funny.
Out of all the people to listen to, Mike Fertar was the one that caught Holly's attention the most since the reasoning for Azeal's mission statement was only because they didn't want any causalities among those that are quite weak to the Gem's Influence or worse. Holly quite understood that dying would hurt her brother utmost extremely so, she tried to stay on the side of what she believed in and help support her brother rather than dying a pointless death. Clarissa and Qingshe also spoke on the subject of the viruses, which was quite interesting too. Since it would be up to one of the four of them to deliver it into the SPA's Systems on the Spacestation.
Lloyd had a mind to understand what Mike Fertar and Azeal in suggesting these two specific teams, but his sister is the opposite-minded, but quite needs reassurances. It's just what separates the two of them, but they work well together enough to ensure nothing is too hard to handle. Clarissa's Spider caused him to slightly raise an eyebrow but nothing more. However, Clarissa and Qingshe's conversation was interesting too. One of the four on the Spacestation Team would have to install the virus. Obviously, he held his lips sealed for this obvious prompt. He's grateful that his sister also realized she's been in her angelic form this entire time after Clarissa's transformation.
In the core of the problem, Holly noticed when Qingshe sunk into her own shadow and came out a changed person. Holly knew why her brother mentioned Qingshe now, and it's much strange that Qingshe looked like a Nun. A Nun devoted to a different religion or the same religion in this galaxy, nonetheless. "H-Holy shit. Though I should probably go back to my human shape-shifted form since infiltrating a spacestation requires a different finesse." Holly said, a bit flabbergasted at Qingshe's transformation. It would be a quicker transformation than the utterly wholly differences that Qingshe and Clarissa look at now.
Lloyd also noticed Qingshe sinking into her shadow, but what came out was quite suspicious compared to what she usually looks like. He would keep a mental note specifically so he could talk to Holly about what had transpired. The nun mentality despite what Qingshe looks like, she was still teasing Mike. "Christ in hell or what my sister said. Besides that amazing." Lloyd said. He would say his usual curse since he's not want to say Holy shit. It's quite common to hear his sister curse and utterly respect the fact that she has a streak of feeling insulted more if someone else said Holy shit, because she's naive but does curse. He doesn't have any idea or clue why she curses more than him, who's more a Demon.
One final person decidedly changed themselves entirely, which would be Alice, when Holly recognized Alice's guitar she was so shocked at how pretty Doctor Vimungo looked. Holly was so happy to see her appearance but wanted to wait for Azeal to speak up to the two of them. 'That's so cool, she looks so pretty! Alice is awesome!' Holly thought to herself. Even though it's obvious as plain as day as what she could be thinking about, but it's nice to know that sooner or later the meeting will be done and that she can speak to her brother privately.
Lloyd blinked slightly at the overwhelmingly lights brightening up on Holly's face it's obviously what she was thinking it. Obviously, Alice changed her appearance too to look entirely different means just like Clarissa, Qingshe, and Alice the three of them are on a different scale in some ways. Though it could mean anything in the long run, but it's better not to piss them off as much as this meeting did cause everyone including Azeal to become heated. He waited until it would be Azeal's turn to speak on the subject of the questions that Holly and he asked since it's obviously what most of everyone else understands by answering their questions.
As such, the man of the hour who was asked questions from Holly first then her brother, then her again, answered the first one specifically on the timetable. Holly listened carefully and followed what was shown on the table showing the Team A and Team B's positions and how they were going to get to those locations. She continued to listen to his answers, now onto the second question, which was infiltrating the spacestation and installing it with a virus. In addition, Azeal mentioned Anti-Demonic Weaponry and Anti-Angelic Weaponry, but they do have an abundance of regular Reskhold Weaponry for any intruders so it means, Plasma-Based weaponry and other kinds of weapons. Holly nodded to him with a smile, and lastly, he talked to the pilot of the starship, a place to drop them off, and was relieved that they were safe enough. 'I feel like I should be careful just in case. Despite this, my brother will always keep an eye out for any anti-angelic or anti-demonic weaponry.' Holly thought to herself. She looks towards the Captain and smiles happily. "No further questions, Micheal Fertar. Let's get this show on the road." Holly said.
Lloyd took notes within his head as everything that Azeal spoke about every single part of their mission on the spacestation. He enjoyed the visual medium that helped with how they would join up with Team A if the Captain needed support. Also, Lloyd enjoyed the lack of weaponry against his sister since that was a heavy time if it wasn't for the Angelic Armor that their mother gave to her, it would be far worse. He also heard the pilot's name from Azeal and agreed with everything that was said at this meeting. However, the Captain asked if there were any further questions or the lot. "None Captain, Like my sister said." Lloyd said with a smile. His smile was grateful that the meeting was now over.
Holly got up when her brother agreed with what she said since she wanted to get this show on the road again since she wanted to get this mission going. She would worry about the consequences of what was in this meeting later on, but now it deserves to deal with the importance of the talk she and her brother are going to have. Holly was the next one to leave the meeting room and headed directly towards her room, though it wouldn't be a long conversation. She always wanted to talk again after they lived within the Reskhold Galaxy for a bit after the destruction of their dimension.
Lloyd decidedly slowly to get up from his chair, and bow towards everyone in the meeting room. He was showing uncharacteristically gentlemanly behavior but he does have some bouts of this. It's mostly because his sister is one of those people who are in a hurry since she is in her element on a mission compared to downtime. Lloyd doesn't dislike his sister in this way but she's so gun hoe when it comes to a mission, but thankfully Holly has been taking Lloyd's caution as another way towards valor and glory very well. He also leaves the meeting room towards his sister's room since they usually talk in her room, since unlike his room, hers is immaculate compared to his messy room. Lloyd holds the Enigmatic Sect Necklace's most important jewel and telepathically communicates with Holly. 'Could I come into your room again? Since we do need to talk after all.'
As such, a response is heard from Holly as a simple, 'Yes.'
Fenrir's Maw – Holly's Room
Holly sat on her desk in her room to reorganize the Recipe lists for when it was her turn to be the cook on the Fenrir's Maw. She stared at the picture that sat beside her recipe cookbook, which was the picture of the crew of the Fenrir's Maw. However, the one who decidedly took the picture wasn't her since she was standing in the picture near the other female crew members. The most photogenic people in the picture were Qingshe, Navir, and Alice. In addition, there was another picture inside of her desk that if opened could see the family, friends, and everyone that Holly desired to see again. The Family that she had in the Enigmatic Sect Dimension. Holly heard the door open slowly turned her head and saw her brother walking in. She slowly got up from her desk and sat on her bed, which Lloyd would probably sit on the stool in the room. "Brother, welcome." Holly said. She was happy to see her brother.
Lloyd slowly walked into the room, when his sister recognized him walking into her room. He decidedly chose the stool that was conventionally within Holly's room. Therefore, he heard her speak with two simple words and smiled back. "So, what do you want to talk about?" Lloyd asked. He knew that she was wanting to say something important it was clear as day on her face.
Holly looked at him slightly and sighed. "Simply put, why did you say those words to me, about forgetting about the Enigmatic Sect Dimension?" Holly asked. She wasn't angry at her brother but more disappointed that he wanted to sweep all the good memories under the rug and get on with his life.
Lloyd had a feeling that's what she wanted to talk to him about. She is the emotional one and doesn't think logically about everything, but he's been hurting too. "I suppose, I should say I am sorry for saying those words. But, father and mother told us that nothing lasts forever. They knew they were going to die. They wanted their children to live, despite us still on the run from those worthless grandparents that stole our family, friends, and loved ones away. Do you know my girlfriend? I was supposed to propose to her." Lloyd said. He wanted to save his girlfriend, but if he saved her, his sister would have died a painful death. "I chose to save you over my own happiness. So, what would you have to do if eternal happiness with someone you loved and wanted to get married to or saving the only family you had left from death, what would you do sister?" Lloyd added. It was a hard pill for him to swallow but he promised his parents that he would save Holly, and breaking that would devastate him. If anything if it wasn't for his sister's arrogance, he wouldn't have tried to knock her down a peg and teach her how to properly fight. He was hurting from telling the truth to her by twitching a bit heavily.
Holly gasped at her brother's confession that Talia and Lloyd were supposed to get married, but the End of the Enigmatic Sect Dimension happened. She was flabbergasted and started crying immensely at the sadness her brother was feeling and keeping inside of himself. "I-I never knew you were going to get married to her. I-I suppose I should have been there for you more brother." Holly said. She does cry but this is one of the few instances she's crying heavily, she thought Talia was taking her brother from her, but in all honesty, Talia was trying to reunite the Enigmatic Twins of Light and Darkness. "I-I can't believe it, I now realize why Talia was trying to be my friend for so long. I thought she was trying to take you away but in all honesty, I destroyed our relationship as siblings. It took you to finally show that my recklessness was wrong, and I thank you for it. I suppose you knew the part of your girlfriend was trying to reunite our family together again? I would save you in a heartbeat brother since I had no one like you had. Talia was a great person and you should cherish her for what she was doing." Holly said. She realized it would be a bit too awkward if someone walked in on them and Holly cried her eyes out. Therefore, Holly remade her bed since she enjoys keeping her room clean, unlike her brother's room.
Lloyd had an eyebrow raised while his sister was talking, but he knew that's what his girlfriend was doing, Talia was one of those people who disliked that these two were fighting at every chance they got. He knew what his girlfriend's last words would be possibly, Save your sister and yourself and live. Hopefully, the Enigmatic Twins of Light and Darkness can find ways to get back at those who destroyed our home. Lloyd sighed at what Holly said, but she was correct, but it's quite heartbreaking that Holly had no boyfriends in the Enigmatic Sect Dimension. "To answer your question, yes, I knew that Talia was trying to reunite us. I will always cherish her, it's the reason why I want to stop everything that we have done in the past. Please let's move on, the memories can live on you know. However, I suppose our desires in wanting the Enigmatic Sect Dimension back to how it was overwhelmingly always there. So let's take it in small steps, Sister? And yes, we should get ready for the operation and be ready for when we will go with Azeal and Navir." Lloyd said. He was grateful that his sister wanted to get out of there. In this case, he decidedly walked out of the room first to the waiting area for Team B.
Holly was a bit shocked to hear her brother's answer to her question. She also was shocked that leaving everything that happened in the Enigmatic Sect Dimension in their memories was a good compromise compared to utterly forgetting it. "Yes, let's move on in small steps. If anything, happens to you brother please understand it's your fault." Holly said. She finished her chores in her room to keep it clean, but she decidedly walked out after her brother to sit next to him in the same room to wait for Azeal and Navir.
Lloyd knows full well that it's his fault, Holly didn't need to mention it. He was the cause of Azeal's anger towards him and he's going to probably have to be told to do some very necessary things after the mission. A la, similarly to how angry he got Azeal would mean something heavily not good. "Alright, sister." Lloyd said. He didn't even have a jab in there because he wanted to leave the past in the past.
Despite having been rattled by the hymn and the outburst of emotion that followed, Navir had quickly regained her composure and turned her attention back to the rest of the crew as they reacted to her response and following apology. Most seemed to accept the situation as it was, but she noticed a disapproving shake of Qingshe's head, despite the mild smile that adorned her face. She paid it no mind for now. If need be, she could always regain the lost approval at a later time and if not, then so be it.
Azael, who didn't seem to disapprove of her actions, suggested splitting up the team into two groups; Izaroth, Alice, Clarissa, Qingshe and Mike would head planet side to collect the gem and herself, Lloyd, Holly and Azael would infiltrate the SPA space station to create a distraction. The plan was sound enough, and she nodded in agreement, watching as the team discussed their options and suggestions among themselves. Qingshe pulled a chip from her shadow, explaining her plan of infecting the station's systems with a virus, which Clarissa happily joined in on by way of summoning an odd looking spiderling and sending it away a short while later. Izaroth accepted the chip as well, although he responded in a much more stoic manner, as she had come to expect by now. It seemed the splitting of the teams was a bit unbalanced compared to their usual way of handling things, but considering the effect the gem had on Lloyd, Holly, Azael and herself, there was nothing to be done about it.
Mike was next to pipe up in agreement to Azael's plan, and wholeheartedly agreed to the twins' suggestion of not killing any of the SPA staff members while they were there. Holly requested them to support her and Navir shot her a small smile and a nod in response, before turning to look out the windows of the meeting room, out into the darkness of space while they approached their destination. She heard E.D.I. speak up as well, accepting the offer of help from Alice and Qingshe to develop countermeasures, yet adding that without the gem itself they wouldn't be foolproof. Navir doubted any countermeasure would be a 100% effective. How do you counter such a raw power, based on one of the most primal emotions that existed? It was near unfathomable that the ship's computer or even the brilliance of Qingshe and Alice would be able to counter such an absurd power of the universe. It was almost as if breaking one of the laws of the universe itself.
Even so, she decided to place a little trust in the members of the team. Being grim and negative about the whole situation wouldn't do anyone any good. She was the second-in-command on this ship and of this team, she figured it was time to step up to the plate and act like one.
She turned back to the group, only to notice Qingshe dropping herself in shadows and coming out looking entirely different, like some sort of nun.
Her appearance had changed to that of a seemingly younger woman, with brown locks of hair framing her face. Her eyes had remained somewhat similar to her own, although the shape of them had changed to be more rounded and human, and she was donned in the most sinful looking nun's habit she had ever laid eyes on. When Qingshe greeted the team with a higher, more melodic voice, Navir couldn't help but grin softly. It was an odd choice for a disguise, even more so when you kept in mind the planet they were going to, but she was sure nobody would recognize the woman for who she truly was.
Alice was next to change her appearance, albeit in an entirely different manner from Qingshe. Alice began playing her guitar, starting slow while vanishing from sight as she did. The music, however, continued to play and began to speed up, increasing rapidly before suddenly falling silent. Navir quirked a brow as the moment of silent lingered, only for Alice to step back into the meeting room, now with green hair and cyan colored eyes. It was a simple disguise, certainly compared to Qingshe's elaborate transformation, but this too would do the trick of hiding Alice's identity.
At this point, Azael piped up in response to the twins' questions and started explaining the plan, noting how the two teams would depart simultaneously to ensure they would have time to infiltrate the station and do what they needed to do. His suggestion to infiltrate while posing as inspectors from the Federation caused a smile to appear on Navir's lips, and she nodded in agreement. 'I concur, Azael. Posing as an inspection team, specifically for a surprise inspection, will be the best way for us to get into the station without being suspected.' she responded.
With her task decided, it seemed she would have to follow the other girls' lead and change her appearance as well. 'E.D.I, please show me the general uniform's a quadrant manager of the Federation would wear.' she requested, a hologram with some examples popping up almost immediately. Taking note of the general style of clothing and the distinct angular markings on the sides of most of the examples, Navir nodded and almost immediately was covered in a black, shadowy essence. When the energy dissipated, she was dressed in a tight, black pencil skirt down to her knees with semi-high pumps, a white, buttoned up blouse and a black blazer with long sleeves, the same angular markings on her sides and a cinched waist. A pair of half rim glasses rested near the tip of her nose and simple, silver earrings adorned her ears. With a snap of her fingers, her golden hair started turning black, the color spreading from the roots to the ends, and she swiftly tied it up into a high pony-tail. Navir noted that Izaroth and Azael had already left the meeting room, but paid it no further mind.
She turned to look at her reflection in one of the large windows that lined the meeting room, nodding approvingly, while seemingly considering her disguise, before suddenly snapping her fingers as if remembering something. 'Of course, almost forgot.' she murmured, closing her eyes and tapping into her core. 'Silaima.' A small, but intense burst of energy washed off her, but seemingly did nothing. Nonetheless, Navir seemed pleased with the end result and turned back to face the rest of the team. 'I suggest we all get ready to go, time is of the essence, after all. If anybody needs me, I'll be waiting at the docking bay.' she stated, sending a curt nod to the room before leaving.
As everyone got ready and there were no futher questions, Mike took a deep breath himself as he traced a mark in the air infront of him. It pulsed with the intense power of Darkness mixed in with demon magic so unfathomable that it would be impossible to detect which family it originated from. This was Mike displaying at least to those still with him, the first account of his people unique occult magic, the magic that the federation wanted and one of the major things the Sattolion imprisoned his people for.
Two more pulse came from it as they washed over Mike changing his appearance to that of a tall frightening looking man with a heavily scarred face, he had the aura of a commander. Jet black hair with deep red eyes, every inch of his body and clothes morph to fit this design even his voice had changed from the more cheerful tone of Mike to a deep threating voice of a man in command and feared by everyone. Maybe it was Mike playing with the idea of how people who didn't know him like his crew, family and friends viewed what the Ashen Demon was, at least in human terms.
Taking a leaf out of Navir book, Mike inspected his form in the mirror and said in his new voice "So this is how people think the appearance of the Ashen Demon is, find it kinda hilarious that I look more human then demon consider the name". With that, he swapped his sword over for one of his older weapons. A Sniper Rifle modified and altered over a long career, this weapon had be specifically designed for him years ago and it had bullets filled with elemental energy that would refill overtime itself, he switched the mode to non-lethal and then equipped himself with a few extra like smoke bomb with built in sleeping gas, traps that when triggered would also set off knockout/knockback pulse and a noise marker designed to draw people away from spots that he need.
Mike nodded once he was happy and said to his team "Meet me at the stealth ship, we'll dispatch once the main ship docked"
Izaroth would mark the change in appearance of Mike with some curiosity than concern. According to the man himself, it was based on what the people believed the Ashen demon to be based on the mercenary captain's reputation alone. As Mike dismissed the group, to make the requisite preparations, Izaroth would head back to his quarters to go and make the necessary preparations.
"So that's what the people believe the Ashen Demon to be, based solely on hearsay? If only they knew the real Ashen Demon. The very idea of that misconception would shatter like glass. A scenario for later. Commencing AI backup... Complete." The android would ponder to himself, setting the virus chip to one side beside a terminal connected to his various systems, and would reach up to the back of his head, brushing his synthetic hair aside to pull out a sort of flash drive, which he'd then connect to the terminal before him, uploading the backup to an unknown system somewhere else, before carefully connecting the virus chip as to not have it run rampant into the terminal systems, and would integrate a simplified copy of his own AI into the chip to help increase it's potency by enabling it to more precisely direct the virus, likewise programmed to self-terminate. The team on the ground had a large area to cover, and he would need to make sure the virus didn't go off to harass the security measures on the wrong part of the planet.
With the task complete, he'd return the drive to the back of his head, and would set about programming his loadout for the coming mission. Most of his systems could be left as is, but he'd need to swap out some of his hardware for the coming mission. The shotguns and beam halberd mounted into his arms, for instance, would need to be adjusted or swapped out, his brightly colored armor plating would need to be swapped out for something more camouflaged for the jungle world, and his core-fed laser cannon would need to be inhibited outright. They were there to be stealthy, not blow up half the planet.
His left shotgun would be swapped for a tranquilizer dart system intended to pacify small to human sized targets, and the right would be swapped for a powerful shockwave gun intended to blast anything attempting to attack at close range backwards, while not uprooting a tree in the process. He'd retain his halberd, but instead of an energy blade, it'd emit a powerful shock intended to force someone or something into unconsciousness instead, and would also have his back mounted thruster units fitted with the camouflaged armor plating. With everything set up, Izaroth would then step onto the assembly unit, which would carry out the needed alterations to the Android's equipment. It would also equip the android with a matching full-face helmet to cover and protect his facial features, as well as make him harder to identify.
With his preparations thus completed, the Android would retrieve the modified virus chip and stow it away into a concealed compartment, and proceed to the hangar bay in a punctual manner, awaiting the rest of the team's arrival aboard the stealth ship, running a system diagnostic to make sure that everything was properly functioning for the coming mission.
Qingshe's gleeful smile only continued to widen, as the other crew members took on disguises of their own. "Oh~, my my my~! Alice, dearie, doesn't that just suit you nicely~!" The now brunette nun made a show of circling the newly greenette doctor, grinning incessantly. "Mmm! I love what you've done with the hair-! Ah~, and the layers with that color pallet? Mmm, mmm, mmm, looking smart!" The girl lavished Alice's disguise with praise, before her golden eyes flicked towards Navir's own change, a shit-eating grin spreading across her lips. "Oh dear~, Navir, aren't you a catch? You'll have them begging to be disciplined, I'm sure~." And stepped on, for that matter, judging by the size of those heels. Qingshe wondered just how many guards would become careless at the mere sight of a pretty face; it was easy to underestimate what a bit of beauty could do.
Her attention was drawn to Mike, a single brow quirking at the billowing, oppressive sensation of demonic magic that even her novice mystical senses could pick up. She loosed a small giggle, as the captain's appearance morphed into something that she would have personally described as the embodiment of stereotypical evil -or at least a flavor of it, so exaggerated that it wrapped right back around to funny, especially when it didn't possess a single truly intimidating inhuman feature. Not even the eyes. She was well aware that red eyes were perfectly possible for humans; rare, but not out of the question. It boggled her mind that the public perception of the "Ashen Demon" was something this... cartoonish. And edgy.
Qingshe shoved down her inner fashionista, restraining the impulse to offer improvements. She was confident she could make this disguise of Mike's much more intimidating... perhaps even going as far as physical modifications? Oh, the things she could do with his body~! The ways she could shape and sculpt it to truly give their enemies the Ashen Demon experience the galaxy deserved~! Something that could live up to the hyp-
No, bad! Down, girl. Let the captain have his fun. We're on a schedule.
And so, Qingshe held her tongue with an unflinching smile and nodded in assent, as Mike finished arming himself and left them with orders to meet him at the stealth ship. The crew was spreading out by now already. The twins, Azeal and Izaroth had already left to make their own preparations. For her own part, the Berwatsenian scientist had little in the way of preparations left to make, save for ensuring Azeal's team had enough opportunities to insert her virus. On that note...
Humming quietly, Qingshe briefly consulted the ship's security systems until she found her target. Seeing as time was increasingly of the essence, whether Clarissa returned the virus chip to her still extended shadow or not, Qingshe finally left the meeting room herself. Walking through the walls of the Fenrir's Maw, she made an unwavering beeline towards the figure of Azeal, who seemed to have wrapped up a meeting with the ship's pilot.
"Oh, Azeal~, don't forget to bring my little present along~," Approaching the ship's weapon master, Qingshe briefly curled one hand into a closed fist, before her ooze bubbled forth in her palm from the shadow created by the action. Holding out her hand towards Azeal, the girl clad in a salacious nun's habit, grinned, as several identical copies of the virus data chip extended forth invitingly from the ooze. These chips would contain the best updated version of the virus Qingshe had at her disposal and would include any of Clarissa's own modifications, provided she had returned the chip that Qingshe had handed her to the ooze. "There's enough for everyone in your infiltration team to take along, so don't hesitate to distribute them liberally~. The more chances we have to use it, the better."
I am online all the time, my sleeping schedule is fixing itself good enough. (The Online all the time might change. Since I need to start working Part Time Jobs.)
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Advanced
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Sci-Fi, Space Opera, Magical, Fantasy, Modern, Post-Apocalyptic Themes, Alternate Universe, Alternate Reality, Horror and Any Anime Fandom
Holly took a seat in the Holdaway Room, which is across from the starship's armory. She's the one who gave the room the nickname of Holdaway since it's like a break room but for games and cleaning up weapons or the like. Holly learned many things from this room especially how to try to bluff even though she's terrible at it. "I have to ask a small question, brother. How many times have we tried to play poker?" Holly asked. She wanted to play that again but with everyone being so busy and her working on writing down everyone's recipes excluding those who don't want to give out their special ingredients or otherwise. However, this small chat was to bring up something that wasn't bothering her but more likely that she wanted to know why he brought some tools and working on them at the table across from her.
Lloyd heard his sister sit down, and asked the question of poker specifically and thankfully he smiled slightly. He knew why she asked this question since he was messing with some of the engineering tools that he usually uses to inspect machinery and the like. "I think we have played poker for about around twenty or more times, but it's always you giving up your position of strength with a royal flush to a straight. But I am working towards what we are going to do as part of the infiltration team. I am an engineer after all, despite how I act I'm grateful we are on Fenrir's Maw or we would have probably been on a Freighter repairing and keeping it running on prayers and dreams." Lloyd said.
Holly gasped slightly when her brother said royal flush and realized that despite her wanting to learn games, she never took it seriously. She was grateful that they both agreed to be on Fenrir's Maw since that Freighter idea would have been seriously a pain since that freighter was primarily on its last legs. "I only wanted to learn, but you knew that. We should get going to the docking bay since that's where everyone in our team will be." Holly said. She smiled slightly since she had the perfect outfit to fit the part of what Azeal and Navir would probably wear. It was expensive yes, but she did splurge a bit since she loves wearing beautiful clothes akin as a uniform since the government, military uniforms were pretty expensive.
Lloyd was finished with his tinkering with his inspection tools for everything that would make him look the part. He turned towards his sister and smiled. "Alright, sister, I'm ready. Let's go to the docking bay." Lloyd said. He had a slight feeling that the special outfit that his sister has telepathically told him a few times will be used, but it would be better to wait and see what it is and not say anything to her. Despite everything, his sister has a fashion sense since if it wasn't for her he wouldn't be wearing his engineering outfit he wears. Since he always wanted to be an engineer and funnily enough, the Enigmatic Sect Dimension's Core of Engineers wear specifically a unique set of gear properly to work on whatever they were asked to do.
The twins leave the Holdaway Room, and go their separate ways, which means, Lloyd specifically goes directly towards the Docking Bay. All the while, Holly goes to get that expensive one-of-a-kind outfit she bought that was an expensive high dollar uniform since she might have joined the military instead of sticking with her brother. Since they had their lives together even if they were survivors of a tragedy, the destruction of the Enigmatic Sect Dimension.
Fenrir's Maw – Docking Bay
Lloyd enters the Docking Bay, notices Navir and walks up to her. He instantly recognized that she had changed her looks similarly to everyone else from the Meeting Hall. Specifically, Qingshe, Alice, and others possibly to look different to hide what they actually look like and she looks the part of an inspector general at the very least. "Navir, how long have you been waiting?" Lloyd asked. He wasn't going to mention anything about his sister being late since it's serious to be part of this mission and it'll take many things to fuck with his cohesion. However, the two twins had to leave the meeting room since Qingshe's transformation freaked him out.
Thirty seconds later, Holly entered the Docking Bay with wearing a beautiful outfit that was very much similar to a Secretary to a Federation Quadrant Manager. Holly walked up to her brother and Navir wearing the Secretary's uniform, and her long beautiful silvered white hair was in a bun. "Your outfit is so beautiful Navir! I am your secretary for this mission, since you look the part of the Federation with your outfit. I followed my personal beliefs to put my hair in a bun, since I don't want to hurt my hair." Holly said. She was so happily smiling with the fact that she didn't see Navir's change since Lloyd and Holly did leave the Meeting room for different reasons.
Lloyd didn't quite suspect that his sister would walk only thirty seconds later, when he would think it would take her a few minutes to change. "So that's the uniform you bought with your money, sister? You were so happy you got it. I can understand why now, you were going to join the Federation weren't you?" Lloyd asked. He was understandingly worried about her answer but he could tell that them are better together as a team than apart going against each other after all. It was how they were when they were kids after all despite all the yelling and arguing.
Holly looked towards her brother slightly, blinked, nodded to his questions. She chose being a freelance cook over being a Federation Secretary because of her passions would outweigh the amount of money she would get. "Yes, it's obvious but I chose cooking for the homeless and helpless over working a dead end job. One of the small things, that I chose correctly since seeing the smiles of the people getting a full belly is better than working for a country that would grind me down to nothing." Holly said. She didn't like jobs that would destroy her passion and cause her to become a cog in the great machine.
Lloyd smiled at Holly for answering his questions, and even he underestimated his sister Holly despite her want to go back to the past of living her life, she learned the hard way to live her life how she wants. Despite everyone else, wanting her to live her life their way, since sacrifices are a must. "I'll always protect you from those that want you to live your life their way, sister. Navir, we are ready for our mission since we will succeed." Lloyd said. His passion is his work as an engineer and he likes getting paid for his work despite what his sister does, she does everything for free since she doesn't want to put a price for cooking for others. If it wasn't for his paychecks, since he did give his sister a birthday gift to get that outfit she did buy after all it cheered her up.
Holly smiled at her brother and she knew that it was her brother's birthday gift that helped her get this outfit in the first place. She was told as much since it was her birthday since they have to be independent and that since their parents are no longer alive giving them their birthday money, Christmas money, etc. "Alright, brother! I'm so happy that we can do a mission with Navir and Azeal! I'll do my best Navir!" Holly exclaimed happily.
Needless to say, Alice took the compliments of her disguise well enough, particularly from her partner in crime Qingshe.
"Why thank you, I'm somewhat experience with trying to get unnoticed by prying eyes in my line of work." She told her with a smile. But that smile suddenly broke the moment the Captain used his... "Occult" magic, "Pffft!" to disguise himself. The disguise itself was overexaggerated in how villainous he seems to look; seems like something that bring more hostile attention to them than less, but there was more to it than that.
Being a Sorceress and an Utwoxalran one at that, the so-called "occult" magic Mike displayed was something she never saw, but was well aware of. Her world were filled with practitioners of magic of almost all kinds. So when the Federation was looking into this magic, naturally her people were the first thing they turned to. But to Alice, being asked to study "occult" magic was like going to a ship yard and saying 'I want you to make boats!' It's such a vague, and outdated word that it could mean anything; it could mean magic in and of itself, and in that respect it was almost insulting to her and her sisters.
So, this was what they were referring to, dark magics with no visible origin point other than the underworld, a general sense of demonic power of no particular distinction. In other words, what people in ancient times used to call "Black Magic".
"...Hey Boss, as not only a Sorceress but as your chief medical officer, you should probably avoid using that particular magic for small things like disguises. ...In fact, you should probably use that magic as little as you can. There's still people wanting that power for themselves, right? That magic can be pretty dangerous to the owner; you should probably save it for an emergency if it ever comes to that. " She said to him. Her tone had that same energy and concern, but there was a jewel like glint in her eyes like sapphires as her face stiffened up to a concerned, stern frown. Black magic was a dangerous thing to wield, she's seen many stories of how witches and warlocks of ancient times harnessed the powers of the underworld to concoct wicked spells, and in all her studies, it never ended well for any of them, not even when their goals were met. There was always a price to be paid for such power.
There was also something to be said about the disguise itself. In theory, she understands the idea the Captain was going for: If everyone puts focus on what they believe is the Ashen Demon, then they'll never realize what he truly looks like, something that can be used as an advantage and as protection of himself, his crew, and most importantly his family. On the other hand, it was a disguise that - even without the black magic seeping from it - gives off a very dark and hostile aura about it. How to put it? It's like if Azeal's human form was even less subtle about his demonic origins than it already was. Still, her primary concern was the magic he used; perhaps it's best that someone else points out that particular elephant in the room.
Nodding at the Captain's order. Alice headed back to the lab to get some supplies, as well as prep up her trusty guitar-axe. Getting a proper container for the Gem of Desire's impossible for now without any knowledge of how it works. Best she could do is make guess work for now and see what happens. That said, she took a marker and drew runes upon the outside of the glass container. It was a bit makeshift; very few runes and not quite as perfectly to the shape that she'd like, but she was in a hurry and this was the best she could do for now. Fortunately, the spell itself was a rather simple one, a seal for mana displacement to prevent any magical energy from leaking out. In order words, an anti-magic seal. "I prefer the term "Mana displacement field" myself."
Once that was done, she put it in her bag and headed off to the Stealth ship as ordered.
On his way to his position, Azeal stumbled upon Holly's Room, hearing the conversation between the siblings, something he couldn't help himself but to eavesdrop on. It seems they were having some kind of intervention regarding what happened in the Enigmatic Sect Dimension, Lloyd losing a lover amidst the carnage their grandparents wrought upon them, and it seemed to strain their relationship on each other as well. They seemed to come to a consensus, something Azeal needed them to do for their own sake, but more noticeable was what Lloyd said in particular...
"It's the reason why I want to stop everything that we have done in the past. Please let's move on, the memories can live on you know."
...It was an odd way of saying it - nothing new with these two - but to Azeal...
"The Memories can live on, huh?"
To call it a gut punch would be overselling it, but it did have an impact. All he'd been doing since the day he lost his family was trying to reclaim it, impossible as it was. Now most of his family was an emotional trainwreck, and all he's doing at the end of the day - his endgoal - has been to pick up the pieces of what was left behind.
In that regard, he can't really call himself much different to them; all of them lost something dear to them on account of the holy war, and by the sound of things, all of them were clinging on to that past in hopes of reclaiming it. Hard as it is to think, Lloyd was right. The past needs to be the past, and in the case of Azeal, all he can do now is make sure his past doesn't destroy their future.
Listening to them, he concluded that they seemed ready enough as a pair - something he needed for those two in particular - and so he quietly walked off to prepare for the mission.
On his way to his room though, he heard a voice that made him stop in his tracks.
"Oh, Azeal~, don't forget to bring my little present along~,"
In all his years, Azeal has seen and heard of many things in the depths of hell, things that would make a sinner find God if ever he knew what nightmares awaited him when he dies. But nothing had made him stand to attention and shutter quite like hearing that serpentine voice calling his name. He turned around, and sure enough there she was, Alice's new scientific buddy, and as a nun... the irony was not lost on him. Now why was she standing behind him like this? Oh yeah, the virus! Nodding to her and holding his hand, he waited for the shadow to ooze out the data chips, almost as if it was vomiting them out into his hand. Technically by the sound of things they only needed one of these chips, but, as she says, the more they distributed them around the better. Made sense to him; at the very least it would speed to process along if they infected multiple points as oppose to waiting for it to spread from one. Creepy as she may have been, Qingshe was also quite the outside-the-box type of clever girl. It was easy to see how Alice took a shine to her.
"Thanks. We'll figure out how best to spread this out when we get there." He said outright to her.
As if on cue...
"Ok folks, look alive, we got the Green light from SPA Central Command! Taking us up to dock now! Team A, report to the docking bay with whatever you need and get ready to roll, EDI will be launching you guys the second we enter their docks. Team B, get what you have to and be ready by the main entrance." Caroline's voice said across the ship's speaker system.
It seems the plan was about ready to start.
"Alright, you be careful out there, and do try to keep Alice and the Cap'n out of trouble." He said to Qingshe before making a run to his room. Creepy as she was, she was clearly one of the more mature and dependable members of the team, right alongside Navir in fact. If anyone can get Team A out of a bind - particularly one of their own making - Qingshe seemed the most likely to him. Call it a gut feeling he had.
The Fenrir's Maw landed smoothly enough into the docking bay of the SPACCs thanks to Caroline's careful handling. The force field opening up to allow her inside. With a seemingly innocent hand gesture directly in the view of EDI's camera, Caroline gave the AI the signal to launch the second ship stealthily out the station and towards Fubakfem while the Station's force field was still open, but closing fast.
...Actually, Smoothly wasn't quite the word for it, as she seemed to get distracted and stopped too late, bumping the ship's nose onto the edge of the dock, causing a loud noise that got all the denizens of the station's attention. This, of course, was a distraction, an "accidental" slip up on her part to divert attention away from the smaller ship being launched out from the rear.
"...Sorry!"She simply said to the now rather irritated agents.
Opening the entrance way to the ship, Azeal immediately walked out, rubbing the back of his head with a pained look on his face, wearing a business suit now as oppose to the usual casual attire he always seemed to wear.
"Damn rookie... The higher-ups gotta stop giving us amateurs everytime we go on these things! I'll need to repremand later." Azeal said in an agitated tone, seemingly regarding Caroline and her "bumpy" landing, seemingly critiquing her piloting skills though in actuality, providing more cover to their true intent. ...That said, it did actually hurt like hell, his head hitting a wall the instant the ship collided with the dock.
He looked at the rather large bay while waiting for the other three to head out. Taking a good look at the SPA members, most of them seemingly humanoid plants in various types, shapes, colors, and sizes. Most of their body are a bunch of green vines wrapping together to the shape of limbs, with a variety of flowers ontop of their heads to serve as hair, two white beads for their eyes and a slit of the vines to serve as the mouth.
These were the Rhi'myn, or "Alraune" as the humans like to call them, a group of planet life that serve as Fubakfem's human counterpart, having evolved from the plant life below for millions of years in the same vein as the humans evolution from monkeys. Since the dawn of their evolved existence, these were the most intelligent and adaptable life form on the planet, serving as both hunters and protectors of the various fauna that lives upon it with them. After the Holy War, they took it upon themselves to become their planet's protectors and formed the SPA to that end. There are other members of the organization that are of other races, specifically those from within the federation who, for one reason or another, decided to join their ranks. But the vast majority of SPA appeared to be comprised of Rhi'myn.
One small group of these Rhi'myn, their bodies seemingly producing extra vines to make a kind of pseudo-clothing, complete with a flower on the center one's lapel like a medal, walked up to Azeal and the others whent they came by.
"Welcome, dear guests. It is an honor for the Federation to grace us with their prescence once more. Although, I must confess I'm somewhat surprised there's an inspection so early into the year. Did something happen by chance?" The Rhi'myn asked them with a rather gruff, yet somewhat humbled tone of voice. Azeal said nothing, waiting for Navir to respond with some kind of deceptive excuse to get the "inspection" rolling.
To be honest, Azeal was curious to see what kind of web she'd spin.
The second ship, meanwhile seemed to have managed to get out of the socking bay as it headed straight for the planet, its stealth systems operational as it did. Alice looked out towards the jungles below; a beautiful unearthly green radiated the area almost completely overtaking the horizon, were it not for the small patches of cyan that littered the ground. Not a single spot on the planet was barren, there was signs of life as far as the eye could see. One would easily forget the fact an intelligent life form lives here and created a civilization amidst the bountiful nature, had it not been for the bits of stone surrounded by vines suggesting buildings assimilated by it.
...Which might have presented something of a problem.
"Well, we're getting into the atmosphere fine enough...Anyone see a spot for us to land?" She asked her Team. There did seem to be some patches of open field to land the ship on, as tight a squeeze as some of them were. But more to the point, they had to somehow find a spot closest to a gem that they have little in the way of detecting, aside from the luring song it seems to resonate.
Hopefully the Captain has a plan of how to narrow it down; they don't have time to comb the entire planet.
Mike was silent as events happened, his mind focused on ensuring nothing went wrong. By the time he spoke, everything had gone to plan so far. Now he just had to hope that the others could give them enough time.
"E.D.I, active tracker," Mike said as the ships scanner began to search and seek out the gems using its unique signal. "If I was to take a guess, it's probably located in the most remount part of this planet where almost no one goes, which would explain why its not been found" Mike told Alice before a warning suddenly appeared.
"Erm captain, I've tracked the gem, but it seems to be moving, I'm also detecting a second ship not of our own," the A.i told him.
Mike cursed softly before he said "Dammit, I was hoping for a easy quest. Alright crew, we're dropping in as quickly as possible, E.D.I get us as close as you can then open the door, we going to jump the moving target". The ship autoflight brought them as close as it could to the moving target before Mike large wings came out his back as he dived down towards the target. E.D.I deployed special flight wings for the others who couldn't fly or land without injuring themselves.
"Looks like we're not the only ones who are aware of the gem's location here... And has managed to beat us to it. The time for caution is past, it seems, lest our prize slip away." Izaroth would say before following Mike out of the ship, his back-mounted wing thrusters roaring into life as he began his pursuit.
"Remain alert, we could still run afoul of the defense arrays in our haste. But be ready for a fight. I doubt whoever this is will surrender the gem willingly." The android said over short distance communications to the planet side team as he caught up to Mike, readying his modified "halberd" to deal a nasty shock to anything that tries to take a bite out of them, commencing a full area scan to try to lock on to any non-wildlife heat signatures.
"Already everything's going awry... What was it Crobalt usually said? "Nothing's ever that easy" or something? Musings for later."
Location: Fubakfem Skyline, Landing Ship
Once Azeal had taken possession of her adorable little party favors, Qingshe sent him a parting wave and giggle, as she half-sashayed her way to the docking bay of the Fenrir's Maw and habitually keyed herself into wirelessly monitoring the landing ship's systems. Sending the fellow members of her team a nod, Qingshe found herself a window to lean against in wait, eventually electing to not address the Captain's rather counterproductive "disguise". She didn't understand the full breadth of the reasoning for Alice's concern with Mike using that particular flavor of strangely indistinct "demonic" magic, but being that Alice was an expert in magic, Qingshe would at least log that concern as worth giving credence to, despite not being particularly afraid of utilizing "forbidden" powers herself.
In the meanwhile, as the landing ship left and descended from the Fenrir's Maw towards Fubakfem, wide golden eyes eagerly watched the surface of the X-Class planet below grow closer, the woman disguised in a salacious nun's habit all but pressing herself up against the window in order to take it all in. It's not everyday you get to visit a quarantined planet like this, after all~. Eagle-sharp eyes scanned the horizon and jungles below, spying a few delectably new critters that left her internally salivating, and her eyes briefly narrowed to reptilian slits even through her disguise.
Her gaze flicked to clandestine signs of civilization, tucked within the mass of green. Rudimentary, wildly outdated -at least outwardly- stone buildings were nestled within the bountiful grasp of nature, thick crawling masses of vines and layers of moss accompanying the natural shelter of nearby trees. Flittering around within those masses, she could have sworn she could see some rather plant-like creatures, the local sentients, going about their daily lives, but as Alice asked about a landing zone, Qingshe affected a pout and pulled herself back to the task at hand, turning her attention more to the shape of the landscape generally.
"Ahmmm~! I do believe I spy with my little eyes a couple opportune targets~," the "nun" grinned, turning a corner of her attention to her connection to the ship's systems to send EDI some coordinate data, naturally already correctly formatted to leave no confusion about the places she was indicating. "Although~, of course, I'm sure many of those will be less convenient, depending on exactly where the Gem's location is determined to b-"
Qingshe's voice cut off in shock, as the Captain's orders to EDI bore quick and accurate fruit. Her eyes widened, as she immediately wasted no time being stunned at what had just occurred and copied the hell out of that signal data that EDI was running in her awareness of the scanners, briefly too shocked for words that it was this easy. Based on how the Gems of Desire had been described, she felt she had rightfully assumed -supported by Alice's own apparent assumption- that the Gems would not be detected purely be technological means. She had thought, surely, that there would be a mystical or magitech element to it.
And yet, there is not...
That was concerning and perplexing in equal measure. For yet again, Qingshe had to baffle at how such a secure and heavily monitored planet as Fubakfem (which should have had pretty much no other technological interference to mask such signals) had managed to host this Gem of Desire unknown for so long. Sure, in a sense, this might partially explain how High Priestess Vivian had known where it was... But what it did not explain was how no-one else had gotten to it first long before the message about the Gems had been broadcast to the galaxy.
But I'll just have to get answers to those questions later...
In the present, Qingshe snapped into action, as EDI's scan reported an irritating complication. "Someone else has already has the Gem? Wha-?" Qingshe shook her head and chuffed, her usual mien of undaunted confidence back in place, as she watched Mike and Izaroth fly out the landing ship's now open door. Twitching inwardly, Qingshe clicked her tongue and giggled. "Ah well~, seems we're going in loud anyway~!"
Crackling black ooze boiled out from the hem of Qingshe's nun habit, spilling out the open door of the ship and sticking to the walls and underside in complete defiance of gravity, maintaining a visible liquidity, as it bulged from the underside of the ship and spat several times in rapid succession.
Suddenly, now arcing through the air in Mike and Izaroth's wake, there were a number of pale, fleshy masses that -on a closer look- might seem to be live human beings. In fact, on an actual scan of them, they would appear to be such. In reality, however, these were but mindless bags of meat, faceless dolls with no genitalia. They were alive only in the most technical objective sense, mass-produced by Qingshe's shadow without any soul or guiding intelligence to call their own. They existed to be used, and what they were being used for now was decoys.
If the ship her team was approaching right now had any targeting systems capable of discerning and firing at organic or heat signatures as small as a human, these meat decoys would by all accounts appear just as genuine to those scanners as any of her teammates and draw their fire. And if not? Well, whether they were splattered by gunfire or with contact with the surface of the planet far below, each decoy was designed to shortly suffer biological self-destruct and dissolve, leaving no evidence behind.
In the meanwhile, Qingshe's shadow bulged again, and the head of a missile peeked out just below the lip of the landing ship's open door. The missile was a sleek ebony black, accented -as usual- by glowing green lines down its length, one about twice as long as Qingshe was tall, and a number of unusually large "fins" splayed from it like wings. A pair of indentations around midway down the missile's length opened, and Qingshe all but glided forward, her feet slipping into and being secured by clasps within those indentations, just as the inactive missile fully left her shadow and plummeted down, the rest of the shadow dissolving from the crew's landing ship in its creator's wake.
Plummeting like a stone through the sky over Fubakfem, a wild, gleeful grin spread across Qingshe's lips, as she allowed herself to briefly enjoy the feeling of freefall, before her shadow rippled out underfoot again. A film of ooze spread across the surface of the missile, careful not to hinder its aerodynamics and leaving a small patch open over an access port in a triangular position from the spot where Qingshe's feet were secured. A moment later, a chord snapped out of the ooze and neatly slotted into that port, and suddenly-
Qingshe grinned wider, as the missile thrummed to life underfoot, now fully under her control again, despite being outside her shadow. For the scientist had designed the missile with an access port that would allow her to plug something she did still directly control into its systems even after disconnection from her main mass, no different from directing something wirelessly, really, but far more secure and clandestine.
With her connection established and control now reacquired over her mount, Qingshe directed the missile's thrusters to blaze to life in a glorious roar, the "wings" guiding the rocket into a sudden spin and steep skyward ascent. Largely swallowed by the wind, a small cackle escaped Qingshe's lips, as she quickly caught up to Mike and Izaroth, grinning incessantly from where she stood proudly straight-backed atop a midair missile, her brunette hair and wimple flaring behind her in the wind, the latter somehow not flying off. The "nun" shot them both a cheeky wink, as she crossed her arms under her chest and grinned wider, her expression all gleaming teeth and eager golden eyes at their approach towards the ship of their apparent competitors.
A "spine" of small rod-like sensors began to grow up from the top of the missile, already keyed and searching for various forms of incoming targeting radar and infrared. Simultaneously, the ooze coating the undersize of her missile bulged out, as the heads of several heat flares began to protrude in preparation to further muddy the waters of the signatures the enemy ship might be detecting.
Qingshe's own voice slithered over the short-distance communications in return to Izaroth's warning to the team. "Biological decoys deployed~. Heat signature decoys: ready and waiting~."
Navir strode around the Docking Bay while waiting, her demeanor exuding an air of authority that matched her sharp business attire. As her gaze scanned the room, she immediately spotted Lloyd approaching her. She noted his recognition of her altered appearance, a calculated transformation to blend in with the others from the Meeting Hall. Qingshe, Alice, and the rest had also undergone changes, a necessary precaution for the mission.
"Lloyd," Navir acknowledged with a nod, her tone measured and composed. "I had been here only a few moments. Time is of the essence, after all."
Her attention shifted as Holly entered, her junior's vibrant energy a stark contrast to Navir's own reserved demeanor. Holly's compliment on her outfit drew a faint smile from Navir, appreciating the gesture despite her stoicism.
Lloyd's inquiry about Holly's uniform prompted a slight raise of Navir's eyebrow, though she remained silent, allowing the siblings to exchange words. She observed their dynamic with a sense of detachment, yet a hint of warmth surfaced as she witnessed Lloyd's protective stance towards his sister.
When Lloyd declared their readiness for the mission, Navir nodded in agreement. "Indeed, we should focus on the task at hand. Efficiency is paramount."
Holly's enthusiasm was met with a nod from Navir, acknowledging her commitment to the mission. Despite their differences, Navir recognized the importance of unity within their team, especially with the nephilim siblings, who brought their own strengths to the table, when it was necessary. Navir would probably never admit to it, but she held a particular soft spot for the two, even if Lloyd could get on her nerves at times.
With a final glance around the Docking Bay, Navir prepared herself mentally for the challenges ahead.
After stepping out of the Maw and into the busy halls of the station, a group of SPA workers were quick to approach their group. Navir maintained her composed demeanor as she stepped forward, her gaze meeting the Rhi'myn's with a mix of confidence and diplomacy. "Ah, indeed," she began smoothly, her voice carrying the authority befitting her assumed role. "We appreciate your warm welcome, esteemed members of the SPA. As for the unexpected timing of our visit, it's simply a matter of routine protocol adjustments. You see, recent developments in interstellar trade regulations necessitate more frequent inspections to ensure compliance and efficiency."
She offered a polite smile, her tone conveying sincerity mingled with a hint of urgency. "Rest assured, it's nothing concerning. Merely a proactive measure on our part to uphold the integrity of our mutual endeavors." Navir's gaze flickered to her team, silently urging them to maintain their roles and support her narrative.
"We understand the inconvenience this may cause," she continued, her expression sympathetic yet resolute. "But we trust in your cooperation, as valued partners in our shared commitment to intergalactic prosperity. If there are any concerns or inquiries, please do not hesitate to bring them to our attention. We're here to facilitate a seamless process and foster continued collaboration between our organizations."
Navir paused, allowing her words to settle before inclining her head respectfully. "With your permission, we'll proceed with the inspection promptly. Time is of the essence, after all." She awaited the Rhi'myn's response, prepared to navigate any further inquiries or objections with the same finesse and strategic diplomacy.
I am online all the time, my sleeping schedule is fixing itself good enough. (The Online all the time might change. Since I need to start working Part Time Jobs.)
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Sci-Fi, Space Opera, Magical, Fantasy, Modern, Post-Apocalyptic Themes, Alternate Universe, Alternate Reality, Horror and Any Anime Fandom
Lloyd smiled at hearing Navir's statement of being here for a few moments before he arrived, which he agreed that time is of the essence. "Better to get in and out as quickly as possible." Lloyd said.
Holly was grateful that Lloyd wanted to protect her and everything else, but she had to get into the role of being Navir's Secretary. Also, it requires some finesse in keeping to the role of secretary. But they were ready for the mission at hand all they had to do was perform the task.
Lloyd already knew what his role was since he was an engineer no matter what already, but he could've probably been nicer to everyone despite that he enjoys being around the Fenrir's Maw Crew. He doesn't want anything to happen to his sister or anyone on this mission. He was confident in his abilities as an engineer.
Location: SPACCS
Holly was the next one to come out of the ship to get right beside Navir and Azeal, which Navir explained the situation to the SPA. She acted particularly well with what Navir said about everything about with the urgency of said inspection, etc. "Yes, it's better to get it done as quickly as possible so you can go back to normalcy." Holly agreeing with Navir's statements as her secretary and genuinely wanting to get it done so the SPA can go back to their usual routines. Before this impromptu inspection, that came upon their lap so quickly, but she did have a slight headache from what happened previously specifically the starship bumping the dock.
Lloyd came out as well and had a smile on his face towards the SPA. His demeanor was an engineer ready to get to work on what he needs to do. He decided not to question what his sister said but agreed with Navir's particular answers to Rhi'myn. "I am ready as you are to get started on this." Lloyd said, with a similar hint of sorry for the inconvenience but didn't overstep Navir's statements on a similar thing.
Holly smiled kindly towards Rhi'myn. She just smiled kindly but also realized that secretaries have always to keep notes, which she does do thankfully. "Good to know we arrived on time instead of being late. Incredibly sorry for everything but as my boss said, we need to get going on our inspection." Holly said, kindly. She should probably said that first thing.
Lloyd kept his eyes on the SPA, instead of his team. "Please, lead the way to where we need to inspect to upgrade your systems for the interstellar trade regulations upgrades." Lloyd said. Upgrading systems is what an engineer would say since he does do that with upgrading required systems or products that need repairing. This organization probably lacks any required repairs to the Space Station since it is a spacestation that commands the region it protects.
Reabsorbing the spiderlings into herself took longer and was a lot messier than it looked outwardly thanks to her illusions, fancy that. Clarissa did a quick scan of the revised virus on the chip before putting it back into Qingshe´s shadow ooze, Neat trick, mine is far too slow, father would laugh, and then smiling appreciatively at the rest of the teammates that donned disguises. An arched eyebrow at Navir nailing the government supervisor and their captain himself apparently not guiding his magic, our resident sorceress is concerned huh, wonder what she´d make of fathers... diwoens, as the rest of the crew one after the other walked out of the meeting room, the ships fixer stayed seated for a while, her eyes darting around in her AR.
"E.D.I? What is the status of my cargo-unit, bring it up please." she said to the empty air and was rewarded with a hologram appearing in front of her above the table.
"I would repeat that you could have this access yourself Clarissa, if you would link up properly with my systems." the A.I. said. "And I remind you what happened last time, my AR escaped into your sub-systems for a week before we got it back, damn fine luck that none of the others noticed." "I am confident the semi-uploaded among the crew realised, I dont see what you are so reluctant about, it was just an unfamiliarity between our firewalls and programming languages" the ships A.I. responded without seeing the womans jawline clenching briefly. Maybe if I could tell you why without sounding absolutely insane you would understand my safeguards. "Unlock internal cameras and sensors, connection code E4-TF7/DAI-IFG5-BTRO-9JO0-T/1"
"..." Clarissa could imagine E.D.I restraining itself from asking the same question as the first time the A.I. had gotten a feed into her lab, "where did these clone bodies come from crewmember, they were not grown on ship, at least not by any bio-tech in my database? she had responded tersely then your captain gave me leave to have my secrets AI... don't push it", if she could go back, maybe she would have told E.D.I that she was only her father's daughter, not a match, not by a thousand dead worlds, to his powers.
The fixer kept perusing the holographic infoscreens for another while, energy-drainage had been stable, temperature the same, no brain activity in any of the... clones, no magic field nothing at all happening in her lab. Breathing a sigh of relief she stood up. "Redraw connection, code Cathrine-04, I'm going down there E.D.I could you let Alice know?" she said before moving down into the walled off section of the cargo-deck where her lab stood. "Ok Clarissa, Alice will be notified that you require a spirit-baseline comparison before takeoff. I am sorry that I am yet unable to observe the neccessary emanations." the A.I. could see the sad smile on her crewmembers face as she walked off, and her mouthing "so would I".
Fubakfem skyline
The stealthy escape from the station and their descent through the atmosphere was a haze in her mind. Clarissa had done what was needed in her lab and on her way back through her room injected the max dosage of stimulants she could without shorting her sensors. The work-overalls were exchanged for a sleek bodysuit that left little to the imagination, though she had kept the facemask off so far, no point in a disguise if her face was covered was there?
"The jungle calls them, the life glowing all around them, tantalizing as they are slowly woken from the edge of starvation. Their father looking on with grim anticipation as their skin seems to melt away, crawling out from their bodies to cover the undergrowth around them... WAKE UP" The others jumping out of the ship registers for Clarissa and she blinks her eyes, sleep-dried, a risk with too much sedatives. The only one left beside her being Alice, looking over she pulls the facemask up, a small spellword to make her voice pass through as her AR syncs with the suit sensors.
"Well Alice, I guess we go in mouth open and teeth out eh?" Clarissa smiles behind the mask before she with a running start jump out of the ship to dive headfirst down through the damp air towards her crewmates. "Open path, enter gallery, loosen bindings on prisoner body, initiate wearing. Focus, only the body, only the flesh, absorb and understand the structure, draw vessels and sinew, spin muscle fibers, drape in skin, lengthen bone into claws. Become, carry form... Senses interfering, packmentality following in flesh, blood of the hunt." Mucus crawling out from the injectionport on her neck to soon cover her like a third skin, a grin splitting across her face. The three lights from her mask glowing through the blank slate of the face and shape that morphed into being from the mould. "Finally! Let loose! Deploy barrier armament, Ha Krima e't mehr da'm. CARVE INTO THEM SISTER!"
Shimering across the fleshy body Clarissa had clothed herself in the magic deflection-spells came into being like an afterthought not her own. All the while the plan of stealth and subterfuge was slipping further from her mind. She could almost taste the lifeforce in the air, the three ahead and the one behind packmates, the flying thing below them their prey. "Her father an iron grip on her neck as her limbs trashed around,Control, deep breaths Clarissa, you are in control, not the corpse you are giving new life, force it to submit, you are in CONTROL" Flinging her arms out to the sides she stopped her dive alongside the others, a query on their communication to engage by boarding or pursue at distance. Clarissa didnt feel stable to talk, and her sedatives were once again empty.
On the outside, Azeal showed no expression beyond the stern mask he had on; he couldn't afford to give these guys anything that might lead to suspicion. But on the inside? Oh, he wanted to give the biggest smirk he could muster. He knew Navir would be capable of pulling this off, but it never gets tiring to see her at work with that. Even back when they were young, she showed enough intellect to walk and talk circles around any demons that would come by to mess with the Reaper. It probably was something of an occupational necessity with her though, who knows what kind of souls she had to have dealt with on active duty; he can't imagine all of them being particularly willing to follow unto the afterlife, after all. Not to mention the whole Reaper job always felt beureaucratic in nature in his eyes.
As expected, the Rhi'myn seemed to have fallen for it, hook line and sinker, with more hesitation in the main representative's eye than any sort of doubt. ...Now that's an interesting reaction. They certainly seemed to believe what Navir says, but they seem a bit...distressed? Worried? The other Rhi'myn seemed to be whispering to each other for some reason as well. Now what could this mean? Is there actually something going on up here, or...?
"Please, lead the way to where we need to inspect to upgrade your systems for the interstellar trade regulations upgrades"
As if right on cue to break Azeal's concentration, the Nephilims had to speak their piece on this, rather than letting Navir do the heavy lifting. Holly didn't say anything particularly bad, but as Navir's "secretary", probably still shouldn't have said a thing. Lloyd on the other hand, had to open his mouth regarding the "upgrades" they intend to do on the station...the Upgrades these two nephilim were supposed to be doing away from them...in secret. Sure enough, the Rhi'myn tilt their heads and looked at each other as if slightly confused.
Thinking fast, Azeal smiled and put a hand on Lloyd's shoulder.
"Slow down there Kid, I know you're excited, but we're only here for inspection. The upgrades happen at Crystakero station after this. You'll have plenty of work to do once we get there. ...Excuse our technician. Like our pilot, he's a rookie too, fresh from the academy; this is his first time doing an inspection round with us and he's eager to show off his talents. He's only off the ship to observe the technology here for any maintenance you may need in the near future. Standard Protocol for interns." Azeal said. While he didn't raise or make any change in his voice beyond a rather jovial tone, Lloyd could feel Azeal's hand clutching at his shoulder tighter and tighter, with each word emphasized, as if he was slowly trying to crush Lloyd's shoulder blade with his hand. As if that wasn't enough, that hand also happened to be giving off an intense heat to it, not enough to be smoking, but just enough to where it felt like Lloyd was touching hot metal.
He would, during Azeal's monologue, hear Azeal's voice in his mind via telepathy.
"Don't make a sound. If so much as a squeak comes out those lips during the entirity of this trip without my say-so, I'll tear out your tongue and make sure you don't grow it back for a month." He said, the subtle anger of his mental voice in stark contrast to his happy appearance.
The Rhi'myn once again looked at each other and then back at the group.
Ah yes, we've heard of this 'internship' from the Federation. I believe it's the idea of giving a new seed a demonstration of their purpose, rather than immediately acting out upon it. If I may be so blunt, you humans are as strange as ever in your ways, no disrespect intended. Well, right this way then... the one in the middle said, Prompting the group to follow them further into the station.
---
Deeper into the station shows its purpose from the moment the team steps out of the docking bay: a giant observation deck comprising of several large windows overlooking the lush green planet below. Monitors lined the walls of the hallways showing live feeds of various angles of jungle and forest from the very same planet. At the center of this station was a large hub from which most of these observation windows were placed, above which was a large spherical room at the center of the ceiling - likely the control room or bridge of the entire station. The station was well-organized with directory signs showing where certain rooms of importance are across the station.
Then there was the Rhi'myn on board the station. ...A LOT of Rhi'myn were on board the station. ...Along with other animals; Azeal had to do a double-take as he noticed what was essentially Cattle walking around the lobby area. Needless to say, that raised a flag in his mind.
"It's...pretty crowded in here today. Having a festival or something?" He asked them. It was hard even for Azeal to notice, but the question seemed to give a slight vibration to the Rhi'myn in front of them as he turned his head as they walked.
"Errm, Y-Yes. I suppose you could say that. It's something of a new occasion for us, you see. We gathered up the our families and friends to enjoy a sight-seeing of our luscious planet from afar. For us in the SPA in particular, the elders insisted this would be a good motivator for us, to remind us of what we are fighting for - and fighting against." The plant responded while smiling...trying so hard for it to be real but it was fairly easy to see that it wasn't a very natural one. It was pretty easy to see, not just from the smile but all kinds of bodily language going on that this one was inexperienced as a liar, and seemingly moving his eyes about as if directing them somewhere with them. Looking in that direction would suggest something down a hall, the sign suggesting that it's the way to the main control room.
Needless to say, this entire situation seemed suspect in Azeal's eyes and he's got a pretty good idea as to why that is, giving a quick glance at Navir in particular, as if to see if she's thinking what he's thinking regarding this.
"My, my, what have we here? I was unaware we were entertaining federation guests." A voice was heard saying, a voice that, the moment it reached his ears, made Azeal shutter as if by a jumpscare. As he turned around, the Rhi'myn looked behind them to see what was evidently another Rhy'min, but this one looked...different. A clear female with the same plant aesthetic to her, a blossoming black rose in place of her hair, green leathery skin wrapped in thick green vines. However, this one looked a lot more human in comparison to the others, a very human face with ruby red eyes, wearing a short black dress and white undershirt, complete with a red tie and black (if somewhat charred) high heels on her feet. From the moment Azeal saw her, you'd swear he saw a ghost, his eyes widened as he stood there speechless. However, that seemed to wear out fast, and went from shock to irritation, as he clutched his face as if in embarrassment. It's likely Navir would recognize her as well, although the twins were less likely.
"O-Oh, My lady...these are inspectors for the Federation, here for a routine inspection of our station." the center Rhi'myn stated with a stutter, as if nervous.
"Yes, I already figured that out. I'll take it from here, run along now." She said in response, with a rather patronizingly. Nodding silently, the three the group were following walked off, leaving this particularly strange "Rhi'myn" alone with them.
"Now then, My name is Belladonna, I'm substituting for the Director of SPA due to his...'absence'. We're currently busy conducting a ceremony, and I'm sure you don't have a lot of time to waste on this trip either. So what's say we skip the tour and get to the heart of the matter? If you would follow me..." She said to them. Without waiting for a response from them, she walked away towards one of the hallways, prompting the others to follow her.
When they do, they'd eventually reach what appears to be the server room, to which Belladonna ushered them inside before entering herself and closing the door...followed by locking it. Taking a deep breath and sighing, she turned around to face them, the pupils of her red eyes going slit.
"You came here much sooner than expected, Azeal, and in a group no less. I would have expected you to come barging in here all by your lonesome. But more surprisingly, you bring Navir with you! Oh, it's so good to see you again, my dear." She said to them, a more casual tone than the one she was speaking with before, at first looking towards Azeal before setting her eyes on the reaper. It was only then she noticed the twins behind them as well, her smile turning into a frown and a raised eyebrow as she looked towards Azeal once again.
"...A pair of nephilims children too, seriously? Azeal, I thought you learned your lesson after that harpy..." She said, her tone immediately going from casual to stern in an instant.
"They're not mine! That's not even important right now, what are you doing here, Mom!?" Azeal asked. If the appearance and name didn't ring a bell, then it was Azeal calling her his mother that would seal the deal as to who this was... Belladonna, the Demon Lady of Wrath.
Fubakfem - Skies
Alice listened to both the Captain and Qingshe as both answered her question regarding the landing zone. Honestly, the Captain may have had a good point regarding where the gem may have been located at the time. However... In truth, it's likely it was found, albeit by the residents of Fubakfem. Given how the civilization is, they likely had no idea what they found if they did and probably didn't know what to do with it or how to properly harness it. The most likely outcome is that they may have enshrined it and treated it as some divine object from their gods.
Before she could say her thoughts however, the AI intervene with baffling information. Not only were they actually able to detect the Gem, but it was moving, which meant someone else already found it and is running off with it.
Alice simply stood there absolutely dumbfounded by this information, and it seems to have caught Qingshe just as much off guard. The same kind of questions that were encircling Qingshe's mind was encircling Alice's as well. But for Alice, more importantly, was the signal EDI detected, one that, based on her initial assumption of how these gems worked and from Mike's musical demonstration of its capabilities, shouldn't exist. The type of energy these gems emitted was something current radars or sensors weren't designed to detect, or so she thought, yet EDI could detect immediately, and as useful as EDI was to the crew, none of his sensors were anything out of the ordinary. Was she wrong, or was this particular gem special in some way?
More than that, the crew headed off towards Fubakfem not that long after the message was sent out. They didn't make any pit stops or took any detours, going straight from Mike's home world to Fubakfem. There were other ships that left before the Fenrir's Maw, true, but her team had a lead thanks to Vivian that took them straight to Fubakfem, whereas she thought the other gem-seekers were running blind. So that begs the question...Who were these guys that now apparently hold the gem? How did they manage to get here first? Most importantly of all, ...Are they the only ones?
While Mike and Izaroth flew off of the ship to find the now-moving gem, and Qingshe decided to fly with style with a giant missile, dropping her flesh-puppet decoys on the way and apparently using her own methods to jam potential enemy radars, and Clarissa, upon commenting on how they're going about it...apparently in a very literal way based what her form became from the instant she landed upon the ground, Alice stayed behind as the last to leave the ship. There was something she had to do first before going out there. Something about this didn't feel right at all.
Taking over the pilot seat of the ship, she manually increased the sensitivity of the radar on board, and found something...problematic, something that raised even more questions then it answered.
"...Welp, look like we got a change of plans. EDI, Keep flying about and don't turn off the stealth for even a second. I'll have Lei hide you when she can but until then, keep out of sight." She said before grabbing her guitar jumping out with everyone else, placing her feet upon her instrument while in the air and with that, the guitar in question stopped falling, hovering in mid-air before moving forward, Alice using the flying guitar like a hoverboard.
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As they headed deep into the jungle, the crew would be hearing sounds in the distance - below them in all but Clarissa's case. Not pleasent sounds either, but rather, the sounds of gunshots and screams as trees in the distance started to come down. and smoke started to rise in some places.
The ship Qingshe's missile was heading for seemed to have the same kind of stealth technology their own ship had, albeit of an inferior quality. By the shape of the air distortion from a result of said tech, it seemed to be a standard cruiser, the kind you'd find people of all sorts from mercs to pirates to wealthy merchants driving around. They seemed to have noticed the giant missile heading their way, as the invisible shape started to move and rotate, as if attempting evasive maneuvers. Fortunately, it seems they noticed it too late; their turning being to slow to properly evade the missile coming at them.
Yet, in spite of the fact that whoever's ship EDI detected is likely going to be sunk soon, the unseen chaos happening in the jungle was still going on. In spite of the large and frankly easy target that Qingshe's missile was about to make a direct hit, the decoys she dropped to the ground were already seemingly getting fired on. ...No, that's not quite right. It's more like there were stray laser bullets from deeper in the forest that were simply heading in their direction, getting the decoys caught in some kind of crossfire.
Taking a look for herself, Alice hovered down to the ground, and found a small area that seemed to got burned up in some kind of fire, spotting what appeared to be a corpse...a human corpse. That alone suggest he must have been one of the people who came here for the gem, but the attire suggests this was a well-armed mercenary to boot. Nothing suggest this guy had the gem, and even if he did have it, it's gone now. As such, whoever he was, he wasn't alone.
It's never easy to find a dead body, but in her line of work as a doctor, she's seen plenty in her days and some even worse. Crouching down to get a closer look, a large portion of the armor's singed, other parts are still hot to the touch as if parts of it were originally red hot. Whoever this was, it looks like he was a mercenary and got himself on the wrong end of a flamethrower, a really powerful flamethrower at that. Moreover, there was some kind of mark on the side of his neck, two puncture wounds like a bite mark of two large fangs. Touching the wound, she felt a liquid coming off it, transparent, but thicker than water. Taking the finger to her face, she gave it a whiff; nothing rancid, but it was unpleasant...and familiar.
"...Paralysis Venom." She said to herself. It seems this guy got bit by something real bad - likely some kind of reptile - unable to move a muscle, before getting lit up. ...Poor bastard.
Combine this with the sounds of screams and gunshots she were hearing in the distance, and combining that with the stray laser fire that she saw going in the decoys' direction, and her suspicions were confirmed.
"Look alive guys, this extraction just got complicated. Whatever EDI picked up must have gotten picked up by a bunch of other gem seekers too. There isn't just one ship on this planet, it's several. All belonging to fellow gem seekers. Whoever found the gem's got a whole rainbow of gun-toters gunning for him and each other. The Planet's a warzone!" Alice proclaimed.
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As she said, deep in the jungle were a whole bunch of people, most of them humans, going around shooting each other, while also hunting something hiding in the woods. An enigmatic creature, hidden amidst the trees was quick to turn these hunters into prey, throwing flames around like dragon's breath and burning them alive, along with small spots of forests, before being on the run again.
"Guess folks are really willing to risk becoming persona non grata with the federation over these things. I regret coming out with a more non-lethal equipment setup now. Can guarantee these guys won't offer me the same courtesy." The android said in a neutral tone over the communicator as he continued his pursuit towards the gem, his body wide thruster array roaring into near-max output as he picked up speed, but it didn't take a brain surgeon to figure out he wasn't amused by the turn of events.
"Begs the question how folks even knew where to look for these things... By all rights, we should be the only ones who knew it was even somewhere on this planet. Did that priestess tip off every mercenary this side of the system, not just us, or are we missing something here? Either way it's highly unlikely the folks on the station haven't realized something's amiss down here yet. Hope Azeal's team are faring far better on their end right now... Not that it's a high bar to begin with." The android would say as he primed his "weapons", drawing out his collapsible halberd from his arm, the energy "blade" and "spike" of the halberd crackling with electric energy. He had no idea when folks would start to attack them, so he could but be poised to make evasive movements in the event something started shooting at them.
