Affairs of the Lylat System

[Shmibli7]

Desmond picks himself off of the ground. 

"Desmond." He says to himself as he gets up. "You have got to stop being so nice to everyone."

He sees the crowd around the car and heads over. 

"Is she okay?" He asks.

[Naza Sutera]

Faces swam into view as a small crowd surrounded Amelia. She was still a little confused and trying to figure out what was happening. Another police car, an ambulance, and a fire truck had arrived on the scene, shutting down half of the highway to tend to this particular debacle.

"Ma'am, do you mind standing up?" a firefighter said, taking her by the hand to help her up. She got a little light-headed and was afraid she'd faint. But her head cleared. Then he shined a light into her eye to test its response to the light. An EMT walked her to the ambulance to check her vitals.

"Do you know where you are? Do you know what's going on?" the EMT asked her as he checked her blood pressure, which he found was a bit low.

"Uh..." Amelia tried to shake the fog from her head. "...--They're in my purse." She was referring to her doctor's number and her ID, Surely that would clear everything up, like those nice cops who woke her up in The District.

The cop who stopped her overheard her and immediately went to her car to look inside her bag. He came back holding the bag wide open to show to the other officer. What the hell was she showing the contents of her purse for? Then it dawned on her.

"Ma'am I need you to come with me," the officer said as he took her from the EMT's custody. 

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

Upon seeing the officers taking the drowsy woman away, Elias and Joanna were divided. Joanna wanted to be at the woman's side. Elias wanted nothing to do with the situation anymore. "Come on Eli. Let's just see if she's doing okay," pressed Joanna.

"Uhh..." muttered Elias, reluctant to continue their involvement. "This is not really any of our business."

"Eli, you almost hit her." Elias kept that in his mind as he pondered whether to stay by this woman's fine. He rolled his eyes, giving in.

"All right, we'll see how she's doing." The couple, keeping their distance, followed the woman.

[Renardfrost]

After an absurdly long nap, Renard found himself refreshed enough to go down into the city proper and explore a bit. He found himself in an entertainment district before long. He only arched a brow as he eyed the various arcades, shops, and restaurants as they lit up for the day hoping to catch as much attention as possible.

Ren would have made a small face of disgust had his stomach not made it's griping known with a loud growl. he heaved a sigh. " Fine..." he said to himself as he gazes around. " But.. where to eat.. there's like ten freaking eateries here."

HIs life was a series of such non-sequiters, but that's how he preferred it. Although.. this observation did nothing to help him figure out where to quell his hunger.

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

Korben retreated back his and Sandor's hotel room, where he found a duffel bag patiently laying on his bed, its black exterior cradling an as of yet unknown set of objects. He sat down beside it and zipped it open, revealing the parts to a high-powered plasma sniper rifle. Methodically and slowly, he assembled the rifle, screwing on the suppressor last, making the rifle almost completely silent. Korben glanced at his watch: 4:15 PM. The time is now. He approached the balcony, and once again glanced to his right. Bohdan and Elizabeth were not on the balcony. They were supposed to be his spotters. He rolled his eyes, and elected to shoot without their aid. He extended the legs of his rifle's bipod down on the railing. Peering through the scope to an office building several kilometers away, Korben spotted his quarry: Saxon Industries CEO Anson Fullerton. The canine corporate honcho had been causing a general mess in his friends' lives as of late, what with hiring mercenaries to kill them after they botched a job he gave them. A job that cost Fullerton money, not including the lavish down payment they received. What can one do in such trying times?

Fullerton looked proudly out the window to his Zoness headquarters. He held a coffee mug in his right hand, where his wedding ring sat prominently on his ring finger, which had the words "Best Dad Ever" printed on them. In his office, which is where he was located, there was his desk. Various papers were neatly placed beside one another. In one of the corners of the desk, there was a picture: Fullerton with his wife and two daughters, all of them dobermans. Fullerton held his mug up against his chest, and had his left hand in his pocket. He took a sip of coffee from the mug. Fullerton sighed in satisfaction. Korben aimed for Fullerton's head and, adjusting for distance, fired. The weapon made only a subtle tap as the projectile, super-heated plasma, zipped across the several kilometers towards Fullerton's head. It pierced the window, and dissipated its energy into Fullerton's skull, killing him instantly. He picked up his rifle, and reentered the hotel room. Taking off the suppressor, he sat down and disassembled the weapon, neatly placing its components in the places he first found them in the duffel bag. Korben zipped up the bag, and took off his sunglasses, exhaling in remorse.

Did I just do that? he thought. He put his sunglasses beside him, placed his elbows on his knees, bent forward, and grasped his hands together. He stared at the carpeted floor in deep reflection.

[Star_Dragon]

In the usual traffic in orbit of Corneria, another vessel dropped out of warp. However, almost immediately after being secured from Warp Speed, the vessel shimmered and vanished.

"Cloaking device engaged, Admiral," came the voice of Tovan Khev.

"No unusual comm traffic, Admiral," added Rhina Khev, Tovan's sister. "In fact, I don't think Corneria even noticed our arrival."

"Law, can you query the Cornerian computers, see if the target came through here?" the Admiral asked.

"Already on it, Admiral Trask," Law answered.

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

Roy stared at a console on his team's small destroyer eagerly, confident that he punched in the correct coordinates and the correct speed. His smile radiated throughout the darkened bridge, lit only by the green, red, and blue consoles. His teammate, Lorenzo, sat watching, dubious of Roy's success. As the ship approached the designated coordinates, Roy cried out "Yes!" in victory. Lorenzo raised an eyebrow, and rubbed his wings. He got up from his seat to congratulate Roy, but was stopped short by a blaring alarm and a red light bathing the ship. The interface on Roy's console showed that the underbelly of the ship was scraping up against another.

"Woah, woah, woah, what?!" exclaimed Roy. "No! Impossible!"

"It's not impossible!" yelled Lorenzo in his thick Aves accent. "You see, you do this and this." Lorenzo gestured ambiguously across the console. Roy was clearly annoyed.

"No, no, no, I didn't do the what in the where now, you see I did this and that!" Roy emulated Lorenzo's gesture, and the duo descending into a back and forth shouting match.

[Star_Dragon]

"Admiral," Law piped up, "I've got something - fragmented report, but it's the best lead so far."

Trask walked over to Law's console. "What do you have, Centurion?" Law showed Trask an image of their target - a raider captain, ship lost, fleeing both the law and what the captain termed as "demons of air and darkness". "Where is this?" Trask asked.

"Still working on gleaning the location, Admiral, but scattered reports indicate the captain is still down planetside," Law answered.

"Keep at it," Trask said. "Anything you can get will be helpful."

"Aye, sir," Law responded.

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

"It's a motherf--king cloaked piece of motherf--king s--t trash ship!" Roy exclaimed as he stared at the cameras of his team's ship, staring into empty space, which, according to the contact sensors, should be occupied by a vessel.

"You see, they no see you, you no see them, CRASH!" said Lorenzo in broken Cornerian.

"F--k you, Feathers!" replied Roy.

[Star_Dragon]

Contrary to whatever the other ship was thinking, the damage to the Retribution's Thunder was superficial, and therefore, easily regenerated. Borg armor technology was fascinating, to say the least. Unfortunately, the collision was an inconvenience. The Retribution's Thunder de-cloaked and hailed the other ship. "This is Admiral Trask of the RRW Retribution's Thunder to unidentified vessel - my apologies for this collision; I was under the impression that I was alone this far from orbit. How bad is the damage to your vessel?"

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

Roy was flabbergasted at the 'importance' this man had. An admiral? Roy thought of this as a joke.

"And I am the King of the Universe! State the reason for your presence in my domain!" Lorenzo smacked Roy on the back of his head as an admonishment. Roy chuckled, but his jolly was interrupted by the entrance of the team leader, Michael, and his second-in-command, Teresa.

"What the Hell, Roy?! What is going on?!" he yelled. Roy stammered, attempting to find an answer that would be appropriate. Michael's rage then turned to Lorenzo, and he began to speak to the toucan in Aves. "Lorenzo, I gave you command of the bridge when Teresa and I went off it. Why couldn't you control Roy?"

"I wanted to see if Roy could actually control the ship for once," Lorenzo answered. "I feel that everyone on this ship should at least know how to control it. If all of us except Roy goes down for some reason, we are f--ked!" Michael raised his eyebrow, and turned back to Roy, who was still trying to find an answer. "Well, Roy?" asked Michael in Cornerian, with a faint Selachii accent.

"I crashed into someone," Roy finally answered.

"Who?" asked Michael.

"I dunno," replied Roy, shrugging his shoulders. "They had a stupid cloaking device, and we couldn't see their asses." Michael rolled his eyes.

"Well, they seemed to have hailed us," said Teresa, overlooking the communications terminal.

"Roy, respond," ordered Michael.

"But Mike, I did," said Roy. Michael nodded, and sat down in the command chair at the center of the bridge.

"Then, let's wait for what they have to say..." said Michael.

[Star_Dragon]

Trask, not sure what to make of the argument he just heard, simply raised an eyebrow, even though the crew of the other ship couldn't see it. Still, his voice was even when he spoke: "I am Admiral Trask Makron, Dragon'taan Marauder Corps - and agent of Dragon'taan Intelligence, when the need arises. I came here on classified orders, hence why I was cloaked. Now that you've so spectacularly announced my presence via this collision, I have to go the direct route... after I determine the damage to your vessel. And your crew, if there is any damage there. Are you alright?"

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

"Mute coms. Campfire." said Michael hurriedly. The whole four-man team huddled next to Michael and turned their backs towards the screen, being careful that their mouths are out of sight. "This guy sounds like a manga anti-hero," commented Michael. The team quietly snickered. "Dragon'taan Marauder Corps? Anyway, analysis. Go, T."

"They sound like they mean business, despite the silly name," said Teresa, in a thick Lutrinae accent. "They are bigger, faster, and stronger than us. I wouldn't want to fight with them now." Michael nodded.

"Lorenzo, thoughts?" he asked to Lorenzo.

"Neutral attitude with us," replied Lorenzo. "Doesn't feel like fighting now. But plans to later."

"Okay, Roy?"

"I don't like them," professed Roy. "Cloaked ships with thousands of crew? If this was a video game, he would be a cheater." Michael smiled slightly. He then put on a stoic face.

"Campfire's over, bring back the sound," ordered Michael. The team turned back to face the Admiral on the big screen. Teresa brought the audio signal back up.

"Admiral Makron, all hands on board are safe and sound. The damage my ship has sustained is superficial and isn't a problem." Michael smiled.

[Star_Dragon]

"Very well," Trask stated. "Since the damage is minimal, and no loss of life, I bid you good day. Close channel." Soon as the channel was closed, Trask sighed. "Comms, any indication that the target is aware?"

"Negative, Admiral," Rhina responded. "And no news net broadcasts. However, the target is on the move. If he is aware, he'll likely be heading for the star port."

"Either way, we're running out of time," Trask said. "Helm, move to a safer location; tactical, re-engage the cloaking device; Transporter room... stand by to beam the target aboard."

The Retribution's Thunder carefully moved away from the other ship, headed for Corneria orbit, shimmered, and vanished again. Shortly thereafter, a small, subtle energy spike could faintly be detected by highly-attuned sensors. Then, nothing for the next three minutes before the ship appeared again at the edge of Corneria's gravity well before it went to warp and was gone, ion trail taking it to what was now known as Outpost 'Mantakar...

*     *     *

In deep space, where once a Pirate base sat surrounded by fleets of cutthroats, that same base, now refitted and with a trading post, fleet repair yards, and resource mines up and running, sat surrounded by a massive fleet of warships varying wildly in design and origin, all of them emblazoned with a strange circular symbol.

Lord-Admiral Markus woke from his sleep to a ringing comm station. He got up, answered the call, and was greeted by the face of Admiral Trask. "Trask," Markus said groggily, "I trust you've woken me with news of profound value?"

"Indeed," Trask answered. "That Pirate captain that escaped your forces when you took the outpost... well, I have him. However, he has been ranting about the 'Demons of Air and Darkness' ever since we lifted him from Corneria."

Markus quietly growled. "So they're known here as well as back home," he said.

"Well, we don't know that for certain - this captain could be the only one who knows," Trask suggested.

"And it could be that there are others that know of them," Markus discounted. "Has he said anything useful?"

"Nothing aside from the ranting about how the demons are seeking to conquer all," Trask answered.

"Very well," Markus sighed. "Get him here. We'll discuss the next move in person." After the comm ended, Markus rose from his seat, and, seeing he was still in uniform, walked onto the bridge of the Thermopylae.

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

Joe laid down in the stiff bed like the effigy of a long-dead knight. He was drifting in an ocean of slumber, despite the bone-chilling temperature the small hut was surrounded by. The fire from the stove was close enough so that Joe didn't freeze to death, plus extra blankets and his comfortable clothing he was wearing aided him greatly to preserve body heat. It was close to midnight in this frozen corner of the Lylat System, and Joe was not alone here. His lover and partner, Diana, stayed with him in the hut. She huddled by the stove, which cradled the life-giving fire. She was reading the Sacred Texts, and was enthralled by the story of Ilya, a heroic Ruthenian noble holy man on a quest to destroy a corrupt kingdom from the inside out. She loved these tales of faith and honor triumphing over evil and injustice. She briefly stopped reading to glance at Joe, his scales and reptilian snout being illuminated by the fire, the only source of light in the hut, save for an electric lamp, which gave off a small amount of heat, by the door. The hut, besides having the stove and singular bed, was also furnished with a table, two chairs, a shelf containing pots, pans, and books, a rack to store firearms (where several were already resting), a small television with a cable running to a satellite dish on the roof, a radio attached to the same cable, and a small hatch on the floor of the hut, leading to a basement. An outhouse was located next to the hut, illuminated by another electric lamp.

The winter winds blew lightly, throwing up small clouds of loose, freshly fallen snow, as well as guiding falling snow to points unknown. Diana continued reading the Sacred Texts, as Joe stirred on the bed, muttering incoherent ramblings in his sleep.

[Star_Dragon]

The Retribution's Thunder dropped out of warp at Outpost 'Mantakar, shields up, but weapons not powered. An open comm line went up: "This is Admiral Trask Makron of the Retribution's Thunder, requesting clearance to beam aboard Outpost 'Mantakar with one prisoner and a security escort."

"Affirmative, Admiral, you have been expected - transport at your earliest convenience to the detention level," responded an artificial female voice. The Retribution's Thunder headed for the outpost, and an energy spike indicated Trask, his security escort, and his prisoner being beamed over. They walked to one caged area with a table, and sitting at that table was a man with a fur pattern of black fur and white stripes in an armored uniform that had six stars on the collar.

"Captain, Admiral," he greeted the prisoner, then Trask.

"Always good to see a familiar face out here, Lord-Admiral," Trask said with a salute.

Markus stood and returned the salute. "At ease, Admiral. Captain, come - sit. We have a lot to discuss."

The prisoner scoffed as his restraints were removed and he was seated. "What's to talk about?"

"We want to know everything you know about the Demons of Air and Darkness," Markus said...

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

A loud, distorted, wolf-like howl echoed throughout the snow-ridden valley, and crashed like a wave of water against the hut. Diana was alerted to its piercing noise, and Joe was awaken from his peaceful slumber, shooting up to a sitting position. He immediately got off the bed, and grabbed a flamethrower sitting in the corner. He turned it on, and looked to Diana. She shot up as well, and taking her heavy caliber blaster pistol out of its holster, walked with Joe to the door of the hut. They opened it, and Joe went outside first, scanning the pitch black area, save for the lit portions around the hut. Diana followed, and slammed the door behind them. She removed the electric light from its place beside the front door and extended her arm holding it outwards. Nothing could be seen from its rays, however, just outside its sphere of influence, piercing yellow eyes emerged from the darkness. A low, somewhat digitally distorted growl was emitted from the entity. Joe threateningly pointed his flamethrower at the mysterious figure.

"How the Hell did you follow us, darling?" asked Diana. The entity continued growling, and placed a large, lion-like paw out in front of it, letting the faintest rays of light shining onto it.

"I swear, if you come any more closer, you'll burn Demon!" warned Joe. The creature retracted its paw, and retreated slowly into the cold darkness. The duo backed away towards the door until they leaned against it. Joe opened it, and he and Diana rushed into the hut. Diana locked it with a key and placed a wooden bar on the latches located on the side of the door. Joe put down the flamethrower in its original place in the corner of the hut. "It followed us. It f--king followed us for nine light years!" Joe was both enraged and terrified.

"We killed its offspring," rebutted Diana. "It'll chase us to the edge of the 'verse if it has to."

"We need to kill it. We have to kill it."

"We need that priest, though. Chmielnicki. And the staff hiding somewhere beneath this hut." Diana and Joe then looked down onto the hatch in the floor of the hut. "We'll keep looking in the morning," said Diana.

[Star_Dragon]

In the quiet of Fichina orbit, an Mogai Tactical Warbird (Image) dropped out of FTL speed and immediately cloaked. Her commander then ordered the ship forward, just in the event someone were to drop out of light speed and collide with them. The ship settled into orbit on the far side of the planet, and a single transporter signal beamed a lone wolf to the surface. The wolf engaged his personal cloaking device, and moved for an abandoned facility.

Following this, another ship (Image) dropped out of FTL speed, but did not cloak. It moved closer to the planet, and began running a sensor sweep.

Edited December 3, 2015 by Star_Dragon
First image unusable, switched to different ship

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

Joe felt a vibration in his pants. He took out the small detection device from his pants to find that a large blip on the radar the device displayed circling the hut. He sat down onto the bed, staring at the device.

"It's waiting for us," Joe announced ominously.

"Let her wait," replied Diana confidently. "We'll f--king kill that b---h."

[Star_Dragon]

Out of the blue, a shimmering, distorted figure came to the scene. Ordinary sensors would be useless, but motion sensors would pick up a very faint reading not far away from the hut. Ketorr moved for his objective, but paused at the scene of the strange creature he'd not seen before circling the hut. He considered his options, but eventually elected to press on. While he was certain he could take the beast out, he had his orders - and they didn't include rescuing strangers that were likely being stalked by such a creature for a reason.

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

Suddenly, the top of the table in the center of the hut began to blink a faint blue color and make a beeping noise. Diana studied the alert. "Now this is new..." she said, noticing another signature on the motion sensors. A signature much smaller than the beast stalking the hut. Joe approached the table and stood next to Diana.

"That guy's gonna get killed," he said bleakly.

"I know. And there's not a damn thing we could do about it."

"Rahat," cussed Joe in Vlach.

[Star_Dragon]

After a long trek through the snow, Ketorr finally came upon his objective: A massive, dome-shaped building. He approached it, slowing down when he saw two anthro-rodents at one entrance. He quietly approached them from the shadows, only to find they were fast asleep.

But Ketorr was to avoid taking risks concerning detection.

With that in mind, he raised his rifle and brought it down on the first one's head with a dull thwack! and then moved on the other and did the same thing quickly. With the two guards unconscious, he examined them briefly - both had completely different weapons, and different armors in ratty repair. That left one conclusion in Ketorr's mind.

Raiders.

Ketorr moved into the facility, taking care to keep his PCD active and avoid the sentries and patrols. It was during this stealth operation that Ketorr noticed that, for raiders, these interlopers were surprisingly disciplined. Still, he avoided harming them unless absolutely necessary, and every time he did, he did so non-lethally and took care to hide the body in a shadowy alcove or empty room.

When Ketorr came to the computer core, he was surprised to see a gang of Raiders and one Canine man dressed in an odd uniform. On the center of the uniform was a strange, hexagonal symbol. Ketorr knew that symbol well. But what was he doing here, he wondered...? He moved closer, trying to get close enough to hear the conversation...

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

"Well, the dude's gone..." said Diana, watching the blip fade away.

"And so is the beast," replied Joe. He then looked to Diana. Her grayish-black fur, her soothing brown eyes, the way the steam rolled off her mouth as she breathed. And she looked back. His green, slick scales, shimmering as the firelight danced off them, his piercing blue eyes, the small ridges running along the side of his head.

"Are you gonna take the watch now?" she asked in a low voice.

"Yeah," replied Joe softly. "Yeah, I am." Diana nodded.

"I'm gonna... I'm gonna get some rest."

"Okay." Diana had said she would sleep, but it took her a few moments to realize this, as her attention was turned to Joe. She had a gut feeling that right now, Joe would rather have her be with him, conscious, looking out for that scary monster that traveled nine light years to kill them.

"Unless..." began Diana, "...unless if, if you want me to stay awake for a few more minutes."

"That would be nice," answered Joe, "I'd like that." They closed their eyes, and made contact with their lips.