Aberrant: Infinite Earth - Fiction - [FIN] Episode 1: Britannia

[The Traveler]

Sakurako sees Everyone preparing for a fight. "Hold on everyone... we should see what exactly is coming, we don't know if..."

"I know, Professor." Sarah says, looking around her. "Someone isn't exactly wanting our best interests... and I can't see where that cloaked fella is anymore."

Jane looks hurredly about, trying to see if someone's hiding.

"Sarah, stick with me." The Professor says. "Jane, keep your eyes peeled. Everyone else, stay natural. But reflexive..."

[Karren Gaunt]

Oh for the love of..! This Section T was the most headstrong group of government-funded idiots Irma had ever seen, and if this was one of the temporary alliances of expendables she had used against Proteus acting against a developing ambush, she'd have walked out on them here and now after a stern talking-to.

"Way too late to act natural now, not after you all stormed in here," Irma commented mildly, gesturing at the scattering crowds of beach goers, one eyebrow raised over her sunglasses and expression bemused, "Did you happen to forget that all three of us could have teleported back to your base?"

The chronokinetic rose from her beach chair in relative unconcern, eufiber flowing from fashionable beachwear to a grey-and-black ensemble of long-sleeved shirt, gloves, fatigues, and sturdy boots. She banished her sunglasses back to the Collection with a pop of imploding air, pale green eyes amused even as a faint accelerating tick-tick-tick of quantum marked a causal manipulation of space-time in her imediate vicinity.

Activating Mastery 1 Accelerate Time. Last four dice mega.

http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3169621/ Let's see. I count nine successes, doubled to 18, and then capped at eight extra physical actions per turn.

[The Traveler]

Jane puts her pistol back in her holster as The Professor speaks. "Act as you will... Obviously there is an issue here I've failed to forsee... Jane... move your team back to base. I have to speak to Irma personally."

"I did something wrong again, didn't I?" Kimiko says to Jane. "Yeah... we all did. We assumed all of what we do would be alright. We have to be uncomfortable with our power. Damn... last thing we need if The Headmistress is coming is to have ourselves divided..."

"While the wicked stand confounded,call me with thy saints surrounded..." is heard, as a whisper, over the comlinks.

"What.... what was that?" The Professor asks as Sara looks confounded herself.

[Mech]

Chris waded into the water, not bothering with the rest. he could feel something was here. "irma, be ready."

He couldn't place the sensation, but impending danger surrounded them.

[Karren Gaunt]

"That would probably be the ambush you came to rescue us from and someone hacking our gear the way 'Kimiko' did earlier," 'Melody' commented over the comlink, raising an eyebrow at the small even by her standards young woman with the voice of Section T's aparent Opnet Czar, eyes sweeping the perimeter with hands held empty and pointing to receive weapons just in case, the world slightly redshifting around her as the eternal tick-tick-tick of her time sense distorted to make up for her more active powers.

[The Traveler]

"No no.... wasn't me honest." Kimiko said running over to Irma, pleading her case. "Someone hacked the com-system... I saw it... In fact I don't appreciate it either."

Kimiko's demeanor changed. Almost like switching gears. Toss a child-like mentality into a Nova mega-mental body and make it angry. "I was observing you, I'm sorry if it angered you but I was making sure you were safe. Does one take offence when the lifeguard watches their family on the beach over there? Or the beat cop who walks his patrol? I have strict operation guidelines to stay to public areas in my watch. We aren't the cavalry, I mean would someone dress like this for a rescue? This innertube isn't even meant for use as a flotation device for crying out loud... We were trying to make straight the situation with Dash before we went out in public to enjoy some down time, that's all!"

Her hair turns a gold color, reminiscent of the inlaid metal a circuitboard is made of in sheen. But then she bows. "I'm sorry."

"Oh... you better be, schoolgirl. Should have brought a hat."

A sound like thunder rips across the beach, and before Irma is the headless body of Kimiko. Well Headless as in somehow the head exploded after a bright light was seen by all.

"While this drama is amusing me highly, I needed to expedite this. I'm not hacking the late Kimiko's precious network by the way that is such a droll way of operating. The comlinks are so vulnerible to electronic warfare."

A second thunderclap is heard and Owen goes down in the same manner. "There... No medic either... Now that you'll be here for a while I have a message for the Professor... You have been naieve. Do you really think I wouldn't notice your arrival in this universe? In this manner? Playing yourself off as a substitute teacher was rather funny actually. Much lower of a position than I thought you'd take? Why do you have to be such a team player?"

The Minnesotan accent and tone of voice all of a sudden makes Sakurako tear up. Realizing something she forgot... realizing something she should have remembered. "M... Mary?"

"Oh... You've not told your fellowship about the first scout the Union sent? About how they gave me nothing more than a quantum aperture manipulator and a garish costume? 'Ensign Minneapolis... Earth's heroine... She'll get help for us...' Tell them my real name.... Professor."

"H... Headmistress..." Sakurako is genuinely afraid. "The nova from my world... Is the Headmistress... And she is also Mary Sax..."

Before she can complete her sentence a shot rings out, striking her in the chest and knocking her down, her Ionic Screwdriver violently tossed out of her pocket. Captain Jane puts one and one together.

"Patricia... Notify Section J, we found the Headmistress and she has infiltrated Section E as their leader under the name of Mary Saxon." She runs over to The Professor. "Also, while I would send a S&R team to our location for The Professor we are under fire. We lost Owen and Kimiko already, and The Professor is mortally wounded. Lock down the hub and wait for another team to relieve you."

Jane then tosses the Ionic Screwdriver to Sarah. She sees The Professor's blood percolating through her suit into the sand. "Sa.... Sakurako!"

Just then the a bizarre sight is seen as what looks like a cadre of 12 schoolchildren marches in formation with rifles, pistols, and glowing fists of quantum fire. Lead by a woman in a victorian headmaster's habit. Cap, Gown, and all. A white mask covers her face.

"Oh look, the psychic princess... removed from her throne and left to be with the common people she holds dear, how quaint. Students... remove them from my sight, but leave The Professor alone. I want the honor of the coup de grace."

Well well...

Roll your initiatives! It's showtime.

[Mech]

Chris scowled he was further out of position than he liked. and two people were dead, he looked to the woman who was attacking, along with the others, and prepared to make them pay.

Long6 *rolls* 1d10: 1+16: 17

[Karren Gaunt]

Irma, splashed with blood and brains from the embryonic little Thetis-type who had been lecturing at her, didn't waste a heartbeat before bending time around her some more to make sure she got that first crucial strike in, eyes narrowed as she spun and pointed one hand at this 'Headmistress' renegade who had shot her client. A click in her thoughts and the fundamental cogs of space-time started grinding to a halt around the quantum beacon that was the Professor's evil doppleganger, attempting to drag the woman into stasis and out of synch with the world for Irma to set up a suitable execution at her leisure.

[envoy] 4:40 pm: Mastery one time stop attempt on the headmisstress, burning a point of will for an extra success, last three dice mega.

envoy *rolls* 12d10: 3+10+8+7+6+6+8+5+4+8+4+10: 79

[envoy] 4:41 pm: 20 successes.

[envoy] 4:41 pm: willpower to resist.

Seeing the forces dropping into place around the woman without an apparent hitch, Irma sprinted for the cover of the Sea Turtle's bar, leaping into the space behind while the world crawled by, letting out a soft grunt of air as she hit the wall behind. Powerful as her mind was, she was only baseline phsically. That didn't mean she didn't have her own tricks to even the playing field though. One such trick thudded into her hands from thin air, the reassuring weight of a LAW rocket launcher forming in her hands. Up she popped in hypertime, weapon on her shoulder and and angled to allow it's backblast to play down the length of a bar.

Boom. The projectile roared for the foremost of the underaged combatants, an anti-tank weapon for children probably sporting anti-tank level protection if this Headmistress was willing to risk them in the open. The chronokinetic then ducked back into cover and banished the empty weapon, crawling back into the kitchen to pop up somewhere else as hypertime blurred out her actions to mundane observers.

[Dash Carpenter]

The loss of life in an instant of savagery was terrible. When the enemy advanced, Kimiko's head lying among the bloodstained dirt... These fools had gotten a terrible enemy as a result of their mistake. Dash leveled his pistol... and unnoticed, a figure of a generic suited man flared but for a looming instant behind the former Directive agent. Then glowing energies settled around Dash's gun... and he fired a full burst like a repeating spear of vengeance.

OOC

Megas First

Multitasking: Jeremy *rolls* 7d10: 5+5+9+10+9+7+3 - 4 sux is more than enough

7 actions.... -3,-4,-4,-5,-5,-6,-6

Shot #1: Jeremy *rolls* 12d10: 4+4+10+5+1+5+10+9+5+9+5+2 - 6 sux

Shot #2: Jeremy *rolls* 11d10: 8+2+2+2+7+9+10+9+4+8+1 - 8 sux

Shot #3: Jeremy *rolls* 11d10: 2+5+5+2+2+7+8+8+10+9+3 - 5 sux

Shot #4: Jeremy *rolls* 10d10: 4+8+2+7+2+6+7+1+7+9 - 7 sux

Shot #5: Jeremy *rolls* 10d10: 10+8+3+6+8+4+7+2+8+2 - 9 sux

Shot #6: Jeremy *rolls* 9d10: 5+6+9+1+10+8+1+5+2 - 6 sux

Shot #7: Jeremy *rolls* 9d10: 8+5+9+5+5+8+8+6+9 - 7sux

[Heather 10093]

Temporal manipulation, accelerate time, area, shapeable: Wyrd *rolls* 8d10: 5+6+10+10+8+10+9+8: 66

6 successes, capped at 3 from skill level, gives all allies except the Professor 3 extra actions, does not stack with Irma's abilities, these extra actions do not count towards your multi-action penalty, but cannot be used in conjunction with any temporal manipulation abilities. Only your primary action can be used for that. The professor was excluded so she wouldn't bleed to death faster. This DOES stack with the quickness enhancement, though.

A ripple spread out from Heather and seemed to wrap itself around each of her allies. As it washed over them, it seemed like everyone else suddenly slowed down, their personal time being greatly accelerated. The ripple approached Irma as well, but vanished into the more intense and focused field being generated by the chronokinetic. The ripple also approached the Professor but broke around her, as it did around the approaching forces, excluding them from the effect.

She rushed towards her downed companion while manipulating the handle to her parasol, causing the delicate tracery on it to glow copper and gold, the parasol itself to expand a bit, and the pole to extend a couple of extra feet. Kneeling by the Professor, she jammed the handle of the parasol into the ground so that it was blocking any line of sight from the approaching forces.

Heather next pulled out a triangular box about the size of her hand. From the front of the box, she pulled two probes out on wires and arced them to give them a different angle on the wound. She flipped a switch then adjusted a series of dials on the side of the device as it began to make a high pitched warbling sound. She pressed a button which caused a cool mist to blow across the Professor's wound, a mist which was illuminated by strobing colors from the device and its probes. Speaking very, very slowly, she said, "Stay calm, Professor. This Triple point detection analysis and recording device can heal almost any wound that is not immediately fatal or outside its database."

Despite speaking so slowly, she still sounded a bit like a hamster on speed to those not moving at quadruple time.

Yes, I gave myself a steampunk Tri-corder. Anyone gonna object? I think it is cool.

[Mech]

Once again trying to do several things at once, Chris shifted, once again taking the form a ten meter tall giant metallic lion, standing on four legs in the water. his energy barrier flickering to life even as he moved into action, Interposing his massive form between Sarah, the Professor,Heather and their attackers. his final act was a burst of brilliant azure energy from his gaping mouth, acting intimidating, but not hitting anyone.

[The Traveler]

The rest of the enemy scrubs break off, almost as if by command from Mech. Irma's shot will definately be remembered, in particular by the Headmistress. The shot slams into her "troops" if you can call them that... her body begins to dissolve into data.

"Well... that was unexpected... Time to regroup..."

And with that, the Headmistress abandons her troops as they scatter lost into the night.

Sarah, still amped up with adrenaline stumbles over to Sakurako. "Please... be alright..." She thinks.

As Heather scans The Professor her scanner has a fit trying to figure out what it was scanning.

Notes

She does have two hearts and two brains like a Gallifreyan. Not to mention her DNA has been mutated from her Taint enough to take time to register as a human nova. bit it'd take too long. One of her hearts were ruptured with a .50 caliber slug. The suit kept her chest from being completely destroyed.

Sakurako musters her stregnth through the pain to hold Sarah's chin. Then with a smile, Sakurako fades to unconciousness...

Notes

And anyone who can sense quantum energy is seeing what looks like every cell firing off in her body all at once... The actual regeneration takes an hour but then it'll take a day before she's back good as new again.

[Mech]

The great metal lion that was Chris roared as she went unconscious and the foes all left. He looked around, his tail lashing about. "Dammit." his voice was nearly a guttural growl. "Is everyone else alright?"

[Heather 10093]

The Professor evidently capable of repairing herself, Heather moved to check the other two victims. Not everything needed a head to stay alive after all. She scanned both of them, then let her time field drop in case it was messing up the readings, but the device still had problems with both of them.

She can be heard saying to herself, "You know, I never got around to recalibrating this thing in all the Chaos. I guess I'm going to have to rebuild the entire database from scratch."

[Karren Gaunt]

There's a time-blurred movement and then Irma was outside the Sea Turtle again with a different model of rocket launcher braced on one shoulder. She fires and the projectile puts paid to another of the fleeing Headmistress flunkies with a boom. She looks at Jane expectantly, features slightly blurred as she buzzes, "I'd shoot to wound but that's usually a waste of time with brainwashed novas. You have anything that'd work?" And then she's gone again in a blur of movement, seeking cover somewhere else from potential snipers like the trained Elite she was.

[The Traveler]

Jane would say something but at the speeds at which time was accellerated she'd probably not be able to get a word in. She also wasn't even sure of the nature of Irma's request. She scraches her head as she walks over to The Professor's body and Sarah, kneeling down, holding one of Sakurako's hands, and holding Sarah's in the other. The look on her face showed one of optimism. But then she gets serious as she sees Irma shooting missiles at the running mob of mooks.

"The Professor'll be alright... After all I should know how this part of things goes. I gotta stop that crazy bitch." Jane thought to herself, running to the bar and sliding behind it. "HEY! The fight's over! Let'em go, this is overkill! They're just kids!"

Sarah moves herself to The Professor and cradles her in her arms. She doesn't know about the nature of The Professor's state and still thinks she's expiring. She starts praying. "Please... Please God... Keep her with us... the's the last good person from her universe... it would be so cruel to take her now." She thinks... knowing full well no one would probably hear her anyways.

[Karren Gaunt]

That earns Jane a Look, the time-blurred Irma openly analyzing the other woman midreload. "I was 'just a kid' when I killed the most dangerous baseline on my earth," she eventually responds with the same buzz after finishing reloading, "And these 'kids' just killed two of your teamates and aparently forced the Professor into some sort of healing coma. When a nova picks up arms and uses those arms to kill people, there's a word for what they've become: Elites. And as an Elite myself, I feel very motivated to show them the costs of that lifestyle. Now find some nonleathal way to put these monsters in training down and subdue them or I will."

She hefts the weapon into place, tracking one of the fleeing figures with one eye on Jane for her reaction, not firing yet.

[The Traveler]

"No... we need answers." Jane says, pulling out the Ionic Screwdriver she pick-pocketed off of Sarah. She points it at the feet of the running attacker and causes the water mains to explode out of the ground and wrap around the runner's feet. "I've never really liked how The Professor uses this... never to it's fullest potential. I gotta know if they attacked because they wanted to or if they were mind controlled..."

She gets up from her position, and starts walking over to the entangled runner. "This was insane... They were teenagers and she used them like this..." Jane's rage begins to start to boil. "Come with me. If that person has any tricks up their sleeve, blow their head off... I lost two good people today and I'm NOT FEELING GENEROUS."

[Heather 10093]

Heather looks over to Sarah and Irma and says, "You want to hold them?"

She gestures towards the remaining attackers still in sight, who immediately shrink inside their clothes and come to a tumbling stop.

Temporal manipulation, age alteration--they all just got 12 years younger, and with them being teenagers, I expect that even with my poor roll, they are mostly toddlers. They can roll stamina to shrug off some of the effect, if you want. I did not target the one already ensnared.

Wyrd *rolls* 8d10: 5+7+10+4+6+5+8+1: 46 Quantum at 15/32

"There you go. Now let's get the Professor somewhere more comfortable to heal."

[Karren Gaunt]

"That's more like it," buzzed the chronokinetic with a grin that wasn't 100% percent false, flickering ahead in a hypertime-assisted stride, green eyes and sixth sense confirming the only active threats were long-term potential ones from her fellow Novas present should her social talents fail catrosphically at a future time, rocket launcher vanishing with a faint pop, "Heather, Sarah, Dash. Please get the Professer aboard the ship while she heals. I'm going to put my people person skills to work seeing how salvageable one of the children who hurt her is with... I'm sorry; I never caught your name or title."

Irma dropped out of hypertime after a final blurred nod to Jane and her improptu teamates, studying the nova who had attacked them and remained both alive *and* above the physical age of four, movie star good looks somewhat spoiled by the blood and brains staining her dark-colored clothing and perhaps the knowledge of what she had just done to the youth's teamates. "So," she began with a smile that was considerably less happy, tapping one finger on her chin in a slow circle about three meters away from her target, "I'm willing to bet that you're smart enough to want to tell me everything I want to know about your understanding of this attack. Whether you can or not, I'm not sure, but I'm willing to work with you. Save me the effort of asking any questions and you'll probably be better off. So. Begin. Please."

Her sixth sense pinged a reporter getting ready to snap a photo of her, and the chronokinetic carefully ignored it, every bit the dutiful friend seeking the truth. She rarely played 'good guy' when she could avoid it, but it seemed that was the spin she'd have to adapt on this world with this very public and very clever ambush by the Headmistress.

[Mech]

Nearby the great Metal Lion stood as a silent sentinel, watching over the others, posing almost for pictures, though he felt useless. The press didn't disappoint. He served to draw attention from the Professor, though his gleaming yellow eyes were always mindful of what was going on with her.

[The Traveler]

Irma's prisoner stares at her blankly for a moment, then speaks softly. "Wha... what... what happened one minute I was in class and the next..." He seems to stare through Irma for a moment before he goes limp, his eyes staring at some imperceptible threat before becoming seemingly shunted from the world. Still breathing, but... not there.

Jane walks over to where Irma is. She kneels down and checks the pulse and respiration of the prisoner and gets a curious look on her face. "Well... you seem to have a coma patient here..."

Sarah picks up The Professor from the sands of the beach, and then she notices something... calmed down from what she though was her last moment with The Professor herself. "Umm... guys... not to sound morbid, but those bodies of Owen and Kimiko... not very convincing." She walks over with The Professor in her arms pointing to what looks like... tubing... in both bodies.

"I can explain, Sarah..." Kimiko's voice chirps up. "I... used a couple of androids to play the roles of Owen and I... we never came along. He's right here next to me in the monitor bubble. I'd been tracking movements of several novas in the area for weeks... I was going to warn you guys over coms back at the Londinium station, but I thought that would be intruding."

Sarah sighs as she walks back to the ESS. "I'll take the Professor to the sick bay. Jane... call a quarantine of this beach, The Professor wasn't off her time yet."

"Oh god, right!" Captain Jane says. "Already on it." Kimiko adds.

Jane then turns to Irma. "Oh... forgot to introduce myself. I'm Captain Jane Arrowway... and you are?" She says with a charming smile.

"Chris..." Sarah says, turning to her metallic guard. "Stand watch at the entrance... I'll see to The Professor..."

[Mech]

He nodded, an audible growl passing for a Sigh from his mouth, gleaming white teeth clearly visible, as he took up position nearby.

[Karren Gaunt]

"Call me Melody," Irma volunteered with the same kind of smile on the way back to the ship, patting one of Mech's looming legs in graditude for providing such an attention draw away from herself, "Though you might want to warn your watcher to keep important news off the hacked coms. Our opponent was smart enough to not be here in the flesh and use self-destructing cannon fodder. She's probably still listening. I would be anyway."

She brushed her hair out of her face again, considering the other woman. Another one to keep track of...

[The Traveler]

Kimiko speaks up over the coms. "I... took the liberty once she got on our network to cut off her tab. A nice encryption algorithmic based on a certain fractal pattern and a randomizer using the average heart rate of everyone on the network is enough to block her now. It would take someone of even The Professor 500 years to hack the network."

Jane smiles as she sees some Section E biohazard crews arrive on the scene for cleanup, flanked by Section J agents to arrest the toddlerized runners and the comatose runner who was questioned by Irma. "Damn. Thanks for the quick thinking, Kimiko... I owe you an actual beach trip."

Jane turns to Melody. "Man this is like herding cats now... I don't know how the Professor does it." She says, scratching her head. "With Sarah and Heather tending to the Professor and I overseeing things here I'm going to need someone to hold things down and assist our metallic friend. Are you up to it, Irma?"

[Karren Gaunt]

"Absolutely. Just tell me what you'd like done, Captain Arroway," Irma volunteered with her best 'I'm capable' smile, thinking furiously under her mask how hard this was going to be. Multiple Travelers crashing into the same problem always was, hence her reflex to walk away from such things soon as she could unless she was right on the cusp of getting a Thetis or a prize of similar value like access to the Professor's ship. She willed her eufiber to concentrate the blood and brains of the decoy Kimiko into a strip she pulled off and wiped off on a toppled beach chair.

Presentation was important, after all.

[The Traveler]

"Very well, Could always use someone that can be a distraction for any civilian crowds. Seems what you are good at." Jane says, starting to talk over to some of the clean-up crews. "Be on your best discretion."

[Silvertalon]

A scant few moments ago.....

Shadow Walkers ears perked below the black hood of her cloak catching the rumbling sounds of thunder not once but twice loudly piercing the cloudless sky. Her head turned towards the sounds that came from a eastward direction when the sudden loud booming bang range out. The people below suddenly begun to panic and scatter for cover into the buildings blow her lofty perch. Within moments the streets were cleared as far as they eye could see. Clearly third sound was possibly a very strong weapon of some sort and the other sounds possible more then just thunder. It was clear by the populaces response to the sounds they took cover.

“A few high rise buildings to the east....... Skyre scan the eastern most highest building facing the beach by half a mile radius. Mark possible hostile targets in red... Possible victims in blue...”

“….. Reaching way point in 3 seconds......” Skyre's simulated voice chirps back.

Reaching into her cloak a soft clicking sound releases an object she now pulls out slow. It suddenly starts to unfold clicking loudly and forming a composite bow within a moment as she holds it in her hand.

“...Up-link established... Feed Active...” Skyre's simulated voice chirps. “Hostile targets detected.... Victims located....

“Two down.... Dead.... Third being carried away in to... a ummm… what ever that is …” She just shakes her head slightly panning the bow in the direction of the hostiles. She softly whispers a comment to herself. “Three hostiles in a high point advantage... Two rail rifles and a kinetic high powered weapon... Kinetic... Still using weaponry with powder charges? How low tech, but oddly effective. Why the anti-material weaponry on organics?”

Now.....

Angling her bow Shadow Walker adjusted her aim leisurely towards the nearest human on the hotel roof top. He begins to turn but suddenly an arrow impacts directly into his chest, lifting him off his feet. The sound of the arrow whistling angrily followed in its wake. The sniper was knocked six feet off the ground with the arrow buried into his chest before his partners only saw him become nothing but a red mist before their very eyes.

note

Using Claws “Whispering Phoenix” The arrow gains a quantum aura, appearing as a legendary bird of prey, a phoenix of fire. Once the arrow released the phoenix's wings spread out while in flight and rings out a cry like an eagle. Upon impact the visual effect erupts into a small explosion of quantum fire.

“WHAT THE FUCK!!!!...” The sniper with the .50 calibre shouted taking a step back, his eyes quickly caught sight of the attacker! A black cloaked figure releasing another arrow in their direction as his sniper rifle leveled upon the black cloaked figure.

“TAKE CO.....! The third sniper was abruptly cut off as his gun slammed abruptly into his gut and at the same moment he staggered back a few feet. His his breaths came in gasps as he staggered slowly backwards looking down at his rail gun, eyes going wide. Seeing a arrow imbedded in the weapon itself.

“W..w.what. The HEEEeeeeeeeeelllllll...” He stumbled backwards over the ledge of the building, falling to his death! “Your mine! Mother fucker!” The .50 caliber sniper fired a well placed shot! A smug grin on his face knowing it was a money shot.

A low growl escaped her muzzle... the third sniper was quicker then she anticipated as he fired his first shot. Her body moved instantly acting as the round missed by mere inches but the force behind the shot caused her to slip slightly backwards. She could see the look on his face clear as day beneath her cloak's hood. A look of surprise and shock. He fired again with determination in his eyes she fired another arrow, the arrow and bullet collided in mid air with a small explosion

note

Another Whispering Phoenix

causing the fragments to harmlessly scatter to the four winds.

Now fear started to take over and it was clear as day as he fired a third shot. She easily evaded it much like the first she was moved back by the sheer force behind the shell. All the while she readied her next arrow and fired intercepting the fourth shell much like she did before. The sniper in a panic kept pulling the trigger as fast as he could....

“DIE DIE DIE DIE! DAMN YOU!!!” He screamed not realizing his gun was now emptied and clicking with each pull of the trigger.

Suddenly the black cloaked figure was gone, suddenly vanishing before his eyes. His entire body froze in place he felt that cold chill of death run down his spine. He turned his head slowly to the right seeing the black cloaked figure standing behind him. A deep growling and snarling sound came from cloaked figure was it speaking something? The alien sounds familiar but yet so strange that it made him completely lose it as he jumped for his life off the 15 story resort hotel!

note

There is enough time to save this third sniper if someone is able to

“..... Alien Craft Inbound....” Chriped Skyre....

Shadow walker only had a moment to catch a glimpse of the alien craft before she felt two powerful impacts of heat slam into her chest causing her to stagger back a few feet. Small wisps of smoke rose from her cloak where it bore though the cloak fabric. Her armor easily absorbed the blunt of the attack but she could still feel the burning heat where the shots impacted. Rolling to the side she narrowly evaded the next volley knocking four arrows at once. The moment she finished her roll she let loose her volley of arrows.

note

Silv fires a special arrow, an arrow that splits apart, revealing a mono filament line. It'll slam with it's line into the port wing, splitting it from the fuselage of the plane. Using “Whispering Phoenix” the “Phoenix” follows with the monofilament line.

Suddenly she fires a single arrow, that splits apart. The pilot tries to pull back but its to late. He sees an angry, glowing phoenix tear into his port side. The vertical take-off jet is jostled violently as one of it's wings are torn off, shrapnel going into the now exposed engine. A moment later the fuselage spins out of control as the only thing keeping it aloft loses thrust, in a few moments it impacts on the west side of the hotel. In those few short moments she casually turns putting her bow away. It folds back into a compact form, and brings it back under her cloak. A black cloaked silhouette is clearly outlined on the top of the building for several long moments.

note

A very familiar cloaked figure I might add.

[Karren Gaunt]

"That one of yours?" Irma asked one Captain Jane's flunkies of the crashing warplane, paused enroute to the crowd. She got a no in reply, considered the possible ramifications of the scenario and decided on the direct approach. That was part of the 'heroic' Irma, too.

The chronokinetic vanished in a tick of quantum and reapeared on the roof some twenty feet from Shadow, one hand on her hip and the other shading her eyes against the glare, a wry smile on her lips, reading the other Nova from behind her social mask, "I really hope you're friendly enough to not shoot first before talking because I'd much rather not die today and I'm running low on Quantum."

Combat Teleport to the roof, ready to Dodge if attacked.

[Silvertalon]

The cloaked figure just stood there for a few long moments not moving, considering its own next course of action if any, and considering the humans reaction in turn. The cloaked figures hood slowly turned in the direction of were the human stood trying its best to judge from its body language what it could possibly be saying. It was indeed a little awkward moment for her as she carefully noted how the human stood ready to react at a moments notice. One hand on its hip looking like it was standing in a relaxed manner. Yet the humans voice sounded wary and careful in what words it chose.

The cloak slowly split open in the front and two black clad gloved hands emerged palms open fingers straight showing nothing was being held. Down along the cloaked figures arms that were exposed look like some type of material covering its arms. Along the forearms the distinctive signs of a body armor of some sorts was worn. One could guess the cloaked figure was wearing some sort of protective gear. But nothing else could be seen though the opening of its cloak. The cloaked figures hands slowly turned displaying it held nothing in them and stayed in place for a few long moments.

It was only then soft growls, yips and barks came from the cloaked figure in strange animal like repetitive pattern. It sounded so completely alien in nature it left one to wounder if it was speaking at all. If so what was it saying.

Translation

My intentions were to protect those that could not protect themselves. As long as no weapon is drawn I have no interest in conflict...... I come in peace? (Soft chuckle)

[Mech]

The display of martial prowess did little to deter the massive metal lion. Irma beat him to the punch, but he still moved quickly, seeming to run across the sky itself, before coming to a halt behind Irma, jaws open, claws and fangs gleaming in the sunlight.

"I suggest you speak up quickly, Unlike my comrade, i have plenty of power left."

[Silvertalon]

“….Unknown mecha detected... Inbound....Eta 5 seconds.” Skyre chirped in Shadow Walker com-link.

The cloaked figure turned quickly in the direction of the approaching unknown mecha moments before it was visible and arrived. It was became very clear to the human trying to make contact and observing the cloaked figure seamed to be to well informed of its surroundings. One would suspect they were being watched by something or someone else not currently present area. The cloaked figures cloak opened on the right side as they figure took a defensive stance. Its right hand moved down to its side possibly holding the cloak open making no other moves.

Note

Anyone with extremely good hearing would hear a soft unlatching click. Then with someone with very good sight and being observant would notice something was moving into place slightly sticking out from behind with in reach to grasp in a moments notice. Doesn't look like a gun at all but nothing you could recognize.

Although taking such a stance did reveal to both the human and mecha the cloaked figure was clearly in some type of advanced body armor. But the biggest oddity of all was the fact the one leg they could clearly see now. Looked like a animals hind clad in that body armor, clearly not human in any respect! The cloaked figure growled a bit deeply its tone shifted a little but still it made those strange unearthly animal like sounds. Still they made no aggressive moves other then a defensive stance possibly ready to act if someone became aggressive.

Note

I repeat, I am no threat! But if you push me I will respond in kind. Calm down!

The figures hood slightly tilted to the right glancing quickly in one direction while keeping its eyes on the two strangers. It was clear by its subtle movements it was ready to bolt or defend itself depending how things were progressing and so far these primitives were becoming more and more aggressive by each arrival by the looks of it.

[The Traveler]

Director's OOC Note

Silvertalon's language now sounds like a very engrished version of an understandible language to you. Same to Silv for what everyone else says. Still translating but the language barrier is slowly, painfully eroding.

[Karren Gaunt]

"Thank you for the assist, but if they wanted us dead, they'd have tried by now," counciled Irma over the coms as what she assumed was the professer's translation took effect, giving the other Nova nod. She wasn't sure if she was dealing with an alien (which would be a first) or a highly-tainted human (which she had encountered a lot of), but in either case, violence was a last option. At least here with all the cameras documenting this incident for prosterity.

"Sarah, any issues playing hostess for our... guest if they'd like to sit down and talk?" she added over the coms, adding that last bit clearly in inviation to the stranger.

[Heather 10093]

Heather came out of the ESS, slapping her forehead. She marched across the sand, picked up her parasol, flicked a switch on the handle, and shook it, dislodging several bullets which dropped harmlessly to the ground. She then walked back to the ESS, closing her parasol on the way, compressing it down to an impossibly small cylinder that she slid into a pouch at her side.

In the ESS, she returned to the Professor's side, observing with interest the way her body was healing from such a severe wound by reshaping itself into a form that had not been injured.

[The Traveler]

The process though was slow. Sickeningly so. And with the obviously mortal wound Sakurako suffered her body was between tick and tock repairing itself.

Director's Note

You'll notice Sakurako's body starting to shrink proportionately a little, as it takes some of it's own mass for the repairs combined with her quantum energies. If you got Node... yeah... She looks dead, but the Reaper got told to F-off it's just a flesh wound. Although now the identifying features of The Professor's body have just about faded away like she was being remolded.

Sarah looks up at a screen in Sickbay, Irma's face on it, with a vitals track. "Umm... Guest? Press the switch on your comlink so I can get a visual. I took the cameras offline for security reasons. I should see this person first hand."

She adjusts her suit, knowing full well until Sakurako wakes up she's in charge of the ESS.

[Mech]

"Fine." Still standing in the air, The Lion was no less imposing, as they could hear metal flex. The Mech was actually breathing. It wasn't a mecha, it was an actual living thing.

[Silvertalon]

"Vury kourlis.... Murkloc breuths azz iz elirve...." The cloaked figured whispered to herself. Although her stance remained defense but a slight less tense then it was a moment ago. Its attention was on the human and now seemingly living mecha.

Note

Very curious... Mecha breaths as if its alive...."

The cloaked figure slightly was taken back by what came next the human started to speak a very gibberish if not broken language of her own species! It was very hard to understand at first. What was said as bits and pieces didn't make to much sense. All she could understand was something that sounded like the word; issues.... down.. elk.... An a whole lot of gibberish in-between it was utterly confusing to her. But clearly it got her attention as her focus shifted upon what the human was trying to say.

"Urr.. do.. Ntzzz Urrrsturrddd u..." The cloaked figure spoke a bit loudly as the growls and animal noises were being filtered out more and more.

Note

I do not understand you....

Yet the cloaked figure kept a good portion of its body hidden from view behind that cloak staying in a defensive stance. As they seamed a little more relaxed then how tense they were only a little bit ago. Slowly there was progress as the cloaked figures guard was lowering just a little.

[Karren Gaunt]

Irma fiddled with the control until she got what she thought was the right setting to give Sarah a picture of their black-clad newcomer, a sea wind blowing her long black hair behind her. Her green eyes looked bemused as the translation brokenly started taking effect, affecting a smile. More and more she suspected this was some kind of alien or nonhuman. A tainted Nova would have more human tells, even a trog probably raised by tainted 1st generation Novas. Still, she'd hold her judgement.

"Same to you. I think," the chronokinetic offered after a pause for thought, "Problem should clear up though and then we can talk."

[The Traveler]

Director's note

Now we've gone from engrish to basic elementary school english, and the comlink's pre-recorded advisory lets you know.

"This is the universal translator circuit. Due to the phonic complexity, only a elementary school level of translation quality can be achieved until more is heard from the subject. take care in diplomatic activity, and any hostility should be met with a quick retreat." The automated message states.

Sarah looks over the newcomer. "Hmm... Might not be human at all, Kiddo. Thanks for activating your firewall by the way." She says to Irma. "Heather? Umm,... " Sarah says, turning to Heather. "Is it possible for you to patch your medical scanner into the medi-scanner that is running with the comlinks? You've always wanted to get better data from more subjects, this may be your chance."