Alan commented to Reggie, "I think you should know, XM is due to meet a delegation from planet Gammu later. Some kind of an AI project or something they have planned for the shuttle navigational computer..."
"And this means what exactly?"
"Well, er... They might come looking for XM if we're delayed to long. I sort of left a message with them, saying where we were going..."
Looking puzzled, Spike spoke up. "Delegation? I don't remember anything but robots on Gammu... oh right, you mean the robots? Not the ones with interchangable chassis for different jobs I hope?"
XM beeped excitedly.
Alan laughed and looked down at the robot. "XM says, yes, the ones that f-... er... mess stuff up."
Spike pales a little. "I hope they didn't bring those heavy chassis with the capship class guns...they could blow up the mountain with those."
XM beeps again and Alan translates. "XM says they're more likely to... um... knock on the front door and ask first. They're really very polite unless you cross them.
"Anyway, just so you know, XM can probably hack the nanobot systems and let us out but that might annoy our host a bit much, I suppose."
Reggie stared at first Alan, and then at the droid XM; and roared with laughter.
"And when have we not had a party on this bloody Planet that hasn't been crashed?" he chortled.
"At least XM's friends are polite, and won't try to destroy us by talking us to death!"
Alan sighed with relief. "I'm glad you aren't miffed with us, Reggie. In a way, it's the Veranda's fault, you know. You let those damn "Fnordettes" come over and hobnob indiscrimately with XM while my hangar was being built. I'm afraid they put some rather "independent" ideas into his circuits; and taught him some very colorful new swear words in the process."
XM emitted a string of beeps, whistles, and sounds suspiciously resembling a "raspberry"; to which the vivacious Kate responded by reaching over and smacking him smartly on the head.
It was Spike's turn to laugh. "Kate, I married you not only for your beauty; but also for your ability to assess a situation and act accordingly. Will you have my babies?" (Which evoked both a glare and an embarrased smile from the beautiful redhead.)
"We still have an hour, by my, err, pocket watch." said Reg. "I propose we continue to wait here for events to proceed. The "Doctor" has not responded to our choice of gameplay, nor do we know what is transpiring above in the Villa. Meanwhile, let me explain further how the entity who possessed the "Doctor" is so intimately intertwined with our Goddess..."
'Now, now, Pops, that ain't cool. Don't be telling all the secrets of the intergalactic atheist gods now! That's just won't settle. Oh, hi you three. Haven't had the pleasure of meeting you." A girl, about 15, was talking as she walked out of a cylindrical hallway that had just opened and was closing behind her. "The name is Sylvia. Sylvia deLuna. Lovely little place my mom's got cloistered away down here, ain't it? Oh, right, intergalactic gods and all that. Ha. Lemme just open up a view-screen, and we can check on Mom and her friends, mkay?"
A bundle of nanobots moved and formed into a computer terminal. "Here we go. No talking, you four! I wouldn't like to have to, y'know, ask the nanobots to blow you all up. That would be catastrophic! Oh, and XM, be a dear and shut off that noise. I have no qualms with downloading your memory into a flashdrive and having this body turned into mere scrap! Now, the screen."
Upstairs, nothing much had happened. Fiona was talking with her guests around a coffee table, Kane was enjoying himself with the argument Fiona and Jay were in (about the profitability of cardimine in New Berlin, New London, and New York), and the mysterious deSicev and Richard Walters were nowhere to be seen. It seemed everything was as it should be.
"There ya go. Happy, Pops? Good! I think introductions are in order, especially with you, Ms. Redhead! Heehee, sorry, that was mean. Want some chairs? Here we go..." Five chairs rose from the floor. "Best part about having a supercomputer as an uncle is that it'll install a computer chip into your spine that allows you to control the basement. XM, don't even try to use it to make me do things or make the nanos do things. It won't work. And trust me, I've had people try... now, introductions?"
Reggie looked around. "Introductions! Of course!"
He indicates the man with graying hair and the squat four armed droid. "Here we have Alan Kell and maintenance robot XM-2333, who use the underground Island hangar just down the road as base of operations for their trading enterprises.
"And over here we have Spike Harris, previously commander of the Sirius Federation Battlecruiser Exeter.
"Kate is another Zoner, from... elsewhere... who met Spike while he was traveling.
"They have been offered security work in this area due to Kate's troubles with Bretonia customs and have been staying at my villa recently. It seems Kate and Spike share a special... dislike... for Nomads."
Reggie continued, "And now, my friends, may I introduce Ms. Sylvia Escobara Harmonia deLuna, the youngest member of the deLuna Clan. And, though she has a rather unsettling and still immature sense of humor at times, I assure you that she has impressive credentials.
"Ms. Sylvia was given a special commission to command the trading vessel [KNT]Harlequinn by Kusari High Command, with only a modicum of string-pulling by her mother, the Ambassador.
"She has also served aboard my partner's vessel, the [~V~]Malaclypse, at my behest and recommendation. I was so impressed with her on our first meeting that I felt Mal should take advantage of her skills.
"While aboard the V-Mal on a secret mission into uncharted space near Kusari, she was initiated in the teachings of our Lady Eris, and has shown surprising Pineal growth. So surprising in fact, that Malaclypse was moved to offer her a position as a fellow Episkopos of the ELF.
"So, in a sense my friends, you are meeting one of the "Bosses" of the Erisian Liberation Front; and by discrete extension, the Temporary Autonomous Zoners as well.
Turning then to Sylvia, Reggie said, "Now, young lady, I have two questions for you. First, have you decided to keep that lovely Golden Apple ring on your finger, and help to lead us against the Ancient Old Ones? And secondly, as you seem to have a built-in "key" to this Goddess-forsaken maze, why are we sitting about exchanging pleasantries when we could either be proceeding upwards to unite with your mother and her guests, or getting our arses out of this drafty rabbit hole?"
Sylvia looked at Reggie with a look of mild confusion. "Why would you want to go back up to the Rouge? You didn't want to see Mom anymore, and took off. I mean, if you want, I can go ahead and make an elevator shaft to lead to the main Atrium... but I'd really rather not. Rich might not like me doing that. Or deSicev, now that I think about it. Also, lovely to meet you all. Let's stay a while and chat! I do love this place!"
===
Meanwhile, in Dublin, the captain of the HMS Royale paced back and forth. The search for the Fantasia was going slower than he had hoped, and it was causing him no small amount of grief. Suddenly, the communications officer reported that the Fantasia had been found. The captain set a course for the ship, only to be interrupted.
"You will die now, Captain, for the Ska Feshir requires you no longer. Thank you for leading us to the Outcasts; but I'm afraid you cannot be telling anyone about the area. Oh dear! What's this? Your engines, shields, weapons, communications and life support are being shut down? Oh, the shame! Here, let me send some friends to aid you in your repairs."
Ten missiles appeared out of nowhere, speeding towards the Royale. The captain tried to order evasive maneuvers, but the voice was correct; the Royale was without power. The missiles sped in, until they finally made impact. Burrowing through the thick armor, they exploded in a mass of chemicals, dissolving human tissue wherever it landed. The chemicals had a half-life of ten minutes upon being exposed to oxygen, and began immediately decaying. Most of the crew was dead, but the bridge was still active. The Captain gave the order to evacuate the area. Power had been restored. The Royale began to activate cruise engines.
"Goodbye, Captain," the voice said again. "I am General Artifice, and you, my good fellow, are dead." The chemicals exploded in a tremendous burst of energy. Each bomb held four megatons of explosive force, and the ship's hull expanded but did not break open. Everything within was gone; the hollow husk floated in space. No energy signal was produced, and so, the Fantasia had no way of knowing that the Royale had been utterly destroyed.
===
Doctor Hiia looked once more at the document he held in his hands, and upon finishing it for what had to have been the third time, crumpled it up and incinerated it. He set his ship off to a distant jumphole; it would lead him to the greatest discovery of his life, if the now-ash primary documents from Old Earth were to be trusted. The Deius Prime experiment could wait; this was far more important.
===
Beneath the Uli Rouge, beneath where Sylvia, Reggie, Alan, Spike, Kate and XM sat talking, the shadowy form of Richard Walters stalked the halls. These were his halls, his territory, protected by the most advanced system of defenses conceived by man. He walked to a special security room, and began to look at the monitors. Walters was a man of many talents, one of which was serving Madam deLuna's whims. The other was system-class assassination. He was quite a capable assassin, never failing a mission or being caught, and he had no criminal record to speak of. His mind was specially shielded from Fnordie and the Doctor thanks to years of conditioning.
The monitors showed a small, nigh-insignificant blur on the plains near the Rouge. Any other human would have decidedly waved it off as a camera malfunction, the product of a smear on the glass of the lenses. Walters knew differently. It was something moving, and he had no intentions of letting it near the Rouge. The basement couldn't be accessed successfully from outside of the mountain, as the air shafts moved constantly. No, only by getting into the actual elevator from the guest bedroom, going down, getting the proper security codes, only by beating the system Walters had made could anyone enter the basement.
And that, Walters knew, was something no one would ever do. His partner had made sure of it.
Tracking the blur, Walters began to activate the defenses. A single locust flew out of the roof of the Uli Rouge. It would remain above the blur, see if there was anything, and if there was, blow it up.
Smiling, Walters leaned back in his chair, his hands folded behind his head. It was good to be secure. It was better to be invincible.
"Yes, Sylvia, I did leave your mother to her own devices; but only because I had been ordered to recconoiter the lower levels of this 'Villa'." Reggie sighed. "While you are not quite privy to all that Malaclypse is dealing with at the moment, I'm sure you will be soon, as his fellow E-Prime. It was necessary for me to assume the role of a frustrated, heartless, and impatient cad in order to put Mal's directive in motion.
"Unfortunately, it appears that I am only able to partially complete my assignment. It appears this mountain must remain somewhat of a mystery for now. And, since I have failed to gather the information I was tasked to obtain; I would not only be willing, but anxious to rejoin Fiona for after-dinner cocktails. From the little giimpse you showed us on your "nano-vision", the party could certainly use some rescucitation. A bunch of stone statues standing about!
Alan, chimed in. "Reggie, what about the rest of us? We're not really dressed for a formal "do", except for Kate here. Should we just wait here twiddling our thumbs?"
"I appreciate your attempt to rescue me, friends; but I believe Sylvia owes you your freedom now." Said Reggie, as he turned to the young girl. "Sylvia, these people are only here out of concern for me. Could you be so kind as to provide them an exit? I will of course stay with you, whatever you decide is our best course of action."
Sylvia, a girl full of surprises and talents yet to be explored, closed her eyes as if consulting an unkown source for guidance. Whether she was in contact with the implant in her spine, her emerging Pineal, or the new Goddess she served remained to be seen.
A quiet whisper was heard on the plains surrounding the Uli Rouge. One would think it to simply be the wind, blowing gently through the mountains. Then it turned into a roar of jump-jets, and the Phantom Assault Shuttle lifted from the ground. Still hidden from sight, the craft sped off from the mountain and towards the little canyon that was not far away. Little escaped Crystal Oni's notice, and thus did the Rampant AI discover a cache of WMDs dropped not far away from where his boss was. With a quick dispatch, the shuttle's troops were dispatched to sit on the ordinance. Nobody was to gain those weapons, except perhaps the Phantom Empire. Super weapons owned by them were starting to run low, and this might be a good place to partly replenish the stocks.
The shuttle dropped into the canyon, and from its hold spilled out 12 troopers. Equipped with the trademark Phantom Powered Armor, the small squad could probably hold their own against an entire battalion of conventional troops, including armor and mechanized with air-support. Not only that, but the troopers were coupled with a pair of the Phantoms' Heavy Assault Armored Units, packing more firepower then most Main Battle Tanks. The .80 caliber auto-cannons could chew up infantry and light armor indiscriminately, two energy blasters adapted from Nomad tech provided limitless heavy fire, and the specially designed rockets could take out heavy armor and air craft with contemptible ease. Floating on rockets and anti-grav, the monstrous metal beasts were every soldiers nightmare. It didn't help that their armor was impervious to all but the heaviest of crew-served guns, and their targeting arrays had been called Oculus Infernum, the Eye of Hell, for a reason. The 12 soldiers and their tanks scattered, and the shuttle lifted again. Since nothing terribly untoward seemed to be happening, the ship was being recalled to the Oblivion.
The two HAUs floated around the bombs, while the 12 soldiers spread around the area and took cover. Active-camo hid them for the most part, blending in fairly well with the surrounding vegetation. It was not perfect by any means, but it made them hard to impossible to spot. And that was all that they needed. Perhaps the poor little Outcast, whomever he or she was, would only see the two mobile tanks. If they still tried with those things around, the soldiers would pop up. And from there would come a hell storm that nothing could survive.
******************
Julius continued to watch the goings-on with a slight interest. Since nothing else seemed to be occurring, perhaps it was time to bring this party to point.
"Madam DeLuna; while I have no intent to be rude, I would presume there is a reason you called us all here. Let us be honest, as I know for a fact you would not invite me to so much as tea unless you wanted to try and get something from me and my organization. I am despised, with good reason, by most of the known universe. There is something you want, and I would like to know what it is."
This is the real true story of rock and roll; it was not about anything more then, how to live your life, as a gangster, in sartorial splendor, and turning the world into a place where normality would never return again...- Malcolm McLaren
The tripwire around the bombs went off like mad. Little did Darkstar's men realize they had just signed their own death warrants.
The security system, protected from the Oni's wrath by unseen means-a binary coding system, ancient, yet so rare that none had any method for countering it-registered things in the surrounding air. Cloaked figures more than a dozen of them, two identified assault craft, approached the weapons, so painstakingly placed by a sixteen-year-old sissy technician.
Its program declared evaluated the threat-unknown, completely unknown. It had no defensive systems. Being a sensible binary computer, it fulfilled its simple objective-protect the Don's secrets at all costs.
****************************************
Willow was nigh a hundred meters from the base of the mountain when everything went white. Oh my God! What the hell was that?
Willow spun around, staring at the massive sphere of white light like a deer in the headlights.
"Oh, shi-"
The massive white ball promptly imploded upon itself, replaced by a shimmering black sphere, one much smaller. Everything suddenly got very windy, being sucked into the rift, for about three seconds, after which the sphere just instantaneously disappeared.
"Oh, thank god." Ahh! What the hell was that!? You're repeating yourself, chumpster. Scared? Ah...No! no, no, I was just rather startled. No, I mean- That means some idiot just tried to screw with my bombs, which aren't supposed to be down here, anyway. The security systems are very simple-any unauthorized approach results in instant detonation. The white thing was the Nucleodisruptodispersive torpedo-see the ground, how it's cracked and unstable? The black was the AQS torpedo going off and sucking in the nucleonic field. If that second bomb hadn't gone off, you, me and this entire little rock here would be a field of quarks and gluons spread across the system. Little boys shouldn't play with matches. That is one of the most overused aphorisms ever. You bounce back slowly.
Grinning to himself even as he tried to figure out how the bombs had gotten to his ship, he sprinted the rest of the way to the mountain and began using his jetboots to bounce unnatural heights up from one crag to the next.
"Holy crap! My Saber!"
Quote:Quick comment - we thought that Panzer was the Leader, Swift. -Agmen
((OoC: So, yeah, this one is another long one. But think about it; it's actually, like, three or four posts in one. I've just condensed them! You can thank me later =P -Harley))
Fiona looked around, extremely confused about what was happening. Why was there always something bad happening whenever she hosted a party?
"Julius, er, Mr. Kane, 'Lord Dark Star', yeah, whatever, I don't care WHAT name you want to use. I'll be happy to answer what is going on once I myself know. As for the invitation, well, I just wanted to see how you were doing. How everyone is doing, since the events of the Ska Ralla. However, well, that doesn't seem to matter anymore, since something big just happened. Okay? So please excuse me while I consult deSicev."
To her astonishment, as she approached a window, blast shielding covered it. The door was also hidden behind a sizable blast shield. She proceeded to a monitor where she saw robots rising from the ground around her villa and proceeding down the one mountain path. The shielding outside crackled as it was put into full swing. Fiona turned on her heel, where deSicev was waiting.
"Statement: Madam, defensive protocols have been initiated. It is not wise to stray from the safety of the lounge. Suggestion: It may be best if you return to the aforementioned section of the house. Statement: Do not mind the security measures outside. Explanation: Madam, a signal has been traced outside, as well as an artificial quantum singularity. Clarification: A black hole, madam. Addendum: Therefore, I have sent out those guards to ensure that whatever was stupid enough to come here to Gran Canaria and activate some bombs dies."
===
In orbit, the battleship Ska Feshir loomed menacingly, cloaked though it may be. A small craft had entered Gran Canaria, and had activated a pair of black hole bombs. General Artifice was not happy.
"Prepare to land the Apparition of Fear, commander. We will cleanse the Target's vicinity of these impudent foes, and bring fear to the C'tanlings! There will be retribution for this use of power!"
A shadow appeared next to General Artifice's chair. Twelve long, thing legs propelled the thing forward, and it spoke gently into Artifice's ear. "My people stopped using singularities once we perfected the Yrshimi laser. I do not believe that these humans could have discovered it without the proper stimuli."
"They have a drug. Cardamine, it is called. Genetically enhances the humans, lengthens their lifetime, but it slowly removes from them the ability to produce lymph. The humans have not studied the lymph system adequately to have found out this effect, however, and so they use it continually."
"Ah," the voice said, "so they have stimuli... Planet Malta... no, we never came here. It must be a naturally occurring plant. Nevertheless, we must discover who it was who recreated the singularity buster. That technology is of more danger to our purpose than if the humans gained cloaking technology."
"We will land the Feshir on the planet. Anything that dares defy us will be destroyed."
"Give him more time. My friend may be able to deal with them before we have need of interfering. As for now, Artifice, I must make use of my knowledge and find that C'tanling ship."
===
Sylvia heard the massive explosion and cried out in terror. She ran to Reggie, and hugged him in fear. "Reggie, I'm scared!"
"There, there. Sylvie, dear, we've been through worse. Trust me. Did I tell you the story of the Ska Ralla?"
"N-n-n-n-ooooooo..."
"Well, that rhyming name was a space station. It was MASSIVE! And we had to blow it up! With a PLANET! Oh yeah, it was awesome! Your mother, Eris bless her, got us into that mess, believe you me, but I got us out. Well, Mal, Dis and I. And Jes. Kane might have had something to do with it. Maybe even Rick. But your mother and sister? Nah, nothing."
"Hehe... sounds like Mom..."
"Oh yeah! You should've seen it!"
And so, Reggie began to tell Sylvia about the events of the Ska Ralla. Alan, Kate, and Spike all listened intently. XM tried to hack into the nanobots, to be rebutted continually. No one noticed the occasional drip of mercury-colored liquid around the edge of the little bubble the group inhabited...
===
In space, the Gammu representatives sped in, the battleship chassis glinting in the dual suns of Omega 49. As they reached Gran Canaria, however, they were seen by the Feshir. The battleship opened it's port side cannons, rolling the laser embankments out of their invisible nests. The massive armaments emitted dazzling array of colors as they fired into the Gammu troupe. No one on Gran Canaria saw, or even attempted to use sensors to detect it. No one looks directly into the sun on high noon.
The only thing to register the attack was Crystal Oni. And Crystal Oni knew not to mess with something that could dispatch the heavily armed Gammu people in a single broadside.
Oni attempted to contact Dark Star, to warn him, but the shield around the Uli Rouge was disrupting any and all attempts at communication. Adding that to the death of the assault units, Oni knew that there was a sudden paradigm shift. It went about ordering a few battalions of Phantoms to storm the villa. And if Lord Dark Star had been killed, the kinetic impactor stood ready to be activated, and to flatten the mountain into a pancake.