Chat log from 08/08/15 to 08/10/15

This is the chat log from the past few days.

"Ikala to Revelation of Fire-" Shed stop as the communications link opened to the sound of gunfire and chaos, it sounded like all out war was breaking out onboard the ship as she brought up a view of the bridge, most of the women there had been killed already aside from a heavily wounded helmswoman who reached up with a blue blood stained hand to press something on the controls...moments would pass as the woman breathed her last and the warbird's docking clamps released depressurizing the area it was attached to as the vessel listed and began to drift away from the dock and out into open space. "What the hell is Operating protocol Omega-231?" Ikala would ask as shed tapped into the down centurions processing node via her cortical implant. "Its active, whatever it is- By the gods." shed begin to move quickly without explanation as she left the room in the direction of where the Revelation had been docked. Meanwhile Aurelia had quickly faded from alertness after a few coughs of blood staining her neck and armor a bright almost flourescent blue...scans would reveal other than her blood color physicaly she was no different than an ordinary women, minus augmentations of course but as far as her basic layout it was all the same. "This is Ikala, I dont think were going to be able to get that medic anytime soon. Hang on Matriarch." would come over the datapad.

[15:11:51]The God Emperor:
The medics quickly arrived at the scene and after a brief scan of her condition they placed her on a stretcher and began heading to the nearest med bay while a doctor began to to do what he could to stop the blood on their way to the more well equipped area to take care of her.

Another men approached to offer a report of the approaching, Balthazar almost glaring at the guard as she reported the Caledonians. "Now what? Of course they are here, what a coincidence. Tell them to destroy the Kallean ship or capture it, inform them that the Centurions seem to have gone rogue and tell them one vessel with a doctor versed in Kallean physiology is allowed to dock." The guard nodded and quickly went about transferring the message to the admiral. "We request for you to either capture or destroy the Kallean ship know as Revelation of Fire and a vessel is allowed to dock with a medic with expertise in Kallean physiology." Balthazar remained at the command center and opened comms to speak to the entire station. "You are to eliminate any centurions you see. They are the machines that came with the Kalleans, they appear to have been reprogrammed and I will not risk the safety of this station by hopping it was only a few. I ask the collaboration of the Kalleans aboard to deal with the machines, they attacked Aurelia and harmed her. Give them the same treatment."

[15:17:16]
Admiral Aurelius looked at the datapad with the message "Alright, send a shuttle with a two fighter escort to the Akkadian station, send Medic Alans" as the order was sent, and shortly, a shuttle with two YF-90 Peregrine's headed for the station. Upon docking, the doctor on the shuttle asked to be taken to the med bay, and soon as he was, he would quickly take over, and rapidly begin to stabilize Aurelia's condition. Kallean physiology had become a standard area of study for Caledonian medics, and now it seemed that precaution was paying off. Meanwhile, Aurelious had the rest of the 504th warp in around the now drifting Revelation of Fire, and sent a battalion of marines to board the ship, full battle gear. Now that they knew that the Centurions were responsible, the marines were ordered to destroy every Centurion on the ship, but preserve the memory cores as much as possible for analysis.<E>

[15:24:56]
Akkadians began their witch hunt as the orders came in. Organized squads being formed while other groups were created to protected and escort the civilians present in the station to safe locations. The well armed guards began to patrol for any stray Centurions and they would attack immediately upon sighting one of the machines, regardless if they seemed hostile or not.

[15:35:53]Kallean Fleet:
"Do yourself a favor and get back..." Ikala would order of an Akkadian squad in position near the breached airlock as she reached up to re-pressurize the room on the other side of the door via closing the outer space door. They probably thought her mad given her attire was an exact copy of Aurelia's and definately did *not* have the appearance of being rater for spatial entry. "Leave the medic to me..." shed state as she twitched for a moment as a helmet of sorts seemed to phase out of thin air over her head along with a power suit taking her figure before armor would begin to materialize in golden swirls of energy over her figure...she was Kal'Nar, the Kallean secretive intelligence agency whos reputation far proceeded even the zealouse nature of the Kalleans wartime rage. Shed potentialy loose her position for revealing such information but she didnt seem to care as the final clanging of dense metal signaled the end to her armors deployment as she entered the room and braced herself as lights displayed her intended trajectory. "Close the door in 3...2..1!" shed punch the release as the suddenly violent decompression would propel her out into the void and hurtling in the direction of the Revelation Of Fire. What happened next would no doubt be written about for ages to come in Kallean lore as she guided her course in to allow for a slip through the shielding after weapons impact as she spun her form to land as if she were kneeling on the outer hull, though speed would serve to punch catastrophicly through the double hull and coincidentally directly onto a group of centurions infront of a Caledonian bording party as the structural shielding closed the breach in the hull..."Come with me, there are still my sisters who yet live." shed order as she stood and primed her energy blade, the Revelation was drifting, though the fight onboard was far from over given it was roughly 500 crew vs 1,000 centurions raging over the decks of the massive vessel...

[15:51:31]Caledonian NPCs:
.:When Ikala appeared, the squad of marines she helped immediately moved into supporting positions around her, providing fire support through the use of their CQC weapons, shotguns and SMG's, since assault rifles were not as useful in the confines of a ship. Ikala would likely notice that there were only a few assault rifles, and those had been modified for ship combat to have shorter profiles to handle combat in such confined spaces.:.<E>

[16:01:37]
Akkadian's squad began to organize to deal with the remaining centurions, a dozen of the machines at least prowling about the station and soon enough they sound of weapons being fired and open conflict began to echo through the halls. A couple of casualties already being reported as the robots were much tougher than expected, causing the troops to resort to a more defensive approach. Sticking to corners and cover and using the advantage in numbers to take pot shots and eventually wear down the centurion. A lot of guards had been stationed on the door of the med bay where the wounded were being taken and Aurelia was, as well as a couple more protecting the Emperor. Having dealt with similarly armored foe their ammunition were all switched to armor piercing. It would not be swift but it would be done.

The men that escorted Ikala out did not question her, allowing the woman to do as she pleased for after all their duty was inside the ship and not outside. The door quickly closed the moment she was out as instructed.

[16:03:32]
Captain Cusario stood within his quarters, mulling over a desk with maps and navigational tools splayed out across it. He had originally planned to get a good rest before deciding on El Impolutos next destination, but he no longer had that luxury, and he now reviewed naval defenses against fleet positions, as well as other smaller notes about available supplies and reputation. There was no clear choice to be seen- The El Impoluto wasn't reputable enough to warrant a break from piracy, but simultaneously, a surprise attacks against fleets would be impossible. He decided he would ask Nex for her advice upon her return. While she was unstable and prone to brutal violence, she still was capable of making wise decisions and considering the safety of the crew, and that would have to do. As if on cue, his first mate returned to his side, cargo in tow. He straightened himself up, preparing to ask for her advice before hearing the hesitant greeting of hers. It seemed forced, almost painful, so he decided to withhold his inquiry until she said what she needed to say. Softly, but still with the authoritative tone he used for business, he replied. "Yes? Is there something on your mind, Nex, or are you ready to set sail?"

[16:16:49]Kallean Fleet:
Cursed under her breath at the marines wielding shotguns in the confined space, "Have you forgotten your foe? Switch to something with Armor piercing properties if you have it. All you will do with that is piss them off and reveal your position." shed order as she continued to make her way through, and although she herself preferred her blade over a firearm given her ample shielding allowed her to close the distance there was something impressive about it as shed grasp an arm being swung her way and twist to snap the servo before thrusting her blade into its core. Aboard the station the dozen or so had rallied into a group and despite the standard tactic one would usually assume of going for the command and control center they were making their way towards climate controls as best they could as harassment fire continued to damage and degrade their offensive capabilities, it was fortunate only a dozen had been on board when crew woman Zelan had sacrificed her life to sever the docking clamps, otherwise there would be considerably more storming the station. "We need to secure atmospheric controls, all other systems are secondary for the time being." Ikala would order, though with the majority of centurions on the Revelation it was slow going at best, and it seemed the sealed doors of the control room for atmospheric controls was a stalling tactic at best, she knew as well as any that the roughly half dozen Kalleans within wouldnt last against the onslaught beyond the doors for long should they be breached. "You, where are your other squads located? Patch them through to my cortical implant." shed order of the marine who was in command of the squad.

[16:25:45]Caledonian NPCs:
.:The marine looked at Ikala "There's a battalion of marines on board now, we've lost three squads so far, but that was expected, companies four and three are heading to secure the engine room and weapon control room, company two is heading for the bridge, company one and five are nearby" as he quickly patched in Ikala to the Caledonian communications network. While there was a bit of trouble at first, since Caledonians and Kalleans used different methods for communications, it eventually worked. Now Ikala was getting reports from the rest of the marines, interrupted by occasional bursts of fire fights. Once the order was sent for all marines to switch to the AP rounds for shotguns and SMG's, the marines with the naval assault rifle were ordered to switch to the APER munition. APER stood for Amor-Penetrating Explosive Round, and while it worked like a normal AP round, as soon as it penetrated the first layer of armor, a small amount of explosive inside the round would explode, sending out dozens of bits of shrapnel. It was a lethal and highly effective round. Companies one and five were ordered to rendezvous with them and Ikala outside the life support control room where the remaining Kalleans were holed up. Meanwhile, the 504th Assault Fleet kept overwatch positions around the Revelation of Fire, which was now stabilized by several salvage corvettes that had locked onto the hull with magnetic clamps, and was now keeping it from drifting.:.<E>

[16:36:47]
The God Emperor heard the information being relayed about the atmospheric controls and immediately began to make his way towards the location of the console, normally Balthazar would not enter combat but he could not let his people do all of the work and he knew that he could cut off the machine's path by heading towards a certain way and as expected he reached the controls before the machines, a makeshift barricade being created with his the help of his powers, two guards and Ostrava with him awaiting the centurions while the other squads came from behind. The machines were now trapped between two fronts, sending a wave of force to throw a couple out of their balance to make the job easier for those raining hell behind them but a stray shot of the machines managed to hit the Emperor's shoulder, causing him to slightly flinch but for his men he could not show any pain.

[17:01:14]Kallean Fleet:
Ikala looked around within the confines of her display at the various positions of Kallean troops, Caledonians, and the reported locations of Centurions, it seemed all would be going well so far. "Kepp it up! Were almost-" shed not have time to finish as a Centurion ran towards the group at full speed before overloading its core to cause an explosion that would fill the corridor around them. Else where about the ship the same was happening as they closed the distance in a rapid manner to detonate their micro fusion cores within groups of soldiers as well as any ordinance they might be carrying, the result would be devastating as the report came a second too late about the doors being breached due to use of a mortar mounted on the back of one as she and her squad came around the corner with the Caledonians to the atmospheric control room...just in time to see the last Kallean within the room fall as the centurions opened fire and another one activated the controls. Wind would howl and hiss as all airlocks, outer hull access doors, and shuttlebay doors opened at the same time to vent the ships atmosphere in a matter of seconds as well as cause objects and debris to be thrown like projectiles within the cooridors of the ship. What few remaining centurions there were would continue to target what was left of the Caledonian and Kallean forces whod of been fortunate enough to be bearing spatially rated shielding and although the suicide bombing method of attacks would be devastating to what survived the ships depressurizing it would be the end of the centurions on board a now heavily under crewed and damaged Revelation of Fire. Meanwhile on the Akkadian station change would come in the the form of a Centurion emerging at a full sprint towards the barricade, glowing red from the energy built up within moments before it would either be taken down and explode or explode into the barricade in an effort to clear it as the other 5 that remained broke into a run in an attempt to breach it. The first two would detonate one followed by the other as the last 3 would attempt to breach the room and access the system, though unlike onboard the Revelation of Fire their numbers were severly limited on the station making the outcome of their attack more than likely to favor the defender.

[17:04:28]
Riza Solstheim was one of the guard detail accompanying the Akkadian leader and as the centruions approached the group, she began making fluid arm movements towards the enemy, each accompanied by the generation of a flame of such intense heat, even the metal that made up their targets was warped and melted, as they continued to burn and sizzle upon their sturdy frames. However, the machines counter-attacked, one of the shots hitting their leader, noticing this, the pyromancer was incensed, running forward to her leader, and summoning powerful pillars of flame from underneath the offending opponent, the once powerful form slowly deteriorating to an almost liquid form. "My liege? Are you okay? It's our job to protect you, please, don't put yourself in such danger!" Riza knew lecturing the God Emperor was bad form, but she was willing to lay her life on the line for this man. She couldn't afford to let him come to undue harm.

[17:13:11]The God Emperor:
"If you have time to concern yourself with me then you have time to attack, soldier." Not even the royal guardian seemed to try and steer the Emperor, his job being to protect him regardless of the situation and not question his ruler but at the sight of the incoming centurion the knight quickly rushed to act as a shield for the God-Emperor, erecting a hastily made barrier of divine light to lighten the impact which still send himself, Balthazar and Riza flying a couple feet back but as the second exploding began to attempt to do the same, The emperor held him in place with his powers, causing the machine to self-destruct around it's own comrades, hopefully that was enough to deal with every remaining one. The explosion having possibly done some damage to his internal organs or bones, while his shoulder still bled from the previous wound.

[17:14:17]Caledonian NPCs:
.:When the Centurions began their kamikaze attacks, the Caledonian marines did take heavy losses, and with the depressurization, the marines activated their helmets, which sealed off their bodies from space, though the flying debris did take out quite a few of the remaining marines. Fortunately, enough remained to regain control of the critical areas as reinforcements came in to begin clean up, and to make sure all Centurions were down and accounted for. The marine that Ikala had spoken to, a lieutenant, had been one of the casualties, a flying crate had taken off his head, so now a gunnery sergeant was in charge, and helping Ikala. While the atmospheric controls were back under friendly control, the Caledonians could only regret that they had been unable to get to the surviving Kalleans in time. Meanwhile, Aurelia had finally been stabilized, and the blood loss stopped thanks to Medic Alan's use of a portable blood cloning device which had cloned her blood, and was now feeding fresh blood into her system. On board the Revelation of Fire, an expert team of salvagers were also going through the wreckage of the centurions, seeking out undamaged memory cores, since those could be used to trace the origin of the command that had caused the centurions to become hostile. The Caledonians knew that only someone of high rank in the Kallean Dominion could have done something like this, but they wouldn't make any accusations until they found evidence. For now, the marines would concentrate on getting the Revelation of Fire ready to be taken back to Caledon Prime where repairs and funeral rites for the fallen could be done. Even the Kalleans would be granted full funerary rites, with Aurelia and Ikala both knowing that their fallen would be interred alongside the fallen marines in the Valley of Heroes on Caledon Prime, a place where heroes both known and unknown were buried. The Valley of Heroes was a place where a visitor, no matter where they were from, could only marvel and reflect on the deeds that those buried there had accomplished in their times. The Valley of Heroes was also where the Caledonians legendary hero, known only as The Phoenix during the Age of Iron, was buried.:.<E>

[17:15:33]
Nariel Silucia noted that he seemed his usual commanding self, as she read his tone, and felt that perhaps things would be okay.. but then again, the slaughter of that silly Luctani female who schemed to organize slave trade against them was really something to be forgotten. Clearing her mind, she came to a blank expression and replied to her captain. "I.. brought us this to share. Consider a drink with me after we depart? I'll have the crew prepare a meal.." This was not how she spoke to anyone but the captain, and he probably knew that. Her attitude was always focused on control and precision, rather than this kind of sway. She really respected this man's presence. ".. Otherwise, I believe things are sufficiently prepared. We are primed to set out. Shall I rouse the crew to hoist the anchor, sir?" Her voice took on a more dark and sharp tone, as she prepared herself to command the others, really defining her brilliance as his first mate. Leaning against the door-frame to his quarters, she awaited his orders, and of course his decision on plotting advance. She imagined he might have a scheme, but often times he relied on her for those more tactically influenced decisions too, so it would not surprise her to be put in charge of heading.

[17:25:20]
Iseabail Winter-Wolf was knocked back by the explosion, not to mention a piece of shrapnel thrown by it which sliced through the surface of her right shoulder, causing the young pyromancer to elicit a cry of pain, muted by a bite of the lip. All the training in the world couldn't prepare Riza for the matter of injury, nor the injury of those around her. The sharp pain shooting through the right side of her body was a harsh lesson indeed. The girl picked herself up, pausing at a pain at the side of her abdomen, which she quickly ignored, making her way back on to her feet, before approaching the God Emperor, once he was done finishing off their current enemies. Clutching her shoulder in a grimace, she spoke softly, but with bitterness. "My apologies sir, it won't happen again."

[17:29:51]Kallean Fleet:
Ikala breathed a slight sigh of relief despite hwo many had been lost due to depressurization as well as all the flying debris. "Those of you that still live, be thank full for your reflexes for they saved your life." shed comment to the ones who still remained around her before she would make her way towards the bridge controls...hopefully it was still intact and should any Caledonians follow her she would not object, protocol could be ignored for the time being given the massive assist from both Caledonian and Akkadian assets in the area. It wouldnt be long before warbirds would begin arriving on the scene to recover the Revelation Of Fire and although the shroud of secrecy would no doubt be raised once more it could for a time be allowed to be transparant in the wake of this disaster. "You there, Sergeant. Assist me please." shed ask as she opened the doors to the bridge upon arrival. "I need you to input the combination 44320-AAD1 into that console over there and await my signal. On my signal press the activation button." shed request as she took her station and keyed in her own code to await him doing the same. The battle on both the station and the ship was won for the time being, but questions remained and given the nature in which the centurions were used all but operating system data had been purged upon destruction, and even that was corrupt at best.

[17:32:09]
Captain Cusario relaxed, and was glad to see that her nervousness was merely over a meal. "That would be splendid, I'm looking forward to it." Latroz sat down in a lavish chair, a throne of sorts that he often presented himself on. He decided that he could leave the heading to his first mate, as there wasn't a specific goal, nor a danger to be wary of. "And I believe it's time to set sail, I'll leave our destination to you for the time being." He nodded her a farewell. Habitually, he started to twist the small silver band that adorned his finger, reminiscing the past while pondering the future.

[17:32:51]Caledonian NPCs:
.:The sergeant nodded and input the code as she said, and once she gave the signal, hit the initiate command at the same time, then stepped back, and a moment later, Ikala would get a direct communication from Admiral Aurelius himself.:.<E>

[17:39:14]
The God Emperor sighed of relief that his plan worked, groaning as he pushed himself off the ground and stumbled slightly. He took a deep breath and adjusted his posture for again, he could not show pain or weakness. Thanks to Olstrava they only felt the shock wave, the flames of the explosion having being kept at bay, the silent knight stood, noticing a piece of debris lodged in his arm he simply reached to it and pulled out without as much as a whimper. Before heading to his Emperor and offering his body for the man as support as they began to make their way to the med bay as well. "Riza, you're hurt, go take care of that. The rest of you unharmed go make sure they are dead and there are no more, as well as helping any wounded to the bays."

[17:39:15]
Admiral Aurelius looked at his datapad as he waited for the communication to be acknowledged by Ikala, since he had concerns about the Kallean Dominion, and as Aurelia's second in command, he was sure that she was having doubts as well. Once Ikala acknowledged and the link established, he would speak in his gravelly yet strong voice "Commander Iakala, I know this may seem irregular, but until the cause of this incident can be determined, I would recommend that the Revelation of Fire and the remains of the centurions remain under Caledonian jurisdiction and control until we know what happened, given what few details I know, only someone with special access could have caused this, and I suspect that someone high in the Kallean government is behind this, and after this incident, I am sure your having suspicions yourself" as he sighed and waited for Ikala's reply. What he was requesting was logical, since whoever caused this would try to cover their tracks, and if it was a high ranking official, then there was the possibility that they would try and muddle any investigation, and since they would have no control or authority over the Caledonians and Akkadians, since the Akkadians would be invited for a joint investigation, this would make sure that the truth could be found. As for the corrupted operational data on the centurions, with enough luck, enough could be salvaged to give some leads.<E>

[17:50:03]
Riza Solstheim felt weak as she watched the God Emperor pluck a piece of debris even larger than the one which had injured her out of his arm as if it were a stray hair. The difference between the girl and the legend were once again made abundantly clear, at least, in terms of experience. She hoped one day she would be able to own but a fraction of the things he had seen. But for now, as much faith as the man had shown in her, Riza was little more than a burden. She wordlessly turned around, kneeling down, taking a bandage from her waist and wrapping it around the injured limb, as her compatriots worked at assisting the wounded. Once they were ready to go again, she would follow, hoping that her next opportunity would be one in which she could show her skills more fully than before, as she stared at the broad, intimidating back of her leader.

[17:54:12]
Nariel Silucia gave a slight smile, still stern through it. "Yes Captain." She left the bottle of wine with him on the table, and exited his quarters to appear on deck. "All hands!" With a demanding shout, she drew every crew member's attention to herself. She could be heard from inside of the quarters, as she was just outside of them. "I need one of you to cook, and the rest, ready the sails." They knew what she meant. As she strode down to the central mast of the frigate, the quartermaster approached her, second in command, as the rest readied the ship's movement out of the harbor. "What'll be yer headin'?" He said to her with a humble lean to his side. "Take us out 4 sea miles direct. We're too close." This indicated that she intended to position the ship out somewhat, such that they could make a drift for preparing more quiet pilferage of nearby schooners. Maybe they would not execute these plans until a few hours rest out at sea, but it would be much, much easier to do so once they had drifted out some miles. "Aye," the second said, and with that he shouted, and was echoed by the rest. One of the crew who was kind of the designated cook approached her as well, and she motioned with her hand for him to follow. The two made way to the galley, where she informed him of the ingredients they possessed from the purchase earlier. Cheeses, Breads and a few freshly smoked pieces of pork would be the Captain and the First Mate's dinner, with the delicious wine they managed to acquire. After ensuring the crew-cook would work, she left to await him on the main deck not far from the captain's quarters as the ship made slow waves out to sea again.

[18:03:19]Kallean Fleet:
"Now" Shed order as she pushed her console's activation button at the same time as the Sergeant's. It wouldnt be all that grand, a simple hiss would follow along with what appeared to be a sleek 3 inch x 1 inch drive emerged from the central console on Aurelia's command chair. No explanation would be given as she strode over to it and recovered the device before inserting it into a slot in her armor for safe keeping. "Negative Admiral, this is a matter of internal Kallean security. We regret that you and the Akkadians have become involved but we will take things from here." shed respond before deactivating the communications link in typical Kallean fashion and opening a link to the Akkadian station. "Akkadian Station, this is Matriarch Ikala Alarten, How does Matriarch DeOrzen fair and is she capable of transport?" She would inquire as she began to key in data into the command console.

[18:14:11]
Captain Cusario sighed, a small smile crossing his face. It was nice to have someone to trust, someone who he knew could do a good job, and that was the main reason he put up with Nexes more violent tendencies. The ship started to move, the slow rocking of the waves helping him to think. The sound of her commanding voice was audible from his quarters, and it was one the crew had learnt to respect. He glanced over at the bottle of table wine she had left behind, pondering whether to pour it now or keep it. He decided to save it for the upcoming meal, wondering what was in store. There were certainly some good ingredients in the shipment, and he knew they would all be fresh and high quality.

[18:15:05]The God Emperor:
"She is stabilized but I'm afraid she is not going anywhere. Do you truly believe it is a good idea to put her in Kallean ships after what just happened? You should be aware that whoever tried to do this is good with machines for hacking advanced machinery like the centurions, it is best for her to remain here where they would not have the knowledge of how to enter. Of course, your kind has full freedom to come and go, bring your specialist and conduct business here and... let's not forget this all happened in Akkadian space. I'd like to ask for a couple of centurion specimens to be left with us in a join effort to understand what happened. But if possible, I'd like to speak in person, we do not know who might hear."

[18:19:41]
The Architect sat in the control room in a fairly large seat, seemingly designated for the one in charge, her head resting on her hand. "Warp will disengage in 3....2....1...." As the navigator sounded off, the view panel outward showed a planet popping into view quite instantly, space around them materializing as the bright tube of energy they were in dissipated. Already, orders had been given, and the Architect sat quietly in her seat as all manner of happenings went on in the hold. Several small ships were released containing a few fairly well-trained recon soldiers, who had this time been conscripted to extract an individual. Soon, those ships would be hovering over a small base location that seemed poorly fortified. They were truly outnumbered by the invading Hive, which was perfectly acceptable according to the strategy that was delivered for this mission. But somehow, this Kaalin Val soldier had proven himself worthy of Balthazar's note, and Carin's as well, as all military material was to be taken care of by her. The soldiers tactically dispersed a kind of gas as they fell on their lines, about 7 or 8 of them charging into the small colony. Gas seemed to hold off any wandering Hive, but for now, the advance was held y make-shift barricades and other pieces of buildings. It was worthless to the Imperium, of course, but that had been established. So poor were these remnants, that the colony had barely been settled before the Hive decided to devour it. The small force that was protecting it, or what was left, must have felt this was a rescue mission on their behalf. There was only one target for this extraction. Soldiers broke forcefully through, and immediately identified themselves as operatives of the Emperor. They would have been easy to recognize anyway, their battle regalia very blatantly Akkadian. The squad leader shouted around, claiming that he was looking for Kaalin Val, and surely he would find that individual soon thereafter. His immediate words would be, that he was ordered to come with him, and under no circumstance can he disobey the Emperor's command. Immediately, several soldiers accompanying the squad leader surrounded the private, practically shackling him as they lugged him off, deserting any others around.

[18:26:57]
Nariel Silucia knocked gently on the Captain's door, and when allowed, entered with the crew-cook who brought a tray of delicious food. As she approached the dinner table for two, she noticed that the Captain left the wine on the table, which somehow felt romantic to her. He could have easily just drank it, as he probably would have if she had not presented it in such a way. Well, nonetheless, she took a seat and gestured the crew-cook to apply the necessary foodstuffs. As he finished doing so, she looked to her Captain, hoping he would join her soon. Meanwhile, the ship paced onward, reaching roughly four or five miles out to sea before simply drifting. The current was such that it would take them in a small looped circle, leaving them at any given time between five and six miles from the actual small island of Tique. This was perfect, as it would be hard to assume they prepared some kind of gank there. Nex enjoyed the sight of the food, though she would never be caught eating a lot, as it was unsavory to be seen as a glutton in her eyes. Who knows where that ideology came from.

[18:39:17]Subject Darkscar:
The situation on Colony Varafelt IV had been desperate even before the Empire arrived. It wasn’t until after their volunteer military was nearly chewed through by hive forces that they sent their plea for assistance from the Empire. That had been months ago, and since Kaalin arrived, he had been engaged in a desperate fight for his own life to survive. He did his best to protect the settlers, but the hard choices of leaving individuals who were wounded or too battle-weary to simply die was a situation that had gradually become less and less foreign to him over the past one hundred and eighty days. But to his own shock, that never made decisions any easier, even if they became more routine.

At the arrival of imperial forces, the settlers celebrated, at first under the impression their saviors had finally arrived in full force. Kaalin didn’t have the heart to tell most of them that the small detachment of troops sent to ‘supplement’ a force that was already nearly obliterated when they got there was as much help as they could expect. These people were going to die. All of them. And it was better that they fought with hope. It’d make their passing easier to cope with when the bugs swarmed in harvested them. -

[18:40:07]Subject Darkscar:
“Kaalin, some imperial bad asses are here to see you. No idea what it means, but maybe it’s the break we were looking for.” The soldier speaking was a young man, not a day over sixteen. He’d taken to fighting after most of the older adults went down in the line of duty. There hadn’t been any choice. He wore a uniform stripped from one of the dead soldiers that had arrived in Kaalin’s unit. It just happened to fit him, and provided better protection than the rags he’d been wearing before.

“That’s news.” Kaalin’s face lit with interest. Had they come to rescue the colony at last? Had their defiance of the hive prompted some sort of response from the empire to liberate them? “Take me to them,” said Kaalin. The young man nodded, leading him to the imperial recon soldiers. They looked far more deadly and far better equipped than anyone on the entire god damned planet.

“It’s me. Kaalin. What’s the situate—“ his voice caught in his throat as they slammed his wrists into a pair of cuffs. Kaalin v-ed his legs, lifting one of his dark brows skeptically. “Why the hell are you taking me prisoner?” The colonists, who had survived days as a result of Kaalin’s unique powers stared, mortified and confused. One of them approached the recon soldiers.-

[18:40:44]Subject Darkscar:
“You don’t understand. . . This man is a hero! If you apprehend him now, we won’t last more than a few hours against those things! You’re going to send down a larger force? Right? If he committed some kind of war crime that’s fine. But you’re not just going to take him away from us, are you? Without any kind of alternative?”

Kaalin managed to smile softly at the colonist. “It’s alright. I did some pretty terrible things,” he lied. “I sent out a distress call weeks ago. They confirmed they are going to send in a pretty decent sized force. I bet it’s here and ready to strike. Stay brave. Stay hopeful.” Kaalin knew that wasn’t the case, however. He knew, long after his arrival, that this place was going to burn. And it wasn’t important enough to the empire to bother investing the resources necessary for rescue or defense, they simply stood to lose too much for too little. “Lets go. I’ll need to stand my trial,” he said, resisting the impulse to spit into the recon trooper’s helmet.

[18:44:11]
Captain Cusario smiled as Nariel entered, waving her towards the seat opposite him. The food smelled delightful, as he had guessed it would be, and he quickly took a seat. He glanced at the motley crewman who had prepared the food, glad to have found him. "You've outdone yourself. My compliments." After settling in, he uncorked the bottle of wine, slowly pouring himself and his first mate a glass. "Well, Nariel, to what do I owe this meal? As much as I'd love to think it's a pleasant surprise, I can't help but feel there's some ulterior reason. So, tell me, what's plaguing your mind?" As he waited for a reply, he began taking small bites of the meal, savoring the flavor of the pork. It was a pleasant flavor, and certainly a 5-star dish compared to what one usually found on the sea.

[18:47:51]Kallean Fleet:
took a moment as she verified the contents of the data drive shed recovered from the command console. In truth shed only halfway listen to the protest from the Akkadian emperor, a title that meant little to her as did most given the Kal'Nar operated beyond borders with little regard for station or prestige. "Have you considered perhaps we could take better care of our own which would lead to a quicker recovery? You admitted yourself you did not know her medical needs upon injury." Shed respond as she looked about the bridge to crew woman Zelan's fallen figure, a brave act that no doubt lead to many lives being saved...shed personally ensure her file was within the drive for the next few moments before shed move to the command chair and begin preparation for docking as she engaged the ships stablizers. "Centurions are property of the Kallean Empire and as such are deemed sensitive material however we will send you our findings once adequate measures have been performed to ensure no sensitive information falls into the wrong hands."

[18:54:55]The God Emperor:
"I allow you to collect the bodies of the machines inside my station but as I said Aurelia will stay here. Have you considered that however did this could have contingency plans and that Kallean ships are not safe? You can bring you people into the station, medics, men to collect the machines but I will have to deny retrieval of the Matriarch. If she is to be transported anywhere then let it be on an Akkadian vessel for safety. I would also not trust Caledonians for separatists could have tried to spark something to put an end to the alliance. Ikala, are you going to say you truly believe putting DeOrzen on a Kallean ship is the best course of action? If so I'm afraid you're gravely mistaken. I only insist due to your leader's own safety as it would be put at risk. Allow that and I will have no problem allowing you pick the machines with no Akkadian interference."

[18:55:32]The Architect:
The recon troops were relatively unyielding and quite ignorant to any requests or questions of them. They in fact stood silently as they were questioned by the folks around, even as Kaalin made efforts of his own to interrogate them. The squad leader made only one move to comment. "Keep your posterior. We are going. MOVE OUT." Now dragging him off, Kaalin would be allowed a final glance at the colony he vehemently defended in the past months, before he was shoveled ungraciously into the small three-man crafts. In a burst, the crafts lifted from the colony, and a short time later, they arrived at their 'mothership,' The Foundation. "You are to see the Architect immediately. Get wise and stay quiet." These troops were rough, but what they lacked in numbers, they had secured in strong and productive training in reconnaissance throughout their careers.

[18:55:41]The Architect:
After having docked, they proceeded to shove the soldier through hallways and led him through secured doors before he reached the bridge room, where he would have heard preparation for leaving. The Foundation was already beginning to recharge its warp drives, according to a few of the navigators. Having nodded to some of the statements by her bridge team, Carin stood from her seat to welcome the young gentleman who entered her presence, as he was accompanied by the squad leader and his assist. "Quick and efficient, just as I planned. Well done gentleman. Uncuff him, and your assist is dismissed, Arnic." Her speech was mature and calm, with a mesmerizing rhythm. The soldiers saluted her, and followed command quickly, uncuffing the extracted Kaalin, and one of them left, while the squad leader apparently named Arnic stayed near. "Now," she spoke as she approached closer to Kaalin, her eyes relaxed, "do you know why you are here?"

[18:59:07]
Admiral Aurelius had actually managed to listen to the conversation and butted in, it hadn't been difficult once they knew what to look for "Matriarch Ikala, you do not seem to appreciate the seriousness of the situation, this was an act committed by Kalleans, and taking Lady Aurelia back to Cerulia is not a good idea, Emperor Balthazar, in light of this, and the fact that we Caledonians are familiar with Kallean physiology, I recommend that Lady Aurelia be transferred to Caledon Prime for medical treatment, also, this is a direct order to all marines on the Revelation of Fire, secure all centurion wrecks, initiate jamming fields to prevent teleportation" and a moment later, the Caledonian warships closed in on the Revelation of Fire, blocking access to the ship to the Kallean warbirds. Aurelius then spoke again "Matriarch Ikala, you are not in Kallean space, and since this incident has involved both Caledonians and Akkadians, everything is therefore under our jurisdiction" as he waited replies from both Ikala and Balthazar. The marines complied with his orders, and initiated the jamming fields as ordered. Aurelius was not known for doing anything that would put more lives in jeopardy, and did only what was needed when the time came. He was also aware that Balthazar would likely comply with his request, and the 504th was well known to be staunchly loyal to the empire. He would allow the Akkadians to transport Aurelia to Caledon Prime if the transfer was allowed, but he would not allow his emperor's fiancé to be put in jeopardy by being placed on a Kallean vessel until all the facts were known.<E>

[19:06:36]
Nariel Silucia was pleased to see that the Captain took satisfaction in his crew's efforts. The cook took his leave after a smile of his own, and the two were left alone at their table. Accepting the glass that he poured for her, she still seemed a little preoccupied, with a contemplative look on her face. The Captain talked to her, seeing to it that her emotional issues were addressed in his questioning, and indeed she came to speak as a response. "I feel that perhaps I made an irresponsible move. But truly I am conflicted, as that Luctani ..had it coming." It pained her to struggle with her own logic, which was something she had experienced since her retirement from INLED. Perhaps the slight deterioration of her mental state was contributing to this. Nex watched the captain eat, and as she finished speaking in return, she began to eat a little as well, before raising her glass to toast. "Should I forget it, or is there something there. Something to be studied. This wine is so that I might think about that, but your word also advises me." Awaiting his glass to meet hers, she would take it to her mouth after having felt and heard the ting sound they made upon contact. This dinner would be productive perhaps, or maybe reflective for her in some way. That was her hope.

[19:11:26]Subject Darkscar:
Kaalin’ watched as he was pulled away from the remaining survivors of the colony. Their numbers were slim, no more than a couple hundred remaining at best. They were the able bodied, and they protected the sick, the elderly, and the pregnant who hid beneath the fortifications. They fought to protect those weaker than themselves. And it was truly admirable. Even though he’d left them with the impression more help was coming, Kaalin could see in some of the colonists eyes that they lost hope completely. Feeling totally vulnerable in his absence and the military’s.

He was loaded quickly onto the shuttle and ferried to the Architects ship. As the recon soldiers pushed him through the hallways, or grabbed him too firmly, he sometimes winced at their rough handling. “You’re treating me like I did something wrong,” he said, glowering at the squad leader. “Is it a crime to not die fast enough on the fringe worlds now? Shit, sorry to have troubled you.”

The soldiers didn’t respond to his barbing. They simply did their jobs, quickly and methodically bringing him to the ship’s captain. Kaalin had never seen the Architect before outside of a newsfeed. His lowly rank and station did not necessitate a personal meeting. When the other guards were dismissed, and his wrists uncuffed, he rubbed at them sorely. “No, I don’t. I’m assuming that I managed to upset the Empire somehow. Either that or I exceeded expectations. Doesn’t really matter to me, because what’s going on down there is bullshit.” Kaalin wanted to spit on her, but his survival instincts warned him against the act. “What’s this about, Architect? You’ll have to excuse me if I don’t exactly grovel. I was only lied to and hung out to dry for the better part of six months.”

[19:13:55]
The God Emperor groaned in his seat, rubbing his head against his palm. "I'm surrounded by foolhardy idiots." he opened his comms to both Kalleans and Caledonians. "You are not a rookie, Admiral. Do tell me when are things ever so simple? Caledonians not happy with the alliance, separatists could just as easily be behind this. Taking possession of another Empire's vessel as well as everything inside? No one would allow such thing for the secret of their technology alone and let's not forget that those wreck are in my territory, only having drifted a bit away once it was deattached from the station. So step away and allow the Kalleans to get their ship and their people that are still inside before I mobilize my fleet to remove you from my space. If you care so much about her well being then you'll send a shuttle with medics and they will work her on Akkadian territory. Neutral ground without risk of either Kallean's coup attempt or unhappy Caledonians trying something or are you going to insult me further by suggesting we can't protect her? Stop being so naive and allow the warships passage to the Revelation of Fire, it is almost as you don't know your own ally and how they are. So to reiterate, Calledonians, pull your ships away from my territory and allow passage of the warbirds to the Revelation of Fire. For minimal risk send a shuttle with specialists on Kallean physiology to make sure she recovers nicely, on neutral ground. Disobeying this may force me to act."

[19:16:09]Kallean Fleet:
"Very well, the Matriarch will remain in Akkadian hands only. All Centurion fallen will be recovered into Kallean custody." Ikala would finish as the flashes of the Kallean Black Fleet began to arrive in force, though it would cause her some concern given black fleet's primary purpose was the security and escort of the- shed have her answer as the final flash emerged and the sleek blade like hull emerged of a Solarin dominance class cruise slipped into existence. It seemed her message shed sent earlier had been received, although shed not expected this sort of reaction but then again an incident like this was not an everyday occurance. The Solarin had not yet ventured into the DragonStar Galaxy...until now it would seem meaning this had gotten the direct attention of the council, something that gave her nerves a bolstering sense of duty as she stood from the command chair and leveled a disruptor towards the Sergeant..."Unacceptable. Caledonians will withdraw from our vessel or your sergeant here will be executed and anti boarding measures will be activated. No centurions will be taken from this vessel or what remains of us will engage. Do not make this into a war admiral though if you continue in this action a defacto state of war will exist between our empires." shed warn, and just for good measure, squeeze the trigger as a warning to the Caledonians as the poor sergeants brains splattered over the console hed been working at...

[19:19:04]
Captain Cusario continued to slowly eat, his eyes staying in contact with Nexes. He listened to her concerns, contemplating what course of action would be best. When she made a toast, he swiftly returned the gesture, tapping his glass against hers with a toast in reply. "Yes, to internal contemplation." With that, he brought the wine to his lips, taking a short sip of the alcohol before setting it down in front of him. He now clasped his hands together, taking up a position he often used for discussion of more serious things. "Firstly, as a friend, I must ask why you still harbor hatred for the Luctani. I understand your past, but is there really a reason to blame an entire race?" Leaving her to think, he followed up with his original question. "Also, I suggest we take this opportunity to decide on our next port of call. The crew needs a direction, and at this juncture, there is no goal present in my mind. The ripest fleets are still weeks from setting sail, our supplies and morale are high, and we have only a moderate disrepute."

[19:25:21]Aurelia DeOrzen:
Dominance Class: Open in dialog box - img07.deviantart.net/8b11/i/2004/339/0/c/spacecraft_contest_entry_by_thejim.jpg )

[19:29:03]
The Architect stared through Kaalin, apathetic to his concerns and to his complaints. She would not hear his misfortune, or his thoughts on what would happen down on that worthless piece of land. She would do as she was instructed by the Emperor, and only macro feedback was necessary, as the strategies of her ground work were already successful. "Kaalin Val, you are to be promoted to Specialist." A sigh escaped her as she explained to him the details of his next mission. "Our Emperor wishes that you see to more pressing issues .. you are to lead an expedition to Proxima II, where you will seek valuable underwater resources. Your briefing will follow, but you will be assigned a light carrier to ferry your team there. Naturally, you will make logs. Congratulations, Kaalin, and truly, act fitting for your empire. Balthazar shall be watching you." The Architect turned away from the new Specialist, much more expansive and important plans on her mind; she felt as if she could hardly be bothered by these small-scale plans, but she deeply knew the importance of each plan she would make, no matter what. "Oh," she spoke, still facing away from him. "Your ranking ceremony will be held with the other officer's ceremony at a date yet to be proposed. Ensure you are properly fitted for that." She referenced his terribly worn outfit; all of that time spent defending a rock that did not really matter sure seemed to leave a mark. With that, she walked back slowly to her seat, and unless she was interrupted by him, she would take her seat. The Foundation was just about to enter warp space, as the navigators sounded off.

[19:42:13]Subject Darkscar:
Kaalin blinked. It was as if she hadn’t even heard a word he said. And that pissed him off. His fists clenched. He wanted to beat this woman, this glorified piece of shit standing right in front of him. “That’s it, huh? No apology, no explanations, not even a fucking how are you holding up? What kind of fucking robot are you?!” The outburst would not be tolerated elegantly. Kaalin had his orders. While it was well understood the man was battle-weary and perhaps traumatized, his outbursts would not be tolerated in the presence of the Architect herself.

The squad leader, Arnic, turned and quickly belted Kaalin in the stomach. The man fell to his knees, holding his stomach. His fist had been clad in a sleek metal gauntlet, which made the punch hurt like hell. Then, Arnic roughly hauled him to his feet as a pair of soldiers put him back in cuffs. “Insubordination is punishable with either execution or brig time. In your case, it’s going to be the brig. Consider yourself lucky, and learn to mind your manners in the presence of the Architect. On this ship, authority is sacred. Understand?”

Kaalin would have cursed the soldier out, but he figured that was exactly why he hit him as hard as he did. There wouldn’t be enough air in his lungs left for a response, so they would take the little choking sounds he made instead as tacit confirmation. Arnic saluted the Architect, then hauled a shackled Kaalin by his collar out of the bridge.

[19:43:31]
Lady Mairis Veridias packed her things, her black dress fluttering about her ankles. She was preparing to embark on the wargames, so she was packing for the long haul. She sighed, it would be months at minimum till she saw her home again, but it would be worth it. She finished, asking a servant to bring her stuff up to the Silence, striding out to a hidden hanger, her fighter ready for departure. She boarded it and rocketed into the sky, heading straight for her ship. Boarding the Arch-Angel's Silence, she strode for the bridge, her belongings being transported up after her. She settled into her chair once she attained the bridge, sighing and leaning back. "XO, what's our status?" She asked. The man snapped a salute. "All systems green ma'am. We are a go." he said. She nodded, hailing the assault fleet. "Attention sailors of the Caledonian Empire. Today we head out to participate in the wargames between the Kallean Empire and our own. This is not just for our benefit, but theirs as well, so do your best. Fight hard and work as a team, do so and we shall all return to the praises and admiration of our betters and our loved ones. For the Empire!" She said, the crews of every ship cheering and preparing for simulated war. She grinned, inputing coordinates for the helm. "Helm, take us away." She ordered, the Assault Fleet falling in behind her, it's Dreadnoughts and Battleships making a imposing force, one that would make most sane foes tremble. Every engine flared and burned brighter, as they warped away, heading for the Caledon-Akkadia border. Within hours, the Arch-Angel's Silence dropped out of warp, another ship falling into real space after it, soon joined by even more ships, creating a veritable wall of cannons and hull plating.

[19:57:18]
Admiral Aurelius sighed "Very well, all surviving marines, withdraw from the Revelation of Fire, and all ships prepare to withdraw from the area" as he cut the communications. He thought the Kalleans were being stupid, especially if this was a Kallean plot to assassinate Lady Aurelia. He was certain it wasn't Caledonian separatists that were the culprits here, for one thing, they didn't have the capability to hack Kallean centurions as they worked far different from Caledonian warforged and iron golems. Once the marines were back on board the carriers, along with the dead, the 504th withdrew from the area, since the dead needed to be attended to.<E>

[20:05:20]
The God Emperor let out a breath of relief but it only lasted a moment before his daughter and various other ships warped in, he immediately opened the comms. "The admiral has asked for ships to retreat, you may have gotten the order but you are not needed. The conflict has been resolved and to avoid further tension I'd ask you to take your ships elsewhere. One simple wrong movement could ignite the spark so please, return to where you came, High Protector." he hopped she would listen and the only reason she was here was due to a lack of information, not exactly being aware of the wargames schedule. Although he found the Kallean's measure too extreme he would not complain, the important was to avoid war.

[20:10:32]
Lady Mairis Veridias received the message, and for once she agreed, having been briefed by the Admiral as she dropped out from warp, the fleet coming about and retreating, staying close enough to react to any potential fire fight, but far enough away that their presence would not raise any ire or spark war. She sat back and brooded, contemplating the potential suspects of the act. She drew a blank and waited for further information, the fleet hanging in the void, waiting for orders as she monitored the situation on the long range sensors. She waited silently, preparing for her next move.

[20:12:08]Caledonian NPCs:
.:The 504th warped in to join Lady Mairis's forces, which was handy, since it would give Aurelius a chance to debrief Mairis in person, as well as to convey his suspicions on the matter.:.<E>

[20:13:04]
Aurelia DeOrzen was starting to come to as the scene unfolded, although she was far from combat ready in her current state, though her look of suprise at the Solarin cruiser orbiting the station along with most of the Kallean Black Fleet would cause her to attempt to sit upright, though the hint of pain and the urging of the medical attendants would cause her to exhale sharply as she collapsed back into the medical bed shed been placed in. Shed gesture to whomever might be nearby as she filtered through the backlog of data being sent to her cortical implant by Ikala before shed finaly speak. "Tell Ikala to give them five minutes..." shed pause for a breath, "Destroy any Caledonians remaining in system after that time..."shed order before closing her eyes to rest, though she would remain awake should conversation be started.

[20:18:30]
The God Emperor was nearby at the med bay and stood upon hearing Aurelia cause a fuss, placing a hand on her shoulder and shaking his head. "Your fleet and mine is here. They are far enough to not be an issue, more threats will only make things worse so I ask you to take that order, please. There's more firepower here right now than back at Akkadia."

[20:36:24]Aurelia DeOrzen:
"The order stands, though it seems not to matter given their withdrawal. It was already controversial when we declared peace after so much escalation...We cannot do so twice and expect nothing to happen when so many have already been crying out for conflict. Help me stand." Shed ask as she moved to stand up as well as summon one of the Kallean video monitors that were floating about the station.

[20:42:18]
Imaskari Inkling Interceptor Patrols “Caledon Watch Mark 12, 13 and 14” remained fully cloaked as its various component vessels, having previously arrived at the far edges of the encounter between the various larger fleets on the border between caledonian and akkadian space, continued their survey of the other vessels gathered via the fully cloaked scouting probes they had deployed. The imaskari weren’t yet aware of everything that had transpired before their arrival and therefore made no moves to bring other forces in that direction, using the opportunity to catalog what could be observed. When the Caledonians began making moves to depart, patrol Mark 12 recalled its scouting probes, and shadowed the 504th until they eventually contacted them using one of the encrypted short-range frequencies they had shared with the caledonians weeks before, for the purpose of their private communications. “This is Imaskari Interceptor Patrol ‘Caldeon Watch Mark 12’ making contact to report that we are following parallel to the wake of your unit. This is the captain of the its first vessel. We bore witness the latter end of the your encounter at the border and wish to know if there’s any information or requests you wish to pass along to our superiors.”

[20:42:30]The God Emperor:
"Aurelia... you should think through this. The Caledonians respected the requests and backed away, I understand none of you are happy with how this played out but remember what you said to me yesterday. You did not want to put everyone in the fire line so do not do it offer this... whoever is behind this attack could want this outcome exactly, are you really going to play right into his hands? If you really think this is the best course of action... wait until tomorrow after you have given it a day of thought and not while you're under the effect of medication. I only ask you this. If by tomorrow you still wish to wage war then I will not protest."

[20:46:20]
Lady Mairis Veridias was tired of waiting, worried about the state of the truce she boarded her fighter, under protest from the Admiral and her XO, streaking towards the mass of Akkadian ships and the Kallean fleet. "This is Lady Mairis Veridias hailing the Akkadian fleets, requesting permission to land and assist in any investigations into the attack on Matriarch Aurelia." She said, slowing to a dead drift just off the border. She waited, ready to turn back at a moments notice.

[20:50:58]The God Emperor:
"Permission denied. You are to turn back immediately and leave the immediate vicinity, right now." the response was almost instant and full of weight. He clearly did not want anyone with the Caledonian banner anywhere near the station. "Investigations will be handled by Kallean's women, so please I ask you once again to depart and not come closer. We have things under control and figured out, I'm afraid Caledonians are not very welcome at the moment."

[20:55:33]
Lady Mairis Veridias rolled her eyes. "The first time that I offer to help you father, and you deny me? Very well then." She said, turning about and heading back to the fleet, fuming. "Silence, Prepare to leave, let them handle it." She ordered, the fleet powering up and turning towards Caledon Prime. "Aye aye my lady." came the XO's response, as her engines sputtered and died. "What the?" She remarked, just before the cockpit seal disengaged. She had enough time to draw in enough air and grab her flightsuit before she was rocketed into the void, struggling to put on the suit. 'Damnit, why does this thing have to be skintight!' she thought in her panic, drifting away from the fighter, which sparked and promptly exploded.

[21:03:17]Aurelia DeOrzen:
"Assist me!" she would order as two Kallean woman rushed into to help her stand...even with her augmentations she was finding it difficult to stand as she tapped into her cortical implant to activate a surge of adrenaline to allow her to stand for the time being, though there was no way it would be healthy and it was easy to see what shed done given the slight tremor now effecting her hands due to the adrenaline coursing through her system. "Activate monitor...Im sorry." she would apologise to Balthazar as she turned to face the monitor as it began its slow orbit around her. "This is Matriarch Aurelia DeOrzen, Princess of the Kallean Empire on all channels, all nets." shed take a break to pause as her eyes met Balthazars. "By now word is spreading of the incident on the Caledonian Akkadian border and of the attempt on my life. What many of you dont know is why, after so many protests against peace this incident was allowed." shed begin, it seemed she would be giving in to Balthazar as she took another breath. "Which is why I will be ordering our war fleets to tear apart known space until we have our answer. We will find you no matter the planets we have to burn, no matter the lives we have to end. We will find you and we will destroy you." Well...it could of went better...but there seemed to be more. "Admiral Aurelius of the Caledonian Empire violated our sovereignty when he orders our centurions seized and violated our honor when he ordered the Revelation of Fire seized and myself brought to Caledon instead of sacred Cerulia. Those of you who wanted war I say this..." her tone was building as she seemed to be finding strength..."That the Caledonian aggressors have two options. One they surrender to us the HEAD of Admiral Aurelius for his CRIMES against our empire. Or Secondly that a state of WAR exist between Cerulia and Caledon the likes of which will not be halted until their surface is but molten glass. We shall see, do they value a single life above peace and their own soldiers on the front lines? We shall see where their priorities lie. And to those Caledonians in the border colonies...remember when we darken your skies that the Admiral had a choice..."

[21:44:04]
Lady Mairis Veridias slips into the suit, the visor of the helmet sealing as she floats there, exhaling and inhaling again deeply. Her eyes were bloodshot and her skin cold. "Mayday, mayday, this is High Protector Veridias of the Caledonian Empire in need of urgent assistance." She hailed on all channels, praying to every god and goddess from every civilization that she was saved and fast, the oxygen meter dropping rapidly made her panic even more. Message would take a few minutes to reach her ship, while other, potentially less hospitable ships would hear her distress call almost instantly.

[21:46:13]
Imaskari interceptor crew members turned to their captains, and the captain aboard each first vessel of both remaining patrols, swiftly agreed to contact nearby imaskari vessels by ansible communications, relaying the signal they received from the Kallean princess. Meanwhile, with the caledonian high protector having been expelled from her ship prior to its exploding, six interceptors were sent in to pick her up as quickly as possible. Provided they were able to get to there in time, they would raise their defensive energy and particle barriers as they dropped out of cloak, and emanated a broad disruption field to prevent technological teleportation phenomena from occurring within the vessels themselves or the nearby area surrounding them. The nearest vessel would slow once within range, and open its ventral cargo hangar with an attempt at collecting the lady in a gravitic tractor beam normally used to gather damaged scouting drones, or various sample and cargo crates.

[21:51:09]The God Emperor:
The moment he heard the message and the sensors reported the ship's demise Balthazar began to shout orders and have his fastest ships head in the direction of the distress signal, the man itself getting on board of a fast, smaller ship before anyone could stop him. "Mairis, can you hear me? I'm coming." but when he got there several other vessels already surrounded his daughter. "Identify yourself and I'd like you to bring Lady Mairis to the Station for medical care..." he mumbled to himself about today being far too eventful. "Are you alright, Mairis? I'll send more ships to try and investigate and retrieve more survivors." and just like he said he would, other ships began to scout the debris for possible survivors or any hints at the cause for this.

[21:53:47]
Lady Mairis Veridias began to gasp as she looked down at the leg of her suit, a tear plainly visible in the fabric. "Fa..." was all she was able to say before she passed out, being brought aboard the interceptors via tractor beam, thudding lightly onto the deck, her wings frozen stiff.

[22:14:02]
Aurelia DeOrzen issued the order given the five minutes shed given had elapsed and word had been received that Mairis was clear of the Caledonian vessels as 10 warbirds began to de cloak, 3 focusing on the Arch-Angel's Silence as shields were brought to bear and the doors to the Hyperion emitter on each vessel was opened in preparation to fire, the other 7 were focused on the Admirals ship as the formed up 6 on and began to hammer it with disruptor fire, targeting the vessels engines in an effort to disable its potential for escape...If the Silence didn't leave system it would suffer the Hyperion Beams, all targetted for the ships engine core in the same manner, though given each was the energy equivalent of an anti-ship MAC weapon chances were slim it would withstand all 3...

[22:14:44]
Winter-Wolf had heard the message and immediately ordered for a broadcast to all settled space to be initiated, and he soon made his way to the press room of Dragonsreach. Meanwhile, on screens all across settled space, even in the lawless Independent Systems as the many news agencies announced that there was a breaking report as they one and all announced that the Emperor of Caledon Prime was about to make an announcement. Then the scene changed to the press room in Dragonsreach where he stood behind a strangely shaped piece of crystal which was used to transmit sound "People of the known galaxy, many of you have heard by now of the incident that occurred on the borders between Caledonian and Akkadian space where Aurelia De'Orzen, Princess of the Kallean Dominion, as well as my fiancé was the target of a assassination attempt, by who we do not yet know, however, a Caledonian fleet further strained the situation by acting in a way that was done with the best of intentions, but was the wrong approach to the situation, I ask that the Kalleans please forgive Admiral Aurelius, and I am also confirming that upon further review, Admiral Aurelius himself is stepping down from command and officially retiring from active duty, on that account, I ask once again that the Kalleans forgive Admiral Aurelius and allow him to retire peacefully, also, I am requesting a council meeting on the INLED neutral world of Aspirius III to discuss the recent events civilly and to hopefully avoid war, especially given what our enemies could possibly hope to achieve, I am requesting that the Akkadians, Solarasi, Intai'sei, as well as the Kalleans attend this meeting as well, thank you" as he ended the press statement.<E>

[22:19:04]Lady Mairis Veridias:
The Arch-Angel raised it's shields and departed, having been given orders to leave Mairis behind if necessary. It warped away, broadcasting a message to the God-Emperor, stating that it's departure was under her orders and asking for him to not blame the Caledonian Empire. The Admiral's ship however, remained, hammered by the unrelenting fire of the Kallean ships.

[22:24:26]Caledonian NPCs:
.:The 504th had departed some time ago, so the Serasia was no where to be found.:.<E>

[22:30:46]
Imaskari captains aboard the six rescuing interceptors, had access to information regarding important Caledonian persons of position, and had some idea of Lady Mairis Veridias' identify prior to rescuing her. While the medic on board assessed and tended to her as best she could with the instruments on board, another crew member set about arranging the lady and her wings in an evac stasis pod. “We are working to stabilize and revive her, but if we are unable to do so in the coming seconds, we will leave her in your charge,” the captain of that vessel replied.

[22:32:06]Subject Darkscar:
Captain Varazalt Hald stood at the bridge of his combat frigate, surrounded by glowing terminals, monitors, data readouts, and a massive reinforced glass viewport. All around him, his techs and nav-officers were transfixed by readings gathered by the ship’s sensors, fingers working in flurries of keystrokes to deconstruct and decode the information.

The combat model was a larger variant, as far as battle frigates go, with its own unique design. Its hanger bay could comfortably harbor as many as twelve star fighters, with extra room for two additional shuttle craft. It had enough stocks, cargo, and living space for as many as three hundred, which made it an excellent hit and run vessel for small scale military operations. It’s long, dagger like surface bristled with guns. However, most of the frigates armaments were a hair lighter than what you would expect to find on a comparable ship of its size and class. What it lacked in raw fire power it made up for in drive thrust and speed. It could easily outmaneuver larger ships, kiting them at a distance as a distraction while his shuttles, star fighters, and boarding crews completed their objectives. Like any skillful pirate, Hald was always picky when it came to choosing battles, and his policy for playing it safe led his crew to more plunder than they knew what to do with. He was easily one of the most successful pirates on the outer rim.-

[22:32:25]Subject Darkscar:
“Captain Hald, sir!” Hald glanced away from the viewport, both hands folded neatly behind his back. The captain was a tall, athletic man. All wiry muscle and agile body tone, built for explosive speed and precision. He was in his late thirties, a dark coat of stubble darkening his jawline. His black hair was short and oiled back, oddly professional looking for a pirate. A scar wound its way down his cheek, ending in a curl at the base of his jugular. A memento that’s served to remind him of a call that ended a little too close for comfort with an Akkadian marine. His eyes, offset in their shade by heterochromia, turned on the subordinate who called to him. One was a piercing shade of emerald green, the other fiery red.

“Speak, Jorthan,” he addressed his sensory tech.

“We’re almost done analyzing the ship’s laser scanners. It’s definitely another vessel. Looks huge, and has dimensions congruent with an Akkadian capital ship.”-

[22:33:36]Subject Darkscar:
Hald perked one of his eyebrows, still looking at the sensor tech. “So should we avoid it, then?”

The sensor tech shook his head. “I don’t see any reason to, sir. Ship’s got no power signatures, and its trajectory and velocity are congruent with a ship of that size that’s a drift.”

Hald furrowed his brows thoughtfully. “Maybe. But the military can execute those parameters to trick pirates like us into taking a closer look. Then come alive at the drop of a hat, guns blazing. I’ve seen a lot of pirates die that way.” -

[22:34:01]Subject Darkscar:
The sensor tech nodded. “True sir, but even then, it’s not a perfect replication. There are things to look for, like the placement of the ships weapons and the angle of its tilt. It has the fewest weapons batteries pointed our way, and hasn’t moved in what I estimate is at least weeks.”

“Good enough. Get Forest to the bridge. We might be in for one sweet score. Akkadian weapons go for a pretty penny on the ship market. It might simply be a design based off of one of their capital vessels. Doesn’t matter to me either way, so long as it doesn’t have any actual teeth.”

“I’ll get Forest right away,” said the sensor tech, paging their newly hired merc. He would be going in with the investigation team. (fin)

[22:38:15]
Lady Mairis Veridias did not improve.

[22:46:14]The God Emperor:
"... so you will wait until it is too late to bring her to the station that has all the equipment necessary? Do not leave my daughter's life to chance, begin to head towards the station immediately before it is too late and I swear by the Phoenix if she dies in your ship because you decided to try and revive her instead of taking her to the station... I will kill you all." it was not a threat but a promise. His ships began to guide the Imaskari vessel towwards the station, hopping they would follow while a medical crew already awaited her arrival at the docks.

[22:54:13]
Imaskari crew members aboard the rescuing interceptors might have decided to make a run for it, but if they failed to revive the lady, they would earn the enmity of the Akkadian Imperium and its God Emperor. They decided not to risk that possibility, and the vessel on which she was aboard, responded to follow the Emperor’s lead while the others lingered nearby.

[22:54:25]
Aurelia DeOrzen rolled her eyes as the broadcast played, they had their terms and the empire would accept nothing less than the surrender of the Admiral or his head for what had been deemed trespasses against the empire...a message that would tansmitted as well as a diplomatic version of "Go fuck yourself" regarding his request for a meeting, though it wasnt far from the actual wording in all honesty. The only other reply would be for the Admiral and his vessel to meet them at the station...alone to atone for what was being called 'sins against the empire'. "So...looks like you have your daughter back" shed comment as she moved to lay back on the bed.

[22:59:08]
Akkadian medics were ready for Lady Mairis, all equipment prepared for her arrival and the moment the Imaskari landed they rushed to her, placing her on the stretcher and starting to work the machines to see her condition and try to bring her back while they made their way to the med bay, Balthazar arriving not too long after and going with them, the Emperor did not offer any reply to Aurelia at the moment, far too concerned with his daughter well being.

[23:07:24]
Lady Mairis Veridias lay on the stretcher, under her father's watchful gaze. While the Akkadian doctor's tried to revive her, feverishly working on her, she lay, trapped in her own mind as her life flashed before her. Fairly soon the procession of memories came to a stop, as if the slideshow had been paused, as her heart beat a single note. Over and over it did this, increasing in tempo and power as they brought her back from the brink. She inhaled, but remained unconscious, it would be sometime before she awoke, time she sorely needed to heal. Her wings twitched, a spasm reflecting her earlier panic and desperation.

[23:12:56]Caledonian NPCs:
.:A short time later, a Caledonian ship with no weaponry arrived at the station, on board was the former admiral Aurelius, who had volunteered to turn himself in, on the condition that the soldiers and sailors under his command would be spared from any wrong doing. He would take the entire blame, and asked that a worthy replacement be found to lead the 504th. Now he was ready to atone for his wrongful actions, and had only one request of the Kalleans, that they not disclose his execution to the public, except to say that he had turned himself in, and that he had been punished, which was a reasonable request, for other than this incident, he had served admirably and with distinction, even Aurelia knew this.:.<E>

[23:17:29]
The God Emperor breathed a sigh of relief as the medics informed of her stable condition but they also told him it would be quite some time before she would be fully healed and awake so he leaned now, placing a kiss on her forehead and mumbling a couple of words before moving on to the next big crisis... the arrival of Aurelius. He did take the time to don his golden armor before heading to where they all where and witness the execution or forgiveness. Whichever it ended up being he would not interfere. Although there was a certain air about him, different than normal, an hostile aura obviously due to the tiring day and events with his daughter. His men still working on the debris for any clues.

[23:21:18]
Aurelia DeOrzen was able to stand by the time the Caledonian shuttle had made its way to the station, and although it was unarmed they would imediatly be escorted by three warbirds...even if he had second thoughts there was no backing out now given more than likely the Kalleans would simply vaporize the vessel, though then again there was no gaurantee they wouldnt anyways given all weapons reported locked on and it would be obvious to the caledonians...though I walk through the valley of the shadow it would seem...She would be waiting as would a full color gaurd of her elite to allow him to walk down in a ceremonial fashion that would at least give the Admiral his last honor and at the end would stand Aurelia with her own energy blade primed and at the ready as they would approach. "Are you ready to face your fate and judgement old man?" she would ask as she gestured for him to kneel amidst the hums of variouse camera drones...

[23:23:58]Caledonian NPCs:
.:Aurelius simply looked at Aurelia, remaining standing "I admit that I did wrong Lady Aurelia, and for that you have my deepest apologies, my only request before I die is that you do not show it to the rest of the galaxy, that is all I ask for" as he looked at her. If she agreed, he would kneel willingly, but if not, he would remain standing, to be killed showing bravery and strength, rather than weakness.:.<E>

[23:30:41]
Aurelia DeOrzen nodded as she looked to the camera drones, "They are here simply for recorded history of this event. Should the records say otherwise let it be known that Admiral Aurelius of the Caledonian Empire has surrendered himself willingly into the hands of the Cerulian Elite to knowingly face execution for his crimes against the Kallean Empire and to ensure no further blood be needlessly spilled on this day. Admiral Aurelius of the Caledonian Empire, Commander of the 504th fleet you are hereby found guilty and sentenced to death. Do you have anything you wish for the record to state before your passing other than what you have already stated?" She would ask as she drew back once he had kneeled in preparation for a swift strike.

[23:34:57]Caledonian NPCs:
.:Aurelius simply shook his head and kneeled down, at peace, though later, the Kalleans would learn that there was another reason why he had turned himself in. A few months ago, he had found out that he had a heart condition for which a cure had yet to be found. He would have died in a few weeks or even two months time, though it would have been far more painful and slow than this.:.<E>

[23:44:00]
Aurelia DeOrzen took in a breath as she readied herself as muscles tensed, in truth a cerulian energy blade would cut through a neck like butter but there was always the training that dictated her swing as the blade hissed against the air as she took in a breath and swung her blade down to bring it across the mans neck...though it would simply hum as it passed through the man and out the other side as if it were simply some sort of holo projection leaving him quite alive for the time being as she flexed her wrist to deactivate the blade. "Let it be known to all. Admiral Aurelius has surrendered himself to death and has indeed perished on this day. His old life, Any lingering selfish desires, all of it perished along with him as he is born anew. An Admiral who would sacrifice himself for the greater good of his people, an Admiral who knows the meaning of the word sacrifice and what it truly means to love others more than yourself. Let his willingness to sacrifice himself speak of Caledonian bravery and the worthiness of the alliance to all those who would demand our back be turned and the wolves allowed in. Rise Aurelius, from this day foward you are as much a Kallean and Cerulian Elite as I am. Though we may be seperate we walk this path as equals." She would state as her hand was offered out to the man to assist him...little did he know the entire incident had been on open broadcast...all nets, all channels...

[23:48:46]Caledonian NPCs:
.:Aurelius look up at Aurelia and smiled as he shook his head "I think you for your kind words Lady Aurelia, and while I do appreciate them, I ask that you still take my life, for though you have forgiven me, and I hope your people, I will be dead soon anyway, I recently found out that I have a heart condition, and I would rather die now, than live through the slow and agonizing death that awaits me soon, let my death bind Caledon Prime and Cerulia together against our common foe" as he looked at her. He had told her about his heart condition because he knew that otherwise she would refuse, and since she was a warrior herself, she would know his desire for a quick and painless death to the slow torture of the inevitable death that was coming to him anyway.:.<E>

[23:56:10]
The God Emperor watched the ceremony although mostly absent in mind as he worried about Mairis, actually being surprised at the show of mercy which he approved but the men's request made him frown somewhat. "Executing you here will not bring anyone closer, only more animosity will be stirred. And do you truly wish to stain what seemed like an act of courage and honor with the excuse of the disease? Are we to believe the only reason you turned yourself in is because you would soon die regardless and for this reason you have no regard for your own life? So much so that you ask someone to do the dirty work due to your own cowardice of living through it or doing it yourself? And here I started seeing Caledonians in a new light... if you really wish to die all you have to do is jump out of the airlock or actually, I would prefer to bloody my hands with your execution rather than allow Aurelia to dishonor her blade."

[23:58:09]
Aurelia DeOrzen nodded as she listened to him, though it was nothing her retinal implant hadn't already scanned when shed first encountered him on the station although it would require some measure of sacrifice on her own part. "Indeed." she would respond as augmented strength hefted the old man to his feet as her right palm began to glow in a golden sphere of energy within her hand...this caught the attention of even Ikala who would turn her head away from looking directly ahead. "This might hurt a little." - It was her only warning as her next act would be written about and even immortalized in stone on Cerulia Prime beside the statue of Admiral Wulgar as the 'Angel of Cerulia' as many would come to refer to her as she thrust her hand against the mans chest. It would be painfull for both as his heart was atomized into her pattern buffer and cells were duplicated from her own augmented pattern and though for her it was an agonizing process she would endure with little more than an expression of focus and determination until at last her hand energy would fade as her teleportation implant shorted out leaving Aurelius with a new...augmented heart like her own as she gently slipped from consciousness leaving him with a new chance and a new outlook on life no doubt as at last the camera drones whirled as the feed cut out...

[0:07:49]Caledonian NPCs:
.:Aurelius had looked at Balthazar about to answer when Aurelia acted and like she said, it was agonizing, but when she was done, he no longer felt the subtle twinge in his chest that was the sign of the condition. He caught Aurelia as she collapsed and sighed softly "Thank you Lady Aurelia, you saved my life, and for that you will ever have my gratitude, and if the day comes that I may return this kindness and mercy, I will do so gladly, and if I am not there, then one of my descendants will do so in my place for this tremendous honor" as he looked at her. He would then stand and look at Balthazar "You are a warrior yourself Emperor Balthazar, would you rather die quickly or die from the agony of a slow and painful death due to disease, until Lady Aurelia did this, that had been what was facing me, and it would not have been a dishonor to die at the hands of a friend, because they would know and understand why the request was made, and she was gracious enough to do what our own geneticists have yet to do" as he stood up, gently handing Aurelia over to Ikala. He would then bow to Ikala "While I do have some years left to me, I am still retiring, but if you would honor my request, please take Lady Aurelia to Caledon Prime, I am sure that Emperor Winter-Wolf is eager to have her back, and is frantic with worry for her" as he looked at her. Then he quietly excused himself back to the shuttle to head back to Caledon Prime to retire to a quiet little cabin along the coast of Caledon Prime's Aerstis Ocean.:.<E>

[0:19:37]The God Emperor:
"He should not have been gifted for his cowardice and lack of guts..." Balthazar turned to leave before he heard Aurelius spoke to him. "I would not diminish an action like sacrificing one self by stating it was due to 'being about to die', nor would I burden someone else with the weight of my death. I'd take that little remaining time and make the most of it or end myself. Now that you have your new heart I highly doubt you would accept your execution so readily, but of course you will say that you would. Deaths should not be taken so lightly." and before anything else could be said the Emperor began to head back, small particles of dust around him being raised around him with each step he took.

[0:32:40]Aurelia DeOrzen:
"She will move when she is ready for long distance transport, currently her best bet of recovery is with the fleet, especialy with the Solarin dominance cruiser nearby." Ikala would respond, though it was missing its sharp accusatory tone shed exhibited earlier as she carried Aurelia's limp figure in the direction of the medical ward, and although nothing was stated it was easy to read her concern given her constant glances down as retinal implants continued to scan as well as attempt to make a connection with her cortical implant...which wasnt responding thus far.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

[15:43:10]
Brunwulf Free-Winter stood on the bridge of the C.I.N. Fyagh, which was a Jaenia-class super-dreadnought, and along with the IX Armada, he was on the border of the Independent Systems, looking at a datapad that was just handed to him. It showed that the 504th Assault Fleet had been assigned to him, which told him that the rumors of Admiral Aurelius's retirement was true and he didn't begrudge the man a single bit. He knew Aurelius personally, and knew that he deserved some time to rest and relax, and wished him luck. He then looked out at the stars from where he stood, his mind going back a hundred and fifty years ago when he had been a young Captain. He had been on Solarasi then, training the Solarasi's new naval officers, helping them to gain experience and knowledge for their fight for independence.<E>

[18:27:33]The Architect:
Having warped back into Akkadian space, The Foundation, along with the Architect and an imprisoned Kaalin Val, was tidally locked within the protection of the local Akkadian cluster of planets. Carin herself awaited orders from the Emperor, still receiving communication from The Avatar every now and then on the bridge. It was likely that she was to return to her quarters on Balthazar's ship soon after docking, but for now, she would wait in contemplation. Though she appeared quite ignorant of Kaalin's concerns earlier, the man was capable, useful, and would likely rise within the ranks of the military if given the proper motivation. She was certain he simply did not understand the mechanisms of war, though indeed she had made it seem as if she valued life very little with her planning. At least, the essentially suicidal mission was an example of well-practiced, nearly underground military developments that, if revealed to the people as such, would create a fairly negative view of the Akkadian Imperium. Wars had to be fought in discrete ways, though, and Carin was well-read in this category. Perhaps it was a fundamental dysfunctionality between her thought processes and those of soldiers who literally experience death and chaos. These thoughts brought her to consider more about her Emperor's methods and decisions, though she knew that orchestrating things in the way she did would provide the results he desired, it would often sacrifice some of the more important tenants of being Akkadian. <C>

[18:27:50]The Architect:
Nonetheless, this Kaalin boy was of value to the Emperor. It was her task to reassign him, and to make use of him. In the state he was in, it was quite unlikely he would be able to simply head out into a carrier with a squadron to command and perform a mission, forgetting about the planet he defended for several months, and witnessed atrocities and mayhem like that of which only war can bring. What was she to do with this one? Now, she supposed, it was time to give him a talk about what it meant to be in the military, and what kind of sacrifices one would have to make for the grand scheme that their Emperor upheld. Would it be enough to convince him? Who knew. She was not obligated to change his mind about Akkadia, or his part in it. If need be, the boy would have to see the Emperor himself, if Balthazar so deemed it necessary. She doubted it would come to that, as if she explained to the Emperor that this boy was in disagreement with the steps to ascension, like times before Balthazar would tell her to make the decision herself, and she may find a replacement for him. Maybe someone more willing to ascend, make sacrifices, and more intricately understand or accept her plans. It seemed only those who saw how well her tactics worked actually respected her, as much of what she had done furthered the Imperium in the years of service she provided, and i nfact ended up saving lives in the long run. <C>

[18:28:11]The Architect:
Sighing, she took to stand, and naturally the Bridge Officer asked her what she would be doing now. "Answer communications from our Emperor with the following: 'The Architect is in possession of Kaalin Val, and is dealing with his reassignment.' I should return shortly." The Bridge officer saluted Carin, and she made her way out of the bridge with a casual stroll. Several moments later, she was at a corridor that housed prisoners, and sure enough the squad leader from the extraction, Arnic, was sitting in front of cell C-2. As he saw her approach, he stood quickly and saluted, then spoke smoothly. "Madam Architect. Your prisoner has been quiet for some time. Were you actually to grant him your ear?" As he finished his sentence, Carin smiled in a kind of half-hearted way. She made no other attempt to respond. Arnic simply acknowledged her silence as a response, and saluted once again, stepping out of the way to the strong cyllinder-locked door. It had a small porthole in it which had a mutable two-way speaker. Carin approached it and looked in, adjusting her glasses casually, her green eyes giving a typical uninterested expression. "Wake up, Val," she spoke into the speaker. <E>

[18:50:12]Subject Darkscar:
Kaalin Val had been asleep for the past couple of hours. He didn’t really understand how weary he had been until he was given the luxury of a bed, even if it was a detainees bed. The mattress felt like heaven compared to the bundles of rags and broken rubble he’d had to sleep on during his service on colony Beta G. Even though he’d only been sleeping for a couple of hours, it was a solid sleep. Not the half hearted, paranoid sleep he learned when dealing with the hive, where he feared he might have to wake at any moment to fight for his life. The young man rose, clad in armored fatigues and a gray beater. He’d been stripped of his jacket and equipment long before being placed in the cell. Kaalin was a man of medium stature, with a compact musculature honed to a point of ferocious strength and explosive agility. The sinew in his chest and stomach kissed sweetly against his gray beater, and his legs filled out his fatigues. The young militant had short black hair, cropped low against his skull to prevent it from being grabbed in a combat situation. And layer of stubble darkened his sharp jawline. His features were fiery and hawkish, handsomely angular. A scar marred his right cheek, but it was only visible when one looked closely. His eyes, however, each possessed their own shade. One was steel blue, the other a poorly matched shade of green. Kaalin’s heterochromia always made him stand out. As a child, other kids would make fun of him for it. But during his teenage years, his negative became his positive, and young women found it quite charming. As an adult, people barely seemed to notice. Or rather, if they did, they no longer showed that notice through flirtation or rude commentation, but through the way they looked at him or stared without meaning to.

He stepped up to the speaker on his side of the cell, addressing the Architect. “What do you want? Is there any good reason I’m locked in this cell? You could have at least left me in better company. That Arnic guy hasn’t breathed a word about what’s really going on here.”

[19:03:41]The Architect:
Carin smiled through the porthole of glass as the feisty man spoke to her. Sure, he had no reason to respect her for her essentially maximum ranking status, but this was Akkadia, and Kaalin would have to come to know that. "You have not a clue who you are, do you soldier? You speak with authority as if you have any. Well, you will, certainly. You would, if you knew how to act upon it. You are Akkadian. Do you know what that means?" Her speech was calm, well-delivered. She spoke such that it was hard to interrupt her, and with real practiced authority. "You do not know what happens at the top, or why. You are the effect, not the cause. Every finely woven detail, every singular extracted moment in your life; in any soldier's life; in every soldier's life, is a sharpened, focused and necessitated movement of strategic formulation. You die for me, you shoot, stab and run for me. You move for me. And when you do? We succeed. This is Akkadia. Do you know how honor is born? Blood is spilled. For every cause, for all cause." After she was done delivering these momentous words, she remained stern and silent, as if she might actually listen to any response he had for her. Her face was emotionless, the true mark of a tactician amidst planning. Her method may have been cold.. but truly, this was war. This man had to come to face it, he had to have some kind of epiphany and understand it to assume his position and to lead his men now. There was no time for the past. Only initiative, action, and progress.

[19:19:27]Subject Darkscar:
Kaalin stared through porthole blankly for a moment, as if it was difficult for him to believe she’d really just given him that lecture. After a moment of stunned silence, Kaalin smirked in way that made his smile almost a sneer. “You really are a piece of work. Your authority doesn’t mean much when you have no moral authority. It’s funny, lady. I almost can’t wrap my head around it. You give me this big long speech about honor and service, when really all you should be giving me right now is an apology. An apology for using me as a political tool, an apology for sending a whole unit of men to their graves without a snowballs chance in hell, their lives, their blood, so the empire could make it look like it would fight tooth and nail to protect new-found colony worlds. But we know the truth, don’t we? They aren’t worth the resources or the losses against the hive unless there is something valuable there. Beta G didn’t have that. But you still need people to feel brave enough to go out and settle, to expand the Empire’s resources without feeling totally cut off, like they will just get left to die. You left me to die. Well, you would have if I hadn’t surprised you. But from the moment you shipped me out I was just a corpse walking to you.” Kaalin had to resist the urge to spit. “Your lecture doesn’t mean jack shit. You used me and expect me to be grateful for the opportunity to die a fruitless death. Just like you used every man and woman who is dying there now.” Kaalin sighed. “And you know what? I understand that. What I don’t understand is how you think you can talk down to me after all that happened. If you want robots, build those to fight for you instead. Men are more complicated than the machines you just described to me.”

[19:29:16]
Bruler sat in silence at the pilot seat of his ship, calmly orbiting around a planet. He had been waiting, broadcasting his off the grid signal that he was open for business... it was only a matter of time. He had done his training today and his studies, so he just needed a customer to give him an assignment....

[19:34:45]The Architect:
She seemed to shrug as he finished, quite sure that he was a lost cause, but she went ahead with a fairly interesting statement. "Kaalin Val. You have my apologies; I am sorry that certain individuals must die for fruitless case. I am sorry that war is structured in such a way. But I too well understand it, and craft plans accordingly." Was it that she actually apologized? That was up for interpretation. She continued after a very brief pause in her smooth tone, moving away from the mic just a little in a random shift of position. "There are some who are simply lucky, because they are talented. It takes courage for them to embrace their talent and act upon it, such that they become productive and successful. Then, when offered a real chance to do something, to perhaps even prevent the necessity for such 'slaughter,' or for 'dead men walking,' they turn it down because they believe all they will do by participating is perpetuate the cycle they despise. You, unlike many, have a choice. You have a proposal. You can dedicate your life and your efforts to Balthazar, perhaps leading his troops to glory and honor, or you can fight against what you believe is corruption. What will you do? Will you run away, only to be hunted and destroyed? Will you fight against Akkadia, your own home, your own people? Who will you serve? I advise you to make that decision now, so that we will have wasted a little less of each other's time." Of course, she knew exactly what she would do with him had he decided against the Imperium's wishes.. and this was the path many had gone before him.

[20:11:56]
Aurelia DeOrzen sighed as she looked around the ruined bridge of the 'Revelation Of Fire', it was extensive to say the least and the blue blood still stained many controls and various surfaces along with the charred remnants of weapons fire, much of the ship looked the same way given the violent nature of the conflict that had taken place on board...the centurions didn't need an atmosphere so therefore when the conflict had broken out explosive round as well as projectiles were not restricted and given the intense nature of the Kallean resistance even further damage had been done to the massive vessel as plating would occasionally be seen hanging from the ceiling as well as exposed or loose wiring, some even live still given the ship was still in the assessment phase of damage control as it orbited the Akkadian station.

[20:53:32]
Lady Mairis Veridias lay in the infirmary, her breathing ragged and labored. She was, however, conscious and very, very unhappy. She sat in the bed and fumed, her arms crossed over her chest and eyes roaming the stark white walls. Her wings twitched and flexed, still stiff and sore from her unexpected trip in space. For what felt like the millionth time, she addressed the guards by her bed. "Can you please, for the love of the gods, get either my father or someone in charge? I'm perfectly fine." She said, moving to get out of the bed.