*HK Begins tracking the skimmer and "Commandeers" a vehicle for himself*
*He catches up to the vehicle, finding it abandoned with 3 tracks of various sets of footprints. All have at least one set of footprints that could be Karen's.*
*HK Begins tracking the skimmer and "Commandeers" a vehicle for himself*
*He catches up to the vehicle, finding it abandoned with 3 tracks of various sets of footprints. All have at least one set of footprints that could be Karen's.*
*HK Begins following the footprints Judging their sizes along the way.*
*HK Begins tracking the skimmer and "Commandeers" a vehicle for himself*
*He catches up to the vehicle, finding it abandoned with 3 tracks of various sets of footprints. All have at least one set of footprints that could be Karen's.*
*HK Begins following the footprints Judging their sizes along the way.*
*Meanwhile, Karen is bound to a chair in a secluded warehouse, struggling to break the cable tied around her wrists.*
Man: Stop struggling, it won't help. The cable is a duranium composite; you can't break it.
Karen: What do you want with me?
Man *sarcasm*: Gee, what could I possibly want with the grand-daughter of the Prime Minister and greatest stateswomen the Republic has ever known? Could it be... Money?
Karen: My Grandmother won't pay a ransom!
Man: Too bad. But I'm sure the Alliance will.
*Karen's voice cracks a little at that.*
I'm afraid they're every bit as savage as their propaganda makes out. But, they are offering a very good price.
Karen *quietly, voice cracking*: You're all ba*****s...
Man: Of course... It would be a bit awkward to get you off Pegasus Prime without P-Sec noticing.
Go ahead, she's yours.
*Karen looks over at a hooded figure, her size and build, who walks over and starts to undo her restraints. Karen immediately tries to fight her way out, being very quickly restrained by her new captor's superior strength, though she does manage to pull the hood down.
The female captor has her eyes, a darker shade of short-cut, brown hair, and a more rounded face. In fact, she looks identical to Tara at the same age.*
Karen *shock*: Who...? What...?
Oh my--!
*Before she can utter another word, the girl covers her mouth and pins her to the ground, allowing Karen to struggle until she passes out.
Just as HK arrives, he sees the same life reading from the alley burst through the skylight, immediately knocking out two of the kidnappers and turning to face Karen's immediate hostage-takers.*
Spider: I knew if I followed you long enough you'd slip up, Cartridge!
Man: Oh, come on! Boys!
*The warehouse quickly erupts into a hail of disruptor fire as Spider dodges effortlessly.*
*HK Begins tracking the skimmer and "Commandeers" a vehicle for himself*
*He catches up to the vehicle, finding it abandoned with 3 tracks of various sets of footprints. All have at least one set of footprints that could be Karen's.*
*HK Begins following the footprints Judging their sizes along the way.*
*Meanwhile, Karen is bound to a chair in a secluded warehouse, struggling to break the cable tied around her wrists.*
Man: Stop struggling, it won't help. The cable is a duranium composite; you can't break it.
Karen: What do you want with me?
Man *sarcasm*: Gee, what could I possibly want with the grand-daughter of the Prime Minister and greatest stateswomen the Republic has ever known? Could it be... Money?
Karen: My Grandmother won't pay a ransom!
Man: Too bad. But I'm sure the Alliance will.
*Karen's voice cracks a little at that.*
I'm afraid they're every bit as savage as their propaganda makes out. But, they are offering a very good price.
Karen *quietly, voice cracking*: You're all ba*****s...
Man: Of course... It would be a bit awkward to get you off Pegasus Prime without P-Sec noticing.
Go ahead, she's yours.
*Karen looks over at a hooded figure, her size and build, who walks over and starts to undo her restraints. Karen immediately tries to fight her way out, being very quickly restrained by her new captor's superior strength, though she does manage to pull the hood down.
The female captor has her eyes, a darker shade of short-cut, brown hair, and a more rounded face. In fact, she looks identical to Tara at the same age.*
Karen *shock*: Who...? What...?
Oh my--!
*Before she can utter another word, the girl covers her mouth and pins her to the ground, allowing Karen to struggle until she passes out.
Just as HK arrives, he sees the same life reading from the alley burst through the skylight, immediately knocking out two of the kidnappers and turning to face Karen's immediate hostage-takers.*
Spider: I knew if I followed you long enough you'd slip up, Cartridge!
Man: Oh, come on! Boys!
*The warehouse quickly erupts into a hail of disruptor fire as Spider dodges effortlessly.*
*HK Bursts through a wall*
HK: Exclamation: Assassination protocols initiated, Prejudice set to maximum! *He begins firing at the hostage takers and the Tara Clone*
*HK Begins tracking the skimmer and "Commandeers" a vehicle for himself*
*He catches up to the vehicle, finding it abandoned with 3 tracks of various sets of footprints. All have at least one set of footprints that could be Karen's.*
*HK Begins following the footprints Judging their sizes along the way.*
*Meanwhile, Karen is bound to a chair in a secluded warehouse, struggling to break the cable tied around her wrists.*
Man: Stop struggling, it won't help. The cable is a duranium composite; you can't break it.
Karen: What do you want with me?
Man *sarcasm*: Gee, what could I possibly want with the grand-daughter of the Prime Minister and greatest stateswomen the Republic has ever known? Could it be... Money?
Karen: My Grandmother won't pay a ransom!
Man: Too bad. But I'm sure the Alliance will.
*Karen's voice cracks a little at that.*
I'm afraid they're every bit as savage as their propaganda makes out. But, they are offering a very good price.
Karen *quietly, voice cracking*: You're all ba*****s...
Man: Of course... It would be a bit awkward to get you off Pegasus Prime without P-Sec noticing.
Go ahead, she's yours.
*Karen looks over at a hooded figure, her size and build, who walks over and starts to undo her restraints. Karen immediately tries to fight her way out, being very quickly restrained by her new captor's superior strength, though she does manage to pull the hood down.
The female captor has her eyes, a darker shade of short-cut, brown hair, and a more rounded face. In fact, she looks identical to Tara at the same age.*
Karen *shock*: Who...? What...?
Oh my--!
*Before she can utter another word, the girl covers her mouth and pins her to the ground, allowing Karen to struggle until she passes out.
Just as HK arrives, he sees the same life reading from the alley burst through the skylight, immediately knocking out two of the kidnappers and turning to face Karen's immediate hostage-takers.*
Spider: I knew if I followed you long enough you'd slip up, Cartridge!
Man: Oh, come on! Boys!
*The warehouse quickly erupts into a hail of disruptor fire as Spider dodges effortlessly.*
*HK Bursts through a wall*
HK: Exclamation: Assassination protocols initiated, Prejudice set to maximum! *He begins firing at the hostage takers and the Tara Clone*
*The Tara clone dives on top of Karen and beams out with her as Spider finishes knocking out the rest of the thugs.*
*The transporter beam seems to have been bounced between several different ships in orbit, but HK can determine the source was somewhere on the Halsar Continent.*
*The transporter beam seems to have been bounced between several different ships in orbit, but HK can determine the source was somewhere on the Halsar Continent.*
HK: *Turns to spider* Query: Do you have access to a transporter?
*The transporter beam seems to have been bounced between several different ships in orbit, but HK can determine the source was somewhere on the Halsar Continent.*
HK: *Turns to spider* Query: Do you have access to a transporter?
Spider: Not exactly. Why? Do you know where they went?
HK: Statement: I know the source of the transporter beam. Either they are there or someone who knows something is. I suppose I could commandeer one temporarily if need be.
HK: Statement: I know the source of the transporter beam. Either they are there or someone who knows something is. I suppose I could commandeer one temporarily if need be.
Spider: Or we could... You know... Contact the authorities?
*Meanwhile, in a secret location. Karen is restrained to a medical table, struggling against the restraining field. As she continues to struggle, an ageing man in a lab coat walks in.*
Warren: You're wasting your energy. Even if you [i]could[/i] get out, there are two guards and Thirty-Three stationed outside. You aren't going anywhere, Miss Fuller.
Karen: What do you want with me?
Warren: Well, your blood, first of all. Then I figured we'd start your conditioning.
*A drone comes down from the ceiling, drawing some blood from Karen's arm with a syringe. Then, Karen's injected with some kind of drug.*
You know, the first time we did this, Dr Harrison insisted on using cybernetics to secure the psychological conditioning and to keep control over the genetic augmentations. But, strangely enough, we haven't had a single problem with the Archangels since we moved to total augmentation.
Karen *anxious*: What did you just do to me?
Warren: Don't worry, it's just the baseline. A series of nanites which will prepare the next stage for rewriting your genetic code.
Karen *anxious*: Who are you?
Warren: We're the Department of Interstellar Security. You won't have heard of us. Officially, we don't exist. Unofficially, we were formed about 10 years after the Republic's founding to protect the Republic from any existential threats, by any means necessary. We've prevented coups, invasions, even declarations of independence, before anyone even heard about them. That's what the Archangels are for: our surgical instruments. Infiltrators, assassins, and one-person armies wrapped into one. Totally illegal, of course, but that's what it takes to keep people like you safe.
Karen *anxious*: I don't [i]feel[/i] safe right now...
Warren: No. But give it a few days and you'll feel better than safe.
Oh, I forgot to mention, that injection? It included a dose of an enzyme which has deactivated your twilight gene. So don't go trying to port or blast your way out.
*Warren turns and leaves, heading to analyse Karen's blood sample.*
*DIS Base. Karen perks her head up as Warren walks back in. She now has a puncture mark on her neck and has been changed into a tank top and shorts - forcibly, as is evidenced by the bruising on her biceps and calfs. Warren calls down the drone and places a vial into its hypo system.*
Warren: Time for your third injection.
Karen *anxiety*: Please... Please, I've done nothing to you!
Warren: True... But I'm afraid you're simply too good a candidate, for so many reasons.
Now, I'm afraid this injection, unlike the last two, is going to hurt. A lot.
*The drone flies over to Karen, who turns her head away protectively.*
Karen *scared, creeping towards panic*: No... No! Please, no!
*She gasps as the drug is injected, grunting as it starts to augment her DNA, before screaming in agony as Warren leaves.*
*HK is already heading towards the nearest transporter*
HK: Statement: I cannot allow my master to stay in their clutches.
Spider: Hey, hold on a second!
*He picks up Cartridge as he wakes up.*
Good morning! You have an appointment.
Cartridge: Oh, come on man! Give me a break!
Spider: I don't have time for this, Herbert. Who hired you?
Cartridge: What?
Spider: You really expect me to believe you came up with the plan to kidnap the PM's granddaughter? C'mon, Herbert, you're not that smart.
Cartridge: Yes I am! I'm very smart!
Spider: You couldn't even break into a skimmer before I caught you.
Cartridge: Hey, that was--!
Spider: Who?!
*Cartridge folds his arms in defiance. Spider tosses him towards HK.*
HK: Statement: Initiating Torture protocols. *There's a strange whine noise coming from him now and he grabs Cartridge and begins emitting an agony field much like those used in the mirror universe*
*One of the guards leads him through the village towards a large ancient structure. The villagers give curious looks at them as they pass by. The building is significantly higher tech than the actual village and has a forcfield and bulkhead doors blocking the way. They open up as the guard gets near. Inside the building is beautiful almost like an artificial park with waterfalls and strange alien plants dotting the area. Metal paths lead the way to other rooms but the guard follows the biggest one leading them to a strange chamber almost like an observatory with holograms of other landscapes dotting the walls instead of windows. And elderly looking Rakatan is sitting in a chair writing in a book.*
Elder: *Has the same untranslatable yet understandable language* What do you need my child?
Guard: These people say they've come here because the infernal one has broken free.
Elder: I suppose it was inevitable that someone would interfere with his prison and release him. Our people don't remember much of our past but he is one thing we have always kept in memory.
Elder: It was countless eons ago that our race imprisoned him even we couldn't stop him. It took our greatest armies to subdue him. Unfortunately we don't have any records of that time here anymore. They were lost in one of the many wars the plague our tribes. However there may be some still left in the temple... But I can't allow you in there. The force field is impenetrable. Perhaps if you would help us out...
*HK is already heading towards the nearest transporter*
HK: Statement: I cannot allow my master to stay in their clutches.
Spider: Hey, hold on a second!
*He picks up Cartridge as he wakes up.*
Good morning! You have an appointment.
Cartridge: Oh, come on man! Give me a break!
Spider: I don't have time for this, Herbert. Who hired you?
Cartridge: What?
Spider: You really expect me to believe you came up with the plan to kidnap the PM's granddaughter? C'mon, Herbert, you're not that smart.
Cartridge: Yes I am! I'm very smart!
Spider: You couldn't even break into a skimmer before I caught you.
Cartridge: Hey, that was--!
Spider: Who?!
*Cartridge folds his arms in defiance. Spider tosses him towards HK.*
HK: Statement: Initiating Torture protocols. *There's a strange whine noise coming from him now and he grabs Cartridge and begins emitting an agony field much like those used in the mirror universe*
Cartridge *screaming*: Okay! Okay!
She said she worked for something called DIS! That's all I know, I swear!
*DIS Base. Karen has been released remotely and is shaking on the floor with adrenaline. It's been an hour since her last injection. As she tries to control her adrenaline, one of the Tara clones steps in from outside.*
Archangel: Get up.
*Karen picks herself up, glaring at the girl about her age.*
You want to hit me right now, don't you? It's taking every ounce of strength you have to resist that anger.
*She takes an open stance, clenching her fists.*
Don't.
*Karen roars out as she charges her, the two locking up and smashing each other against the wall before the Archangel gains the upperhand and pins her with an arm across the collar.*
That all you've got?
*Karen grunts before shoving her back with so much strength the Archangel has to roll to stop herself.*
Comments
*He catches up to the vehicle, finding it abandoned with 3 tracks of various sets of footprints. All have at least one set of footprints that could be Karen's.*
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
*HK Begins following the footprints Judging their sizes along the way.*
*Meanwhile, Karen is bound to a chair in a secluded warehouse, struggling to break the cable tied around her wrists.*
Man: Stop struggling, it won't help. The cable is a duranium composite; you can't break it.
Karen: What do you want with me?
Man *sarcasm*: Gee, what could I possibly want with the grand-daughter of the Prime Minister and greatest stateswomen the Republic has ever known? Could it be... Money?
Karen: My Grandmother won't pay a ransom!
Man: Too bad. But I'm sure the Alliance will.
*Karen's voice cracks a little at that.*
I'm afraid they're every bit as savage as their propaganda makes out. But, they are offering a very good price.
Karen *quietly, voice cracking*: You're all ba*****s...
Man: Of course... It would be a bit awkward to get you off Pegasus Prime without P-Sec noticing.
Go ahead, she's yours.
*Karen looks over at a hooded figure, her size and build, who walks over and starts to undo her restraints. Karen immediately tries to fight her way out, being very quickly restrained by her new captor's superior strength, though she does manage to pull the hood down.
The female captor has her eyes, a darker shade of short-cut, brown hair, and a more rounded face. In fact, she looks identical to Tara at the same age.*
Karen *shock*: Who...? What...?
Oh my--!
*Before she can utter another word, the girl covers her mouth and pins her to the ground, allowing Karen to struggle until she passes out.
Just as HK arrives, he sees the same life reading from the alley burst through the skylight, immediately knocking out two of the kidnappers and turning to face Karen's immediate hostage-takers.*
Spider: I knew if I followed you long enough you'd slip up, Cartridge!
Man: Oh, come on! Boys!
*The warehouse quickly erupts into a hail of disruptor fire as Spider dodges effortlessly.*
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
The two nod as they grab their gear heading out towards the nearest settlement.
Elsewhere
Kal is relaxing having a drink watching a few of his men train.
Ordo: it looks like someone is being active.
Kal: what now?
Ordo: one of our people spotted this.
He hands him a padd with the images from the market.
Kal: either someone offered them a fortune or they are just getting plain stupid.
Ordo: you want to do anything with it?
Kal: no not now. Send a scout to recon the situation and see what's going on.
*HK Bursts through a wall*
HK: Exclamation: Assassination protocols initiated, Prejudice set to maximum! *He begins firing at the hostage takers and the Tara Clone*
*The guards at the wall of the settlement stop them*
Guard 1: What is your business here outsider? *The translator can't lock onto the language but somehow they are able to understand him anyway*
Guard 2: It is unusual for any to survive the crash.
*The Tara clone dives on top of Karen and beams out with her as Spider finishes knocking out the rest of the thugs.*
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
HK: Statement: I will not fail you again if I can help it.
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
HK: *Turns to spider* Query: Do you have access to a transporter?
Guard 2: What kind of information?
Rookie: unsc forces have been engaged by forces engaged by this man.
Zain colony
Over comms
Admiral hoish: this is the 19th attack fleet we are deploying troops to major battle zones across the planet.
Unsc Thunderbolt
Ops: odst pods deployed. Launching pelicans now.
Hoish: very good bring us to low orbit over the capital and provide heavy fire support.
Helm: aye sir.
Spider: Not exactly. Why? Do you know where they went?
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
Spider: Or we could... You know... Contact the authorities?
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
Warren: You're wasting your energy. Even if you [i]could[/i] get out, there are two guards and Thirty-Three stationed outside. You aren't going anywhere, Miss Fuller.
Karen: What do you want with me?
Warren: Well, your blood, first of all. Then I figured we'd start your conditioning.
*A drone comes down from the ceiling, drawing some blood from Karen's arm with a syringe. Then, Karen's injected with some kind of drug.*
You know, the first time we did this, Dr Harrison insisted on using cybernetics to secure the psychological conditioning and to keep control over the genetic augmentations. But, strangely enough, we haven't had a single problem with the Archangels since we moved to total augmentation.
Karen *anxious*: What did you just do to me?
Warren: Don't worry, it's just the baseline. A series of nanites which will prepare the next stage for rewriting your genetic code.
Karen *anxious*: Who are you?
Warren: We're the Department of Interstellar Security. You won't have heard of us. Officially, we don't exist. Unofficially, we were formed about 10 years after the Republic's founding to protect the Republic from any existential threats, by any means necessary. We've prevented coups, invasions, even declarations of independence, before anyone even heard about them. That's what the Archangels are for: our surgical instruments. Infiltrators, assassins, and one-person armies wrapped into one. Totally illegal, of course, but that's what it takes to keep people like you safe.
Karen *anxious*: I don't [i]feel[/i] safe right now...
Warren: No. But give it a few days and you'll feel better than safe.
Oh, I forgot to mention, that injection? It included a dose of an enzyme which has deactivated your twilight gene. So don't go trying to port or blast your way out.
*Warren turns and leaves, heading to analyse Karen's blood sample.*
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
Guard 1: The infernal one? How has he escaped?
Guard 2: The elder needs to see this.
HK: Statement: I cannot allow my master to stay in their clutches.
Spider: Hey, hold on a second!
*He picks up Cartridge as he wakes up.*
Good morning! You have an appointment.
Cartridge: Oh, come on man! Give me a break!
Spider: I don't have time for this, Herbert. Who hired you?
Cartridge: What?
Spider: You really expect me to believe you came up with the plan to kidnap the PM's granddaughter? C'mon, Herbert, you're not that smart.
Cartridge: Yes I am! I'm very smart!
Spider: You couldn't even break into a skimmer before I caught you.
Cartridge: Hey, that was--!
Spider: Who?!
*Cartridge folds his arms in defiance. Spider tosses him towards HK.*
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
Warren: Time for your third injection.
Karen *anxiety*: Please... Please, I've done nothing to you!
Warren: True... But I'm afraid you're simply too good a candidate, for so many reasons.
Now, I'm afraid this injection, unlike the last two, is going to hurt. A lot.
*The drone flies over to Karen, who turns her head away protectively.*
Karen *scared, creeping towards panic*: No... No! Please, no!
*She gasps as the drug is injected, grunting as it starts to augment her DNA, before screaming in agony as Warren leaves.*
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood
HK: Statement: Initiating Torture protocols. *There's a strange whine noise coming from him now and he grabs Cartridge and begins emitting an agony field much like those used in the mirror universe*
*One of the guards leads him through the village towards a large ancient structure. The villagers give curious looks at them as they pass by. The building is significantly higher tech than the actual village and has a forcfield and bulkhead doors blocking the way. They open up as the guard gets near. Inside the building is beautiful almost like an artificial park with waterfalls and strange alien plants dotting the area. Metal paths lead the way to other rooms but the guard follows the biggest one leading them to a strange chamber almost like an observatory with holograms of other landscapes dotting the walls instead of windows. And elderly looking Rakatan is sitting in a chair writing in a book.*
Elder: *Has the same untranslatable yet understandable language* What do you need my child?
Guard: These people say they've come here because the infernal one has broken free.
Elder: I suppose it was inevitable that someone would interfere with his prison and release him. Our people don't remember much of our past but he is one thing we have always kept in memory.
Cartridge *screaming*: Okay! Okay!
She said she worked for something called DIS! That's all I know, I swear!
*DIS Base. Karen has been released remotely and is shaking on the floor with adrenaline. It's been an hour since her last injection. As she tries to control her adrenaline, one of the Tara clones steps in from outside.*
Archangel: Get up.
*Karen picks herself up, glaring at the girl about her age.*
You want to hit me right now, don't you? It's taking every ounce of strength you have to resist that anger.
*She takes an open stance, clenching her fists.*
Don't.
*Karen roars out as she charges her, the two locking up and smashing each other against the wall before the Archangel gains the upperhand and pins her with an arm across the collar.*
That all you've got?
*Karen grunts before shoving her back with so much strength the Archangel has to roll to stop herself.*
Karen *hateful*: Get up.
Trials of Blood and Fire
Moving On Parts 1-3 - Part 4
In Cold Blood