Dominion &nbsp; Secrets Under the Ruins | EE Dominion of Batuu

Subject 73 Red

Kalic stopped when he heard a voice. He “eyed” the woman through his eye wrap, looking down the corridor. He then looked back, smirking a little.

“I’ve got bearings. The dark can’t stop me from seeing.” Kalic looked at Vidalu, nodding a little. “Kalic Daws by the way.” He looked down the corridor again before starting to walk down, taking careful note of everything. He didn’t really know who Red was, but he figured he’d find out soon enough. A small, vague vision hit him though. One that seemed to suggest something was going to happen.

Subject 73 Red · Feb 2, 2021

Tags:

Ingrid L'lerim Calruss Shiman

Nighthaunter

Red walked down the dark, damp stairs, aiming his heavy repeater down the stairwell at the woman. He slowly moved down, not even making a sound. His helmet visor switched to night vision, allowing him to see where he was going and to keep sight of the woman. In all, she shouldn't have even noticed that he was there.

But then she called out to him, and seemingly to someone else. Red froze, listening to her words. Then, he started quickly moving down the stairs towards her, almost sprinting, but slow enough to maintain his balance, and was still aiming her down with his repeater. Then, he saw the other person, a man, and the person spoke to her. From what he could tell, the other person had noticed Red too, but that didn't matter any more.

"Freeze!" Red ordered at them. The woman had, strangely enough, tried to be careful to not let her voice ring out. She clearly knew something more than him. So, smartly, Red did the same thing, but still kept his voice loud enough to be heard and to be commanding enough to the people at the bottom of the stairs.

Red stopped a couple of steps above the bottom of the stairway, aiming back and forth between the two figures. Through his night vision, he could see their weapons, and they had no indication that they were on his side. "Drop your weapons, now!" Red told them.

"Identify yourselves, now!" He ordered, keeping his repeater trained on the two unknown people, keeping his blaster ready just in case he had to open fire. Honestly, this mission could use a good fight, so far it had been pretty free of action.

He was hoping that would change.

Broka the Hutt · Feb 3, 2021

Location: In orbit of Batuu aboard Broka's Chelandion
Tag: Vexari Kahl

Broka was already set up in the conference room aboard his ship. The Smuggler's Queen was certainly a figure that peaked Broka's interest. She showed respect from the start, Broka knew this woman was going to be a good ally to have.

"<Well, how convenient of that. That's one building the supplies from Pa'Desh could be spared for other projects on Batuu then. Come, sit. It is about time you and I finally meet in earnest - well, in private. It is very nice to see an Imperial official show respect right from the start of relations. Obviously you are not of the Empire, such as myself, but it is still good to see. Now, would you care for some food? This is usually the timing for my fourth supper before dinners begin, however it would not be good on my part to not be a proper host. Would also care for a drink too? My servants are certainly quick with providing those. Would you like to speak of business over the meal, or are you one to take brakes from business while food is on the table?>"

Broka then waved servants over to the kitchens aboard the ship to start preparing food for at least himself. If his guest would take some, he would send the message to the kitchens as well. Meanwhile, some wine was already in his goblet, and he took a large sip. This was a long awaited moment. Right now was the test to see how one behaves when the Imperials are not looking. He expects her to be proper with the business, but those are just assumptions from the past meetings in more public settings. If they were to be doing closer business, then this test was necessary for Broka's process.

Vidalu Na'an · Feb 3, 2021

Equipment : One(1) shoto lightsaber, One(1) standard E-11D blaster carbine, One(1) industrial-strength syntherope (50m), Three(3) standard thermal detonators, One(1) Imperial trooper helmet with standard comm connections
Ship: Standard-kit HWK-290 light freighter
Tags:

Ingrid L'lerim , Calruss Shiman,

Arturo Braga ,

Thorald Magnusson ,

Subject 73 Red

Kalic Daws said:
“I’ve got bearings. The dark can’t stop me from seeing.” Kalic looked at Vidalu, nodding a little. “Kalic Daws by the way.” He looked down the corridor again before starting to walk down, taking careful note of everything. He didn’t really know who Red was, but he figured he’d find out soon enough. A small, vague vision hit him though. One that seemed to suggest something was going to happen.

Subject 73 Red said:
"Freeze!" Red ordered at them. The woman had, strangely enough, tried to be careful to not let her voice ring out. She clearly knew something more than him. So, smartly, Red did the same thing, but still kept his voice loud enough to be heard and to be commanding enough to the people at the bottom of the stairs.

Red stopped a couple of steps above the bottom of the stairway, aiming back and forth between the two figures. Through his night vision, he could see their weapons, and they had no indication that they were on his side. "Drop your weapons, now!" Red told them.

"Identify yourselves, now!" He ordered, keeping his repeater trained on the two unknown people, keeping his blaster ready just in case he had to open fire. Honestly, this mission could use a good fight, so far it had been pretty free of action.

He was hoping that would change.

"Weapons?"

Na'an only blinked up at the man with the repeater, her good eye owlishly large in its confusion. She spread her hands out where they could be seen, her cloak falling open to show that while she did, in fact, have her saber and her blaster, they were still safely at her waist. "There's no need to be afraid of me, you know," she said quietly. "I'm more of a friend than the Empress would have either of you think."

Through the overpowering air of this place (gods, the stink of it) she caught a whiff of it again. The sharp, cold prickle that the Empress carried on her, that she left on everything she touched, had followed her new companions down here into the tunnel. That must have been what she'd sensed outside the tunnel, rather than the Empress herself. Na'an had expected the Empress to figure on this little mission from the start--the Force had a way of shifting her expectations lately, of teaching her not to question why--but the fact that it lingered more on the blind man than the man with the gun was a surprise. She found her attention lingering on him momentarily, fixing him with human and artificial eye alike. Hadn't she met someone by the name of Kalic Daws somewhere before? Had he smelled like the Empress then?

But then a sound from behind her pushed the thought away for the moment. Na'an turned back towards the door, waving the other two to approach and be quiet. Behind the temporary barrier, something had started...drumming? A soft, rhythmic beat, undercut by a low basso tone that...could be a voice? or voices? It was still quiet--but in a way that felt more like distance than actual volume. Whatever that was, it was a ways behind the barrier, rather than just on the other side.

"I don't--" she said, half to the others and half to her self. "I don't like the sound of that language. That's not Basic."

She didn't like a lot more than that. The way that drum seemed to thump its way into the blood, for one, hot and thick and sludgy, like the heartbeat of some massive beast, old and slow...And the endless note of that voice, as if the throat making it had no need to breathe...

Nope. Nope nope nope. Every instinct, every cell in her knew whatever was behind that door was something that could not be borne. Not for one more second. Na'an whirled back towards her new companions in the tunnel. "I'd love to make friends here on this moldy little stoop at the bottom of a hole," she said briskly, "but I think that'll have to wait until we stop them from saying whatever it is they're saying. You guys good on three?"

Kalic Daws · Feb 4, 2021

Equipment: 1x PR-1
Tags:

Subject 73 Red

Kalic looked at Red and Vidalu, slowly backing up when the soldier said to freeze and drop their weapons. Kalic's responce, however, was to level his repeater with the man. "You really want to try a spacer?" He then heard Na'an, looking at the her before shuttering. His memories flashed back to what Ingrid did to him, at least what he was allowed to remember. He gripped the particle cannon a little tighter before looking at her.

"Trust me.... That witch is no friend of mine." Kalic noticed that something had gotten to Vidalu, but he didn't realize it was actually him. He thought it was something he couldn't see in the Force. He listened carefully, hearing something too. It wasn't basic. He looked around. Great.... This would be fun.

"I can agree with that. Let's crack some skulls."

Arturo Braga · Feb 7, 2021

Location: Ancient Ruins, Batuu
Gear: KC-47 Hybrid Strike Rifle, KC-77N Hybrid Pistol, Sk-AR Mk.1 Armor
Comrades & co:

Subject 37

Vidalu Na'an Calruss Shiman

Nighthaunter

The gutted house creaked and crumbled around him. Minutes passed where Arturo sat in silence, another lonely soul in a city of lost ones. Using his armor's optics, he kept an eye on Ivixa as best he could, listening intently for her to make her move on the sniper. Even with his ears peeled, he couldn't hear a thing from upstairs. That was when the sniper's voice came over the comms. "Target KIA." Surprised, Arturo could only nod his respect to the empty room. Ivixa was about as ruthless as the Empress, it seemed. Arturo supposed she had to be in this line of work. There wasn't much room for hesitation... Or mercy.

When she inquired after their next move, the contractor responded, "keep our heads down and watch the cultists." It was as good a plan as any.

After a while, however, his opinion changed. Shifting from his position in the corner -his legs were beginning to cramp- Arturo moved to one of the windows, silently sneaking a peak at the square beyond. Through the haze of falling ashes and dancing sunbeams, the mercenary could just about make out the cultists Ranulf had approached earlier. Deep in discussion, their attention was drawn inwards, to the words being shared. None among them bothered to cast a glance outwards. Arturo frowned. Had he a listening device of some sorts, he might've been able to hear what they were talking about.

As things stood, he would have to make do with what he had. Perhaps his comrades would fair better in that regard. Who knew?

He activated his comlink as the group suddenly began to move.

"Looks like they're splitting off. Got three contacts heading for the building off to the East. The rest're milling about where they met." Moving away from the window, Arturo kept low and silent as he moved out through a destroyed doorway, his visor quickly picking out the three shapes as they continued to walk. "Gonna follow the three, see what they're up to, over."

Treading lightly, Arturo exited the square a full thirty seconds behind his targets. The empty streets seemed to swallow the hunted and the hunter whole. A strange emptiness pressed in on all sides, giving the mercenary the feeling he was being watched. Perhaps he was at that. Casting a glance about, he pushed on, following the heat signatures as they swerved down alleys, through passages long since abandoned. Skirting around a corner, Arturo passed beneath a gated archway, the hinges squeaking noisily as he did.

The three cultists stood twenty feet distant, oblivious to the spy in their midst. Zooming in with his optics, Arturo watched as one of the cultists -the leader? What patch is that on his cloak?- took a key from his pocket. It looked as old and as rusted as the door it belonged to. A few seconds passed before the door grated open, revealing stairs that led downwards into a darkness so deep Arturo wondered if his helmet was playing up. The three cultists went down them without a care in the world, leaving the door ajar.

Only the Gods knew how many ghosts escaped through it. The mercenary wasn't too keen to face them alone.

"Lost visual of the three. Appears they've descended into some sort of crypt. Could do with some backup."

Nighthaunter · Feb 7, 2021

Location: Ancient Ruins, Batuu
Equipment: MK I Nightsuit, Silent Blades, Willbreaker, Phase I "Clairvoyant" Anti-Material Sniper Rifle, Smoke Bombs, Throwing Stars., EMP device.
Tags:

Arturo Braga

"Target KIA"

The words rang out in his ears, Ivixia was quiet and efficient just as every good assassin should be. With Ivixia making initial contact he assumed that it was okay to remove the cultists with lethal force. However, he knew that the preference would be to do this quietly. They did want to be engaged in a full fledged firefight anytime soon. He could still hear the movement from upstairs above him from at least two cultists. He felt stuck in this position because if he left the building it was likely that the two cultists on floor above would spot him leaving the building. He needed to eliminate them as soon as possible and move forward. He slipped his two blades into his hand as he crept forward from the corner of the room, instinctively sticking to the shadows as he crept out of the door way and began to slowly crawl up the stairs.

As he crept towards the top of the stairs he could feel his breath quicken in anticipation for a fight. There were two cultists about ten feet in front of him standing in the hallway of the ruined building's second floor. They hadn't seen him yet as they were far to focused on arguing with one another. Also his Nightsuit rendered him practically invisible when he was in the shadows. He looked down at the two blades in his hands and took a deep breath to calm his nerves. Nighthaunter then exploded into action throwing one of the blades at the first cultist, aiming for his neck and trachea. The blade went flush into the side of his neck, blood pouring out onto the floor as the cultists tried to call out for help and breathe, but instead found himself choking on his own blood. Nighthaunter knew he had to move quickly on the second cultist, as he was only stunned by his compatriots fate for a few seconds and began to reach for his weapon and turn in the NIghthanters direction. Nighthaunter sprinted forward and jumped in the air crashing into the cultist before slamming his remaining Silent Blade through the cultists eye. The cultists mouth opened as he screamed for half a second before the Nighthaunter smothered his mouth and sliced his throat. The life disappearing from his eyes, Nighthaunter then walked over to the other cultists still choking on the blade embedded in his throat and removed it. Blood spilling out of the gaping wound that had been left by the blade. The Nighthaunter admired his work with an evil smile.

"Lost visual of the three. Appears they've descended into some sort of crypt. Could do with some backup."

Heard in his ear as he stood over the bloody scene in front of him. "On my way" He said gruffly over the comms as he moved silently back down the stairs and out of the ruined building. He marked Arturo's position on his HUD and slowly made his way over the blocky ruins and into the square, as he stuck to the shadows as much as possible. He moved down abandoned alleys and streets as he made his way towards his position., before finally moving past a gated archway and seeing Arturo.

"You called?" The Nighthaunter crept up behind the mercenary but making just enough noise as to not startle him.

Vexari Kahl · Feb 7, 2021

Vexari moved to take the seat offered to her, relaxing in it comfortably so she and Broka could properly discuss business. "Business and food at the same time is alright for me! Just some finger food and a glass of wine for me, though.", she said with a smile, chuckling softly. "Suffice it to say, Batuu suffered major damage during the Maw attack. Most of the buildings are in need of heavy repair, plus we've got a downed Imperial I-class Star Destroyer in the jungle causing forest fires due to a fuel leak. We've got them contained but it's stretching my people on the ground pretty thin.", she said with a sigh.

"Batuu used to be a lively and highly profitable centre of trade for the smuggling community. The damage has certainly.....done a dent to those profits, though thankfully my Lucrehulk, which you might've seen amongst the fleet above the planet presently, also doubles as an orbital trading station in a pinch, so we've redirected most of our business there for now in the meanwhile. A temporary measure but it'll work until reconstruction is complete. I'm also in the process of buying a fleet of old surplus Venator-class Star Destroyers to bulk up the planetary defense fleet so my smugglers can get back to work..."

Broka the Hutt

Broka the Hutt · Feb 8, 2021

Vexari Kahl

Broka waved to one of the servants standing by the door to send the order to the kitchen. Meanwhile, upon hearing the request, the other servant put out a glass and poured wine into it until it was full. A habit of serving their master.
"<Good thing the supplies are coming soon. The journey from Pa'Desh is slightly longer than from Annaj. Possibly will come in and drop the supplies in the midst of our discussion. Bulk Freighters are rather slow as you are probably aware of. Would you prefer them to dock at this Lucrehulk, or go directly to the surface?>"

Broka then took a sip from the massive chalice in his hand.
"<You sounded as though you were going to say more about those Star Destroyers. A rather large model of ship for smugglers. I assume it is for defense of your world?>"

Calruss Shiman · Feb 8, 2021

Spreading out the group began to fan out and make there way over to the cultists who were hidden away in the dark aura, their intentions clear one way or another. Calruss on the other hand stood where he was in deep thought, considering what his next move was. While it seemed like the others were out to slaughter the savage people that had set up camp in the ancient ruins, the teen had a different idea all together. He was still set on capturing one of those things to find the source of that dark energy, wherever it may be. Slowly, the teen broke his gaze from the ruins and began to make his way over, his lightsaber still clinging to his leg unneeded for now.

The ruins were a monument of a time gone by, a place where the habitants had long gone and a more darker force had moved in. It was unsure how long it has stood here unnoticed or where the new inhabitants had come from, but with it being finally discovered it surely wasn't going to last long. Swiftly making ground to the first house he carefully used the walls to take great care in sneaking around the back, using it to go deeper into the plagued town.

Slipping into a side alley, Calruss wasn't expecting a group of three to come around the corner at the same time. Almost out of instinct the warden snapped to his lightsaber and ignited it before the heretics could even widen their eyes in surprise. He swiped his lightsaber at blistering speed at the closest ones chest and dropped him to the cold concreate in a smoking heap. The others had no hesitation at charging right at him unarmed, too much in a frenzy to even think about drawing their weapons. Calruss slowly shook his head from their madness and raised an open hand up to the pair, suddenly freezing them in place with force stasis as they opened their mouth in a war cry. Not long after the warden suddenly pulled back his other hand and sent it forwards to force push the madmen through an ancient wall that was on the verge of collapsing. With their help the wall did just that, falling on top of them as they flew threw it with speed.

Releasing a small sigh the teen walked through the gaping hole in the wall and stood above their lifeless bodies, one of which was bad for once. He was hoping that one of them would of survived, but it was almost impossible with a push of that strength "Shame... it appears I put a bit too much behind that" he grunted to himself while his right hand turned of his saber and returned it to the holster. For once, he had to tell himself to hold back on his hits, if he kept the way he was going there was no hope in getting a prisoner. Dusting himself off for a few seconds he turned around and began to make his way in the direction of a crypt, a place which may provide answers to the horrid atmosphere

Subject 73 Red · Feb 9, 2021

Ingrid L'lerim (Too lazy to link everyone)

Red watched the woman as she spread hands, and saw the weapons under her cloak. So, she was armed, so she was expecting a fight. She even had a saber. That was... intriguing.

"There's no need to be afraid of me, you know," she said quietly. "I'm more of a friend than the Empress would have either of you think."

Red examined the woman. She didn't look Imperial, not in the slightest. Was she lying. She didn't appear to be. In fact, she seemed very sincere.

"Really? What's your operating number?" He asked her, demanding for identification.

He was paying more attention to the blindfolded man, who had raised his blaster in response to Red aiming his weapon at him.

"You really want to try a spacer?"

"Do you really want to try Special Forces?" Red asked him. The man wouldn't be the first spacer he had ever fought, and he certainly had his experience in fighting them. They rarely stood much of a fight against Red.

Then, surprisingly, when the woman mentioned Ingrid, the man shuddered. Intriguing, so he did have a past experience with the Empress. Interesting...

Then, the woman pointed out the chanting. Red heard it too, and apparently so did the man. The voices were strange, and the language was even stranger. Still, the woman seemed extremely unnerved by it. Seriously, this woman was even more mental than Red was.

Then, the woman suggested that they should stop and fight whoever was doing the chanting. The man agreed, seemingly itching for a fight. Red tilted his head at them. "Fight? Lady, you've got me all wrong. I'm not here to fight, I'm here to scout. I'm just here to collect intel and information. I wasn't sent here to fight. If you two want to go fight, be my guest. I'm not looking for a fight." Then, Red shouldered his repeater. "Looks like it'll be only the two of you, sorry to disappoint." He continued. He was practically smiling underneath his visor.

Of course, he would probably end up fighting these two people to capture them and bring them in. But for now, Red was, for the time being, a pacifist.

That would probably change very soon. He wasn't used to being a pacifist, and, to be honest, he hated it.

Vidalu Na'an · Feb 9, 2021

Equipment : One(1) shoto lightsaber, One(1) standard E-11D blaster carbine, One(1) industrial-strength syntherope (50m), Three(3) standard thermal detonators, One(1) Imperial trooper helmet with standard comm connections
Ship: Standard-kit HWK-290 light freighter
Tags:

Ingrid L'lerim , Calruss Shiman,

Arturo Braga ,

Thorald Magnusson ,

Subject 73 Red

Na'an only blinked owlishly in the dark. Kalic's response was one that made sense to her; the other's, the red one, less so. "Not looking for a fight? You mean, you don't feel--"

A puff of moving air against her ear. The faint whoosh of the door at her back, sliding open. And the smell, a thick bloom of rotting meat and corruption, like hot breath on her neck--

Na'an whirled back, her hands releasing the clasp of her cloak and grabbing at its edges. The door blocking the staircase from the passage beyond had opened, and on the other side were two beings, one taller than the other but both of them taller than her, and both of them in dark cloaks of their own. The shorter one reached for her, his lips open, but he could only let out a short squawk of surprise before Na'an was on him. The cloak, loosed from her shoulders and whipping around her, made a good shield in such a tight space, and she pushed the advantage hard. In the space of a second she'd dealt two hard strikes with the heels of her palms, neck and nose, with a third to the being's gut bending him double over her knee. She slid around him, moving the knee into to his back as he slammed into the ground still tangled in her cloak.

"Kalic, the other one!" With the guard she'd pinned writhing under her, she only had a second to point down the passage, where the second guard had already bolted. "Don't let him get to the others! And you, Red, here! I need you to--dammit--"

The guard was fighting her hard, thrashing to free himself. In response Na'an grappled to maintain the pin, rolling him closer to the wall and pressing hard against where his lungs would be with her knee. In the struggle, the high, knobbled cone of a Cerean head slipped out from under both her cloak and his, and Na'an felt her guts clench.

A Cerean, here, in this place? Surrounded by the stink of the Dark Side? Good thing she hadn't gone for the kill just yet. She bent down, pushing more of her weight into him even as she spoke into his ear.
"Don't fight," she said, focusing hard on the words. She'd only done this a few times before; it didn't come as easily as it did for more experienced manipulators. "You know as well as I do you don't want to fight me."

Ingrid L'lerim · Feb 10, 2021

Lady Ingrid L’lerim Ragal Terassi Vandiir
Eternal Empress of the Eternal Empire, Lord Commander of the Wardens of the Shroud
The Red Witch, The Night Queen, Lady Stuztala, Head of the House L’lerim, CEO of the HPI Consortium, Archon of the Primyn Group

Location: Ancient ruins, Batuu
Equipment: The Soulsabers | 2x Striith vibrosword | Brynja coat | Hersir Imperial Uniform | G1 OmniLink | The Last Gift || Empyrean gland
Tag: Calruss Shiman |

Thorald Magnusson |

Ivixa Nera'kas |

Arturo Braga |

Subject 73 Red |

Vidalu Na'an |

Kalic Daws |

Nighthaunter |

Ladybug

Ingrid continued to listen to the communication as she watched the events with her eyes. If that hadn’t been enough, she could even feel through the Force that in front of her own, others had already come down to the catacombs. Where there was something that made them come here too. However, now her own began to come down pretty slowly, no matter who the cultists were, their numbers began to decline. That was the sign she was waiting for, now she could start. So far, it was only her necklace that functioned as a Taozin amulet, but she liked to be more secure than that.

She reached into the Force and this time hid her own presence in the Force, then became invisible the next moment. It was no longer possible to see with the Force, the naked eye, or machines and sensors. The perfect disguise for an assassin. That is why she wanted to send her men forward; she didn't want to do the work, because she could have easily walked where the object was, not to mention she could have used teleportation. And with the object or find, she could escape to the Netherworld in front of everyone. Played with the thought of showing the object to Adrian for a moment. Although her husband would not have sensed anything from that.

At least that would have been left for them to communicate in the afterlife so she could bring him back. But no, his soul in pieces and she didn’t find the way to merge them into one soul again without causing more damage, to get back her husband. And for each of these pop-up objects, Ingrid hoped to find some solution to see if any of the objects hid a secret good enough to resurrect Adrian. When she sensed that one of her own had come down, she started forward. The Empress moved quickly, soundlessly like a shadow or a real ghost. After all, her original work was a death; she was the artist of death, the death was her art, an assassin who perfected her abilities in this direction.

She passed the dead cultists, up here some of her men were still searching for the cultists on the surface, but Ingrid went after Calruss Shiman, who had already come down, and as far as she sensed

Subject 73 Red was the other one who was already downstairs. And of course her own spy; she felt him too. Which was perfect for her, so while she was just going down, she also sent a message to

Kalic Daws in the usual way, by telepathically forwarding the codeword. The best source of information without revealing anything about it. Because there were others down there.

~ What's going on down there and who's with you? ~ she asked.

Ivixa Nera'kas · Feb 10, 2021

Location: Ancient Ruins, Batuu
Tags:

Subject 73 Red

The symbol on the armor of the dead sniper did not escape Ivixa’s notice, especially as she saw the same symbol on the armors of the cultists in the street beneath the building. It was then that she saw three of the cultists break off, leaving a group of three behind. While Ivixa was initially hesitant to follow after Braga, knowing that there was still a risk that the cultists would discover the body of the sniper, she did not oppose the contractor’s actions. Like her, he was a professional in his line of work, perhaps even more experienced than herself.

While his actions left Ivixa in an awkward situation, the diminutive sniper ultimately decided that she did not want to take any chances.

Holding her breath, Ivixa took aim at the skull of the nearest cultist, waited a few moments, then squeezed the trigger, firing off a single armor-piercing projectile which punched through the man’s skull in the same instant, the sound of which was silenced by the active anti-sonic silencer integrated into her armor. Not skipping a beat, Ivixa then placed her rifle on her back, descending on the group from above with a repulsor-assisted fall as she fired the CryoBan projector on her wrist in a wide spray, which she hoped would briefly stun the last two cultists so that she could pick them individually. The second cultist was fortunately a cooperative target, allowing Ivixa to quickly focus him down with the CryoBan projector to freeze the man in place. However, the last was more resisting. Picking up the telltale motion of the man moving to point his rifle in her direction on her armor’s photoreceptive sensors, Ivixa threw herself out of the way with a graceful roll into a nearby alleyway. Nevertheless, the cultist fired a trio of shots, none of which struck Ivixa but would likely alert any other cultists in the area of the engagement.

Ivixa groaned in frustration, but was undaunted. She immediately seized the initiative, taking advantage of her armor’s liquid-cable launcher to allow her to ascend the exterior wall of the building adjacent to her. Then, letting the cable support her mass, she waited until the cultist entered the alley before finishing him off with the shatter beam weapon on her gauntlet, almost instantly burning a hole through the man’s skull in the process.

From there, Ivixa descended from the wall and opened her comms to the rest of the squad.

“I’m en route to the crypt.” The tiny sniper said as she took a brief glance down at the cultist’s corpse, briefly scanning the symbol on the man’s armor so she could get a good picture of it before moving towards the crypt.

“Is anyone familiar with the symbol on their armors?”

Armor
- Ivixa's Phase I "Glitter Ghost" Stealth Armor
  - Undersuit
    - UL-14 “Virtus” Class Underlay
  - Left Wrist
    - Shatter Beam
  - Right Wrist
    - LPD-40 IceJet Miniaturized CryoBan Projector
  - Energy Shield
    - Phase III “Force Avenger” Energy Shield
Small Arms
- Phase I “Clairvoyant” Anti-Materiel Rifle
  - APFSDS Rounds (Neuranium Core)
  - Antimatter Rounds
- HG-88 ‘Big Iron’ Hand Cannon
Melee
- Whimsy Knife
Grenades and Explosives
- Impact Grenade (2)

Kalic Daws · Feb 12, 2021

Equipment: 1x PR-1
Tags:

Thorald Magnusson [/USER] Calruss Shiman

Subject 73 Red

Kalic smiled a little at Red.

"Just Special Forces?" It was then that he looked back at Vidalu before seeing the other guard run. He lowered his blaster and ran against the being to slam him with the weapon and knock him down. Kalic would then quickly go to hit him with the butt of his repeater only for it to be dodged. Dang it! The guard tried to get away, but the Miraluka had an idea. He quickly picked up and swung his blaster like a club, slamming the man back down before jumping to grab and choke him out.

"I hate having to be quieter sometimes." He then heard a voice in his head. Apparently a certain someone found him and had forced a connection. Ingrid wanted to know who he was with. Without even knowing it Kalic's mind answer, but it probably wasn't as detailed as the Empress wanted.

"I don't exactly know what's going on except some... whatever they are saw us, and I'm with a special forces scout, and someone else."

Ingrid L'lerim · Feb 20, 2021

Lady Ingrid L’lerim Ragal Terassi Vandiir
Eternal Empress of the Eternal Empire, Lord Commander of the Wardens of the Shroud
The Red Witch, The Night Queen, Lady Stuztala, Head of the House L’lerim, CEO of the HPI Consortium, Archon of the Primyn Group

Location: Ancient ruins, Batuu
Equipment: The Soulsabers | 2x Striith vibrosword | Brynja coat | Hersir Imperial Uniform | G1 OmniLink | The Last Gift || Empyrean gland
Tag: Calruss Shiman |

Thorald Magnusson |

Ivixa Nera'kas |

Arturo Braga |

Subject 73 Red |

Vidalu Na'an |

Kalic Daws |

Nighthaunter |

Ladybug

There were further messages that others were also walking down to the crypts, which was great. Apparently the rebels stopped, so they would have time to run over them and get over them. Not wanting to reveal herself with the words, especially that she had already reached the crypts, so she thought for a moment about the text message or about sending a telepathic message. In the end, she opted for the telepathic.

~ No, I have never seen this symbol. But I forwarded it to Blackwatch, hopefully the intelligence can give us a more accurate answer in the foreseeable future. ~

Meanwhile, a telepathic message also arrived from Kalic for her earlier question. Ingrid knew who the man was there with them. She sent him to explore, and the other… knew this aura. She was the rebel who led the attack on the PL. She killed one of Karza’arana when Ingrid had just rescued Adrian from the base. It was because of this thought that she remembered as they tried to greet each other that the simple kiss had barely succeeded because they were always distracted by something, an explosion, or just

Aerarii Tithe . She was still happy there, though her relationship with Adrian actually only deepened after that. And she decides there she’ll never use her lover, later husband, for her job and duty.

~ I know the man, he is mine. My people are about to arrive, it would be unfortunate if you were caught, Mr. Daws. Get out of there and arrange this so that your rebellious friend can't get to the artefact. Encourage her to leave and prevent her from acquiring the object without losing your own disguise and cover, Mr. Daws! ~

For now, she stopped where she was, still invisibly, waiting for Kalic to leave and her other men to arrive…

Arturo Braga · Feb 20, 2021

Location: Ancient Ruins, Batuu
Gear: KC-47 Hybrid Strike Rifle, KC-77N Hybrid Pistol, Sk-AR Mk.1 Armor
Raiders of the Lost Crypt:

Kalic Daws Calruss Shiman

Thorald Magnusson

"I did." The mercenary's reply was terse. Turning, he regarded the Nighthaunter, suddenly grateful for the anonymity his faceplate granted him. He almost hadn't heard the man approach. If not for the noise he'd made, things might've taken a sudden, violent turn. And at this range, Arturo was fairly certain how that would have ended.

Pointing to the crypt's entrance, he said, "the three I was tailing went inside not too long ago. From what I could see, they seemed excited. About what? I couldn't say. Didn't risk taking a look." 'Not without backup,' his words seemed to imply. Shrugging, he began to creep forward, his rifle held low, eyes scanning the buildings to either side. Now that he had support, things were different. Well, not completely.

The courtyard they were in was still and as silent as the grave. Much like the rest of the city.

Coming to a stop at the crypt's door, he gave the Nighthaunter a quick look before wrenching it open. Bringing his rifle to bear, he waited, expecting to be greeted by a hail of blasterfire. He was disappointed by what he found. Nothing? Really? Stirring, he gave his companion another look, another shrug. Wherever the cultists were, it wasn't at the bottom of stairs nor in the chamber that lay just within. Toggling his night vision and signalling for the man to follow, he took a step inside. His descent was slow, cautious. Just because he couldn't see or hear anything didn't mean nothing was there.

He quietly hoped something was. The cultists couldn't just disappear, could they?

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, he gave the chamber a quick sweep. Nothing. "All clear." He said, trying to make sense of the strange feeling worming its way into the back of his mind. Something like fear, it waxed and waned, only to return twofold with every second that passed them by. Was he the only one feeling so... weird? He didn't know. Didn't bother asking. All the same, when Ivixa's voice came over the comms, he almost breathed a sigh of relief. "Can't say I am. Maybe the Etties know what it symbolizes." Glancing up the stairs, he asked, "you close?"

Subject 73 Red · Feb 24, 2021