Infinities Edge

[Kazanna]

Without really giving her much more thought, Elias stepped out the front door, the rifle in his hand crackling with meanacing energies. It had a continuous arc of charged ions that arced between it's stabilizing matrices for it's charged attack. Elias took aim at his first target, a vehichle down the street, he fired upon where his suit's HUD detailed would set it off in an explosion. He used a cyber link between himself, his bike, and his ship, to have both of them come to him. Within seconds, the low level whine of the bike could be heard as it came towards them rapidly, evading obstacles with its built in navigation system.


Elias motioned to the fire, "Get it between yourself and the end of the street. They know where you are, they'll be aiming at you soon, They use heat tracking. The Delphi system is programmed to display you as cooler, so they won't get a good mark. But no chances, stay by the fire." He followed the course of his ship, controlling it mentally, his bike, controlling it as well. He kept his rifle trained on where he knew the first of the tracking hounds would appear. The trail of nanites he had spread throughout the town on his way in were giving him a wonderful view of his new foes as they came towards them. He used the nanites that were already integrated with the power grid within the city to take rapid control. He turned off all of the lights in the street, save for those on his foes, then used a vid-com display to project his image towards them, and he spoke through it.


"You know who I am. I know why your here. I'm going to give you a single warning. Back off. Go back and report this job as taken. There will be no warning shots." Elias let the image fade out, but kept an eye on his targets. Each of them looked between one another before their commander issued an order through their closed coms. Elias guessed right. They weren't going to back down, they were going to try to take him. Elias turned on his external com, and let the sound transmit through all of his nanites, spread across the entire town, as he began to laugh, slow, ominous, dangerous, and filled with insanity.


Elias raised his rifle, took aim, and said, "Bang..." As he pulled the trigger, letting forth a channel of charged particles that fired at a rate six times faster then the speed of sound. By the time the sound wave hit the target, it was already dead. The oncoming bounty hunters lost their first tracking dog, and a second was injured by the blast.


Elias' mask grinned visibly.

 

[Elle Joyner]

She had no choice but to listen. Even if she'd had a choice, she would have listened. This wasn't her territory. This wasn't a business meeting, or press conference... this made no sense to her. It was frightening... like a terrible dream she couldn't wake up from, except it was a dream she was very possibly going to wind up dying in.


With the order to head towards the fire, Gemma behaved accordingly, keeping low and staying alert, all the while trying as much as she could not to look at what Elias was doing. She knew, deep down, what was happening, but the idea of seeing it... of actually witnessing it gave her chills, even with her proximity to the roaring flames. She felt ill and dizzy and regretted, miserably, that last glass of brandy, but she did as she was told and kept her eyes straight ahead.


And she reached the flames and she ducked low to the ground and she waited... and she prayed, because it just made sense... and nothing else made sense, but somehow in the back of her mind, even if she'd only met him roughly ten minutes prior, Elias was going to keep her alive...


The question was... would it be worth it, in the end.

 

[Kazanna]

Elias didn't even flinch when multiple rounds struck his armor, he didn't move away, in fact, he began moving towards his enemies slowly, the rifle in his hand humming as it fired off repeated rounds, each round, rather then killing an enemy, simply removed one of their limbs. He knew all of the wounds would be mendable, and each of them was wearing a high powered armor suit, so the suit would prevent blood loss until medics could arrive on scene.


With an agonizingly slow march, Elias approached them, firing shot after accurate shot into them, destroying their weapons, obliterating their chances of fighting back. It took him less then fifty seconds to complete the engagement, less then a minute to clear the distance between himself and the leader of the enemy group.


"You were warned." He said grimly to the man, who lay in a tattered heap in front of him, before he turned away from him, and back towards Gemma.


Elias was casual as he approached her, his armor unfolding, exposing his face, he had a neutral look on his face, "Overpaid worthless..." He sighed and shook his head, using his nanites to open a channel between himself and his ship, from there, the channel would direct to the Polaris Guild of Hunters.


Elias spoke aloud, so Gemma would hear his message as well, "Once again, this is Elias Grim, You are interfering with one of my bounties, She is captured and under my protection. Until I say otherwise, there is no jurisdiction that can claim her from me. I will burn your station to cinders if you send your dogs after me again. Now come collect your trash Gustav." He closed the communication channel and looked to Gemma as his land vehicle pulled up behind him, "Time to go." He said with a cold, flat tone.

 

[Elle Joyner]

From her position by the fire she couldn't see what was happening anymore, but she could hear it and she was almost positive there would be no recovery from the horror of those sounds. All she had been through, she had never imagined this might be where she'd end up. Idly, she wondered if she might have been better off staying put... but of course, that was a ridiculous theory.


She'd be dead if she hadn't gone into that bar. She'd be dead and her reputation would forever be ruined, the real villains never exposed, the danger never truly over. She needed Elias, much as he frightened her. He was her only chance at getting through any of this alive, even if that was at the expense of others...


Still, when Elias appeared beside her, she jumped with a small startled scream, barely squelching the sound as her hands covered her mouth. Mortified, terrified... feeling ill and only too eager to be done away with the desert planet entirely, she rose to her feet and nodded, unconsciously.


"Right. Let's go."

 

[Kazanna]

A Terrestrial Enforcement and Deployment Vehicle or TED-V was designed to be efficiently able to combat enemy troops as well as aid in riot situations for small militaries, militias, and law enforcement groups within outlying planets within the jurisdiction of Alliance Space. TED-V's were heavily shielded from front to back, and with eight fully independent repulsor engines, each of them powered by armored cortium power cells, they become a mobile fortress for law enforcement. Especially considering the twin rail cannons mounted along the crafts roofing ducts, the Quadracet Auto-Cannons with a full pivot reaction mounted on each of the corners of the craft for a total of eight cannons, and a series of riot cannons that gave them the ability to painlessly dispatch entire crowds if need be. They were by far the most efficient and effective craft created for Law Enforcement since the employment of Armored Vehicles. Nearly every civilized world had at least a few, and this planet was no exception.


Elias had expected this however. As he had expected nearly everything that had happened tonight. So when the TED-V's came flying in, spotlights illuminating him, his charge, and the bike. He gazed up at them, and waved, "Took you boys long enough..." He muttered.


The law enforcement officials within them were calling out over the PA system, "Reaper, You've destroyed civilian property and assaulted multiple civilians as well as destroying their property. Give yourself up and no one will get hurt."


Elias snorted and shook his head, he'd already hacked into their systems remotely, so his face appeared on their screens as he took control of the two circling TED-V's. Elias spoke calmly to them, "Listen up boys and girls. Here's how this works. I come in, I blow things up. I get rid of bad people, then I leave. You send me the bill. I pay it. That's option A. That's the option your CO want's to take. Because with option B. I'm going to crash both of those lovely birds into each other until they crash, and we all know that TED's are durable mother fuckers. So it'll take a while. Which means your all going to be Jelly a long time before they go boom. So take your pick. Me. I'd pick option A."


Without waiting for a reply. Elias moved to Gemma, and scooped her up off the ground. He was a strong man, and very agile. So as he did, he jumped back, and landed on the back of his ground vehicle, placing her just ahead of himself he pulled on the throttle and it roared towards the edge of the city as the two ships floated overhead, unable to move, their systems still held by the hack.


Elias' ship flew in overhead, it's cloaking system rippled as it became visible, floating above the city. The ship extended a monofilament line that allowed for retrieval of the ground craft and Elias took hold of it, linking it into it's port before he took Gemma up again in his arms, "Pardon the rough treatment Ma'am. Were leaving shortly." He said as he triggered his suits repulsors, the Delphi armor lifting off the ground vehicle as the ship drew it in. He flew them, skillfully, into the ships primary hold. The same door he had exited earlier that day.


Elias set Gemma down, and closed the door behind himself before the ship began heading back towards the stars, away from the city. Elias' armor slid off of Gemma, and back onto his own form, his armor folding away until it held the appearance of simply clothing, his weapons all folded back away. The only one left was the pistol Gemma carried. Elias looked to her and nodded slowly, "Now were both enemies of the Alliance, But the commandant of the alliance fleet knows better then to send a squad after me. He knows they'd come back in a medical ship, never fit to fight again."


Elias Grim made his way to the cockpit and sat down in the chair, gazing at the landscape as it quickly changed to stars. A moment later, the tesser engine within the ship started itself up and they were floating over the jungle world of Cal Droma, home planet of the Calonian race. Elias stared down at the world, muttering, "Auntie will know where to start..."

 

[Elle Joyner]

It was with a strange sense of detachment that Gemma allowed herself to be snatched up and carted about. She was by no means accustomed to being manhandled, but the idea was hardly the most prevalent thought on her mind. Everything that had transpired felt unreal, even the rush of wind as they slashed across the landscape, leaving behind the carnage outside of the bar.


When at last the vehicle came to a halt and she was set on her feet, she frowned softly, watching as he reclaimed his armor from her, before disengaging it entirely. It was strange, seeing him, really looking at him him, for the first time, how ordinary he looked. Maybe not ordinary... but certainly not the titan she'd expected to see before her.


"It's fine..." She offered to his apology, her words slow and calculated, "At least I'm still breathing."


When he continued, she nodded, considering his words, "I... I haven't thanked you... sorry. Just... this is all a lot to take in. But I appreciate it, everything you're doing... everything you just did. I... I was pretty ready to give up. I'm glad you showed up, when you did."


Apprehensively, she followed him, taking in the ship as she moved behind him. When they reached the cockpit, she stood back in the doorframe as he sat down, "...Auntie?"

 

[Kazanna]

Looking back Elias paused, "Ah, I forgot to mention... My ship, it has a Tesser Reactor. Were floating over Cal Droma now." Elias said calmly, trying to explain the change of the stars and the planet hanging in front of them now.


Elias stood up and moved to the back of the ship, disengaging his Delphi suit. The armor and weapons began to unclip in a series of cubes that hung at his waist until he removed them fully. He set them into a retaining receptacle, where they would be cleansed, and checked for deformities. The Delphi was an unknown armor type, it was rumored it had been invented, but the reality of things was far different. It had been discovered, and it's metals and technology had been replicated and integrated. It's original template had become the template for all of the modern day Nano-Technology.


Of course, Elias knew that, he took a long moment of relaxing out of the suit as his nanites repaired the strain he'd put on his body using the overpowering suit. Each of his limbs showed strained muscles, torn ligaments, and stretched flesh from where the suit had used his body to it's limits. Elias was used to the damage, and it mended almost the instant he was out of the suit. So he remained calm as the nanites did their work.


A few moments later, a table slid up out of the center of his ships cabin, as well as soft reclining benches on either side. Elias sat down, and the table showed all the evidence in the assassination case, and the part that Gemma supposedly played in it. He pulled up the current ruling Queens of Cal Droma, Zenika and Tenika. Motioning to them, he said, "They are my Aunties, The current rulers of the Calonian Empire, and some of my Mothers former Pupils. I learned much from them about espionage, demolitions, and physical combat as well as general field combat stratagem. They were fine teachers, but there are some lessons they could not teach me, methods that they have that we have need of. Zenika... is... our best bet... But if Tenika finds out I'm here, Which she will after a time..." He gained an uncomfortable look on his face, and turned towards Gemma. "I'll probably get torn apart." He shrugged, like it was normal.

 

[Elle Joyner]

She was impressed, to put it mildly. Tesser Reactors weren't common, and they certainly weren't cheap. When she had suggested to her employer at the factor back on the Desert Planet that they might consider Tesser Reactors in the vehicles they designed, he had laughed at her... laughed, and informed he that contrary to what she might think, the sand in the desert was in fact, only sand... not gold.


Watching carefully, her eyes followed him as he moved to the rear of the ship. When he disengaged the armor entirely, a brow quirked as she took in the sight of his strained, ragged form. The Nanites would do their work, but for a brief, fleeting moment, he was someone distinctly human... Ordinary. Flawed.


Shifting from her leaning position, Gemma approached the table, settling down on the bench opposite his. Her eyes fell on the pages, spread out on the table top and a frown crossed her features as she caught sight of her own face, staring back... It was the picture from her company identification card. A ruthless memory...


Looking up again, she caught the tail end of Elias's commentary on his aunts and nodded, slowly, "...Zenika... not Tenika. I think I'm following. Elias, I... I know you don't have to do this. Hell, I don't know that I would, if I were in your position. And I might not get many chances to say it, but... thank you." Breathing out a soft sigh, she smiled, dryly, "...Should we go knock...?"

 

[Kazanna]

A retaining chamber opened, and Elias motioned to it, "Before you look into there, I have a document you need to sign, It basically states that your not allowed to share any information about anything you see while in my company, with anyone, Ever. And trust me. If you tell. The hell you are experiencing now will be nothing in comparison to that which will come for you if you reveal the secrets I'm about to show you." Elias said with a flat, firm, even tone.


He produced a digital document, it had around fifty pages of agreements that basically all stated the same thing, the signer wasn't allowed to speak a word of what they would see. The only finish clause that would cause a need for concern would be the one that read, "In The event of divulging information to a competitor of the Wind Flame Umbrella, your memories will be wiped, your contact will be mind wiped, and you will be removed to the lowest rung of society available within the Wind Flame Umbrella's influence for observation." Elias tapped the bottom of it.


"That makes me the contractor, You sign there, your under protection of not only me, but the entire Wind Flame Umbrella, which, you are technically still an employee of anyways." He grinned lightly, "Or have you forgotten about the Merger."


He was referencing the fact that the Wind Flame industries had, through very careful manipulation of the stock markets, bought her companies shares until they controlled 51% of them. They then, under contract, that placed her company within their umbrella, sold four percent of the shares to a third party that was uninterested according to paperwork, but was in fact a hedge fund company that simply built wealth for a rainy day.


Elias would wait for her to sign the contract, before he would proceed any further with the mission he was beginning. From here on out, it was all action for him, He was going to be dancing on the edge of the infinites, to save a woman he hardly knew, because in his opinion, She wasn't the monster she was made out to be. Elias Grim, the Reaper of Jericho Station, the Protégé of the Void Bearers, was about to go to war with the universe, for little other reason then his own opinion.


And he didn't give a damn.

 

[Elle Joyner]

It was funny how refreshing the sight of a contract was... how irrational that felt, at the same time. She was a business woman, with more knowledge for these sorts of things than most, certainly more fit for signing contracts and reading over legal briefings than racing across the galaxy, running from Bounty Hunters and terrorists.


Looking over the paper work she smiled faintly, tucking her hair behind her ear before nodding, "Trust me... If there's anything I can comprehend, it's the necessity for contractual protection. Not that you'd have anything to worry about. After all that's happened, I don't imagine I'll be returning to my old field any time soon. Even if my name were cleared, there's just too much damage done. I'll be lucky if I can get a job working in a bar back home, let alone running a company."


After signing the contract, she sat back, a frown crossing her lips as she looked down at her signature, "...Last chance, Elias. You'll be under contract, too... You sure you wanna be saddled with me?"

 

[Kazanna]

With a light grin Elias tapped his own signature into place, and tucked the contract under his arm. He motioned towards the door he'd opened.


"I'm sure Gemma. It's been a while since I've done anything fun. Now we can get to the good part!" He said, pushing the door open.


The door led to nowhere, there was simply nothing on the other side of it. Elias pressed his palm against the doors interior, and spoke to it clearly.


"House of Wind, Interior Closet. Floor Five, Room Seven, Direct Access, Calonian Wardrobe, Secondary access point." he said to the wall.


It rippled slightly, and a cold, eerie energy issued forth from it. Elias grinned, and motioned to Gemma, "See, Fun part." beyond the door was a well lit room, a closet more or less, a huge, walk in closet, with thousands of outfits for varying occasions, from varying cultures, each of them in a hermetically sealed bag with technological monitors on each one.


Elias stepped into the closet without any hesitation, and breathed in deeply, before letting it out again, he murmured, "The air here... is always so much purer... Come on in. It's fine, Just... Don't touch the familiars, Some of them bite."


(OOC: And now things go into a totally different dimension Elle. I'm exposing you to my primary characters universe. Magic gets involved, lots of it, and things from every bit of lore I could dig up. Welcome to The Lands of Eternal Twilight))


Moving about like he was at home, Elias tugged the shirt on his shoulders off and muttered, "Lets... see... I'm going to need... stately junk... Probably something... Lobbyish... Or maybe..." He pulled one of the outfits off a hangar, and muttered, "Yeah, this'll work..."


He walked further along, into the closet, and opened another door. This door opened into a bedroom, one that was, for the most part, unused, there were trophies of conquests, dismantled firearms, an entire nanite stasis chamber containing a sample of Elias' nanites that were replicating and devouring each other rampantly. The bed was untouched, a four poster bed with clean black sheets, and a comforter of similar material, all of it softer then any cotton known to man, smooth as silk, but as durable as steel. Elias threw his selected outfit down on the bed, and went to the wall, tapping it gingerly, he spoke calmly to nothingness, "Auntie, It's Elias, If your around, I've a request for you. Come meet me in my room as soon as you can." Elias pulled a chair out from the desk that was covered in scattered firearm parts, muttering, "Lets... see..." The firearm was an ancient weapon, a custom designed hand held rifle that seemed to take exceptionally large shells, but require a single hand to wield, to anyone, it would appear a relic, to anyone who actually knew what it was, it would be a laughable weapon, known to cause utter destruction and havoc upon use. It gleamed and shimmered as runes upon it danced, it would be the most attractive thing in the room, and Elias simply pushed it out of his way so he could display the contract on his desk carefully.


If Gemma stepped through the closet, and entered the room, the moment she stepped foot inside it, a tall woman with violet hair, eyes to match, and a fairy like appearance would be standing in front of her, staring her in the eyes. She would stare at her, and say, "Gemma Livingtree, Well this is quite the risk you take Reaper..." Her gaze would be hypnotic, more so then the alluring firearm. "I do hope she's worth it."


The most striking thing about the woman wouldn't be the hue of her eyes, or her hair, It would be the horns curling forth from her forehead, the demonic looking horns were accompanied by a pair of leathery wings, and a serpentine tail that swayed back and forth slowly.

 

[Elle Joyner]

"Don't touch the..."


Gemma rose from her seat to follow Elias, but froze at those last words, a brow quirked. She was thoroughly lost. Then she stepped in after him and lost didn't begin to cover the sensation she experienced. She'd seen a lot in her time, but nothing... not even Nanite technology could explain what had formed before her eyes. It wasn't possible... not because the technology was too difficult to achieve, but because technology like that, as far as she knew, and she knew quite a lot, didn't exist.


Mouth agape, she stared at the scene around her, her head shaking slowly back and forth, "...This isn't... How are you..."


Then the woman appeared and all sense of reason went right out into space. Gemma had seen her share of alien things, coming through the city back home, or in and out of the factory back on the desert planet, but the woman who seemed to creep into existence out of nowhere... that was entirely new, and that was before Gemma had even gotten a good look at her. She was stunning, beautiful in a way she should not have been, but also dangerous... Like a room marked 'Do Not Enter', there was some forbidden about the woman, but easily, that was also what made her so enticing. Only Gemma's knees were not shaking out of curiosity or entrancement... but unparalleled fear.


Stepping back, trying not to tumble over her own feet, Gemma met the woman's gaze with her own wide, startled one, stunned... frightened, even, "Elias!" She called, before the woman spoke her name, sending a chill down Gemma's spine. How was it everyone in the galaxy knew who she was...? She couldn't possibly account for -that- much infamy.


"...What is going on, here!?"

 

[Kazanna]

With a sigh, Elias turned from what he was doing, he glanced at the situation and shook his head, covering his face with the palm of his hand gently. He'd seen the other woman's methods, how she treated people, he was used to it, but he'd forgotten how she was with new people, how she inspected them, treated them with a curiosity that bordered on animalistic.


The woman glanced at Elias, and tilted her head towards Gemma, "Introduce me to your new friend Nephew, Before she says something stupid." Her voice was as sharp as a razor blade, but as soothing as a mellow symphony. There was unheard of aggression behind her tone, but a passionate tenderness that would seduce any man or woman.


Elias stepped over and nodded, "Right... Gemma Livingtree, This is her Ladyship Carlith Illidya, the current operations manager of Wind Flame Industries and it's umbrella companies, My aunt, and my masters Prime Familiar. Before you ask, Yes, She's a demon, No, She's not inherently evil, She might eat you, but that's her call." He said carefully, gauging his words as he spoke.


Carlith smiled at Gemma, now that they had been introduced, she bowed regally, she was clothed simply enough, a tight fitting corset, that flowed out into a long skirt with a split that rode up to her hip. She had several resplendent baubles, earrings and a necklace that held the house emblem, a wolf howling at a crescent moon. She had long painted nails and looked as though she took all the time in the world to work on her hair, which, was braided in several places running from the crown of her head all the way back down to her hips. It looped and coiled and almost seemed to have a life of it's own.


Elias glanced at Carlith, "Come now auntie, You'll scare her, She's new to this sort of thing, Aliens are one thing, but you know how it is the first time you come to the house, You know the reactions, if you aren't born here, your out of place." Elias said gently.


Carlith glanced at him, and shrugged, "So? I still have to inspect her, I am the current protector until YOUR done fucking around. It was your mothers job, and she left it to you, It's YOUR responsibility so grow up Elias." She said before she turned back to Gemma, She loomed closer to Gemma, invading her space as definitely as one could.


Within Seconds, Carlith had somehow, despite having never moved enough to do so, wrapped her arms around Gemma, in an odd embrace, and was staring at her with her large, violet eyes, muttering, "Oh, She's a pretty one... Miss, Can I use your form some time, It would be such fun..." As she spoke, her body was shifting, within seconds, Gemma would be staring at herself, save for her outfit, "I wonder... though..." She shifted again, suddenly, she looked like Elias, "Perhaps you see this figure as your hero..."


She let go, laughing hysterically, "I'll go modify the dress, I've taken her measurements, Give me a few minutes." She walked out of the room, when she could have vanished, or ported away, she walked, laughing all the way.


Elias sighed, and looked to Gemma, "Sorry about her, She's.. Insane... To say the least..." he said apologetically.

 

[Elle Joyner]

Gemma couldn't tell if Elias was serious or not, but he gave no real indication that he was joking, which was, in and of itself, terrifying. All she could do was stand there, as the woman... the creature... whatever she was, looped herself around Gemma, whose heart began to pound, painfully, against her chest. Certainly, though, Elias wouldn't go to such lengths to save her, just to let his Aunt take her out, minutes into stepping on his ship...?


Swallowing, she tried to fight the fear, roiling through her veins and watched, half in horror, half in awe as the woman's form shifted, twisted, and Gemma was staring face to face with herself - a perfect copy, beyond the wardrobe. Shivering, she fought to relocate her vocabulary, but before she could comment, the woman had shifted again and now it was Elias standing there, holding her in that awkward embrace, and Gemma blushed scarlet. It wasn't that she had any particular reason to be embarrassed... It was him, not really... but she was gifted - every aspect of the shift lending to the sensation that it was, in fact, Elias, standing there... and despite her every attempt not to, she could not help but notice how damnably attractive he was.


But then the woman released her and Gemma breathed out in relief, rubbing her hands over her face, trying desperately to clear the mortifying thoughts from her mind. As Elias spoke, she shook her head, looking over at him, "...I can't even... I have nothing to say... That was..."


Chuckling dryly, weakly, she lowered her eyes, "...Well, then."


Regaining at least some of her composure, Gemma approached Elias, fingers raking through her hair as she took in her surroundings again, "...You're gonna need to explain all of this... really slowly."

 

[Kazanna]

Shrugging slightly, Elias stepped over to her, and offered her his hand, he muttered, "That... is a long story... that requires a far better environment then my room."


His offer of his hand was more of him reaching out gently and taking one of her hands in his own hands warm soft embrace. He glanced up towards the ceiling, and stated flatly, "Study, Two persons, gentle trans shift."


A moment later, the voice of Carlith, the woman from before, stated in a calm, cool tone, "Acknowledged Reaper, Trans Shift activated."


Elias moved closer to Gemma, and muttered, "Stay calm, don't move. It's and Integrated AI, run's the house, and all of their equipment. I had my own... for a while..." He smiled weakly, like all of this was normal to him, but almost embarrassing.


The Trans shift, was more of the house itself moving them in a very stable form of teleportation, it took less then a second and transported them from one room to the other, in this case, the master study in the front of the house, on the main floor. Elias released his grip of Gemma, and stepped away from her, He spoke again a moment later.


"Run Narrator Program, Historical file, Reaper, Subset Elias Grim, confirmation code, The Reaper has Risen." Elias' voice would sound strained as he would issue another command to the houses AI.


The internal systems within the house had an intelli-strip running through the entirety of the house, from one end of it to the other, at floor and ceiling level that allowed it to not only create three dimensional holograms but also record data within the house and display past events from the memories of those within the house's archives.


The hologram that ran was an image of two people, both of them sharing a striking amount of familiarities to Elias, The woman was a brunette with eerily green eyes and a perfect figure, her eyes shimmered with the fiber optic tell tale of first generation nanite clusters, the only difference in hers, were that they gleamed with the light of being far more advanced then the typical nanites, the man, was coated in battle scars, wearing a clean cut suit, he had neat tidy hair and a hard look on his face that resembled a military general or something similar. Elias motioned towards them, "My parents, Fate and Kellian Grim. Mother is the Matriarch of the family. They were the first of my tutors, grand parents and fine instructors until I was ready for my next set. They started me off at a very young age... Training me to be..." He frowned, and shrugged, "More, I suppose. I never did ask."


The pair stepped away, off to the side of the room, a moment later, the queens of Cal Droma stepped forward, Zenika and Tenika Soreno, and their grand Counselors, there were a number of them, "Mother tells me that her master ran a mission with them, This... is Zenika, and Tenika, the mis-matched twin queens of Cal Droma, My aunties by er..." He paused and shrugged, "Because They say so rather then anything, I don't think there are actual blood ties..." he muttered, almost confusing himself.


Calonians in general were an odd race to most when first witnessed. They were like giant Bipedal Cats with nearly humanoid features. They were covered from head to toe in fur, often displaying the markings of various large cats similar to those of Earth's wilds. The Soreno twins were similar to that of a Saber Tooth Cat's markings, beige, nearly blonde with darker fur near their faces, and small white dots around the sides of their faces. Behind them was another with similar features, Elias motioned to her a moment later, she was taller then the twins, over six feet tall.


"She was my actual instructor, but they worked as a unit during the wars, so when the twins became the ruling body, they were brought on as guards and counselors. Her name is Talonia Meeratac, She's a brilliant woman, capable of engineering feats that I'd never dreamed possible until she began teaching me how to look at things. I spent... Ten years of my life with them, learning everything from espionage to infiltration, I learned the basics of combat and a few advanced forms, but nothing really concrete. The others, are Mirk Taloris, A Saber Lynx, Conik Daoris, a basic Lynx, and Telon Vesu, A Shadow Panther, Mirk was a heavy weapons expert, Conik was a master scout, and Telon... he's a telepath with incredible ability. He tried teaching me but... I don't have the gift he does. He taught me instead how to read people, figure out their next move before they plan to make it."


The group stepped away, and joined his parents, they began conversing silently, a woman stepped forward a moment later, she looked like Carlith, but far younger, and much more savage, her eyes were a strange mix between a cats and a lizards but she looked totally human otherwise, the only thing that set her apart was that she had an integrated AI Tiara built into her cranium that was shimmering with an active AI aura the woman was integrated with nanites of a very strange variety.


Elias motioned to her, "She taught me piloting and mech use, her name and other information are confidential, but she was an amazing instructor, brutal... and unforgiving of mistakes, but amazing nonetheless. She's using an AI with Nexus Nanites, the kind that were outlawed during the first war... They were outlawed because they drive users to insanity, She's the only exception." Elias' voice was calm, almost regretful when he gazed at the woman.


She stepped away, distancing herself from the other group. A moment later, Carlith's image stepped forward, she was wearing armor that was a duplicate to that which Elias had worn, a heavy firearm in her left hand, a shimmering Katana in her right. She had a steely look in her eyes as though the hologram itself could murder them. There was a man beside her, which, caused Elias to take a step back.


He paused, and looked away slightly, "You've already met Carlith Illidya, She was my instructor in weapon use, from basic firearms to swords and the like." He motioned to the man and muttered, "End program." The images faded away, all but the man who stood there, a data pad in his hand, the contract that Elias had just made with Gemma.


"Let me introduce you to... well... Your boss... Technically." Elias said motioning to the man, a sigh escaping his lips.


But the man beat him to the punch, he raised a hand, his motion was subtle, but it demanded silence. He had the presence that showed that any disobedience of his orders, or even his whims, would be a bad idea indeed.


He turned to Gemma, and regarded her silently for a long moment. He wore a pair of intelliglass glasses that were coursing with data. He reached up and tugged them off, sliding them into the front pocket of his clean suit.


It was then his features became truly displayed, he was a giant man, nearly seven feet tall, he had the chiseled jaw of a scottish highlander, long hair down to his waist that was held back in a tight braid that started at the base of his skull, his lapel held the Wind Flame Industries logo, it seemed to be part of the black suit he wore. He stared at Gemma for a very long moment indeed, his chiseled from stone features, were complimented well in an eerie way by his dark green eyes that held the mystery of eons.


"As Elias here said." His voice was calm, but radiated power and the wisdom to use it appropriately, "I am your higher up. My name is Aquarius, Though most, know me as Kazanna Lunaris, the CEO and creator of the Wind Flame Industries. It's a pleasure to see you again Miss Livingtree. I am sorry for what has been done to you..." He had a sad look on his face for a moment, "But I'm sure Elias here will have everything sorted out within a few years. He's quite a good shadow agent..." the man said with a gentle smile, his lips pulled back slightly revealing fangs, his canines and the surrounding teeth, were sharp, but his features lacked the aggression that would make him frightening, he seemed calm, and eternally able to see what was ahead.


He looked to Elias, and nodded to him, "You can use the company resources as you need to Elias. But I think your initial instinct was correct, Start with the Soreno twins. They have the case files you will need." His tone was almost fatherly, understanding of a child who had broken something and was forgiven. He turned away from Elias, back to Gemma, and smiled, "Any other questions Miss Livingtree?"


Gemma would have met him a few years prior, when he had forced the merger of her company into his companies umbrella, it had been considered an aggressive takeover, but he had allowed her full independent continuation of research and development with the contractual agreement to share any intellectual findings and advancements with the other companies within the umbrella towards scientific advancements. It would have led her company, and her, to continued wealth, had the fiasco that had torn the corporate world, as well as the political world apart not happened.

 

[Elle Joyner]

She followed along, not because she had an unspeakable desire to further immerse herself in the bizarreness happening around her, but because she was genuinely terrified of being anywhere at that moment, but by Elias's side. In reality, it was functionally stupid of her, trusting him to easily, considering how little she knew him, or about him, but he was the only thing familiar at the moment, and she had to be better off with him than with that horned... thing... in the enormous closet.


As he drew her closer, Gemma didn't argue, but kept her eyes trained tightly to the floor. He was far gentler than she expected him to be. It was uncomfortable, but she couldn't identify entirely why. Still, when he released her a moment later and they were in an entirely different room, she didn't hesitate to fall into step behind him, keeping close as was reasonable.


He spoke, and she listened, watching intently as each hologram appeared, committing the memory the faces, the names and their appearances. It was a habit from her position as CEO, but it never proved inconvenient, even outside of her job. A shudder ran through her at the sight of the woman from the closet and she looked intently at the other man. He looked startlingly familiar, and when Elias introduced him, Gemma realized almost immediately why.


She recalled, distinctly, her thoughts on how powerful he had seemed, during the take over... and she was, for a time, grateful that he was on her side... but there was a gnawing thought in the back of her mind that she couldn't help but wonder over. Why had no one come to her aid when the mess had begun? Why had it taken Elias finding her, dragged down to the lowest rung of the latter, drinking cheap brandy in an even cheaper bar? If they believed she was innocent, simply at Elias's say so...


As she was addressed formally, Gemma shook her head, "No. No questions. Thank you."


It wouldn't do to look a gift horse in the mouth... Besides, she was relatively sure she knew the answer to the question. It wouldn't have surprised her if Elias was, in fact, the only reason anyone believed she hadn't done what she'd done. She was alive, after all...


Settling down into a seat nearest her, Gemma dropped her head into her hands with a long sigh. Exhaustion was creeping in, threatening to pull apart her thought process, altogether. It was too much, all at once, and she could hardly stand, "...Does this ridiculous ship have a bar...? I could really use a drink."

 

[Kazanna]

Kazanna stepped away, and vanished in a flash of dark light. (Oxymoron lol) His voice echoed in a light laugh as he vanished.


Elias shrugged a moment later and sighed, "It just gets crazier the further in we go by the way, it's like a rabbit hole."


When she spoke, he almost responded instantly, but instead he paused and started laughing aloud. He shook his head at her and sighed, realizing his error. She still assumed he was escorting her around his ship. He motioned to the windows that led to a deck and the terrain outside.


It was the twilight hour, the sun was gleaming on the horizon, but it was unmoving, it would remain there, for all of time. The sun was sitting on the horizon of a great ocean that was covered in a light mist. The landmass they were seated upon was vast, to the left of the deck was a massive field of wildflowers and tall grass, beyond that, a huge overgrown forest, and beyond that, was a smoking volcanic mountain.


Elias muttered, "Were not on my ship anymore. Were... Within his home. It's... not quite... real so to speak. But yes, it has a bar, a very well stocked one..." He stepped towards the door of the study, which led to a hall, "Welcome to the lands of eternal twilight Gemma, welcome to where I was raised." He slid the door open, and then crossed the hall, it was relatively narrow, and he slid open another door, that led into a richly furnished dining room. On it's edge, was a bar, which, on the opposite side, revealed an expansive kitchen. The bar was lined with hundreds of bottles of varying size and make, it was sorted in an odd, yet perfectly understandable way. Elias pointed to the end towards one end, "Human drinks." He pointed towards the other end, "Non human drinks." He motioned to the center of the bar, "Glasses." He shrugged, "Help yourself to anything not glowing or misting. Or... I can pour you a drink..."

 

[Elle Joyner]

As Gemma followed his gesture towards the window, her brow rose in surprise at the sight that met her. She hadn't thought to look, but then, why would she? There wasn't much of a view, floating mid-space over a planet... Except that was just it. They weren't over the planet anymore... they weren't mid-space. Rabbit Hole, indeed. And she felt a lot like Alice. The Tesser Reactor could accomplish many things, but she had never before heard of anything quite like what she was experiencing. They were, quite literally, no longer on the ship. It was mind numbing, and exciting, all at the same time.


When Elias made for the door, she pulled her eyes away from the stunning view and started after him, rubbing her forehead, where a headache was beginning to form. It was, by far, the strangest experience she'd endured thus far, and she had a nagging feeling they had only just tapped the surface, "So, if this is the rabbit hole... does that make you the Mad Hatter or Cheshire Cat?"


A small smile formed when she followed him into the dining area, her eyes falling on the bar, "Well stocked. You weren't kidding. Pour away."

 

[Kazanna]

Moving around the edge of the bar, Elias took up a glass, muttering, "Lets... see..." He leaned against the bar from behind it, staring at the wall of liquor, he let his fingertip point towards a bottle, "That one." He pushed himself off the bar and reached up and grasped it. The bottle was coated in a light mist, the ceramic bottle seemed to drift in and out of reality, it shimmered slightly and he muttered, "Fox spirits... Wonder if auntie will mind..." He shrugged and turned around, holding the bottle aloft in front of Gemma, "Fox spirits, it's created by... Fox Spirits... actually they're really interesting creatures. Like Calonians... only Foxes..." He shrugged lightly again, and poured a shot of it out into a glass.


The fluid itself was similar to the bottle, it shimmered in and out of reality, releasing a constant, soft mist. Elias motioned to it carefully, "Just... be ready, it makes you see spirits. Good stuff though. One shot does the job of a lot of the other bottles... Safer too... unless..." He reads the back of the bottle. He'd pour a shot for himself with a shrug a moment later.


"It does run the risk of killing it's drinker occasionally." He said with a light smile. Everything he said, he said as though it was every day conversation.

 

[Elle Joyner]

Gemma leaned up against the bar counter, shaking her head. Listening to him was a little like going insane... the words coming from his mouth should have been relatively easy to understand, but she still couldn't grasp anything he was saying. The lack of comprehension, mingled with everything else that had happened that night gave her a heady, dizzy feeling and initially she considered turning the drink down. But as far as she was concerned, she had been through enough... and she needed to find a space somewhere in her mind that wasn't overwhelmed, either by the heated action from earlier, or the dream world Elias had dragged her into.


"...Seeing spirits. Can't get any weirder than that woman in your closet, I guess. And if it does get weirder, don't tell me. I don't think I could take it."


Eying the liquid in the shot glass she looked up at him with something of a wry smirk. He was turning out to be nothing like what she had pictured, when he had first revealed himself in the bar. It was surprising, and a little refreshing, but all at the same time, disconcerting. She'd always been able to read people, but he was a mystery. A mystery, wrapped up in an enigma... covered in a puzzle.


Taking the glass, she held it up to the light before giving him a shrug, "...What doesn't kill you..."


And with the heft of an experienced drinker, she threw the shot back.

 

[Kazanna]

Elias took his own shot, held it up, and declared, "Makes you weirder and more fucked up then before!" He put his free hand in a balled fist on his hip and slammed the shot back, then slammed the shot glass down on the bartop.


He breathed out and the mist issued forth from his lips, he muttered, "Ah... the house is shielded... but occasionally..." He motioned to the dining room window, "You'll see strange things..." he shrugged slightly. There were indeed strange things outside, dragons floated around lazily in the evening looking air, there was a coalition of fairy folk harassing a band of wary spirit crows. Elias stepped out from behind the bar, muttering, "How strange... all of this must be... I mean... when I was a kid... it was one big adventure after another. I was as strong as a fully grown man then, and I was like... an ant, I could carry my mother around by the time I was five. Nanites do that..."


His gaze was on the lands outside, he murmured, "But enough of that... there is business we need to attened to. I need to teach you how to address a Calonian Queen and not get murdered..." He turned around, and gazed at Gemma quietly.


To her, the fox spirits would be a disjointing experience, for first timers, especially in this house, it was sometimes terrifying. The house had hundreds of familiar spirits that managed its affairs daily. Spirits that cooked, cleaned, and managed everything from meals to basic laundry, scrubbing of the baths to cleaning of the laboratories delicate instruments.


Elias had grown up with these creatures constantly around, so he was used to them. Gemma would be seeing creatures of all makes and sizes types and forms. Anything from tiny frogs, and lizards, to large drifting ghost like spirits and demonic looking spirits that scrub down the walls.

 

[Elle Joyner]

He hadn't been exaggerating when he'd described the drink earlier. It was a little like downing an entire bottle in one go... complete with the headache... though that might not have been the spirits talking, so much as everything else she had endured that day. Setting her glass down, she pinched her forehead, leaning forward on the bar with a soft whistle.


"That stuff... is killer. Wow." Breathing out, she looked up at him, shaking her head, "Not so fast, you..."


She pointed at him, straightening up just slightly, "You haven't explained half of what's going on, here... And while I appreciate the help, it's not gonna mean much if I walk into a closet and get eaten by your second cousin, twice removed. I'm not gonna pretend like this isn't totally freaking me out, but I think, thus far, I have done a damn good job of maintaining my composure, all things considering."


She swayed a little, as she pushed off from the bar, jabbing her finger into the air, pointedly, "But you keep talking like all of this should make sense, and frankly, it doesn't. Where are we? How did we get here? What in the hell is that thing, dusting the sconces there? And why are you spinning...?"


Holding her head again, she collapsed against the bar, frowning, "...Ooh... I think I hate you."

 

[Kazanna]

Elias smiled lightly, nearly laughing. His nanites did a fine job of keeping him sober, but fox spirits abused your entire body, liver and soul in fact. So he was a bit tipsy from the intoxicating effects. With a motion towards the spirit dusting, he said calmly, "He's a cleansing oni. a spirit that keeps the house clean. One of many. Don't mind him."


Elias stepped over to the bar and nodded as she said she thought she hated him, "Yeah... that's... the general effect I have on people..." He said with a light laugh and a shake of his head.


Choosing his next set of words carefully, he took a small shot glass, a jar of martini olives, a small glass, and a large pitcher. He pulled out an olive, "This is us." He pulled out another one. "This is the ship." He set the two down on the bar top, about a foot apart. He placed the shot glass over the olive he'd marked as them, followed by the small glass, so it covered the shot glass, finally, he took the pitcher and put it over the glass as well, leaving the olive marked as the ship outside. "The shot glass is the island, the realm it exists within. The tumbler glass is a pocket dimension, like a tiny fold in space. The pitcher, that's the reality you know and call home." He picked up the olive representing the ship. "Right now, there's a teeny tiny little void reactor inside my ship that's linked to the house. It's hidden behind that panel I opened. It requires a registered nano-mesh to use." He looked to her, and shrugged, "Basically, were inside your bosses head, who's actually in a very advanced form of cryogenic sleep while a clone of his is used as an avatar to do his work."


With a light smile, he leaned over the bar, and pulled down another bottle, this one was warm to the touch, "Dragon Oil. Makes you breath fire, Wanna try it?" He turns, asking her as he begins shaking the volatile bottle near her face.

 

[Elle Joyner]

"Don't mind him... Right..." It was a little like going insane, this house. She was certainly none of the things she had witnessed yet were in any way natural, yet Elias spoke about them as if they were perfectly ordinary. A part of every day life.


When he continued, she watched his display with a fixed interest, but try as she might, Gemma's attention span was slipping, her mind spinning. There were glasses and olives and something about a pitcher, but in reality, it was only the last few words that seemed to mean anything, and then, they were just intensely confusing, "...So, I'm an olive... inside... my bosses head. Wow. That's a story for my therapist, if ever I had one."


Rubbing her temples, she looked over at him as he plucked up the second bottle, and she pointed a finger at him with a smirk, "Oh no you don't."


Reaching out, she looped her fingers around his hand, holding the neck of the bottle and lowered it back down to the bar top, straightening up to her full height, laughable, considering how much taller he was than her. She came to his shoulders, but with a push up onto her tiptoes, managed to meet his chin, her eyes focused on his, that pointing finger hovering just in front of his nose, "I distinctly remember you telling me not to drink anything misty... and I didn't listen, and now look at me. I am definitely not drinking anything with the word fire involved... Your eyes are blue. How did I not know that?"


A second later, her toes gave out and she fell forward, toppling into him with a small yelp, "Ah! Yeah...Never drinking again. Swearing it off, right now."

 

[Kazanna]

It was more his general strength and his reactions that caused his next motion, he stepped through the bar, and caught her, rather then over, or around, he went through it, breaking it into two clean halves. He released a sigh, and grinned, then let out a snort and a laugh, shaking his head he helped her stay standing.


"The Fox Spirits will be leaving you soon, just relax. It shouldn't be more then a minute or two more." He said gently into her ear as he supported her.


With careful movements, and the experience from having escorted someone drunk before, Elias gently moved Gemma to one of the dining room tables chairs. The chairs were hard wood, but oddly soft enough one could fall asleep in, though, they had the feeling of that not being possible. They were generally good for this type of thing, a moderate back, armed chairs with stable footing and no wobble to them. Elias looked Gemma over sighed lightly.


"I suppose in the current situation Sobriety might have been a better choice... Let's get you something to eat." He said with an amused tone.


Elias glanced up again, and spoke gently, "Can you get me her entire case file, and expand it on the table. I'll do the cooking end if you can do that."


The houses AI went to work rapidly, a dark, flat disc appeared above the table, covering it's width, the entire case file, from evidence concerning the assassination itself, to Gemma's personal history and track record, accomplishments, and the personal effects that were recovered from her office the day it was raided, gently dropped onto the table in a great pile. Elias glanced at it all and shrugged.


"That's just some of it, they raided your house too, but your wardrobe wasn't considered to be a threat to galactic security..." he said with bitter sarcasm.