Infinities Edge

[Kazanna]

Elias' hand was on Gemma's shoulder within a moment of her finishing the words. He had a smile on his face, gentle, calm, almost serene. His eyes held wisdom beyond his years, he leaned down slightly, tall as he was, he put himself to her eye level.


"There are many uncertainties ahead of us Gemma Livingtree. But there is one thing I know, and that is that you have come far too far to quit now. You can do this. You will clear your name, and you will witness the fall of those who have wronged you." Elias said calmly.


He brought the fingertips of his free hand to the side of his face, and spoke calmly, sending a relay out with his nanite network, "This is Elias Grim, Iden number is being sent via internal system registry. I am addressing the consulate on Valoria. I have Gemma Livingtree in custody and I am further extending her bounties warrant via the Deaths Fist Proclamation. I require an expanded investigation into her case. I have concrete evidence in the shape form of unfiltered nanite memory files that are being transmitted to you now. I was able to interrogate a man involved in the conspiracy, and we are in the process of identifying the true mastermind behind the entire case."


Elias was quiet a moment, data was streaming across his eyes in tiny shimmering lights that showed that he was transmitting and receiving data. Gemma would recognize it instantly.


Elias heard in his mind "Standby for Warden Transfer." A moment later, a pair of Valorian Wardens, the best equipped, and most efficient lawmen in the known universe appeared in a flash of light. A male and a female, each towering above them at seven feet tall. They looked every inch as frightening as they should have to all parties concerned. Elias raised a brow, as he looked at the two of them.


"Really..? They sent you two to help out? Someone must have taken what I said very personally." Elias said at a barely audible tone.


The Valorians were tall humanoids, they looked almost plant-like in their appearance, and were symbiotic with the plants of their home world. The males were generally ranging between the hues of a pale, human-like skin tone, to a deep red, with a pair of horns that swept back from their foreheads in a smooth flow from their noses back. They were herbivores, but had fangs in place of molars, and they were all very tall. Their bodies were almost always very strong and looked like steel corded muscle. Each Valorian male was capable of feats of strength that made their entire race feared. Their religious beliefs were species wide, and led them to believe that Justice itself was the path to a prosperous life and afterlife.


The Females were similar to the males in most aspects, but bore a more graceful figure with a naturally occurring telepathy that made them excellent law enforcement specialists. They were powerful telepaths capable of warfare on not only a mental level, but also a physical level through kinetic manipulation. They were more akin to spell casters but it was something that had been proven by science to simply be a physiological trait they bore. They were slender, toned, and had a green to blue tone that allowed them to blend into their planets environment during the early days of their evolution. The Valorian race had evolved on a horrible planet filled with ever evolving creatures that stole the traits of their most recently consumed victim. The Valorians themselves were rumored to be able to replicate this, but no evidence had been found to support such claims.


The two Valorians looked at Elias with an air of disdain. the female addressed him coldly, "Hello Reaper. What kind of mess have you gotten us into this time." Her voice was like a flowing song, almost hypnotic, but bearing all the animosity that she felt towards Elias.


Angel reacted before Elias could even respond. She stepped past him, in between the two Valorians and slapped the female across the face firmly enough to leave a visible cut where her armor bit into the females soft skin. Angel growled at her, "That's for using the song in your greeting." She slapped the woman again, "That's for greeting him first." She slapped the female a third time, "And that's for leaving me to die on Talo Kir." The female looked at Angel with shock, and her male counterpart snorted out a light laugh.


He extended a hand to Angel, "Good to see your still drawing breath Harbinger Solo Lunaris, How's that mech of yours? Still top of the line I expect."


Angel, or as she had now been revealed to have another name, looked at him, responded with a more ambitious sounding voice as she shook his hand firmly,"Better off then yours Malorik, But then again, The Halo is kind of the template for every other mech in creation."


The male, identified as Malorik nodded and then glanced to his partner who was looking ashamed. "I apologies for Meerie's behavior, she's still just as Arrogant as ever, but she'll grow out of it as al young ones must." He glanced to Gemma, and then to Elias, "I see your protégé is as... Ambitious and skeptical as you are Solo. This will be interesting."

 

[Elle Joyner]

As Elias hand fell to her shoulder, Gemma looked up at him, both encouraged by his words and terrified by them. Reaching up, she covered his hand with her own, shaking her head, "...It's not me I'm worried about."


It was no matter, though. They had no choice. He was right. They had both come too far now, not to see things through. It was the only way they could finish this and get on with their lives, either of them... Regardless of what happened in that red room, there was too much risk in giving up. No matter what happened, the enemy would not stop, and without evidence, she was as good as dead anyway, Elias as well...


As Elias moved on, she hesitantly released his hand, allowing him to work on the transmission as she did all that she could to focus on what they were about to do. The trouble, of course, being that she had clue at all what that was. When the new pair arrived, Gemma gave a small, startled jump at the sight of them, moving consciously closer to Elias, as she had done when Aquarius had first shown up.


They were enormous and frightening, and like everything else she had seen thus far, like nothing she had ever encountered before. Still, she was not as surprised by Angel's reaction as she had anticipated. It was a strange feeling, growing accustomed to the behaviors of these people... strange and unnerving.


Looking to Elias, Gemma frowned, softly, "What's next?"

 

[Kazanna]

Elias glanced at the two Valorians and shrugged slightly, turning his attention back to Gemma. He motioned for her to follow, "Now we take my ship into the warehouses manual entryway. It's not a fun voyage. But theres a good reason for that." His armor had been in the form of a full cloak, one that was almost obscurbing his body until right then. He motioned to Angel, who had since been revealed to be named Solo, as his armor slid back into place over his face, the skull visage shimmered and he spoke, his voice becoming disheartening and cold, mechanical, "Take the Halo through first, go through with the Valorians, I'll meet you at the Threshold, I'll go retrieve our mothers and the Delphi unit's I'm going to need. I'll take the Twins with me. Good thing they sent warehouse cleared agents." His armor pulsed with readings that shimmered across him, his nanites were going wild with his constant orders, he was preparing, assembling every nanite he had. From one end of the universe to the other, Elias Grim was soaking up his entire collection. They were making their way to points where they could make the jump to his ships transporter.


Elias strode down the hallway and back into the primary flight deck his ship was in. The twins, Zenika and Tenika followed after him, explaining things to the Valorians in their native tongue, They were both fluent in the sophisticated language, as they were empresses, it behooved them greatly to be able to speak to other cultures easily. Angel followed his orders and they split at the entry to the ship yards. The Valorians followed after Angel, but not before both of them gave Gemma a look of uncertainty. The twins ushered Gemma along.


"This is the part where we all just do as were told. I know that look, It's the War Face. Master Aquarius has it too... It's the frightening look of a man who could bend the universe to his will.. and would do it for little more then the challenge." Zenika said quietly, "When we first met Aquarius... He took an entire Zrocron command carrier singlehandedly, a month later, when the first war started, he and Angel destroyed the Trinian Fleet without losing a single asset. A month after that, he butchered the Consort to the Prime of Trinia. Elias is exactly the same as him, the only difference... Elias calculates every move he makes... Because he's mortal, he could die, and he knows it... Aquarius goes in head first with a blade in each hand." Tenika chimed in a moment later, "If I had to put money on which of them would win in a fight it'd be our Elias. Hands down. He's never lost to anyone, He's never lost an asset. Not even once. Every drop of blood he's spilled has been calculated since the day he was born."


Elias glanced back at them, "Helps when you have an entire nerve matrix full of second generation nanites that are infused with individual AI carrier cores with a hub mentality." His armor had shimmered, it's eyes had glowed to show he was looking at them as he strode towards his ship.


The craft's belly opened and he stepped up into it again, Zenika and Tenika followed after him as he began making his preparations for the his next tesser jump. He'd wait for Gemma to get in before he'd go any further. He'd glance to her, and say calmly, "We have one stop, then were off to war. A war against the Templars, the puritan bastards who would put you on a cross and burn you alive to prove a point. That the collective races cannot live in peace. That humans must be the rulers of the galaxy. You'll want to hang on though, this jumps a bit rough. Were going to make several jumps, very rapidly, I need to relay a bunch of data across a whole mess of worlds, in a very short period of time. A tesser chain will do the trick, but it's going to make you feel like your insides are being pulled out through your nose. It's meant to be used as a weapon. Today, I'm using it to unite the collective races against the Templars." He'd taken manual control of his ship's physical controls, which, to anyone who had seen him use his nanites, would read that what he was doing was very complicated, and that his nanites were running thousands of other operations at that moment.


He let his armor fade off his face once more, before he smiled at her, "Ready for the fun?"

 

[Elle Joyner]

Gemma followed after the group, careful to pay attention as the twin empresses addressed her. It wasn't surprising, really, to hear that Elias and Aquarius were so similar. What surprised her was the confidence that despite his impressive existence... despite the fact that Aquarius seemed capable of accomplishing just about anything and everything in the universe, no matter how ridiculous or even impossible they might be, they still put their confidence in Elias.


It was reassuring, to put it mildly, but it was also a little overwhelming. She had seen a lot of what he could do, but had a feeling she hadn't nearly tapped the surface. His Nanites were practically a mystery to her, and it was her area of expertise. She could understand then, why he was so intimidating to those would didn't understand their complexity... But Nanites aside, he was fearsome... A force to be reckoned with, worthy of the infamy that followed his name throughout the galaxy.


Pausing at the mouth of the ship, she turned to Elias as he offered her a brief overview of what was about to happen. She wasn't looking forward to it, not for any reason, but there was no point in voicing her concerns. It was what it was and complaining would do nothing of use.


Smiling dryly, she shook her head, "Ready as I'll ever be."

 

[Kazanna]

Elias hit the controls, and the ship took off smoothly, he brought them above the atmosphere in a matter of moments and then the ship did the thing it was designed to do, it tore a hole in reality, drifted part way through that hole, tore another, and repeated the process until it was floating above the core worlds of every sentient race in the universe. Elias' hud came up with an option, it was flashing across the ships entire internal interfaces. A voice began echoing out.


"Tesser Engine running at 70% capability. Cortium Centrino Reactor Online, Running Neo-Phasic Pulse protocols. Preparing for Galactic chrono-reset. Engines running at maximum output. Beginning Infinities Edge Protocol."


Elias Glanced back into the cabin, and smiled halfheartedly, "Time to dance on a razorblade." He pushed the ships thrusters forward, and the ship continued it's work until the Tesser engines were running at 90% capability. The Cortium reactor began pulsing at the back of the ship. The twins both had strapped in, and closed their eyes. They were visibly shaken as Elias' hand pushed the controls forward and the dangerous combat vessel began to accelerate through the collective rifts it had just carved through all of space and time. He had connected the known universe at a single point. His ship was holding the entirety of reality in the grasp of it's Tesser Engine.


Elias activated a microphone and camera that played onto him. "Transmit message to the Alliance Fleet, Addative list, Collective Races, Addative list, bounty hunters, Addative list, Guilds, Addative List, Trinian Republican Armies, Addative list, Chellek Empire. Begin transmission."


Elias stared at the screen as the collective militaries commanders came online on his screen, playing across in a mass of faces of nearly outraged commanders. "This is Elias Grim, The Wind Flame Reaper. Son of Fate Grim, Former High Admiral of the United Fleets and current Admiral Advisor to Kellian Grim, My father. I am the disciple of the Lunaris Clan. I call on all of those who owe me, or the Lunaris Clan any kind of loyalty. I call on the Trinnians, and the Chelleks to take revenge for the dishonor they have experienced at the propaganda war that has raged across our cultures for the past two years. I call on all of you for assistance now in the form of the destruction of those who tried to push our cultures to war with one another. I am broadcasting this message in a simulcast through the use of a Tesser Reactor running the Infinities Edge Protocol. For those of you that don't know what the Infinities Edge is, it's the creation of a black hole that interconnects through the entire universe. I've opened the door, it's stable. All you need to do is send me fifty of your best soldiers with a single commander. I will do the rest. Send me your barbarians, your cutthroats, your murderers, the worst of your worst, the best of your best, I want your monsters and your heroes, I call in this favor, because you all know you owe us. You owe us a billion times over. Your common enemy, The Templars, need to be knocked off of their pedestal, That's what I plan to do. Unite with me now, and we'll bring about a lasting peace. I'm transmitting the collective coordinates for each of the tesser holes, you will exit at the edge of the known universe in a location where we have all fought before, where neutrality is known best. Reaper Out."


He closed the channel, and opened a final tesser hole in the center of the long chain of tesser holes he'd opened already, and the ship shot through it. The entire experience would feel like he had described, like one's body was trying to expel it's internal organs and fluids through ones nose. The constant blur of the universe itself sliding past the ships exterior would cause even further disorientation.


They exited on the edges of known space, at the location of the last war, the grounds of the Thousand Day War. Elias let out a breath and relaxed in the pilots chair. He brought the ship down and landed it carefully, muttering, "Here's where we'll bring the Templars... Were five hours early though... I put the holes for every one of the tesser holes five hours away with the fastest ships. Even Chellek designs."


The ship was still running it's protocol, The Infinites Edge protocol was still pulsing rapidly. Elias patted the ships hull and muttered, "Hang in there... Just a while longer..." He stood, and stepped away from the seat, making his way to the back wall panel, "Time to plan a war ladies. To the armory." He moved to the wall panel and it opened, he spoke to it, "House of Wind, The Armory, War Room." The doorway opened, and he stepped through, his attitude was stable, calm, as though this was what he was meant to do.


The Armory


The Armory was the collection of Aquarius, Carlith, and all of their protégé and allies, the place where they brought the greatest weapons of creation, and the most terrible, and locked them away for later use, some of them were able to be accessed at different points in time, others were locked away under seals and locks that would never open. Tools, and equipment that had brought about the end of the world a thousand times over was sealed away here. It was a warmongers paradise. But Elias had interest in very little of it. He tapped the controls, this was one of the few places he knew he had to use manual controls or voice controls. He turned on the main system and the entire Armory came to life, the houses AI came online, and stretched, yawning, "Battle Sphere Online, What is your user name and passwords?" She asked rubbing her eyes, as though she was a living, breathing person who had just woken from a nap.


Elias smiled and said firmly, "User, Elias Grim, User Password, The Reapers Protégé has taken up the mantle..." He said quietly.


A moment later the Armory shimmered to life and it's internal systems altered the AI that was displayed, no longer was she tired, her form was like that of Carlith's her hair swept back, a full military combat uniform in place, She nodded to Elias and stated, "I have been expecting this moment Reaper. I regret to inform you however, that the protocols I was previously under are... not aligned, this event was supposed to occur five years from now. You have somehow broken the time-line, and therefore, my predictions are down to a 75% accuracy level. I will scan for further data, but... until I am able to amalgamate the rest of the data, any information derived from my records from this point forward should be viewed as suspect to inaccuracy."


Elias nodded, "Understood, Activate Delphi Protocol twenty seven, give me fifty units, integrate them into my collected bio-mass, it should be in the ships core room."


The AI core nodded slowly, before it sent the orders out.

 

[Elle Joyner]

Gemma felt a little useless, watching as Elias worked. She was surprised to see the twins so disconcerted, but she was well aware that however powerful and dangerous they might have seemed, looks could be deceiving... they were still vulnerable, as much as she was, and their fear was understandable, considering the uncertainty of the mission at hand.


The only one who didn't seem terrified out of their skin was Elias, which was neither shocking, nor assuring... She imagined these types of situations were the ones he thrived at... the kind that had the least likelihood of everyone involved walking away. Then again, his confidence wasn't entirely unappreciated. At least one of them would be able to go into this with a shred of confidence.


When at last Elias informed them of his plan, Gemma was still trying to recover from the disorienting, nauseating sensation of feeling as though her body had been attempting, on it's own, to turn inside out. She looked up when he mentioned the armory and on slightly shaky legs, rose to her feet, slowly following after him.

 

[Kazanna]

Elias glanced to Gemma, whistling slightly, "Most humans cant stand for an hour after that trip Gemma, Looks like this whole trip has made you stronger then you thought." He grinned as he spoke to her. "Your going to want a calibrated setup of the Delphi Armor Platform for this run... It requires a full biometric Sync, You've been using one of my adapted cores. Which doesn't allow for the full barrier that your going to need. Lets see... the twins will as well..." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Three layers ought to be enough for Standard Barrier. Run Delphi Program Two, Three independent clauses of them with three layers each."


The AI nodded at him again and shimmered slightly as it went to work. Within moments, three biometric measuring stations appeared in the war room, to the side, Elias spoke again a moment later.


"Calibrate One for human, female, Look up file Gemma Livingtree, Expedite, set up the other two for Calonians, Tenika and Zenika Soreno, Run full bio-metrics." He ordered the AI.


"Error in your order string Elias, Delphi Program Two cannot be run a second time for living beings that are already within the Delphi Bio-Metric Sync. The Soreno Sisters are within my data files, They have Delphi Unit's of their own in cold storage tanks number seventy-seven and seventy-eight. Redundancy systems dictate that further bio-syncing is unneeded and will only corrupt the Delphi's sync data." The AI core looked at him as though he was an idiot for not knowing the information it gave him. "Honestly Elias, Your underestimating them, They're both proven warriors and have fought in many campaigns. They did not rise to the throne with a silver spoon in their mouths, You ought to ask them about their sealed past files."


Elias' brow was raised at the information that the core sent to him, He was genuinely surprised. "Learn something new every day..." he muttered.


The AI core lowered two of the bio-metric scanners and synced the other one to Gemma's living profile. "Bio-metrics sync scanner is prepared to receive Gemma Livingtree. Standby Mode activated. Please enter when ready. Remove any garments you seek to retain."


Elias frowned again, muttering, "Since when do you have to strip for it..."


The AI glared at him, "When one has no Nano-Mesh, one must conform to the old methods of technology. Gemma Livingtree is a pure human with no Nano-mesh or Bio-Rhythmic enhancements. Your data files should contain this information."


Elias scowled at the AI and muttered, "Run Privacy filters, full containment, give the lady some of her decency, fit her with shadow-cloth afterwards, It'll be a nuisance to have her equip a bio-synced Delphi Armor core without a Shadow-Cloth overlay. Yes, yes I know Password for the shadow cloth is The silken spiders are extinct, may their silky threads never shrink." He said shaking his head with an irritated look on his face.


He glanced to Gemma, "You can dress down in the chamber there, We need to get your readings to equip you with a Delphi Suit. The system is intelligent but it needs to have your complete readings." He stepped over to her and reached out, tapping her on the shoulder. The Delphi core he had given her earlier folded away and a moment later, tugged itself away from her skin, forming a cube, shimmering in the air before her before it reapplied itself to his own armor, sinking into his body like a water droplet sinking into a lake.


Elias smiled weakly, "Sorry for all the embarrassing moments... you get used to it with this lifestyle... I stopped thinking about it so long ago the first time we addressed it I actually had to remember to turn away... I apologize for that Gemma... This all must be very hard on you." His expression and his stance towards her showed that he was genuinely apologetic, even if the steps he had put her through so far were necessary ones.


Elias had never been good at interpersonal skills, never had a good way of addressing people, He'd always just let his actions speak for him, even though he'd been trained to speak very well and to address entire military command structures he was still very bad at talking to people one on one. At his age, he was always worried that he'd never have any real interpersonal relationships outside of his clan that would amount to much more then business.

 

[Elle Joyner]

As she listened, Gemma frowned, her glance splitting evenly between the AI and Elias. She understood the need for protection, and she wasn't necessarily opposed to the idea of having one of her own, but she had gone so long in her own skin... No augments, no Nano-mesh. She was uncomfortable with the idea of being anything more than, in her humble opinion, she was born to be.


But she supposed giving in to the system was better than being dead. It was ironic, really, given what she did for a living... her opposition to change, but ultimately the objective ahead of them would be difficult enough with Delphi Platforms... Without them, she wouldn't last long enough to care whether or not she was still the person she desired to be in the end...


Biting her lip, she looked to Elias before smiling a little dryly, "Something tells me I'm gonna have to get used to it, if I'm gonna be sticking around your lot for a while. But thank you, for the courtesy. Could... Could you walk me through this? I don't exactly know what I'm doing, and I don't want to make the wrong choices and wind up with a tail or anything..."

 

[Kazanna]

Elias nodded slowly, and motioned to the chamber, "Honestly, you select the last option on the list, then select the last option on the drop down. At that point, it'll spool up the appropriate Meshes for the Delphi overlay. It's reversible, and it's not even a nano-mesh, so you'll come out still untouched as it were. The Delphi is capable of full immersion integration like mine is set up. But you can still use it to 20% of its capabilities without a mesh. Which... might not sound like a lot, but at the 100% I can use it at, you can use five cores and develop a weapon capable of splitting open a planet's crust. It takes a bit, but..." He shrugs, "Sometimes a show of force really proves a point."


Elias glanced to the AI's mainframe, "The Delphi is integrated with micro-clone AI cores of her. It took the better part of fifty years to develop the Delphi armor into a replicatable state. Aquarius is the only person that is wearing an original version these days, or rather, he's the only person that uses the original platform."


The AI suddenly chimed in, "Incorrect. There are five other Delphi Unit's available for use that are of Original Strain. Of the Ten that were originally found, Aquarius is using one of them, Carlith has one in her personal armory, another was gifted to ///ERROR Data Not Found/// a fourth was gifted to ///ERROR Data Not Found/// and the fifth was dismantled for study. Numbers six through ten are still unmarked and still available for active use via assignment from Data Records."


Elias paused, and frowned, muttering, "Wait.. but... didn't Aquarius set the other five up as modifications..?"


The AI responded, "No. They are in their original state, in a stasis block in the level we are standing in. They are able to be activated with a bio-rythmic sync and are capable of ten fold Delphi Platform capabilities without a nano-mesh."


Elias' jaw dropped, he'd heard of power, but ten fold without a nano-mesh was madness. "Man... I'd kill for one of those..."


The AI Spoke, "Acknowledged, Delphi Origin Strain Unit Number Six activated to the code of Elias Grim. Please disengage currently active Delphi Platform to accept new Armor."


Elias was suddenly in shock, "Seriously?"


The AI nodded at him, like he was an idiot, "Yes, Stupid, Your maximum clearance beside the timeline generator. You can access and use anything in the lab or the armory, well within reason. Can't go giving you the Mythical Weapons... You might lose them."


A raw Delphi core, larger then Elias stood tall, was being carried down the hall by several of the mainframes controlled grappling arms. It was being held in a stasis field. "The Delphi armor will bond to it's user upon skin contact. The bonding is permanent and once made, the Delphi Armor will only respond to your commands. It is capable of Nanite Integration, but we have yet to test it on someone with second generation nanites. Be warned Elias. If you accept this weapon, there is no telling what it will do to you, or what you will do it."


Elias shrugged, and looked to Gemma, "You might want to suit up first. Last option on the first list, then the last option on the second list." He had an excited look on his face. To Gemma, it probably looked horrifying as his Delphi Cores dismantled themselves from him and assembled in a pile of cubes on the floor, all he had left on was a skin tight suit that showed off his muscles tightly.

 

[Elle Joyner]

"Last option on the first list... then last on the second..." Nodding, Gemma commited those instructions to memory. It wouldn't be too terribly difficult, she hoped. Just a quick in and out and then she would be done. And the way Elias had put it, she wouldn't need to worry about anything being permanent... It was really the least of her worries, in the long run.


Looking back at Elias, she blinked, her eyes absently roving over his form... just a moment, only a moment, but it was enough to make her blush. Turning her eyes away, she chuckled, softly, "...I'm not gonna be able to convince you to stay just like that, am I?"


Giving him a wink, she turned back to the chamber. "Wish me luck, hmm?" Taking a deep breath, she moved to step inside, but paused with her foot just past the threshold of the chamber.


It had taken both his mother and Carlith to get her into the outfit... and even then, it had been no easy feat... "Elias. Um... I might need help, here."

 

[Kazanna]

With a frown, Elias shook his head, "Why did they never tailor in any zippers, or Velcro, or nano-fusion particles." He muttered as he moved away from the console and over to assist Gemma. He approached her like any project at first, head first and without any heed for civilities. Then, As he reached out towards her, he stopped, and blushed, his hands only a few inches from her.


"Er... Miss Livingtree..." He was slightly frozen in place, staring at her from his position behind her. "You sure you want my help..?" He asked with a slightly nervous air about his voice.


Elias may have been a super soldier, may have been an expert at interpersonal activity when it came to psychology, but he was still untested as of yet with women.his mother and Carlith would have had a field day with this moment, they would have teased him relentlessly. But instead, the AI got to it first.


"I do believe I can see you blushing Elias Grim." The AI's voice chimed in, it's tone like a mixture between Carlith's and Fate's voices. "Your as scarlet as the day you were born boy. Like a cherry!" The AI giggled at him, and it's appearence shifted between that of Carlith's and Fates, Solo's was combined in as well, a melding mixture that rotated.


Elias sighed quietly, and motioned towards the AI, a moment later, an electrical pulse shimmered out from his fingertips, "Shut up..." He muttered. And the AI vanished with a fizzle.

 

[Elle Joyner]

Gemma smiled gingerly, shaking her head as Elias extinguished the image of the AI. She wasn't sorry to see it go, all things considered... It was nice, if for only a moment, not to feel inundated with spectators for a change. Since leaving the desert planet, she had felt constantly watched, scrutinized... judged by the many visitors, and it was refreshing, even if it was only for a short while to be left alone...


"Elias... First of all, it's Gemma. You should get used to saying it, seeing how we're probably gonna be stuck with each other for a good, long while. Secondly, you really have nothing to worry about..." She said with a soft chuckle, "I meant what I said to Aquarius... I trust you. I trust your judgment and I trust your resolve. A hell of a lot more than I trust Carlith or any of the others... and I certainly can't get out of it myself. I wouldn't be half surprised if I wasn't sewn into it places. Besides, I've spent the entire day listening to the insinuations regarding you and me. You may as well give them something half decent to discuss. And incidentally, if you haven't figured out by now that I really don't mind... then you aren't as intelligent as everyone suggests."


Looking over her shoulder she gave him a quick smirk, "...For the record, I think you're cute when you get flustered."

 

[Kazanna]

Without a word, Elias manipulated the ties, and the restraining fibers on the back of the outfit. It would drop to her ankles a moment later. He was thoroughly embarrassed. "I'm a warrior Gemma... I know of infiltration, how to seduce someone, how to act like I'm interested, How to play on someones emotions to cause them undue duress and get them to do anything I would want them to do. I have overthrown two empires in my life, I have carried out executions, rescue missions, I have saved entire worlds from holocausts and even sealed a black hole with little more then a home made quantum bomb... But I've never been on a date before." He finished speaking, and turned away from her. "The constant teasing, and emotional attacks thrown upon me from my mother and my aunt are because I have devoted myself to my studies. I am almost twice your age, so they see a prime target in you. I never sought companionship, from anyone, so they tease me, and you, because it is very rare... for me to show interest in a woman, my own species or otherwise..."


Elias turned back towards her, and motioned towards the chamber,"Kick the clothes out, it'll keep them intact. A spirit or something will put them away."


If she would comply, he would motion towards the chamber, "I've taken control of the core functions within the lab. She wont be happy when she wakes up, but It was beginning to get on my nerves..." He would say. If she had complied, his motion would close the chamber, and display her full genetic data in front of him, "Map... to you..." He'd mutter.

 

[Elle Joyner]

It was immeasurably complicated and difficult not to completely lose her resolve, along with the garment. Shivering at the sudden lack of covering, she crossed her arms over her chest, keeping her back to him, listening intently to his words for fear of crumbling entirely and dissolving into a pathetic, blushing mess.


"If it's any consolation, I've never done much dating, myself. I hardly had the time for it... and even then, finding someone who was interesting enough, who wasn't completely full of themselves.... It was a challenge, to put it mildly." As he continued, she smiled faintly, and glanced over her shoulder again, "So you are interested, then? I had wondered."


Shaking her head, she turned back around with a soft laugh, "Good. That is, if I'm not misreading... And I hope I'm not."


Lifting her foot, she kicked the outfit back out of the chamber, before she stepped fully inside, "She can be as unhappy as she wants. I much more prefer you to handle things. What's next?"

 

[Kazanna]

Elias smiled lightly and motioned to the chamber again, it sealed with her inside it, "Now you relax, and I do my part. Just put your arms at your sides and let the scan do it's work, Any scars you have are going to go away. Ah... It has a side effect, it's going to straighten your hair and make it clear... Sorry... It's part of the process."


The machine would come to life, and Elias would manipulate the controls, as the AI was offline now. He began mapping Gemma out, one tiny detail at a time, it recorded her initial statistics, everything she was at that moment, a thousand tiny laser beams danced over her body. A moment later, she would feel weightless as the system would remove the gravity within the chamber, it would trace over every atom that was Gemini Paige Livingtree. Elias motioned to the central console, and began running the biometric routines. He'd never done this before, so his motions were careful, controlled, his eyes shimmered with his nanites intense focus.


A moment later he muttered, "Your chamber is opaque out here, but inside you can see out. It's to remove the feeling of claustrophobia, Aquarius made that thing to mend his injured son, many many millennia ago... The procedure was a success, the results were..." He shook his head, "His son left his presence, he lost the boy, as quickly as he had adopted him the boy left... a Heartbreaking moment... But the Boy, He was claustrophobic, so the solution was to remove the visuals." He glanced over to the chamber, "I have the tracking data of the inside of the chamber now. I'll be setting up the reset now."


He continued the process, and a moment later, Gemma would feel a tingling feeling as the nanites reset her genetic code. He motioned through various diseases she would have later in life, and removed them, "Alzheimer's, Dementia, Oh that's a nasty fate, best get rid of that... Sclerosis of the liver... chronic heart disease, Oh you didn't smoke in high school did you?" He asked with a gentle teasing tone. The machine's lasers would penetrate her flesh seamlessly, it would trace across and throughout her entire form, repairing every form of damage that could possibly effect her, and then it would begin cleanse her of all natural defenses, Her skin pigmentation would reduce, her hair, as he had said, would lose it's pigmentation and become perfectly clear, A moment later, a flash of light would barrage her, and a light evaporate puff would dance across her skin.


"It's fine to breathe, it's a preventive for diseases that don't even exist yet... You can pick your new hair color and how you want it styled too in the features menu, I'll handle the delphi processing." He was already plotting her syncing profile for the Delphi's systems, he'd opted away from an AI core, and instead opted to have a built in entry port that would remain blank until later.


He initiated several sequences and the machine would finish it's real job, her skin would darken back to it's normal tone, if she had a tan line, it would vanish into her complexion, her skin would match the toning that would be the most expansive between her arms, legs, and face, and it would color match her entire form. A moment later, it would prompt her with options for hair color, ranging with a series of sliders that would let her manipulate it from one end of the color spectrum to the other, brighter or darker toning, depth of pigment, and opacity for general color toning. Of course, the changes would grow out as her hair would without a functioning nano-mesh, but for now, her hair color would be modified by the machine.


Elias muttered,"Here comes the delphi cores, Relax, it's a bit invasive, Women hate this bit apparently, skin tight armor suits generally squeeze a bit tight. It'll start when your done with picking out your modifications, or if you just want your hair back how it was, that's fine too, it'll give you that option in the drop down menu in front of you."


The Delphi Core was six of the Delphi Cubes. The material would fall into the chamber from above, hovering around her as they began to disassemble into a small nano storm. The storm would wrap itself around Gemma and coat her body from head to toe, giving her the basic armor platform. It would start at her toes, and plate itself over them, leaving space between them to allow for more articulate movement, They could be modified for later appearance changes, but for now, it gave her the basics. It wrapped up her legs, strengthening areas around her joints with created servos, the servos once in place would flatten and reinforce themselves several times before the process continued it's way up her form. It would dance up her hips and across her abdomen slowly, the nanites would slow here, and plate themselves several times over before continuing up her form, it would pull itself over her chest, pressing against her bosom tightly, like an overly tight corset. The armor would adjust as she needed it, but it was a form fitting, and tight armor designed for combat, comfort was secondary. It would wrap over her shoulders, and down her arms to her fingernails. The last, and most horrifying part, was as it would make its way up her face, it would begin digging into her skin at her spinal cord, interfacing with her nervous system. She wouldn't feel much more then a pin prick, but the suit's nanites would interface with the nerves that controlled sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. They would wrap up her face, covering her mouth, her nose, and eyes, pulling her hair into a tight pony tail that would then be pulled into the suit's matrix. She would feel trapped, alone, and without senses for a moment, then everything would become crazy, her mind would be assailed by too many senses, more then she would have ever been ready for, more then any human should experience.


The chamber would open, and Elias would be standing there in front of her, smiling lightly, He'd nod at her, and say, "Imagine opening your eyes, and think about your head as you do, that will let the helm fold back. It's frightening for first timers, you could survive in that thing indefinitely, so... no worries if you don't figure it out at first."

 

[Elle Joyner]

The vast majority of her decisions were made for her, and Gemma wasn't disappointed by that. The less she had to figure out, the least chance she had of royally screwing something up. Her hair was easy enough... she'd chosen to keep it as is. It was one of the features she was most pleased with, and another thing she had, most of her life, never changed.


What followed those decisions was disoriented, frightening... exhilarating all at the same time. So many sensations all at once, it was a little like being remade...reborn, except unlike an infant, she was fully, cognitively aware of what was happening. The suit was suffocatingly tight, at first, and to compensate, Gemma took shorter, more shallow intakes of breath, which might have been enough, except that as the mask began to enclose her face, she could feel panic rising in her chest, the constricted muscles tightening, making it difficult to breathe... to think...


With a sucking sounds, the chamber door opened and Gemma could hear Elias's words... Like a safety net, she focused on them and did as he instructed, picturing her head... her hair, her eyes, her face, her mouth, her nose... the curve of her chin and her cheekbones, her brows... everything she could visualize, she did... desperate to be rid of the awful thing covering her face.


When it did at last slide back, as she had seen Elias's do many times, she took a deep, gasping breath and reached out, her arms looped round Elias's shoulders as she pulled herself close, bracing herself against him with a shudder.


"I could go... a very, very long time..." She started after a moment, her voice quivering, "...Without doing that again..."


Releasing Elias, she stepped back, shaking her head, "That was awful... Tell me we're done?"

 

[Kazanna]

Elias had embraced her back gently, smiling, he chuckled quietly, as she released her, he spoke carefully, "The next part... this is going to be odd for you, I'm going to give you the crash course on the Delphi's adaptability, when were done... It'll allow you to control the suit in all of it's adaptive points. I'm going to transmit my memories into it's neural link, Its... going to be painful... your going to see moments in my life when I had to learn how to use the suit without instruction... Your going to feel those moments as though your experiencing them. Just... Relax into it, and realize that it's not happening to you, it's just being shown to you."


Elias took a step back from her, and raised his right hand, "This will not be pleasant... not in the least... and I'm sorry for that, I truly am... But after this, you'll be able to control that suit like it's part of you."


His hand began to shimmer with gossamer strands of data, his memories were being gathered, collected, refined into the most focused nano cluster he could build. He smiled quietly as he focused, his eyes watering slightly, there was sorrow, pain, regret, and loss in his eyes, these memories had been painful for him. He had not enjoyed this training, but he valued it, embraced it, and it was part of what made him who he was.


With a gentle motion, he reached out and placed his fingertips on her forehead, the nano cluster became as a storm around her and his memories would flood her for what would feel like an eternity. But in reality, it would be but a few moments.

~Flashback~

​

The sensation of pain is almost never pleasant or enjoyable, it is almost never a moment one cares to remember. But for Elias, it was pain that taught him, agony that refined him, and the cruel, painful agony that he endured under his tutors was what made him into the perfect soldier he was. Elias was running in this memory, his body coated in the Delphi armor, his surroundings was a forest, but he was young, no more then thirteen years of age, he was running for what seemed to be, his life, because a moment of hesitation occurred as he looked back physically, and a voice rang out, "Use the Suit Boy! I'll not warn you again!" A blade flashed forward, and slammed through his stomach, slicing through the Delphi Armor, it was a horrid, grisly blade, one Gemma had seen before, the strange weapon Aquarius had been wearing on Cal Droma. Except the voice that had shouted at him had been Carlith's.


Now she appeared, bearing the weapon, and nothing else, it was wrapped over her form in a provocative fashion, hardly covering her, it embraced her fully however, and shimmered in the low light of the islands eternal twilight state. She swept the chain whip like weapon to the side and sliced a tree in half as she drew the weapon out of Elias' side, "Now Run boy, RUN! Because Even if you are Fate's son I WILL KILL YOU!" She roared as Elias struggled to his feet, he began running, and a moment later, through tears, and terror, he became more aware, the suit was giving him a 360 degree view, his entire surroundings were visible to him, and it almost made him falter in his step, but he saw the blade as it came this time, and he dodged it, with inhuman speed, a rapid sidestep. Carlith's voice rang out again, "Well Done Elias, your learning, Phase two begins now." Seven more blades shot out towards him, Two impaling him, but he managed to catch a third, and dodge the rest. He fell to his knees, the blades were through his right shoulder and the left side of his pelvis. He was gasping for breath as he held to the blade he'd captured, he held it taught, and then used it to slice the barbs off the others. He released the blade with a snap and pushed himself shakily to his feet. The Delphi's HUD was screaming at him silently, alarm bells from his nanites were warning him of damage and blood loss, but he focused on healing. He was in pain, brutal, agonizing pain. He rose and began to run again, shrugging it off. "You wont kill me Auntie. I will learn this..." He ran forward, dodging past a tree, his movements were faster now, he was able to predict his surroundings much faster. He'd gained the suits vision properties, he'd mastered it's dodging capabilities, and he'd gained immeasurable speed.

~End Flashback~

​

Elias smiled at Gemma weakly, "Sorry, but thats only the first one... Take a few breaths, let me know when you've gained the knowledge, it should be agility, speed, and vision. There are only a few other properties. That wasn't the worst however..."

 

[Elle Joyner]

He had not been exaggerating and a part of her was grateful for that. It was worse than she had expected, even with his warnings. She could feel it... all of it - the pain, the fear, the frustration... She could feel the determination, the uncertainty, the anger... Deep in the back of her mind she tried to remember what he had said. That it wasn't really happening to her, but it felt real enough...


When he spoke again and the vision faded, Gemma stared at him for a long moment, her breathing rapid, her hand rising to her shoulder, which she could swear still felt the sting of that wicked blade. Her own eyes were damp and she shook her head, a frown forming on her lips. The things he had been through... The damage that had been done to him...


It couldn't have been necessary. There was no way that it was all necessary... He was good, but he surely could have been just as good without the torment they had put him through. Somehow, despite everything, she wanted to continue... She wanted to see what made him who he was, to understand the man who, until now, had been little more than an enigma. And idea.


Shaking her head, drying her eyes with the backs of her hands, she nodded, "...I got it." She said, softly, "...Let's keep going."

 

[Kazanna]

Elias nodded, and pressed his hand against her forehead again.

~Flashback~

​

Before Elias stood a titanic creature, it roared at him defiantly and charged, the creature was covered in what appeared to be active magma, and had a face that looked like it was out of a horror movie. Carlith once again was the teacher, she rode on the beasts shoulder, the same armor as before embraced her. She motioned, "I have summoned a demon from deep in hell for this training exercise, it's from the eight level, You know what that means right? It wont show mercy, and once it begins attacking you, I can't stop it. Nor will I. You are to kill it, or be killed, and it will earn your soul as it's payment." She jumped back and vanished, reappearing beside Elias, she had her arms wrapped around his shoulders. He was only a bit older now, in his teens, sixteen, possibly seventeen, his hair was long and the Delphi armor he had on was far more limited. Carlith Kissed his cheek and muttered, "Use the Delphi's weapon capabilities, Kill it properly. Don't fuck around because I've turned your nanites down to low regeneration."


She vanished and the fight was on. Elias was already cold at this point. He didn't even mind this part of the training. He couldn't control the suit's weapons though, so it would be a challenge. The beast came at him, and he dodged to the side, the blistering heat from it's body scorched him painfully. Elias cringed slightly and groaned, trying to do as he had been instructed, picture a weapon, and form it.


The creature turned and brought it's fist down on him. Elias gasped, and suddenly, out of desperation, threw his hands up, a weapon had formed. Instantly. A massive, black and silver Scythe was in his hands, It was the weapon that he had wanted, the one he knew he could use, it was what they had taught him to wield. Elias felt his knees buckling slightly from the sheer weight of the creatures attacking fist, the heat from it was burning his flesh. He roared in pain as the creature began to laugh.


"Pitiful..." It belched out, pressing it's fist against him.


Elias' eyes gleamed with anger, with hatred. He hated demons, he had studied them, and fought against them, he'd lost friends to them, even at this early age. So as he glared at the beast, he calmed himself, and then, in a flash, his rage became focused, it became power. Elias rotated the scythe against the creatures hand, and pivoted his wrists, angling himself back so that the fist would smash towards his legs, he used the creatures momentum to lever himself up and over its fist. He could feel his skin bubbling, but he ignored the pain, ignored the cruel, bitter agony of the fire that consumed his form, he roared in defiance against the larger creature, and somersaulted over its fist, onto his arm and with a twist plunged the blade between it's knuckles. He held fast to the weapon and began to rise up the creatures arm. Everything happened in slow motion, his face showed bitter, defiant, rage. His actions were focused as he felt his feet beginning to burn, his flesh was melting, he knew he had seconds, so he ran up the creatures arm, feeling the heat rise. He shot forward and tore the beast's arm apart, modifying the scythe as he moved, it became longer, and he plunged the blade through the creatures heart.


It was to his follow though, the creature was of fire, and as such, as it died, it exploded. But his teacher was not without mercy. Carlith appeared before him, smiling, "Good job Elias. You've done well." She embraced him and the explosion that ensued wrapped around them, her wings extended and protected them. She swept them away, and kissed his forehead gently, healing him instantly. He sighed, and relaxed in her embrace for a moment, shuddering, "Thank you... Auntie... It came out... like I thought it would..." He still held the scythe in his hands, the cruel weapon shimmered in his grasp, and he gazed down at it with a smile.

~End Flashback~

​

Elias shuddered slightly and pulled his hand back, "There's only a few more... But you should know how to manipulate the entire suit physically now... That memory hurt... A lot... Carlith was a lot less mean at that point. She'd gotten used to instructing me. Less Tension, she was treating me like a loved pupil rather then her punching bag.... Still didn't make having my skin boiled away any less painful..." He leaned against the console and shuddered slightly, He was reliving the memories as he showed them to Gemma, and it was painful.

 

[Elle Joyner]

The second time the vision faded, Gemma felt worse than before, using the frame of the chamber to brace herself as she took a deep, shuddering breath in. Her heart was pounding, painfully against her ribs and her eyes watered with the sting of smoke and charred flesh. Squeezing her eyes shut, she leaned her head against her hand, shaking her head. She could see the thing, still, in her mind's eye... could feel the agony of the burning. It was inhumane, what they had done to him... Of course, maybe that was the point.


There were no excuses, however. No reasoning that would ever make sense to her. She knew he would defend them before the words left her mouth, but she would not hide her disdain for the manner with which he had been treated... even during his training.


"...If it's all well and good... I think I hate her." She said, softly, "The things they made you do... It... it's ridiculous. It's sadistic." Frowning, she looked up at him, "...No one should be made to go through something like that. I don't care what they were training you for."


Rubbing her arm, she straightened upright, "Let's just get this over with..."

 

[Kazanna]

Elias paused, and smiled lightly, shaking his head, "It was far from the worst of what they put me through... This next part... it's pretty bad... I'm not sure if you'll be able to remain conscious through it... But that's sort of the point..." He said as he extended his hand to her forehead once more. "Stay calm, your almost done..."

~Flashback~

​

Elias stood on the deck of the house, the full Delphi armor embracing him, he was in his twenties now, Carlith stood before him with another man, a sagely looking monk that radiated power. Elias was being rated by Carlith, it was his graduation to his next master. "You will be time-stopped from this point on until you are finished with your studies under your next master. But first,you must undergo your final course Elias. I am sorry for this, as I argued with Kazanna about this for months, but he insisted. You must be put through the Trial to see if you have learned to use the Delphi suit properly for defensive purposes as well as offensive. We have already judged your offensive capabilities with the suit to be ample. Your final test is the resurrection protocols. We need to see if you understand how to use them, and the only way to test them... is... well... to test them..." She said, making a face. "Kazanna said that I'm to do it properly. But Elias, I want you to know. This isn't personal, this is part of your training..." She was suddenly standing before him, tears welling up out of her eyes, "I'm sorry baby, Auntie loves you, don't be mad at me later..." Elias stared at her confused for a moment as she stepped back. She raised her hand, she was holding his still beating heart in her hand. She closed her eyes, and let out a sob, crushing the organ brutally.


Elias looked to her hand, and then back to her, his eyes rolled back, and he fell to his knees. The internal mechanisms in the suit caught him halfway down, and he would hear, as his life ebbed away, "Resurrection Protocol Activated Replacement tissues simulated by Delphi core until regeneration can occur." The strange, cold, piercing feeling of metal entering his body would occur, the Delphi had replaced his heart as his nanites had begun the furious process of rebuilding his damaged tissues. The suit had taken control of his body and assumed a defensive combat stance. It had increased the density across his body and issued a statement, "Resurrection Protocols Activated by the user. Delphi Combat mode activated, Target, Aggressor."


Elias took control suddenly, "Enough!" He shouted. He wanted no harm to befall his aunt, despite the fact she had just torn out his heart. The suit folded back, revealing his face, there was strain in his voice as he gazed at Carlith, "Resurrection Protocols are fully functional Auntie, I am in complete control."


Carlith smiled at him, and rushed to him, her hands still stained with his blood, she was sobbing, "I'm sorry, I really am... Gods, He said I was to do it without spell-force, I mean, we put you through all that... and then I was... He told me to... I'm sorry, I'm sorry Elias..." Elias embraced his aunt, He was taller then her now, their positions from last time switched, he embraced her, holding her gently, he muttered, "I know Auntie. It's fine..."


She took a step back, and motioned to the monk, "This is your new Instructor, He will train you for the next few decades. You will be placed within a time locked zone for the duration of it. It will be as though you never left for us, but for you..." She wiped her eyes with her clean hand, her other hand still stained with blood and shaking, "It'll be like thirty years has passed... You wont age though... You wont even notice the time has passed with his teachings..." She smiled and bowed to the monk, "Let me introduce you to Shoshen, The Ki Master, one of your uncles most trusted, and one of my favorite sparring partners."


The memory ended then, with the strange monk staring at Elias, the look was chilling, as though the man wasn't quite human, his form was perfect, and he looked as though he could take hold of the entire world with but a thought, he was shimmering slightly, like he was one foot in, one foot out of reality. Elias bowed to the monk, and the memory faded.

~End Flashback~

​

Elias stood there, shuddering slightly. He had his hand on Gemma's shoulder, he knew she would need to be steadied, he murmured, "There is one more that is needed. It's more recent. It's a point when I mastered the suit's abilities. Take a breath though, This last one is calmer, easier, I didn't get injured in it... much..." He murmured.

 

[Elle Joyner]

If she had not known that what she was seeing and feeling, what she was experiencing was not, in fact, really happening to her, she might have done more than black out, the moment Carlith crushed the heart. It was beyond anything she had experienced, in pain, in fear. Irrationally, despite Carlith's obvious discomfort, Gemma was still furious with her and somehow, the tears the woman shed made her even angrier.


As the world swam back into focus, Gemma choked out a gasp and collapsed against Elias's shoulder, her eyes falling closed as she tried desperately to quell the panicked feeling within her own chest, her narrow frame quaking with shock. She clung to him for a long, quiet moment as she tried to calm herself, but even after her breathing at last returned to normal she took another long minute or two before she released him and straightened upright.


Drying her tear stained cheeks, she bowed her head. Everything that he had shown her, thus far... everything he had experienced... it wasn't even the tip of the iceberg. The things that he had endured to get to where he was now... she could only imagine. And still, he was capable of such remarkable kindness, of gentleness... When he should have, by every right, been consumed by hatred and bitterness, by anger and resentment, he was defiantly good. Calculating and just... but good.


Looking up at him, certain she was seeing him in a new light, now, she nodded, "...Go ahead."

 

[Kazanna]

Elias nodded quietly, and placed his fingertips on her forehead once again, muttering, "This next vision, I was on a very early mission, With Solo, Or... Angel as you met her. We were infiltrating a ZRocon data-store. I ended up downloading their entire mainframe to my big toe... yeah it was... tiny... Embarrassingly so. Your mainframe... Is actually in my..." He paused, and glanced away, "Never mind... I'll tell you later..."

~Flashback~

​

Elias was falling, the ground was rushing towards him, though, it was a very, very long way away, he was in a full dive position. Glancing to his left, he could see Solo falling beside him, she was being lazy about it, drifting about like a child, posing this way and that, doing somersaults and various other acrobatics. Elias just shook his head at her and continued to fall. They were diving toward a target, miles below. Elias motioned towards her, and she nodded. He activated the thrusters on his suit, speeding up his descent, aiming for a neutral landing zone, a small copse of trees, just to the side of the target. With a soft nudge of his thrusters, he aligned how he wanted to be, and then as he came in close to the ground, he reoriented himself, he turned himself around with a few pops of his thrusters and used them to slow himself down slightly, the impact would be coushined, but he was still coming in at a very fast rate, and he didn't want to leave too much of a crater.


He locked his armor down, it became like a stone, the Delphi nanites created a storm around him and then solidified it. He impacted the ground and instantly triggered his stealth unit before he stood up and spoke over the secure comms, "Solo, I've landed, where are you."


"Coming in on your... twelve..." Elias looked up, knowing exactly what she meant. He braced himself for the impact as he felt Solo slam into him, she was laughing as she did, she collapsed as he caught her skillfully and spun her around so she could land with cat-like grace. He shook his head at her, "Showoff." She shrugged as she rose from the landing, and smiled in his HUD, the image of her face was there, "Guilty, but hey, At least I earn it!" She giggled lightly, "Ah, lets get on with this then." Elias shook his head again and made his way towards the facility nearby.

~End Flashback~

​

"That's... the last of them. That memory should teach you the rest of the control schema. If there's anything else you need to know, ask me. I can demonstrate, or teach you manually." Elias said calmly.


The last memory had been fun, interesting, and amusing to him. "Oh and, if you wanted to go skydiving, we can later. It's actually loads of fun to free fall with these suits on... Full impact absorption. I still don't understand how the physics work." He shook his head with a grin, and then motioned to her face, "Raise your helm again, I need to apply the new armor."


The new Delphi Core he was to receive had arrived, and was floating in front of him, shimmering ominously. It was larger then the other cores, it looked far more dense, but also far more natural, as though it had grown from something, rather then having been created in a lab. Elias stared at it with curiosity, muttering, "I've... only ever seen Aquarius initialize his once... You remember a few years back, when the Calonian settlement on Sola-Ta failed, because its sun imploded? Aquarius was there, he held back the blast. It was insane... He just... stood there in space, and defied the blast while we evacuated the planets people, he was wearing his own Delphi armor. It was... Amazing..." Elias shook his head, "Like watching a god, as an ant... It made me really understand why we do what we do... We saved an entire colony, over five million sentient lives, all of them saved because of our organization..." He smiled proudly, "I used a lot of my training that day. As I have every other day..." He shrugged lightly, like a teenager, proud of the accomplishments of his parents.

 

[Elle Joyner]

Holding up a hand, Gemma sank down on the edge of the chamber, shaking her head, "I need a minute. Just... just a minute."


Rubbing her forehead, she looked up at him, "...I just watched someone crush your heart... in their bare hands. That isn't something you generally see, other than figuratively. This isn't normal for me, Elias. None of this. I... I know that to you it's just the way things are, but I sat behind a desk... The most dangerous part of my day was dependent on who made the coffee that morning. I never had to worry about monsters... and freefalling. I know that this was all to adjust me to the suit... but even that seems crazy to me."


Her eyes fell of the core and she frowned, "...I don't suppose it'll do much good telling you I really wish you wouldn't use that thing? You're a mystery as it is... Second Gen and all. The risks, Elias. Do you really thing they're worth it? I mean... I'm not trying to lecture you, but Nanites were sort of my area of expertise. And things that are unknown are general unpredictable. Unpredictable with you... that's a scary thought. If anything were to happen to you..."


Sighing softly, she lowered her gaze, "I'm lost out here, Elias. I need you."

 

[Kazanna]

Elias paused, he hadn't thought of it the way she had explained it, he smiled at her, and kneeled down, gazing at her gently, his features had softend a great deal, he met her eye to eye, gazing into her eyes, his soft smile held as he studied her for a moment.


"The risks are worth it Gemma, If it can do even a small thing to save you from your fate. I would burn the universe." He stood back up straight and stared at the Delphi core, the thing was actually expanding, it was growing crystalline structures that expanded it's overall mass. Elias smiled at her, "Besides, Auntie and uncle use them. Uncle invented the Nanites before any of us were even born. The two are compatible..." He stepped towards the core and reached out gently, his fingertips gracing the cores edges gently, it released electrical impulses across it's entire surface from the moment he touched it, and a moment later, a deep toned voice with an ominous burble issued forth from it.


"Non-Ethereal user identified, Elias Grim, The first Son of Fate Grim and Kellian Grim, Genetic Signature reads Stable, Data feed has commenced, Second generation Nanite bearer, Chaos Factor of Black. Beginning Assimilation." The voice said in a strange echo that peirced through the air like a knife through skin.


Elias paused, he was suddenly afraid. Assimilation. He shuddered slightly and tried to speak, but the Delphi Core split into the most dangerous looking Nano-storm he had ever seen, it wrapped around him and forced his arms to spread out. The cores storm spun around him rapidly, the tiny nanites within the Delphi Matrix began to communicate with his own second gen nanites. The two conflicted momentarily, fighting for dominance, and then broke into a full scale war. Electrical pulses fired off between the Delphi nanites and Elias Second generation nanites. The pain was beyond what he had anticipated for such an event, electrical pulses and jolts fired off across his entire body and began to arc out across the lab. He grit his teeth and suppressed a roar of pain.


He was only able to hold out for so long as his nanites fought between regenerating the damage caused by the delphi system and combating the delphi core's endless supply of nanites. He'd closed his eyes early on from the pain of it all, and the nanites were now lifting him from the floor within the storm, shaking his body violently.


"You will be Assimilated Elias Grim, You will become a part of the Delphi Core. Your Nanites are compatible. You will help us expand." The voice said grimly.


Elias' eyes snapped open and he took control of his nanites, firing an EM blast that fried every circut in the lab instantly, plunging them into darkness. He landed on his feet in a crouched form, and polarized his nanites to attract the Delphi's core to his body.


"You will assimilate to Me Delphi. Not the other way around. You will help Me Expand." He said just before he fired off a second EM blast, this blast would be visible in the zero light enviornment, Gemma would see his entire body shine with inhuman light and power.


Elias stood up and felt the new system begin to assimilate. He'd won the arguement. He snorted as he heard the voice of the Delphi within his mind. "Your logic is rational. We will accept this union. We are thankful to be welcomed into such a powerful being Elias Grim."


Elias turned to Gemma, his new armor was nearly a replica of his former armors apperence, but it looked far more savage, more barbaric, it had added skulls across it's entire form, adapting to his persona, to who he was meant to be. The armor was intelligent, it knew what he was, who he was meant to be. Then, the data link occured. and Elias eyes widened, He looked to Gemma in startled shock.


"This thing has full access to the databanks here at the lab, without restrictions... I can view the classified time files... I..." He paused and frowned, staring at her, "It's like waking up in a library... one full of books and data you've never seen before... this is insane... I... I can't belive the amount of information... my Nanites are handling the load, but by the goddess... this is madness..." He extended his hand towards Gemma, "I think I get why they trained me the way I did. Compared to Carlith's teachings, that fight with the armor just now was a breeze, compared to my learning in the houses library, this data load is nothing, But still... The amount, the sheer amount of information this armor can hold, and it's still processing more... This... Thing isn't even man made... It's..."


A moment later, reality broke apart, and Aquarius appeared again, he was different, he looked far older, there was a healing injury on his face, which spoke volumes of how bad things were from where he had just come, "It was made by the Ethereal race. It was given to me as a last resort, as a way to end a conflict that will not happen for a very, very long time Elias." He was carrying a weapon, Elias favored blade type, A Scythe. It looked ancient, the head of the blade where it connected to the shaft was coated in what appeared to be blood, but it misted with a strange energy. Aquarius looked to the weapon thoughtfully, and nodded to Elias, "It's time."