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Post by Nightshade on Feb 13, 2018 17:11:20 GMT -8
Once again, he was back where he started. Blues sent him there with a mission, a mission that would see him involved against powers beyond time and space. Yet, Nightshsde was not the scaredy V7 he was when the whole ordeal began. His feet paws faintly tip tapped on the ground as he made his way in the abandoned Nia Sequester Base.
He had been told to not do anything anymore. But he could't do that. He wanted to see the light. More over, he truly felt that the NIA ideals strongly resonated with his view of the world. If all ended well, he would be tightly clad in the shiny silvers and deep reds of the NIA uniform once again and off to solve a mystery soon enough.
Strolling around, the cat looked at the damaged wall. It was incredible how it was barely stable. But he was not there for tourism or reminiscing. He would just hope that he would find what he had left here.
He began removing piles of junk data, searching around for his Isolator or a spare. He turned the whole place upside down, a good two hours of search needed to explore everything. Sure enough, in the middle of the destruction and decay, he found what he searched for. Mistair had forgot to pick it up. There it was indeed. All in one piece it seemed, too. He just hoped the rubble that had fallen onto it did not destroy or break the device.
He would try to initiate the little object and wait for it to turn on. Once the Isolator was properly working he would activate the Update Protocol. He waited for the device to change him, allowing it to slowly break down into many data fragments that glued themselves onto his body, turning his greys into reds and green into silvers. He sat down on the stone floor while waiting for the NIA Armor to completely integrate with his systems and connect him to the NIA Communication mainframe. Sure, until he was given authorization from an official all his powers would be locked off as long as he tried to wear the uniform, but that would change soon enough. There was no way the NIA would not notice someone using one of their isolators and wear one of their uniforms. He openend up the communication channel and awaited any response. In the meantime, the cat navi examined his body and the armor he was now wearing after so long had passed. Man he forgot how cool and stunning it looked.
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Post by Zane on Feb 14, 2018 3:31:47 GMT -8
As he activated the Isolator and planned to wait it out, much like what had happened with Thorn, he found himself being transported soon after. It wasn't in the old ruined base, but into the area that was mentioned only in passing before. The base that was too far when they were evacuating before and led to them making the other field base they were using with Sequester's current condition.
He was transported into a room directly across from someone else who was seated and just looking at some papers right now. A cyan navi of mechanical design, the only facial feature being his yellow eyes. He was rather plain looking as aside from his color and slightly bulkier frame he'd more likely be considered just a customized normal navi. He glanced up from the papers, almost as if he were looking through Nightshade rather than at him.
"So you're that Nightshade that I heard about? Fit the bill, anyway. What's up?"
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Post by Nightshade on Feb 14, 2018 3:45:17 GMT -8
"I have found something. Something big, actually. It has to do with the problem within the netopian network. I was wondering if I could speak with someone with the proper authorizations about it." Nightshade calmly replied, still fiddling with the boots of his uniform. The elastic fabric was a tightere fit than what he remembered. Perhaps he had gotten taller. "I would hope to fix what I have broken by making sure not to make the same foolish errors again, while also not wishing to waste your precious time. May I inquire about Mistair's current status? I thought she was the one that handled interrogatories."
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Post by Zane on Feb 14, 2018 3:58:41 GMT -8
The person listened to him and waited for him to finish. There was plenty of things that crossed his mind during this since plenty went down, but it would be difficult to discern from his eyes. He spoke up to answer him.
"Thanks to your prior visit she got hit with additional duties that she wasted no time in venting to me about. Being the leader of a large group does mean you have to listen to their complaints, but boy does it suck. Want to talk to her about it?"
He hit some button on the desk where the papers were resting at, possibly to call her in now from whatever work she was saddled with at the time. He could do that at his leisure anyway.
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Post by Nightshade on Feb 14, 2018 4:25:21 GMT -8
Nightshade sat down and slightly bowed in respect. So that was the guy behind it all. Talk about meeting all kinds of important figures. "Sir, I know about my errors. But I am not here just to beg for your forgiveness. I want to earn it. Please don't punish her for the problem I myself caused. I acted carelessly, but I am ready to make the things I made wrong right again. She was the one who entrusted me with your colors and I am very, very sorry for how it went and how I let her down. Now, if I'm allowed a bit more of your time, there are a few things I would like to share. They involve a trip to Kotobuki, Scarface of the Undernet and something I have witnessed in Element City, as well as some strange happenings within Ranmount regarding Cybeast Gregar and Cybeast Falzar before said events."
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Post by Zane on Feb 16, 2018 2:06:38 GMT -8
"I don't care much for begging anyway."
It was a curt response directed at his opening statement. He hadn't answered the other assumption or the rest, simply waiting instead. And it didn't take long for the door to slide open, a sigh being the first thing to be heard before she started speaking right away. Between recent events, her already decent workload, and her added workload thanks to numerous happenings that outside factors influenced, she was at least annoyed with her boss of all people even if she was compliant with the demands.
"Commander Grom, if it's another status report, no, I didn't spot anything in my recent scope of Netopia. And also no, we aren't quite finished yet. It can work to find some, but not--"
Then she spotted the actual reason she was called in this time and sighed a heavier sigh instead. She would keep her word, but seeing as he was still alive in front of said commander, she could presume that he wanted to listen to what he had to say. And she normally would have walked right back out of the room and let him see to that but since she was already here, why not? She'd humor him, folding her arms in front of her chest as the temperature in the room rose as well. With that taken care of, Grom's eyes went back to Nightshade for him to carry on with the discussion.
"So a trip to Kotobuki, Scarface and the Undernet are back, something at Element City, and about what happened at Rammount, is it? Carry on."
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Post by Nightshade on Feb 16, 2018 4:54:16 GMT -8
"So, as Agent Mistair might have reported, I posess Cybeast powers. Yet it is not a proper juuka, more on that later. While I rushed to Ranmount following the trail of the Cybeasts, I found them layng on the ground completely maimed. I got too close and Gregar bit one of my arms off before both of the cybeasts disappeared into nowhere. Their data almost disintegrated. Right there in that moment, I noticed some sort of purple sheen behind me. Somewhere else could have just left as I arrived and probably the real guy behind all of this. Little to say, Forte arrived soon after. Right now is objective is to claim the cybeasts for himself.
After my first Beast Out, my missing arm was completely reconstructed by something. Then, the lock on Netopia disappeared sometime later. I travelled back to Creamland following a navi named Embera and found myself witnessing Napalman of World3 and Magnolia fight a variant of the Shadow Devil. Apparently, Magnolia is part of the Creamland Knights and seems to be able to completely erase anything around her. I tried contacting Mistair to tell her that, but without Isolator Technology integrated in my systems I was unsuccesful. After a brief trip to Creamland I returned to Electopia only to find out about a Reaverbot attack.
New life was completely destroyed. A life virus dwelled in the underground of element city...and Rosso showed up. He completely destroyed Element City and confronted ex ONB Resonance.exe. I did not see the end of the confrontation, but my...let's call them 'juuka senses' felt an insane power spike coming off Rosso. I do not know what he did, but I am more than sure that he triggered Falzar's Beast Factor. Unlike me, it wasn't a remnant. The power output of thst thing was the real think. I am sure of it. How those juuka Powers did not attract Forte's attention is unknown to me. I fled the scene after briefly helping K414 of the Animus Syndicate deal with the Life Virus, and decided to understand my juuka powers better.
I tried to access the Undernet and fount out one access point is located in the forest near ex element city. There, I was confronted bt Scarface who denied me access to the Undernet servers, saying that I was cursed. I have no idea how or why would he know such things about me. When I asked about it, he told me to find a guy named Dr.Psyche in Kotobuki. Using Greiga's affinity with bugs I was able to pass through the barriers protecting the area and resit the corruption while Beasting Out.
My exchange with Dottor Psyche gave me knew knowledge about something. There was a thing inside me that cause the whole permadeletion deal to spread everywhere, while my reconstructed arm was a simbiotic virus designed to go off upon my deletion. I suspect the transfer of such things inside my systems happened during my brief time in ranmount." He explained. He collected his thoughts one more time, trying to avoid eye contact with Mistair.
"Oh. One last thing. Aside from Cybeast remnant now permanently merged in my code I seem to be undergoing a slow mutation process. Or at least it's what Psyche said. He could not pinpoint what was happening. It said that the result was not data as he understood it. I thought that I should at least try to repair the damage I did, so i came back to the now abandoned sequester, found my old Isolator and used it to try and get this intel to you. That is all, sir."
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Post by Zane on Feb 16, 2018 14:54:11 GMT -8
As he started his report and also avoided eye contact with Mistair, Grom's eyes had also started to wander too. He was looking at Mistair as it progressed around the time that Element City was mentioned. Mistair wasn't looking anywhere in particular either, rather it was more like she wanted to turn around instead. Because she had been frustrated she was late to notice and Grom himself hadn't thought it a problem. But when Nightshade was finished, the voice that chimed in first was neither the commander's of Mistair's, but the source of why the temperature had risen in the room so abruptly.
"I was wondering where to find him. No wonder he eluded me for just a bit longer. Thanks for the tip, leaking faucet."
He wouldn't bother correcting some of the bits he got wrong. Mistair was the one to take action first as she started to form her defense then, instead being blasted across the room and into the opposing wall by flames. Rosso would admit that he questioned why they took this approach but in the end, man had it worked in their favor. They kept finding people that would have otherwise been difficult to approach if someone else didn't find them first. And this little chicken without a head was great at it. And all it took was cutting its strings, something the kid did himself really.
"It's a shame he caught the virus, but that's fine. Excellent report, Nightshade. I'll cover the situation. Do what you need to do."
"We can put Scarface aside. His only enemies are those who spurn their good graces."
Grom nodded, Rosso preparing his next shot. He was going to be more discreet about this but it turned out someone liking the uniform also liked talking about others in the same organization a tad too much. But he had done that from the beginning so this was all expected on his part. All he needed to do was be in the right place at the right time. And it was about time they started setting up to grab their next target anyway. So he also decided to at least listen to whatever rant Nightshade would make right after this just because he was hearing a lot of these speeches lately, so may as well hear out one more.
"Agent Rosso is about to get to work. So what are you gonna say or do this time, 'Agent' Nightshade?"
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Post by Nightshade on Feb 16, 2018 15:37:21 GMT -8
"That's up to you - you just fried my ex-CO, so the burden of command falls to you... sir."
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Post by Zane on Feb 16, 2018 16:45:53 GMT -8
She had managed to defend herself just enough to not take the full brunt of his attack, but to say she could go blow for blow with Rosso was pushing it. The outcome was essentially predetermined as it were. So she created the barrier around himself as he fired the sphere of flames at her, engulfing her in a prison of fire that would melt it away eventually if she didn't act in time. In the meantime she sent out a message to the person who was right about some things in a short and succinct fashion, Rosso scoffing a bit now that thought back to what Nightshade had to say.
"Please, she's just a really good secretary. Too good in fact. Just like you make an excellent informant. You're sub-par at speaking yet horrible at listening."
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Evolution.
Feb 16, 2018 18:03:10 GMT -8
via mobile
Post by Gaia on Feb 16, 2018 18:03:10 GMT -8
Vanguard.EXE
He had been working in her stead when she left, joining her and using his unique tracking skills to assist in finding their targets. Other recent events notwithstanding, since having relocated, things had been pretty quiet.
From the message he got, his worse fears coming to fruition, he could only suppose that the quiet had finally lifted. Leaving their tracking algorithm, Vanguard ported out in a pillar of purple brilliance, and reappeared, answering Mistair's call, appearing before her attackers.
A figure he had yet to meet was in the business room, an imposing sort that looked important. The other two were both familiar faces - the cat he had been struggling to keep leashed up this entire time, and the ever present zealot, Rosso. Looking behind him, he noticed the fires surrounding Mistair's defense, and instantly knew the situation.
Reaching out, Vanguard consumed the fires around Mistair's barrier, his own fire wrapping around the inferno and absorbing it into his own life essence. He turned, then, igniting the verniers at his wrists, as he knew Rosso would in response.
"You assault them as soon as they start picking apart the plan, but you left me to walk away when I specifically started asking questions? What's with the sudden change in style? I had already pieced together that the NIA was somehow useful to you, so, why now?"
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Post by Zane on Feb 16, 2018 21:03:30 GMT -8
And it looked like the guest was here as well. Between her defense and Vanguard's attempts they staved off his flames for now, Mistair breathing a sigh of relief at least by having one person here to rely on. Rosso scoffed at his words though, the flames igniting around his arms. His vindictive gaze unwavering, and the heat in the room beginning to rise to the point of being unbearable to lesser beings. Those here would be fine, but it was clear that he wasn't doing this for show this time.
"Why I left you alone when you were questioning things? That's a really simple thing to answer. Because you were one of the possible decoys I could use. Ultimately I only needed to use two of them, so I left you alone. I allowed you to die fighting, more than you obviously deserve."
Grom hit another button on his desk, this time the man slipping through a passage that opened beneath him that quickly closed behind him. The three of them each thought they knew something either about him or what he was doing, or even what he was capable of. And yet they still had no clue how far he could go. So he would offer at least one final question in return to Vanguard as he lifted his arm. Like each of his fights before, this one would be concluded at the very beginning. As they always would be.
"So tell me: would you prefer dying the easy or the hard way?"
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Post by Gaia on Feb 17, 2018 12:55:40 GMT -8
Vanguard.EXE
Vanguard raised his lip into a sneer, his right arm shifting as the vernier coils expanded around the barrel of his signature cannon. Supporting his weapon with his off hand - thankfully and recently restored by NSD's attempts - he leveled the weapon he had once leveled at the border wall to the Navi who had wanted to delete him for his transgressions. He was mostly raising it in defense; he wanted to try and diffuse this situation before it spiralled out of control, but, it already appeared that Rosso had his sights set on annihilation.
"You miscalculated when you decided I was but another pawn in your game - I'm a whole other player, and, unfortunately for you, I'm not quite in check mate, yet.
"Despite your intentions, you've been doing some good things within the NIA. We've been fighting the same battle, even if we've been fighting with different motives. When I first signed on, it was to get out of prison. There's still hope for the both of us here, Rosso - It doesn't have to be this way."
He glanced at Nightshade, then, hoping the cat would be able to get past its usual indecisive nature and pick a side - and be able to look past his past ignorance to pick the right one. When he had dropped in, it looked like he was prepared to take orders from Rosso, which kind of worried him. He wasn't entirely sure if he was capable of handling Nightshade, as he'd never seen the cat fight, but, he didn't want to try and fight him and Rosso, all whilst keeping Mistair safe. He needed an ally right now, and, as much as he would rather prefer others, he couldn't quite be picky.
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Post by Nightshade on Feb 17, 2018 16:56:19 GMT -8
Just on cue, the cat navi jumped to Vanguard's side, as if ready to cover his back. "Spare your words. He wants us dead. I'm with you on this one. To be honest, I think I alway was on your side. I just...needed a push in the right direction." Nightshade's aura flared to life with a hint of greiga in it. The more he used those powers the more he was able to use them the right way. "Be careful, he's got falzar inside him. Or at least, he can use her powers."
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Post by Zane on Feb 17, 2018 19:50:28 GMT -8
Rosso couldn't even hold in his chuckle at both Vanguard and Nightshade. This was just hilarious to watch. It was a mix of a genuinue laugh and also one filled with malice. He could respect Vanguard's words, yet he could also loathe them as much as he loathed Nightshade. He truly didn't need to do anything to that one. He in no way could ever be a problem for them. He completely and utterly lacked the qualities. But those who chose death at his hands would obtain what they chose.
"Bravado doesn't suit you, Vanguard. Much like loyalty doesn't suit the gnat. Moments before he was just fine watching Mistair die, yet now he's willing to fight with you. Does he want her good graces, or yours? He's a shining example of the worst filth this world has to offer. That's saying something with certain people living in it. He'll run if he's in danger and leave you to die, like K-414 would have. He'll betray you to others if it will get him what he wants, like he has with several, including those standing right here. And he'll watch you die, if he thinks he has to. The best ally to ever have on your side."
And he knew that Vanguard knew him at least a bit as well. If you mentioned something... well, he had no reason to hide it, did he? He could've had a much better chance in this fight if Nightshade simply knew how to be quiet. But as he mentioned, the kid really didn't know how. And it was amazing how deep a hole could be dug. So what if he had three targets? In the grand scheme of things, they weren't nearly as significant as the types of things he was designed to fight. The Armored Destroyer had made that same claim when they first met, and neither of them were big on empty words.
"But you and I, we could never fight the same battle. Who you are goes against it. You being willing to even use someone like him as an ally is enough by itself to draw that line. Desperate times for desperate measures, I'll at least admit you recognize that much."
So he snapped his finger, a sphere of flame appearing by each of them that was set to detonate. They would each have time to avoid it and counter at their leisure, as it was the only move he made at the time.
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