>>Previous threads can be found at: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=NearFuture%20Cyborg%20Quest
>Fate Points: 0
>Nano-Meta: 2155 Units
>Credits: 46,250

The year is 2025
Your name is Dave, and you never asked for this.
It's soon after dusk, according to your internal clock, and Sigma is dead. He seems to have set up some kind of deadman's trigger on the Sleipnir. That damn rat traitor.
A massive explosion rocks the ship, and Amy, currently plugged into the computer, starts screaming, mentally.
<-aaaAAAAAA->

The ship shakes again, and Amy tugs the cable out of her head.
"There's. . something inside the computers." She says, woozy.
The ship shakes again, and everyone- save for you and Delta- lose their balance, falling to the ground. Amy vomits.

>>20117260
Well then let's go in there and get it out.

Through the trembling and shaking of the Sleipnir, you unsteadily make your way over to the computer, and you plug yourself in.
QofV rampages through the system, swarming and swelling, devouring all it can get it's hands on.

<Consensus?> Epona says.
<Invader is rampant.>
<Too many of it ro remove.>
<Integrate?>
<Not optimal.>
<Then we die.>

You grit your teeth, and reach into the black, swelling swarm of digital locusts. It tears through your mind, burrowing and biting and tearing and devouring-
But you give it no ground. You grit your teeth. You've defeated it once before. . .
<We give you our assistance.> Epona suddenly says, and you feel a multitude of disjointed, simple minds push at the swarm, giving you time to breathe.
The ship shudders again.

>Roll 1d100. Taking first roll.

rolled 9 = 9

>>20117360
This can only end well.

rolled 43 = 43

...

File: 1343761454803.jpg-(1.62 MB, 2400x2880, 1227509561024.jpg)

>>20117391

rolled 69 = 69

>>20117391
Oh, son of a motherfucker.

>>20117391
Aw come on, we know how to beat him. And this is probably an older version than the one that attacked Daedalus if Sigma planted it there a while ago.
Get Daedalus in to help with numbers?

>>20117428
Ironically, an older version would probably be MORE powerful.

>rolled = 9
>Fate Points: 0
Wellp...

>>20117446
No it wouldn't. We'd have noticed if it had been multiplying all this time, it has to have been dormant until triggered and an older version would have worse code.

Suddenly, the swarm that is 'QofV' swells, once more, multiplying, and clinging to the multitude of minds that make up Epona. Quite easily, they get crushed, and 'eaten', and the pressure on your mind is back... but stronger. It's almost as if Epona is working against you, now.
The virus clings to you, tearing parts of you away. . It's painful, unbearably painful

Amy pulls you back, disconnecting the cable. You're disoriented, shaken. .
She draws the Hydra and shoots at the computer, slagging the components on the inside, and you hear it churn to a stop.
The Sleipnir suddenly stops shaking, and simply sits there, dead in the water. The massive viewscreen on the end of the bridge suddenly turns to white noise, giving off the noise of static.

". . You okay, Dave?" She asked, pulling you to your feet.

>>20117458
"ye-yeah...I'm okay."
dry heave from the pain

"Ye-yeah. . " you lie, the agony almost unbearable. It feels almost as if you were burned. "I'm okay."
She puts a hand on your shoulder, and leans against you. Her presence is soothing, at least slightly.

"What was that?" Azure asked, eying the computer. "I can. . most likely pilot the Sleipnir directly, but the computer is too damaged to use."
Dani pulled herself to her feet. "There was an explosion below us." She said. "And there was something. . familiar, for a moment. Now there's just the smell of stinkbugs."

>>20117533
More of QofV just ate Epona. That thing's getting ridiculous...we need to write an 'antibody' AI to counter it or something.

Still unsteady and disturbed, you say nothing. Slowly, ever so slowly, the pain starts to ebb.
"Azure, get that casing out of the way, and plug yourself into the computer. Get us to Valhalla." Amy says. "Dani, go check below. I need a damage report."
"Right." Dani says, and shoulders her massive MG, before leaving the bridge.
Azure tears off her face.
Well, just the skin and hair covering her head, to be literal. What stares back at you. . is a Terminator, with the rictus grin of a skeleton. She walks over to the computer, and shoves it aside, disconnecting the cables and plugging them into herself.
"I have control." Azure said. "Without a fork of Onyx, we can't exactly use our on-board teleporter, so we'll make our way back to Valhalla via repulsion drive."
"Good." Amy says. "Do it."
The screen in front of the bridge flashes on, and you can see blue skies out of the front of the Sleipnir- Azure must be coasting low enough to still be in atmos-

Dani rushed back up, almost stomping through the door.

"Phi." She said, panting. "Phi and his lava lamp computer and the coffin is all. . exploded."

>>20117746
LEAVE THE PLANET AND NEVER COME BACK

>>20117746
"Are you sure Phi didn't survive? Their species managed to survive their planets destruction by clinging to the remaining bits?"

>>20117746
SCAN DANI NOW. MAKE SURE IT'S HER AND NOT THE EMPEROR.

>>20117746
Fucking Sigma.
P.S. Don't go back to Valhalla, it's a stationary target and they know where we live.

>>20117458
We still have a copy of Epona, right?

>>20117804
We still need to pick Bubbles up.

>>20117818
Ugh, I guess we do.
And if they wanted they could have tele-bombed Valhalla before instead of setting up that overly-elaborate trap.
Or just got Sigma to kill us in our sleep.

"Are you sure Phi didn't survive? Their species managed to survive their planets destruction by clinging to the remaining bits?"
"I'm. . I'm not sure." Dani said. "It's all. . goopy and dark down there."
"Stay still." You say, and step closer to her.
She freezes, standing perfectly still, as you deepscan her. Her genes are still a strange, bastard mix of emperor physiology with a human appearance- not like the corpse of Amy who you had shot before, which had explicitly emperor genetics. It's her.

"Okay, we don't go back t-" You say, but you get interrupted.
<Talos bids me to send you a message, Dave.> Daedalus says, from far above you. <He says that the female Gemini has returned. He also says that she seems very pleased with the large storage of mint ice cream you had prepared for her.>

Let's let her enjoy that icecream while she can before we inform her of Sigma.

>>20117877
"So, they have all of our tech and in greater numbers than us. Any ideas what to do now?"

>>20117877
Correction. We NEED to go back to Valhalla. Daedalus is still the only digital entry point to Valhalla, yes? So we put him explicitly on guard against VofQ. Primary priority.

Ask Amy if she thinks she can bash together a firewall or AI that can counter VofQ's swarm tactics.

>>20117877
Tell Lucca to grab a big bucket and ice cream, and fill her in on our current situation.

>>20117937
> big bucket and ice cream
>and

Meant to write *of*.

"So, they have all of our tech and in greater numbers than us." You say. "Any ideas what to do now?"

Delta slipped his helmet back on, but said nothing.
"We. . We leave the planet." Dani said. "Never ever come back. Get the mindcore, give it to the AI ships, get nano-meta generators, and leave. Forever."
"We cannot teleport without a computer." Azure said. "And I've seen no evidence that they can teleport, yet. Perhaps my copy is resisting. I know that I would. We need to return to Valhalla. If we intend to leave forever, we can take Talos' core."
"No." Amy said. "Here's what we do. We find them, we kill them, we wipe their data. There are a few techs I've been thinking of, and I need to talk to Jun about them, but it's possible we could defeat them."

". . I've found Phi." Azure said. "He's alive, albeit unconscious and dessicated. And I believe the computer down there can be repaired. May I attempt it?"

>>20117855
More thoughts:
>Kidnapping people can fail. Captain Minerva decided that it would be simpler to have some of the Calladai jam your communications, and then simply have Sigma claim they were captured.
If we'd have gone to anybody's homes/workplaces to look for evidence from the kidnapping and find out where they'd been taken we'd have found them there and the entire plan would have fallen through before it even started. I'd say that was a bigger 'gone wrong' than anything that could happen with kidnapping.
This 'assassination' makes no sense.

>>20118009
If you think you can, then yes. That's probably a good idea.

>>20118009
"Speaking of your fork, what do you intend to do if we find it? Integrate? Assuming she's not compromised of course.

>>20118009
> Perhaps my copy is resisting. I know that I would.
In that case, we must hurry. I wouldn't want her to suffer any longer than necessary.

>May I attempt it?
You and Amy are the experts when it comes to these things, so please, if you think you can, do it.

>>20118037
>Speaking of your fork, what do you intend to do if we find it

We name her Cora (Copy_Of_ouR_Azure.exe) and give her the Dani treatment.

>>20118009
What about our Epona copy? Do we still have it?

"If you think you can, do it."
"Right away." Azure said.
"Speaking of your fork, what do you intend to do if we find it? Integrate? Assuming she's not compromised of course."
"I- I- I- I don't know." Azure said, stuttering. "Don't ask me those things. Please."

Soon enough, Dani comes back above deck, carrying Phi. The pumps in his back are sealed, and his legs are curled up below him- right now he's completely black, as opposed to his normal brown.

>>20118078
The one that just died WAS the copy.

>>20118101
No backup? Damn.

>>20118009
>We cannot teleport without a computer.
We can plug our spine's onyx into the ship like Azure's doing. He'll probably manage. And how hard is it to get hold of a new computer?

>I've seen no evidence that they can teleport, yet. Perhaps my copy is resisting.
Yeah, still doesn't explain why Sigma couldn't just unload a plasma shotgun into our spine instead of trying to lure is into that ridiculous operation that just cost them their spy, their base, their secrecy and a heavy captain for no gain.

>>20118085
"How are you doing, Phi?"

>>20118063
I find that I agree with you on that.

>>20118085
Dammit, I can't remember how long Cyan said Phi was going to sleep...

>>20118130
Especially considering he was THERE for the planning session where we asked Magenta the best way to kill ourself.

>>20118130
Plus how could they develop teleport countermeasures without the teleport technology? They have it. You can't develop a vaccine without ever coming into contact with the virus.

>>20118085
"I think Phi's just hibernating. Or something close to that. Talos said he'd be sleeping and dried-out for a few days."

>>20118176
Maybe their version of Azure managed to delete a small part of the teleporter schematics?

>>20118193
If it was good enough for them to understand and develop the technology further than we've been able to, they could probably have patched up the hole. We've been back less than a week, they must have some serious science brains working on this shit to get that far that quickly.

>>20118160
>Strictly speaking, even if he was there, he couldn't hear any of it- it was all internal communication.

>>20118176
>They don't have Onyx, so they have to learn how to calculate the teleportation themselves, while you got the shortcut via alium technology. They know how it works, so they now how to manipulate the Exotic Material, just not *correctly*. Yet.

"I've got most of the chemical computer returned, at approximately fifty percent capacity." Azure said. "I don't understand most of the science behind it, however. Also, we are approaching Valhalla now. Nothing seems out of place."
"How long was Phi going to sleep?" You ask.
"I don't recall." Dani said. "But I do remember him talking about those pumps, about how they give and get liquid for when they want to slumber. Maybe we could . . wake him up early?"

>>20118234
"That might not be a good idea. Pulling him out of his funky stasis-sleep improperly could be massively traumatic. We'll get some proper facilities together at Valhalla to bring him back."

>>20118234
So they do have the teleport tech, they just can't quite use it yet. That's not going to last long.

"I don't think that's a good idea, we should probably let him rest."

>>20118234
>Maybe we could . . wake him up early?
"I think we shouldn't, unless things get even worse."

>just not *correctly*. Yet.
We should devise ways of disrupting their infrastructure, then.
Maybe even get Van Co. in on that. I'm sure they wouldn't be happy if ArmaTek gets the teleporters on the market.

>>20118234
I don't know how it works, I'm not going to mess with it.

Azure, is the Cyan on Phi's comp at all intact?

All right....let's take Sleipnir into the hangar where 12 kept his gunship, and disembark.

>>20118234
Once we confirm that Valhalla is clear we should contact EE and KI and have them sweep for Armatek infiltrators, after that we should call up our good friends over at van co. and do the same along with temporary deactivation of the teleporter and deletion of that fork of onyx.

>>20118293
Maybe we could even sell the teleporters to Van Co.
They go to all the trouble of getting the tech to work and then find out you can buy one for $99.99 at your local Walmart. When everyone's a superhero, noone is.

>>20118321
We made the teleporter as secure and un-reverse-engineerable as possible anyway, I don't think that would help. Van Co.'s not going to let anyone fuck with their only two teleporters.

"I don't think that's a good idea." You say. "We should probably let him rest."
"Right." She says.

"Azure, take the Sleipnir to the underwater hangar, where 12 kept his gunship."
"Right." She says.
"Is Cyan on Phi's computer at all intact?"
"I have no way of telling. The chemical-to-digital converter was damaged in the explosion." Azure said.

You plunge into the water, and then slowly ease toward the airlock.
"Bridging successful." Azure said. She unplugged the cables from her head, and slipped her face back on, adjusting it to make sure it fit properly.

You all disembark, Delta following you as you walk in.
"Hey, Dave." Lucca said. "And. . big guy."
Delta saluted.

>>20118321
What we really should do is pass the data on these Callidus infiltrators along to every fucking corp and government on the planet.

>>20118379
"Lucca, grab some ice cream. I've got bad news."

>>20118379
"Lucca, I'm afraid I've got some bad news about Sigma..."

>>20118379
>Phi

Let's keep our eyes on his vitals, though. Just in case he got injured, or the pumps damaged.

>>20118379
This is Delta. He's captain of the big guys. Delta, this is Lucca. She's in charge of the little guys.
>They're both drone pilots, really.

>>20118379
"Lucca, meet Kristoph. AKA, Delta. Kristoph, meet Lucca. He's a tubeborn supersoldier and a deserter from Armatek, what with the whole 'they don't treat him like a human being' issue. He'll be bunking with us from now on."

>>20118379
Hug the fuck out of Lucca.
"I'm so glad to see you. We thought you had been captured."

Then tell her the story of seeing her in the ArmaTek base.

>>20118379
PARANOIA MODE ACTIVATE.
Scan her. We do have her DNA archived right?

>>20118379
Lucca, update: Sigma called Valhalla, said ArmaTek captured all our buddies. Like a dumbass, I didn't confirm by trying to contact y'all, and it turned out to be a trap. Sigma was a plant, and is now dead via suicide capsule. We need to gear up for all-out war.

>>20118485
We did try to contact them all, they jammed the communications.
Then we contacted both sets of parents and told them to be careful.
We're not quite that dumb.

>>20118439
This, then
>>20118400
>>20118404
these.

Without responding, you wrap your arms around her, hugging the fuck out of Lucca, taking the chance to scan her- It's her, all right, according to her genes.
"Uh. . Dave. ." She says, somewhat hesitantly. There's something in her voice you can't place.
"I'm glad to see you. We thought you had been captured."
"Captured?"
You proceed to tell her the whole story about what Sigma had said, the mission you undertook, and finally, how Sigma turned out to be a filthy, murderous rat.
"He always creeped me the fuck out." She said, grumbling. "Who's this?"
"This is Delta. He's captain of the big guys. Delta, this is Lucca. She's in charge of the little guys. He's a tubeborn supersoldier and a deserter from Armatek, what with the whole 'they don't treat him like a human being' issue. He'll be bunking with us from now on."
" . . Hi, Delta." She said, giving him a little wave.
"Greetings." Delta responded.
"We need to gear up for all-out war."
"War? Really?" Lucca asked. " . . Okay. I'll help. As long as you never fuck with my implant unless I ask."

"Dave." Azure said, approaching you. "We can take the computer core from this base, or we can make a new one out of nano-meta, for about two hundred units. We have a few options."

>>20118508
"Let's just make a new one, with some reinforced security. And a fork of Daedalus, since he ate the same virus that just shut us down. If anyone can counter it, it's him."

>>20118508
I think first we should check that he didn't fuck with the base computer as well. He could have just as easily as Sleipnir's.

>>20118508
>" . . Okay. I'll help. As long as you never fuck with my implant unless I ask."
"I promise."

>We have a few options
"What would you suggest? Talos has been a valuable ally, and even if he isn't sapient, I've come to consider him a friend."


And we should probably decommission Valhalla until Armatek has been dealt with. Take everything important/valuable, lock the doors, and close the blinds.

>>20118508
Let's make a new one, with a lot of new Daedaluses hardcoded in to act as security.

We should check out this one here, make sure it's safe.

Ok, we need to set up anti-teleportation methods, maybe something that detects incoming teleportation and puts something there, like a brick, before they get there.

Would that work?

What happens if you teleport into something like that?

>>20118508
"Gear up, everyone. You know the safest place for us now?"
Look to the sky
"That's right. We're going to the moon."

>>20118600
Too close. Why not Neptune after we secure the mindcore?

"I promise, Lucca."
"That's all I ask." She said, and gave you a smile. "You don't even like mint ice cream, do you?"

"Let's make a new one. And I think we should check that he didn't fuck with the base computer as well." You say. "He could have, just as easily as Sleipnir's."
"Right." Azure said.

You, Lucca, Azure, and Delta tromp down to the computer core, where Azure starts examining things.
"I'm not seeing any changes in most of this. . Except that the isolated computer is empty." Azure said. "The data drive has been removed from it. Eleven is gone."

>>20118508
Make a new one. We still need a base of operations, and unfortunately we still haven't gotten around to building that moon base. Tweak the design to make it more secure if you can.

Also, call up Van-Co and order another thousand units of Nano-Meta. I get the feeling we're going to need a lot of it.

>>20118589
Teleportation is incredibly hard to detect, we'd need a 100 on a bullshit tech roll to do it, probably.

>>20118635
"Hmm... Eleven didn't have any important information anyway, and I'm pretty much the only one who could access it anyway. Maybe he thought she had important information or something."

>>20118635
They kidnapped 11? There go our rehabilitation plans. He didn't really know anything useful though. Maybe they're trying to make more sapient AIs? I don't think we ever found out how he was made.

>>20118630
>>20118635
Moonbase is better due to proximity to Earth, we're still locked into lightspeed communications so if we're out at Neptune it'll take ages for communications back-and-forth.

>>20118635
"Talos, do you know who took the data drive?"

>>20118635
Bubbles may well have mercy-killed Eleven. I wouldn't blame him - we probably should have too. We should find him and ask, somewhere among all the other shit we need to do.

>>20118643
Orrrrrrrrr we just ask 1-ship-1 to synth us some nano-meta.

>>20118673
Not entirely true. Don't forget, we can make Ansibles now. Though we'd still need an Ansible link on the Moon or Earth, which would be vulnerable.

I still agree with the Moon over Neptune though.

>>20118688
We should probably also inform them that the immediate threat to us has been neutralised.

>>20118673
Or we could just ask Gazebo for the ftl comm plans.
I don't see how the moon is any safer than Earth when they have teleporters and repulsion drives, anyway. I'd rather stay out of the solar system.

>>20118688
I thought 1-ship-1 didn't have the exotic matter he needed?

>Exa, clarify, please?

"Talos, do you know who took the data drive?"
<One moment, sir. I apologize for the delay.> Talos responded. <Ah, it was a man who was identified as Sigma. He was on the whitelist, so I assumed he was allowed in this location.>

>>20118719
You need the super-rare exotic matter to make the nano-meta synthesisers, doesn't mean we can't get 1-Ship-1 to dump a bunch off for us.

>>20118736
It's fine, he is no longer on the white list, but given that he is dead it doesn't matter.

Anyway I think we should give Three a call, I want more information on ArmaTek.

>>20118736
"From now on inform me if anyone does anything related to sensitive locations. Even myself."

>>20118736
"Thank you Talos. Is the drive still in Valhalla, or did he move it from this installation?"

>>20118736
...christ, there's more than one of them. Talos, Sigma is off the white list. Delta, here, goes on a grey list...give him access, but don't let him take anything without confirming.

No offense, Delta, but considering you're basically a clone, impersonation is an issue.

>>20118736
"When did he take it?"

"Thank you, Talos. Is the drive still in Valhalla, or did he move it from this installation? And when?"
<He removed it from the installation, and took it onboard the Sleipnir, when your group left, sir.> Talos said. <Several weeks ago.>
"The computer is installed." Azure said. "With some additional protections. I'm working on a new AI-warfare AI right now." She said.
>200 units of nanometa removed.
"Talos, from now on, inform me if anyone does anything related to sensitive locations. even myself.
<I understand.> Talos said. <Additionally, there is an incoming signal.>

To Do:
Make 2 awesome tombstones for Epona.

And a very small and basic one for Sigma.
"May he find the peace in death he lost in life."

>>20118881
Can you tell who it is?

Answer it, patch me through.

>>20118881
>Electronic warfare, not AI warfare. pay attention, exa.

>>20118883
>Epona
“With this we commemorate Epona. One of Amy's own prototypes. Some kind of high powered mech never even considered for mass production. Too awesome to live, and too dear a friend to be forgotten.”

>>20118881
Can you tell me the source of the signal?

>>20118881
"Main screen turn on."

>>20118883
Yeah, we need to dispose of his body. Something like "Here lies a fuckwit" seems a fitting epitaph. Does he have family? We should probably at least inform EE they had a spy working for them and now they don't.

"Can you tell who it is?"
<One moment. . conferring with Daedalus. It is. . a teenage girl, in San Diego.>

"Answer it."
"Hello?" You hear her say. ". . Sanya told me to call here if I ever needed help... is this Amy?"
You recognize her voice, vaguely. It's K, that girl who helped you assault Twelve's gunship. . . Also the one with the teleporter. "It's just, Matt's dead, and Sanya's dead, and now I think they're looking for me."

>>20118936
Can Amy hear this or is it just patched through to us?

>>20118936
"Matt? You mean the awesome power armor dude with the XBAWX HUEG claw? Those fuckers! This is Dave. Amy's partner. Listen, we'll be there to get you right away."

>>20118936
Tell them we're busy building a fucking moon base and they can go die

>>20118936
Hey, it's Dave.

Can you teleport far enough to get to us or are we going to have to extract you?

"Matt? You mean the awesome power armor dude with the X-BAWX HUEG claw? Those fuckers. This is Dave, Amy's partner. Listen, we'll be there to get you right away."
"No, wait!" She said. "I don't know you're not one of the ones chasing me. You're not Van Co, are you? Or one of those heavy, concrete guys? I want to talk to Amy."

>>20119010
"What, VanCo's in with those ArmaTek guys now? Shiiit. Hold on, I'll get Amy."

>>20119010
"Van Co? Shit I knew there was a connection there... Amy she wants to talk to you."

>>20118936
"This is Dave. Amy's here with me." Patch Amy in. "How good is your teleporter?"

What I have in mind is sending a Raven - since they're faster than Sleipnir - and having her teleport on board, since I doubt she can reach Valhalla. Then have the Raven fly back to Valhalla. Alternatively, use the Decoy Dave to collect her.

>>20119010
"Okay. Amy, K wants to talk to you."

<Lock our teleporter on her position, just in case somebody decides to attack her while we're talking.>

>>20119010
"The concrete guys are from ArmaTek."

>>20119010
Patch Amy into the call.

>>20119010
Sure, Amy's right here. Though we already worked together once.

Patch Amy through.

>>20119010
Let's go fuck up all of VanCo's manufacturing. Tell the VP that if his boss doesn't cut the shit we'll destroy everything that VanCo is. Then, lets destroy their mars base.

"The concrete guys are from ArmaTek. And Amy's here with me." You say. <Amy, come down to the communication terminal.>
Amy rolled into the room, and you patch her in, quickly informing her via bullfrog what she's said so far.
<Onyx, lock the teleporter on her location, just in case somebody decides to attack her while we're talking.>
<Setting up the evac teleporter array.> He responded. <Charged. Calculating. . .>
"You knew Sanya?" Amy asked. "Why did he tell you to contact me?"
"He was the one that piloted the mech, back when we took down the Phoeonix. He told me to contact you through Verne if I ever needed help- said that you owed him a favor."
"Right- the time he pulled me into cover." Amy said.
"I'm being hunted." She said. "By. . a lot of things. And people. They're looking for me."

>>20119112
<Amy, what do you think - should we take her with us if she wants to?>

>>20119112
Some of the things are actually people, and some of the people are actually things.
"Amy, go get on the evac teleporter and we'll send you over to fetch her."

>>20119112
Good to know, we'll fetch you.

Do our Evac Teleporters teleport themselves out or could we design one that teleported itself along with the person it is meant to evacuate?

>>20119188
>>20119164
Ask before sending the teleporter.

>>20119211
Yes, some warning is definitely in order.

>>20119188
>That's actually part of the way they're designed.

<Amy, what do you think - should we take her with us if she wants to?>
<We should.> She said, without hesitation. <She's part of the same thing Verne is in. I intend to see this to the end.>
"Amy, go get to the evac teleporter, and we'll send you over to fetch her." You say.
"Right." Amy said. "Stay right there, uh. . "
". . Just call me K." She responded. "And I'm waiting. . .five minutes. No more. If you have teleporters, that's long enough, right?"
"That's long enough." Amy said, and skidded away.

You watch the girl via Daedalus' satellite. She has a long wrist computer on one arm, and a backpack hanging off of her shoulder, look around worriedly, back against the wall. The computer looks much more modified than you had last seen it, and it looks like she has a handgun on her hip. She's. . really, very young, come to think of it. Sixteen?
There's a flash of blue light, and Amy and the evac teleporter appear. They talk a short while, before K nods, and the three of them vanish.
<Teleportation successful.> Onyx said.

rolled 76 = 76

>>20119112
It's a fucking ArmaTek trap to get our teleporter or us.
Tell her to meet us somewhere and we'll pick her up in a Raven.

>>20119274
>She's. . really, very young, come to think of it. Sixteen?

Well, she's basically as old as Amy.

>>20119274
<Daedalus, find out as much about her as you can.>
Let's go down to meet her then. Don't forget the bioscan that seems to be the new way of saying 'hello' around here.

>>20119274
Set up a bowl of ice cream for the poor girl.

>>20119332
If we have only mint left, we shouldn't. It's very likely she would hate us for the rest of our life, in that case.

>>20119307
>Amy's older- she's eighteen, almost nineteen.

<Daedalus, find out as much about her as you can.>
<I'm working on it, but it's rather difficult.> Daedalus said. <Data on her is limited, lord. Her name is Kirsten Bianchi, and she is not a citizen of any country that I know of.>
"Right." You say, and turn to Lucca and Azure. "I'm going to go greet her with some ice cream and a bioscan."
Lucca nodded. "Have fun."

You climb up to the kitchen, grab some neopolitan ice cream, and climb up even further to the central lobby of the base, where the evac teleporter, Amy, and K are standing.
"What's this?" K asked. She had deep bags underneath her eyes, and they were bloodshot.
"Ice cream." Amy says. "It's Antarctica's national dessert. Heh."

You deepscan her, checking her genetics, or any evidence of nano-goop modification. . It's a bit more difficult when you don't have any previous data, but everything seems legit. .

Except for the long array of computing hardware on her arm. the deepscan sees the teleporter, and its exotic material, but there's something deeper, in the nerves and muscle. . Some kind of exotic material you've never seen before.

"Thank you." She said, and took a few scoops.

She set it down, took a deep breath, and then sat back, on the floor, closing her eyes.

>>20119437
So, K, could you tell me about your teleporter?

rolled 94 = 94

>>20119437
>and then she exploded into ofVQ
>captcha Cured ThingW
CURE IT DAVE

>>20119464
>thing
>THE THING
>K IS INFESTED WITH THE THING
>CURE IT WITH FIRE

(this isn't a real suggestion, please ignore it.)

>>20119479
She does have exotic alien material inside her. And we are in the Arctic.

>>20119437
I should probably warn you that we have one of the concrete dudes here. Fairly sure he's on our side but we are being careful.

>>20119437
Pick the poor girl up, and put her in one of our guest beds.

>>20119521
Actually we're in the antarctic. Big difference.

"I should probably warn you that we have one of the concrete dudes here." You say, and she suddenly flashes blue, and vanishes.

She appears on one side of you, already on her feet, handgun pointed toward you. Her shoulders are drooped and her stance was one of extreme exhaustion, but she kept the gun elevated despite that.
"K, he's defected. He's on our side." Amy says "Fairly sure, at least, but we're being careful."
K grips the gun more tightly, then droops it.
"Fuck it, even if you are lying, there's nothing I can do." K said.

She sat down, and went back to her ice cream.
"So, K, could you tell me about your teleporter?"
"It teleports. Maximum of a few hundred meters, and I can teleport once every few seconds." She said.
Huh. . Shorter range than yours, but much faster recharge timing.

>>20119630
Where'd you get it? Do you have an AI in there to help with targeting? Do you mind if I take a peek through it, purely mentally and see what I can find out?

>>20119630
"Mother FUCKER! I am going to kill the person who keeps giving everyone else my tech! I mean, my space ship was bad enough, but now my personal teleporter too?"

>>20119630
How did you get it? I thought the one on Mars was the only one.

>>20119695
It's not ours though, it's a lot better than ours.

"Where'd you get it?"
"There was a crashed van, and Resurgence operatives started to loot it. We fought them, acquired two of these things. One went to my, one to Sanya." She said.
"Do you have an AI in there to help with targeting?"
She met your eyes.
"Something like that." She said.
"Do you mind if I take a peek through it, purely mentally, and see what I can find out?"
"Yes." She said. "I mind."

>>20119752
Oh, okay. In that case it's not ours, it's just a different version of ours.

>>20119761
Understandable. What if I told you that with the information from yours and mine I could probably improve it if you wanted.

Also have you had anything other than this implanted into you?

>>20119761
"I understand. Is there anything you need?"

"Understandable." You say. "Also, have you had anything other than this implanted into you?"
"I don't have any implants." She said. "Nothing at all. I did take a few shots from the Resurgence operatives back then, and needed surgery, but since then I've been fine."
"Is there anything you need?"
"Sleep." She said. "Just sleep."

>>20119761
Who owned the van? Or was it Resurgence that had them? I didn't think anyone else had teleporters.

>>20119858
You can use one of the guest rooms. Amy, want to show her?

>>20119858
"That's okay. We can give you a room to catch some sleep. Although, are there any other members of your group left except Verne?"

"You can use one of the guest rooms."
"Sure." She said.
"Who owned the van?" You ask, as the three of you walk.
"Don't know." She said. "All I know that it plowed into some poor bastard, then rode off before Resurgence killed the engine with some sort of explosive. M had to stick behind to get the guy to a hospital."
"How long ago was this?" Amy asked, suddenly alert.
"Uh. . half a year? Longer?"

>>20119858
Okay, you can take one of the guest rooms.

Look through the data on her and the exotic material in her, see if we can learn anything about it.

>>20119909
Thank you. Thank you very, very much. I officially owe you and M my life, I think.

Also, we both apparently have exotic matter in our systems, and the van is the most likely point of origin.

>>20119909
<Huh?>

>>20119909
"...What do you think Amy? I never saw the vehicle that hit me."

>>20119909
Hahaha, oh wow. I think I know where I got my bullshit powers now. This was in Near Future City right?

>>20119909
"So, what's your inexplicable power?"

>>20119858
But you do have an implant, under your wrist computer.

"Where was this?"
"Nearfuture city. According to what Sanya said, he said it was on the way to. . somewhere, from new york."
"Thank you." You say. "Thank you very, very much. I officially owe you and M my life, I think."
"What? Why?"
"Because approximately half a year ago I was hit by a vehicle." You say. "So, what's your inexplicable power?"
"My. . my what? I don't have anything like that."

>>20120000
Oh come on, everyone who comes to Valhalla is awesome in some way. Yours is probably something to do with that exotic matter in your arm.

>>20120000
Aw, I guess it really is genetic and not from being bitten by a radioactive van then.

>>20120000
"In that case you still have my sincere gratitude. Just rest and we'll see how we can help you once you wake up. Any requests for your breakfast?"

>>20120000
"Really? Well that's a refreshing change of pace."

>>20120000
You have giant piles of exotic material in your system, much like me, you maybe just haven't used it yet. Unless that's part of the teleporting gig.

You sure you don't want me to take a look so I can help you find out the limits of your capabilities?

>>20120000
Your arm is laced with exotic matter, the same as my spine is. It's why I asked about enhancements.

Don't worry about it, though. We can discuss it later. Mean time, you needed sleep, right? We'll wake you if anything major happens.

>>20120000
"Come on. Everyone I've met has had something. Amy is a technological genius. I have magical bullshit hacking. Azure is a sapient AI. Resurgence Operative 12 had the power of being a gigantic asshole. You have to have a -thing- of some kind."

>>20120064
Don't forget Sigma, the world's most technologically advanced junkie.

"Come on. Everyone I've met has had something. Amy is a technological genius. I have magical bullshit hacking. Azure is a sapient AI. Resurgence Operative 12 had the power of being a gigantic asshole. You have to have a *thing* of some kind."
"Well. . I do have a thing. Sometimes I can just. . touch things, and. . control them. Like. . start cars without the keys, turn off augmentations. . hack things." She said.

>>20120115
You have to touch them? Lame.

>>20120115
"Huh. Similar to my bullshit hacking, but with less range. It's probably that exotic matter in your arm."

>>20120115
"Oh shit. You're fem-Dave. Amy, she has my thing. She's crimping my style, I'm not a special snowflake anymore! WHAT DO I DO?!"

>>20120115
"That...that actually sounds a lot like my bullshit hacking. I look forward to getting to know you, Kirsten."

>>20120115
You can also do that. I call it Bullshit Magic Hacking, though I don't have to touch them. Isn't it cool? Maybe you can't do it at range because you don't have a new spine, do you want a new spine?

We're extremely excited, we just met someone else with Bullshit Magic Hacking.

"That...that actually sounds a lot like my bullshit hacking. I look forward to getting to know you, K."
"You can control people's minds too?" She asked, meeting your eyes.

>>20120115
ಠ_ಠ
<Amy, let's kill her, dissolve her body, and never speak of this again.>

>>20120163
"Never tried. Might be possible, but I'm more of a brute-force type of hacker. Doubt there'd much much of a person to control left, when I'm done. A biologic RC car, perhaps."

>>20120163
"...No, and the only people I know who can are alium assholes. Don't try that shit on us. It won't end well for you. C'mon I'll show you to your room."

>>20120163
"I've only ever tried it on fully cyberized minds, and even then, only when they're actively trying to kill me or my friends. Theoretically I could do it, but I don't think I really want to."

>>20120163
"Uhhh. Nnoooo. The only people I know of who can control organic computers are a race of horrible amoral demigod lizard-fly shapeshifters from space. I might be able to do that, but I've never really tried."

>>20120163
Uh, no. I'm never tried though.

Hey, I want you to try something, could you try controlling my brain? I want to see if it'd work on me.

>>20120163
I... never tried? I've only hacked mechanical stuff.

>>20120163
Well that's certainly a surprise.

How on earth did you manage to get into trouble with a get our of jail free card like that?

>>20120163
I....have not tried. I am effectively a digital demigod though.

"...No, and the only people I know who can are alium assholes." You say. "Don't try that shit on us. It won't end well for you. C'mon I'll show you to your room."
"... Alium assholes?" She asked Amy.
"Complete assholes." Amy said. "Only slightly alium."
"How on earth did you manage to get into trouble with a get our of jail free card like that?"
"It doesn't really work on people that has. . augments and implants and stuff. Like that dick with all the smoke drifting from him- I tried, but he just go angrier." She said. She sighed, and shook her head.
"This is your room." You say.
"For now." amy said. "We're being chased too, so we might have to get the fuck off the planet."
". . Right." K said, and slid the backpack off of her shoulder. She took off most of the computer components from her arm. . but left on a thin, tightly bound armband. You can see hints of electronics underneath it, and a small flat, rigid object that you realize is the teleporter.
"Thank you, you two." She said, and climbed into the bed. She was out before she said another word.

>>20120337
to Amy, "Well, that answers one question and raises about another hundred."

>>20120337
<Talos, please keep an eye on her. And do pffer her breakfast when she wakes up.>

>>20120337
"Damn. Must've been tired."

<Talos, keep an eye on her. If she teleports, inform me immediately and of where she went.>

>>20120414
But don't let her wander. Warn us when she wakes.

"Well, that answers one question, and raises about another hundred."
"No. . It just raises one." She said. "What the fuck was Sanya *doing*?!"

The two of you leave her room.
<Talos, please keep an eye on her. Offer her breakfast when she wakes up, warn us, and don't let her wander.> You say.
<Understood, sir.>
"Damn, must've been tired."
"She didn't even finish her ice cream." Amy said. "Poor girl."

>Well, now you guys get to choose what you need to get done. Talk to someone, build someone, go on a mission somewhere. . etc.
>WAT DO?

rolled 75 = 75

>>20120507
Let's gather the team together and work out the costs, viability and practicality of relocating to the moon.

>>20120507
Missions are probably a strategic mistake just at the moment. We should look into getting started on that moon base.

>>20120507
-Talk to Abel, we asked him to do some research on ArmaTek and an overview of their company could really help right now.

>>20120507
Call Three. We need to inform him that Resurgence might need to get militant again, because a far nastier organization than the original Resurgence has sprouted up because of a double-agent leaking our shiny tech to them, that they have no idea how to use. A shadow war is about to begin.

>>20120507
Finish the Icecream, then see about reconnecting the fluid computer. It I doubt that ArmTec have managed to copy that, so it'll be useful againt them.

Our main goals at this point are dealing with Armtec/smokey and their copy of Azure, and with Verne and co's manhunt, correct? Is there anything I've forgotten?

>>20120507
Call EE and tell them about Sigma.

>>20120528
>>20120539
Moon-base is a completely pointless waste of time.

>>20120507
Research Anti-Transportation measures.

Talk to Three, get info on ArmaTek.

Make a Moon Base.

>>20120507
1.Talk to the corps we're in good standing with. Jun and that Van Co. guy.

2. Talk to Three.

3. Talk to Abel.

4. Start some basic planning for the Neptune mission.

5. See how Bubbles is doing.

6. Could we salvage anything of the Emperor we had in stasis?

Call up Gareth and ask him what the fuck is going on and how he is connected to armatech?

Okay. First thing you need to do. Talk to people.

You go back down to the computer room, Amy at your side, and you see Lucca and Delta staring at one another, apparently in some battle of wits. .
And you see Delta promptly ambush a bunch of Lucca's drones with Terran Marauders. Oh. Futurecraft. The drones seem to dissolve, but you notice the way that she makes them spread apart only makes them *look* like they're dying.

You move on, up to Hjilsjalf and the satellite uplink there.
First, you call Jun.
"Jun Viridian, Kawasagi Electronics, Nearfuture City branch. How may I help you?" She asks.

>>20120628
I don't think Garry is connected to ArmaTek. His boss, however…

If Frank Darrow is even real.

>>20120703
We should probably apologise for dragging Sigma to her office. Explain the situation to her and why we acted that way.

>>20120703
After this, lets try our hand at futurecraft. I think we could beat them both if we tried.

>>20120733
I doub that, unless we use bullshit hacking. And I'm against using bullshit hacking when it comes to our friends, even if it's all in good spirit.

rolled 76 = 76

>>20120703
hey jun it's dave here I really need to talk to you, in a face to face kind of way...like now...can I send a raven for you I can't really talk about it over the phone...and if you can track down Mark I'd like a word or two with him also...

>>20120733
Really? They are both specialised in multi-tasking and commanding units.
I mean we could just hack the game but that's cheating.
Might as well give it a go though.

>>20120752
>>20120766
Who cares about multitasking, we just tech up and make the biggest nastiest scariest Giant Robot Spider with a DEATHLASER that we can, and then stomp all over their little dudes.

"Hey, Jun." You say.
"Dave."
"I want to apologize for dragging Sigma there. It. . turns out he's a traitor for ArmaTek. And has been for who knows how long. He had information we need. . Otherwise I wouldn't have brought him there."
"I don't like dead bodies in my office, Dave." Jun said. "God, ten years ago I never thought I'd have to say that, but here we are. Just. . don't do something like that again. Or warn me, before hand, or. . damnit."

>>20120802
"Won't happen again, I promise."

>>20120802
Well there wasn't really time for a warning. He was alive when I had the idea.

>>20120802
"I'm sorry Jun. I'll do my best to avoid such situations in the future. Do you have a clue what kind of poison killed him?"

rolled 34 = 34

>>20120802
noted...can I bring you here to valhalla for a while? I need some face to faceless-helmet time with you...and mark if you know where he is

>>20120802
I'm sorry Jun, I am. He was threatening people I knew, and I thought that if he was still alive I could sort it out quicker. Now I'm short on leads, and ArmaTek is using the time to lean how to use all my alien technology.

>>20120802
"Hey, I'm sorry. But he led me into an execution chamber with a crazy monoknife-wielding clonebitch, the single connecting hallway being secretly a gigantic disintegration cannon. Which he leaked the schematics for. Also, there were tons of lobotomite supersoldier goons. And he blew up my shit. I was just a little mad at him at the time."

"Won't happen again, I promise."
"It'll happen again." Jun said. "There won't be time for a warning, or someone will be close to dying, or. . something will happen. I don't fault you for it, Dave."
"Do you have a clue what kind of poison killed him?"
"It was an implant." She said. "In a way. They injected him with the acid in an inert form. The pill he took was a catalyst, and activated all of it. Was that what you called me for?"

>>20120864
"Yeah, how do you feel about building a moonbase?"

>>20120864
"I'm trying to sort all the trouble he's caused. Which includes arming a dangerous paramilitary group with super-technologies and wunderwaffen. One of the things he caused was you undue stress, and that seemed the simplest to sort out."

>>20120864
"No. I haven't even begun." Regale her with the story of our Armatek adventures.

>>20120887
Why the hell do you guys want a moonbase?

File: 1343777324098.jpg-(70 KB, 590x391, nazi-moon.jpg)

>>20120928
Having a gigantic D-shaped base on the moon seems rather in character for Dave. Although I agree it won't be of much use if our enemy has spaceships and teleporters.

>>20120971
Yeah, it's cool but it will be incredibly expensive and we have so many more important things to be doing. Our current base is perfectly serviceable.

>>20120900
This:
"Let me tell you a tale, Jun, One of betrayal and spite."

>>20120995
Though, setting up a new base that ArmaTek doesn't know about isn't a bad idea. Maybe not on the moon, though.

"Yeah, how do you feel about building a moonbase?"
". . I don't believe it's a very good idea. Where will you get supplies for air, food, water. . without an atmosphere, there's nowhere you can shunt extra heat." Jun said.
"And. . there's more."
"More?"
"I haven't even begun."

You tell her everything- about the way you were tricked, and the way Sigma had given ArmaTek *all* of your technologies, from power suits, to teleportation, and how you'd gone on the mission and barely escaped a trap designed specifically for you.

". . I. . I don't know how to respond." Jun said. "Should I send this information to my superiors?"

>>20121025
We've got the whole universe at our fingers, let's make it somewhere more awesome. Like Saturn, or Europa.

>>20121038
Why not just use the Emperor base where they kept Amy? That one should be perfectly serviceable. We should at least investigate it.

>>20121038
"I leave that to you, maybe consult with Grayson? He should be told, at the least. Would you like me to?"

"If you think it's a good idea."

>>20121038
Whatever you think is best Jun, I'm telling you because you're a friend. I'm not really an employee at EE anymore am I?

>>20121038
"I'm not sure either. I had hoped you'd be so kind to share your opinin."

>>20121038
Probably not, maybe to Grayson and one or two others but I'd rather this not get spread around. I want them to think they've won before I teleport the sun onto them.

>>20121054
We really should. It might have awesome new tech on it.

Wait, I thought Jun was a board member, how many more superiors can there be?

>>20121038
Probably, and look into anything he did while he was at EE. Who should I call at KI?

>>20121048
>We've got the whole universe at our fingers
>Let's make it somewhere in this solar system so it's easy to find
I don't follow.

Superweapon idea: Take a teleporter, and surround it with a giant sphere of lead, or some other inert dense metal. Then drop the thing into the sun, once it gets deep enough, teleport back the teleporter device, and a shell of sun-plasma on top of whatever you have decided should no longer exist.

"Whatever you think is best, Jun. I'm telling you because you're a friend. I'm not really an employee at EE anymore, am I?"
"No, not anymore." She said. "Not since the Resurgence issue."
"Maybe you should consult with Grayson, too. He should be told, at the least. Would you like me to?"
"No need. I'll call him up here and tell him." She said.
"Who should I call at KI?"
"I think I'm going to handle that. Ever since the merger, things are a bit topsy turvy- EE as a whole is going through a sort of identity crisis. You'll know when we're back to normal."
You can hear the grin in her voice.
"We're coming out, soon, with the first commercial Gen-3 neural implant in the world." She said. "After a bit more testing, of course."

>>20121169
"Joy. More people to hack."
Display a :P smiley on our helmet, if we're wearing it.

>>20121169
That's pretty amazing! Congratulations.

Oh and before I go, one other bit of good news, I've found someone like me! another person who can bullshit hack things. If things go well I'll bring her to talk to you and maybe you can get a published paper out of it or something.

>>20121169
More people to hack. Oh, I could probably improve it if you want, but I think we'll discuss this sort of thing later.

Take care Jun.

>>20121169
Please implant me with tons of exotic matter. It seems to give people superpowers.

>>20121191
I think we shouldn't throw our advantage away.

>>20121169
Oh, I found someone else who has weird exotic shit in their nerves and can do magical bullshit hacking.

>>20121207
What advantage? Jun's one of our oldest friends, she's not working for ArmaTek

>>20121265
A published paper tends to be available to everyone.

"Joy. More people to hack." You say. "That's really amazing. Congratulations!"
"It's a labor of love." Jun said. "It's been rough going, but I think I can accomplish it reliably now."
"Well, it's been nice talking with you." You say.
"You too, Dave. But please try and call me before teleporting into my office- If I have any guests, I don't want to freak them out. Have a nice day."
"You too."
You hang up.
Now. . who to call next?
>[] Abel (Via Dropbox)
>[] Gazebo (Via Ansible Dropbox)
>[] Three (Via Resurgence Private Tele-net Terminal)
>[] Gareth (Via. . a phone.)
>[] Other?

>>20121279
Let's ask three about the van that ran us over and the teleporters.

>>20121279
Gazebo. Tell him we're on a bit of a delay, on account of people trying to murder us and all we hold dear.

Then Three.

>>20121279
[X] Three (Via Resurgence Private Tele-net Terminal)

We have questions about the Van, K and her teleporting, and ArmaTek.

rolled 71 = 71

>>20121279
>abel
"dude, shit is going down, trust nobody, not even me unless you can verify my identity --perfectly--"

>gazebo
"hello gazebo, have you prepared the tools you will need to help me acquire the mind-core? I will request that you maintain a high level of stealth if you return to the system, people of my species may try and attack and steal the core again. please reply before teleporting back in-system"

call three

>>20121279
How long is it since we last slept? What's our brain melted % at?

For later consideration:

-Ask Amy what she wanted to tell us before Smokey the asshole knocked her out.

rolled 41 = 41

>>20121369
best begin that conversation with a stealth poke to either side of her abdomen...or perhaps via the 'frog'

>>20121279
send her a text message
"oh and for the love of god call the system something more awesome than 'bullfrog' "

>>20121369
Oh yeah, I forgot about that.

>>20121354
>Your brain is roughly at 45% by now, and you haven't slept in some time- a few days.

First, you send Abel a dropbox message.
<Dude, shit is going down. Trust nobody, not even me unless you can verify my identity *perfectly*.>

Next, you send Gazebo a message as well, borrowing Cyan's translation software.
<Have you prepared the tools you will need to help me acquire the mind-core? I will request that you maintain a high level of stealth if you return to the system, people of my species may try and attack and steal the core again. Please reply before teleporting back in-system.>

After you send those two messages, you turn to Amy. Something just occurred to you.
"What did you want to tell me before Smokey knocked you out?"
"Well. . ." She quirked her lips. "I'm having second thoughts about it. But, well. . you know that time I shot at Lucca? I'm. . not as averse to that idea as I was."

. . You turn and call Three.
"Three here. Hello, Dave." Three said.
>Wat say? What ask

>>20121438
Hi Three, you know ArmaTek? Yeah they need to go down. Sigma was a plant, they got a pile of tech we don't want them to have.

I need every single bit of data you can pull up on them. I am planning on turning them into a smoking crater.

>>20121438
"How'd you like a base of operations off the Earth. For instance, on the moon?"

rolled 35 = 35

>>20121438
"ah good the jamming is over, do you have any information on Armatek? they just tried really really hard to kill me...and they stole my toys, and they dared to try and kill my girlfriend, and they planted that first guy in your research team that tried to kill me...all in all I am very cross and I want to stomp some face...just do not look at any futurewikipedia websites of theirs...

>>20121438
Hey three, sorry if I'm interrupting anything, but do you know anything about resurgence operations approximately 6 months ago? A van accident?

>>20121438
"Hello there, Three.
I found out Callidus was working for ArmaTek. And apparently so was Sigma. They have all the tech. All of it."

>>20121438
"Hello Three. I need your advice, I'm in really big trouble."

I bet we have the whole speech about the recent days already saved. Time to recite it once more.

>>20121438
<In that case, I'd suggest we should get to know her better. We know very little about her besides the time we spent on our ops.>

>>20121537
Do we really want to tell him everything? Is three even involved in this particular mess?

>>20121567
Which parts would you exclude?

rolled 100 = 100

>>20121438
>at amy
<I can see why, over and over again, from three angles; love you darling>

>>20121594
>100
She wants to fuck.

File: 1343780415201.png-(16 KB, 379x214, 0e3.png)

>>20121594
Well, I guess we need a bigger bed. Permanently.

>>20121594
>NO. FUCK YOUR NAT100s!

<I can see why. From three angles.> You say. And you say it very, very well. You get the message across expertly. You somehow feel like you wasted something- you could have used your newfound loquaciousness to convince Amy of something... but the moment passes.

"Hey, Three, sorry if I'm interrupting anything, but do you know anything about a Resurgence Operation approximately six months ago?"
"I do remember a few operations. . " He said.
"Something about a van incident?"
"Ah, yes." He responds. "There was something moving from Van Co. to EE, and it was top secret- We had to find out what it was, so we sent a few operatives. They ended up dead, the two cases were lost, and the last was damaged irreparably- We couldn't find even a single gram of it."

rolled 99 = 99

>>20121709
I know where they went, don't ask I wont tell

>>20121709
u mad Exabyte?

in all honesty, as you should know by now that, was not intentional...but it was funny

>>20121709
Oh, good to know. You never got any additional information on what was being shipped?

Back on topic, ArmaTek. Tell me everything about them, hierarchy, leadership, base locations, everything.

>>20121709
Ask him if that dude from wikipedia actually is his boss.

"Oh, good to know. You never got any additional information on what was being shipped?"
"Not particularly." He said. "We have a few reports, but nothing reliable. And the cell who pulled that op didn't survive."
"Also. . . I need your advice. I'm in really big trouble."
"What kind of trouble?"
You tell him. You tell him what you told Jun, and what you told Lucca. Sigma's an asshole, ArmaTek's an asshole, Smokey's an asshole, assholes everywhere.

"I see." He said. You hear him scratching at his chin. "Here is my suggestion. Sue for peace. Tell them you'll get them some new technology, and or assist them in making a new QC-2- Yes, I know they think you blew it up, it was on encrypted messages- And then sue for peace. You've already destroyed quite a bit- I don't think they'd want to sink more money into a futile prospect."

>>20121869
I don't think that will work. At the very least Smokey has a personal vendetta against us and wants us dead. Maybe we can try that after we crush his spine into powder.

>>20121869
"Thanks, Three.
By the way, I've got a lead on what was in that van. Some sort of exotic material, apparently the kind that allows direct human/electronic interface."

>>20121869
"Do you have any clue how I could reach their boss? Captain Minerva has a real hate-on for me."

>>20121869
"But can we really let assholes run around with world-changing tech like that?"

P.S. I just remembered our discussion about patents and how if we don't patent it they won't know it exists. I think now would be the time to patent fucking everything before ArmaTek can.

>>20121869
Thanks. Do you have any idea how to contact the higher ups?

Do you know where any of their bases or centers of operations are?

"But can we really let assholes run around with world-changing tech like that?"
"Assholes? From the story you told, it seems that only Captain Minerva is an asshole, and everyone else is just doing their jobs. Not to mention, your . . uhm, sister, did start all of this. It's not entirely their fault, and you'd be killing innocent men."
"Do you have any clue how I could reach their boss? Captain Minerva has a real hate-on for me."
"I can try my best, but Battleaxe has always been an enigmatic person. If I get anything, I'll bring it to you." Three said.

>>20121945
"Do you really think the stuff they pull with the clones who end up as heavies isn't at least a bit assholish?"

>>20121945
Sigma was an asshole. He fucking copied Azure. We need to deal with that shit.
And the whole company treats sapient beings as slaves because they're not exactly human.

"Do you really think the stuff they pull with the clones who end up as heavies isn't at least a bit assholish?"
"It's much better than using real people as soldiers." Three said. "Real people who have families and lives to leave behind."
"Sigma was an asshole. He fucking copied Azure. We need to deal with that shit. And the whole company treats sapient beings as slaves because they're not exactly human."
"But. . they aren't human." Three said, somewhat hesitantly. "That's a fact."

>>20122013
"How do you mean?"