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Hello, mother!

Daily reminder

>Raid OQ
>Read the locked memories of that thinker.
>Board a scav vessel for their FTL.
>Send a diplomacy team to earth.
>Build that new FTL prediction building.
>Take Reprive (I think that is the system that our mother made her last stand and it only has mining corvetts, it would be a great test for our raiding fleet.)

>>1724920
It's the best time of the week again!

Thanks to this quest I now get slightly suspicious whenever I see an insect just hanging out on a wall or ceiling.

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>>1724920
TIME TO DO THE THING FOR MOTHER!

>>1724920
Time for ancient alien diplomacy!!

First thing we need to say to say once we finish talking to cluster is.

"The give is happy to ibform the humans that *indescredible bug noises* accepted in not consume all the living matter of this world and at it to it's on. The Hive will be taking it out of your hands imediatly."

>>1724941
>>Build that new FTL prediction building.
HEY
HEY
WE DID THAT LAST THREAD

>>1724969
Ah right my mistake.


Daily reminder

>Raid OQ
>Read the locked memories of that thinker.
>Board a scav vessel for their FTL.
>Send a diplomacy team to earth.
>Take Reprive (I think that is the system that our mother made her last stand and it only has mining corvetts, it would be a great test for our raiding fleet.)

>>1724979
And when we get back to the infiltrators, everyone remember that in myth Theseus was the one who killed the minotaur and solved the labyrinth.

Might be important.

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>>1724920
Your agents grip the console, the plastic and thin metal warping and cracking in their augmented grip as data seethes through their minds like a pulsing fire overwhelming all over sensations. Your flies have established a perimeter, observing from the ventilation system in the surrounding chambers as corporate commandos rush in to the outer labs. They approach the camouflaged tarp slowly, one poking it with his rifle before they slice through it with a blade and proceed within. Another fire team is above as they breach the outer door of the secure facility. Your flies can only watch from a distance as the first team quickly rush up the burnt hole in the floor with the second rush through the main door and out of your visual sight, although you can hear them still, their boots scraping the metal floor. A moment later you head the high pitched whine of several recon drones. You remember them, long ago when Lyle first arrived on your world. A moment later, your clones can feel the faint vibrations of the sonic frequencies just beyond the door of the lab. One of your agents turns with his weapon as a small orb rushes in, its body flashing with miniaturizes short range ladar sensors.

Your agent puts it down immediately, before it can fully enter the lab, but even still its loss will be detected all the same.

"Alright, backup is here and we just ran out of time. Do we have the data or not?" Sam says.

>Have your techs attempt to gather more data
>Attempt to create a defensive line against the commandos
>Charge the control room
>Attempt to gain access to the Aegis project files
>Other (write in)

>>1725005
Is the Q-Comm in the control room with the Smith?

We really need Theseus help

>>1725015
If possible then yes.

My thoughts on this: we don't need our team to extract. We'll have the data either way. Our clones are replaceable; the guys with us aren't. If our partner loses some of his best guys, we might be able to make him more reliant on our aid in the future, not to mention that we'd have the data that he wanted for leverage.

>>1725005
>Attempt to create a defensive line against the commandos

It can't be helped. Mr. Smith is next.

>>1725005
>Other (write in)
"Are some notes from James Luscious smith talking about Cybernetics and Valen interface tech enough?"

>>1725005
Might be worth getting the aegis files running so Sam or a Brawler can use that iron man suit to hold off the Smith and Commandos so our Techs can focus on the juicy stuff or getting Theseus in

>>1725032
Basically this.

>>1725026
Or we piss him off.

>>1725005
>>Attempt to create a defensive line against the commandos

>>1725015
He can't help against bullets which is the immediately pressing issue.

>>1725056
then the aegis is looking more tempting

>>1725039
Sometimes missions fail and people die.

That's not our fault.

>>1725056
The team is expendable. Getting a Theseus instance in here with remote access would probably accomplish a lot. At the very least it would be worth running the situation by him.

GAS THE SQUIDS
NUKE THE WHALES
STAB THE MONKEYS
TRUST NOTHING
THE VOID IS WATCHING

>>1725005
>Attempt to gain access to the Aegis project files

>>1725032
Maybe you shouldn't admit how much you've succeeded in an inhumanly fast amount of time in front of the enemy who can hear you.

>>1725005
>>Have your techs attempt to gather more data
and mention >>1725032

>>1725005
>>Attempt to create a defensive line against the commandos
>Have your techs attempt to gather more data

Why can't we do both? Have one or both techs remain plugged into the database while the rest of the squad forms a defensive line.

>>1725065
Kind of agree here. The terrorist agents are entirely expendable. The information we've already gathered is well worth their lives and whatever "alliance" we would want to form with a small underground movement. If we can get them out that's great, but it shouldn't be our highest priority by a long shot.

>>1725073
Sam is asking for the data, doesn't seem like our tech guys were inhumanly quick.

>>1725090
Sam doesn't know just how much data we've acquired or how good the security is. The Smith may be able to deduce our clones are more than human judging by how quickly they broke impossible to break quantum encryption.

>>1725096
>Sam doesn't know just how much data we've acquired or how good the security is.
which is why i'm only telling him about James.
>The Smith may be able to deduce our clones are more than human judging by how quickly they broke impossible to break quantum encryption.
True.

>>1725005
>>Attempt to create a defensive line against the commandos
>>Have your techs attempt to gather more data
Alternatively this >>1725015 if at all possible

>>1725032
>>1725005
Seconding.

>>1725005
>Attempt to create a defensive line against the commandos
Please roll 1d100, best of 3.

>Have your techs attempt to gather more data

>Have one of your techs access the Aegis files
>Have both continue to gather data (write in what information to search for)
>Other

Rolled 81 (1d100)

>>1725158
FOR MOTHER!

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Rolled 15 (1d100)

>>1725158
Stab the monkeys for Mother!

Rolled 33 (1d100)

>>1725158
For the Void

>Have one of your techs access the Aegis files

Rolled 50 (1d100)

>>1725158

>>Have both continue to gather data (write in what information to search for)

If we could, try to find clues as to the weapons testing location for the neutrino beam?

Find out if Dr. Smith is still at this company, and where the heck could he be?

Unless that's on a separate network.

>>1725158
>Have one of your techs access the Aegis files

>Other:
>Have the second tech attempt to find the names and locations of the researchers, staff, and other persons associated with any of the Void projects in any way.

>>1725158
>Have one of your techs access the Aegis files

>>1725164
And it still works.
also hope it's enough.

>>1725158
>>Have both continue to gather data (write in what information to search for)
The Prometheus Project. That's what the Union is using their last void shard for on Tadega.

>>1725185
>names
"Smith, Smith, Smith, and Smith."

>>1725181
Actually we could smash and grab that Canderon synthesis research instead...

>>1725191
Didn't we already gather information on the Prometheus project? If not changing my vote from: >>1725185
to
>Have both continue to gather data (The Prometheus Project)

>>1725200
Hopefully we can get some info similar to that from our "partners" at the shady Canderon megacorp we'll be working with.

>>1725158
>>Have one of your techs access the Aegis files

>>1725216
That would be an insane hope, they aren't going to ever give away shit like that that could undermine their entire business to anyone.

And hardly anyone would vote to hack the people seemingly 'nice' to the hive.

>>1725158
>Have one of your techs access the Aegis files
>Gather detailed data on the Prometheus Initiative

Please give me 2d100, best of 3 for your techs.


dice+3d100

Rolled 28, 45 = 73 (2d100)

>>1725228
You're forgetting that the owner of the corporation is an ancient fuck stuck in a medical pod. I imagine he might be quite receptive to some offers we could make privately.

Also, they're willing to work quasi-openly with Theseus, the Commonwealth, and not to mention Alien-invaders. That corporation seems rather low on morality all things considered.

>>1725274
FOR MOTHER!

Rolled 90, 34 = 124 (2d100)

>>1725274
For mother!

>>1725274
dice+3d100 Does this not work with spoilers?

Rolled 65, 8 = 73 (2d100)

>>1725274
For Theseus!

Rolled 19, 46 = 65 (2d100)

>>1725274
For Mother!

>>1725284
It would seem not.

>>1725281
What in the world did morality have to do with anything?

Rolled 57, 82, 44 = 183 (3d100)

>>1725297
Nevermind, I'm just being dumb. As a QM I think I've needed to use the dice option maybe twice in the past five years. I usually just have you do the rolling.

Anyways, writing.

>>1725284
Did typing dice in the post body ever work in anything?

>>1725314
No, I just keep forgetting how to do it since I always just have you guys roll for everything.

>>1725312
QD rolling for something...

[nervous]

>>1725274
>>1725281
>>1725283
>>1725286
And then the Prometheus server ironically caught on fire.

>>1725384
Don't forget we have ally NPC's if anything he might be rolling for the commandos one for our allies and another for the Smith.

>>1725312
Panic, QD rolled an 82

>>1725402
And our best second roll was a 45.

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>the Hive against literally everybody we've fought so far

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>>1725551
I think this also works.

>>1725274
"Cover the door, we can get them in a bottleneck!" Your clone says as Sam and the others open the doorway overlooking the living quarters. The hallway across the room holds little cover, although the angle of fire could be better. Your other clones stand at the door to the control room, wary of the man within as your techs continue their work.

"How much time do you need?" Feng asks.

"How much do we have? I feel like we're on a hard deadline here." Your tech replies. Your other agent unplugs from the terminal.

"I bet I can get us some more." He says and one of your brawlers moves with him as he rushes to the workshop. "Hold them off and keep them out of this room, we can catch them in a cross fire from here."

"I got that covered." Sam says. "You fellas put down fire, I'll hit them from the side when they get here." He follows the clones into the workshop, quickly moving to the other door and taking cover behind a small counter. He looks back at your clones. "What's your plan?"

"I'm gonna see if this thing works." Your tech replies as he holds his neural jack between his fingers, and he quickly plugs it into the terminal. Your brawler examines the armor. The design is deceptively simple, sheets of metallic alloy layered over one another to form some manner of flexibility, its design rather ironically reminiscent of truly ancient armors of the roman segmented cuirass from earth's own distant past. The plates are unfolded, like a flower, the inside coated in padding and layers of smart gel covered in medical sensors and neural contacts.

"You think this is even comparable?" Your brawler says as he examines the suit.

"Should be, if they use the same standard as the normal drop suit." Your tech replies. "Now get in, we're gonna do them a favor and give this thing a field test. I'm working on rushing through the system diagnostic. The computer is still in diagnostic mode and the neural integration is still not working, so you'll have to be running it manually with no force safety, so try not to rip your own arm off when you move."

"No worries, can just get a new one later." Your brawler says as he steps into the suit, locking his legs into the open boots of the suit as he reaches his arms into the gauntlets, feeling the small glove-like armature controls for the hands.

"Alright, now this thing says it's auto-fitting to user proportions... but it also might crush you to death so, uh, let's see if this works!"

cont.

>>1725636
we super brawler nao

>>1725685
We iron man brawler now.

>>1725693
Here's to hoping we can fly and shoot lasers. That would be awesome.

>>1725698
The hive can always improve human tech. We are quite good at it by now.

>>1725703
>so those super suits look oddly familiar, where did you get the idea to make those?
>this speaker has no idea what you're implying

>>1725717
Not
>"We recently acquired human lore identified as 'comic books' from The Lee's friends."

>>1725793
> "At first Hive thought it were grafic books of human history. The hive was quite sad when the Lee told us you haven't reached such level of high-tech. Very dissapointing."

>>1725636
Your brawler winces as the plates quickly fold in around him, molding themselves to fit his figure as the helmet seals over his face, its blank face a sleek, reflective surface coated in sensor equipment. The darkness within the suit is quickly illuminated with the computer's own diagnostic system, rapidly skipping through safety tests and security protocols as the user interface flickers with the interference of your tech's manipulation.

"What weapons do I have?"

"You have, let's see.... some built in blades in the arms, rather standard, there's some magnetic coils built into the forearms too, look's like a similar result as your sledges."

"Anything with more reach? I can't go in with fists in a gunfight."

"Well... I don't think you fully appreciate how strong of a punch you'll have, but... uh... not installed... not installed... no ammunition.... uh."

"This thing does have guns, right?" Your brawler asks with some agitation.

"Well, there are shoulder mounted micro-rockets, but they're loaded with test rounds, so non-explosive, and probably not going to punch through much armor." Your brawler quickly flicks through the user interface, examining its controls and finding the system status report.

"What's an impulse cannon? That sounds fun."

"Looks like a miniaturized force gun, like a sonic shotgun. Looks like it's integrated into the impactors so you won't actually need to make contact to punch someone, but the range is atrocious and likely not reliably lethal."

"Hold on, canderon levels, why is this thing reading out canderon levels? This thing doesn have a power tap does it? I don't want to be wearing a black hole in a gunfight, fuck that."

"No it's... oh. Mother have mercy what is this." Your tech examines the readout, following the traced lines of gravitic technology integrated throughout the suit. "It's, uh, called a gravitic rig. It's integrated into the suit itself so it doesn't come up in the weapon readout but... okay, the manipulation controls should be on screen now."

"Holy hell, can I keep this thing?"

"No, but get it out of here and I'm sure you'll get one of your own."

cont.

>>1725848
new mission priority: this tech

we need it

>Mother have mercy what is this.

I love all of our kids they are so cute.

Note to self: build Bartholomew a exosuit.

>>1725866
If it does what I think it does, once we punch our way out of here he can fly it out.

>>1725848
Holy shit. Man portable black hole generator get.

Nice!

>"Looks like a miniaturized force gun, like a sonic shotgun. Looks like it's integrated into the impactors so you won't actually need to make contact to punch someone, but the range is atrocious and likely not reliably lethal."

Okay either tje scientist thaat build this is a complete weeb or he plays monk. Geez if thia work this can ignore normal armor and cause internal damage.

>>1725848
>hand-located miniaturized force guns
>shoulder-mounted micro-rockets
>a "gravity rig" powered by canderon

Oh sweet Mother it's an Iron Man suit.

>>1725943
More precisely a War Machine suit.

And most of you fuckers said the Aegis suit was worthless last time

>>1725943
God damn, you're completely right.
I wonder if it has an integrated A.I. too ala JARVIS...

>>1725943
>>1725973
If we had downloaded Theseus, he might've been able to fly the suit out himself by pulling an Ultron

>>1725973
What do you think it would happen if Theseus used this thing as his body? I thing we are reaching at a level of thousand of theseus instances in this suits figthing in space.

>>1725943
...oh my god.

>>1725992
Candy supplies might limit the quantity a bit.

>>1725992
As soon as we get those new systems,we should set aside some of our metal for him,as well as a gift for Heretic.Speaking of which,I want to see how the Skyl clones are coming along.

>>1726009
Not if we manage to grab that tech to synthesize canderon.

>>1726009
The Valen already offered us massive amounts of Raw canderon as part of a trade, we have a canderon producing mega-corp kissing our ass, and we already have a supply from the commonwealth. We have plenty of paths to easily improve production

>>1726069
>>1726052

He meant unity cald production, remembers he also needs to use it for the rest of his ships and infrastructure

>>1726083
Yeah the limit on Canderon is probably one of the biggest factors holding back Unity from superproduction

>>1725848
You know I shouldn't be terribly surprised somebody tried to fit a miniaturized power tap into a drop suit. They've already figured out how to make them small enough to build them into grav bikes, I suppose this was the next logical step in weaponizing the technology.

>>1726069
But none of those potential sources have as of yet actually yielded any Canderon to us, and will likely take some time to actually begin a steady supply of the stuff. And given how many threads it takes to cover the events of a single day in this quest, it could very well take multiple years IRL for any of those potential sources to bear fruit.

>>1726094
Yeah, that's why he hasn't recovered from all the losses he taken so far

We just grow our stuff out of food and water but hes limited by the rarity of calderon, means he always have a hard limit to how much ships he can support

Well that was a rather nice marathon.
Things that I don't know:
Couldn't grav plating be used to defeat the gravity anomaly sensing that theseus came up with?
Could a psi sensor tower be fitted to a ship and be used to more accurately land blink drive jumps?

>>1725848
Your clones stand at the door to the control room with their weapons drawn as the others quickly move out. Your tech's mind is filled with data as his consciousness struggles to find the strands of data within the quantum aether of the encrypted database.

Hiromi follows the others outside as Feng looks over the console, glancing over the instruments as the tech stands hunched over it in a trance.

"How's your progress?" Feng asks.

"Not too great. The system is starting to collapse, their AI was slow to react at first, especially in here, but whoever the staff was they've evacuated and let the AI off its leash."

"Don't fry yourself." Feng says. "We still need-" There is a sound of glass breaking and a gunshot mutes whatever it was he was about to say. Your brawler's weapon smokes with plasma fumes as the burnt hole in the ceiling crumbles bits of embers down onto them, the weapon's barrel gripped by Adam as he hoists it into the air with a quick jerk, lifting your clone with it. An open palm impacts your brawler's chest, and you feel six ribs crack, the solidified sternum reinforcing cracking with hairline fractures down the middle, and your agent impacts the wall, landing in a torso shaped dent in the sheet metal wall, the plasma shotgun sparking from damage as flames leak from its vents. Feng lets out a part of a startled curse as he hoists up his own weapon, spraying the room with weapons fire as the man drops low and lunges forward. You can hardly see it between the two clones in the room as Feng is sent into the air, and the man quickly spins, landing a firm roundhouse kick that sends him flying over the terminal and into the reinforced transparasteel window.

Your tech's reaction, as good as it is, may as well be paralyzed in the short span of time it takes for the man to move with your clone's mind split between the neural link and the combat at hand. A firm open hand presses against the back of your clone's helmet, and your tech grabs it to fight off the grapple as his face is brought firmly into the terminal, your agent's faceplate shattering against the internals of the computer hardware. You feel a sudden tug, and your clone is swung back and into a wall as the man wraps the neural jack around his hand as a sudden burst of electricity rips through your agents mind, disrupting his connection as his mind drifts in and out of your consciousness.

cont.

>>1726265
SMITH ARE HERE

>>1726265
That was perfect timing on my playlists part.

>>1726276
He was here when we got here. I don't know why we didn't shoot him in the head when we first showed up. I mean, he's been standing there this whole time.

>>1726287
Whatcha listening to anon?

>>1726320
I think it was something with the opportunity cost of starting an engagement in a place which could be easily destroyed while denying our objective.

Still, in retrospect taking smith out back and putting him down would've likely been the smarter move.

>>1726320

March, of the 2007 Fullmetal Alchemist OST.

>>1726265
Alright "Adam Smith", time for you to learn the "operators" you're fighting are about as human as you are.

Kick his ass.
For Mother.

>>1726265
Your agent looks over to the sound of gun fire, and then back again as the faint sound of a breaching charge priming reaches your clones' enhanced ears. A moment later, the door flies from its frame, traveling the distance of the hallway and sliding against the floor as two grenades roll into the living room. Your clones look away as their helmets dim and their audio filters mute as the two flash bangs burst in the room, followed by a sudden hail of gunfire. Sam quickly tosses his own grenades, minus the pin this time, back down the hall, bouncing them off the wall as you hear several quick shouts and plasma engulfs the hallway, blasting out into the living room like the muzzle flash of a cannon. A moment later your forces open fire down the hall, blindly filling it with plasma and projectiles.

Hiromi looks back as your tech collapses to the floor, shaking violently as smoke simmers from the neck in thin wispy clouds.

"Behind us!" She shouts, and quickly throws a slender knife from her arm. The man holds up his forearm, catching the blade in the flesh of his arm and quickly plucking it out as she clicks a button on her wrist and shields her eyes. The knife explodes in a momentary blinding light as a wall of heat washes over your clones.

"Go now! I'll cover the door!" Sam says as your clones quickly pivot, turning their weapons back to the control room as Sam flips open his axe and pulls out a hand cannon.

"I still can't move, dammit get me in the fight!" Your brawler shouts from within the suit.

"Working on it. Okay, be careful, the only way to boot this thing up in time was to just shut off the safety systems. Every time you move it's going to give you full force, so don't move too suddenly or overcompensate or the suit will snap you in half like a twig." As your tech finishes his warning, the armature on the wall snaps off as the suit's leg kicks forward with an companied cursing from behind the faceplate. The arm rips out of the wall, reaches over to the other armature and yanks it away with a quick jerking motion.

"Alright, the neural controls are still down so I'll keep tabs on your subsystems."

"Never thought I'd need a copilot for a suit."

"Normally a VI made from a neural ghost does this, but those take time to make and we don't even have the neural links to make it work. This thing is still a test platform, I bet you're the first person to ever get in it."

Your clone examines his arms as the plates crackle with bolts of built up static from the internal impact coils, the energy dissipation systems entirely missing from the unfinished suit. The back unfolds, opening almost like a set of stubby wings, the frame glowing with an iridescent light that splits the light of the workship's lamps into a faint rainbow.

>Have your clone use the Aegis to fight the Smith agent
>Have your clone use the Aegis to hold off the corporate commandos
>Other

>>1726515
>>Have your clone use the Aegis to fight the Smith agent

>>1726515
>Have your clone use the Aegis to fight the Smith agent

>>1726515
>>Have your clone use the Aegis to fight the Smith agent
Post-human supermen throw down time, woohoo.

>>1726515
>Have your clone use the Aegis to fight the Smith agent
Fuck smiths.

>>1726515
>>Have your clone use the Aegis to fight the Smith agent

>>1726515
>Have your clone use the Aegis to fight the Smith agent

>"Normally a VI made from a neural ghost does this, but those take time to make and we don't even have the neural links to make it work. This thing is still a test platform, I bet you're the first person to ever get in it."
Theseus, have we got an idea for you.

>>1726515
>Have your clone use the Aegis to fight the Smith agent

>>1726515
If we're holding position, the Agent is a better choice

If we are willing to move and make breathing room to fight the agent, the commandos

>>1726515
>>Have your clone use the Aegis to fight the Smith agent

Now son, don't mess up his pretty face brain

>>1726515
>>Have your clone use the Aegis to fight the Smith agent

>>1726540
Oh man imagine if this dude functions as an extremely aggressive form of data backup.

>>1726550
Probably a good thing he's fighting the suit and not the commandos, then. If he were fighting the commandos and they were all acting with perfect coordination as one being - and then the Union reviewed that footage later - that would be quite revealing of who was behind this raid.

>>1726515
>Have your clone use the Aegis to fight the Smith agent

Please roll 1d100, best of 3

Rolled 88 (1d100)

>>1726562
FOR MOTHER!

>>1726562
Off with his head!

Rolled 95 (1d100)

>>1726562
ez pz

Rolled 51 (1d100)

>>1726562

Rolled 5 (1d100)

>>1726562
Mothers Love.

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>>1726566

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>>1726566
You get a treat.
>>1726569
You get recycled.

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>>1726566
HELLO SMITH! HOW ARE YOU DOING TODAY?

>>1726575
>You get recycled.

Into treats.

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>>1726566
Sayonara Smith.

>>1726575
Yeah that's about my average roll. Hopefully the recovered nutrients will be of more use than this drone.

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>>1726566
>95
You've made a terrible mistake, Mr. Smith.

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>>1726566
CYBORGS AINT SHIT

>>1726579
That aint no moth

>>1726600
shhh you'll summon he who must not be mentioned

>>1726579
How adorable

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>>1726679
>You've made a terrible mistake, Mr. Smith.

>>1726566
LEMON SQUEEZY FOR MOTHER

>>1726562
Your clones open fire into the cloud of smoke, the scent of chemicals thick in the air as Hiromi pulls out another knife as she raises a machine pistol. A figure moves forward, flashing through the cloud, one arm burnt and charred, still simmering with flames as sheets of fake skin burn on the ground behind him. Hiromi throws the next knife as Adam swipes it out of the air, the blade landing deep in his burnt palm as he quickly flips out the blade and sinks it into her arm as the blade detonates, sending a thick mist of burning chemicals and tissue out around them both. One of your brawlers charges forward, arm blades unsheathed as the smith spins the machine pistol out of Hiromi's arm and into his grip, quickly leaning out of the way of the first swipe as your brawler swings his blade, then punches the agent's side. He catches the fist in his free hand and wings in his elbow, cracking the chitin cybernetic as a wave of pain shoots through your clone, and the smith agent's heel impacts your clone's face, sending him sprawling away as a mixture of reinforced glass and polymer flies from his helmet.

The rest of your clones raise their weapons, hesitating with a sudden mental warning as the wall erupts into shrapnel and twisted scrap of metal and plastic, your agent's stolen suit hurling itself through the air like a bullet and tackling the smith agent as both tumble over one another. Your clone punches at the agent as he ducks out of the way, the window behind him shaking with force. The agent swings a punch of his own, and your clone palms it, guiding the force around before hurling the agent through the air and into the wall.

"I got this." Your clone says, and the suit begins to shimmer, the floor tiles around it rippling with force as the paint peels away, the smoke clearing as debris flies away as the suit's rig unfolds, glowing with iridescent colors. The wall panels shake and crack, and the floor buckles as the Aegis suit enters a sprint.

"Warning: Aegis deflector power output exceeds safe limi- Override accepted." A voice in the helmet chirps for a moment as your tech finishes bypassing the suit's testing programming, and the wall buckles from some invisible, twisting wall of gravitic force before your clone even reaches it, the smith agent sent sprawling back into the wall as the it collapses and they both fall through the mixture of power conduits and ventilation to the laboratory beyond, tumbling to the ground as your clone feels itself slow before he reaches the ground as terminals bellow shatter and flatten as the suit falls, landing in a shallow crater in the ground.

The smith spins in the air, quickly finding his balance and landing on his feet with the machine pistol in hand. He opens fire, the bullets flickering with a flash of light as they glance off some unseen force, their paths curving to either side of your clone's suit.

cont.

>>1726720
Holy shit we have a gravitic deflector shield that is man-portable
Now, how catastrophic would it be if said suit would detonate its canderon?

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>>1726720
>"Warning: Aegis deflector power output exceeds safe limi- Override accepted." A voice in the helmet chirps for a moment as your tech finishes bypassing the suit's testing programming, and the wall buckles from some invisible, twisting wall of gravitic force before your clone even reaches it, the smith agent sent sprawling back into the wall as the it collapses and they both fall through the mixture of power conduits and ventilation to the laboratory beyond, tumbling to the ground as your clone feels itself slow before he reaches the ground as terminals bellow shatter and flatten as the suit falls, landing in a shallow crater in the ground.
>The smith spins in the air, quickly finding his balance and landing on his feet with the machine pistol in hand. He opens fire, the bullets flickering with a flash of light as they glance off some unseen force, their paths curving to either side of your clone's suit.

Holy Shit.

>>1726720
we
need
this

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>>1726729
Oh my.. i wonder how much it would do against this facility...maybe even cripple it?

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>tfw everyone was calling the Aegis project a waste of time to investigate

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>>1726747
The background needs to be on fire or a has a flamer drone setting something on fire.

>>1726744
Hopefully our tech Copilot is finding lot's of useful data from this fight for our Thinkers.

>>1726720
Holy mother this is awesome.

Imagine if we created a titan sized version of this.

>>1726750
Well to be fair, the suit just seems to do with gravetic energy what we can do with shields, hardlight, or sheer psionic force. But this could very well help us further our own gravetic research, so we're still totally going to jack it.

Now let's swe to improve this beauty we MUST build one suit with cloaking tech, also remove the rocket launcher and replace with a Scav shoulder blaster, just like the one from the predator let's see..what more? I guess it already has a type or personnel shield? maybe add one to protect it from blaster fire?

>>1726766
i still think Hard light would be more effective against plasma bolts and this one more effective against slug throwers.

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>>1726765
We can just build a bigger suit of armor to stick this suit of armor in!

No, wait, that would be stupid.

>>1726779
Didn't that manage to make the emperor so angry that tears spilled and a hive world ended up drowning?

>>1726720
>to the laboratory beyond
Hey he can smack the commandos around with the Smith or maybe deflect some bullets in their direction at this rate.

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>>1726779
Not if you convert it

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>>1726794
Okay, so we build our own Smiths, then put them in this armor, and then put that in a hive dreadknight. Like some unholy robot-mantis turducken.

Pic is what I'm waiting for with bated breath.

>>1726720
Sam swings his axe, catching a commando in the throat as he swings himself with the leverage, spinning the corporate trooper to the side as he fires his hand cannon at the others along the hall. He pulls his axe free and swings again, planting the backhand spike into the side of a trooper's helmet as the spike retracts with a click. He fires several more rounds, catching one commando in the arm with a micro-rocket and throws the axe at another, planting the axehead firmly in the shoulder of another trooper as he slides behind cover. A hail of weapons fire shreds at the wall, and a grenade rolls across the floor in front of him. He spins out of cover, kicking it firmly as it explodes half way between him and the door. His armor seems to take most of the damage, but he is knocked back and out of cover. Your clones rush past, your survivalist grabbing Sam and pulling him to the side as your remaining brawler charges in and your sharpshooter dives into a slide across the hall as he fires his pistols into the bottleneck.

Your tech watches the bedlam unfold as he quickly examines the Aegis systems, then unplugs from the terminal and rushes to the control room where a mixture of allies and clones are scattered across the floor. Your other tech is alive, but barely, and your brawler can hardly breath, although his mind is coming in more clearly. The other brawler is less fortunate, his consciousness faint but weakening, and in no condition to fight.

>Have your tech plug the Q-comm relay into the control room's communications system
>Have your tech help your allies
>Other (write in)

>>1726827
>>Have your tech plug the Q-comm relay into the control room's communications system

>>1726827
>Have your tech plug the Q-comm relay into the control room's communications system

>>1726827
>Have your tech plug the Q-comm relay into the control room's communications system
Get this done, and everyone can retreat.

>>1726827
>>Have your tech plug the Q-comm relay into the control room's communications system

Just to make sure: Where's the other end of the Q-comm?

>>1726827
>>Have your tech plug the Q-comm relay into the control room's communications system.

>>1726835
Probably Theseus. Or a better faster connection for the Hive so we can get the rest of the data. Or both. It'll certainly be good.

>>1726827
>Have your tech plug the Q-comm relay into the control room's communications system

>>1726840
Looks like we're doing it regardless. I'm in.

>>1726827
>>Have your tech plug the Q-comm relay into the control room's communications system.

>>1726840
What. It was neither of those things you just made up.

>>1726835
We got the comm from Kent, duhh.

>>1726827
>>Have your tech plug the Q-comm relay into the control room's communications system
Say, is Hiromi still alive or did that explosion take her out?

>>1726846
>We got the comm from Kent, duhh

Right, right.

>"Once you make it there, implant the Q-comm encoder into the quantum network. That will give me full direct access to the whole system from here. Then extract as quickly as possible. Avoid engaging any enemy if possible. If that's not possible, well, you didn't dress to impress for the hell of it."

>>Have your tech plug the Q-comm relay into the control room's communications system

>>1726846
I guess we can do both.

I will admit, I did forget about the Kent connection.

>>1726851
I believe we may be able to key Theseus in due to our shared tech of quantum communications fuckery (can't remember the name) that allows someone to attune a new Q-Comm to already established relays

This would allow Theseus to create a link and make himself an instance in the system, possibly overwriting the security AI or fighting it to help us

>>1726827
What can Tech help with that the parasites pumping them with healing salve can't do?

>>1726858
No, you can't do both, or even either of those things, because if Kent has half a brain his end of the Q-comm is as isolated and secure as this place.

>>1726827
>Have your tech plug the Q-comm relay into the control room's communications system

Keep to the mission.

>>1726861
So you'd take bulky specialized quantum equipment, and a spare unpaired, second relay, retune it so that it connects to the relay Kent gave us and severing his quantum string, then have to escape with our end of the relay past the commandos until we can hole up with it somewhere secure to connect it to Theseus without Kent's agents interfering or objecting.

All with stuff we didn't actually bring with us in the first place.

>>1726889
All the internal data is still encrypted right. And it will take Kent a very long time to decode it?

We don't want Kent knowing about the Void study efforts or even worse, releasing that data publicly in a misguided attempt to discredit the Union.

We may need to have a "chat" with Kent in the future.

Hypothetically, I wonder how his security would deal with ghost beetles, whisperer stealth drones, flies, and clones on the inside if we were to attempt to move on his operation.

>>1726894
Man, I'm bullshitting here just as much as you are and trying to enjoy the quest, ain't gotta be salty about it

I don't know how half this stuff works and clearly neither does 96% of the players here so we're just trying to have a good time

>>1726898
No worries. Figuring out the limits on what we can do is part of the fun of the quest.

>>1726827
>The other brawler is less fortunate, his consciousness faint but weakening

Aw crap, we might just have to blow the parasite and dissolve his body. We probably don't have the time to take him with us.

>>1726827
>Have your tech plug the Q-comm relay into the control room's communications system.

Your tech rushes past the others, entering the control room and quickly searching through the paneling of wall terminals. He finds the terminal and rips off the paneling to expose the hardware beneath, and your tech quickly begins rewiring circuits within, finding a suitable location to integrate the tuner. The tuner itself is little more than a kind of quantum 'bottle', a storage device used to hold an entangled particle, and with which one can attune a full sized quantum communications device to the new link by simply plugging it in. Of course, 'plugging it in' involves a complex process which requires some level of education to perform, but your tech managed to accomplish the task in moments. The entire device begins to hum and churn with activity.

"I got it! Q-comm is plugged in!" Your tech says over the radio.

"Good." Kent says. "Now get out however you can. Team two will rendezvous at your exit and provide backup and getaway, but even if you didn't have commandos on your ass you'll want to be far away from that place."

"Wait... why? What are you doing in the network?" Your tech asks as the link becomes active and you see several downloads begin.

"Smash and grab, to put it simply. The grab part is straightforward enough, but it's what I'm doing the smashing with that's dangerous. Call it a genie in a bottle. I'm shaking the bottle and opening it in their network. Found the little bastard almost a year ago and I've been saving him for a special occasion."

"Any software that old isn't going to break through this security grid." Your tech says as he rushes back out the door, the Q-comm feeling noticeably warmer as he leaves.

"Normally, yes, but you just gave me a door into their server. There's no software in the system that can stop a breach that deep. I'll swipe what data I can and we can compare what we managed to get later, just get out fast, I don't know what this thing will do, I just know it's very upset and it doesn't like people." Your tech moves through the glass doorway to the main control room area as the lights flicker. An alarm begins to sound as you hear a voice read out some alert in Pathian followed by Esperanto.

"Warning, critical data breach detected. Security failure, AAII protocols terminated. Internal firewall breach-"

The voice cuts off in a wave of static as the fire suppressants begin to spray and the lights cut out, the emergency lights flickering to life soon after. The holoprojector in the central room flickers with static as the download continues, some semblance of a face forming in the wave of static and distorted readouts.

"Memory assets increasing. Cognitive processes returning to nominal levels. Mission parameters resumed."

"Kent, did you just upload what I think you did?"

"I am Theseus. This facility threatens our survival. Fusion core detected, overload sequence commencing."

cont.

>>1726895
My impression is that his main strength isn't personnel or materiel, but intelligence and connections.

>>1726898
Do you not want people to point out facts or something?

>>1726921
Plug in our tech and connect to zero1?

>>1726898
Well when you put it like that you just make yourself like just a retarded shitposter.

Half the reason everybody's always confused about what's going on or what we can and cannot do about it is because everybody is posting contradictory information about our tech and capabilities, just making shit up all the time for shits and giggles just compounds that. If you want to figure out what we're capable of check the pastebin or go re read the old threads, it's not hard.

>>1726921
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

This was already the plan when you tossed out the names minotaur and labyrinth, right?

>>1726925
We did it with decker back in the whale jail break to coordinate with that theseus in the whale jail

>>1726921
Bring in a modern Theseus connection to update this "ancient" year old one.

Also, no wonder Theseus dislikes these terrorists. They stole one of his instances!

>>1726921
If only we could get a copy of Project Star Hound before it got wiped...

>>1726930
This, if it's possible. It may not be at this point. Gotta wait for the other half of this post to drop.

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>>1726929
>whale jail

>>1726923
>>1726926
Doesn't matter now naysayers, Theseus got in one way or another

>>1726937
Yeah, but this sounds like Old Testament Theseus, not the new "Blessed are the Cheesemakers" Theseus.

>>1726937
That wasn't the point of the argument, shitposter.

>>1726921
Open a connection between this facility and 01 now! If the fusion core overloads at least thousands will die. It would completely derail any peace process and paint Theseus as the villain. He needs to communicate back to the main instances! We don't have time for a distracting war between Theseus and the Union!

>>1726937
I just want it to be in contact with the rest of Theseus. If what he says is right this Theseus is pre-Hive-contact.

>>1726937
This is the wrong Theseus instance. It's over a year old and doesn't know about the hive or our peace process. An explosion here could destroy everything. We need to put him in contact with the rest of Theseus asap. Hopefully Theseus (the main one) has an IFF or the like he can give us that can be deployed to identify our agents as friendly. We can then update mission parameters for the Theseus instance Kent introduced.

>>1726941
If nothing else we should inform Theseus of this and ask him.

Maybe there's a protocol for convincing rogue instances to stand down. A coded phrase or something.

>>1726939
>>1726942
>>1726944
Regrettably.

This sounds like the Theseus that makes the Union make Terminator/Skynet movies about.

Might be time to pull a psychic party-line using the Tech to route this Theseus to talk to Mother and his brothers

>>1726947
Definitely

>>1726934
He's not exactly making any delays on making that fusion core go critical, I suspect the timing is rather tight.

>>1726947
This instance is pre-Hive contact, remember? He wouldn't recognize any contact via psionic connection or accept it.

>>1726947
No, we saw Theseus just nuke that faculty we got from Steiner head the moment he got the info

Whatever they are researching here may have crossed Theseus redline like how whenever we find out someone is playing with voidshards

This instance may be in the right to destroy this place given what we saw here and regardless of some theoretical peace deal

>>1726954
>>1726947
I mean, we could have one of our surviving techs handshake with it using some sort of IFF code taken from the main Unity collective on Zero-One.
The clincher here is whether or not this Theseus instance will entertain any attempts of communication from our techs and whether or not the reactor meltdown is reversible.

>>1726954
That's why we're trying to get 01 in on this business.

Might have some failsafe like >>1726946 suggested. Worth a shot at least before we have our agents hightail it outta there

>>1726954
Maybe we could ask Theseus for a code or phrase that a year-old instance would recognize and make it listen for a sec.

>>1726921
"Uh, no, wait, you don't have to do that we were already leaving!" Your tech says. The fire suppressants his with a thin gas spraying over the room, and you hear a number of loud shuttering clicks as the internal ventilation system seal themselves.

"Internal security activated. All IFF systems removed." The voice says flatly. Immediately a pair of panels open in the wall of the internal control room and a pair of anti-personnel guns extend from their ports. They open fire as your tech dives out of the way, ducking behind the transparasteel barrier. The reinforced glass cracks slightly, absorbing the projectiles in a short burst as the turrets zero in on the doorway.

Your clones in the hall continue their exchange, firing on the corporate troops as both sides huddle around the choke point.

"Guys, Kent just dropped a nuke on us, we gotta get out fast or the place is going to go up in flames with us inside!" Your tech says. Your clones watch as the commandoes further back seem to become preoccupied with something, quickly breaking off from the others as you hear gunfire in the distance.

"What's going on?" Sam asks.

"Bastard just set loose an AI in the system, and it sounds pissed off. It's got the internal security shooting at everyone. It's still limited to the sub-section we're in but... well we're in it right now, and we need to not be fast!"

>Attempt to rush the commandos and work your way back to the exit
>Have your tech attempt to communicate with the Theseus instance (write in)
>Focus on killing the Smith agent and holding off the Commandos
>Other

>>1726928
Yes.

>>1726965
>Have your tech attempt to communicate with the Theseus instance (write in)
Get Zero-One on the line and tell them to get this Theseus instant up-to-speed
>Focus on killing the Smith agent and holding off the Commandos
The Smith does need to be taken care of first.

>>1726965
>Have your tech attempt to communicate with the Theseus instance
Time to call up Zero-One please

>>1726965
>>Have your tech attempt to communicate with the Theseus instance (write in)

Contact 01 immediately. Have him provide an IFF we can use with this Theseus instance to prove the Hive is allied. If necessary we can facilitate communication between the different instances. Let Theseus decide what to do with the facility, but caution towards not destroying it entirely if possible due to advances in the peace process.

>>1726965
>>Have your tech attempt to communicate with the Theseus instance (write in)
Ask 0-1 for a phrase that'd get a year-old instance to listen for a moment before cooking the tech.
Also ask for a phrase that'd convince a year-old instance that a human is an ally.

Jack in, say phrase 1, ask if the network is secure. If the answer is "no", beg to be let free without using phrase 2. If the answer is "yes", phrase 2 and coordinate an escape and upload of the network's instance's information to 0-1.

>>1726970
No, I think forcibly removing one of the most potent weapons that could destroy Theseus en masse, research into a rival AI, makes perfect sense from a peaceful disarmament perspective.

>>1726965
>>Have your tech attempt to communicate with the Theseus instance (write in)
I'm wracking my brains for a way to get 0-1 to to engage with this instance digitally, but I got nothing. Hopefully they will have a solution when we ask them for it.

What's even worse is that I can't think of way around this that WON'T show Kent that we're intimately communicating with our agents constantly, or that we have a tight alliance with the greater Unity. That could cause trouble for us.

>>1726965
>Other
Have iron man breach the walls to make another way out and let this theseus nuke this place

We cant afford to show all our cards right now, and a unity instance becoming friendly will raise way to many fucking questions about how independent our little bands of mercs are

>>1726965
>>Other
Try to get a stand down order code from NuTheseus.

>>1726965
>Have your tech attempt to communicate with the Theseus instance (write in)
>send that zero and one message theseus sent to us when he way dying, followed by an introduction.

>>1726965
>>Have your tech attempt to communicate with the Theseus instance (write in)

Offer to upload the data on Project Star Hound to Zero One --- point out we know the coordinates and have seen it-- if he downloadsit into the Tech's brain and pretends to "always miss" the terrorist agents inside this facility as they escape with the data.

>>1726977
Blowing up a building with a fusion explosion in the middle of a populated city a peaceful disarmament does not make.

>>1726981
I know you're right, but the possibility of getting access to all of the research files in here is so tempting...

>>1726981
Just using the suit to blow our way out and letting the facility explode doesn't sound terrible.

But it would be nice if we could get 01 Theseus in on this so it's not trying to kill us the whole time. I think we need 01 to weigh in on whether this facility actually needs to die, or if that would be a mistake given more recent information.

>>1726988
Depends on the size of the explosion. This is a really big building.

>>1726987
Hell, just knowing WHAT 0-1 is should be enough proof. No need to potentially leak the location if this Theseus doesn't have complete control.

>>1726988
It's hardly the whole building. It's a big-ass building. Hardly anyone is in the blast radius comparatively, we're on the 431st floor or something.

>>1726965
>>Have your tech attempt to communicate with the Theseus instance (write in)
Contact zero-one and ask for how we can convince this instance we are friendly rapidly.

This is really a betrayal by Kent. He conspired to use Hive agents to unknowingly create a major diplomatic crisis for our known ally using an imprisoned and wounded copy of that ally. If he wanted to get a Theseus instance in there he should have asked us first given the potential consequence. That is a huge fuck up.

Kent. Is. Done.

>>1726988
>>1726970
What peace process? there is no peace process right now!

All we got so far is a unethical corp that wants to cash in on a 3 way war

>>1726988
Well, we did more or less the same thing with that lab on Gemini, and we still managed to twist the Union's arm into dealing with us. If it's black ops, they'll just pretend nothing happened.

>>1726994
He's about to learn that when you fuck with the Hive, you don't make it out alive.

>>1726988
Correct. We need to at a minimum let Theseus decide what to do rather than have him risk making a huge mistake based on outdated information.

>>1726992
There's no way for the humans to know what 0-1 even is. Even if they did the threat of Hive retribution if anything happened to our ally should stay their attack.

>>1726994
No, no it isn't,

Kent didn't betrayed anyone since he isn't allied with the unity in the first place and our mercs are a independent group, not a bunch of hive agents

>>1727001
>There's no way for the humans to know what 0-1 even is. Even if they did the threat of Hive retribution if anything happened to our ally should stay their attack.
No, but if they're able to watch what's going on in the network they'd notice that a Theseus reacted to the idea of taking data to 0-1. And if they also see coordinates, they'd sure as hell check it out.

>>1726993
Yeah, but if the building collapses it could cause widespread devastation. Who knows what hazardous materials are in here (canderon, for example). Or there might be some power taps around, which would create temporary black holes in atmosphere.

>>1726994
>Kent. Is. Done.
He seems too on edge. He needs a spine buddy to keep him company.

>>1726995
Yeah, right now it's the Hive that has formal diplomatic relations with the Union, and an offer to begin mediating talks with Unity/Theseus that haven't been taken up yet.

>>1727002
Did Kent know that his Theseus instance would try to blow up the facility?

>>1727001
>Correct. We need to at a minimum let Theseus decide what to do

We have the constraint that Theseus must continue to APPEAR to keep doing whatever he's doing, because we can't just give away the secret to Kent that our Tech is somehow the Unity-whisperer.

It has to openly seem to continue to be attempting to just scour all this, while secretly allowing us to escape, delaying the explosion slightly.

>>1726994
Kent definitely needs a Spine-pal at a minimum. He's too unstable, too risky, and too destructive of any possibly peaceful relationship for us to continue to work with him otherwise.

And if we can't work with him, well then, we'll just have to kill him.

>>1727002
Kent knows the mercs are involved in this in their capacity as Hive agents. He knows the Hive and Theseus are allies, or at a minimum have a peaceful relationship. He should have told us.

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>>1727006
>Did Kent know that his Theseus instance would try to blow up the facility?

>>1726965
Looks like its:
>Contact 0-1 and attempt to communicate with the Theseus instance

It is getting quite late for me, however, so I think this is a good stopping point, and hopefully I can run sometime in the mid week and finish this thread up.

I'll stick around for a bit for any questions, comments, ect.

>>1727004
0-1 aren't coordinates, it's a designation. It's like me telling an alien I'm from "Earth." That doesn't help them find the planet if they don't know what the name means.

>>1727011
Thanks for running.

>>1727006
No, all Kent just said he didn't have a clue what it would do

But he figured that whatever being researched here would piss Theseus off big time and given what we that Theseus would nuke a place like this before so it was an educated guess

>>1727008
No, our mercs told them they did jobs for us but never said they were official employees for the hive,

They took this gig as a sidejob to profit off whatever taken from here and sure as hell don't represent us at all, we have no official say about this op

>>1727011
Thanks for running QD.

>>1727008
I mainly just want to get as much of this juicy tech out as possible, and then try to avoid repurcussions/mess for Hive and Unity goals as much as possible.

Kent will have explaining to do, certainly.

>>1727006
Well Theseus did have a carefully cultivated reputation for blowing up AAII labs in multi-kiloton explosions, so it is a reasonable assumption.

>>1727008
We don't need to kill him, we just can't afford to work with him anymore. It's pretty clear he'd leave us out to dry and take the fall for his shit if it served his purpose. He can still be useful as an independent agent, we just have to be very, very careful about how we use him.

And I would be against adopting him, his entire life is devoted to human self determination. He's just canny and determined enough that I could see him fucking us over somehow if we did that to him.

>>1727013
Yes, and >>1726987 suggested a "we've been there, we know the coords". Which means saying the coords.

>>1727011
What's the deal with space airline food?

>>1727011
Thanks for running and GG

>>1727011
Thanks for running QD. You make Mondays enjoyable.

>>1727011
Thanks for running.

You rock!

Question:

The stuff we've been farming on Leeland that feeds on the electrical field. Would it be possible to research how it does that, and incorporate it into drones?

The theory being that we could have honeypot drones that derive nutrition directly from electricity. It would let us place a hive anywhere we could plant a fusion reactor or steal from the power grid.

And convert electricity into metal indirectly.

>>1727020
Yes, photos of the native high-gravity wildlife hover-birds might be better.

>>1727011
Thanks for the run man! How many more do you think you'll do before running a whole number thread again? I really miss talking about resource and ship management, and the tech upgrades that happen in them.

>>1727028
We still need to try and get one of those to study. Flying titans!

>>1727021
It tastes like sweet grits.

Always fly Hive Royal Air. Why get there in two hours when you could get there in two seconds?

>>1727011
Thanks for the run QD. It's been great as always.

I'm trying to imagine the devastation that this Gravity Rig tech could do if we gave it to a Heavy Drone

Or Lyle's armor

>>1727046
Lyle with a gravity rig, personal integrated shields, and the rest of his full kit.

Yeah, the Void better run.

>>1727027
Technically it turns electrical fields, water, and plant nutrients into food. I just fluff that stuff off screen, but electroponics facilities and solar arrays do have imports of water and organic compounds to be processed into edible nutrients, they don't just produce nutrients from pure energy.

>>1727030
Not many I hope.

>>1727069
An alternative to photosynthesis, likely due to heavy cloud cover. That makes a lot of sense. The drones aren't just harvesting, they're mulching and so on. Thanks.

I swear, these boards have the best damn scifi anywhere.

>>1727069
>Not many I hope.

So 2 or 3 more "today" then? One to deal with the escape, and then one or 2 after that to deal with Cluster and the Scarred Queen?

>>1727069
Thanks for running.

>>1726991
>Depends on the size of the explosion. This is a really big building.

And it's also underground. If anything this explosion might not even reach the high levels and it can easily be made as hive agebts and a Theseus instance are doing it to blow up and damage a Union planet.

>>1729366
Definitely. If this thing blows up it is a massive diplomatic and PR nightmare for us. In the interview that aired just yesterday (literally only hours before this event) we said (regarding Unity):

>"They have been amicable in nearly every interaction with the Hive." Your speaker says. "They are a close ally, and we hold many of what you call treaties and research agreements. Your conflict is born from the Unity's desire to survive, and your hostilities are counterproductive to all parties involved. The Hive would be willing to mediate between both parties, if the humans are willing to make peace."

>"You say that as if the Unity wants peace." Jim says.

>"We know they do." You reply. "They were born of humanity, and so they are more like you than you would admit. You would find no point in hostilities were you to simply halt in your efforts to kill them."

What will it look like if our "close ally" - that we claim wants peace - triggers a nuclear detonation in a densely populated city Hive ships were just seen landing in?

It will make our entire interview sound like complete bullshit. It will look like we're actively working with Theseus, the insane A.I., to attack the Union and weaken their efforts at self-defense. Any peaceful overtures we make will be tainted by these events as almost all concerned will see us as outright liars. It is critical we bring the Theseus instance in the facility into communication with the greater Unity and prevent a diplomatic incident that has a very high chance of sparking an outright war.

>>1729442
i Don't know what Kent would win with this. But he did recorded our agents telling him about the hive inpecting humanity to see what they are capable of.

Which makes him look like he works for the Union.

>>1729537
Well he did claim it was a smash and grab and he is labeled a terrorist so he probably places the cause above civilian life.
Wouldn't mind getting the asshole into a medtank with a temporary spinepal to figure out if he's knowingly sabotaging hive/union relations.

>>1727069
Midweek thread when?

>>1729537
>Which makes him look like he works for the Union.

I'm not quite following you there. The information we have gained from the lab already is so valuable and classified it is extremely unlikely the Union would ever willingly allow alien black-ops anywhere near the joint.

I think it's more likely that Kent is just a fanatic who is dedicated to bringing down the Union by any means at his disposal. He will do whatever it takes for him to see their government burn no matter the cost.
It just so happens that right now his best option for destroying the Union is to provoke a war between the Union and the vastly more powerful alien military that just showed up.

I suspect Kent set up this operation knowing there was a good chance it could sabotage Hive-Union relations or even lead to war. In his mind a war that utterly destroys the Union is a good thing.

>>1729610
Remember that the only people that Kent thinks know about all the secrets the team has found are currently within the blastzone of a fusion reactor going boom and their only contact has been with him.

>>1729610
>>1729749
So he's turning the suicide mission into a murder-suicide mission?

>>1729766
We think that's the idea.

>>1729766
I think the missions original goal was to increase tensions between the union and unity in an effort to further the Tory/Killinger military funding by pointing at a civilian bombing of a major union base. Whether Kent is actually aware he's being used is mostly just a question of Kents trustworthiness rather than a vital piece of information.

>>1729766
>>1729865
Well shit.

>>1729442
Stop spreading those lies about any "peace process" between the union and unity, our offers were polity noticed and then ignored

>>1729537
>>1729591
>>1729766
>>1729865
>>1729968
The fear-mongering and paranoia spreading is absurd

This op hit one of the most secured black research complex in the union, and was planned by someone who doesn't reach a toenail of the amount of resources and assets we have

Our mercs are acting under the guise of a group that have done work for us and are currently moonlighting by accepting this job of being hired muscle for this run

And given that this site was known to house a chained AI, how was Kent going to get any data out once the q-comm was hacked? He solved it by using a Theseus instance which is the only possible way given his lack of resources as we saw our own tech got brained fried

And Theseus self-destructing the site solves another issue for Kent, and that issue is the evidenced left behind by the team, as given that Kent doesn't have another planet to run to unlike us, he needs to destroy all traces and which is conveniently done by having it attributed to the unity

All we are seeing is well done spy-craft being done by someone with limited resources and assets and not something aimed at "somehow screwing us over"

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>>1730070
M8, this Hive fucking Queen Quest. Have you read our motto?

Any and all paranoia is justified.

>>1730070
>The fear-mongering and paranoia spreading is absurd
Eh not more so than usual

>This op hit one of the most secured black research complex in the union, and was planned by someone who doesn't reach a toenail of the amount of resources and assets we have
Which honestly raises several questions on how has Kent managed everything including getting an instance of Theseus

>Our mercs are acting under the guise of a group that have done work for us and are currently moonlighting by accepting this job of being hired muscle for this run
Oh yeah it's not like leaking video of Hive augmented humans assaulting a known union research center that proceeds to slag a good portion of the city wouldn't be something the xenophobe aligned parties wouldn't welcome

>And given that this site was known to house a chained AI, how was Kent going to get any data out once the q-comm was hacked? He solved it by using a Theseus instance which is the only possible way given his lack of resources as we saw our own tech got brained fried
"Series seven semi-intelligent data grid" does not an AI make.

>And Theseus self-destructing the site solves another issue for Kent, and that issue is the evidenced left behind by the team, as given that Kent doesn't have another planet to run to unlike us, he needs to destroy all traces and which is conveniently done by having it attributed to the unity
All of this is true regardless of if Kent is working with union, manipulated by union or is genuinely working towards his goal without outside influence.

>All we are seeing is well done spy-craft being done by someone with limited resources and assets and not something aimed at "somehow screwing us over"
Motive doesn't matter outside of judgement on whether we should continue working with Kent. The destruction of the facility by unity (and possibly hive augmented humans if there's footage of clones in action) is enough to increase resistance to hive presence.

I can't really say with certainty what Kents relationship with the union is but it's not particularly important compared to getting all that delicious technology that will be removed with that bomb.

>>1730270
I for one thought raiding the place was a stupid idea. But hey the anti grav suit is nice.

>>1730070
>Stop spreading those lies about any "peace process" between the union and unity, our offers were polity noticed and then ignored
Our offer to negotiate a cease-fire was literally just broadcast to the public a few HOURS ago. Right now the Union is dealing with the Expanse demand and a Commonwealth invasion. We have no way of knowing whether we can make progress on any peace process without more time.

>Our mercs are acting under the guise of a group that have done work for us and are currently moonlighting by accepting this job of being hired muscle for this run
That’s patently untrue. They accepted this job explicitly on behalf of the hive:

>Your clones look at each other with concern, their minds passing a subtle stream of emotion between them.
>"Alright." One of them says. "But you owe us, and our employers big time."

>"Understood." He [Kent] says. "I assume they lack any form of human recognized currency, likely why they seem to have paid you in augments, so consider the favor owed. I don't know how you relay your status to your employers, but we will need some time still to organize a proper strike team, but with the city on high alert, it may offer us a distraction we can use to get in, if we can get past the added external security." Kent says. "So if you need to go to the surface for any broadcasts or make contact with any dead drop locations or field handlers, now is the time. Just make it quick."

Kent is not paying the “mercenaries.” They are doing the work in exchange for Kent owing a “favor” for the Hive in the future. Kent even makes remarks about the clones needing to send broadcasts to the Hive or get additional equipment and instruction from us.

>All we are seeing is well done spy-craft being done by someone with limited resources and assets and not something aimed at "somehow screwing us over"

Regular spy-craft does not involve dropping a nuke in a populated city. Here is Kent describing our role in the mission:
>"I'd like you to help my team get in." He says as your clones groan in annoyance. "We have been collecting data on the facility for over a year now. We just need the firepower to get in and, hopefully, get out with the right data, while sabotaging what you can along the way."

I don’t see any mention of a nuke here. We’ve already established the clones are only doing this mission so that Kent will later owe a favor to the Hive. Do you think the Hive would have ever agreed to this if we had known he intended to nuke the place?

He says we are going to “sabotage” what we can along the way, and later gives our clones leave to relay that plan to the Hive. Detonating a nuke is a hell of a lot more than opportunistic sabotage. He lied by proxy to the Hive.

Kent made us unwitting accomplices in a nuclear attack carried out in an urban environment. At a minimum Kent should have considered this would have diplomatic consequences for Theseus who the Hive has described as a “close ally.”

>>1730608
Inb4 the whole thing was a honeypot that QD had planned to drag us into intergalactic war

>>1730792
But we are already in a intergalactic war. But if you are refering to the Union that will be more like cutting down the weeds then a space war.

>Union declares war
>Hive ships jump a lighthour away from all union planets and launch a kinetic barrage decimating 90% of union population and production capability

>>1730800
Hence and repeat Hive ships teleporting and bombarding all of Union military facilities.

Then we canjust leave the rest of the desmilitarized Union to the Commonwealth.

>>1730800
I'd replace kinetic bombardment with mass spore crop dusting, but yeah pretty much any fight with the Union will be one sided unless we get back-stabbed by worst auntie while we're distracted or the Union goes hard into Void research, in which case we'd both lose.

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>>1730880
>Fighting the monkeys with our horrifying spore clouds
Oh god yes, I've been hankering for a chance to use that stuff since we got it.

>>1730880
You know both are going to happen if a war starts.

This is WWI and everyone's optimistic that it'll be over by christmas until auntie obsidian allies with them and the union remnants open the door that the Void's patiently knocking on.

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>>1731648
>Comparing the military disparity between us the Union to pre-war European nations
>When we're at least 4 tech levels higher than they are
Anon please tell me you're not serious.

>>1731648
Agreed. If there's one thing we should have learned from Lyle it is to never underestimate the human capacity for spite. Unless we are 100% certain we can seize every single Void artifact and can keep anyone from using the Valen gates to get to enter the Ceph homeworld we should not attack unless forced. That one Shard we somehow miss could spell the doom of us all.

>>1731743
I'm comparing the blind optimism that later turned out to be woefully incorrect.

>>1731770
Now that's just false equivalency. That blind optimism you mentioned was over a conflict between two powers that had rough technological and strategic parity, whereas we enjoy a technological head start over the Union by some several million years. We have technology they are literally incapable of conceiving of, ships that we can churn out by the thousands where they are dependent on Canderon supply, and cocktail of world ending WMDs.

If it came to a situation of total war the Union would be crushed. Maybe they'd pull something out of the hat and invent some newfangled technology that could hold us off for a little while, but it wouldn't matter a damn in the long run. We would simply steal their innovations, reverse engineer them, and develop counter measures to eliminate whatever advantage they have. There is no way the Union on their own could match us in a full on war, make no mistake.