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Objective: Reconnaisance - The Grey Man - 07-18-2015
It had been a long time since the Man had been caught so off-guard. Sensation ebbed in and out of him, his vision coming in and going out of focus every few seconds. He squinted, raising a gloved hand above his face. He'd been wandering aimlessly for hours, disoriented... But this didn't look like the Nativity 6 facility. It didn't even look like Io. Heck, it didn't look like any of Jupiter's moons!
He was lean, but well-built--around mid height for his time. He looked around. Nobody nearby; a few distant figures ambling around near the horizon.
He glanced down at himself. The jet black flightsuit--and harness--he'd worn under his engineer disguise was all he had on now. He sighed quietly as he hit the dirt, trying to minimize his visibility what little he could. At first he'd thought that all of this could simply be some kind of holographic projection system set up by NTNJ to deceive intruders. Now, he wasn't so sure...
With a tug of the attaching sling, he brought his rifle over his shoulder and into a steady position in front of him. Keeping his finger off the trigger, he peered down the scope. He could see the other people much better this way. Time for a little recon.
Soldiers, Emissaries, Spies, and Creatures... Entities of all stripes seemed to emerge from a fountain that was central to this strange place. It was hard to keep track of where his scope was positioned, due to the lack of any distinguishable horizon, so he had to briefly open his other eye to compensate when seeking new targets to observe. Fortunately, none of them noticed--or at least, if they did notice, they weren't letting on.
And gates. Large edifices seemingly glued to the nothing of this place. The one nearest to him was tall, and stone, and impossibly worn.
Grey Man didn't abide by it. It was all just plain strange. Wrong, somehow. It wasn't fair, either. Victory had finally been in his grasp, and now he was cut off from his advisors, his mission support, and even Big Ron. All attempts to hail them on their usual channels during his strange nervous spasming fit had been unsuccessful. He had heard a voice, whispering insane new truths into his mind as he faded between lives. It was not the voice of any of his comrades, though, of that he was sure--and in time, that voice had also faded. The Grey Man was alone, for all intents and purposes.
He sighed, lowering his rifle and starting a brisk belly-crawl towards the gate nearest to him. He knew that some of these people were armed, and didn't want to risk an engagement until he could better assess the situation. They were better equipped than the guards of Nativity 6. One man he'd caught a glimpse of appeared to be wearing some kind of powered armor that Grey had never seen before. His predilection for archaic weaponry had caught up to him--there was no way that conventional bullets could pierce that armor... could they?
He knew he didn't want to stick around to find out. The plan was to check one of these doors out, then make a decision from there. Sadly, even at his quickest pace, this would take him quite some time from his prone crawling position. He paused, rolled his shoulders and his neck, and let out a long exhale. Guess it's time to start figuring all this craziness out...
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - Dark Drive - 07-18-2015
“That’s all you need to know right now. You’ll figure out the rest soon enough. I’ll be watching … and waiting.”
It's unbelievable. All of it. And this is the thought coming from a man using futuristic technology from his world - a dystopian world. He had so many questions when he woke up in pitch darkness, greeted by some white figure that went by the name of...Omni, was it? However, he simply couldn't speak to 'it' even if he wanted to and this all resulted to him waking up in a middle of nowhere, all bathed in white light and colors. Was he in heaven? It most certainly did not seem OR feel like it. Rather, he actually felt alive, something he has never felt since he 'died' from his world, struck down by his younger self.
Now, he was sitting near what appeared to be near a blue pool - a fountain of sorts it seems. He was stuck deep down in his thoughts, wondering what purpose did he have left after everything he's done and why did this 'Omni' person bring him to this strange world where everything reflects the wishes of those part of it. So many questions were in his mind that he paid no attention to his surroundings, not caring whether or not there were other people around him or whether they were friendly or hostile.
Why? Just why? He looked down and placed his hand on his belt buckle, the Drive Driver, wishing that his partner could answer the questions for him, but he knew it was impossible. Belt-san was dead, and he was all alone to figure things out.
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - The Grey Man - 07-18-2015
He'd peeked his head through a couple of the doors by now. It seemed as if each place led somewhere vastly different from all the others. He was hoping to find answers, but instead ended up with just more questions. He decided against choosing a door... for now.
He could see somebody sitting by the fountain as he approached. Through the lens of his scope it was obvious that they were deep in thought. Maybe this guy is just as lost as I am... Grey thought to himself, allowing his normal stoicism to be replaced by a thin skein of hope. Still, this person was armored--and from the looks of him, even better equipped than the strange armored warriors he'd spotted before. They were also likely to be armed, and the Man wanted to avoid a direct confrontation if he could. He needed to be certain that the newcomer was not a threat before he took any big, decisive action.
Sidling up to the other side of the fountain, Grey Man waited... and observed. He re-slung his rifle, opting instead for the more maneuverable .45 strapped to his right hip.
Slowly, he began his approach. Pressing against the lower rim of the fountain, he moved slowly, but fluidly, like a python stalking its prey. Gun outstretched, he twisted his torso out to get a good slice of the pie as he cleared the edges. Finally, he came to a point where he was still hidden. Instinctively, he vanished from the stranger's field of view, and tried to hail Big Ron. Still no reply. He wasn't going to be receiving any backup.
Alone, scared, and outclassed, Grey did what he always did in situations like these: took a deep, but silent breath, held it in for three seconds, then exhaled. He did this three more times. His pulse slowly returned to normal. The sweat on his brow cooled and began to dry.
It was time.
With a grunt of effort, he dove from the safety of cover, twisting during his roll as to orient himself towards his foe, pistol raised but not yet pointed directly at the stranger.
"Who are you?" growled the Grey Man, holding his head to the side to better look at the strange soldier before him. The man's head instinctively snapped towards him. There didn't seem to be much fear in his body language, but Grey couldn't read the man's face. Keeping an even tone, he posed another question. "What is this place? Do you know?"
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - Dark Drive - 07-18-2015
Indeed, the sensing of movement from the corner of his eye has triggered Dark Drive to immediately dart his sight on the source. He was surprised by the presence of another person besides him, and he found himself suddenly caring a lot more about what was going on around him (not the man could see his face anyway). His surprise, however, turned into aggression when he saw the measly handgun in the man's hands. He was not afraid; guns and bullets never worked him before and surely wouldn't harm him now thanks to his NEXT System armor.
He quickly raised his Blade Gunner, pointing the barrel of his weapon at him in the same manner as the man with the .45 pistol, but chose not to shoot when the man asked his questions; it appeared he had no idea what was going just like him. He simply responded, "Your guess is as good as mine if you're asking me that."
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - The Grey Man - 07-18-2015
As he thought, the other man was armed. Fortunately, they hadn't attacked him yet; a crystal clear sign that this person wasn't under any orders to be immediately hostile toward him.
Grey cocked his head to the left, trying to get a better look at the stranger's weapon. He'd never seen anything like it. It resembled a handgun, only it had a sword coming out of the top of it. He couldn't imagine what it must be like to try to aim such a thing, but the other person seemed pretty confident in his own skill with it, if nothing else. Plus, even The Grey Man had to admit, the thing's looks were pretty impressive.
The man spoke in reply to Grey's interrogation. "Your guess is as good as mine if you're asking me that." Grey hid his knee-jerk twitch of nervousness away down in his toes. The strange warrior's voice was cool, calm even. He wasn't worried in the slightest about Grey's weapon of choice--and by rights, he probably shouldn't be. He had a heavy accent as well. Grey could even place it, loosely--he sounded like he was from somewhere near Asia. Planet Earth. Long way from home, then. Grey could relate to that.
As he answered the stranger back, he signaled for the man to lower his weapon, and he began to do the same. If this fellow was from Earth, Grey didn't think he would need to use his own weapon, after all.
"You're lost out here, too, then?" He fished into his pocket for his cigarillos. There were four left in his belt satchel. Maybe if this tension didn't immediately diffuse, he could offer the stranger a smoke. Not the most far-out of tactics, but hey, it'd worked for him before. Chomping on the end of one, The Grey Man lilted his head back and spoke. "Any chance you have a light?" he asked, spacing out for a moment as he realized that he'd set his only lighter down on the missile console back on Nativity 6--followed, more thoughtfully, by "And what's your name? You from Earth?"
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - Dark Drive - 07-19-2015
Dark Drive lowered his weapon when he saw the man doing the same. It was evident the man had no intention of starting a fight and Dark Drive likewise was not in any mood for violence - not after everything he's done and all the lives he's destroyed. Still, he was not exactly quite sure whether or not it is a good idea to trust this stranger he just met seconds ago - specifically one who's occupation appears to be that of a soldier given how he's armed with both a pistol and a rifle.
"You're lost out here, too, then?"
Following that, Dark Drive's concern were put to rest when the man put a cigarette in his mouth and asked for a lighter, not something a hostile enemy would ever do in the middle of a standoff. And Dark Drive couldn't help but lift his head in mild astonishment by the man's seemingly cool nature (then again, smoking could've just been a way to ease himself up during a confrontation). He apologized to the man with another simple response. "No. Sorry."
He sheathed his Blade Gunner and stared at the man as he asked more questions along the lines of his name and if he was from Planet Earth. These questions made Dark Drive feel uncomfortable as his memories began flashing back before him in his head and causing the masked warrior to abruptly break off eye contact with the man for a couple of seconds. Overwhelmed with guilt, he decided that it was best not to answer until he knew who this man was. He redirected the queries back at him. "May I know who you are first?"
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - The Grey Man - 07-19-2015
A small smile and a nod from the Man served to reassure the stranger that he was making the right choice by lowering his weapon. His new friend had nothing to light the cigarillo with, though. Grey had a little book of matches on him, but they were strictly for fires, so that made two of them without a light. "Really? That's a shame." He sighed as he put the cigarillo back in its pouch, cursing himself under his breath for leaving his one and only lighter behind.
Next, the stranger met his inquiries with a mirror of his own questions. "May I know who you are first?" the man asked, his voice still quite calm and even. Grey smiled a little, without really meaning to; the stranger didn't sound like a native speaker, but his English was very formal. Reminded the Man of Lt. Krugman back home, in a way... but there wasn't any time for reminiscing just yet.
Grey guessed that the stranger's hesitance towards answering was to be expected, under the odd circumstances. No sense in putting up a fight, now that they were friends--or at least, now that they both knew there was no immediate plan to try and kill each other. "Me?" Grey answered him finally, with a little bit of a shrug. "I've been called The Grey Man for as long as I can remember. Child soldier. Practically born with a gun in my hands. Had a real name once, but that was a long time ago, now. Just 'Grey' works, too; I know the full title can be a bit of a mouthful in a lot of situations."
He gauged the other man's response as best as he could; Grey was pretty well known throughout the solar system. The stranger didn't immediately react, and there was no change in him to suggest a hint of anything other than the same mild confusion that already plagued them both... It all served to cement the little death that had been eating away at him, the fear that began to seep into Grey's heart, seeing all of these far-out warriors and their unrecognizable armor: the truth was that he wasn't crazy, or dreaming, or drugged by the IPA, any of the hundred alternate scenarios his panicked mind had come up with. Reality, from what little of it he'd been able to see, was just as the hot white voice had etched into his mind as he wandered sick through the void: he'd been taken to another world... a world far different from his own. He wondered if the stranger was in a similar predicament, but thought it would be best not to mention having heard any voices in his head for now.
Looking around to make sure that they wouldn't be caught unawares, Grey started checking his various pouches to make sure he hadn't left anything else important back on Nativity 6. "As for where I'm from," he continued, "I was born and raised on Earth, mostly in the Americas, but I spent some time in Eastern Europe and southeast Asia as well. I was further trained on Mars. Made my living as a mercenary for years, bounced back and forth between the NTNJ and their rivals, the IPA. Got tired of politics and tired of killing, so I became a freedom fighter instead for these last few years... and I was just about to liberate Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn from the technocracies and their endless warfare all at once; then I passed out, and woke up here. No signal from my comrades over my earpiece, no emergency distress beacons or anything, just dead..." Silence fell. He stopped for a moment; his hand had come to rest against something cool, square and metallic. His slate. He'd nearly forgot about it. Quickly, the Grey Man pulled the compact computer out of his pocket with a spin, unlocked its home screen, and started scanning for nearby signals. He didn't think there'd be much, but... hey, wait. By god, there was something. It wasn't any type of network that he'd ever seen, but maybe his slate could autohack it. Grey configured the slate for the job as he spoke.
"... But I'm afraid that's everything about me that might interest you," he concluded, sliding the slate back into its pouch as it beeped and whirred its way through several attempts to access the 'dataverse' network, whatever that was. He sat down near the stranger, by the rim of the fountain. It was a good move for making himself seem less threatening, but Grey was placing far more consideration on minimizing their visibility to ensure no unwanted surprises. "So, I guess we're back to you. Who are you? You sound like you're a fellow Earthling, but I've never seen a suit of powered armor like yours before, on Earth or anywhere else I've been."
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - Dark Drive - 07-23-2015
Dark Drive listened intently; this man was from a future beyond even his. How could it be possible he did not know and what this place is for he also did not know. Regardless, he answered. "I am from Earth. 2035..."
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - The Grey Man - 07-24-2015
"2035, huh?" Grey repeated. So, the stranger was from an entirely different year from Grey. By rights, he'd have been dead for centuries in Grey's own world. "I'm not sure what's going on here, but I'm itching to find out..."
His slate chimed out chromatically; it had gathered some information. Grey slid it back out of its pouch and addressed the AI. "Ramses, find anything?"
A pale blue facsimile of a face faded onto the display. "Sure did... You're done already?" It inquired of him. Grey shook his head. "Not exactly, but I think our friend here is as every bit as lost as you and I. He doesn't mean any harm."
"My condolences," the tiny machine offered the power-armored man, before turning its attention back to Grey. "Look at this," it said, the face on the screen fading away. The Grey Man scrolled through the list of links being offered to him. "Hmm... Alright... And you've set up a couple social media accounts... Doesn't look like anybody replied to your forum posts... With a subject line like that I can't blame anybody." Finally, he came to a link to a website.
"AntiOmni.org..." He read aloud. "Sounds interesting..." He quickly skimmed over the content of the site, taking the fantastic parts of the narrative presented with a grain of salt... Still, it was the closest thing he had to a real explanation. It appeared that the head of this organization had an interest in getting Ramses to join, as well. Grey saw potential in these arrangements, but he was also apprehensive. He needed to know he could trust their leader before he just handed over access to either himelf or his equipment...
No time for that now, though. Stranded from his unit, he was in sore need of people that he could call on in times of duress. Grey typed a quick reply to the leader of the organization, then turned away from his slate and back to the mystery man.
"Sorry about that. Good news, though: we aren't the only ones here who've been displaced from our homes. So, you are from Earth. 2035, too... Well, what should I call you?"
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - Dark Drive - 07-24-2015
"Sorry about that. Good news, though: we aren't the only ones here who've been displaced from our homes. So, you are from Earth. 2035, too... Well, what should I call you?"
Dark Drive looked at the man. This AntiOmni.org thing...he would have to look that up when he had the time, but the man who introduced himself as Grey was certainly trying his best to make sense of the situation before them. Nevertheless, the black warrior pondered on what he should say in response to Grey's question; should he tell him his real name or his title? His answer was, "Kame-"
He abruptly cut himself off. It was insulting to still be calling himself a 'Kamen Rider' at this point and he grimaced at the thought. He looked at the man and awkwardly spoke, "Drive. Call me Drive."
He the tried to divert Grey's attention away from his response by asking him a question of his own, one that would also sort out some of the confusion given how the latter said '2035, too' in a muttering tone, "You said you were also from Earth. So, how is it possible for someone to be trained on Mars and be a freedom fighter?
Dark Drive was very curious, mainly because humanity, at least by 2035, had should have been utterly defeated and enslaved by the Roidmudes with absolutely no hope of winning. Civilization had fallen and the Roidmudes turned the whole planet into a wasteland for their own needs and gains to ensure their superiority and survival. Thus, humans shouldn't be capable of the technology to travel to Mars, no less train there. So how is it possible that this Grey Man could be born on Earth and grow to be a freedom fighter against politics when there are no governments left by 2035? More importantly, how is it that does he not even slightly recognize Dark Drive as the destroyer of humanity? Was there an explanation for this? Far future? Alternate timeline? Another universe?
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - The Grey Man - 07-24-2015
"Kame-" the stranger started, before pausing reflectively. After a brief moment, he turned to look at Grey. "Drive. Call me Drive." He said solemnly.
Grey wondered why he'd changed his mind about telling him his name. Maybe he was wary because Grey hadn't given him his own real name? He'd had that problem before. He quickly dismissed it; as long as the armored man would answer to 'Drive', that's what he would call him.
He spoke again before Grey could ask him anything else. "You said you were also from Earth." That accent was driving The Grey Man nuts. He had been there, he knew it, he just couldn't quite place where exactly in Asia Drive was from. "So, how is it possible for someone to be trained on Mars and be a freedom fighter?"
Grey leaned back against the fountain wall and thought about how he should answer. "Well," he started, "where I'm from, humans have pretty well taken command of the entire solar system. For you to be from 2035... You'd have to have been dead for well over 300 years. I'm trying to think of something that happened around that time... I know that we made the first manned mission to Mars around 2024... So maybe the first attempt at a colony was a few years after 2035..." He scratched the stubble on his chin, unsure of his dates. "Either way, the year I'm actually from is 2481. I was born in 2463. The planet Mars doesn't sustain life very well, as you probably know; too far from the Sun. At night it gets way into the negatives. You'll freeze in minutes. So, a bunch of scientists got to thinking about this problem, and decided the best way to deal with it was to have a network of little 'bubble' colonies set up, rather than actually try to terraform it to look more like Earth. They ran off of a mixture of solar and nuclear energy. Once they cracked how to travel faster than light, the same principle carried over to every other planet. I was born on Earth, but moved to Mars in my mid-teens. I was formally trained in politics at a university, and the Interplanetary Alliance--or IPA--gave me a different kind of education in the shadows. Of course, by then I'd already been involved in about six wars that had taken place on Planet Earth."
He looked off into the void. Had it really been that long ago now? The memories of the things he'd done, not knowing any life except to follow orders... He closed his eyes and sighed, forcing the memories back into the darkest parts of his mind. Where they belonged.
"As for the freedom fighting," Grey continued, "The IPA aren't the only big players in the solar system in the future. The short version is that the military economy is what was filling everyone's coffers. There were other forms of industry, sure--but these didn't matter compared to the size and scope of their endless wars. They didn't care how many lives they destroyed, how many homes were razed, or anything at all about ending the conflicts. It took me a long time to realize that." He paused. Another wave of memories surged through him, each one ringing out in his mind like a distant report. "... Maybe too long." he added quietly.
For a short moment, silence fell between them. He picked up quickly, not wanting to dwell too long.
"So, I started doing what I could to try to make things right." He said at last. "I made a few friends in the IPA, a few in Jupiter-centered Neo Techno New Jerusalem, a few in the various corporate-owned private military corporations. I knew that the major players wouldn't just back down; I'd snuck into one of their so-called peace talks and learned that they didn't care anything about settling differences, just balancing the carnage enough that both organizations could turn a big profit off of everyone's misery..."
His slate chimed again. He quickly tended to it as he finished his story. "So after a while, I picked up a few loyal friends along the way. It was with them I decided to make my last stand. I knew it'd have to be crazy. So, using what the IPA had taught me, I managed to figure out that the NTNJ were stockpiling anti-planetary armaments on Io, one of Jupiter's moons. My closest friend, a man who calls himself Big Ron, joined me for the mission. We disguised ourselves as engineers. It was hairy. They caught us pretty quickly--our intel had given Ron a bad fake ID. I had to break him out of the facility's brig, because he had the only datastick we needed to hack the weapons computer's AI. A few more people had to die along the way, but we managed to sneak our way in and get access to their weapons. The NTNJ sent an entire fleet of high-powered gunships after us, but I only needed one of their superweapons to vaporize all of them. I hailed the leaders of each major faction and told them that as long as I controlled Io and its superweapons, the galaxy would be at peace... or else." He smiled a little; a small, cynical kind of grin.
"It almost worked, too. They had run into me before, so they knew I wouldn't hesitate to destroy them... Even if a hundred thousand civilians died in the chaos, it would save millions more. Thankfully, once the gun was pointed at them for a change, they didn't have much to argue about. I was just celebrating my victory with the rest of my team when I woke up here. At first I thought it was a hologram or that someone had drugged me back when I rescued Ron from the brig, but now..." His bittersweet smile faded. He looked up from his slate and stared straight into Dark Drive's visor. His expression hardened, and he lowered his voice before speaking.
"... Now, I'm thinking that we might both be in big trouble, here."
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - Dark Drive - 07-25-2015
Dark Drive listened intently to what the man had to say, and quite frankly, it was all pretty unbelievable. This man really did have a history or his own, and he was born in a distant future way beyond his. He was amazed by the things he had to go through as a soldier, but some things still didn't not add up to him.
"... Now, I'm thinking that we might both be in big trouble, here."
Dark Drive decided to be honest and asked. "You are a strong-willed individual but...the only troubling thought I can think of is, how did humanity advance so far by 2024? Did nothing happen in Japan during 2015? Had humanity really not experienced hell throughout the decades until 2035 before the whole I.P.A. and Jupiter NTNJ conflict? Does the word Roidmude not sound vaguely familiar at all to you?"
If none of it rang a bell to the Grey Man, the only logical explanation would be that they're from alternate worlds, which would mean they were transferred from theirs to this new unknown dimension. That would answer both their origins and they could finally get a grip on the situation they were both in. Of course, it would mean that their newfound friendship and trust won't be jeopardized if Grey answered 'no' and Dark Drive was hoping that this man will respond as such..
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - The Grey Man - 07-25-2015
The Grey Man heard Dark Drive's questions. His face showed the man that he was more than a little confused.
"Roidmude? Never heard of em. As for 2015, that's kind of an obscure year in my time. Things happened, sure... just nothing worth remembering in a history class. So I'm afraid that whatever hell on earth you're referring to either wasn't as bad as you thought, or... maybe more likely... for me, it never happened at all." And indeed, if not, this would serve as evidence that this Nealaphh character Grey'd been communicating with at least had some idea of what was going on here.
On the brighter side, the stranger had let his home country slip--Japan. He knew the accent had sounded familiar. "So you're from Japan, then." He stated, hoping that, on the off chance he was wrong, Drive might correct him. "Tell me more about what happened--or was supposed to happen--in 2015. What's a roidmude? I've told you plenty about my time and place, but you've been silent, for the most part."
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - Dark Drive - 07-25-2015
"Yes, I am from Japan..." Dark Drive muttered. "I guess it's only fair if you knew something about me as well."
He took a deep breath and told the soldier what he needed to know about him. "Grey man, it sounds like what you speak of is true. However, the reason I struggle to comprehend it is because...humanity has fallen by 2035. Beaten by their own android-like creation, the Roidmudes within a two decade timespan. The whole world went to hell in 2015 when the Roidmudes turned on their creators and by 2035, all of Earth was under their complete control after their one-sided victory. I find it hard to believe that private military corporations like IPA and technology related to interstellar space travel could even exist like after humanity's defeat and for you to not have heard of them is astonishing to me."
Dark Drive then muttered. "We may both be from Earth, but I can't help but feel that we might not be from the same world..."
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - The Grey Man - 07-27-2015
The Grey Man's eyes widened a bit as he listened to Drive's story. Well, he thought, after it had all been told, That's certainly not something I remember being taught in history class.
"We both may be from Earth, but I can't help but feel that we might not be from the same world..." Drive said quietly; the Man shook his head, affirming the other. Grey looked at him, an eyebrow cocked, and nodded his head before speaking: "Your story is very much foreign to me. I've never even heard of any of that stuff you mentioned; in fact, it clashes with my own timeline. It's beginning to look very much as you say."
Grey regarded the situation thoughtfully. "Drive, if we are from different worlds..." He trailed off at first. His mind was swimming with little scraps of information, the flotsam and jetsam of his brief scroll through the man called Nealaphh's website. Neurons fired. Connections formed. His eyes narrowed, and then widened at his realization, and he bit his lip pensively. It was all beginning to add up, and he wasn't sure that he liked what it all meant.
"If we are from different worlds," he finally said, staring off into the void of blank white, "that would mean that the information I just found on my phone was right. It would mean that we've been torn out of our own universes, and dropped down here, into a world of danger and mystery, ruled by an angry and capricious deity."
He remembered something else he'd read; something about a force called Omnilium, that all Primes could manipulate freely. An idea sparked.
"Drive," he started, "there is a way for us to know for certain if this is the case. The website that my slate's AI found mentioned a few things. There are certain beings in this supposed 'new world' called Primes. These 'Primes' are set apart from everyone else--called 'Secondaries'--in a few ways, but the one that stuck out the most to me was that Primes can intuitively manipulate the fabric of this new reality. They can pull a type of energy from themselves at will, and use this energy to make new objects--or even people."
Grey pulled out his slate and showed Dark Drive the part of the website to which he was referring--granting him the same insight into Omnilium summoning that Grey himself had stumbled upon only moments prior. "So," the Man explained, "my plan is for both of us to see if we can create some small object out of nothing. I don't yet know if we would be considered Primes, but if even one of us can manage to create entirely new objects out of thin air, then we will know a lot more about our current predicament. And, if not... well, I guess the only thing we'd really lose is a couple of our minutes, right?"
He glanced around; none of the formless shapes, far in the distance, were taking any notice of them. Before Dark Drive had time to voice an opinion, The Grey man spoke once more.
"Now would be a good time for us to try--nobody sees us."
And with that, The Grey Man closed his eyes and began to concentrate.
It was slow at first, hardly noticeable to Dark Drive... but soon, just a few feet away from the two of them, the empty air condensed, and in seconds, a ball of rainbow energy had emerged. It floated, unevenly at first, in midair, but shone brightly as it shrank down. Slowly, very slowly, it could be seen that the object was taking shape. Seconds turned to minutes seemingly without any notice from the two of them, each man as fascinated by this new power as they were when they were children--filled to the brim with excitement and wonder at the mystery of it all.
And at the end of this scant handful of minutes, the two men finally had a lighter.
Grey scratched his head. "That was a lot easier than I thought it would be." He then turned to Drive, while simultaneously fishing his cigarillos back out of their pouch; it was nice to know he wasn't in any real danger of running out now. "So, that answers our questions about where we are, I guess," Grey mused, trying to hide the excitement in his voice while lighting his cigarillo, "... So now let's see if you can do it, too."
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - Dark Drive - 07-27-2015
The Grey Man started talking about the situation they were in; everyone here has been taken out of their own universes, and dropped down here, into a world of danger and mystery. Dark Drive knew it was quite the possibility, but even so, that doesn't explain why they were here and who brought them here.
Who, he wondered? Grey answered that about something akin to that of a deity and Dark Dark almost instantly remembered what first happened when he arrived. And that same voice echoed in his head as he thought hard about it - was this so-called deity the figure in white he saw when he opened his eyes in pitch darkness?
“That’s all you need to know right now. You’ll figure out the rest soon enough. I’ll be watching … and waiting.”
He was brought back to reality when Grey said to him. "There is a way for us to know for certain if this is the case. The website that my slate's AI found mentioned a few things. There are certain beings in this supposed 'new world' called Primes. These 'Primes' are set apart from everyone else--called 'Secondaries'--in a few ways, but the one that stuck out the most to me was that Primes can intuitively manipulate the fabric of this new reality. They can pull a type of energy from themselves at will, and use this energy to make new objects--or even people."
"Nani?" was his response to the Grey Man's explanation. He wouldn't have time to ask any more questions when the latter displayed him his tablet-like device to him as if telling him to take a look for himself. Was that a website? This place actually has some sort of internet? The Grey Man further said. "So, my plan is for both of us to see if we can create some small object out of nothing. I don't yet know if we would be considered Primes, but if even one of us can manage to create entirely new objects out of thin air, then we will know a lot more about our current predicament. And, if not... well, I guess the only thing we'd really lose is a couple of our minutes, right?"
Dark Drive nodded reluctantly and watched what Grey had in mind. To create something out of thin air sounded otherworldly, but Dark Drive was about to become a believer soon. Just a few feet away from the two of them, the empty air warped, and in a matter of seconds, a ball of rainbow energy had emerged. And it began to slowly take shape afterwards in what felt like minutes. The black warrior stared intently, utterly dumbstruck by the event that was unfolding right before his eyes; it was like an awe-inspiring movie reaching its most climatic moment. It was shame, though, that the result was...less than exciting - at least to Dark Drive.
"You used this...energy," he muttered in a befuddled voice, like a child disappointed with his Christmas present. "To make yourself a lighter?"
"That was a lot easier than I thought it would be." Grey nonchalantly replied. "So, that answers our questions about where we are, I guess."
Dark Drive looked at him blankly as the man proceeded to set the tip of cigarillo ablaze for a smoke. Grey suggested, "... So now let's see if you can do it, too."
The Kamen Rider opened his hand and stared at the center of his palm? What could he create with this energy that this world runs on? He took a couple of seconds to think about and he got his answer. With that, his fingers clenched into a fist and rainbow energy began to appear around him, just as Grey predicted. At first, it looked just like Grey's initial ball shape with the same rainbow color. However, instead of shrinking, it expanded over an area a couple of feet from where they were standing. It proceeded to reconfigure and Dark Drive eagerly waited as his creation gradually took on a more solid shape by each passing minute; with its hue slowly turning more blue as well. His patience wasn't forever but it was well worth the long wait as the rainbow energy faded away to reveal his new creation. Taking the place of the rainbow aura was none other than his personal vehicle, the NEXTridoron.
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - The Grey Man - 07-27-2015
There was a nice car in front of them now; it matched its driver's attire. Grey briefly wondered if Drive was some kind of superhero back in his own world, to have such an elaborate outfit and color scheme that ran across everything he used. Either way, it'd been a while since he got to see a car this old. Cars had been replaced by personal air and hover-crafts a couple centuries back where he was from, but much like how people never totally abandoned riding horses, there were people back in Grey's time who still loved a good, fast car. And Grey was one of them.
He whistled as he ran a hand along the machine's hood. "This thing looks incredible. Early 2000s, just like you mentioned." He peered into the windows. Even on the inside, the thing had a very 'sleek' look to it; smooth curves, rounded edges. It was long in the front, but not garishly so. He'd have wanted a silver one when he got home, if he knew the make or model; sadly, it appeared that this was a custom job. Drive probably had it specially made. Makes sense, I guess. Grey thought to himself.
"So, you must be ready to get out of here, then?" He asked, only half jokingly. Drive nodded emphatically. Grey reached for the passenger's side door and tried to open it. The thing wasn't locked or anything... But he did notice Dark Drive was looking at him. Grey couldn't tell what kind of expression he was making. The man in blue lifted up a finger and a thumb to his face, and pantomimed flicking something away from his face. "No smoking in my car." Drive told him flatly. Grey sighed, bent down on the ground, snuffed out his light, and put the rest of his cigarillo back in its case.
Ah well. There'd be time for that later, he was sure.
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - Dark Drive - 07-27-2015
Grey whistled as he ran a hand along the hood of Dark Drive's personal ride. "This thing looks incredible. Early 2000s, just like you mentioned."
"Looks like you got a sense of speed, friend..." Dark Drive mused; it's been a while since he's casually joked with someone.
He would then notice Grey reaching for the passenger's side door but Dark Drive had a cache for anyone who was going to call shotgun with him. The man in blue lifted up a finger and a thumb to his face, and was tempted to flick that cigar out of Grey's mouth. He shook his head in disapproval at the heavy smoker. "No smoking in my car."
Grey reluctantly placed his smoke away as he was told and entered the vehicle and Drive followed suite, entering the Driver's seat as the door automatically closed behind him. He suggested, "Let's go for a spin. Where do you suppose we should head to in this strange new world?"
(OOC: Should we end it somewhere here?)
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - The Grey Man - 07-27-2015
Quote:I guess so. We can plan some actions for a different area or simply have Drive drop Grey off somewhere, depending on your preference. You can assume that after this post, The Grey Man is a viable contact for Dark Drive, through any kind of communicator/phone/etc the character has -or- messaging him through the dataverse.
Grey looked around the interior of the NEXTridoron. This thing was pretty nice, especially for a sports car. There was even a small board with a few switches that Grey didn't immediately recognize--there was probably more to Drive's car than met the eye. Now that he thought about it, the name also made a lot more sense now that the car had shown up. Drive, as in he drives this car as part of... whatever he does. Grey still didn't quite know what his new acquaintance's old line of work was, but it still all felt very 'superhero' to him.
His thoughts were cut off by Drive. The man behind the wheel asked to know where Grey wanted to go. "Well, let's see..." He pulled out his slate again, pulling up the short summaries of each world. "According to this, these odd gates each lead to entirely different worlds." He scratched his chin contemplatively. There wasn't much use in taking a car to places like 'The Tangled Green', 'The Vasty Deep', or 'The Endless Dunes'... The rest of the different planes of existence all seemed fairly hospitable to cars, though he didn't think he wanted to visit the one covered in ice. Japan was fairly temperate for most of the year, typically only getting a relatively small amount of snow compared to colder regions, so Grey wasn't sure that Dark Drive could keep control of his vehicle in the below-freezing conditions described by Nealaphh.
"Do they have Brahm Stoker in your world? Apparently Dracula runs the world that this guy calls The Pale Moors," he offered up as casual information, scrolling through their options. "Really, it depends;" he said finally. "If we're looking for paved roads, I think it'd be smart to go to where things are more civilized, which narrows it down to Coruscant, or Camelot," he continued, motioning to these Verses' gates as he spoke, "and if you wanted, we could see if there's decent driving terrain in one of the other ones, but as far as that goes I don't think we'll have a lot of luck there, there, or over there." he concluded, pointing to the gates to the Green, the Deep, and the Dunes, respectively as he spoke. "Personally, I think the two of us would probably blend in better in Coruscant, but there are stories of actual magic being practiced in Camelot, which also seems fairly intriguing... Not to mention, I've read that the government in Coruscant can run on the authoritarian side... So unless you have a thing against dirt roads, I think we should try Camelot."
Re: Objective: Reconnaisance - Dark Drive - 07-27-2015
"Do they have Brahm Stoker in your world? Apparently Dracula runs the world that this guy calls The Pale Moors," Grey casually spoke. Dark Drive simply shrugged; he was a bit rusty on foreign history and literature.
"Really, it depends;" he said, changing the topic. "If we're looking for paved roads, I think it'd be smart to go to where things are more civilized, which narrows it down to Coruscant, or Camelot and if you wanted, we could see if there's decent driving terrain in one of the other ones, but as far as that goes I don't think we'll have a lot of luck there, there, or over there. Personally, I think the two of us would probably blend in better in Coruscant, but there are stories of actual magic being practiced in Camelot, which also seems fairly intriguing... Not to mention, I've read that the government in Coruscant can run on the authoritarian side... So unless you have a thing against dirt roads, I think we should try Camelot."
"Authoritarian..." Dark Drive murmured ominously before speaking up. "Camelot, it is then. And did you say magic?"
His imagination started running wild; Dark Dark could not help but think of medieval-looking towns with people in robes as well as elves with wands and all that fantastical jazz in various folklore. Would a freedom fighter and a Kamen Rider fit in that theme if they entered into some magical society? Would they be treated fairly would they be seen as alien foreigners? He looked at Grey and asked. Also, which way is Camelot?