The Shadow Over Costa Del Sol (Open)

[Tearen Wover]

It was interesting that the girl had elected to choose mental dialogue as her method of discussion with the god-mind. Most humans opted for a verbal discourse, but evidently the fact that the girl did not actually have to speak to Nealaphh made communication easier for her. Additionally, she seemed to have become emboldened by Nealaphh's demonstration of the ability to summon objects on a whim. It let her take the sculpture (it had really cost only a pittance of Omnilium), and she turned it over in her hands, marveling at its very existence.

The structure is indeed real. I summoned it by using Omnilium, a precious resource that you yourself have access to. You were granted the power to create anything you desire when you were brought to the Omniverse by The Smiling One. You need only focus on what you want or need, and it will form itself. Nealaphh said, folding its hands over its chest once more. It listened to her as she planned and thought out about the best course of action to take. It was encouraging for Nealaphh to hear this sort of thought coming from her. Evidently she now felt slightly emboldened by the prospect of using Omnilium. More importantly, she was clearly very intelligent despite lacking a majority of her substantive memories. Perhaps now would be a good time to turn her against The Smiling One.

I can imagine you have questions as to why you were even called to the Omniverse in the first place. I too, question this. There is a being who hold power over this world named...Omni. He is capricious and cruel, and it was he that tore you from your home. Whether he himself removed your memories, I cannot say, but he is the reason you suffer so. Nealaphh said slowly. Cat looked the god-mind in the eye briefly, a slight tear welling in her blue hues. Nealaphh would have to proceed with caution; it did not want to return her to the miserable state she had just recovered from.

The good news, is that I seek to rectify this problem. Omni, The Smiling One, will answer for what he has done to you. To me. To everybody. But...I digress. You desire something to keep you safe and in company while I am away? So be it. Nealaphh said, stretching its arm out in front of it. A sphere of Omnilium radiated into existence, and a black octahedron began to form. Once this shape was finished, a similarly colored black cube was formed. One was filled with a red inner light, and the other, a blue inner light. They rotated slowly and hovered in mid-air. Nealaphh pointed to the octahedron

This is Klee.

It then pointed to the cube.

This, is Shen. They are Shards, personal servants of mine. They know everything that I know, and they can protect you from any menial danger of this world, aside from other primes. They will obey your commands and keep you safe, and will tell you whatever you need to know. Nealaphh said. It was good to see its old subordinates in the Omniverse, even if they were only idealized copies of the beings it once knew. The god-mind briefly thought back to The Remnants...what had ever become of the Siblings? What of the Cataclysm, and had Hykeros ever found his lost brother. Alas, these answers were lost to times and places so far removed from here and now, that to try and fathom the outcomes was beyond even Nealaphh's ken. Regardless, it stayed to watch Cat as she attempted to summon her first item within the Omniverse...

[Ari]

Omni... i know if him. This little green creature told me that he was the one who brought me here. She actually seemed to.. like him, despite the fact that he's a criminal. If he's the one that took my memories... then he is the one who can give them back. That means your task is much more important than any trivial request I may have. Thank you. Cat wiped the stray tears off her cheeks as she watched Nealaphh create two odd-looking shapes, one of them resembling a cube. Slowly, she reached out to touch them as Nealaphh introduced them both. They were curious things that glowed with an inner light, each in their own colours, as they floated above the ground. They looked like floating black shapes, nothing very special, but if Nealaphh said they could protect her than clearly they could. Cat looked up to the sahdow-man, eyes watering slightly agian but this time not from fear. She was... happy. The young woman was happy. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Nealaphh, embracing him in a tight hug before she would let go of him. She didn't want him to leave but she knew he had to.
Cat smiled softly and sat cross-legged on the floor, hands level with her chest as if meditating and focusing on the space just infront of her chest as she tried to pull out her omnilium like Nealaphh had. She could tell there was something there, something internal she supposed, which she poked and prodded at before returning to the task. Thinking of the odd irridescent material, Cat searched inwardly for the source to bring it out. The material slowly began to seep out of her hands into a small floating orb in front of her. It wasn't much but it was enough for what she wanted to do. Cat began to poke at and mold the sphere, making it take the shape of something similar to a five point star, then a sort of cartoonish humanoid shape. Cat was focused solely on her creation and barely noticed that Nealaphh was still there watching her.
The irridescence of the orb began to disappear as white and black colouring began to appear, as well as a bit of gray. The shaping altered and conformed, slowly changing to resemble Nealaphh's armour, then his gun, then his head. The colours and shades grew and splotched the surface until the whole doll was covered, then fine details etched into it. It began to fluff up slightly as the details finished up and Cat reached out for it, all the changes done.
Grinning, Cat turned the doll towards Nealaphh and held it up proudly. I did it!! That actually worked!! She hugged the doll tight to her chest as her smile softened and shrank. You can go now, if you need to. I'll be okay on my own with the shards.

[Demetri Malius]

As Demetri silently walked the streets and the sun began to set, leaving red streaks across the sky, his thoughts constantly wandered to the image of Nealaphh teaching the girl how to summon items with Omnilium, as well as the dataverse device that he used to project the images of the machines he was looking for. Demetri began to wonder if perhaps he could summon a companion to aid him in his observations and quests, and certainly another pair of eyes would be helpful. His footsteps came to a halt as the sun’s dying light disappeared across the sky, leaving nothing but darkness overhead. The calm breeze grazed the dark alleyway, softly caressing Demetri’s face as he stared at the dirty floor in thought. His eyes stood still as he recalled anything that could help him visualize what he wanted in a companion. His ally would need to be strategic and intelligent, and well fit to accompany him and keep up with his speed and stealth. He remembered peculiar metals and devices at the mechanist shop, and all the different unfinished and broken machines that were laid across the floor and shelves, although he didn't pay enough attention to remember much details. If he could indeed summon an ally, it may be in his best interest to summon a living machine that could support him. He subconsciously walked by a dented dumpster, leaning his back on the brick wall of the building it belonged to before sliding down to a seating position. The stench of rotting food and urine reached his nostrils, but he paid no attention. He needed to focus, there was no room for error or distractions. The machine would have to be small, yet mobile. If it could somehow levitate, it would most likely be sufficient enough to move beside him but he also needed it to not attract too much attention. Perhaps if it was a sphere, each immediate necessary part could reach out and retract, allowing it to function at all times yet be able to retreat into itself for defense or stealth movement. Demetri then held his hand out. Perhaps...

As he focused his energy a small orb began to form. Demetri closed his eyes and let out a deep breath willing the machine to form and to be born into this world. He visualized each piece, trying to complete technology far ahead of his home world age. He struggled to make sense of it, hoping that his will alone was enough to create such a machine. Soon he began to feel a presence, and slowly he opened his eyes. A silver plated mechanism floated centimeters above his hand, it reminded him of the steel weapons and armor that warriors used in his home world, the sturdiest and most durable metals used in battle. Small puffs team erupted from small crevasses between the plates, where it could be seen that it hid a retractable mechanism within. It then began to speak.

Powering on.... calibrating gyroscope and gps locator...connecting to the dataverse... searching for artificial intelligence... decrypting personality... initiating protocols… downloading bounty and news updates... booting up... successful.

Steam then poured out from the machine, the heat warming his hand as the mechanism expanded, hissing while the front plates shifted and opened, revealing a camera-like glass and a small blue light that flickered and darted from side to side, which Demetri assumed to be its eye. Mechanical whirrs echoed in the alleyway as two small metal arms came out from its sides towards its bottom, with small plates located at each of its joints for protection. At the end of each arm was a clawlike hand, complete with three sharp metal fingers, and a small rubber bump on its palm. Another two devices prodded out from its side on the top. The top devices were plated on top as well and lasers beamed from each side with what seemed like some kind of ranged shooting device. The eye began to emit a blue ray at Demetri, as if it was analyzing him.

Scanning... no threat detected. Current affiliate is known creator. Thanks is given. Logging biometric details into database for future reference and recognition. Registering... complete. Boot complete. Completing setup....Intelligent Robotic Infiltration Strategist IRIS variant initiated. Starting personality program.

Each part then squeaked as it seemed to stretch itself, almost as if it awoke from a deep slumber. Suddenly the weapons retracted into the machine and its blue eye flickered before the machine began to speak.

"Ugh... starting up is such a tiring process,” the robot paused for a moment as the blue light darted around for a moment before focusing on Demetri. “Ah, hello there, creator. I am IRIS. Intelligent Robotic Infiltration Strategist variant of omniverse technology...or at least that's what my programming says. Nice to meet ya!" The machine seemed surprisingly human, almost as if it wasn’t a robot at all. Perhaps Demetri did better than he expected.

The machine floated upwards and back up from Demetri, allowing him to rise from his position, while it surveyed its surroundings. Demetri was still shocked by his creation, and examined the machine, moving his head to see it from different angles.

"According to my gps, we are in the Vasty Deep, Costa del Sol to be exact. I can retrieve some information from the dataverse on this location if you… why are you staring at me like that.” the bot questioned Demetri, although its tone was more accusative and questioning. However, the informant ignored him, continuing to examine the machine, and proceeded to poke it, still not believing it was completely real.

"HEY! Stop it! I thought i was summoned to help you spy on stuff! Not to be your "hands-on" robot you pervert!”

The robot spoke in a semi-serious tone,and Demetri stopped and finally acknowledged its voice. He blinked a few times, realizing that he had actually summoned a mechanical companion, and that perhaps he could do more.

"Oh, I apologize. I just can't believe I was able to summon a machine as mechanically calibrated and functional as you..." Demetri spoke in awe.

The robot waved a hand at him, and a small hiccup of metal clanking was audible from within it. Was it perhaps laughing or giggling at him? "Well thanks for the compliment, to be fair I did get a teeny-weeny bit of help from the dataverse, as you managed to at least give me a a mobile dataverse integration." The bot shook up and down, almost nodding to him. "That means that you can use me as a mobile dataverse device, and it helps me with figuring out what the heck you want me to do. Which brings me to my point. What the heck are ARE we doing anyway?"

[Tearen Wover]

Nealaphh watched as the girl went about creating some sort of...effigy reflecting its own appearance. Had the girl formed such a deep bond with the god-mind already that she saw it as a source of comfort? The shadow was not familiar with this type of appraisal of its character. Still, watching her embrace her true potential was satisfying in a way for Nealaphh that almost mirrored human pride. The god-mind nodded to Cat as she reassured Nealaphh that she would be okay on her own.

Klee and Shen are essentially mental copies of me. You will not want for my company. Nealaphh said before turning on its heel and donning the stormtrooper helmet once more.

The stark sunlight nearly blinded Nealaphh when it emerged from the empty bungalow, but the shaded lenses of the helmet helped prevent the glare from being too overwhelming. People in the street were giving it passing stares and murming to each other. A quick scan of their thoughts revealed that they believed Nealaphh to he intoxicated or otherwise mentally impaired. Evidently it was not usual for troopers to travel on their own. Still, the god-mind disregarded the ambient thoughts and strode off towards the more less reputable neighborhoods of the city. Nealaphh was aware that dressing in stormtrooper regalia would make it difficult to speak with anyone outside of the law, so the god-mind absorbed the Omnilium from the armor to create a long, raggy brown robe and a mirrored , blank face mask to obscure its features. The robe was a far cry from the piece of art it usually sported, but such finery would also be conspicuous in this place.

Being of empire influence, and also just by dint of being in the Omniverse itself, the population of the seedier section of Costa Del Sol was quite widely varied, and Nealaphh was assaulted on every side by languages and cultural references it did not understand. It would have made a fascinating topic of study any other time, but the shadow was here for a different variety of information today..

Nealaphh needed ways to get large amounts of equipment and raw materials into Coruscant without the Empire noticing, so any of these traders who dealt with illicit shipping might be able to clue the god-mind in. Doubtless, the information would come at a price, but Nealaphh was certain it could strike an equitable bargain. After all, unless the person it dealt with was also prime, there weren't many denizens within this part of the city that would be able to have an advantage over the shadow. That being said, despite Nealaphh's attempts to disguise itself, it was still getting many odd looks from the people on the street. The god-mind wasn't exactly sure how to make itself more inconspicuous, so it chose a random female passing by and snagged her mind. She froze in place as Nealaphh scoured her brain for information on where to acquire local attire, and what it found was that it was odd for someone to be dressed in a heavy robe in such warm weather. The god-mind had not taken this into account, being that warm areas allowed it to sap more ambient heat from the air, and thus, overheating was not an issue. In the context of passing for a local, however, it made sense. Unfortunately, If Nealaphh could not cover up its glistening black carapace, it would still be conspicuous. This posed a dilemma. It then occurred to Nealaphh that the only encounters it had ever had with the Empire involved the god-mind wearing its preferred robe, so perhaps moving around with just its skin showing would not be an issue. This still posed the problem of obscuring its facial features, but from what it could glean from the woman, it was apparent that in these criminal neighborhoods, covering up one's face with a variety of garments was not uncommon.

The god-mind released the woman, who immediately sprinted away in terror. It ducked back into an alleyway and spent the next few minutes reconfiguring its robe and mask into clothes similar to what the woman's mind had been expecting. A pale red button down shirt, a pair of khaki shorts, flip flops, as well as a white baseball cap and a pair of large, aviator sunglasses. In order to cover up its third eye, Nealaphh summoned a paisley handkerchief and tied it over the offending feature. Now dressed like a cross between a vacationer and hoodlum, the god-mind once more sallied forth into the streets. It still got odd looks on occasion, but the magnitude was significantly reduced from before. As such, it began to cherry pick bits of information from passing minds until it finally learned of a place it might be able to get the information it needed.

...

Ten minutes of walking delivered Nealaphh to what was known as a 'bar'. It was a small, dingy building with colored lights adorning the interior walls. A large flat table dominated the far back wall of the structure, and a denizen was behind the table, serving various beverages to patrons. Again, Nealaphh got a few quick glances in its direction, but the intent behind them was less out of curiosity and more out of concern for safety. Many of the denizens within this bar were, in fact, non-humans, and based on their surface emotions, it seemed as though many of them feared scrutiny from the local majority population. As such, when they saw Nealaphh's obsidian skin, they actually relaxed, which was pleasing to the shadow. Using information that it had gained in its transit to this location, the god-mind sat at the bar table and tapped on a menu screen for a bit. The computer interface allowed a patron to concoct their own desired beverage, and as far as Nealaphh knew, ordering a specific mixture of fluids would draw the attention of the tavern's owner. As such, the god-mind ordered a drink comprised of Kahlua, Blue Curaçao, Beef Broth, and Seltzer, and waited for the results. After a few minutes, a small creature, no taller than Nealaphh's knee, descended from some steps built into the far corner of the establishment. Nealaphh peered in its direction and the two made eye contact, even through the mirrored sunglasses. The diminutive denizen crawled up on to a bar stool next to the shadow and placed its own drink order before speaking.

"That's a pretty odd order you got there, stranger." it said in its squeaky voice. It had large, floppy ears and pale skin, with a wrinkled face. Its hands had large stubby fingers that ended in three bony knobs, and it was dressed in a large (for its size) black coat. Nealaphh tapped on the creatures mind with its telepathy, and it looked surprised for a moment before staring towards the wall and responding to the god-mind mentally.

Ahh, so your a mentalist then? Always nice to have one of your kind sniffing around my head. the creature said in a sardonic tone.

I need only one piece of information from you. Nothing else you know interests me. Nealaphh responded. It was technically the truth, but Nealaphh was sure that, had it not been preoccupied with more important matters, it would have sucked all the knowledge from the denizen's tiny brain, wholesale.

Uhhhhh huh. Alright then, what do you need to know and what do you have for me? it asked. By the way, my name is Chip.

Greetings, Chip. I am in need of a clandestine shipping route into the lower tiers of Coruscant. I have been led to believe you have a contact who may be able to assist in this matter.

Oohh sure, sure. Yeah I know a guy who runs boats in and out of the City. Real bad egg, lemme tell ya. Regardless, he can only move your merchandise without the Empire knowing. As for finding a secret gate or whatever, you'll have to sniff elsewhere.

That is acceptable. Your terms?

Heyyy, I like you buddy. All business and no bluster. Okay then. I don't need to know exactly what business your in, but I am going to need a cut of the action. Measly five percent, you can do that right? Chip asked, taking a sip of its recently delivered beverage. Nealaphh thought to itself for a moment. Frankly, the endeavor that it was undertaking was not oriented towards profit, so finding a way to pay this creature would not be intuitive. However...

I propose a counteroffer. I am sorry to say that my endeavors do not involve personal monetary gain, however, may I make the conjecture that you have many contacts for illicit trade?

You could say that, yeah. I'm listening.

Excellent. As a by product of my manufacturing process, I will be in possession of large amounts of copper and nickel. The alloy of these two metals, with some additional materials added, make a strong, corrosion resistant metal alloy. There will be nearly a thousand tons of this produced by the time I am done. I am certain that if you have any contacts who dwell in the arena of maritime construction, they will have great use for such metal, which you can sell for a complete profit. Additionally, it removes the hassle of me having to find a way to dispose of these leftovers. What say you?

Chip sat in silence for a long time. Nealaphh was tempted to try and read into the little creature's thoughts, but refrained from this. Trust was an important element to maintain at this time.

...sounds just a little too good to be true. You tellin' me I get a thousand tons of cupronickel for free if I just drop you a name?Fishy man...that's kinda fishy. Chip said, taking another swig of his drink. Nealaphh squinted its eyes for a moment, before calling a tiny, flickering orb of Omnilium out of its palm. Chip's eyes immediately widened.

Material gain is beyond my concern. I am trusting that this generosity will also purchase your discretion as well as a prolonged business relationship. You need only answer yes or no; I do not find haggling or supplicating to be worth my time.

...so...you's a prime huh? That explains a lot. Hrm...alright there, buddy, we'll call it a deal. I'll also tell my shipping friend to treat you real nice-like too. Call it a...token of appreciation.

Superb. The name?

You's lookin' for Ollie the Ice Pick. Deals with frozen food shipments from the Deeps to Coruscant. You can find him down by the docks in the Imperial shipping zone, warehouse forty-five. Don't worry about the Imps putting' some heat on ya, they never go down there.

Very well, Chip. I look forward to any future contact.

Don't mention it. Seriously. Don't. Chip said with a half-honest smile. Nealaphh nodded in understanding and stood up from the flaking bar stool slowly. With ever-measured strides, the god-mind departed Chip's bar and headed off towards Costa Del Sol's shipping yards...

[Demetri Malius]

Demetri’s thoughts came back to his current situation. He needed to infiltrate this base in order to find out more information on the machines that Nealaphh was searching for. He still needed to find a way inside, he had a few idea, but he couldn’t be sure. One mistake could mean a bounty, or worse, death. He began to explain himself to the robot.


“I wish to attempt to infiltrate the fort that lies not too far from this vicinity. It is protected by a large sandstone wall, and is heavily guarded by a number of patrols. The wall is too high to climb alone without being caught.And the only area short of patrols are the towers at each corner." Demetri covered his mouth as he thought about a way in.


IRIS then floated out of the alley to see the base for itself. It paused and scanned from afar, then stayed in place for a while. Right as Demetri was about to poke it again to make sure it hadn't died or something, the robot turned to him and spoke. "Okay so... don’t poke me again. So from what I can tell, you can't reach the towers from the base, you are going to have to climb one of these buildings and jump to one of the towers from there. It would help if you had something like a rope though, or you may fall to your death..." The bot explained the option as it waved its arms around.


Demetri thought about it for a moment before reaching his arms out, summoning his chain kunai. "Perhaps like these?" The chains hung off his arms swinging in the breeze as they jingled.




"Perfect! Now for you to get up there and make a life or death jump!" The bot exclaimed as it floated up to scale the building next to them. Demetri took a deep breath before whipping his chain kunai at the a small decorative windowsill and tugging at the chain lightly to secure it. He pulled himself up and then began to swing side to side to give himself momentum before reaching his chain out for another windowsill. He would then swing upwards and retract his other chain, keeping his momentum as he repeated this process, moving up the building in a diagonal manner. As he pulled himself up, IRIS was waiting for him. "Ooh, that was tough, I was steaming as I watched you climb all the way up." The bot gave off some whirrs again. That was definitely laughter. IRIS then moved over to the edge of the building, which led to another before the base. Demetri jumped across and followed the bot to the edge, keeping low to avoid detection.


"Are you sure this is going to work?" Demetri questioned the robot.


"Of course, you have like a 34% chance of making it to the tower unseen and unscathed. Good odds." Demetri face turned to one of doubt.[/b] "Don't worry creator, you'll be fine, just relax its, its not like your life depends... oh wait is does. Well just don't miss, I'll be right behind you!"[/b] The bot joked once more as Demetri grimaced and rose from his position. He then backed up and took one last deep breath. "Okay go!" The bot shouted, cheering him on.


Demetri sprinted forward, timing each step with perfect precision as he approached the edge. He locked his eyes on the tower, aiming towards the stone roof. The edge rushed to him and he took one last step before leaping forward, his surroundings seeming to freeze as he floated in mid-air. Two stormtroopers stood in the tower, conversing with each other. Demetri quickly whipped his kunai forward, latching around the stone and watching as the kunai secured itself around the chain. Less than a second later, the two guards noticed him, one of them beginning to shout "What the hell is that? Get down!" Demetri aimed his landing and kicked one of the guards down as he landed in the tower, knocking him out as he rolled to a standing position. By the time Demetri turned around, the other stormtrooper already had his sights on him. "STOP RIGHT THERE! PUT YOUR HANDS UP."


For a moment Demetri thought his plan had failed already, until he saw a familiar blue light come up behind the grunt. IRIS extended its arms and grabbed a hold of the guards helmet. "I like your head armor, so I’ll be taking it."[b] The guard wrestled away as the robot tore off its helmet. [b]"Thank you very much." The robot mocked the trooper.


"Why you little bot..." As the grunt raised his rifle, a chain came from behind him, circling his neck as he was distracted by the machine. His eyes bulged out from their sockets as the rifle fell to the floor and he was pulled backwards towards Demetri. His body fell to the floor and his eyes fluttered as he fell unconscious. "Nice work creator, for a second I was sure that you were going to die. Good thing you have me here, an expert at infiltration." The bot spoke playfully while it giggled and shook. "I'm keeping this guy's helmet. You go ahead and take the suit of the other guy you hit."


The bot began to try to fit its body into the stormtrooper helmet, struggling to fit the armor over its round figure until there was a sudden pop, locking it into place. Demetri stripped the guard of his armor and began dressing himself as well. It was surprisingly lightweight in his opinion, but felt sturdy. He looked up to see ISIS, who looked comical to say the least, as a floating helmet. "Okay creator, I can keep track of all the radio signals with their communicator, ooh, and the visor comes with its own HUD! Although, it does overlap with my preprogrammed HUD. Oh well, onward! This way!" The floating helmet hovered down a hall, with Demetri following close behind. As the began to round the corner, Demetri felt a presence. He quickly grabbed the robot and hid a bit away from the corner of the hallway.


"HEY I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO-" The robot began to scold him again for touching it.


"SHH." Demetri hushed the robot as footsteps echoed through the hall. Two guards were walking down, talking about something.They were quite vulgar.


"Oh man, these fucking primes are really starting trouble."


"Tell me about it, have you heard of the guy that moves shit with his mind?"


"Yeah, supposedly he's like a shadow, and he can block bullets and shit too."


"Shit man. If we were to go up against a fucker like that, we would have no chance."


"Fuck that, I would be outta there, we don't get paid enough for that shit..."


The two guards passed by the hall as Demetri and IRIS stared in their direction, holding their breath and voice communicators as the two were oblivious to their presence. Demetri gave a sigh of relief as the continued down the hall. "I'm certain that I shall be the one to lead us now, IRIS." The stormtrooper helmet nodded and they continued down the hall. It was quite the ways down but they were nearing the control room. Then another few presences. Two more guards. They would have to sneak past their room. Demetri motioned for IRIS to stick behind him. He focused on the presence of the guards, getting a mental image of their positions facing the door. It reeked of alcohol, and he could hear the guards joking around. He would just need them to look away for a second. He waited in anticipation. They would glance back a few times, but he needed something longer than that. Then he sensed his chance. "Now." Demetri whispered to IRIS. They two guards were laughing at a joke, too occupied to notice as they slipped passed them. One had his helmet off and was drinking a beer.


"That was funny as hell, man."


"Thanks," the helmetless one chuckled. "I've been saving that one for the perfect time." Suddenly he saw something in the corner of his eye. Was that a floating helmet?


"Hey Jim what's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost."


"Oh, uh, nothing man. I think I'm going to take it easy on the drinks though, feeling a bit tipsy."


The other trooper bellowed "Whatever man, such a lightweight."


Demetri and IRIS continued until they finally reached a surveillance room. There was a single guard inside sleeping. Demetri silently crept up behind him and pulled his chair out into the hallway. "Now that we are clear, we must check the logged transfers to see if they have the machine that Nealaphh is searching for. Check documentation and everything else as well, maybe we can see if someone higher up knows anything."


"Alrighty then, creator!" The two then frantically searched the databases on the computers, IRIS was uploading everything into its mainframe, and Demetri was focusing on any relevant information. Although he had never seen any computers or equipment like this before. The layout of everything was rather simple, and he had no trouble clicking buttons to look through each file, though it would take him a few seconds to glance over them. As for IRIS, every file that it uploaded ended with the machine emitting a ding noise upon completion. At the rate that IRIS was uploading files, it was ringing at a constant. Demetri was having trouble concentrating.


"IRIS, CAN YOU PLEASE STOP THAT WRETCHED-" Demetri whispered harshly at his companion before stopping. "Wait, I believe I discovered something. It states some information about a UNSC Pelican Pilot. Joseph Gustav. He may know the whereabouts of our machine. He was last seen in the Nexus, heading to a place called the Ashen Steppes..."


IRIS glanced towards him. "The Ashen Steppes? I hear it's really hot there. I don't want my processes to overheat."


Demetri allowed IRIS to download the file as the began to walk back out. "I'm certain you will be functional." They retraced their steps back from which they came, avoiding more guards. They eventually found themselves back to where they started. The two guards were still out cold. Demetri quickly stripped off his armor, as walking with it at night was sure to attract too much attention, especially since he was about to rappel down the tower. IRIS began to try taking off the helmet that it put on, but it seemed locked into place. "Um.... I think I'll keep this on for a while."


Demetri gave the machine a questioning look. "Do you wish for me to assist you in removing the helmet?"


The helmet shook side to side as IRIS spoke. "Oh, nonono, I'm fine, perfectly fine, just want to wear it is all, a little keepsake." Demetri gave the bit a questioning look before taking off in a run. He leaped once more before hooking his chain to the building they had been on before and seung low to the ground before breaking off into a roll. IRIS followed right behind him. "Well, I guess it's off to the Ashen Steppes we go..." The robot seemed to sigh as they headed off towards the Nexus

[Tearen Wover]

On the way to the docks, Nealaphh passed several Imperial patrols, but none seemed overtly interested in it. Regardless, Nealaphh exercised caution as it entered the warehouse rows of the port district. Any attempt at dressing up Costa Del Sol as an attractive tourist destination broke down here; the buildings were almost a uniform matte grey color, and the ground was painted with white guidelines to help the vast array of automated cargo carriers find their destinations. By now, night had fallen, so it was not easy to maintain a high situational awareness. Fortunately, the way in which the buildings were numbered and lined up was extremelt logical, so finding Warehouse 45 was trivial for the god-mind.

Nealaphh entered the office side of the warehouse; it was a dingy little space with hallogen lights lining the ceiling and untold reams of paper scattered across several desks. Behind the largest desk, there was a small, portly human seated. His skin was flushed, and the back and sides of his thin flower-print shirt were stained with sweat. The small, desktop fan blowing directly in his face apparently did nothing to assist with the heat of the seaside air. He looked up at Nealaphh with dull eyes as the shadow entered, as if seeing ab aberration such as the shadow was the least interesting thing all day.

"Yeah?" he asked, his tone both sounding gruff and defeated. Nealaphh could feel waves of stress and anxiety emanating from the man's mind. High cholesterol, kids in school, sick wife...the human was rife with regret and worry. If this was Nealaphh's contact, then the god-mind had doubts as to his ability to conduct the operation in question.

I seek an individual named Ollie the Ice Pick. I was sent here by Chip. Nealaphh said plainly. The fat human nodded slowly. Apparently he didn't even realize that Nealaphh had spoken telepathically. The human picked up a phone next to his computer and spoke into the receiver.

"Boss, some guy is here to see ya."

...

"No I don't know who he is. Says he knows Chip."

...

"Yeah okay."

The human turned to Nealaphh and pointed a stubby thumb towards a heavy door in the far left corner of the office. He said no further words and went back to tapping keys at his aging computer. A normal human might be offended by the lack of social grace being demonstrated, but to Nealaphh it was pleasingly efficient. The god-mind pulled open the heavy metal door and entered a small cold room with another door that led into the warehouse proper. Nealaphh could already feel its body becoming sluggish as it struggled to absorb sufficient heat from the air. Hopefully the negotiations would not take a long time.

As the shadow opened the door to the refrigerated warehouse, a frigid blast of air surged in to the intermediary compartment. Nealaphh's body did not have physical responses such as shivering or goosebumps, but if one were to peer behind its sunglasses, the god-minds eyes did become visibly more dim. Various automatons went about their work, packing frozen fish and vegetable products into freezer containers, which were, in turn, hauled away by the port district's carrier automatons. Nealaphh was unsure what, exactly, the type of contraband Ollie was in the business of transporting, but there was certainly no evidence of anything other than food items being processed here.

As Nealaphh watched the droids go about their business, a tall man in a heavy coat approached Nealaphh. He wore a tight fitting woolen cap on his head, and a cigarette was held between chapped lips. He looked Nealaphh up and down before speaking in a low, almost menacing tone.

"So Chippy sent ya, huh?" Ollie said, pulling a small blaster pistol out of his coat and fiddling with the firing mechanism.

"Little rat always sending deadbeats and Imp spies my way. Gotta deal with 'em accordingly." the man continued, popping a magazine into the black weapon. He pointed it at Nealaphh at an oblong angle from his hip, only half-aiming at the god-mind's head.

"So...how we gonna make sure you ain't a problem?"

Nealaphh proceeded to calmly hold it's hand out, palm side up, and activate its dataverse device. It pulled up it's bounty posting on the relevant dataverse site. Ollie looked at the picture of Nealaphh and wrinkled his brow.

"So? Who the fuck is that?" Ollie barked. Nealaphh wordlessly lowered its bandana and removed its sunglasses using its mental power, tucking both into it's shirt pocket. When Ollie saw the three, burning, green eyes, he took a step back, but his look softened.

"Ooookay then...so the Imps have it in for ya. Gotcha." Ollie said, lowering his weapon. He kept it in his hand just in case, but Nealaphh could feel that he was going to be much easier to deal with.

"That still don't mean you ain't-"

I did not come here to waste my valuable time. Either we talk or I leave. My integrity will have to be taken on faith.

Ollie's face scrunched up as Nealaphh spoke into his mind. He pursed his lips for a moment before letting out a puff of sighed steam.

"Agh. Okay, okay. Chip did say you were coming, said to treat you right. I just gotta cover my back, man."

Indeed. Did he tell you what I need moved?

"Yeah, nickel and copper ore. That's an easy one."

Oh?

"Sure, sure. We'll just jam the metal into the shipping droids. Won't even have to mess with the frozen goods. Pie, man."

I do not understand. Pie?

"...uh, y'know. Easy as pie. Whatever. Chip said you were gonna kick the leftover cupronickel back to him, and we already agreed to share profit on that, so we're square, payment wise. I just need to know where I'm sending the stuff." Ollie said, pulling out a heavy looking digital device. It was most likely insulated to help maintain functionality in extreme cold...unlike Nealaphh, who was beginning to feel a tad faint.

That is...yet to be determined. I will contact you again when I have the relevant information. Until then, Mr.-

"Whoa, whoa! Easy there! I also need to know how it's getting into the deeps and who's sending it!"

The information will be sent to you. Please, I must get back in to warm air.

"...alright, alright. Don't send it to the office! Imps'll catch it through the dataverse. Send a messenger."

Understood.

With that, Nealaphh promptly turned on its heel and briskly walked back out of the frozen warehouse. By the time it reached the smothering heat of the office, the god-mind was nearly staggering with each step. The second the heat hit its skin, Nealaphh sank against the wall with relief, feeling life returning to its body. It had no idea that exposure to extreme cold would be so dangerous to this body. It would be imperative to avoid frigid temperatures in the future.

For now, Nealaphh gathered itself for a few moments more and worked out what it should do next. There were five steps to this project and all but one had been addressed; where to set up shop within Coruacant. The location would have to be out of the way, yet easily accessible for large cargo transfers. The god-mind needed to find someone who was familiar with the city, and also not affiliated with the Empire. Nealaphh lurched back on to its feet, adorned its headgear, and headed out in search of such a person...

[Tearen Wover]

Nealaphh found a secluded space on a nearby beach, next to an outflow pipe from which filthy water steadily dripped. To a human, the cove would have smelled of rotting sea vegetation and fish, mixed with the sharp tang of sewage. Nealaphh, thankfully, lacked any sort of olfactory senses, and was unperturbed by the stench. Here, under the dull orange glow of an urban sky, Nealaphh searched through the Dataverse for any relevant information that would be able to assist it in locating either a secret way in to Coruscant, or of someone who might know. Nealaphh had considered returning to the individual known as Chip, but the god-mind did not necessarily want to lay all of its plans bare to a largely unknown individual. As such, Nealaphh submitted searches to the Dataverse, consisting of the key words 'Coruscant', 'Smuggling', 'Crime', and 'Gate'. Very little in the way of concrete information could be found; the Empire evidently had a tight grip on any information that might expose a weakness in their defenses. What Nealaphh did find, however, was an ongoing news stream of a robbery in process. A young female woman with alarmingly bright green hair sat behind a polished desk, with a vista of Coruscant in the background. She wore a bronze colored suit and a pink blouse beneath, all of which seemed to be trying to contrast against her admittedly garish hair. Nealaphh noted the background with some interest, since the cityscape appeared to be in the light of day, whereas it was night in the Vasty Deeps. This incongruity would have to be explored at a later time.

"...three primes, recently identified as Okor, Tartaros, and Galel Baraz, are currently attempting to steal an artifact known as the Crown of Blackhand. The trio of criminals, also recent participants in Dante's Abyss, are currently engaged with another group of primes intent, apparently, on apprehending them. Imperial forces have been told to stand off until the conflict between the primes has come to an end, in the hopes that the criminals will be weak enough to neutralize. We go now, live to the scene, with Ron Burgundy. Ron?"

The scene shifted to a mustached man sitting in the side of some sort of aerial vehicle, circling over the scene of the battle. The field reporter was dressed in a leather bomber jacket and a woolen white scarf. Bright orange ear protectors wrapped around his head, and they appeared to be custom made so as not to perturb the reporter's hair. The camera kept attempting to zoom in for closer views of the battle, but Mr. Burgundy continually ducked in front of the lens, despite being out of focus.

"Yes, female news correspondent, the scene is indeed...," he paused, swerving to stay in the shot, "...indeed grave. These three heavily armored men have almost utterly destroyed the main exhibit floor, which comes as a blessed relief to myself and other nacho aficionados everywhere, as the cafeteria has been left largely unscathed. The Coruscant Museum, widely renowned for its decadent food service, was also hosting an exhibit of ancient...Jack...Jack you're off of me. Jack. The camera is off center. There you go! Ancient trinkets and dead people from the Tangled Green. The thieves, whom I've dubbed Larry, Curly and Moe, are still beating the ever living snot out of their prime buddies, who I have dubbed Alvin, Simon and Theodore. Let's now take a look at the current situation. The current situation. Jack! Point the camera...at the museum! Good god! There! Geez!"

The camera then focused back on the museum, which conveniently had a large hole blown in its roof. Nealaphh watched in earnest as the three primes it had encountered in the lobby of Dante's Abyss exchanged blows with their counterparts. Their opponents seemed competent, but based on the relative state of the fighters, seniority was winning out. All at once, the draconian prime tore a deep gash into Okor's armor. The armored prime responded by firing some form of phosphorescent munition into his face.

"By the braided beard of Agamemnon! Alvin just spilled Moe's guts all over the museum floor, but...but Moe is still going! Oh, dear sweet Whiskey, No! Theodore has just been burnt to a crisp, like a child's marshmallow! Sweet little Theodore! Oh the primanity!"

The camera continued to stay focused on the museum fight, with the insufferable human drawing comparisons between the carnage and various forms of desecrated human sustenance non-stop. It didn't matter to the god-mind, however. What mattered was that it had found its contact for gaining entry into Coruscant. To be able to arrange such a daring endeavor in broad daylight...they had to have some form of insider knowledge.

All at once, however, Nealaphh heard an odd noise. A steady, mechanical thumping that was causing small vibrations in the water. As it gradually got louder, Nealaphh found itself momentarily blinded in the spotlight of some immense Imperial construct that was essentially a box-like cockpit mounted on two legs. Its cannons swiveled to bear themselves on the shadow, and a loud magnified voice blared over a loudspeaker.

"Prime! Remain where you are! You are under arrest for crimes against the Empire!"

It was at this point that Nealaphh noticed the seven stormtroopers arranged in a barrier formation around the AT-ST's legs. The god-mind did not need to look around to know that it was cornered. Well. Cornered for a human, maybe...

[Tearen Wover]

A long moment passed as Nealaphh and the Imperial strike team stared each-other down. Nealaphh was not entirely certain that it would be able to defend itself against a caliber of weapon as strong as the AT-ST's cannons. It's gaze slowly panned across the collected soldiers at the feet of the mobile construct. All of them had their weapons trained on the shadow, but Nealaphh could feel their fear emanating from beneath those stern, black eyes. The sea crashed against the industrial shore, lending its august opinion on the gravity of the situation. Dull hisses of surf seemed to goad the opposing forces on, begging them to tear each other to shreds. All at once, there came a sharp buzzing voice that crackled forth from the construct's speakers like a bolt of thunder.

"Open fire!"

The god-mind had barely enough time to raise its hyperbaric shield before the hail of red death came streaking towards its location. The smaller arms fire from the soldiers bounced off of the inverted space harmlessly, but then the AT-ST's main guns issued an echoing report. Sand and bits of decaying jetsam went flying everywhere, as the shadow was blasted into the air and several meters back, into the small tidal pool at the base of the outflow pipe. Nealaphh briefly considered escaping down the narrow metal passage way, but that would only forestall another inevitable encounter with the Imperial troops. This was their turf, and Nealaphh understood now why Ollie had been so adamant about the god-mind sending a messenger instead of a dataverse communiqué. Doubtless the Empire had been tracking his dataverse searches as his device connected to their local network. Nealaphh was did not have the capacity to feel foolish, and only noted this mistake for future endeavors. Reflection would have to wait, however, as another volley of fire came soaring in as Nealaphh got back on its feet.

Again, Nealaphh deflected the stormtrooper's scattered blaster bolts, but this time the shadow was able to better anticipate where the AT-ST would be aiming its attacks. Before the construct could fire, Nealaphh dove off to the side, sending a large splash of water up as it sank into the surf like a stone. The god-mind's body had zero buoyancy, so Nealaphh had to crawl through the surf as it entered the waves. In between the breakers washing over its head, Nealaphh could hear large explosions of steam and water all around it, as the Imperial troops tried to find a mark to fire upon in the waves. Unfortunately for them, Nealaphh had already torn the clothes from its body with a wrenching telekinetic force, and so its reflective black body blended seamlessly with the likewise inky water. The only thing they had to aim by was the green gleam of Nealaphh's eyes, which continued to sink farther and farther away into the ocean.

The AT-ST, in a desperate maneuver, took a few tentative steps out into the surging breakers to try and get a better shot. This put it in range on Nealaphh's mental capabilities. A fatal error. Capitalizing on the opportunity to go on the offensive, Nealaphh summoned all of its mental power and began to shift time in its favor. It watched as another blinding burst of scarlet energy poured from the 'mouth' of this proverbial metal dragon, but in ever so slight slow motion. Nealaphh was able to duck under the blast as it slammed into a growing wave behind it, and as the guns charged for another round, the god-mind focused as much spacial tension as it could directly underneath the construct's right foot. An explosion of muck-ridden sand and water bloomed from the point of contraction, and the AT-ST's metal limb was momentarily knocked off balance. The machine tried to regain its footing, but the same wave it had fired upon a moment earlier returned with a vengeance, slamming into the AT-ST's tilted bulk and knocking it completely on its side with a magnificent splash.

Imperial engineers scrambled, soaking, out of the AT-ST's cockpit, sputtering sea water and tearing their helmets off of their faces. In a panic, they thrashed their way back to shore, fearing the retribution of the shadow. By the time they had dragged their uniformed bodies out of the water, however, there was no sign of Nealaphh.

"Set up patrols on all of the beaches! That thing is not getting back on this island without us knowing about it!" the chief office shouted at the stormtroopers, milling in confusion at the shore's edge. The team leader nodded and called the orders into Imperial command. Nealaphh heard all of this telepathically, even beneath the water where it was currently laying face down. It did not have a need to breath, so being submerged was okay. Fortunately the waters of Costa Del Sol were warm enough that it did not immediately begin to feel itself lose energy, but prolonged time in the water would not be conducive to effective operation.

Nealaphh thought about trying to send a message to Demetri or the Girl, but it realized that didn't know what their dataverse addresses might be. Posting a message on its AntiOmni.org dataverse site would only draw attention. It was no good. Nealaphh would simply have to be incommunicado for a while longer. However...there was no need to traverse the ocean without the luxury of some place warm. Nealaphh began on constructing a large onyx tetragonal cocoon around itself, perfectly flat on the edges. The god-mind drained water out of the interior, and bestowed the cocoon with a simple gravitic impulse drive, allowing it to travel along solid ground, while floating over any potential obstacles. With absolute silence and no immediate plans, Nealaphh bade the cocoon to slip off down the slope of the ocean floor, into the inky blackness of the abyss...

[Ari]

Cat smiled softly and waved as Nealaphh left, trying to convince herself that she really would be okay. Glancing over her shoulder, the girl wondered if the two figures had the same level of telepathy as their creator. He did say they were copies... I think i'll start with the book first instead. Since Nealaphh speaks english, I should be able to read it.
Cat's steps made little sound as she searched the house for a quiet, comfortable place to curl up and read, deciding on a small corner of a room filled with windows that was probably meant to be used as a study. She dropped the book there then began to wander about the house agian, gathering up all the pillows and blankets she could find. It didn't take very long for a small fort of sorts to be made in the corner where Cat would hide away until either of the men returned. She had taken the pillows from the couch in the living room to make walls, then draped blankets across them and pinned in the corner to make a roof. Inside, Cat curled up within a pile of blankets and pillows, with one of the shards on each side for light. Curled around the Nealaphh doll, she opened the book to page one.

Greetings, fellow Omniverse denizen…

The girl spent hours reading that book, reading over the sections over and over, asking the shards to explain parts of it when she entirely failed to comprehend the information. The fact that so many people had been kidnapped to this frightening place before her was unnerving - entire civilizations? All from different places? different worlds full of strange people from even stranger places, where everything was new and foreign and dangerous.

If there are people here.. from more than one universe... wouldn't that mean that moving between universes is possible? That means there is a way out... unless this is an alternate dimension... in which case we aren't original selves, otherwise there would be two of ourselves running around. Right? So we're either fake... or it's a long way to home... either way, it's not going to be easy to get home. If... if I have a home to begin with. Cat curled in tighter, hugging the Nealaphh doll tightly to her chest. She wanted to talk to Nealaphh, wondering if he knew anyway of travelling through dimensions. The shards were good and probably just as asking him, but she didn't want to speak out loud.

The.. the dataverse! Nealaphh said we could contact him through there.. it must be like the internet. I can do that... perhaps....
Cat closed her eyes and concentrated, assuming her meditative stance agian. She reached inside, searching for the same place she'd found earlier when she'd made the doll. A bubbling iridescent light glowed from in front of her as she tapped into the reserve of foreign material. It rippled and bubbled, gradually splitting in two spheres, one much smaller than the other. The smaller one was focused on first, lengthening to a narrow cylinder, which lengthened and narrowed further at one end to make a long point, which then unfurled into a feather. The other end altered and became the point of a pen. Further detail formed as the colour bled out from the center; a light formed where the end of the pen would be, the feather's strands separated and became softer, a rubber grip formed around between the light and the pen tip in the appearance of a ribbon wound around it. A mix of blue hues covered the feathered part, while the ribbon turned purple and the tip was a silver metallic. The light blinked a few different colours before turning off- yellow, blue, red, green and purple.
As the detailing and colour of the feathered pen began to finish, the larger orb of the iridescent stuff began to change, flattening and elongating into a rounded rectangular shape. It decided it was the proper shape when it reached approximately ten inches in one dimension and almost thirteen in the other. The edges became slightly indented and rubbery as the surface took on the texture of glass.

Cat reached out and grasped the pen as the screen flickered to life, connecting to what Nealaphh had called the dataverse. She pressed the tip of the pen to the pad and then paused, realising that she didn't know how to contact Nealaphh. Oops... I guess I'll just have to search through until I find mentions of him or a way to contact him. It'll take a while, but it shouldn't be too hard... right?
The girl smiled softly to herself as she flicked the pen across the surface of the tablet, taking pride in her ability to create such a thing. She didn't even notice the sun setting outside of her little pillow-fortress of comfort.

[Marcus Wright]

With that... John Connor's story continued, and another resistance soldier that followed him would bring the brief questioning to a brief end as both John and the soldier came to a brief standstill at the gates of the place called the Vastly Deep and both of them walked in, determined to find out what else they'd run into. A brief caution had struck the two soldiers as they exited the portal into a place called Costa Del Sol.

The strange resistance soldier had stopped to watch his leader figure out where they were for a second. As he saw John typing on his new "smartphone" or whatever they called it, a click came up from john's "smartphone" saying that they were in a place called Costa Del Sol. Reading more information to the resistance soldier, John read off the description. "There's some sort of Stormtrooper naval base nearby, Never know if these fellow soldiers could give us potential information or just be pain in our asses.

John nodded "Right now? I think we should just cover our own asses and i'll let you know otherwise."

The resistance soldier nodded and continued the staring around the area.

There was a moment of brief chaos as brief stormtroopers were being thrown into the water by someone or something..

....

John watched the approaching chaos and took precautions once again.

[Ari]

Cat stirred and blinked open her eyes, met with a faceful of pillow. Groggily, she sat up, blinking at the soft light seeping through the cracks in the walls of her fort. Klee and Shen still hovered at her sides, but the dataverse device was half buried under some of the pillows. Did I... Did I fall asleep...? How long was I awake...? At least I stayed in the same place this time. I guess Nealaphh and Demetri are still out there somewhere. Nealaphh said they would return here today, but I think that's been negated if he tells me to go visit Ambrosia.. I won't bother saying anything about it.
Cat pulled the tablet out from between the pillows, searching even deeper beneath them before finding the pen. Simply tapping the pen to the screen turned it back on, light stinging her eyes after prolonged darkness. It looks like nothing happened while I was asleep. Klee, Shen, we should get going. I'll get something to eat on the way... do you two eat? Probably not, right? I don't think Nealaphh has a mouth either. It's odd.
While Cat spoke mentally to the shards, she absentmindedly started tying back her hair, a small elastic forming as she pulled most of it back. The front was too short to be tied back and hung loose while the rest was tightly bound into a short and spikey ponytail. The tangled green... it's directly across from the Nexus. It'll take a while to get there, and we must be going alone since Jak didn't answer. I'll let Guu know we're coming, once we reach the Nexus. Although... Cat glanced at the two shapes, very clearly not of her creation, as she began forming a small bag that could carry her dataverse device, a very simple thing with little design that was obviously only temporary. You two should return to Nealaphh. I'll be safe on my own and you two look too conspicuous to travel with me. I'll go on my own, or I'll get companions of my own on the way.
Cat slid out of the pillow fort rather clumsily, knocking it down on the two shards as she did so, then haphazardly throwing the pillows and blankets around to uncover them. The girl gave them a rushed apology as she darted out the door and ducked through streets back to the place where she had entered... and subbsequently got lost. perhaps I should have brought them along... no.. i can manage this on my own. I just need to follow the flow of people. Another trek through the streets following people led her to a central market, and from there she shoved her way through the crowds to the gate way. It looked different from when Cat had first walked through, but perhaps that was simply because she was walking through a different way.