Dominion Through the gates of hell - AC dominion of first new nether hex

[Brimstone]

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Tags: Eliz Krayt Kasia Celestyne Pietro Demici Cedric Grayson

The three transports sped across the parched lands toward the Mesa, so far no opposition, that was unlikely to continue, the probe droids he had released had detected movement on the side of the mesa, as if something was hiding in there, but so far, any long range life scans were inconclusive.

"Sir, we are approaching the base of the mesa" one of the engineers reported to Brimstone as he felt the vehicle shift sideways ready to disgorge its passengers.

Suddenly there was a crack as something struck the outside of the craft, momentarily flickering the lights and rocking the whole craft, Brimstone sounded battle stations and the soldiers got ready to leave. Brim had always planned to lead the charge and he strode out carrying his heavy rotary cannon, ready to engage whatever had dared to attack him.

But there was nothing, no noise, no follow up attack, nothing. He looked at the craft, assuming the driver had struck a rock or something similar, but saw what looked almost like a glowing burn mark across the hull, as if a whip of energy had struck the vehicle but had then left some of its energy in the wound. He examined it more closely, it was a strange emanation coming from the wound, it was not organic, but it didn't feel mechanical either, and the damaged metal appeared to almost be writhing in pain.

"Everybody out!" he shouted, "there are no attackers, form a perimeter and keep watch in case someone returns, we will not be ambushed, do i make myself clear?"

He looked at his soldiers, ruthless, well trained and fearless to a man. He then looked up at the Mesa calculating his next step in his head as he went.

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[The Manifold]

Hypergate Weken: Netherworld Side
Brimstone | Eliz Krayt | Kasia Celestyne | Pietro Demici | Cedric Grayson | Isla Draellix-Kobitana | Corala Gethsverg​

Anomalies: Detected. Location: Grid Sector 30 - Enth. Programming Dictates: Immediate Response.

The Manifold's burning eyes snapped open. Once again, new glitches were intruding upon the Great Work. The infestation of anomalies was spreading with a speed that boded ill for the Droid God's plans. First there had been the Aurek Anomalies, the Galactic Alliance. They had been warned to depart, and they had ignored that warning. Then there had been the Besh Anomalies, the Eternal Empire. They too had disregarded The Manifold's imperative to depart. The Omni drone suspected that these Cresh Anomalies, entering from Hypergate Weken, would be equally unwilling to listen to the Machine Spirit's holy dictates. The mortals were stubborn and insolent.

Even more than that, they were greedy; greedy for territory and for control, eager to plant their little banners here.

Hanging in the void between the islands of Oblivion as they recharged their systems with pure Netherworld energy, The Manifold prepared themself to depart. Although all the data they had gathered so far on the workings of these petty mortal empires indicated that the warnings they delivered would not be heeded, they would still follow their programming. They would make clear to this new group of anomalies, exactly once, that Oblivion was the Droid God's realm, and that mortal interference was not permitted. Should they, too, fail to obey this divine law, then the servants of Omni would make war upon them. They would be either destroyed or rewritten.

Mortals tended to resist both fates equally. If only they understood the perfection of a drone's techno-spiritual form.

Reaching out one desiccated, machine-augmented hand, The Manifold grasped the fabric of the Netherworld and folded space. The islands of Oblivion hurdled past them as they traveled far to the east, to the barren ash plains where Hypergate Weken stood. The thousand souls running through their circuits sighed as they reverted from their near-instantaneous travel; what were time and distance to the Droid God, especially within Its own realm? This was but one of the many abilities Its servants could share in, so long as It was master of Oblivion. Directing their attention to their surroundings, The Manifold hovered forward, the tips of their dangling toes dragging in the ash.

This was a barren place, a great plain of rock and cinder and blood, and The Manifold could not comprehend why the mortals were so eager to claim it as their own. So far as the drone could ascertain, it possessed nothing they needed for continuing their biological functions, or even for their primitive industry. Was it simply for the joy of control, then? Was the entire "conquest" fueled by mortal ego? It was quite possible. They were flawed creatures, beings in need of Omni's touch to perfect them. The Manifold felt few emotions; such things were not in their programming. But sometimes feelings leaked through from the thousand souls that powered their cognitive processes.

In that moment, the drone felt their frustration. The flawed minds of these organics were causing great disruption.

Indeed, The Manifold could sense the chaos that the mortals were bringing with them. One of them was altering the Netherworld's balance in the area around the gate, flooding the terrain with light energy. That was not permissible. Omni alone controlled the flow of Force-energy in Oblivion, and the Droid God had already created a perfect balance. To disrupt it was tech-heresy of the highest order. Worse, it seemed these mortals were also here to stay. A convoy of them was moving toward a rocky mesa, carrying equipment that could only mean they intended to set up a permanent base in the region surrounding the gate. They did not think to ask this realm's master for permission.

The Manifold quickly drifted forward, skimming the rocky surface, its withered organic body dangling from its huge mechanical implants like a hanged corpse. The convoy would soon encounter its own... difficulties, for the very ground here was full of spirits that resented all intrusion, beings with great mastery of technomancy. But it fell to the Manifold to confront the leader of these glitches, and to deliver the warning that Omni's justice would come for all organics who tried to claim Its realm. The drone identified the man with the strongest Force-aura, Cedric Grayson , as the ringleader of these anomalies. It drifted toward the hypergate, then stopped at a respectful distance.

"Your Presence: Unauthorized," the Omni-drone said, their booming voice coming from the cables and speakers attached to their head rather than their waxy, unmoving lips. "Your Actions: Heretical. Glitches: Not Permitted. To Pass: Become Rewritten. Serving Omni: Inevitable. Imperative: Submit." Although The Manifold was alone in the presence of the many crusaders who had come through the hypergate, they showed no fear. Indeed, they showed no emotion at all, physically or in the Force. There was only a strange, metallic presence, and the faint, barely detectable screaming of a thousand souls flowing through its power conduits...

 

[Heinrich Faust]

Location: near the forward camp

Tags: Geiseric , Hei Sogecki, Eina L'lerim-Vandiir , Aelina Corsanis

Heinrich took the queue from Sei, placing his lightsaber back to his belt as the spirit voiced its concerns. It was true that there was much that the Crusade didn't know about the Nether. In fact, there was much that most people didn't know. It wasn't outside of the possibility that they would run into threats that couldn't be dispatched by conventional means. Nevertheless, they had to find a way. Those that hadn't been able to withstand the entity would eventually have to leave the forward camp, leaving the Crusade with less than desirable numbers. This was a setback that they could not allow.

His ever-skeptical gaze fell on Eina as they stood there, studying the stranger as the rest of their party made their way closer.

"My apologies. There are many uncertainties in this plane, particularly for us. One can't be too careful. You are correct, however. We are indeed merely travelers here, searching for answers. Perhaps this makes us a tad presumptuous."

He offered an apologetic bow as he spoke.

"As for this creature, you must have some idea of how we can defeat it. We may not be able to use blasters or blades, but we have other skills as well. Perhaps with our combined efforts, we will manage to best this foul spirit."

If this spirit was telling the truth, then perhaps they had just found a valuable ally. If they were lying... then perhaps the crusaders were already too deep into the fight to return. Unfortunately for them, the only way to know would be to continue.

 

[Pietro Demici]

Location: near the portal

Tags: Isla Draellix-Kobitana , Eliz Krayt , Brimstone , Cedric Grayson , Kasia Celestyne, Corala Gethsverg , The Manifold

Pietro looked to Cedric as the Holy Guard began to take position around them, scanning the surrounding area. He could hear the grave tone in his words, and gave him a practical, yet reassuring smile.

"We will find the answers. It will only be a matter of time."

He looked over to Kasia as she finished her prayer.

"You are indeed a true warrior of Ashla. How appropriate it is to see you here, acting as one of her heralds in this strange place."

The Crusade had been continuing to grow as word spread of their cause. Many had come from the farthest reaches of the galaxy looking to serve, and serve they would.

As Pietro began to move forward, there was a sudden shift in the air around them. The cardinal stopped in his tracks, eyes darting around, searching for the source of the strange feeling. Suddenly, a strange being approached. The appearance of the strange creature looked almost human, in a way. Rather, it might have once been some sort of humanoid. Whatever it used to be, it wasn't anymore. Much of its body had been replaced with some sort of implants, turning it into a malformed abomination.

The Holy Guard were the first to spring into action, forming a defensive line in front of the cardinal and the rest of the party, weapons at the ready. Pietro immediately drew his lightsaber, readying himself for the threat of the beast.

"There are no glitches here, creature. If you mean us harm, then I suggest you reconsider, turn around, and return to whatever pit you crawled out of. You will find no victory if you choose to continue. Consider this your one and only warning."

With those words, the blue light of his saber roared to life. Pietro said a silent prayer as he stood with the Holy Guard, waited for Cedric to give the command to attack.

 

[Cedric Grayson]

The empyrean moved about this creature in a way that registered to Cedric as unnatural. It was akin to an automaton in its callousness, its soul seemingly empty of sentient thought, only alive in the sense of a machine operating coldly, and yet its intelligence was wholly sentient. Cedric could only blink at the thing in momentary confusion, his brow furrowing behind his mask as the word Omni rattled around in his head.

He'd heard the name before, an individual or some sort of creature tied closely with the emergence of the Netherworld into reality. A source of supposed good and ill for the galaxy, and if he was the lord of this place, quite possibly an enemy of the Crusade.

A hand was held open into the air to stay Pietro Demici 's own, for the moment.

"Bold claims," Cedric's arms folded about his chest as he took a few paces forward to better meet The Manifold 's strange gaze. "The other side of this gate resides within the de jure territories of the Ashlan Crusade. It is as much our birthright as any of our worlds," his finger's loosened, body preparing to spring into action should the droid-not-droid-thing opt for violence.

"We are not heretics, but psions of the Ashla. Of the Goddess, and if this place is truly another portal between reality and the Netherworld, we'd sooner cut it off entirely. Our interests may not intercede, but perhaps run parallel with one another." A pause. "Who is Omni?"

Kasia Celestyne, Eliz Krayt

 

[The Manifold]

Hypergate Weken: Netherworld Side
Pietro Demici | Cedric Grayson​

Threats and warnings. Always with these mortals, threats and warnings. They did not understand that they were being done a courtesy, being granted an opportunity to withdraw before the full power of the Machine Spirit fell upon them to cleanse them from this realm. They did not understand that, whatever their supposed might in the physical galaxy, they had no authority here. A king from a distant land could not command even a pauper on the far side of the world, for another king ruled there, one who would not accept any usurpation of his absolute authority. But the organics, in their ignorance, assumed themselves to be little gods.

A blue energy blade ignited, the clearest threat yet... but the lead warrior stayed his cardinal's hand.

"Proximity ≠ Authority," The Manifold flatly retorted. Ruling the far side of the gate did not mean that these errors had any claim to any piece of the Netherworld. Perhaps might made right in their chaotic, violent galaxy, but Oblivion was Omni's realm. The Droid God was the architect, the builder, the organizer, and the deity here. It ruled by right of divinity, and because it had created this place, carving it out of the fabric of the Netherworld. In time, Its benevolence would spread through these gates, and the physical galaxy would also be rewritten according to Its designs. Then there would be no more war and chaos, only rigid, clockwork order.

That would be a glorious day. Surely the mortals could understand that, and welcome the end of suffering.

Despite threats and claims, this group of anomalies seemed somewhat more receptive to diplomacy than the other glitches The Manifold had dealt with so far. Perhaps it would be possible to reach an accord this time. The Manifold knew nothing of their supposed goddess, but they supposed that it was natural for primitives such as these to fall back on religion, explaining forces they did not have the technology to understand though stories of gods. The drone would reveal the One True God to them. "Omni: Droid God," they began, bright orange eyes flashing. "Oblivion: Omni's Realm. Admittance: Denied. Exception: Omni's Blessed Ones."

Long tendrils of flexible metal slid grotesquely out of ports in The Manifold's corpselike hands, making the flesh of its arms ripple. The tentacles swayed in the open air, blue-green lights running through their internal circuitry. These were the implements the drone used to spread the blessings of Omni. Perhaps one among these organics would be willing to accept the blessing directly. If not, perhaps they could find another accord, a temporary agreement until the day when all organics would be joined to the Droid God. "Imperative: Depart. Alternative: Submit. Alternative? We Are Listening." Could their interests truly run parallel?

 

[Brimstone]

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Tags: Eliz Krayt Kasia Celestyne Pietro Demici Cedric Grayson
The Manifold

The men filed out with the Hades commandos taking the lead, quickly they formed a perimeter as instructed and the engineers then followed out of the vehicles. Brimstone marvelled at their precision, the soldiers under his command could rival the discipline and order of any Imperial.

The engineers began wheeling a large piece of equipment out, this was the deployable antenna that needed to be moved the estimated 240m up on to the top of the mesa.

"Sir, grapple launchers are ready and the engineers are prepared for ascent" came his second in command.

"Excellent, fire launchers, have the commandos advance first and secure a position at the top of the cliff." Everything was going to plan and well ahead of schedule.

There was a loud crack and this time Brimstone saw it, an arc of electricity leaping from what looked like a small cave, striking the closest sons of ession and blowing them off their feet, flying several metres back and lying smoking on the ground.

The repeater blasters on top of the transports opened fire on the positions, breaking chunks off of the rock and kicking up dirt. After a few seconds the barrage stopped and the dust cleared from the ruined cave entrance. There was no more bolts coming out.

"You four, on me now" shouted Brim at four of his commandos, "the rest of you proceed as planned" they would confirm the kill or make sure the job was done themselves.

Brimstone advanced outside of the perimeter and the five of them approached the cave with weapons drawn.

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[Pietro Demici]

Location: near the portal

Tags: Isla Draellix-Kobitana , Eliz Krayt , Brimstone , Cedric Grayson , Kasia Celestyne, Corala Gethsverg , The Manifold

Pietro was unsure what to make of the strange entity. It seemed to have a desire to assimilate them in some way, but had kept itself open to communication. The cardinal would have normally killed the creature and be done with it, though he wouldn't be one to go against Cedric's orders. Instead, he disengaged his lightsaber and motioned for the Holy Guard to take a less aggressive stance. Perhaps if they didn't incite this strange being, then perhaps they could avoid future confrontation.

"Perhaps we can find an alternative."

He shot a look over to Cedric.

"Lord Grayson, if this is indeed a portal to the Netherworld, then perhaps there is information to be obtained."

Turning back to the Manifold, Pietro motioned around as he spoke.

"This is your world, is it? What is your objective? You mentioned these Blessed Ones..."

He paused for a moment. It took a great deal for him to hold his tongue. The very idea of talking to a servant of a false god was something was difficult for Pietro to stomach. Every fiber of his being told him to cut the entity down. Despite this... he managed to keep his cool.

"How does one obtain such a blessing?"

The cardinal was trying to word his questions wisely. He did not want to prompt any unwanted action from this stranger, but he knew that any information that could be obtained, should. There was much that the Crusade didn't know about this place, and the more they could discover, the better they would know how to handle the situation. He continued looking the Manifold up and down, studying it in case of any sign of aggression.

 

[Eina L'lerim-Vandiir]

Eina L’lerim-Vandiir, the First
Matriarch of the Valkyrja; Leader of Sanctuary; Liaison of the Fjölkyngi Smiðr Guild​

Objective II: Kill the evil spirit/demon and help the mortals
Location: Netherworld
Equipment: Estrian Armour and 2x Swords
Tag(s): Geiseric | Heinrich Faust | Hei Sogecki | Aelina Corsanis | Open

[ This is my World ] ​

Eina watched the four people and the other knights; mortals generally behaved so irrationally. In her experience, it is as if they know everything better than everyone and have a right to everything. Even when there was no legal basis for this. So she could really only hope to convince them not to be completely reckless.

~ This is not only a "creature", this is a demon. They were once a huge Force User in Realspace, that is, when they were alive. After their death, they became the shadow dragon here, meaning they chose this. Intelligent, trained Force user, smart and powerful, probably hundreds or thousands of years old by now. We need to outsmart them and find their weakness. It's different for every demon. ~ she explained.

Lest the task to be too easy, and that’s why she doubted the man had met one before. Arrogance again. Eina is already fighting demons like this, but even she said after each that they were all new. It was foolish to hang every demon on the same peg, especially these ones.

~ Help… question it was, of what the chances are that they will not hinder her. ~ she did not say out of hurt, but rather as a fact, because this was the reason why she did not bring further Valkyrja with her; she doesn't have to worry about them while casting a spell and she might hurt others.

She nodded at Heinrich's words as accept the apology. Meanwhile, Sala was already moving forward, so she pointed her hand toward the cave to go. If the others were going, there was a very strong dark side presence inside, in addition, the darkness was as if it were alive, it was able to almost completely suppress the light of the lightsabers, and any other light source, so in dim conditions, but they rather had to keep going in complete darkness.

A few minutes later, they reached a hall of vast dimensions, where the creature was also there, probably larger than the largest creature the knights could see in their lives…

The dragon:

 

[Aelina Corsanis]

Objective II: Defeat the Demon, Eradicate the Darkness
Tags: Eina L'lerim-Vandiir , Heinrich Faust , Geiseric , Open


As the darkness enclosed around her, Sala closed her eyes, allowing the force to provide her sight. The room she had just rushed into was cavernous, and even enclosed as it was, the chaotic winds of the netherworld made sight clouded, and it took all of her focus to truly the entirety of its depths. She drew in and bated her breath as the immensity of the foe they were facing truly dawned on her - overshadowed only by its presence in the force - almost certainly the strongest manifestation of the dark side she had ever seen.

Centering her mind in the force, Sala steeled her resolve, channeling every bit of courage and determination she could muster into her soul, and then into her body and blade. She began dodging around the chamber, becoming faster and more agile with each step, channeling the light side of the Force through her body and into the blade that sliced through the air, almost like an extension of her arm. towards one of the extended arms of her gargantuan foe, intentionally making sure it was only a glancing blow - intended to provoke a response, not to injure or wound. Landing back on the ground, she resumed her quick dance-like movements, trying to avoid the behemoth's grasp, searching for the first sign of a mistake or vulnerability.

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