Wait, Kitty seems to know what the thing actually is. Ask her if she knows anything else about it, like if it's from her world, what it's used for, etc. Information like that should help with knowing the intentions of the people.

>[[previous chapters: http://www1.tgchan.org/wiki/Nahala:_The_Dead_Age ]]

>>141549
I count about 30 guys I think. I can't really see if they're armed or not but some should be.

I think we're going to have to use Kitty again. Provided that she can hide her tail and other freaky features. She goes in first with your sidearm. If they're hostile she makes them "kill" her, then you wait until she has resurected and hit them from two directions, you from a long-range with her weapons and she gets close and nasty.

If they're not hostile then we negotiate with them. I'm guessing they're not exactly certain on what they have there and Kitty has alot of knowledge that I'm sure a certain scientist would be interested in.

Ask Kitty about anything useful she can tell us about it.

Also, be sure to stay low, and quiet. Even if you could manage to take all those people out, chances are that thing has some heavy armaments on it.

HUG TAV

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/03(Wed)16:31 No. 141572 ID: 17e2b5
File 126766270297.jpg - (126.36KB , 777x777 , 04-02.jpg )

>30 guys

And no telling how many more where we can't see, including inside the ship, itself.

There seems to be some question about what we're working with, so I'll go over our inventory. Of course, I don't have anything on-hand. This is all Kitty's stuff, all of which is off-world. She doesn't seem to mind me rifling through it all.

She's got a modular sniper rifle of some sort with two clips of incendiary rounds, 12 shots. Three anti-armor mags and seven standard. She's using it right now.

An odd kind of handgun with nine mags that sound like they have liquid in them.

Another handgun Kitty seems protective of. I count seven mags before she whispers I should put it away and leave it alone.

There are two units of the explosives we used earlier remaining.

Ten flares.

Seven of some sort of small pellet she identifies as thrown explosives.

All of this comes from the bag she carries around.

You guys seem overly eager to assault these guys, or jump out into the open without knowing anything about them.

>Kitty resurrected

Guess that's why.

"Kitty, how fast can you recover from being killed?"

>"Burns, if you're taking advice from those voices again, I'd suggest you stop. They know less about me than you do.
>"I'm not going to get into a fight with a hundred or more people, who're probably armed. I don't like being shot. And if I do get killed, I probably won't be conscious again for a week, or a month, depending on the damage."

Oh. Well. Guess Kitty isn't an unstoppable killing machine I can hide behind at my leisure.

>>141572
Then is there any way you can get closer without being seen, to identify what kind of people they are? Maybe ambush one of them for a friendly (or unfriendly, depending) chat away from the others?

>>141572
Well that both simplifies things and make them more difficult.

Ok so we have an unknown amount of people + around 30 guys. From the looks of it they're trying to figure out how to get the ship working or they're doing preflight prep. If they're hostile and how many of them are armed are currently unknown. But they were locked up pretty securly so I would guess they're not to keen on company.

You have two handguns and a sniper rifle as well as explosives and flares. Assault and casual greetings are pretty much exlcluded. Not much more to do then than sneak forward and recon, whoever is the sneakiest should go forward for that and the other one provide cover with the rifle in case everything goes to shit. If an oppurtunity presents itself then snatch someone and question them about what's going on.

What can we tell about how the people are acting like from here?

I'd say avoid unless necessary. If you approach them I'd say you carry the bag and have Kitty with her rifle out. Holding it with two hands as a "just in case they aren't friendly" thing. Our body language should be easy to read that we are approaching cautiously because we don't know who they are. Again I advise against approaching them unless there isn't any other options.


.....What's our current objective again?

>>141572
Hey, only one of us suggested that likely-suicidal course of action. Give us a little credit, here.

... Uhhh.

I don't really know how you should approach this, beyond a not-really-helpful suggestion of "try to get closer and see if you can figure out who exactly has got potentially a hundred guys on this thing." I figure the answer to that implicit question is probably not useful to you though. Maybe somebody else'll do better than me.

That looks like a hell of a lot of zoom. They might not even be able to see you at this distance. The sneakier of you two should probably try to get closer and examine the folks near the ship.

Hopefully they're neutral or friendly-maybe just stopping her briefly and fueling/repairing or similar.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/03(Wed)19:51 No. 141677 ID: f11584
File 126767471092.jpg - (175.31KB , 777x777 , 04-03.jpg )

So far the best suggestion I've heard is using stealth and catching one of them away from the others. We can apologize later if they're friendly and escape if they aren't.

>What's our current objective again?

To get you to a safe, secure location. Ironic. Tannon may know something about anything, and this is as good a lead as any in this ghost town. Fuck. I hate this. Not knowing exactly where to go, what to do... I'd do just about anything to have a concrete answer to where I need to be.

>stopping briefly and fueling/repairing

I doubt that. The entire ship is underground. From what I can tell, there are no exits or entrances aside from the one we used, or man-sized ones further on. I'm not sure where the light is coming from, but those holes in the distance are too small to let a ship that size through.

>"This is strange."

Kitty seems anxious.

"What?"

>"I don't know. It's like... none of them are speaking. One will just walk up to the other one, they'll stare at one another and then walk off, if even that. They only use their hands when they have to. Most of them aren't even working on the ship. They just keep moving around in circles."

"What the hell are they doing?"

>"Got me."

No real choice. I guess I'll move up and let Kitty support me while I grab one of them? She's the one who knows her own weapons, after all. I can't do anything back here.

>>141677
Psychics? Maybe they're working on the ship via telekinesis. Or they're robots, communicating via radio... and some of them are malfunctioning, walking around in circles like that.

How much of this cave is man-made? Could they have built this place just to contain the ship and its 'crew'?

this sounds like they are mind controlled and are just set to walk around and look busy.
also, the ship may have weapons that could blow a hole in the ceiling to leave.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/03(Wed)20:15 No. 141700 ID: f11584
File 126767611659.jpg - (135.51KB , 777x777 , 04-04.jpg )

Mind control? Robots? Really?

I think it's more likely they're drugged, crazy or conditioned in some way.

Then again, I am watching them with what's technically an alien...

"Kitty, I'm going to grab one of them and bring him back there."

>"O-okay... are you sure?"

"I'm not incompetent."

>"I didn't -

"You have the guns. I don't know how to work them anyway. Just support me. I won't be long."

I leave Kitty. She seems a little worried. Surprising.

She's just surprised at your sudden bravado.

Be extra careful, man. We have no idea what these guys are capable of.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/03(Wed)20:39 No. 141716 ID: f11584
File 126767758110.jpg - (183.96KB , 777x777 , 04-05.jpg )

I wait for one of their "patrols" of seemingly mindless observation to separate before I grab one isolated from the rest.

I target him because he's young, probably more prone to panic. He's wearing a hard hat, so maybe he's in charge of something.

Strangely, he puts up no resistance, and seems completely unsurprised.

It takes even less effort to drag him back to Kitty. The others did not witness or hear any of this, and go about their business.

Now we need to interrogate this guy.

>>141716
Just ask him simple questions. Who are you, what are you doing here, etc.

If he doesn't answer to anything... Inspect his body for clues as to what's going on.

I KNEW IT! he is being mind controlled so hard! he was not under orders to attack anything so he did not attack. if nothing works try putting us on him, we would be able to read his mind and maybe break whatever control is on him.

>>141718

Can we stick his head in a Faraday Cage? That might break whatever's controlling him from afar.

If it helps, a tessaract is the four dimensional analog of the cube. It's composed of 8 cubes, all of which share one side with another cube.

Acasion and acasiate is not something I'm familiar with, though acacia is a rather beautiful low growing tree with bright yellow flowers, a hallmark of spring. The etymology of acacia comes from the Greek word ἀκή (akē), “‘point’” so perhaps acasion has to do with points somehow?

A vessel that traverses the points on a tessaract (16 total) could conceivably be called a "Tesseract Acacia-ing Vessel" but that's about as close as I can get to the technobabble she rattled off there.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/03(Wed)21:15 No. 141746 ID: f11584
File 126767970216.jpg - (182.01KB , 777x777 , 04-06.jpg )

I sit him down across from me, while Kitty holds him to one of the pistols. Looks like she's already fashioned a crude disguise for herself.

"I have questions for you that I want you to answer. If you don't cooperate, we'll have trouble."

>"I understand."

He responds quickly, almost impatiently.

"Who are you and -

>"Timothy Archer Potts. I'm the Second Team lead researcher for the legally sanctioned Imperial excavation team to Qer."

He seems pretty eager.

"What are you doing here?"

>"We are investigating dig sites throughout Qer for traces of past civilizations."

Don't tell me, that this is Doctor Tannon's team?

>>141746

Doctor who?

>>141746
>Don't tell me, that this is Doctor Tannon's team?
Well, why don't you ask? He seems really amenable to the idea of giving you answers.

Man if all of these guys are like this then maybe this'll just be surreal instead of a firefight. That would be a good thing, right?

>>141746
"You're not reacting like a normal person under these circumstances. Why isn't anyone down there talking to eachother? Why are they walking in circles?"

>>141748

No, he'd have a TARDIS.

He's talking about Dr. Tannon.

Oh right Dr. Tannon, of course.

WHO THE FUCK IS DOCTOR TANNON

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/03(Wed)21:33 No. 141764 ID: f11584
File 126768079099.jpg - (188.39KB , 777x777 , 04-08.jpg )

>WHO THE FUCK IS DOCTOR TANNON

The guy we've been looking for this whole time? You voices told me she had picked up his name when she was asking around for information. It's why we're in this city.

Kitty beats me to the punch.

>"So this is Tannon's team?"

"This is Tannon's team," he parrots.

>"What are you doing down there?"

>"We are uncovering dig sites believed to house relics of ancient civilizations."

Kitty seems annoyed by this and addresses me.

>"Burns, TAVs are buried underground on all sorts of worlds. It's rare for civilizations to get to the point that they can even find them, much less excavate or use them."

"So this thing has been here for centuries?"

>"More than that. They -

I signal Kitty to stop once I notice Timothy is listening rather intently to our discussion. Clever bastard.

"Enough playing, Timothy."

Why isn't kitty wearing any pants?

What's with yall being so stoic and emotionless and looking useless?

>>141764
Perhaps the best question to ask is "What are you?"

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/03(Wed)21:38 No. 141768 ID: f11584
File 126768113983.jpg - (181.91KB , 777x777 , 04-09.jpg )

He interrupts before I can continue.

>"As I your hostage this may be unconventional: I would ask for an exchange of information rather than extraction. My increased amiability would further communication and diminish hostilities between us for mutual benefit."

This kid is starting to weird me out.

"I know you're interested in the ship. I'd ask why but I'm sure I'd get a limited answer. So I'll ask this: why are all of you running in circles down there, without saying a word?"

He seems to think on this for a moment.

>"I cannot give you an answer. I can however, introduce you to Doctor Tannon, who would be more than glad to answer any of your questions."

He's pretty persistent. We still haven't found out much on how dangerous these people are. Tannon is apparently there, somewhere. And he's the man we came here for.

Do we take him up on his offer?"

>>141768
These guys seem either programmed, or they're being controlled somehow. Beware. Dr. Tannon may be the source. Agree to meet with him, but be as cautious as possible and try not to get tricked into a situation where escape is difficult. If possible, convey some kind of 'stay alert' message to Kitty without Timmy there noticing.

>>141768
Ask him if he thinks Tannon will pull any weird shit on you. Not because his answer will be useful, but because it might be entertaining. But probably boring and useless.

And, well, you haven't got any other leads handy, y'know.

>>141770

Cough once for "stay frosty."

Cough twice for "get the fuck outta Dodge."

>>141768

Make him take off his hat and look at it.

[paused] Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/03(Wed)21:45 No. 141775 ID: f11584
File 126768150099.jpg - (148.57KB , 777x777 , 04-09-p.jpg )

[[ Visit Tannon on Timothy's terms? Or take another option of your own creation? ]]

i repeat, touch us to him, we may get a peak in his head.

Screw that; put us in kitties cleavage for safe keeping.

>>141775
Agree to meet with Tannon but not in the base. Tannon is to walk out alone to a prechosen spot, one that is out of sight from the rest of them. Once there you will meet him, then the two of you will go to a new spot where Kitty will meet up with you, during the first part she is to cover the approach for any of Dr. Tannons men, anyone with a weapon coming gets a brand new hole in their head and so does Tannon.

And if you start acting like the rest of them once you're close to Tannon then she is to drop him.

To get him to agree to these terms young Tim is to tell Tannon that Kitty knows exactly what it is they have down there and how it operates. With her help he could uncover amazing facts about these ancient civilizations.

>>141775

oh god eye beams

I forgot who Dr. Tannon was, sorry. >.<

>>141776

>>141775
Oh those wacky pause bars. But yeah, let us take a look inside his mind. inb4somethingtriestolookinsideours

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)07:18 No. 141991 ID: 17fc61
File 126771588252.jpg - (181.21KB , 777x777 , 04-10.jpg )

I remove the hard hat, just in case. He seems normal, aside from his behavior.

"Sorry, kid, but the way you're acting, I can't say I want to throw myself into the lion's den."

He finally looks up at me.

>"I understand. Our behavior seems abnormal to you, so you do not feel as though you could trust us."

Voices, I understand what you're getting at with wanting me to let you look around in his head, but keep in mind that no one but Kitty and myself seem to know you exist, and my mission is to keep it that way. Why would I run around slapping you onto everyone whose mind I'd like to read? Plus, you can't read minds. You only seem to be able to pick up on surface thoughts, and not even memories someone's recollecting.

I suppose the best suggestion is to meet Tannon away from the others.

"All right, Tim. We need to see Tannon. We didn't come here for all of this."

>"Why did you come here?"

"I'll speak with Tannon about that. We'll need to hold you hostage to ensure there's no foul play while we set this up."

>"That will be unnecessary."

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)07:20 No. 141992 ID: 17fc61
File 126771603182.jpg - (134.69KB , 777x777 , 04-11.jpg )

"Why?"

>"Doctor Tannon is on his way, alone, to see you now."

How the hell? He would have had to have started walking for us a few minutes after I left.

>>141992
So these guys continue to be really fucking creepy. Awesome.

I'm thinking that they've got some kinda mindlink thingy going on, even if it's not full-blown mind control.

But once again, at least these guys are just creepy as opposed to, y'know, belligerent.

So I guess it's time to talk to Dr. Tannon, then.

Say "Your minds are linked somehow aren't they? Something changed you. Something is influencing you."

>>141992
Ok, seems like some sort of telepethy is going on here. Unless people from the empire is normally this weird then my money is either on the ship being the cause or Tannon being the cause. I suggest you move out through the door you opened and meet him out there, set up one of the explosive charges there as well and arm it. Then you will have an easily defended bottleneck as well quick access to your get away vehicle. If being close to Tannon makes you start acting weird then shoot him and get away.

Once you're face to face with Tannon offer him an information exchange, after he has told you about what's going on in there. And as your mission is to keep us a secret among other things then don't ,no matter what we might suggest, show us to him or tell him about us.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)08:06 No. 142000 ID: 17fc61
File 126771880266.jpg - (168.64KB , 777x777 , 04-12.jpg )

"You guys psychic, or something?"

He says nothing in response.

We can't get back up the cliff easily. It took a while to get down.

>"What do you want to do?" Kitty asks.

"He's who we came for. We didn't expect this shit, but it can't be helped. We don't have a lot of choice."

Even if something goes wrong, there's two of us against two of them. Probably way more if you consider Kitty. We're still at an advantage, at least in terms of face-to-face advantage.

It doesn't take long for Tannon to sally out to us, alone.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)08:08 No. 142001 ID: 17fc61
File 126771892058.jpg - (193.28KB , 777x777 , 04-13.jpg )

>"What do you animals want?" he hisses, as soon as he's within ear range.

"We came here for you."

>"That story is becoming tiresome. I assume you have questions prepared for me, then? Hurry it along."

I suppose we have a million?

[paused] Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)08:11 No. 142006 ID: 17fc61
File 126771909276.jpg - (154.58KB , 777x777 , 04-13-p.jpg )

>[[ The line of dialogue choices with Doctor Tannon can dramatically change the storyline. Choose your questions and answers wisely, as they will lead to one of several paths. ]]

>>142006
Ok Tannon seems to be the one responsible for their strange behaviour. This guy also seems like a no time for bullshit kind of guy.

Start of by explaining the basics of your current mission for him. You need a safe vault for storage. Preferably one that hasn't been opened and is at a remote location. What you need it for is your buisness and not something he should conern himself with.

What you're willing to offer in trade is a chance for him to pick Kittys brain. She knows alot about these ancient civilisations and should be able to provide him with some breakthroughs in his research about them.

Once you have gotten past that ask him what he is doing with that TAV. If he is unwilling to talk about that then drop the issue, for now atleast. You really should have a talk with Kitty about what that is and what it can do. It might be something that could be incredibly useful to have and if that's the case then we're going to have to figure out a way to snatch it from them.

Ask Tannon how many times we've repeated this before according to his own timeline. Apologize profusely.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)12:56 No. 142051 ID: a42c37
File 12677361651.jpg - (195.34KB , 777x777 , 04-14.jpg )

"You get a lot of visitors?"

>"No idle conversation. Out with it."

A real charmer.

"All right. Are you aware of the Artifactum within the Confederacy?"

>"Yes, of course," he spits.

"And the Vault it's built above?"

He hesitates, finally.

>"Yes?"

"We're looking for something similar."

He thinks for a moment, seeming to analyze my ever word.

>"You aren't treasure hunters. My likely, you're here on someone else's orders. Open ended. Soldiers? But why?"

I say nothing in return. He's sharp. I don't think I want to give him any more information than he needs. I posture impatiently.

>"Yes, I'm aware of their location. Most, like the Confederacy's, are classified or downplayed.
How did you come to learn I was here?"

"A barkeep in Tallwoods dropped your name."

Tannon scowls. This seems to mean something to him.

>>142051
Give him a bit more information about the bar keeper. It's hardly vital information for you and by giving it to him you show that you're willing to cooperate.

And ask him if you could get a list of the vaults like the one you found us in that he knows of. He doesn't need to know which one you're going to pick.

And I agree that this guy seems quite sharp. The less information you give him about your mission the better. He seems like someone that would connect the dots very quickly.

Inquire about this barkeep. This seems to hit a nerve.

>>142051
Take it he doesn't like said barkeep. Keeping with that line of thought might lead you to having more information to use without having to give up more. Of course, I am also weary of inadvertently pissing him off.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)14:29 No. 142086 ID: a42c37
File 126774175650.jpg - (181.77KB , 777x777 , 04-15.jpg )

"Is there something about this barkeep you -

>"No, you fools. It's you. You're obviously Confederates on some sort of posthumous mission. The Coalition has been scouring Qer and Poilen for the past week for Confederates like yourselves. Why, I don't know. I would assume they're looking for someone of importance that supersedes military importance, as your nation no longer exists, for all purposes. Likely a political figure, or something less transparent.
>"By making yourselves so obvious to the general population, you've likely led the Coalition right to my doorstep. They believe you may be or have knowledge of what they're after. Regardless of whether this is true, it's enough to warrant their attention."

"You're worried because you're from the Empire?"

>"The two factions aren't on the best of terms. I have only an affiliation in name with the Sunrisen, but it's enough for the Coalition. They'll follow your trail here, and will inevitably discover this chamber. I'm sure you can see the problem in that.
>"We were already running low on time."

This is getting too far out of hand. I'll take my chances elsewhere.

"If you give us the information we need, we can be on our way. I don't care about any of what you're doing."

>"Impossible now. You've already created a trail here. Releasing you only increases the odds that you might use your knowledge of this site as leverage if you were captured."

The dialogue is breaking down, fast.

>"The simplest solution would be to kill you both, seal your entry point and bide time."

>>142086
Offer to help instead.

agree that it is simple, but a simple plan may not be the best.

>>142086
What a wonderfully pragmatic man. His views are a bit confined but still. Don't counter threat him. He is a sharp bastard and probably has a backup plan against any of your possible aggressions.

This is where you make the offer he can't refuse and hope Kitty can live up to her part. You're going to offer him to get that ship up and running and get him and everyone else out of here without a trace. Of course that happening hinges on Kitty and you being alive.

Hopefully he is smart enough to know that torture doesn't always work, on Kitty it's pretty much guaranted not to work, atleast not fast. And you would be pretty worthless as a hostage because she doesn't really care alot about people. And lets hope that Kitty knows more about TAV other than what it's called. Otherwise you're going to have a big problem at your hands.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)15:23 No. 142095 ID: a42c37
File 126774499840.jpg - (227.33KB , 777x777 , 04-16.jpg )

>help
>Kitty

"That would be a waste. My friend here knows a thing or two about these vehicles you -

>"Don't insult me," he says. He nods towards Kitty. "We may as well drop the formalities, Nyaerian. Your disguise is terrible."

Kitty seems a little surprised.

"Kitty?"

>"Kitty," Tannon scoffs at the name, almost amused. "You animals even take literal names."

>She inhales sharply, restraining herself before explaining. "Nyaer is to my people what Kalian is to yours. It's the name of my world.
>"I don't think Tannon is from your world, Burns."

>"How astute," he interjects, before I can get in a word. "Needless to say, we have no use for your so-called expertise."

>>142095
Hmmm, I think I know what he wants that ship for. He wants to go back home. The people he has there are probably behaving oddly because of him and some off world device or ability. They don't really seem to operate a maximum efficiancy though.

Ignore him for now and ask Kitty if she can get that ship up and running. If she can then offer help. If she can't then offer to draw off the coalition in exchange for a list of vaults similar to the one where you found us.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)16:00 No. 142107 ID: a42c37
File 126774723840.jpg - (181.71KB , 777x777 , 04-17.jpg )

Enough of this. He's insane.

"You're overreacting. There's no evidence the Coalition is even tracking us. The only people who knew about us were -

>"A Tallwoods mob family, no doubt. They've been selling information to the Coalition for -

"Fuck that! Bottom line is, you're speculating."

>"It is a calculated likelihood large enough to be an eventuality."

"It's not going to happen."

>"We'll see."

"Look. You haven't tried killing us, so that must mean you've been considering something else. I just want those Vault locations. Nothing else. I never wanted anything to do with this war, or your fucking ship. I just want to get back to my wife and kid. Before that, I need that list."

He simmers on this for a while. He doesn't seem to ever think long, so he must be working up something interesting.

>"You're an Acruen, aren't you?" Kitty finally asks.

Tannon glances coldly at her, continuing to think.

>"I'll just go ahead and tell you, then. I'm amortal. He may be, too. Regardless of whether he wants to hear that or not."

Tannon stops considering.

>"That changes everything.
>"In that case, I have an offer for you."

>>142107
You're probably not going to like this but hear him out.

I just hope this isn't going to be about organ harvesting, because that would really suck.

Since he is aware of amortals, describe the man who could have made you amortal to him as you lay dying. He may know more about that.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)16:45 No. 142120 ID: a42c37
File 126774992067.jpg - (124.17KB , 777x777 , 04-18.jpg )

"What kind of offer?"

>"You'll find out once you're in the ship. This is the only way you'll get the locations of those Vaults from me."

Tannon and Tim both leave, signaling for us to follow.

Seems like we don't have much choice in the matter. I suppose the situation could have turned out much worse.

Whelp, might as well follow them. Make sure Kitty has her handgun ready, at least. Concealed, but ready.

>>142120
Hmmm. Rig yourselfs with suicide explosives as security against last minute doublecrossing. Then follow them.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)17:08 No. 142137 ID: a42c37
File 126775132313.jpg - (135.11KB , 777x777 , 04-19.jpg )

>Rig yourselfs with suicide explosives as security against last minute doublecrossing.

You guys are pretty hardcore when it's not you getting blown up, huh?

We follow, regardless, prepared for anything we can think of.

"Kitty, what are these guys?"

>"Husks," she answers. "Humans that had another brain of some kind implanted in their heads, in the original. The original people are dead. They're Acruen spies."

"So they aren't all like this?"

>"No. Some people call them robots. Some say they used to be organic, or that they still are. Don't know. Haven't dealt any with them. I do know they usually have their own bodies. They're supposed to be difficult to find."

"Nobody told these, I guess. Son of a bitch, what have I gotten into?"

>"Yeah, you could be drinking right now."

"Shut up, Kitty."

There's an elevator inside one of the support gears keeping the ship off the ground. Tannon waits for us inside.

>>142137
Well it's quite possible that you're both amortal. Atleast one of you certainly is. So you should be back and kicking in about a year tops, anyone else around won't be so lucky. That and I think suicide explosives are a great way to keep people honest, preferably they should be in the kiloton range but lesser yields are acceptable.

Ask Kitty why Tannon seemed so hostile towards her kind. I'm guessing Kitty is the product of alot of genetic tampering with the goals of creating a slave race and Tannons people aren't exactly thrilled with how it turned out.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)17:43 No. 142160 ID: a42c37
File 126775340580.jpg - (153.99KB , 777x777 , 04-20.jpg )

>Ask Kitty why Tannon seemed so hostile towards her kind.

She explains on the way that Acruen seem to naturally hate all biological life, which is why he addressed us as "animals."

After several minutes of coursing through the ship, we arrive at a massive chamber. A soft hum overtakes everything. The walls and floor seem to constantly shiver.

>"This is the primary housing chamber," Tannon explains on the way.
>"The singularity inside the chamber is contained by several million acasiation coupler rods within its own fractured space.
>"Although the ships are typically kept in perfect condition by maintaining their own suspension fields, to ensure entropy doesn't acclimate, sometimes things do break down.
>"Most likely, this was a problem that was never fixed during construction. The million or so years this ship has been here was enough for the drive core to need to be folded back into itself."

I have no idea what the fuck he's talking about.

>"Unfortunately, we don't have the equipment here to do this, so it's been difficult to stabilize the suspension drive long enough to ignite the acasiate's main chamber. We can't get airborne.
>"This is where you come in. The dimensional space isn't entirely lethal, but it will kill most lifeforms before they can complete the repairs. I've sent in several of my crewmen, in the hopes that when one died, the other could continue their work. For whatever reason, none have succeeded."

Kitty clears her throat, likely completely aware that I have no idea what's going on.

>"So you need one of us to enter the singularity and realign the coupler rods to ignite the acasiate's realignment phase, to power the suspension field?"

>"Yes."

>"Is it just a switch, or...?"

>"It will be somewhat like entering the Expanse on foot."

>"Oh, god," she declares. "Burns, you can't do this. It has to be me."

"Oh, you think so?"

Do we do this? Is there any reason why I should be the one to go inside this thing? Should I hand you over to Kitty? I wonder if I could trap you inside of this thing's engine, or whatever this is... If it kills people when it enters, then...

What do you think?

>>142160

Remind me why we're trying to help this guy when we (the artifact) need to be elsewhere?

>>142160
Sure, let her go in.

On the bright side, you're not dead.

No man, we wanna be out here in the world until the woman takes her top off. Then we can go be somewhere forever for the rest of time. At least until we eventually go to another dimension or world like we do all the time and help out other people. Man, you should see half of the crap we manage to do. Romances, saving the world, making the world worse, etc.
Also, again like I asked, ask Tannon about the man who may have made you amortal as well as the real world. Kitty may not know, but this guy is apparently also well versed in other worlds and crazy amortal bullshit so lets try, shall we?

i think i know the problem. it doesn't kill people in and of itself.
think of a huge empty field. you need to hike all the way to the other side to push a button. the problem is that it's empty save for the button, no food, no water.

I wanna go in with Kitty.

>>142165
We're helping him because he won't let us leave or tell us where the Vaults are otherwise.

[paused] Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/04(Thu)18:09 No. 142175 ID: a42c37
File 126775499876.jpg - (131.36KB , 777x777 , 04-20-p.jpg )

[[ The more stress Burns undergoes, the more likely it will be for him to need a good drink or ten later. ]]

I would like to note that if we get trapped in this thing, nobody from the Coalition is going to be able to retrieve it. Hell, they probably won't ever know, Burns. Tannon won't let you leave. Unless you ARE amortal, trapping us in this thing is not going to work well for you.

Give us to Kitty, she might need the extra "eyes" in there (though we are actually quite unfamiliar with the technology) All you'll really be doing in the main time is sitting around, and I doubt you'd get any useful information out of the good doctor, as he's got no reason TO give it to you.

>>142160
Give us to Kitty. I wanna see this. I hope you're ready to take care of her when she returns. From the sounds of this she might need a week or two to get back up on her feet after this.

And while you're waiting for her to get back you could ask Tannon about the weird guy that thought about taking us from your dying body. Or maybe not, we don't really know what kind of rumour that guy might have, if Tannon learns that you're assosciated with him then Tannon might decide on one of those wonderful fates worse than death that comes with not being able to die.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)10:09 No. 142418 ID: c67320
File 126781256038.jpg - (196.08KB , 777x777 , 04-21.jpg )

I suppose it's probably not best to leave you in there. I'm not sure, though. And I can't discuss this with Kitty in the open. And she could use the extra eyes.

I'll be asking Tannon questions about the man in the black suit while you're gone. As for you...

Ask her if it would be acceptable to leave you in there. She knows more about this than me. Look at for you. She's done good by me.

I hold you aloft.

"Kitty!"

She turns.

"For luck."

Tannon doesn't seem to give this any notice. He... it likely assumes this is a meaningless gesture.

She eyes me for a moment before nodding. She didn't seem to think I would ever hand you over, willingly.

I don't know her well enough to tell... She's worried for some reason. Afraid, I'm almost sure.

But I swear I can almost see her smile, as she takes the Tear from me.

>>142418
>[[ Look at for you. == "Look out for her." ]]
>[[ Why I even bother putting in a password, I don't know. ]]

>>142418
Hello Kitty. I'm gussing this is a bit more dangerous than you or Tannon has let on. Messing around with singularities can have all sorts of nasty side effects, there is alot of energy involved in it.

Please be careful and if this is insanely dangerous then tell us so now and we will figure out a better way to do it.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)11:18 No. 142436 ID: 8e9eb6
File 126781668372.jpg - (75.95KB , 777x777 , 04-22.jpg )

Hello, voices...

>if this is insanely dangerous then tell us so now

It is. But there's no other way.

I enter the housing chamber, and am torn into a fixture of time and space.

>>142436
There are almost always other ways.

So tell us a bit more about what it is you're going to do. From what I understood you need to recreate the singularity that provided power and it's going to be alot of radiation flying around. Is there more to it than that or is the rest of the risk just the normal ones involved when playing around with singularities?

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)11:34 No. 142447 ID: 17fc61
File 126781764029.jpg - (207.35KB , 777x777 , 04-23.jpg )

I find myself in the control field. A million towering coupler rods stand like a forest before me, in a field of endless white.

It would be easy to get lost in this.

Don't be fooled by your eyes. The space here is warped, and missing in places, despite light bouncing off of the mass within it. It's an incredibly confusing, dangerous place. Entering without an acasiation suit is close to a death sentence.

The air forgets itself. You can suffocate when it moves. The light's origin, whatever it may be, changes rapidly.

At any moment, you can be torn apart when space fractures. There's no warning. It's no wonder the Acruen husks died in here. Even I'll likely sustain a great deal of injury.

I don't know why Burns gave you to me. Did he leave a message? He must have wanted me to know something. He couldn't have just been worried about my safety. I'm a stranger to him.

Regardless, there's something he doesn't know:

>tell us a bit more about what it is you're going to do

The control mechanism isn't an object so much as a place. It's void of mass. Simply reaching it will cause the suspension drive to fold back in, which will start the ship.

The problem is, you can never be sure where it is, without equipment to read its location.

>a lot of radiation flying around

No. Not in the way you'd think. It doesn't pose much of a danger to me.

I'm frightened, if you can tell. But it's not the physical dangers that concern me.

The only way to find your way in here is to follow your senses. And if you stay here too long, reality starts to break down. Memories become landmarks, and dreams become obstacles. It's almost just like the Expanse.

We could be trapped here, until an engineering crew finds us. With the Acruen piloting the ship, that could be centuries, or longer. Even then, they wouldn't care if I stayed here or not.

We must be careful, at all costs.

>>142447
Part of his resons for giving us to you are a bit selfish. If we're lost in here then he can be pretty certain that we're in a place that nobody can get too, atleast not easily. I don't think that would be a good idea though. And part of it is that he does actually care for you and he hopes that we might help keep you safe. You're currently pretty much one of the few solid landmarks in his life. He has lost his nation, his family is adrift somewhere likely as refugees, he no longer has any orders or the structure of his old life. Without you there and some sort of goal I think it's likely he would just drink himself to death, only that wouldn't work. So I think you're more important to him than you give yourself credit for.

So following you senses you say. Our only sense is sight, so can you give us any description on what we should look for?

And you said the reality in here can be shaped by the observer. Is that something that could be used to find what you're looking for with a disciplined enough mind?

>>142458
Oh, and he's falling in love with you. That's probably why he was willing to trust you with something that can tell you his darkest secrets and innermost thoughts.

>>142462
what? no. he has a wife and kid.

>>142463
Yeah, his main reasons are that you've proven yourself fairly trustworthy, and that he thinks we'd be safe in a place that kills people who enter.

>>142463
Traditionally that hasn't stopped alot of people. Hell in some places they just add a new one. Monogamy is not the only way of life.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)12:06 No. 142474 ID: 17fc61
File 126781957352.jpg - (110.61KB , 777x777 , 04-24.jpg )

I enter the field.

>love, regret
>loss

His reasons are his own business.

>hiding the Tear

As for you, no, this isn't a good place. Anyone with the right equipment could find you easily, when they pick up something that doesn't belong in here.

I can't decide if Burns was being foolish, or he knew I would protect you if I get lost. Is he really that devious? Maybe I'm giving him too little credit.

I knew I couldn't trust him.

I can't trust anyone.

>what to look for

I... I don't even know if you could see it. The twisted reality may only interact with me. It'll be someplace important to me. A location of some kind, dissimilar from everything else.

I hope I can find it before my mind begins to slip.

>>142474
To your right appears to be a memory or something. Also, trust him. He's trusting you, isn't he?

hmmm? is that a young you over there? anyway, burns is trustworthy, he just has some mixed upped priorities. he really thinks getting us someplace safe is still his mission, he seems almost incapable of thinking otherwise. maybe the guy you made him not dead in his jeep messed with his head.

>>142474
Well I'm guessing the little girl running away to your right I thin it is could be important. And if we're looking for things that would be important to you then this is an ideal moment to tell us about a couple of those things so we know what to look for.

And I think you're giving Burns to little credit. Just in the wrong way. He isn't really a devious person, he is a rather straighforward kind of guy. He gave us to you because of previously mentioned reasons but also I think to show you that he does trust you. Atleast enough to hand over us to you, and we're currently his reason to exist. He has lost pretty much everything to obey his order to keeping us safe.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)12:22 No. 142486 ID: 17fc61
File 126782056426.jpg - (103.30KB , 777x777 , 04-25.jpg )

>a memory

Something did catch the corner of my eye.

I take off running just long enough to realize it's waiting for me.

It is a little girl.

>young you

No, don't put ideas in my - !

A sharp pain runs through my arm, as I feel the air twist. It tries to tear away, but I won't let it.

Are you voices trying to trick me as well? Everyone is out to... I can't. I can't trust any of you. Anyone. My own...

My... yes, it probably is. No.

I'm sorry. I realize this is me. It's always been me. It could have been anyone, but it was always me.

>>142486
Hey, this is the mind-warping thing working. Get a grip. Stop distrusting everything. Especially us. We're usually annoying and quite useless, but trust us all the same dammit.

>>142486

Walk up behind the little girl and look where she's looking.

>>142486
I'm sorry that you think that way but we're not trying to trick you. But lets put this issue aside for another time.

You have to focus on the task at hand, neither you or we want to be stuck in here for centuries so focus at what needs to be done here and tell us how to help you.

Now is this the important event that will restart the device or is it a part of the way there?

>>142474
Even in horrifically dangerous situations it's very rare for our holder to come to serious harm, let alone die. He knew this when he handed us over.
He told us he trusts you, that he wanted us to ask you about leaving is in here, and to look out for you.
He is unlikely to betray you in the foreseeable future, and should you choose to exploit his affection then his species' pair-bonding behavior will ensure that he would willingly put himself at great risk to protect you.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)12:43 No. 142503 ID: 17fc61
File 126782180242.jpg - (152.48KB , 777x777 , 04-26.jpg )

"Of course I trust you, voices! You guys are so silly."

>little girl

"What little girl? There's just me. There's only ever been me. And you guys, of course."

>the device

"You guys are so weird today!"

>>142503
Oh fuck this is bad. Why can't they ever send in mentally and emotioanlly stable people to tackle a landscape that changes depending on the mind of the observer?

Well forget about that for now Kitty. Tell me, where are you today and what do you have planned for today?

>>142503
Did you forget about Burns? You were just talking about how much you like him!

then where are your mom and dad? little girls shouldn't be alone.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)12:51 No. 142509 ID: 17fc61
File 126782227352.jpg - (153.02KB , 777x777 , 04-27.jpg )

>Kitty?

What? Why would you... You aren't supposed to call people that. It's not nice.

>Burns

What? You guys are starting to scare me. Act normal, okay? I don't like this.

>"Cynthia! Where are you?"

"Oh, no... Momma's home."

>>142509
Oh, I see what's happened!
Cynthia, we're inside your memories right now. You're remembering this event, not living through it.
Sorry, we got confused. D:

>>142509
Sorry Cynthia. We didn't know your real name and we had gotten used to calling you Kitty.

Isn't it good that your mommy is home? Maybe she brought something for you. By the way, is there anything signinficant with this day?

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)13:06 No. 142516 ID: 17fc61
File 126782318339.jpg - (121.59KB , 777x777 , 04-28.jpg )

"Quiet, guys. I'm not supposed to have you."

>"Cynthia? Cynth-
>"There you are! Damn it."

Momma's dressed up. That must mean she's been shopping me again.

>"Get dressed. I finally found you a buyer."

"N-no! I don't want to be sold!"

>"Cynthia, I thought we went over this, already.
>"There's no future for you here.
>"You don't want to work in the fields like I do.
>"Wouldn't you like a rich, normal human for a husband? You'd finally be able to eat, normally."

"I don't care! I just want to stay here!"

>"Baby, I can't provide for you, anymore. Normals love Nyaerian girls, and will pay a lot of money for one.
>"Your brother already died because I couldn't feed us all.
>"Please, baby, make this easier for me."

I hate this. I hate everything. Why does it have to be like this? I don't understand what's happening. I don't understand!

[paused] Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)13:08 No. 142522 ID: 17fc61
File 126782333257.jpg - (134.39KB , 777x777 , 04-28-p.jpg )

>[[ due to technical difficulties ]]

>>142516
Take it easy little one. Your mother is doing what she thinks is best for you. She does this because she cares about you and she cannot give you what she thinks you deserve.

Show some faith in her for now and go get dressed. If things turn out bad then I promise you that we will do everything in our power to help you out.

Well... shit... that's depressing... why do the little catgirls always have to have depressing childhood memories...caravans...

ether listen to your mother, or run. that's all you can do for now. one day you may be able to do something else, but not yet.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)14:18 No. 142541 ID: 2242de
File 126782751383.jpg - (218.89KB , 777x777 , 04-29.jpg )

"I won't!"

>"Cynthia!"

"No!"

>"CYNTHIA! TRUST YOUR MOTHEERRRRRR -

>>142541
This isn't happening... this already happened... or perhaps it didn't happen like this... but you are not a young girl any more... nobody calls you Cynthia anymore... SNAP OUT OF IT!

>>142541
Sigh, nothing can ever be simple and easy can it? Why can't they ever go "Sure that's no problem. Here take what you need, anything else I can help you with?" it's always some hard shit that needs to be done.

Ok, Cynthia listen to me. Hold out two fingers on your right hand and jab them straight into the eyes on your mothers neck, then run away. Can you do that for me?

>>142541

OH SHIT NECROMORPHS

CUT OFF THE LIMBS CUT OFF THE LIMBS

>>142541
SNAP OUT OF IT. WHATEVER HAPPENED HAPPENED, GET TO THE TASK AT HAND.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)14:56 No. 142571 ID: ebae1b
File 126782976125.jpg - (337.83KB , 777x777 , 04-30.jpg )

>Snap out of it
>"CYNTHIA! SNAP OUT IT!"

Not again!

An explosive round rockets into the Piaculum's head, before it explodes in gore. It won't be down for long. Just like the rest.

Voices! Where did you go!? Why didn't you warn me!

we are hurtling through your memories, none of this is happening, it's all in the past. our mind-link seems to be messing with it because we have no real memories for this place to use on us.

>>142571
Because we were trapped inside a hallucination, possibly one of your memories. This shit is trippy as fucking hell.

But now you're back. Give us an assesment of the situation and how the search for the control mechanism is going.

>>142571
You started daydreaming!
AND THIS IS ANOTHER MEMORY! WAKE UP! YOU NEED TO FIND THE SHIP CORE AND GET BACK TO BURNS!

YOU'VE GOT TO FIND THE CORE THING AND GET THIS SHIP ONLINE SO WE CAN GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE!

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)15:11 No. 142582 ID: ebae1b
File 126783071732.jpg - (194.85KB , 777x777 , 04-31.jpg )

The... the ship core?

Burns?

>"Cynthia!"

"Burns! W-we have to get to the... t-the singularity's heart!"

>"Cynthia, stop. You're talking nonsense, again. You had another episode."

"Oh, god, Burns... Where's... where's Saul?"

>"He died, Cynthia. Five years ago. Come on, baby."

That's right. Our son died, five years ago. My husband's been so good to me. I never deserved him. I'm putting such a strain on him.

"Where am I?"

I'm in so much pain. It feels like the air is tearing me apart.

"We're in the expanse, baby. Come on, we have to get to the evac shuttle. We're almost there. We'll be okay, soon."

>daydreaming
>memory

N-no...

"No. No! This isn't right!"

>>142582

Cynthia, OUR position in the timestream is fixed.
THIS IS A DREAM OF A POSSIBLE FUTURE! YOU HAVE A DRIVE CORE TO FIX!

Oh, screw this.

[Replays her memories for her up until the point before she saw her younger self.]

>>142584

Yes! We're the only constant in here!

GET TO THE CORE. THAT'S AN ORDER.

>>142582
Cynthia. You still have to fix that core. You're still stuck in the acasiation chamber of a TAV. You need to focus on the task at hand. Focus your mind on what you need to find, cut away everything else, focus solely on what you need to get the TAV running again. The landscape here is influenced by your mind, control it.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)15:43 No. 142592 ID: ebae1b
File 126783261349.jpg - (204.47KB , 777x777 , 04-32.jpg )

Yeah.

Yeah, I remember now. This place. It's mixing my thoughts, memories, hopes, fears...

>"You never could protect anyone but yourself."

Fuck. Not him.

>"And you still wonder why I took your mortality away."

The core has to be here somewhere. If I can just get to it, everything will reset.

>"You've always known what you've had to do - where you have to be. Why don't you try doing it for once?"

>>142592

>"You've always known what you've had to do - where you have to be. Why don't you try doing it for once?"

Except you ARE doing what you have to do: find the core and activate it!

FOCUS! FOCUS ON YOUR OBJECTIVE!

>>142592
Hey a mindghost with an actually somewhat useful advise. This place builds up a reality based on your memories, hopes, fears and other stuff from your mind.

Well then focus. You know what it is you need. Make this space distorting thing work for you. Focus on what it is you need and where you need to be and cut away everything else.

>>142592
I'm glad to see you harbor a hope that Burns will prove worthy of sharing your life.

>"You never could protect anyone but yourself."
Isn't that what you're doing right now? Taking on a dangerous task so that your friends will be safe? The man is an idiot and a liar.

Focus on the drive core. We will help you as best we can.
[Attempts to project blank white space over the images, and white noise over their words.]

Wow this place is annoying, fucking with you like this. What kind of pussy engine uses psychology to kill people? REAL ENGINES USE RADIATION, SMALL AND PUNY BABY ENGINE!

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)16:07 No. 142601 ID: ebae1b
File 126783402147.jpg - (182.35KB , 777x777 , 04-33.jpg )

I stand.

Reklaw watches me, scrutinizing me. I know this isn't really him, but the effect is the same. How I hate this man.

I'm back in... reality. The white field is distorted beyond recognition. I can feel forces around me tearing at my body. Some of my bones sustained minor fractures in my absence. I ignore the pain.

>Doing what I know needs to be done.
>Isn't that what you're doing?

Yes. Yes, it is. This goes beyond why I'm here. I'm not doing this for selfish reasons.

I'm putting my life on the line to help Burns. It's not because he's done anything for me, or even because I care about him. I'm doing this because it's my choice. It's what I want to do.

Mother was wrong.

A raised platform appears before me, with two books upon its surface.

The one on my right is entitled "SAFETY." It has no author.

The one on my left is entitled "LOVE." The author's name has been scratched away.

I have to open one of these books, I know. This is what I've been looking for.

The idea of Reklaw continues to watch, awaiting my answer.

>>142601
Love. A loveless life is no life at all.
It is a risk, that is true, but the possible rewards are beyond measure and the alternative is a cold, empty life.

Go for love.

>>142601

I assume one of these will get the engine running...

Hm.

I say go with Love.

This won't stop until you fix this thing. Just ignore him.

>>142601

Well, how's this work usually?

I'd suggest Love, but on the other hand we're trying to make a reactor safe. That seems like maybe safety would be the best option here.

>>142601
Nothing can ever be simple can it?

I'm going to go with love. Which means that saftey is the right one because I'm always wrong. Except when I'm not. But my insticts say love is the right one. Based on your own mind constructs and what Reklaw had to say to you I don't think saftey will be the safe choice. Part of love is doing something for someone else, just like what you're doing here.

OPEN BOTH

>>142617
oh god no, that never leads to something good.

>>142621
No, it always leads to something AWESOME. Now, if it's awesomely GOOD or awesomely BAD depends. But it's always awesome. However...

>>142601
As much as I love taking the thrid option, I'm nto sure if it's possible here. So remember this:

A life of LOVE leaves to a grave without REGRETS.

A life of SAFETY leads to a cage made of REGRETS.

>>142601

Love.

The book of SAFETY has no author. A life without meaning.

The book of LOVE has an author, scratched out. A life with a meaning, but a meaning you don't want to accept.

That's what you're running from isn't it? You don't want to care about other people, because they'll just die. Or leave you.

Open that book of Love, and stop running.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)17:10 No. 142632 ID: a7bf20
File 126783780267.jpg - (152.50KB , 777x777 , 04-34.jpg )

>The book of LOVE

Who wrote it?

My mother sent me into safety, out of love.

For all of my life, I've run to safety. Reklaw cursed me to live a life of eternal safety from death, as punishment for my inability to... Well. I deserved it. I know.

I no longer have to, but I keep running, because I'm still afraid of pain. I've worked through these problems countless times. I'm a century and a half old, but I keep returning to my old ways.

I've always known what I wanted, but I've always been taught to take the path to stability - to assurances.

Not today. Perhaps, never again.

I choose LOVE.

>>142632
So... open it.

>>142632
Sounds like this would be one of those momentous occasions that fires up the drive. Lets hope it is.

[animated] Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)17:22 No. 142641 ID: a7bf20
File 126783857697.gif - (351.98KB , 777x777 , 04-35.gif )

I open the book, to find textless pages.

They have no words, because I have yet to write them.

This small portal is the intersection of points I have been looking for. As my fingers slip through the white, it overtakes everything.

I blank.

>>142641
Hey! Wake up.

welcome back, how long you think we were really in there?
10 bucks says we turned this thing on in record time.

>>142641
Damn you do have a nice ass.

Good work by the way. You got out of there and you're still alive. Or should be in a day or two in the worst case scenario. If that's not the case then I suggest you get up and find a better spot to collapse on.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)17:28 No. 142647 ID: a7bf20
File 126783891720.jpg - (154.93KB , 777x777 , 04-36.jpg )

Ugh.

I hurt all over. My bones really did fracture in places. I should be all right in a couple of hours, though.

I hear the rumbling of the ship. The suspension drive is active.

No one is here, though. Burns and Tannon are nowhere to be found.

I hear another kind of rumbling, sporadic and fluctuating. It almost sounds like... gun fire?

>>142647
Investigate. Burns may need your help.

>>142647

Aw crap. Please tell me you have a sidearm on your person or something.

Otherwise, approach sounds of violence carefully.

>>142647
No rest for the wicked, atleast not now. Come on get up, you have been through worse. You have to get to Burns and Tannon and tell them that the ship is ready to go.

Then Tannons husks can fight a read guard action, it's not like they're actually alive anymore. While they're doing that you can get the fuck out of here.

>>142647
Can you get up to go help? Burns said he had no idea how to use your weapons.

Though that may not have stopped him.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)17:45 No. 142658 ID: 411406
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I vaguely recall how to make my way out. The fire fight isn't inside the ship.

I exit to the immediate thunder of gunfire. Acruen husks already lie dead, just outside the entrance.

Neither side is with the ship. The Acruen must have fallen back. Gunfire is being exchanged around the ship, itself.

>weapons

No, I left them all with Burns, knowing they would likely be lost in the singularity!

>>142658

Damn. Crossfire all over the place.

Can you spot a weapon on the ground nearby? Perhaps on the dead body in front of you?

>>142661
Dude's dead because he was caught if the crossfire, if he has a weapon... he can keep it.

Coalition probably followed your trail like the Doc said.

Do you know anything about the ship that might be helpful? Defensive weaponry perhaps, maybe just some engine work to help distract or blow off the attacking forces.

>>142664

I see.

How fast can you run, Cynthia? 'cause it looks like you'll need to run very, very fast.

For that matter, it might be a good idea to see exactly who is attacking first.

>>142658
Well fuck that's not good.

Ok first of all move forward so you can shout to Burns and Tannon that the ship is powered up and they need to get in there. After that I would suggest that you make your way over to the control center and make a quick preflight prep and check as well as see if it has any weapons you can activate.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)18:19 No. 142680 ID: b5df79
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>ship's defensive weapons

TACs are almost always built with only one or two devastating weapons. Most militaries add a lot of their own to the hull later.

>dead man's weapon

I rush to it, knowing I'm fast enough.

But I forget my injuries, and slow considerably.

It's enough for someone to line up a shot. The bullet ricochets off my skull. It hurts like hell, but I was prepared for something like that. If it had caught me off guard, I'd be "dead" for a while.

>"Kitty!"

Burns. I hear his voice!

>>142680
Burns is to your left!

>>142680

Grab the dead mans guns and return fire, also rush to cover.

tell him to get down and to remember that you can't die.

Haha Burns took them all on singlehandedly and is winning. GUNS BLAZING INTO THE NIGHT

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)19:17 No. 142703 ID: 61bdf1
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I grab the weapon and dash as quickly as I can manage behind cover. Two more bullets whistle past my head, but I'm left unscathed.

Tannon and Burns are waiting for me.

>"Kitty! You all right?"

"No." I hate to admit it. "I've got some fractures. My head still stings from that bullet just now. It's not that bad, but I can't really do a whole lot other than fire a gun. What happened?"

>"Coalition really did show up. The Acruen tore through them at first. It was nuts. They can aim perfectly, with both hands, and take out ten targets in less th -

"Okay, okay!" Typical boy. Easily distracted. "What happened?"

>"More just kept showing up. It looks like there's a whole legion of infantry up on the surface. I think they're invading Qer. The Acruen eventually got overwhelmed by sheer numbers. There's only about four of them left, including Tannon.
>"Another wave is on the way. If it's anything like the last batch, it'll be about thirty hostiles."

"There's no way we can repel them right now."

>>142703

The only tactical advantage right now is the ship. We have to know if it has any defenses now that its powered up.

Either that, or provide cover fire while everyone else gets to the ship.

Escape on the ship! It isn't restricted to 3 dimensions like you are; it can go around the walls and ceiling!

As much as I hate to admit it, Tannon's forces have not attacked you yet, but the Coalition forces put a bullet in (against) your skull, so it's pretty obvious whose side we've ended up on. The ship's working now--it's your only way out. You might not have much time left though. I doubt if the Coalition forces get to it, they'll just ignore you and let you leave.

>>142703
Sounds like we'd better GTFO.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)19:48 No. 142722 ID: dc0bc1
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"We have to make a break for the ship!"

I can scarcely hear myself over the sudden roar of the world around us falling apart. The ground level of the city above is disintegrating, cutting open a path to the sky above. Light shines in from a new day. Was I gone that long?

>"You fool animal!" Tannon bellows. "You started the suspension drive but didn't disengage the takeoff sequence!"

"We can still make it on board!"

>>142722
What kind of dumbass ship has an auto takeoff???????

where the hell is the button labeled 'don't take off' how the hell were you supposed to know! anyway, everyone who can, get on that ship.

>>142722

You have GOT to be kidding me.

Who the hell leaves the auto-take off ON when powering up the ship?!?

Anyways, MAKE A BREAK FOR IT!

Don't stop for a witty one liner or blame. Just run for it. Be ready for more headshots.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)19:57 No. 142731 ID: dc0bc1
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"Who the hell triggers the takeoff sequence before the engines are started!"

>"Someone who's trying to leave in a hurry!
>"You should have stayed with the ship!
>"Now the Coalition soldiers have gotten inside!"

Oh, FUCK.

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)20:03 No. 142733 ID: dc0bc1
File 126784819013.jpg - (166.79KB , 777x777 , 04-42.jpg )

"We could still -

>"No! We couldn't storm the entrance in time to make it inside before the ship lifts off! It's gone!
>"And we can't stay here. The suspension field is extending, already. If we stay here, it'll envelope us and tear us apart, Amortal or not!"

This can't be happening.

Burns seems to agree, although he doesn't understand what's going on. He must be thinking of just making it out of here safely, for his family.

I can't chase after the ship to try to make up for my mistakes. I want to. But I came here for Burns, not the ship.

I'm sorry. Thank you for your help, but... we have to let the ship go.

BATTLE CRY! WASTE THEM ALL! OOLOOLOOLOOLOOLOOLOOLOOLOOLOOLOOLOOLOOLOOLOOLOOL It's only seven we can fuck 'em up and run.

>>142733
Let's run, then. Tannon is not going to be pleased...

Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)20:14 No. 142739 ID: dc0bc1
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>WASTE THEM ALL
I want to, so badly. I'm so pissed off right now.

>Tannon is not going to be pleased...

FUCK Tannon. If he doesn't give us those locations, I'll rip his arms off! I am not pleased!

The ship rises on its own, into the sky. If I had been a few minutes faster, Tannon's plan would have worked. If I had stayed with the ship, I could have protected the others while they made it inside. If I... ugh.

No. This is Tannon's fault. Not mine. Not ours!

Stop talking and run inside! It's like ten seconds away! Not that many enemies are inside. You can take them down.

If you're good and convinced you can't get in, that narrows down your options to 'run' and 'explode.'

>>142739

Not to point fingers, but Tannon screwed up by:
-Not alerting us to the auto-take off sequence upon ship power up
-Not locking the damn doors

Oh for fuck's sake.

i agree. he let you without information. if you had known the ship would take off as soon as you turned it on you would have known to hit the 'don't take off' button. but because he is an ass you didn't know.

wonder what a few soldiers on an inter-dimensional ship will do. play cards and pary that they can drive the thing?

>>142745

Author willing, they'll pilot the ship right into the center of a supernova.

[end of chapter 4] Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)20:56 No. 142757 ID: dc0bc1
File 126785135926.jpg - (153.85KB , 777x777 , 04-44.jpg )

This is Tannon's fault.

"Why didn't you tell me about what you did?"

>"In all honesty, our plan was to abandon you, in the off chance you should decide to take the ship for yourselves. Having the takeoff procedure already underway without your knowledge was a part of that plan."

"Typical Acruen."

>"I anticipated you would want the ship for yourselves. Was I wrong?"

Not entirely. Still, I'm considering killing this man... this thing.

>"You wanted the location of one of the Vaults?"

"Yes. You're going to give it to us."

>"Indeed, I am. With my only immediate means of escaping this world gone, I will have to return to my secondary escape plan. As it so happens, it is contained within one of the devices you call a Vault."

"You don't honestly expect us to believe you?"

I look to Burns for agreement, but he's strangely solemn. I can't imagine what he's thinking. This only makes me angrier.

"After what you did? You'll just betray us again!"

>"I am not evil, animal. I am amoral. I am deductive. And right now, I lack the resources and protection necessary to make the journey. Surely you must realize this. I require you, at least until I reach our destination. You do not have my promise, but my statement of fact that I cannot and will not betray you until that time."

"How reassuring."

>"This is the nature of animal life. It is a game of appearances, disguises and interpretations of reality.
>"Right now, I appear to be at odds with the most powerful military force on this planet.
>"They now have in their possession the most powerful military weapon on this world. They do not understand its operation yet, but they soon will. And they will be looking for us, as they will believe we know too much about their new toy, and possibly more.
>"You need the knowledge I will not give you unless you meet my demands. I need you, as well."

>"We need that information," Burns finally speaks up, his head still hung low.

He says nothing else. Neither does the Doctor.

Son of a bitch.

This... this is not over. Not by a long shot.

give us back to burns, we can get him more talkative, even if it's just by making him angry.

[chapters 1-4, part 1 synopsis] Plague!!NkAwOzZ2H0 2010/03/05(Fri)21:24 No. 142771 ID: f59519
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[[ The interaction players have with the characters has dramatic and long-reaching affects in Nahala: The Dead Age. These can be inconsequential, damning or extremely beneficial. The story evolves to coincide with how the main characters interact with the world around them, and players affect this directly. Without player interaction, events would be completely different. Due to your choice selection, you have:

*trapped the Piaculum of the Confederate Artifactum
*resurrected Burns as a playable character
*drawn attention to the world of Kalian from outside interests

*made Kitty a playable character
*hurried Burns' acceptance of his fate
*caused Burns to notice Kitty's rocking tits and sweet ass
*helped push Burns back into a return to alcoholism

*caused Burns to briefly question his sexuality
*allowed the Malan family to continue operating
*allowed the Coalition to become aware of you
*discovered the hidden cache below Broken Towers

*lost the Qer TAV to the Coalition military
*temporarily slowed Burns' mental recovery
*permanently solidified Kitty's loyalty to Burns
*gained Doctor Tannon as a resource and reluctant ally

In addition, you have directly prevented the following:

*Burns' death
*entry of the Sunrisen Empire into war with the Coalition
*the escape of Doctor Tannon from Kalian
*Kitty's temporary entrapment within the singularity
*the destruction of the Qer TAV
*a hardcore sex scene between Kitty and a futa version of herself

The main plot does not deviate dramatically and events do not have dramatically negative outcomes unless players persistently make terrible decisions.

Player-Character Interaction Karma Rating: 80% ]]

>>*a hardcore sex scene between Kitty and a futa version of herself

Wait, what

>>142772
agreed, you better shell this out for us.

>*caused Burns to notice Kitty's rocking tits and sweet ass

Dude must be near blind to have needed our help there.

Well geeze, that futa thing probably would have to take place within the hallucinatory singularity.

>>142783
so... we tell her to go fuck herself while she was in there and she does? MAN, Plague, you better just be messing with us and only said that to troll us. cause if their was an actual chance of that happening...

>>142771
We can fix his alcoholism later. And it's not like he can die from a busted liver now is it.

I'm a bit pissed that we lost the TAV though. My plan was for her to go as far forward as she could in cover and then yell out for Burns and Tannon and have Tannons remaining husks cover Burns and Tannon while they got inside. But this should be more fun.

Can we still get the Empire in on the war? Because I can think of a couple of ways we should be able to make that happen.

By the way I liked this summary. It's nice to see what consequences actions have had and what they could have had.

Well, sounds like we want to get the empire into the war, and get the TAV back. Don't want them to have it... but vault first.

>>142772
Ffffffffffff- Damn, we failed so hard.

>*helped push Burns back into a return to alcoholism
Yeah, but now his liver grows back.