Death of Ivan, Birth of Omega

[Javan]

The twin suns were just setting outside Tir. A calm briks wind starting blowing through the bone remains Ivan was now sitting. Calm and peaceful, exactly what Ivan wanted at this point. Things had started spiraling out of control for him. Where at once he could remain composed, that was become ever increasingly more and more difficult. Each day he grew more and more tired. The strain of his profession was starting to get to him.

It had been some time since he started his training as a shade. And according to their customs he used the spirits of others to strengthen himself. A custom he was now paying the price for. Where once they were seperated, containable, now they were united and out of control. Each wanting what they no longer had, life. The whispering of their voices grew ever louder, closer. And with that he knew his own reality was draining. The choices were simple, fight and lose, or give in and lose. The question he had to ponder, though, was how best to lose.

Ivan had never been more scared in his life. The though of losing total control over his body filled him with dread. For him, this was a fate worse then perma-death. And yet, no matter how hard he would fight, they would suceed. So Ivan did the only thing he knew he could do, fail.

The mental barriers that had been holding the spirits in check for a long time were released. Instantly the murmers of voices became screams and shouts, and Ivan, doing when he knew he must, joined in with them and became one of thier ranks. Quickly the sense of consunious he once had was gone. He now saw the same objects though the eyes of a countless many. The sights around him no longer being his own to interperate, but filtered simultanousially though several other spirits. Ivan's sould could not help but feel an overwhelming sense of peace, as the spirits took in his, showing mercy, and amalgamating his own into their fold.

All his past thoughts remained except one, no longer could he remember his name. That is to say he could no longer remember his real name. All he knew to anwser to was the name Omega, the same all of them would anwser to. And like them he did not know why. All he knew, like them, was that their old names were gone, replaced with this one.

As the sun finally set Ivan, the real Ivan was no more. What sat there was a vessel, looked through by a multitude of eyes, sounds heard through a multitude of ears. What sat there now was not a man. But a creature, driven to accomplish a goal by any means, and not rest until it was completly finished.

[Javan]

"****..."

Ivan's comlink went offline just as Dorian gridded out next to the Rebel in Tir, where Kayyl had managed to track the signal.

"Maybe he went inside."
"No, the place's empty, 'cept for the bartender."
"I lost him."
"Aaw man..."

Dorian had never seen anything like this, much like Eomar and Kayyl, who probably were as stunned as him after what had just happened. Ivan's comlink first started to emit strange whisperings, just before a loud, angry scream. And then, the static. The soldier was already worried enough with this weird succession of sounds coming from his friend's commlink when a multitude of voices spoke aloud, claiming Ivan was no more, that they were not Ivan...

Dorian's mind was racing. This was worst than a nightmare. Kayyl had managed to bypass the alien ship's communication jam to track the signal, but it came from everywhere around Rubi-Ka. A second Ivan was in Tir, then, in the blink of an eye he was having coffee at The Cup, then he was sitting at an Intern-Ops meeting in Omni-HQ.

"The signal stopped moving. It's in Tir, near the Rebel" Kayyl said, while Dorian shot his way out of an Omni-Tek outpost in Milky Way.

"We are in Tir. We are Omega." spouted the voices from Ivan's comlink.

Shivers went down Dorian's spine and cold sweat rolled on his forehead as he tried to concentrate on the droids that blocked his way to the exit of the outpost...

"God dammit... I'm on my way as soon as possible.! I'm in Milky way right now..." yelled the soldier, in an attempt to cover the sound of blaster shots.

And, when he finally got to the Happy Rebel after a quick escape in his yalmaha, Dorian found... nothing. The signal had disappeared.

[Javan]

It didn't take long after switching on my comm link I was greeted by Dorian's trembling voice.

"Willow, am I glad to see you..." Dorian quickly uttered, trying to remain calm.

"Oh?" I replied, wondering if this was yet another tower battle Dorian was always getting himself mixed up in.

"Ivan..." Dorian began -- it didn't take long to bring me up to speed. "Let us start at his last known location" I said trying to get some semblence of control over the situation.

I could see Dorian was visibly shaken, which included his trigger finger...unsettling to say the least. Beginning the familiar movements of my hands my NCU picked up the rest of the ritual, completing the Sabertooth nano-program. I sniffed around for any clues as to Ivan's where-abouts...nothing, "I should have known..." I muttered to myself. In my stubborness I had forgotten that this spirit influx was connected to the shadowlands obviously, my enhanced senses would do nothing.

"Well I will begin with the most logical place. I will head to Jobe platform and see if anyone has spotted him around." I said. I could see my uneaseiness with the situation was only exacerbating Dorian's state. I thought it better to let him calm down on his own, and if I was away from the receiving end of his blaster...well all the better.

Gridding into Old Athens I headed for shadowlands access. The whompa doors to Jobe platform opened with a loud pneumatic clap. "This is only going to end badly" I thought to myself stepping into the portal.

[Javan]

"What the hell is this guy?!" a Male Watcher in the city of Athen shouted, "Keep your eyes open John, We need to split up." George wated for the reply from his partner. "John....John!" He shouted. Where John once stood only his rifle was left. George had been a veteran of the civil wars, but he had never been scared like this before. "WHERE ARE YOU, YOU MOTHER F****!" George shouted. "We are here." whispered a multitude of voice from behind him.George was paralized with fear. Before George could react a rapier had been plunged into his back.

Memories flooded in, friends, neighbors, comrads, parents...suddenly all taken away. He was left with nothing but darkness. Hunched over, George's mind was no longer there. The nanobots were keeping it alive for a little while, but there was nothing left in that body to keep alive. Hunched over, Gorge finally died, in a shell of a body with no more life then an android.

Omega looked at the bodies he had lain waste to. The enegry he had taken from them was enough to sustain him for a little while. Ever since their awakening they had an insatiable hunger. The spirits that now made up his consinusioness had, in a sense, become cannibales. They required the enegry of other spirits, and humans had enough enegry to make the game worth the hunt. They knew that Athen could not contain their hunger for long. But until that time came they would use it to replenish themselves.

And then Omega hear things over the comm link, the ones who constantly talked calling him Ivan, always Ivan. They grew tired of this and so they would now enlighten these people.

[Javan]

Arlyne connected to the organization channel and sent out her customary greeting.

"Hail Assembly". No one seemed to notice. A discussion seemed to be going on and Ivan seemed to be dominating the waves. Arlyne found it unusual though when she checked for a status report on the channel. Ivan and her were alone. Arlyne thought to herself, hm odd, Ivan is either bleeding over from another channel or he is talking to himself.

Arlyne heard Ivan say, "need energy to sustain ourselves." The tone seemed odd and kinda awkward for Ivan. She finally broke in with, "Ivan what is going on? Are you at another party?" "Ivan? It called us Ivan? We are not named Ivan", his voice replied over the waves.

Arlyne thought upon the reply, IT! What the hell did that mean? She paused for a minute or two then spoke upon the open channel slowly, "ok....what do you call yourself then?" "Omega, and we need energy", Ivan's voice was quick and sharp.

"What are you talking about, who is Omega...who is we...you gotta lay off the Rhino herb Ivan...are you hungry or something?", Arlyne spoke in an irritated tone. "We need energy", Ivan repeated.

Arlyne thought as she walked through the Newland streets, he is pissing me off, has he gone nuts?. She stopped at the grid and spoke over the channel again,"Ivan or I mean Omega where are you?" Ivan's strange dialogue continued,"Athen.." gunshots from the background covered the rest of his words and blared across the channel.

"Was that Old Athens or Athens West?" demanded Arlyne ignoring the gunshots and making cuckoo gestures with her right index finger close to her ear. Ivan did not respond, Arlyne opened a secure link to Sembly, "Sembly where is Ivan?" Sembly replied shortly,"West Athens". Gosh I am on watch alone with two freaks.....must be a gosh damn pair of full moons or something. Skeptical Arlyne decided to check on Ivan and encoded herself in the grid.

At the West Athens receiving terminal, Arlyne paused and spoke again over the channel,"Omega where are you?"
Omega answered snottily, "I am looking to the east at a wall that must be Athens, I am in a dump."

Arlyne entered The Cupp. "He said a dump, and here I am", she spoke softly to herself. Looking around the place was empty save for a lone female adventurer and the staff. She walked up to the waitress and asked, "Coco have you seen a short slim opifex man dressed in a strange mask and a cape recently in the bar or area?" The waitress simply rolled her eyes and turned her back on Arlyne. Arlyne frowned and curled a fist and turned around ignoring the slight. There before her eyes Ivan appeared like an apparition.

"You..." Arlyne almost shouted at him, "what is the matter?" "We need energy," Ivan looked around the bar and then started to walk out, "this will not do", he said stepping out of the bar's front door.

"What the.." Arlyne chased after him outside and into the street. She continued to follow him and tried to talk to him but he ignored her calls. Ivan led her to a culdasac in the back of town. A couple of passersby and two Vanguard militia members mingled in the street.

"Omega what are you looking for?" Arlyne tried to reason with him still uncertain of what was happening. The shade ignored her.

__________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ ____________

[added later elaborating on events]

Varija did not like this. The hair stood up on the back of her neck, DAISY's sensory communications came alive too the tune of impending danger. "What are you looking for? Stop ignoring me and answer?", Varija shouted at Ivan. Ivan was inspecting a civilian female opifex who had just wandered in to the wrong place at the wrong time.

Suddenly and viciously Ivan attacked the young clan lady. His rapiers plunged into the lady's kidneys, her death was instant. Paralysis gripped Varija, as she witnessed her sworn brother coldly and brutally murder a fellow clan citizen. A horrific feeling swept over Varija stunned that he could do such a thing. For a moment she could not move she could only watch as the thing that called itself Omega knelt down next to the lady's crumbled remains. Her blood left her body and created a good sized pool which Omega knelt in. From her frozen vantage Varija could not see exactly what Omega was doing to the lady and as she struggled with herself another feeling came over her. A wave of sorrow assaulted her, like many voices crying of suffering. Something was happening between Omega and the corpse and Varija could not see what it was but it hit upon her psychic like a ton of bricks.

The attack did not go unnoticed, a Vanguard militia immediately responded and attempted to apprehend Omega. Varija freed herself from the horror and began to act. Omega began another vicious assault on the militia member.

"THAT IS ENOUGH", Varija screamed at Omega. All instincts came awake and combat systems ramped up, and the corpsman executed Uncontrollable Body Tremors within Omega's ncus. The action was late to save the militia guard, however it did get Omega's attention. Varija scanned for bio signs upon the corpses, her computered returned, Condition: Dead. Not reclaiming...****!

"That is enough", Varija shouted struggling with what to do next, Damnit, ****, there is no one else to call for help. Omega looked at her and then began to walk off again as she worked through her internal struggle. Her mind flashed through thoughts and feelings to a conclusion. This monster is not the brother I once knew. It will not roam WA murdering people and calling itself my brother!

"They do not satiate you do they?" Varija shouted at him as he began to walk off. He paused some distance from her and turned to face her. Varija continued, "They do not satiate you because they are beneath you. They have no power!" The dialogue seemed to be working as he stepped closer to her. "Here lies power", Varija motioned to herself. Omega began walking back to her. **** I hope this works, I gotta get this bastard off the streets! The corpsman made mental preparations for the battle that was about to begin.

"She is interesting to us" Omega spoke to himself as he closed the distance to the corpsman,"she might fill us."
Oh gosh shut the hell up you loony, just take the bait and attack already! Varija's eyes narrowed watching Omega for signs.

When he came she was ready. She evaded the rapiers as best she could and held fast executing her plan. She unleashed all the offence she had at once disregarding herself and healing. Uncontrollable Tremors tore into Omega followed by a rapid string of nanobot energy; Wrack and Ruin, Sentient Nano Gorger, Mutagenic Contamination, Viral Combination, Nano Feast, Malicious Prohibition. DAISY also opened up with flings and aimed shots. He was very skilled with rapiers and it did not take him long to feign and thrust in a killing blowing on the corpsman.

The rapier drove home into Varija's kidney sending shockwaves through the soli frame. Omega drove rapier into her right chest, its blade punctured through the tank armor between the ribs and into the lung. Varija coughed and gasped for air. Blood choked her and she began spitting blood up. As she sank to the ground she grabbed hold of Omega's shirt and pulled him down with her.

Brother and sister fell tangled in a death lock as they both collapsed upon the ground. With her eyes still open and ncu encoding for reclaim she saw Ivan's body convulsing and twitching from her nanobots. The nanobots had taken their deadly toll upon him. Her last thought was, You're coming with me!

[I would like to remind you that everything posted that is not from the perspective of Ivan/Omega has not been written by me, but by those who are in the subject.]

[Javan]

:: Uploading log entry. Stand by. ::
:: Log entry uploaded. Beginning playback. ::

Last night, I was too exhausted to fully realize what's going on... Sorta. *sigh* Damnit... Ivan's comlink came live, yes... But the voice I've heard in there wasn't Ivan's. I met him tonight...
*shudders*
Of course, when he — they... When they... Aaaaw, crap! ...Ivan is gone. I'm afraid he's gone for good... I think he finally surrendered to the numerous spirits he was holding... He is not a "he" anymore, but a "they"... Calls himself Omega... And gets angry when someone calls him Ivan.
*draws a breath*
I am all at once terrified by what I saw tonight, and also curious... Not many people have been either willing or able to talk about this downside of being a shade... It's like a taboo. But I've heard shades can sometimes get drowned by the spirits they, err, carry... And when that happens, there is no single identity anymore. They become some kind of collective...
*frowns*
From what I've understood, Ivan as we knew him has gone. I don't know if we can get him back... But from where I stand, I can hardly see how...
*pauses*
I met him in our HQ after he -- they, gave me their word they meant me no harm. Hey, he's a shade... I hear they suck up spirits, souls... whatever that's called, and therefore, you can't reclaim... I really don't feel like pissing one off.
*frowns slightly*
Iva — aw crap... Omega said he'd show me... To follow him...
*looks absent-mindedly*
I saw him hunt. I've seen Ivan fight before, but I didn't see him do... ~that~.
*frowns painfully*
Words can't quite describe the feeling of horror and fascination that took over all at once... I was petrified, watching hunt his prey and take it down, merciless, cold, focused... and he leaned over... the body's face. I could ~see~ the energy flowing between them... from the body to Iv — Omega's face...
*shudders again, her eyes shutting briefly*
We must feed... He — Aw damnit! They! They keep saying that... And Omega's saving Nuser for last... He says she's the one whose energy cuold make him — them! Aargh! could make them whole again.
*shakes her head quickly*
~Holy crap... I wasn't trained for this...~ Anyway. For now, I managed to make him consider being a bit more selective on his preys, but... I feel this is walking on thin ice. Very thin. I just hope there's a way to talk him out of preying on Arlyne... Omega said "she tried to kill us". Not good. At all. Technically, it's a fight between two members of Assembly, and if they can't solve it by themselves, they should take it to the leadership... ~Aw hell...~ And Dorian's case in between...
*massages her temples slightly*
*comlink bleeps*
...Argh.
*sighs*
End logging...

:: Playback completed. ::

[Javan]

The assembly was starting to get on Omega's nerves. They could not understand how hard it was for them to understand something as simple as their name.

Trivial, they had to feed. The void that filled them was growing. They were on the prowl, the vessels that housed what they needed would not be able to sustain them for too long in this one area.

"Omega where are you?" one of the assembly asked him. He responded, they were no threat. He had no urge to take their enegry. Still this one presisted on his location.

Dead, the vessel put up a small fight, they all had. But they were no match for us. They felt proud of their abalities. But they knew their true goal, the vessel Nuser would be theirs. They knew they hated this Nuser, and it seemed reasonable that this Nuser could fill this void.

"Coco have you seen a short slim opifex man dressed in a strange mask...", the voice was the same as the one from the assembly. They did not remember how they got where they were, but they did not like the area. The woman vessel turned to him. Speaking drivvle as far as they were concerned.

Questions, these of the assembly always had questions. He was tired and went back to fill his void.

His prey was there, and he pounced on it with precision, with the one whoes name they thought was Arylene. The name had just come to them. The name was trivial though, she did not matter to them.

Hit with something they turned. The one was saying something about not hurting the vessels, about stopping him, killing him. They were enraged, and the mention of enegry was all they needed to pounce.

Fire, a tree, some place that was not fimalure to them, but at the same time not strange. They remembered slaying the evil one, but then they were here. They were bickering now, "What was that?" "Where are we?" "How could the assembly do this to us?" "The one must pay, she tried to kill us." It was then Omega passed out.



Omega awoke, the void even greater now. They must have been there for a long time, they needed prey, they needed to get the Nuser. They had to do it soon.

"Ivan what do you want now?", they were at the Nuser. These vessels were insistant on calling them that. It was starting to tick him off. The Nuser seemed like easy prey, but they wanted to toy with this one. The completeness they would inherit would only be sweetened if deprived for a little longer.

"Iv...Omega.", at least they were starting to get it. "Omega this is our HQ." The one of clay was speaking to him. They knew where they were vaugly, then...poof...they had lost it. "Where are we?" Omega asked. "Irrevelant", they said "We are hungry, you were questioning us on this, come, we will show you...because you seem to hear but not listen."

The enegry asorbed from the three in black was sweet, refreshing. Omega grinned underneath the mask. The one of clay kept speaking to them, something about the vessels. The only thing that cought their attentition was of the mention of Clans. A being like them. But not like them. He had to know on what they fed, they were sustained it seemed, he would use these other vessels to bide his time to get the Nuser. The Omni-Tek, the Unredeemed. These were their new targets. These vessels of the assembly, both smart and stupid at the same time. Finally they had gleamed at least something from them. Athen could no longer hold them, so they must move, and they were attracted to the city of Rome by the mention of the Omni-Tek. There might be hope for the assembly, they had some affinity for them. All but the evil one. Her time would come...but after he had finished with the Nuser. A grin overcame Omega's face. Soon this void would be filled.

[Javan]

Cherelle slumped down on the sofa. She shook her head slowly. "Holy. Crap." Drawing a long breath, she started to upload the comlink content into her advisor's log. "Comlink ID: Xeenah", the computer voice announced. She sighed. "Okay, let's see this again... Crap, crap, crap. If he takes out our doc... If he takes out my friend..." Cher growled slightly, sighed abruptly, then started the data transfer.

[Vicinity] Varija: looks at Cher
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Oh crap... What happened, Arlyne?...
[Vicinity] Varija: looks at Lasinn
[Vicinity] Xeenah: kneels next to Arlyne
[Vicinity] Varija: is she safe?
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Yes
[Vicinity] Xeenah: nods once
[Vicinity] Varija: Cher
[Vicinity] Xeenah: watches Arlyne closely
[Vicinity] Varija: spits up some blood
[Vicinity] Xeenah: winces and frowns
[Vicinity] Varija: **** it still hurts
[Vicinity] Xeenah: His rapier?...
[Vicinity] Varija: Ivan must be stopped
[Vicinity] Xeenah: ...
[Vicinity] Varija: he is not the same anymore
[Vicinity] Xeenah: First things first, you need assistance, Arlyne...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: I know.
[Vicinity] Varija: no no that will be fine
[Vicinity] Xeenah: raises a brow
[Vicinity] Varija: i am taking care of it now
[Vicinity] Varija: but there is complications
[Vicinity] Xeenah: ~You'd better...~
[Vicinity] Xeenah: blinks
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Err...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: What... complications...?
[Vicinity] Varija: i am not sure yet
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Complications to your wounds or to the situation?
[Vicinity] Xeenah: You get me worried here, dear...
[Vicinity] Varija: and when did you get a knight escort...
[Vicinity] Varija: that would have been useful
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Not an escort... But that can wait. What complications?
[Vicinity] Varija: Ivan must be stopped
[Vicinity] Varija: look forget the complications
[Vicinity] Xeenah: raises a brow
[Vicinity] Varija: wounds heal thats what scars are for
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Arlyne...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: looks down then up
[Vicinity] Varija: Omega must be stopped
[Vicinity] Varija: he is a murder
[Vicinity] Xeenah: nods
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Do you understand what happened to Ivan?
[Vicinity] Varija: what he does not is not human
[Vicinity] Xeenah: And what he's become?
[Vicinity] Varija: no i do not understand
[Vicinity] Varija: and I do not care
[Vicinity] Xeenah: draws a breath
[Vicinity] Varija: he must be stopped though
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Okay... How did you end up fighting with him?
[Vicinity] Varija: he murdered clan bretheren infront of my very eyes in cold blood
[Vicinity] Xeenah: sighs
[Vicinity] Varija: they were nothing but food to him
[Vicinity] Xeenah: He's doing what shades do when their individual mind collapse and is overtaken by the collective...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: And it's the spirits he's hunting
[Vicinity] Varija: looks at cher repulisively
[Vicinity] Varija: you do not hear their screams do you
[Vicinity] Xeenah: I did.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: I watched him do.
[Vicinity] Varija: i dount think you did
[Vicinity] Xeenah: It was the scariest thing I've seen on Ka.
[Vicinity] Varija: when it happened
[Vicinity] Xeenah: nods slowly
[Vicinity] Varija: it was like the weight of world crashed upon my conscience
[Vicinity] Xeenah: ~Yeah...~
[Vicinity] Varija: thousands of screams all at once
[Vicinity] Varija: this is monstrous

[Javan]

[Vicinity] Xeenah: shudders, remembering
[Vicinity] Xeenah: ~Yeah~
[Vicinity] Varija: i cannot call this my brethern
[Vicinity] Varija: it must be stopped
[Vicinity] Xeenah: I bought some time.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: He'll pray on Omnis.
[Vicinity] Varija: you did not buy any time
[Vicinity] Xeenah: sighs abruptly
[Vicinity] Varija: you licensed him to murder
[Vicinity] Xeenah: I didn't.
[Vicinity] Varija: he hunts in backyards
[Vicinity] Xeenah: It's not a him anymore, don't you realize it?
[Vicinity] Varija: on civilians
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Civilians?
[Vicinity] Xeenah: What civilians?
[Vicinity] Xeenah: In Rome?
[Vicinity] Varija: i understand what he is
[Vicinity] Varija: i have two of his rapier holes to prove it
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Okay, so when Jen ends up falling to the MP's fate, we'll just shoot her too?
[Vicinity] Xeenah: looks distressed and sad
[Vicinity] Varija: dont you see
[Vicinity] Varija: he cannot be aligned
[Vicinity] Varija: he will not be controlled
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Are you so sure of that?...
[Vicinity] Varija: and he is not satiated
[Vicinity] Xeenah: No, he's not, but at least, he stopped hunting on clanners.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Now, if I can get him to understand that you attacked him because he hurt a part of the Clan Entity...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: sighs
[Vicinity] Varija: um
[Vicinity] Varija: i did not attack him
[Vicinity] Varija: he attacked me
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Why did he attack you?
[Vicinity] Xeenah: What happened?
[Vicinity] Varija: because I baited him to because the ****ing street was full of people
[Vicinity] Xeenah: closes her eyes for a second and sits down
[Vicinity] Varija: it might as well have been a meat locker for him
[Vicinity] Varija: you want him slaying half a dozen people for spirits in the name of Assembly!
[Vicinity] Varija: looks at Cher sharply
[Vicinity] Xeenah: looks at Arlyne sternly
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Look.
[Vicinity] Varija: no
[Vicinity] Varija: what has happened to you
[Vicinity] Xeenah: No what? I didn't say a damn thing.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: I'm not sure what Iva--- Omega's condition entails, I don't know if it can be controlled, but he still remembered he was a member of Assembly.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: And that's saying a lot for a shade in his state.
[Vicinity] Varija: are you so self absorbed in metaphysicals and philosophy that you can no longer determine right from wrong
[Vicinity] Xeenah: narrows her eyes
[Vicinity] Lasinn: can he be contained until you can work out what to do?
[Vicinity] Xeenah shouts: No he can't!
[Vicinity] Xeenah: steps up
[Vicinity] Lasinn: Sorry!
[Vicinity] Xeenah: And he can't be perma-killed by me, ****ing hell!
[Vicinity] Xeenah: What you want me to do, beat him up repeatedly each time he reclaims??
[Vicinity] Varija: so he kills a couple clanners, now we let him loose on omni and its ok
[Vicinity] Varija: i do not wish him on my worst enemy
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Too late.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: He's out for you, from what I hear.
[Vicinity] Varija: i am sorry
[Vicinity] Varija: for disrespecting you cher
[Vicinity] Xeenah: And kicking the crap our of him won't help him reconsider that.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Right.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: At least, I spared a couple dozens of life.
[Vicinity] Varija: but he does not a fight for cause or freedom
[Vicinity] Varija: he fights to feed.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: No, he doesn't. I know that.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Fight, I mean.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Aw crap.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: ****ing hell.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Perma-kill weapons are not as easy to get as everybody seems to think.
[Vicinity] Varija: i dont know what the answer is
[Vicinity] Xeenah: I do.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: I hate this answer, but...
[Vicinity] Varija: but i cannot live with myself know that is out there
[Vicinity] Xeenah: We'll have to kill him if we can't deal with him.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: passes her hand over her face, drawing a long breath
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Sorry for snapping...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: I bought some time, at least, and that might be enough to figure out what to do and do it.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: I'm still shaken up by what I've seen him do...
[Vicinity] Varija: we need Jen's counsel
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Indeed.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: I'll see if I can get in touch with her...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Hopefully, she'll take her messages frequently
[Vicinity] Varija: cher
[Vicinity] Varija: last thing
[Vicinity] Xeenah: kneels next to Arlyne
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Yes?
[Vicinity] Varija: remember this spot.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: nods
[Vicinity] Varija: Sure he will come for me again
[Vicinity] Xeenah: That's gonna be your hideout?
[Vicinity] Varija: no but I will need a place to buy time
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Gotcha.
[Vicinity] Varija: I can keep killing him
[Vicinity] Varija: but it will be painful for me too
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Yeah... Doesn,t reclaim suck, sometimes.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: But I'd suggest running off...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Because if he gets you down first, there won't be any reclaim for you.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: nods
[Vicinity] Xeenah: sighs
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Hey...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Be very, very careful, Arlyne...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Don't try to fight him.
[Vicinity] Varija: yeah sure
[Vicinity] Varija: you think i want to be inside his head
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Hell no...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: makes a face
[Vicinity] Varija: that thing is freaking crazy
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Yeah, it is...
[Vicinity] Varija: reclaim myself before he gets me
[Vicinity] Xeenah: nods
[Vicinity] Xeenah: ~If you have the time...~
[Vicinity] Xeenah: He's quick and fierce...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: shudders slightly
[Vicinity] Xeenah: What kind of mess it's gonna be, I don't know.
[Vicinity] Varija: i know
[Vicinity] Varija: its going to be a big ****ing mess
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Yeah...
[Vicinity] Varija: i have already come to that.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: sighs
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Shades do not come back or heal from that condition.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: ~Aw crap...~
[Vicinity] Xeenah: closes her eyes for a second, wobbling silghtly
[Vicinity] Xeenah: takes out her Yalm and decompresses it
[Vicinity] Varija: you still on your meds?
[Vicinity] Xeenah: hops in the Yalm
[Vicinity] Xeenah: nods
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Yes...
[Vicinity] Varija: excercise?
[Vicinity] Xeenah: And th
[Vicinity] Varija: eating?
[Vicinity] Xeenah: All of that, and some hypnosis sessions with my Master
[Vicinity] Xeenah: It's just that hell broke loose in the meantime.
[Vicinity] Varija: what about the other thing? any activity there in the ....

Cher jumped and quickly pressed a button, stopping the data transfer. She let herself fall back against the sofa arm, her palms slowly brushing back her red hair spikes. She interlocked her fingers behind her head and pressed her forearms against her cheeks, groaning slightly. "Light duty my grey arse..." she muttered.

[Javan]

It was dark in Rome, the sun constantly being eclipsed by the smog put out in the air. Rain fell frequently, and so Omega found a safe place to make his stash. They had been slowly picking people off the streets and bringing them back to their hideout. Their bodies were strung up by their feet, knocked out, so not to start reclaim. Omega had started feasting on them 5 at a time. Omega found that in keeping them alive their hunger was more satisfied. Sooner or later, though, the bodies would have to be desposied of. Omega knew things would be a lot worse if he were discovered.

It was raining again, as usual, and Omega was darting across the rooftops, body in toe, to get rid of them, one at a time. They were bickering amongst themselves, none of them knew how or when they wanted to get at the Nuser, and slowly doubts were starting to swirl that she would not quench this hunger they had. Omega hadn't realized it at the time, but he had started running in the road and had a guard spot him.

"Hey you!" the guard shouted while running toward Omega, "What are you doing here?" So far the guard, for unknown reasons, had not noticed the body Omega was carrying, but Omega stopped feeling that he was about to get a mid-morning meal "What the hell is that!?" the guard shouted as he got closer, just noticing the body. Omega tensed up, he dropped the body and lunged toward the walls of the city. The guard began putting out fire all over the place, trying to keep up his aim with the creature. Omega, using his spear to dig into the walls, swung himself in a circle jumping up to catch the wall with his left rapier. Turning his weight upward now, he lunged back into the middle of the street a few feet away from the guard.

The guard had never seen anything like this. He was reloading his gun when this man, creature, monster, whatever it was had just landed right in front of him. The monster's eyes, like the eyes of a demon, staired at him, no inside him, as if looking through a glass window. The guard had finished reloading his gun and began firing just out of reflex. His hands moving, bullets flying everywhere, he felt like he was not in control.

The volly of bullets filled the street. Omega was dodging as fast as he could. Every so often, though, one bullet would hit him. Yet, as the guard could see, he was not phased. Omega jumped in the air, and came down behind the guard with a thindering slam. Omega turned with the guard and slammed him against a wall. The guard, underneath his mask, was paralized with fear. Before he could react Omega dug his rapiers into the guards heart, pining him against the wall.

Omega's face was right up against the guards. Slowly the guard began to take his helmet off. Blood was rushing out of his mouth, sweat running down his face like a waterfall. Omega just staired at him, looking right into his eyes. Finally Omega pulled the rapier out and cought the guard before he hit the ground. Spinning him quickly, and snapping his neck before he let him fall. Omega now walking off, looked back for a second then continued. Omega did not feed this time, for reasons they did not know. It was as if the thing never happened. Blood was pouring from Omega's arms and legs. Omega took his rapier and placed it against the wounds, fusing them shut. Omega picked the body up they were previsoully transporting. Once more he looked back at the soldier, then disappeared into the darkness.

[Javan]

"...aaaAAAAH!!!" Cherelle sat straight up in the bed, wild eyed and panting. After staring blankly for a moment, she gradually started to come back to her senses. She brushed her palms on her head, drew a deep, long breath and crawled out of the large bed.

It was the third night in a row that she was dreaming about Sessai. Cherelle remembered all too well... Sessai being taken over by the spirits... And the encounter in Nascence... Except that in Cher's dream, instead of Sessai's spirit resurfacing, the tattoos of Sessai's face started to move toward the eyes and Sessai turned Ivan, who quickly lashed out at Cher.

The delicate grey fingers started to work and soon, the breakfast and a fresh coffee pot were ready. Cherelle sat at the table, the computer still turned on next to the table, and took a sip of coffee, thinking.

The dreams are here again... Trying to tell me something and again, I don't know what it is... Okay, turn your brain on, girl...

She frowned, took another sip. She drew her knees to her and crossed her arms on them, resting her chin on top.

Right... So far, I found that once a shade carrying so many spirits let go of his mental barrier, there's no coming back. So it's permanent. Then it's going to be Omega. But who is Omega?

She rolled her head to the side slightly. It's obvious that it's not a single spirit that took over... Or he wouldn't call himself "we". So it's either... a group of spirits who's in control, or... all of them? No... ~Can they?...~ She blinked quickly, thinking. Hmm, very improbable, but possible...

Cherelle shook her head quickly.

Okay. Back to basics... What is a shade? Someone who takes someone's spirit and integrate it. Which causes perma-death because the reclaim process required to reunite the spirit to the body... And a shade reclaims *with* the spirits he owns as well... So a shade piles up spirits inside his own, controlling them until he can't anymore... At which point his spirit cracks and crumbles. Then what?

She reached out for her cup and took another sip. All those spirits... Coming from his enemies, most probably. Ivan was with Omni-Tek for a very long time, he probably have a majority of Clanner and Redeemed spirits in him... Can it make a difference? I'm not sure any of them remembers what they stood for when they were... ~alive~... Aw, that's odd. They are still alive, in a way...

She emptied the cup and set it on the low table before sitting up. She walked to the window, staring down at the Market view. All those people... They're now dead for good, no reclaim for th --

The red spiked head slowly raised up. W-w-w-wait... Wait a second... Hold it right there. She turned around and started to walk back and forth across the apartment. Shade, spirits, reclaim... Think, Cher, think... Reclaim reunites a soul to the body it belongs to... When that soul or spirit is withdrawn from the body, there is no possibility of reclaiming... That's why we must scan within two weeks of a previous insurance scan... If Omega is perma-killed, what would happen?

She was now pounding across the living room. Okay, he's got several spirits... in charge of the body. How many, no one knows, but I'd put a number with at least four or five digits... And many of them, if not all, are controlling the body. If, say, nine of them, like in Sessai's case, are in charge... Then if he's perma-killed... One of the eight remaining souls would be reunited to the body... We'd have to perma-kill him nine times... But... But... If he calls himself Omega, then I'm afraid it means that they're a united entity... All of them... So that would mean...

Cherelle stopped. Oh no... Aw crap... Blood seemed to leave her body as the horrible idea was slowly forcing its way through her reluctant mind. Oh. My. God. Thousands of spirits...

She closed her eyes, shuddering.

[i]He couldn't be perma-killed.[i]

She stood in the living room, shoulders dropping, tears swelling behind her eyelids.

Thousands of spirits are available to be reunited to the body, linking the rest of the spirits... And they all want to kill him... He will only reclaim thousands of times... With our names on his grocery list.

Cherelle felt her stomach lift up. She quickly ran to the bathroom.

A few moments later, wiping the tears from her cheeks and shaking, she turned on her comlink.

" 'evening nightshift..."

[Javan]

The evening was a complete blur. The lower ambient hum of the black and blue grid space didn’t seem to help much as it usually does. Shades were a mystery to him, if not scary at some point. Fear and ignorance go hand in hand really. Most of the populace of Rubi-Ka associated Shades with death, and not the kinda death like “opps my rusty POS gun backfired, and now I’m just waiting for the bots to build me a new liver while munching a bronto-sushi platter.” No this was the *real* thing… rare as it was even for a shade, it scared people. Kotras was hardly and exception to ether case of ignorance, and fear.

He remembered Cher at the HQ… in the bar no less. She had something in mind, but no matter how much she tried to explain it… it just didn’t stick. It seemed like hours with no progress, like he was back in kinder garden, but this time the “special class”. It was frustrating. The whole situation was frustrating. Ivan was dead, or dead-ish… He guessed. And this… “thing” left in his shell had some vendetta against Varija. For all he know this thing could have been responsible for Ivan’s demise. But to top it all off, his wife tried desperately to make sense of things for him, as well as try to share some new inspiration she had, but she might as well have been speaking French. He picked up on her wanting to see a readout of this Omega’s insurance scan. Something to do with the number of dominant spirits. He remembered the scan seeing it plain as day. A couple dozen spirits all flagged as the dominant (how ever the hell that was supposed to work). He also remembered Cher bringing up the canister that Sessai came across, and also looking for it all over the labs.

Then the emotions began to flair. It suddenly hit him. Ivan was gone. Dead. No more. He had been loosing touch with the new kids in the clan. Becoming more and more distant. It wasn’t on purpose by any means but it still happened. Especially with Ivan. He was a Pol after all. *Was*. But he came around, even invited him out to party a few times, and every time Kotts turned him down… too busy… if he did that to a clan-mate then how would he treat his own children. Too busy for your own family? Ether way, Ivan tired to bridge the gap, and now he’s dead. The Guilt was making him sick all over again. Good thing grid cubes can’t throw up.

This Omega thing was a threat; A threat that needed to be taken care of. He has access to every last bit of information that Ivan did. Grated it’s not much, but it’s enough… enough to track and find his target; enough to track other targets. The members, the applicants, Cher… He had to know who this Omega really was. Which side was he on? Why does he want to kill Vari? Was he lost and confused, or just a bloodthirsty schizophrenic. If it was the latter of the two he knew the clan access had to be cut… Delicately at first, forcefully if he retaliated…

Cher started swearing at him for even thinking about it. How did *that* even happen? Vari is one of her best friends, and yet she got mad at him for trying to fix the problem before it got any worse! Did she really think that if they ignored Omega he’d just get bored and leave!?

The shouting and swearing with Cher was a blur, so was the e-vac. Now he was in the grid still looking up through the rings with just the static hum to keep him company, wondering if he could even bear facing of against a shade that could kill him if things came to that. If Omega really wanted to kill the clan, he’d have to make a stand, but would he live? True death was staring him in the face yet again.

[Javan]

[Vicinity] Kotts: I'm gonna tell him "no more"
[Vicinity] Xeenah: No more what?
[Vicinity] Xeenah: looks at him anxiously
[Vicinity] Kotts: no more stabby stabby of Clan mates
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Kotras. You don,t get it...
[Vicinity] Xeenah: We have no mean of forcing him.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: None.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Nada.
[Vicinity] Kotts: course we do
[Vicinity] Xeenah: What if he basically answers "screw you"?
[Vicinity] Kotts: then I shoot him in the face ad kick his ass from the clan
[Vicinity] Xeenah: backs off
[Vicinity] Kotts: put out an APB on him with the clans
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Okay.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: In this case, let me cancel my insurance, then shoot me
in the head.
[Vicinity] Kotts: narrows his eyes
[Vicinity] Kotts: Cher
[Vicinity] Xeenah: That's what it will mean for each and every one of us if
you attack him.
[Vicinity] Xeenah: So, if that,s what you're up to, then shoot me now.
[Vicinity] Kotts: I won't attack him
[Vicinity] Xeenah: Shoot him in the face and kick his ass from the clan,
Kotras, is signing our death warrant.

She stopped the playback, frowning painfully. She didn’t feel masochist enough to watch the rest of the log. She had tried to explain to him, but he would always get back to the “gonna shoot him again, then” solution. The result would be a pissed off, reclaiming Omega, with our names on his grocery list. The cursing and swearing that took place, then his sudden evac... She never thought things would go that far. “If you have to choose between your husband and your clan, Cher, what will you choose?...” she muttered.

Her eyes were bloodshot from exhaustion and too much staring at the screen and going through files. “Cher, step back a bit... Focus. Relax...” she whispered to herself. After a few minutes of meditation, she opened her eyes again. Her mind was a bit clearer. She looked around to the familiar shapes and colors, then back to the holopad screen.

“Okay... So, this Shade experimentation program had been continued... And they were using this toxin called Cure88... Every former test subject that had died was charged up with it... A canister of that toxin has been found in our HQ by Sessai...” The amber eyes were quickly browsing through the search results windows when something caught her attention. It was a medical report from Arlyne. Cher started the playback.

Normally I would protect this information because of medical privacy rights, however I do not believe Sanjei will mind given the importance of this matter. I was able to examine Sanjei and was able to determine that both he and myself have this Cure88 neurotoxin within us. My scanner indicates that the toxin is inactive and dormant and a full analsys of the toxin reveals that it has no effect on our physiologies. One more thing, the scanner could not determine the age of the toxin within us, so its entirely possible that its older than we might believe.

Cherelle forwarded until she found the log of the examination.

Varija: positive ID of Cure88 on both of us, analysis results indicate that the its inactive and poses no danger to us.
Sanjei: To others, then?
Varija: our physiology does not lend itself to the toxicity of the neuro subways, nor does it allow for such a substance to activate, therefore its dormant within both of us.
Sanjei: ... right..
Varija scanner chirps once more with completion of all analysis
Varija: WOW
Sanjei: Huh?
Varija: hey the scanner has flagged the age of the neurotoxin within both of us to be indeterminate
Sanjei: So... it won't go away?
Varija: well yeah that too probably
Varija: but more importantly
Varija: it cannot determine how old it is
Sanjei: Ah.
Varija: which means its entirely possibly we might have had this for a lot longer than believed

The amber eyes slowly glanced up the screen, staring blankly for a moment. Cherelle was holding her breath, her mind racing. She rewinded the log and played it again. “Inactive and poses no danger to us... Our physiology does not allow Cure88 to activate, so it’s dormant within us...”

The memory of last night’s dream overlapped with her current thoughts. In her dream, the previous night, instead of turning into Omega, Sessai was staring at Cher, pointing behind the bar, and picked up the canister of toxin... She said ‘They’re dead’ and opened the canister. At which point Cherelle woke up.

“What does it mean?... What does it mean?!” Cherelle took her head between her hands and pressed on the sides, almost seeming to hold her thoughts together, litterally.

“They’re dead... Victims charged up with the toxin... are dead. Why did they use this toxin for, and why call it a cure? Did they cure the shades from their --"

She stopped, standing still. “Oh, silly Opi... Why didn’t I realize it before?” She slapped her forehead. “The toxin did it... The toxin did it!!!”

She sprung from the ground, her face brightening up. “That’s why Ivan was feeling bad when he approached the test subject we found in Nascence!! That’s why Zathariel was feeling ill in the little cabin where they found the remains! They were all charged up with this toxin!!”

She laughed manically. “We must find this canister!!! It’s still in the HQ, Ivan didn’t take it, he didn’t want to!!! It’s Arlyne who stored it in the lab after the test on Hunter and herself!!!”

She quickly got dressed. “We just might have found our way to teach Omega the basics of living in society... I just hope I can make sure Omega gets the message before anyone in the Clan calls him out or jump on him... But at least, if I’m right... If Omega attacks Arlyne, he’ll go down with her. But I won’t let him go that far if I can prevent it.”

She frowned slightly. “If they could only understand... Before Ivan’s mind dissolved, it never bothered any of them that he could pull out a spirit and integrate it. Granted, he wasn’t as much a predator as he is now... But there’s no Ivan anymore. Omega is a newborn that must learn everything from square one. With an incentive... a strong incentive.”

She was staring at the door. “You want to be a good leader?” Salinger’s question from last evening popped up in her mind. Cherelle muttered. “Yeah. And unless Jen decides that Omega is to leave Assembly, I have to try to find a way, for all of them. *All* of them. Omega is still one of our member, technically...”

[Javan]

Omega was sitting on what could best be described as a throne of dead bodies. The hideout in Rome was cleared out a little bit. A few bodies hung strung from their feet. Throats slit after Omega had taken the enegry from them they so desperetly needed. Others unconscious, waiting to be the next victums. Omega found this day to be quite satisfying. Their hunger had been filled for now, and so Omega sat there, content, eyes finally starting to shut for the first time in days.

Dreams, memories, Omega had no idea what they were. Whispers and mummers kept flowing through their head. Omega saw himself, a different body, a different planet mabey. Watching humans fighting machines. Their stomache filled with dread as if they knew they were about to die. Memories, dreams....Omega had no idea anymore. It was all a blur, a thin line that they walked. The humans kept shouting the name of David, as if praising him while killing the machines.

[Assembly] Xeenah: *gasps* Arlyne!!!
[Assembly] Varija: Yes ma'am?
[Assembly] Xeenah: Are you okay?
[Assembly] Xeenah: Oh, don't answer to that!

The voice snapped Omega from their slumber. The commlink was turned on, and there was no way they would forget this voice. It echoed through their head constantly. One of the two they were going to take much satisfaction in getting the enegry from.

[Assembly] Ivanelme: *snarles over the commlink*
[Assembly] Ivanelme: We heard the evil one.
[Assembly] Xeenah: Sorry, it was a playback from my comlink...
[Assembly] Varija: ~breathes deep~
[Assembly] Xeenah: Oh, maybe not
[Assembly] Sembly: Kotts logged on - Know your limits. Then push them.

The evil one was on the commlink, the voice was unmistakable. The one of clay lied to them, but it was of no importance. The evil one was on the comms, their head was buzzing with voices. Omega felt soon they would strike, but for now perhaps they would toy with their victum.

[Assembly] Ivanelme: *voices shreak and screm while speaking in a calm tone*
[Assembly] Ivanelme: We will get this evil one. Why must you protect her. She tried killing us.
[Assembly] Varija: ~muster of courage~ Cher do you hear something?
[Assembly] Ivanelme: *loud slam heard in the background with voices screaming in the distance*

Omega had started slamming their fists into the walls of the hideout. The stone or metal that made up it's composition began to crack and Omega's fists began to bleed. Their anger at this insolence was beyond description. They were being made a fool of, and they did not like this at all. They were starting to think speeding up their timestable was a good idea, but Omega tried to keep things under control. They wanted to revel in this killing. There was no need to speed things up.

[Assembly] Ivanelme: We know you hear us.
[Assembly] Varija: Sunds like rats Cher.
[Assembly] Ivanelme: *a loud shrill and scream heard as well as a a loud crash in the background*

Omega was furious. Never had anyone done this to them. Mocking them, calling them rats. Omega was slamming and thrashing the walls of the hideout. A support beat fell under the force of his blows bringing parts of the ceiling down with it as well as the bodies. Omega's fists and arms were bleeding profusely now. But the pain was the furthest thing in their mind. Things would be pushed foward. They were the ones that toyed with their prey, it would not be the reverse.

[Assembly] Ivanelme: INSOLENCE!!!
[Assembly] Varija: Yes definitely many rollerrats.
[Assembly] Ivanelme: *more shrills and a loud scream heard that is silenced by what seems to be the sound of flowing water*

Omega's anger was turning more into blind rage. One of the still live vessels began to wake under the sounds. Omega turned to this middle aged man, he was covered in tattered clothing. His eyes were green, hair dirty blonde. His eyes still groggy. The man looked around and began screaming, never before had this man seen such horrors and with this creature stairing back at him he knew death was almost certain. Even with the maricle of reclaim, death was still feared. Little did this man know that true death staired him right in the face. Almost instantly Omega slit the man's throat and watched the blood pour from his neck. Omega was so furious they did not consume this man's enegry, lucky for him. Ture death would come for him another day.

[Assembly] Ivanelme: *voices start muttering to themselves*
[Assembly] Ivanelme: *a loud snap is heard*

Omega's voices were shouting now, screaming at each other for letting this happen. Omega turned in his rage snapping the neck of the closest vessel next to him. The man was still uncusious, and wouldn't feel a thing or really know what happened to him. Once more Omega's rage kept him from consuming this man's enegry.

[Assembly] Varija: You know Cher.
[Assembly] Varija: I was thinking...
[Assembly] Ivanelme: *more loud crashes and bangs heard*

Omega's rage finally manifested itself in full force. With all their strength Omega brough down a second support beam, bringing down the back half of the ceiling that was above his throne. More bodies crashed to the ground buried in the rubble that followed them, blood now seaping from both his arms and the floor. Omega's eyes now blood red, his skin turning a hellish shade.

[Assembly] Xeenah: OMEGA!
[Assembly] Ivanelme: *a choir of screms heard before the commlink goes into static*

Omega let out a loud scream. All of the voices in unison eventually blowing out the communication system that was inside the helmet. Omega could still hear them, but it seemed that the assmebly could no longer hear them. Omega was furious, and began smashing more of the walls of the hideout. Dust filling the area, attracting passers bye to their location.

Omega raced to fix the device. They had to make their intentions clear now. They could not tolerate any insolence like this, and they were going to make sure it never surfaced again. The communication system was filling with static. Omega tried speaking and it seemed they still couldn't hear them.

[Assembly] Varija: ~whisper~..****.....~glass breaking~
[Assembly] Varija: Cher.
[Assembly] Xeenah: OMEGAAAAAA!!!!
[Assembly] Xeenah: I told you about the vessels, Omega.
[Assembly] Xeenah: I told you about the Clans.
[Assembly] Xeenah: I told you about being united.
[Assembly] Xeenah: That's why Arlyne taunted you, to protect clanners you were about to attack.
[Assembly] Varija: Its no use Cher I scared him off.
[Assembly] Varija: After all he s only a second rate spirit at best.
[Assembly] Xeenah: Omega...
[Assembly] Kotts: Come out and play...
[Assembly] Xeenah: You want to get the evil one?
[Assembly] Xeenah: Come and get it, she's right here.
[Assembly] Xeenah: I'm tired of worrying about when you'll get at her.
[Assembly] Xeenah: It ends now.
[Assembly] Kotts: Ripe for the picking... dinner is served.
[Assembly] Varija: They are just second rate spirits trying to figure how to use the commlink.
[Assembly] Varija: They cant handle this.
[Assembly] Varija: I mean remember Cher.
[Assembly] Varija: After all.
[Assembly] Varija: Ivan already killed those spirits once
[Assembly] Varija: Right now they are are fingering their way through commlinks 101.

Omega used some of the enegry they had gathered to reset the comm device. Finally able to get it work their rage once more took over. Omega found the control over electronics to drain them to some degree. At least now anwsers could be gotten. They once again had access to the planatary database. Something they now needed to find this pest and finish her off once and for all.

[Assembly] Ivanelme: *static comes from the comms, a shrill of voices are heard*
[Assembly] Ivanelme: *all the voices scream in unison, crashes and gunshots heard behind them*

Omega was now running, stabbing and slamming into people while avoiding gunfire in Rome. The guards were alerted to their presence by the crashes and dust coming from one of the old building areas. He had jumped down, slamming into the ground cracking the cement. The guards had opened fire grazing Omega as they were dodging the bullets. Omega put them out of their mind, Omega was focused. Omega ran and jumped over the city walls through to the Red district and entered the grid before the guards had a chance to react to their presence.

[Assembly] Ivanelme: WHERE IS THE EVIL ONE?!
[Assembly] Varija: Hey .... it figured it out...
[Assembly] Varija: Maybe it can find Ivan too.
[Assembly] Xeenah: She's in our HQ.
[Assembly] Varija: I only want to speak to the real man of the host, not those two bit spirits he already destroyed once.
[Assembly] Ivanelme: *loud screams heard*
[Assembly] Ivanelme: *bangs and slams heard in the comms*

Omega had made his way to the HQ area, furiouslly slamming and pounding any structure in their way. Omega's rage was starting to more exactly focus itself. Their anger alligned closer and closer as they managed to bridge the gap between their target.

[Assembly] Varija: open your eyes, it makes walking easier
[Assembly] Ivanelme: *the screams grow louder, creating a distortion in the comms sending an unbearable static throughout the system*

This latest insult sent them into a frenzied rage slamming the ground outside of the HQ building. All the souls now content to massacure anyone that got in their way....anyone.

[Assembly] Varija: Sembly do you like Omega?
[Assembly] Xeenah: Where are you, Omega? Are you coming over here already?
[Assembly] Sembly: :: Do you have a hard time completing projects? ::
[Assembly] Xeenah: *grins ironically*

[Javan]

Omega had finally gotten into the HQ and slowly they made their way toward Cher. A nagging voice the only thing keeping them from attacking her.

Ivanelme shrills and screams heard as he walks closer and closer
Xeenah nods
Xeenah: Omega
Ivanelme shouts: TAKE US TO HER!!!
Xeenah shouts: DON'T YOU SHOUT AT ME!!
Varija shouts: where is Ivan?
Ivanelme screams loudly raising his fists in the air, voices and echoes behind him. All screaming, enegry seemingly radiating off him
Ivanelme shouts: TAKE US TO HER!!!!
Xeenah slowly narrows her eyes
Xeenah: You listen first.
Ivanelme spots people off to the right
Ivanelme shoves Cher out of the way
Ivanelme shrills and echoes heard, voices screaming and shouting
Salinger covers his ears and winces
Kotts narrows his eyes glareing at the shade
Ivanelme shouts: WHERE IS SHE!!!
Kotts looks up at Cher
Xeenah shouts: Omega!
Xeenah shouts: Can you see what you almost walked into?
Kotts looks back at Omega
Ivanelme snarles
Xeenah shouts: LOOK AT ME!!
Ivanelme glances over at Cher, eyes blood red
Xeenah: Look. at. my. hands...
Xeenah slowly brushes her hands together, a very thin cloud emanating from them, like some powder
Xeenah stares straight at the shade's mask
Ivanelme glances at them.
Xeenah extends her palms quickly
Xeenah: Touch me, and you're dead.
Ivanelme starts to wobble and quickly backs away
Xeenah: Shade, uh???
Ivanelme snarles
Kotts: We all have it.
Ivanelme voices shout and scream as if in agony
Ivanelme shouts: GET IT AWAY FROM US!!!
Ivanelme slams into the wall
Xeenah: Okay, you can breath... for now.
Kotts: I warned you! I told you not to attack Assembly. Cher told you not ot attack clans.
Ivanelme: We have been in Rome!
Ivanelme voices shrill and scream
Kotts: Then what are you doing here?
Ivanelme fear in his eyes
Ivanelme voices being to shout in rage
Xeenah: Calm down...
Ivanelme shouts: INSOLENCE OF THE EVIL ONE! WE WILL NOT BE MOCKED!!
Xeenah shouts: SILENCE!!! ALL OF YOU!
Xeenah looks at Omega
Xeenah takes one step forward
Xeenah: I'll stop here.
Xeenah: For now.
Xeenah: Shut up, Omega, and listen.
Ivanelme back slides against the wall, eyes greatly filled with fear. Sweat pouring from his face, blood dripping from his hands and arms
Xeenah: The evil one is not evil.
Xeenah: She is the healer one.
Xeenah: She protects the Clan vessels.
Xeenah: Did you attack Clan vessels in front of her?
Ivanelme fearfully nods sweat pouring from his face. Looks at his hands and the voices begin to shreak
Xeenah: Did you???
Xeenah: Answer me now or I'll take another step forward.
Ivanelme nods once more stairing at his hands. Quickly looks up voices shreaking in agony
Xeenah: You know now why you cannot attack clan vessels?
Ivanelme voices shreak while the body nods. Omega tries to stand but fumbles in fear
Xeenah frowns
Xeenah: Omega...
Xeenah: Listen very carefully.
Ivanelme eyes darting around to the people in front of him
Xeenah: You said you belong to Assembly, but you attacked clanners, our allied vessels.
Ivanelme blood pouring to the floor mixing with sweat
Xeenah: If someone attacked one of you, you'd protect them.
Xeenah: Oh, ****ing hell...
Xeenah backs up
Ivanelme stands still fearful
Ivanelme blood seaping from his clothing
Xeenah: Omega, you must cure the vessel...
Xeenah: You must cure your vessel!
Kotts: Vari Can...
Kotts glances at Cher
Xeenah: Omega!!
Xeenah stares anxiously at the shade
Ivanelme glances in fear, pulling his rapiers up he singes closed the wounds and cuts he has all over his arms and hands
Xeenah draws a breath
Xeenah: Good... Good.
Xeenah: I don't mean to harm you if you cooperate with us.
Kotts blinks
Ivanelme nods fearfully sweat still pouring from his face and body, heart beating fast, breathing rapid
Xeenah: You broke the unity by attacking clanner vessels, Omega!
Ivanelme: We have done no such thing since you mentioned Omni!
Ivanelme voices scream
Xeenah: I know, Omega. You kept your word.
Xeenah: You are learning fast.
Xeenah: The vessel carrying you, however, was known to us.
Xeenah: And would not do such a thing...
Xeenah: Arlyne didn't know that Ivan was gone.
Ivanelme breathing starts to slow, panic still in his eyes
Xeenah: Omega broke a rule that the vessel used to honor.
Ivanelme voices talk in panic sweat still pouring from his face
Xeenah: So, she draw your attention on her, so you'd loose interest on the clan vessels.
Ivanelme: We honour this code.
Xeenah: Now you do.
Xeenah: At the time, you didn't know...
Xeenah: And Arlyne, that you call Evil one, didn't know either.
Xeenah: Ignorance, on both sides.
Xeenah: Now, you know.
Xeenah: Now, she knows.
Xeenah: You are part of Assembly.
Ivanelme eyes swell, voices start mummering in a choked voice
Xeenah: She is part of Assembly.
Xeenah: Assembly is part of the Clans.
Xeenah: Do you understand?
Xeenah 's voice is calm but firm
Ivanelme voices speak sweat mixing with tears of fear, as the head nods
Ivanelme: We understand.
Ivanelme voices start to whimper
Ivanelme: We need the Nuser.
Xeenah: The doctor doesn't have the power. she doesn't.
Xeenah: She said it to drive you away from our allied clan vessels.
Ivanelme tears and sweat flowing from his face, blood starting to dry on his clothing
Xeenah: Why do you bleed.
Ivanelme voices whimper
Ivanelme: We do not know.
Xeenah nods
Xeenah backs off a bit more
Xeenah: You see, we don't harm you.
Xeenah: Confer among yourself.
Ivanelme nods
Xeenah: Do you want to remain with Assembly, Omega?
Ivanelme: We are in the assembly. We must remain. It fills part of our void. Our hunger would not be able to end if we are not to remain.
Xeenah nods
Xeenah: That is because of the vessel.
Xeenah: Your vessel.
Xeenah: Omega, Arlyne is part of Assembly.
Xeenah: If you try to kill her, all Assembly vessels will be very angry at you.
Xeenah: She is a part of us.
Xeenah says this sentence very intently
Ivanelme nods
Xeenah: If we would kill a part of you, what would you do?
Ivanelme: You know what we would do, but can not now.
Xeenah: Exactly.
Xeenah nods
Xeenah: Then we have that in common.
Ivanelme nods
Xeenah: Omega, will you kill Arlyne?
Xeenah: Now that you know why we protect her, will you try to kill her?
Ivanelme shakes his head, voices mummering
Ivanelme: No.
Xeenah: Just so you know...
Xeenah: She's got the toxin inside of her body.
Xeenah slowly grins
Ivanelme eyes fill with fear, and he slumps down to the ground
Xeenah: You wouldn't now survive this if you'd kill her...
Xeenah: So if you forget to keep your word, you will die because of your own stupidity.
Xeenah: You are not stupid, so I know you won't do that.
Ivanelme stairs at the floor nodding
Xeenah: Omega.
Ivanelme looks up
Xeenah: Can you read?
Ivanelme nods
Ivanelme voices no longer mummering
Xeenah: You will have a lot to learn...
Xeenah: Meanwhile, no hunting clanners.
Ivanelme stairs back at the floor nodding
Xeenah: The other Assembly vessels are angry at you because you wanted to kill Arlyne.
Xeenah: They may speak harsh to you. Provoke you.
Kotts tilts his head slightly
Ivanelme remains speechless
Xeenah: Do you understand?
Ivanelme nods
Xeenah: If they do, are you able to refrain from attacking them?
Ivanelme nods
Xeenah: Okay. Then, you will survive.
Xeenah: That will give me the time to inform them of the new nature of the Omega vessel.
Ivanelme continues stairing at the floor
Xeenah: Omega...
Xeenah: You need to heal. You keep bleeding.
Ivanelme wimpers
Ivanelme: We are fine.
Ivanelme: Leave us please.
Xeenah: You are bleeding.
Xeenah nods
Xeenah: We will leave.
Ivanelme: Please leave us.
Xeenah: We will meet again soon.
Ivanelme motions them away
Kotts nods once and heads for the door

Omega sat there. They were so close to death, so close to losing everything. The blood was still flowing from some of their wounds. They slowly brought up their rapier and cartarized the remaining open wounds. Their clothing was soaked in a mix of blood and sweat. They had almost died. Varija could no longer be hunted, they were content to let this revenge be over with. They still had one target, and they would then focus on this target only.

Omega got up and walked to the grid terminal. The pool of blood and sweat still there. Omega knew their old area in Rome had been discovered, they would have to create a new one. The assembly had accepted him now, but on deadly conditions. They had to follow them, they had to be whole.

Omega entered the grid and headed back to Borealis. They knew of an area they could make their new hideout. This could allow them to go into their feeding ground, or perhaps find a new one, until they were ready to take the Nuser. They would be right in her city, watching and waiting. Omega grinned, at least there was some goodness left in this situation for them after all.

[Javan]

Omega had been watching Nuser for a while now. They were watching and waiting for a time to strike. And the time was almost upon them. Nuser and some other mage were talking in the streets of Borealis.
There she is, with someone else, two for one today.

No, we need only her let us not complicate things. We must get her alive as well.

But we would have so much joy killing the other one…

The voices were fighting amongst themselves. Omega sat and watched, just waiting to pounce on the prey. The suns were starting to set. Omega saw a perfect opening.

Omega lunged down from the building, landing a few feet from his target. Rolling himself between the two mages he plunged his rapier into the gut of Nuser. Blood came pouring out of the wound. Pulling the rapier out fast Omega spun the blade around as he rolled it up toward the top of his head. Hilt now the weapon, Omega was preparing to deliver a knockout blow to the wounded mage.

Before they could, though, the male mage punched him in the back. Omega stumbled and raised the rapier back up again, only to be slashed in the face by Nuser’s axe. The blade shattered the sides of his helmet, tearing his flesh from the top of his forehead down to the bottom of his chin. Omega took a step back, voices letting out an amazing shrill.

This was the most serious wound they had ever gotten. The gash shattered their helmet, and cut a curved line down from above his temple, through his eye, and down to his chin. Their eye was completely traumatized, cut along with their flesh blood pouring down like a river from the wound. Omega took the rapier he had and ran the hot blade across the wound. The smell of burning flesh filled the area, creating a repulsive perfume around them. After the cut was closed Omega walked over to his helmet that was lying on the ground. They picked the pieces up, fusing the helmet back together and put it on.

The mage was shouting at Omega, but it didn’t matter. They began walking toward Nuser who was lying on the ground. The made did some motions with his hands and Omega felt his arm crack. Then the mage punched him right in that area. Omega took a few steps over from the blow arm trembling. The mage pinned them against the wall using that arm.

Omega was weak, but he attempted to shove the mage off him. It proved futile as the mage just put all his weight on Omega’s arm. Omega snapped his arm and kneed the mage in the stomach. The mage stepped back and Omega started to walk toward Nuser again. This time Omega felt the same crack in his leg. This whole experience was starting to get on their nerves; they might have to attempt this another time. They began limping toward Nuser; that is until the mage knocked them down. Their broken leg gave out under the blow. He kept shouting at them. Omega didn’t care; he stood back up putting more weight on the shattered leg. The mage walked toward him and began punching them. Omega wobbled but managed to stay where he was, finally having enough and catching the mage’s fist.

Omega put his face right up against the mage’s, eye for eyes Omega stared him down.

“We will get her, and the things we will do to her before we steal her soul will be beyond your imagination.” Omega whispered to him cutting his arm, just to make a mark for him to remember Omega by. The mage said something to him before Omega left. Something along the lines that he would stop Omega, and that his name was Titanmage. Whoever this person was, Omega felt like getting Nuser might be a little more fun now.

[Javan]

Badpacket chuckled in his mind. The yesterday's diagnosis got again confirmed. Ivan wasn't a threat. A threat to Nuser? Maybe. A threat to him? Hardly, as unlike Nuser, Badpacket wasn't affraid. It seemed that everybody around is overestimating that shade. Ivanelme to begin with, thinking he is invulnerable, the whole of Assembly, being affraid of him more than death itself, and Nuser - the first time he saw her genuinely horrified. When he first saw the new Ivanelme, Omega, he was intrigued. From the second he heard his voice he subconciously understood what's happening, but instead decided t play it dumb. He attributed the disturbing voice to an artificial sound mixer, nanobot or electronic in nature. He then mocked omega's use of we, referring to them as "You and your invisible flying magic pony friend". In fact, he was expecting the shade to snap. Slowly probing the reactions he concluded that he'd have to outright attack him to provoke an attack. BP thought of this as a disappointment, as that day he was particularly bloodthirsty - besides, he hated undecided or half-allies - "either you're with me, for the good and bad, or you're dead". Or maybe this disappointment was of a different reason - maybe BP saw in Omega a bretheren soul - hoped to see someone even more chaotic, aggressive, uncontrollable than himself, and was just trying to bring that out.

After a while, they had a discussion over Ivan's alleged perma-killing. He didn't believe in his abilities to perma people, less so in being unkillable himself. To the engineer, it didn't make sense. Ivan was the same nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen, sulphur, phosporus, and carbon with trace amounts of other elements as everybody else. Does him having a split personality is enough to grant immortality? After all, he though, when the brain evaporates from an explosion of a nuke, it's the same if it's a brain of a man or a woman, an engineer or a shade, a good or evil person. Deep inside however, something wasn't quite right, something was telling him he was wrong - but it was too silent for BP to notice.

They agreed to meet face to face to discuss the matter. At this point, BP was iching for a fight - although neither his slayerdroid, neither his grenade launcher nor his pooch could perma-kill to prove Ivan wrong, he thought it would make for a good final argument to end the discussion. He wanted to prove nobody is immortal, but couldn't. The only way to do so would be to perma-kill his opponent, but what would the satisfaction be then?

When Ivan came to Newland, he calmly sat down on a table by the bronto burger stand, not giving BP any reasons to attack. The awkward silence lasted a moment, after which the topic was changed again to the strange voices and their origin. The gruesome image of the shade didn't work on BP. Being all covered in dried blood was not a reason for fear or despise, but for a sarcastic remark about personal hygene. At that point Ivan told Cain to *prove* that the voices are not the result of technology. He did differently, telling the shade to wait, returning after a few moments with a small black box and putting it on the table..

Badpacket then takes out two wires
Badpacket plugs one wire to a socket, and inserts the second under what would seem to be some electronic component
Badpacket then places both wires on the left side of his head, they seem to meld with the skin and in a moments notice Badpacket twiches and his eyes jerk for a second
Ivanelme waits
Badpacket grins, staring ahead of him
Badpacket begins with a voice that seems like an echo
Badpacket: Test test..
Badpacket 's voice suddenly switches to a schrieking, painfull pitch
Badpacket: So, hear me now?
Ivanelme: We hear you yes.
Badpacket 's voices seem to change pitch and speed from second to second.
Badpacket: Do I need to prove anything further?
Ivanelme: We are not sure.
Ivanelme voices split talking amongst themselvs in mummers.
Badpacket 's little black box seems to be the source of the sound
Ivanelme voices reform and being to speak
Badpacket: The wonder of TECHnology..
Ivanelme: We are staisfied.
Badpacket continues staring ahead
Badpacket: There IS NO soul, NO GOds nor deeemons
Ivanelme: May we see the black box?
Ivanelme: We want to try this.
Badpacket replies with a tone of an old man
Badpacket: You would not know how to use it anyway..
Ivanelme: You could not tell us?
Badpacket changes to a tone only a paranoid could have
Ivanelme looks at the man intently
Badpacket: I... I could
Badpacket: But even if, do you have a place to..
Ivanelme: Do we have a place to what?
Badpacket 's voice now seems that of a woman
Badpacket: ..a place to plug it in?
Ivanelme has a quzical look on his face
Ivanelme: Where would we plug it into?
Badpacket now turns to a voice sounding extremly geeky and annoying
Badpacket: Slot Ana-VR?
Badpacket: It is rare and unique..
Ivanelme: would we know if we have this Slot Ana-VR?
Badpacket pulls out the wires, a trail of blood trickles down his head
Badpacket shakes his head
Badpacket 's voice is now normal
Badpacket: You don't.
Ivanelme: Are you sure?
Badpacket: You would be the second person on Rubi-Ka to have it.
Badpacket: Let me ask you.
Badpacket: How organic is your brain?
Ivanelme: One hundred percent.
Ivanelme: We have no implants.
Badpacket: Then you can't plug anything in.
Badpacket: Though.. I find that hard to believe
Ivanelme: How is that?
Badpacket: Everyone is more or less machine nowadays, save for the savages
Ivanelme starts touching over his body.
Badpacket: Nanobots are machines too
Ivanelme pulls a Experimental Cyborg Token Board out from the back of his neck, blood pouring from the wound, But his face makes no indication of pain.
Ivanelme: We have this.
Ivanelme holds the Experimental Cyborg Token Board out toward the man.
Badpacket glances at the board
Badpacket: No thanks. I have my own one.
Ivanelme: Oh....
Ivanelme places the board back on his neck.
Badpacket: Even if you donn't have metal parts, having a nanobot cloud in itelf is a machine. An *organic* machine, but artificial.
Ivanelme: Well, we have no nanoprograms running at the moment.
Badpacket: Can you monitor your general health status?
Badpacket: The amount of nano-energy available for the nanobots?

Just before they ended their conversation...

Ivanelme etches the word Nuser into the table and then slams the rapier down on the name
Badpacket jumps up from the punch
Badpacket: Easy
Ivanelme grins at Badpacket
Badpacket: Punch her, not the table. The table isn't your enemy.
Ivanelme: We know this.
Badpacket: Then go and kill her already
Badpacket: You'll do everybody a favor.
Ivanelme: We plan to do much more then kill her.

Cain grinned. It may not be the same Ivan he knew... The new creation may be hostile, bloodthirsty, vengeful and hateful. What was born is a weapon, not a human being. "Good for us, bad for them. If this is the new Ivan, I want it to stay that way. If we find a way to tame it, control it, there may be yet potential"

[Nuser_]

((sorry RL and the will to write has kept me from posting this sooner))

Approximately one week ago

Nuser was standing near backyard 4 with her face facing the twin suns soaking in the warmth of the suns on her face.
“wonderful..peace..no gunfire..just peace. This is what it used to be like before omni-tek had moved in to *protect*..yeah right. All they had brought in its wake was violence” She did enjoy the solitus and opifex killing each other. But it hurt her to see a brother or sister getting ganged upon...brutally murdered infront of her. And she was unable to help. Some unknown force forbid her...wierd how she could heal some but not others.
She felt someone approaching and looked down...

WHAT? Nuser hissed
We didn't think you so tall. The little male opifex replied

Nuser laughed...funny how he all of a sudden had forgotten that he had always been so short compared to her. Not like they had never stood face to face before.

we? Nuser asked with a smirk on her face
Yes, us.
Sorry to disappoint you Ivan..but I only see you Nuser replied..still grinning with the though about how stupid this was
Why must everyone call us this. We are not Ivan. We are just here to see the one we will soon feat on. The shade replied

Nuser raised her brow wondering what he was talking about..also those voices. How on earth did he manage to pull that off? Sure he had played pranks on her before. But this?

say what? She asked questioningly
Were we not clear. Our hunger is ever growing. Your name is echoing through our mind. We must quench this hunger.
Okay and I thought omni pol made you nuts...What exactly did Tussa do to you?

Nuser stared at the little opifex who apparently seemed to be wondering about her strange question. Watched how the opifex whispered with several voices. Almost arguing among each others. That was when it first hit her..perhaps this was worse than first suspected. Not even a machine could manage that. None that she knew of. She had never seen anything like it. It was frightening her. She knew it would not be wise to show so she tried to uphold her flattening sceptical tone

Hungry? I suggest you to visit the nearest Brunto burger nuser joked
Jen did nothing to us, and we do not require your Bronto Burger.
...You've gone mad She replied while shaking her head

She turned her attention to General Akhilleus who had just arrived from a battle

Hail Nuser till all are free! Akhilleus said and bowed
We are not crazy.
ooh it aint my brunto burger......Hail Akhilleus She replied nodding approvingly

Finally someone from the family arrived. This whole situation was starting to freak her out. Nuser watched how the Omega took a brief glance at Akhilleus then turned his attention to her once again. She noticed the distant eyes of the omega...cold and dark as if there was no soul behind it..just empty.

Since when did you get split personality? Sure you've always been nuts..but..this? She asked questioningly

We are not seperate, we are one. We are not crazy, and we are not Ivan. We are Omega.
You may be many things..but certaintly not an omega she hissed
Your drivle is starting to annoy us. We are just here to size up our prey, we require enegry. We are not an omega, we are Omega.
Then what makes you the omega Ivan?

Once again the souls started to argue amongst each other. It seemed like the Omega did not like beeing called by its former name. Perhaps it would be the way to get his attention off her. Confuse him. But she did not dare to take that step. Not yet...

[Nuser_]

We are Omega. We just are. The voices growled
Thats no explanation

The voices started arguing again...and the omega focuse was once again aimed at her..with a venomus look in his eyes

We are not here to anwser your questions!
No?

The Omega let out a horrible shrill that made sent a shiver down her spine..almost making her numb with fear...nuser struggeled keeping her composure

Then why are you here? stalk prey..got it..no rollerrats here
We stated this earlier. We do not require rollerrats, human enegry is greater. We must quench this hunger.
Try the GSP dancers..they always flash around bare flesh Obviously joking
It is not the flesh we require.
he needs to find some solitus they are all over. Akhilleus smirked
Your body is only a vessel, it is the enegry within we require. Your flesh is meaningless to us.
...my energy? Sorry no can do Nuser growled while raising a brow
You have little say in the matter. The voices hissed
Look Ivan. I dont know what prank you are trying to pull this time..but it aint working
We are not pulling a prank.

Nuser watched the little shade walking around her. Studying her..like a sabertooth and its prey..searching for a weakness

Perhaps you may be the one to end this hunger of ours. Your mind will not stop racing through our head.
Try smacking your head against the wall Nuser growled while glarring at the shade
That will not end this hunger we feel. Our pourpse here in finished. We will be coming. *evil grin on his face*. All our efforts will be against you, we must end this hunger we have.

Nuser watched the shade as he walked away, then looking towards Akhilleus.

We are in deep arent we? She asked

Akhilleus nodding in agreement

Indeed we are my Queen

[Javan]

Jen sighed delightfully. It was great to be back on Rubi-Ka after having visited her family. Sure, she loved her parents and younger brothers to death, but it was the red planet that was her home now. Throwing her luggage and shopping bags to a corner of her and Cord's Tir apartment, she stepped out of her shoes (brand new Mana Bleh's ones too!) and made her way to her personal holo terminal, asking Sembly to bring up her messages from more than a week past. Sifting through about a hundred spam messages and some replies to her usual news groups, she finally came to the important stuff. Membercare, clan messages and personal messages.

The first thing that struck her was a frantic message from Cher. Something about Ivan. Then another. And then Kotts. A slightly disturbing thought churned in the back of her mind, but she pushed it back and continued reading. Half an hour later she was just as confused, and both Cher, Kotts, Vari and not to mention Ivan had their comlinks turned off. Something about the whole situation sent shivers down her spine. She didn't know too much about shades, and what she knew, she only had from personal experience with Jaszt and with that horrible woman that RUR sent after her and Kotts. Rubbing her hand, the one that had been sliced apart before she and Kotts had gotten out, she frowned in worry.

They scared her and fascinated her at the same time, and there was very few things that would be more scary than a rampant shade having lost control over their spirits. It reminded her of Jaszt again and she furrowed a brow. She needed to talk to Cher.


*** Two days later ***

She turned off her comlink after having discussed the whole Ivan situation with BP in length. From what she had gathered, Ivan had lost himself along the way and there was only one thing that was important at this time. To help him any way she could, and the only way she could do that was turning to the most powerful tool in her posession, her training as a mindshifter, if that was even an alternative. She had shared her thoughts with BP and the man had very nearly flown off his boots. The whole conversation had gone wrong. BP hadn't seemed to understand that her only interest was to help Ivan, and he certainly had no idea what mindshifting was, nor its pro's and con's. But she was tired and didn't want to discuss it anymore. She really needed to meet with Cher.


*** One day later ***

Having had time to think about what BP had said and what she had understood from the vehement concern in Cher's tone in the reports, Jen was starting to doubt that she could pull it off, even if she was able to somehow connect with Ivan. She still knew so little, the only thing that mattered to her was the welfare of her friend and that of the members of Assembly. BP had insisted that she 'left Ivan alone' and let him go after Carly Kawarau, Nuser, as he wanted, but Jen wasn't sure that was a good idea. Yes, she loathed the NLF as much as the next person, but what would it say about them if they used one of their own as a tool, a killing machine in their fight against the crazy nanomages? Especially when Ivan was not himself. It was confusing and worrying her.

Would it be wrong of her to even attempt to mindshift Ivan, even if she acted with the best intentions and to protect her clan and himself *from* himself? Would she be able to do it? She was certainly aware of the risk and guaranteed pain it would bring her. Forcing a mind open was never a quick, simple and ultimately powerful thing that some people seem to think it was, and it was certainly not something one did in the snap of a finger, without the subject even knowing about it. The two encounters with Michael Kreble had taught her that. It wasn't something she looked forward to, *especially* not with a shade who apparently had succumbed to the power of the spirits driving him, but what else could she do? It was her strongest chance to help Ivan, if help was at all possible. If he was completely out of reach and could not be trusted with the rest of Assembly, she could not allow him to remain in the clan. They were her responsibility, they were her friends and ultimately, they remained her life on Rubi-Ka. Using one of them as a weapon of mass destruction just because he was after the same person they were was completely out of the question. The motives wouldn't even be remotely the same. One didn't do that with one's friends, simple as that. And where was Cher, damnit? She *had* to talk to her! She shook in a sudden, eerie feeling. It wouldn't be pretty and it wouldn't be easy.

Jen picked up the mirror that lay on the desk before her and looked at herself.
"21, going on 50," she mumbled, searching her young face for wrinkles without finding any.
"Pull yourself together, Jen. You're not afraid. You're...not afraid. You can do this. And so can Ivan."

Quickly checking her comlink, confirming that his signal was alive, she picked up her things and left the apartment, determined to go find him.