IC: Cyberzombies under SK, One Shot #1 Options

[Tanka]

Midnight
The sound of gunfire is heard in the hills of what used to be Colorado. Bright flashes and screams pierce the night. A few long seconds pass where nothing is heard. Then, a plane takes off, heading westward.

A man screams in the distance, then goes silent.

[Tanka]

One Month Later
The same area is lit up by gunfire and magic galore. This time, it's mostly silent. Mostly.

A large man holds an ex-comrade in his hands, his neck crushed. Two friends of the now-dead man stare in disbelief. The magician pulls her arms back and begins chanting. Energy crackles around her hands and arms in fierce arcs of light. She throws it forward, and pours her heart and soul into the spell. The man (was it a man?) drops, smoking and smoldering, to the ground. The magician drops, but is caught by her fellow man.

They escape, cyberdeck in tow, to an unknown location with something that could spell disaster for the world or disaster for one large corporation.

[Tanka]

Today, 8 AM
Peace and silence rang true through the base. There was nothing noteworthy going on. Well, for now.

"Alright boys, get Units Zeta Nine Gamma, Delta Two Omega and Beta Two Alpha up and running pronto! Lofwyr himself has a job for these boys to do."

The technicians got straight to work, warming up the equipment that would be used to run morning tests real quick before sending the three Cyberzombies out to meet Lofwyr, the (in)famous Great Dragon in charge of Saedurr-Krupp.

[Sphynx]

TheBeast's eyes open. It takes time to focus through the oxygen rich gel he's forced to sleep in due to his condition. A tube extends from a datajack in his skull to a computer panel above the tankard. A Red light turns yellow, as The Beast starts to gain full awareness and wakefullness, then turns to green a moment later. The liquid seems to drain from the ground, lowering The Beast with it, until its mishappened claws for feet finally touch the surface with a muted thud. Its knees bend as the liquid receeds more, and finally the muzzle of The Beast breaks free from the liquid, allowing it a chance to take in a deep breath of stale air. It exhales the air with a roarous release, worthy of his namesake. Black strands of hair cover his entire au'natural body, from the tip of his long haired head, to the base of his beastial tail, to the tops of all four of his clawed hands. He stands there, flexing his incredible muscles as he re-learns to breath, taking in and releasing huge gulps of air. Finally a door-panel opens at the top of the tank, and in a flash The Beast leaps up and through the panel, landing lightly enough to not make any noise at all, on the metal surface outside the tank. There is but one thought to come out of this Beast's mouth, as he finally addresses the technicians working in the room.

" Food...... I want MEAT !!! "

"Delta Two Omega activated", is heard over a muted loudspeaker in another room.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Please forgive if I took a few too many liberties in my post.

[TargetPractice]

"Agent Kriker, take your two new assistance and rouse the hammer, its time to show those two what this job is about" *blip* the companel blipped out.

"Hey you two stop watching the battle cycle championships its time to meet him." Agent Kriker said as he went to what appeared to be a pantry and retrived a cart with a large block what seemed to be marble upon it.

"Ok boss" the two answered in almost stereo. Rick and Rudd looked at each other with a look of excited anticipation, they were finnally here, in the Delta Clinic. From there early days as members of the SK Lasher, a corp-kids gang, to their first job guarding that almost abandoned warehouse, the pair of ork twins were SK loyal to a fault.

Rick spoke to Rudd in twin speak while they followed Agent Kriker down the descending hallway. "What do you think this guy is? My bet is on a machine, and plugs all over his body?"

Rudd responded "Nah I bet they keep him in a cryo freeze, I heard these guys are vicious killers with not a shred of humanity left."

The three of them reached what looked like a freight elevator going down a mine shaft. Rudd spoke up "So are we going to need some stun batons and protective gear to wrangle this one?" a almost catharic expression on his face. Agent Kriker looked at him unflinching and shook his head and put on his visor and responds "You two might want to turn on your thermovision, it gets a bit dark" and pushes the down button for the elevator.

After what seems like 5 minutes the elevator shaft ends and the ride comes to a stop, Kriker turns on his thermo vision visor, while the twins focus in their cyber eyes. The sight before them is a odd one. A decently vast cavern of ruff hewn rock opens infront of them.

"Watch your step and don't touch anything of his" Kriker warned the slack jawed pair. He pushed the cart down a narrow ledge to what looked like a slab of granite, surrounded by a managerie of various carvings in stone. The twins walked over and started looking at the statues.

"Man these are some pretty simple drek, looks like they were done by a four year old blind dwarf, Rudd, quick, catch!" as Rick picked up a simple looking statuette of a dragon and held it in a Hail Mary pass position.

As the statuette soared thru the air, both brother grinning that they would finnally see a cyberzombie, there was a flash of movement. First Rudd's leg was grabbed from the bottom of a pit, which soon encompassed him, then a small whir of servos and another blur of motion, something large had lunged on Rick, and he to was enveloped in the darkness of the surrounding pit. The rounding sound a few wet thumps, and a utterence "Oh drek, my baby!"

"Jack, remember your not allowed to kill them, I have the statue" Agent Kriker yelled down the pit. Jackhammer climbed his way up the side of the mesa-like column the rest of the artwork and Kriker were on.

"I'm sorry Klaus, but didn't you tell them not to touch my stuff?" Jack said in a pleading voice bringing up two bodies in pretty bad shape. He brought them up in one arm and walked over to Agent Kriker. "I didn't even cut them this time, just beat them up a little....well alot"

"Its ok Jack, those two were idiots anyway, but more importantly Lofwyr has a job for you and two others. I don't know much about it but, he requested you personally." Kriker placed the statutte back on the podium that it once occupied. "Maybe this time you will actually get to meet the head wyrm himself, isn't what that statue was about?"


"Well yeah, but that one was just a rough guide, this small one is the true masterpiece", as he held out what at first glance looked like a globe of quartz the size of a orks fist. Kriker grabbed ahold of it and it felt very heavy, and walked towards the elevator dragging the two unconscious orks. When they got to the top of the shaft Kriker got an actual look at the sculpture. It was a intricate orb of green and blue quartz, very similiar to a globe, with a golden dragon wrapped around the globe.

"Jesus, Jack, how long have you been working on this one?" Kriker said in amazement.

"How long since my last mission to alaska?" Jack responded with a grim face.

Agent Kriker picked up his comlink "Beta Two Alpha up and running. He's got another gift for the Big L, this one he might want to see" then he looked at Jack "Thats the best I can do for you man."

[Glyph]

Grond grunts slightly as he lifts the massive weight, pushing the limits of even his superhuman strength. He likes the slight pain of his straining muscles - it's good to feel something. Sometimes it seems like he doesn't feel much of anything at all. As usual, he has the weight room to himself - the others trickling and edging out uneasily.

As he finishes his set and sits up on the weight bench, he is surprised to see a few of the techs nervously shuffling from foot to foot, waiting for him. He follows them impassively, barely deigning to notice as they hook trodes to his head and major muscle groups, while one of them runs a hand scanner over him and the others cluster around various displays.

"Heartbeat and respiration steady, no necrosis or abnormal growths yet... brain pattern normal... " He ignores their droning voices, bemusedly watching one of the flickering LED lights. "Preettty...", he mumbles in a deep but muted voice.

To his surprise, after the battery of tests is done, two fidgety guards show up, apparently to escort him into the presense of the dragon himself. In spite of himself, Grond feels a slight hum of interest. The guards don't annoy him with any chatter as they go. Like most, they seem afraid of him. As they should be.

[Tanka]

"They're up and running? Good, good. Bring them to the antechamber. The Big Man himself is here to meet them and inform them of what their job will be."

As you are escorted in the antechamber with two dozen armed guard, various metahumans, mostly "straight" humans, though. Each of them with an assault rifle of some sort.

Entering the antechamber, the double doors are cracked open enough for three to go in at a time. First enters the man who ordered you awake, by himself.

The contingent of guards stops outside of the doors, awaiting their orders to proceed. After a few minutes of silence in which a pin could be heard dropping halfway across the globe, the man turns and motions forward.

The guards drop into a formations of threes. Three groups of three are in the front, another three group of threes in the back. Three groups of two with a space in the middle are inbetween the two groups of the front and back. It's apparent that each of you are to take a space between each guard.

[Sphynx]

After stretching a bit, allowing the gel to quicly insta dry off of him, the Beast reaches over and grabs a T-Shirt from the table next to him, slipping it over his head carefully. Over that he wears a silk white shirt with baggy sleeves from the elbow to wrist, but tightly fitted from elbow to shoulder and at the wrist. The techies button it up for him as he sniffs the air. Shortly he is formally dressed with the exception of bared feet, due to an inability to walk with shoes on with his claw like appendages. Lastly they slip a leash over his head, tightening it around his neck, and lead him to an ajoining room. As they move, The Beast hunches over, walking on hands and feet, his overlength arms acting as legs as they cross over to the new chamber. From within can be smelled exotic flavors and red meat. He is sat at a table where he carefully tucks a napkin into his shirt, and sniffs at the meats before him. He reaches over with a large fork, stabbing into a large leg of lamb, and brings it to his plate, carefully eating it with knife and fork. After half an hour of eating various meats, all cooked to gourmet perfection, he excuses himself from the table, and walks on all 4s with the techie holding the leash to a large room filled with 2 dozen guards. The Techie hands the leash to one of the guards, and The Beast falls into procession like an obedient animal, still formally dressed. He constantly licks his small tusks, cleaning up juices only he can smell, his overly broad shoulders swaying like the waves of the ocean, rippling beneath his silk shirt. His head jerks every once in awhile as he snaps at a piece of meat that dislodges itself from his teeth. OVerall, the impression given is that of an extremely powerful carnivore, the very top of a deadly food chain.

[Glyph]

Grond's face is impassive as he takes his position between the guards, but he actually feels a rare emotion... a flicker of genuine amusement. The elaborate security precautions are gratifying to what remains of his ego, but also a bit ridiculous. They're going in to see a great dragon. He and the two trolls could probable lay waste to most opponents, but unarmed, against a great dragon? Give it indigestion, maybe. At least these guards are cool and professional, looking unfazed by their dangerous escort duty. The fear that others usually show gratifies him, but it is annoying at times, watching them start and twitch around him.

[TargetPractice]

Jack was walking with Agent Kriker to the line up. He lit a large cigar, "So Klaus, you know what the big wyrm wants? Also, your telling me that I will actually feel the nicotine from this one? Ever since that filter was put in they took all the joy out of smoking" he then took what seemed like a full trolly breath inhaling half of the cigar.

"Hey, that was rare, circa 1958 Dominican, from my own personal stash. Don't just wolf it down, even if you don't get a kick out of it, enjoy the flavour." Agent Kriker looks disturbed. He had known Jack since his days in the mines and has been with him through it all. He had almost gotten used to the cold void of alien motive and emotion that Jack exuded but sometimes it was just too much for even him. "Take your place behind the other two, your being teamed with Grond and Beast this time"

Jack nodded and took his place in line, using the pristine helmet of the guard to his right as a ashtray, atleast till the guard notices.

[Tanka]

As the last of you falls into place, the man motions forward. The first line of guards steps forward, followed quickly by the second. Their steps are in perfect sync, and an arm's length is between each row of guards.

As you finally enter the grand room, each row of guards is lining the walls, evenly spacing themselves to allow all 24 of them an equal amount of room.

In the direct center is a table with a man with long, silvery hair and golden eyes behind it. He smiles a knowing smile, one that flashes arrogance, ego, and all things attributed to one of the most powerful beings in the world. And all of it with due reason.

He motions to three seats as the last guard enters the room, then snaps his fingers. All the guards stand at perfect attention, butts of their guns resting on their left foot.

As you sit, a booming voice enters your mind.

"I know who you are, and you know who I am. Let's leave the introductions at that, shall we?

"However, Jack, I am told you have something for me. Do you wish to present it now or at the end of our meeting?"

[Glyph]

Grond sinks into the soft leather upholstery of the massive chair - obviously designed to accomodate the massive size and heavy weight of him and the even larger two trolls. He regards the dragon with a rare look of respect, respect for someone higher up on the food chain than he is (a scarce group, these days).

He waits for orders, impassively but still attentively. At the mental comment directed at Jack, he starts in surprise almost imperceptively, and turns his head curiously towards the armor-plated troll.

[Sphynx]

The Orc known as The Beast drops to all 4 legs as the procession begins to enter the Lair of the Dragon. The guard holding his leash, gives it a yank to make The Beast rise, and is instead thrown to the ground as The Beast yanks his head in the other direction. A forepaw lands on the chest of the prone guard, claws extending from the paw, into the kevlar armour of the guard as the sound of nearly 2 dozen HVARs clicking in near unison indicate that the other guards are not happy with The Beast standing over the foolish guard. The Beast seems ignorant of the weapons now pointed at him and in a deep gutteral growl of a voice says, "You would do well to remember who is Predator here, and who is prey."

The sound of a Tech running up yelling "No! No! Put the guns away!", breaks the deadly silence of the room, and the leash is picked up by the techie, "Get off him you stupid lout!" The Beast bows his head in submission, as the Techie yanks his leash, pulling him off the nearly wet-panted guard. "Yes boss", he says in a much lighter voice, as another guard takes his place holding the leash. Soon the group, shaking guard included, enter the room, The Beast permitted to walk on all 4 paws, and as the guards take their positions, he caters up to the chairs, head low and bent slightly to reveal his throat as he approaches the Silver Haired man. His behaviour similar to that of a dog giving recognition to his Alpha. Then, as the man nods to him, he stands erect, and walks over with extreme grace and pride to his chair, sitting in it as the man begins to mentally talk to them.

Noticing the cloth hanging from his retracted claws, apparently caught in the cracks as he intimidated the guard, he quickly pulls it out in a subtle manner, attempting to hide it by discarding it under his chair. He listens with rapt attention as the man gives Jack favored attention.

[TargetPractice]

Jack gulps a hard swallow down "Yyyes sir, I have a small momento of my last few successful missions here for you." He hands over the globes to the man. "The green are emeralds from Amazonia. The blue quartz is from the UCAS area originally known as Pennsylvania, and is quite rare. The gold embossed dragon is from my various missions to Yakut. That small diamond representing the Saeder Krupp head quarters was from a blood shaman I ran into in Australia. Annnd the rubies are from my missions in the warring chinese states, apparantly their honor guards are paid in gems. Finnally the copper the main globe is made from is from the Soiux Nation, it has been smelted in tin from Alquinkain-Maintoo Council Lands." he is beaming a bit, then realizes he took the attention away from the great wyrm himself (atleast thats what he is thinking). "I'm sorry sir" and then sits back down.

[Tanka]

"I thank you, Jack. You have nothing to apologize for."

He graciously accepts the globe and places it on his desk in a well-placed empty space.

"Now. Down to business, shall we?

"There have been troubling reports all over the Matrix - specifically Shadowland - about a certain rival corporation using some very nasty paracritters and testing even more. While I don't know if these rumors are substantiated or not, I hope, for the sake of the world, they are not. However, that is not something we can wait to find out. We must go and find out ourselves."

He looks to the right wall as it lights up. A few aerial surveillance photos begin cycling through. Nothing in the images seems amiss, though the buildings seem to be in various states of redesign and re-building processes.

"This is Compound 75 Alpha, owned by Ares. While on the outside, nothing seems to be wrong, it is theorized the inside is much, much more... Shall we say... Interesting?"

The screen flips to a post in Shadowland. One that has only become more popular as of recent times.

"While I admit that some posts in Shadowland are a bit... Erratic... Some are rather key-on. This one, for example, tells a story about a man and his group who are hired for a simple smuggling. It fails and they stumble upon an Ares compound - Compoung 68G - which is supposedly being used as an Insect Spirit Hive.

"While the facts may not be entirely true, some of them are. Ares is playing with something that should have been exterminated long ago, but wasn't.

"What you're being asked to do is accompany a team of my best Mages and Adepts to go kill the Shaman summoning Queens for Ares. He may not be in the compound, but you can almost be sure his whereabouts will be known by someone - or something - inside of the compound.

"Are there any questions yet?"

[TargetPractice]

"If I remember the last time I worked with mages, they seemed to be hindered with me around. Are we going in as a separate group as them?"










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All those items were pieces of the globe, not a group of items, unless he took it apart.

[Tanka]

(Oops, will edit in a sec.)

"For the most part, you'll be physical security and infiltration. Basically, clear their path so they can do their deed."

[TargetPractice]

Sounds like a normal lawnmower job, and will be much easier here with Beast doing this thing. You noted Paranormal Critters, what ones might we be running against, I remember them being very resistant to my "gentle touches" in a few old runs, is there anyway around that?

[Glyph]

Grond smiles unpleasantly. "Whatever nightmares they're cooking up in there, they'll find out what a real nightmare is when they meet us." The normally stoic ork's face is alight with a disquieting eagerness. For the first time in a long time, he feels alive again. The prospect of enemies that could actually challenge him has shaken him out of his usual leaden stupor.

[Tanka]

"Well, the types of critters appear to be your average dogs.

"However, we all know appearances can be decieving."

He smirks, an obvious reference to himself.

"As the Shadowland post reveals... Ares is supposedly combining regular critters - and sometimes paracritters - with Insect Spirits.

"That is the reason for the crack team of mages and adepts. While you'll do fine drawing attention and delivering the physical punch, my mages and adepts will be cleaning out the hive, starting with the Queen and moving on to the Shaman.

"Your main job is to protect them at all costs. However, if they tell you to leave, do so. Because of your - ahem - nature, you - as you undoubtedly know - cause quite a ruckus with the Astral Plane. So it would behoove you to leave when they ask - or tell - you to."

[Sphynx]

The Beast takes a moment to let everything sink in. After a bit he comments as well. "Insect Dogs eh? Guess they better already know who their damn Alpha is before I have to show them. If this is where the Battle is, I'm up for it. Just to be level though, are we more of a distraction, or elite? Meaning, if you're looking for us to handle all the critter and personel defense so the Mage types can get in and do their thing,, I'd approach with a different strategy than if you're wanting us to get the Mages in as deep as we can before setting off an alarm. So, we a distraction, or we suppose to do this Elite thing?"

[Tanka]

"Both, if possible. Keep the critters off the mages, but don't go out of the way to disrupt them."

[Glyph]

Grond nods. "The spellcasters will be well protected. Nothing will stand before us, and we will leave the smouldering bodies of our foes behind us." He frowns slightly. "With such a large group, though, when you include the mages, I don't think stealth will last us that long. It will turn into a firefight very quickly, I think."

[TargetPractice]

Where are we going to be implanted and will we have a escape route planned? I will do anything for you sir, but I would like ot know if this is going to be my last mission.

[Tanka]

"You will be dropped here," he points to a spot on the map, about 100 kilometers away. "Until you reach the compound, you will be under protection of Invisibility and other such spells. Remember, be stealthy until you reach the compound, then let all bygones be bygones, as it were."

He stands still, waiting for other questions.