The Galactic War: Rogue Element ~The Beginning

[Luke Skywalker (Ossanlin)]

Ossanlin descends behind Enorryma and places his feet as silently as she had.  He surveys the layout and notes both technicians and the security guard.  The first tech and security guard are at their appointed stations, but the second tech is partially obscured around the singularity chamber.  <<We'll have to move quickly...>>

He draws his aim on the security guard who is walking away from their position across the catwalk.  <<Ready...three...two ...one...Fire!>>  Ossanlin squeezes the trigger on his weapon and watches as the security guard crumples on the walkway.  He quickly moves to draw a bead on the second tech, but the singularity chamber is in the way.

[Estelore]

Enorryma fired on the first tech, who crumpled to the ground at the same moment as Ossanlin's target.

Norry turned toward the other tech, mentally scowling. <<We will have to move to get a clear shot. The only part of him in view is his shoulder, and that's not enough to successfully stun him.>>

[Luke Skywalker (Ossanlin)]

<<Go!>>  Ossanlin breaks left along the wall "balcony", his ASAR shouldered...the being needed to drop before he figured out what was happening.  He sprints along the walkway as the tech starts to look around and views his fallen compatriot.  Ossanlin draws a bead on his exposed shoulder and pulls the trigger three times.  The first two bolts miss, but the third catches the tech in the shoulder, momentarily dazing him.  <<Norry, he's dazed.  He staggered out of my line of fire.  Take him down before he recovers.>>  His tone of thought is calm, his demeanor icy and stoic. 

Some people lost their head in the frenzy of battle...and then lost their lives or worse, the lives of those they commanded.  Calm rationality, logic, and steadfastness were keys to Ossanlin's battle prowess.  Precision and forethought...  Oh he experienced anxiety before battle, though it was always kept on a tight rein and never displayed.  But once the action began...all of it melted away.  Emotions, fear, anxiety, anger, aggression...none of it had a place in battle, and in battle, Ossanlin allows emotion no berths within himself.

[Estelore]

Norry moved quickly, her ASAR raised, as she stepped around the side of the singularity housing. Her target leaned weakly against a wall, and she sighted down the ASAR and fired, dropping him in the time it took for him to blearily glance up at her. He slumped to the floor.

<<Got him. Where next, sir?>>

The job was just now beginning to show signs of an omnipresent force Norry called 'Mission Entropy'. Tiny details were beginning to stack up and act against them, costing them seconds and putting them at risk of panicking and rushing things. Left in this state, problems would begin to spiral and compound on each other.
If anybody could keep the mission entropy in check, it was Ossanlin, but Norry had to silently admit to herself that she didn't entirely trust the rest of the team not to bung this up.

[Luke Skywalker (Ossanlin)]

<<Good work, Enorryma.  There are two master couplings installed with breaker switches down on the bottom level.>>  He makes his way to the ramp on one side of the room and jogs down to the bottom floor.  He works his way over to the first lever.  <<They have to be pulled simultaneously.  Each one is secured by the keypad next to it.>>

He uses his wrist-panel to cause Norry's emitter matrix to show the proper key sequence to unlock the other lever.  <<Take up position by the other lever, but don't enter the key-sequence yet.  Now we wait for Esarvit's communication.  The virus has to be at full proliferation before we cut the power.  Once we enter the key-sequences, we'll have ten seconds to disarm the couplings.>>

~

Ehvrin shakes his head.  <<It just seems odd, backwards...fightin g our own kind.  I mean, I don't agree with the unprovoked atrocity that the Electorate perpetrated, but won't the loss of the Tyrennian hurt the People?>>

[Estelore]

Enorryma put her ASAR away and moved where she was directed. She watched Ossanlin, waiting. She missed her own hands quite a bit, and she hoped the Hork-Bajir's clawed hand would be articulate enough to use this device.

[Chad32]

<<It certainly didn't enter my mind when I joined the war that I'd be fighting Andalites to help Yeerks. Both species can vary wildly in personalities and goals, even though our leaders tell us the Yeerks are of only one mind. Their leaders tell them something similar. I'm quite certain the loss of Ossanlin and his crew will hurt our people's chances of winning this war, but how we win is probably more important than the winning itsself.>>

<<Honestly I don't know what we'll do, even if we recsue the rebels. Try to restart it? Become rebels ourselves?>>

[Ember Nickel]

When the data finally finishes downloading, Esarvit pauses a moment to make sure the first few screens'-worth have loaded without any errors. Seeing that it looks good, he goes ahead and uploads the virus. This part is much easier...The nice thing about breaking into Andalite computers is that the people who are supposed to be securing these ports are hardly any younger than me. They would have been completely helpless towards a more net-oriented user...we could maybe even have done this remotely.

He quickly unplugs his ARC just before the data begins to corrupt, and the pixels start blipping across the screen. <<Virus uploaded!>> he sends, not bothering to mask his pride.

[Luke Skywalker (Ossanlin)]

Ossanlin addresses Esarvit through the ARC.  <<Good, Esarvit.  Be ready to disarm the battery backup couplings>>

He glances at Enorryma.  <<Enter the key-sequence now, Enorryma.>>

Ossanlin keys his sequence in and a chime starts, ticking each second.  He grabs the handle and heaves it upward, twists it one-quarter clockwise, heaves upward a second time, twists it another one-quarter clockwise, and pulls the handle up a final time, as Ennoryma should be doing on her side of the chamber.

A klaxon begins to sound on each level of the facility as the flow of energy is cut off.  All around the complex, true-light turns into the dim yellow of hazard lighting.  The host cells' holograms would be deactivating along with any other systems deemed to be non-essential.  The hosts would probably be able to hear the almost-melodious klaxon from within their cells as well without the holo-sound.

<<Esarvit, Aurellia, disarm the backup battery couplings now.>>  Once they cut those backups, the computer would completely lock-down, and the effects of Esarvit's virus would become a tad more permanent.  Of course, the loss of power also means that their time undetected inside the facility is at an end.

~

Aurellia moves to one of the battery back ups and flips the protective cover open.  She pulls the connection lever and watches the power readings drop.  She glances at Esarvit.  <<Only one left, sir.>>

~

Ehvrin nods.  <<Yes, sir.  Prince Raigar always said the ends don't justify the means, and I see the truth of it.  But...I keep thinking about the Homeworld.  It bothers me to think that I might never see that shade of rosy orange-red again.>>

He suddenly falls silent as the lighting in the ramp-well changes from true white to dim yellow and melodious klaxons begin echoing throughout the facility.

[Terenia]

The hologram goes out.

It takes Chris a few beats to realize that anything has changed. He has not moved in so many hours, has not stopped his ceaseless staring at the stupid fake trees -- staring to the point where he does not see them anymore. So when they disappear he almost does not notice, he has fallen so deeply into his frustrated anger and anxiety.

When the change in his surroundings finally registers he blinks slowly, wondering if perhaps he had fallen asleep, or was hallucinating. Cautiously, he reaches out and touches the now-blank wall, only dimly lit with a cold wash of blue light. Somewhere in the distance he can hear a gentle humming.

As soon as he is satisfied that the wall is real a rush of adrenaline hits him, and he scrambles to his feet, spinning around to look for any inconsistencies that might allow him escape. There is something oppressive about the blankness of it, and his stomach twists as he runs his hands along the seams. At least with the hologram, he could pretend his cell was larger. Now there is no denying the small room he has been shoved in.

What sort of game is this? he wonders, one hand dropping to grab for a Dracon that isn't there. Haven't we endured enough already? A surge of anger running through him he backs up, eying the wall that has, most often, melted into a doorway. Chris isn't a huge person, but he is fairly well built, with strong, broad shoulders. Certainly no match for an Andalite tail blade, especially weaponless, but he has the element of surprise. If the damn Andalites enter, he tells himself firmly, rush them. Just get the hell out.

If it meant taking a potentially deadly hit, so what? He had already lost everything, their names an endless litany in his mind that he had been going over for hours upon hours upon hours. Maybe, if any of them had survived, this would be his only chance at finding them.

Surely the Andalites wouldn't shut off the hologram if it didn't mean something. Surely they would come for him, for whatever twisted reasons they might have.

Or maybe they were just ****ing with him.

Regardless, he crouches down low and prepares to run.

[Chad32]

Claxter had been trying not to think of being barred from his homeworld. <<There's always the dome.>> He said, referring to the Terynnian's dome that housed plants and water. <<I suppose we can't really contact our homeworld families without giving away the fact that we're still alive. It would be nice if life's choices were always easy, but that's not realistic.>>

He noticed the change in lighting as he spoke. <<It's started. I believe we're just supposed to hold our position until we receive orders.>>

[KitsuneMarie]

With her eyes closed and head down forehead resting against her knees as she sits against the wall, Tess cannot tell an immediate change in the status of her cell. The only difference is a vague sensation that the room just got brighter.

Sniffing and rubbing her eyes, she raises her head and looks around. What she sees--or rather what she doesn't see makes her mouth fall open in shock: the hologram is gone, replaced with empty blankness.

"What...?" she whispers, her voice hoarse.

Putting her palms flat on the floor, she lifts herself to her feet with a heavy panting exhale, her hands going straight to her swollen belly as soon as she is standing. Tess's dark eyes track the four walls of the room, not remembering which one of them holds the door, not knowing where to expect any further changes to come from.

Oh god, Chris, I wish you were here right now, she thinks desperately, a hand trailing up from her stomach to her messy hot pink hair, shoving it behind her ears to clear her vision.

[Ember Nickel]

<<Well done,>> Esarvit says. <<Want to go ahead and take the next one yourself?>>

He isn't very close to Aurellia, but maybe that's the way these things should be. Either she's kept her head down or his has been up in the galactic dust clouds (again).  At least she doesn't have some frilly nickname.

[Estelore]

Enorryma followed the sequence to cut the facility's power, and she found herself absently wondering why a place of this size would even have such a sequence available in its manual operations settings. Surely technicians could find another way to do maintenance and to obtain emergency power, without completely crippling the place...? She herself had done so countless times on much smaller ships and vehicles, without decommissioning her ships in the process. It seemed such a catastrophic flaw for a place of this size.

She shrugged off the thought and refocused on the mission, finding that she rather relished the sound of klaxons and the eerie burning-sodium gold of the hazard lamps. They always meant a fine thrill was approaching.

<<What next, Sir?>>

[Luke Skywalker (Ossanlin)]

Aurellia arches an eye and gallops across the room to the other backup breaker.  She flips up the protective cover and disarms it.  She contacts Ossanlin on her ARC.  <<Sir, the computer is locked down.>>

~

Ossanlin nods at Norry.  <<Good work.  Now we return to the service levels and make our way to the western ramp-well.  Our next purpose is to gather host supplements and the hosts themselves.>>

Ossanlin re-opens the communication with Aurellia and Esarvit.  <<Good work.  Begin phase two.  Both of you descend to the Maintenance room on level negative one again.>>  He makes his way back up the ramp around the singularity chamber to the hatch Norry and he had entered by.  <<Exit into the southern hallway of level negative one and proceed east to the Yeerk supplies room.  Use your compression packs and take as many portable kandrona generators as you can carry.  And don't forget to take some of the mineral supplement to add to the water as well.  Once you've done that, head to the eastern ramp-well and make your way back down to the maintenance level.  If Claxter and Ehvrin aren't waiting for you, you wait for them.  Once all four of you have returned, activate the restriction field at the bottom of the ramp and rendezvous with Ennoryma and I at the first floor-breacher.  We will have the hosts with us.  Take out anyone that gets in the way.>>

Ossanlin climbs out of the hatch and glances around to make sure it's clear, then opens the communication channel with Claxter and Ehvrin.  <<Begin phase two.  Both of you head up the ramp-well now to level zero.>>  He shoulders his ASAR and heads down the west hallway toward the ramp-well.  <<There shouldn't be anyone in the halls, but take out anyone in the way.  Don't hesitate.  Once you reach level zero, enter the weapons/effects storage room.  All of the lockers should be open thanks to Esarvit's virus.  Each locker should be dated.  Use your compression packs to take everything that's dated on or after the date of the rebellion's defeat.  Once you have the weapons and personal effects in hand, head back to the eastern ramp-well and descend again to the maintenance levels.  If Esarvit and Aurellia are not waiting for you, you must wait for them.  Once all four of you have reunited, activate the restriction field at the bottom of the ramp and rendezvous with Enorryma and I at the first floor-breacher.  We will have the hosts with us.>>

He ends the communication and reaches the entrance to the ramp-well, looking behind himself for Norry.

~

Aurellia nods at the communicator as Ossanlin speaks.  <<Yes, sir.>>  She moves to the hole Esarvit had cut into the floor and descends into the maintenance room again.  She keys open the maintenance room hatch and peaks her head out, looking down both corridors.  With not a soul in sight, she exits the room, ASAR shouldered.  Semi-panicked, confused thought-speech voices can be heard, mainly from the direction of the Yeerk cells, and even from above, but all seem to be locked at their respective stations.

This area looks very different from the maintenance level.  It's all sleek white-and-silver polish.  The yellow glow from the hazard lighting leaves some uncomfortably-deep shadows.  There would've been holograms in the hallway as well, were it not for the power being cut.  She makes her way quickly down the hallway to the long Yeerk storage room and keys the room open.  Stacks of durathane crates are meticulously ordered around the room.  She moves to one and cracks it open, displaying several stasis-fields all occupied by portable kandrona generators.  She removes both compression packs from her back-pack and begins filling one with the small, metallic cylinders.

~

Ehvrin nods at his Prince's communication and glances at Claxter again before moving out into the ramp-well carefully.  He starts to move up and passes level negative one without incident.  Thought-speech voices can be heard all around, but none seem to be actually in the corridors.  He makes his way up to level zero and yowls in pain as a blue bolt of energy sears through his left shoulder.  He fires multiple times into the corridor and retreats down the ramp.  <<Sir, I've been hit.>>  He calls to Claxter.