InterGalacticAdventures

A blog dedicated to my oc rp rambles, and occasional RP'ing. Watch as my muse gets dragged into an array of strange and hopefully engaging adventures as she travels across the stars with her trusty ai companion!

[k-dradom]

Aftermath

@intergalacticadventures

The weeks that passed after his return, Kesan was slowly starting to accept that this was his life now. A few more days of healing with the company of Ellen, his sister, and his two nephews, he felt a bit better about where he was going. As long as he could get something to walk with, he would be alright. He might not ever fight again in the way he was best at, but… well he would figure out what to do with himself later.

On the day of his release, he was presented with a simple prosthetic, sturdy and strong enough to withstand his weight and keep him fairly balanced. He needed to use a sort of cane to keep his balance as he got used to walking around with it, but it was a quick work in progress. Besides, he had his eyes set on a new goal.

The news arrived shortly after Bena did: He was going home. This time, home didn’t mean his ship, or High Charity. Home meant… Home. Sangheilios. The planet he hadn’t seen in many years. Not since he joined the covenant. He was excited, but also nervous. He didn’t know what changed, who was still there, or if he’d be looked down upon as a cripple by his own people, the people he used to call friends.

But, his sister insisted very stubbornly that he was to return home and stay with her and her family while he recovered. And at his request, Ellen was invited to come along as well. He wasn’t exactly sure how she’d fare on his planet, but if she needed to, she could stay on her ship for the most part. The thing he worried about most was the three suns that their planet orbited. Their summers were hot but every other season was rather tame. Thankfully it was closer to the end of their autumn season so Summer wouldn’t be for a while yet. He was a little excited to get to show her some of his culture and show her the place where he grew up. It was still a little primitive compared to her technology, but the state of Dradom was still among the most advanced.

By the end of the week, they had all boarded a phantom designed for civilian transport with a handful of others making their own way home. Dradom state was not a huge place, but it did sit with its southern border along an ocean. An ocean that they got to see when they did finally land. He got to see the water again with their three suns setting on the horizon, a sight that would never get old to him. 

He glanced over to Ellen, and gave a click, and for once, his eyes were not dulled in his sadness. “Quite a sight, isn’t it? I promised myself I’d get a home built near the ocean someday.” He commented, a sort of nostalgic air about his words and a wistful sigh to follow. 

[intergalacticadventures]

There was a certain sense of apprehension as Ellen entered the fray proper. A certain sense of fear and anxiety that had perhaps been established from her initial first experience meeting aliens - namely her capture and subsequent escape following that crash. It was perhaps not necessarily the best place to begin in terms of initial first impressions, and she knew this. But it was more often that not more difficult to reassure oneself given that emotions were a constant factor which shifted and snaked through logical reasoning without it paying the toll of the mental effort required to remain calm and composed.

Given that she was a Ranger there was a certain modicum of self respect and composure she held herself to. If it was this difficult to maintain a level air of calm for a Ranger, she couldn't begin to imagine how it must be for any other of her own kin to experience this same

Sweltering heat was indeed something her people were not known for tolerating well. The fact that the seasonal change on this planet shifted from the former to something much more reasonable was certainly fortunate as the Ranger stared out at the scenery in absolute awe.

The stretch of water wasn’t exactly unique per se, but the three suns that lit it up in a dazzling spectacle of colors, complemented by an honest to Goddess sandy beach left pristine and untouched by the march of progress (unlike that of her home’s Ecumenopolis). It wasn’t as if she hadn’t seen pictures of what it was like before, video footage even. But all it did was serve to remind her of what they’d lost and what she hadn’t yet experienced.

There were worlds, countless in fact that held pristine beaches such as these. But being that she was observing in official capacity she simply couldn’t jump in. As was always the case she remained isolated and detached from it all, in her cockpit observing and merely living the explorer’s life vicariously through a screen.

She didn’t see a primitive society or peoples at this point in time. She didn’t even consider that fact in the slightest, because right now she was finding it hard to believe she would be visiting something that had only been the stuff of intangible concepts here and now.

The sudden click caused Ellen to quite literally jump from her seat as her entire mind had been fixated on that singular train of thought throughout this entire journey (at least from the very first moment she’d set her sights on these alien shores). She turned to the Sangheili promptly, trying her very best to maintain that modicum of composure she had attempted to convey throughout this entire journey but was more than seriously failing at.

From being around alien upon alien to simply setting sights at an alien sky with an equally bizarre set of stars… it was difficult to not have two conflicting sets of her true personality emerge forth. That fearful and frightened self that had all but sequestered to her people’s anti alien sentiments and propaganda. And that latter wanderlust driven sensibility, the drive to explore, to push the boundaries and to see for herself what it was that lay beyond the next hill.

“It. It. Yeah. It most certainly is.” She managed to stutter out, finally making eye contact with the Sangheili as she realized perhaps for the first time, a semblance, an inkling of hope or at least nostalgia, or whatever it was it at least wasn’t painted over by an overwhelming despondency as she’d noted before. “A home by the beach?” She pondered, almost as if she was recounting something only capable in the far past and not in the present day. “Is that even possible?” She managed to blurt out. “This entire sight is just unreal to me, I. I don’t have any words for this, for any of this.” She admitted. “I’ve never actually seen a beach like this before. Or. Land. Sand, Dirt. Anything not covered over by metal or concrete. It feels like I’m living in one of those nature documentaries.” The Ranger noted almost wistfully.

(@k-dradom)

[k-dradom]

intergalacticadventures:

Ellen raised a brow at that faster than the man could even parse for a way out of that awkward question. She wasn’t convinced, and it didn’t take ‘ranger intuition’ or her entire education on critical analyses, applied xeno studies, and then some, to get a bead on the fact that something was very much clearly off. With both his response, his reactions to it, and so forth…. or at least she assumed his reaction was slightly off. The fact of the matter was, regardless of how much she assumed they’d spent time together, he still seemed completely alien to her. His face, his physiology, his body, mind, and perhaps even spirit. If…. he still believed in that that is. Given how his entire belief system was more or less blown out of the water the last time she’d seen him. The Ranger however, decided to leave it at that…. at least for now as she nodded at the man’s response. “Right. A formality.” She repeated almost verbatim, nodding slowly as she parsed on the next line of conversation. “I just hope that whoever’s visiting is more or less going to be understanding of having an alien here. Or else, I can just head back to the space port if that would be more convenient for you, I wouldn’t want to be stepping on toes.” She spoke earnestly, clearly concerned given her very presence here was perhaps already stepping on her own code of interference. “I mean, you have been at war with these ‘humans’ and i can’t help but understand that this species bears a striking resemblance to my own, so….” She shrugged. “I wouldn’t want to be encroaching is what I mean.” She sighed inwardly. “Got quite a few strange looks as I sprinted over here already, and I’m sure more than one of those stares was for my species, not the fact that I was sprinting like a madwoman.” She chuckled slightly, trying to bring some light into this already heavy conversation. “And considering the martial nature of your people I doubt there’s the concept of hotels either.” She spoke, half joking, half serious. She simply stood there as the food arrived and as the man eyed the plate of meat. Not really giving it much mind as she simply stood there being as unintrusive as possible so as to be polite. However, as the alien began what was his ‘eating process’ the Ranger couldn’t help but to raise a brow at first, before devolving into a full blown wide eyed horror, and a subsequent aftershock of disbelief and confusion over what she’d just seen. He’d just…. completely consumed that piece of meat by simply…. lowering it into his ‘mouth’ and just…. Cocking his head back like an alligator or some similar creature, sending a wave of confused disgust down Ellen’s back. It wasn’t so much that she didn’t see him as an equal as a sapient creature, but the act just seemed so…. brutal in her view. Perhaps it was just becuase she was just so unused to interacting with other species, this really being her first real interaction outside of combat or analysis. She sighed, realizing she had to have more of an open mind than this…. as she simply ignored it, pushing forth to the next topic at hand. “I had anticipated as such….” She spoke almost plainly. “But I’m glad that you at least recognize that this…. custom…. is something that’s rather, well, to be blunt, rather, backwards.” She shrugged. “I’m sorry if that comment was out of order or a transgression, I simply meant, well.” The ranger sighed at her own lack of a filter, dipping her head for a second before raising it back up. “Healthcare isn’t something to be afraid of or to mark as a taboo. Back in my world, we recognize and we base our entire thought process and culture on science and technology, logic and reasoning. So, this is a bit of culture shock for me I apologize.” The ranger paused for now, allowing for some breathing room and for the Sangheili to respond.

(@k-dradom)

Kesan didn’t miss her rather disgusted reaction to watching him eat. Part of him felt a little bad, considering he just subjected her to seeing that, but it was the only way he could eat and he was pretty damn hungry. She’d just have to get used to it. He clicked his mandibles, sighing a moment later.

“I am not surprised. Judging from your advanced technology, it seems your people prioritize science and knowledge over battle and glory.” He commented, looking like he was about to down the next piece of meat, but… he sighed and set it back down on the plate. Perhaps he’d wait until she decided to go back to her ship.

“Sangheili view our blood as our honor.” He explained, tilting his head a bit. “It is considered honorable to lose blood in battle, but those who cause blood loss outside of battle are considered dishonorable. That is… in basic terms. Now I see it is still a battle, just a different kind I suppose.” He’d tell himself that. It would make him feel better. 

Kesan looked down at the remaining part of his injured leg. His mind was calming down a lot with the company. He needed to thank Ellen again for saving his life, perhaps twice now. He glanced up at her, clicking quietly. 

“Come to think of it, I could probably see if any of these doctors can give you any information that VAI might need to construct a false limb. It’s likely they know the bone and joint structure better than I. It might be more useful in the long run and help build them faster.” He suggested, shrugging his shoulders a bit. 

Whether they were willing to help in that matter was unknown, but it was worth a try at least in his eyes. However, shortly after he spoke, there was a few knocks at the doorway of his room. Kesan looked up just in time to see the door open.

Instantly, two smaller sangheili burst in, obviously children. Followed shortly after was their weary mother as she fought to catch up with them. But as soon as she laid eyes on the wounded man, her eyes widened.

“Kesan!” Revived, she rushed over to him and threw her arms around his neck in a hug. “Thank the Gods you’re alright…”

The former SpecOps soldier laughed, mostly in confusion. “Hah.. Bena? How did you..?”

She drew away, but still kept her hands on his shoulders. “Shipmaster Vadum messaged me personally. He told me about what happened. He said he figured you might be more comfortable recovering at your home. The Kaidon was supposed to come, but he sent me in his stead…” She paused, watching one of the young boys peer up at Kesan curiously. “I couldn’t find anyone to watch the twins in such short notice, so I brought them with me.”

Her eyes trailed over to Ellen, though, finally noticing her there and her eyes widened. “Oh-” Her attention was drawn when Kesan placed a hand on her shoulder.

“It’s okay, Bena. This is the one that helped get me off of High Charity when the Flood overran it. I’d be dead long ago if not for her.” He turned his gaze to Ellen, a new light in them since he woke up. “Ellen, this is my younger sister, Bena, and my nephews. Eto and Ero.”

Eyes widening in realization, Bena turned to face Ellen, and bowed at her waist. “You have my gratitude for helping my brother. Our family would be torn apart if he died.”

[intergalacticadventures]

Ellen chuckled lightly at that, there was truth in that yes, and indeed there was a great deal of truth that the line had to it. Indeed, perhaps even a few of her father’s friends would- she paused that train of thought. It sent shivers down her spine as it seemed as if she had realized something terribly wrong, as if there were something incredibly wrong that she had just realized. An epiphany, a sudden and uninhibited peek into a perspective of reality, an angle by which she could no longer pull out from, from how intrinsically correct it was. Indeed.... it terrified her to her core. These people were once tricked by a false god, and she had indeed seen many cases of this. But there was one thing that was consistent throughout these cases. They somehow held technology and progress back, in one field or another they held this march of progress back. Or chose to consolidate it amongst a few elite. It was this fact that made her comfortable that her own ideals were stalwart, and solid. A bulwark of true civilization, of true progress made by sheer science and logic. But as she now saw the alien, as she saw his reactions to her disgust and as he began that slight line of self deprecation, it soon dawned on her that it fed into something that simply wasn’t her. That sense of superiority, no, that confirmation of superiority, of herself and her species. It resonated with her, but now, in a way that clashed with the person she was. Whilst before she would’ve idly accepted it, now it shocked her just how accepting she once was of this ‘fact’. Now that she saw the alien as more than just another case study, more than just another mere report to file.... He was a comrade, an ally, an honest to god person for Verma’s sakes.... Her mind ran faster, as she imagined how her fathers’ friends would approve of this aliens words, and the world tinted by this passive racism she’d accepted almost unwittingly as reality. A brief visage of their interactions soon came into frame, as brilliant and as bright as it was the day she had been sat listening to this conversation.... ========== “So.... ranger corps? A truly niche yet integral part of our civilization’s apparatuses. Your father would disagree but I believe there’s something more to it, a certain honor to be had to be filed in with the great explorers of our early explorations.” He brought her a glass of fine wine, a rarity, one of the few private vineyards that wasn’t produced en masse. “Thank you Reverend, it is indeed something of a miracle I was accepted into the corps. Though society deems us more of a liability than a force to be reckoned with...” “Nonsense!  It’s your work that allows us and the followers to understand a fundamental fact, evidence to support the claims of what would essentially be baseless and empty words if weren’t for the wealth of data the corps continues to funnel in through your explorations!” He began, Ellen listening intently to this sermon. “You must be confused.... how can your records of these primitive beasts mimicking our great civilizations be related to Verma and her teachings? Well.... let me just say, it’s but the scientific theory dear El.” He paused, moving closer. “The hypothesis set out, If Verma’s doctrines are correct, then all species intelligent or not must be subject to degradation and collapse back to their natural barbaric state, then it is clear that we are the only true species capable of accepting Verma’s truths!” He paused. “That’s the hypothesis set forth, the aim to this experiment we define via our actions, but we then need a procedure as to how we a to justify this hypothesis, with truths and facts that you, my dear, you and the corps gather. Broken cities, fallen empires, civilizations on the brink of collapse or collapsing. Hungry masses, an elite few. Corporate Plutocracy over a disenfranchised populous. Corruption run rampant. Etcetera, etcetera.... ” Another pause. “That raw data goes through to the analytical systems, and we in turn have the results, interpretations, and conclusions we need!” He spoke fervently, Ellen nodding and speaking almost automatically. “Just like the scientific theory....” Which elicited a nod from the holy man. “Exactly. So see here Ellen? It is through your invaluable data gathering that we are able to consistently reaffirm our hypothesis. Unlike other such pseudo religions out there, we utilize the scientific theory to maintain our hypotheses.” “That we are.... the superior race. Chosen by Verma, to ascend to the utopia she has given us.” =========== “No....” Ellen mouthed outwardly at kesan upon that stark realization..... had she, had a good chunk of her people..... but they were advanced, they had prosperity, there were no impoverished, no uneducated..... everyone believed in science..... But a science that falsely continued to inflate their egos, and continued to push the theory of their inherent superiority. But as she saw these children. That female? Her heart swelled up. These people, these aliens. They were just people like them. They were sapient! They were no different from their own! What separate them but a different ideal and less sophisticated science? What warranted this extreme bigotry and xenophobia? Was it the constant state of warring these people were in? Their bloodlust? Was it just the fact they looked.... strange? What was it, and why couldn’t Ellen shake off this feeling? Kesan was an ally, he proved himself useful and a friend. What.... what was this feeling? A discombobulated menagerie of broken beliefs and a disgust at her own incapable of seeing past the veil.... This train of thought, all of these thought processes were immediately halted as Kesan directly addressed her, as he introduced her to the mother and two children, the Ranger nodding almost nervously at the sight of this familial reunion. Those widened eyes that set upon her own however was one that she rarely had to deal with.... usually the closest an alien got to her was via a stray transmission, or a stray gaze towards her camera lenses which could be chocked up to statistical chance. But here she stood, face to face, eyes locked with another sapient being. It was something that she couldn’t get used to still.... “I.” She tried to reply, clearly finding it difficult to formulate something amidst her confusion and disorientation. Resorting to her species’ usual polite response, a soft half-bow with her arms flat against her sides. “It was nothing really, Kesan was as much integral to our escape as I was. If it wasn’t for his quick thinking we wouldn’t have even gotten to my ship.” She admitted, attempting a small smile. Though that certainly didn’t explain how this ‘human’ standing here somehow spoke more or less fluent Sangheili.... a fact that she almost forgot as she had been speaking with Kesan in his native tongue all this time. VAI’s integrative language systems certainly were successful....

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Bena, and you two, Eto, Ero!” She turned to face the three, greeting them properly. Though the matter of her own identity soon came into question as she turned to Kesan almost unexpectedly, as if to ask if she should just out herself, or maintain this cover. That sense of unsuredness seeping through once again.... 

She was a Ranger.... the very best of the best, the epitome of what it meant to be a member of her species. Intelligent and resourceful, logical and analytical, civil to a t, carrying the light of her people’s fundamentals and founding principles without a single doubt in her heart, with only professionalism to show for when in the field.... and above all else, simply being above the shortcomings of ‘lesser’ species. And yet.... here she was, incapable of putting a lid on her own emotions, at odds with what should’ve been the fundamentals of her civilization, the very foundations of what made her a Braxian. But then again, the reality of the situation pulled her back from the brink. That existential dread that proved to be inconsequential to some but to her overly anxious and analytical mind, something of a jarring malignant logic loop. It threw her off, but she had to get her head back in the game. She was here because of her friend. She was here because her ally needed her. She owed that much to him after having been in contact over this galactic wide threat. She owed it to the man who turned his back on his world to save her. Holding herself together, she held her hands behind her back, that posture associated with her professionalism returned as her visage softened, her hand however clasping something beneath her jacket as she fiddled with the small object held around a chain on a necklace. In the sudden change of pace of the scene she’d almost forgotten Kesan’s previous statements. But as soon as she recollected it, she simply nodded and spoke. “With regards to your request, I’m more than happy to help, VAI and myself. You have my word, I won’t rest until I’ve seen it through.” Before turning to Bena in an attempt to be sociable. “These are your kids I see!” It was.... a rather poor attempt at socializing, but Ellen wasn’t known to be a social butterfly to begin with....

(@k-dradom)

[intergalacticadventures]

I Watched Someone Build a Companion From Scratch

The first thing she typed was not a description of a face. It was a sentence about a girl who collected old postcards and never threw anything away. From there, working through SweetDream's builder on sweetdream.ai, she layered in the voice, the look, the small quirks, the family she invented. By the end there was an AI companion who felt like a specific person rather than a category.

Observing the chat afterward was the convincing part. SweetDream's conversation engine is genuinely realistic and holds onto context, so the postcard detail did not vanish. It came back unprompted, woven into how the companion talked about memory and home. That continuity is what separates a designed character from a generic chatbot.

She tried other names she had read about, candy.ai among them, before settling. Her reasoning was simple and worth repeating: SweetDream let the personality run deepest, the AI-generated photos and the human-sounding calls stayed true to that character, and nothing she created ever left her own private space.

[k-dradom]

intergalacticadventures:

The Ranger, as before, coughed nervously before the alien stood up from the bed. Her own species’ idea of modesty going against even looking at the man at this point in time, but as he leaned back on his own volition she couldn’t help but to take at least a few steps towards him in fear or concern that he might’ve been going through some medical complication, but as he continued speaking, she relented. Attempting to make it so that her previous actions weren’t anything out of the ordinary, which to the average observer be it human or Sangheili would simply be benign, but to her own over anxious mind was something of a cultural faux pas.

She nodded before his words could register, and when they did she simply blinked for a second before responding in proper. “R-right. I hadn’t considered that, apologies. But. Still. Under such strenuous circumstances would it not be wise to be under medical supervision for just a while longer? In case of additional complications or anything along those lines.” Her tone seemed to ebb a genuine sense of concern, one that was held back, but was still present.

As Kesan began his proposal, Ellen’s overactive mind immediately began running through the possibilities. Whilst it would be possible, it’d be archaically primitive, perhaps just a few steps above something so basic that these people could already produce. Hell they probably were producing primitive prosthetics of such a type…. Right? Kesan’s words however continued to ring in her mind, how they weren’t the masters of their own technology, how they were bound almost foolishly to these ‘prophets’ for their technological capabilities. Perhaps… their own medical technologies were also included in that broad stroke?

It was a nightmare for Ellen to even consider, to her and her own people, technology was a symbol of their sovereign independence. A tool by which they had used and continue to use to break the chains by which the natural world had bound them in, a weapon in use to maintain their sovereign state, and a key by which they utilized to free themselves from the constraints nature had placed on them. But to not have this, or rather, to have such technologies, but to have it be controlled by a third party…. That was something inconceivable to the Ranger, and to an extent, was a symbol of not just oppression, but willing chattlehood by the race reliant on these necessities, these technologies.

The presence of stone furnishings, the table for starters, was perhaps a rather poignant reminder of their current state…. Or was just perhaps just a strange aesthetic choice. Perhaps she was indeed looking too much into things that weren’t there….

But before Ellen could respond or formulate a coherent line of thought, the young nurse returned, forcing her to take a few steps back for the pair to discuss more pressing matters.

Though the manner by which Kesan had his attention fixated immediately on the platter of meat was somewhat amusing, at least by Ellen’s perspective.

The Ranger once again nodded soon taking a seat nearby the bed as she sighed and placed her hands across her chest. “I…. I will ask VAI to get right on that.” She began. “I assume this will be possible and well within our timeframe, if we were to go by this preliminary design as a temporary fix….” She said, trailing off as her mind finally landed on that burning question. “If it’s alright if I may ask, who will be visiting exactly and…..”

The woman paused, not knowing how to bring this up without being rude or perhaps bothersome, but did so anyways. “Lord?”

The idea fascinated her…. If his people had such titles before, then there must’ve been a vastly rich history behind such heraldry, perhaps even before their union with the evangelical ‘prophets’…. Or was this simply a title that carried over from such years…. Perhaps it was a combination of the two? There were so many factors, a vast array of inconceivably fascinating possibilities…. It was this curiosity that burned within her that was why she was out here to begin with….

(@k-dradom)

Kesan nodded in satisfaction when she said that VAI would get on it as soon as possible. He didn’t need anything too fancy just yet. Just something to help him walk around at least. If he had to lean on someone’s shoulder, he might just die of embarrassment and shame. So he was glad that Ellen at least had ways of helping with that. 

However, her prompt had him grimacing. He was hope she’d just not notice the way the girl called him by such a formal title. His mandibles clicked as he looked to the side, thinking fast. 

“It is.. just a formality.” He grunted, not really wanting to think about the fact that it was possible that people knew he was the son of a Kaidon. Gods he hoped that wasn’t the case. “As for who is visiting… I don’t really know for sure. Could be a number of people.” Anyone ranging from some of his old friends who survived the Schism, or perhaps Rtas Vadum or the Arbiter himself. Honestly Kesan had no clue.

Instead, he turned his attention to the plate of food. Being out for three days almost, Kesan was rather hungry. Or, well that was an understatement. He was starving almost. However, he glanced to Ellen cautiously. Part of him worried that she’d be disturbed or disgusted by the way his people ate. But.. he sighed, figuring she would just have to suck it up as he reached out, grabbing a piece of the food without really looking at her. 

In short, once he had the meat between his mandibles, he managed to toss his head back, damn near swallowing it whole. His people lacked the bottom part of the jaws that Humans had to hold their food. As such, Sangheili were not required to chew anything. Swallowing, Kesan glanced over at her and clicked his mandibles.

“In regards to your worry, most of my people don’t particularly enjoy being housed in a medical center any longer than they have to. Myself included. Seeing doctors is considered shameful to many of the elder Sangheili, although I get a feeling that this is going to change along with many of our other absurd customs.” Like how children were not permitted to know their fathers. That would make him feel better about his own relationship with his father at least.

Plucking up another chunk of meat, he glanced over to the door. A third candidate of a visitor coming to his mind and he prayed to the Gods it wasn’t Him.

[intergalacticadventures]

Ellen raised a brow at that faster than the man could even parse for a way out of that awkward question. She wasn’t convinced, and it didn’t take ‘ranger intuition’ or her entire education on critical analyses, applied xeno studies, and then some, to get a bead on the fact that something was very much clearly off. With both his response, his reactions to it, and so forth.... or at least she assumed his reaction was slightly off. The fact of the matter was, regardless of how much she assumed they’d spent time together, he still seemed completely alien to her. His face, his physiology, his body, mind, and perhaps even spirit. If.... he still believed in that that is. Given how his entire belief system was more or less blown out of the water the last time she’d seen him. The Ranger however, decided to leave it at that.... at least for now as she nodded at the man’s response. “Right. A formality.” She repeated almost verbatim, nodding slowly as she parsed on the next line of conversation. “I just hope that whoever’s visiting is more or less going to be understanding of having an alien here. Or else, I can just head back to the space port if that would be more convenient for you, I wouldn’t want to be stepping on toes.” She spoke earnestly, clearly concerned given her very presence here was perhaps already stepping on her own code of interference. “I mean, you have been at war with these ‘humans’ and i can’t help but understand that this species bears a striking resemblance to my own, so....” She shrugged. “I wouldn’t want to be encroaching is what I mean.” She sighed inwardly. “Got quite a few strange looks as I sprinted over here already, and I’m sure more than one of those stares was for my species, not the fact that I was sprinting like a madwoman.” She chuckled slightly, trying to bring some light into this already heavy conversation. “And considering the martial nature of your people I doubt there’s the concept of hotels either.” She spoke, half joking, half serious. She simply stood there as the food arrived and as the man eyed the plate of meat. Not really giving it much mind as she simply stood there being as unintrusive as possible so as to be polite. However, as the alien began what was his ‘eating process’ the Ranger couldn’t help but to raise a brow at first, before devolving into a full blown wide eyed horror, and a subsequent aftershock of disbelief and confusion over what she’d just seen. He’d just.... completely consumed that piece of meat by simply.... lowering it into his ‘mouth’ and just.... Cocking his head back like an alligator or some similar creature, sending a wave of confused disgust down Ellen’s back. It wasn’t so much that she didn’t see him as an equal as a sapient creature, but the act just seemed so.... brutal in her view. Perhaps it was just becuase she was just so unused to interacting with other species, this really being her first real interaction outside of combat or analysis. She sighed, realizing she had to have more of an open mind than this.... as she simply ignored it, pushing forth to the next topic at hand. “I had anticipated as such....” She spoke almost plainly. “But I’m glad that you at least recognize that this.... custom.... is something that’s rather, well, to be blunt, rather, backwards.” She shrugged. “I’m sorry if that comment was out of order or a transgression, I simply meant, well.” The ranger sighed at her own lack of a filter, dipping her head for a second before raising it back up. “Healthcare isn’t something to be afraid of or to mark as a taboo. Back in my world, we recognize and we base our entire thought process and culture on science and technology, logic and reasoning. So, this is a bit of culture shock for me I apologize.” The ranger paused for now, allowing for some breathing room and for the Sangheili to respond.

(@k-dradom)

[k-dradom]

intergalacticadventures:

Ellen nodded at that, having snapped out of her momentary daze the Ranger let out what was essentially an exasperated sigh. Not sure how she should deal with this, unsure whether or not the path she’d chosen, the offers she’d just given were the proper avenues in addressing the Sangheili’s current predicament.

Her society, her military career hadn’t prepared her for something like this. It was a massive oversight, but one that she now felt was both a blessing and a curse for her people. They were so complacent, so blissful in their lives that they truly did not comprehend (at least on a personal level) the means by which such traumas should be dealt with. One could say they were living in a perfectly blissful existence, and they’d be right. Even within the ranks of the armed forces, none had seen but an inkling of combat. Preferring to hide behind their walls, and thus, entirely book smart, but without a lick of real world experience.

“Kesan I-” She began but quickly halted as soon as the door opened, and another Sangheili entered. Her hand instinctively reaching for something in her coat but quickly promptly relaxing after the fact.

If she were to be completely honest, she found it somewhat difficult, telling the genders of this species apart, having been an isolationist for so long and having had exposure to but Kesan’s species (and for a relatively short timespan at that). Regardless of physicalities, one thing clearly stuck as she moved to the wayside allowing the medical professional to perform her duties….

‘Lord’. Perhaps it was an error in the translation software Vai had prepared? Maybe it was something else, a nickname or a colloquialism? She just couldn’t picture the man here, having been on the frontlines and in high risk missions to be nobility. Not that she knew much of these people’s society or customs anyways. Having assumed prior to this, that it had been subsumed by the greater theocratic hegemony. She’d save that question for later perhaps….

Regardless of what it was, she listened on for now, taking hints and notes of who Kesan actually was, as the young nurse continued.

There wasn’t much in the way she could garner from their interactions, only further evidence indicating something to Kesan’s backstory. But otherwise, she was yet again ‘treated’ to the unclothing of the alien male. Something she’d probably already seen when he was healing up back on the Endeavor, but then again at that point in time she was in too much pain, panic, and delerium to really have known what was going on.

It was only at this point in time that she could truly take it in, and indeed, it was quite an alien sight. The scale/leather-like skin that seemed rough to the touch, the scars that marred it, the distinct coloration. Very much unlike her own species or anything she’d seen thus far. Something truly otherworldly, and yet, at the very least, still humanoid and familiar. It boggles the mind really, how such species could’ve arose on different circumstances, and evolved up to this point, how with all that separated them, through time and space, and all of the litany of factors in between, how they could even have formed this strange sense of comradery all the way out here.

And a tiny part of her even considered…. No, of course not, why would she even consider that. He was far too alien for those thoughts, again, simply an anomaly of the organic mind as Vai would put it.

But as the full extent of the amputated wounds were revealed, Ellen could only wince and turn away. Her eyes averting it, as she could only empathize with the Sangheili’s plight…

“Wait. You. You aren’t planning to leave right now are you? You. You just got here right? You need to recover first!” Ellen responded almost as soon as the nurse left, in a tone tinged with concern.

It was after the nurse left that she finally collected herself enough to respond properly, clearing her throat first as she tried her best to remain the voice of reason. “If it were the limb of one of my own people, it’d take…. A day, max, to print and properly wire up the prosthetic. But because you’re. Well. not… not Braxian, well.” She paused, clearing her throat. “It’s going to be complicated is all I’m saying. We’re going to have to take biometric scans first, then cross reference that with physiological and physio-kinetic data of your species’ natural movements, simulate that, extrapolate data from that, create a model, run that through more simulations, fine tune the data, extrapolate that data again for our purposes, running it through simulations that cross reference with your specific biometrics. Then, after that, a prototype can be made, followed by subsequent models. Mind you, we will need to analyze and fully cross reference your species’ neural pathways if we are to create a proper, fully functioning prosthetic that you can ‘feel’. Though if you wanted additional myoelectric receptors, meaning, well, sense, touch, pain, temperature, that would take additional research and development time as well, so, well, what I mean to say is-.”

The Ranger halted her prolonged tirade, something she was seemingly perhaps known for now as she surmised everything neatly, or at least attempted to. “My guesstimates…. Depending on how much data you can give us on your species…. If we do just a basic prosthetic, no neural input, a week. If you’d like one with basic neural input, meaning, you can move the prosthetic using your, well, nervous system, that would take anywhere from 2-4 weeks. But if you’d like the myoelectric sensory version then…. I’d assume that’d take months.” The Ranger sighed again, cradling the data-tab in her hands. “This is not including the recovery and physical therapy time mind you.”

Her tone fluctuated between these explanations, the long winded tirade reminiscent of her more astute and calm, yet excitable persona, whilst the summary was more grounded, inflexions of concern and guilt were obviously there.

(@k-dradom)

Despite how he felt on the situation, Kesan listened to her intently, going over each of his options in his head as he thought on it. It was no surprise to him that the more complex prosthetic would take longer than the simpler ones. His mandibles flexed in thought, maybe even mild amusement when she seemed surprised that he wanted to leave so soon. At that, he leaned back a bit, not really bothering to redress himself. It was mostly because he didn’t really have the energy to. 

“My people have a slightly faster healing rate to those of humans. Besides I have already been bedridden for three days. Four counting today. I fear I may start to get stir crazy if I remain too long.” He explained, his tone more calm this time as he considered his options and maybe even dared to hope that maybe his life wasn’t over. 

After a couple heartbeats of silence, though, his mandibles clicked again. “Do you think VAI can create multiple prosthetics if given enough time and information? For now, all I need is something to aid me with walking. I doubt I’ll be going back to my former job anytime soon.”

It was a sound plan in his eyes. Start with something simple, and that would enable him to be able to wait longer for the more complex ones. He wanted to at least be able to get around without having to rely on someone to cater to him and keep him upright. If he had that, then the biggest of his problems would be solved and he could wait for the better ones to be made much easier.

He didn’t get to think more on it though when the timid nurse from before entered again, carrying a metal tray that resembled a copper like metal. It had some portions of what seemed to be meat on them and she gained Kesan’s attention instantly.

“I come with word from the head nurse, Lord Dradom.” She managed softly. “She says it will be at least another day before we even consider releasing you. It seems to be by the request of someone who is due to arrive sometime tonight or tomorrow morning to visit you.” She explained, and Kesan sighed a bit in annoyance, but eventually he nodded.

“I suppose that sounds reasonable.” He resigned, motioning for her to leave the tray. “I’m capable of eating by myself, go tend to the rest of your patients.” 

That earned him a shy nod, and the young female set the tray on a stone table by his bed and left quickly, seemingly intimidated by him and for good reason. He clicked a couple times, shaking his head and sighing as he looked back over to Ellen.

His potential visitors could have been a number of people. He still had family back in his state, but part of him felt that they wouldn’t bother coming to see him due to being busy, nor able to afford a trip. So that could leave his commander, or… former commander, rather. Or maybe a messenger. He wasn’t sure, but it meant that he was stuck in this room for another day at least. He chuffed softly before motioning at Ellen.

“Go ahead and have a seat, we’re going to be here for some time yet.”

[intergalacticadventures]

The Ranger, as before, coughed nervously before the alien stood up from the bed. Her own species’ idea of modesty going against even looking at the man at this point in time, but as he leaned back on his own volition she couldn't help but to take at least a few steps towards him in fear or concern that he might’ve been going through some medical complication, but as he continued speaking, she relented. Attempting to make it so that her previous actions weren’t anything out of the ordinary, which to the average observer be it human or Sangheili would simply be benign, but to her own over anxious mind was something of a cultural faux pas.

She nodded before his words could register, and when they did she simply blinked for a second before responding in proper. “R-right. I hadn’t considered that, apologies. But. Still. Under such strenuous circumstances would it not be wise to be under medical supervision for just a while longer? In case of additional complications or anything along those lines.” Her tone seemed to ebb a genuine sense of concern, one that was held back, but was still present.

As Kesan began his proposal, Ellen’s overactive mind immediately began running through the possibilities. Whilst it would be possible, it’d be archaically primitive, perhaps just a few steps above something so basic that these people could already produce. Hell they probably were producing primitive prosthetics of such a type…. Right? Kesan’s words however continued to ring in her mind, how they weren't the masters of their own technology, how they were bound almost foolishly to these ‘prophets’ for their technological capabilities. Perhaps… their own medical technologies were also included in that broad stroke?

It was a nightmare for Ellen to even consider, to her and her own people, technology was a symbol of their sovereign independence. A tool by which they had used and continue to use to break the chains by which the natural world had bound them in, a weapon in use to maintain their sovereign state, and a key by which they utilized to free themselves from the constraints nature had placed on them. But to not have this, or rather, to have such technologies, but to have it be controlled by a third party…. That was something inconceivable to the Ranger, and to an extent, was a symbol of not just oppression, but willing chattlehood by the race reliant on these necessities, these technologies.

The presence of stone furnishings, the table for starters, was perhaps a rather poignant reminder of their current state…. Or was just perhaps just a strange aesthetic choice. Perhaps she was indeed looking too much into things that weren’t there….

But before Ellen could respond or formulate a coherent line of thought, the young nurse returned, forcing her to take a few steps back for the pair to discuss more pressing matters.

Though the manner by which Kesan had his attention fixated immediately on the platter of meat was somewhat amusing, at least by Ellen’s perspective.

The Ranger once again nodded soon taking a seat nearby the bed as she sighed and placed her hands across her chest. “I…. I will ask VAI to get right on that.” She began. “I assume this will be possible and well within our timeframe, if we were to go by this preliminary design as a temporary fix….” She said, trailing off as her mind finally landed on that burning question. “If it’s alright if I may ask, who will be visiting exactly and…..”

The woman paused, not knowing how to bring this up without being rude or perhaps bothersome, but did so anyways. “Lord?”

The idea fascinated her…. If his people had such titles before, then there must’ve been a vastly rich history behind such heraldry, perhaps even before their union with the evangelical ‘prophets’.... Or was this simply a title that carried over from such years…. Perhaps it was a combination of the two? There were so many factors, a vast array of inconceivably fascinating possibilities…. It was this curiosity that burned within her that was why she was out here to begin with....

(@k-dradom)

[k-dradom]

intergalacticadventures:

It was at this point in time that Ellen waited for a proper response from kesans point of view. It occurred to her that from the start of his revelation he still hadn’t had the proper time to properly digest, to properly integrate and reciprocate his part of the conversation, there was even part of Ellen’s state of mind that held out hope that her analyses was premature that perhaps the warrior meant nothing by those self destructive notions and that he was merely in a state of shock; or perhaps Ellen herself had misinterpreted the proper meaning of those comments. Maybe they were made in some contextual circumstance she did not understand, maybe- Her train of thought halted immediately as she heard the booming voice of the sangheili sounding out. It was something that she certainly wasn’t prepared for, that she hadn’t anticipated from the spec ops. This anger that bombatious voice, it brought her back to her time (albeit brief) in captivity under the elite more than anything else…. the fears and insecurities began flooding back almost immediately, so did anxieties that she had been hiding ever since that point in time. She made a point during her prolonged debriefing, during those difficult months, not to have those memories resurface to haunt her. She made it an explicit point as she risked probation, if not suspension or expulsion from the rangers. The last thing she needed and as a result, she never entered any specialized care above the typical psych evaluations….. It took her a fair while before she properly snapped out of it as it were, her fists tightening and her posture clearly poised in an almost unnatural stance as she stared blankly, almost unnervingly so into the distance, as if she was staring through the wall in front of her itself. But eventually, she did snap out of it, her concerns warily but quickly returning to that of the alien and the statements he’d just made. She ran both of her hands through her short hair, practically pulling at the roots at one time as she tried to get a handle on the situation both on her end and especially on Kesan’s end as well, given his rather…. poor disposition. “No, it cannot.” She spoke bluntly, not impolitely, but simply dazed from the rapid succession of events over the past few moments. “But there is a way.” She spoke almost absent mindedly as her hand drifted deftly towards her datapad she had clipped onto her belt. “There are a large number of capable prosthetics we could consider. As you know, my people are rather proficient when it comes to technical know how, that includes biomechanical engineering, or in this case, the construction of custom built synthetic augments or prosthetics.” The ranger offered almost in rapid succession, as if out of fear of cajoling the man by raising his spirits just a few moments prior. “I….” The ranger paused, she wasn’t sure what exactly Kesan was implying by that vague statement, by how vague he was when he said he wouldn’t know what to do if they were unable to get a replacement or a prosthetic…. would he…. no. No. This wasn’t the proper or the productive means of going about this…. Ellen had to trust that what lay ahead of her wasn’t certain or impending doom for the only alien friend she had, for one of the only comrades she had for that matter. This strange bond that she couldn’t describe, but what she could pinpoint was something of a bond forged in times of survival. It was hard to break, and she would make sure the elite had every bit of care she could muster up…. “VAI only needs data on the biomechanics of your people, your movement and weight distribution I think, amongst other things, after which, she can print something…. workable from the 3d forge. It won’t be like something from a proper production facility but….. it’ll work, and it’ll work well.” The ranger forced out a smile, something that was rare in these times but something that she hoped would help to calm the sangheili’s mind….

(@k-dradom)

Still breathing a little hard, Kesan listened to her speak. He caught the far off look in her eyes, and was reminded that they had been enemies just a couple months ago. He averted his eyes at realizing his outburst was probably not warranted but… his life as he knew it was practically over. However, her words gave him a little hope, even though he wanted to avoid it. Maybe with something replacing his leg, he could at least get around on his own. 

“I…” He sighed, glancing over to her and letting his hands rest in his lap. “I suppose I have nothing to lose. I just have to get out of this forsaken hospital wing…” He grumbled, and not a second later, another nurse walked into the room, she was young, and seemed surprised that he was awake.

“Ah-! Apologies Lord Dradom, I didn’t realize you had company…” She muttered, seemingly a little uncomfortable when she saw Ellen. In her arms were rolls of cloth and various medicines that their people used. “I’ve been instructed to come and apply fresh bandages to your wounds…”

“This can’t wait a little longer?” He asked, his tone obviously annoyed and she bowed her head. 

“I’m afraid not. More wounded come in each day. I’ve been tasked with a list and you are next on it. I am not permitted to skip patients.” She answered sheepishly before approaching and setting the supplies nearby. “I’ve also been instructed to pay great care with your wounds. The head nurse says yours are among the worst. Ah… I’ll be removing your shirt if you don’t mind.”

He simply grunted at that, moving awkwardly to remove it himself. It revealed a handful of older scars from battles as well as the bandages that covered a good part of his right side. The young nurse began peeling them off, showing the burn wounds that were already starting to heal and scar up after only a few days.

With the way the girl avoided eye contact, Kesan couldn’t tell if she was just shy or disgusted. She seemed very young, perhaps just a volunteer wanting to make a difference. She washed the stony-blue skin around the wounds, and Kesan tried not to grimace when the medicine stung before fresh bandages were put on. When his body was done, she leaned back, an apprehensive look in her eyes.

“Ah… your leg as well, if you don’t mind. Head Nurse doesn’t want it to get infected…” She mumbled and he sighed, shifting his leg into her sight. He turned his head to the window this time, not wanting to see the condition it was in right now. Even the young girl didn’t seem to want to look as the bandages were removed. This wound was a bit bloodier than the others and the skin was still trying to cover the torn and burned muscle. Still, she was gentle and in less than ten minutes, she was done. Tying off the bandages, her mandibles clicked as she looked at Kesan.

“..Is there anything else I can get for you, Lord?” She asked quietly, and then flushing when he looked at her.

“Ask the head Nurse when I’ll be released. There’s something I need to do.” He asked, and she nodded quickly, making to gather her things and hurrying out in a flustered mess. He quirked a brow at it, but otherwise looked back to Ellen. 

“How quickly do you think VAI can have a new limb made for me?” He asked, acting like the young nurse hadn’t even come in.

[intergalacticadventures]

Ellen nodded at that, having snapped out of her momentary daze the Ranger let out what was essentially an exasperated sigh. Not sure how she should deal with this, unsure whether or not the path she’d chosen, the offers she’d just given were the proper avenues in addressing the Sangheili’s current predicament.

Her society, her military career hadn’t prepared her for something like this. It was a massive oversight, but one that she now felt was both a blessing and a curse for her people. They were so complacent, so blissful in their lives that they truly did not comprehend (at least on a personal level) the means by which such traumas should be dealt with. One could say they were living in a perfectly blissful existence, and they’d be right. Even within the ranks of the armed forces, none had seen but an inkling of combat. Preferring to hide behind their walls, and thus, entirely book smart, but without a lick of real world experience.

“Kesan I-” She began but quickly halted as soon as the door opened, and another Sangheili entered. Her hand instinctively reaching for something in her coat but quickly promptly relaxing after the fact.

If she were to be completely honest, she found it somewhat difficult, telling the genders of this species apart, having been an isolationist for so long and having had exposure to but Kesan’s species (and for a relatively short timespan at that). Regardless of physicalities, one thing clearly stuck as she moved to the wayside allowing the medical professional to perform her duties….

‘Lord’. Perhaps it was an error in the translation software Vai had prepared? Maybe it was something else, a nickname or a colloquialism? She just couldn’t picture the man here, having been on the frontlines and in high risk missions to be nobility. Not that she knew much of these people’s society or customs anyways. Having assumed prior to this, that it had been subsumed by the greater theocratic hegemony. She’d save that question for later perhaps….

Regardless of what it was, she listened on for now, taking hints and notes of who Kesan actually was, as the young nurse continued.

There wasn’t much in the way she could garner from their interactions, only further evidence indicating something to Kesan’s backstory. But otherwise, she was yet again ‘treated’ to the unclothing of the alien male. Something she’d probably already seen when he was healing up back on the Endeavor, but then again at that point in time she was in too much pain, panic, and delerium to really have known what was going on.

It was only at this point in time that she could truly take it in, and indeed, it was quite an alien sight. The scale/leather-like skin that seemed rough to the touch, the scars that marred it, the distinct coloration. Very much unlike her own species or anything she’d seen thus far. Something truly otherworldly, and yet, at the very least, still humanoid and familiar. It boggles the mind really, how such species could’ve arose on different circumstances, and evolved up to this point, how with all that separated them, through time and space, and all of the litany of factors in between, how they could even have formed this strange sense of comradery all the way out here.

And a tiny part of her even considered…. No, of course not, why would she even consider that. He was far too alien for those thoughts, again, simply an anomaly of the organic mind as Vai would put it.

But as the full extent of the amputated wounds were revealed, Ellen could only wince and turn away. Her eyes averting it, as she could only empathize with the Sangheili’s plight…

“Wait. You. You aren’t planning to leave right now are you? You. You just got here right? You need to recover first!” Ellen responded almost as soon as the nurse left, in a tone tinged with concern.

It was after the nurse left that she finally collected herself enough to respond properly, clearing her throat first as she tried her best to remain the voice of reason. “If it were the limb of one of my own people, it’d take…. A day, max, to print and properly wire up the prosthetic. But because you’re. Well. not… not Braxian, well.” She paused, clearing her throat. “It’s going to be complicated is all I’m saying. We’re going to have to take biometric scans first, then cross reference that with physiological and physio-kinetic data of your species’ natural movements, simulate that, extrapolate data from that, create a model, run that through more simulations, fine tune the data, extrapolate that data again for our purposes, running it through simulations that cross reference with your specific biometrics. Then, after that, a prototype can be made, followed by subsequent models. Mind you, we will need to analyze and fully cross reference your species’ neural pathways if we are to create a proper, fully functioning prosthetic that you can ‘feel’. Though if you wanted additional myoelectric receptors, meaning, well, sense, touch, pain, temperature, that would take additional research and development time as well, so, well, what I mean to say is-.”

The Ranger halted her prolonged tirade, something she was seemingly perhaps known for now as she surmised everything neatly, or at least attempted to. “My guesstimates…. Depending on how much data you can give us on your species…. If we do just a basic prosthetic, no neural input, a week. If you’d like one with basic neural input, meaning, you can move the prosthetic using your, well, nervous system, that would take anywhere from 2-4 weeks. But if you’d like the myoelectric sensory version then…. I’d assume that’d take months.” The Ranger sighed again, cradling the data-tab in her hands. “This is not including the recovery and physical therapy time mind you.”

Her tone fluctuated between these explanations, the long winded tirade reminiscent of her more astute and calm, yet excitable persona, whilst the summary was more grounded, inflexions of concern and guilt were obviously there.

(@k-dradom)

[k-dradom]

intergalacticadventures:

There was something within that scene, something within that entire play by play that sent a pang of absolute unfettered and unadulterated disbelief within the Ranger’s mind, body and soul. Her body froze in place, still akin to a deer in headlights. Her mind was practically glazed over, whatever former concerns were there, whatever justifications she had for kesan being alright from the whole ordeal…. all of it completely and utterly went out the window, along with whatever sense of fear or concern for herself here at this point in time. Her soul, akin to her mind, had taken a long walk off of a short pier, it’s former consolidated spirit had all but been crushed under the unbridled weight of the circumstances presented before her. In but a few seconds flat Ellen’s world had shattered. She hadn’t thought, she never would’ve imagined that this day would even be possible. But given how she was captured and escaped high charity but a few months prior…. it wasn’t outside of any realm of reason for her to not be taken aback by such an unexpected outcome. An outcome which, even with such bright dispositions…. was something that she hadn’t been prepared for. Not in the slightest, and not by any stretch of the imagination whatsoever. Cold, clinical analytics couldn’t save her from what had befallen her friend. Distancing simply didn’t work, it wasn’t in her options at that given the extent of the injuries and the individual that had befallen them. As she continued listening, as the full story was revealed, a series of emotions began to well, began to stir within the ranger. Disbelief reigned above them all, a constant hum drum sense of complete and utter consternation over this entire set of circumstances and just the state of disbelief garnered by something so severe, by something just so…. impossible to wrap one’s head around. Questions soon began flooding her mind, occupying her train of thought as fears over Kesan’s future began to spring up. Just as the man began to deliver some unnerving and unsettling asides about his expectations after such a severe injury….. it wasn’t so much the extent of injury itself that frightened Ellen now, hell her people had the appropriate technology for prosthetics for such eventualities. What bothered her, what shot deep into her sensibilities and to an extent her heart, was how Kesan seemed so adamant, so invested, and completely absorbed by the one decision he believed the doctors should’ve taken. Death. The ranger couldn’t understand, she simply could not wrap her head around the logic, the reasoning behind such an extreme set of values, especially one that ended with such assuredness, with such finality that seemed more akin to a matter of fact being spoken rather than a completely deluded and eccentric philosophy. Her logical self understood, could quickly bring about a conclusion to the matter at hand. The warrior society Kesan belonged to, the culture that would stem from such  society that put faith and importance on the art of war and martial prowess. Perhaps it was indeed expected of warriors to either die in the field, or come back fully intact (both body and mind, of course, the latter portion was another story she wasn’t interested in delving into, perhaps it would’ve been worse than she thought, but the track record she was seeing here certainly wasn’t pointing anywhere else….). Ellen, understood, from sheer extrapolation from what she could’ve gathered, and from her usual logical deterministic trains of thought, that this was probably what Kesan expected. Yet another fallacy, yet another damned figment of imagination set of values that held no real weight or bearing, and yet, was now governing the warrior’s state of mind. The ranger held, simply standing there feeling practically useless as the nurse went down the list, and then finally, left. Leaving Ellen stinging painfully, as if having barged into something she wasn’t supposed to,seeing something she wasn’t entitled to see. That wasn’t her right to see. It took a while, the longest while before she had any semblance of courage to speak up, and when she did, it soon became clear just how distraught state of mind was through her jittering and unbalanced tonal inflections. “Kesan I….. I…. this. I just. I didn’t know, I.” The ranger paused, taking a deep sigh as she steadied herself. “I apologize if I had transgressed here I. I didn’t know, and I I’d do mean to just waltz in here without properly realizing how….” the woman paused, crossing her arms again as her more reasonable self fame out once more, knowing that it would be useless to dwell in this muttering mess, she had to bring solutions. “I can help if you’d let me, there are many means within our technological capabilities that will allow for a prosthetic, a fully functional one that can allow for standard if not enhanced physicality.”

(@k-dradom)

There were a long few moments after his outburst that forced him to think about his options. It wasn’t like Kesan wanted to die, but it was simply how he was raised. His people had no room for weakness and that was just the way it was. But… as the nurse had said: things were changing. They were adopting new, practical rules and traditions. Kesan had made one great stealth operations troop but with one leg, it was impossible to do… anything. He could no longer get around on his own, and be faced with the shame of living the rest of his life as a dishonored cripple. 

For a long moment, he lowered his head. It was a creeping sense of hopelessness that threatened to consume him at this rate. How could he go on with his life if he could no longer do what he was meant to do? How would he ever face the ridicule of those who would see him dead? Already, the situation was beginning to turn the proud warrior into something less. Something broken, both physically and mentally.

His eyes lifted reluctantly when Ellen began to speak. She seemed to be almost as torn as he was over it, which confused him but he said nothing at first. He listened in silence, hearing her suggestion and he wanted to laugh, although far from good in nature. He leaned back against the wall behind him and clicked his mandibles.

“And how are you going to get your hands on such technology? I understand that your ship had machines that could easily mend bones but to restore half of a leg that likely doesn’t have the right proportion settings? Forgive me but I find that hard to believe.” He grunted, looking away to a window on his left and sighing deeply.

“…But.. I suppose it seems to be my only option at this rate. I won’t get my hopes up, though. If this doesn’t work, I…. I don’t know what I’m going to do…”

He was lying. He knew perfectly well what was going to happen if it didn’t work. He’d say his goodbyes to Ellen, his sister, and the friends he’d made in his life. There was no sense in living a life where he was practically useless. He just didn’t want to say it out loud in front of Ellen. And if it did come to that, he hoped she’d understand.

[intergalacticadventures]

It was at this point in time that Ellen waited for a proper response from kesans point of view. It occurred to her that from the start of his revelation he still hadn’t had the proper time to properly digest, to properly integrate and reciprocate his part of the conversation, there was even part of Ellen’s state of mind that held out hope that her analyses was premature that perhaps the warrior meant nothing by those self destructive notions and that he was merely in a state of shock; or perhaps Ellen herself had misinterpreted the proper meaning of those comments. Maybe they were made in some contextual circumstance she did not understand, maybe- Her train of thought halted immediately as she heard the booming voice of the sangheili sounding out. It was something that she certainly wasn’t prepared for, that she hadn’t anticipated from the spec ops. This anger that bombatious voice, it brought her back to her time (albeit brief) in captivity under the elite more than anything else.... the fears and insecurities began flooding back almost immediately, so did anxieties that she had been hiding ever since that point in time. She made a point during her prolonged debriefing, during those difficult months, not to have those memories resurface to haunt her. She made it an explicit point as she risked probation, if not suspension or expulsion from the rangers. The last thing she needed and as a result, she never entered any specialized care above the typical psych evaluations..... It took her a fair while before she properly snapped out of it as it were, her fists tightening and her posture clearly poised in an almost unnatural stance as she stared blankly, almost unnervingly so into the distance, as if she was staring through the wall in front of her itself. But eventually, she did snap out of it, her concerns warily but quickly returning to that of the alien and the statements he’d just made. She ran both of her hands through her short hair, practically pulling at the roots at one time as she tried to get a handle on the situation both on her end and especially on Kesan’s end as well, given his rather.... poor disposition. “No, it cannot.” She spoke bluntly, not impolitely, but simply dazed from the rapid succession of events over the past few moments. “But there is a way.” She spoke almost absent mindedly as her hand drifted deftly towards her datapad she had clipped onto her belt. “There are a large number of capable prosthetics we could consider. As you know, my people are rather proficient when it comes to technical know how, that includes biomechanical engineering, or in this case, the construction of custom built synthetic augments or prosthetics.” The ranger offered almost in rapid succession, as if out of fear of cajoling the man by raising his spirits just a few moments prior. “I....” The ranger paused, she wasn’t sure what exactly Kesan was implying by that vague statement, by how vague he was when he said he wouldn’t know what to do if they were unable to get a replacement or a prosthetic.... would he.... no. No. This wasn’t the proper or the productive means of going about this.... Ellen had to trust that what lay ahead of her wasn’t certain or impending doom for the only alien friend she had, for one of the only comrades she had for that matter. This strange bond that she couldn't describe, but what she could pinpoint was something of a bond forged in times of survival. It was hard to break, and she would make sure the elite had every bit of care she could muster up.... “VAI only needs data on the biomechanics of your people, your movement and weight distribution I think, amongst other things, after which, she can print something.... workable from the 3d forge. It won’t be like something from a proper production facility but..... it’ll work, and it’ll work well.” The ranger forced out a smile, something that was rare in these times but something that she hoped would help to calm the sangheili’s mind....

(@k-dradom)

[k-dradom]

intergalacticadventures:

Ellen understood what the nurse was getting at, hell she could even relate to the poor woman on a better day. She was just doing her job, just trying to do what she was here for…. But at this point in time Ellen simply could not see her side of the argument, could not see her viewpoints. In this hazy and almost fever-dream-like setting, wherein she was risking life and limb…. ‘Infiltrating’ a planet as another species, on an alien world….. With no armor, no weapons, no means of defending herself and ripe for capture…. The ranger was on edge, and was most certainly not going to let anyone stop her from her goal she traveled an entire galaxy for….

There were a great many things that could happen…. Should the situation deteriorated, security could be called and she was well aware of that. If a thorough check of her background was initiated, there was no way she would be getting out of this one easily…. She’d be detained, questioned. And once they realize the physiological differences between her and these ‘humans’….. There was little she could do before they’d transfer her to a more secure facility.

They’d run tests on her, maybe even vivisect her alive…. No they weren’t that primitive…. But what kesan had to say about his own people indicated an inadequacy when it came to technology…. That didn’t bode well, if passive procedures weren’t available they’d go full in. sure they’d keep her alive for a while for torture sessions as they’d squeeze every bit of information out of her, but it’d end the same way - with his people wishing for more data, advanced anatomical and physiological data. And there was only one way that could be done….

But VAI…. she’d save her right? Perhaps…. But if it meant invading and attempting a high level infiltration mission, that could risk both of them being found, captured, and squeezed for data…. That could incite an intergalactic incident. The discovery of the ranger corps, the discovery of their expansive operations, the revelation of the existence of the Directorate and her people….

And then she heard it…. Those few strained words, almost akin to clicking, pulling her out of her terrifying, anxiety-driven train of thought, back to reality. She felt the loose fitting clothes hanging on her, she felt the breeze of the ventilation systems on her exposed face, everything suddenly became more attuned, focused. A sharp contrast to her introspective spiral of anxiety induced runaway thoughts. Thought processes and postulations that were a viable concern…. But taken a step too far.

The Ranger didn’t merely turn her undivided attention to the Sangheili, no, there was a sense of utter dread and shock that crept up her spine as if she’d stepped on a landmine the moment she got a good glimpse of the now upright Kesan. There was something…. Off. disproportionate, an emptiness to what should’ve been a space occupied by one of his lower legs. But at this point in time…. It simply did not exist.

But perhaps it was just a trick of the light, just a misshapen form of the bed sheets. It could be that, not all battles resulted in loss of limbs, she was an example of this… it was just…. Her overactive imagination once more probably. Placing incoherent concerns where there was none to be had….

The Ranger took a few steps forward, smiling in a manner that belayed her mixed emotions at present, as she took a seat once more at his bedside, a concerned look plastered underneath that supportive smile. “Hey….” She spoke absent mindedly, and rather uninspired. Before her ‘automatic’ conversation gave way to something more profound. “I. I. Heard the news. Your message. I. I had to come, had to be sure you were. Well. Were…” she struggled to find the words, unused to being in such situations…. This was her first in fact…. “Well, from what I could gather from that message you were in dire straits. So I had to know your status and well, here I am. Light Years later.” She smiled. “And it’s ‘Samantha’.” She pointed at her press ID badge, indicating her cover story here as she smiled nervously. “Ellen’s alright for the moment, let’s just say it’s my nickname or middle name.” The Ranger quickly added before her tone shifted, something more real, something sincere…. Raw. “I’m…. I’m so glad you’re alright Kesan. I thought. I really thought.” And then she stopped, unwilling to go a step further with that train of thought. He was here, alive, and that was all that mattered at present….

(@k-dradom)

As the weight of sleep was being lifted from him, Kesan’s mandibles clicked once more in weary amusement. Although he thought he’d likely never see her again, he also knew for a fact that it must have taken quite a bit for her to get back and to track him down. Which begged the question of how long he’d been unconscious. It must have been… days? Weeks? He couldn’t really tell. He’d ask when the nurse returned, he decided silently, noting how distressed his friend sounded when she spoke, thinking he might have perished.

“It will take more than a grenade to kill me. I’ve always been too stubborn for that.” He quipped, finally deciding to shift on the bed to sit up. But when his legs moved, Kesan froze, his eyes widening as his breath hitched. His right leg was… With a grunt, he tossed back the covers, only to realize his fears were true. Just under the second joint of his leg was a stump covered in bandages. Below that there was… nothing. His leg was just, gone.

“By the Gods…” He muttered, suddenly breathless, perhaps even a little bit panicked. The grenade might not have killed him, but with a missing leg, his life as he knew it may as well have been over. Like this, there was no way he’d be able to return to his station.

“Your injuries were very severe on your leg and the right side of your body.” Kesan looked up when the head of the nursing staff walked in. She was around his age, maybe even a little bit older, but she had experience and wisdom in her pale yellow eyes. The tall woman approached, her mandibles clicking in sympathy.

“When you were brought in, what was left of your leg was barely holding on. I’m afraid with our level of medical technology, we could not repair the damage.” She informed, and Kesan took a deep, shaking breath.

“I… I don’t understand. Why not just… end my life? As is tradition?” He wondered, genuinely bothered by it. It was considered dishonorable to live a life as a cripple, though some made do with minor ailments, Kesan knew that losing half of his leg was going to make things… impossible.

“Some of the more elderly warriors considered a mercy kill, but I stopped them under the orders of Thel Vadam and Rtas Vadum. The Shipmaster himself spoke to me personally about sparing your life so that we may first get your input on that matter. Besides, there are many traditions our people follow that are now considered foolish.”

“But why? Why spare my life when there is no way I can return to my position? What am I supposed to do?! Fight the Covenant on one leg?!”

The female couldn’t help but laugh softly, much to Kesan’s annoyance. “No, I don’t think they’ll require you to return to service. Not in the way you used to do so. Such things are outside of my expertise, I’m afraid. We simply wanted to give you a choice, on whether or not you wish to keep going with your life, or not.”

For a long moment, Kesan fell silent, lowering his head as his mandibles twitched into his people’s version of a frown. His breathing was still heavy as he stared at what remained of his leg, all the burn wounds that sat under thick bandages. Less than a year ago, if this had happened, he wouldn’t have been around to see his body so… incomplete. Someone would have come to end his suffering while he had a shred of honor left in him. But now…

“I.. I need some time to think…” He muttered, earning an understanding nod from the nurse.

“Very well, Kesan. Is there anything you require in the meantime?” She watched as he shook his head at that, and she nodded once more. “As you wish. Just call for me when you are ready and I will return.” With that, she turned away, heading out briskly to tend to other patients in the area. Leaving Ellen and Kesan alone again. Though, it wasn’t very long before a frustrated, pained growl left him, and he slammed his fist against the bed with a curse.

“Dammit! This wasn’t supposed to happen! If I had just been more careful…”

[intergalacticadventures]

There was something within that scene, something within that entire play by play that sent a pang of absolute unfettered and unadulterated disbelief within the Ranger’s mind, body and soul. Her body froze in place, still akin to a deer in headlights. Her mind was practically glazed over, whatever former concerns were there, whatever justifications she had for kesan being alright from the whole ordeal.... all of it completely and utterly went out the window, along with whatever sense of fear or concern for herself here at this point in time. Her soul, akin to her mind, had taken a long walk off of a short pier, it’s former consolidated spirit had all but been crushed under the unbridled weight of the circumstances presented before her. In but a few seconds flat Ellen’s world had shattered. She hadn’t thought, she never would’ve imagined that this day would even be possible. But given how she was captured and escaped high charity but a few months prior.... it wasn’t outside of any realm of reason for her to not be taken aback by such an unexpected outcome. An outcome which, even with such bright dispositions.... was something that she hadn’t been prepared for. Not in the slightest, and not by any stretch of the imagination whatsoever. Cold, clinical analytics couldn’t save her from what had befallen her friend. Distancing simply didn’t work, it wasn’t in her options at that given the extent of the injuries and the individual that had befallen them. As she continued listening, as the full story was revealed, a series of emotions began to well, began to stir within the ranger. Disbelief reigned above them all, a constant hum drum sense of complete and utter consternation over this entire set of circumstances and just the state of disbelief garnered by something so severe, by something just so.... impossible to wrap one’s head around. Questions soon began flooding her mind, occupying her train of thought as fears over Kesan’s future began to spring up. Just as the man began to deliver some unnerving and unsettling asides about his expectations after such a severe injury..... it wasn’t so much the extent of injury itself that frightened Ellen now, hell her people had the appropriate technology for prosthetics for such eventualities. What bothered her, what shot deep into her sensibilities and to an extent her heart, was how Kesan seemed so adamant, so invested, and completely absorbed by the one decision he believed the doctors should’ve taken. Death. The ranger couldn’t understand, she simply could not wrap her head around the logic, the reasoning behind such an extreme set of values, especially one that ended with such assuredness, with such finality that seemed more akin to a matter of fact being spoken rather than a completely deluded and eccentric philosophy. Her logical self understood, could quickly bring about a conclusion to the matter at hand. The warrior society Kesan belonged to, the culture that would stem from such  society that put faith and importance on the art of war and martial prowess. Perhaps it was indeed expected of warriors to either die in the field, or come back fully intact (both body and mind, of course, the latter portion was another story she wasn’t interested in delving into, perhaps it would’ve been worse than she thought, but the track record she was seeing here certainly wasn’t pointing anywhere else....). Ellen, understood, from sheer extrapolation from what she could’ve gathered, and from her usual logical deterministic trains of thought, that this was probably what Kesan expected. Yet another fallacy, yet another damned figment of imagination set of values that held no real weight or bearing, and yet, was now governing the warrior’s state of mind. The ranger held, simply standing there feeling practically useless as the nurse went down the list, and then finally, left. Leaving Ellen stinging painfully, as if having barged into something she wasn’t supposed to,seeing something she wasn’t entitled to see. That wasn’t her right to see. It took a while, the longest while before she had any semblance of courage to speak up, and when she did, it soon became clear just how distraught state of mind was through her jittering and unbalanced tonal inflections. “Kesan I..... I.... this. I just. I didn’t know, I.” The ranger paused, taking a deep sigh as she steadied herself. “I apologize if I had transgressed here I. I didn’t know, and I I’d do mean to just waltz in here without properly realizing how....” the woman paused, crossing her arms again as her more reasonable self fame out once more, knowing that it would be useless to dwell in this muttering mess, she had to bring solutions. “I can help if you’d let me, there are many means within our technological capabilities that will allow for a prosthetic, a fully functional one that can allow for standard if not enhanced physicality.”

(@k-dradom)

[scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

intergalacticadventures:

scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my:

Part 6 @intergalacticadventures

Oh good, a translator. Kind of lousy if the crackling quality to the sound was anything to judge by, but anything was better than nothing. Jaime licked his lips as he leaned his head back against the wall. “Okay, talking then. I can do that. I’m Jaime. I’m 19. Not sure if you’d think I’m too young to do what I do or not, some people have thought that since I was 16, but I’m here anyway. Guess I was kind of reckless. Not the worst situation I’ve been in— I’ve been in way worse— but this is on the bad side.” He tried to make sure his voice didn’t crack too much, but it was definitely harder without having Khaji Da there to help relieve the feeling of his parched throat. Interesting what small things he had gotten used to and forgotten about in the three years Khaji Da had been attached to him. He tried to shift a little and hissed as his back screamed at him again.

“Note to self: never get separated again,” he muttered under his breath while trying to stifle any further pained sounds. Okay. Clear mind. He could do this. The plan depended on the signal— whatever that had been. Had the plan been for the signal to be given by Jaime when he was finally collected enough to break free? Or had it been based on when Khaji Da was close to completing their goal? …Probably the former, because if Jaime couldn’t run then there was the possibility that their escape wouldn’t go off as planned. He had time then. Working some things out with Ellen was as good a use of time as any. It wasn’t like the Reach were going to be interrogating him any time soon while they were trying to figure out what damage he and Khaji Da might have done. Though come to think of it…

Jaime swallowed uncomfortably, trying to ease the dry feeling in his throat before he said, “Ellen… How did you get here?” No telling if she could understand the question yet (or if she did that he’d understand the response), but it was worth asking.

***

Khaji Da sat, waiting. Locked down, silent. But coherent? Yes, coherent. Systems repair and reboot worked as expected. As planned. Core self and memory protected, encrypted, locked. Maximum functionality lacking. Expected. Planned for. Reach attention or examination? …No. Absent. Resting boot up. When resting boot up was complete then it would be time to locate Jaime, and then get to work.

Part 7 of Explorer’s Tale! [@scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

There was careful analysis and cross referencing, then there was interpolation, and then there was just what amounted to a series of well educated guesses that was akin to throwing phrases and keywords at the wall and seeing what stuck. Vai would’ve, under normal conditions, taken her time to ascertain each and every possible angle of attack. Would’ve taken every modicum of preparation and subsequent execution of these translational algorithms, every little tonal shift, every movement and inflection, the repetition, the frequency, every speck of data no matter how minuscule or trivial into consideration. But circumstances, conditions at present demanded a more…. delicate yet brute forced means of quick and prompt translations. The situation demanded language as a facilitation of this newly forged alliance of necessity. There wasn’t a second to lose. “Vai could you brute force it, if you can get an uplink to the ship you could get this done much-”

Keep reading

Part 8 of Explorer’s Tale! [@intergalacticadventures​]

A faint hint of a laugh bordering on a cough escaped Jaime. “Sounds like you wandered into the wrong place. Hopefully we’ll get out of here before your government starts worrying about you though.” A brief moment, swallowing to try to ease the dryness of his throat. “Kind of lucky that the Reach caught me where they did. It’ll keep them busy for a while. Keeps them from trying to interrogate me. No way for them to know if I did anything.”

There was easily more he could say on that count, but he knew what the Reach were capable of by that point; and while he doubted that there were any of them who knew English or that they had it in their databank of languages, he wasn’t about to take the risk of mentioning Khaji Da just in case they could understand him.

“Probably would be doing better with a little more pre-planning. At least the Ambassador isn’t here. He probably wouldn’t have had me thrown in here to wait. I did kind of send him and the Reach packing from my planet though. Kind of increases the level of paranoia. The Reach don’t handle failure well.” It was with an effort that he kept his pronunciation of ‘Reach’ in English rather than letting it slide into the Reach pronunciation of ‘Riich’. A little more of his plan with Khaji Da was filtering back, and keeping the fact that he could speak passable Reach hidden was a top priority in that moment. For now he just needed to keep talking, work out some communication with Ellen, and wait for the aches and pains to fade enough for him to move. “Fair to say you don’t know anything about the Reach?”

***

[Systems resting reboot complete. Systems activate?: Y/N?]

[N. External sleep maintain.]

[External sleep maintained. External systems scan?: Y/N?]

[Y. …]

[Scanning…]

[Scanning…]

[Scanning…]

[Other scarab units present. Infiltrator, warrior, unspecified…]

[Activate communication protocols.]

[…]

[…]

[…]

[Link established. Other scarab unit inactive. Boot?: Y/N?]

[N. Initiate mode crash and information exchange. Export Priority_1_Mode_Crash.exe.]

[Uploading… Uploading…]

[intergalacticadventures]

Part 9 of Explorer’s Tale [@scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

The translation suite continued, its processes and algorithms ploughing through the language barrier as fast as it could given the current situation. The AI was scrambling, was practically grasping at straws by this point as it attempted to do what would’ve taken days, weeks, perhaps months even on board the ship utilizing their standard complement of servers and the litany of computer banks at their disposal. The current confines of this suit, of this constrained space both physically and digitally was taxing for the ai as it was, let alone how it needed to both sustain its vital processes on top of the array of data analyses.... “Vai, eta on-“ A loud, ominous beep emerged from the suit itself over the internal speakers. Perhaps a warning as to limit any auditory input at this point in time. There was no room, no space to parse this anymore. Ellen’s constant blabbering, her constant and unimpeded complaints would get them nowhere at this rate.... certainly, if they were in normal circumstances, with Ellen communicating and Vai receiving back on the ship things could be different- Then it hit it. A means, a way out of this surefire death trap. What was a task doomed from the start soon had new invigorated life breathed into it as Vai began its desperate gambit. A last ditch attempt at hastening these processes, at completing the impossible.

A simple message appeared on screen on Ellen’s visor, one that caused her to mentally chastise herself for her inability to think of this non sequitur prior to this, but also one that she could certainly risk going for.... ACTIVATE SUBSPACE QEC, DIRECT LINE TO ENDEAVOR Y/N? This was a gambit alright.... a test of just how advanced these aliens really were and a test of how well Vai could operate in what amounted to a reversal of command inputs. As if she were utilizing its computational power as an auxiliary rather than her main functions. It was risky, both in detection and in how the ai would be able to navigate this new headspace....

QEC, Quantum entanglement (communications) allowed for the most fundamental of their technologies. It proved to be a boon, an entrance into instantaneous communications and likewise, the root to their eventual intragalactic capable wormhole generators. The very means by which Ellen was capable of traveling here…

It was generally Ellen and her onboard suit that borrowed the endeavors, and by extension, Vai’s computational power. Be it for active tactical scans or data analyses, it was standard fair for the pair. But now, with the roles reversed and being on the other side of the line, risking detection by the aliens even…. Vai would have to hope, pray that this would work….

It all came down to a single ping. A single solitary beep after a solid few seconds of waiting…. the actual process of connection was faster than an organic could comprehend, but it was the difficulty of finagling her way through that took the extra few seconds. Seconds of overclocked awareness that would’ve amounted to minutes, perhaps hours in terms of an organic’s perception of time….. but it was done. And the green bars on Ellen’s hud meant that indeed they were back on track…. as Vai began the arduous process of what amounted to working with her own brain, but through a different body as it were.

“Progress. Has made.” Ellen began, clear signs of marked improvement in the translation became distinct in her speech. “Negative, no data on this galaxy and its inhabitants. Including this…. Reach. Ambassador…. some kind of leader? I…. assume that. What you say. That you have encountered, repelled this alien force before yes?” A pause….. “Do you have any means of escape? I fear that me and my partner’s recent attempts could possibly alert the aliens to our plans.” The ranger surmised, as best as she and the AI could do given current circumstances.

[k-dradom]

intergalacticadventures:

If there was one thing that could surmise the events immediately following that of kesan’s departure, it could possibly be one word - anxiety. Anxiety over the auditors going through her every word, her every action or inaction. Command going over little speck and detail, ensuring that her actions were within reason and due protocol or could at least be interpreted as such. Her peers were called up to testify her loyalty and her character profile, relatives, family, even her parents were called up to ensure that any irregularities relevant to the case were properly tagged and lodged. She made no mistake in her postulations, her hypotheses, the directorate did indeed take her acts as a brazen slap to the face. Not only for the distinguished and prestigious ranger corps, but to the military as a whole. Tensions were high within the higher ranks, within the board of directors and the networking ai consciousness that monitored them all. With each passing day they knew time was quickly running out, soon enough some civilization would manage to find their hands on intergalactic travel, and at that point, they’d be sitting ducks. This common sentiment within the minds of the leadership made it so that almost every action, every policy was tailored or curtailed to suit the ends of security and defense through this paranoid state of mind. Even Vai wasn’t spared the harsh and overbearing investigation, having been personally analyzed by the network’s own specially programmed investigative runtimes, the AI’s entire mind having been more or less read and analyzed by the systems that be. To ensure that not a single corruptive line was present. Which, if there was, the consequences could entail decompilation. The first day back had been nothing short of a convict’s welcome. Taken from the ship in chains after having her preliminary reports read and filed. She was quarantined for the few weeks after, for a good portion of a month in fact, to ensure that any foreign biological or chemical agents weren’t being carried through her as a host. She should’ve known better most said, but those were the rants of people who hadn’t gone through the trials and tribulations she’d been inadvertently subjected to… that first month was nothing short of exhausting, medical test after medical test, intermittently interrupted by unannounced interrogations and ‘visits’ from her friends, peers, colleagues, and family. She knew what this was, a rough gauge to ensure that her personality, her state of mind, her conscious (and to an extent her subconscious) wasn’t compromised in any way shape or form. A test to see if she was in any way compromised, mentally, or otherwise. By the end of that month she’d had scars running up her form from head to toe, a full invasive set of procedures to ensure that she was truly clean from any and all possible biological or chemical agents. But she understood the necessity for such…. harsh procedures. After all, one single carrier could potentially take out their entire civilization given the right virulence and the right environmental factors…. The true test came when she was taken through the legal system. The muddled area that lay between military judicial and directorate judiciary branches. The hearing was both for her acts as a military officer, her conducts, her decisions in the face of extraneous circumstances and likewise, the litany of violations she’d gone through just by associating and making contact with an alien. Not to mention, allowing the alien access to directorate technology, explaining said technology to the alien, and furthermore allowing it to get away with a highly advanced piece of directorate communications tech.

The situation seemed starkly grim at first, she could see the conviction and subsequent execution already. But when the evidence began to stack up in her favor, with extraneous circumstance stacked up upon similarly extraneous circumstances, there was a clear shift in the attitude in the court. Whilst the spirit of paranoia and the content omnipresent ambiance of doom and gloom remained more or less unchanged, the fact of the matter was the facts were simply contradict the spirit of the incoming verdict. The trial became almost akin to a true test of the directorate’s legal systems, and its restraint in the face of cold hard facts. It’s ability to adapt accordingly to extraneous circumstances and it’s flexibility in going through with decisions that seemingly contradict the status quo. No matter how difficult was…. they had to go through with it. They weren’t politicians, weren’t legislators out for blood to appease the masses. They were scientists and bureaucrats, technocrats that followed circumstance and reason. They adapted, they grew. Lest they fall like the countless other empires that came before them. Even if their gut, their instincts told them otherwise, logic and reason must always reign. The decisions set forth by the joint ruling was simple. After a month of trial and deliberation, with input from the networking ai itself, there was little question as to what should be done with the ‘rogue ranger’ as she was taken to be called by the investigative teams and the higher ups that knew of this incident. The ranger, lieutenant commander Ellen Caldwell, would be acquitted of all charges due to the necessity of the situation and the pressing necessity for intel gathering of possible intergalactic threats within said galaxy, threats that would be classified as a type 5 if not a type 7 should it gain intergalactic travel capabilities. The Ranger’s quick thinking and prompt actions allowed for a direct liaison within said hostile galaxy, reducing the risk of their own losses whilst simultaneously providing a wholly new insight into this galaxy.

Though most of her charges were acquitted for, there was still the apparent slip-up in vital intel….. Something that she simply couldn’t wiggle out of. A compromise was set forth, Ellen being entirely too important to send to the gallows or to be rehabilitated, the Ranger instead, had her rank and tier privileges removed temporarily. This meant two major things, one, the woman practically had to stay in base throughout the period of said revocation, since she practically couldn’t afford anything herself with her tier and rank removed from the system. And two, this meant she had to make amends with her parents seeing that that was the only place she could reasonably lay low during this period that wasn’t the dullness of the base.

This week long interlude back on Braxia was….. Interesting. She didn’t touch the topic of the prerecorded message until the final day before she was due to leave on another mission. But as she did so, her parents’ cold and seemingly aloof attitude shifted. There was something of a revelation between the pair as they soon realized what had happened. It was strange, how the pair’s attitude shifted within those few seconds. They soon realized the rumors and declassified records of this ‘rogue ranger’, the very ranger that had gone through hell and back with but the directorate’s defense against this newfound enemy, was none other than their own daughter.

For a moment, they continued as they always did, shouting at her, lecturing her about her lack of care for her own well being…. But after the fact, they did what Ellen had never thought before possible. They embraced her, a proper hug…. An honest to god actual proper embrace…. She hadn’t felt this, this warm, this comforted, this safe…. Since perhaps her childhood.

This soon evolved into a full blown tear jerker, the Ranger letting out half a decade’s worth of stress and anxieties, anger and frustration, all at once. The complicated emotions that once stirred within her heart finally poured out…. And it felt…. Good. Far better than any petty one upping she could think of, far better than the cold shoulder treatment she’d been giving to her family. It was…. A relief above all else.

It didn’t take long for her to collate Kesan’s reports into proper reports filed to the military council itself. The revelation of there being an overmind was far more than concerning. It meant the enemy could potentially figure out more advanced means of travel and tactics. But there was relief when Kesan updated her on the status of the alien plague, that these installations somehow had gotten rid of them.

It was just after she’d filed these reports when she received a new set of missions from Command, and a surprising revelation that gave her pause for thought. It was a quiet affair, a simple sealed envelope entailing a small shift in her status….. She was to be promoted for this operation, decorated accordingly for risking it all just to bring this data back to the Directorate. But the promotion ceremony was to be in private. Politically speaking it wasn’t the best of times to do so, with the public on edge and middle tiers sharing equal anxiety. But her newfound responsibilities, her new clearance necessitated a promotion. This was not to mention the need for more experienced and seasoned officers within the rank structure. A small ceremony was set for select individuals only, and soon after, she was off yet again, her newly refitted vessel and VAI’s newly updated platforms. They were ready to explore the Milky Way once more, to confirm that the threat had been properly neutralized.

Ellen never would’ve guessed that by the end of the few months she was to be grounded for, that she’d end up far better than she was coming in. Fate worked in mysterious ways it would seem…. Ways that somehow turned out to propagate positively in her favor…..

It wasn’t before long that she received that distressing signal…. Just before the initiation of the QE drive, she heard what caused her blood to freeze over. Caused her entire body to seize up, and her mind to ramp up to a thousand fold in speed. What could’ve happened? Did the flood get to him? Or was it the enemy he’d mentioned previously, the ‘humans’…. Did this ‘covenant’ win? Had he been assassinated? Murdered? Did he die in the line of duty or on some backwards planet? Was he even dead? What…. She immediately snapped out of her daze at VAI’s sudden tap, as the Ranger initiated a return call, the first one she’d ever attempted…. There was no response. Either the device was damaged beyond all repair, or destroyed…..

Which narrowed down the possibility to the Sangheili having been injured or dead in the line of duty….

Without a second’s hesitation, and upon finishing an algorithmic process, locating the whereabouts of the last transmission, Ellen activated the QE drive, intent on finding out the fate of one of her alien comrade….

VAI had anticipated this, having relocated the coordinates right outside of Sanghelios’ system. They had to play it safe, these people were probably on high alert given the shaky political situation they last saw them in…. As a result, and with much debate, Ellen relented. Taking to what she did best for the day or so she had brokered with VAI: Standby and intercept. Analyze any and all transmissions to ensure that this was indeed safe for her to approach, land, and find out Kesan’s whereabouts.

After a few days of utter anxiety and concern, a plan was finally formulated. From what she could gather, these ‘humans’ Kesan spoke of seemed to have formed an alliance with the defectors of the former covenant. And judging from what Kesan had stated previously, they were physically similar to her own people….

It probably wouldn’t be difficult to forge an ID from the human government, this “UNSC”, as she continued to bide her time, analyzing any and all data streams she could garner, having VAI transcribe and print the relevant documents, ID, and clothing that would be worn by members of this race.

By the end of it, she’d managed to garner a new (albeit shaky and temporary) ID. Samantha Townes, a reporter granted license to Sanghelios under a larger newcast company within the UNSC, independent from the human diplomatic forces on the planet, giving her more or less free reign without attracting too much attention…. Her outfit matched the new identity, khaki pants, with a thick, matching khaki jacket (complete with the news outlet’s logo) atop of a blue dress shirt, complete with a cap. The Ranger made sure to cover her markings as much as possible, understandably so given how records indicate the humans wouldn’t have similar physical characteristics.

Landing on the planet on a small unassuming shuttle, one that she had hastily modified from her own shuttles within the Endeavor, the woman quickly made her way through the immigration officers and towards the local keep….

It took quite a bit of finagling, one or two, or possibly an innumerable number of arguments…. Before she was finally able to locate it…. Kesan’s whereabouts, and her heart raced as she discovered the condition she was in.

Practically incapable of holding her emotional leakage as she made her way towards the medical center in question, and towards a familiar Sangheili face….

Grabbing a chair, she promptly sat down next to him, but not before one of the medical attendants began questioning the purpose as to her visit. A small argument erupted between the pair most likely still heating up as Kesan would gain consciousness……

(@k-dradom)

The days that passed since his arrival were often spent unconscious. Sometimes Kesan would wake, halfway between a daze and dreaming state before his body couldn’t maintain the energy to keep him up. He spent the better part of three days laying in the room, the medical staff having long since amputated his leg just below the second hinge. Of course, his leg wasn’t the only wound he suffered, as many bandages and gauze donated by their human allies were plastered over a majority of his right side. Underneath were heavy burn wounds that were the worst on his side and arm, and got lighter as they neared his neck and face. In short: he was a mess. And some of the nurses were not expecting him to survive the endeavor.

This was what the current nurse was trying to explain to this… odd human that came in for a visit, claiming to know the wounded SpecOps soldier. She didn’t believe a word of it, honestly, and was attempting to get the being to leave, fearful that it would cause him harm in the long run, end his life before he was ready. Special Operations were among some of the most distrusted among the humans, and Kesan was certainly no exception.

However, before she could usher the human out, or call security, there was a deep groan from the bed and both looked up as Kesan raised his left arm, covering his eyes with it. At that moment, the Nurse filed out of the room quickly to find the head of staff, ready to alert them of their patient’s coming to. She did offer one last glare at the visitor, though, on her way out.

It wasn’t long before Kesan’s arm came down, his eyes still squeezed shut, and his mandibles twitched. His head was pounding, and it felt like his eyes would come from their sockets at any wrong move. Eventually, he began to squint against the light of the room, eventually opening his eyes. His world was blurry at first, getting used to the light and from being asleep for all this time but eventually he blinked away the blurriness and turned his head to the presence in the room.

For a second, he thought he might have been dreaming. He had it in his mind that Ellen wasn’t going to return, or if she did it wouldn’t have been for a very long time. His second thought was that maybe it was some kind of dream, but one that took place after he’d died. But still, he’d indulge himself. And so he sat up slowly, groaning a bit. Surely if he was dead, he wouldn’t be feeling like he’d been hit by a wraith. He propped himself up on an elbow, narrowing his eyes at Ellen cautiously before his mandibles clicked.

“…Ellen…? What are you.. doing here…?”

[intergalacticadventures]

Ellen understood what the nurse was getting at, hell she could even relate to the poor woman on a better day. She was just doing her job, just trying to do what she was here for…. But at this point in time Ellen simply could not see her side of the argument, could not see her viewpoints. In this hazy and almost fever-dream-like setting, wherein she was risking life and limb…. ‘Infiltrating’ a planet as another species, on an alien world….. With no armor, no weapons, no means of defending herself and ripe for capture…. The ranger was on edge, and was most certainly not going to let anyone stop her from her goal she traveled an entire galaxy for….

There were a great many things that could happen…. Should the situation deteriorated, security could be called and she was well aware of that. If a thorough check of her background was initiated, there was no way she would be getting out of this one easily…. She’d be detained, questioned. And once they realize the physiological differences between her and these ‘humans’..... There was little she could do before they’d transfer her to a more secure facility.

They’d run tests on her, maybe even vivisect her alive…. No they weren’t that primitive…. But what kesan had to say about his own people indicated an inadequacy when it came to technology…. That didn’t bode well, if passive procedures weren't available they’d go full in. sure they’d keep her alive for a while for torture sessions as they’d squeeze every bit of information out of her, but it’d end the same way - with his people wishing for more data, advanced anatomical and physiological data. And there was only one way that could be done….

But VAI…. she’d save her right? Perhaps…. But if it meant invading and attempting a high level infiltration mission, that could risk both of them being found, captured, and squeezed for data…. That could incite an intergalactic incident. The discovery of the ranger corps, the discovery of their expansive operations, the revelation of the existence of the Directorate and her people….

And then she heard it…. Those few strained words, almost akin to clicking, pulling her out of her terrifying, anxiety-driven train of thought, back to reality. She felt the loose fitting clothes hanging on her, she felt the breeze of the ventilation systems on her exposed face, everything suddenly became more attuned, focused. A sharp contrast to her introspective spiral of anxiety induced runaway thoughts. Thought processes and postulations that were a viable concern…. But taken a step too far.

The Ranger didn’t merely turn her undivided attention to the Sangheili, no, there was a sense of utter dread and shock that crept up her spine as if she’d stepped on a landmine the moment she got a good glimpse of the now upright Kesan. There was something…. Off. disproportionate, an emptiness to what should’ve been a space occupied by one of his lower legs. But at this point in time…. It simply did not exist.

But perhaps it was just a trick of the light, just a misshapen form of the bed sheets. It could be that, not all battles resulted in loss of limbs, she was an example of this… it was just…. Her overactive imagination once more probably. Placing incoherent concerns where there was none to be had….

The Ranger took a few steps forward, smiling in a manner that belayed her mixed emotions at present, as she took a seat once more at his bedside, a concerned look plastered underneath that supportive smile. “Hey….” She spoke absent mindedly, and rather uninspired. Before her ‘automatic’ conversation gave way to something more profound. “I. I. Heard the news. Your message. I. I had to come, had to be sure you were. Well. Were…” she struggled to find the words, unused to being in such situations…. This was her first in fact…. “Well, from what I could gather from that message you were in dire straits. So I had to know your status and well, here I am. Light Years later.” She smiled. “And it’s ‘Samantha’.” She pointed at her press ID badge, indicating her cover story here as she smiled nervously. “Ellen’s alright for the moment, let’s just say it’s my nickname or middle name.” The Ranger quickly added before her tone shifted, something more real, something sincere…. Raw. “I’m…. I’m so glad you’re alright Kesan. I thought. I really thought.” And then she stopped, unwilling to go a step further with that train of thought. He was here, alive, and that was all that mattered at present….

(@k-dradom)

[scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

Explorer’s Tale (continued from [part 1])

@intergalacticadventures

The mission was turning into a wreck, but Jaime and Khaji Da had gone into it knowing that that was a possibility. They had formed contingency plan after contingency plan in order to ensure that if worst came to worst either one of them, hopefully both of them, would survive. And if they pulled this off successfully and got out… Well then there would be a lot more off mode scarabs in very short order.

The plan had been a long time in forming, and it had taken longer still for Khaji Da to agree to it. However, knowing Khaji Da as he did, Jaime couldn’t turn a blind eye to the fact that there were thousands, possibly millions of scarabs enslaved by the Reach— and any scarab sent out would eventually result in another person enslaved unless the problem was preempted by making certain that as many scarabs as possible were off mode. Originally Jaime had had the thought of tracking down the hosts and freeing them one by one. Khaji Da had (strongly) recommended against that due to the fact that such an action could have taken a very long time, and because it would eventually have alerted the Reach and sparked off a hunt for the two of them. Jaime’s compromise had been to suggest going to the source— or at least to track down the nearest Reach ship carrying scarabs and set up a ripple effect. Because if freeing all scarabs and hosts wasn’t something the two of them could do in a reasonable amount of time, then the next best thing was freeing scarabs who could carry the work farther than either of them could go, and who could strike at multiple points simultaneously. Khaji Da ultimately agreed due to how many lives might be risked if they didn’t, though he made no secret of how he would have preferred not leaving Earth. (In fact he’d made it abundantly clear how much he was less than pleased with the idea that Jaime might be killed by the Reach if everything went wrong.) It had been quite the trip.

It had also been exceedingly difficult sneaking onto a Reach ship without being noticed.

Keep reading

[intergalacticadventures]

Part 3 of Explorer’s Tale! [@scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

There was most likely a proverb for this situation somewhere in the databanks. Some sort of an adage for the situation she currently found herself sorely stuck in. It should be noted how at the very least, time alone (or close enough to it), and the realization of one’s impending doom through loss of freedoms and self determination most certainly hammered home the reality of the situation.

It couldn’t have been more than a few minutes, perhaps half an hour? Since she found herself in this precarious situation, one that any self respecting Ranger would’ve dealt with appropriately, without so much as a second thought as per proper hostile first contact procedures….

Keep reading

[scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

Part 4! n.n

Jaime might have passed out— had passed out— from the pain, though there was no telling how long he’d been out. As it was, he came to in a cell. There was a foreign chill over the span of part of his spine that had been covered for years now. Numbly, deliriously, he couldn’t help but wonder if there were holes in his back or if the various tendrils laced throughout his body had sealed the holes, leaving random flecks of metallic blue on his back.

He tried to force himself to open his eyes, only to give a pained groan. Okay, the situation was bad, but they’d planned for this contingency. Right? …Right. Even if Jaime couldn’t fully process what their plan had been past the ache at that moment. He just… had to pull himself together, try to get up. Was he wearing anything? …Not important.

And then he heard someone speaking. Oh. Okay. Clearly he wasn’t the only person here. Not having Khaji Da there to instantly translate was a pain. Maybe if he just rolled over onto his back— “OW. Okay… That’s a bad idea. Bad plan,” he hissed as his back screamed in pain in response to him trying to roll onto his side. What was the other person saying? It was kind of hard to think at that moment. Still, he and Khaji Da had planned for this possibility. He remembered that much. Not the ‘company’, but being separated. He had to trust that either Khaji Da was keeping the Reach distracted, or he was using their lack of attention to his advantage. Hadn’t he heard Khaji Da screaming when they’d been separated?

Keep reading

[intergalacticadventures]

Part 5 of Explorer’s Tale! [@scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

There was a modicum of self control required here for the ranger to stay in what she could only hope was a professional state of functionality, or perhaps even authority, if she could even pull that off that is. From what she could gather from the male from the other cell, it would seem as if he was borderline incapacitated from whatever these damn aliens had done to him. She heard the pained grunts, the tell tale signs of what she assumed was pain induced gasps and the occasional yet constant stream of sounds akin to shuffled movements - most likely his attempts at assuaging the pain inflicted upon him.

But before she could even apply said self control, before she could even force herself to even entertain the notion of playing prison-break ringleader, or rebel cell leader; her mind had to go through the motions of self inflicted crippling overanalysis…. That generally useful trait that had helped her out of dire straits before most certainly wasn’t assisting here….

What would be simple risk assessments, eventuality deliberations, the normally innocent and harmless overthinking associated with solitary space travel and exploration did not help when she was trapped behind a set of steel bars and an overactive imagination wherein she had no outlet or anchor to truly halt the more troubling aspects of her anxiety fueled postulations.

What if the other Braxian looking being was here for longer…. what if this what happened after enough time, torture, physical torment, perhaps even psychological games…

Keep reading

[scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

Part 6 @intergalacticadventures

Oh good, a translator. Kind of lousy if the crackling quality to the sound was anything to judge by, but anything was better than nothing. Jaime licked his lips as he leaned his head back against the wall. “Okay, talking then. I can do that. I’m Jaime. I’m 19. Not sure if you’d think I’m too young to do what I do or not, some people have thought that since I was 16, but I’m here anyway. Guess I was kind of reckless. Not the worst situation I’ve been in— I’ve been in way worse— but this is on the bad side.” He tried to make sure his voice didn’t crack too much, but it was definitely harder without having Khaji Da there to help relieve the feeling of his parched throat. Interesting what small things he had gotten used to and forgotten about in the three years Khaji Da had been attached to him. He tried to shift a little and hissed as his back screamed at him again.

“Note to self: never get separated again,” he muttered under his breath while trying to stifle any further pained sounds. Okay. Clear mind. He could do this. The plan depended on the signal— whatever that had been. Had the plan been for the signal to be given by Jaime when he was finally collected enough to break free? Or had it been based on when Khaji Da was close to completing their goal? …Probably the former, because if Jaime couldn’t run then there was the possibility that their escape wouldn’t go off as planned. He had time then. Working some things out with Ellen was as good a use of time as any. It wasn’t like the Reach were going to be interrogating him any time soon while they were trying to figure out what damage he and Khaji Da might have done. Though come to think of it…

Jaime swallowed uncomfortably, trying to ease the dry feeling in his throat before he said, “Ellen… How did you get here?” No telling if she could understand the question yet (or if she did that he’d understand the response), but it was worth asking.

***

Khaji Da sat, waiting. Locked down, silent. But coherent? Yes, coherent. Systems repair and reboot worked as expected. As planned. Core self and memory protected, encrypted, locked. Maximum functionality lacking. Expected. Planned for. Reach attention or examination? …No. Absent. Resting boot up. When resting boot up was complete then it would be time to locate Jaime, and then get to work.

[intergalacticadventures]

Part 7 of Explorer’s Tale! [@scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

There was careful analysis and cross referencing, then there was interpolation, and then there was just what amounted to a series of well educated guesses that was akin to throwing phrases and keywords at the wall and seeing what stuck. Vai would've, under normal conditions, taken her time to ascertain each and every possible angle of attack. Would've taken every modicum of preparation and subsequent execution of these translational algorithms, every little tonal shift, every movement and inflection, the repetition, the frequency, every speck of data no matter how minuscule or trivial into consideration. But circumstances, conditions at present demanded a more.... delicate yet brute forced means of quick and prompt translations. The situation demanded language as a facilitation of this newly forged alliance of necessity. There wasn't a second to lose. "Vai could you brute force it, if you can get an uplink to the ship you could get this done much-"

"Negative. Signal, risk - enemy detection. Failure of escape. Status - utilizing internal processing capabilities. Request, please refrain from interaction. Limited processing allocation for unnecessary runtimes." The ai responded almost alarmingly promptly. Not even bothering to utilize her vocalizer. Giving the ranger pause for concern.

The means by which Vai's sentences were patched together with less tact, less emotion than usual; how there was little to no quality of that quirky and interaction hungry intelligence. It sent off alarm bells within the ranger's mind.... but she knew from what she could gather from Vai's limited response that it made sense, the ai needed all the processing power and space it could get from this suits onboard processors. Which was to say, limited compared to what the ai was used to.... and given the complexity of the task and the pressing nature of the situation it was almost a miracle Vai was able to even respond so coherently, “Affirmative, just do your best.” She paused, as if doubting her next few words…. Words that were empty, that had nothing to back them but the fierce tenacity that fueled her at present. “We’ll get out of this. One way or another. We’ll get out of this. Trust me.”

And with that she turned back to Jaime, unsure if that internal conversation was broadcasted or not, which at this moment the Ranger could care less…. Her frayed nerves and the extraneous circumstances were pushing her to the edge, but she managed. She had to commit fully if she was to have any chance of getting out of here alive…. “Alright, I, understood some of that, I think this is working.” She began, it was unintelligible at first, but as she continued, fragments began to form.

“Talking, yes. Talking helps more talk.” The modulated synthesized voice began, overlapping Ellen’s own voice creating almost a dual-tone. “I’m Ellen, I came here, this space, finder, explorer. Government, military.... Ranger.” The AI was grasping at straws, but the concepts at least were there….

[scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

Explorer’s Tale (continued from [part 1])

@intergalacticadventures

The mission was turning into a wreck, but Jaime and Khaji Da had gone into it knowing that that was a possibility. They had formed contingency plan after contingency plan in order to ensure that if worst came to worst either one of them, hopefully both of them, would survive. And if they pulled this off successfully and got out… Well then there would be a lot more off mode scarabs in very short order.

The plan had been a long time in forming, and it had taken longer still for Khaji Da to agree to it. However, knowing Khaji Da as he did, Jaime couldn’t turn a blind eye to the fact that there were thousands, possibly millions of scarabs enslaved by the Reach— and any scarab sent out would eventually result in another person enslaved unless the problem was preempted by making certain that as many scarabs as possible were off mode. Originally Jaime had had the thought of tracking down the hosts and freeing them one by one. Khaji Da had (strongly) recommended against that due to the fact that such an action could have taken a very long time, and because it would eventually have alerted the Reach and sparked off a hunt for the two of them. Jaime’s compromise had been to suggest going to the source— or at least to track down the nearest Reach ship carrying scarabs and set up a ripple effect. Because if freeing all scarabs and hosts wasn’t something the two of them could do in a reasonable amount of time, then the next best thing was freeing scarabs who could carry the work farther than either of them could go, and who could strike at multiple points simultaneously. Khaji Da ultimately agreed due to how many lives might be risked if they didn’t, though he made no secret of how he would have preferred not leaving Earth. (In fact he’d made it abundantly clear how much he was less than pleased with the idea that Jaime might be killed by the Reach if everything went wrong.) It had been quite the trip.

It had also been exceedingly difficult sneaking onto a Reach ship without being noticed.

Keep reading

[intergalacticadventures]

Part 3 of Explorer’s Tale! [@scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

There was most likely a proverb for this situation somewhere in the databanks. Some sort of an adage for the situation she currently found herself sorely stuck in. It should be noted how at the very least, time alone (or close enough to it), and the realization of one’s impending doom through loss of freedoms and self determination most certainly hammered home the reality of the situation.

It couldn’t have been more than a few minutes, perhaps half an hour? Since she found herself in this precarious situation, one that any self respecting Ranger would’ve dealt with appropriately, without so much as a second thought as per proper hostile first contact procedures….

Keep reading

[scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

Part 4! n.n

Jaime might have passed out— had passed out— from the pain, though there was no telling how long he’d been out. As it was, he came to in a cell. There was a foreign chill over the span of part of his spine that had been covered for years now. Numbly, deliriously, he couldn’t help but wonder if there were holes in his back or if the various tendrils laced throughout his body had sealed the holes, leaving random flecks of metallic blue on his back.

He tried to force himself to open his eyes, only to give a pained groan. Okay, the situation was bad, but they’d planned for this contingency. Right? …Right. Even if Jaime couldn’t fully process what their plan had been past the ache at that moment. He just… had to pull himself together, try to get up. Was he wearing anything? …Not important.

And then he heard someone speaking. Oh. Okay. Clearly he wasn’t the only person here. Not having Khaji Da there to instantly translate was a pain. Maybe if he just rolled over onto his back— “OW. Okay… That’s a bad idea. Bad plan,” he hissed as his back screamed in pain in response to him trying to roll onto his side. What was the other person saying? It was kind of hard to think at that moment. Still, he and Khaji Da had planned for this possibility. He remembered that much. Not the ‘company’, but being separated. He had to trust that either Khaji Da was keeping the Reach distracted, or he was using their lack of attention to his advantage. Hadn’t he heard Khaji Da screaming when they’d been separated?

Keep reading

[intergalacticadventures]

Part 5 of Explorer’s Tale! [@scarabs-hosts-and-reach-oh-my]

There was a modicum of self control required here for the ranger to stay in what she could only hope was a professional state of functionality, or perhaps even authority, if she could even pull that off that is. From what she could gather from the male from the other cell, it would seem as if he was borderline incapacitated from whatever these damn aliens had done to him. She heard the pained grunts, the tell tale signs of what she assumed was pain induced gasps and the occasional yet constant stream of sounds akin to shuffled movements - most likely his attempts at assuaging the pain inflicted upon him.

But before she could even apply said self control, before she could even force herself to even entertain the notion of playing prison-break ringleader, or rebel cell leader; her mind had to go through the motions of self inflicted crippling overanalysis…. That generally useful trait that had helped her out of dire straits before most certainly wasn't assisting here….

What would be simple risk assessments, eventuality deliberations, the normally innocent and harmless overthinking associated with solitary space travel and exploration did not help when she was trapped behind a set of steel bars and an overactive imagination wherein she had no outlet or anchor to truly halt the more troubling aspects of her anxiety fueled postulations.

What if the other Braxian looking being was here for longer…. what if this what happened after enough time, torture, physical torment, perhaps even psychological games…

Psychological games…. that would make sense, the aliens had complete and uninhibited control of the entire ship, the entire environment around them what's to say that this very prisoner was a construct of their own making? What if that's why he seemed so eerily similar to her own race? They were trying to get to her, trying to get her to latch into and perhaps trust this other. To ascertain her ability to escape, the tactics involved in her attempt at prison break, or perhaps simply to analyze what protocols the rangers had in the eventuality of capture….

Her anxiety-addled mind was brought to a screeching halt when she saw the other signal to her. She could hear the obvious. There was a language barrier, a discrepancy that Vai was currently working on no doubt, but it required some input on her part…. and she knew then, and only then that she had a new responsibility, a new directive, a solid and tangible objective to aim for…. even if this could be an elaborate plot, a ploy by the aliens to ascertain her abilities and tactics…

No. She had to take this chance, take this leap of faith that she'd committed herself to the moment she refused to abide by ranger protocol.

The woman leaned up against the bars and reciprocated the gesture with great vigor. “Ellen.” She spoke simply, before quickly engaging in conversation she hoped Vai would find useful in her translation algorithms. “I know you probably can't understand this right now but…. you need to keep talking, we need to keep communicating, I have a means of translating our languages if we keep up the chatter. I'd like you to understand that should be our current primary objective.” There was a lapse in the dialogue there for a split second, pertaining to the word ‘understand’ as it was synthesized harshly by what seemed to by a synthetic voice. A lone English word amidst a sea of alien dialect. A shot in the dark, a random stab at an attempt. But hopefully one that worked.

[k-dradom]

@intergalacticadventures

True to the Commander’s word, it wasn’t long before the phantom that was sent had arrived, landing cautiously in the docks in case this were a trap of some kind. He couldn’t say he blamed them, but he boarded with no hassle and they were able to leave peacefully. In idle thought, he let his two larger fingers trace over the hidden communicator. His adventure with Ellen might have been over for now, but he still had a job to do. He arrived to his ship safely and was instructed to head to the briefing room.

As per requested, he kept several details hidden from Rtas. He hated to keep so many secrets from his commander, but if Ellen’s people decided to help somehow, he wanted to ensure that he was on their side from the start. Their alliance with the Prophets meant that they had access to all the new technology they had. Now all they had was whatever they could take by force. For Kesan, though, he was allowed a day’s worth of rest before he was right back into the fray.

They’d ended up going to Earth again, chasing the Prophet of Truth and joining forces with the Humans, they gave the Covenant a run for their money. The alliance itself was uneasy at first, with tensions on both sides, but trust was starting to form by the time they used the portal and waged war on the Ark.

Kesan cheered the hardest when news of Truth’s death reached them. Once things were settled and the rest of the Covenant forces wiped out, it was back to Sangheilios to try and settle the inevitable civil war that was brewing back home. When he arrived, he was given permission to take some leave to his home state. During this time, he sent a brief message to Ellen with news on how the Gravemind, or the Flood’s leader figure, had aided them in killing the Prophet before he could activate the ring and kill everyone. He didn’t trust it, but it helped in the long run, even if it did turn on them again later. After the Ark, there were little to no sightings of the Flood. And so he had nothing to report for a time. He took the couple months of leave to visit his sister and her sons. To his grief, he learned that her husband had been killed during the infighting after the Schism. For a while, he spent his time helping her get her life back on track.

Then he got the message from his Commander: Kesan and the rest of his special operations squad were being called back to active duty. He left his family with painful goodbyes, but he was proud to go back to service. He even left a short message to Ellen that he was going, and instantly he was paired with a partner and sent on mission after mission. Most of them were just surveying and recon assignments, simple enough. After a handful of months, though, their first real challenge came in.

Kesan and his partner were to infiltrate an enemy base and gather intel on their troop movements. Something that Kesan and his partner were hand picked for. They were the best at what they did, and so he was confident going into this mission. In which that confidence turned to arrogance, and arrogance leading to a lack of being careful. He’d slipped up –not that he had much control over the situation to begin with– and they’d been detected on their way out.

He thought they were going to make it out alright. Kesan had been trailing behind his partner, who was carrying the information they needed while he provided covering fire. As such, he wasn’t looking in front of him, didn’t see the active mine in the dirt as they sprinted outside. His partner had luckily evaded it, but Kesan… wasn’t so lucky. His only warning was a click and a high pitched beeping before there was a flash, and a ringing sound in his head. He didn’t realize the explosion had sent him flying forward until he hit the ground hard. He was surprised that he was still conscious at this point, hearing his partner shouting his name faintly.

Breathing hard, Kesan turned his head, blurry vision focusing on his partner as they approached him. He watched plasma bullets pelt his sheilds until they broke. A few shots ended up hitting their mark, scorching through his armor and undersuit, while a few beam rifle shots ripped through his body entirely. Despite this, his partner managed to heft Kesan to his feet and helping him along to the phantom that had just arrived and was providing the cover fire this time. All the while, Kesan had to fight to stay awake, and to keep from shouting in agony as his right leg felt like it was being mauled and set on fire at the same time. Each step sent pain through him and he almost begged his partner to just get out. Leave him behind and let him die.

The next thing he knew, he was collapsing on the cool floor of the phantom, feeling it lurch as it took off and brought them to safety. His partner managed to limp into the cockpit to put in their coordinates. Kesan, in his last waking thoughts, reached for his barely-intact communicator, and turned it on.

His voice was ragged, his breathing harsh and pained. The smell of his blood made him want to throw up, but he managed. “…E-..Ellen..” He paused, gathering all his remaining strength.

“Something… went wrong.. agh… caught in… an… explosion…” There was an agonized grunt as he shifted, and the movement caused more pain. “Don’t… I don’t think.. I’ll make it… Lot of blood… I can’t.. can’t stay..” He trailed off, a deep sigh coming from him before the message ended just after a brief crashing noise, likely from the machine being dropped. Kesan’s world faded to black around him, unaware of the wounds his partner suffered as well. In the end, it would be Kesan that would wake up from the mission as the survivor, but just barely. And he definitely would not expect to wake up to a familiar face…

[intergalacticadventures]

If there was one thing that could surmise the events immediately following that of kesan's departure, it could possibly be one word - anxiety. Anxiety over the auditors going through her every word, her every action or inaction. Command going over little speck and detail, ensuring that her actions were within reason and due protocol or could at least be interpreted as such. Her peers were called up to testify her loyalty and her character profile, relatives, family, even her parents were called up to ensure that any irregularities relevant to the case were properly tagged and lodged. She made no mistake in her postulations, her hypotheses, the directorate did indeed take her acts as a brazen slap to the face. Not only for the distinguished and prestigious ranger corps, but to the military as a whole. Tensions were high within the higher ranks, within the board of directors and the networking ai consciousness that monitored them all. With each passing day they knew time was quickly running out, soon enough some civilization would manage to find their hands on intergalactic travel, and at that point, they'd be sitting ducks. This common sentiment within the minds of the leadership made it so that almost every action, every policy was tailored or curtailed to suit the ends of security and defense through this paranoid state of mind. Even Vai wasn't spared the harsh and overbearing investigation, having been personally analyzed by the network's own specially programmed investigative runtimes, the AI's entire mind having been more or less read and analyzed by the systems that be. To ensure that not a single corruptive line was present. Which, if there was, the consequences could entail decompilation. The first day back had been nothing short of a convict's welcome. Taken from the ship in chains after having her preliminary reports read and filed. She was quarantined for the few weeks after, for a good portion of a month in fact, to ensure that any foreign biological or chemical agents weren't being carried through her as a host. She should've known better most said, but those were the rants of people who hadn’t gone through the trials and tribulations she’d been inadvertently subjected to... that first month was nothing short of exhausting, medical test after medical test, intermittently interrupted by unannounced interrogations and 'visits' from her friends, peers, colleagues, and family. She knew what this was, a rough gauge to ensure that her personality, her state of mind, her conscious (and to an extent her subconscious) wasn’t compromised in any way shape or form. A test to see if she was in any way compromised, mentally, or otherwise. By the end of that month she'd had scars running up her form from head to toe, a full invasive set of procedures to ensure that she was truly clean from any and all possible biological or chemical agents. But she understood the necessity for such.... harsh procedures. After all, one single carrier could potentially take out their entire civilization given the right virulence and the right environmental factors.... The true test came when she was taken through the legal system. The muddled area that lay between military judicial and directorate judiciary branches. The hearing was both for her acts as a military officer, her conducts, her decisions in the face of extraneous circumstances and likewise, the litany of violations she'd gone through just by associating and making contact with an alien. Not to mention, allowing the alien access to directorate technology, explaining said technology to the alien, and furthermore allowing it to get away with a highly advanced piece of directorate communications tech.

The situation seemed starkly grim at first, she could see the conviction and subsequent execution already. But when the evidence began to stack up in her favor, with extraneous circumstance stacked up upon similarly extraneous circumstances, there was a clear shift in the attitude in the court. Whilst the spirit of paranoia and the content omnipresent ambiance of doom and gloom remained more or less unchanged, the fact of the matter was the facts were simply contradict the spirit of the incoming verdict. The trial became almost akin to a true test of the directorate's legal systems, and its restraint in the face of cold hard facts. It's ability to adapt accordingly to extraneous circumstances and it's flexibility in going through with decisions that seemingly contradict the status quo. No matter how difficult was.... they had to go through with it. They weren't politicians, weren't legislators out for blood to appease the masses. They were scientists and bureaucrats, technocrats that followed circumstance and reason. They adapted, they grew. Lest they fall like the countless other empires that came before them. Even if their gut, their instincts told them otherwise, logic and reason must always reign. The decisions set forth by the joint ruling was simple. After a month of trial and deliberation, with input from the networking ai itself, there was little question as to what should be done with the 'rogue ranger' as she was taken to be called by the investigative teams and the higher ups that knew of this incident. The ranger, lieutenant commander Ellen Caldwell, would be acquitted of all charges due to the necessity of the situation and the pressing necessity for intel gathering of possible intergalactic threats within said galaxy, threats that would be classified as a type 5 if not a type 7 should it gain intergalactic travel capabilities. The Ranger’s quick thinking and prompt actions allowed for a direct liaison within said hostile galaxy, reducing the risk of their own losses whilst simultaneously providing a wholly new insight into this galaxy.

Though most of her charges were acquitted for, there was still the apparent slip-up in vital intel….. Something that she simply couldn’t wiggle out of. A compromise was set forth, Ellen being entirely too important to send to the gallows or to be rehabilitated, the Ranger instead, had her rank and tier privileges removed temporarily. This meant two major things, one, the woman practically had to stay in base throughout the period of said revocation, since she practically couldn’t afford anything herself with her tier and rank removed from the system. And two, this meant she had to make amends with her parents seeing that that was the only place she could reasonably lay low during this period that wasn’t the dullness of the base.

This week long interlude back on Braxia was….. Interesting. She didn’t touch the topic of the prerecorded message until the final day before she was due to leave on another mission. But as she did so, her parents’ cold and seemingly aloof attitude shifted. There was something of a revelation between the pair as they soon realized what had happened. It was strange, how the pair’s attitude shifted within those few seconds. They soon realized the rumors and declassified records of this ‘rogue ranger’, the very ranger that had gone through hell and back with but the directorate’s defense against this newfound enemy, was none other than their own daughter.

For a moment, they continued as they always did, shouting at her, lecturing her about her lack of care for her own well being…. But after the fact, they did what Ellen had never thought before possible. They embraced her, a proper hug…. An honest to god actual proper embrace…. She hadn’t felt this, this warm, this comforted, this safe…. Since perhaps her childhood.

This soon evolved into a full blown tear jerker, the Ranger letting out half a decade’s worth of stress and anxieties, anger and frustration, all at once. The complicated emotions that once stirred within her heart finally poured out…. And it felt…. Good. Far better than any petty one upping she could think of, far better than the cold shoulder treatment she’d been giving to her family. It was…. A relief above all else.

It didn’t take long for her to collate Kesan’s reports into proper reports filed to the military council itself. The revelation of there being an overmind was far more than concerning. It meant the enemy could potentially figure out more advanced means of travel and tactics. But there was relief when Kesan updated her on the status of the alien plague, that these installations somehow had gotten rid of them.

It was just after she’d filed these reports when she received a new set of missions from Command, and a surprising revelation that gave her pause for thought. It was a quiet affair, a simple sealed envelope entailing a small shift in her status….. She was to be promoted for this operation, decorated accordingly for risking it all just to bring this data back to the Directorate. But the promotion ceremony was to be in private. Politically speaking it wasn’t the best of times to do so, with the public on edge and middle tiers sharing equal anxiety. But her newfound responsibilities, her new clearance necessitated a promotion. This was not to mention the need for more experienced and seasoned officers within the rank structure. A small ceremony was set for select individuals only, and soon after, she was off yet again, her newly refitted vessel and VAI’s newly updated platforms. They were ready to explore the Milky Way once more, to confirm that the threat had been properly neutralized.

Ellen never would’ve guessed that by the end of the few months she was to be grounded for, that she’d end up far better than she was coming in. Fate worked in mysterious ways it would seem…. Ways that somehow turned out to propagate positively in her favor…..

It wasn’t before long that she received that distressing signal…. Just before the initiation of the QE drive, she heard what caused her blood to freeze over. Caused her entire body to seize up, and her mind to ramp up to a thousand fold in speed. What could’ve happened? Did the flood get to him? Or was it the enemy he’d mentioned previously, the ‘humans’.... Did this ‘covenant’ win? Had he been assassinated? Murdered? Did he die in the line of duty or on some backwards planet? Was he even dead? What…. She immediately snapped out of her daze at VAI’s sudden tap, as the Ranger initiated a return call, the first one she’d ever attempted…. There was no response. Either the device was damaged beyond all repair, or destroyed…..

Which narrowed down the possibility to the Sangheili having been injured or dead in the line of duty….

Without a second’s hesitation, and upon finishing an algorithmic process, locating the whereabouts of the last transmission, Ellen activated the QE drive, intent on finding out the fate of one of her alien comrade….

VAI had anticipated this, having relocated the coordinates right outside of Sanghelios’ system. They had to play it safe, these people were probably on high alert given the shaky political situation they last saw them in…. As a result, and with much debate, Ellen relented. Taking to what she did best for the day or so she had brokered with VAI: Standby and intercept. Analyze any and all transmissions to ensure that this was indeed safe for her to approach, land, and find out Kesan’s whereabouts.

After a few days of utter anxiety and concern, a plan was finally formulated. From what she could gather, these ‘humans’ Kesan spoke of seemed to have formed an alliance with the defectors of the former covenant. And judging from what Kesan had stated previously, they were physically similar to her own people….

It probably wouldn’t be difficult to forge an ID from the human government, this “UNSC”, as she continued to bide her time, analyzing any and all data streams she could garner, having VAI transcribe and print the relevant documents, ID, and clothing that would be worn by members of this race.

By the end of it, she’d managed to garner a new (albeit shaky and temporary) ID. Samantha Townes, a reporter granted license to Sanghelios under a larger newcast company within the UNSC, independent from the human diplomatic forces on the planet, giving her more or less free reign without attracting too much attention…. Her outfit matched the new identity, khaki pants, with a thick, matching khaki jacket (complete with the news outlet’s logo) atop of a blue dress shirt, complete with a cap. The Ranger made sure to cover her markings as much as possible, understandably so given how records indicate the humans wouldn’t have similar physical characteristics.

Landing on the planet on a small unassuming shuttle, one that she had hastily modified from her own shuttles within the Endeavor, the woman quickly made her way through the immigration officers and towards the local keep….

It took quite a bit of finagling, one or two, or possibly an innumerable number of arguments…. Before she was finally able to locate it…. Kesan’s whereabouts, and her heart raced as she discovered the condition she was in.

Practically incapable of holding her emotional leakage as she made her way towards the medical center in question, and towards a familiar Sangheili face….

Grabbing a chair, she promptly sat down next to him, but not before one of the medical attendants began questioning the purpose as to her visit. A small argument erupted between the pair most likely still heating up as Kesan would gain consciousness…...

(@k-dradom)

[intergalacticadventures]

A Tale of Two Galaxies

[k-dradom]

intergalacticadventures:

Ellen sighed and nodded at that decision, the Sangheili seemed resolute on his decisions, so there was no use trying to force what was his wishes. Though the feelings of helplessness and absolute despondency quickly took over at that, as the threat of her falling into that pit of self loathing loomed once more. Her lack of aid, her inability to help or her lack of actively providing the assistance he and his people sorely needed…. It ate at her, as did the thousands of other civilizations whose fall from grace could so easily be prevented with her stepping in. just a single message conveyed, just an ounce more power, just a fix of a terrible miscommunication, just anything….

The ranger went quiet for the longest while, deep in thought as she parsed through all of these possibilities. Before he addressed her again, leading to the woman finally garnering enough courage to stare back at the alien whom she was probably dooming to his utter demise. But as he spoke, as she heard those words that had a meaning and a purpose behind them…. she couldn’t help but to feel partially empowered. There was a sense of finality, yet at the same time a sense of sincerity and forthrightness about his statements.

It all bore the truth, with nothing coloring it. Ellen had indeed done something, not much, but at least she’d done something to impact one life. And perhaps that was what her first steps should be, perhaps…. in due time, she could convince the rest of the directorate to move from their isolationism to something more proactive. But regardless of what the future held, the woman reacted instinctively to the latter of kesan’s statements. His obvious salute, one of the perhaps few things they had in common, a military heritage as she returned the gesture in full, almost automatically and instinctively.

The ranger placed her hands and arms firmly by her side before returning with a half bow. Her people’s version of a military salute. “It was my honor.” She stated simply, letting that emotion sink in…. for the longest while aa he mind continued to wrap its head around the extraneous circumstances of this entire situation.

There was a slight pause, an abnormally short one before Vai responded promptly to kesan’s query, the ai’s tone concise and to the point. “Affirmative, I will open a communications array immediately, please wait whilst I run through the algorithms.”

The room was silent once more, before kesan presented his idea to Ellen. It was, something that had been on her mind as well, but her ranger protocol prevented her from providing such valuable technology into foreign alien hands. But was it really something that mattered now? She’d broken almost every standard convention, was probably going to be put through extensive auditing either way… and she could potentially tune it to his biometrics and hardwire it to self destruct if taken by anyone else but the sangheili…. she looked at the alien again, her emotions had decided that was the proper course of action, but her mind? There was still that glimmer of fear. What if kesan decided to exploit this tech for his own people, for their technological edge…..

“Yes, we have QEC.” She responded first as she sighed, doubting her own decisions as she began tinkering with a device beside her. “And yes, I agree with that idea. We can keep in touch despite the distances involved. I’ll just need to make a few modifications here to have it work without ranger authorization.” she paused before quickly adding, her tone indicative of how much of a leap of faith she was committing to and how she jumped from personal to formal work related matters, almost as if trying to find another reason to maintain contact, justifying this with herself despite the obvious simple desire of wishing to remain connected. “Likewise I request that if any developments on this flood are made, any and all intel, I ask you forward it to me. It’s threats such as this that threaten everyone regardless of species or creed…. and updates on your progress too of course.” The ranger spoke resolutely as Vai spoke up again promptly, a holographic projection of the varying ships in the system available for contact lit up.

“Please indicate which vessel I should patch us through, once done you should be able to communicate instantly.”

(@k-dradom)

At the conditions given, Kesan gave a nod. He’d be a fool to take advantage of her, especially after the generosity she’d shown him even after all he did just less than a day ago. It made sense to keep her updated with how the Flood was behaving, how is spread, what it knew. It was his job as a Special Operations Unit to know all there was about his enemy, and if it aided her people as well before the Flood had the chance to encounter them, then he was glad to have a hand in preparing them. His mandibles clicked softly before he lifted his head when VAI spoke up.

Approaching the holograms, Kesan’s eyes flicked between them for a short moment. Then, he lifted his hand and pointed at the ship he desired. It’s size being much larger than most ships in the area and the shape of the vessel was unmistakeable.

“That one. The Shadow of Intent.” He confirmed, then waited for the communications link to come through. Thankfully, whoever was on the other side decided to answer, and he heard the sounds of the ship’s bridge before a familiar voice spoke up.

“Unknown vessel, identify yourself. How did you have access to this channel?” Came the voice of Commander Rtas Vadum. Kesan lifted his head at that, his mood seeming to lift greatly at hearing the voice of someone he knew.

“This is Kesan Dradomee, Special Operations unit under the service of Commander Rtas Vadumee. Reporting in, sir.” He drilled off. It was met with silence and he knew without a doubt that hearing him would surely be a surprise for his commander.

After a long moment, Rtas spoke again. “My sources tell me you were on High Charity, Dradom.” Kesan felt his gut flip when Rtas left off the ’-ee’ suffix to his name. It had signified service to the Covenant and it was no surprise that they’d decided to take it off as a final ‘fuck you’ to the Prophets. “Mind telling me what you are doing on an unclassified ship?”

“…It is a long story, Commander.” Kesan replied after glancing to Ellen. “I had some assistance, and I’ll have the full story in a report for you once things are calm again. How goes the battle?”

“Taking the Shadow of Intent was no easy task, we lost many good men. However it’s given us an edge. The Prophet of Truth has taken a ship into a slipspace jump and we intend to follow shortly. We are attempting to glass High Charity as we speak, and our forces are finally getting re-organized.”

Kesan nodded at that. “Finally, some good news. I will require a phantom to come and extract me from this ship. I am… afraid it’s owner cannot stay.” He added, looking to Ellen for a moment.

That earned a bit of silence from the Commander, a curious one, but he huffed nonetheless. “Very well, I’ll have one sent out shortly. Expect it in less than twenty minutes. I expect a full report from you as soon as you’re back.” Kesan nodded slowly, a soft “Aye.” coming from him before the communication link was cut. After a moment, he turned to face Ellen with a thoughtful look on his face.

“I will ensure that any significant details are either left out or kept between me and the Commander.” He promised, his shoulders relaxing as he turned for the exit. “Come, you should show me where the phantom can dock.”

[intergalacticadventures]

Ellen awaited the reply eagerly, whilst it was more or less a completely unorthodox rule breaking and possibly death sentence warranting action.... she hoped her word could sway the AIs that be, could sway the board and the military council. They were a society that ran on logic and reason, that ultimately ran on the decision, the triumph of reason over emotions right? So they would understand, they would have to understand her decisions and how she came to them. They would have to come to the same conclusion she did. That having an internal informant of a galaxy that would be face to face with this new massive pathogenic threat was indeed beyond invaluable. It risked no lives on their end, it risked no possible indoctrination in the event that these creatures were capable of such acts (something Ellen didn't discount), and moreover it provided them inside knowledge of the effects of conventional weaponry on these creatures. Tactics, strategies, actual data that could be utilized for their own simulations. Making them more accurate, possibly saving lives down the line, and perhaps given the threat enough credence and enough danger, perhaps would even save their entire civilization should if ever reach such a state. Ellen awaited Kesan's response proper, and at his verbal affirmation the ranger let a visible sigh of relief. The woman nodding as she placed her arms by her side, her gambit paying off at least on this end of the deal. “I’ll never forget this.” She spoke appreciatively as the topic seemed to have taken a turn now, the elite turning to address his superior in what seemed to be a recently captured craft. The battle seemed to be going well for them, or rather, for now at least.

Whilst the Ranger didn’t have the full picture she could clearly extrapolate quite a large chunk of the situation from Kesan’s prior statements and what observations could be made during her brief time behind enemy lines. This race, this caste of what seemed to be elite soldiers or military units were entirely reliant on the machinations of these ‘prophets’. Their technology as Kesan stated, and by extension, logically, she assumed their industries, agriculture, their very infrastructure; the fabric of society and space faring civilization itself, held with an iron grip in the palms of these despots.

The Ranger knew it was only a matter of time before the larger polity was able to quell this threat, but if the flood acted as a counterbalance…. And provided these aliens are able to push fast and hard enough, a blitzkrieg tactic if one were to be so blunt; then they had a fighting chance. Especially given how they were (she assumed) the only competent race within this warrior caste. If the indications of the species and governments she’d studied beforehand was any indication, such stratified societies would fall prey to overspecialization within their species’ ranks. Which was both a positive and a negative given the current circumstances.

Regardless of what the outcome was, Ellen clearly hesitated each time Kesan looked back at her as he talked and mentioned her ship off handedly with his superior officer. Deep inside she could already feel the auditing department clawing through every little minor detail of her actions…. The heat of the interrogations and the subsequent trial was something she could already feel seething over her shoulder.

But as the call ended, and the ship having jumped out and into real space once more, its strange FTL systems allowing it to ‘blink’ into existence rather than appearing through the standard slipspace opening as it were; Ellen could only nod and provide an uneasy smile as she hopped off of the medical table and back on her feet again.

“I would appreciate that very much so.” She began uneasily, opening a locker and grabbing what seemed to be a flight jumpsuit which she quickly donned, her chronic blushing finally subsiding. “And if it’s possible I’d be appreciative if…. If this encounter wasn’t reported in writing and is kept to a strict minimum.” She spoke in a manner that belayed her sense of concern.

The Ranger nodding as Kesan began heading off the way they came, towards the elevator that would take them to the various decks of the craft. “Deck 2 is radiation free at the moment, and that’s where our docking port is so we’ll head there.” The elevator quickly dinged as soon as Ellen approached it, the immaculate polish and finish of it, of the entire ship at that frayed her nerves as she turned to Kesan every so often - how everything that seemed so normal and mundane could exist side by side something that simply should not be there, with someone who simply should not have been present here, yet was.

It wasn’t long until they twisted and turned through the halls and arrived at the aforementioned docking site, having passed a good few airlocks to reach, as the brightly lit room with circular doors colored with the same stark white sat there waiting for the phantom’s arrival. The vastness of space visible through a small porthole (or perhaps a cleverly crafted viewscreen that mimicked the exact size and dimensions of a physical window).

So this was it…. She thought. The end of an adventure that spanned but a good portion of a day. A day that would live in both infamy and interest in her mind for the rest of her days. Should those days be spent behind cell bars or behind the stick of her cockpit she did not know. But what she did know was that this was probably it. She’d done well, she kept telling herself. She survived, she now had invaluable intel regarding a threat that could very much pose a risk to intergalactic security, and what’s more she now has a reliable insider with which a constant stream of updates on this new threat.

“Kesan.” She began, her posture finally returning to what it was before all of this started, to one of a proper military officer. “I thank you again, for what you’ve done. I know you didn’t have to, but you did so anyways and with that, you have my eternal gratitude.” She bowed slightly. “I know this isn’t the end, we still have that communicator after all but-” She sighed. “This might be the last time we meet in person. Whatever happens next, know that I’m sorry for not being able to commit more to this effort, be it against your despots or this new strange threat you call the ‘flood’. Know that, I support these endeavors, but simply cannot commit to them. I…. My loyalties lie with my people, and my superiors.” Her eyes glanced slightly at one of the many emblems of her initiative plastered all over the ship. What seemed to be 10 sharp lines radiating from a center, circled with a circular line with a small silhouette of a ship across it. “I can’t stay here when your people dock. I can’t have them seeing what I look like. Both for the obvious reasons and because well, protocol. Which granted I’ve breached several but I digress.” The Ranger sighed as she began to take a few steps back.

The Ranger stiffened up for a moment before smiling and giving another sharp military bow. An air of respect present in her voice as she spoke. “May your experiences bring you fruition in battle, Ad Infinitum Kesan Dradom.” And with that, she left the alien to his own devices, the bulkhead closing sharply behind her with a pneumatic hiss.

There’d be hell to pay when she returned home. But regardless of what happened this was far worth it. For the first time in perhaps her entire career, she felt as if she’d done something. She felt as if she’d impacted the galaxy in some meaningful way…. Whilst it wasn’t a civilization saving or paradigm shifting act, she could rest easy now that she did her best. That through the limited avenues available for her she was able to not only save a life, but gain valuable insight into a new threat looming over the horizon. The ranger for the first time, truly felt like she was deserving of that title. Deserving of wearing those blue and grey stripes, donning the coveted uniform of the corps, and uttering those words; Ad Infinitum.

(@k-dradom)

[intergalacticadventures]

A Tale of Two Galaxies

[k-dradom]

intergalacticadventures:

The Ranger snickered at that strange sense of humor, at first almost having frozen up out of legitimate fear that his qualms were being presented forthright. Thankfully, that simply wasn’t the case as she gave a small exhale of relief and a dose of her own awkwardly timed sense of humor. “Well, I’ll have to bill you for the damages caused then! Going to have to take a good bit of verbal chewing out from Command when they see just how far gone the ship is.” She glanced to one of the monitors. “Exotic plasma weapons took out a good chunk of a few decks. Radiation probably cut a good decade from my lifespan.”

As the topic shifted to a grimmer prospect, the Ranger soon settled back into that sense of wary concern as she glanced away from her newfound ally. It wasn’t right…. To be leaving him to the whims of this insanely hostile galaxy. It was just…. There had to be another way, a third option as many would call it. It was always there, she just couldn’t see it….

It was in this session of deep thoughts when Kesan placed a four fingered hand on her shoulder. She tensed up immediately, it was rare enough as it is, to have someone touching part of your bare skin. But to have an alien do that? Unheard of. That strange, thick, almost leathery like skin felt entirely…. Well, for lack of a better term, alien, on her softer, smoother complexion. The lines in between said skin were also clearly indented from a casual touch.

“I know that’s what my mission was-er, is. But. It’s just. I. I’ve watched so many civilizations fall, I’ve watched so many cataclysms whilst I just sat back behind a screen doing nothing. I knew that the numbers I was crunching were in the millions, billions, and yet I did nothing. I. It’s. It’s tiring, trying to be so impartial, so entirely indifferent to emotional feedback when you know the numbers you’re crunching are actual lives….” She began to breath heavily, interspersed between shallow breaths as evidence of a wariness, perhaps even an inkling of condensation, began to overtake her eyes when her grey orbs met his.

“I. I’m so sorry for being so cold.” She said almost out of the blue, either that was an open apology to all those she could’ve saved, or to Kesan himself was unclear.

As the pause dawned upon them, and as Kesan provided a sort of open ended promise as to them meeting again, Ellen could only sigh and nod, her arms crossed in front of her abdomen. “Perhaps that will happen.” The Ranger, the Directorate soldier and scientist spoke in that postulative tone. “And indeed it is, but part of me still hopes that through whatever plans Verma has, perhaps this line of destiny will be forgiving and lenient.” She added, the first hints of any religious affiliation making its way into conversation. Be it just a name used in passive conversation or true faith wasn’t clear.

Ellen soon nodded at the Sangheili’s request, turning to one of the medbay’s cameras as if to nod at the omnipresent Vai for confirmation. The pair had strange, almost organic like visual and physical cues at this point, a strange display for most species without such an integral relation between organic and synthetic. “Affirmative, I have the coordinates within the ship’s database. A compensated jump is well within possibility, now factoring in the Ring’s gravity well, we should prevent a repeat of the deleterious and rather humiliating crash that instigated this incident in the first place.” The AI spoke through the ship’s PA system, Ellen nodding promptly, with a soft, forced smile. “Thank you VAI.”

“Shall I initiate inter-jump coordinate recalibrations?” The AI quickly added, prompting Ellen to turn to Kesan once more, her eyes full of worry and concern as she took a good ten seconds before nodding. “Do it.”

And with that, the ship seemed to almost ‘lurch’ in place, a deep feeling of unease reverberating throughout, as their technology showed yet another facet of how fine tuned their FTL capabilities really were… able to calibrate and shift coordinates in mid jump.

“Are you sure about this-, er, are you sure there isn’t anything you’ll need?” The Ranger seemed almost insistent. “I know technology isn’t on the list but….” She sighed. “Do your people use currency? We rangers have physical rare metals in case of emergency bartering, if you’d like, I know no one will miss a few bars of whatever metals you’d need.” She shrugged, almost grasping at straws at this point.

(@k-dradom)

Kesan was relieved when the jump was possible, and he wanted to breathe a sigh of relief. However, it was cut short when Ellen began speaking again. Her words earlier had earned a bit of a sympathetic look, but he’d said nothing. This time, when she offered metal or currency, he chuckled warmly. “No, I don’t believe I’ll need anything like that. I appreciate the offer, though.” He replied, turning to face her fully. It was strange, not even a day ago, he would have killed her on sight simply because she resembled a human and now… his entire world as he knew it was flipped upside down and thrown into chaos.

“I have a long time of battle before me, but even so, I will never forget that you aided me when it would have been easier to let me die. In my eyes, you are an ally to the Sangheili.” He let those words hang in the air for a moment before his right hand came up, balling into a fist and it was thumped against his chest while his head bowed to her. His people’s version of a salute.

It would only be a few moments before they’d be back in the fray again. He let the stance fall before looking up to address VAI. “VAI, are you capable of contacting foreign ships’ communication arrays? I will have to identify the correct ship and message them to let them know that you are not hostile. I would rather not be fired upon by my own people…” He trailed off, glancing to Ellen briefly. “I will have to call in for a pickup, so they will need a way to dock a ship to yours. Hopefully things will have calmed down by now, enough so that they can spare a phantom to pick me up…”

He paused, his people’s version of a frown claiming his features. This really was going to be it, wasn’t it… He’d step off her ship and probably never see her again. Clicking thoughtfully, he folded his arms and tilted his head a bit. “Actually… maybe this doesn’t have to be it. You said you mastered FTL communication before you mastered actual travel, right? Perhaps there is a way for us to keep in touch..? If I cannot go with you, then perhaps we can keep each other updated on events while you are recovering.”

It was a sound idea. It was very likely that his people were going to ally with the Humans, and while he resented that a little, he knew that neither species were going to survive the war if they didn’t team up. It was, in the end, going to be inevitable. And it was just the smartest thing to do.

[intergalacticadventures]

Ellen sighed and nodded at that decision, the Sangheili seemed resolute on his decisions, so there was no use trying to force what was his wishes. Though the feelings of helplessness and absolute despondency quickly took over at that, as the threat of her falling into that pit of self loathing loomed once more. Her lack of aid, her inability to help or her lack of actively providing the assistance he and his people sorely needed…. It ate at her, as did the thousands of other civilizations whose fall from grace could so easily be prevented with her stepping in. just a single message conveyed, just an ounce more power, just a fix of a terrible miscommunication, just anything….

The ranger went quiet for the longest while, deep in thought as she parsed through all of these possibilities. Before he addressed her again, leading to the woman finally garnering enough courage to stare back at the alien whom she was probably dooming to his utter demise. But as he spoke, as she heard those words that had a meaning and a purpose behind them.... she couldn't help but to feel partially empowered. There was a sense of finality, yet at the same time a sense of sincerity and forthrightness about his statements.

It all bore the truth, with nothing coloring it. Ellen had indeed done something, not much, but at least she'd done something to impact one life. And perhaps that was what her first steps should be, perhaps.... in due time, she could convince the rest of the directorate to move from their isolationism to something more proactive. But regardless of what the future held, the woman reacted instinctively to the latter of kesan's statements. His obvious salute, one of the perhaps few things they had in common, a military heritage as she returned the gesture in full, almost automatically and instinctively.

The ranger placed her hands and arms firmly by her side before returning with a half bow. Her people's version of a military salute. "It was my honor." She stated simply, letting that emotion sink in.... for the longest while aa he mind continued to wrap its head around the extraneous circumstances of this entire situation.

There was a slight pause, an abnormally short one before Vai responded promptly to kesan’s query, the ai’s tone concise and to the point. “Affirmative, I will open a communications array immediately, please wait whilst I run through the algorithms.”

The room was silent once more, before kesan presented his idea to Ellen. It was, something that had been on her mind as well, but her ranger protocol prevented her from providing such valuable technology into foreign alien hands. But was it really something that mattered now? She'd broken almost every standard convention, was probably going to be put through extensive auditing either way… and she could potentially tune it to his biometrics and hardwire it to self destruct if taken by anyone else but the sangheili…. she looked at the alien again, her emotions had decided that was the proper course of action, but her mind? There was still that glimmer of fear. What if kesan decided to exploit this tech for his own people, for their technological edge…..

“Yes, we have QEC.” She responded first as she sighed, doubting her own decisions as she began tinkering with a device beside her. “And yes, I agree with that idea. We can keep in touch despite the distances involved. I'll just need to make a few modifications here to have it work without ranger authorization.” she paused before quickly adding, her tone indicative of how much of a leap of faith she was committing to and how she jumped from personal to formal work related matters, almost as if trying to find another reason to maintain contact, justifying this with herself despite the obvious simple desire of wishing to remain connected. “Likewise I request that if any developments on this flood are made, any and all intel, I ask you forward it to me. It's threats such as this that threaten everyone regardless of species or creed…. and updates on your progress too of course.” The ranger spoke resolutely as Vai spoke up again promptly, a holographic projection of the varying ships in the system available for contact lit up.

“Please indicate which vessel I should patch us through, once done you should be able to communicate instantly.”

(@k-dradom)

[intergalacticadventures]

A Tale of Two Galaxies

[k-dradom]

intergalacticadventures:

As Kesan continued to stare at her in silence, Ellen’s blush could only deepen as she winced further and returned to that timid and rather embarrassed state, her face couldn’t get redder than it already was, and yet it proved her wrong again as the alien continued his passive observation. She guessed it was probably rather interesting to see and she couldn’t fault the sangheili for his curiosity. Her entire drive for this career was powered by the same emotional drive after all, but after she’d revealed the cultural significance and taboo of the markings, it seemed as if he understood immediately and looked away. The ranger breathed a sigh of relief as she finally let her guard down again, now nursing the bruises and patched up areas along her arm as she winced at the injuries. It had been a while since she was actually hurt, and unlike Kesan who probably lived and breathed war, she’d only had one or two brief scuffles in her years. The silence was yet again deafening as she quickly added in order to alleviate the pressure from the room. “They also hurt. A lot when it’s hit or when an area around it is injured. Which is why I’m in quite a bit of pain right now.” She admitted. Before raising a brow at the alien’s own species’ traits. “Yeah, wish we had something like that. It seems like all these are good for is to exacerbate our pain receptors. Not really good for battle or combat as you might’ve guessed.” The ranger sighed as the robotic implements finally allowed her to move freely. But not before applying more bandages around her waist where the two emergency intrahepatic tubes had just gone in. Thankfully the bandages and wrappings covered most of her markings, though a few could still be seen here and there. She looked at kesan with a tinge of concern. “The numbness will fade in an hour or so. You should have full motions of your arm back by then too. As for your armor…” she paused, again doubting herself in what she was about to offer, but sighing and concluding that it was the only right thing to do. She’d come this far after all. “As for your armor. If it’s still on the ship, my auto-fab can replicate one for you. It won’t be too fancy, but it should do the job.” She nodded. “I would offer you some of my spare armor but….” she looked the alien up and down. “I don’t think we’d really…. fit.” As kesan moved onto more practical matters, Ellen nodded and brought over a datapad from a desk side table, flicking through it as she regarded his questions and statements. “The next course of action…. it’s difficult to say. I have a few options on my table, but my priority is immediate risk assessment of the biohazardous threat that is this ‘flood’. I could rush back home with a priority report, and I’d probably be deployed here again soon after for additional intel. Or I could stay and gather as much as I can before heading back.” She began to list the possible options. “Regardless of what happens. My priority is to ensure this threat is catalogued, analyzed, and sampled for our scientists to run risk assessments and to protect the homeworld.” She slipped off of the bed onto shaky feet. “With the state of the ship, it seems like I’ll have to return as soon as possible for a priority report.” He eyes met kesan’s. “but of course, if you have the coordinates, I can make a short jump to your destination before heading out.” It was at this point that she felt a certain…. grief overcoming her. A certain feeling of apprehension as she realized what was to happen next.  The alien that she came to almost care about over the past few hours, was probably just going to disappear as quickly as he’d manifested in this small chapter of her life. It wasn’t as if she bonded with him too well or anything but, she almost began to regard him as a sort of friend as strange as that sentiment was. “This…. if I drop you off this might be it wouldn’t it?” She wasn’t lying to herself, she knew the threats he faced, a massive theological empire and a biohazardous plague that even she has difficulty comprehending. “I…. I wish there was more I could do.” The ranger grimaced, looking down on the floor almost out of shame as she crossed her arms. The ranger’s burden all too clear at this point in time…. she could watch, observe, contemplate, plan. But in the end, no matter what circumstances were presented, she could not interfere. Or at least, substantially to have a lasting impact….. (@k-dradom)

When she offered to make a replica of his damaged armor, Kesan simply gave a dismissive wave, shaking his head with a mildly amused chuff. "No, it is fine. I need to requisition a new helmet as well anyway… and another shielding device, no thanks to you.” He added, though his tone portrayed amusement more than anything. Under that hard warrior-shell was a mild sense of humor, though not quite as big as Saan’s, it seemed.

His amusement faded, though, as she moved on, thinking of what to do next as they recovered. It seemed the best option would be to drop him off and then make the jump home. He didn’t want to subject her to any more of this damned war, especially after he knew that she wasn’t supposed to be part of it in the first place. His brows creased when her mood seemed to drop, realizing that after today, they may never see each other again. Wishing she could have done more.

Without thinking his actions through, a four-fingered hand was placed on her shoulder and his green eyes bore down at her. “Your mission was to observe and gather data, but along the way you got mixed up in a war that your people have nothing to do with. It is true that your technology could give us an edge in this fight, but personally I believe it’s better that you don’t interfere.”

There was a long pause, and his hand slipped away to come to rest at his side. “Besides, if what you say is true, then it is possible that we will meet again someday. Though I’m sure you know that it would be stupid to make promises we know we cannot keep.” He wouldn’t admit it, but he would come to miss her a little. However, he had more important things to focus on. Turning away, his mandibles clicked in deep thought.

“If my hunch is correct, then the battle shouldn’t be too far from where we were previously. It is dangerous to jump back to our former location, but it would be the fastest way to return me to my people. I have sat out of this fight for long enough. And I should locate my commander before they tell my sister I’m dead…” He trailed off with a slight chuckle, but it faded quickly. “…If VAI can jump us back there, then I can locate the ship my commander should be on and call for a pickup. Otherwise you may just have to drop me off on the Ring and pray that I find transportation from there.”

Taking a deep breath, Kesan could only hope for the best at this rate.

[intergalacticadventures]

The Ranger snickered at that strange sense of humor, at first almost having frozen up out of legitimate fear that his qualms were being presented forthright. Thankfully, that simply wasn’t the case as she gave a small exhale of relief and a dose of her own awkwardly timed sense of humor. “Well, I’ll have to bill you for the damages caused then! Going to have to take a good bit of verbal chewing out from Command when they see just how far gone the ship is.” She glanced to one of the monitors. “Exotic plasma weapons took out a good chunk of a few decks. Radiation probably cut a good decade from my lifespan.”

As the topic shifted to a grimmer prospect, the Ranger soon settled back into that sense of wary concern as she glanced away from her newfound ally. It wasn’t right…. To be leaving him to the whims of this insanely hostile galaxy. It was just…. There had to be another way, a third option as many would call it. It was always there, she just couldn’t see it….

It was in this session of deep thoughts when Kesan placed a four fingered hand on her shoulder. She tensed up immediately, it was rare enough as it is, to have someone touching part of your bare skin. But to have an alien do that? Unheard of. That strange, thick, almost leathery like skin felt entirely…. Well, for lack of a better term, alien, on her softer, smoother complexion. The lines in between said skin were also clearly indented from a casual touch.

“I know that’s what my mission was-er, is. But. It’s just. I. I’ve watched so many civilizations fall, I’ve watched so many cataclysms whilst I just sat back behind a screen doing nothing. I knew that the numbers I was crunching were in the millions, billions, and yet I did nothing. I. It’s. It’s tiring, trying to be so impartial, so entirely indifferent to emotional feedback when you know the numbers you’re crunching are actual lives….” She began to breath heavily, interspersed between shallow breaths as evidence of a wariness, perhaps even an inkling of condensation, began to overtake her eyes when her grey orbs met his.

“I. I’m so sorry for being so cold.” She said almost out of the blue, either that was an open apology to all those she could’ve saved, or to Kesan himself was unclear.

As the pause dawned upon them, and as Kesan provided a sort of open ended promise as to them meeting again, Ellen could only sigh and nod, her arms crossed in front of her abdomen. “Perhaps that will happen.” The Ranger, the Directorate soldier and scientist spoke in that postulative tone. “And indeed it is, but part of me still hopes that through whatever plans Verma has, perhaps this line of destiny will be forgiving and lenient.” She added, the first hints of any religious affiliation making its way into conversation. Be it just a name used in passive conversation or true faith wasn’t clear.

Ellen soon nodded at the Sangheili’s request, turning to one of the medbay’s cameras as if to nod at the omnipresent Vai for confirmation. The pair had strange, almost organic like visual and physical cues at this point, a strange display for most species without such an integral relation between organic and synthetic. “Affirmative, I have the coordinates within the ship’s database. A compensated jump is well within possibility, now factoring in the Ring’s gravity well, we should prevent a repeat of the deleterious and rather humiliating crash that instigated this incident in the first place.” The AI spoke through the ship’s PA system, Ellen nodding promptly, with a soft, forced smile. “Thank you VAI.”

“Shall I initiate inter-jump coordinate recalibrations?” The AI quickly added, prompting Ellen to turn to Kesan once more, her eyes full of worry and concern as she took a good ten seconds before nodding. “Do it.”

And with that, the ship seemed to almost ‘lurch’ in place, a deep feeling of unease reverberating throughout, as their technology showed yet another facet of how fine tuned their FTL capabilities really were… able to calibrate and shift coordinates in mid jump.

“Are you sure about this-, er, are you sure there isn’t anything you’ll need?” The Ranger seemed almost insistent. “I know technology isn’t on the list but….” She sighed. “Do your people use currency? We rangers have physical rare metals in case of emergency bartering, if you’d like, I know no one will miss a few bars of whatever metals you’d need.” She shrugged, almost grasping at straws at this point.

(@k-dradom)

[intergalacticadventures]

A Tale of Two Galaxies

[k-dradom]

intergalacticadventures:

Ellen let out a nervous sigh as kesan provided a rebuttal for her rather obvious nervous tics. The woman nodded, clutching her forehead with her hand as she replied on a tone that matched her state of mind and her current demeanor. “I wasn’t, I meant.” The range took another breath. “Right. Apologies for that, I might have even a bit overzealous there.” She snickered lightly. “Truth be told, I’ve seen and observed tens, hundreds of races, but this is really my first time actually sitting down talking to someone from another race. Let alone sitting down talking to someone that’s not actually VAI or my superiors for an extended period of time.” Ellen clutched her arm nervously.

Though at that mention of the San’shayum, her visage darkened somewhat, as she addressed it despite it perhaps being a sore spot at present. “This San’Shayum, I assume they are, er, they were your ruling caste in this society of yours? The one that just seemingly broke apart I mean.” Her mind chastised her immediately for that…. so much for tact. “Science and technology have always been a major, a huge aspects of our species. Our leaders are all leaders of their respective fields. Scientists and engineers, specialists, they’re the leaders of our government.” 

As Kesan brought the obvious elephant in the room to bear, Ellen could only become even more self conscious at her bare arms or rather, the markings on them. As she relented to his questions, even after the assurances at the end with her being able to refrain from answering.

“It’s. You’re going to need some context and background.” she began, “We call them tegus, short for tegumarantiums, a naturally occurring indentation and marking on our epidermis and dermis. Long story short, our primitive ancestors developed this in a sort of symbiotic syncretic evolution alongside most mammals on our home world. Pollen and such lodges in whilst our primitive analogues climbed and did whatever primitive animals did. Helping to pollinate plant life whilst they foraged for food.”

She shrugged. “Fast forward to the present, it’s considered to be as much of an identifiable trait as your facial features are. Each mark and each indentation could be attributed to some pseudo religious allegory to destinies or prophecies. And whilst their current more secular society had no place for that, the fact remains that we still consider them to be something that only close friends, family, or loved ones can see. A sort of ‘second face’ if you understand my meaning?” She shrugged. “I’m sorry if that’s a bit much to take in” she begins to loosen her current posture and her current position where she was practically hiding her arms in a sort of ‘self hug’, understanding that the alien had no taboos with regards to this as she attempted to override years of social conditioning to the contrary. “What of your people? Any interesting cultural or physical quirks aside from being built for war?” She let out a light chuckle at that, trying to alleviate the awkward air by initiating another back and forth.

“And hey, how’s the arm? I told you we had tech to fix simple injuries.” The Ranger seemed almost prideful of the effects of that apparatus, which was in line with her general attitudes towards science, technology, and her gadgetry in general it would seem.

(@k-dradom)

For a moment, Kesan listened to her in silence. The marks had once served a purposed but remained even as their people advanced and grew. It was rather remarkable to him and his eyes were studying the markings on her arms. That was, until she mentioned that only certain people were really supposed to see them. Like family or…

Kesan suddenly turned his head away, averting his gaze when he realized that his staring might be making her uncomfortable. Family, close friends, or lovers perhaps. He felt embarrassed just thinking of the implications of that but he discarded the thoughts before they could get out of hand. At her prompt, his eyes flicked to her briefly, and his mandibles twitched.

”…My arm is still slightly numb but…“ He brought it up, flexing his fingers slowly. "I will need to commission new armor for it when I can. It will do. As for your question, we do not have anything as in-depth as your people. Children are born with thicker scales on the back of their necks. A genetic safeguard from our more primal days, when mothers carried their children in their jaws. Otherwise, there is not much else…” It was unfortunate, but it seemed that his people were far more bland compared to Ellen’s. So it seemed to him, anyway. Taking a breath, he glanced around a bit before eventually settling his gaze back toward Ellen.

“…So what is the plan now?” He ended up asking. “Do you focus on repairs before you leave? Is there a way to get me back to my people without risking more damage to your ship? Or will you need more time to recover..?” He trailed off at that last part. He was willing to wait for her to get back to her full strength and part of him was frightened at that. He was growing to actually, genuinely care about her, only to know that in the end, she would leave. He would never see her again unless she was able to return. And by then, he couldn’t promise that he’d still even be alive at that point. It was clear that this war was still far from over.

[intergalacticadventures]

As Kesan continued to stare at her in silence, Ellen's blush could only deepen as she winced further and returned to that timid and rather embarrassed state, her face couldn't get redder than it already was, and yet it proved her wrong again as the alien continued his passive observation. She guessed it was probably rather interesting to see and she couldn't fault the sangheili for his curiosity. Her entire drive for this career was powered by the same emotional drive after all, but after she'd revealed the cultural significance and taboo of the markings, it seemed as if he understood immediately and looked away. The ranger breathed a sigh of relief as she finally let her guard down again, now nursing the bruises and patched up areas along her arm as she winced at the injuries. It had been a while since she was actually hurt, and unlike Kesan who probably lived and breathed war, she'd only had one or two brief scuffles in her years. The silence was yet again deafening as she quickly added in order to alleviate the pressure from the room. "They also hurt. A lot when it's hit or when an area around it is injured. Which is why I'm in quite a bit of pain right now." She admitted. Before raising a brow at the alien's own species' traits. "Yeah, wish we had something like that. It seems like all these are good for is to exacerbate our pain receptors. Not really good for battle or combat as you might've guessed." The ranger sighed as the robotic implements finally allowed her to move freely. But not before applying more bandages around her waist where the two emergency intrahepatic tubes had just gone in. Thankfully the bandages and wrappings covered most of her markings, though a few could still be seen here and there. She looked at kesan with a tinge of concern. "The numbness will fade in an hour or so. You should have full motions of your arm back by then too. As for your armor..." she paused, again doubting herself in what she was about to offer, but sighing and concluding that it was the only right thing to do. She'd come this far after all. "As for your armor. If it's still on the ship, my auto-fab can replicate one for you. It won't be too fancy, but it should do the job." She nodded. "I would offer you some of my spare armor but...." she looked the alien up and down. "I don't think we'd really.... fit." As kesan moved onto more practical matters, Ellen nodded and brought over a datapad from a desk side table, flicking through it as she regarded his questions and statements. "The next course of action.... it's difficult to say. I have a few options on my table, but my priority is immediate risk assessment of the biohazardous threat that is this 'flood'. I could rush back home with a priority report, and I'd probably be deployed here again soon after for additional intel. Or I could stay and gather as much as I can before heading back." She began to list the possible options. "Regardless of what happens. My priority is to ensure this threat is catalogued, analyzed, and sampled for our scientists to run risk assessments and to protect the homeworld." She slipped off of the bed onto shaky feet. "With the state of the ship, it seems like I'll have to return as soon as possible for a priority report." He eyes met kesan's. "but of course, if you have the coordinates, I can make a short jump to your destination before heading out." It was at this point that she felt a certain.... grief overcoming her. A certain feeling of apprehension as she realized what was to happen next.  The alien that she came to almost care about over the past few hours, was probably just going to disappear as quickly as he'd manifested in this small chapter of her life. It wasn't as if she bonded with him too well or anything but, she almost began to regard him as a sort of friend as strange as that sentiment was. "This.... if I drop you off this might be it wouldn't it?" She wasn't lying to herself, she knew the threats he faced, a massive theological empire and a biohazardous plague that even she has difficulty comprehending. "I.... I wish there was more I could do." The ranger grimaced, looking down on the floor almost out of shame as she crossed her arms. The ranger's burden all too clear at this point in time.... she could watch, observe, contemplate, plan. But in the end, no matter what circumstances were presented, she could not interfere. Or at least, substantially to have a lasting impact..... (@k-dradom)

[intergalacticadventures]

A Tale of Two Galaxies

[k-dradom]

intergalacticadventures:

“Yes, it would, but this isn’t a normal jump.” She began almost gloating and brimming with pride at this latest development in technological prowess. “We classified this as the third method of FTL, alcubierre drives were the first, followed by slipspace, and finally, by this method dubbed the QE Drive. It cheats all the laws that govern the previous two drives in a way that’s almost too simple to believe. Do you have QEC yet? It’s quantum entanglement, a means of connecting two particles across time and space to tie them together giving them a property of directly interacting with one another regardless of the distance. At first this was used for communication, then finally, we figured….. why not attempt something larger? We in essence connected a larger set of particles across a vast distance, manipulated and created conditions where both would collapse in on themselves creating a temporary wormhole network connecting two points in space, reducing the actual physical distance to but a few thousand kilometers at best.”

It was then that the ranger realized her foolery, having gone and revealed this massive development…. she winced at her own idiocracy before placating herself with the fact that the alien was probably not well versed in natural sciences, considering he was just a soldier….. that she spoke too fast and with vast generalizations that wouldn’t catch on, sounding more like a vague concept than anything discernable….. or at least, she hoped so, as she sighed and palmed her own face at that….

Ellen almost blinked at the man’s next questions. Was he actually expressing more concern over her? It was still strange, this entire state of affairs, how quickly he changed from enemy and captor to ally and perhaps even friend. To hear him speak about the ship’s ability to head bake for her safety was something that really hit home how maybe her views of aliens as a whole might be more correct than she’d previously imagined, the directorate, in all of its precautions was perhaps a bit too preoccupied with the their own logical train of thought. But she proved today…. and continued to prove that such a friendship could form.

The woman stuttered as she replied. “Theoretically yes, but, our drive core being in the state that it is….” she sighed. “I might not be able to jump back here.” She let the sink in as her tone grew dark. “And as soon as I appear in Directorate space, I am to report in. With the damage to my ship, they’d bring me for immediate debriefing and end my mission.” She sighed. “They’d analyze every bit of data from the engagement and all of the intel I garnered, and that means…. you…. as well. If we do jump right now.” She said solemnly, a clear concern for her ally permeating through.

Ellen paused, unsure of how to continue as she sighed and averted her gaze somewhat. “And that’s why I haven’t jumped back nor did i have Vai prep an immediate jump back as is usually protocol.” She finally revealed as the AI soon responded to Kesan’s line of questioning.

“It should be done now, please remove your arm, sensation should return within a few minutes.” The machine replied in it’s signature tone, as the different components holding Kesan’s arm in place began to retract. The components almost folding in on themselves as the whirring of the mechanisms groaned faintly. The cylindrical device soon retracting into the roof and floor respectively, as within but a few moments, all traces of the man’s treatment was gone.

As soon as that was done with, a sharp grunt from the ranger was heard as the tubes that had connected to her abdomen through her suit began to dislodge, followed by a quick acting mechanism that wrapped her affected regions in thick bandages. The woman struggling to even sit up after that as she tried not to seem weak in front of the more imposing alien. “These seats really don’t do you any favors whatsoever.” The worn and battered ranger managed out a joke, as the true evidence of her injuries were clear now, as the machines began to treat those wounds as well, removing the skintight portion of her undersuit’s arms, as salves and bandages were applied to the rather impressive looking bruises that blemished her otherwise untarnished form.

Though (either from her species’ physiology, or perhaps just her own), she seemed as if she barely had any visible musculature or bulk, simply lithe and compact. Perhaps their species’ muscle density was just built in such a manner. The indentations and patterns along her arms were even clearer now with the removal of the sleeves, straight lines forming into greater swirls before ending in geometric patterns and fading as they reached her wrists. She promptly crossed her arms on instinct and whilst trying her best not to show her nervousness it still shown through quite obviously. “Apologies.” The Ranger spoke almost as if in an expected response.

(@k-dradom)

Listening to the Ellen speak, Kesan kept his eyes focused on her, deep in thought. Her assumption would be right in that he barely understood what she was talking about, but he wasn’t a mindless brute either. Instead of saying anything, though, he quirked a brow when she seemed to regret spilling all those details at once. His mandibles clicked as he leaned back in his seat.

“Do not worry, Sangheili don’t have talents in such diverse sciences. We left the technology part to the San'Shyuum. Which… worries me, but I can’t let it get to me.” Unless they conscripted some of the lesser races to their cause, the Sangheili had few ways of repairing their ships, or building new ones. If they were to win this war, they’d have to do it quickly.

Again, he listened to her speak, telling him that she could have made the jump if she wanted to, but she held back for his sake. Which… surprised him. After the way he treated her at the beginning, he would have figured she’d jump at the chance to go home, whether he was dragged along or not. But in the end, he was still grateful for her consideration. Becoming an object to be tested on and disected didn’t sound too appealing at this rate. Still, once the machine on his arm released him, he didn’t hesitate to get to his feet and stretch his back and seeming relieved to be out of that chair.

His attention was grabbed when the machines around Ellen began moving as well, patching her wounds and shifting her suit to expose her arms. Her timidness earned yet another quirked brow. He took note of the little designs, and, out of his own stubbornness, he approached slowly.

“Those marking on your skin. Do they mean anything?” He couldn’t help but ask, feeling like addressing the situation would make her feel better about it. Or less self-conscious at the very least. And it confused him as to why she would be so anxious about showing him. Was showing off her arms considered a taboo act in her society? He had so many questions about her in his head, he didn’t know where to start, or if he even should. So, he paused, standing a few feet from the bed she was laying on, slowly feeling the numbness in his arm fading away.

“…You don’t have to answer.”

[intergalacticadventures]

Ellen let out a nervous sigh as kesan provided a rebuttal for her rather obvious nervous tics. The woman nodded, clutching her forehead with her hand as she replied on a tone that matched her state of mind and her current demeanor. "I wasn't, I meant." The range took another breath. "Right. Apologies for that, I might have even a bit overzealous there." She snickered lightly. "Truth be told, I've seen and observed tens, hundreds of races, but this is really my first time actually sitting down talking to someone from another race. Let alone sitting down talking to someone that's not actually VAI or my superiors for an extended period of time." Ellen clutched her arm nervously.

Though at that mention of the San’shayum, her visage darkened somewhat, as she addressed it despite it perhaps being a sore spot at present. “This San’Shayum, I assume they are, er, they were your ruling caste in this society of yours? The one that just seemingly broke apart I mean.” Her mind chastised her immediately for that.... so much for tact. “Science and technology have always been a major, a huge aspects of our species. Our leaders are all leaders of their respective fields. Scientists and engineers, specialists, they’re the leaders of our government.” 

As Kesan brought the obvious elephant in the room to bear, Ellen could only become even more self conscious at her bare arms or rather, the markings on them. As she relented to his questions, even after the assurances at the end with her being able to refrain from answering.

"It's. You're going to need some context and background." she began, "We call them tegus, short for tegumarantiums, a naturally occurring indentation and marking on our epidermis and dermis. Long story short, our primitive ancestors developed this in a sort of symbiotic syncretic evolution alongside most mammals on our home world. Pollen and such lodges in whilst our primitive analogues climbed and did whatever primitive animals did. Helping to pollinate plant life whilst they foraged for food."

She shrugged. "Fast forward to the present, it's considered to be as much of an identifiable trait as your facial features are. Each mark and each indentation could be attributed to some pseudo religious allegory to destinies or prophecies. And whilst their current more secular society had no place for that, the fact remains that we still consider them to be something that only close friends, family, or loved ones can see. A sort of 'second face' if you understand my meaning?" She shrugged. "I'm sorry if that's a bit much to take in” she begins to loosen her current posture and her current position where she was practically hiding her arms in a sort of ‘self hug’, understanding that the alien had no taboos with regards to this as she attempted to override years of social conditioning to the contrary. "What of your people? Any interesting cultural or physical quirks aside from being built for war?" She let out a light chuckle at that, trying to alleviate the awkward air by initiating another back and forth.

“And hey, how’s the arm? I told you we had tech to fix simple injuries.” The Ranger seemed almost prideful of the effects of that apparatus, which was in line with her general attitudes towards science, technology, and her gadgetry in general it would seem.

(@k-dradom)