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WARNING The following story contains scenes of violence and graphic sex between consenting anthropomorphic marine animals. As common sense would dictate, if you're over the legal age in your neck of the world to read on then please read on and enjoy. If not then please go away, simple as that. DISCLAIMER I do not own any aspects or creatures of Call of Cthulhu. They are all copyright Chaosium Inc. and the respective authors who've contributed over the years. NOTES So it begins again, the first chapter of the third Fursonae X Machina saga. This is also the first major deviation since while the first two concentrate primarily on the relationship between machines and the land based creatures we're all familiar and in love with, this series focuses primarily on sea dwelling species and their encounters with the creatures of H.P. Lovecraft. Now that I hopefully have gotten your attention with that, I'll just run through the standard fare and let you know that, with the above exception, everything from here on in is copyright Klesk Vadrigaar 2006 and my e-mail address is [email protected] Proof reading and initial criticisms courtesy of Ebon Jackal (couldn't keep this up without you man.) Okay, that's out of the way so let's get things rolling. FXM: Legions of TEMPEST First Encounter: Cthylla's Emergence Written by Klesk Vadrigaar June 6th - 8:31 p.m. - *Ah me, another day, another solari.* Crystal thought quietly to herself while watching the hands of her Riptide Mk. XVI C.E.T.A.C. continue maintenance on the perimeter sensor tower. *Another moment of a finite and rapidly disappearing life lost, some might say.* The pink dolphin sighed as she sat inside her massive aquatic meka warrior, manoeuvring the control columns with near surgical precision to replace and reconnect the final relay chip and then close the sensor's housing. *There, job finally done.* She steered the C.E.T.A.C.'s arms down to put the tools it was holding back in their box and close it before sending a mental command for it to stand up so she could survey her work, a relieved click coming from her beak at the again fully functional sensor tower. *Oogh, not one of the more appealing aspects of the job but at least it'll ensure the city stays free of harm.* Crystal cracked her neck and swung her bot's arm up to swat away a stray Namok fish that was swimming around the cockpit before activating her cerebral link. ++Ecco 2 to Ecco 6, Trax do you read me? ++ Through the faint remains of daylight filtering down through the water, Crystal made out the silhouette of a gigantic manta ray shaped mek standing up in the distance. ==Loud and clear girl. What's the latest? == The transparent image of a tiger shark materialised on the cockpit screen in front of her. ++Last sensor is finally up and running, which is more than can be said for me. ++ The dolphin groaned as she leaned forward so the base of her tail slid free from the housing sheath that extended back from the rear of her chair, allowing her to massage it lightly and try to get some feeling back into it. While in reality she had little to complain about, given the benefits afforded to a member of the elite TEMPEST Legions, there were still days like today, where having to carry out the seemingly endless list of menial tasks around her home city of Scylla in the Pacific Ocean just made the job downright tiring. ++10 hours straight of mentally controlling this thing, my brain feels like a dried up sponge. ++ ==It's what we gotta do if we want to still have a home to go to. == Trax reminded her. ==Anyway, the other sensors are all now in working order, there still doesn't seem to be any sign of further glinter activity, and my C.E.T.A.C. is in dire need of fresh blood. I'm gonna call it a day and head back. == On her end, the dolphin smiled. ++ Sounds ideal, I'll catch up as soon as I've run one final system check. ++ On her screens, Crystal watched as Trax's C.E.T.A.C. pushed itself off the ground and began to transform, tucking its arms in underneath its body and then closing the armoured belly plates around them before linking its legs together and sliding the tail that had been situated just above them down till it clicked into place over the feet. The robot completed the transformation by folding its head back by 90° and extending its massive wings so that it now looked like a non-anthro manta ray. With that done it flicked its tail from side to side and began to glide silently back to base. Crystal let out another sigh and guided her own C.E.T.A.C., shaped like a six gilled shark, to sit down and link with the tower to run a diagnostic. Best to ensure there weren't any more nasty surprises waiting to ruin all her hard work. Groaning again, Crystal sat up in the pilot seat and switched on her mek's head lamp as a thin tentacle extended out of the wrist and inserted itself into the relative terminal socket on the sensor tower. Data began flashing across the canopy screens as the dolphin stifled a yawn, thanking the heavens that her long day was at last over, and then muttering a silent curse when another rogue bit of intensely bright light from the east began to bleed into her vision, forcing her to squint. Which in turn lead to a feeling of bewilderment when she realised she was too far down beneath the waves for that much light to filter through, and that on Neo-Terra the sun set in the west. Cocking her head, Crystal ordered her C.E.T.A.C. to stop what it was doing and turn to face where the strange light was originating from, feeling a cold chill running down her back when she saw it was in fact not light but an eerie golden glow, and was not coming from the surface but from deep within a rocky fissure situated in the distance. *Ohh Deus no, it can't be...* The glow began to increase in intensity, getting brighter and brighter as a distinct buzzing sound began to permeate through the waves as though a huge swarm of aquatically oriented bees were propelling themselves through the ocean. A description that proved to be remarkable accurate as two seconds later a massive cloud of bizarre creatures exploded out of the fissure, each looking like a gold glowing mushroom with revolting black veins etched over the dome on top of a huge writhing mass of translucent purple tentacles. A nanosecond later the Riptide's radar sensor began beeping like crazy to confirm her worst fears. *Fuck, it is!!!* Yanking the steering columns back as hard as she could, Crystal ordered her mek to push off the ocean floor and get some distance between her and the creatures as they dispersed out to swarm around her. ++ Trax, are you still there?++ She sent out frantically while her mek's arms reached behind to grab the harpoon caster mounted on its back. ==Yeah, I'm still here. What's happening? == ++You spoke a little prematurely. Glinters are coming in at nine o' clock!! ++ Crystal kicked her legs swiftly, propelling herself up and out of the reach of several of the glowing creatures as her mek angled its harpoon caster down and speared several of the closest glinters through their shimmering heads. A muffled popping sound was heard as the plasma charged harpoons exploded and blew the creatures wide open, their golden glow dimming and fading out as they died. More glinters were quick to swirl up after the dolphin's C.E.T.A.C. as it swam away, their long tentacles snaking out to wrap around the mek's leg, allowing them to close the distance and latch with a wet 'schlurp' onto the armoured housing. ++Dammit, Trax I've snagged a couple on me! ++ Beneath her, the manta ray C.E.T.A.C. swivelled its head up in concern as it reverted back to combat mode and fired into the swarm with its two shoulder mounted harpoon casters. ==Schmed! Are you gonna need help girl? == Crystal grit her teeth as the glinters began to deliver an onslaught of electric shocks that played havoc with her mek's systems and gradually wore down the first layer of armour. Bubbles of toxic gas rose from the slimy appendages as they followed the attack up with a secretion of corrosive liquids onto the robot's insulation casing, eating away at it to expose the delicate organic circuitry inside while more tentacles snaked upwards to help the monsters advance to the cockpit. ++Just hold the rest off, I can handle them. ++ Performing a crocodile type roll, Crystal brought her mek around so that it was facing belly up in the water. As the glowing monstrosities clung to her like leeches she then gave the order for her C.E.T.A.C. to ready one of its sonar daggers. A hidden compartment on the mek's thigh flipped open, revealing a long gleaming blade which it grabbed while executing another roll to keep the glinters distracted. With nary a second to lose, Crystal checked which one was closest to the cockpit and raised the knife, ready to show it the errors of touching her in places it shouldn't have before she realised they had inexplicapably stopped their advance. The dolphin only had a moment to puzzle over this uncharacteristic behaviour before she was distracted by the Namok fish that had been eyeballing her earlier swimming into her field of view, curious to see what was going on. On instinct the glinter closest to the cockpit whipped several of its tentacles out and speared the poor creature through its belly, bringing a disgusted grunt from the cetacean pilot as its glowing dome began to ripple and then burst open, revealing a slimy translucent version of the fish's head while more of its tentacles ballooned outward and were then ripped apart by the newly formed fins inside them spreading out. *Now that is simply no decent way for anybody to go!* Crystal thought bitterly as she drove the knife deep into the mutating monstrosity's head and then cranked the sound generator on it to a punishing level. A sickening 'splurge' came from the glinter as it ruptured from the sonic blast, its tentacles going limp and its glow ceasing. Breathing a quick sigh of relief, Crystal began to do the same to the others on her while she continued to fire into the swarm. ++Dammit, there's too many of them! We're never going to be able to hold 'em off at this rate!++ She sent to Trax, watching as every time she took out one glinter another five showed up to take its place. ==Then we'd best make use of our surroundings. Help me herd them around one of the sensor towers. == Crystal glanced over at the manta ray C.E.T.A.C. as it drew its own pair of sonar daggers and began to slash down any wayward glinters that managed to escape the continuous onslaught of harpoons. The dolphin cringed when she realised what Trax was proposing to do. Seeing no other alternative however, she swam her mek around till she was on the other side of the glittering swarm and ordered it to ready its sonic cannon. Like a dutiful serpent, a long tendril snaked out of the top of dolphin's head frame and moved down to encompass her beak. Taking a deep breath while continuing to shoot at them Crystal let forth with a sonic screech, the C.E.T.A.C. amplifying the sound to an ear splitting level (even for her) and then shooting a close focus cone of sound out of its own mouth at the glinters. Seeing it had the desired effect, Crystal hit them with several more blasts, gradually forcing the glinters back up against the tower she'd finished repairing not more than five minutes ago. ==Alright then, == Trax quickly sheathed his knives and reached behind to pull a grenade out of its container on the bot's waist. ==first the wind up, == The manta ray robot warrior reared up like a pitcher ready to throw a fast one. ==And then the pitch! == He hurled the grenade directly into the centre of the swarm, the glinters first parting and then swirling around the deadly device like a monstrous mouth snapping up a tasty morsel. *Better get some distance.* Crystal thought as she whirled her mek around and activated the leg mounted turbo-boosters while Trax followed suite. The two sped away from the scene as the grenade detonated, severely damaging the tower with the resulting shockwave and causing it to go haywire. A cacophony of loud crackling and muffled explosions, sounding bizarrely akin to popcorn being made, echoed out through the waters as electricity arched out of the tower and through the glinter swarm, exterminating any stragglers who'd managed to escaped the initial explosion. Both morphs grit their teeth as the electricity surged through their meks as well, scorching the exterior and subjecting the pilots to an agonising tingle as their C.E.T.A.C.s did their best to dissipate the charge. Mercifully it was quick to end as the tower's emergency shut off system kicked in, leaving both dolphin and shark coughing and gasping as their robots crashed onto the ocean floor. ==Crystal? You okay? == Trax said at last as he materialised on her canopy screen. The dolphin shook her head and carried out a check of her mek's systems. ++Well my baby's gonna need a new paint job, her left leg's almost dead, operating abilities have been reduced to about 50% and your explosion took out my life support which means that if I don't get back to base in the next 30 minutes I'm gonna run out of air. ++ She gently pushed the steering columns forward and ordered the robot to carefully stand back up. ++I myself, however, am fine. ++ Trax chuckled on his end. ==Same here. Let's make sure there aren't any strays then blow this place. == The two C.E.T.A.C.s made their way back to where they'd been working. It was all Crystal could to stop herself from cursing again when she saw the charred hulk of the sensor tower surrounded by floating carcasses and fragments of charred skin. ++Ah dammit! Four hours work completely down the drain! ++ She guided the arms down to start picking the remaining glinters off her mek's leg. ++Ah well, better I paid for it with sweat and tears rather than my life. ++ Trax stepped forward to observe the damage more closely. == Still though, how could they have known to band together and try to converge in on this one spot where the sensors were down for maintenance? Normally they just blindly attack every possible entrance into the city. It isn't like them to try and covertly sneak in like that. == Trax sounded confused. ==In fact, if I didn't know better, I'd swear that seemed like an organised ambush. Almost exactly like the kind Legion 15 reported witnessing in Celephais last week. == Crystal pulled the last glinter carcass off her leg and brought it up to where she could examine it. ==What do you think? Possible they're finally starting to develop a higher level of intelligence after all these years? == The shark enquired. Crystal crushed the carcass in between her fingers. ++Doubt it. If they are then they would have realised how futile an idea it was to swarm together in one huge clump like that once we started firing at them simultaneously. Not to mention that one should never hang around once someone's sent a grenade in your direction. ++ She ordered her robot to put its harpoon caster away and transform into transport mode. ++No, their behaviour looked more to me like something was guiding them. Only when the initial surprise attack failed and you came to my aid, that something must've gotten confused and left them to fend for themselves. It's the only possible explanation for the way they first knew how to strike at and wear down my mek's defences, but then wasted their opportunity assimilating that poor fish to try and gain some more brains, instead of moving in for the kill when I was vulnerable. ++ Crystal shook her head. ++ We'll report it to Major Novak and Ladon and see what they have to say. ++ She smiled sweetly at the image of the tiger shark. ++By the way, thanks for jumping in to help me. ++ Trax grinned back. ==Hey, I'm just glad you didn't incur any injuries this time. == His C.E.T.A.C. transformed as well then began to swim off back to base as Crystal paused momentarily, her eyes trailing down to her right arm as the shark's words resonated in her mind. Letting go of the control column she closed her hand and flexed, watching as the glove and sleeve of her pilot suit wrinkled and stretched over the limb. *Yeah, that goes without saying.* * * * June 8th - 9:41 a.m.- "...and so it was in the post evolutionary year AE 137 that the colony of Tartarus Deep first encountered and was tragically wiped out by the mutant series we now know as the Glinters." The porpoise tour guide narrated as she led her school group through the lobby of Legion 17's HQ in the middle of Scylla city. "The subsequent discovery of their ability to assimilate both organic and technological matter is what lead to the Terran Network's formation of the elite TEMPEST Legions to defend Neo-Terra's undersea metropolises against them, as well as the development of a revolutionary new type of aquatic meka warrior that could withstand prolonged exposure to their attacks. As most of you will no doubt know already, this culminated in the creation of the Cerebral Enhanced Terrain Aquatic Combat suits, or C.E.T.A.C.s for short, several of the prototype models of which you can see through here." The students crowded excitedly around a holo-display of numerous first generation C.E.T.A.C. mekaniks; their actions being watched by a rather downtrodden looking orca whale that heaved an aggravated sigh at their show of enthusiasm before stepping into a bio-scanner at the rear of the lobby and let it carry out its relative security checks. - Identity Confirmed. Corporal Orion Masterson approved for entry. - The bio-scanner said, followed by the security doors leading to the more secure areas of the base sliding open. The whale sighed again as the excited chatter of students asking questions and gushing with delight rose in volume behind him before he stepped through the doors and was mercifully left in silence. His name was not meant to be a reflection of his series' feral instincts, or even perhaps some unsaid hope of his parents. It had simply been chosen due to the fact that, in addition to the skin colour, his body was also riddled with an odd collection of small, scar like marks. Such a feature in itself would not have been seen as particularly odd either, if not for the fact that they occurred in the order of one large one on his head, two on each shoulder, three on his stomach formed in an upward slant, three on his right arm forming a backward 'C', two on the left forming an upside down 'V' shape and one on each of his calves. Looked at from the front one would immediately notice that they bore a most uncanny resemblance to the arrangement of the stars in the constellation Orion. Up ahead a second set of security doors opened to reveal a foot long silver plated remote probe with a sleek, eel like body design waiting patiently for him on the other side. - Good morning Corporal, welcome to TEMPEST Legion 17. I am Ladon, Terran Network AI # 011-2E-5SB, assigned as...- Orion rolled his eyes and cut the probe off. "You're the base administrator, I know." He said in a voice whose deep, yet smooth tones could possibly have come off as sounding rather appealing to some if they didn't seem so restricted and choked by some internal feeling of anger. - Indeed. I trust you did not have any problems getting here.- "Aside from having to covertly take a detour through both the third and fourth tentacle passes during morning rush hour in order to throw off any pursuing paparazzi? No, not really." The whale glanced up at the ceiling. "This city certainly does live up to its namesake if nothing else." - Well I am glad that you have arrived here safely. Major Novak is waiting for you in her office. This way please.- The probe turned around and swam down the corridor as Orion closed his eyes and followed meekly behind, the same indiscernible weight that was evident in his voice becoming just as apparent in each of the cetacean's footsteps. *And so it begins...* * * * - 9: 46 a.m.- Deeper within the bowels of HQ in her aforementioned place of work, Legion 17's leader sat behind her desk with a contemplative and rather weary expression on her face. Major Natasha Novak was, physically, a bit of an oddity of sorts. At first glance the pitch black colour of her skin, adorned with the two distinctive white patches above her eyes would have lead most to believe her to be an orca. However, on closer inspection the conical shape of her face as well as the projecting directional fins on her forearms and her vertically positioned tail flukes told quite a different story. Regardless of whatever series she may have been, it was quite clear that all bodily signs pointed to her being a predator of the purest kind, and the aged scar snaking up her neck from the collar of her grey uniform jacket coupled with the seasoned gaze of her amber eyes only served to accentuate the first fact by confirming that she'd obviously been around for a while and seen a fare share of action. Right now though, those eyes were showing the strains of increasing concern, flicking again over the report from Crystal and Trax concerning their unfortunate run-in with the glinter infestation two days earlier. After coming to the two's combined conclusions she dropped the data tablet on her desk and leaned forward on her webbed hands. "Ladon, I need you to float a message to the Scylla U.T.M.C. division. Tell them to send any additional operatives they can spare to join the group stationed at the gap in the city's sensors. I want as many eyes scouring that place until all towers are back up and running." - You are aware that that may be seen as unnecessary, given how it will deplete the forces available for inner city patrol even further than currently, Major?- Novak nodded with a hint of aggravation. "Yes, and if they give you any shtick then be sure to remind them of what happened the last time they sent insufficient numbers into an area of previously high glinter activity. If nothing else they still owe me a favour for pulling them out of that." - Understood Major, and if I may add a related note, Corporal Masterson has arrived and is on his way to you now.- Novak perked up upon hearing that, the aggravation and weariness slipping discretely away from her features. "Well, I'll be darned..." She muttered with amusement. Quickly she sifted through the contents of her desk until she found a larger tablet bearing Orion's name with the words CONFIDENTIAL: FOR AUTHORISED EYES ONLY flashing in red underneath. Setting it down in front of her, away from the other haphazard piles, Novak straightened herself up and put on a quietly amused smile as the door swished open and the blue coloured orca in question entered. "Major Novak? Corporal Orion Masterson reporting for duty." He said, his body stiffening to a rigid military stance as he saluted her. Natasha's smile grew in amusement as she watched the display, noting how though the orca completed the greeting flawlessly he couldn't hide the disdainful glint in his eyes that showed he really didn't fancy having to do it. "Very nice, Corporal. Good to see you've honed the rigours and habits of military training so perfectly." She stood and extended a hand. "Therefore, your first test is obviously going to be seeing if you can break yourself out of them. Around here I prefer to stick with just being properly addressed to maintain some degree of respect. The body posture and inane waving of flippers can be dropped right now." The orca responded with a confused gaze that shifted between her and the outstretched hand, trying to determine if this was some sort of a trick. "Ah, and they've also drilled in the inherent weariness of drifting from form, despite what your inner instincts may be." She nodded in approval. "Go on corporal, you have my assurance that this is the real thing." Orion blinked and then shrugged as he accepted the hand and shook. "As you wish, Major." Natasha nodded again and gestured for him to sit down as a chair wheeled itself up behind him. "I'm glad to see you decided to take up the Network's offer." Orion shifted a bit and adjusted the seat of his armoured wet suit, embroidered on the shoulders and chest with the A.S.W.A.T. insignia, until he decided he'd made himself as comfortable as was possible. "Regardless of whatever my feelings about the matter may be, turning it down didn't seem like the best of ideas. I mean whether I like it or not, I've put myself up as an available resource thus I'm obligated to make myself useful when requested." He stated with a slight hint of vinegar. "Commendable words." The whale/shark mix mused as she pressed her thumb to the data tablet and then began reading through the information on it once it had verified who she was. "So, Corporal Orion Masterson, incept date 04/03/309, son of Maria Masterson and of course her mate, the world renowned Zachariah Masterson, latest I believe of the phenomenal geniuses in your family whom the TEMPEST Legions largely accredit for helping the Network computers advance and improve our C.E.T.A.C. technology." She looked up to meet Orion's gaze. "Must be great coming from a lineage as celebrated as yours." In response the orca's eyes merely drooped down to stare gloomily at the floor while the muscles in his arms visibly tensed. "One would think." He muttered despondently. Novak noted the reaction and continued to read. "So pretty much a normal, unremarkable existence up until the age of 19 when you made your first application to join the TEMPEST Legions. Quite a stir that caused, particularly your reactions to some of the media covering the story." Orion huffed. "If that guy was so desperate to get a photo he could've waited until I was done in the restroom rather than sending in a fly-cam. Especially not while there were several other recruits in there with me. And anyway he managed to get a scoop on some scandalous going ons while he was in the ICU afterwards so what did he really have to complain about?" "Indeed." Novak nodded while she studied what was next. "Though that really pales in comparison to what you did later on." She placed the tablet back on her desk and folded her hands together on top of it. "According to your dossier you completed both the standard pilot training program and the advanced program with flying colours, only to promptly pack up and transfer to the Aquatic Special Weapons And Tactical division before you could be assigned to an actual legion. So far as we know you've never set actually foot inside a C.E.T.A.C." The major leaned forward and spread her hands in a confused manner. "To be honest, ever since then you've had us completely baffled over that course of action. If I may ask, on behalf of my superiors and the Network, what in the far reaches of Helgon happened to prompt you to leave us just like that?" Orion immediately stopped his brooding analysis of the floor and looked up at the cetacean (Or was she a carcharian? Up close he really couldn't tell), his expression bordering on cynical as if he couldn't believe the puzzlement behind the question she'd just asked was actually genuine. "Deus, you mean no one's made the connection yet?" He said in rather louder and more violent tones than was probably anticipated. - Please try to relax, Corporal Masterson. - Ladon attempted to soothe. Novak shook her head to let the computer know it was okay. "We've had our inklings in the past but personally, now that I've got the opportunity, I'd like to hear it straight from the source." She said to the contempt whale in front of her. Orion nodded and took a deep breath to steady himself. "Of course, I apologise." He rubbed over the smooth dome of his head again to give himself a few seconds to phrase his answer. "If you haven't suspected it already, it's because the glinter attack on my father's labs in Sarnath happened. That sort of thing does tend to stick in your craw." The mixed sea dweller across from him nodded slowly in understanding. "Yes, that had crossed a few minds over the last couple of months." She leaned back in her chair and sighed. "I know it's rather late for this, but please accept my condolences for your loss. It never can be easy for a calf to lose a parent." "I shouldn't have had to lose him at all." The blue and white whale muttered with scathing bitterness. "It was so just damn typical of him. He was in the same area of the labs as the blasted T-D chamber when the attack began and had more than enough time to get both him and his crew out safely before the glinters would have reached him. But no, he instead chose to waste his opportunity to escape and make a noble sacrifice. And for what? To ensure the new C.E.T.A.C. he was working on, his 'ultimate masterpiece' as I believe he described it, could be moved from its hangar and sent through the gate first!" Orion violently pounded the armrest of his chair, leaving a considerable size dent in the metal as he concluded his rather heated statement. Grunting at the pain, he closed his mouth and again tried to force himself to calm down. "If I'm intruding on a rather sensitive matter for you then I apologise." Novak assured. Orion just sighed and let his head wilt forward into his hands. "No, no it has nothing to do with you. It just seems like this has always been the whole damn curse of my family. Stretching all the way back to when a Masterson first gave aid to the computers in their quest to develop an effective combatant to defend against the glinters the machines have always come first. Never mind the well being of their mates or their calves, all the males ever seemed to care about is their robots." Silence descended in the office. Novak folded her arms and remained still; content to give the whale the time he needed to collect himself before continuing. "While I empathise with your apparent contempt corporal, this does raise one other query." She said once Orion had straightened up and was sitting to attention again. "My absence from the legions hasn't affected my abilities to pilot if that's what you're wondering. I've kept all my bodywork up to date and if you check my CO's reports from A.S.W.A.T. you'll see I've also maintained a regular regime of simulation practice during my time there." The whale/shark mix again nodded. "Yes, I'm quite aware of that. What I'm more interested in is just why after shunning us for so long you've accepted the Network's offer to rejoin us so willingly and quickly." Her eyes narrowed as she leaned forward. "What is it you really are hoping to accomplish here, Corporal?" Orion did a perfect mimic of her facial expression. "Whatever my feelings on the matters pertaining either to my father or his work may be is irrelevant now. From the information I've been sent, your legion has managed to recover the C.E.T.A.C. he was working on from where it got transported to after Sarnath was destroyed. Additionally, it seems he also designed the damn thing so I'm now the only one that can pilot it." He placed his hands on the desk and leaned forward so that now the only thing separating the two morphs was a mere three inches of air space. "Regardless of what it may have done to ruin whatever remote semblance of a family life we may have had, it's clear that he must have happened upon some radically new innovative evolution with that thing. Something which could clearly prove very useful to the military if you could just figure out what it is." He sat back and crossed his legs. "Hence you guys have now got the new super weapon, and I've got the necessary means for you to make use of it. What more needs to be said?" The black and white coloured mix contemplated the statement and turned up the piercing factor of her gaze to show she didn't believe a word of it. "Yes, that's true. But somehow I doubt you could seriously have a principle as admirable and outright unbiased as that as your motive." She parted her lips to reveal two rows of teeth that, while shorter and more akin to a whale's in design, still looked to be as fearfully sharp as any shark's. "Come on Corporal, what's the real reason I should let you join my team?" The assertiveness faded from Orion's face at the female's perceptiveness, leaving a subtle look of shock which then faded into quiet admiration. "So, you picked up on that huh?" "When you've been at this for as long as I have it becomes a necessity to be able to notice such things." - It is largely what has earned Major Novak her reputation. - Ladon commented. Orion sighed and hung his head. "Okay, the truth is I need some questions of my own answered here too. I mean, I'd like to know what it is that my father felt made it necessary to dedicate so much of his time to his work and then die to save whatever it was he was working on. Call it guilt or whatever you want but I know I'm never going to find any closure to this until I actually see his creation in action." He looked up at the major again with a noticeably more pleading look to his aqua blue eyes. "Please understand, though I may have some rather serious misgivings he wasn't a bad morph. I don't want to keep hating him if he actually had a legitimate reason." Another still of silence fell while Novak studied the humbled cetacean, noting the seemingly weighted sulk of his shoulders, the sombre downward curl of his lips, the genuine despair residing within his eyes... "Well then, as long as you're giving your full consent to this then I suppose I could give you a try out." She rose and walked over to slide the whale's dossier into the interface terminal on the wall. "Ladon, add Corporal Masterson's details to our list of active operatives. As of now he's officially to be considered part of Legion 17." - Understood, Major. - The computer promptly replied. Novak nodded and turned to Orion who was now getting to his feet. "You'll need to get fitted for a pilot suit first, and then I'll let Ladon give you a tour of the place before the medical exam." Orion felt himself smile. "Thank you very much ma'am. Though if it's at all possible, may I ask you something?" The Major nodded. "What is it?" "Are you a half-born or something?" He queried while looking over her form. "I've been trying to deduce whether you're a whale or a shark since I came in but frankly I can't tell if you're either." Natasha stared at him for a moment before bursting out laughing. "Nope, I'm both. Equal parts Orca and Great White." She opened her mouth to show several more rows of teeth behind the two she'd already bore. "While the appearance may be rather befuddling it's more than compensated for by the fact that I've been gifted with the combined strength, the speed, and the stealth of both series as well as being able to spend longer amounts of time above and below the waves than either." She leaned in again with narrowed eyes while the gill slits on her neck flared. "And as you'll soon find out corporal, if you step out of line it also makes me twice as dangerous." Orion didn't seem to be intimidated and politely nodded before walking (with added haste, the Major noted) back out of the office. * * * - 10:41 a.m.- -...and this is the pilots' rest area. While you may not find much opportunity to use it during the limited time you will spend at base, the current pilots have regularly expressed how it serves as an excellent 'limber up/cool off' space.- Orion 'mmmed' in response and gave the area a brief glance over. Nothing too luxurious, just the average recreational room with couches and plush chairs surrounding a large holo-visual enabled wall which, for reasons he couldn't possibly fathom, had been tuned to the Network channel dedicated to 24 hour stock exchange coverage. On the left side he spied a door marked 'Dining Area' and to the right was a large port window through which a colourful coral garden could be seen. "This has an aqua-environment setting too?" - Indeed. A full array of power jets are fitted to all walls and the ceiling. The garden can also be depressurised and opened to the sea if desired. - Ladon replied. Orion tugged fastidiously at the collar of his new C.E.T.A.C. pilot outfit as he followed the probe into the next area. While all in all he felt only slightly uncomfortable in the blue and white body garment (and privately had to admit that he really admired how the lack of armor made it far easier to move around as well as left his muscles more prominently on display under the tight fabric) it seemed he just couldn't get used to the sling like hold that the collar was exerting on his neck. No matter how feverently his fingers tried to adjust it the orca just couldn't seem to alleviate its choking grip, prompting him to momentarily recall the times when he'd been required to dress up for a special occasion and had thus been forced to put on a tie (the one item of clothing he despised above all else). Each of those occasions he'd always entertained the morbid fantasy that he was hanging himself as he tightened the fabric around his neck, and right now the idea was becoming all to familiar as he kept trying to make it easier to breathe. - Down here is the locker room and main bathing area. The showers are equipped with full water function as well as the standard chemical function.- Orion momentarily forgot about his neck and looked up with interest as he stepped into the room. Water showers were rather a rarity in urban military instalments (due primarily to the fact that chemical ones got morphs clean in less time and didn't give them as much incentive to hang around dawdling) so to have them installed clearly showed how highly the military regarded Scylla's respective legion. "Seems I'm getting quite a deal here." He commented while surveying the place. Aside from himself the only other current occupants of the room were one individual who was retrieving something from the depths of his locker, the door obscuring mostly all of his (Orion guessed it was a 'he' from the quietly cursing voice he heard from inside) features save for the long slender green eel tail that extended out and curled around underneath the bench. Behind said individual the whale could also make out the shapely white form of a female axolotl who was standing under one of the showers scrubbing at the bright red, fern shaped gills on her head. "I take it bathing is communal then?" He asked. - Indeed, though separate facilities are available if you prefer.- The whale merely shook his head. "No, communal is fine with me." "Should hope so, it's been a while since I got to see some nice juicy whale on display." Orion paused in his survey of the locker area upon hearing the deep, rather threatening toned voice behind him. Cautiously turning around he felt himself go rigid with a mixture of apprehension and amazement as he found himself face to face with a beefy looking tiger shark clad only in a towel that look to be rather stretched with trying to contain the girth of the legs underneath. "And I gotta say you really fit the bill of that." The shark said with a decisive lick of his lips. Had it been any other situation the orca would most likely have tried to stall for a few seconds so he could get a nice memorable view of such a powerfully built sea-dweller before saying his hellos. In this particular case, however, his desire to do so was rather diluted by the fact that said sea-dweller had an alarmingly predatory glint to his eyes and was showing off a very hungry grin full of huge, sharp teeth. "Uh...well it's nice to meet you." He said while extending his hand. "Ooh, and he's polite too. What a special treat." The carcharian responded. Orion blinked, not sure if the comment was meant to be taken as a compliment to his conduct or to his being a potential snack item. Whichever it did little to calm the unease he felt as the shark began to move towards him. "Maybe a few more dressings than I'd like but other than that you're perfect." The shark said with another run of his tongue over his teeth. By now Orion was starting to feel in two minds about the predator stalking up to him. Sure he was all too aware that there were still feral inclined sharks out there who survived via the same mass slaughter and feasting of their fellow marine series as their non-evolved ancestors had done, but to encounter one in the midst of a massive and civilised city? "Uhm, just before you actually do go through with any fantasies you might be having of eating me, may I please remind you that you aren't the only apex predator here at the current moment? And also that the other one present just transferred in from A.S.W.A,T, and thus has more than the necessary attributes for ensuring that you don't go through with eating me?" He said with a measured degree of force. In response the shark merely just closed the gap between them and leaned in so that Orion could feel the slightly rough texture of his snout rubbing against his own much smoother nose. Hoping it would at least give the carcharian reason to have second thoughts, the orca stared right back into his amber coloured orbs, showing not the slightest trace of being intimidated. "You've got quite a feisty spirit there. Almost as feisty as I'd claim myself to be." He heard the shark say with surprised tones lacing his speech, though his surprise was nothing compared to the orca's when he calmly withdrew and offered a closed mouth and far friendlier looking grin. "Which means I should probably stop with the charade before I piss off the guy who's apparently been given the locker next to mine." Orion couldn't help but blink again in sheer dumbfounded confusion as the shark gave him a pat on the shoulder and turned to start getting dressed. "What?" He said while debating whether to pinch himself to see if he were dreaming. "Had you going there for a moment didn't I?" He heard the shark say and noticed all traces of the predatory glint had vanished from his eyes. "You were...just screwing around with me?" The whale asked. "He didn't mean it It's just something he does with newcomers." Someone behind him said shakily. Orion turned to see the moray eel rolling his eyes and giving him a meek look of sympathy before turning back to notice the shark was now hunched over with his hand clasped over his mouth as if trying (rather badly Orion noted) to suppress laughter. "Why you..." The orca started to say before he felt his own mouth twisting uncontrollably into a smile and had to admit that yeah it was kinda funny. "Sorry about that, but I had to do something to fix that look of downtrodden gloom you were wearing." The shark smirked. "Sadness just doesn't become you orcas." "Well I'd have less reason to feel as such if this damn collar weren't so annoying." Orion grumbled as his fingers resumed with their frantic tugging of the clothing part in question. "How do you guys stand wearing this all day?" The tiger shark walked over. "Here, this should help a bit." He grabbed the zipper tab and pulled it down to the orca's chest. "Always try to leave a little bit at the top. It allows the suit to conform to the contours of your neck without causing undue pressure on your windpipe." Orion felt over his throat. Now with the zipper pulled down it felt much easier to breathe and he no longer had the imminent impression of being strangled. "Thanks, that does feel better." He smiled appreciatively at the shark that extended his own hand. "My name's Trax. Well actually no it isn't, it's Miles, but I really prefer Trax." The whale nodded in kind as he shook hands. "Well my actual name is Orion, but just so everyone can know right now I really prefer to be called 'Ryan'." He gave a wearisome shrug. "The whole mythological relation just irks me." Trax gave an understanding smile. "Fair deal. Well the eel behind you is Warwick, our field technician." The axolotl approached from behind with a towel now draped around her form. "And she's Erin, our chief medical officer. She usually does a round of the base every morning so now's the best time if you need anything from her." Ryan greeted each in turn. "So you're the latest from the world renowned Masterson pod? I'm honoured to meet you." Warwick said in the same shaky tones often adopted by adoring fans when meeting the celebrity of their affection for the first time. "Your family has done so many incredibly things to aid the TEMPEST Legions. We're all indebted to you." Ryan's smile faded slightly upon hearing that but he did his best to maintain the cheerful expression. "Yes, I'm sure you are." "That bi-pulmonary fluid pump system your grandfather came up with to help maintain a steady supply of blood to synthetic muscles. Deus, do you know how much that revolutionised our process of C.E.T.A.C. maintenance?" Ryan's shoulders noticeably slumped. "Um...Actually, yes I do." But Warwick seemed to not hear as his recounting became more and more excited. "I mean yeah now it seems like such an obvious and advantageous idea but he was the one who figured out how to make it a reality. Now it's practically a cakewalk keeping them up to speed because they can circulate nutrients and electrolytes to the organic components twice as efficiently with almost no need for us to refit them or give them regular top ups." He smiled up at the whale with eyes that now positively glowed with exhilaration. "You must be so proud to have so have come from such a well renowned breeding stock." Ryan's body started to quiver from trying to hide the increasing reluctance he was feeling. Sure he wanted to try and make a good first impression with his new team mates, and also figured the eel probably meant well in showing his appreciation. But try as he might to maintain an air of interest, the orca had heard it all a million times before and currently would've welcomed any opportunity to get away from yet another recital of his family's accomplishments. "Yes well, I'll be sure to pass on your thanks when I next speak with him. Now if you'll forgive me I need to go..." "Then of course your own father went one better with the beauty that we've now got in the garage." Warwick cut him off. "I mean we all thought he'd peaked with the creation of the Reef Defender C.E.T.A.C. that the sub-aquatic division of the U.T.M.C. uses but damn, that thing is something else." Now the cetacean felt anguish mix in with the reluctance. *Deus, not that. Please don't bring that up now!* Sensing his hands were starting to shake with trying to contain the growing emotional onslaught he clutched them into fists while trying to look for some avenue, any avenue, to just get away from the eel before he did something he knew he'd seriously regret later. Mercifully it seemed the powers that be sympathised with his plight as a grey striped hand clamped down on Warwick's shoulder and silenced him. "Warwick, I'm glad you're so enthralled with getting to meet the fresh meat, but all being well I don't think he really wants to hear about what he probably already knows his family is famous for." Trax said with a friendly but insistent tone to his voice. In response the eel looked up at the tiger shark and shrank away as he caught sight of the disproving expression. "Right, uh...sorry I-I didn't mean to get carried away there." He said in a far more subdued and nervous wind. With relief now replacing the anger, Ryan waved the apology off. "It's alright. Only to be expected of you." The moray eel relaxed a bit and leaned to grab a maintenance vest with numerous pockets for tools from his locker which he put on over his own pilot suit. "Seriously though, I'll have your father's C.E.T.A.C. standing by with the others in the launch bay if you want to come have a look at it later on. You know, when you're done with the tour and everything." Ryan nodded his thanks. "I'd appreciate it very much if you did." Warwick quickly zipped the vest up and slithered his way out of the locker room. "You'll have to forgive him. He's ever so fascinated by the technology we use from day to day around here." Erin said with quite considerate and gentle tones. Ryan gave an accepting shrug and turned to speak with her, only to have to stifle a gulp when the axolotl unashamedly cast her towel off and opened her own locker to get dressed. "Seriously it's nothing. Just hit a bit of a raw nerve." Trying to avoid getting sidetracked from the sight of the nude amphibian in front of him, he turned back to Trax and saw the shark nod. "I suspected as much from the way you were trying to squeeze your hands into mush." The shark tugged on a pair of waterproof shorts and followed them up with a grey tank top. "Let me guess, you've been forced to live in the shadow of your old man's fame all your life and now frankly you've had enough of it and wish everyone would quit expecting you to be like him." Ryan felt his mouth drop open in astonishment. Quickly he thought it over and had to shake his head at having heard his problem summarised in such a blunt but painfully accurate statement. "Was I close?" Trax asked in bemusement. "Pretty much." The orca responded with a despondent sigh. He sat down on the bench and rubbed over his head again as he continued to repeat the statement in his head and sensed the anguish again begin to creep up on him as a result. "Though added to that is the fact that, as you may have heard, his dedication to his work seemed to be greater than his dedication to his family." The bemusement quickly disappeared from the carcharian's face. Slowly he searched his memory and gave himself a mental kick when he recalled the news fiasco that had resulted from the destruction of the Sarnath labs. "Ooh, schmed." Trax sat down next to the whale and clasped his shoulder in sympathy. "Sorry, I'm kind of tactless on these things." Ryan closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "No, there's no need to apologise. It's a problem I gotta try to work out and that's what I'm hoping to accomplish here." He felt another hand alight on his other shoulder and looked up to see Erin smiling gently at him. "Well, you can take my word for it that you'll have our full support. Even if you didn't have celebrity status we all do our best to look after each other here." The anguish began to dissipate and Ryan and sat up with a lighter feeling in his heart. "Thanks, it's good to know I'm welcome here." He smiled at the two other sea dwellers, glad that he'd already started to establish a bond with his new team mates in the short time they'd known each other. Given, however, that one of said team mates was still only clad in a pair of panties and the other in tight fitting shorts and a tank top that left little to the imagination he stood up and composed himself, not wanting to distract them or himself from their duties for any longer. "I better go get the orientation finished up with now. I'm sure the Major wants me joining you in the ranks as soon as possible." "All right, drop by the med-centre when you're done so we can get the exam over with and finalise your medical details." Erin stated. Ryan paid her a nod of acknowledgement and started to head back to where Ladon was still hovering quietly by the door, regarding him with what the orca could swear looked almost like intrigue nestled in the depths of his large blue eye. *Well, guess maybe this won't be such a bad experience. Specially seeing as how...* And then Ryan's mind promptly met with a severe bout of paralysis when the door whooshed open and in walked a creature that shocked him so much it felt as though his entire body had gone numb. "There you all are." The pink dolphin said with relief. "Come on, what's the hold up? Morning briefing's in less than teeeeennn....mih...nuh?" The cetacean's voice trailed off, gradually growing weaker before finally keeling over and breathing its last. "Oh....by sweet Deus." She muttered with excessive difficulty upon catching sight of the equally knocked for six whale standing in front of her. "Ruh...Ryan?" The comment almost completely passed the blue orca by without him noticing, too preoccupied as he was with trying to regain control of the thick tongue in his mouth that seemed to have suddenly decided it was time to take a break from the laborious task of moving around in the ways necessary to make words. "C-Crystal?" He murmured almost inaudibly, his eyes blinking on their own accord as if trying to clear themselves of the illusion that was standing before them. Said illusion however seemed to sense this and took measures to prove it was all too real as Crystal quickly charged forward and threw her arms around the whale with such force it nearly floored him. "Ryan! Sweet Deus it is you! It is you!" She exclaimed, accentuating her words with several happy clicks and squeaks of her beak while the whale in question stumbled backwards from the onset of both the impact from the charge and the extra weight she was adding to his form by hugging him so tightly. Feeling himself lose the battle with his balance, Ryan shut his eyes and held onto Crystal just as tightly while he prepared for the painful sensation of his back meeting the floor at mach velocities. It was only thanks to a quick intervention on the part of his new friends that the whale did not have to suffer the humiliation of actually falling over, saved as he was by two meaty arms swooping underneath to catch him and stop his descent. "Whoa, that's gotta be the most exuberant hello I've ever seen Crys give anyone." Trax said with an amazed chuckle as he helped the cetaceans settle slowly onto the floor. "You two know each other then?" Ryan shuffled himself about till he felt he'd gotten as comfortable as possible on the vinyl tiling before looking down over the pink, lithe bodied girl that was hugging him so lovingly. "Yes, we were...friends, of sorts...during our high school years." He stated in broken sentences, his mind still too busy trying to come to grips with the reality that the morph he spoke of was the same as the physical entity he could feel lying on top of him. Crystal extracted her beak from where it had been nuzzling at the muscles of Ryan's neck and gave the shark a wide beaming grin. "This guy was the one they assigned to me as my study partner and who went on to help me get through all the courses I needed to enrol for the TEMPEST pilot's academy." She rolled off and sat up as Ryan extracted his torso from the floor. "He's also the one I accredit my nick-name to." Trax cocked his head. "Wait, you mean this is the guy who got you to start calling yourself 'Crystal'?" The orca shook his head to rid himself of the wooziness and shrugged as he looked up at the shark. "Initially we met up because I was meant to be tutoring another member of our class who also had 'Sakura' as her first name. I mistakenly went to her because she came first on the roll call list." Crystal hugged her knees to herself and grinned. "While we were busy laughing over the mix up he thought I might try adopting a pseudonym or something to help avoid further confusion and then suggested 'Crystal' because apparently I had the clearest blue eyes he'd ever seen." The dolphin smirked and stood up along with the whale. "As time went on I decided to use it in place of my real name because it just seemed so much more suitable for me than 'Sakura'." Ryan averted his eyes, feeling a tad awkward at this unexpected turn of events as the dolphin approached him. "We stuck by each other afterwards till we graduated and then on into our time as cadet pilots. Well, that is up until the...well...the incident with his father occurred." Ryan's eyes ceased in their aversion and rolled down to stare at the floor as though in embarrassment. "We tried to keep in touch after he transferred to ASWAT but as time went on things started coming between us and we just drifted apart." Crystal gripped his arm and offered the whale another gleeful smile. "So you actually accepted the computers' offer then." "Didn't feel like I really had a choice." Ryan looked down at the other cetacean. "Totally slipped my mind that you'd been assigned here though." The phin's smile grew larger. "Well you know me, always preferred to stay close to home." He gave another amazed nod while Trax folded his arms and gave his own equally astonished smile. "Damn, this certainly is one hell of a turn of events." Crystal clicked her agreement happily. "And after all this time when I thought you were gone for good." She hugged the orca again. "We've just gotta set some time aside for catching up now." Ryan nodded as the surprise in him dissipated in favour of the exuberance he felt about how the decision he thought he'd end up regretting was yielding such wonderful results. As the dolphin continued to nuzzle he noticed she'd apparently gone a ways towards improving herself physically in their time apart. Her body felt tighter and more streamlined under her suit and she also seemed to have bulked herself up considerably too considering how strong the hold she had on him felt. He did happen to notice in passing that one of her arms seemed to have a harder density to it than the other but it only barely registered on his mind while he embraced her with as much vigour. "Well, as great as it is to see you again, I'm afraid I really have to get my orientation finished and these two really need to stop being hindered by all the hellos." He reminded. Taking note, Crystal let go of him and straightened herself out. "Ah yes of course, must let you get through the rest of the initiation." A thought occurred to her and she grinned. "Though you might find it of value to drop in on today's briefing. Things have been getting mighty strange around the sea terrain lately. Might help to bring you up to speed on what you'll be expected to deal with while you're with us." - Yes, I'd advise that as well, Corporal. - Ladon mentioned from above. The orca looked up at the probe and then at the dolphin again before shrugging. "Fair enough, lead the way." Crystal's grin grew again in size as she took the whale by the hand and lead him out of the locker room. "See you there in ten then okay?" She called back to the other occupants. "Sure thing, babe." Trax called back. - I think you'll find this to be of interest. By an irony your arrival has come two days after Corporal Okuda and Private Deirhart encountered some rather disturbing glinter activity around the perimeter sensors.- "Should be quite a tale to hear then." Ryan noted before regarding the probe following behind him. "Though just out of curiosity, am I to always expect you to be that quiet during moments of emotional turmoil?" In response, the robotic eel shifted its gaze to the hallway ahead of them. - My primary purpose here is to observe the goings on of the legionnaires. Interference is only necessary if it appears one or more are in imminent danger of being harmed or allowing harm to come to another.- Ryan cocked his head. "Asimov fan are you?" The probe showed no indication of reaction. - Please just have faith in us, Corporal. We will do everything we can to ensure your well-being while here.- * * * - 11:31 a.m.- "...and as you can see from these images my C.E.T.A.C.'s head cam was able to catch, the glinters clearly exhibited some initial signs of collective co-operation and planning. The first time I believe they've ever shown such behaviour." Crystal narrated as footage of her and Trax's battle with the swarm played out on the wall screen behind her. "At first we believed that our worst fears were coming true and the glinters were indeed finally beginning to develop higher levels of intelligence, however as we were soon to discover that wasn't entirely the case as you'll see in this next part." The glinters ceased advancing towards the camera and swept back into a massive glittering cloud, presenting a very obvious target for the plasma harpoons that soon swept into view on the screen and began blowing the horrendous monstrosities into tiny bits. The other morphs in the briefing room watched in silence as Trax tossed his grenade at the swarm and then the camera jerked itself away before the screen went blank. - As Crystal has hypothesised, and Major Novak and I agree, while this does not support the theory of heightened intelligence in individual glinters it does present evidence of them being controlled via a means as yet unknown. - Ladon said as he swam down in front of the screen. From where he was sitting in the front row, Ryan heard an aggravated 'humph' from behind and turned to see a brown female hammer-head staring at the desk with disgust. "So what's that supposed to mean then? That there's some 'brain glinter' out there that's assimilated so much intelligence it's figured out how to assume control of the normal ones?" She asked with a noticeable Germanic tint to her voice. "That's one of the possibilities we're considering, Lena." Novak stepped up to the left side of the screen and pressed a few buttons on the holo-panel to bring up a topographical map of the city's perimeter where the assault took place. "From what Intel has managed to work out, that particular swarm had to have originated from somewhere around this area here." The map zoomed out, following a wide cone of red that extended from the area of the encounter to cover places much further out in the rural areas of the Pacific. "As we all know, glinters, much like the jellyfish series they evolved from, generally prefer to congregate areas that are either very heavily inhabited or have very dense vegetation so they have a steady supply of materials to assimilate and gain both nutrients and intelligence from. That narrows down the possible location to these areas here." The cone narrowed significantly. "And though they, like us, now have the ability to endure much higher water pressures they still prefer areas that are reasonably close to the surface so that brings the possibilities down even further." On cue the cone split apart and formed into several trapezoids. "Our main task for today then will be to do a sweep of the areas closest to us. Get out there, have a look around and see if we can uncover anything else about how these creatures managed to know how to get past our perimeter sensors and set upon two of our number." There were numerous murmurs of agreement and disapproval. "I'd also like to mention that we have a new member here who'll be joining us today. To those who haven't already, I'd like you to say hello to Corporal Orion Masterson." She nodded at him to stand up and he did so with some reluctance. Almost at once the mumuring stopped as the entire room focused itself on the whale, several pairs of eyes widening in recognition when they noticed his distinctive blue and white colouring as well at the scar like mark on his head. "Masterson? He isn't one of the..." "...yeah, I think Professor Zachariah was his father or something..." "...and that C.E.T.A.C. we recovered last week, wasn't that from..." "Great schmed! One of them in the flesh and he's joining us? I feel so honoured." "Ain't he a looker? I wonder if he's..." "...and the Network computers asked him to come and be the pilot for it? That's unfair! We found the damn thing, how come we can't be the ones permitted to use it?" The orca lowered his head and tutted in annoyance as the muttering he'd been expecting continued. Noticing this, Novak stepped forward and cleared her throat loudly. "There'll be time for the Q and A later. Right now I want all of you to get yourselves ready and report to the Pacific Hunter by 1300 hours. Dismissed!" The occupants of the room snapped back to attention and stood up to salute before filing out. Once they'd all left, Novak allowed herself a sigh of regret and leaned on the desk. "Sorry about that but it's customary for all new additions. I didn't want to make it look like I was giving you special treatment by allowing you to remain out of sight." "Nor should you have done. Aside from my family's reputation I'm nothing all that special when you get right down to it." The orca said with a gloomy click of his snout. "I just have to deal with whatever occurrences my so called 'celebrity' factor brings up as I move along." He turned to his hyrbid commander and let her know he was fine with her actions. "I'd best go get my medical exam over with now and then join up with the others." Novak nodded. "Ladon will show you the way there. Private Lensinav has also suggested you go have a look at what you'll be controlling before he transfers it to the docking bays." Her stare turned decidedly sterner. "I hope you understand why it may seem like I'm dropping you in at the deep end here, so to speak. I don't know if we'll actually find anything but if you can carry yourself through a normal mission like this with no previous experience then that'll be the final proof I need that I can use you." Ryan nodded his understanding and followed the probe out of the briefing room. * * * - 12:07 p.m.- "So you've had the necessary spinal link nodes installed I see." "Yep, tested and serviced as required too. Assuming the thing's operating system isn't too wholly different from the standard design my brain should be able to link up with its own quite easily." Ryan replied while watching the glowing red and yellow scanner rings sweep up and down his nude form. "Seems you've also had a back up plug and several memory banks fitted to your tail too." Erin noted from where she was observing the results of the medical exam. "Just a recommendation from my CO at A.S.W.A.T. Helps take off some of the mental stress since my tail can handle storing and sorting through any non-important data so my mind can stay focused on keeping the C.E.T.A.C. moving." The white axolotl nodded as she looked up from her screen to gaze over the hulking (and, she secretly had to admit, rather cute) mass of cetacean standing in front of her. "You keep up a regular exercise regime?" "I swim 5 miles almost every day." The whale said with a slight dip of his head. "Helps a lot when I'm trying to forget about life." Erin raised her head poms upon seeing Ryan's body slump. Quietly she paid him her sympathies while checking over the next area under study. "Your lungs look to be in excellent condition." She stated, trying to get on to another subject. "Aqua Fibre are they?" "Oxytech, greater air capacity." "Ah yes, how long can you hold your breath?" Erin enquired. Ryan thought for a moment. "Bout two and a half hours last time I tried." "That's quite a talent." The axolotl commented. She watched the screen in silence for a while until the exam was complete and the scanner rings vanished. "Well, so far as I can tell you're a perfectly healthy, up to date whale. Your bio-mechanical parts and systems are all functioning normally with no undue taxation on your muscles or organs, and your heart rate and other statistics all appear to be normal." She stood up and looked over his sinuous form. "There are just two other questions I'd like to ask, if you don't mind." Ryan shook his head. "Can't imagine there's anything physical about me that I've got to hide." The salamander expressed her thanks. "Well the first is about your skin colour. I've never seen a blue orca before." She stated with fascination. "It's because my mother was an albino. Some of her genes were passed onto me and washed out a bit of the natural black." Nodding, Erin stepped forward and gingerly touched one of the white marks on his shoulder. "And these?" "Had them ever since I was born. It's what inspired my parents to name me after the star constellation they bear such an uncanny resmblance to." The amphibian stepped back and looked him over one last time before snorting in befuddled fascination. "Alright, you can get dressed now. As far as I'm concerned you're more than ready for active service." Ryan turned and stepped back into the changing room, pausing momentarily to look down over the three marks that ran diagonally up along his bulging white abs. Lightly he ran a flipper hand down over them, noting as he had done many times before how the skin of the marks always seemed to feel just a little bit smoother than that surrounding them. Nothing too unusual, but noticeable all the same. He withdrew the hand and focused on looking over the whole of his front. Even viewed upside down the arrangement was undeniable (and he'd compared it to many astrological charts to be sure), every single one in the correct place to form a flawless composition of the celestial bodies that commemorated one of the greatest hunters in all of Greek mythology. *It's just a coincidence. Morphs have weird birth marks all the time. Doesn't mean anything.* He told himself till he heard the door to the med-centre swoosh open outside. "Hey there, Erin. Do you have a moment?" The voice was unmistakably Crystal's. Grabbing his shorts, the orca started to dress himself as quickly and as quietly as possible, not wanting to intrude on the dolphin's time with the doctor. "I've just been using it quite a lot since the last check up and since we're going out again I was wondering if you could have a quick look at it and check there aren't any signs of problems." "But of course, Crystal. Just have a seat and we'll see that everything's working as normal." Ryan heard the comments but paid them little heed as he slid his hands into the gloves of his pilot suit and then pulled the suit up over his shoulders. "Do you still feel any slight aches or pains when you use it?" "No, it's pretty smooth going now." "Good that's a sign your muscles have gotten accustomed to it. Try stretching a bit for me please." The whale pulled the zipper up, remembering to stop before he reached the neck area and then clipped the belt closed. "Yes, it seems to be synching up nicely with your body." Strapping the carrying pouches and weapon holster to his legs, Ryan gave himself one final dust off and then stepped back into the main area, hoping that if nothing else the dolphin would be pleasantly surprised at his presence. "Just be sure to go easy on it for a few more days so it can..." Unfortunately, it seemed it was still him that was destined to get all the surprises today as he caught sight of Crystal sitting on an examination bed and promptly went numb with shock again when he saw she had the top half of her suit off with Erin and a medi-mek leaning over her, tinkering with her...bionic right arm!? Ryan felt himself take a double gasp (simultaneously through his mouth and blow hole) and then expel every whisp of it in a startled cry that contained no semblance of comprehensible speech or emotion. "Huh?" Both femmes looked up to see the aghast whale staring at them like one who has just seen a shivering devil buying a parka from the ghost of Elvis. "Ryan?" Feverently the whale blinked his eyes as if to again clear them of some optical illusion that was screwing with their perception of the world. But as before the same vision greeted him despite his best efforts: a shiny, metal plated appendage with the pulsing red mass of synthetic muscle just visible underneath, leading up and into the shoulder joint of the girl who most certainly had not had such a thing as part of her the last time they'd met. "Crystal, what...?" He began, not even sure of what question he was about to utter. With a confused stare, Crystal followed his line of sight and let out a gasp of her own when she saw where it lead too. "Oh schmed. Ryan, I can explain this!" But before she could do so he'd walked across, smacked the poor medical robot aside and grabbed the limb, still unable to believe it was real even with the smooth texture of Biteryllium alloy in his hand. "What the hell is this??" He asked while yanking it upwards to get a better look. "Eeep! Please, t-take it easy! I just had that fitted barely a week ago!" The orca stopped dead. Now frightened that by handling the thing he was causing pain to the dolphin, Ryan quickly let go and stepped away. A movement that almost caused him to have a back to front collision with Trax who suddenly burst in behind him. "Guys, I heard someone scream in here from down the hallway. Is everything..." He took in the view in front of him. Even if everyone hadn't been cowering from everyone else it didn't take a great amount of deductive reasoning to guess what had happened. "Ah, schmed on seaweed!" He said with heavy angst. "So much for trying to bring this up without causing a scene." Widely stretched whale eyes shifted to focus on the shark, then the axolotl, and then on the dolphin again as Ryan took a deep breath and tried to stop himself from freaking out. "H-How did this happen?" He asked once he'd regained control of his voice. Crystal glanced down at her lap and tentatively gripped the metal fingers of her prosthetic with the warm fleshy digits of her real arm. "Well, like I said, a little over a week ago..." Trax stepped forward and cut her off. "No Crys, let me. It's my fault after all." Ryan rounded on the shark, fixing him with an accusatory stare. Not so much because he felt anger towards him but more because he simply didn't know how else to react. "What is?" The shark took a deep breath and clasped his hands together while he deliberated on how to start his explanation. "Crystal and I had been sent to take out a large sized infestation of glinters that had been sighted plaguing the Jade Coral Reef several miles to the northwest of Scylla. It was turning out to be a fairly run of the mill extermination mission until we were caught off guard by a second pocket of glinters that had wandered into the area while we were preoccupied taking out the first body. In the ensuing scramble one of them managed to get near Crystal's C.E.T.A.C. while she was distracted and attacked the cockpit." He paused for breath. "I was on the other side of the forest so I didn't notice anything was wrong until I tried to call to her for assisstance and just heard her screaming for help. I rushed over immediately but by that point the glinter had bored its way inside and latched onto her arm." "What?" Ryan said. "You gotta understand, any other means of help was still 10 minutes away at this point and it had already anchored itself into her flesh to the point where it couldn't be removed without causing excessive injury. Only way to stop it from assimilating the rest of her was if I did something right then and there so...." Trax lowered his head while his tail curled around his legs protectively. For all of his impressive muscles and towering stature he looked incredibly timid and scared at that particular moment. "So what? What did you do?" Ryan demanded with severe desperation. "Th-The only thing I could do. I performed an on-the-spot amputation." The shark squeezed his hands together tightly and looked up with pleading in his green eyes. "I didn't have any other choice; it was either that or let her die. I..." He looked down again, unable to take the accusatory stare of the whale. "I'm sorry." Silence hung in the air for several tense moments. Trax kept his sight on the floor and waited for what he sensed would definitely not be a pleasant response to his tale, while Ryan diverted between the shark and the dolphin. "Crystal?" He asked. "It's thanks to him that I'm alive. I've never borne him any ill will." She said shakily, knowing it probably wasn't the ideal thing to placate her friend with but unable to think of anything else. Regardless it seemed a satisfactory enough explanation as Ryan let himself exhale (not quite remembering when it was that he started holding his breath) and scrubbed at his face as if trying to rid it of the rather unfriendly shades it had become adorned with. "I see. Please forgive me, I didn't mean to burst out like that." He stepped forward again and gently took both of Crystal's hands in his own. "It just...well it's a bit of a shock. I'm sorry if I gave you all such a jump." Hearing this, Crystal dared to let herself loosen up while Trax cautiously lifted his head to see if what he thought was happening was accurate. "So this doesn't freak you out then?" The pink cetacean asked hesitantly. Ryan looked down at the prosthetic appendage he was holding and lightly rubbed it over with his thumb. "No, no I guess it doesn't really. Just rather an unpleasant surprise to see an example of the inherent dangers of this job on my first day, specially to one I care about." He gave a small and embarrassed smile while he linked his fingers in with Crystal's metallic ones. "Guess I should thank you as well, Trax. We both owe you for your actions." The shark scrutinised his orca team mate for a moment and then relaxed when he saw the gratitude was genuine. "Well then, just so we can get all the dramatic twists and developments out of the way, how about I show you to the garage so Erin can finish up with your girl?" Ryan nodded. "Works for me." He turned to offer an apologetic expression to the axolotl. "Sorry if I damaged your medi-mek there." Erin looked down where the quivering robot was lying on the floor and picked it up. "Don't worry, if anything, Warwick will probably love you for giving him another opportunity to get inside one of these things and learn more about how they work." * * * - 12:13 p.m.- After a long walk around HQ to help smooth things out between them, Ryan and Trax at last found themselves inside the massive chamber that served as the combined construction and repair centre for TEMPEST 17's esteemed meka warrior suits. "Ah brilliant, there you are." They heard Warwick shout from below and looked to see him peering at them from beside the left shin of a huge shark robot. "Just give me a minute to finish adjusting a couple of things and I'll be with you." Trax leaned on the railway of the entrance walkway and watched as the eel quickly dove back into the mess of red muscle and blue neural wiring that lined the insides of the leg to finish up with whatever it was he was doing. "How's the repairs there coming along? Can it be used to today?" He asked. "Sure thing. May want to keep her out of prolonged battles but she should run fine as she is." Came the reply. Ryan walked over and peered down at the carcharian C.E.T.A.C. with intrigue. "That's Crystal's I take it?" "Yep and boy will she be relieved to know that she doesn't have to spend another day stuck behind her desk." The shark mentioned before realising. "Wait, how did you know it was hers?" Ryan leaned next to him and shrugged. "It's a Riptide. Just seems like the model that would best suit her preferences." Trax looked rather amazed but nodded as he thought it over. "Yeah, that it is. She drives it like a gymnast and loves it like a daughter." He looked behind and gestured over his shoulder. "Mine's there on the other side if you want to have a look." The orca duly crossed the walkway and gazed over the sleek manta ray mek that was currently parked in its non-anthro transport mode against the wall, next to another one shaped like a sea turtle. "Wave Runner huh?" He remarked with a hint of bemusement. "Mk. VIII with all the trimmings." He heard the shark state proudly. "Been refitted slightly to take a few more melee weapons. Had to sacrifice one or two of the long range systems but it's a small price to pay for turning it into the ultimate bad ass bot!" He walked up to fondly admire his robot warrior, his face glowing with what could almost have passed as paternal pride while Ryan hung his head and tried to stifle a few laughs. "What? What's so funny?" "Just that's exactly what I'd expect to hear from a shark, and so far it's about the only thing you've exhibited today that's at all similar to the normal behaviour of your series." The blue coloured whale said between chuckles. Trax flared his gill slits, looking halfway between confused and insulted before rolling his eyes and letting forth a very weary sigh. "Deus why do morphs always have to make that assumption? Just because every so often there's a report of one of us instigating a feral attack on some poor sod everyone thinks all sharks care about is killing, eating and being vicious." "Well, the way you were acting when we first met did little to dissuade me that you were any different." Trax shrugged in a 'what-can-you-expect?' way. "Yeah okay, maybe that wasn't the best move. But seeing as it's how everyone expects me to behave when they first meet me, and few like to be persuaded otherwise, I figure why not put it to good use and see how others react to it? At least that way I can get an idea of what kind of morphson they are." He smirked knowingly. "I gotta admit that was a hell of an expression you were wearing when I did." Now it was Ryan's turn to shrug in the same manner as he looked back down at the robot. "So you in fact try to prove not all sharks conform to the popular stereotype." "When I can. I mean, there are some parts of that that are true. For example I still have just as much of a fierce predatory streak as you'd expect, I just try to channel it through means alternative to the traditional ones." "Such as?" "Sports mainly." The shark pulled his collar aside to reveal several team pins attached to the inside. "Back in my high school days I was the jock of the town. Name any league team I was on it at some point. No matter if it was football, tennis or even curling, I did everything I had the energy for. Didn't allow me much time to get anything above normal grades but it did wonders for all those damn impulses I got." Ryan regarded him quizzically before turning to look back down. "So why'd you choose the TEMPEST Legions then instead of going on to pursue a career?" For the second time meekness overcame the tiger shark as he glanced off to the side. "Well, come on. This is the only profession where I get to play around with giant robots all day." At that, Ryan had to turn and stare at the shark with an expression telling of one who accepts what they've heard, but only because they expect to then be told that it was joke and not meant genuinely. "Hey, jocks can have geek sides to them too you know. I've just always held an innate fascination for machines." Trax retorted in defence. "And anyway my sporting talents still prove quite useful when wielding all the blades and schmed I've got on there." Ryan felt renewed laughter bubbling up inside him but managed to hold it at bay this time as he grinned. "Okay while again that sounds a bit more like a normal shark, you're still definitely nothing like the stereotype." Trax cocked his head, pondering the veracity of the statement due to the whale's smile but knowing it probably wasn't meant in jest. "Well, I'll take that as a compliment then." He replied while Warwick appeared on the stairs connecting the walkway to the work floor below. "Alright Ryan, if you're ready for this I'd like to introduce you to your new set of fins." The eel rubbed his hands together as he leaned over and gestured for the garage's bay doors to be opened. "I hope you like the paint job I gave it. It was so crusted over with algae and barnacles when we found it in that cave I had to completely strip it down to the metal to get it clean." "I'm sure you did fine." Ryan said in passing while his expression darkened and he steeled himself for his first look at what he had often heard his father describe as his 'masterpiece'. The thing that had often made him entertain the notion of marking out at the sole object for all his loathing and contempt, seeing as so far it had caused him to lose the parent in question and earned his family even more notoriety that they frankly could have done without. Upon seeing it being moved into the bay on a huge anti-grav platform however, he did have to forgive himself for momentarily forgetting about his hatred when he saw just how his pod's mark of cutting edge genius was so evident in its structure. Shape-wise the C.E.T.A.C. looked like something straight out of the world of Anne McCaffrey, or perhaps J.R.R. Tolkien. Its head bore the very distinct conical snout and spiny crests that almost every dragon seen in paintings and fantasy book covers had born, the lustrous mechanical angles done up in a rich shade of aquamarine blue. Following behind this was a sleek, serpentine body, nearly 50 feet long, with two sets of huge wing like fins, both of which bore transparent membranes like those of a fish, attached above the arms and then further down near where two great swords had been mounted to give the appearance of a tail fin. Running along the top of the body was a continuation of the spines. Big and jagged they cropped up at regular intervals along the back like the teeth of a chain saw, terminating just before the start of said tail fin. On the robot's underbelly, in between its clawed arms, Ryan could make out the outline of the harpoon caster, mounted in a cavity between the abdominal plates with its barrel turned to face the same way as the head as if ready to dispense swift retribution on anything which displeased the fearsome looking black draconic eyes that currently stared lifelessly out from either side of the snout. Ryan swallowed as he gazed over this magnificent cyber-beast under him, his contempt being stamped down under a new feeling of enthrallment while he drank in every streamlined curve, every scale and every formidable angle of the creation his sire had paid the ultimate price to save. The whale continued to stare at it in silence for what seemed like an eternity, several fresh waves of differing emotions battering his mind one after the other until a shrill sounding whistle emanated out from somewhere nearby and snapped him out of his trance like state. "Kick...ass!" Trax exclaimed, his mouth hanging so wide open one could almost see the drool that was pooling up near his lips. "Ryan, that's your C.E.T.A.C.?" "Yep, that's it. The Nereus Mk. Alpha as it's apparently called." Warwick stated cheerfully while Ryan shut his eyes and gripped the hand railing a little more tightly, the initial euphoria now quickly fading. *Just couldn't stop with the damn mythological references could you?* He thought bitterly before following the other two sea dwellers down to observe the machine on a closer level. "Deus, this thing is the works! Harpoon caster, Vulcan cannons, diamond tipped claws, ooh and two full sized sonic frequency blades if I'm not mistaken." Trax said, mentioning every one of the C.E.T.A.C.'s visible offensive weapons as he caught sight of them. "Damn, I'm almost tempted to swipe this thing off you and try it out myself." "Well unfortunately you wouldn't get very far." Warwick piped up. "The operating system's been equipped with a gene recognition programme. It can only be piloted by someone who's a direct blood descendent of Zachariah Masterson." The shark looked a tad crestfallen but then caught sight of Ryan (whom he noted was suddenly baring a much darker expression than before). "Good thing we have you then huh?" "Yeah." The orca stated seethingly while he ran a flipper hand over the metal hide of his steed to be. Now that he'd seen it up close and personal, Ryan felt in two minds about the C.E.T.A.C. On one end he had to admit that he was impressed with its apparent design and armaments. The robot was indeed of the highest quality in all regards and no doubt any pilot worth his/her fish would be honoured to have it as theirs to control. At the same time, however, the cetacean still couldn't shake the wrathful sting sitting deep within his heart that not only had his sire deemed this to be more important than himself, but also that everywhere he looked on the C.E.T.A.C. he could see blatant indications that the whale had obviously designed the damn thing with every intent of seeing his son and no one but his son piloting it. *SF swords. What other possible justification could he have for adding SF swords besides the fact that they were the weapons I favoured practicing with in self defence classes?* Ryan stepped back to again take the mek in as a whole. *And a dragon. Only he and mom knew how much I used to love stories with dragons in them.* An exhale of exasperation filtered through his clenched teeth while his hands balled up into fists again. The worst part of the whole thing was that despite his inner sense of loathing telling him to despise the thing; he actually did feel an increasing want to see what it could do. Regardless of how much he condemned his relatives for their constant show of favouritism towards machines he still harboured a deep love of his own for the splendid combat suits they'd help develop. And now, with the cream of the crop staring at him in the face, letting him know that it was his to do whatever he wanted with, Ryan could not help but feel the desire to get inside and show the world just what it was that had earned his pod their much exalted reputation. "Hey Ryan?" The orca whale looked down to see Warwick coiled up in front of him with a nervous smile to his mouth and bright light to his eyes. "I just had an idea. The garage has its own T-D gate up there at the end of the loading bay area and since we need to get this thing onto the Pacific Hunter anyway, I..." He crossed his arms behing his anthro torso and curled his tail tighter around itself. "I thought you could give your C.E.T.A.C. a quick try out by piloting it through the gate and onto the ship. You know...just so you can get a feel of the controls, or...something." The moray eel hunched his shoulders while the whale looked up at the huge aquatic meka-warrior again with uncertainty. Though as before, Warwick probably didn't mean it, he had inadvertently just given fresh troops to both sides of the conflict now going on within Ryan. *Don't do it. This thing is what your father showed he loved more than you! The best way to prove your hatred is to just scoff at the idea and walk away.* Ryan's muscles began to tense. *And what will that prove? Only that you're a stubborn and unfeeling wretch who can't find it in himself to forgive.* "Hey, that's a great idea!" He turned to see Trax grinning. "In fact if mine's ready to roll why don't you and I follow him? No sense hanging around here anymore now that we've all had a chance to fawn sufficiently over this beauty." The shark gave a solid knock to the Nereus and beamed at the good sounding 'clang!' that echoed out as a result. "What do you say, Ryan?" Now put on the spot, the orca found himself unable to do anything except stand there and try to stop his internal war of wills, if for no other reason than to get his muscles to relax before they burst from being so tense. "I...I'm not so sure." He struggled to get out. "Ah come on. Sure it looks scary but it ain't like it's going to do anything bad to you. It's just a machine." Ryan blinked as if someone had flashed a bright light in his eyes. Amazingly he felt his internal loathing dissipate and ebb away like magic as the shark's statement rang in his ears. *That's right, it's just a machine. Not its fault if the guy who created it fell foul of your expectations.* The tension in his muscles slackened and Ryan took a relieved breath. Yes, that indeed was all it was. He had no right to stack blame on it, nor would he be committing any grave betrayal if he got inside it. The C.E.T.A.C. was just a tool that was meant to be used. And with that, Ryan decided he'd best do what he originally came here for and use it. "Okay then, no time like the present I guess." He walked over and ducked into the space underneath it as the cockpit, located inside the pectoral area, unsealed and opened up to allow the pilots chair to come rotating down 90° to where he could climb up into it. "Here, I made a list of all the system alterations I managed to uncover while giving this thing a look over." Warwick stated as he slithered forward and handed the orca a data tablet. "Hopefully there aren't any other unseen surprises on this thing." Ryan climbed onto the seat and slid his tail and dorsal fin into their housing sheaths in the back. With that done he strapped himself in and took hold of the steering columns, feeling a most queer sense of calmness taking root within him now that he was actually taking control of the thing. "Only one way to find out." He took the tablet off the eel as the neural link helmet descended down onto his head. Seconds later there came a brief twinge of pain as several connection spikes penetrated the relative points on his spine and brain stem and the chair then began to rise back up into the cockpit while above a manipulator tendril carrying a large tube of specially prepared blood slid forward on its ceiling rail and slid it into the necessary socket between the mek's spines. With a reassuring hiss of air, the whale was sealed in darkness as the C.E.T.A.C.'s own cerebrum checked over his brain waves and DNA signature. A moment passed and then came a brilliant display of colour as the cockpit leapt into life. Monitors flickered to full glare, lights flashed to on and the world outside faded back into view as the mek's cameras came online and fed their images to the main canopy viewers. )) Alright, everything seems to be up and running as normal. Guys, can you hear me out there? (( He sent over the cerebral link. ==Loud and clear, Rye. Feeling okay? == Trax replied. The whale looked down at the control columns and smiled as he gripped them harder. )) Yes, yes actually I do. (( To his left he could make out the other two marine creatures looking up with combined exultation. @@Okay, pan your head around a bit. Get a feel for using its eyes as your own. @@ Warwick stated. Ryan focused on sending the necessary mental commands and the mek's head shifted to look first right and left, then up and down. @@Excellent, now, now try to sit up. @@ He levelled the columns back and felt the cockpit shift a bit as it rose up high into the air while a monitor showed a holo-image of the robot erecting itself to sit on its rear wings and tail section. @@That's brilliant! @@ Warwick exclaimed, barely able to contain his excitement. ==Yeah, but you ain't going to be able to go anywhere fast like that.== Trax cut in. ==Go ahead and see if you can transform it. == Steeling himself, Ryan closed his eyes and gave the order. Immediately the whole cockpit felt like it was in the middle of a 7.2 earthquake as the draconic meka began to change shape. The last few feet of the tail detached and slid up along the section before them as it split apart and folded out into two strong legs. The rear wings followed suite and moved up along the back of the body to join with the upper wings and become one magnificent pair while the spines came together to form a long flowing sail down the middle of the back. As this was going on two side sections of scales detached from the torso and move down to join the upper calves of the legs, thereby giving the upper body a more flexible humanoid shape. The transformation at last finished with the head tilting forward so that it was in the correct position for the new anthro form that the C.E.T.A.C. had assumed. With a quick intake of breath, Ryan pulled up on the control columns and gasped with glee as he felt the mek, now looking most terrifying in its anthropomorphic dragon mode, get up on its new feet and draw itself up to a full upright standing position like a titan rising from its slumber for the first time. Breathing raggedly, the orca felt his arms slip from the columns and dangle limply over the sides of the pilot chair while he looked around. From his new vantage point he towered over the rest of the garage, able to see everything much as he imagined the Deus did when looking down from the heavens and feeling his movements not be so constricted due to being in a non-anthro form. ==Bet that felt pretty intense huh? == Ryan pivoted around to see the now significantly minute looking shark staring up from the floor. )) Like you wouldn't believe. (( He replied before grabbing the steering columns again and catching his breath. )) Activate the T-D gate, Warwick, I, I gotta see how this thing moves. (( The other two occupants quickly moved out of the way as Ryan ordered the robot to reach up and detach the harpoon caster from its chest housing. Taking a moment to admire how fitting the huge, meaty rifle looked clasped in the C.E.T.A.C.'s hand, Ryan rested it against his shoulder and worked on getting the legs to move. Of course it was at this point, just as the orca was starting to really feel good about what he was doing, that he was reminded of an all too unfortunate fact: namely that in his excitement he'd forgotten that he was standing on a raised platform, and as such the floor was decidedly further away than he was expecting when he put the mek's foot forward. Ryan squeaked shrilly as he felt himself lurch unexpectedly in the direction he'd stepped, his robot's foot finding only air where it should have found surface and overbalancing as a result. @@Ryan!@@ The eel was heard to scream as he watched the new wonder mek stumble and look to be on the precipice of totalling itself and likely most of the garage too. Feeling himself tilting forward into a free fall, the startled cetacean quickly pushed the left column forward as far as it would go and grunted with pain as his body was thrown against the straps of his chair when the C.E.T.A.C. extended its free arm forward to grab the walkway in front of it and stop itself from toppling over. "Oogh." The blue orca coughed as he rubbed at his shoulder where the straps had cut in deeper than elsewhere. @@Ryan? Are you okay? @@ Warwick almost screamed in panic. Grunting again, the cetacean settled back into the chair and shook his head a few times. )) Yeah, I'm fine. Just momentarily forgot that I'm still new to this. (( He sent in disdain, chiding himself for making such a rudimentary mistake. ++Don't let it get to you. It'll become much easier once you actually get that thing in the water. ++ A familiar light toned voice resonated over the link. With eyes widening, Ryan shifted his gaze up and gasped upon seeing the pink dolphin standing next to his robot's gigantic hand with a very approving smile on her face. )) Crystal! (( Embarrassed, he quickly manoeuvred the Nereus to right itself again and release its grip on the main walkway. )) Uh...what do you think? (( He carefully turned the robot around to let her get a better look at it. ++I think you look ready to kick some glinter butt. If they actually had butts that is. ++ She replied while hurrying towards the stairs. ++Try to get yourself moving for real. Major Novak doesn't like to be kept waiting. ++ She quickly climbed into her own shark C.E.T.A.C. while Trax and Warwick made a bee-line for theirs. Bringing the harpoon caster down to where he could carry it with both hands, Ryan steadied himself and grinned again when he felt the controls of this thing were coming easier to him. No longer was anything remotely resembling regret or even reluctance present within his soul. Now joined and at the controls of such a mighty and magnificent machine he felt strong and confident, prepared to take on just about anything the seas outside could possibly throw at him. With much more careful movements he began to guide the dragon robot through to the loading bay area. There he spied another vast chamber to the left, in the centre of which a shimmering T-D gate spun and flashed with the powerful bolts of lightening that signified it was ready to send morphs to the designated co-ordinates in the vast expanses of the cosmos. Hearing the clumping sound of several more C.E.T.A.C.s approaching from behind him, Ryan grit his teeth and pushed himself forward up the ramp and into the swirling portal. *Alright Dad, let's just see what the hell it was you gave your life for.* * * * - 12:56 p.m.- "Welcome aboard, corporal. Glad to see your sense of punctuality is up to scratch." Novak commented as Ryan stepped through the hatch connecting the C.E.T.A.C. launch/storage bay to the rest of the Pacific Hunter. "Gotta do what I can to make a good first impression, ma'am." He said with reverence while following the Major further into the bowels of the ship. "Good that you seemed to have taken to piloting the Nereus with such ease as well. That was quite a well handled parking job you did in there." The hybrid commented with a smile. "Though as a recommendation in the future, try to turn yourself around first and then slowly walk backwards into the storage alcove. It allows for far less shuffling and manoeuvring that entering front first and then trying to turn around while you're in such a cramped space." "I'll make a note of it." Ryan replied while viewing his surroundings. "So this is what a Legion carrier looks like from the inside." - Indeed. On board you will find we have all the required equipment and supplies necessary to function as a fully mobile command base while out patrolling the feral territories. - Piped up a familiarly calm, patient voice, causing Ryan to turn around and questioningly regard the small robotic eel that was now hovering behind him. "You're here too?" "Only way to ensure activities run with as much efficiency and smoothness as at HQ." Novak said, watching the orca's reaction with amusement while the two stepped into a grav-shaft. "To help avoid confusion everything's pretty much laid out the same way, just more compact. Bridge and command areas take up the top levels, Med-centre and crash quarters are below us. Mess hall, gym and recreational areas are below that and then it's just cargo and engineering down from there." The shaft ascended a level and the two sea dwellers stepped out. "I'd advise you try to see this as a sort of second home, corporal. At times when things really turn nasty we can easily end up having to spend a week or two away from the city." Ryan looked out through a port window and smirked slightly. "A real return to the wild then." He said as the hatch ahead of them opened up and they stepped into the main bridge area. "Lena, what's our current status?" She said to the brown hammerhead Ryan recognised from the morning briefing, standing to the rear of the bridge on a small platform that overlooked everything in front of it. In response the shark turned from where she was surveying the other sea creatures and meks going about their duties and gave a reverent nod. "All team members and C.E.T.A.C.s are aboard; supplies are loaded up and secured. As I see it, we're ready to cast off whenever you are, ma'am." She said. Ryan noted that her voice seemed to carry a more pal like degree of respect when she spoke to the hybrid. It was as though she were addressing someone who was both a friend and a superior rather than a superior alone. "Then please do so. The sooner we get out there, the sooner we can find out what's going on." The other shark nodded as she went to sit down in the chair in front of her and begin tapping on the command console. "Alright ensign, set coordinates for Sector 41 and bring thrusters up to full power." A small yellow angel fish seated in front of the main viewing windows entered the necessary commands and nodded that all was set and ready to go. "Okay everyone; hold onto to your flukes, we're away." Overhead, Ryan could hear the distant rumblings as numerous support lines and service meks left the exterior of the ship and it began to move out of Scylla's docking bays. "Left and right tail flukes are functioning normally." "Airlock doors are closed and sealed." "Central core temperature is in the green." "Life support is holding steady." And so the usual rattling off of data as it poured in from all areas of the ship continued while through the windows the sullen green glow of the specially designed bio-field that allowed sea dwellers and mekaniks in but kept all forms of glinters out loomed up ahead. Momentarily there came another shudder as the Pacific Hunter passed through it and out into the vast depths of the ocean beyond. "Good work all. You know where we're meant to go now so bring the engines up to full speed and get us moving there." The bridge crew duly followed the order and got down to guiding the ship towards the first of its destinations. "Right, well if there's nothing else that needs my attention I've got a few things that need to be taken care of now." Novak stated while looking over the tablet in her hands. "Orion, your team mates should be down in the rec areas if you want to finish up introductions. Ladon will help you locate them." "Thank you Major, I'll manage fine on my own." The cetacharian tucked the tablet under her arm and departed from the bridge. Stepping up behind the seated hammerhead, Ryan placed a hand on the top of her chair and stared out of the view ports as the ship cleared a rocky outcrop and then sailed over a deep gorge filled with schools of numerous different series and plant life. Now that they were rising up to a higher level in the water there was more sunlight filtering through and thus the orca had a clearer and unspoilt view of the Pacific's lush beauty, lovingly emphasised by the serene pale blue of the water and vibrant colours of the coral and animals living within it. *Deus, almost forgot what it's like out here, away from the cities.* Ryan mused as he leaned a little more heavily on the chair and let himself get lost in the ambient visual feast, reminding and making him appreciative of the changes that had befallen the world after the fateful meteorite fallout so many hundreds of years ago as well as the machines' continued attempts to maintain it and keep it inhabited afterwards. As a small zipper frog (so called because it bore a striking resemblance to the stated amphibian but had several long, rudder like tails and powerful humanoid legs that enabled it to propel itself through the water at amazing speeds) swam up past the window, pausing momentarily to look curiously inside before swimming away, Ryan felt a disntict ancestral spark flare up inside him. Closing his eyes, he focused on the odd but soothing notion many marine morphs sensed upon venturing out into their native habitats. A sort of reminder that this is where he belonged and thus why it was up to individuals such as himself to ensure it didn't come to harm. "I'd really think about removing that hand if I were you." A scornful voice echoed out, disrupting the orca's moment of serenity. "Huh?" He opened his eyes to see Lena staring at him with severe disapproval. "I said I'd really think of removing that hand if I were you. Unless you're thinking of plopping yourself down in my lap," The hammerhead's stare became positively acidic. "Which I assure you will be an action you'll regret all the way to your premature grave, then there's no reason for you to rest your full weight on my chair." Taken aback at the shark's sudden shift of mood, Ryan quickly lifted his hand and stepped away. "Sorry Lena, I got distracted there for a moment." The corrosivity of the shark's gaze went down a few more notches on the pH scale as she huffed and turned back to her console. "I should've figured as much, this is a captain's chair, not a leaning post. Treat it with the proper respect, Corporal." She emphasised his rank with a show of teeth. "And while we're on the subject, if I'm the one sitting in it then what does that tell you?" Ryan cocked his head, not entirely comprehending the logic behind the brown carcharian's line of statements. Another acid laced stare from said carcharian which came soon after in response to his failure to answer, however, told him that the obvious is exactly what she wanted him to say. "That...you're a captain?" He stated cautiously. "Korrekt. So by normal military standards then, that should be the proper honorific you should use when addressing me. To you I'm either 'Captain' or 'Captain Von Prussen', not 'Lena'. Got it?" Feeling increasingly unnerved and an urge to go on the defensive, Ryan swallowed and nodded slowly. "Yes, perfectly understood. Please accept my apologies, Captain." The shark diluted her acid gaze a bit, though perhaps not quite enough to make the orca feel it was safe to relax. "Good." She stated and turned back to the console again. "Mind your conduct while you're here, Corporal. You have no special right to be lax with respect just because you're famous." Although he knew it was a risky move, the comment re-ignited the sting of loathing in Ryan that made him decide that, regardless of how threatening this shark seemed to be, there was something he had to get across to her now if they were to ever work together peacefully. "Don't remind me." He stated with a darker edge to his voice while simultaneously sending a private message to Ladon along the cerebral link. )) Ladon, where's Crystal at the moment? (( >Corporal Okuda is currently in the C.E.T.A.C. launch/storage bay. < The probe answered in kind. )) Tell her I'm coming down there. (( He sent before turning around and quickly exiting the bridge before the shark had a chance to react. * * * - 1:15 p.m.- After stopping to grab a cup of coffee from the mess hall, Ryan stepped back into the area where Legion 17's robot warriors were kept, sipping feverishly at the steaming liquid in hopes the flavour would help to take his mind off the less than pleasant introduction he'd just been through. Spotting Crystal sitting in the open cockpit of her C.E.T.A.C. he walked over and waved to get her attention. "Ryan!" She said with delight upon seeing the whale. "Just a moment." She turned her attention to moving the steering columns and the shark mek slowly lowered itself to a squatting postion and extended an open hand. Ryan stopped and stared for a moment as the massive skeletal appendage was laid down in front of him. Not quite catching on, he looked up to see the dolphin smile and nod at the hand in front of him. Taking the meaning now, the orca regarded her dubiously for a moment before sighing and stepping up into the palm. "So how are you fairing so far then?" She asked as she lifted him up on level with the cockpit and noticed his unsettled expression. "Oh, that's not good." "What isn't?" "You look like you've had a massive wake up call, yet your cup is still almost full. That's never a good sign." Ryan sighed again and sat down in the palm of the C.E.T.A.C.'s hand. "I just met the captain of this ship. Don't think I made a very good impression on her." The dolphin uttered a sympathetic squeak. "Uh oh, did she chew your ears out over something?" "That's putting it lightly." The blue orca muttered as he took a longer sip of coffee. It was Plankton blend, a variety that had won favour with many undersea dwellers for the fact that while it delivered the same hit as the normal type of java it tasted almost exactly like shellfish. Though Ryan knew it was generally targeted more at the series of marine life that'd had plankton as part of their diet in the pre-evolutionary days he still harboured something of a liking for the salty, more piscine edge that the blend offered. "Well, unfortunately that's just part of who she is. Best you can do is mind how you behave around her and just expect that she'll probably scrutinise you more for flaws than others." "Always one in every pod." Ryan stated gloomily as he stared at his distorted reflection in the black liquid. "Does she have a disliking for other predatory series or something then?" Crystal swayed her head from side to side as a small smile found its way onto her beak. "No, actually it's more like she has a disliking for males." Ryan looked up. "What?" "Lena's a rather fierce feminist. She believes that females are or at least should be equal to males in all fields and aspects." Crystal smirked as she leaned on the display monitors in front of her. "Let me guess, when the Major was there she was all kind and friendly, but once she left it was back to 'don't infringe your masculine influence on me or I'll rip your throat out'." Bewildered, Ryan managed a passing nod which made Crystal chuckle. "It's because she looks up to Novak, both as a role model for what she's accomplished and a friend who's been with her for the majority of her time in TEMPEST." The orca contemplated the steam rising from his cup with a raise of the ridge above his eye. "But, but in most of the cities and habitats on this planet females are equal to males. It's a frame of mind the Network computers have been trying to instill for years in order to avoid unnecessary pain and conflict." "For some it's still not enough." Crystal admitted as she rolled her eyes. "As far as Lena's concerned, anyone who tries anything that could possibly be interpreted as a devaluation of women is just as bad as the ferallie tribes who still believe in the whole, to her, archaic concept of having a guy as the Alpha." Ryan thought pensively about this and shook his head. "What did you do to tick her off, if I may ask?" Crystal enquired. "Leaned on her chair and then mistakenly called her by her first name." The orca replied to which the dolphin squeaked again. "Ah yes, that would do it. By leaning on her chair she probably thought that you regarded her position as commander of the ship so lowly that you can just use her station as a rest area whenever it pleases you." The dolphin leaned out of her seat so she could pat her cetacean friend on the shoulder. "Don't worry, she's no less merciless with the other team members, me included." Ryan looked puzzled. "You? What fault could she possibly find with you? You're a Legionnaire C.E.T.A.C. pilot, one of the most revered positions in the aquatic division of the military." "She still has her ways. One of her main ones is...well..." The dolphin quickly checked around at the other occupants of the bay. Warwick was busy on the farside tuning up the sea turtle meka that he'd been piloting earlier and Trax was over to the left chatting with a male seal. "I don't know if I should be saying this out loud as it's currently just a rumour." Crystal sat back in her seat and motioned for Ryan to come her. "Come on, it'll be better to talk in here." The blue orca cocked his head. "It's alright, there's enough room for two, and as you probably know it's soundproof to boot." Crystal smiled and motioned a bit more insistently. Contemplating the idea, Ryan finally shrugged and set his coffee cup down before crawling inside the cockpit. "Alright, now just place your legs on either side under the monitors and then rest your head in my lap." Ryan did as told and the dolphin ordered the canopy to close and seal them inside. "Rather a suggestive postion this creates don't you think?" Ryan commented, looking over how they were configured. "Are you saying you're complaining about it?" Crystal teased, though there did seem to be a slight edge of actually wanting to know the answer in her voice. "No, just making an observation." Ryan assured as he tried to find some place to put his arms so they weren't touching the dolphin where only lovers and mates are generally allowed to touch each other. Finally deciding to fold them on top of her legs, he looked up and resumed with the puzzled stare. "So go on, why does Lena dislike you if you're a girl?" Crystal folded her own arms behind her head and stared at the cockpit ceiling. "It's because my love interests have always favoured guys who prefer taking a more dominant role in the relationship. I think that kind of irks her because she's a confessed lesbian who's had the hots for the Major for years." "Really?" Ryan asked with another raise of the eye ridge. Crystal rolled her eyes again. "Don't get me wrong. As you already know I myself have a fair amount of passion for girls. It's just that because I still prefer guys over anything else she thinks I'm just trying to entertain false pretences. Added to that is how I'm usually the one in the submissive role and you've got yourself a ready steady recipe for breeding distaste." "Unbelievable." Ryan huffed, dipping his head with a squeak from his snout. "She hasn't actually said anything to confirm this yet; it's just the vibes I've been getting off her." Crystal peered off to the side as a saddened tinge took to her face. "At times I have to wonder if she might have a point." Ryan looked back up with surprise. "What do you mean?" The dolphin gave a defeated shrug. "Well, to be honest over the past few years those relationships I speak of haven't really amounted to much. I mean yeah I like someone who's headstrong and confident of themselves but somehow I always seem to pick the ones who are too confident or just looking for decorations to hang off their arms rather than something more meaningful." The dolphin stared mournfully down at the floor and clicked her beak. "Course then again I never was good at picking boyfriends was I? Even during high school the longest I could manage was six measly months." Ryan shook his head and placed a hand on her shoulder. "You had a lot on your plate during that time. We both did. Hardly the right conditions for building lasting relationships." Crystal continued to stare at the floor for a while longer before her eyes drifted to the gloved hand that was holding her and gently laid her own on top of it. "Perhaps. Still think I could've done better though." She looked down at the whale. "What about you? Anyone special yet?" At that, Ryan had to look away embarrassed. "Well, aside from a few one night stands the only one who really stood out for me was this beluga I was seeing for a while." He shifted his body uncomfortably. "It wasn't the times we had together that I remember so much as when my A.S.W.A.T. unit was called in to smash a calf prostitution ring and it turned out that the one masterminding it was her brother." Crystal's beak dropped open in shock. "You're kidding." Ryan nodded. "Guy put three members of the team in intensive care while trying to make his escape and then held one of the calves he was trying to sell as a bargaining hostage. We later discovered he'd had several illegal black market muscle enhancer and speed booster augs fitted and had apparently also been 'sampling' some of his wares before putting it out for bartering. Yet when the courts finally convicted him and sent him down for life it was me who ended up getting stamped on, by her. She failed to see how what he was doing was wrong and felt I'd utterly betrayed her trust by aiding in her sibling's arrest." Silence hung in the air for a moment, and then Crystal promptly fell back in her chair, laughing hysterically. "I know, can I pick 'em or what?" Ryan stated dejectedly while the pink dolphin wiped at her eyes. "Geez, every time I think I had it bad you always seemed to do one better than me." She said after she'd calmed down. "Thanks for the anecdote though." "At least it made you feel better." He stated, sighing slightly when he felt a hand gently rub the top of his head which helped to alleviate his own spirits somewhat. "Dammit, why did you leave so suddenly Ryan? It was so nice to have you around, even during your numerous episodes of being down in the dumps." Crystal said as she beamed warmly at the cetacean. In response the dejected gloom merely deepened as the orca dipped his head again; all matter of cheer or upbeat ness abandoning him. "You know why." Crystal's beam extinguished and she gave herself a mental slap for asking such a stupid question. "Ryan," She said, taking his hand and squeezing it. "I know I said it before, but I'm sorry." Again silence descended, Ryan taking the time to get over another bout of self-pity with Crystal gently doing her best to calm him, not wanting to drive her friend away mere hours after meeting up with him again. "If there's ever a time to get over it, it would be now." Ryan finally said with reassuring firmness. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Though I'll only accept your apologies under one condition." "And what's that?" Ryan bared his teeth in a grimace. "Could you please let go of my hand? It's really starting to hurt." Crystal looked down at where she'd been holding the orca and quickly released her grip. "Ooh, sorry again." Ryan 'oofed' as he flexed his fingers and felt feeling begin to return to them. "You've definitely gotten stronger since high school." He checked her arms and confirmed that it indeed had been her real one that had been holding him. Crystal smiled dreamily. "Yeah, well after my little...'injury'... I got obsessed with improving myself as part of the physiotherapy, trying to build up my muscles and my stamina, kinda like my role model." Ryan cocked his head. "Your role model? Who might that be?" Upon relising what she'd said, the dolphin quickly looked away as the pink skin of her cheeks grew deeper in hue until it was a bright crimson. "Well..." She said hesitantly. "I mean I..." But at that moment she was cut off by the sounds of alarm klaxons going off from outside. Both cetaceans shot up to full attention and turned to see red lights flashing up and down the loading bay while everyone suddenly scrambled to get to their C.E.T.A.C.s "Dammit, glinter alert." Crystal sighed as she ordered the canopy to open again. "Tracey, what's going on?" She called down to a female seal that was rushing across the bay. "We're approaching the first area of investigation and picked up signals both off the port bow and further up front. Novak wants everyone prepped and ready for action." She said as she ran past. Dolphin and orca turned to regard each other again. "Looks like you're going to be seeing your first bit of action, Ryan. Better go jam your bot." Crystal stated. The orca nodded briefly before clambering rather clumsily out of the cockpit and into the hand. Picking up his coffee he discovered it was annoyingly going cold and duly tossed it into a nearby disposal chute as Novak entered the bay. "Hope you're ready for this, Corporal. The ones currently floating next to us appear to be just a small body of wanderers but we're now picking up a mammoth signal in front. Privates De Rivas and Lornes can handle the small ones but I'm gonna need you with us as it appears we've also detected the presence of morphs in the area as well. What the hell they're doing all the way out here is beyond me but we've gotta get to them a.s.a.p." The hybrid said. "Not gonna bother with easing me into this huh?" Ryan asked knowingly as the male seal ran over to climb into the C.E.T.A.C. next to where Tracey was strapping herself into hers. "I'll see to it that you have adequate cover at all times, but all the same that's some impressive firepower you'll be controlling. If you can wield it properly then you should have no problem." She said. Ryan nodded his agreement and the Major hurried over to a C.E.T.A.C. modelled like a Great White while Ryan quickly ran up the stairway and loaded himself into the Nereus. Linking himself up with the meka warrior's brain and then bringing all systems on-line, Ryan settled back into the pilot's seat and took another deep breath. While he sensed that this was rather a big step for someone who just signed up this morning he felt surprisingly calm now that he stood on the precipice of his first major battle. The Major had known quite well what she was doing, landing him in the thick of things. Even if it hadn't been a requirement of his job he'd still spent many countless hours in simulated battles. He knew how to handle himself, and if the Nereus turned out to be as battle ready as it looked then that was just another mark in favour of its designer's genius. Of course there was the other possibility that everything could go drastically wrong but that was far in the back of his mind now. Life was inherently full of such risks and right now the only way he was going to sort out his own problems was if he took the one being presented to him. With another intake of breath, Ryan watched as Tracey and Mike's C.E.T.A.C s were slid forward into their respective launch frames while the whole bay was shrouded in red light. Moments later the floor opened up beneath both robot warriors and they descended into the depths of the sea outside. Wishing them well, Ryan gripped the steering columns and leaned back in the chair, deciding to try and kill the next couple of minutes with a little mind wandering until the bay went red again and the other C.E.T.A.C.s began sliding forward in preparation to drop into the abyss. :: Okay, everyone check in. Corporal Okuda, can you hear me?:: Major Novak's image came through on the canopy viewers. ++Standing by, Major. ++ The dolphin stated before her mek went hurtling down through the floor. :: Private Dierhart?:: == Ready to let Helgon break loose on your orders, ma'am. == Trax stated before joining Crystal beneath. ::Private Lensinav?:: @@Here...ahem...ready when you are. @@ Warwick stated with a distinctly nervous look about him as he too vanished. :: Private Adeney?:: /\I'm ready to go, ma'am./\ Erin said in her normal gentle tones as her beluga whale modelled C.E.T.A.C. (an irony Ryan had to laugh at, considering what he'd just been recounting) was sent down below. ::And Corporal Masterson?:: Ryan leaned forward and steadied himself as he stared confidently at the image of the cetacharian. )) Go ahead, ma'am. If they're ready then I am too. (( And so he felt himself plummet down into the abyss, his robot shuddering as it splashed into the water and he began to swim towards where the others were gathered as Novak dropped in behind him. ::Okay morphs, transform and stay sharp! We've cleaned up messes like this before and we're going to do it again, quickly and cleanly.:: All C.E.T.A.C.s converted into transport mode and began to glide to where Ryan could see an eerie golden glow creeping up from beneath several dark and foreboding cliffs of rock, followed by the sinister buzzing of electrified organisms. *Time to see what you've got.* He thought as he pressed himself forward and ploughed on towards the conflict. * * * - 13:30 p.m.- Almost from the start, Ryan could sense something was wrong. As Legion 17 cleared the cliffs and took in the sights of what was going on below, he began to sense that there was something amiss, that something was present in the scene that presented itself to them that was not usually present when engaging glinters. Sure from the outset everything appeared to be run of the mill. Several dozen large masses of twinkling golden monstrosities sweeping across a dense valley in pursuit of several severely misfortunate morphs (most of whom appeared to be otters judging from the tails extending from their diving suits) who were frantically scrambling about the place, now learning a painful lesson as to why higher life forms never ventured out into the deep sea anymore. Dotted around the landscape were the blackened carcasses of wrecked salvaging equipment, clasped onto which were numerous glinters that now sported a sickening design of golden lines across their tentacles which bent and curved at right angles like lines on a circuit board. Above them, robotic claws gnarled and twisted like the gates that graced so many story book haunted houses reached out to continue pawing around the warped metal, searching for any last trace of technology or data that they could assimilate for their own needs. Gazing further down into the void beneath them, Ryan had to stifle a sickened gulp when he caught sight of another glinter lourding over the body of a stray salvager, its slimy golden otter head looking this way and that from the mass of purple tentacles as an equally revolting half formed furry arm clapsed itself tighter around the rapidly dissolving chest of the poor morph caught in its grasp. ++ Yep, definitely showing the same type of behavioural patterns as before. ++ He heard Crystal state over the cerebral link. ++They're attacking in small groups, trying to separate the morphs so they can get them on their own and then sandwich them between their numbers. ++ Ryan looked further ahead and grimaced when he saw more glinters, some having assumed some quite horrendous forms from the mutating effects of consuming both the morphs and their equipment, speeding around in the distance and behaving just as the dolphin had said. ::Indeed, well analysed Corporal.:: The image of the hybrid again materialised in front of Ryan. ::Masterson, stick to the rear with Okuda. Take out any ones that try to get at the team from behind. I'll stay up here and provide covering fire.:: The orca nodded his acknowledgement. ::Alright everyone, load up and keep your eyes peeled, we don't know how intelligent these glinters might be, nor how they're being controlled. Look for any possible signs that might provide some answers here.:: The C.E.T.A.C.s transformed back into combat mode and readied their harpoon casters before diving down into the thick of the infestation. Immediately wanting to put an end to at least one victim's suffering, Ryan turned and swam towards the glinter holding the now almost fully digested otter, his teeth baring as his helmet's targeting visors lowered down over his eyes. ++Know what you're doing there? ++ Cyrstal enquired from beside him. The orca squinted slightly as he brought his rifle up and got ready to take a shot. )) You line up the sights and then pull the trigger. If you find yourself facing too many at once then you use a grenade or your sonar blades to help clean them up. That's basically all there is to it, isn't there? (( He squeezed the fire button and several harpoons cut through the water to skewer the glinter like it was meat on a shish kebab. As the glowing creature stopped what it was doing to register the sudden erratic intrusion of several sharp and rather hot objects into its body, Ryan leaned back and close his eyes, paying the otter his condolences as the thing that had been assimilating it exploded and drifted to the rocks below as charred pieces of dead flesh. Alerted by the beeping of the Nereus' radar sensor, the orca then twirled himself left to see several glinters breaking off from their pursuit of the others and come at him, no doubt favouring the newly arrived prey which had ample amounts of both flesh and technology for them to devour. With almost no hesitance Ryan performed a sweeping motion with his hand, systematically firing at intervals and managing to pick off quite a few of the main body coming at him before ordering his mek to change the rifle's settings to three shot burst and aiming it at the remainder to take them out too. Another beep from the radar, and Ryan pulled back to launch himself into a somersault, his C.E.T.A.C.'s sleek form moving through the water with the ease that most avians moved through the air with to sail over another advancing group of glinters which Crystal summarily dispatched with a blast from her sonic mouth cannon. ++Hey, that wasn't half bad, Ryan. ++ The dolphin commented in a pleased tone. Yet more glinters poured onto the two aquatic meks and attempted to surround them by creating a swirling ring. Caught off guard, the orca attempted to steer away from them, with the result that his C.E.T.A.C. crashed into Crystal's that was currently doing the same thing in the opposite direction. With a seasoned awareness, the dolphin quickly guided her rifle arm down to fire several shots at the ring of glittering monsters and then grabbed the dragon mek to lower them both underneath it and out of harm's way while the glinters were distracted with being blown apart by the harpoons. ++Though probably best that I don't distract you with idle chatter. These guys obviously aren't as mindless as what we're used to dealing with. ++ Crystal said in embarassment. Concentrating on the mass above them, Ryan gave the order for his tail to release one of the swords and reached behind to grab it and stick the blade up into the reforming cloud. More muffle popping sounds were heard as glinters collided with the flat side of the blade and ruptured from the sonic sheath. )) A good piece of advice, though a bit of a pity. Your voice always did help me to calm myself down somewhat when I was agitated. (( ::Keep it down you two. Focus on the job at hand.:: Novak stated while spraying a larger cloud of glinters with automatic fire from her double barrelled caster. Ryan looked over at the shark C.E.T.A.C. next to him but it had turned away to focus on saving a frantic otter from several pursuers. Deciding to leave the talk for now, he swam around to where his radar had sighted another large concentration and narrowly avoided having another salvager (a sea lion this time) run into his shoulder. Hoping it wouldn't cause the obviously unsettled morph too much further trauma, Ryan put away his sword and reached up to grab the sea lion in his mek's huge paw so he could bring it down and hold it close to the cockpit while he activated the secondary cannons on his head and began taking out the swarm, feeling increasingly unsettled as to how easy it was coming to him to keep aiming and firing, massacring every last creature without a second thought. Once he'd confirmed they were all dead, Ryan opened his hand a bit to see the quivering mammal curled up in fright against the palm (as he expected most would probably react if grabbed spontaneously by a mechanical behemoth). With careful gentle motions, he extended his mek's arm and opened the hand the rest of the way. The sea lion payed him one final look of fright from within his diving helmet before tearing off to a safer area in the surroundings. Watching and ensuring the frightened mammal reached somewhere where it was out of the main area of glinter infestation, Ryan rolled himself over in the water and shot forth to continue with the clean up. For the next hour or so the battle progressed on, each member of Legion 17 pushing their skills and talents to the breaking point as they repelled the relentless waves of glittering monsters. And with each successful kill, Ryan had to admit that he felt more and more nervy. Though he'd put himself through numerous different simulations and scenarios, they had all been centered around what the Network computers currently knew about glinter behaviour, and that knowledge, in summary, pretty much amounted to that glinters were a highly evolved but essentially still mindless bunch of vicious coelenterates who were driven solely by the basic impulses of attack and feed in order to survive. They had no accounts of glinters who, say, knew to curl around a swishing sword blade and thereby avoid being struck by its sharp edges. Or to split up into smaller groups and thus present more targets that everyone would have to waste time dealing with, rather than assume one huge mass that they could all concentrate their fire on and eleminate with relative ease. Yet for all the surprising tactile moves and evasions, it seemed to not be enough to throw the orca off. No matter what the glinters did to try and get at him his rifle still managed to find them and put an end to their antics, and for the occasions when that didn't work his swords usually provided adequate compensation. *This is almost unreal.* He thought as his radar beeped again, showing four of the monstrosities moving in on him from the left. Rolling himself around, Ryan raised his harpoon caster to take them out, only to then watch in amazement as they dipped under the barrel and zipped towards the exposed chest area underneath. For a second Ryan feared that was it, there was no way he could do anything to stop them from getting to him now, yet barely a second after that thought had left his brain he saw his mek's hand let go of the rifle's grip and then twirl it around its trigger finger so that the barrel was now angled to face at the so nearly impacting glinters. Without even bothering to think about it, Ryan squeezed the fire button with all his might and flinched as all four glowing creatures were harpooned and exploded mere inches from his face. *No way,* He thought once he'd regained his breath. *That was too close to be a fluke.* Quickly using the Nereus's free hand to wipe the splattered mess off his canopy screen, Ryan looked up to catch sight of yet another glinter closing in on Erin's C.E.T.A.C. and felt his arm raise to take it out almost instantaneously. *And there again. I mean I know my reactions are pretty fast but dammit I'm still a rookie! I should be having more difficulty than this.* Indeed while his actions felt for the most part to be normal it was uncanny how accurate and graceful he was being. In fact, now that he thought about as he joined Erin in rescuing another salvager who was trying to drag a wounded comrade to safety; it almost seemed as if the C.E.T.A.C. was actually helping to correct any mistakes in his aim or his movements before they proved costly. *Damn you Dad, what in Helgon did you install on this thing?* He thought with heavy contempt as the Nereus's wings spread and thrashed behind him to slice apart a horde that was trying to make a sneak attack on his exposed back. ==Schmed on seaweed! Someone's certainly taken the effort to make sure these freaks got some education on fighting this time around!== Trax said as he watched several glinters rush towards Warwick, then rise above his line of fire and disperse like a slimy gold blanket over him while he was busy trying to alter his lock. @@AUUGH!! They're on me! I've got some on me!!@@ The poor eel screamed in blind panic as his mek's arms began to frantically claw at the monstrosities that were surging with electricity. Ryan quickly turned to try and reach him but in the time it took him to do so, Trax had already covered the distance and was yanking out a long pole with two box like hook devices on the end. ==Hold still Warwick, I don't want to risk cutting off anything that's meant to stay attached on you. == The sea turtle mek tentatively lowered its arms and Trax extended two lethal looking scythe blades from the hooks which he then proceeded to dice the glinters up into paste with. ==That's it just stay calm, I'm almost done.== The shark soothed as he executed a series of rapid swings (similar Ryan noted to what a golfer might do when driving his ball off the tee) to cut the last few creatures on the C.E.T.A.C.'s head to shreds. == Okay, done. They're all gone. == He extended a hand and helped the turtle to stand up while Ryan swam over. )) Are you alright? (( In response he heard the sound of someone coming off a bout of severe hyperventilation before the shaken image of the moray eel appeared before him. @@I think I'm okay. (pant) Yeah...(pant)...I'm okay.@@ The turtle head looked down and surveyed the damage. The glinters had managed to crack the armour casing in a few places but the damage wasn't too severe. @@Just cover me for a moment while I patch myself up. @@ A section on the shell of the C.E.T.A.C. swung open to reveal a full array of maintenance tools and supplies. Warwick fished out several spare plates and a welder and set to work on sealing the cracks. )) Okay, doesn't look like there are too many left anyways. (( Ryan looked around at his surroundings. By now most of the area looked like a fitting scene for one of the old anti-pollution vids that the Elders were once fond of producing. Everywhere the beauty of the sea bed was desecrated by a thick covering of glinter corpses, the tattered black flesh draped over every bit of coral and plant life like algae. *Sure hope we're not expected to take care of sweeping duty.* The blue cetacean grimaced as Novak sailed past, her rifle now split into two single barrelled ones which she was using to mow down the last big swarm. ::Alright, that looks to be the last of them.:: She sent to everyone once she had finished. ::Is everyone accounted for?:: )) Warwick got snagged but it's nothing serious. (( Ryan answered as he approached the Great White C.E.T.A.C. and set his feet down on the ocean floor. ::I see. Good work, all of you.:: The whale/shark materialised inside the orca's cockpit. ::Especially you, Masterson. For a newcomer you handled yourself pretty well back there.:: Ryan's gaze lowered at the comment but he nodded nonetheless. *Yeah, far better than I would've expected of myself. Even on a good day.* Novak swam over to where one of the salvagers was tending to another one that was lying on an outcrop of rocks. Switching on her C.E.T.A.C.'s external speakers she ordered it to squat and lay down its armaments. "I'm Major Natasha Novak, TEMPEST Legion 17. May I ask what you're doing out here?" She asked. The otter salvager looked up and swallowed slightly upon seeing the massive robot looking down at it. Pushing himself up off the ground he swam up on level with its eyes (thereby showing he'd obviously never encountered one before as anyone with a basic knowledge of C.E.T.A.C.'s knew that all models had the cockpit located in the chest area) and cleared his throat. "W-We apologise. We're with the Pacific Deep Sea Salvaging Company ma'am." He pointed to an area behind another rocky outcrop in the distance. "About a week ago one of the U.N.T. Navy's battle cruisers sank in an area nearby here. We were...sent in to recover what we could." The poor and severely shaken mephit wrung his hands together and shivered terribly. "Only when we started digging around, we found there was something else there. Something...we'd never seen anything like it before." He looked up into the glowing blue robotic eyes and Novak noted that he looked as though he'd literally seen something worse than could be imagined. "Glinters?" She asked. The otter shook his head furiously. "No, it was nothing like that. It...It was guarded by these...these things. Th-They came out to get us...oh Deus we never stood a chance! We dropped what we were doing and tried to just get the hell away, but...but then we ran into those monsters." He jabbed a shaking finger at the deceased glinters littering the sea bed. The legionnaires looked down and around while trying to contemplate what manner of horror could these land walkers have possibly have run into to jar them so much. "Can you possibly describe to us what it was that attacked you?" Novak asked, confused and now feeling just a little unsettled as she saw how scared the otter looked. From behind his face plate, the otter opened his mouth to answer, only to go stiff when the most inhuman type of scream was heard, followed by a series of equally alien sounding croaking and braying from behind the outcrop he'd pointed to. "Oh no...NO! They followed us!" He cried as the screaming grew in volume, signifying whatever was emitting it was rapidly approaching their location. Novak checked her radar sensor and found that indeed it did detect approaching bodies. One which read as normal, and the other which, even more worrying, simply was coming up as UNKNOWN. *Unknown? But that's impossible. What creature could there possibly be in these waters that hasn't been at least documented in some form yet?* Novak looked up again in time to see the small harried figure of another slavager burst out from behind the outcrop, swimming as though some demonic entity escaped from the very pits of Helgon were behind her. And as all members of Legion 17 were to discover only seconds later, that was a frighteningly accurate description when they saw what was actually chasing the otter. To try and compare it to any of the known anthro aquatic series on Neo-Terra would have been futile, for while it did indeed possess the anatomical structure of an anthropomorphic, if rather bloated entity it bore no resemblance to any that lived below the waves. Huge webbed hands with grotesque claw tips dug furiously at the water, pulling the being forward at a fearsome speed which it accentuated with regular kicks of its strong, webbed and equally horrendous frog like legs and feet. Of facial features, its collection consisted of two orange eyes, glassy and bulging like those of a trout, sitting above a pair of glittering blue/green flabby lips so wide that they seemed to almost exceed the width of its head. Between these oversized mandibles several rows of transparent needle like teeth could be seen lurking, emitting out of which was the strange braying and croaking that had been heard earlier on. Framing the face were triangular shaped scales which flared and retracted in a rhythm normally associated with animals who breathe through gills, even though from the way the creature moved its mouth it was obvious that it used that orifice for breathing as well. Extending along the back and also the arms and legs were some very piscine like fins, though all the legionnaires immediately agreed silently that they had never seen ones with such horrendous spiked edges or eerie twinkling membranes. As this monstrosity, sprung from Deus only knew where, rounded the outcrop and sped towards the other sea dwellers it was all any of them could do to stop themselves from going faint with shock and feeling much the same type of fear that no doubt the poor salvagers had no doubt been feeling. "DEUS HELP ME!!!" The scrambling otter screamed at the top of her lungs upon seeing the C.E.T.A.C.s standing by her crew and helping to snap at least a few of the pilots out of their death like stare. ==By the tides, what the hell is that thing??== Trax sputtered out as he elevated off the sea floor and angled his harpoon casters down to lock on it. ::I don't know, but it doesn't look all that friendly. Everyone raise your weapons and standby. Fire as soon as you have a shot without hit...:: Novak never got a chance to finish her order, cut off as she was by Ryan's C.E.T.A.C. spreading its great wings and shooting like an arrow up and over the fish/frog like creature that, despite the aesthetic similarities, was certainly neither the latter nor the former. As it closed the gap and widened its ludicrously sized maw to take a bite out of the otter (thereby giving everyone another shock upon realising its mouth was of such huge proportions that it could easily fit her in there with room to spare), the Nereus wasted no time in aiming its harpoon caster straight down and sending several shining projectiles to skewer the monster through one of its glassy orange eyes. The creature let forth with several unearthly croaks that sounded only vaguely similar to what would have come from an average frog or toad and seemed to be tinged with a mixture of pain and annoyance as its sensory organ was engulfed in a gory explosion. Abandoning the otter, it flipped itself over and swam for the winged draconic being that had attacked, producing yet more suspicious surprises for those watching when a glittering stream of gold fluid leaked out of its damaged eye. *So it is a glinter then. But a glinter that's taken the form of what?* Novak pondered with puzzlement as Ryan's C.E.T.A.C. dove out of the way of the creature's swiping claws and then replaced its harpoon caster so that it could draw its swords. As the monstrosity shifted its form with equal agility, the Nereus slashed out to catch its claws on the edge of its blade and then countered with an upward swipe that took several of the fingers off. As the thing reared back and brayed again with more pain, the dragon mek twirled one sword to an underhanded postion and drove it down in an attempt to finish its adversary off. However, it seemed the denizen's wounds were not as severe as it had lead everyone to believe, for as soon as it sighted the approaching blade it quickly zipped out of the way and delivered retribution with a brutal kick of its clawed feet. The blow landed square in its targeted area on the C.E.T.A.C.'s spine, but just as the creature had fooled Ryan, so Ryan was to fool the creature and the mek immediately whipped its tail up to wrap around the bluish green appendage while it itself turned around and drove its sword into the swollen belly, the blade reaching its destination this time and pushing deep inside. With one final pain wracked croak, the ichthyoid creature writhed around in its death throes, belly flesh rippling with the sonic waves breaking its innards apart as the Nereus maintained its hold. Then at last it lay still, the glow of its internal fluids diminishing to confirm the depature of life. Releasing its leg, Ryan withdrew the blade and wiped it clean before slotting it back on the tail as Novak and Crystal swam forward to survey the damage. ::Well, as much as I should probably condone you for that sudden and rather suicidal assault, corporal, I admit I can't help but be amazed. Excellent work.:: The holo-image of an exceptionally shocked orca whale appeared. )) You wouldn't be the only one, ma'am. (( To the left Crystal knelt to gaze at the monstrous corpse as it settled lifelessly on the ground. ++How did you do that? I've never seen a newbie pilot a C.E.T.A.C. that quickly or fluidly before. ++ Looking totally lost, Ryan just raised his hands and shook his head. )) I...I don't know. I was looking at it and suddenly my mek just leapt at it. Then when I tried to compensate by blasting the damn thing my fire seemed to drift off to hit it in the eye rather than what I was aiming for. (( ==Well, that was a heck of an effective drift. == Trax sent in astonishment as he knelt beside Crystal. ==I've seen glinters assume some pretty screwed up forms during their assimilation process, but never anything like this!== He nudged the creature with the barrel of his harpoon caster, earning himself a jump (as well as a yelp from Warwick) when its good arm twitched as it rolled over. ==Schmed, its blood has gone dark but it's still spasming. == He stood and backed away as Erin approached and activated the bio-scanner built into her C.E.T.A.C. 's hands. ::Well?:: Novak enquired as the beluga whale mek felt over the body. /\Scan confirms all the signs are there. It is a glinter, though apparently one that's managed to achieve almost complete assimilation of an organism. /\ Erin paused for a moment while she surveyed the creature again. /\As to what animal it's assimilated to assume this strange visage though is beyond me. There's nothing in the Network archives on recorded series that even remotely matches this thing, which is why I'm guessing our sensors didn't immediately recognise it. /\ One of the otters swam over from where she'd been helping her crew mates. "There's more of those where we came from. They're protecting....I don't know...something even worse." @@W-Worse? @@ Warwick sent meekly while Novak turned to the morph. "Where exactly did this cruiser you were salvaging sink?" She asked. "J-Just a few miles north-east of here, about two sectors over." The otter stuttered as she pointed the way. Novak turned back to Erin who was still looking over the fish/frog type corpse. ::Erin?:: /\If you'd let Ladon and I examine it further, we may be able to get a better idea of how it got this way. /\ The hybrid nodded and contacted the computer. ::Ladon, we've taken care of the infestation here. Tell Lena to come pick us up and ready a specimen tank, we'll be taking on some ...'extra' cargo.:: >Understood. Estimated time of arrival should be approximately 5 minutes. < The cetacharian took a deep breath as her gaze fell on the bizarre creature again before she elevated it to the otter swimming near her. "Gather your crew together, we'll take you back to Scylla and then you can arrange transportation home from there." The otter looked immensely relieved. "Oh thank you. Thank you all." * * * - 2:14 p.m.- "Look, forgive me if I sound a little harsh towards you, seeing as you've all just come back from fighting, but what in Helgon is that thing? More to the point what's it doing on my boat?" Lena exclaimed as the deceased fish/frog monster was lifted up out of the water and into the C.E.T.A.C. launch bay on-board the Pacific Hunter. "Answer to question one is we don't know, and thus the answer to question two is so we can figure out a better answer to question one." Novak stated dryly as she descended the stairs from her C.E.T.A.C. cockpit. "It was chasing a member of the salvaging crew over there, till Corporal Masterson was able to distract it and put it out of action." For a brief moment Lena looked over at the emerging orca with what might have passed for amazement, though the sullen grunt that then came forth from her lips did quick to dispel the notion that the expression was given with positive intentions. "Deus über den Wellen, this is a battleship not a place for your men to show off their bluten trophies!" She said in disgust, upon which Novak's eyes first widened in surprise at the outburst, then promptly narrowed as she turned to the hammerhead with teeth bared. "Lena, the decision to bring it on board was mine, not his. If there is a series out there that we're not aware of but the glinters are, then this may be the first opportunity we have to learn about it." On both sides of her wide, flat skull, Lena's own eyes abandoned their disdain and focused on the hybrid as the message of contempt hit its mark upon her. "And on a related note I'll thank you to try not forming an instant dislike to our newest recruit mid-way through his first day. This team needs a certain degree of cooperation from everyone in order to function properly and I will not have you wrecking everything on account of your mistrusts." Now with the confirmation that she'd made her worst fear of upsetting the Major a reality, Lena's posture quickly lost its entire disapproving leer. Though the two women matched each other in height, physique, and menacing value it soon became apparent who deferred to who as the brown one dipped her head in submission. "I'm sorry, ma'am. Please forgive me." Novak maintained her iron gaze just long enough to ensure the hammerhead built up a sufficient mental reminder of who was in charge before exhaling and turning away. "Try to be a little more considerate in the future, Captain. I can't be expected to smooth over every one of your quarrels and spats, regardless of how inadvertent you claim you were in initiating them." Lena nodded like a toddler that had just been severely scolded and now felt fully ashamed for it actions (though more as a response to getting caught rather than out of actual regret). Looking over at the sea creature again she crinkled her nose. "Seriously though, can I please request that we move that thing elsewhere? It reeks!" - The problem will soon be taken care of. - Landon soothed as he floated into the launch bay leading a large speciment tank on thin insectoid legs. As he stepped off the staircase and caught a look of his most bizarre kill to date, Ryan couldn't help but swallow and stare back at his C.E.T.A.C. with a most foreboding air. "Well, so far I'll bet this has been one hell of an initiation for you." Trax stated while walking up with Crystal in tow. "Figures that the day everything goes wacko would be the day you'd sign up with us huh?" Ryan just continued to stare at the dragon mek, feeling a deep pitted sense of bewilderment and angst at it seemed to mock him by staring straight ahead, never acknowledging his presence or providing any answers to the questions he felt pricking at his mind over what he'd just been through. "I didn't know what I was doing out there, yet I took that thing down no sweat." "Ryan?" Crystal asked. The orca turned to his friends. "I didn't give any order for it to engage the creature but it did anyway. I had no idea what its weak spots were or even if it had any, yet I managed to hit it in all the right places. Doesn't any of that strike you as odd?" Dolphin and shark looked at the orca then at the robot behind him, a look of agreement on both of their faces yet no sign of a possible explanation. "Well, this isn't any run of the mill C.E.T.A.C., Ryan. And since it's designed to only respond to you we hardly know anything about what's been incorporated into its programming or internal workings." Crystal stated, lost for anything else to say. "Also, I've seen some pilots perform some pretty snazzy maneuvers during moments of crisis, most of whom would never think of doing such things unless they were forced to act on the spur of the moment. Who's to say you didn't get lucky?" Ryan looked at the shark in a way that suggested he would've really liked it if the answer were that simple, but at the same time both of them knew that that couldn't possibly be the case and Trax had just been stupid to state otherwise. "Okay, maybe not." The striped carcharian said with up held hands. "But regardless you put the thing down and you saved someone from a nasty fate as a between meal snack so does how you accomplished that really make much of a difference?" Ryan slowly shifted back to the C.E.T.A.C., staring hard at it again before he felt his shoulders slump as Trax's words had their desired effect. Yes, however much the events that had just taken place may have unnerved him, Ryan could not dispute that their overall effect had been positive. "I guess you've got a point there." The orca glanced over at Novak as two long tendrils finished loading the fish/frog into the tank and it walked back out of the bay. "There's still something else though." He moved over to the half born. "Major, when I was fighting that creature there was one other thing I noticed." Novak turned to the whale. "And what's that?" "When I was wrestling with it, it...I don't know...it looked at me and I felt something. Something in my mind besides the normal input and processing of data from my C.E.T.A.C." Ryan looked down the corridor and scratched at his neck. "I can't describe it, but it seemed like it was trying to search my thoughts." The cetacharian gaze drifted while she chewed the info. "You believe it was using telepathy on you, is that it?" "Something like that. As I said, it's hard to describe." Novak nodded. "Come with me please, I think we need to discuss this." * * * - 2:20 p.m.- "Okay, everyone please take note that this is just something I've been considering after what you and your crew told us but it seems like too much of a coincidence." Novak turned to the briefing room's central holo display. "Ladon, upload a complete topographical map of this area." - At once, Major.- Four copies of the requested document appeared, all angled so that everyone seated around the display had a clear view. "Now this is where you stated that cruiser sunk. Is that correct?" The relevant point on the map was marked out. "Yes, that's it." The otter stated. "Well have a look at this. This is where Scylla is located." The city's location, several kilometres southwest of the cruiser's position was marked. "And here's Celephais, the only other habitat thus far that's reported signs of intelligent glinter activity." Another mark quite a ways northeast of the cruiser was marked. "Now you stated this thing sunk about a week ago." Novak said looking at the otter again. "That's right." "Well, that's round about the same time Celephais reported its sightings. And if that isn't strange enough then look at this," The two cities and the cruiser location were connected together, showing that not only did both Scylla and Celephais lie on an almost perfect 45° angle to the cruiser but both were almost the exact same distance away from it too. "Incredible." Crystal turned to her hybrid commander. "So do you think that's where the source of whatever it is that's controlling the glinters is?" "Signs all point to it." Novak commented. "Might turn out to be nothing but seems worth checking it." To his left, Ryan heard the sound of claws digging into wood and turned to see Warwick with a petrified expression on his face. "B-But there are more of those...those...things there." Novak nodded. "And as Corporal Masterson was so kind as to point out, they could possibly possess telepathic abilities. No matter how you look at it, there's probable cause for it being the solution we're after." The display vanished as the hybrid stepped forward. "Captain Von Prussen, steer a course there as fast as will allow. Adeney," She turned to the axolotl. "Conduct some initial tests on the specimen and see if you can find anything." Her gaze shifted to the eel. "Lensinav, see if you can augment the C.E.T.A.C.s cerebellums to dampen down any external mental projections. Ask Masterson to help you if you need it." The cetacharian looked up to address the room as a whole. "As for everyone else, make use of the time while you can. Dismissed." The morphs saluted and left the room. "She certainly does cut quite a commandeering presence." Ryan commented as he headed down the corridor. "It's her nature. When things start heating up is when she starts getting becoming obsessed about appearing as authoritative and knowledgeable as possible." Crystal took his arm and smiled. "Don't get too perturbed by it, she usually performs the best under these conditions so it's not all bad." She cocked her head when she noticed the orca was staring at the floor with a uneased expression, as though lost in some disconcerting thoughts. "Ryan? Is something wrong?" He sighed and rubbed over the smooth dome of his head. "Just thinking. What else are we going to encounter? And more importantly how many other 'surprises' is my C.E.T.A.C. going to throw up?" The whale's mouth became a thin line, tightening with the onset of anxiety. Concerned that he was feeling so uptight about events, Crystal gently leaned her head on his shoulder and wrapped her other arm around his neck. "You've already proven your worth to the team, don't feel you have to go with us if it's getting to be too much for you." The blue and white whale hissed through his teeth as his hands tightened. "On the contrary, now I need to see what that thing's capable of more than ever before. Specially if we're going to be running into more of those creatures." The dolphin raised her head and couldn't help beaming at the determination simmering in her friend's dark blue eyes before they both heard a voice from behind. "Umm, excuse me?" The cetaceans turned to see the female otter salvager. "I know some of us already payed you their gratitude, but I just wanted to personally say thank you again for rescuing me." Ryan cocked his head momentarily before untangling himself from Crystal and approaching the brown furred girl. "First, can I ask your name?" "It's Rebecca, Rebecca Hutchins." Ryan smiled as he placed an arm on the otter's shoulder. "Well then Rebecca, would you and your team be interested in a quick wind down from our mess hall's spirits stores while you talk us through what happened out there?" The three morphs recommenced down the corridor. "Cause judging by how badly my nerves need to be steadied after that I can only imagine what you guys must be feeling." * * * - 3:36 p.m.- == Well, there it is. == Trax said as the Legion 17 meks swam towards the sunken ship. == Amazing how this things always look so omnious whenever you see them. Like they're the bringers of a warning that something exceptionally bad is about to happen. == Indeed with the pointed end of its hull sunk deep into the sands of the sea bed and the rest of the dark, sabre like structure sticking out at a sharp angle, the ship did look seem to demand a rather foreboding air. *Yeah, like a Damocles blade hurled from the heavens to unleash some manner of utmost evil locked away beneath the sands.* Ryan thought, silently wondering how close it really was to the truth. Cautiously he pushed forward with the team, slowly making their way closer to the side of the ship so they could get a better look. :: Looks the hull's been ripped open in the forward section. Though by what I can only guess.:: Novak commented with a puzzled tone. ::Doesn't shed much light on why its presence would lead to either a spontaneous change in glinter behaviour or the appearance of new assimilation forms though.:: ++Unless, ++ Crystal tilted her head down and blasted the bed underneath her with a sonic wave. The other legionnaires turned to watch as she then settled her C.E.T.A.C. down and listened for any sign of an echo. ++Yes, it sounds like it's hollow a couple of metres down. There must be a subterranean cavern beneath us. ++ ))Do you think that's where the frog creatures came from?(( Ryan asked, feeling a deeper pitted sense of unease creeping up at the similarity between Crystal's discovery and his previous thought. ++If it is, it makes sense. After all, I'm sure having a huge naval ship come crashing down on top of you would be enough to stir up any creature into a furore. ++ Ryan looked back to the ship again and swallowed. )) So, what do we do then, ma'am? (( ::I'm picking up glinter activity but it seems to be relegated entirely to inside the ship. Probably the rest of those things retreated back to watch over what the salvagers said they were protecting.:: The Major's Tidal Strike C.E.T.A.C. converted to combat mode and readied its rifle. ::We'll proceed in with caution. Captain, take the ship up to a safe depth but keep all channels open. We may need to get out of here in a hurry if we run into whatever it is that's supposed to be down there.:: [] Copy that, Major. Please be careful. [] Lena reply was almost pleading in its tone. The other legionnaires transformed as well and began to swim towards the hole in the side of the ship, several quietly admitting they didn't like how still and void of activity the black interiors that lay beyond seem to be. ::Head lamps on, morphs. If the radar sensors can't determine what these creatures are then I don't want to run the risk that they may not be detected by IR either.:: Several bio-illuminescent pods extended out of the C.E.T.A.C.s heads and flickered to full intensity, revealing a warped, chaotic mess of metal plates and railings twisted with the mangled remains of maintenance drones and more severely malformed morph corpses. ==Looks like they tried assimilating parts of this thing as well as the crew members who didn't make it out in time. == Trax noted as he ducked underneath a collapsed bulkhead. Behind him, Erin gently grasped the head of what was barely recognisable as a walrus, the eyes, muzzle, whiskers and tusks all so badly disfigured by the assimilation process and the subsequent fusion with the metal walls that they looked like something out of a collaboration between Picasso and H.R. Giger. /\Poor dears. They never deserved this. /\ She muttered despondently. ::Indeed. But this does beg one question.:: Novak turned and looked above into a hatchway that led up to the next deck. ::From the looks of things it seems they stopped chowing down on this thing only about half-way through. That's almost unbelievable. What could possibly have happened here to make a glinter stop wanting to consume everything it could?:: _-Possibly because something else was here, something else that didn't want them intruding on their property.-_ Mike said from further up closer to the front of the ship._-Come have a look at this.-_ He ordred his swordfish shaped mek to make a beckoning motion and the other sea dwellers swam over to behold an engine room stuffed to the gills with dead partially mutated glinters. Everywhere they looked, on the fusion reactors, the control stations, the coolant tanks, not a single spot was sparred from being covered with black rotting flesh. The seal walked over to one of the tanks and picked up a glinter that looked to be part beaver and part food replicator, the half formed fur of the head sitting on top of several tentacles that had turned transparent and were streaked with imprinted serial numbers much like the ones printed on the equipment in a normal cafeteria. _-Look here, notice the long ragged slash marks on its head? Those weren't made by any conventional weapons.-_ Erin picked the glinter off of him and studied it more intensely. /\ He's right, Major. Judging from the length of the incisions and the tattered line of the flesh on either side these look almost like claw marks, and not ones made by a machine. No, these are definitely animal./\ The axolotl appeared in the cetacharian's cockpit. /\ I admit that right now it's only an assumption, but I have a feeling that if I compared them to the claws on that thing aboard the Pacific Hunter they'd be an almost perfect match. /\ Silence descended as the pilots contemplated this disturbing discovery. @@So, so what does that mean? We've now got glinters attacking other glinters? @@ Warwick sounded lost. ::Who's to say, Private? Maybe the frog ones thought they were a threat to their domain. As we don't know how they're being controlled, we can only guess as to how they're meant to behave.:: Novak pushed her C.E.T.A.C. further down into the forward section of the cruiser. ::Fortunately, if the Deus is smiling on us, the answer may be very close by. We just need to keep...:: And then suddenly every one of the cockpits was wailing with the beeps of detected enemies approaching, giving most quite a jump. ::Dammit, guess they've detected us. Everybody, load up and stand ready! Things are about to get seriously hot!:: A brief, jarring overture of harpoon casters being drawn and primed echoed through the interiors of the ship and eight C.E.T.A.C.s stood ready, weapons aimed at the bulkhead hatch in front of them and an attentive, if slightly unnerved, posture assumed by the pilots. Glancing briefly left, Ryan looked at the six-gilled shark mek standing next to him and said a quick prayer for the dolphin inside it as the faint but no less eerie sounds of croaking and braying were heard from beyond the doorway in front of them. ::Seems like they're concentrated primarily in front. Must be coming from the cavern underneath.:: Novak stated. Ryan looked back ahead at his commander and took a deep breath. )) What's our plan of action going to be then? (( The Great White cyber-behemoth in front of him stood silent for a moment, listening to the growing brays and croaks before withdrawing a hand from where it was supporting the caster. ::Lensinav, does the structure around us seem sturdy enough to withstand the concussive force of a few more explosions?:: Another silent moment ensued while everyone tried to work out what the Major was planning via that statement. @@Uhm...it should be. I mean the infrastructures of these cruisers are made with some pretty strong alloys. @@ The eel replied before adding. @@At a glance I can't be certain though. @@ Novak, however, seemed to only be interested in the first part as her hand reached behind to pull out a grenade. ::Alright then morphs, ready your explosives and try to keep your aim straight.:: She reared back as the ground beneath them seemed to start reverberating with the unearthly calls of what sounded like hundreds of approaching enemies. ::If the entrance to the underground is ahead of us...:: And then, like a scene most usually will only witness in the worst of their nightmares, the floor of the cruiser literally seemed to explode, unleashing dozens of the huge fish/frog monstrosities onto the poor legionairre pilots. ::Then we'll just have to make our way past them!:: With nary a second thought, the Major armed and chucked her grenade into the middle of the surging monsters. The entire frame work of the ship seemed to shudder and whine as it was hit first by the shockwave of the explosion and then by the successive impacts of bleeding and injured sea creatures being viciously thrown against it. ::Remember Corporal Masterson's method everyone! Concentrate on the eyes and the belly, and keep up a steady feed of grenades!:: Novak yelled as the area was lit up with harpoon fire and the battle got underway. Rolling his eyes a little, Ryan forced the control columns forwards and upwards to try and gain a vantage point on the reinforcements that were pouring out behind the ones already engaged in combat. Targeting one off to the side he nailed it in its upheld arm, stopping it from dealing a lethal swipe to Erin's C.E.T.A.C. and allowing Trax to move in and finish it off with his scythe blades. Quickly sensing movement on the other side of him, Ryan turned to see another frog creatures hurtling up towards him with claws and teeth bared in a most unnaturally wide snarl. Again the orca felt what he had described to the Major earlier, that odd pressure inside his brain as if something were poking around at his lobes and synapses trying to find what was contained within them. Gritting his teeth, he aimed for the interiors of the oversized maw and dove to the side as the creatured croaked in the displeasure of having its throat ruptured and burned from the inside by plasma harpoons. Seemingly deeming it to be only a minor niggle, it then rolled over and swiped at the dragon mek, managing to hit it in the forearm and cut several deep grooves which bubbles and sizzled as the corrosive liquid from the frog monstrosity's claws began to eat away at the armour. *You may be able to take on new forms, but you're still stuck with the same old tricks.* Ryan thought as he ordered the mek's scratched arm to drop its rifle and grab his opponent by the neck scales while his other one reached behind to draw one of his swords. The creature grappled and brayed in annoyance as it was throttled by the mek before it was forced to hunch over from the force of the blade being driven into its gut and dragged across to fully unzip it. Letting forth one deep pitted and almost demonic sounding croak of defeat, a pair of orange, glassy eyes lifted to stare directly into the cockpit, and Ryan was forced to let go of the columns and grab his head as the contents inside were rattled by the force of a full on mental punch. Gasping, he glared defiantly at the frog entity as the Nereus let go and it sunk into the soupy golden mess of its innards spilling out. ::Corporal Masterson! Are you okay?:: Novak sent over the cerebral link, giving the orca another painful jab as his mind still hadn't yet recovered from the glinter's attack. )) Ack!...Yeah, I'm still well enough to keep fighting. (( He answered as his mek quickly snatched up its harpoon caster again and helped drive off another one that was terrorising Warwick. ))I think I can now provide confirmation that these things are definitely possessed of some sort of telepathic abilities.(( ==That's putting it midly! == Trax sent in agony as he deflected and parried the attacks of two monsters that were advancing on him simultaneously. ==My C.E.T.A.C.s managing to dampen the brunt of their assault but Deus is my head throbbing from their searching about!!== He spun his scythe around to force a slash aside and then quickly followed with an uppercut while the glinter was still reeling, managing to severe one of its arms off at the elbow. Looking down, the creature merely croaked in disappointment at its bleeding stump before braying with the pain of being brutally kicked in the stomach and sent tumbling away into the water, providing a distraction for its partner which Trax took advantage of by riddling its front with shots from his shoulder casters. ==Ahhh thank you that feels so much better! == The shark whimpered in relief as the second frog creature crumpled and floated away to breathe its last. Nodding his agreement, Ryan dodged another oncoming entity and pushed forward towards where they were coming out of the floor further up ahead. )) There's an awful lot of them here, Major. Are you sure we shouldn't fall back and try another approach? (( ++If we do, they'll just follow and try to attack us while we're retreating. At least this way we've got them limited on manoeuvrability and the number they can squeeze in here.++ Crystal stated as Novak was preoccupied with cutting out a trail through the middle of the swarming monsters. ++Just relax and try to stay focused. As long as they don't separate us too much we should be able to hold them off until we can create an opportunity to force our way past. ++ Ryan admitted he had some serious doubts about that statement but decided it wasn't worth voicing them in the current circumstances. Instead he merely grabbed onto an exposed I-beam and shuddered as the wave from another grenade shot out through the interiors of the cruiser. With a quick re-check of his surroundings he then noticed several monsters being blown away from up ahead and darted for the opening to drive a few more that had also noticed their ranks were again being forced apart. Tensing himself in preparation for the mental assault that was sure to come, Ryan ordered his harpoon caster to be set to scatter shot and sent the nearest of the group tumbling back towards the bulkhead. This gave him just enough time to catch his breath and then grab the barrel of his gun so that he could club the next one down as it was too close to land an effective shot. Feeling an almost barbaric sense of wrath shoot through him, Ryan raised his rifle over his head and rained blows on the creature, not even bothering to question how his arms seem to deviate slightly with each strike so that the weapon hit the abomination on its twinkling back fin or its thrashing legs. When he at last decided he broken it up enough so that it couldn't immediately get back up and attack him, Ryan turned his attention to the next couple, only to see that they'd been diverted from him by the appearance of Tracey's C.E.T.A.C. and were currently pursuing the mek around the next room. Finding it in himself to smile, he gave his thanks to the seal and quickly barged in through the doorway that she'd graciously cleared for him to behold the sight of a seemingly unlimited number of nightmarish visages pouring like a fountain out of a black abyss framed by the melted plates of the engine section's floor. *Deus, it's like sea lice on a macro scale!* He thought while propelling himself upward to avoid several monsters that had spotted him and broken off to take a swipe. )) Tracey, try to keep that one distracted for just a bit longer. I'll help you as soon as I'm done with these guys! (( He angled his rifle down and began firing without mercy at the pilling bodies of ichthyoidal horrors under him. -_No, no don't worry about me, Ryan. We just need to keep these guys busy until Warwick can get in here._- The seal replied with a much more optimistic tone to her voice. Ryan allowed himself a brief second to look up from where he was firing, about to ask the seal just what the heck she meant when two more heavily bleeding frog creatures burst back in through the doorway followed by the Sea Turtle mek containing the eel in question. @@Ack...get off! Get off me!! @@ He yelled while violently kicking his left foot about to try and shake off a pursuing glinter creature that had managed to grab hold of him. Fortunately the swordfish C.E.T.A.C. belonging to Mike zipped in hot on its heels and used its two arm blades to skewer the beast through its stomach and wrench it off Warwick. @@Alright you freaks! See how you like this! @@ The eel cried, hefting up a huge bulky object which it then flung into the centre of the swarm. Seconds later the cruiser interiors were rocked again by the impact of another grenade, which was then succeeded by another, then another, and then another. The explosions grew more distant as the object tumbled down the hole, shaking everything down to the foundations and causing so much havoc amongst the surging waves of frog creatures that they were forced to disperse to the point where a huge gap in the centre of their numbers appeared. ::Alright, we've got our opening! Let's move everyone!:: Not questioning the order in the slightest, Ryan pushed all available power into steering his meka warrior down and into the abyss, shooting and batting the monsters aside with his wings where necessary until he found himself situated in the vast expanse of a cave. And with a circular sweep of his head lamp, the orca discovered that it was indeed very vast, and for a good reason. *Deus, to think the over landers thought we were being extreme, having the meks build our cities at the depth they're at.* Ryan shook his head and blinked as the light from his C.E.T.A.C.'s head cast aside the blanket of darkness to reveal not a bunch of rocks, stalagmites or other natural formations one would expect in a cavern but towers, roads and domes. Cyclopean structures of all kinds stretched out underneath the mek, withered and crumbled with the effects of age and constant exposure to water but nonetheless visibly built for the purpose of habitation. Strange thin pyramids reached high above octagonal pavilions nestled between five point star-fish like oratories and twisted cylindrical columns. A totally chaotic collection of geometric shapes, all bearing no resemblance to any type of architecture or civilisation known to exist on Neo-Terra, announced their presence as light burned through the shroud of black that had enveloped and held them for who knew how long. And once the initial hellos were over, the city did not hesistate to introduce the rest of its current residence as the fish/frog creatures poured upwards in droves to aid their fellow brethren. *Not even gonna give me a chance to get over the initial shock.* Ryan swore under his breath and dove out of the way, just in time to see another shape drop down through the hole and give some more light to the current events with a flurry of harpoons. ==Wowee. Our new friends certainly have carved out a nice niche in the sea for themselves. == Trax stated upon seeing the ruined city. ==Maintenance leaves a lot to be desired but the location certainly is to die for. == He swam over to aid Ryan as Novak and Crystal clambered down through the mess of ichthyoids to join the other legionnaires. ::By the tides. H-How long has this been down here?:: The cetacharian stated, her surprise evident by the uncharacteristic stutter. ++Judging from the visible state of errosion and the amount of sedimentary build up, I'd say anywhere from millions to perhaps billions of years. Though the covering above us appears much more recent, perhaps a century or two. ++ The dolphin paused to duck her robot underneath a slashing monster which Novak dispatched with her rifle. ++Please note I can't be certain of that, it is kind of hard to make studies on this type of thing while in the middle of combat.++ Crystal clicked in aggravation while she swam down past the towers to land on one of the low rise buildings. ++I might also mention that these ruins look like they've been disturbed even more recently. Like they've been dusted off and put back into use in the last few years or so. ++ Crystal glanced down at the structure she was standing on contemplatively and then back up through her head-cam at the sprawl of other mathematically perfect and nightmarishly twisted buildings in front. Which in turn earned her a perfect view of a huge open maw of teeth, advancing in out of the darkness to take a chomp out of her C.E.T.A.C.'s cockpit. Yelping in surprise, the cetacean instinctively threw herself back in her seat as her mek followed the idea and threw itself off the side of the building. ++Eeeeek! Well, s-suffice to say, I deem it a total mystery as to who or what built this place. Same for whatever it was that apparently happened upon it and decided to move in. ++ *Well, unfortunately it's a mystery we don't have time to solve.* Novak grunted and snarled as her radar sense movement coming in from the side, forcing her to dive deeper into the ruins while she tried to turn her head lamp towards where her attackers were. ::Dammit, without their trademark glow these things are nigh on impossible to fight in the dark! Lensinav, dispense some of those glow globes of yours.:: @@S-S-S-Sure thing ma'am. @@ The eel gasped as the shell of his mek collided with one of the towers, leaving him unable to reverse any further away from the heavily wounded piscine creature that had been chasing him and with no means to get back the harpoon caster he'd lost during their initial scuffle. Closing his eyes and saying a silent prayer, he mentally ordered one of his daggers to be unsheathed and quickly grabbed the weapon to throw it at the braying enemy. Taking his shaking hands off the control columns, the eel then covered his face and continued to plead internally with the heavens while he waited for the lethal cracking sound of the cockpit being torn apart. When after a short while it did not come, Warwick peeked through his fingers and let his breath escape in several ragged gasps when he saw the monstrosity floating lifelessly before him, his sonic charged blade firmly lodged in its skull. *Okay, okay, okay. Just where you aimed. No need to panic. Keep it together. Keep it together.* Taking a deep breath, Warwick looked over the corpse and decided he could get a replacement blade back at base. No reason to take anymore unnecessary chances was there? The sea turtle mek swam back to retrieve its caster and then headed up through the water to where the main heat of the battle was concentrated. Reaching into one of its shell compartments it withdrew several balls made of a flexible gelatinous substance filled with bio-illuminescent chemicals. Giving them a shake to get the light up to full strength, Warwick began tossing them out to illuminate as much of the area where the legionnaires and bloated frog creatures were duking it out as possible. @@Is that better? @@ He sent to everyone. )) Like you wouldn't believe. Thanks a lot.(( Ryan responded, sighing in relief now that he had a clearer view of where his enemies were. ))Is it just me Trax, or do these guys seem to be paying more attention to us than everyone else? (( Out of the left side of his cockpit, Ryan watched the tiger shark's C.E.T.A.C. tilt its head down and survey the area below them. ==I think you might be right, they seem particularly insistent on making sure we don't get any closer to that huge domed thing down there in the centre.== Ryan guided himself down to see where Trax was pointing and spied a large building, similar in design to a football staduim (though about five times the size), covered with a covex shaped, ten pointed star roof. It was all Ryan could to stop himself from huffing when he looked up above the structure and noticed the very tip of the cruiser's bow was angled down through the hole in the cavern's ceiling to point at it like an accusing finger )) Major, we've noticed the creatures are concentrating their efforts around where we are. I'd like to move in and try to get a closer look. (( From across the cavern, Novak temporarily looked up from the two ichthyoids she was fighting to gauge where her newest recruit was calling from. ::Well, that's better than what we're doing over here. Go ahead, we'll follow.:: She abandoned her current opponents and turned to face the other legionnaires. ::Everbody, home in on Corporal Masterson. I think he may have found what we're looking for.:: All the C.E.T.A.C.s quickly dove to follow their leader, tearing through the water towards where the orca was advancing into the thick of the infestation with swords drawn and guns ablazing. *Just focus on your target, forget everything else.* And so Ryan did, keeping his gaze focused squarely on the foreboding, monolithic dome rushing up towards him, ignoring the now continuous high pitched wail of his radar sensing enemies in every direction, the dull ache of his head as said enemies tried to force their way into his thoughts, even the disturbing way that though gnashing teeth and glaring eyes filled his screens the closest they ever got to him was the end of his gun barrel or the tip of his blade. Time and the world were forced into non-existence for the orca, leaving only the matter of getting his meka onto the roof of the central building and then finding some way to get at whatever lay inside. )) Warwick, I'm getting too far away from the light. Do you have any more orbs to spare? (( Illumination crept back into his vision as the eel chucked another of the glowing balls down after him. Giving his thanks, Ryan switched one of his screens to rear view and concentrated on catching it with his tail. With one swift flick he then tossed it over himself and caught it on the point of his dragon's snout. Now that he had ample illumination, he was able to pick out a spot to land and duly pumped all power into his legs, breaking through the last wall of the frog monsters and landing with a muffled bubbly 'Thud!' on the dome. *The salvagers said they actually caught a glimpse of whatever is in here. Therefore that must mean...* Ryan ordered his C.E.T.A.C. to dig its clawed toes into the stonework to better anchor itself and then stood up to run around the circumference. Eventually he came to where the sunken cruiser's bow had been pointing and narrowly managed to stop himself from tumbling over when the dome under him fell away into a gaping black hole. *As always, right on the one occasion when you don't want to be.* Steadying himself and crouching, the orca carefully perched himself on the edge of the hole, noticing how there seemed to be debris resting on top of the dome around him as though something had smashed its way out from inside. Examining the thickness of the stone and then looking up to re-evaluate the overall size of the building, Ryan felt a bitingly cold shudder run down his spine when he realised both the size and the strength an entity would have to possess in order to break out of such a thing. To most morphs of a sane mentality with a good grasp of their present situation, common sense would've dictated at this point that, with the amphibious monstrosities, the refurbished look of the city, the evidence of the hole and the what not, perhaps the best course of action would have been to gain some distance and see what could've been done to organise a mass attack rather than try to investigate such a ominous discovery alone. Sadly, to one with an incensed disposition and the eagerness to just bring an end to the hellish happenings that has befallen him and his team mates, those kind of considerations generally go no further than the back of the mind. As such, Ryan viciously stamped his feelings of apprehension down and brought forward the glow globe he'd been given from Warwick to hopefully expose whatever it was that the ichthyoidal horrors felt necessary to keep from harm, and was also most likely responsible for giving the glinter swarms elsewhere the brain power they needed to make life even more unpleasant for other inhabitants of the oceans. Ryan in fact got as far as holding the globe out over the abyss in preparation to let it light up the interiors before he realised something was seriously wrong with his situation. Something that should have been happening wasn't. Something that he should've been watching out for but had forgotten about in his haste and yet wasn't being made to pay the price as a result. Something that threw the entire pattern of the days events out of context simply because against all calculated and assumed odds it had ceased to transpire. The creatures had stopped attacking. Pivoting his mek's head up and around, Ryan let his eyes droop open widely in surprise and confusion when he noticed the monsters were no longer charging at him or his team mates, nor were they giving any further indication of aggressive behaviour or intent to destroy. Instead they now had withdrawn and were floating cautiously around the dome area, teeth bared and glassy eyes staring the C.E.T.A.C.s with malice but making no further attempts at assault. Bewildered, the whale stood again and tried to contact his friends. )) Major? Crystal? What's going on? (( ++I...I don't know. They all just turned to see where you are and then suddenly just ceased. ++ The dolphin replied, equally thrown for a loop. Blinking, Ryan guided the Nereus around in a 360° turn. Everywhere he looked he saw the frog things, snarling and looking like nothing would give them greater pleasure than tearing him up into small, easy to digest chunks and then having a picnic lunch, yet doing nothing to put their facially expressed threats into action. No matter how many times he turned around (making himself rather dizzy in the process) he couldn't make sense of the turn in Legion 17's predicament. As hard as he racked his brain (which he now noticed didn't hurt as much as it had before with the mind probing) he could come up with no logical reason for why superior numbers would spontaneously call a cease fire. Unless... Ryan quickly whirled around and looked down into the hole in front of him. Without even thinking about it he let the glow globe roll out of his C.E.T.A.C.'s hand and tumble down into the black mirth, burning it away with incandescent light to reveal interiors decorated with strikingly twisted pillars and strange murals. Which in turn lead to the blue ceteacean severely regretting his decision when the darkness fell away from something that made his heart skip a beat. Some unimaginably huge, black and blood red wall lined with massive suction cups that surged its way up towards him and knocked the poor whale clear off the dome from the impact of it hitting the stonework from underneath. Feeling his meka warrior go tumbling head over heels out into the vast space of the cavern, Ryan was able to do naught but stare in horrified silence at the image which spun into his field of view every few seconds. The image of a massive octopoid tentacle breaking its way out of the dome, thrashing and battering away at the structure to facilitate its brethren's progression out. Grabbing the steering columns and ordering the stabilisers up to full power he slowed the dragon robot down, carefully maneouvring the body until it was again in an upright position. Quickly forcing himself to take a breath, Ryan then looked to where the others were and swam for them at top speed, the last thing any of them needed at this point was to get separated just as a new threat was announcing its presence. Sadly said threat seemed to have cottoned on to the same idea as the whale immediately found his way blocked by another tentacle so large in bulk it would have put those of even the fabled Kraken to shame. And unlike the Kraken's, this tentacle also seemed equipped with added weaponry as in the fading levels of light, Ryan caught the glint of white bone protruding out of the flesh on the end and curving backwards in a lethal looking hook, the exceptionally sharp point aimed directly at his chest. ++Ryan! Watch out!!++ Crystal screamed over the cerebral link. The warning went almost unheard, so astounded was the orca at the sight of the titanic appendage that was prepping to strike him down in retaliation for his disturbing the shelter of whatever being it was attached to. By what seemed like only the sheerest of mercies, the sudden clashing blur of red and black passing before his eyes as the tentacle executed its attack to bury the hooked end deep inside his gut stopped Ryan from totally losing his grip on the situation and he responded in the only way he saw feasible. Pushing the Nereus forward with all his might, Ryan aimed himself for that rushing wall of flesh and sunk his mek's claws deep into it, hoping the cretein wasn't enraged enough to actually try harming itself in its pursuit of him. The tentacle bucked and thrashed like a mighty serpent as it sensed his hold on it but nevertheless the hook did not come any closer, and Ryan immediately took advantage of this by firing up the turbo-boosters on the legs to propel his C.E.T.A.C. up and over the appendage. With his way now clear, he wasted no further time in closing the gap between him and the other legionnaires. ++Ryan, are you okay?++ Crystal asked with concern as she materialised in front of the orca. )) For the moment. (( He answered with extreme unease as the vicious thumping and cracking of stonework echoed out through the cavern. All pilots turned their gaze to the dome, several feeling themselves grow faint with shock as it shook and crumbled under the assault of tentacles smashing their way out. Four...five...six...then seven of them broke free and thrashed powerfully through the water, each using the hooks on their ends to break away at their imprisonment and release the remainder. Rising up to blossom out like a magnificent black and red flower, the octopoid appendages continued to come, reaching the normal number of eight and then just going higher. Nine...ten...eleven, soon the C.E.T.A.C. pilots ceased counting, the actual total number seeming less important in comparison to thinking about what type of unnatural monstrosity that would require so many. When at last twelve gigantic tentacles stood proud, enough to encircle what remained of the domed building; they ceased with their destructive thrashing and curled down over the stone walls, gripping them firmly so that they could at last give rise to the body that lay at their centre. And what a body it was! Elliptical in shape with pulsing black veins etched over blood red skin it was clear from the outset that the creature was, as most had guessed by that point, octopodal by series. That said, none could possibly think of any such pod, be it born of the earth, from the Genison meteorites, or any manner of Elder-era mythology that bore even a passing resemblance to the visage that arose in front of them. Smaller vestigial tentacles, each with their own mini versions of the fearsome razor hooks, twitched and curled around the base of the huge pulsing head, putting on as open a show of threat as their larger counterparts had done. Above them, veins that wormed up, down, in and out of the claret shaded flesh continued with their systematic process of shrinking and inflating, producing a ripple of motion that ran from the bottom of the creature all the way to the top and then back down. And as the octopodal monster pushed itself free of its resting area to expose itself fully to the legionnaires, most were forced to gasp with dry throats when they were fixed upon by not two, not four, but six glaring red eyes, each telescoping out from their asymmetrical arrangement around the body. The ichthyoidal frogs ceased their brays and croaks to respectfully move out of the way of their guarded individual, allowing the being to raise several of its tentacles and expose the beaked maw protruding from underneath, snapping with unmistakable wrath at the ones who had dared to intrude upon its domain. ==Tides...ohhh Deus...Major, I ask that you please forgive this sudden exhibition of conduct unbecoming of an officer, but WHAT THE FLYING FUCK!!??== Trax exclaimed; adding as much emphasis to the last part of his statement as was required to mirror the thoughts of everyone else present. ::I don't know, Private. But if nothing else, I'm betting it's the one calling the shots around here.:: Novak replied quietly, though whether it was in an attempt to keep her team's nerves steady or simply to hide her own creeping fear of the new arrival was anyone's guess. Slamming its tentacles back down onto the ruined buildings beneath it, crushing several of them in the process, the octopod swivelled its eye stalks around, focusing them independently on each member of Legion 17 and narrowing them as if in disgust that such minute creatures could cause so many problems for its bodyguards. As the eyes fell on the Nereus however, their expression changed. The two residing on the top left of the bulbous head narrowed while the three lower down widened, as if they sensed something within the body of the draconic robot that confused them. And that confusion, it seems, was all that was necessary for it to cement its opinion of the legionnaires as one eye then quickly rotated left and extended upwards on its stalk to fix on the amphibious monster that lay awaiting further commands above. To this the creature nodded its finned head before letting forth a deep, almost satanic bray to its surrounding friends, who then in turn swarmed upon the legionnaires while the octopod bared its two front tentacles to join in the fray. ::Guess that answers that.:: Novak commented with a weary sigh. ::Everyone, split up and attack that thing from every possible angle. If it's the one that's controlling them then it's the one we need to subdue first!:: The rest of the team didn't even need to be told. As soon as the sight of gnashing teeth and swiping claws again filled their view they dove in every direction and readied their weapons for the resumption of battle. Sadly if they thought it had been tough going before, they were soon to learn a whole new definition of pain as the octopod raised its tentacles higher while its head seemed to balloon and take on a rather familiar golden glow. "AAAUUUGGHH!" Ryan and the others cried out. Losing focus on where they were headed, the C.E.T.A.C. pilots thrashed around in their seats at the searing agony, of claws, of teeth, of hooks and of wholly horrific beings boring their way into their very souls and tearing them apart to see what the marine creatures were truly made of. Hideous images and burning anguish seeped in from all directions, rocking them to the very core of their bodies till all thought and sense of control had been totally wrecked. Letting go, Ryan grabbed his helmet with both hands and dug his fingers into the areas of exposed blue skin, feeling his vision ebbing away and wondering if he could possibly try breaking his skull open to alleviate some of the crushing torture before he completely blacked out. Again by a mercy, it seemed the monsters could not maintain such a strong attack as the pain eventually abated and he was left gasping for air, feeling like someone had just shoved his cranium into a trash compactor and switched it on. Looking up through the cockpit screens, he saw the octopod has now somehow sprouted several additional hooks on its upraised tentacles which were now tumbling down through the air like fallen trees to rip the legionnaire meks and their pilots into shreds while they were still recovering. "You want pain, I'll give you pain!!" He roared, anger now replacing agony as he forced the Nereus to role over so its rifle arm was free to take aim and cut a long glowing line of harpoons into the red and black veined flesh. There was a series of muffled pops as the projectiles exploded and blew several sizeable chunks clean out of the slithering appendage. Pushing himself off from where he'd landed, Ryan shot through the water to continue with his counter-attack, fear and caution dissolving away like smoke with each successive hit that he nailed upon the beast. Gradually the area around the tentacle became a swirling pillar of golden blood as it tried to get away from the attack, writhing around not so much with pain but annoyance that an enemy not even a fifth of its size was managing to hurt it. )) Guys! Are you all okay??(( Ryan sent while keeping his fire concentrated. ==Ooof...in the loosest sense of the term. == Trax sent back rather sluggishly. ==That felt worse than waking up after a three day non-stop jaunt around the bars in Scylla. == )) Just concentrate your fire! This thing may be big but it's still as vulnerable as anything else. (( _-On that note...-_ Ryan heard a soft 'schllurrk' behind him and activated his rear view camera to see a frog monster with a rather large arm mounted spike in its stomach. _-Try to keep an eye on your surroundings will ya? You're a dead easy target just floating there.-_ Mike sent while his C.E.T.A.C. hurled the unfortunate being into a nearby pillar. Ryan sighed and nodded in admittance before looking back to see the octopod was withdrawing its injured tentacle, literally sucking the bleeding limb back into its body while two of the eyes glared at the orca disdainfully. Knowing that couldn't bode well, Ryan pushed himself to the right, trying to see if there was a way he could get behind the titanic monster and out of its line of sight. Unfortunately all his progression earned him was another up close encounter with two more glass eyed and razor toothed entities which he was forced to deal with. Cursing his luck again, Ryan commanded his C.E.T.A.C. to roll around in the water, widening the gap between it and the vicious claws to an inch rather than a millimetre and giving him the second he needed to grab one of his swords and bring it up into the chest of one opponent. Biting his tongue against the twinges of hurt in his exhausted mind (after the combined attack that the octopus monster had orchestrated, being probed by individual monsters barely stung) he pulled the skewered amphibian to him and then swung both of them around to ensure its buddy's next swipe hit it in the back. Another application of harpoons and Ryan pushed both of the creatures off him to sink to their demise. Frantically he pushed forward along his original course but met further resistance when a new tentacle projected its way out of the octopus's body and caught his warrior bot full on in the stomach. Though the whale knew he wasn't having to physically suffer the blow himself it didn't stop him from forcing the air out of his lungs as he felt himself being thrown upwards and then tossed off right before the tentacle made full contact with the cavern's ceiling. Indeed the only thought that resided in his head during that moment was how fortunate he was that it hadn't been the hooked underside that had hit him. ++Schmed on sea weed, that thing's going to cause a cave-in if it keeps this up! ++ Crystal cried as she swam away from a falling piece of rock. ::I don't think that's its only objective, Okuda.:: Novak stated gloomily. ::If you remember, the ceiling's also the only thing standing between it and several thousand miles of open, heavily populated water.:: From where he was helping Erin drive off another attacking tentacle, Trax looked up at where the majority were pounding like a drummer at the peak of a solo and shivered. ==Well what do we do then? That thing's gonna change the whole face of the Pacific if it gets loose! == The Major pondered for a moment and then let forth a deep throated growl as she ploughed her way up above the cephalopod's mantle and began raining down harpoons. ::Try to drive it back down till we can get some help!:: The other sea dwellers tore themselves away from whatever adversary they were facing and shot like hell to join their commander while she manoeuvred back over to where the battle cruiser had crashed through. ::Ladon, Lena, this is Novak, can either of you hear me?:: There followed a long agonising pause, and for a moment the cetacharian hybrid was tempted to fear the worst as she watched her team bravely endure while getting seven shades slashed out of them by the ichthyoidal horrors and their six eyed, mollusc controller. >We are...ceiving you....jor, though y...signal...exceptionally...weak. < Ladon came through at last, sounding almost mocking under the circumstances in his normally calm and collected tones. ::Ladon, we're in some serious heat here! We need back-up a.s.a...ack schmed!:: Novak's order was interrupted by the need to dodge another falling piece of ceiling rock. >...n't copy Major, pleas...peat. Do you req....re a...stance?< But Novak didn't have time to repeat her order. Seeing that the other pilots were becoming clumped together and obviously wilting severely under the never-ending assualt she wasted no time in diving back into the thick of things and spraying the octopod under them with more fire. *Tides, however you may change your flow, please grant us mercy in this time of crisis. If not for me then please for my team.* Novak sighed and clicked her teeth, trying not to think about how ironic it was that she decide to break her life-long dedication to atheism just as death seemed imminent. Looking to the side of her cockpit, she closed her eyes and snarled as she saw Tracey attempt to fend off one of the fish/frog mutations, paying absolutely no attention to the ominous black and blood coloured tentacle that was sneaking up behind her. ::Lornes, watch your back! You've got...:: But the tentacle reached the seal before her words did and she found herself being grabbed and violently shaken about before it slammed her into the ceiling. *Dammit!* The hybrid seethed. Quickly she scanned for who was closest and sighted the Nereus trying to avoid being sandwiched between two of the fish creatures. ::Ryan, Lornes has been hit! See if you can get her away from these things.:: From where he was currently staring down the enemy in front of him, Ryan nodded stiffly. )) I'll try my best, ma'am. (( His gaze broke to gauge where his eel friend was located in all the chaos. It wasn't all that difficult. Even if he hadn't had the help of the glow globes there was so much glinter blood being spilled the cavern positively twinkled with a sickening gold aura. )) Warwick, follow me, we need some emergency maintenance. (( The sea turtle C.E.T.A.C. quickly whirled around, clubbing a tentacle aside in the process and sped over to join its dragon counterpart as they raced towards where Tracey lay limply underneath the steadily crumbling rock. @@Trace, are you okay? What's wrong? @@ A flickering image of the rather bruised seal appeared in both cockpits. -_Impact broke a lot of my spinal connections and really bent my tail out of shape. I've got life support for the time being but I sure ain't going to be going anywhere fast._- She answered dejectedly. @@Okay doesn't sound like anything irreparable. Ryan, if you can just hold them off for a few minutes please. @@ The orca nodded and turned to resume combat while Warwick's mek latched onto the seal's and dragged it away from the fighting. *Okay, you're up against Deus only knows how many amphibious monstrosities plus one seriously PO'd octo-titan. You've got one team member that's out for the count and the rest are well on the way to joining her. Ammo's running low, range is too close for grenades, and above you is a metre or so of loose rock that's destined to come crashing down at any minute. What do you do? What the hell do you do?* Ryan scanned through the feeds from his mek's cameras, surveying as much of the scene as he could while his mind did its best to maintain as fast a pace as a worn out organ can maintain. *C'mon Rye, you've got morphs counting on you!* The orca bit down on his tongue again and violently shook his head. At that point he felt he'd transcended beyone absolute exhaustion, but still the thought of having to die in order to get some sleep didn't hold much appeal. From somewhere above he heard the distinct sound of more sedimentary layers breaking apart and suddenly felt inspiration strike as he gazed up at the ceiling. *Well, guess it can't hurt to try and use the surroundings to your advantage.* Ryan quickly ordered his harpoon caster to triple burst and aimed at where most of the cracks were converging. Saying a silent prayer he fired the last of his harpoon supply and dove out of the way as they blew another sizeable chunk out of the weakening structure. *Alright, now let's see how much this thing enjoys a screaming migraine.* Rotating into a horizontal position, the Nereus spread its wings and sliced through the water like a knife, letting go of the rifle to reach out and catch a particularly large chunk of sediment which it then clutched to its chest while curving around to a point where it could target one of the octopod monster's eye stalks and prepare to launch a slam dunk. A smoothly executed attack it was, and one that by all accounts was supposed to have succeeded. That should have succeeded, if not for one glaring problem. Ryan didn't know what it was. A flurry of motion? A brief obstruction of the light? Perhaps merely the ripples sent out through the water from his presence. Whichever, he apparently did something to alert the titanic octopus that something extremely bad was about to befall it. At the moment his mek hurled the rock four of its eyes turned to focus squarely on him, being followed an instant later by one of the tentacles surging forward to intercept the rock and smash it into tiny pebbles with the razor hooks on the underside. Alarmed that his attempt apparently hadn't been as effective as he'd been hoping for, Ryan quickly tried to think of a way to compensate and decided he had to take a risk. Drawing both of his swords, he aimed and drove the C.E.T.A.C. to the closet of those damned eyes, hoping he could at the very least score a hit on this thing while his path was clear. Frankly, however, the creature had decided it was done toying with him and duly sent up two more tentacles to catch him and stop him dead in his tracks. With an almost misogynistic glint of glee the octopod curled two of its eyes down to watch the dragon mek struggle against its hold, putting on a valiant effort but proving it was clearly no match. And then, figuring what worked for one enemy would most likely work for another, the creature held the mekanik up and violently slammed it into the ruins of the city beneath. The blue dragon shuddered and jerked as it met with the stone structure of the buildings at an accelerated pace, yet the red and black octopod noted that it did little to quell its struggling. Deducing that it obviously was just a bit stronger and more feisty than the one before, it dug several of its hooks into the small being's hide and then swung its tentacles up to smash it into the ceiling again. "Ryan!!!" Crystal screamed, horrified at seeing her friend being battered around like a rag doll but unable to do anything because of there still being a dozen or so frog creatures in her way. As she fought tooth and nail to get through, the octopus merely checked if the pathetic being in its grasp was still showing signs of activity and then, seeing that it was, duly swept it across the top of the ruins, driving it through numerous towers and pillars in hopes that it would stop squirming. "Get your fucking tentacles off him you freak!" The dolphin yelled as she drove her knives into the throat of an ichthyoid and shoved it aside to provide her with a clear means of swimming in to save her whale. In response, the octopod merely extended two of its eyes to gaze at her approaching form and Crystal was then forced to cry out as she felt a razor sharp hook bury itself in the back of her robot and jerk her away from the main body. Quickly wrapping the Riptide up so it was rendered immobile, the pulsing mollusc scanned across the other legionnaires, noting their positions and conditions as the golden glow returned to its ballooning mantle. ==Oh tides, not again! == Trax groaned in realisation. ==Ryan, Crystal, try to get out of there; it's about to...== * * * - Time freeze - Inside the Nereus, the extremely battered whale was now contemplating if what he'd just been through was anything like what the last mint in a box felt like as someone tries to shake it out. With his vision blurring over from all the mental attacks and the physical beating he just endured, the whale managed only a momentary glance up as his assailant through the cockpit screens before he felt his head explode inside his helmet and the world was mercifully extinguished. * * * - Time recommencement - As for the others, the mental attack wasn't quite as bad this time. With so many of its precious body guards eliminated the octopod could only band enough together for a half-strength blast. Still, the sea morphs did manage to shake the interiors of the cavern for almost a minute with their pain wracked screams, and most were left feeling so weak afterwards that they didn't even put up a fight when it seized them in its tentacles. @@It...it's got us! Oh Deus it's got us!!@@ Warwick cried with fright as he was grabbed from behind and twirled around to face the monstrosity. ::Calm down, Lensinav. We've got to see if we can wriggle out of here.:: Novak stated, though she didn't sound all that calm herself. There was a short pause as the eel wrestled with his control columns and got no response. @@It's got us!!!@@ He wailed with increasing terror in his voice. ==Yeah, but screaming ain't going to...erf... do much good. == Trax grimaced as he heard the creaking of his C.E.T.A.C. buckling from the pressure of being squeezed. Inside the sea turtle, Warwick was now in the grips of a full blown panic attack, clawing at his face, flailing his arms about, and doing just about everything else that would not help their situation one bit. As a single telescoping red eye filled his screens, the moray eel felt his body go limp, too terrified by the unearthly gaze to move. @@Huh...ho...hokay. Okay...guys I'm sorry, I'm sorry. @@ He gasped for breath and held his angular head in his hands. @@Just in the wake of our ever present doom, can I say something to all you guys? @@ ==What is it? == Trax asked; hoping that if nothing else he'd have something in his final minutes to alleviate the gloom. Warwick looked gingerly lifted his head and found himself still staring into the octopus's satanic red orb. @@Deus help me, IT'S GOT US!!!@@ He screamed before lasping into another panic attack. On the opposite side, Novak panned her mek's head around and took note of her team. Right now all of them were wound from head to foot in red and black streaked flesh, their struggles proving useless to break out of the monster's hold. Possibly she could tell them to eject from their meks but the likelihood of them surviving against the frog creatures without any form of heavy duty protection or firepower seemed slim, even more so if they all felt as drained as she was from the second psychic blast. Slumping back in her chair, the cetacharian stared at her assailant and now conqueror as it brought her closer to one of its eye stalks, staring back at her pitifully as if trying to decide what was the quickest way to dispose of such a minor annoyance. ::Okuda, what's Masterson's condition?:: She asked, glancing down at the limp form of the Nereus. It took a moment for the dolphin's image to materialise, and when she did Novak couldn't help taking notice of how there appeared to be rather wet looking streaks on the skin under her eyes. ++I...I don't know. He's...He's not responding to my calls. I'm getting nothing but static over the link. ++ The dolphin shivered and wrung her paws nervously. ++I...I think he's been knocked unconsciouss. Either that or he's...++ New tears trickled down her cheeks, prompting Novak to sit up again and lean forward. ::No Corporal, don't assume anything of that sort until you have absolute proof! I need you and everyone else to keep your heads steady if we're ever to stand a chance of getting out of this.:: Turning to again meet the gaze of the octopod, the cetacharian bared her teeth and tightened her grip in the way dictated by her shark ancestry, determined not to let this monstrosity from the deep have the triumph of knowing she was scared of it. *Who are you? What are you? I've studied the Network records of every marine series on this planet and there's not as much as a byte of information mentioning you.* At that, the eye stalk tilted to one side, its top lid lowering as if in contemplation of the hybrid's thoughts. *Huh? Can you...hear me? Hear what I'm thinking? The Major's eyes widened slightly but she kept her teeth bared.* In response the eye turned to the frog creatures circling around and nodded an answer. *Them? Are they translating my thoughts for you?* The eye fixed on her again, letting its sinister glint tell all. *Well then, if you can understand me then please, at least tell me who you are!* Silence hung uncomfortably in the air, shark/whale stared at red and black octopod while red and black octopod observed shark/whale with the same type of pitying gaze. Then suddenly Novak felt it again: the prickling sensation in her brain. Only unlike before it wasn't simply an emotionless agony. No, this time it was something more distinct. A strange, mindlessly incomprehensible collection of words that was repeated by numerous voices, all chanting and singing out in a choir of unearthly voices and unreachable tones, with each hitting like a tiny splinter in the mind of the hybrid. *C...C-thyll-a...n...nah...ngth'lumi...y-ys-yss-ysagt'lod! Cuh...thigh...llah... Cthylla...* Around the cavern the other pilots heard it too, their fatigue and despair temporarily forgotten as they looked around, knowing the voices had to be coming from somewhere yet being met with only the closed mouth expressions of the frog creatures or the stare of the equally mute octopod giant. *Cthylla...ngth'lumi ys-ag-agt...ysagt'lod! C-thy-lulah...nght'lumoy ysogt'lahd! Cthylla...* Which meant no-one noticed the brief second when the Nereus wiggled its snout free of the tentacle holding it. *Cthylla, ngth'lumi y'sagt'lod! Cthylla, nght'lumoy ysogt'lgahd! Cthylla!!* And so the voices continued to sing, growing increasingly frantic and higher pitched as the cephalopod beast decided that since it had revealed what had been asked of it, there was no more need to keep its enemies alive. With a small flurry of bubbles, the tentacles jerked each member of Legion 17 underneath the monster, to where its beaked maw could be seen snapping and clicking eagerly for the taste of morsels and the assurance that they would go where they could no longer cause any harm. *Cthylla, ngth'lumi y'sagt'lod! Cthylla, nght'lumoy ysogt'lahd! Cthylla!* @@Oh Deus please! I can't go the way of my ancestors! I've still got so many aspects of life to get through! Like seeing the kelp oil harvesters in the Great Barrier Reef of Australia! Or lying on some tropical beach, tuning buggy engines till I shrivel up and have to be re-hydrated in one of those new aqua-infusion tanks! Deus how I've longed to see how those tanks work!! All that new technology, new gizmos and widgets I'll never see produced! @@ ::Lensinav, can it!!:: Novak spat while she ordered her C.E.T.A.C. to writhe with all its might against its bindings, knowing while she couldn't wrestle free hopefully she could hinder it for long enough to think up a new plan. *Cthylla, ngth'lumi y'sagt'lod! Cthylla, nght'lumoy ysogt'lahd! Cthylla!* But still the maw drew closer, its ebony shells systematically parting to reveal the black void between and then gnashing together again, the imminent doom that their movements signalled being accentuated by the eerie blue light that... *Wait...blue light?* Novak ceased her desperate squirming for a moment and focused in. Yes, indeed there seemed to be some strange blue aura reflecting off the flawless pearl of the maw, even though if she remembered properly, the glow globes they'd brought with them produced white light, and the creatures all so far had bled gold. With desperation now briefly being hindered by puzzlement, the cetacharian gazed left and was forced to let herself gasp when she saw the Nereus beneath her, its head tilted back and the fearsome snout wide open to reveal a burning mass of blue ichor building up inside. ::Corporal Masterson?:: She stated hesitantly. ++Ryan? ++ Came the tentative follow up from Crystal who was closer. The robot gave no response; merely it flexed its jaws around the strange blue fire, coaxing it to grow larger and more intense as it drew closer towards the gnashing beak. *Cthylla, ngth'lumi y'sagt'lod! Cthylla, nght'lumoy ysogt'lahd! Cthylla!* Quickly Novak checked in front of her again but Legion 17's captor seemed ignorant to this new development. Figuring that whatever the orca was about to enact it couldn't possibly be worse than the fate that was staring her in the face, the hybrid gripped her control columns and closed her eyes. ::Masterson, I'm going to try to get myself out of the way. Whatever you're planning on doing, do it fast!:: Hoping her turbo boosters hadn't been damaged beyond working condition; the Major angled her mek's legs to the left and gave the order to fire them up to full power. The tentacle shuddered as it tried to keep her stationary but nonetheless Novak felt herself inch very slowly westwards. And not a moment too soon either it seemed. For with one look out of the canopy screens, the hybrid saw the dragon robot heave itself against the back of is bindings. And then, like the fantasy novel creature which it bore such a terrifying resemblance to, the mek snapped its head forward and belched a searingly brilliant ball of blue straight into the monster's mouth, causing it to clamp itself shut on reflex before bursting into a gory Technicolor mess of red flesh, black veins, and glittering golden blood. *Cthylla, ngth'lumi y's....ag...????* Novak felt herself being jerked violently upwards, no doubt a reaction of the octopod as it tasted for the first time that day the true definition of agony. An agony that was then quickly added to by the Nereus turning to the trapped Great White and spewing a vicious stream of ichor all over its bindings. Thrashing her self around as much as she could muster, Novak felt a wave of relief rush through her being when the tentacle's grip began to loosen as it was burned away by the beams before it finally decided the struggle wasn't worth it and promptly unravelled from the Major so it could retreat to the body of its master and heal. ++Ryan! Oh thank the Deus you're alright!!++ Crystal cheered as the mek kindled the tentacle holding her and she was also released. Wishing them both well, Novak turned her sights to the cavern floor and dove for the harpoon caster she'd dropped upon being seized. Snapping it up, she did a quick check of its ammo supply and then gazed up at her team, now with renewed hope burning in her soul. *Good work, Orion. Damn good work.* The Tidal Strike shot back up through the water, weaving its way through the thrashing tentacles and up to the mantle of the behemoth. Judging from the way its six eyes were squinting and writhing about it obviously was still reeling from the pain of having its maw reduced to a bleeding mess of charred flesh. And with a quick gaze around her, the Major noted with exceptional satisfaction that all the fish/frogs wore a uniformed look of totally being lost, apparently now having no idea what to do now that their master was too busy hurting. *Alright you, listen up and listen good!* She swam to the lowest eye and targeted it with her harpoon caster. You're already in deep schmed for terrorising the cities with your damn ambushes! Add to that what you've done to my team and trespassing into my private thoughts and I'm pretty much be aching to send you on the fast train to Helgon. Therefore I'm only going to say this once. The eye slowed its writhing and cautiously opened itself a crack to regard her. *Let my team go, or so help me the only way you're getting out of here is as a corpse!* She punctuated her statement by jamming her mek's rifle against the flesh of the stalk. *Release them, now!!* In response the eye merely curled downwards, scrutinising her every inch to see if she actually meant it and then rolling itself as if in aggravation that she wasn't kidding around. For a moment, Novak almost felt like grinning. Except that in the next instant she felt herself being knocked clear away by strong currents at the octopod behemoth surged upwards and rammed its whole body against the ceiling of the cavern. Fighting frantically to get herself upright again, Novak looked up and went rigid upon seeing a practical downpour of rocks raining on her as the cavern finally caved in on itself. ::Everyone, transform if you can and swim up. We're going to have to follow this thing's lead if we don't want to get flattened!:: Below, Trax heard the order and shook his head, trying to get rid of the dizziness from suddenly being spun around by the tentacle as it unravelled from him. Speedily checking his surroundings he saw most of the other legionnaires were free and making haste to escape. 'Most' being the operative word. As he counted them up, the tiger shark felt a distinct chill course down his spine when he realised they came to one fewer in number than they should've been and hastily looked up to see the dragon C.E.T.A.C. still tangled up under the fleeing giant. ==Ryan! == Kicking his mek's legs at full power he piloted himself up through the descending masonry, trying his best to concentrate on positioning himself back under the octopus and not get distracted by the chunks of rock clipping him on their way down. ==Ryan, hold on I'm coming! == Yanking an axe out of his back compartment, the shark closed the gap and wasted no time in burying it into the flesh of the tentacle. This caused it to swing outward and smack him full on in the chest but he bravely grabbed hold of the pulsing appendage and wrenched his weapon free to strike it again and again, gradually cutting his way down through the tough skin until the tentacle snapped itself upwards in an attempt to getaway, causing the almost severed tip to be broken off by the sudden movement and carry its two passengers away from the bleeding stump. With a sigh of relief, Trax then focused on unwrapping his friend's mek, trying to be as gentle as possible while he removed the hook embedded in its stomach. ==That was some sweet moves there, Rye. I think we all owe you one for that. == The dragon gave no response, rather it merely floated there regarding the manta ray C.E.T.A.C. with its cold blue gaze as Trax tossed the tentacle away and assessed the damage. ==Okay, that looks pretty bad but it doesn't look to be fatal. Do you think you can transform? == Again the shark got nothing but static in response. No image of the orca on his screens, or signs that Ryan had heard anything he'd said. Confused Trax lifted his gaze from the pectoral area housing the Nereus's cockpit and looked up into its robotic eyes, feeling that same sense of unease when the draconic head turned away to view the departing titan above them. ==Ryan? What are...== He followed the line of sight and stopped when he saw the octopod was changing. Two small hump like growths he'd failed to notice before (fairly understandable considering what a nightmare the rest of it looked like) appeared to be growing out over the rear tentacles like balloons that were being filled with air. Gradually they began to ripple and elongate, flattening out like taffy to form two distinctly rudder like appendages that grew and grew until they were as long as its body was tall. Wings! It's got flippin' wings!! The shark thought in disbelief, barely able to do much else besides gawk like a moron as the bohemoth flapped its new limbs, pushing itself out of the remains of the cavern and into the serene blue depths of the sea above with its ichthyoidal minions struggling to keep up. _-Major, it's getting away! Wh-What should we do?-_ Mike sent in despair as he dragged Tracey's crippled C.E.T.A.C. from the rubble. ::What we can to give it a proper send off! Everyone who still has ammo, concentrate your fire at the wounds on that thing's underbelly!:: Novak called. Though she knew she was barely fit to continue combat herself it seemed of little importance. The thing could be hurt and right now that was all that mattered. As such she sped off in pursuit of the beast, followed by Erin, Mike and Crystal once they'd reverted back to combat mode. Sadly it seems said beast had well and truly had enough of dealing with the meddling marine creatures and their little robot toys. Cranning four of its eyes to look underneath, it gave its pursuers one last optical sneer before spreading its tentacles out and spewing a thick purple cloud of liquid out of its damaged maw. With their inertia now too strong to counteract, the legionnaires could do little to help themselves as they flew head on into the inky muck. ++Ick! What the hell is this stuff?++ Crystal exclaimed, watching in horror as she metal around his cockpit began to sizzle and melt while hair line cracks formed across the screens from contact with the ink. /\Watch out, it's corrosive!/\ Erin cried, desperately trying to turn herself around and releasing several bubbles of gas from her decomposing armour. ::Everyone, activate your turbo boosters and move forward!:: With reluctance, the four meka warriors did so and pushed themselves through the ink, their bodies sizzling and liquefying as it ate away at them until they at last broke out into normal water again. Just in time to be confronted by a huge wall comprised of the remaining ichthyoidal amphibians, teeth bared and claws raised to give their master the time it needed to get away. ++Oh, come on! What does it take to catch a break here? ++ Crystal said witheringly. With the utmost sinister intent in their glassy orange eyes, the creatures advanced, noticing the severely damaged state of their opponents and knowing that now would be their prime opportunity to vanquish them once and for all. ::I don't suppose anyone is still in fighting condition are they?:: Novak asked dejectedly. /\ My legs are barely mobile, cameras 1, 3, 7 and 8 are off-line, spinal systems are shot to hell. I'm counting my blessings that my life support is still operational./\ Erin stated sorrowfully. ++ Pretty much the same with me, only my reserve oxygen tanks are also punctured and taking in water. ++ Crystal hung her head. ++ To be honest I think I hate myself more at this moment than them, for letting my poor baby get so badly screwed up. ++ _- Hardly any better news on my end. -_ Novak leaned back and couldn't help feeling the urge to chuckle, their situation now seeming so hopeless it was almost funny. She glanced down at her harpoon caster but the barrel had been melted by the acidic ink and was clearly going to be of no use. With a final consenting sigh of defeat, she turned towards the leering monsters, staring past their snarling piscine like mouths and webbed frog like claws to glare defiantly at the octopod that rose like a bloody red shadow behind them, its escape having been halted now that it realised it had the chance to watch the ultimate demise of its adversaries. ::If anyone here wants to cover their eyes or look away right about now I won't think any less of you.:: She promised as the piscine like amphibians croaked their triumph and descended upon her and the other legionnaires. Whereupon they immediately started jerking and braying like crazy with the surprising pain of again having harpoons skewer through their bloated forms. *Huh?* Novak thought as hordes of the glittering projectiles coursed their way through the water to bury themselves in the greenish blue hide of the ichthyoids. Daring herself to turn from impending doom, the hybrid glanced up and felt herself almost cry with joy as the hulking form of the Pacific Hunter forged bravely into view. ::Lena!:: She sent as the ship rained down its retribution onto the creatures. [] Major! Danken Sie dem Deus! What's your status?[] The hammerhead sent frantically. ::Breathing our last here, but for the moment we're all still accounted for.:: [] Then may I recommend, ma'am, that you haul your fins back up here schnell! I've got a Black Hole depth charge primed with those bastards' names written all over it!![] Nodding in aggreement, the hybrid tensed herself and gave the order for her mek to revert back to transport mode. ::Legionnaires, get yourselves on board, we're leaving this place!:: ++ No need to tell us twice ma'am.++ Crystal gasped as she turned herself around and pumped what scant remains of energy her C.E.T.A.C. had left to reach the loading bay. From underneath Warwick appeared hauling Tracey up from the depths to followed quickly behind while Novak payed the frog monsters one final glance, sensing an almost perverted sense of glee rush through her as they tried desperately to get away from the storm of harpoons but were too busy being fatally wounded to make much progress. ++Ryan, where are you? ++ Crystal called out as she searched beneath her. ==Here with me. Hold the door for us, please. == Trax stated, his manta ray C.E.T.A.C. gliding gracefully up through the currents with the fearsome sea dragon beside it. Ryan grabbed Crystal and hauled her away to safety while the shark made a quick detour to help move Mike and his commander out of harm's way. And in the midst of the foray, the titanic octopus sat and watched. Six awesome red eyes blinked with confusion and aggravation as the last of the robot warriors disappeared into the bowels of the strange new enemy that had appeared and made mince meat of its guards. As said enemy then spat out a small cylindrical object before bolting up for the waves above it payed forth one final gesture: a glare of abject contempt that promised it would never forget this act of heresy before it shook the harpoons out of its tentacles and tried vainly to get away from the scene before it found out first hand what the object that had been left behind was intended for. * * * - 4:51 p.m.- "Ensign, report!" Lena demanded while rushing back to her station on the bridge. "All C.E.T.A.C.s are on board and the launch bay has been preassurised ma'am." The little angel fish stated. "What course heading should we set?" Sitting down in her command chair, the hammerhead took a deep breath and fixed her subordinate with a steely gaze. "Up, Ensign. Take us up as fast as the ship will let you." The fish nodded reverently while Lena slapped a comm channel open. "Attention all decks, this is the captain. We are breaking surface, repeat, we are breaking surface. I advise everyone to grab hold of the nearest anchored object and hold on tight!" She closed the channel and gripped the arms of her chair as the ship began to list further and further back. From somewhere in the abyss beneath them, the hammerhead could hear the distinct rumblings of detonation, of water, sand, rock and hopefully that bulbous monstrosity she'd sighted on the radar being sucked mercilessly into the void of a microscopic gravity well. Crunched, crushed and torn away to never be seen again. Through the view ports in front, the growing intensity of daylight filtered down through the film of water. Approaching them fast but not fast enough. "Left tail fluke is showing red, engines temperatures are critical." Another crew member called out from the side. "Deal with it for two seconds; we can shut it down once we're clear." She ordered, gritting her teeth at the nausea creeping up on her from the sudden decrease in pressure and willing her vessel to make added haste up through the last few metres of water, away from the deadly suction underneath. "Ten metres to surface. We're having difficulty out swimming the current, ma'am." Piped someone from in front. "Dump whatever you can muster into the engines. Drop life support if you have to." "Six metres to surface. I'm reading severe hull buckling on the aft sections. We're coming apart!" "No, we're not." Lena said forcefully while mentally pleading that her worse case scenario was not about to come true. Not when they were so close to safety. *Please, just hold together a bit longer. Just until I know the Major's out of harm's way.* "Two metres to surface! Now lowering wings into position." Closing her eyes, the brown shark took a quick swallow and braced herself as there came the most violent of bucking as the ship burst forth from the waves and out into the shining air of beyond. Streaming out sudsy white ribbons from every inch of its sleek angular hull, the Pacific Hunter presented a most breath taking sight as it tore itself free from the deep. Like a humpback whale in days gone by, surging up to catch a much needed breath of air, the ship propelled itself into the serene blue of the afternoon sky. And then, as if the initial appearance hadn't been enough, it continued the display with an unfurling of shimmering emerald. Four immense pairs of mono wings spread themselves from the metallic hide and flapped for all their might, slowing the ship as it descended from its leap and righting it to the normal horizontal position over the churning waters. Inside the bridge there several audible sighs of relief as sunlight shone freely through the dripping wet glass of the view port. "Mono wings out, altitude stabalised, we're clear Captain." The smiling angel fish slumped back in her chair. Easing her grip on the arm rests; Lena carefully extracted herself and leaned forward to gaze at the sprawl of sky stretching out over the sea beneath them, relief and apprehension taking turns to fill her heart as she thought about why they'd needed to make such a hasty escape in the first place. "Ladon, send a full array of service drones and medi-meks to the C.E.T.A.C. bay immediately. Then I want you to take control of things here while I head down to join them." - Understood Captain, they're gathering down there as we speak. - The computer assured. "As for you all, I want you to set an aerial course back to Scylla. Don't dive until we're within 5 clicks." She stated to the bridge crew. There were the regular utterances of acknowledgement and Lena wasted no further time in hurrying out. * * * - 5:02 p.m.- "Major!" The shark was heard to cry seconds later upon rushing into the bay and seeing the cetacharian being helped out of her cockpit by a medi-mek. "Are you alright ma'am?" Novak leaned heavily against the tentacles of the robot, feeling a tad uneasy at the fact that she was being supported by the same type of appendages that had been holding her moments earlier; only these did not have the same type of sinister intentions. "Aside from having my balance skewed by your sudden acension I think I've got the least to complain about among us." She sat down on the floor of the bay and gave Lena a grateful smile. "Just to confirm, that was not a criticism in any way. I don't know what we would have done if you hadn't shown up." Lena glanced at the battered and melted hulk of the Tidal Strike and grimaced. "Well after Ladon lost contact with you I figured all was most likely not well. Unfortunately we got caught up in another school of the new smart glinters as we tried to track you so we were a bit delayed." Novak raised an eye ridge and coughed slightly as the medi-mek prodded over her throat to check for injuries. "Then I guess that confirms it. Whatever that thing was, it had to have been the source of the ambushes." Lena nodded and couldn't help shivering slightly. "What in Helgon did you find down there? I've worked with my fair share of octopuses and squids and never have I seen anything remotely similar to that beast." The medi-mek finished its body check and injected Novak with a solution to help clear her dizziness. "Your guess is as good as mine, Lena. All I could tell was that it was a glinter that had somehow grown larger and more intelligent than anything we've ever encountered. I've no further idea as to what series it assimilated to get that way..." Her voice trailed off as a possibility she dreaded to dwell on surfaced. "...or even if that was the only one of its kind out there." Seeing the one she both reported to and idolised looking uncharacteristically glump about the situation, Lena knelt down next to the Major and rubbed her shoulder. "Well, at any rate, thanks to that depth charge I doubt we need to worry about it terrorising Scylla anymore, ja?" "And Masterson." The hybrid added. "Sorry?" "Thanks to the depth charge and Corporal Masterson." Novak stated with a wry grin. "Before you arrived that thing was prepping to give us all a guided tour of its digestive system until he managed to 'convince' it otherwise." Again two white and brown balls of shock revealed themselves from the sockets on the sides of the hammerhead's skull. Turning to the Nereus which several drones were currently trying to pry open, Lena had to first blink in disbelief and then turn back to her commander as if to laugh politely at the obvious joke. Seeing, however, that the cetacharian was being totally genuine, she felt herself wilt with dumbfounded surprise. "He...but...Waaaassss?" Novak leaned forward to hide her chuckles. "I do hope you haven't forgotten to apologise for what you said to him on the bridge." Immediately eyeing the hybrid, Lena couldn't help but shudder as she caught the look of insistence in her eyes. Figuring Novak had a point that couldn't be argued with, she stood with fallen shoulders and reluctantly walked over to the mek as the drones managed to trip the manual cockpit release and began to very carefully pull the canopy up. "Ahem...um....look, Corporal, I...um...I think there's something I need to tell you." Clearing her throat again, the shark turned away from the dragon mek and tried to compose her statement so it at least sounded quasi intelligible. "Look...um...about what I said earlier, you know with the chair and everything, maybe we got off on the wrong fin with each other, ja? I mean you're new here and obviously hadn't been told about how things are supposed to work so...I guess I was kind of wrong to lash out at you." She closed her eyes and turned around again, hoping the orca wasn't harbouring any feelings of ill will towards her. "I'm grateful for what you did today, saving the Major and everyone. So...ahem, um...what I'm trying to say is that..." She let her eyes drift open, "That I'm...." And saw that Ryan was indeed not harbouring feelings of ill will. Actually, the shark doubted he was harbouring any feelings about anything at all upon seeing his still limp, unconsciouss form being slowly lowered from the Nereus' cockpit. "Was die Hölle?" She exclaimed as the comatose whale was laid on the floor between two medi-meks who immediately set about administering first aid. "Ryan?" Crystal stated in confusion as she stepped over from her C.E.T.A.C. "But..." "Please step aside, Crystal." Erin stated as she passed the dolphin and knelt to hook a portable comp-terminal up to the orca's neck. Quickly she ran a diagnostic check of his bodily organs and systems and let a quick exhale of relief pass when the results came up. "It's okay, he must have just blacked out again. Probably from the sudden decompression while we were heading to the surface." One of the meks affixed a bio-electric cell to the whale's brain stem socket and set it to administer several short pulses. Ryan twitched for a few seconds as his mind was kick started back into full operation and slowly opened his eyes. "Ughhhh...uh...whah?" He blinked as bright light assaulted his still dilated pupils and tried to block some of it with his hand. "Wh-What happened?" "It's okay Ryan; we're back on the ship. You got us out of there safe and sound." Crystal soothed as she held his hand. "I... (cough)...I did?" He said with a drowsy sense of confusion. Squinting, he attempted to sit up and groaned as the motion brought a throb of pain. "Oooog...I feel like my head's been used in a very confined game of pinball. All I can remember is seeing that octopus over me...and then, nothing." There were several looks of confusion from all around, and one look of increasing indignant from the hammerhead. "Well, we all owe you big time." Trax stated with a hearty slap on the orca's shoulder, causing him to tumble limply backwards into the tentacles of a medi-mek. "Indeed. But I think it'd be best if you could please hold your thanks until I've given him a full check and let him rest for a while. He's been through a lot after all." Erin stated with a soft smile. Slowly she helped the orca to his feet and out towards the med-centre, followed closely by the other legionnaires and leaving one very aghast looking shark who still couldn't believe she'd just bared her soul to a guy who had been totally ignorant of her the entire time. "Deus im Himmel! Of all the nerve!" She exasperatedly seethed before storming out. * * * - 7: 48 p.m.- Water coursed down from the shower head onto Ryan's skin, its warmth helping to ease some of the ache in his muscles. Not that he would've really taken much notice. As the whale sat there, leaning his back heavily against the wall in the locker room of Legion 17s HQ, his mind seemed not to even register the dull throb of fatigue that emanated from numerous parts of his body, too busy as it was trying to untangle the events of the day. *Never before seen monsters, an eons old habitat, enough danger to effectively cripple us and I just waltz in and save the day like it's something I've done every day of my life? What the fuck???* Ryan levelled his head a little further up into the main spray of water to let it flow down over his face. Mercifully the trip back had been largely uneventful and after some extensive study, Erin had concluded that apart from some slight signs of concussion he seemed to be okay, recommending only that he spend some time soaking to help relax his systems. *And there's another thing, I must've taken double the beating Tracey endured yet while she was crippled I apparently got out of there on my own. How is that even possible? Better yet, how in the tides did I even manage to stay in one piece??* Opening his maw to let it fill up so he could swig and clean it, Ryan closed his eyes and groaned inwardly to himself. Questions, questions, questions, all pushing and shoving each other around in his head, struggling for priority. As far as first days went, this had to have set a new record for total number of events that made absolutely no bleeding sense. Where the hell had those piscine abominations come from? How long had they been hiding down there with that octopod? Why had they chosen to use the other glinter swarms to spring ambushes on the cities when they clearly could have wrecked an even more substantial amount of havoc just attacking directly? More to the point just what in all depraved manner of Helgon had he been doing engaging them willy nilly like that?? *It was pure suicide yet I pulled it off. How? I knew zip about what I was doing but Dad's dear C.E.T.A.C. apparently was better informed. HOW? What the hell is in that thing!?* The orca propped an arm against his leg and let his head rest against it. Even if he couldn't make heads or tails of what he'd seen there was one thing he knew that was certain: he was again going to be the talk of the town. Once this got out (which it most likely would via some means) everyone would be going on about how the prodigal son had returned to uphold the reputation of his lineage. How he'd proven his heritage by using the memento of his father to save his team's lives and defeat a potentially deadly threat to the inhabitants of Neo-Terra's seas. *Deus I'm gonna be...gonna be a flippin' celebrity all over again. Little daddy's boy trying....to make his sire proud. It's gonna be like that song...what was it? "Don't need another hero" or something...no wait it's not that one. "Holding out for a..." No...dammit what was it?* Ryan was finding it difficult to concentrate. *Was some film related...or not...Deus...room's starting to spin again...head...feels so light...room is losing light...feel like...* He grit his teeth and smashed the back of his head into the wall. The blow only stung mildly but it helped jolt him back to full consciousness. Groaning a little more audibly, Ryan rubbed over the blue skin of his dome and blinked to help clear his vision. Though Erin had proven he didn't have any serious injuries he was still feeling a bit woozy due to his exhausted state and the last thing he needed right now was for someone to come in and find him blacked out on the shower floor. Taking a deep breath, the whale tried to focus on the soothing flow of water and forget about all the troubling aspects of his day. Better to enjoy the moment of tranquillity while it lasted as there weren't likely to be many on the horizon when... "Ryan, are you okay?" The whale looked up from his contemplation and immediately felt added incentive for his aforementioned notion upon seeing who stood before him. "C-Crystal? I...I..." He stuttered somewhat while trying not to gawk at the dolphin's form, now no longer covered by suit or any sort of clothing but displayed in all of its pink, slender and nicely muscled beauty. "You looked almost dead lying there, I was afraid you might have had a relapse." She said as her hands clasped tightly together with worry under her breasts. Seeing this, Ryan closed his eyes and forced himself to focus. "No, no I'm fine. Just tired beyond belief." Crystal looked relieved and stepped past to activate the next shower over. "Sorry if I gave you a bit of a shock. Felt I needed a wash after all that happened today and then when I saw you slumped there I got kind of worried." Ryan half-nodded, paying only a minimal amount of attention to the dolphin's words as most of his mind was focused on taking in the full scope of her body. It wasn't necessarily lust that drove him to do so (though that probably did have a partial hand in the matter); it was just how much the girl next to him had changed from how he remembered her. As water began to course down over her smooth skin, Ryan couldn't help following its path, watching as it made first glistening impact on the melon of her head then trailed down over the crystal clear eyes that had inspired her namesake and then around her cute beak, taking a moment to mingle over the teeth that had once been wired and set with strengtheners but now bore themselves cleanly in straight, perfectly pointed little rows. Leaving the beak, the water coursed its way down her neck, covering all the bulges and runs of muscled tendons before alighting upon and then spreading out over the swells of her breasts, no longer the filling buds of puberty but now perfectly sized orbs, not too big as to hinder swimming but still of a size that demanded one's utmost adoration. Bathing and slickening the tempting pink orbs, the next place of travel was the stomach, an area that, as the whale recalled, had occasionally been an area of aggravation for its owner due to the way it had always bore a slight outward bulge of chubbiness. Not anymore though, now it was the curves and valleys of an athletic wall of muscle that the waters coursed over, filling and cleansing each in turn before moving on with their downward journey. And thus they came to the second area of exceptional importance: the secular and more than tempting line of deeper red flesh that the dolphin revealed as she turned to scrub over her side, nestled in between two legs which, so far, had presented no measure of complaint and most likely do so even less now, hugging Crystal's treasure with their smooth developed calves as they did. Watching as the first streams of water completed their tour and left the dolphin's feet to catch their return trip through the drain, Ryan's gaze was temporarily distracted by the entrance of a cetacean tail, spreading its flukes out to allow the next group of streams to drip off its form, coming as they were down along the dolphin's spine to temporarily mingle over the base that rested above a now petite and nicely toned... Ryan broke his stare and twisted down to affix it on the floor. Now was not the time to let his mind wander on such things, not when it was having enough trouble trying to maintain its grip on consciousness. *Focus you idiot! There'll be time for that later. Right now just concentrate on keeping yourself awake till you can make it to the dorm and sleep off some of this exhaustion.* "It's okay Ryan; you don't need to turn away." The whale looked up from his thoughts. "Sorry?" "You don't need to feel embarrassed, if that's actually what you are feeling. I don't mind you looking at me." She said with a reassuring smile that was quickly joined by a visible blush. "I'm actually kind of flattered." Ryan closed his eyes and lowered his head as if in shame. "It's not that, Crystal. It's just..." He dared his obviously wanting sight to let itself be plastered all over her nude form again. "Just...Deus, I can't believe how you've changed." The dolphin cocked her head at the seemingly despairing tones to the orca's voice, not quite understanding the point behind his statement. "Is it...too much for you?" She said, partly in confusion and partly with the trepid worry that the whale disproved of her. "No...no, not by a long shot." Ryan was quick to reply. "I meant that here we are, having just come back worn and almost half dead from the most worrying encounter I'm sure any of you have ever faced, and all I can do right now is leer and gawk about how much you've improved yourself." The orca replied with a sullen lace. The comment did little to better clarify his inferrations but Crystal was able to take solace that her worries had been proven false. "Well, if it's any help, I'm kind of thinking the same about you." She settled herself down on the shower floor and let her real hand glide over his arm, unable to prevent a soft coo of happiness when she felt how tight the skin was stretched over muscles that felt as hard and as strong as steel. "You've really packed yourself out since we last saw each other. I mean I know orcas are naturally quite well built but still, damn are you something." Ryan elevated his gaze to briefly meet Crystal's before shyly turning away. "Well, A.S.W.A.T. is a demanding profession." His face again fell. "And anyway a punishing work out is surprisingly effective at getting rid of malicious feelings." Crystal cocked her head, feeling her initial glee vanish upon hearing the handsome bulk of muscled cetacean next to her had only gotten that way through rigorous and brutal self torture. Looking down over the chiselled pecs and abs gracing his front she silently found herself wondering just how much inner loathing and anger he had to have been harbouring in order to obtain those. Sighing sorrowfully, she allowed her bionic arm to settle on Ryan's shoulder and gently rubbed his neck with its metallic digits. "Ryan, I know there's nothing I may say to convince you otherwise, but all the time I've known you there's nothing I've wished for more than that you stop trying to punish yourself for the misfortunes of your heritage." Hoping it wasn't too intimate of an act; she leaned in and nuzzled against the other side of his neck. "Surely you gotta understand it's not your fault." In response the whale let out a slow, soft exhale, his eyes slipping closed at the feel of a wet beak against his blue skin. "So I've often tried to convince myself...that that is a truth I've gotta accept at some point. But it seems like no matter where I go or what I do the only thing that stays with me is the reminder that I'm a Masterson, and I therefore have a duty to follow the celebrated family tradition. To hell with whatever my personal desires might be." He muttered with seething. "I just wish I could believe that what I'm doing now, I'm doing because it's my choice. Not because I've disgraced my name and need to atone." Crystal withdrew her head, a creeping sensation of dismay taking root at what she was hearing. "Ryan, I know that's not true. The computers gave you an offer and you accepted it out of your own free will. You'd never have come here if you didn't believe at some base level that it was the best course of action for you and for everyone." She tightened her grip on his neck and turned his head around so the two were again locking eyes. "And for as long as we were friends, you never consented to something purely because of peer pressure. You go by what your heart tells you, and I'm willing to bet it didn't tell you to do this merely because it'd make others happy." She watched as the whale's lips tensed, showing she was striking very close to the truth of the matter. "What happened with your father was a tragedy, but it's by no means an indication that it's up to you now to prove his work is a success. You're under no requirements to stay here if it doesn't suit you, and I doubt any of us will think any less of you if you leave." Her grip slackened so she could rub the back of his dome. "All I want while you're here is to not keep feeling like you have to do this to make up for running away the first time. You did what you felt was necessary for yourself then and now is no different." The self deprecation began to fade from Ryan's eyes, much to Crystal's relief. "And at any rate, you've already proven you're a worthy asset to the team as well as someone everyone gets along with. Well, apart from Lena perhaps." The whale looked down but it wasn't fast enough to hide the beginning of a smile. Noticing that she was stroking him with her robotic limb he couldn't help reaching up to touch it lightly. "Funny that..." Crystal cocked her head. "What is?" "When I first saw this on you it was a totally jarring shock. But now, the more I look at it, the more...natural it seems. Like it's what should be a part of you in lieu of having a real arm." The dolphin withdrew her prosthetic and flexed it slowly, the vat grown synthetic muscles swelling under the metal plating. "Well, it works, it doesn't tax my systems too badly, and it's a lot more flexible which allows for better control when I'm driving my C.E.T.A.C." She curled the fingers into a fist and clasped it with her other hand. "I suppose that from time to time yeah it does kinda of seem strange, but I've grown used to it." "Do you ever have any problems with the physiotherapy?" Ryan asked, figuring it had to be a more pleasant topic to discuss than his own never ending sense of despair. Crystal smiled and gently shook her head. "Not really, like I said, I've got someone whom I've always looked up to, to provide inspiration for me when things get tough." Ryan nodded as he cocked an eye ridge in query. "Who is this morph? You mentioned him/her earlier but never really said more on the matter." Tensing her hands, Crystal looked at the sinewy cetacean next to her, seeing how he looked so lost and confused, and yet at the same time so cute and tempting. *Oh what the hell, it'll probably provide a better answer than words ever could.* Crystal thought before her head quickly moved forward and sealed its lips over Ryan's in a wanting kiss. The only sound to be heard in the locker room after that was the steady crash of water. Both sea mammals stayed where they were, Crystal not wanting to break away from the moment and Ryan not quite certain what to make of this sudden development. As the whale felt his friend's hands gently take hold of him while her tongue danced around his predatory teeth, however, his mind gradually started putting the pieces together and managed to deliver quite a shock when he realised the truth. )) Crystal...wait...you mean... (( He sent due to not being able to make use of his maw. The dolphin 'mmmphed' her confirmation into the kiss and then pulled back with a smile. "Yes Ryan...you." For the second time that day, he stared at her like she wasn't physically real. For a brief moment he considered the notion that he was still unconscious and this was all some bizarre coma fantasy. One quick knock to the head however proved that was about as far from the case as could be. "But, when..." "I think some time during our second year in high school, when we expanded our study sessions to allow more time for the extra work load." The visible red blush came to her cheeks again as Crystal bowed her head. "Do you remember when I'd start feeling sleepy after hitting the books for hours and you'd suggest I try taking a nap, only when I woke up I'd find you'd dozed off next to me? I always thought that was kind of comforting. To know there was at least one guy in my life that was willing to stick by me whenever I was in need." Bemusement briefly overcame the puzzlement on the orca's face as he recalled the occasions. "So, why didn't you ever say anything?" Crystal's expression dampened slightly while she continued to study her hands. "Well, at that time it was really nothing more than a passing crush. And you always seemed so glum and pessimistic most of the time, what with your family problems and the like that I thought I'd just...well..." She curled her head a little further inwards to her chest. "That I'd just get in your way." Ryan looked at the trepid dolphin, seeing how meek but how sincere her posture dedicated about her words and felt his eyes go wide. "So all this time..." Crystal shook her head. "No, after you left I figured that was it. You never really gave much indication that you felt anything for me so I just assumed I'd best think of it as a closed chapter and get on with my life." She quickly leaned forward to grasp his hands while locking eyes. "You still served as a great moral inducer. I mean Deus, how could I not? I doubt there was a single other cadet who put as much dedication and effort as you into achieving top grades. I just decided it wasn't worth pursuing an affection that I never knew was shared." She glanced down over the muscles of his body and couldn't help feeling a shudder of arousal course over her. "Guess there are some things you never really get over." She looked away to try and quell her instincts but was shot down in her attempt by a blue flipper hand gently move to caress her cheek. "So, now that I'm here, you're finding that there's still some attraction?" Crystal swallowed and looked back into the orca's eyes, finding a desperate pleading for her to confirm the statement. "Yeah, after I saw you there this morning I guess some old flame inside me started burning anew." An expression of anxiety and not knowing at all what to do now took residence on the dolphin's features. "What I don't know is...can it work between us?" Whale and dolphin gazed at each other, preferring to let the sound of the showers fill the void as they deliberated on the prospect. On one end Crystal felt she was willing to take the chance, if only the possibilities of either it proving erroneous or Ryan deciding he didn't feel strongly enough for her weren't so equally prominent. Much to her tearful relief, the second of the two cons was then quickly smashed flat by Ryan wrapping his hands around her waist and pulling her in for another, more cooperative kiss. One in which they both allowed their maws to part and their tongues to meet, Ryan's content to mimic the exhausted state of its owner by laying on the bottom jaw while Crystal's tenderly stroked and fawned over it, teasing the massive layer of muscle to let it know how grateful it was for the oppourtunity. And as the kiss deepened so did said gratuity spread, flowing and coating the dolphin's body much like the water from the showers were doing, easing her feelings of anxious and putting her doubts to rest. With a small inward sigh, Crystal wrapped her arms around Ryan's back so she could press herself even closer to the whale, letting their bodies soothe each other with the same type of welcoming warmth as their tongues. Though she hated to think such a momentous and much wanted moment would end, the dolphin knew that it would only do so because the next equally sought after moment needed to begin and finally the two cetaceans parted their mouths, allowing for their lungs to refill with air and their eyes to see the glowing look of affection present in their friend's. "So...can I take that as a good sign?" Crystal ask hesitantly. Ryan's expression faltered but she noticed he didn't look away this time. "If you honestly are asking me, then the only answer I can give is I don't know if we can make something work between us." He affectionately ran his hands over her dorsal fin, making her shiver. "But that said I see no reason why we can't at least make an honest attempt at it." Quivering from the feel of smooth flipper flesh against her back, and now knowing the possibility of it merely being a precursor of more to come, Crystal merely let her head wilt forward, its weight carrying it into the hard swell of Ryan's chest which she nuzzled at contentedly while tears flowed from her eyes. "Thank you, Orion." Looking down at the dolphin, Ryan decided to let the name slip pass. She obviously only meant it as a term of affection, and anyway he felt too tired to possibly get antsy about the dreaded connotations it brought to mind. Wrapping his arms tighter around her body he craned his neck forward to let his head rest against hers, cushioning the dolphin on all sides with his muscles. "No Crystal, thank you. For just...giving me something positive to focus on." The dolphin squirmed happily in his embrace, comforted both by the words and the feel of his warm, wet skin against hers, unhindered by clothing or any other barriers. Slowly she gently shifted her gaze down to marvel at his physique, paying particular interest to the three star like marks on his stomach that stood even more prominently on the enlarged abdominals much like the others ones that had earned him his namesake. Feeling a very new but expected sense of heat beginning to build up inside her, Crystal shifted herself a bit more, letting her body be stroked by his and the embers within her be fanned by the contact. From above she heard what sounded like a sigh of approval at her actions and duly curled her legs up to fold herself even further into the whale's safe and senouous hug. Feeling the dolphin press herself closer to him, Ryan glanced down and couldn't help breaking a smile when he saw how content she looked, eyes closed, beak pressed into the valley between his pectorals, lips softly rumbling with peaceful murrs, an image of one totally at ease and thankful to be in her situation. For the longest of moments he had to wonder if it would really be that bad letting himself drift away from conscioussness with such a serene image in his mind. Up until Crystal tried to curl her tail around herself and inadvertently brushed it against a part of Ryan's body which had started to swell considerably from all the intimate contact. "Oogh." Ryan murmured upon feeling flukes caress over his slit, which then brought on an immediate sensation of embarrasment when Crystal opened her eyes to look up at him. "Ryan, is something..." She started before the feel of something large and blunt gently poking at her flukes forced her to break off. "Oooh, damn." "Crys...I...um..." He released her to scratch tentatively behind his head while trying to think of an excuse. It wasn't the easiest thing to manage at the moment as most of his mind was again too distracted with the sensation of a dolphin tail lightly touching and teasing his swelling genitals. Lifting herself off, Crystal look down between them and gasped at the sight of Ryan's thick orca shaft emerging from his slit lips. *No way, this is too good to be true.* She thought, her hand moving down as if on remote to gently touch the head and then rub along the length that had already exited out into the world. "Are you sure you're really that tired?" She said with a growing smirk. "Well...having a cute, naked 'phin in your arms does provide a bit of a wake up call to some parts." He said with an embarrassed grimace of his mouth. Noticing the growing red tinge that shone out among the blue of his cheeks, Crystal tenderly cupped the orca's head and again let him know her gratitude with a kiss. "Ryan, that's gotta be the second nicest compliment you've ever paid me." The whale looked confused. "Second nicest?" "Well, giving me a name I actually like being called by is pretty hard to beat." She smiled warmly before leaning down to again nuzzle his chest. "Still, if you're being so nice to me then it's only right I return the favour." She began to slink her way down his body, letting her tongue trail after her to lap up the water running down his stomach while her hand continued to preen and warmly welcome the still growing pillar of red whale flesh. "Crystal...euf...wait, what if we're discovered?" Pausing to scoop a large droplet of water resting just above Ryan's groin, the dolphin looked up and smiled reassuringly. "Warwick's probably busy having his own jerk off session at the prospect of getting to spend the next week pulling apart and fixing up our C.E.T.A.C.s, Erin's still busy examining your new catch, Mike and Tracey are in the rest area, most likely helping each other get over the events of the day, and Novak's busy compiling her report to High Command." She brought her face on level with the pulsing length and lightly ran her beak along the underside of it. "Anyway it wouldn't be the first time some of us were found being 'friendly' in here, so theres hardly any need to worry." Ryan still looked concerned, but any attempts to protest were quickly extinguished by the feel of a warm cetacean tongue running its way up and over his penis to get a feel of its shape and texture. Stifling a deeper groan, the whale leaned back under the sprays of water and closed his eyes, worry turning to wanting as Crystal licked and bathed his still growing erection. On their own accord one hand moved down to rub and stroke over her dome while the other helped place her hands around his legs to provide her with some better support. Crystal squeaked her thanks to the help and leaned down to administer a full length lick to his shaft, coating it from base to tip with her warm saliva which the shower was quick to mix with its even warmer flow of water. This caused her to have to murr quietly herself as each gentle lick and fondle of the shaft caused the water to trickle over her tongue, helping to spread the flavour of the thick penis further over her eager taste buds. *Deus, I feel like I've been missing out on this for far too long.* She thought privately while briefly taking her tongue off the shaft so she could rub it with her beak and get a sense of its smell to go with the taste. Ryan's cock, much like most orcas on Neo-Terra, was rather unique in that while it was still housed in a slit like those of his predecessors it bore the same blunt, mushroom like shape of the Elder's. Furthering the similarity was the fact that his balls were not located inside his body but instead hung freely in a huge white sac of skin underneath, yet another odd effect of the accelerated evolution brought on by the mass exposure all of the planet's animals had had to genison. To the dolphin, and indeed pretty much everyone else however, neither of these unusual attributes usually mattered all that much. If anything they only served to make an intimate session with an orca all that much more convenient as the balls could be fondled and toyed with while the fluids inside the slit made it easier and more enticing to slide the shaft inside your mouth. And it was both of the aforementioned that Crystal then decided to take advantage of as one hand neatly tucked itself underneath the sac to tenderly grip and feel a honey dew sized orb while she opened her maw and let it slide down over the tip of the quivering penis. Both occupants of the showers were heard to moan thereafter upon the feel of cetecean teeth lightly grazing over sensitive flesh as inch after inch of the orca's flesh moved into her maw, filling it nicely with its thickness and complimenting the temperature inside with its warmth. Sighing Crystal let her eyes slip closed as she continued down, focusing on the delectable taste of the shaft as more and more of it nestled in her mouth until the head pressed against her throat and she was forced to gag in surprise when she saw she still had a good ways to go before reaching his groin. ++Nngg...dammit. Ryan, I hate to say this but I think you might be a bit too much of a mouthful for me. ++ She sent with a rather heavy sense of regret. Blinking from where he'd been slumped in sexual bliss against the wall, Ryan sat up and sighed when he saw the dolphin trying to get the rest of him in her without choking herself. )) Here, maybe this will help. (( He carefully cupped her head and focused on making the end of his shaft curl down to follow the natural bend of her throat (despite the more humanoid shape, most cetacean cocks still retained an amazing amount of ancestral prehensility). Crystal coughed initially at the feel of slick flesh grazing against the back of her mouth but then 'mmed' quietly when her gag reflex dissipated due to the object in her no longer causing as much of an obstruction. Givng Ryan a look of thanks, she lightly gripped the base of his shaft and let herself be guided down further, the orca's cock bending and sliding down her esophageous to allow for more to be slid between her jaws. When the tip of her beak finally pressed itself up against the skin of his groin, Crystal deemed she'd made it far enough and held herself still, letting her maw get used to having such a huge object crammed down it. "Is...Is that better?" He asked between increasingly ragged breaths, the wonderfully tightening hold on his penis conflicting with his worry that he might be hurthing the dolphin. ++It's a bit difficult not to gag...but I still like how it feels. ++ Crystal bit down to let her teeth press against the flesh while she twisted her head around into a more comfortable postion. ++Deus...I always wondered from time to time what you'd taste like. But I never imagined it'd be like this. ++ Swallowing and tensing from the feeling of teeth lightly grating against his skin, not doing anything too painful but definitely adding a sharper edge to the pleasure, Ryan looked down and regarded the dolphin with clouding eyes. "Like...aahh...what?" Crystal splayed her tongue out in her mouth and pressed it against the underside of the shaft while she began to move off slightly. ++I don't know...it's kind of salty...but it's nice. It's like how a whale should taste. ++ Realising it wouldn't do much just letting it sit in her mouth, the dolphin pursed her lips and began to suck insistently on the orca shaft, letting her tongue move and conduct its own feel over of the slick texture while she did a slight bobbing action with her head. This made Ryan squirm more feverently underneath her and so she used her bionic arm to hold him steady while she continued with her fellatio, the drool from her beak helping to coat any inch which remained outside while her throat instinctively flexed itself around the sensitive head, trying to work it down into the stomach but not really accomplishing much besides just stimulating it into dripping pre-cum down her gullet. Feeling this and sensing himself growing even more rigid from the sensation, Ryan took hold of the hand holding onto his leg and squeezed it tightly, the ardent haze of bliss settling over his mind bringing to light an interesting new line of questioning while he gazed down at the cute cetacean swallowing him so willingly. All that time, over many, many study periods, lunches and coffee breaks she'd harboured a crush on him? Looked him over with admiration and who knew what kind of lust, while he'd been so wrapped up in his own problems and dismal view of his life that he'd been completely unaware of it? Had she dropped any hints? Given some sort of indication of her affection for him that he'd completely missed? Had any others felt the same way? His team mates at A.S.W.A.T.? The friends from his gym? All gone completely unobserved because he was too busy staying out of the media's eye and dreaming about how much better life would've been if his family hadn't been so divided? *Deus...what have I been ignoring all this time?* Ryan agonised with a deep throated squeal of contentment as Crystal sucked harder. Suddenly feeling rather ashamed that he was just lying there, letting her do all the work, he craned his neck to gaze over the dolphin's body and got an idea. "Crys...ngg tides...Crystal...spread your legs for me." The dolphin gave him a confused glance but he merely nodded his affirmation and she did as told. Gasping under the continuing torrents of sexual rapture, Ryan tried his best to concentrate on sliding the thick length of his tail in between the dolphin's legs and then curling the flukes up so they spread over the now ripely red lips of her sex. Though he knew it would be a struggle trying to get himself to concentrate simultaneously on both using his tail and keeping his penis bent inside the dolphin's maw, the orca was not to be dissuaded. Never mind how exhausted or worn out he felt, if Crystal was going to be this nice to a wretch like him then dammit he was going to return the favour! With slow, sluggish movements, the orca made use of the flexibility enhancements that had been made to his tail and curled his flukes around to softly rub and stroke at the petals, his fatigue being momentarily dulled by the surprise of feeling how slick they were with juice. On the other end, Crystal felt herself seize up at the feel of nimble wet skin prodding at her treasure. Realising in the next instant what it was she loosened her lips to let fly with a moan of approval, only to discover that her airway was almost completely blocked due to the size of the cock currently stuffed in it. To most morphs this would have presented grounds for panic, but dolphins thankfully have more than one orifice for respiration and it was this that Crystal gave thanks to the heavens for as she used her blowhole to take a fresh breath of air. "Oh...sorry Crystal, was that...too sudden?" Ryan said raggedly upon noticing she had stopped sucking. Hearing this, she wasted no time in plunging her mouth down his shaft and pursing her lips as tightly as they could be pursed around the thick meat. ++It's okay, Ryan. You just kind of caught me by surprise there. ++ She gazed warmly at the orca to confirm all was well and then 'mmed' again as more strong tasting pre dripped down her throat. Feeling relieved, Ryan went back to pleasing her inviting depths, murring softly to himself when Crystal's own tail flukes curled up to rub and comfort his own while they flicked and teased at the swollen lips. After they did this for a while and got the petals to part in their bloom, Ryan then angled the tip of one fluke to rest against the spot in between and deftly pushed it in to wriggle about inside like a wide flat finger. Sensing the intruder stroking along her inner walls, Crystal couldn't help blasting an intensely pleasured gust of air through her blow hole, creating a little fountain effect as the water raining down on her from the shower was sent spraying out in all directions. Trying to suck with more fervour to show her appreciation, she felt that she herself was now becoming rather squirmy from the whale's actions. A feeling that in turn lead to her realising, quite with surprise, just how much she really had missed Ryan. As she took a moment to look up at him again, the dolphin couldn't help but feel her heart flutter slightly as she locked with the tired but grateful gaze of blue eyes. Eyes which had born so much contempt for his own heritage, yet had rarely ever held anger towards his friends and never shown anything but compassion for her. Eyes that watched over taut white muscles that bulged with almost perfect definition yet had only come to be because of an internal sense of loathing and a subsequent need for extreme self punishment. Eyes that just made her want to show this orca how much she, if no one else, valued his presence and contribution to the world. With another quick intake of breath, Crystal tried to squeeze her throat muscles as tightly as she could around the length that was occupying the space in between while her tongue feverently massaged and licked at what lay in her mouth, both wanting nothing more than to feel that hot wonderful pole of pulsing meat give that final twitch and then spray its creamy reward all the way down her eager gullet. From behind the dolphin's vagina clamped and squeezed its aching lips around the pleasuring fluke, while underneath her hands again relinquished their support in order to cup and soothe the beautiful white orbs, letting them know it was okay to surrender under the now pounding waves of ecstasy and give up their much sought after contents. "Oooogh...oh Crystal please!...Oh Deus, I'm getting close." Ryan rumbled, his eyes starting to tear up both from how good the sensation he was already experiencing felt, and how increasingly desperate he was getting to go above it and finally climax. ++Please Ryan, go ahead and cum. I want to taste your seed flowing down my throat!++ The dolphin cried over the link, not feeling that it was the most romantic thing to say under the circumstances but too fixated on her pleasuring to think of anything else. She sucked as hard as her gagging mouth would allow, feeling him almost teeter on orgasming when there suddenly came a gasp of absolute astonishment from behind that stopped both of them dead in their actions. "Whoa, now there's something that'll make anyone envious." Crystal's beak was suddenly jammed into Ryan's groin as the whale attempted to sit up and face the newcomer. Perhaps even more unfortunate, in light of what had previously been on the verge of happening, the dolphin also felt the shaft in her mouth lose it prehensile hold and attempt to straighten back out into the nomal erect shape, causing her to choke viciously for a moment before she was able to extract it from her maw and clear her airway. Coughing and spitting out excess saliva, the cetacean turned around to see Trax standing in the entrance way to the showers, wearing nothing save for a towel around his neck and a very uncharacteristic look of shock on his grey carcharian features. "Ack!" He exclaimed, taking a step back at the rather sudden reaction of the other two occupants. "Uh...ooh damn...um, sorry?" He sheepishly closed his eyes and leaned against the frame of the entrance way. "I kinda thought I could do with a quick rinse over before finishing up and heading home. Didn't realise that you two were 'catching up'" Both cetaceans looked at him with confusion, prompting him to quickly rethink his statement. "I mean...as in...ah, schmed I'm so bad at this." He sighed in shame and turned to leave. "Look, sorry that I interrupted you. I'll come back later when you're done." The shark began to skulk away as Crystal turned back to Ryan. Seeing the orca just shrug and look as though he really didn't have any idea of how respond, she sighed and cleared her throat. "Trax, wait!" The shark paused and cautiously turned around. "It's okay, you're not interrupting us. You just gave us both a bit of a jump." Trax cocked his head. "You're sure I'm not busting in?" Ryan swallowed and closed his eyes. If both admiring and sampling Crystal's beauty hadn't served to derail his thought process enough, the sight of a towering, gorgeously muscled tiger shark clearly was going to kill any chance of making coherent speech stone dead unless he found some means to break his leering stare. "We chose to do this in a communally used area. If anything it's our fault for not expecting this to happen." He said, wincing slightly at the burning feel in his penis from being denied so close to climax. "Go ahead and shower if you need to." He looked at Crystal who nodded accordingly. Still feeling a bit hesitant, Trax nonetheless decided the best course of action would be to take his teammates at their word and placed his towel on the shelf outside before stepping in to the shower next to the two and turning it on. A moment of awkward silence descended upon the locker room. Ryan and Crystal looked over their current predicament and tried to think of what to do about it, while Trax kept himself firmly turned to the side and his gaze focused straight ahead, trying to clean himself while not keeling over from the sheer embarrassment of ruining a moment of intimacy. ))What do you think? Are we in trouble?(( Ryan sent privately. Crystal snuck a look at Trax out of the corner of her eye and shook her head. ++Out of everyone here, he's the last morph I'd expect to breathe a word about this. He's had too many relationships of his own on the side to possibly contemplate screwing up anyone else's. ++ She glanced down at the orca's cock. It was throbbing heavily in protest at having been treated so nicely only to be tossed aside just before reaching its peak, and also seemed to be trying to entice her into helping it bridge the last bit of distance by leaking out a steady stream of glistening pre. Swallowing and feeling her own loins were burning with similar want, Crystal snuck another look at the tiger shark and curled her fingers around in her lap as the fierce red tint came to her cheeks. ++Well, as long as you don't mind an audience, I suppose we could finish with what we'd started. ++ Ryan eyed her with utter shock, yet having his own look at the sinuos, almost Adonis like predator next to them; he couldn't help but feel his shaft throb in arousal at the idea of at least being watched by the shark, if not having him actually join in the fun. Sighing with resignation he turned to voice his agreement, only to see that Crystal had obviously already banked on him doing so and leaned in to lick up some of the streaming pre. Rumbling softly and feeling himself relax again, Ryan leaned back against the wall and moved his head into the flow of water, its warmth joining with the warmth of Crystal's tongue and helping to take his being back up into the planes of ecstasy above the clouds as his shaft twitched happily with the recommencement of attention. Gradually the tension in the room began to fade as the cetaceans began to ease back into their intimate play with each other. Noticing her legs were stil spread, Ryan again placed his flukes against her needy sex and began to rub her a little more insistently, to which Crystal responded by speeding up her licks and moving around to ensure she got every inch of the beautiful penis she'd been allowed to love and play with. From the sidelines, hearing the soft moans of bliss that came from his companions and feeling his body tense up (in more ways than one) as a result, Trax clenched his hands into fists and tried to keep his gaze away. However, as the whale lay back against the wall and smiled a smile of pure contentment at his dolphin lover, he found his will crumbling sand and finally dared himself to look over at the prone, sinuous body of the orca. "Ohhh, schmed is he cute." The shark whispered chokingly, the sight of Ryan looking so eager to enjoy his treatment yet seemingly reluctant to acknowledge said enjoyment making the shark almost want to pounce the orca like he'd read predatory felines were so fond of doing. "Is this making you uncomfortable?" He heard Ryan ask and nearly jumped. "No, no of course not. Hey, if it'll help make you feel more welcome here then I'm all for it." He tried to grin as the whale looked him over and wondered if that was a good sign. Looking over the quivering but no less tempting mass of hulking tiger shark, Ryan felt his cock twitch again and decided that based on what was said between them earlier, he had to take a risk. "Trax, if I may ask, did you mean any of what you said before?" The shark looked up. "Sorry?" "When we met this morning...mmm....did you actually mean what you said about me being a 'juicy bit of whale' or was that entirely meant in jest?" Now realising he'd been put on the spot, Trax felt himself cringe. This had been a situation he'd found himself in before (usually on account of his little playful utterances), and from past experience he'd discovered that he could either land himself a sweet time with someone or kill his relationship with them if he'd misjudged their preferences. With heavy, hesitant breaths, Trax looked over at Crystal, and seeing her nod her agreement on him coming clean he took a deep breath. "Most of the time, yeah that's generally just something I say to wind newcomers up. In your case, it was less so." Knowing what it would do to his growing arousal, Trax nonetheless turned himself to fully face the orca and felt his heart skip a beat. "You are one seriously fine piece of whale, Rye. And if I wasn't so unsure about what you're preferences might be I swear I'd kiss you right now because of it." Rumbling softly again at the words, feeling them penetrate him as sharply as the blissful pangs from Crystal's licking, Ryan simply turned over and gave the shark an inviting look. "Well, what's holding you back then?" If there'd been even the slightest gust of air in the shower area it most likely would have proven sufficient to floor the shark at that moment. As if guided by auto pilot he sank to his knees, bringing himself on eye level with the whale and seeing the confirmation in Ryan's limpid blue orbs that what he'd heard before was indeed an invitation. "You're seriously okay with this, Rye?" A flipper alighted on his shoulder and rubbed gently at the skin of his neck. "You were kind enough to help haul me out of harm's way, seems I should at least show my gratitude for that." Their heads began to close the gap between them. "Just as long as you understand, I'm still kind of unsure where my priorities lie so I don't know if this will lead anywhere." The tip of Trax's snout made contact with Ryan's beak. "Rye, right now I think I'm just glad for the moment." The shark said before grabbing his head and smooshing their lips together. Ryan 'mmphed' slightly in surprise at the sudden abandonment of finesse but was consoled by the feel of a thick carcharian tongue gently entering his maw and letting him know it'd just been an inadvertent reaction of lust. Slowly he placed his other hand against the shark's firm chest while Trax encircled both his shoulders and his waist, holding him like an infant would hold a much loved plush toy. From below, Crystal felt her jaw go loose with amazement, her attention to Ryan's cock now forgotten as she sat up and stared wide eyed at the sight of one male hugging and kissing another male. Something she certainly would've never considered before given what she'd seen of the orca's sexual conduct. "Ryan, wait...you're..." Glancing briefly at the dolphin, he could only give a shrug. ))Well, in a partial sense I guess I am.(( The whale sent while simultaneously having to churr as he ran his hand down over the shark's own impressively chiselled body while Trax gently rubbed at his dorsal fin. Crystal suddenly felt like the air she was breathing had gotten heavier, her lungs seemed to working harder for each breath while she watched the spectacle unfold in front of her. Despite what she sensed most would probably feel like in this situation, she didn't actually feel jealous at seeing someone else having intimate contact with the whale. On the contrary, she thought it was wonderful that Ryan had discovered something else about himself that, if his current reaction was anything to go by, at least brought him happiness rather than contempt. ++So, when did this come about? ++ She asked, a funny sort of half smile coming onto her face. )) Drinking binge after work, a year or so back. One of the team asked me to kiss him as part of a stupid "Truth or Dare" contest. (( The whale and shark parted from each other and let their eyes share the thanks. )) I think I enjoyed it a lot more than I was supposed to. (( Crystal looked down at hist shaft and watched it throb from the kiss, the movement causing her to wince when she felt her nether lips were reacting in much the same way. "Damn, thanks Ryan, I needed that." The orca let his head droop limply forward and rest against the barrel chest. "I'd say we all did." He looked down to smile tiredly at the dolphin before churring again as a pair of rough hands continued their exploration of his anatomy. "So that's why they named you Orion huh?" Trax asked as he rubbed over the three scar like marks on the whale's stomach, cocking his head inquisitively at the difference in skin texture. "Yeah, pretty much." Ryan sighed while nuzzling into the shark's chest. "Guess it is kind of fitting when you think about it, but I still just...well it still bugs me somewhat." Trax glanced back at the now more sullen looking expression on Ryan's face and kissed the white mark of his forehead. "Shame, I think it's kind of cool." Ryan gave another click to show he understood, even if he didn't quite agree with the sentiment. Gently running down the velvety wet abs (it never ceased to amaze him how sharks could feel like sand paper when touched in one direction and yet be as silky as he was when rubbed the other direction) Ryan massaged his way down to Trax's groinal region and felt himself smile bemusedly when his hand ran over the dual stiffness of his clasper like cocks "So you're one of those lucky enough to still have two." Trax looked to where the whale was touching him and smirked. "It varies from series to series. Some of us just evolved a bit further than others in that regards I guess." He moaned through his many rows of teeth as Ryan's head soon joined his hand to eagerly lick and bathe the twin erections, finding they carried a distinctly heavier salt flavour than his own but nothing worse than what he tasted during his morning swims through the sea outside. Trax flared his gill slits and felt himself tense as the cetacean maw closed over his left shaft tip, giving the head a loving suckle while swirling around what lay underneath with a thick, rubbery tongue. With his breathing becoming more ragged due to the delectable suctioning feel, Trax grabbed Ryan's shoulders and began to hump his maw, his teeth grinding in ecstasy as the whale opened his jaw to allow more of the sensitive flesh to be thrust into its warm confines, dripping its flavour all over his taste buds and bringing more throaty moans from its owner. Spurned on, the orca started to run his tongue around the circumference of the cock (not that easy of a task considering its size) trying to get his mouth muscle to cover every possible inch as it was presented and then withdrawn, leaving a trail of thanks in its wake. Beneath him his own shaft was starting to feel rather painfully hard, throbbing as it was with the excitement of what he was doing and from being denied climax twice. Keeping one arm resting on the tiger shark's hip, he lowered the other one to try and finish himself off but then another hand moved in to stop him before he could make contact. "Wait Ryan, I have a better idea." The whale looked up at Trax who nodded over at Crystal. Turning towards her, Ryan blinked when he saw she was now lying between his legs, hands feverishly pawing at her flaring slit and a look of being conflicted between wanting to join in and wanting to just watch the action unfold very evident on her features. "She's aching for a finish and so are you. Therefore let's try something that'll work for all three of us." Taking the meaning, Ryan released the cock and nodded his agreement. "Well, if it's okay with you Crystal, would you mind if we took this further?" Upon hearing this, the dolphin almost wilted as her treasure burned with even greater need, stating its desire to be filled with the orca's thick shaft. "Just as long as you do one thing for me Ryan: when you cum I want you to do it over my face." She said, with a distinct colour of her cheeks. "I still just would like to know how you taste." Smiling amusedly, the orca cupped his lover's head and kissed her softly on the beak. Feeling her tongue briefly flick over his once again, he helped her lie down onto her back on the shower floor and crawled on top. Looking up to check on Trax, he saw the shark rubbing his penii under the flow of water to help lube them up before step around behind him and kneeling down. "So, have you actually done this before Ryan?" He asked while cupping the firm blue and white ass cheeks. The orca briefly glanced down at the dolphin under him and closed his eyes. "I've...experimented with things. Sort of to just get a feel for what it's like." A noticeable flinch appeared. "Thought I expect this is probably still going to hurt like hell." Trax nodded. "Okay, then let's give you something else to focus on first." He reached underneath the supple derriere and gingerly lifted the huge cetacean cock so it was grazing against Crystal's sensitive lips. The pink dolphin gave a nod to continue and then gasped as her depths were pushed apart by inch after inch of hot, filling meat. Leaning up to again bury her beak in the barrels of Ryan's chest, she felt as if she were literally melting away from both the heat of her loins and the heat of the intruding pole. As she gently kissed and licked at his pectorals, Ryan hilted himself fully in her and lay still to let them both adapt to the feeling. "Ryan...ooh Deus, does that feel incredible." The dolphin moaned, relishing the perfectly combined feel of smooth skin warming her on the outside and the huge shaft massaging her on the inside. Looking down, Ryan just nodded his agreement, embracing his pink lover again and just enjoying the tight, affectionate hold her body was exerting over his. An enjoyment that then grew greater when he felt his tail being folded over onto his back to allow a slightly rough but experience set of fingers press and enter into the puckered sanctity of his hole, being joined soon after by the arrival of a thick warm tongue gently entering to help assist them in their explorations. "Mmm, yep you're definitely unclaimed territory back here." Trax said, feeling especially aroused at the prospect that he'd be the first to ever share this kind of sexual pleasure with the whale yet also rather concerned as to the complications that it would present. "You sure you still want to do this?" The whale grunted at the feel of digits protruding into his tail hole, unable to stop a slight cringe when he felt how large the tips were and thought about what it would feel like if the webbing on Trax's hands wasn't there to stop him from pushing them in the rest of the way. "May I assume you've done this sort of thing before?" He asked hesitantly. "Yeah, quite a few times." Trax said with a shrug. "I had a tendency to go into conquest mode during my teen years." Ryan looked a litte more relieved. "Well, then you should know how to do this so it's gentle and as painless as possible." The shark felt a need to remind Ryan that his series wasn't generally known for being gentle with anything but thought better of it. If the whale was going to submit to his will then he could at least have the decency to not make his first time a harsh lesson in the behavioural preferences of predators. "Okay, then just concentrate on how good she feels while I prepare myself." The orca turned back to the lovingly smiling dolphin in his arms and sighed as she kissed him again softly before rolling her head back to lay it on the shower floor and leave him easy access to the endowments that lay just underneath. Ryan took the incentive and gently ran his tongue over her neck, enjoying the way her skin still retained a slightly cool texture despite the coursing streams of warm water. Gradually moving his way down, the cetacean flattened the large mouth muscle out and drew it like a paintbrush over the hill of her left breast. It felt just as smooth and pliable as he hoped and even gave him a bit of a surprise when he realised that even at maximum width, the mammary still proved to be larger than the sheet of flesh that was bathing it. Now feeling even more enraptured, he took a moment to first encircle and then bite down on the stiff nipple before licking around the circumfrence to ensure he didn't miss giving any area a decent show of affection. From above there came a light churr, the sound of one in the throes of blissful elation, delivered as only those of the sea could deliver which the whale took as encouragement for him to proceed on and show the other breast an equal amount of appreciation. Licking and enacting the same treatment, it wasn't long before Crystal started to squirm around in his strong hold, her movements merely helping to bring to light the fact that she was still impaled upon his phallus and which seemed to only make her squeak and click with even more excitement. Groaning at the feel of fleshy walls rubbing his shaft, and of tongues and fingers easing apart his sphincter, Ryan let his tongue move at a bit more lazied pace, preferring to take time and enjoy the build up to the main action until the latter two left his backside and a pair of hands gripped his waste. "Alright Rye, this may feel a little weird going in but I assure you it'll make it less painful." He gasped at the feel of a much longer, more tapered object pressing itself into his opened hole and then had to stop and think when he realised said object still felt a little too thin to be one of Trax's penises. "I'll explain in a moment, just try to keep yourself relaxed." The shark assured, seeing the whale look at him with an increasingly puzzled look until he hilted himself and and leaned over. "Now is when you're going to need to brace yourself." The puzzlement grew for a split second and was then overcome by shock when Ryan felt the organ penetrating him was also growing. Gritting his teeth, he winced as the shaft expanded in girth and stretched him further and further until it felt more like its original size. "A little nano-technological upgrade, courtesy of the mekaniks." The shark stated while stroking over his back. "Since I'm primarily cartilage down in that area it lets me compact it down to smaller proportions so actually entering somebody is made a lot easier." The wincing orca looked up at him and he tried to give a supportive smile. "At least this way I'm already inside you so the stretching part isn't so bad." Ryan just stifled a gasp and leaned back into Crystal's embrace. His anal passage now felt like it was going to burst apart from trying to contain the greatly enlarged shark cock, yet at the same time the pain was helping him stay awake and Trax was pressing quite nicely against his prostate which helped to take the edge off a bit. Balling his fists up, the whale closed his eyes and wriggled about to see if it would make his rear get more used to the intruding member but that just made Trax tighten his grip. "Whoa, whoa! Don't move, Ryan. That just makes it worse." He leaned in and kissed the blue orca on his neck. "Trust me, everyone always finds it hardest the first time. Just try to keep yourself relaxed, it'll get better soon." And so it did. As his rear got more accustomed to the length and thickness of the carcharian rod it stopped trying to tense itself closed and instead became more accommodating, allowing Ryan to finally breathe a sigh of relief as the agony abated and then churr when the shark's kissing spread over to his cheek and then his mouth. "Deus do you feel good though." "As do you, and you, Crystal." Ryan replied, giving the shark another kiss and then doing the same to the still churring dolphin. "You want to start Trax, or should I?" "I'll go first." The shark slowly drew himself out, continuing until only the head lay grasped by the anal ring and then pushing himself back in. The whale coughed as he felt the shaft be driven back into his still aching backside but strangely he found himself shifting his hips so they met with Trax's and enveloped the pulsing shark hood inside. From in front, Crystal had to moan loudly as she felt the same departure and rentry into her love canal and clung for dear life to the orca as things continued to ascend. Feeling Trax was again pulling out, Ryan instead decided he couldn't wait this time and promptly pulled out too so he could keep more of the slick phallus inside him before the shark gave it all again which in turn pushed him back into the dolphin. Gradually the three built up a rhythm, drawing themselves away from each other and then smooshing back together, bring a sharp pang of pleasure for each every time their bodies connected again. Ryan was having some slight trouble keeping up with the shark's mounting vivaciousness but based on the way his two companions were squeaking and growling with ecstasy he figured it didn't matter if he went a bit slower than him. Especially since it afforded him more time to appreciate Crystal gasping and twisting her beautiful features every time he invaded her depths. From behind he felt Trax's grip slip from his hips to hold each other across his muscled stomach while the shark continued to pound his cheeks, producing a deliciously wet 'slurp' with each thrust. "Oooh, Deus, Ryan! Oh I can't...gahh...can't describe how good this feels!" Crystal chattered through clenched teeth, her vaginal muscles contracting down on the wonderful whale cock to try to keep it inside her and only serving to encourage more vigorous thrusting. "You're...mmmph...pretty much the same. Uhhh...so warm, so willing." Despite the growing grip of sexual delight, some semblance of regret still managed to seep through Ryan's body. "I'm...ngahhh....so sorry I never...mph...never let you experience this before." Through half-lidde eyes, Crystal did her best to give the orca a look to show she never thought bad of him because of his apparent failure to recognise her affection and then reached up to lock him another loving kiss. ++No Ryan, that was...oh my...as much my fault as it was...oergh...yours. I'm just glad to...erf...have you now. ++ She broke the kiss to moan loudly as a more powerful thrust from Trax caused Ryan to plunge himself back into her tunnel and make her level of pleasure almost crash through the roof. "Oooohh, Deus fuck!!" Her hands frantically slid up to grab his neck and use to anchor herself, flesh and metallic fingers hooking around each other while she churred and cried from the increasingly torrential waves of euphoria. "S-Squeeze my tail....mmph...my tail base. I love...OOOHHH...having that area touched." Ryan nodded in distraction and pried his eyes open (the combined pain/pleasure from Trax, coupled with the tight hold from Crystal was forcing him to squint in sexual delight) so he could guide a hand underneath the dolphin to perform the required action on the thick length of tail. Sensually he pressed and kneaded his fingers into the skin, applying pressure in small focused points as one would when giving a therapeutic massage which made the dolphin just squirm around more. "Ohhhhh by the tides!" She screamed as the added sensation threatened to turn her entire nether regions into one big erogenous zone. "Ditto for me." Trax growled with another powerful thrust. While he was pretty sure the whale was having the toughest time out of all of them trying not to pass out from the sheer sexual high he was coming up a close second. Ryan's tail hole was almost suffocating in its wonderfulness, willingly holding one cock in warm accommodating tightness and providing a firm, smooth cheek for his other one to rub against with each thrust. And with each thrust the tail itself also showed its appreciation, alternately caressing or playfully slapping him with its silky flukes as he rode the rear of its owner. ==You know Rye...nghah...I've a thing for...errrgh...tails myself. Mind if I...ugh Deus...suck on yours?== Ryan had personally never heard of tail sucking but figured it couldn't hurt to try. "G-Go ahead...ahhh...just please don't stop!...eeoooo...Deus that hurts!...But it's...oooh...still so good!!" Smiling briefly to himself, Trax drove his shaft as deep as he could into the whale (managing to make both Ryan and Crystal scream with rapture simultaneously) to show how much he appreciated the compliment and then grabbed the tail to deliver a lick over its splayed flukes. They tasted slightly synthetic, usually an inevitable side effect of cybernetic augmentation, but were still wet and very smooth so he placed the tip of one in his mouth and began to suckle lovingly, remembering to try and keep his teeth out of the way so he didn't cause any harm. Ryan squirmed with new sensations as he felt his fluke being enveloped in wet warmth and then prodded over with a thick muscular tongue. Much to his surprise he found he actually kind of enjoyed how it felt, even more so seeing as the work that had been done on his tail apparently seemed to make it more sensitive to touch. Feeling his eyes start to water as each lick brought forth little tingles of electricity which added to the pile he was already experiencing from his other actions, the whale knew he didn't have long to go. Already his balls felt as if they were boiling over with hot cum ready for release and his penis was beginning to tense again in preparation for the grand spray of final climax, yet he remembered what Crystal had asked of him and knew that the best course of action would be to get her off first before him. Not that that most likely be any serious challenge. As the dolphin in question clamped her jaws down over the side of his neck, biting in to show how near she herself was to orgasm, he quickly moved his other hand down to her tail base and began to double time his massaging of it. Slowly he twisted the pink appendage back and forth, wringing it in a similar way one would with a wet cloth, which only served to makes its owner squeal and bite down harder to the extent she feared she would severe an artery if it kept up. ++Ooomph...R-Ruh-Ryan, be careful...ahhhgghh...it's too much...I'm gonna...++ The whale winced at the strong jaws holding his neck but nonetheless continued squeezing and wringing. )) I know...that's what I'm...errrf...hoping for! (( Quickly he turned to the shark and tried to nod as his ass was again forced apart, sending such wonderful stings of both pain and pleasure in harmony that tears actually starting seeping down his cheeks. )) Trax, I need you to help me...errrf...pull out as...oh tides!...soon as... (( Any chance of finishing the statement was drowned out by Crystal suddenly seizing up and practically squeezing his cock off as her treasure contracted from the grip of utmost release. "DAYYYYYUUUUSSSSSS!!!!" She screamed, juices flowing out to provide a bittersweet nectary coating over Ryan's shaft. The whale himself practically followed her in climax right then and there but fortunately Trax had caught the important part of the message in time to reach in between the whale's legs and seize the base of his shaft to stop him from cumming. With quick, precise movements he helped Ryan pull free and began stroking the length feverently until the orca let out his own cry as his world caved in and a flood of thick white cream was unleashed, arcing clear over the entire length of Crystal's body to splatter all over her still open maw. As the dolphin coughed and swallowed she was hit by a second blast, then a third, a fourth, a fifth and even a sixth, each one painting itself across her face and chest, warming her skin like the knowledge that she'd finally provided a light to the life of the whale she idolised did to her heart. Sighing and feeling a few tears of joy trickle down her cheeks, Crystal cupped some of the cum off her breasts and licked it out of her hands, taking a while this time to savour the bitter salty taste as well as the strong masculine musk it gave off. After swallowing what was in her mouth, the dolphin laid back down and just let the rest spread down over her features while she watched Trax give Ryan another quick kiss and then thrust into him a few more times until he completed the chain of events and sent his own torrents of seed into the orca's hot passage as well as all over his back. With their desires and their lust now sated, the three collapsed, one on top of the other, onto the floor of the shower area, panting, messy and just thankful to heavens that they'd been allowed time to enjoy each other's company while they hugged each other. "Ryan...(pant)...that was unlike...(pant)...anything I've ever experienced." She smiled a grateful loving smile as her arms again encircled the orca's neck. "All these years I've wondered what it would be like and now that it's happened it's just....just..." Unable to find any fitting adjectives to explain her feelings, Crystal merely smiled and went with the next best alternative. "Oh Ryan, thank you." She said tearfully before kissing him again passionately. Watching the two embrace from above, Trax couldn't help chuckling as he reached down to stroke over the whale's chest. "I don't really think I can add much to that, aside from how grateful I am for being allowed to do that to you." The shark leaned in and kissed Ryan on the back of his neck. "For what it's worth, even if this isn't what you wanted out of life, I'm glad you're here with us." Appreciative and extremely touched by the kind words, Ryan prepared to say something in return, to let both of his lovers know how much their affection and support had meant to him at this turning point in his life. But as soon as he opened his mouth the orca knew it was hopeless. With his energy reserves gone and his body almost paralysed from the force of his orgasm, Ryan knew he could no longer maintain a state consciousness. Looking down into the eyes of the dolphin, he barely had time for one final nod of acknowledgement before he slipped and fell head first back into the warm, silent hold of darkness. "Ryan?" Crystal asked as the whale went limp, his eyes slipping closed while his arms dropped from where they'd been hugging her. Carefully pulling himself free, Trax looked down at the now passed out cetacean and smiled in understading. "That is one exhausted whale." He got off and carefully helped Crystal roll him onto his back. "Should we inform Erin?" She asked. Trax did a quick check over. After seeing that the orca was breathing normally and had a steady pulse he shook his head. "He just needs to sleep. Heck after all that's happened today I think we all do." The shark's eyes brightened as an idea formulated. "And I think I know a good way to go about it." He stepped back into the spray of the showers to quickly clean himself up and then went to grab his towel. "Keep him company for a few minutes. I just need to go check something with Ladon and the Major." He grabbed a few clothes and headed for the locker room exit while Crystal smiled and curled herself up next to her whale, gently stroking his head while she listened to the soothing, rhythmic beat of his heart. * * * - 10:03 p.m.- For what seemed like longer than he cared to measure, Ryan floated motionlessly through the silent featureless void, seeing naught and hearing nothing but strangely not feeling all that concerned. Though it probably would worry his team mates they would know how to cope. He'd blacked out in a secure area with medical attention very close by; therefore there was no need for him to worry about the condition of his body either. Right now, all the whale had was nothingness. No glinters, no mekas, no heated warring between his parents, no dead relatives, no paparazzi stalking him for news scoops, his mind was mercifully trapped in a place where the world couldn't get to it. By all accounts another coma would've seemed like heaven to the whale. Except of course that it would simply have been like what he did the first time. Just as he'd resigned his first commission to the Legions and ran away to join the protective shield like community offered by A.S.W.A.T., letting himself stew in unconsciousness was simply another way of him trying to escape from his responsibility. As much as the whale relished the idea of being in the safe embrace of darkness he knew that it would only defeat the purpose of why he'd finally decided to come back in the first place. As such, the whale did not try to resist when he felt the void release its grip and propel him back to wakefulness, no doubt a result of his body technology detecting a fault somewhere and trying to kick start his brain so it could carry out a full diagnostic. Groaning and feeling his mouth had gone dry, he blinked as the world swam back into recognisable focus, causing him to the rub at his eyes when he found himself staring not at the interiors of any area at HQ but the darkened ceiling and walls of what he recognised as his own bedroom. Blinking and racking his brain for a possible explanation when the image refused to changed, he briefly considered the notion that it had all possibly been a dream. That he'd perhaps spent a little too long doing his night time weights routine and that Legion 17, Crystal, the fish frogs and the giant octopod had all been nothing more than phantasms born out of a mind idled by too many sports drinks and late night HV programmes. Feeling, however, that he felt just a little too tired and his rear ached a bit too much for that to be the case, Ryan attempted to sit up and grunted when he felt something heavy resting on his stomach, as well as a dull pain somewhere further down near his rump. *Well, there's the fault I guess.* He elevated his hips to slide the length of his tail out so he could have a look at it. The end was a tad kinked from how he'd been lying on it, probably bending the memory bank installed under the skin out of shape. Nothing serious, but probably worth making a note to get it checked out as soon as possible. Sighing, he let it drop down onto the bed and attempted to move it into a more comfortable position, earning himself another shock when it brushed against something soft and smooth next to him. Something that shifted at the touch and then let forth with a churr as it rolled over. "Oh great, you're awake." It said happily before a slender muscled arm draped itself over his chest and a short stubby beak nuzzled itself into his neck. "Crystal?" He asked, his mind still bogged down in fatigue. "Mm hmm." She wrapped her bionic arm around and held him tenderly while kissing his cheek. "Feel a bit better now?" Ryan laid his head back down while slowly extending his own arm to pull the dolphin closer to him. She still felt a bit wet from the shower and, like him, was obviously still naked. Both of which helped to put the whale a bit more at ease since they confirmed the passionate encounter he'd just shared with her had indeed been very real, even if the change in location still perturbed him. "How did we get here?" He asked. "Trax's idea. He thought it'd be nice for you to wake up in some more familiar surroundings than the crash dorm so he swiped your address and a visitor key from Ladon and then we used the T-D gate in the garage to get here." Crystal rested her head on Ryan's chest. "I must say, this is a nice place you've got." Ryan felt his gaze avert but nodded. "Well, a family with tons of patents and military funding usually ends up with a lot of money stored away. And of course they'd want to make sure their next of kin has enough to get by on." A small, rather wearisome sigh escaped his lips, though the accompanying feeling of downtrodden was all too quickly extinguished when Ryan's other hand moved south to encounter a sand papery feeling object lying on top of him. Quickly feeling it over, the whale couldn't help but chuckle quietly when he detected a familiar conical shaped snout and recognised it as the sleeping form of Trax. "He came with you huh?" The dolphin followed her friends hand and giggled when she felt the shark. "I think you've made a new best friend. Out of all of us he seems exceptionally enthralled that you're going to be serving with us." A thought struck and she looked up. "You are staying with us, right?" Though the smile vanished from his face, Ryan did not give indication of hesitancy. For the second time that day, he felt the reassuring firmness of knowing the decision he'd made was the right one as he opened his mouth to speak. "I still have my family issues, and they're not going to go away until I deal with them." He looked back up at the ceiling and closed his eyes. "I don't what's going to happen in the long term, but for now I know my place is here. I've still got to find out what's truly going on with my father's C.E.T.A.C.," He held the dolphin closer to him. "And in terms of emotional support it's not like I can just walk away from your affection is it?" Crystal felt her heart warm with contentment as the whale gently kissed her on the beak. For a while the two lay there in silence, basking in the feel of each other before Ryan had to stifle a yawn. "Anyway, if it's okay with you I'd like to sort this out tomorrow. Right now I'm too tired to really care about future prospects." Crystal watched as he laid his head back down to return to the peaceful bosom of slumber. Feeling his body relax and his grip slacken, she leaned up for one more kiss before curling herself up against the cetacean's body. "Welcome to TEMPEST, Orion." She murmured before letting sleep overtake her as well. * * * - 10:09 p.m.- Novak stifled a yawn as she sorted through another cache of data on planetary marine life, which Ladon had been kind enough to collect from the Network Archives for her. Though she knew there was no immediate need for her to stay at HQ, and thus the best course of action would be for her to follow the lead of her subordinates and get some much needed rest, the cetacharian still could not shake the mystifying unease she felt over the monsters they'd encountered. For the past few hours she'd been carefully going over all the known and categorised series which the mekaniks had discovered during their numerous studies of Neo-Terra's oceans and had so far found nothing that even remotely resembled either the hybrid like amphibians or the titanic hexocular celaphod that been commanding them. *It doesn't make sense. The glinters need to assimilate living organisms in order to mimic them, yet there's not a single listed series that they could possibly have come into contact with that would explain how those creatures came to be.* The Major slumped back in her chair and massaged her eyes while she turned the problem over and over again like it was a Rubik's cube whose colours refused to match up. *Okay, so we cleared out the nest and brought the matter to everyone's attention. All well and good but that still doesn't compensate for the fact that the nest had to somehow get there in the first place.* She looked up at the ceiling of her office and ran her tongue over her teeth. Usually after clearing out a huge infestation of glinters she felt calm and relaxed, knowing that a potential problem had been taken care of and the seas were that much safer. Now, however, the feeling that glowed most prominently in her heart was doubt. Doubt that what her team had happened upon could be explained away by any normal scientific means. Doubt that their source could be traced back to any reassuringly mundane origins. And especially, doubt that they'd really taken care of the problem. Novak hugged herself as it came over her again, the itchy, prickling sensation up along her spine. Something she'd felt only once before in her life and had heeded what it heralded. The feeling that indicated something was not ending, but beginning. "Ladon, have you sent off my request for a research team to be sent out to the coordinates of our main area of enemy contact today?" - Indeed, Major. I have been assured that one will be dispatched as soon as the necessary staff and security escorts are available.- "Good, tell them any samples of the city that they can find are to be immediately analysed and dated. I need to know just how long that metropolis has been lying underneath our feet." - As you wish, ma'am. - The computer responded as the office door chimed. "Come in." The cetacharian stated. In walked Erin, looking with heavy confusion at the data tablet in her hands, followed by Warwick who looked like a kid that had just been turned loose in a candy shop. "Sorry if we're disturbing you ma'am but we thought you might like a quick update on our progress before you left for the night." Figuring it might help to get her mind off the issue at hand, the Major nodded and bid both of them to be seated. "Okay, Adeney you go first." The axolotl momentarily glanced down again at the tablet in her hands and then cleared throat. "As you requested I've completed my diagnostic of our relative conditions." "And?" The hybrid asked. "Whatever type of psychic attack those creatures used on us there seems to be no residual traces. None of Legion 17 is showing any abnormalities in brain function or behvaiour and aside from some cases of extreme exhaustion, point in case being Corporal Masterson; I'd say we're all for the most part okay." Erin cocked her head as a thought occurred. "Actually, if I may ask, where is Corproal Masterson? As I understand he suffered a relapse while in the showers." Across from her, Novak shook her head. "He's fine. Dierhart and Okuda helped get him home for some much needed rest." The axolotl raised her gill poms and nodded. "Good idea, though a bit of a pity. There's something else I uncovered which I very much would've liked to ask him about." She got up and slid her tablet into the computer terminal on the wall. After entering a few commands the screen changed to show a monitor displaying what appeared to be an individual's neural activity. Erin typed out another command and the display then split in half to show a feed of one of the ichthyoidal creatures taken from a C.E.T.A.C. camera. "These are the readings of his brain activity and what his head cam captured during our last battle. I asked Lensinav to retrieve them for me from the Nereus's black box recorder as part of my medical check up." The image panned left to briefly centre on the octopus as its head ballooned and glowed. Seconds later it shifted wildly about while the display next to it turned red as the line suddenly began to zig-zag up and down in an extremely erratic pattern. "This is when the octopod we encountered hit us with the first psychic attack. Now watch this." She entered another command and the display changed to show Ryan's C.E.T.A.C. looking up at the octopus as it launched its second mental assault. The line zigzagged up and down again, after which it went completely flat. "This is after the second attack, as you can see there's almost no activity." The line continued to pass along the screen as the image showed the Nereus being picked up by one of the tentacles. Every so often there appeared a tiny blip of brain activity but nothing really noticeable. When the camera feed showed Ryan's C.E.T.A.C. belching fire into the monstrosity's beak it remained flat. When he freed the other legionnaires it showed no change. Even when images of rubble and water rushing past as the mek rocketed up to safety flashed across the screen there was still no sign of conscious brain activity. Just a continuous flat line slowly inching across until Ryan was removed from the cockpit and his link severed. Erin shut off the display and turned to face her commander as Novak glanced repeatedly at both her and the screen, perplexity and disblief contorting her features into several varieties of different shapes. "You've confirmed that wasn't a fault in the program or the equipment?" She asked the eel. "No, I checked it over twice ma'am. Out of all the systems on board his C.E.T.A.C. that was one of the few still in perfect working order." Warwick responded with a shrug. "I know it's hard to believe Major, but there doesn't seem to be any other possible explanation. After he was knocked out by the second blast, Masterson never regained consciousness until we revived him back on board the ship." Erin stated, hanging her head at not being able to provide any further information. Turning back to the moray eel, Novak checked to see if he had anything to add and found no signs that he did. "I-I don't know what to say either. I mean until today I thought C.E.T.A.C.s were just automated drones, designed to be manually controlled by pilots. They...they don't have AI or any degree of sentience whatsoever yet from I've seen there there the only conclusion I can draw is that Ryan's Nereus was somehow piloting itself." The green sea serpent looked as if he were both excited and terrified by the prospect but didn't know whether to believe it was true or not. Thinking it over, Novak finally had to close her eyes and take a deep breath as she prepared to remind everyone of the unfortunate truth. "Correction Private, normal C.E.T.A.C.s are designed that way. From what I've seen so far the Nereus may be a lot of things, but normal definitely isn't one of them." Recalling what the whale had told her during their morning interview, the Major couldn't help letting a smile grace her cheeks as she glanced as the wall terminal. "As our dear Corporal told me in private, his sire was clearly on to something radically new when he built that thing. It appears all we can hope to do is help Masterson figure out what it is." She turned to regard the eel again. "How are repairs coming, Private?" "I'll need to draft in some extra help from around the city but given a week and some all nighters and I'll have them all back up to full operational capacity." Warwick responded and the hybrid noticed a distinct brightening of his eyes when he said it. No doubt spending a week doing nothing but working on machines would be like a slice of paradise to the eel. "I might even be able to improve the defense systems to guard against stronger psychic attacks if I had a little more information on the glinter manifestations that attacked us." Novak sighed as she glanced back at her desk terminal. "Well, unfortunately that seems to be the big unanswered question." She moved the screen projector to show the other two occupants what was on it. "I've searched through every file the Network has on aquatic life and come up empty. As far as they're concerned, both of the assumed forms the glinters took are of creatures that have never been encountered or recorded before in the entireity of this planet's history since the Genison meteorite fall out." Both axolotl and eel look suitably unnerved about this. "But I thought the computers had documented every new type of sea animal that was brought here." Warwick said. "As did I. Right now there are only two possible conclusions I can draw: both either have been on this planet for longer than 300 years, or they somehow managed to arrive here from some other part of space without being detected." Novak said, resting her head on her hand while contemplating just how unlikely both of her statements sounded. - There may be another explanation, Major.- All eyes turned to Ladon. - In your follow up report on the confrontation, you stated that the creatures attempted to communicate with you.- The cetacharian nodded. "Yes, they kept repeating these two lines. I didn't really understand most of it but they mentioned what sounded like a name: Cthylla." Erin straightened herself up as she recalled what had happened. "Yes that's right. They stated it over and over again like it was something of extreme importance." Novak leaned over towards the computer's interface terminal. "Ladon, does that mean anything to you?" -Indeed. In the interest of aiding you in your investigation Major, I ran it through the Network archives. There is a match for it.- The display changed to show his findings and everyone felt their jaws drop. There on the screen was a perfect, hand drawn image of the winged, six eyed octopus, postioned next to a body of text which listed the entry as part of the Network Archive's section on 20th century fiction, genre: horror, sub-genre: Cthulhu Mythos, category: monsters. Cthylla (the Secret Daughter of Cthulhu) is a fictional character in the Cthulhu Mythos of H. P. Lovecraft. Cthylla was created by Brian Lumley , who mentioned her in his Titus Crow novel The Transition Of Titus Crow (1975), though he never actually described her. Tina L. Jens , however, depicted Cthylla as a giant, winged octopus in her short story "In His Daughter's Darkling Womb" (1997). Cthylla is a Great Old One and is the youngest progeny of Cthulhu and Idh-yaa. She came from the star Xoth, but now dwells on Earth. Cthylla is destined to give birth to Great Cthulhu again when he is destroyed in the distant future. She is essential for Cthulhu's plans, and is thus vigilantly guarded by countless hordes of Deep Ones , star-spawn , or other Mythos minions or deities. For what seemed to almost be hours, three pairs of wide eyes stared in dumb silence at the screen, none able to do anything besides cough and give senseless utterances of disbelief that this was the creature that had so nearly been the death of them. "B-But...But...that's a listing for literary fiction." Warwick exclaimed at last. "According to that, it doesn't even exist!" Novak paid a passing nod as she leaned in further to scrutinise the entry. "You're absolutely certain about that Ladon?" - There is a similar entry under the same category and sub-genre for the frog creatures you encountered.- A picture of the ichthyoidal amphibians that had battled mercilessly against Legion 17 (one of which Novak trepidly remembered was still locked up down in HQ's bio-containment pens) materialised next to another article. - Apparently they are the ones referred to as 'Deep Ones'.- More silent wide eyed stares ensued as the three marine creatures tried to wrap their heads around the notion that the monster they had fought with (and very nearly killed by) were nothing more than storybook creations. "But...I don't get it. How can glinters assume the form of creatures that aren't real? They need DNA in order to know which form to take." Warwick stated, the increasing worry and nervousness now ringing in his voice. Novak turned to survey her subordinates for another moment or so and then let her head wilt over onto her hands. "I don't know Lensinav, but somehow they have. And if that's the case then it can only mean we're going to have to find out how as soon as possible. Before we start to see some seriously dire developments in the sea." From the wall terminal there came a beeping, signifying the arrival of mail. - A general issue bulletin for the Legions has just been issued onto the Network, Major. Do you wish to read it now? - Ladon enquired. Raising her eyes just above the level of her hands, the whale/shark nodded warily and turned to her desk terminal as it was uploaded. Both Erin and Warwick watched as their commander read the message, her eyes closing and teeth baring as her worst fears were confirmed. "Legion 15 in Nereidia city has just reported in. They've spotted and engaged another swarm of intelligent glinters off of their perimeter." Balling her fists up, she turned and fixed her subordinates with a foreboding stare. "This isn't over yet." TO BE CONTINUED.... * * * (harmonizing) sea's bed sea's bed sea's bed sea's bed sea's bed sea's bed sea's bed what else can I place here? what more can be returned? it seems as though you have tried no one will ever feel your bleeding and now the tide's come to leave here to go find myself again i enter her very softly until it's away from this land all the pain inside that we try to hide if you can't find me look beneath the sea's bed sea's bed sea's bed sea's bed oh-ho-ho maybe it comes up there underneath the surface so go listen carefully to the proclaiming wind who carries with it and that is what i remember the sweet smile of remedy one final breath and i'll dive down the worlds become's obsolete and this is what i remember the pain of being alive just like a bewildered child who's only trying to hide all the tears we've cried in an endless fight if you can't find me look beneath the sea all the pain inside that we try to hide if you can't find me look beneath the sea's bed oh-ho-oh everything that you thought will be fine everything that you begin to feel inside everything that you thought you'd know Boy Hits Car - Beneath the Sea's Bed * * *

FINIS

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