"Asking who someone is before introducing yourself? Didn't your mother ever taught you manners?"

Chris replied as she rounded the corner with her crossbows at the low ready position. In front of her, at the end of the ribbon was a girl, slightly taller than her with an overabundance of yellow and gold on and around her. In her hand was an ornate musket complete with engraving and scrollwork. Her hair was in curls and her eyes were a deep gold, and she wore a getup that Chris wouldn't mind wearing herself, course without the silly hat and with the colours redshifted. With the girl was the almost complete polar opposite a man who wore something so Japanese it looked more out of place than Chris's gear. He had long dark hair kept in long ponytail behind him. And with his sword and sharp eyes leveled at Chris, She couldn't help but see a resemblance to Tsubasa.

Chris stopped a comfortable fifteen paces away from the pair, still keeping her crossbows at the low ready position. Her gear has stopped playing music for the time being, but both she and her still had enough phonic gain to keep full operation for a few more minutes before she needs to sing again. She then just waited for a reply. Although she honestly didn't want conflict with the two, she's ready to give battle if it comes to it.

---

@Grnmachine@Gentlemanvaultboy

@Lmpkio
Slowly but surely the group made their way forwards. The ferocity of the green invasion was possibly a surprise to some as most beings in the universe didn't move at such a suicidal rate, but the novelty of the situation didn't last long. As there were nothing but battle hardened soldiers around, who didn't have time to reflect on how their enemy's single mindedness was similar to that of an ant colony's but that wasn't quiet right. As much as everything happened for the good of the colony, there was still care for the good of the colony. Ants would aide one another in moments of crises, even going so far as to put themselves in harm's way to save another. It wasn't like this with the tide of suicidal bodies that threw against them. There was no comrade in the assault. It was as if every two bit minion thought they were going to be the hero that scored the winning shot when in the end they were nothing but cannon fodder.

Between precise slashes at green orbs with legs, which were so delicate she didn't even need to use her armament haki to destroy them, Abigail took moment's to note the fighting force which she was currently aligned with. To many the storm trooper's skill in battle would've come as a surprise. After all, many considered them as a bit of a joke in actual engagements, but that was nothing more than rumors and propaganda, which had started with the destruction of one of the Empire's special weapons. Real stormtrooper's were a force to be reckoned with. Fighting was pushed into their brains with power drill proficiency right at the start of their training, and only looked bad, at least from what Abigail's learned in her travels, because a few particularly skilled opponents they found themselves engaged with.

However, training and skill aside, she couldn't help but note that she was still dealing with human beings, who had the same limits as any other living entities. Sure, they could go toe to toe with the best of them, but they did have limits as she couldn't help but notice that little by little she could feel nerves seeming to throb around her. Of course, she could always just be imagining things as the sheer number of flood swarming around made it difficult to track her comrades too, or maybe putting more concern into the growing unease that was needed.

"Hey!" Abigail called to the leader of the group. "ABout this diplomat we're suppose to save and take home, how much further do you think they are?" She paused to swing around and sever two green abominations in half, causing their orbs to pop in a green cloud and the rest of their bodies fall to the ground with a wet clang that could hardly be heard over the firing and clicking of claws.. "I mean, I'm not in too much of a rush or anything, because of personal issues, but some of your men seem to be getting kind of nervous." Another pause for a series of swings that caused four of the little problems to cease being problems and start a new existence as paint for the air. "And that's got me a bit more nervous than these things as the last thing we want is zombies forming right in the middle of our formation." As she said this she swung her blade up, to the left, right, and turned around to perform a wide sweeping slash that count down two more of the scuttling ball sack. "Okay. So I'm starting to feel more certain its not just me. More of these things are getting through."

Abigail opened her mouth to say more, but paused. Something was coming. She was sure it was one of the invading entities, but different. There were two of them, and they were coming in fast. She was sure it was an alien because of the same ferociousness she was feeling through the rest of the enemies around them. What was odd was she wasn't getting the hunger out of them. It was like the two didn't have any desire to eat at all. All they wanted was to get close. Frowning, she paused to see something new emerge from the darkness. They were green which she figured wasn't going to change from the various forms of the alien species. They had legs belonging to something that was bipedal before. It was the shoes that gave it away. However, they somehow managed to be even more alien than the pure flood spores. Above the waist there was a big throbbing sack.

With a single mindedness that characterized the species they rushed into stream of fire. When they got a few feet, they exploded, releasing dozens of the little green bulbs of slaughter directly over the storm trooper's front line..

The feeling of open air and mindlessness; the feeling of stretching in all directions and hitting no boundaries. It was as simple as that.

Kirby was rosy, unassailed, and well-fed-- supposedly. His cheeks, and by extension, his body swelled with what they'd ensnared, within some quivering movement and arisen, muffled displeasure from the prey at being digested or suffocated alive, or both. But onto the pleasantries: the most restrictive thing of all, because with greetings came expectations. There were people you were expected to remember. With that were promises and alliances to uohold. Then, inevitably, they were asking favors of you.

He was willing to compromise and commence an adventure if need-be, but where Kirby put his little red foot down was with this idea of "cooperating" with someone of equal standing who wasn't just a pet fish or something, someone his armored compatriot with her unique set of weaponry and more mature appearance here obviously was. Kirby understood, at this point, that partnership of the transcendent nature implied two things: the first was what lay below it being a convoluted justification for them existing within the same plane, involving a set-up of roundabout dynamics with grey areas and multiple antagonist and other stuff which Kirby was utterly nauseated by; the second was the call to action being entirely irrelevant to the goings-on of Planet Popstar, the only incentive for him to adventure at all, and therefore eliminating Kirby's need to exert any sort of effort.

So, in conclusion, Kirby knew who to suspect: the Union of What-Have-You that had been sending him recruitment letters regarding this type of inter-dimensional bullshit ever since Smash happened and sucked. Why he had to acknowledge other people in entirely different worlds was, however, the fault of a second party, one with a sort of ubiquitous comprehension, one who could bend canon at their collective will.

And Kirby didn't want to think about that second party. It was the only thing he could admit, with all earnest, frightened him.

Within their ambiguous little covet, there may have been an awkward silence; Kirby was mute, as always, and he affixed a stalwart and expectant look on Aemus Saran (alternatively: "Metroid," which was honestly easier to remember them by) in anticipation of, maybe, some sort of dialogue. In the case that they spoke, Kirby remained ever-expressionless, stoic, and still.

His cheeks squelched with the sounds of his meal...

“The infection of which you speak is known as the Flood. A biological menace that saw to the demise of my creators. – The Forerunners.” 5439 responded. “The attack has gone on for too long, the infestation will now be attempting to construct a Proto-Gravemind! If they are successful, the intelligence of the Flood will increase tenfold. – Transmitting optimal location for Gravemind construction.”

Across all devices, a layout of Union Station would be downloaded and a waypoint that directed everyone to somewhere in the centre of the station would be displayed.

“The Ethereal is correct. The Sol-Drive must be destroyed, however, ensuring the Proto-Gravemind is destroyed in number one priority. My sentinels shall clean up the minor outbreaks. All specialists should focus on the Sol-Drive and/or the Proto-Gravemind.”
As the comm cuts off, the ship that had entered the system began to glow as all its external ports began to open, allowing the internal lights to shine like a beacon in the void of space.

Then they went dark.

Millions upon millions of sentinels began to swarm like a plague of locusts towards the station with terrifying speed. As the reached the station, they split into many groups and coordinated attacks on all the Flood forms, using their central beam to burn them into ash.

All the personnel on the bridge watched as millions of these small fighter-craft begin to eradicate the Flood attached to the station. If it hasn't been more obvious already, their great numbers and plasma weaponry proved to being the advantage against the biomass, something which the Star Destroyers would've similarly done, only from much more afar. Of course, if they did reach within firing range, they would also risk blowing up the station with all of their troops onboard. That said, the troops below had the complete responsibility in taking out the station's core. They need to enter in fast and quick, all before the entire station blows up.

"Contact the legion." Vader orders, "They are to eliminate the core-drive once locating the Senator."

Yet despite the hazardous conditions his troops are in, Vader refuses to enter the battlefield. He believes his elite 501st legion can finish it... and if they do it successfully, they'll most likely receive a substantial reward in return.

---

With Kirby being finally free from his prison, and not having blown up into tiny bits and pieces, Samus breathes a sigh of relief for not having killed a valuable ally. She had many questions regarding how he managed to pop up here, but yet how, why, and other possible reasons don't matter right this minute. Her visor beeps rapidly as the bounty hunter recieves a layout of the entire station, with a waypoint being shown near the middle of the union station. According to this new 'expert' on the alien biomass, the core of this ship must be destroyed, while he releases his own distraction to keep the parasites at bay and to not have them escape into other potential worlds.

Seems fair at least.

Samus looks down at the pink blob awkwardly as his cheeks squelched with the sounds of his last meal. There was only one thing that needs to be done.

"Alright Kirby..." she states bluntly as she takes a quick glance around the room to make sure she's alone, "I don't know how the hell you got here, but you've landed here at the wrong time. I'm here, along with several allies, to destroy this station's core so we can kill whatever has been crawling on you and keep it from escaping. If you wanna to come along, your help will be much appreciated. If not, the exit is through the door behind me and to your right. Your choice, I got no time. So pick quickly."

With that, the armored bounty hunter dashes down the corridor and towards the next room.

---

The stormtroopers continued to deal with the Flood disturbances that headed their way, firing upon them in a quick and rapid manner. Yet rarely did they stop moving. As the Stormtrooper Commander orders his men to keep moving, with several other aliens having just appeared in their sights, Abigail had several questions regarding the matter.

"Hey! About this diplomat we're suppose to save and take home, how much further do you think they are?"

As Abigail slices through two green abominations, the commander and three men fire upon four smaller crab-like creatures, with a trooper smashing one underneath his boot with a sickening splat.

"Not sure." he replies bluntly, "Several stories down I believe. We need to find some elevators and a holomap before we can continue farther. Hopefully we can get out of this dark corridor first."

Some of his men began to shake slightly when at rest, with their breathing becoming slightly more rushed. The VIP guest also noted this.

"I mean, I'm not in too much of a rush or anything, because of personal issues, but some of your men seem to be getting kind of nervous."

The Commander fires down another abomination from the corner of the next hallway before he responds.

"It's not often we fight things like these." he says calmly as his troops mow down three aliens infront of them, "Natural human emotion. I don't mind these ugly bantha poodoo. I just hope SOME people here aren't scared of bugs, are they?"

He was looking at two troopers in general, shaking a bit more than some. Indeed, Stormtroopers were used to deal with more humanoid threats. The rebellion is what these troopers were trained to deal with, along with keeping order on other planets. The initial conquest of worlds during the rise of the Empire was many years ago, and most of them were still undergoing training by that time. After all, most of the troops of say the 501st legion still consisted of clone troopers from the days of the Republic, soldiers cloned from the bounty hunter Jango Fett. Once they were gone, the niche had to be filled up by regular cadets from across the galaxy... preferably humans. Unfortunately, some of these soldiers still had their phobias in tact...

"And that's got me a bit more nervous than these things as the last thing we want is zombies forming right in the middle of our formation."

The Commander didn't respond at that notion. However, he sincerely wishes deep down that this wouldn't be the case. Yet before he can contemplate more on that subject, two aliens came running from ahead of the squad. The flametroopers proceed to scorch the foolish creatures, yet as soon as the first spark hit, the aliens explode violently as their giant sacks releasing several green bulbs towards the troops. The initial blast gazed the flametroopers at the front, killing two by the middle, and slightly wounding the two closest to the walls. The Commander shields his face from the blast as the entire group halts to assess the damages.

"Men down! Men down!" the commander alerts as they attend to the fallen, having already been affected with the green bulbs.

Yet suddenly the fallen troopers violently try to grab their commander, like a possessed animal. The leader struggles initially before stormtroopers in the back eliminate the two on the ground.

"Ah shit..." the commander sighs as he orders two other men in back to take up as flametroopers, "We gotta be careful. I think these bulbs can possess us if they manage to break through our armor and attach onto skin. If we see anymore of these guys, just shoot them, I repeat, shoot them... BUT do not scorch them!"

With that, the troopers move on. Yet before they can move too far, the Commander suddenly receives a call coming from the Star Destroyer.

"Commander Therus." a female voice says over the coms, "We have just encountered the specialist and is doing his job in eliminating the alien infection. He highly suggests, and I quote, that 'All specialists should focus on the Sol-Drive and/or the Proto-Gravemind.' After retrieving the Senator, send a dispatch to eliminate the core of the space station. Once that's accomplished, head back to the ships as quickly as you can for evac. Understood?"

"Understood." the commander answers bluntly before putting away his comms and alerts everyone about their next mission.

Ahead of them is the door that leads to where the elevators reside, alongside a holomap.

@Lmpkio
"I'm sure they are." The redheaded swordsman sighs, watching another wave of bulbs reduced to miss. "Personally, I've seen scarier things, things that make these guys look damn near cute, but...." A pause to pick off a few of the parasites that were lunging at the heads of nearby storm troopers. "It's not their appearance that's intimidating, now is it? It's what they turn every other thing into that makes them something to worry about, now isn't it."

Abigail backs up when she notices the blobs explode against the wall of stormtroopers. She begins to move her hand up in order to shield herself from the blast, but the soldiers at the front did a good enough job with their own bodies. Before anyone can respond several other men die, and they quickly rise again to attack the group's commander. Said attackers are quickly dealt with by several of the storm troopers, who, to their credit, at least in Abigail's eyes, were much more afraid of risking the wrath of their empire than they were of getting close and personal with the greenies.

"Protogravemind?" A quizzical expression shadows her face, leaving her brows high up, near the upper limits of her face. "What the hells a protogravemind?" She wasn't sure why, but something about the word excited her. She wondered if it was somehow connected to the larger force she's been detecting. She couldn't tell what it was exactly, but it was something like static that existed in the air.

After the attack by the carrier forms Abigail pauses a moment to stare down at the remaining lower halves that sped the sacks so quickly towards them. The legs definitely belonged to something humanoid. "I wonder." Abigail muttered, unconcerned with the distance the soldiers were putting between them and her. "If these things are just a product of natural evolution, or something created. Hard to imagine evolution, especially in a completely different dimension from their home world, would've given these nasty little things the ability to effect every single body, regardless of race or species. Even viruses can't just jump races like that." It was tempting to stay and examined the remains for a bit longer, but she now the distance between the soldiers and herself were becoming, not exactly uncomfortable, but the word right below that.

Sighing, she stood up and quickly rejoined the group inside the room with the elevators and the holomap.

[color=red]"Well, we've got a map and we've got access to the elevators."[/colo] The red head said, she resheathed her sword, clasped her hands behind her back and stepped up to the holomap. "Now we just need to find our way to this senator, and get the hell out of here." Frowning, her hand came out from behind her back and she pointed towards a blinking green dot on the floating image of the station. "That's us right there"

Her finger moved again, and gently pressed several areas, watching intently at a tiny screen which appeared just above and to the left of the map. Each screen showed a different section of the ship. Noe of the shots were normal. The luckiest areas were either completely empty or contained huddled masses in cramped spaces, probably praying for either death or salvation. The worst ones were scenes out of a literal horror movie with walls and floors covered in shades of viscera. Abigail didn't take time to take in any of the images playing on screen. She simply rapidly flipped from camera feed to camera feed till she found one that was held potential.