13org

The Hunt, A Modern Fantasy Smorgasbord RP

---

Even though the situation was finally under control and Faye free, she was still very nervous and wanted nothing more than to get out of that prison that was called the 'Faith Manor' as quickly as possible.

"I'll be once we get out of this prison!" Faye said in an outburst, looking around and shifting nervously as she replied to Michael before she glanced towards Morgana, realizing that what she said might sound a bit offensive for her, since it was technically, still her family's estate.

"Sorry, Morgana... I didn't mean to offend." Faye said, lowering her tone a bit.

As she followed Morgana together with the group towards the exit of the building, the only thing holding the already nervous and impatient Faye from darting outside was the possibility of more wards and traps. Even if the front door was a few steps away, Faye wouldn't risk activating any traps, curses or wards.

The moment Faye finally stepped on the courtyard, she finally felt relieved. Even with the amount of OMR soldiers entering the manor as they passed by them, she felt much safer and more comfortable than inside the manor. In the blink of an eye, the characteristic cheerfulness Faye was known for seemed to be back again.

Distracted by blinking around the courtyard and enjoying freedom once more, Faye only noticed the agent Amanda was introducing to the team once Michael showed her his burns and asked if she, as a healer, could help him. Immediately stopping, Faye approached Lhoris and Micheal.

"I'm sorry... It was... difficult being chained and trapped like that. I know you're still tired and wounded... Sorry Michael." She said, feeling bad for being so cheerful despite Micheal's current state, lowering her head before turning to Lhoris.

"I'm Faye. Thank you for coming for us... And welcome to the team!" Faye said, her voice regaining the usual cheerfulness as she welcomed her.

"I mean... You will be staying with us... right?" she asked curiously, looking to Lhoris both waiting for a reply and not-so-subtly curious about her appearance, particularly her ears.

"I don't know if I can be of any help in healing Michael, but if you need something, just ask! But please... do not ask me to enter the mansion again..." Faye said, her voice trembling nervously as she mentioned the last part.

The Envenomed: Military Science Fiction Deniable Operations

While Kleo's previous outburst and the things that were said did make the mood a bit tense, Alice had done what she could and could offer little more than a comforting smile as the team got ready to open comms with the support squad while making the last few preparations before departing for the mission.

Rho-Hux's question to the Invictoid Commander was indeed an valid one, since no one thought about it before. As far as Alice herself was aware, no one had formally discussed who exactly was in charge of their squad, but just like the Commander itself said, Salvator seemed to almost naturally filled that role. Alice herself had no issues with him being formally declared the leader of the squad. In another hand, the Commander's words as he replied to Rho-Hux didn't exactly help to calm down the atmosphere after the previous incident with Kleo.

"I have no objections with our current leader. Despite we having never formally discussed or selected one, Salvator filled the role almost naturally. With that said, as long as we have an equally capable leader, I am more than fine." Alice said with a nod towards the commander and Rho-Hux.

Due to the specialized nature of both her role and her equipment, Alice required no further armament from the armory, but seeing how they would meet with the support team, she decided it would be good to go anyways. Plus, considering how 'well' things went until now, she wouldn't be surprised if something happened to sour the meeting between them and the support team. What Alice wouldn't have expected though was the own support team making some 'incisive' comments right upon meeting them.

Not knowing what to say and instead merely observing the exchange, Alice approached Salvator, delicately putting a hand on his shoulder and nodding reassuringly after noticing the expression he had. It was honestly surprising how Salvator was able to control himself and not explode after everything that happened.

"Alice. Thank you for your support. We will be counting on your team for this mission." Alice said, turning to the support team with a nod and a professional tone after Echo mentioned that it would be better to reduce unnecessary use of the comms.

Using Echo's arrival and notification in order to try and steer the mood of the conversation to a more professional one, Alice briefly introduced herself, both to show her willingness to work with the support team and hopefully encouraging them to do the same. The place they would be investigating wasn't exactly easy to navigate... It would be reassuring to know their support team at least had the intention of guiding them in and out safely.

The Hunt, A Modern Fantasy Smorgasbord RP

---

As agonizing as the trappings that bound Faye were, the complete isolation from magic they caused did offer at least some solace... At least at that moment. Morgana's fight with her mother wasn't a kind or pleasant one to experience for those with fae blood. Their spells, while relatively tame at first, quickly began to spun out of control. Runes and curses that twisted and tore the natural flow of magic formed a true maelstrom of magic.

Faye had no idea of how much time had passed. To someone with Fae blood, the trappings Morgana's mother used were almost cruel. Isolating one from the flow of magic, which was for her as natural as the senses she had been born with felt like torture. The moment Faye was freed from her bindings, the sudden rush of magic was both like a breath of fresh air and a flashbang. Agitated and disoriented, Faye quickly got up, breathing heavily as she looked around, frantically looking for the exit. It was only after a minute or so that Faye finally noticed what was going on, with Amanda and Micheal also free from their own cages and Morgana, apparently emerging victorious over her mother.

"Amands, Micheal, you guys are ok, aren't you?" Faye said, running to where they were, still noticeably agitated.

"We are... safe now, aren't we, Morgana? Can we get out of here now? T-The OMR team will soon arrive... We can leave things here to them, can't we?" Faye asked, turning to Morgana as her eyes darted around, still in full alert.

The Envenomed: Military Science Fiction Deniable Operations

Alice had a rather concerned expression as she heard the mission briefing. When backed up by organizations with plenty of resources, many would find it easy to underestimate independent groups. Pirates, Bounty Hunters, Scavengers... Call them whatever you want, but if there was something Alice learned while living as a fugitive in the research and exploration ship with the rest of the voidhanger colony was how effective ingenuity, adaptability and creativity could be when facing a lack of resources... When it was stated that over 50% of the pirates' forces were lost, she knew well not to underestimate whatever it was that the pirates were facing. Who knew... Should their be in the pirates' position, those losses might as well be theirs, regardless of how much more well equipped they were...

And that was just the borders of the station. The many expeditions she went to study the Abyssic Plane and the Oneiric chasm taught her that the fear of the unknown should always prioritize even a researcher's curiosity... Should one want to keep themselves alive.

Still, not everything were bad news. The team that would assist them in this operation would be tasked with relaying information to them, including planning the path they would take in real time. Not only that, but just as the invictoid commander had replied to Ilshar, there were no signs of major distortion or instability.

Despite how worried Alice was in the beginning, it seemed like the briefing was quite effective in reassuring that they were as well prepared and well equipped as they could be for that mission. The relief on her expression was visible as she nodded, indicating she had understood both their mission and the plan of action.

"No further questions, commander." Alice replied in a professional tone to the invictoid commander, nodding as she did so.

"Don't worry, Kleo. Should your equipment get damaged or something similar, I can give you mine. Voidhangers are quite resistant to ethereal radiation and vacuum." Alice said as she heard Kleo asking for 'good' protection equipment.

Almost immediately following that, Salvator approached Kleo to talk. While his words might be a bit harsh, Alice knew well that it was necessary. She had already caught on, quite early in fact, that Kleo seemed to have some kind of distrust and prejudice towards non-humans, but considering the situation they were all in, it was something she would quickly have to learn to put aside.

With that said, not everyone would be as kind and patient as Alice was and would be willing to brush aside prejudice and hostility based on one's race or deal with an inflated ego. While she was trying to encourage and show herself to be approachable and trustworthy to Kleo, she couldn't help but agree with Echo. Perhaps limiting communication with the support team would be for the best.

"His words might be a bit harsh, but I assure you he said so because he cares about us. Every one of us have their own circumstances for being here, but it doesn't change we're in this together. Trust us and we will have your back." Alice said with a reassuring smile to Kleo.

The Envenomed: Military Science Fiction Deniable Operations

Alice's expression the moment she laid eyes on the holographic image of the space station their mission would take part in was one of shock. Not only due to the sheer size of the space station, but due to it's overall layout. The tight corridors and corners not only would be incredibly unfavorable for Alice, making it much harder to position herself and use her rifle properly, but it also would heavily favor CQC, something Alice had only very basic training of.

"Oh this is bad... Very, very bad..." Alice said to herself, with a worried expression. Immediately upon looking at the holographic image of the Space Station, she could already think of a multitude of terrible situations that they could face... And she had not even began to think about ethereal interference... Which could make that mission a true nightmare, should their luck fail them.

"It would be extremely helpful if we had an idea of the path we're going to take inside the Space Station and a map... Any engagement with hostile forces inside would be incredibly disadvantageous for us, who have no knowledge of the inside layout of the Space Station. Ambushes and traps are only a few of our worries when we get inside..." Alice said, clearly concerned.

"Knowing the chances of a distortion wave or any large-scale ethereal disturbance... And being prepared for those... is also vital for this operation. The Oneiric Chasm is cruel and deadly to those unprepared... Even for those who had already went into numerous expeditions before." Alice said, agreeing with Ilshar's words and sharing Salvator's concerns about possible ethereal disturbances.

Even experienced voidhangers knew better than to consider adventuring into the Oneiric Chasm without proper preparation and considering every possible outcome, no matter how unlikely it was to occur. Fearing and respecting the Chasm was the first thing Alice learned on the exploration ship she used to live with other voidhangers.

The Envenomed: Military Science Fiction Deniable Operations

Knowing that the matter of the said 'informant' would be investigated did make Alice a bit more relieved. She knew well the invictoids wouldn't tolerate a potentially disastrous variable on their plans, considering how they acted. Either bring such 'variable' under control or eliminate it. Hopefully, sooner than later and without using them as a disposable force for their objectives...

As the Invictoid mentioned to the dossiers of the possible missions they could take next, Alice noted how King seemed to know their content with a single glance. But what perhaps drew her attention even more was King's attitude at the Invictoid Authority. With acid words and not making any attempt to hide his opinions, it certainly made Alice stop reading the dossiers and watch the Invictoid's reaction. Who exactly was King? The only possibility she could think of was that he, somehow was someone important enough to allow him speak his mind like that to the invictoid without fearing any repercussions. But again, if he was so important, why put him in a squad with mere agents like them?

"I think the option B is a rather interesting one. Not only it will help us to secure the results of our previous mission, but it will also give us a good opportunity to gather intel on field, which definitely prove to be very valuable." Alice said, raising her voice a little bit in an attempt to lighten the atmosphere after King's words, worried about a possible retaliation from the Invictoid Authority.

"By the way, I am sure the necessary information will be given to us once we have decided on our next mission. Stricter protocols to help avoid any information leak are understandable, given the situation we have faced on our last mission." Alice said, trying to calm down King.

The Envenomed: Military Science Fiction Deniable Operations

The commander's words, after showing them the aftermath of their last mission, were harsh but the point he wanted to make was clear... Keeping one's hands clear and following one's morals in the situation they faced was... impossible. Just like the invictoid commander said, there was no room for discussing right or wrong in the war they fought. Doing so would be useless. They only had to be clean and efficient. It was a cold way to thing about things, but it was better than sitting down and spending days and days discussing how they could do things in the 'right' way instead of actually acting.

The invictoid commander's words were like a cold shower for Alice. In a war of that scale, the old sayings about doing a few things that could be considered 'bad' to bring a greater good later on seemed more appropriate than ever. With those thoughts in mind, Alice knew she would have to find a way to ignore her reservations and her morals, if she wanted to continue doing her job.

"I-I... understand commander..." Alice said, looking down. As unpleasant as it might be, she knew the commander was right and trying to argue against his logic would be useless... After all, regardless of how much society changed and evolved, one aspect would always remain unchanged. War.

---

With those thoughts still in Alice's head, she gave a small bow as she went to take Kleo to the medical bay, where upon arriving, they were silently greeted by a gealtirocht as it motioned for Alice to lay Kleo down on the bed behind a curtain. As soon as she did so, Alice would ask the gealtirocht's help in taking the shrapnel in her back.

"Thank you. Just be warned, Kleo might be a bit... agitated... when she wakes up... If she does so, just send her our way, if she is in any condition to walk or just tell her to wait for us and that we will explain everything to her as soon as possible." Alice said, thanking the gealtirocht both for tending to her wounds and staying with Kleo with a brief, albeit somewhat distant and tired smile, before she returned to where the rest of the squad was.

---

Alice heard the commotion before she saw the scene as she was reunited with the commander and the rest of the squad. The reason for such was a human, apparently someone with high ranking, who seemed to be incredibly angry about how the commander's actions deviated from the previous agreed plans. Alice merely watched in silence, similarly to the rest of her squad as the human went on about what happened in Prosperity, ending with a rather ominous remark as how they were all disposable for the invictoid commander. Once again, a cold fact, but one that was still undeniably true.

"Disposable? Maybe.. But nobody could straight up order them to die... Or blaming them for surviving afterwards." Alice thought to herself.

With that little 'incident' dealt with by the commander, they continued following him into a room where a strange creature, composed of a swarm of small, strange pieces floating in an orb of ethereal power seemed to be in charge of a command center. This creature, which was introduced as the Ixaxxar node by the commander soon began it's questioning after a brief evaluation of their squad's performance on the last mission.

The question asked by the Ixaxxar node was a very concerning one, bringing to light something Alice seemed to have either missed or forgotten about in the middle of the chaos that previous mission was. The very first informant that met them...

"It seems there was a security breach." Alice said, agreeing with the other Gealtirocht, Rho-Hux.

In hindsight, now that she heard Salvator's report, the so called 'informant' did seem to be rather suspicious...

"Just like Rho-Hux, Ilshar and Salvator said, it does seem to be too suspicious. Whether he was merely an informant or not, he seemed to have a good deal of knowledge on how the Intransigence operates and specifically about our mission there. He seemed to know more than what he should." Alice mentioned with a serious expression.

The Hunt, A Modern Fantasy Smorgasbord RP

^{Interactions: Amanda @Kumbaris, Micheal Crane @BigPapaBelial, Xaviron @Martian, Morgana @King Cosmos}

---

While it was true Faye wasn't wounded or in any immediate danger, for someone with Fae blood, especially her, who was basically a hybrid, being trapped in such manner and completely cut off from magic was extremely cruel. A torture one could not hope to escape from. At least not alone. With that said, despite Faye's struggle, she could still hear in the background Morgana and another woman having a heated exchange.

"Please... I did nothing... Wrong..." Faye said, weakly as the iron chains rattled very faintly as she used the little energy she still had to draw attention to her weak and low voice... As she herself knew trying to free herself was not an option.

Even though she knew deep down that the best she could do was to trust Morgana and her friends, every second she remained in those chains seemed to last hours for her. For a family who did never capture or engaged in conflicts with the Fae, why would they employ such cruel means to trap them? Did the Faith family even care of how much suffering those bindings caused Faye or any Fae-blooded creature?

The Envenomed: Military Science Fiction Deniable Operations

Alice heard the commander's words with a somewhat concerned expression. It was a given that their position wasn't the best one. Alice knew well that certain... tactics were a given when fighting against powerful enemies, but even so... There was a line one should not cross. No matter the goal or cause... Kleo's outburst was also definitely not helping. Fortunately, she soon fell unconscious due to probably either continuously overexerting herself or the wounds reopening. While not technically a good thing, it would give them time to explain things to her... and try to prevent her to further test the commander's patience and leniency.

"Thank you, commander. Forgive us for Kleo's... Outburst. She went through a lot and lost a good deal of blood." Alice said, gently putting Kleo's arms over her shoulder and lifting her as the commander turned to them, suggesting to take Kleo to the medical bay.

"While not exactly 'special forces', I understand the position we are in and I understand that some times, some... 'interference' is needed to make the situation evolve in the way we want it to... With that said..." Alice said, pausing as she tried her best to measure her words so they wouldn't be taken as an offense or a sign of insubordination by the commander.

"There is a certain line where the 'whatever it takes' approach stops being acceptable or justifiable. Wanting to succeed on our goal is a given, but we should be careful to not do anything to cross this line. Should we do, bringing the popular opinion against us will be just one of our worries." Alice said, bowing a bit just to make sure her words wouldn't be misunderstood as challenging or threatening.

"In this case though, I fully understand and agree that our interference was definitely necessary to both hasten and make these 'peace talks' being taken more seriously." Alice completed, once again bowing, thanking the Commander for both hearing her words and for his service before turning and nodding to the rest of her team, getting ready to take Kleo to the medical bay.

"Oh, and... I'm sorry for the blood and all the confusion... Anyways... welcome to the team! You can count on me for scouting and long-range fire support." Alice said in a lower tone before leaving, turning to King with a smile.

The Envenomed: Military Science Fiction Deniable Operations

For a moment, the sound of metal creaking was everything Alice could hear, as the huge walker went down the hill, creating as much, if not more damage to the terrain than it had on it's previous, violent charge towards them. It wasn't a fun mission, nor one that went without it's share of problems but they were all fine... Mostly. Kleo still needed some proper medical attention and now that the adrenaline was starting to die down, Alice as well began feeling the shrapnel in her back from the previous explosion. Pain began in waves, one after another until it came back as strong as in the beginning.

Fortunately, it took but a moment for the ship that was going to extract them to arrive, appearing almost out of nowhere due to it's extremely advanced technology. The command coming from the soldiers disembarking and securing a perimeter with an almost mechanical-like efficiency around them was direct and simple. Board and depart. Their mission was complete. Exactly in time for the much needed medical attention for both her and Kleo.

---

It was almost strange how in the span of a few seconds, the battlefield they were in was left behind, remaining just as a memory. The tranquility and calmness within the ship stood in stark contrast to the endless cacophony of gunfire, explosions, and death that had surrounded them on the battlefield mere seconds before. Unfortunately, despite the grave wounds that Kleo had suffered and the shrapnel embedded into Alice's back, it seemed like their presence was being expected by the commander of that ship, a vaguely humanoid, skeletal machine going by the designation: Invictoid Authority Node 04/10.

Quickly acknowledging their presence upon arrival, the machine spoke. It's voice sounding like a strange echo around it as it addressed the Envenomed. The machine's speech was direct and efficient, dismissing any sort of formality as it asked them to follow it to a more... comfortable room, before urging the Envenomed to ask their questions it knew they would definitely have. Time seemed to be of utmost importance and value for the mysterious machine.

Kleo's reaction upon reaching the room was completely unexpected though. Despite her grave wounds, Kleo didn't hesitate in throwing her helmet at the machine as she began a stream of insults and threats towards it, mentioning how she was kidnapped and how she almost died, inevitably ending with her letting herself fall on the couch after coughing blood into the ground, a clear sign that her wounds had reopened.

"Kleo... Your wounds... Please calm down." Alice said delicately, going to where she was as she quickly took an apologetic glance towards the commander and the strange human that now had his boots covered by Kleo's blood. Upon closer look, the latter one, despite it's outwards human-like appearance, had quite an unsettling feel about him. The lack of movements as it stood still, not moving even for breathing make it look more like an ultra-realistic sculpture than a human. King would also notice Alice staring at him for a bit too long, before turning away.

"I'm sorry. It is as Salvator said. She has lost quite a bit of blood and was severely wounded. We both need some medical attention, but her wounds are much worse than mine." Alice said, both to the commander and the human named 'King' Should they agree that Kleo deserved urgent medical care, it would buy them some time to calm her down and hopefully address any concerns or doubts she might have.

Aside from her concerns about Kleo's well being, the points raised by both Salvator and Ilshar did also make her concerned. What exactly was the goal of their mission in Zanovia? Were they really just fulfilling a contract?

"That would make us quite similar to any other big corporations in the galaxy, wouldn't it? Moving ourselves for money and contracts, rather than for a cause..." Alice said, replying to Ilshar and Salvator's words as she took an inquisitive glance at the Authority Node.

"I also wouldn't mind for a proper explanation about what happened... Like many others that joined the Intransigence, I also suffered greatly in the hands of other greedy mega corporations. It would disappoint me greatly to see the Intransigence taking a similar path..." She completed, looking to the bio-machine with a serious expression.