"We are honored by your thanks," says Chilomena graciously to Third; now, with the proper body to do so, she bows with regal grace. At humanoid size, the throne upon which she stands is large enough to be a stage rather than a seat.

"However, one must wonder whether we have simply been bred for loyalty to you. After all, thousands of years can change most minds. But in the end, it is all very much the same... whether we have chosen this path, or whether destined. For we knew not which was the truth."

She gestures with one of her four arms toward her translator, and speaks some words directly to it. The golden bug prostrates itself in response, deeply honored. Dena can sense the surprise emanating from it with her insect-sense.

"For my services I have been granted the name Jhenli. Queen Chilomena wishes that you call me by this from now on," explains the golden bug when it straightens. The Queen continues to speak, and Jhenli immediately switches back into translation-mode. "And She says: You may leave, Third and Dena; we too look forward to forging a long and productive companionship with the Creator-kind.

Jhenli will guide Third and Dena back to the outskirts of the Hive, whenever they are ready.

[Private to Tervila Dena; Third Beneficiary of Orderly Knowledge: If you're leaving right away, you can post your departure and return to 'The Lost Corridors - Mining Settlement' thread.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 06:49, Sat 28 Feb 2009.

Third returns the bow graciously. " Thank you, Jhenli. Your services have been invaluable. And to your highness... Being bred for loyalty can only lead one so far. If it were a simple matter of having been bred for it, Third does not think that you would have been able to keep your faith in us so long. Breeding can fade. Perhaps Third is wrong, but Third thinks that your loyalty is more than just a function of being created." It bows deeply to them again. "Thank you once again." it says, preparing to leave alongside Dena.

Dena apes Third's actions, in performing a respectful bow.
"Obligations flow in both directions." she mentions before leaving.  "We ourselves are under obligation to recognize and repay your loyalty.  I will do all I can to accomplish this.  We will meet again soon."
Dena, perhaps forgetting etiquette a bit, turns her back and leaves rather than backing out of the room.

Week 4 (8th day of Resplendent Water, RY 1085)

With the aid of Queen Chilomena and her builder bug minions, the group of free Celestials and the remaining 40-odd Water District refugees move from the mining settlement to the tunnels of Hive Irix Chilomena. The hundreds upon hundreds of onyx worker bugs at the Hive Queen's disposal make the move swift, painless and methodical, systematically cleaning out all excess waste, even traces of human life, and leaving the remainder of the settlement pristinely clean. Even the ashes from the purported attack on the settlement that took the miners' lives (all but their leader, Granite Creed, and his missing wife, Patience) have all been removed, bits of organic matter secreted away into wherever the insects keep such things.

They do find a use for everything, though. Materials are recycled or processed into their crafts, or stored in massive vaults, the true function and purpose of which only the hivemind itself can understand. As Dena and Third know, the insects also have a penchant for expressing history and significance in art form, the walls of their oldest caverns (rather than the auxiliary, outer-hive ones, whose shape and positioning grows and changes as needed) decorated in colored resins, bits of glass and gems, bone chips and stone fragments, conveying everything from messages of purpose and inspiration, to their most treasured memories.

Following the Queen's entourage, the Celestials pass through a series of workrooms from outer to mid-hive: emeralds working as food-producers and cloth-spinners, sapphires doing everything from gem polishing to resin sculpting to tool-making to mechanical engineering (working with scavenged, broken vehicles or automatons, discarded minor artifacts and so forth.) For increased protection, the Celestials are allowed deep into the Hive as special guests, their rooms rather symbolically built off of the Vault of Ancient Memories, where Jhenli had given Third and Dena a broad, illustrated summary of the 3000-some years since Hive Irix Chilomena has been created. Many depictions of the Celestial Exalts from the insects' point of view can be found in this museum, benevolent figures adorned with Caste Mark symbols on their foreheads in pure gold or silver.

The rooms are all freshly dug and well-furnished, using the versatile bug resin in place of wood or metal, sheets and pillows made from their own silk-producers, fixtures and details added by their skilled sapphire artisans. As they were made in great haste, the designs are simple, but very comfortable. Even the refugees have at least their own bed, desk and storage chest, though their living area branches off from the outer hive instead (connected via a humanoid sized tunnel to the Celestials'). The Immaculate prisoners are brought in under heavy guard, with Ruby Defenders watching their simple stone-and-earth furnished cells at all times, instructed to allow only Celestials or Hive royalty to enter.

It's quite easy to get lost within the vast, labyrinthine builder bug hive. Fortunately there are always insects in the vicinity to serve as guides or summon one, if they lack the capability for human interaction. The Exalts are allowed to roam all but the inner hive and royal chambers freely, and there's plenty of room and resource for a week of training, building or planning.

---

OOC: Those of you playing Celestials whose past lives lived, created or ruled from Coils when it was still the Pillar, can use the moment you enter the hive's Vault of Memory to trigger a past life flashback (if you want me to make one up for you, PM me!)

Other than that, detail what you will train or accomplish in a bit over one week of downtime (9 days to be exact). [Private to Third Beneficiary of Orderly Knowledge; Yaishin Higura: I will continue to use the 3 Immaculates thread for you should you continue to speak with the Immaculates in private, rather than involve them in matters the other PCs or the Hive will openly see. I'll just change scene within that thread, once Higura gets Jilava out of the settlement... if that makes sense.]

"This is a very fine location..." Danae remarked as the Exalts were lead in.  While she didn't have too much at this point to do in terms of working on the virus--it wouldn't do to simply stand around idle--but she 'Had' equipped nearly everyone to the limit of what was available...

Yet without materials, there wasn't much she could do with the last of her Orichal...

Her eyes drifted over to some of the things lying around--and she was struck with an idea.

"Ah... If you'll excuse me?"  Danae noted, holding up a hand to call attention.  "I think I just found an area that could best use my abilities--would you mind if I got to work immediately?"

Taking the time needed for propietry, Danae's first stop was towards some of the Cloth Spinners...

"I've a certain project in mind..." She began once she managed to get an audience with whomever was in charge of that department.  "I noticed you had access to silk here...  Would there be any way could could produce a certain volume of Steelsilk in the upcoming days though?  It'll serve as a useful base for something I plan to develop, and it's the material I was iffiest about..."

Once that was sorted out though--her next destination was to the mechanical section--not entirely unsurprisingly--but there you have it.  Tugging on her gloves as she moved in with a smile, Danae looked around at some of the busted automatons.

"So...  How many of these do you think we could get working in nine days?" She asked some of the collected bugs.  "It'll help to have any additional muscle in nearby uprising--and I don't like seeing a bunch of good chassis lying around fallow after all..."

Third approaches the Vault alongside the others once again, and stares at the image of Shining Eye. Something about it catches the eye... reminds it of days long past, of another life, of

"Yes. You must be careful with the carvings. If they are off, the meaning is lost." A voice. A familiar voice, that of Shining Eye, echoes through the air like a voice on the wind. Third approaches the carving, even as it feels that presence from within its own mind. "They must be of infinitesmal detail. It would not have remained hidden were it a simple number." Third doesn't touch it, but it moves quite close indeed to the inlaid mural, a finger running over the faint lines. "If my future self is to find these numbers again, it must be available... Eye do not trust mere chance in these things." For a moment, Third turns, and its eyes make contact with that ancient self, a Twilight whose eyes are on the mural, just behind Third. Then they shift, meeting the Solar's eyes as she looks towards it. "These flaws in the fabric of Creation are my gift to myself..." she says, a wan smile on her face. Her skin is pale, pale as Third's, and she has the look of someone who has spent a great deal of her life fighting for those who do not understand. "And now... I am afraid that you cannot be left alive. I do not do this because I enjoy it, for what consolation that is worth." The blade by her side flicks out, and in a blur of gold, the orichalcum blade is jutting out from Third's chest, blood spraying out, numbness spreading

The Solar nearly falls backwards into the mural, eyes wide, breath coming fast with alarm, a hand moving to its chest... And then slowly moving away. Only a memory. Recovering from its loss of composure, the Solar slowly turns, studying the folds of the garment... On each arm, endlessly fine stitches, and even more across the body itself... It begins to count them, studying the ratios, knowing that there is something significant hidden there.

The sight of the murals in the Vault do not have the same effect on every one of the Exalts. For some, the images are inspiring, but have no effect besides demonstrating the creativity and ingenuity of the builder insects. For others, they trigger memories that shake the core of their being, reminding them of what they once were... and what they could become.

For Danae, the inner chambers of the Hive are neither deeply shocking nor simply attractive to the eye. Rather, they carry for her an uncanny familiarity, a feeling of 'rightness' -- that she has been through these caverns many times before, that she has always had the authority to order the insects of Hive Irix and expect to be obeyed. She recalls fragments of her life as Terian with a sense of longing for the majesty of the distant past. These remarkable insects toiled ceaselessly to build the armor, weaponry and vehicles of the Clockwork General's army to his exacting standards -- but that was not the only thing they worked on.

In the height of the First Age, the builder bugs adapted their skills, organization and numbers to aid in building everything from Cursed Sapphire's highly complex but efficient tools, to Maia Wise-Eye's organic artifacts crafted to emulate living animals, to Iris in a Field of Briars' wearable, high-fashion outfits and jewelry. And still more. Very likely they have retained a great many of those designs, unused in the wake of the Celestials' disappearance, the Usurpation and a lack of reliable magical material source.

Danae can easily envision the vast output potential that the massive factory-fortress would hold, should the insects of Hive Irix be returned to their rightful duties, and necessary resources secured. The possibilities are not only thrilling, but endlessly tempting. What could one accomplish with such incredible numbers and quality of artifice?

Reality, for now, is much more sobering. Maia's successor still lies trapped in her bed of twisted wood and magitech fibers as Alazne the White Dove, forever dreaming, waiting to be liberated. And the husks Danae determinedly sets to work on are worn and in disrepair, a poor echo of the grand machines that once marched in neat and perfect rows on the ancient battlefields of Creation.

The first of the sapphire artisans to answer Danae shifts fluidly to humanoid form, speaking Old Realm in an ethereal, feminine voice. She addresses the Dawn Caste's inquiries in order. "Unfortunately, the emerald cloth-spinners are not created to be speech-capable. Our Hive is, however, capable of steelsilk production, though it will take perhaps a week to make a sizable amount for a single, humanoid sized project." Several emerald producers scurry forward, passing to Danae a square sample of the flexible, yet durable cloth in question. "The speed of course will increase as our Queen births more sisters appropriate to the production."

"As for the Automatons. We will of course not prevent you from working in whatever manner you wish to, Clockwork General. Our numbers and expertise are at your disposal. With a crafter of your caliber, we may be able to reconstruct five of the most intact for use in the specified time. However, their artificial minds may be faulty, or too aged to remember their previous masters, as we have. When we activate them you and your allies may want to be ready for combat." That said she and her assistants clear a space at the engineer's workshop for Danae to begin.

---

OOC: Continue to post flashbacks at the Vault (if appropriate) and/or your actions in the next 9 days. Those who do opt for a flashback at this point in time gain Past Lives +1. If you do not post in the next couple days, I will assume you are resting and doing nothing, and move on to 9 days later.

Xurizu marvelled at the artwork he saw around the hive as they were lead into the depths of the hive, especially at the history portrayed on the sides of the Vault of Ancient Memories.  Although none of the murals there sparked any form of recollection for him, he never-the-less admired the craft and the dedication which had gone into them, and made a note to spend at least some of his evenings for the next few days studying them all, following the history they presented.

His days, he planned to spend on more practical things.  The first day, he spent practicing his essence channelling, learning the technique of sharpening his instincts, quickening his thoughts, until he could raise them to superhuman levels.  On the next day, he left the hive, travelling by himself away from the areas patrolled by the Hive, and away from the old settlement.  He was hunting for something, for a form more suitable to moving around in the caves and natural rocks of the Earth Floor.  He found that in a hunting spider, a fast and spindly creature that he spent most of the day stalking, before he finally killed it with his knife, and drank of its bitter blood.  To pass the rest of the time, Xurizu cast his mind back to the time period of their escape and to the spells cast by the Sorceress Misa.  There was one in particular that he had seen in sufficient detail that he thought he could reproduce it.  He enquired to the bugs if one could be found, and not, then he would travel out from the Hive, away from the settlement, each day and practice out there.  The first spell he could remember learning, both the others he knew he no longer had the memories for.  Eventually, as the remaining week drew to a close though, he could call forth the Titan's Icy Breath!
[Private to GM: One day to learn 1st wits, One day to hunt, 7 to learn the spell.]

"There's no critical rush for the steelsilk, I won't have time to work on the project until we're done with the upcoming operation" Danae said "The automata are another matter...  I'll see if I can restore their programming as we work on repairing them--but I'll be ready to fight back if they become hostile as well.  They'll be a great asset if we can fix them up though, and I'm willing to take the risk inherent in bringing them back online."

The remaining days were spent working at the damaged automata.  Danae was careful to ensure that the level of risk if their programming had degraed was minimal, but there was only so much that could be done until they had been brought back online--most of the neccessary precautions were possible in this place though.

She only hoped that their power would be enough to help make a difference in the upcoming battles

Third, in the time it has, is working endlessly on compiling the information, infiltrating the systems of the automata. A web of information is inserted into the devices, redundant copies, differentiated designs, all meant to make the process of removing the virus without completely destroying the brains of every automata on the floor a task best suited for somebody who is already too mad to lose their sanity on the project. Every primary function has these commands hidden somewhere within the endless spirals of code, never the same way twice- a concentrated effort is made to hide them, disguising them among the command lines around it. It infiltrates, becomes so deeply entrenched that even discovered, clearing the commands out will be excruciatingly difficult. It does this with the help of Harmony, surrounded by drifting colors as it moves through the code- Not like a bird through air, a fish through water, but like a god through its domain.

After his discussion with Talia and further introducing himself to her, Dashu had immediately gone to reattune his jade dragon's claws.  After that, he tries to stay out of everyone's way.  He had no skill with anything technical.  He did, however, help with any of the bureaucratic work that might need to be done.  Preparing himself to have to deal with Mockingbird and other leaders of commerce on a more regular basis, Dashu spends most of his time sharpening those skills.  He wasn't much of a leader, but he could at least organize information.  In his spare time he checks in on whoever might need help.  He does make it a point to always run small errands for the more technical minded exalts.  At one point he even tries to crack an awkward smile at Danae.  It's almost like he's glad to be back.

Dena sighs as a hesitant, experimental tap with a pickaxe bounces off her abdomen about an inch above the belly button.
"Try again.  Harder.  Hit me as hard as you can." she instructs.  "If you deliver weak blows in practice you will also deliver weak blows when you're trying to protect your friends and family.  Don't worry about hurting me, worry about the people who will be hurt if you can't protect them."

A few days earlier, having arrived at the caverns, Dena had planned to return to her solitary and foul-smelling training in the nature and resisting of pain.  However, having seen Tycho leave and take many of the best trained mortals, Dena had realized that the remaining mortals were now short both of fighters and of trainers, and a certain nagging guilt over that had moved her to take action.

She'd quickly realized that she could efficiently do both by using herself as a training dummy to get pain and training at once.  Now if only some of the mortals would learn to hit well enough to actually inflict pain. . .

[Private to GM: I don't actually expect her time to count double, of course.  2 days should finish off her Laughing Wounds charm training leaving 7 for training the mortal cohort.]

Nanaret spends the nine days training intensely, when she does not assist Higura or Third in standing guard while they speak with the Immaculate prisoners. She also spends what free time she has exploring the Hive itself, familiarizing itself with its layout so she can find her way to the exits or any important areas (the prison cells, the various workshops, the refugees' quarters and so on) without help.

This is not necessarily because she distrusts the builder bugs; it is simply in her nature to prefer to have the option to act independently if need be. That, and asking for help is not something she is quite accustomed to. It took quite some time just for Doctor Higura to coax her to open up to him, and even so their counseling sessions can be at times volatile, particularly when Ranavalona's consciousness rises to dominate her mind. Fortunately, he has had months to grow accustomed to dealing with her rages, and has the medicine skill to repair any painful consequences, though any deep and serious wounds would be better cared for by a Solar healer (Talia?)

The two techniques Nanaret is training are both combative in nature, utilizing the fury state that she has increasingly begun to rely on. She requests a practice cavern of the builder bugs, one that will have no outside traffic, and asks Higura to accompany her. Though the Lunar is still concerned about including anyone else in such exercises, as she does not know how they might react to the Bitch Queen's more violent personality, she still asks both Dena and Dashu whether they would be interested in sparring her. Dena, she figures, is training to be highly endurant and even accepting of pain, while Dashu has seen her personality shifts more than once without batting an eye, and both appear to be swift fighters.

If neither accept Nanaret chooses Higura as her primary sparring partner, though either way the doctor is involved very closely in her development -- encouraging her to tighten her control over her rage, to give just enough to Ranavalona, but not too much that she loses self-awareness completely. Through repeated sparring sessions and supervised exercises, she pushes both her speed and her endurance to the limit, heightening the speed of her strikes while drawing from the intensity of the battle-trance to revitalize her Essence.

Talia feels a nagging sense of deja vu while dwelling within the Hive that grows gradually in intensity. Because the persona she had been during the Usurpation had been so dominant and greedy for power, her shard's memories of the life that lived before Mei Xing are subdued. It takes time for her consciousness to become aware of the connection between herself and the benevolent yet fiercely protective Creator whom the builder bugs praise so prominently in their art.

In fact an entire inner Vault chamber has been devoted just to her: a radiant woman in blue, pale in a way rarely seen in the lower floors of Coils, her blonde hair wound up into a braided crown. The symbol on her forehead is the Caste Mark of Twilight, and she is always depicted with builder bugs gathered raptly at her feet, rising on their forelegs as her hands grace their heads in blessing. Even the Queens knelt before her, for the original three Queens of Hive Irix considered her Mother. What few Old Realm inscriptions there are label this woman the Little Mother, for she was short of stature but she alone was the Celestial to grant them the spark of life.

When Talia wanders into the shrine of the Little Mother, drawn there as if entranced, she gazes up at the large, lovingly crafted statue of the woman and realizes with sudden, startling certainty that she is looking back at herself. Or more accurately, one aspect of herself, the progenitor of artificial life in the Pillar. The sheer bewildering amazement that follows this realization -- that she had once not only crafted items of power, but created living, sentient, reproducing beings that survived for 3000 years -- is almost too much for her mind to bear.

[Private to Talia Zerith: Well, you now have Past Lives 3 -- since you already started with 2. Along with that you get a free Craft(Genesis) 1. Also, the bewildering nature of suddenly recalling an entire past life will make you disoriented for about a week. -2 to all dice rolls, though since you probably won't be needing the rolls during the downtime you could just RP it out as seeming dazed and distracted a lot. If you want you could even pass out for a while ;) it would be fitting, but I'll leave it up to you since being unconscious would put a dent in training time you might use :P]

Nanaret, Dashu and Xurizu feel the least affected by the memories retained by Hive Irix Chilomena.

Ranavalona herself has never been trusting of magitech or artificial intelligences to begin with, and Rana herself states quite plainly to Nanaret that her only fond memories of the Pillar were of fighting against its forces, leading a force of raging wyld mutants and beastmen during a distant period when Creation was at war.

Dashu notices among the insects' murals the shadowed figure of a Night Caste, but he is always depicted at the edge or in the background compared to the shining figures of the Clockwork General, the Mother and so forth. The figure was apparently a thrown weapon specialist and was often accompanied by subordinates depicted with gusts of air surrounding them. But he feels a strange blank toward the images, as if he should feel something but doesn't. On the other hand, their existence informs him that another Night Caste had lived here once, armed by the builder bugs' factories.

Xurizu himself has enough trouble recalling his own memories to remember anything his past lives might have known. There is a No Moon depicted among the Celestial luminaries remembered by the insects, though, the woman named Maia who often stood at the side of the General in every portrait or sculpture.

---

OOC: Ok, Higura is going to write his own memory/training post by tonight, so we just need that and a post from Talia. Again thanks for patience, this has been slow but I've really wanted to establish more of the 'memories of the past' before we go on.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:06, Wed 13 May 2009.

Talia has spent the first few days crafting more badges, and then teaching the design to the builder bugs.  She offers what aid she can to Danae's efforts, but seems distracted by something.  After the recent struggle with Mei Xing, she is somewhat leery of the Vault of Memories.  But something in her mind draws her to the shrine the Hive has built to its creator.

When she wakes up an hour later, she is even more shaken.  She withdraws for a while to collect her thoughts and quietly reflect on what she has recalled.  She quickly realizes that quiet reflection is not her forte, and decides that constructive activity would be more helpful.  She withdraws to an open, secluded area to practice her martial art.  To an observer, the forms and flowing movements would appear more like a dance than a combat style.

In her resting hours, she begins sketching out the design for a personal weapon.


[Private to GM: I'd like to buy Demure Carp Feint, which will take up two days, and she's planning to make a pair of war fans.  I'm not entirely sure what materials are available, but I figure a metal-ribbed cloth fan with be both cheaper and less obivously a weapon.]

After escorting Jilava to her new cell and making arrangements for it to be guarded properly, Higura focuses on his and Nanaret's training, along with meeting with anyone who wishes to speak with him. Once again, Higura's time is rather quiet and subdued, his functions not really in the spotlight of the group's effort and yet undoubtedly present in its overall structure.

One incident does stand out, however, as he accompanies Nanaret during a stroll to explore the hive itself - and the first time Higura witnesses the old caverns closer to the Hive's core. Exchanging words and thoughts with his companion, the doctor suddenly comes to a stop, watching the murals adorning the vault, his current words suddenly trail off, and he stares at them, his eyes widening, as the grips of memory catch him...

A walkway over a vast room, centuries ago.

A man stands on the edge of the railing, peering down at the vast room below. Several insectoid figures are curled next to one another, dormant as if in suspended animation. They do not move, and yet the man's gaze does not waver from them. "So this is it, then, right? The eve of a big day for you, Dusan." The woman says, stepping close to the railing as well. The man turns, and looks at her face. He smiles, and nods slowly and quietly. He has known Corseca, the Chosen of Journeys for decades now, and is the only person he considers family. She is the younger sibling he never had, and has thought of her as his little sister for so long now they might have been related.

"It is a big day for them." The man says. Higura, through his heightened dream state, recalls saying the words himself. "Tomorrow, they are truly going to awaken, not simply as builder automatons, but as living organisms with thoughts and feelings of their own." The woman nods, her yellow eyes narrowing as she smiles. She looks at the sleeping insects carefully, shaking her head softly. "I still don't understand, though. I know you didn't create their bodies, but didn't you participate in their creation? You made the blueprint for their minds, didn't you? I'm still not sure why you would not want them to know you gave that to them, and erase that knowledge from your design. Don't you want them to know who allowed them to be sentient?"

"No." The man says simply, shaking his head. "I consider myself lucky I was even allowed to partici pate in this. Besides... Tomorrow, they will awaken to a new world, and will begin their existence in earnest. That is for them to have, without my shadow to cast an invisible leash on them. I have already been asked to give them a strong feeling of loyalty and accomplishment for serving their purpose and their celestial creators - I would rather they not let this adoration tie them to me as well. With the combined factors, they might idolize me... And I do not want to be this in their life. I would rather they get to know me as a friend, through interaction, rather than hold my role in their awakening over their heads. Their life is their own, now." The man looks back at the sleeping insects, smiling softly. He then turns to the girl besides him, who simply smiles at him.

He looks at her smile, but then the scene distorts and shifts, the warmness of the previous images all but lost. Higura still sees through Dusan's eyes, but is in an unknown location, filled with machinery, complex devices and displays that illuminates the darkness in a blurry fashion. The face of the girl is still close to him, but she seems asleep. Dusan then realizes with horror that most of her body is connected to the machinery around them, the majority of her human appendages replaced with tubes and devices, cables running through her skin. He tries to struggle, but realizes with added panic that his own body is the same, unalterably connected to this strange and sizeable device, his arms and legs forever gone.

He tries to scream, to warn her, but a goopy green liquid escapes his broken lips instead, his voice silenced. In response to his agitation, a mechanical spider crawls close to him, and even through numbed skin, he still feels the needle the construct sticks in his neck. He feels a warm liquid injected in his veins, and does his best to protest, but the pressure on his brain is too difficult to resist. Already, the name of the girl that he considered his own flesh and blood is fading from his consciousness. The feelings he had when recognizing her are being dulled, and in a moment, he finds it even difficult to remember who he is. Sleep comes like thick tar over his mind, and he finds himself struggling to remember only one thing. "My name... is Dusan. My... name..."

Sleep is stronger. And in the blank darkness, he who once was Dusan dreams of the myriad possibilities cast in the destiny of the Five Coils.

Suddenly snapped to reality, Higura breathes shallowly and collapses to one knee, holding his head with one hand as, strangely for the usually calm and composed doctor, his features are twisted with a powerful and overbearing emotion: Fear. After a moment, however, the overwhelming feeling is gone, and the doctor is left to ponder at to the meaning behind the strong memories associated with this place.

He cannot remain this way for long, however, and soon he is back to his usual self. After all... There are things left to do, here in the present - and soon, things would once again become hectic for the group of Celestial fugitives.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:10, Fri 15 May 2009.

In the meantime, it seems the builder bugs have taken it upon themselves to re-equip the remaining refugees, in order to increase their chances of survival. Drachma has been given an exceptional reinforced breastplate, and all other refugee combatants garbed in fine reinforced buff jackets. Their weapons have similarly been upgraded in quality: former mining weapons enhanced for combat use, spears refitted with well-balanced hafts and sharper, more precise points. They have been made uniforms woven by the emerald producers as well, using hues of dark blue and contrasting white, contributing to a more formal appearance. Apparently these are similar to the style of uniform now being made for the Gatekeeper of Water's new Republic.

The artisans of Hive Irix also offer to provide an exceptional quality mundane armor, weapon or tool (Resource 4 base cost or below) to those Celestials who still require it.

Drachma, though initially overwhelmed by the new situation, seems to have taken things in stride. He did protest the uniforms at first, but even he admitted afterward that they helped morale and encouraged solidarity. Still, he often wonders what has, or will become of Tycho and Saffron, gone their own separate ways.

By the end of the rest period, five Hulking Armor Sentinels have been refurbished and rewired for use by Danae and her sapphire helpers. They have yet to be activated, though, as it is still yet uncertain whether they will awake hostile or not. A large, unused outer have cavern has been set aside to deal with last minute adjustments before activation, in particular to ensure the automatons are memory wiped and disconnected from the Earth District network. Danae and others may gather together there, whether to aid in reprogramming, or to stand ready should the HAS units for whatever reason attack.

---

OOC: Int+Lore (five times) to check the sentinels' programming, unless you'll just switch 'em on without bothering. I've assumed the crafting portion was already done as it's just a repair job and Danae would be able to do that easily with her skill, Charms and assistants.

Also if you'll take the exceptional armor/weapon/tool offer, state which you want. (Talia this is above and beyond what you've crafted for yourself.) Edited--should be Res 4 base, not 3.
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:26, Fri 15 May 2009.

"Okay..."  Danae announced, turning the last few screws on the fifth HAS, chewing on the bottom of her lip as she stood away.  She had been tinkering with the programming of the five Sentinels while putting them together--fortunately, she was almost dismayed at how incredibly similar their inner programming was.  Of course, you didn't really need too much sophistication when you were basically letting the network do all the thinking for you.

Of course, when something's rolling outside of the network, then they tend to either not turn on at all, follow last orders (Which in the context of most of these HAS being shattered and beaten up, probably involved killing something), or demand new directives--but the last tended to be a trait only known on slightly greater intellects

Still, when dealing with machines of limited intellect, it was important to give them enough violation to know 'When' they needed to reassess their directives--fortunately, there were enough shattered hulks around that Danae could scavenge a few choice bits from more advanced, older wrecks here and there, and use them to slightly augment the (Deliberately downspecced) Thought Cores of these HAS units.

She also made a point of painting a few blue stripes on them--just to distinguish them from the usual HAS lurking around.  She liked the color blue.

If this worked out--she'd be able to give them new Directives--if she was 'Very' lucky, they would be intelligent enough not to be fooled by plans as simple as what the Celestials were about to pull here.

Oh well, time to hope for the best...


[Private to Gatekeeper:
17:37, Today: Danae Adela rolled 4 successes using 8d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 with rolls of 5,3,10,5,10,6,1,1. Int + Lore (+3 succs) 5.
17:37, Today: Danae Adela rolled 4 successes using 8d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 with rolls of 1,6,7,7,4,4,8,8. Int + Lore (+3 succs) 4.
17:37, Today: Danae Adela rolled 4 successes using 8d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 with rolls of 8,9,8,9,6,5,2,6. Int + Lore (+3 succs) 3.
17:36, Today: Danae Adela rolled 4 successes using 8d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 with rolls of 5,7,8,10,2,3,4,5. Int + Lore (+3 succs) 2.
17:36, Today: Danae Adela rolled 4 successes using 8d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 with rolls of 3,4,3,4,1,1,10,10. Int + Lore (+3 Succs) 1.

Who'd have thoguht it?  5 rolls all gave the same successes?  Spent 6m on each roll to add 3 successes, giving 7 for each, minus any stunt and assistance bonuses ]

Most of the Exalts would likely not notice Higura's slight change in attitude, but Nanaret herself does. Unfortunately, unlike Higura she is not particularly skilled at giving counsel, nor accustomed to expressing sensitivity. Her care shows in less immediate apparent ways; she might linger at his side after training, or suggest that they take breaks more often, engaging him in light conversation.

Once she dares ask Higura about his memories, and listens with quiet interest at what he might reveal. Usually, it is Nanaret doing most of the talking about her mental state, her fragmented memories and the effects of sharing her consciousness with the volatile Ranavalona, so the reversal generates discussions of Higura's nature that she'd not considered before. Her thoughts on Dusan is that Higura himself has not strayed far from the predecessor, except that Higura works more with 'maintenance' than building new minds... or breaking them.

And then the visions, wired to the machine. Serves him right, Rana thinks gleefully. But Nanaret's thoughts are more forgiving, and curious. "What are you, really?" comes the inevitable question, and then the more difficult one: "Why?" There were Celestials like Tycho forced to become partly machine, but that was recent history. Back then, during the Age when Rana and Dusan still lived, their enemies had not been zealous Dragon-blooded. Sometimes their enemies were other Celestials. Could one of them have...?

Winding down from one of the last of her training exercises, Nanaret decides to make her way to the cavern where Danae is about to activate the automatons. Though she can't offer any help with the technical aspect, she has been training up her combat skill and that may well have some use should the machines go haywire. She remembers what Third had informed the group, as well, concerning the weaknesses and blind spots of the armor.

Drawing out Sixth Coil, she waits.

Talia stands nearby, unarmored as always, apparently unarmed as well.  An exquisitely crafted fan is tucked into her sash.  She is hopeful for the successful repair and reprogramming of the Sentinals, but prepares her mind for the worst.  She tries not to consider that her combat style is more suited to fighting against living opponents, who can be distracted or misled, rather than automatons.  She focuses instead on her knowledge of the devices' workings, hoping that undersatnding will aid her, should anything go wrong.

Danae activates the first of the sentinels with a mix of hope and trepidation.

As the operating system boots up, drawing from Essence capacitors and reserve tanks, it goes through several test phases, ensuring the proper function of all the joints, gears and articulated parts. Danae can see the readout on the jade screen behind the back panel she has currently pried open: step-by-step notifications from the boot-up procedure, interposed with intermittent lines of diagnostic data.

Several warnings pop up as well -- a few UNKNOWN REFERENCEs here, some NO DATA FOUNDs there, MEMORY RESET DETECTED: LOADING DEFAULT DATA, and finally, a start-up screen.

FIVE COILS - DISTRICT OF EARTH
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENT SENTINEL OPERATING SYSTEM v7.11c
HULKING ARMOR SENTINEL MARK III - BATCH 5109.07.27
UNIT HAS-030-128

The sentinel's single eye activates in a flare of red light, cautiously scanning its surroundings without moving. The beam passes over the three Exalts currently gathered as well as the two ruby guardians blocking the tunnel leading from the otherwise empty cavern back into the Hive complex. "REQUEST NEW HIERARCHY OF COMMAND AND PRIME DIRECTIVES," it utters in a mechanical, inflectionless voice.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:53, Fri 15 May 2009.

"Yes!!" Danae mentally shouted as she nodded, letting a grin form on her face.  "Your new directives will be as follows--Your Prime Directive will be to serve as protectors of Designated Celestial Exalted and their allies."  She paused for a moment to input the recognition data of the members of the group, as well as to designate both the refugee group, and the residents of Hive Irix as 'Allies'

"Beyond that, you are to obey my commands primarily, and the commands of the Hive Queen, and Designated Celestials if they do not conflict with my own.  Under no circumstances are you to accept commands that would require a direct violation of the Prime Directive."

She stepped back, and gave the HAS units a chance to process this data.  "If you require clarification on any aspect of these directives, you may ask now."
This message was last edited by the player at 21:04, Fri 15 May 2009.

The sentinels, once activated in turn, quickly process the new information and almost simultaneously voice their acknowledgment.

They seem capable of detecting one another's presence, and without prompting link one another into a collective network, conveniently sharing data. Rather than waste energy repeating the same words, the first activated HAS 128 is given 'seniority' among the network peers, and speaks on their behalf.

"THREE CLARIFICATIONS, AS FOLLOWS, IN ORDER OF IMPORTANCE.

"ONE. VISUAL AND VOCAL RECOGNITION REQUIRED FOR ALL DESIGNATED AND ALLIED INDIVIDUALS, AND AT LEAST FIVE REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLES OF ALLY GROUPS. ONCE STORED IN OUR DATABASE, THIS NEED NOT BE REPEATED.

"TWO. PLEASE EXPLAIN FURTHER WHAT 'PROTECTION' ENTAILS. SAMPLE OPTIONS: PASSIVE INTERCEPTION, HOSTILE ACTION, NOTIFICATION OF NEXT IN COMMAND. FURTHER DIRECTIONS MAY BE SPECIFIED.

"THREE. MODE OF ADDRESS. DEFAULT IS 'MASTER'. IS THIS ACCEPTABLE, MASTER?"

In any case, it appears there will be no opportunity for Nanaret or Talia to test their combat skill this time around -- unless of course Danae wishes them to test their capabilities. But it may be best not to press her luck; it was enough of a feat to reset and recalibrate the sentinels' memories with such uniform success.

---

OOC: We should probably sum this up pretty soon, so I can bring other PCs back into the posting. (edited, cause I didn't think anyone else was paying attention, heh!) [Private to Danae Adela: We can assume that you have the time to get everyone necessary (including the Queen) to get scanned and speak in the presence of the sentinels, so all the hierarchy and ally definitions are stored. If you have any further adjustments or directions for the sentinels that might be glossed over in my next time skip, we can discuss those in PM.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:24, Fri 15 May 2009.