CAVE: Conquering Alliance of Villainous Evil!

[Earl of Purple]

CAVE Airspace

A tandem-rotor helicopter is approaching, a rather ugly one, painted sky-blue with large black SSG stencilled on each side, the letters shaped to resemble chains. It's large, with enough space for maybe forty human-scale individuals.

The Skyside Slaver's Guild are sending a representative, and possibly gifts.

Approaching from the South-East

Three horsemen are galloping towards the mountains. The first horse is a large black stallion, ridden by a tall, swarthy-skinned man with long black hair hanging in braids past his ears and decorated with glass beads and a bushy black beard. His eyes are dark green, and he wears a chainmail shirt, reddish-brown leather trousers and a red cloak rimmed with tassels. Belted at his waist is a curved sabre, and he has a crossbow hanging from his saddle. The next rider is a woman, wearing a tattered blue-grey dress, with pale skin, long blonde hair and blue-grey eyes. She's apparently unarmed, and her horse is a pretty brown mare. Then, a very large black-skinned man with a shaven head, black eyes and a vicious scar where his left ear should be, wearing a steel breastplate over a dirty brown shirt and carrying a long spear, riding a large piebald horse. Behind these riders are two horses laden with supplies.

[Nova_Eclipse]

Southeast Peak

"Hmmm, very interesting. How many can you control at once?" Balthius asks, the fingers of his left hand waggling in mid-air, as though he's typing something on a nonexistent keyboard. "I am trying to ascertain how to integrate your abilities into our larger forces, you see."

HQ Courtyard

"I see," says Chaeron with an understanding nod. "We are similar, you and I, in that we've both been changed by....traumatic experiences, shall we say. But the world for me, and for those of my allies, is always changing. Such is the nature of our unending journey. One copes as best one can. Coming here cost us dearly, and arriving in this...Nexus, was not our intent. But if the rumors are true, it seems reaching this place is far easier than escaping. So, until our strength has truly recovered, we must make due, and thus, we've begun operations here." He looks to his assembled troops for a moment, before looking back to Malice. "If you're interested, I am inclined to share details at length, but I would like to know what your goals are, having been changed so by your death and subsequent escape from hell."


CAVE Airspace

The helicopter will recieve a radio call as they approach CAVE airspace.

"Inbound unidentified helicopter, you are approaching restricted airspace. Identify yourself immediately, or you will be fired upon."

Approaching from the South-East

As they near the mountain, the riders will start to encounter clockwork forces on the move, along with several large machines that could be golems of some kind. At first, the soldiers in the fields pay the riders no mind, but as they get closer and closer to the mountain, the patrols will become more frequent, until at last they arrive at a checkpoint, an area that appears to have a barrier of some sort that doesn't seem to be easily skirted. The clockwork soldiers at this outpost seem to be more carefully constructed, and one of them actually speaks, albeit in a rhythmic monotone that reminds one of a ticking clock.

"Halt. Restricted area ahead. Authorized personnel only. State your business."

[bc56]

Southeast Peak

"How many people can you afford to sacrifice?" Gem responds. "The real limit is that they don't last long, only a week or two. It can be extended with more rituals, but not forever." She could summon as many spirits as there are sacrifices available and time to perform the rituals, but they'd only stick around for a limited time. She knows a few loopholes, but they won't keep working indefinitely.

[Earl of Purple]

CAVE Airspace

There's a reply on the same frequency. "This is the transport shuttle Skyhorse of the Skyside Slaver's Guild, requesting access and landing." The old Russian helicopter will slow down and start to hover, not getting closer until permission is granted- or denied, at which point it will turn and fly off again.

South-East Barricade

"My business, good sir, is to sign up. I am Arzad Tanja, the Scoundrel." The word 'scoundrel' is imbued with power when he says it; for him, it's more than a title. "These are my boon companions, Lady Audrey of Salia and a mute I call Smash. May we approach?" The large black man nods, but doesn't look too impressed, whilst Audrey is a little afraid. None of them have seen anything like this; technology and magic of this type is not available on their homeworld.

[Halae]

[Nearby Mountains]

Mountains are rarely alone. The tallest peaks are always surrounded by a number of their lesser peers, and though a massive army can move quickly, that doesn't mean it can move instantly over a huge army. Logistics means that you can't sweep across the land like a flood so easily as all that, and due to their heightened elevation, mountains are some of the most difficult terrains to conquer. Less so with airships of course, but fortifying them is still a challenge.

There's an individual taking advantage of this problem of logistics, having set up a small hidden camp. Limited smoke, in among the gray and green rocks, with most of her equipment hidden within a small indent into the mountain, too small to truly be called a cave. A massive gray cooler is being used to keep supplies in, though a little of what's inside has already been used. There's no tent, or bedroll, or anything like that, as while this is meant to be a stay of a few days, the individual camping out here is in no danger from the cold or exposure due to the extremely tough nature of her body.

Said individual is not far from the wall indent. She's wearing gray camo pants and a massive ghillie suit meant to hide her from prying eyes - while it wouldn't fool someone up close, from as far as a hundred feet away, she's near indistinguishable from the rock face she's camped out against. She's been careful not to be spotted by those below, but at some point, they might have caught the glint of the telescope she's using the observe the CAVE headquarters. Her hands work on a notebook pad of paper that sits in her lap, marking down comings and goings of notable individuals as she watches quietly; the behemoth of a woman is doing reconnaissance at the moment, not planning to attack without a better idea of the setting for engagement, and objectives she'll have to pursue if she's going to disrupt their activities in the region and keep them from spreading.

"Robots..." she mutters to herself. There's so many robots, zombies, and other automatons in this mass; it's made keeping track of the actual personnel in the group actually surprisingly easy, and the approach of the Not-Magtok has been recorded as well. The question is whether she'll remain undetected long enough to get away with her intel.

[Lord Magtok]

HQ Courtyard

Spoiler

Show

HQ Courtyard

"I see," says Chaeron with an understanding nod. "We are similar, you and I, in that we've both been changed by....traumatic experiences, shall we say. But the world for me, and for those of my allies, is always changing. Such is the nature of our unending journey. One copes as best one can. Coming here cost us dearly, and arriving in this...Nexus, was not our intent. But if the rumors are true, it seems reaching this place is far easier than escaping. So, until our strength has truly recovered, we must make due, and thus, we've begun operations here." He looks to his assembled troops for a moment, before looking back to Malice. "If you're interested, I am inclined to share details at length, but I would like to know what your goals are, having been changed so by your death and subsequent escape from hell."

Malice grins. He said it, he said the words! He said we're not so different, you and I! Maybe not in those exact words, but close enough. Even better, Chaeron probably doesn't even recognize the significance of it. It's likely just how he talks, without a single ounce of irony. You know what that means though, right? It isn't an act for him, all of this ruin and conquest imagery. He's the real deal, Malice! The beautiful gem you've been waiting for! The Abbot to your Costello, the Hobbes to your Calvin, the Bert to your Ernie! The perfect comedic straight man and an immensely powerful strategic ally, all in one package! Oh man, this is going to be so much fun! Worming our way into the hearts of his legions, figuring out his hold over them, plotting a swift and decisive coup to take all of CAVE for himself...or maybe we could settle for simply being the power behind the throne, and manipulate our way into getting Chaeron to trust our every word.

We're getting ahead of ourselves, though. We have plenty of options available, and there's no real need to rush into anything just yet. Obviously we're just going to go with the flow for now, trade some basic information on the Nexus itself and the people in power, maybe join the organization too. Not going to go into Inside and murder any cops for this guy, though. Not yet, but maybe in a few months if it sounds like he has a decent plan for moving in on Inside, possibly...

"Oh, I don't want for much, really," Malice starts, holding up a hand so he can count his goals and aspirations on his fingers, as if he'd written all of this out ahead of time, and wasn't making up each and every request on the fly. "A glowing spotlight upon me as I take center stage, my name up in lights, maybe a wacky song and dance number. All while the MagCave's inhabitants are dragged out before me and executed via firing squad, Inside's police force is set ablaze, and VIGIL is shot right out of the sky. Oh, and a needlessly ostentatious title and rank that have no correlation with any actual duties or responsibilities I might have. Also, a nice hat, a t-shirt that says 'I joined CAVE and all I got was this lousy t-shirt' on it, a pony, three body doubles with extremely thick mustaches and/or foreign accents, a fourth body double who is pretty obviously a woman wearing a bald cap, the username and password to your personal Nexflix account as soon as you get one, and a complete and pristine set of teeth surgically removed from a live elf's mouth, without so much as a single cracked crown or bruised bicuspid. That should be enough to keep me happy and satisfied for one lifetime, I think." Wow, way to lay all your cards on the table all at once, Malice. Rasputin doesn't even bother paying attention to any of this nonsense anymore, turning his back to Chaeron from his place atop Malice's shoulder, to instead watch the robots and soldiers go by.

[Nova_Eclipse]

Southeast Peak

"Hmm, I see. We may need to begin sorting captives, then." Balthius says with a nod. He leans back, and puts his feet back up. "Well, my dear, I can say your services will be most welcome here. The Alliance offers many benefits. For one, we share resources, which includes troops, weapons, and any natural resources we can exploit. While we freely offer these resources to Alliance members, those members are then expected to make the best use of them they can in furthering our goal of conquest, acquisition of resources, and growth. Do well, and you'll gain more status among the other members. You may even gain the favor of one of the dragons, as I have. Those of us with the favor of the dragons outrank those who have not yet attained that honor, and those unattained are expected to follow the orders of those who have. Simple, yes?"

He sweeps one arm around, to indicate the entirety of CAVE's base.

"I can give you the grand tour, if you'd like, or we can just give you an ID and you can explore at your leisure. We're still working on expanding our living quarters, but you're free to set up where ever you can find some spare room that will fit for now, and we can expand that space as you need it. Questions?"

CAVE Airspace

There's a pause for a moment, before the controller comes back on the comm.

"Transport Skyhorse, you are cleared for entry. Please follow the landing beacon. Escorts are being dispatched." The pilot should now be able to pick up a landing beacon that will lead the craft in to one of the helipads. Shortly, a number of green and white flying craft will fall into formation to escort the chopper in. When it nears the helipad, the occupants will notice a number of soldiers just off to the edges, watching the helicopter come in. Among them is a raven-haired woman in heavy, futuristic armor, who watches the helicopter as it lands, and waits for the occupants to disembark before approaching.

South-East Barricade


"Hold here. This unit will summon command-class to assist." The clockwork soldier makes a buzzing noise for a moment, then nods. Shortly, a man dressed in black will be seen flying overhead, before dropping in a cloud of black and grey smoke. When the smoke clears, he smiles at the group.

"So, you are looking to join up, yes? Come with me, please." The soldiers in the checkpoint move aside as he leads the group towards the HQ.

[Nearby Mountains]

The individual will probably note that while the force musters many automatons, there are also quite a number of individuals who seem more autonomous. She's probably already noted the raven-haired woman and the black madman who seem to command the bulk of the forces, but the man talking with Not-Magtok is a relative rarity. All of the soldiers seem to obey him as well, which means he has some sort of rank. Clearly, one to watch.

There also seem to be a number of newcomers who have started to appear. Thankfully, none of the forces below seem to have noticed her yet, but that may not last too long as they continue to expand.

HQ Courtyard

Chaeron listens to Malice's list with an odd expression. Serious, but amused nonetheless. He smiles when Malice finishes.

"Well, as long as it's not in that order, some of that could be fulfilled right now," he says, "But some might need some further discussion. We do plan on taking on VIGIL eventually, but this MagCave you speak of...I assume there are things there that we might find...useful?"

[bc56]

Southeast Peak

Gem nods. "Excellent. That is simple enough." She considers for a moment, before answering the second question. "A tour would be helpful. This place is too massive to explore alone, at least at first." Once she has a place to live set up, she can send her minions to scout out and map the other sections of the base. "And could you see to it that my things are brought up here? They're on my horse and donkey."

[Halae]

[Nearby Mountains]

Emily will keep focused for the moment. She's got the beginnings of dossiers written up for all the command staff she's seen so far, having given them all codenames until she can hear their actual names or, failing that, designations. She's also keeping a list of the different forces she can see as part of the dossier files

Forces as a Whole
● Disjointed, suggesting various sources. Dimensional? Ethnic? More data required.
● Well controlled ranks of soldiers, but minimal biological presence. Most soldiers are automatons.
● Unknown intelligence level among automatons.
● Unknown production ability.
● High technology level with sporadic elements. Either the creation of different times and places, or the creation of different powerful minds.
● Require a headquarters. Location indicates intelligence and preference for entrenched positions.
● Nearby mountains deemed unsafe in large groups. High chance of scouts being detected. Traverse with caution.
● Artillery present; not a threat to other fortifications, suggesting defensive array.
● Willing to deal with slavers and take slaves of their own.
● Interacting with what appears to be a rogue Magtok. Shared mechanical and biological secrets likely.
● Based on Magtok interaction, MagCave assault deemed likely.

Clockwork
● Erratic behaviour. Seen laughing seemingly without reason. Odd movement patterns.
● Cyborg. The extent of cybernetic augmentations unknown but likely extensive. Technology seems primitive, but intricate.
● Black and Gold color scheme.
● Appears to have primary control of clockwork automatons.
● Based on cybernetics, is likely originator of clockwork designs.
● Likely classic monologuer. Keep talking if surrounded, otherwise eliminate with speed.

Lady Red
● Tight control of automatons, leading with focus and determination.
● Extreme martial skill. Avoid direct confrontation if possible.
● Mechanical inserts suggest either cybernetic modification on robotic physiology. More data needed.
● Appears to have command of primary humanoid-like automatons. Intelligence and reasoning ability are likely high.
● Black and red smooth armor.

Brass-tok
● Exhibits Magtok-like exaggerated movements and melodrama.
● Head in a jar(???) follows him around on cybernetic spider legs. Enjoys perching on his shoulder.
● Seems to have impressed Warlord
● An airship that's capable of high altitude movement. Other capabilities are unknown.
● Differentiation from normal Magtok appears to be brassy cybernetics, red robe
● Likely a mixture of biological and cybernetic expertise. Probably has use for captives in experiments.

Warlord
● Rarely shows himself
● A conventionally handsome man, but unremarkable otherwise.
● Powers? Abilities? Unknown
● Keeping control of Lady Red and Clockwork suggests strong leadership qualities, minimum.
● Access to high technology implies defensive measures taken to keep him safe, as well as bearing high-grade equipment.
● Appears to have diplomatic skills.
●
●

The dossier is frustratingly empty on the finer details of all the commanders. With Warlord out in the yard greeting the rogue Magtok, however, there's an interesting opportunity to see him in action. Her telescope is focused on the conversation in the courtyard, attempting to find out what she can about the man in the jacket from afar, and perhaps find out precisely what they're planning. Under her ghillie mantle, she takes continuous bites of pemmican, keeping her energy up as she stays focused on her current vigil.

[Earl of Purple]

Helipad

The helicopter's crew note the escorts and follow the beacon, landing at the correct helipad. After it lands, five people disembark, though there's plenty of space aboard for more. The first is a well-dressed man, with pale skin, watery blue eyes and thinning blond hair, though he's not yet forty. He wears a black suit of old-fashioned cut, and there's a large centipede with yellow legs resting on his shoulder. Next, there's a large and thuggish human with a shaven head, brown eyes and tanned skin, wearing a dirty breastplate and large earrings, bearing a hefty cudgel. Next are the pilots, wearing matching green plaid shirts and battered jeans, but one has a red flight helmet and a large 10mm pistol and the other has taken their helmet off, revealing a dirty white man with a O+ tattooed to his forehead, and carrying a big revolver. The final person to disembark is the flight engineer, an oil-spattered dwarf wearing a mechanic's jumpsuit with cut-down sleeves, carrying a couple of tools; he'll turn and make a few checks of the helicopter, accompanied by a pilot.

The well-dressed man, the first to disembark, speaks first. "My name is Theodore Bagsmyth, and I have been tasked with welcoming you to the Nexus, and ideally setting up a trade agreement. Do you have the authority to arrange such a thing?" He smiles, and doesn't seem too worried about the fact he's inside a potentially hostile fortress with no chance of escape if CAVE disagrees with slavery. "We do have some gifts, if we can make a deal."

South-East Barricade

They'll wait, a little impatiently, until their guide arrives. The Scoundrel smiles at him when he arrives, and disembarks, motioning for his followers to do likewise. "Indeed we are. I am the Scoundrel, Arzad Tanja." Once again, he's lying about his name but there's power about the title he's claimed; 'Scoundrel' isn't just a word when he says it. "May I ask what your name is, and what rank you hold in this... organisation?" He's not entirely sure why he's here; or where he is, for that matter. Providence is not always informative.

[Morty]

[Above the Southwest Peak]

The sky above the south-western peak of the base darkens. Or rather, it will feel as though it does, even though it looks exactly the same as it did just a minute ago. The wind picks up, carrying the scent of sand and something else, difficult to place. Old tomes and manuscripts? Not something the inhabitants are used to, probably.

Soon after, something appears in the sky. It appears to be a small-sized spacecraft, one that doesn't look suited to interstellar travel. There seems to be little about it that would justify the foreboding accompanying its arrival. The ship approaches the base, but stops just short of entering its airspace before broadcasting a radio message to anyone who's listening.

"Larukh of the Thousand Sons is requesting permission to land," says a voice that sounds human, but not quite. It's booming and oddly devoid of emotion.

[Nova_Eclipse]

Southeast Peak

Balthius jumps up, clapping his hands together once with a large smile.

"Wonderful! I've already called for your things, they'll be brought and stored safely until you've chosen a space, and then brought there for you." He starts for the door. "Come this way, and I'll show you around."

[Nearby Mountains]

Emily might have noticed that a few birds have taken to the sky today, circling above the peaks, occasionally diving towards the forests that CAVE hasn't cut down yet, ostensibly hunting for prey. A number of vultures have started to circle above CAVE's HQ, though. It's hard to tell what they're focused on, though, with so many buildings in the way.

Helipad

The raven-haired woman frowns as Theodore introduces himself. She had thought coming up onto the helipad alone would reinforce the idea that she had some authority, but apparently, the man is not as perceptive as she hoped. Her eyes smolder orange for a moment, but her voice is low and even when she speaks.

"Commander Kaydara of the Red Dragon of Terra. And yes, Mr. Bagsmyth, I do have that authority. I would not be here to meet you if I did not. If you wish to discuss business further, you will instruct your men to remain with your vehicle, and follow me. Clear?"

South-East Barricade

The man in black chuckles, his artificial eye buzzing as it focuses.

"I am Dr. Balthius Volgin, Commander of the Black Dragon of Europa. I share the position of Second-in-Command of the Alliance with Kaydara, Commander of the Red Dragon of Terra. Our leader is a very busy man, you see, so among other things, we handle many of the business aspects of the Alliance, as well as interviewing new potential allies, such as yourselves. Satisfactory, yes?"


[Above the Southwest Peak]

"Permission granted. Please follow the landing beacon," Is the simple response from the base's controller. The beacon will lead the ship down into a suitable landing zone, where a man in black power armor awaits, surrounded by troops, a bit of his officer's uniform visible from the armor's gorget. He seems unaffected by the foreboding the ship's arrival has caused, though some of his troops shift uneasily, weapons held at the ready. He waits eagerly, to see what sort of people have sought out the Alliance this day.

[bc56]

Southeast Peak

"Yes, yes, you can hide again." Gem says to the smoky spirit as she follows Balthius out. It resumes its previous position hiding in her shadow, and once again makes itself hard to see. Since Balthius knows it's there, he should be immune to its effect now, if he couldn't see through it already. It spends its time glaring at anything it passes by with hateful curiosity.

[Morty]

[Above the Southwest Peak]

"Acknowledged."

There's no more communication from the ship as it follows the beacon and lands. Its engines die down and a landing ramp extends from it. From it, six figures emerge - four giant, two human.

The group is led by a man who looks to be over two metres tall - or he would be, as the bulky power armor he's wearing makes him even taller. Painted in dark blue and gold, the armor quietly hisses and clicks with his every step. He's not wearing his helmet, which is instead held by a magnetic latch on his armor. The face revealed this way is human, but angular and unsmiling, with features oddly shaped by whatever has turned this man into a hulking giant. His skin is fairly dark and the very short hair looks to be jet-black. His eyes are piercing purple, narrow and fiendishly intelligent. In his hand is a long staff adorned by an eye of some kind of precious gem.

The three other giants marching in lockstep behind him are wearing similar armor but holding bulky firearms instead. Their helmets are on as well, hiding their faces entirely. There's something subtly off about them, and one can wonder just what is hiding behind those helmets. There's a stiffness and lack of grace to their movements. As if their limbs move by some force that's neither muscles nor the artificial joints and servos of their armor.

Dwarfed by the heavily-armored superhumans are two human women who look altogether normal. One has dusky skin and dark braided hair, while the other has pale skin, delicate features and unsymmetrically shaven head. They both bear a mark on their left cheek, which appears to be a stylized serpent eating its own tail. They wear ornate robes in a gold, blue and purple color scheme, resembling the armor of the warriors next to them. They flank the man with the staff in silence.

The entire group stops a respectful distance from the welcoming party and the staff-bearing man speaks in the same booming, but also detached and clinical voice that was heard through the communicator.

"I am Larukh of the Thousand Sons and these are my followers. I have come to offer my services, as well as those of my cohorts, to the masters of this place."

[Halae]

[Southwest Mountains]

A lot is happening, given the situation, but Emily does, in fact, notice that the vultures are circling. That's... odd; vultures don't kill things, since they have the most secure food source anywhere (everything dies eventually, and something is dead at any given time), meaning they leave anything that's still moving alone. If they're circling above the compound, that means there's a huge amount of carrion or soon-to-be-carrion there.

This merits more investigation, but from the peak she's currently situated on, she can't get a proper look at the location, telescope or not. After a bit of internal deliberation, she'll fold up her telescope and slip it into a carrying case so it isn't broken in transit, and picks up a bundle of pemmican from the cooler, which she'll leave here on the mountaintop for now. The notebook goes with the telescope into the case, and before long, she's climbing down from the mountain she was on top of. It'll still be her camp, which is why she's not bringing along her cooler, but she does need to set up in another spot for the moment.

She'll carefully and quietly make her way down the mountain, using her powerful sense of smell to avoid any patrol routes she comes across, as she goes to set up on the next peak over. It's higher, and a different location than the other spot - hopefully it has the vantage point she needs.

[Earl of Purple]

Helipad

"I am honoured that we inspire such an important person coming to meet us." Theodore is surprised; he'd assumed the most important members would be deep inside the fortress, and anyone sent to meet them would be ultimately expendable. The Guild's paranoia is pretty extreme. It's not his perceptiveness that's the problem, but his expectations. "Stay here, everyone, we are amongst friends." The cudgel-wielder frowns, but stays put. He was hired specifically as Theodore's bodyguard, but looks like he's got unexpected time off.

He'll follow Commander Kaydara, leaving the various mercenaries and crew behind. One of the pilots is looking around curiously, though he's not hiding his observation.

South-East Barricade

"Very much so." The Scoundrel grins, glad to hear he'd be an ally, not a subordinate. If so, Providence be damned he'd be riding away. Although that would require getting back on his horse, and possibly losing one or both of his companions at this stage. Scoundrel is not a leadership Name, so there's little he can do to protect them that way, but neither is so vital they couldn't be replaced.

Earl's perception is questionable, as I had not noticed they were being led to the HQ before, so they're following a little anxiously in the case of Audrey, impassively in the case of Smash and somewhat arrogantly in the case of Arzad himself.

[Lord Magtok]

HQ Courtyard

Chaeron listens to Malice's list with an odd expression. Serious, but amused nonetheless. He smiles when Malice finishes.

"Well, as long as it's not in that order, some of that could be fulfilled right now," he says, "But some might need some further discussion. We do plan on taking on VIGIL eventually, but this MagCave you speak of...I assume there are things there that we might find...useful?"

There's a brief moment of silent tension when Chaeron expresses interest in the MagCave. I don't think Malice was actually expecting anything like that. People so rarely express interest in anything technological in this world of magic, but given the nature of Chaeron's forces, maybe we should've seen this coming. Regardless, the lair belongs to the cyborgs, not this jackbooted thug. As loathsome and degenerate as Magtok might be, Malice would sooner see the purple-robed failure cry and whine and quiver in the cave forever than allow Chaeron to own it. Chaeron might be convinced to help take the MagCave from Magtok, but it could not, should not, will never be shared with him. Never ever never. That subterranean fortress and everything within it belongs to Malice! Not you, not him, not anyone else!

"Possibly," Malice admits, uncharacteristically cagey. "We'd only just begun excavating when I died. Anything in there is mine, though." We might share our technological genius with you, loan out innumerable aberrations of steel and science, construct thousands of Malbots for your war, but make no mistake, Chaeron. Your crown, your dragons, your armies, these will not make you our leader, or even our equal. We do not bow.

[Nova_Eclipse]

Southeast Peak -> CAVE Tour

Balthius leads Gem down a hallway, and around a few twists and turns, then down several flights of stairs, before they emerge in another long hallway. There are doors here and there, but not the normal, more conventionally-sized ones she's seen so far for the most part. These are thick and heavy and metal. Some stand open, while others are locked shut.

"This is our lab area for the time being. The Red Dragon people don't tend to use it much, but I use it extensively, and I expect this is where you might want to work some of your magic."

He gestures to one of the standing open doors, pausing as they reach it.

"After you, my dear."

[Above the Southwest Peak-> HQ Landing Pad]

The officer in power armor strides forwards confidently. Although he's still smaller than Larukh despite the power armor, he seems pleased to see the giant, and displays none of the uneasiness some of his troops are displaying.

"Welcome, Larukh. I am Chaeron, leader of the Conquering Alliance, and I have heard tell of the prowess of the Thousand Suns." Long ago and far from here, that was, but no need to mention it now. "The Alliance welcomes you and your cohorts. Come, let us discuss your services, and how we can help each other." He turns halfway, and gestures towards one of the buildings behind him, as his troops quickly move aside to create a protective corridor towards an entrance large enough for even Larukh to comfortably fit through.

[Southwest Mountains]

As Emily descends, she's going to notice an odd scent. Nature...mixed with electronics, grease, and oil. Something (or perhaps several somethings) natural, and yet, not wholly natural, is nearby. The smell becomes stronger the more she descends, though it's not noticeable enough to most creatures without enhanced senses of smell. There seem to be less animals in the area today, too, which is odd as well. Curious.

[Helipad->HQ Offices]

"Those of us entrusted with command are...difficult to kill, shall we say, and I prefer to lead by example," Kaydara says, turning on her heel. She leads Theodore down, off the helipad, and into a nearby building, to an elevator. Down two floors, and into an ornate conference room. She doesn't speak again until she's installed herself at the head seat at the table. She gestures to one of the open chairs.

"Have a seat." She'll wait for him to sit, before going on. "Now, Mr. Bagsmyth, you mentioned you wanted to set up a trade agreement. Given your organization's name, I can guess what goods you trade in. What sort of agreement are you looking for? We may be interested in both buying and selling goods."

[South-East Barricade -> South-East Quadrant]

"Tell me about yourselves while we make our way. What do you hope to gain from joining the Alliance?" Balthius asks, not slowing his pace. The mountain is growing ever larger, despite their moderate pace, but there's still some time before they reach any of the buildings looming in the distance.

[HQ Courtyard]

"Of course," Chaeron says with a smile, picking up on Malice's sudden caginess. He suspects what Malice's hang-up may be. "Perhaps I misspoke. By 'we', I meant in the collective sense only, since you did say you wished to join the Alliance. That name is not just for show; those who are accepted into our ranks are given access to our resources, but they are expected to contribute to our overall goals in return, and not to squander the resources they were given. That's not to say that resources are not expendable, but that they need to be expended in a manner that produces a net gain." His smile fades to a more practical expression.

"As an example, say we provided an invasion force for you to command, with the goal of seizing the MagCave. You would take our soldiers and attain your goal. You keep the MagCave and its contents, and, in the future, say we needed some extra intelligence, or perhaps the use of one of the devices that you managed to recover, in support of either one of the Dragons' goals, or the goals of another Alliance member, you would provide these resources in equal measure to what was used to attain your goal. Give and take, co-operation, you see. We are neither a business, nor a charity. We offer mutual resources for Alliance members to use, and mutual protection from those who would wish to harm us or to thwart our plans. Does that clarify somewhat?"

[Halae]

[Southwest Mountains]

Emily scents the air a bit. Hmm. Something's wrong here.

Despite her great size, Emily's a surprisingly quiet person when she wants to be, and the ghillie suit helps by letting her appear to be, well, a large boulder. So, for now, she'll start pursuing the scent, trying to get closer to the source to see what's going on and whether it needs immediate intervention. If it doesn't she'll be heading up the other mountain towards that vantage point she wanted to get on the camp. Investigating this takes priority, though, due to the fact that she doesn't know how long it'll last.

[bc56]

CAVE Tour

Gem smiles and goes through. "Thank you." She would prefer a more private setting for her rituals. Any disturbance could have significant effects. She'll still take in everything, getting a feel for the place. The creature in her shadow does likewise, drinking in every detail through its sinister gaze.

[Earl of Purple]

Helipad --> HQ Offices

Theodore nods in understanding, but he seems quite unfit- he's breathing heavily by the time they reach the elevator. He sits down quite eagerly and the centipede scampers into a pocket, before reemerging with a packet of pills in its mandibles. Theodore takes the packet, strokes the centipede and swallows a tablet. "Yes, a deal. We find the market in the Nexus is primarily a luxury market, for young and attractive individuals. Any goods with specialist skills we either have to employ ourselves or ship off-world, to places where they sell better. This is quite expensive, and there are only so many doctors one can find places for. As an army, however, I think too many doctors isn't a complaint you could have, or mechanics given how many automatons I have seen here."

[Morty]

[Above the Southwest Peak-> HQ Landing Pad]

Larukh follows, as do the three silent armored soldiers and two women.

"My other cultists and slaves will remain on the ship for now," he says. "They will disembark once we have reached an arrangement."

[Nova_Eclipse]

[HQ Landing Pad -> CAVE HQ Main Building]

Chaeron leads the group inside the building, down a short hall, and into a meeting room. Obviously, this part of the building was meant to accommodate creatures of wildly varying sizes, and the soldiers will have no trouble fitting through the various doors and halls. The meeting room has a number of seats in varying sizes, as well, including ones to accommodate the soldiers and their bulky armor. There's also a somewhat odd table, in that it's taller than normal for humans, but shorter than it would need to be for the soldiers. Curiously, the seats are fastened to the floor as well. Chaeron gestures at the seats, and takes the one at the head of the table.

"Please, take a seat, all of you." He'll wait until they're all seated, at which point, both the table and the seats adjust themselves slightly, so that the table is at a comfortable height for the soldiers, and the seats raise the smaller members of the meeting up to a comfortable level with the table. Once that's done, Chaeron looks to Larukh. "Now then, I'd like to hear what the Alliance can do for you, in return for your services."

[HQ Offices]

Kaydara considers for a moment, before speaking.

"Doctors might be useful for us in the future; as you've observed, much of our current force is artificial in nature, but I expect that to change as we gather members. Both will be useful as lab assistants, though. I am curious about another class of goods you may or may not have a market for: those without special skills, and unable to be classified as luxury goods. Is there a good supply of such individuals here?"

[CAVE Tour]

Through the door, Gem will find a massive room, set up as a laboratory. It's obviously not used, though, since everything is laid out as though it's being stored. Balthius gestures around.

"I trust a space like this will be adequate for your work needs?"

[Southwest Mountains]

Emily won't have far to go, as presently, several small animals come close to where she's hiding. But this close, she can see, they're not normal. One eye has been replaced with cybernetics on each of the two squirrels, and the rabbit's ears have been replaced by a pair of flexible metal tentacles that end in large dishes, like satellite antennas. None seem to be reacting to her presence yet, but it's clear CAVE has done something to these animals, and it's likely if the animals notice her, she'll be dealing with more than just bad smells and creepily altered fauna.

[bc56]

CAVE Tour

"This is more than adequate." For what Gem wants to do, it's downright gigantic. "I can definitely work with this." The cloud of smoke seems less impressed. There's nowhere to hide, and the lights are too bright. It prefers dark, enclosed spaces.

[Halae]

[Southwest Mountains]

After a bit of concerned looking at the cyborg woodland creatures, Emily decides not to intervene with them, stepping away from where she's found them to go back towards the path she was taking up the mountain. It wouldn't serve anyone but CAVE if she were to be spotted here, and that means there's little reason to try and bother them. This is definitely going into the notebook once she's got a moment, though.

[Earl of Purple]

HQ Offices- Slaver's Guild

"We have a supply of basic labourers, yes. We don't import many, as the market for them isn't very large, though that could change." Theodore is a little surprised; he wasn't expecting CAVE to have much trouble sourcing labourers on their own, since they'd seized a goblin colony and dwarf mine. "If you mean to strike out and capture some, rather than buy them... Yes, there is a good supply of labourers available, if you know where to look. Many of the small communities close to Skyside and our trade routes are either well-hidden or pay us to leave them alone, an arrangement more profitable than simply riding in and taking everyone away." The larger ones are usually too well-defended to raid easily.

[Morty]

[CAVE HQ Main Building]

Larukh seems slightly confused by what "all of you" means. After a moment, however, he orders the women to sit down with a slight incline of his head. The three armored warriors, however, remain standing.

"They cannot sit. Once we have reached an accord, I will explain why that is." Once he's seated himself, he continues. "I have separated from my erstwhile brothers and I lack the resources to support myself and my entourage. My armor alone requires maintenance by qualified tech-adepts, and none of my followers qualify as such. I also lack the facilities I require for my studies and summoning daemon servants. Thus my proposed deal is simple. Your resources and facilities in exchange for my sorcery and services of my cohorts."

[5a Violista]

[HQ Training Gym]

Nemo did, in fact, retreat towards Kaydara. It looked like the safest place, and a good place to catch her breath.

The former goblin, falling quickly to the bloodlust, looks around with all his eyes. He mentally categorizes everyone around in order from weakest to strongest. He flexes and razor feathers fire out, in an effort to herd all the unaltered victims/volunteers together. He doesn't care about whether he cuts them or not - because the end goal is to cut them, after all. From the cuts, the blood and other body fluids start to drain out and move towards his various eyes. Once an eye has drained enough blood, it stops appearing bloodshot and stops draining fluids.

The formerly-human male then falls to his hunger. He spies the cornered victims and starts to head towards them, but then the goblin's feathers deter him and cut him. With his pheromones there's no way he could have sneaked past it. With no other nearby prey, he turns towards the woman who is still chained up and desperately praying and trying to not fall victim to her hunger. His beard-ropes shoot out and wrap around the woman and start to draw her in towards his unhinged mouth.

At first, it looks like the man will succeed in consuming the woman, given that he already took a bite out of her side (his injuries from the goblin's feathers quickly knit themselves together), but then she reaches out her hands to stop him and drains some of his mental processes in self-defense. It satiates her and causes him to let go, reeling in pain.

The woman breaks the chains and quickly backs away from everybody into a corner, terrified of the feathery goblin, the thorny man, the two by the entrance, and terrified of her own hunger. She won't go after anyone else for now, but in the future when she starts starving she's afraid of what she'll do.

The former man, now no longer thinking straight, and starving, looks around for where to go. Those other two already injured him so he doesn't want to go towards them, and so there's only one last place he can go.

He starts to charge at Kaydara, trying to either eat her or get past her. His ropelike beard shoots out to try to grab the Red Dragon's leader.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[HQ Training Gym]

Kaydara watches intently, assessing the usefulness of these monsters. She seems impressed, but the man turning towards her isn't exactly unexpected after his injury and the woman proving herself tougher prey than he could have predicted. However, he'll find the Red Dragon leader even more difficult prey, as although Kaydara looks human for the most part, she is something far different.

Quick as a flash, Kaydara extends a hand towards the man. A split second later, a massive beam of burning orange-white plasma is streaking towards him, a beam large enough to engulf him entirely, and powerful enough to vaporize him if he does nothing to try and avoid it. Although she doesn't expect him to be able to dodge it, the Red Dragon leader stays alert. These monsters are impressive enough that they could surprise her, and it seems that Nemo is still learning how to control some of her power, which makes caution around her creations even more prudent, at least, for the time being.

[CAVE HQ Main Building]

Chaeron folds his hands in front of his mouth, resting his chin on his thumbs as Larukh explains his proposal. When the warrior finishes, he's silent and still for a moment, considering. Finally, he lowers his hands to the table, but doesn't unfold them, fixing Larukh with a curious expression.

"I see. A simple proposal on its surface, but there are a few questions that must be answered before I can determine if we can accept your offer. The largest one being, why did you separate from your brothers?" He waits for an answer to this question. Harboring fugitives is one thing, but fugitives with massive armies hunting them is currently not something he has the forces to deal with, unless those fugitives are bringing armies of their own. He's hoping, however, that Larukh's separation was under better circumstances, and perhaps the warrior is just stranded here in the Nexus as he is.

[HQ Offices- Slaver's Guild]

Kaydara nods, and folds her hands in front of her, considering for a moment. Basic laborers are the preferred use for such people after all, but CAVE has a more nefarious use for them. Not that she needs to mention that. Besides, the Slaver's Guild probably doesn't care what happens to its merchandise after it's sold, anyways, as long as CAVE's coin is good.

"We tend to have uses for such individuals, but our other activities mean that we sometimes have an abundance of them as a result. What sort of trade terms are you interested in?"

[Southwest Mountains]

Emily manages to get away from the animals for the time being, but shortly after she arrives back at her perch, she'll probably notice that the vultures that were circling over the base earlier have changed their patterns and seem to be working their way towards the mountain she's currently on. Either something's up, or something is drawing them here, albeit slowly.

[CAVE Tour]

Balthius smiles, pleased.

"Excellent! I shall have it marked as your personal space, then. If you'll follow me, I'll show you to some of the living areas." He leads to a door similar to the one they entered the lab by, and then through it. A few more twists and turns, and down two flights of stairs, before reaching what seems to be an atrium of sorts. A number of people bustle about, going about various tasks, some of them artificial, some not. Halls lead off in several directions, but thankfully, there are signs posted here, directing people towards mess halls, kitchens, and living quarters, which appear to be divided into colors and directions.

Balthius stands for a moment, apparently considering something, before looking back to Gem.

"Have you any special needs for living area? Excessive sunlight, or lack thereof? Special wardings, perhaps?"

[bc56]

CAVE Tour

"Nothing special, I'm afraid." Gem is an ordinary baseline human, unfortunately. "I would prefer somewhere with a bit of privacy." Because murdering her alternate selves might be disturbing even to self-proclaimed evildoers.