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Tran
Feb 17, 2011

It's a pleasure to meet all of you. Especially in such a fine settin' as this. Just need us some music an' a brawl an' we'll be set.
You know, we probably have access to the memory of this thing's creation or operation. It's most likely all there in Anna's memories, embedded within the horrible spine thing.

Just sayin'.

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Hexenritter
May 20, 2001


LowellDND posted:

I want Hexen to write a post, and we are doing Cool Battle scenes in the belt. After that, Athena will probably do ... whatever it is she is going to do.

Slice of Life: :v:

Within the only remaining functioning laboratory space aboard the Olympus, a small figure in a red robe quickly gathered up a small felid with tiger stripes of fluorescent green fur. She reached up with a mechadendrite and tickled beneath the felid's chin. The cat seemed to smile, his eyes closing lazily as he enjoyed the chinrub. The figure headed for the door, where her tutor and friend stood waiting for her.

"I'm done. Sorry that took so long, I just didn't want to leave anything behind, especially these two." As she said that, she nodded her head toward the cat and then toward the mechanical hound that followed her everywhere.

"That's fine. I didn't either, and it has been proven in scientific studies that owning pets alleviates stress." Athena replied.

A reverberating clang resounded through the entire ship, followed by another one. The floor trembled and shuddered as though the ship was being dragged along uneven ground.

"I think it's time. I just have one more thing I need to do." She said as the lighting in the ship shut off and red emergency lights in the walls, ceilings and floors came on.

++COMMAND CODE ACCEPTED.++
//SELF-DESTRUCT SEQUENCE INITIATED.
//REACTOR CORE COOLANT OFFLINE.
//CHAIN REACTION INITIATED.
//TIME TO DETONATION: TEN MINUTES.
//SECONDARY SCUTTLING CHARGES ACTIVATED, MAXIMUM YIELD.

"There would ordinarily be a klaxxon sounding too, but we don't want to tip off the bad guys."

"What about the stasis field?"

"Oh, that'll hold. The generator is shielded from the blast."

The smaller figure looked around and then behind her as an explosive device raised out of the floor, red numerals on a black display counting down. She shivered for a moment like somebody had just run an icy finger down her spine.



"Something wrong?"

"No, just a weird feeling. Can't place it."

"Don't worry about it then. Hold on to your cat." Athena said with a little grin

"Very punny."

-----

The two figures simply blinked into existence. They were standing on the bridge of a large ship. Dozens of red-robed figures were interfaced in sunken booths along the walls. The smaller one walked over toward the forward viewports, taking in her first real look at the depths of space. She'd seen picts, of course, but witnessing something with your own eyes is an entirely different experience.

"That really was amazing. point-to-point long-range transmission. The teleportation technology I've studied so far doesn't even begin to come close. How far did we travel?" Her voice was awed.

"Several hundred light years."

"So this is my new apprentice?" The voice came from behind Athena, who turned toward it.

"Yes. She's hungry. She's been devouring everything I throw at her. Her appetite for knowledge rivals my own. I'm at the point now though where she needs more interaction and a wider curriculum."

++How is the other one doing?++

++Angrier but coming around.++ [attachment: laboratory-incident.3dv]

++Wow, she really gave it to those last two. Sorry about that.++

Athena turned toward the one by the viewport "Come over here. I'd like to introduce you to your new teacher."
.
The smaller figure turned and approached, lowering her eyes respectfully. "Thank you for accepting my apprenticeship, Magos. I look forward to studying with you."

"I trust Athena has informed you of the sorry state of the galaxy, and why we must tread carefully?"

"Because of the corrupting influence of the Warp and the religious zealots of the Terran Imperium and Adeptus Mechanicus?"

"That is correct. I will countenance none of that backward thinking aboard my ship or from my apprentices. Science is its own faith, and while great and terrible things dwell in the Immaterium fed by the psychic emanations of all living things, they are not gods, nor is that broken thing on Terra."

"And the Omnissiah, Magos?"

"Science is its own faith, and while belief may dictate reality, you do not see Athena demanding bent knee and anointing her moving parts with holy oil and paeans of supplication, do you?"

"No, Magos."

"If anyone were to be the Omnissiah, I think she'd have won the race. There is no room aboard my ship for blind faith. Your eyes must be open, Ohone, and unfettered by the lies of others who seek only to control you."

++Thank you for the compliment, Sebekh.++

++I merely speak the truth, my friend. How are your other plans coming? Whatever happened with Ohtwo?++

++She's in Sol right now, dealing with Huron Blackheart.++

++Ah to be a fly on that wall.++

++It can be arranged.++

Hexenritter fucked around with this message at 05:18 on Jan 26, 2016

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



Aww yiss, feel that? That's some RISING ACTION

hollylolly
Jun 5, 2009

Do you like superheroes? Check out my CYOA Mutants: Uprising

How about weird historical fiction? Try Vampires of the Caribbean

I can feel the paradigms shifting!

sniper4625
Sep 26, 2009

Loyal to the hEnd
So....this whole time, we've just been a clone? :crossarms:

JT Jag
Aug 30, 2009

#1 Jaguars Sunk Cost Fallacy-Haver

sniper4625 posted:

So....this whole time, we've just been a clone? :crossarms:
Guessing Athena broke her rule and cloned us off her model of our brain after our first contact with her, and that Ohone has been working directly with her this whole time

sniper4625
Sep 26, 2009

Loyal to the hEnd

JT Jag posted:

Guessing Athena broke her rule and cloned us off her model of our brain after our first contact with her, and that Ohone has been working directly with her this whole time

Said "Ohone" has been entirely bereft of the wisdom of this thread, and as such I cannot recognize her as such. Fauxhone.

poor life choice
Jul 21, 2006

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



hollylolly
Jun 5, 2009

Do you like superheroes? Check out my CYOA Mutants: Uprising

How about weird historical fiction? Try Vampires of the Caribbean


:supaburn::supaburn:

sullat
Jan 9, 2012
Say, do we still have Devries clone machine, imperfect as it was?

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



sullat posted:

Say, do we still have Devries clone machine, imperfect as it was?

Im fairly certain you do. Youve got a whole vat of Krieg producers.

paragon1
Nov 22, 2010

FULL COMMUNISM NOW
Eh. This doesn't even register on the scale of hosed up poo poo going on in Ohone's life.

poor life choice
Jul 21, 2006

sniper4625 posted:

Said "Ohone" has been entirely bereft of the wisdom of this thread, and as such I cannot recognize her as such. Fauxhone.

haha. When you put it that way ... I vote for that Ohone to take over.

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



Current: 423,584

Bracelet

“So you said a friend gave it to you to give to me?”
“Yup.”
“Hm. And you don’t see any traps or things on it?”
You nodded approvingly at her caution. “I did not.”
“Well… I guess I’ll touch it?”
“Go for it.”

Out of sight, portions of the ship went to a higher alert, preparing for chemical weapons, decompression, explosions, fire, bioweapons, daemonic incursions… You weren’t sure what the trap might be, but you sent the warnings just in case. And if there was nothing, it would be a handy drill.

Almost gently, she touched the crystals individually. Her voice came out in a breath. “Oh.”
“What?”
She touched each one. “They have … emotions. Regret. Anger. … defensiveness, I think? … The feeling of painting? They are hard to describe.”
“You can see the content?”
“No, just … images. Echoes, maybe?”
You considered it. “I don’t feel anything when I touch them. Edourd?”
He reached out, paused. Shook his head. “Might be attuned to her.”

You looked at it thoughtfully. “Why is it attuned to you alone? What do you think is inside?”

hollylolly
Jun 5, 2009

Do you like superheroes? Check out my CYOA Mutants: Uprising

How about weird historical fiction? Try Vampires of the Caribbean

It's Artificial Intelligences all the way down, obviously.

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



Call Hera in, yes/no?

Also, what message do we want to send to the past?

I'm assuming you want the Staff to be Scienced as well

Tran
Feb 17, 2011

It's a pleasure to meet all of you. Especially in such a fine settin' as this. Just need us some music an' a brawl an' we'll be set.
Yes to the Hera consult.

Past message should be the identification number and location of our Psider neural tissue sample, followed by instructions to get Lynwood to Ophelia 7 with it after the party. If room remains, mention a need for immediate mass production and distribution there.

poor life choice
Jul 21, 2006
1) yes

2) Uhhhh... Fabiyan visiting Ophelia 7 while on his WarpQuest and somehow helping prepare them for Gorgon?

3) Yes. Put your psykers on it too. Maybe Fabiyan as well? See what they can glean or sense about it.

Hexenritter
May 20, 2001


Slice of Life: Excoriator 483 Bravo-10, Equivalent Imperial Rank Designate: Lieutenant, Location: Alpha Deck

The hallways were silent save for the sound of the built-in environmental system's respiration pump. There were prey, for those who knew how to look - skittering along the floors and holes in the ceiling. There were also predators, moving slowly with the professionalism that was their life. Most dangerous of all - 483-Bravo-10 and the other members of his squad stalked the corridors of Alpha Deck.

Their signature matte-black Fabiyan-Pattern powered carapace armour and skull-like faceplates were something that had stepped out of nightmares, and even now terrified those who saw them. They were indoctrinated, yes, and had failsafes, yes … but even when ‘just following orders,’ thousands had been massacred under their guns. Not unusual, to those living under the Grey cloaks - but these had been with such remorselessness and precision that one had to wonder if there was anything human behind the masks at all. The Excoriators themselves cared not for such concerns, it was their duty to serve and protect at the whim of The Holy Couple.

A scribe rounding a corner almost bumped right into 483 Bravo-10 and let out a squeak of surprise. Recoiling from the tall figure, he sputtered an apology.



As 483 Bravo-10 watched the scribe, facial recognition software popped up a small picture and the scribe's personnel file. No violations. Security clearance valid. "Move along, citizen." Came the response, distorted and pitch-shifted by the helmet's voxcaster.

The scrawny but well-groomed man rushed off in the other direction.

Behind his mask, behind his eyes, the command interface popped up.

+++ALERT STATUS INCREASED+++
Alert Status: High, Preparatory.
Interrogative: Request mission update.
Mission: Patrol Route-94-Bravo. Execute intruders without valid clearance.

The patrol was mostly uneventful. Stray animals foraging or expanding their territory. Even on Alpha Deck it was not unusual to see such creatures. Some still as-yet-uncatalogued, some quite delicious, others quite dangerous. Those that were not startled and scared back into the spaces between were handled with the simplicity of a lasblast, left for the maintenance crews to dispose of, memos sent above to reassure them of sanctioned lasfire.

Curfew had been put into effect, as was announced over the ship’s speakers, and the sight of the Excoriators was sufficient to coerce obedience. The few crew and family members that crossed paths with the patrols were gently reminded to go home, and those pilgrims found walking the halls were escorted to their designated, proper zones.

Meanwhile, outside Ohone’s personal quarters, which looked now more like the fortified entrance to a Krieg bunker, her personal guard, Squad 01-Alpha, remained on an even higher alert footing. Having several hellguns and emplacements aimed at you for just looking in that direction kept the corridors around her quarters clear of traffic.

They didn’t need to kill - simply being seen reminded people that they could die at any time, by the Iron Maiden’s will.


edit: Yes to Hera consult

Hexenritter fucked around with this message at 06:48 on Jan 26, 2016

Blasphemaster
Jul 10, 2008

So we're a clone? What? Something something HUH? :psydwarf:

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



Blasphemaster posted:

So we're a clone? What? Something something HUH? :psydwarf:

Isnt this fun? :D :allears:

reignonyourparade
Nov 15, 2012
Well we already know that Ching Shih has weird time poo poo ahead of(/behind) her so it... Probably relates in some way to that.

Hell, it might even be her emotions in the first place!

I'm gonna say a list of bad poo poo that Ohone must perceive, leave it to Fabiyan's discretion what to alter and how.

So. Ohone must percieve Anna+gorgon consume souls, Agatha become demon world, fabiyan lost in warp, gorgon takes Ophelia 7. Prevent at own discretion, priority cripple gorgon.

Tran
Feb 17, 2011

It's a pleasure to meet all of you. Especially in such a fine settin' as this. Just need us some music an' a brawl an' we'll be set.
That's a decent way to go about it. I'd change the part about Gorgon taking Ophelia 7 to "Ophelia 7 contact lost, Gorgon responsible."

Notably the exact extent of the memetic subversion is unclear to us, so we still have room to alter it without destroying causality.

Arkanomen
May 6, 2007

All he wants is a hug
No Hera


loving Athena cloned us. That's rude.

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



Arkanomen posted:

No Hera

loving Athena cloned us. That's rude.

Maybe she knew you'd need a back-up since you walk into nukes :colbert:

hollylolly
Jun 5, 2009

Do you like superheroes? Check out my CYOA Mutants: Uprising

How about weird historical fiction? Try Vampires of the Caribbean

I don't want to bring in another AI into this party. I don't trust any of them. The enemy of my enemy is not always my friend, and in this universe she's more likely to just be yet another enemy.

No Hera

Rahul
Dec 10, 2004

Have we effectively been a clone ever since the nuke? I mean, we were at ground zero. Plot points or not, we should have been vaporized when that went off.

Arkanomen
May 6, 2007

All he wants is a hug

Rahul posted:

Have we effectively been a clone ever since the nuke? I mean, we were at ground zero. Plot points or not, we should have been vaporized when that went off.

We could still be in the Warp? Maybe Devries brainboxed us and this is all a dreaaaaammmmm....~~~

Hexenritter
May 20, 2001


Slice of Life: The Real Ohone :v: . Location: The Empiricist, 20LY Galactic North of Prospero, Segmentum Solar

"I wonder sometimes, you know? What would have been. Should I have given Kiera the files?" Ohone sighed as she looked out of the viewport into the vastness of space. She squinted a little and tried to pick out Sol from amidst the billions of tiny points of light painted across the ebon curtain of the sky. She eventually resorted to using astrogation charts.

"Don't waste your time worrying about "what if"s. What happened had to happen. Granted, there are schools of thought that say you can alter future outcomes by changing past events but that's a dangerous game. Look to the now, and to the future. Look at what needs to be done, what must be done, and then extrapolate from there. Leave the temporal manipulation to Athena."

"Yes, Magos." She reached down with one hand, petting Megabyte between the ears while Mr. Flours slumbered, laying across her shoulders. Wrapped around the back of her neck like a self-heating scarf, he occasionally twitched a little or mrrowled in his sleep. It made her smile, wistful for her time back home on the Beast. She thought about the Lord-Sire, wondered whether Limosa had re-taken his position as first scion, about everything she left behind.

"I was thinking of making some modifications to Megabyte."

"Really? What sort of thing did you have in mind?" Sebekh shifted his gaze from her to the cyberhound at her side.

"Melta gun in the mouth, prehensile power weapon on the tail, that sort of thing. He's my guardian and attack dog, after all. He needs to be the best I can make him."

"We can adjourn to the laboratory if you'd like. We can even use this opportunity for me to test what you already know."

"That would be great." She said with a beaming smile as they walked to the elevator. Having a new Magos felt not so much strange, but different. Ohone drifted off in thought as the doors closed, wondering how she was doing back aboard the Beast.

Sebekh and Ohone debarked the elevator on one of the laboratory decks, passing several open labs filled with apprentices toiling away on their studies and their assigned tasks. More than a few looked up and watched enviously as she strolled by, muttering to one another about the newcomer getting preferential treatment.

----

++She just gets dropped off out of nowhere and the Magos goes running to be her personal tutor? First that temperamental one shows up and he basically gives her an entire lab deck and several hundred adepts, now this. I don't like it.++

++Ours is not to reason why. He's got the big picture, we don't. Now shut up before you get us both sequestered.++

++Fine. You've been around Athena's work, and you've seen that lab incident. What's your take?++

++Her work on gravitational fields and spatial manipulation is light years ahead of even the Magos' work. I mean, she just teleported three lifeforms here all the way from Golgotha, and she can create black holes. I'd kill for a look at her equations.++

Toughy
Nov 29, 2004

KAVODEL! KAVODEL!

yes hera

There Bias Two
Jan 13, 2009
I'm not a good person

Wait so when was the real Ohone switched for a clone?

poor life choice
Jul 21, 2006
Maybe they're both real. A double created teleporter mishap-style, with neither being a vat-grown abomination.

Obviously in that case "Ohtwo" holds all the cards. Yeah Athena has taken the other one under her wing, but do you see all these hats?

Nyaa
Jan 7, 2010
Like, Nyaa.

:colbert:
It's the spine. Ohone's spine.

Bede
Jun 2, 2006

I wasn't even around for the goblin baby vote
Shouldn't the second be Oneoh instead of Ohtwo?

Rahul
Dec 10, 2004

In rereading that post I really get the feeling that is a pre-nuke Ohone. She seems a lot less... broken than our Ohone.

poor life choice
Jul 21, 2006

Rahul posted:

In rereading that post I really get the feeling that is a pre-nuke Ohone. She seems a lot less... broken than our Ohone.

Assuming an Ohone stayed with Athena since their first encounter, she only made it partway through act 2.

Althair
Jul 26, 2006
words are weapons
I just got caught up and all I have to say is *flips table* and that comic poor life choices posted x10000

sullat
Jan 9, 2012

There Bias Two posted:

Wait so when was the real Ohone switched for a clone?

It's clones all the way down.

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Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



Althair posted:

I just got caught up and all I have to say is *flips table* and that comic poor life choices posted x10000

DOUBLE OHONE

edit: Lets see what the vote is at:

yes
tran
plc
hex
tough

no
ark
holly

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