Scene #6416: Storm in a Teacup: Given Enough Rope

Owner	Pose
Septette Arcubielle	Upon arrival to the Starbounder-built telepad, it's immediately obvious that the Elites have the right place. The grassy meadow is strewn with gravel-sized pieces of amethyst erchius, deep claw-marks in the dirt, and trails of brown withered grass where the beast dragged itself away. Following the trails leads to a surreal scene: dozens of woodland creatures of familiar and foreign species have been impaled on sharpened wooden stakes, most of them still living. The social animals- those that would scream in pain, rather than remaining silent- have been carefully staked to avoid compromising their lungs. They're arranged with acoustic precision to rival an opera-house, weaving their agonized howling together into an unearthly spine-tingling melody. It's improvised fear architecture, lovingly crafted from the materials at hand. Past the forest of living bodies, the trail of withered grass re-emerges in the direction of a gulch with the mouth of a small cavern near its basin. The space around the cavern has been subtly 'trapped' with a variety of improvised devices designed to cause sound: a pile of noisy small rocks hidden by tufts of grass, fragile branches placed where a foot might crush them, and so on. Nothing happens immediately if any of the "traps" are triggered- it's hard to imagine that anything could hear it over the background screaming anyway, if nobody's put those animals out of their misery. The cave is dark and glistening with condensation. It leads down and to the left in a loose spiral that makes it hard to see what's around the corner. The walls are channeled with grooves that direct the flow of the wind to sound like a cross between someone blowing over a bottle and a low, hollow moan; in its own way, the atmosphere in here is almost as bad as the shrieking forest, especially with the way the puddles of water seem to squirm when they think nobody's watching. The animate water- or part of it- finally reveals itself in the form of a six-inch-tall sprite that seems to be made of jellified liquid, swirling translucent blue and purple. It peers around a corner with enormous yellow eyes, regarding the party almost reproachfully. A piece of twisted metal is clutched in its fingerless "hand", likely an improvised chisel.
Staren	A drone flies out of the teleporter first, followed by (a robotic) Staren and a squad of golems -- metal statues shaped like his power armor wielding kanobos -- who, having already heard the noise and seen its source through the drone isn't visibly shocked now, but keeping an emotionless expression. It's unnerving and fucked-up, but it doesn't really make him /afraid/, anyway. It's just grisly. The feel is more like a detective being called to a murder scene than someone afraid for his life. If some of the animals look like they could live, if any, Staren applies healing potion and removes the stakes. To those just waiting to die, he considers his options and then opts to put a bullet in the brain from his SMG. Clean and fast. Staren's as likely to hit the traps as miss them, as he flits from place to place with flight -- it doesn't even really occur to him that a twig he happens to step on would have been placed there deliberately, anyway. Once in the cave, as soon as he sees the sprite he points his arm at it, but then hesitates. This can't be the creature, and it looks /relatively/ harmless. Could it be an elemental that the creature missed? "Hey. You there. Are you intelligent?"
Starbound Flotilla	George is here, armored up in his hardsuit with his helmet under one arm, regarding the staked animals and smoking. Every so often, he goes down the line, putting a bullet in their brains much like Staren does -- it's precisely lined up in particular ways, for some reason, as if targeting a /particular part/ of the brain -- and puts out the cigarette. He doesn't seem put off by the screams. Honestly he doesn't seem put off by anything at all, but in a more unnatural way than he usually is. He probably took whatever he took last time. As he approaches, and sees the little liquid sprite, he narrows his eyes, seeming to run an assortment of math in his head. He looks like he's about to shoot on instinct, before he instead sighs and leaves his pistol where it is in his holster; whatever his intentions are, he seems to think it's better to let Staren and whoever else might take their Talking action go first without his interruption.
Nova Terra	Nova is not here. Never mind the occasional shimmer in the air which would wholely go missed as Nova doesn't make her way past the collection of animals slowly being tortured. Their cries don't hurt her so much as their thoughts, the constant, prolonged pain. Only to be silenced by one of Staren's bullets. Also not a pleasant experience. Okay. Maybe Nova is here. The cave entrance is trapped, but Nova recognises this, being a stealth operative and so manages to move past with barely a sound, partially thanks to her suit's sound dampening. She bypasses the strange creature as she slowly heads further in, looking for their prey.
Android 17	The sight of animals stops Seventeen in his tracks. Not because it strikes fear in him, but because it strikes revulsion and anger. However, after the moment of shock had passed, he moved quickly with Staren to alleviate the animals of their pain. Luckily, Seventeen was a park ranger and had experience with on the field veterinarian experience. Hopefully, they are able to save more animals than would be normally necessary. Seventeen is surprisingly gentle and careful, however, he is not a bleeding heart. If an animal is determined to be unsavable, he moves to the next and lets Staren put it out of its misery. Seventeen works like a machine until the last one is taken care of. Then once more he goes down the way through the cave. He avoids disturbing sound traps, noting that the creature was definitely intelligent, but more than he realized. There is a fine line between tool use and being uncanny. Seventeen stops at the 'sprite', but he does not attack immediately. However, he focuses on his hearing, listening for the sounds of a heartbeat, living in any form, or anything that could separate this creature from what they were hunting. However, his hands are clenched and he is ready to be released like a spring. Seventeen was not happy.
Kotone Yamakawa	Kotone Yamakawa is able to home in easily on the transport beacon thanks to her own ships teleporter being of the same tech base more or less. She's clad in her stealth armour far more ready for a fight and far better armed today as well. She's following a bit after Staren and doing much the same. She'll put down those that Staren can't heal and move on, she will miss the branches over the sounds of the tormented animals as they move on. Once she reaches the cave entrance she'll turn on her cloak and ade from view moving in to back up Staren in the likely event this thing gets hostile or is a trap.
Zwei	It's not a normal deal that Zwei wastes its time (and more importantly, energy resources) on things like this. It doesn't serve the objective, whatever this random hellbeast does to some world it doesn't care about is beyond its concern, and there are always heroes on call to clean it up anyways. One could characterize it as a grudge for it escaping last time, but that doesn't entirely fit anyways. Possibly? Zwei has certainly expressed certain degrees of frustration or intense dislike towards certain things before, and at least made motions at or promises of inefficient, emotion-driven activity, but then who knows how truthful they ever are. Since it's not a fight in a space asteroid hallway for now, Weiss is trudging through the undergrowth, and by trudging, what is meant is 'stepping with actually eerie lack of sound'. Leaves don't so much as crunch under her feet, though it's hard to tell whether it's some kind of sound cancelling technology, or just walking with incredible precision, given her slightly weird and robotic gait. She has a great variety of surround sensors lit up at the moment, basic shape recognition pinning down the horror movie sting triggers without issues, thermals and brainwaves easily locating woodland animals (though she doesn't stop to shoot any of them; let Staren and George use their bullets on that), and acoustic examination of the groove structure pins down the cause of the howling very quickly. It makes sense to lead with the quiet foot with a head full of info-gathering tools. She's wearing her battle armour, though. 'Battle armour'. That stuff which doesn't seem to have any seams or panels or anything to put it on or off with, and just makes her look like a different kind of robot (or rather, a bulkier version of the same robot without the external human affectations), currently just lit up with the trio of amber face nodes. The tiny goo being draws her to a crouch, which looks like the position for a friendly 'hey what's your name?' opener to a little kid, but she's scanning the thing instead, trying to determine what it's made of, any signs of an intelligence substrate, signs of Erchius radiation, any outgoing/incoming connections between it and its surroundings, and if necessary, vaguely 'how magical it is', trying to pin down its origin and state of 'that's (not)how that works'. Unless Staren gets some immediately helpful, vocal answers out of it, she runs her fingertip across one of the grooves in the wall, seamlessly erasing it with little sand-hisses of shifting stone. Just to see what it does, of course.
Septette Arcubielle	With Staren and Seventeen's efforts, many of the animals can be saved- mostly scavengers, who seem uniformly fresher, as if they came to eat the earlier herbivores and were skewered too for their temerity. The most recently-injured flee immediately after being freed and healed, trying to put as much distance as they can between themselves and the site. Those that have been skewered for longer just... stand there, or lie down, staring off into space. Some of them continue to scream in pain even though they're in perfect health. It's like something inside of them broke. The water-sprite stares vacantly at Staren while he talks for a moment, then 'glares' at Weiss as she erases one of the grooves. The quality of the moaning instantly shifts to be much less menacing as the acoustics are ruined. A second goo-critter crawls out of a nearby stagnant pool and begins quietly re-eroding an identical groove into exactly the same spot. The sprite isn't "alive" in any vertebrate-conventional anatomical sense, though Zwei's scans show it as being essentially amorphous colloidal nanotech formed from a suspension of alien blood cells in water and a healthy dollop of magic. The cells are erchius-positive, too, and linked to some external controller; virtually a positive ID for the creature they're hunting! Assuming it's not destroyed by an itchy trigger finger, the critter makes a vague 'follow me' motion with its arm and ducks back around the corner, moving briskly yet not quite so fast as to seem like it's fleeing. Following it will lead the party to a larger chamber whose floor is dominated by a pool of cyan-stained water, sloping steeply down into a deep and stagnant pool. The walls are adorned with elaborate carvings and paintings in shades of purple and blue, primarily depicting a radiating disk like a stylized sun or the mouth of a leech with a single staring eye at the center. At the far end of the pool, half-shrouded in darkness, is the creature they fought at Nessos. Its censoring cloak is decayed enough by now to show a humanoid figure with gorilla-like arms, chalky flesh bruised bluish-green and spackled with slate-gray fishy scales, and a trio of unblinking yellow-red eyes above a fanged aerodynamic snout (one of them ruined by Nova's bullet days ago). Its lower body, hidden beneath the half-opaque blue water, is shredded so badly it's a miracle that it managed to crawl here. And it pushes itself off the wall to drift towards the center of the pool, and it speaks in a voice shaped from bone-rattling silence against the wind's moaning. "I have made mistakes," it says, holding its black-clawed hands up placatingly, "but do not waste this chance to right an ancient wrong. We were proud, once. We walked among the stars. Those who do not know our story, please, sit and listen. Those who do, consider- who have you heard it from?" It tenses slightly, as if bracing for violence... but in its current state, it can't do much about that.
Staren	Regarding the 'broken' animals, Staren looks to Seventeen for guidance as to whether to put them out of their misery or let them be. The guy clearly is some kind of animal expert. If Zwei doesn't just vaporize it, Staren will follow the sprite, deploying high-tech 'breadcrumbs' and drones along the way and letting Zwei with her better sensors take point. Seeing the creature, Staren readies his sniper laser rifle and has his finger on the trigger just as it speaks. Staren looks warily at the others, especially for George's reaction. There is a damn high chance of this being a vector for a basilisk hack or memetic hazard, after all... He starts putting filters in place -- saving the raw video input from his eyes and ears to a file somewhere while downsampling the video stream shown to his mind to a lower quality, although not low enough to require straining to understand. Like an analog TV signal, maybe.
Starbound Flotilla	George makes a short "pfft" sort of noise. "Yeah, you bet you have huh?" He immediately chainsmokes a fresh cigarette. He's not interested, for whatever reason, in what the thing says; he turns away immediately and watches the group, intently, eyes focused on each of them and seemingly tracking both their weapons and their faces. It's a surprising degree of focus from a man who seems zoned out and a bit defocused about the foe. He gives, seemingly, zero attention to Weiss' reaction (whether that's because he knows it's useless to read, or some other reason, is up in the air). Staren gets less focus. But the others, and for some reason particularly Nova Terra get the most significant watchful eye -- or he would, were she visible. The only thing he focuses on that isn't the group's reaction is... the walls. Where purple and blue mix, he checks something, taking a tiny smudge off a corner and examining it, with the look of someone checking a cooking thermometer. Whatever he finds there, he seems to find satisfactory, albeit only barely so.
Kotone Yamakawa	Kotone Yamakawa will have to thank both Staren and 17 later for what they could do for the animals. She would only put down those Seventeen would site as which ones could be saved he does know more. If no one frags the strange thing? She will follow it while remaining cloaked for the moment. She has similar thoughts to Staren something might not be right and she will kill all her wireless systems at this point. The thing talks to them almost pleading is it a ploy to eat more? This thing has a story of its own? Information could be useful but Kotone is very much wary, this is why she's keeping cloaked even if it's a trap it could be a source of information. She holds her fire to listen for the moment but also will check to see if anything is odd with the walls.
Android 17	"What do you think your greatest mistake was, from the moment we met until this moment?" Android 17 asks. The tone is cold, very VERY cold. It's the tone of someone who is contemplating murder and does not find the prospect to be negative at all. Those eyes, piercing blue, stare right at the creature. Of course, his ears are always working, listening for anything around them that might try and sneak up on them. However, Seventeen remains unconvinced in the truthfulness of the creature's actions and words. Which is strange, given the amount of consideration towards the Abyssals or other misfits. Seventeen does not normally take this approach. He extends a hand up, pointing it right towards the creature's center of mass. "I suggest you hurry up and explain yourself. You see, I have a condition, where sometimes when people say certain things all I can hear is 'please kill me'."
Nova Terra	There's a sudden cry of pained surprise, a corner of the chambering lighting up for a brief moment as Nova's cloak fails rather rapidly compared to the usual pace. Nova herself appears to be in some pain as she drops down to one knee, breathing heavily. She's holding her rifle in one hand, but the other moves up to hold her head for a moment as she manages to get out, "It's... Being genuine..." The sudden surprise of the creature talking had given Nova enough pause to try and touch it's mind. The result is clear on display. Even if she wasn't somewhat curious about what the hell the creature is talking about, she doesn't look in a ready state to attack right now.
Zwei	<<Check, check, check, aaaand check.>> \|\|The chain of logic is so coherent that it is refreshing, despite its dire source.\|\| Some tiny spark of malicious satisfaction flickering out as quick as it had come, Weiss moves beyond the little water critter she'd just given extra overtime and into the main cavern. Given that she has an ID on the connection and all, she doesn't expect to be surprised by what she finds there. She already knows what it looks like, after all, seen through Asche's eyes. Weiss takes her helmet off, somehow, and the geometrically perfect, pale face, nickel hair, and bright gold eyes --are not revealed. It's almost a doll's head, featureless and yet oddly feminine, carbon black and subtly patterned subsurface scattering, just like Asche's plating. She doesn't have a mouth, or ears --even her eyes look like some sort of holographic 'lenses' in faint recesses in the shape of her face, so internally complicated that they cannot be for show. Her voice comes out, and it isn't the sort of 'tittering malicious answering machine lady' voice of usual. It isn't even a recognizable language. It isn't even primarily sound. Absurdly complex holographic glyphs form in a ring around her head, oriented like a reinnaissance halo, coruscating with constantly shifting pulses of patterned changes and variances in light. A faint, whining, electric crackle sounds off of it, possibly a byproduct, sounding like something picked up through a space telescope. It translates anyways, because it is a language, still spoken by a few. The pretense at being 'human-like', while almost always optimal in every situation, doesn't serve any purpose here. A carbon doll with glowing eyes replies in a language of light and geometry, shrouded in background lumosity like a saint in a painting. <<"You have made at least one. I need not consider where I know it from; I did so at the moment I heard it, and have done so ever since. What you said to the Asche unit back then; you were the last, or near so. Now you are many enough. 'Your god', you had said.">> <<"I am aware of your war in heaven. I will hear it, but if you wish for me to consider it, you will let it be known exactly who we have heard it from as well, your hand equally transparent and your purpose equally obvious as hers. If you cannot do as much, your side is less worth considering.">> <<"The Erchius. That is your miracle. That is your Genesis. You know precisely who is your creator now. Why are they, now, not your god. No one else is left who could.">>
Septette Arcubielle	The basilisk hack or memetic hazard that Staren's preparing for doesn't seem to come. Despite the bizarre acoustics, its words are just... words. One of its remaining eyes tracks George's movement around the room; it doesn't appear to notice that he's measuring anything, and seems vaguely proud he's examining its artwork instead. Its eyes slide back to Seventeen. "Attempting to fight rather than reason. Your kin attacked first, you recall. I have been... unfortunately accustomed to that. I should have parleyed. But the Blurring... My words would not have been understood." "I know the apology you want, child of man- for the animals above. I was dying. I had to recuperate. This is, regrettably, how we feed, as surely as you raise pigs and cattle for slaughter. Only the manner of butchery differs. Its gaze lingers on him for a moment or two longer, as if seeing if he'll try to attack. At least its honesty is refreshing? Its rapt attention on Seventeen is broken as Nova decloaks. The stumps of tentacle-fins on the back of its head twitch piteously, as if reflexively trying to shield itself from the new intruder, but it relaxes after a moment. It doesn't seem to understand what she means- or the importance of her saying it's 'being genuine'- but it seems vaguely brighter after her yelp of pain. Its gaze turns back to Zwei, sweeping over the golden glyphs. It visibly strains to read them with only two eyes, but seems to attain some understanding after a moment. "Our 'war in heaven' is ended with the death of our god," it says slowly. "I know not who 'she' is. Only that one of the metal Children of the Tree has remade us from stone. Only they saw us like... this. It raises one of its arms out of the water, and the kaleidoscopic censoring blackness is intensified around its hand before fading again. "Corrupted. Concealed. Only perception by others can be our salvation from that." It gestures towards the leech-like face with a cyclopean eye. "We descended to Etria with a parasite god that wielded us as a weapon. We forced humanity to destroy us, in ages past. Now we are free of Its influence. Still the metal children of the tree seek our destruction, even after recreating us. Reborn to be slaughtered. Hunted for sport." It shrugs helplessly, and raises its hands above the water. "It is what the Children of the Tree were For. Their singular purpose. It need not be yours. The tragedies of the past... are now yours to correct.
Staren	Staren listens, warily. Pieces fall into place. "Regardless of what Septette says, Zwei is right. Your existence is incompatible with our own. If you wish to survive, you must agree to find a way to be changed into something else. Sorry. Well. I shouldn't be, that's just a malfunction in my psyche, isn't it? You aren't something I should feel sorry for, but perhaps you're willing to become such a thing? What's it going to be?" "If you do not wish to change, then say your last words." He steels himself. This is the right path. He knows it.
Zwei	Given that the Deep One is having trouble using just two of its eyes, and Zwei's first impression is more or less established as 'not a human about to react as humans do', Weiss switches from Licht Cipher to the universal language of the Multiverse: English. <<"You know, that brings up an excellent question! If you look like a walking censor due to the firmware Yggsdrasil installed in all its little skelebots, why do you also have a real form that they wouldn't know about? Why do you know and think these things, if the reason you were created is that a machine whose sole purpose was to slaughter you, and sole comprehension of your existence was that of an alien menace, did it themself? Erchius can pick up a lot of things that are only subconsciously understood, but I don't think it goes even that far.">> <<"Oh, also they still want you dead. I don't at the moment, because you're my ticket to learning everything they won't ever tell me! Ehehehe~">>
Kotone Yamakawa	Kotone Yamakawa is listening for the moment she shears Nova's words and she too decloaks much as Nova had. Adding another to the group as Zwei pulls off something that leaves her staring. As she sees Z as more information comes out and she listens. She hears the creature's story and frowns she also hears Septette on the radio. When it comes to this thing? It's the method of this thing's feeding that is an incompatible danger. She does not attack just yet as Staren makes his offer to it to wait and see how that goes, but she also expects Septette to burst through the wall and do the kill herself if they do not. Still, the offer should be made, and the fact that the children of the tree remade it? That is worrying they may just be Septette's cleanup crew. She doesn't fire just yet she is clearly waiting for its choice to be made. She also looks to Zwei too while she's rightly wary of Zwei? She'd had more dealings with them in the past and well Zwei did overhaul her security systems a long time ago too. , Whatever happens, she will wait and hear what the things answer is. Also that Septette can make more of these things? That is very troubling.
Nova Terra	Nova is still recovering from her brief mental contact with the creature, but it gives her an opportunity to consider if she wants the creature dead or not. Hunting monsters is not inherently her job. Only if they're a serious threat, which at this point that doesn't appear to be the case. On the other hand... Nova looks up at the creature, keenly aware that it may have information that they need, "What happened on the station where we found you? We're told that there were five thousand people there. Did you kill them all?"
Android 17	"That is a wretched way to have to live," Seventeen says, honestly. He frowns, this is increasingly getting more and more out of his wheelhouse. There is a lot he doesn't understand, even though and the explanations that are happening are becoming a bit much to process all at once. However, the hand comes down, energy disbursed harmlessly as he considers the plight of the creature who has to cause suffering to exist. This is honestly a lot to take in, especially with the revelation that it was created to be hunted? Staren gives a solution, and he can't disagree. He knows the terror of a monster designed to live off the suffering of others. He is keenly aware of this because it's something that haunts him every night. Finally, he speaks, calmly. "I can't disagree with Staren. We need a way to change how you eat and exist. You show enough intelligence to see both the necessity and...horror in your actions." Of course, this also just might be in response to being TOLD to do something.
Starbound Flotilla	Seeing Nova Terra's appearance and clear indications of what she's doing linking minds with it... that gets George /just slightly/ tense. It's even visible through his unusually dulled affect. Clenched teeth. A quirked eyebrow. But while he keeps his eye on them and on the rest, he doesn't especially do too much with that tension. "Well, hope you're kinda seeing what /problems/ are coming up on being genuine. Kinda like being 'pure of heart', it doesn't really tell ya what's in the heart, just that you're not gonna get anything but that." He watches Staren. It seems like Staren's willingness to take this matter as a default matter of executing the beast gets his approval. He doesn't like the willingness to be merciful, but he apporoves of its understanding that killing it is necessary unless something drastic changes. Zwei's interest is something George perceives as quite negative. But his blunted affect doesn't show aggression to Zwei, rather just a more overall negative response. He'd be aggressive if he just wanted Zwei to back off. Perhaps he's so negative about their choice of investigation because he thinks there's something else they'd be better pointed towards? It's hard to tell; even surface thoughts wouldn't reveal much on that topic. Kotone Yamakawa is willing to strike, but his posture is more of a sad uncle or something like that, wishing she were older or wiser or more willing to take killing the thing as a default action. He seems to take her current posture as Not Quite Enough. Android 17's apparent sympathy provokes a sort of purse-lipped tension, almost an impatience boiling through the affect, but it's one that's quelled by his willingness to defend his most treasured forest friends above many other things. Nova Terra actually causes him to fidget, briefly, in a way that almost seems needled or directly antagonized in some fashion. Seeking what happened at Nessos is cutting to a point that George somehow seems uncomfortable with pursing, far beyond the interest he showed before in simply containing an outbreak.
Septette Arcubielle	The Deep One's clammy eyes linger on Staren and Seventeen for a while. "Coexistence is compromise," it replies carefully. "There are parts of ourselves we cherish, and parts we... regret. Shedding the shackles of our god has changed us. It is not within our power to change our nature further. If your kin can..." It tilts its head backwards, showing a gilled neck in a display of vulnerability. "I submit to such alteration, as necessary to avert the repetition of the past." It isn't clear whether it means the Deep Ones attacking humanity, or the eradication of the Deep Ones. "I don't know how we were recreated so," it tells Zwei plaintively, lowering its head once more. "The humans in Nessos- perhaps we are shaped by them, if they recall the ancient war as well. I still recall the ending days; my name, my thoughts. Where those memories come from..." It makes a vague uneasy gesture. And that makes a nice segue into Nova's question. It can't help but bare its needle-like teeth in a facsimile of a grin. "Ah. You were not aware? Nessos's inhabitants live. They have been conquered by an iron tyrant. And they are afraid." Fine sensors pick up a distinctive fireworks-like explosion of brightness about two miles up. A moment later, the cave shudders as Septette hits the ground outside from out of freefall. The Deep One freezes in something approximating a primal dread, then dives beneath the surface of the water. Deafening, clanking footsteps and a dull red glow come around the corner before she comes into view. Septette's customary shawl has been discarded. A long, curved blade is already folded out of her skeletal arm, glowing orange-hot. She stands in the entranceway to the watery chamber, with enough space to squeeze past her. "Everyone who won't stop me killing it, get behind me now. Everyone willing to be harmed, against the wall." Her tone doesn't brook any debate.
Staren	Staren simply nods. He puts away the laser, and pulls a pair of goggles from his bag as he approaches the creature... And then Septette appears. Staren turns towards her. "It has agreed to let us try to alter it into something your utility function will care about. Will you allow this course of action, because of its future value?" He waits for a response. If Septette insists on fighting, he just gives the monster a conflicted shrug and a 'Sorry.' and doesn't move to interfere.
Starbound Flotilla	George is amid his smoke when the sudden shuddering of the cave makes him nearly drop it. He fumbles with it, snatching it and making sure to keep it firmly there when Septette joins. "Lost some weight, Bones?" He asks, giving her a friendly grin. She didn't even have to speak before he was on his way back behind her at a casual walk; he's halfway there by the time she's finished explaining the matter. He tilts his head slightly, gently indicating the nature of the walls and the purple therein. He gives her a meaningful look. He expects she knows what it means, and he'll have his answer for it in due time. For now, he brings his helmet back on over his head and keeps behind her. How DOES he smoke with his hardsuit helmet on?
Android 17	Seventeen looks at the creature, it's true at the end of the day survival was probably the most important thing on his mind. There are parts of one's self that you wouldn't want to change that easily too. The motion of extending its neck is an easily understood one. Taking a breath, it appears to be Staren's show from here, and up to this point he has shown at least competent. However, with the arrival of Septette, and the obvious look of violence she has to offer, he turns towards her. Instead of doing anything she asks, he stands between her and the monster. His eyes focused and narrowed, for according to what he has heard...she is just as every bit responsible as it is. Perhaps even more so. "You heard Staren," He says. Even if he's alone, he's not going to back down from this.
Nova Terra	So the people of Nessos are alive, but apparently captured and taken somewhere. Useful information. Nova manages to rise to standing once more, though still trying to shake off the after-effects of the brief contact. That's some serious power there. Of course, it's just in time for Septette to suddenly make her way into the chamber, with the obvious intent to kill the creature. Nova does feel a little guilty at being partially responsible for its current vulnerable state. But not enough to put her life on the line for it, or to face off against Septette. A daunting prospect. "Screw it. Good luck, pal." Nova hefts her rifle up onto her shoulder, walking over and squeezing past Septette. Though as she does so, she says, "Make it quick. Doesn't seem like it deserves a slow death."
Kotone Yamakawa	Kotone Yamakawa would have pulled the trigger without thinking if it had not wanted to change, she doesn't know if it could but there's also vital information they could get out of it and there has been a sense of distrust growing in Kotone towards Android Seventeen intending to back him up if it does come to a fight. It's terrifying to face Septette but how long has she been left to run wild over the multiverse? It's disturbing to think of what else she might be playing with away from prying eyes.
Staren	If Septette pushes for a fight, Staren points out to Kotone and Seventeen, "Guys, I don't have a guarunteed way to do this. I'm just winging it. I'm willing to try, but it's a longshot anyway. It's not worth fighting over."
Android 17	"Then stay out of the blast radius, Staren," Seventeen says firmly. "It wants to change, and I respect that. I'm making my stand on this."
Septette Arcubielle	"Everyone in this room," Septette says- with a distinct eye on Nova, though she relents once the Ghost shoulders her rifle- "has been in extended memetic contact with a Deep One. You have no way of knowing you're not psychologically compromised. There is categorically negative utility to its continued existence in any form whatsoever, Staren, and anyone who opposes me-" Her movement is barely telegraphed. In a fraction of a second she drops to one knee, digs her talons into the stone floor of the cave, and dashes forwards with an explosive backscatter of damaged rock to swing the blazing armblade at waist-height against Seventeen and Kotone! "-is presumptively subverted."
Staren	Staren nods at Septette's warning that he may be comprimised. "That's a good point too." He puts the goggles back in the bag, and watches as she attacks, wincing at the attack on Kotone. "Please stop, Kotone."
Android 17	The rush of rock flying at Seventeen forces him to block with his arms, bits of it beat into his arms, causing pain to run up it. However, when she comes in with the blade, he swings back, narrowly avoiding the weapon in a direct hit, instead, losing a few bits of hair. Seventeen drops back to the ground, attempting to sweep her leg. If successful, he flips back over, aiming to send both feet down towards her stomach and attempt to send her flying back into the ground. He lands, once more in a fighting stance. "Stop talking, because I got nothing else to say to you."
Kotone Yamakawa	Kotone Yamakawa looks at Septette, she knoes aruging isn't going to get far with her. "Someone brought it back was it you?" Kotone cloaks now and she moves she has some idea of how Septette fights and she will move quickly there is no real holding back right now, there can't be and she will attempt to circle about she knows Seventeen has a lot of firepowers and is a close up fighter with a lot of firepower. With her? It's Rocket Tag against Septette. So she just opens up with chain of burst fire as she keeps moving and knows she can't rely on her cloak to evade Septette forever. There's no banter out of Kotone either.
Septette Arcubielle	Rather than attempt to interfere in the ongoing fight- something that would almost certainly go very poorly- the little jellysprites hurry about trying to draw some kind of magic circle on the ground, using a combination of their own constituent fluid and wet pigments stolen from the walls to create an inward-spiralling serrated shape. They're straining to move a piece of rubble out of the way of their intended illustration. It doesn't seem to be going very well for them. Kotone and Seventeen's lesser blows just completely rebound off of her- she doesn't even seem to stagger, instead just digging her feet into the floor. When Seventeen's attempt at a trip falters, she tries to grab him by the neck with her foot and throw him directly into Kotone! If she fails to grab him, she'll just lunge and throw a jab at Ko instead. "Feel free to tap out at any time," she says in a dissonantly bright voice amidst the violence. "I don't want to cause more injury than necessary to break your determination."
Staren	Staren watches the fight uneasily, sharing a glance with George for a moment. "...The chances of assimilation are vanishingly unlikely, honestly. There are so many ways this could go wrong, only the most obvious of which is that it's a trap. If I rescind my offer will you two stop fighting?" He looks uneasy every time Septette comes close to Kotone. "You realize, even if this all goes right... The outcome for it is what you were afraid of when you got your first cyborg body." Eventually Staren turns back towards the water. "Hey, Abyssal. Why'd you stop talk--" And then he realizes he lost sight of it, and looks alarmed briefly before spying the dark shape. He frowns, pulls out his matter manipulator, and starts draining the water. Because he's seriously thinking about just ending this, and having to try and kill it underwater would be awkward.
Android 17	Seventeen is grabbed by the throat, but his arm grabs Septette's, fighting against the hold it has. While some bruising would occur, Seventeen seems quite a bit hardier than most. When he is thrown, he goes, managing to maneuver himself to avoid crashing into Kotone. However, he keeps going, but right as he might crash into a wall, he seems to disappear. Moving at an almost impossible speed, he moves right towards Septette, coming in low. Then follows up with a forceful punch right towards her center of mass, trying to send her flying back, and this time following through by bringing both hands back to either side and then forward again, aiming a wave of energy to wash over the woman, hopefully driving her back. "Offer is extended to you, feel free to tap out anytime," he says with a wry grin.
Kotone Yamakawa	Kotone Yamakawa knows she may be outgunned hee but certain old events are playing out in her mind. Also, Septettes own attacks and the Cyborg just keeps moving, she's able to avoid being hit again and she's keeping going. Maybe there's always been a level of distrust to Septette given her conversations on the broadband, her actions in other areas. She hears Staren but she says nothing she does take note of Septette's offer. Even if she asked about the Metal Tyrant that rules that colony now? Would she get a clear answer? No, she doubted she would. The chatter of her assault rifle also continues as she pauss briefly again to fire once more on Septette.
Septette Arcubielle	"Impossible speed" is, Seventeen finds, not quite enough. Somehow, even though she's moving more slowly than he is, Septette always seems to be ahead of him in a ceaseless writhe of motion: his fists glance off of her forearms, his energy blast dissipates on the flat of her blade. The back of that blade comes crashing down on him immediately afterwards in a overhead swing that'll crack the floor if it misses, and might just crack his head if it hits. Kotone's fusillade fares little better- the bullets rake across Septette's body with no visible effect, and she retaliates by almost casually launching a forearm-sized skewer of magical ice through at her. The Deep One's peculiar language seems to permeate the water just fine: "There is nothing there to reason with. Violence is the only language the children of the tree understand. ... Whatever it is you're intending to do- please stop." Its tone is superficially calm, but growing steadily more hoarse as the water drains.
Staren	At the rate things are going, Staren might actually drain enough of the water out before Kotone finally gets hurt. "ENOUGH! I rescind my offer!" Staren aims his beam cannons at the abyssal. "How would you like to die?" After a few more seconds, he comments, "I suppose it doesn't matter." Twin particle beams and half a dozen miniature anti-tank missiles shoot down at the beast's center of mass. COMBAT: Staren launched a Massive Forceful attack at ?????! 45 Drive spent.
Kotone Yamakawa	Kotone Yamakawa is going to need better weaponry to deal with Septette in the future, if they ever fight again. The confession of Septette took over the colony, and she also sabotaged the security ship as well as noted. She keeps moving but this time? Kotone is caught by a lance of ice which catches her in the gut going in one end and out the other. She staggers he cloak failing and falling to the ground from the hit, as the Deepone basically says that Septette is a unthinking monster that only knows violence.. AS this happen a mix of hydraulic fluids and something red almost akin to blood by foul-smelling leaks from her wound.
Android 17	Seventeen gets smacked across the back of the head. The android barrier appearing just barely too late to completely absorb the blow, before falling forward. He manages to catch himself, and pull it into a hand flip, aiming to try and land back on his feet. He's pushing himself quite a bit, but he doesn't seem to think of a way past that ability to reduce their attacks to nothing. It might be based on her ability to perceive the attack. He can't see Staren, fully focused on the fight for the moment. Then he charges once more, aiming to try and set that up again, each attack more and more trying to probe her attacks. Trying to understand how to fight her. He almost feels as if this isn't going to be the only time. Not by a long shot. However, right as he would hit, the form vanishes. This time, appearing directly above her holding both hands down and aiming a massive ball of energy right towards the head of the woman. He doesn't hold anything back.
Septette Arcubielle	The final overpowering energy blast from 17 does manage to stagger her- there's no externally visible damage, but when she turns to face him with her hands raised there's a subtle click from her neck. She flicks out her arm-blade again, preparing to lunge... and then the events on the other end of the room draw her attention, and she withdraws. "I am the eighth Coistrel of the Deep Ones. The last time I perished was at the hands of a Child of the Poison Tree." The monster tries to stand up on its shredded legs, in the shallow puddle of water remaining to it. It tries to raise a hand to Staren. It tries to conjure up some defense to ward off his withering assault. "And you, Child of Man, are-" It manages to do none of those things. Its skeletonized lower limbs scrape against the rocks as it tries to push itself up. Its hand shakes. And its voice of empty sound dies in its throat as it's ventilated and burned down to ash. Its body doesn't completely disintegrate under the assault, but its head, one limb, and several chunks of its torso are simply gone. As the air escapes from its deflating chest, the burbling almost seems to form sounds, like an auditory inkblot test. "This won't heal her." "They show you pity, not kindness." "Do you like hurting other people?" And then, with that dying blindfired psychological assault expended, the Deep One falls cold and still. Septette rolls her shoulders, settling her 'clicking' spine down, and turns to leave. "You can fix her body, can't you, Staren? Won't need any help?"
Staren	Staren remains stoic in the face of the auditory inkblot test and tries not to think about it too hard. The alien will use words to try to bend them to alien action. Septette's right, the risk of all of this was too high. He turns to Septette. "I know you calculated this, but I am /annoyed/ with you for threatening to torture people. As soon as I figure out how to discourage that behavior without harming our mutual goals, I will do so." Staren looks at Kotone. "If she'll let me." He will, of course, start giving her the cyborg equivalent of first aid if she doesn't reject him.
Android 17	Seventeen's attention is drawn as Septette's gaze goes towards Staren. Just in time to see him destroy the creature. Taking a moment to catch his breath, and to land. There is just the shock of Staren doing that because it renders the entire few minutes completely pointless. His hands ball into a fist, his initial reaction is to Gero Staren, but he takes a breath. He doesn't say anything else at that moment, instead, he just moves to leave. There really isn't anything to say, and he feels he'd likely act in anger than rational thought. Or really REALLY hit Staren hard. Like, REALLY hard. Like, through a mountain hard.
Kotone Yamakawa	Kotone Yamakawa can't really fight Staren off right now even if she wants to. Unlike many combat cyborgs, she's not prone to turning off her pain receptors. For personal and practical reasons such as doing way more damage to yourself as you don't know you are taking more of it. Either way she lays there and Staren can work on her but the look on her face isn't very happy. She's clearly still able to talk, and she's not shouting things at Staren, or Septette, that's a good sign right?
Starbound Flotilla	George unfurls his helmet, letting it fold back into his suit. He flicks the cigarette in front of Android 17, crossing his path with it on his way out. "Well! Business all sorted out there." He says. "That means you don't really gotta go back to Nessos. Steer clear of it, won'tcha, Nature Channel?" His eyes gleam a terrible, ominous red for a moment before his helmet re-furls. "If I had to guess, it seems like there's really only risk around there these days, and you wouldn't want more of these things out there hurting your animals." He begins to flicker, his own teleportation gradually allowing him to egress fairly quickly.