Spirit Operations Unit Leviathan (L3 | Open | SF/Fantasy)

[Isa-sama]

Clarissa was incredibly glad to be in the same van as Dr. Miles. It meant that not only did she get to hear the conversation happening between the other three occupants, she also got a look at facial expressions that accompanied the talk.

When there was a lull in the conversation, Claire took that moment to talk. "Here's my question: just how intelligent were the demons you faced? And were they all militarized or were you not able to tell?" She quirked a half smile and stated, "I'm Clarissa Schiffer. Pleased to meet you."  

[Ivaylo_Sai]

Niko was watching the others when Clarissa spoke up. He tilted his head to her, arching a brow to look her over then nodded politely with a simple introduction, "Nikoli." He paused briefly, "Depends on the fragment. Least as smart as us. Organized where I saw. Empyrea's a kingdom with them at the top. Twenties got a mafia thing going. Think there's an Empire in the Frontier," he glanced at Uso for confirmation.  

[SirBayer]

This finally convinced Eamon to break his silence. "Now, I go' a question. An' it's gonna seem a tad silly, I think. But, uh, how d'we know tha's not the case here?" It seemed outlandish, applying these totally different standards to his own world, but they were all Fragments, right? They'd behave similarly, if not identically. They were all related, somehow. And so far he hadn't heard anything that set the demons anywhere near what they faced. What they faced were animals. What was out there were almost... people.

He was implying a conspiracy now. That was the first sign of insanity, really. He'd always thought conspiracy theorists should just be stoned. Not shot, really, because then they'd just feel vindicated. But no Illuminati would throw a rock. 'Least not so far as Eamon could tell. Still, the possibility had to be considered. If there were humanoid, intelligent demons out there, there could be some here, and they could be in places nobody wanted them in. A possession over long periods of time, perhaps? An order dedicated to demons? It was dumb, and unlikely, but possible.  

[Ivaylo_Sai]

"We don't," was Niko's simple answer. Perhaps not a very comforting one but true. The possibility did exist for such a conspiracy and they had no way of knowing. However, "The other fragments are older though. This one is fairly new. I don't know what causes the break, makes a fragment, but this one was labeled 'New' in the Terminal and we've not had other operatives come back before so ours must only be a few months old or less." He paused to look the others over, watch their reactions. "It is possible the difference in our demons is a. . . lack of experience. Over time they may evolve."  

[Mr. Blackbird Lore]

Uso nodded, confirming the existence of an Empire on the Frontier. "Yeah, Demons were a big deal on the Frontier. From the sounds of it, either had complete dominance or were well on their way." He shakes his head with a smile, remembering his opponent. "Still, that demon was dumb. Just blows my mind."

Hearing Niko speak of his discoveries in the Terminal caught the brawler's interest; it also forced him to realize just how shallow his probings had been. He let go of it quickly, just shrugged off the disappointment he held for himself. Nothing to do about it now, he told himself, but a part of himself continued to berate his consciousness in silence. It wasn't worded thoughts, just a looming presence in the back of his mind, a creature of disdain formed in the subconscious. It was glaring at his consciousness for failing to be as meticulous as the scout. Jake was noiselessly... brooding wasn't quite the word, but it was the only one that seemed to fit.  

[Isa-sama]

Clarissa frowned slightly. "There's no reason to believe the demons can't evolve." Great. Now she had to wonder how fast the demons would evolve if they could. "I suppose my question now is how do the demons feel about this particular fragment? Will they want to come and flood us or are they more interested in their homeworlds?"

Having to deal with their own animalistic demons was a problem on its own. But if they were going to have to deal with smarter demons, how would they be able to handle it? Would those demons send an army over here? Would they attempt to "educate" the demons of this world (again, wondering if it was possible to even educate these demons)?

The potionmaker shot a slightly confused glance at Uso. "When you say dumb, what do you mean? Just in terms of not being as able a fighter as you? Underestimating you? Unable to understand the concept of death?" All Uso had stated was that the demons were stupid on the Frontier, which bothered her. Claire wanted to gauge the intelligence levels of the Frontier's demons. Perhaps they were not as stupid/animalistic as the new fragment's demons, but that still left a wide range of possibilities for intelligence levels.  

[Jokerman-EXE]

Doctor Schraeder now chimed in from the other car, reminding the passengers of Dr. Miles' vehicle that there were others listening to what they had to say.

"Nikoli, was it? I'm not going to ask for a full debriefing here on the road, but I am interested in what Eamon has suggested. It may seem like a bit of a... wild theory, that's true." Her pointed silence gave a good indication of what her face would have looked like, had she been in the same car as them. She had read right into what Eamon had been saying, between the lines, and intended to ask the question directly.

"However, in our line of work, I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing to entertain ideas that may not be firmly grounded in prior precedent." She sighed a bit, her comm crackling. "So, Nikoli, what do you think? Do we face a possible threat from these militarized demons? It seems to me that we've survived this long, on our little fragment, because they haven't turned their eyes on us yet."

A moment more of silence. "Ah. I'm Doctor Sarah Schraeder, by the way."  

[Ivaylo_Sai]

Niko had leaned back slightly to listen to the conversation and watch the others, giving several glances up front to the quietly brooding Dr. Miles. He was curious to just how dumb the Frontier demons were given what he'd been told of them did not include any marked lack of intelligence but then some people were mindbogglingly stupid so the boy could simply have met a poor specimen. When another voice interrupted from the other car Niko couldn't help but frown slightly and glance to Eamon for mention of him.

But he did answer, with a half glare and slight nod, "******** did kill two of us. He's not from around here. I'd say it's not demons to worry about but Black Phantoms. More of them and we know they can invade. Can also . . ." he trailed off a bit searching for a word to come up with "manipulate the addiction. The hunger." He glanced toward Uso as if for confirmation. "Never would have got so close. Didn't mean to attack, was just following. They can make you. . . loose yourself in the hunger. Not think straight." He shook his head with a slightly disturbed look.  

[SiberDrac]

Alright. So demons were evolving. Distressing, but surely these people had not expected the world to stay the same and allow them to catch up to it. You go stale, you lose. Cops put out undercover agents. Mobs created passwords. Cops learned the passwords. Mobs stole the lists of undercover agents. Coevolution is simply a thing that happens.

Strings listened to the conversation around him, but felt no need to contribute. It was good to have the werewolf back, even if he was a liability alongside his strengths. Hmph, and now he could ghost, or something like it. Would make him especially dangerous if he ever went mad.

"Speaking of which," he rumbled quietly, "Clarissa. Can you make a... something, to track something invisible?" Surely he was a master of articulation. He gave Nikoli a slow look. "If the demons are getting smarter, and our furry friend here can 'stealth,' then I'm sure they can do it, too." Creepy thought, that there could now be enemies around them at any time, able to wrench their hunger through them.  

[Mr. Blackbird Lore]

Uso sat awhile to contemplate his answer to Clarissa. "To say he underestimated me is a severe understatement. The demon thought himself god-like it seemed, though in retrospect I suppose that's not surprising: bullets did nothing to him. That does explain why he was so surprised when I snapped his arms in half and cinched his windpipe shut." He paused to properly reflect on the encounter. It was only a few seconds before he resumed. "I suppose his idiocy was more of a tactical error than any lack of intelligence. My partner and the demon seemed to have a running history. That neither was dead yet I suppose speaks to the skills of both parties."

On the topic of Black Phantoms, he corroborated Nikoli's claims, "Yeah, those ******** are no bueno. I had never really understood it until that encounter- the hunger, I mean."

Then he lapsed into silence again. He had a lot to meditate on now that his companions had forced him to think beyond the here and now.  

[Isa-sama]

Clarissa had to bite her tongue to prevent herself from instantly asking questions. Her interest in free spirits also ranged a little into phantoms, and the information she was getting about them was akin to feeding a steak to a starved man.

She looked over at Strings and with a thoughtful gaze, she nodded. "Yes, I can make a potion for that. At least, I'm fairly sure I can." She looked at Niko and said, "I will probably have to ask you to describe how you use your stealth to try and bottle up the effect that I need to track. I hope you won't mind answering those questions later." Niko hadn't wanted to talk about his stealth, and knowing that everything was being recorded, she had understood why. She would give him an out for now and work on that particular potion after the mission.

Uso finally answered her, and she wore a wry smile. "So just extremely arrogant." That was good to know. It would allow them to have the element of surprise when dealing with Frontier demons (unless arrogance was unique to that particular demon).

Finally, Clarissa could ask about Niko's and Uso's encounter of the Black Phantom's hunger manipulation. "Tell me, do either of you remember how close you had to be before you got affected? Do you know if there's a range on the manipulation?" The Black Phantom's ability to affect hunger was extremely interesting. If it could increase the hunger, perhaps it could decrease the effects as well. And if it could do that...well maybe she could put that within a potion.  

[Mr. Blackbird Lore]

Uso greatly desired to be left alone; conversely, he grudgingly appreciated being drawn from his self-analysis and took to the moment "Most likely, but I couldn't give you a good measure. He didn't use it at first contact. It was a last resort he used when we gave chase. At best I could say it's more than arm's reach, but less than fifteen yards. At least I assume that's the reason only Nikoli and I bit the bullet."  

[SirBayer]

"Can we kill a Black Phantom?" Eamon asked. "I'm inclined ta say 'yes,' or at least 'get rid of 'em' - ********, as ye so gently put it, back'd off from the truck. If he had na reason ta fear us, or rather if he were immortal, he prob'ly wouldn' have done it. Danger'us as they may be, we can fight 'em, and knowin' their capabilities makes it all the simpler. Example: Knowin' they can manipulate the whole hunger thin', we stay further back - don' give 'em a chance to do it. An' so long as we're nice an' careful, we can always get our folks back, too."  

[Ivaylo_Sai]

Niko had tensed up at mention of his new ability. A quick glance to the intently listening Dr. Miles confirmed his fears - she was going to prod him again and this time she had at least one other egg head to help. He looked back at Clarissa with a tight expression and couldn't help but wonder about her 'potions'. When did SOUL turn into an alchemist's lab? He gave her a thankful nod though when she put the interrogation off till later.

Niko just wanted to get back home and sleep in his own bed. The world was falling apart around them in more ways than they knew and he just wanted to sleep, maybe go to the mess hall and actually enjoy a meal before this new body got as bad as his last. That was a small comfort. The ability to enjoy, to feel anything. That was a greater ability than any other he'd picked up or heard of, and he'd seen some pretty impressive ones. At least he'd have a small taste of 'normalcy' before the world came crashing down and his loyalties were tested. He was not looking forward to that.

Nor was he enjoying the current conversation. Clarissa's question about the Black Phantom made Niko tense and shift uncomfortably. He didn't want to answer so he let the boy do it - though his answer left something to be desired. He was considering adding to it when Eamon cut in with a new question. Might as well speak up.

"Black Phantoms have the same vulnerabilities as Blue. They are actually easier to hurt than you or I - if you can get close enough - and die permanently if killed in that form. Their danger is that they are hunters, actively hunting, and we are their prey. They know we are here. The Terminal can target Illuminated for Black Phantoms: highest concentration of, nearest location to known entries, specific persons. The targeting isn't perfect but it will get them close. The Terminal does at least warn the Illuminated but only on entry. There's no time limit one can spend in Phantom form, no limit to how far you can travel in it if you're willing to take the risks. Phantoms can even recall to the Terminal if they've another coin to spend to leave it. They can stalk their prey and use whatever abilities they have in their physical body. Not all Phantoms are equal, being only as strong as they were in life, but they are all dangerous.

"The hunger manipulation is a subtle art dependent largely on the opposing wills of both the Phantom and Illuminated. Being aware of it can help fight against it but that takes concentration which is likely to be divided in the fight. The range is also dependent on the Phantom's will, strength, and concentration. They can have a stronger effect on single targets or weaker on multiple. They can also manipulate free spirits. As ******** did to twist minions or just gather them to create a distraction for hunger crazed Illuminated." Niko paused to watch the others and decided he'd said enough. Let them ask if they want further clarification.  

[SiberDrac]

Once again, Strings lapsed into blank silence, seeming tired and bored, though his more approached the leveling, empty stare of ennui than exasperation or mere disinterest. The mention of the hunger was mildly enticing. He knew he could hold his own against it well enough, and had for a long time, but the other knew that by now, so there was no need to repeat it. Instead, he stared out the window, trying to ignore the festering spark inside him that wanted, wanted so badly, to plummet from a skyscraper and learn more about this Terminal for himself.