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 Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2009 7:50 am
"No!" Was Kai's only response, desperate in tone and expression now. Stubborn as always, she never wanted to listen.. even if it would be for the overall benefit of staying alive. As her shoulder was gripped more tightly than her friend meant to, her own hand grasped over it as if to hold it.
"Nick.." She gasped, quieter, yearning to pull her back.
Edge hissed as the screech came again, standing so firmly, so stoic in front of them. His body was nearly horizontal in its stance to prevent either from moving in the direction of the Jury. He looked even more furious as the dim red glow of Nick's eye reflected off of his shown teeth which remained in a distinct snarl.
"I won't.." She started, but was thrown off-guard as Edge suddenly moved. She expected him to go to Nick, to grab her, to stop her from going towards whatever the Jury was. But she was mistaken.
The mechanical dragon lept at Kai herself, skidding behind her, digging silver metal claws deep into the sheered stone of the floor, and grabbing her by the fabric of her top, yanking her not only backwards, but out of her friend's grip. He snarl-hissed into her ear, his muzzle right next her face. At first, she struggled to pull away from him. Despite their extremely tight bond- excentuated by the fact that they're never seen apart- they often argued and disagreed on each other's methods.
At first, Kai believed it was just one of those times. When Edge had made a decision and was just as stubborn as she was in it. His jaw tightened on her collar, and an overwhelming sense of calm soaked her senses.
It will be alright.
"Nick.." Kai said again, but quieter. The words she heard weren't truely words, just a feeling.. a sense across their bond.
We will follow.
The final feeling was the deal breaker. Kai hesitated, and then stood calm, a passive poise allowing her friend to continue uninhibited.
"...Be careful.. keep fighting.." She nearly whispered.
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Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2009 2:34 pm
Nick's hand returned to her head once Kai was forcefully taken away by Edge. She turned to face the two as she struggled to stand. Her mechanical hand releasing its fist and stretching the hand out. The hand than relaxed at her side once she finally managed to stand up. Her posture slumped.
"t-thank... you." She looked at Edge. Her breathing became heavier. "and thank you Kai... you... are a... good sister... to... me."
Slowly she begun to back away. "If... you see... Titus and K-kagi... tell them-" Nick's words were abruptly cut off as the sound of wires plugging into something echoed in the hall. Nick froze glaring at the two. With the glow from her eye Kai would be able to see small and large wires now plugged into the side of Nick's face and arm.
Nick gasped before the glow completely vanished. The eye shut off just as Nick's body went limp. More wires came surrounded by Black fog and wrapped themselves around Nick tightly. Seconds later the wires pulled Nick down the hall and into the cockpit of the Jury.
The Jury screeched again once its captive was tied and secure within its cockpit. It rose again to its feet and continued deeper into the unknown territory at a slow pace. The black fog following it.
As the story goes with any sighting of the Jury, it left behind no tracks... The sands remained unstirred as if no one or thing had been near the temple.
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Gestalt Effect Vice Captain
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Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2009 6:32 pm
Kai had wiped the emotion from her face, as strained as it had been, and now looked forward with her usual intense expression.
The sight of wires 'plugging' into her friend caused a slight flinch, but she kept herself standing unnaturally still, supported by Edge from behind in more than one way. She swallowed. The sight was far more than disturbing to see. It seemed surreal, which more or less helped her handle the violent torture occuring to someone so close to her, right in front of her eyes.
She waited, and waited. Waited until Nick was gone, inside of the Jury's cockpit. She found, as soon as it had vanished from sight, that she'd been holding her breath. Gasping, the strength in her legs seemed to be lost and she wavered in her place. Edge made some low-key grunting noise and released her collar, shifting his body into her side as she fumbled for strength and balance. She gripped onto his back spikes and threw her leg over his back to sit right above one of the lower spikes and hold onto the ridges that hid his draconic, bat-like wings within them.
"Follow." Was stated unnecessarily, in a low, furious tone. Kai's resolution was far stronger than her body. If her mind wasn't still in full-gear, she could probably sleep for the entirity of next year after all this. Her body was shifted up as Edge stood at his full height and walked the remainder of the corridor. Thankfully, the time of day was later, twilight not too long off, so the sun wasn't as blinding as she thought it would be. Still, she hid her eyes- for more than just the reason of bright light. Large wings snapped outwards from the organoid's sides, internal jets revved, and with a lurch of metallic hindquarters, they became airborne in a shot of light and dust.
Their landing point was Jager. It had only been left five miles away, so the trip was short and sweet. Edge left her upon Jager's head, just above the cockpit's opening, bathed himself in a bright white-blue light, and disappeared within the core of the Zoid itself. Kai dipped into a kneel, supporting herself on one hand, as the zoid came to life, shifting and groaning as it moved for the first time in a year. As the cockpit opened, she grabbed the corner, and let herself drop inside, sliding into the pilot seat. Lights flickered over the control panel and information screens lept into being in front of her. As Edge controlled them for her, locations and lattitude and longitude numbers warred and shifted for a few moments before he decided on one.
"Alright, let's go." Kai muttered, brow set in furious intensity. Jager moved forward, grating against the rust that had set at some of his unused joints, then broke into a run in the general direction of Nick.
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Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2009 11:15 pm
-------------------TIME SKIP--------------------------
 The further ventured into the territory the thicker the black fog became. Any radar system would had been useless since entering the cursed fog. Edge would be able to hear the murmurs again. Their voice louder and louder the further in the fog Kai and Edge went. Loud as they were their words were not clear enough to make out. This is what drove many insane when they were able to hear it.
Nick's eye flickered than brightened up. It was still fairly dim, but meant her heart was beating again. She gasped for for breath as her left eye shot open. The darkness of the room less than welcoming. She could feel her arms wrapped in wire and held at level with her ears. Again, she looked like a crucifix decoration on the cold wall of the room she had never seen completely.
She let her head hang with a sigh. Desperately she wished for some company, friendly company. Someone to be with again... Perhaps she would be able to dream instead of fall into a black sleep.
Her left eye closed again. The right eye dimmed a bit more as Nick quickly fell into a deep sleep. It was the only relief she got until she was 'needed' once again. The Judge was not around, now doubt the best time to get some sleep.
Outside the Jury loomed over a large boulder. Thirteen feet high, thirteen feet wide. The center of the rock had cracks, some deep some shallow. The cracks spanned seven feet in both directions.
Jury's red eyes and nostrils flared. It stood still like a giant eerie statue, hidden well by the black fog.
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Gestalt Effect Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2009 5:26 am
Jager's run slowed to a walk, each giant metallic paw step more careful than the last. As the fog thickened and the information read-outs became more and more interrupted by noise, and the gauges became less and less reliable, Kai turned to as much a visual approach as she could- though even that was poor.
She reached forwards, flicking off various instruments, the halographic screens fading out of existance. Audio was just as fuzzy, and with switching that off, she was left blind and deaf in an already uncharted territory.
Thank goodness for Edge.
"It's up to you two now." The pilot murmured. Jager growled in response, though very quietly, hesitantly. His tail swayed, and for a moment he paused. Edge's grasp on the zoid core released slightly for a second as the voices in the fog became louder, more distinct, more distracting. He hissed and curled himself tighter, melding again completely with Jager. It was hard to ignore, especially since the voices were so exceptionally familiar.
Suddenly, Jager lurched to a stop. His head panned in the direction of the ominous figure- its details untellable through the fog. It was simply a deeper darkness to Jager and Edge. To Kai, it was unseeable. But she knew better than to press the zoid, or the organoid, in such a dangerous position. She shifted the gears and pulled back, forcing Jager back about fifty yards- out of the line of a direct attack of whatever was hidden within the blackness of the dangerous fog.
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Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2009 11:22 am
The Jury's head shifted in the direction the Jager had come from. Its eyes flashed but it made no advance toward them. Jury let out a terrifying screech. White flames streamed from its nostrils and mouth.
Nick stirred a little from her sleep at the sound of the Jury. Damn thing, didn't know the meaning of quiet.
-I know you are out there. I feel everything through the fog. It is my web and you my prey. Perhaps it spares you and your human's life? Or perhaps I send you to your maker? What say you ancient one? Or is her calling too strong? You would like a meeting with the one calling to you?- A multitude of voices echoed in the fog. The murmurs behind them. Only Edge and Jager would be able to understand the voice. To Kai it would sound like more demented screeches and laughter. Hysterical twisted laughter.
The fog showed no sign of lifting. Here it was eternal, only to change at the whim of the Judge. At least the rumor about the fog claims.
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Gestalt Effect Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2009 11:55 am
Jager shifted a metallic leg back, arching its shoulders downward in a very defensive poise. Feline-like, it's tail swayed, irritated and unsure. The zoid, normally as stubborn as the pair it currently carried, and just as- if not more than- willing to leap into danger with claws and teeth bared, refused to move forward. He made no noise, listening to the voices.
Edge did the same, his furled wings, bound around the core, withdrew slightly. The voice.. that voice..
The voices of Edge and Jager were one and the same as they spoke, overlapping and sounding like an echo. A furious voice overlapping a serious but lighter one.
We come in no stealth, within your web. They began, interrupted by a relatively quiet, resounding growl from Jager beneath the voices, We approach directly. Our human should be spared. We believe it to be so. Her calling to the one you keep is unbreakable. She refuses to forego her current path, nor do we.
Jager shifted again, bringing himself to a more direct stance, standing tall and unyielding- portraying the shared words in physical manner that the Jury may see.. or feel.. within its fog.
I have been called for some time now. The voice was combined, but the furious tone became more prominent at this statement- Edge was speaking alone, but still embedded within the Jager's core. I wish to know why the powers of old draw me and my human. I desire a meeting.
Kai, in the meantime, sat within the cockpit. The gauges and screens were useless, the visual and audio were nothing but blackness and noise- aside from the twisted laughter that rose the hairs on the back of her neck, despite her static resolve. She said nothing, did nothing. Jager was reacting to something, and she could sense Edge's unease. But their bond leant trust that failed to waver. Only impatience caused her to shift in her seat.
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Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2009 12:58 pm
-It calls to all her children. She wants them home, twould be a shame to miss the moment. Though, it seems you have forgotten... pitty.- Jury snorted with laughter again. Flames spouted from its mouth.
-She is out at the moment with another or her children, but perhaps I can entertain you until she returns.-
The offer not inviting by the sound or the feel.
The wires holding Nick to the wall begun to retract slowly. It wasn't long before she was allowed to drop to the ground with a hard -THUD- . She grumbled from the sudden wake up call. "Damn little..." She huffed and pushed herself from the floor.
Nick had little time to reflect on what had just happened before another mask was attached to her face. Small wires stretched from the inside of the mask and attached themselves to the right side of Nick's face. The mask was identical to the one Edge had crunched in his maw.
It that moment her mind was, again, no longer her own. The nightmare once again. Her posture straightened as she begun to walk away from the wall and deeper into the thick fog.
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Gestalt Effect Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2009 1:13 pm
Much of my memory was tampered with. Edge's voice sounded even more irritated than what it had started out as. It wasn't by his choice that so many of the things he should know are now foggy and grey. Dream-like, with tidbits from the oldest of ages that taunt him like nightmares that all point in the same direction. Constantly the temple calls to him, and his memories of the ancient days are crystal clear- until the Judge becomes involved. At every moment of his memory which the black fog comes, it's like watching an old television, where the picture cuts in and out. Something happened back then, something perhaps that makes the ancient organoid a problem which had to be dealt with.
Edge hissed, which translated through Jager as a savage growl, unlike the liger and more like Edge himself. We do not need your entertainment. The organoid returned to the coupled voice, becoming even again with Jager's tone. Edge wanted answers, Kai wanted Nick, Jager wanted to destroy what felt so 'wrong'. All three were anxious.
When will she return?
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Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2009 1:51 pm
-Tampered or shielded, I can never tell the difference.- Jury chuckled. -Oh, but do not fear, she will let you know everything when the time comes.-
 It knelt down as Nick emerged from the rock. Wires shot from the cockpit as the chamber opened. Nick was once again engulfed in wires and thrust forcefully into the seat of the ZOID. Jury's eyes flashed.
-Your great mother will surely be happy to hear you have answered her call. Most children are naughty and do not respond to their mothers for such a long time. Until it is too late... shame.-
Nick filmy grasped the controls and edged the large ZOID forward. Its shadowed form barely visible through the fog. It looked fragile with its thin frame, yet the looks were misleading. It looked to have sharp wings all over its bony body. Crimson eyes pierced the shadow and glared judgmentally, almost mockingly, at the Jager and its crew.
A com-link screen flashed in front of Kai. Oddly it was no longer affected by the fog. The mask darkened by shadows and more fog. Half the mask was cracked and looked to be at the point of breaking. The most notable crack in the shape of the familiar cross scar over the eye. That half, the right, seemed more demented than the other. It seemed mad with a demented laughter. The other half, the left, was without scars and more of an amused look on it. Under the left eye was a strange crimson Zoidian symbol, nothing Kai would recognize, but something Edge would. ( and not because it was on the other mask he destroyed) The right eye glowed brightly while the left was dark, as if staring into a lifeless void.
"You come all the way out here to seek death little one? Heh, Makes my job less exciting." The Iron Judge laughed. Its voice so twisted and demonic it was unearthly. Beneath the awkward twisted voice Nick's familiar tone was present, yet it was hard to pick up on through the demonic warping.
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Gestalt Effect Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2009 2:52 pm
Edge had no more response for the Jury, irritated and frustrated with having to wait for what he wanted. The red eye-like panels of the Jager glowed in fury mirrored by all three of the ones who stood before the Jury and, unknown to all for the moment, Nick.
There were so many questions Edge wanted answered, but knew well this was not the time, nor the creature, to ask.
Jager shifted his weight again, metal claws digging deeply into the earth as soon as it noticed the change in the fog. The ominious figure was moving, and the lithe, agile zoid would mirror it in initial defense.
Even Kai saw the crimson eyes, and immediately she gripped the controls to share command, which she had given over fully to Jager and Edge during the time when none of her senses could make head nor tails of the situation. The mocking glare made the pilot shift forward in her seat, eyes narrowed- the intensity normally plastered across her face increased ten-fold. Nick meant more to her than she'd ever verbally express. And this ordeal had to be met.
The com-link startled her, not expecting any of her gauges or screens to function while in the utter darkness of the fog. Edge was just as taken aback, but by the image, not so much receiving the uninhibited link.
"We don't seek death. I seek my friend.. my sister." Her statement started out harsh, but at the word sister, repeated from what Nick had told her earlier, her words softened for those ending words. Immediately, however, she sharpened again. "What job? I want nothing to do with you. I only want Nick!" She snapped, removing the word 'we' for the knowledge that Edge did want something to do with this thing, and Jager only wanted to get rid of it.
She took Jager's controls and pushed him forwards, but the zoid- and Edge- forced the movement to hesitate. The 'feeling' that was shared across the bond screamed that Nick was present, that Kai needed to be careful. The pilot squinted out at the black fog and at the profile image dipicted across the comlink. She couldn't see Nick, or anyone, aside from the dark, lifeless creature which haunted the image.
"We have to move. If we stand here, it'll attack regardless." She spoke to both Jager and Edge, who conceeded.. but with continued edged of warning. Jager bared its teeth, snarling at the approaching Jury. Blades flashed as the side blades of the Blade Liger Mirage componant extended and locked into position.
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Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2009 3:54 pm
The iron Judge leaned back with a howl of laughter. "I see... How unfortunate."
The com-link vanished leaving Kai to the dark once again. A static noise still audible over think even though the picture was gone. Fog begun to grip at the joints of the Jager and seep in through the vents into the cockpit. Edge would be able to hear her voice, calling for him. What she was calling him for or where was still masked by the whispers.
More sets of crimson eyes and silhouettes surrounded the Jager. All of them withdrawing their own blades. The 'wings' now resembled large scythes, almost larger than the ZOID itself. Each shadow stood blade to blade.
"Smart little girl." The Iron Judge hissed over the com-link, this time without a picture. "Farewell..."
Jury screeched again, rearing on its hind legs and kicking its forelegs. White fire spewed from its nostrils and mouth once the forelegs stomped back to the ground. The Jury in turn was finished with tormenting the Organoid verbally. It still laughed and chuckled at the Organoid's frustration.
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Gestalt Effect Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2009 7:02 pm
Kai gripped the controls harder, gritting her teeth as the 'iron Judge' dropped the link, leaving her yet again deaf and blind to the situation.
Edge melded himself tighter with Jager, trying to force out the calling voice with a battle looming over them- a battle unlike the battles of war or competition. Far, far unlike them. Pulses of energy flowed through Jager as all three became one unit; a movement from one equaled and matched an exact movement from both of the other two. It was as if they could read each other before their thoughts were placed into motion, and indeed it was true.
Jager's movements grated against the age-old rust, but it didn't inhibit his range of motion enough to cost a battle by any means. Kai's fury, Edge's fury, Jager's fury erupted at once and the liger-like zoid surged forwards, ion boosters glowing in preparation to hype up its speed at a second's notice.
Kai pushed Jager forward, within a hundred yards of the Jury, and then hard to one side, as if trying to go around it and prepare for an angle strike. She wanted the Jury to move- to show her another hint at what she was about to face. Jager roared a taunting roar, mocking, taunting, trying to pull Jury forward.
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Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2009 7:26 pm
The silhouette of the Jury faded deeper into the fog at Jager's charge. Illusions begun to pop up everywhere. It would seem as though the Jager was in the middle of a shadow army. Glaring at him.
However, despite the illusions, something familiar was trying to contact Edge. Someone desperately looking for help, a way out of this nightmare. None of the shadows carried this cry. It was behind the shadows and coming at them at an incredible speed.
The shadows begun to circle the Jager, keeping just out of reach of any of its melee weapons. Eyes focused on the head of Kai's ZOID.
Below the ground begun to open up revealing a terrible fire below the earth. A large hand shot fourth and grabbed at the ZOID's legs. Terrible screams of terror and pain came from those burning cracks. Even more ungodly noises screeched with the painful cries. With all that noise it would become harder for Edge to hear the cry for help.
It felt as if this were happening, yet in reality the fog swirled about silently. The ground was still sand and in one piece as it was before... The more fog that poured into the cockpit and gears of the ZOID the more real the hellish events became.
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Gestalt Effect Vice Captain
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Posted: Fri Dec 11, 2009 7:24 pm
Jager roared in utter fury at suddenly being surrounded, shifting back into a stance poised for a pouncing, lashing strike. His bladed tail swiped back and forth, his head looking from side to side, eyeing each of the shadowy figures in turn. His metallic claws glowed blindingly white-gold as his paw lashed outwards in feline-like motion as a laser claw strike which met with nothing but air and dancing fog.
Kai was moving with equal intensity, guiding his actions in time with his reactions, perhaps even a little faster. The pair lept forwards, side blades alive with light and rippling power, slashing at the nightmarish army, and slaying nothing. Growling between clenched teeth, Kai pulled back on the controls, withdrawing Jager from his onslaught of attack. This was useless! Something was wrong!
The sudden light in the deathly fog made the pilot release a control to shield her eyes. Jager moved on his own, pulling his still-heated paws back from the burning hell which reached up to pull him down into it.
"What the..." Kai gasped in a string of curses, normally hard-set eyes widened. What on Zi could this possibly be? This was... impossible! She'd stopped using the word after what had happened, but this just couldn't be!
Edge was distracted, his hold on Jager's core almost completely released, though he stayed within the inner mechanisms of the zoid. The voice was someone, something he knew. He should listen to it, he should follow it. Blue eyes burned in brightening light, and a hisss was ground through his metallic, pointed fangs. Only when Jager lurched oddly did Edge start to pay attention again. The screeches overlaying the voice he tried with effort and pains to listen to, he was forced to give up the distraction of searching for it, though it bothered him to no end.
When he recurled himself around Jager's core and viewed the world as only an organoid could, he growled sharply- the voice echoing through Jager with the slightly different tone that let all listening know it wasn't only the zoid that was displeased with the situation.
It's not real
The organoid, somehow, was not fooled. The ancient being- though he could see the illusions- saw them as somewhat transparent. Without physically touching, he couldn't show her what he could see. But he knew she felt what he was thinking through the trio's connection.
Kai failed to respond, frantic and unable to fight her immediate, deeply in-grained defensive reactions to the shadowy figures and the large hand grabbing at Jager's legs. Jager jumped back, twisting quickly in the air to face the multitude of opponents again from a greater distance- its boosters glowing in the quick, sudden movement it had made.
Edge made his move, taking hold of the Jager's controls, and forcing it to move directly forward, through the fog, through the shadowy figures. He knew it was technically a gamble against this equally ancient power, but he rather despised trickery and illusions.
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