Imperialisium wrote:Olympus Mons
Tap-tap-tap
The tapping of hammers and the whirring buzz of power tools echoes as the excavations continued. Workers in fully enclosed suits to protect them from the harsh realities of the Martian atmosphere toiled in shifts. Coming and going from a large ship which had hovered mere feet above the red soil of Mars. It was a dead world. One choked by ancient calamities and reinforced by the gestalt influences of Mankind. The tunneling was towards and around an unearthed object approximately five hundred meters into the incredible bulk of Olympus Mons. Dwarfing even Mount Everest back on Earth. A double door of polished gold and bearing the effigies of angelic figures, dragons, and various other spirits.
Standing before the door, staring at it with an unblinking, unyielding gaze, was a raven haired woman who possessed fine features. Eyes of electric green as she rested an armoured gauntlet on her hip. Her other arm hanging limp as she continued to bore into the doors. Oblivious to those toiling to unearth yet more passageways and remains of ruins long buried under the iron rich Martian sediment.
Another armoured figure walked up and stood beside her, arms crossed, a thin layer of red dust about his gear.
"The Technocracy seems to be unaware of our presence," voiced the warrior.
"They will find out eventually. What of the colonial patrol that would pass by?"
"They're dead. Made it look like a fuel cell accident. I was sure to crush their transponders."
"Good."
The woman's limp hand spasmed at the wrist. Her head glancing sideways with brow furrowed.
"What is it, My Lord?" spoke the armoured warrior quickly.
"Disturbances back on Earth," she spun on her heel, "Do not open the doors yet," walking away from the doors the armoured woman appeared to be leave the antechamber.
John, Nikolai, and Caladrielle
John, Nikolai, and Caladrielle drew up to watch the events taking place. The Sorceress spatting on the ground in response to Alexei's icy glare. John seemed utterly unamused but either apathetic or not willing to intervene. Nikolai merely puffed on his cigar and cocked his head, as if intrigued by what would happen next. Caladrielle frowned and began to circle towards Sofia. Stopping halfway there she blanched. A panicked look on her face, eyes darting too and from, clutching her staff close by. A slow exhale of breath blossomed into cold vapour.
Everyone's breathe was cloudy mist as the temperature around them plummeted. Frost covering windows and along the metal bodies of vehicles. Tiny flecks of snow from frozen moisture in the air falling onto shoulders and hair. The temperature continued to drop precipitously. Ice forming and the ground freezing into cold tundra. John glanced at his phone and checked the temperature. His phone read 14, 13, 11, 6....-5. Stuffing it back into his pocket he drew his side arm and nodded to Nikolai who pulled out an AK-74U from under his coat. Wielding it one handed like a pistol he began to scan his surroundings. Caladrielle shivered.
Lightning bolts struck earth in the distance just beyond the tree line. One, then two, three, and four. On until at least a dozen strikes occurred in an unnaturally close proximity. Dark shapes emerging from the tree line then blurred. Coming into focus as the group was surrounded by armoured warriors.
"Well...well. If it isn't some old friends."
The voice was honey sweet, sultry, and yet edged with danger. Similar and sending off alarm bells in the group as a woman shimmered into view. Anna.
Alexei - Black Ice
As Alexei had suspected would happen, Connor had joined the scuffle, but he managed to limit himself to giving a threat toward the Ogre. Alexei was only allowed this sliver of comfort, as the older Garou seemed to be in agreement that Belial’s presence was too overarching for them to waste time fighting with each other. The former Inquisitor turned to him and nodded, though he was too tired and tense to manage a smile. He did not lower his sword, as he was still afraid that the Changeling would attack. Soon, however, they had bigger issues.
The heat of the party’s rage was suddenly met with a piercing cold, which seemed to stab into everyone from nowhere. Alexei could feel the hair standing on his neck and back, and he buttoned his jacket while letting his eyes shift around him. John and Nikolai had drawn their weapons, and the former Inquisitor raised his own sword as well. At first, he feared that Belial had come to greet them early, but what arrived instead was almost as problematic. Soldiers decked in armor, shining like black ice, peered from the shadows at the group, and from their ranks stepped a woman who was all too familiar to Alexei, Morri, and Jonah.
The thunder rolled. Four times, as though the devil had fallen to earth and had crashed against it several times in quick succession. Yet the woman who approached was not so disgraceful. In fact, she was perfect, as perfect as she was deadly. That jet-black hair, those smooth emerald eyes, that porcelain skin, that frightening graphite-colored armor. Anna. The Prince had returned, whether for a moment or for some time, and she was alive. The hopes and fears of the entire party were realized, and she acted as though nothing had happened. As usual, her presence obfuscated everyone and interrupted their argument altogether.
Alexei could not be more stressed and shaken. He knew he had not been imagining that she was still alive, but he did not believe she would ever show her face. His blood told him without a doubt that she was the genuine article, not some illusion made from his mind. Perhaps another time he would have run to meet her, but his muscles were frozen, and adrenaline had rushed through him, pushing him into survival-mode. “...Anna...” he murmured, before giving a weary sigh.
Frost fell from his lips, and he met her smug expression with one of terrible exhaustion and barely-concealed exasperation. He did not care if Caladrielle watched and had her suspicions confirmed. He was a grown man, and would watch for himself. “...Of all the times you had to plan a reunion, you couldn’t pick a better one than now, hm? Heh...” A sardonic smile, one which accepted the incredulity of the situation, finally appeared on his face. “...I would have gotten good wine, maybe I would have worn a suit. Maybe I would have slayed the fatted calf, but I suppose that would not be enough blood for you...Enough stupid comments, I suppose that was too much. I haven’t had my last confession, which now I’d have to travel to Rome to receive. At least Pope Francis wouldn’t take away everything I’ve ever loved in Los Angeles and disappear for a year...”
Another deep sigh and chuckle, before the worn glare came back to his face. Wisely, or unwisely, he lowered his sword for the moment. “...So then! With those formalities aside...what brings you back to Los Angeles? I’m sure you’ve heard that a Demon Prince has come to destroy what remains of your kingdom?” he inquired.
