|
|
Post by Whill Shaman Xixo on Sept 19, 2013 19:13:24 GMT -8
Cloning is the process of creating a new life form from a genetic template, which, without modifications, would be completely identical to the original. Genetic engineering is frequently paired with cloning science, however, in order to instill in clones various traits, among which are the well-known growth acceleration and docility attributes seen in the Grand Army of the Republic's clone army, cloned from Jango Fett. The Grand Army of the Republic evolved through several stages and had used various clone sources by the time it became the Imperial Stormtrooper Corps, but in its first conception, the entire army was composed of clones grown in this very facility (and others very much like it in other cities on Kamino).
The complex is very large due to the Kaminoan Cloners' preference for meticulous clone development in order to provide the highest quality of clones available to the universe at large. Clone life begins with the assembly of genetic material inside transparent wombs. The embryonic development continues inside these clone cylinders, with genetic tampering performed at this stage of the clone's life via imposition of various conditions on the artificial amniotic fluids, until the clone is ready to be removed or 'birthed'. The time elapsed from zygote to infant is a variable that can be controlled by the genetic engineers, at a cost.
The artificial wombs are arranged in circular clusters circumferencing cylindrical pillars through which the nutrients and genetic essentials are administered to each clone. This area is called the Embryonic Vault. Per the usual Kaminoan decor, the dominant visible colors are white and blue: although to the Kaminoans, who can see ultraviolet, there is more aesthetic enhancement here than meets the eye.
Once at the infant stage, the Kaminoans prefer to remove the clone from the womb and submerge it in a learning environment in order to help form its personality and provide it with a useful education model, which may vary depending on the purpose the clone is intended to fulfill (or perhaps may be bypassed entirely, as in the case of creating 'blank slate' clones for the purpose of spirit transference, namely). Higher-level or even custom learning environments are accommodated by the Kaminoans, as long as the client is willing to pay for it.
The Education Facility is adjunct to the Embryonic Vault, accessed to and from by a series of transparent sealed walkways (except for womb maintenance workers, and even then only in the rare case that there is a malfunction). The transparisteel exists mainly for paid visitor tours, to show off the impressive size of the facility, as individual clone development can be monitored remotely by video feeds if requested by the client and paid for with a fee. Education of the clones starts with environmental immersion by audio/video stimulation, and then, as mental development progresses to an adequate stage, switches to a computer-based feedback basis that allows the desired education method to be tailored to the given clone's progress.
The Cafeteria is just downstairs from here. Clone diets are specified by the client, but the Kaminoans are also able to provide a recommended regimen for most known species in the event that the client is fairly indifferent to this point. All clones eat together, with the exception of infants, which are fed by nursing staff or droids.
Beside the Cafeteria is the Gymnasium and Recreation Center, which is an added feature (and extra expense for the client) for the clone to use to supplement education and artificially-based muscle growth with tangible physical activity. A whole host of activities are available, from traditional sports to combat training classes to cardiovascular exercise equipment and training weights.
Upon reaching the clone-age equivalent of five years old, clones are boarded in the Dormitory according to sex. Prior to this, their living space is in the Nursery, which is in the uppermost level of the dorm. A variety of quality rooms are available, again linked to the price that the client is willing to pay for the clone's particular needs. A mass-produced clone, for instance, has no need of a 'penthouse suite'; a more spartan commode is perfectly sufficient in this case. But the nicer features of Kamino life are available upon negotiation of the contract.
Cloning is a highly customizable service provided-- at some expense-- by the Kaminoans, and to ensure that they are able to make the most of their vast expertise, the Cloning Facility in Tipoca City has been designed with this in mind. Depending on what price the client is willing to pay, clones can be produced at up to the utmost quality, with an entire catalog of predisposed natures and options available to them. This is Kamino, where you can find the best of the best. Or at least the best of what you are willing to pay for.
|
|
L???? ?o R??
Member
Posts: 159 
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
Traffic Light: Green
|
Post by L???? ?o R?? on Sept 29, 2013 13:02:07 GMT -8
Today on Kamino, Aire learns about cloning, direct from the source!
It's common knowledge that, ever since the mass-production of sentient organic species was made possible, people have used it as a method of making war. The same was true with the mass-production of droids, and before them, weapons.
With the conclusion of a fruitless search through the city archives, Aire wandered her way over to the Tipoca City Cloning Center.
Well, I say 'fruitless', but those computers had had so much propaganda about cloning that Aire quickly became familiar with some of the more intricate details of the process. She found it fairly distasteful, and the fact that Ryu had gotten so into the idea of getting his own clone was a little bit disappointing to her. Why did he want to do this? She could answer this question in one of several ways and none of them seemed all too pleasing to her. He might want a blank vessel with which to do spirit transference, as he had casually made reference to the fact that Sidious and, closer to home, his father had made use of this technique. Or perhaps he was trying to create a son for himself. This wouldn't be particularly far-fetched, either; it seems that the genes of Icarii are not compatible with those of Terellians, else she might have borne him one by now, so perhaps this is his search for a suitable heir. Or maybe he wants to make an army greater than any that's come before.
But where would this fit in with his vision of god?
She supposes for a while. A clone body would grant pseudo-immortality, for sure. A son would be the truest continuance of his legacy, that's also true. An army would be a direct flexing of his power, so that would also make sense.
Frowning, she is forced to admit that there really is no reason not to get a clone.
But, she thinks, just because there is no reason not to does not mean that there is compelling reason to do so. So, she says to herself, on a personal level she is not inclined to make a clone for herself. There is unilaterally no reason not to become a master swordsman, yet not every Sith is responsible to do so. Power is ultimately a personal choice, and very often one might come across every reason to pass up a certain path towards increasing one's power.
It seems that her master is not going to pass on this, and she cannot resent this decision. In fact, it is her duty to endorse it.
For him.
She doesn't want to be cloned, though.
The doors hiss open and shut as she clears the threshold and is given respite from the deluge that covers the planet with tears.
|
|
L???? ?o R??
Member
Posts: 159
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
Traffic Light: Green
|
Post by L???? ?o R?? on Oct 1, 2013 9:32:31 GMT -8
Those secrets are lost and may be never to be found.
These are the words running through Aire's mind as she wanders her way through the public-access areas of the Cloning Facility.
The enigma surrounding the Clone War's beginning was never really uncovered by the Jedi, merely deduced after the fact. This went doubly so after Order 66 went through; Kamino itself was even phased out of the Imperial scheme, despite being the singlehanded reason that the Empire was able to come into existence, 13 years after making the army in the first place. Now, centuries after the fact, do we expect there to be anything preserved at all, much less still functional? Common sense says no.
But never say never, you know. Revan occasionally came across Rakatan artifacts, and he lived over 20,000 years after the fall of their civilization. And moreover it is a small Universe in which we live.
How to search, then? She sadly lacks Force Sight, which can expedite this process immeasurably. Using intelligent guesswork is a nice thought, but there's only so far that will get you once you remember that the engineers of this project were able to keep their secrets hidden for over a decade from the Jedi, who are no slouches in the mental games department. The edge we have, though, is that the Jedi didn't have the answer in advance. We do.
Aire therefore wonders whether there might exist one of the following three things:
That Dooku may have rented a room in the Dormitories for the project, where he may have inadvertently left some sort of clue;
That a specialized training routine for the clones who were recruited for this program exists that the Kaminoans may have some record of;
That some of the equipment might still exist, forgotten in some warehouse or other.
These seem like the only ways there could still be some information on Kamino to glean from the cancelled project, and indeed, they aren't bad lines of thought.
What seems most favorable and most simple to Aire is to resolve the question of whether there is something left in the Dormitories, so she consults her nifty visitor's map and makes off in that direction within the facility straightaway.
|
|
L???? ?o R??
Member
Posts: 159
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
Traffic Light: Green
|
Post by L???? ?o R?? on Oct 14, 2013 11:48:31 GMT -8
Our speeder-based voyage to the Cloning Facility from Tal's apartment was quiet but thankfully less eventful and more dry than Aire's run to it. The feeling comes upon me once again to contemplate exactly what it is I should be doing. Where are my weaknesses, now?
In part, I answer myself, I am weak by the ease with which I was riled into such a display of emotion. That was...all too unfortunate. I don't regret it, but I think that in the future I should redouble my efforts to keep myself in check better.
I ...could try to strengthen Force Sight? Well, surely, if Dimension Shift is a thing that I must track with Force Sight, improving my skill with it will be a natural by-product.
My bladework has been lacking, lately. Aire isn't capable of pressing my skills as far as I need to go with them, so they could benefit from some attention. Maybe later, if Tal wants, we can practice our Vaapad and I can get a better analysis of what needs to happen.
In the larger scheme of things, what am I overlooking with my plan?
Well, I am assuming first and foremost that I will be able to copy Dimension Shift after observing it. But after that, I am also assuming that I will be able to get onto a planet and execute the maneuver in such a way that it will cause the denizens to be threatened...but also assuming that they will discover that it's me and that they will come after me.
They'll come after me in droves. But a horde of worthless beings is still a horde of worthless beings. I reiterate what I told Tal: even just one of us, alone, could slaughter an entire army. Intuition tells you that it's not so, but that is because your intuition has you imagining that you will be facing the army head-on, one man versus wave after wave, and your intuition really likes to keep your mind confined to the boundaries of the dejarik game. That doesn't have to be reality. You can--
And, just like that, we've arrived. Isn't it great how meditation is useful for eating up large, boring chunks of time?
I stand, stretch. Lead the way inside the facility, speak to the receptionist. Follow the directions to the Future Orders desk, pick up a datapad.
Then I sit, with Tal following in suit, and begin to skim over the options available to this clone of me that I'm about to make.
"Hm, hmmm..."
CLONE PURCHASE ORDER SPECIFICATIONS
(fields marked with * are optional)
Prime Clone Section
(to be completed by purchaser)
Species:________________
Age:_____ Affiliation*:________________
Sex:____
(to be completed by physician)
Height:_________ Weight:___________
BMI:___________ BHR:______________
Blood pressure:________ Type:_____
Clone Order
Quantity:____
Maturation time (weeks):? 1-3 ?
| 4-24 |
| 25-52 |
| 53-104 |
? 105+ ?
Clone Customization (see catalog for examples)
Body Traits [differing from Prime Clone]: (please list)
Personality Traits to be expressed: (please list)
Clone Accommodations
Will require lodging ? (please estimate time)
Will be given special dietary consideration ? (please specify)
Will be given education ? (please select an existing model or provide your own)
Will have access to recreational facility ?
Will have access to public areas ?
Will have a personal trainer ? (please speak to PT staff or provide your own)
Other ? (please list)
The Tipoca City Cloning Facility assures the client in good faith that details of the clone request form will be completed to the best of our ability. The Tipoca City Cloning Facility reminds the client that cloning, especially of uncommon species, makes use of bioengineering techniques which are not 100% reliable. The Tipoca City Cloning Facility is responsible to advise the client of any undesirable traits as soon as they become apparent, but the Tipoca City Cloning Facility assumes no liability for side effects expressed as a result of modifications requested by the client. The Tipoca City Cloning Facility assumes liability for clones lodged and nourished in the facility until the order transaction is completed and for any defective clones created not as a result of modifications requested by the client.
"I wonder if I should check the catalog, I can't imagine what kind of personality traits I want to have expressed, can you? Oh! Wait! Maybe make him twice as smart as me, or something...increase his reflexes, wow...genetic engineering can do that, right? I should probably check the catalog, see how possible this is..."
But I don't. Instead, I just fill it out with the minimum required wait time, no education or lodging for the clone, and requesting as options "improved reaction time" and "10cm taller". That's all I think it would need-- after all, if I were a little bit taller, I'd be more intimidating, and with better reflexes I'd naturally be even more powerful than I am right now. However, I will wait to hear Tal's input before I return the datapad to the desk to get the price quote for this personal clone.
|
|
Ishmael
Member
Posts: 134
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
|
Post by Ishmael on Oct 14, 2013 18:07:15 GMT -8
*The ride to the cloning facility is indeed boring, and also very quiet. It would seem that Ryu and I have nothing left to say to each other, at least at this junction. I'm fine with that. As much as I enjoy stimulating conversation or even a bit of verbal sparring- by no means are the two mutually exclusive- I need time to think, to work through the last few hours of my life and modify my plans now that I've had my epiphany. If you could call it that. The term 'wake up call' would not be inappropriate.*
*Our boots squeak on the gleaming white floor as we make our way to the administrator's office. I'm growing quite tired of being perpetually waterlogged. Thank goodness I'm planning a trip offplanet soon...*
*Later, I'm stuck waiting for Ryu to finish filling out his paperwork. I'm slouched in my chair, chin resting on the heel of my palm as my gaze flicks about the office restlessly. Last time I was here, it was spattered with blood and shattered furniture. There were two dead Kaminoan's under the transparisteel window, one clutching at a holdout blaster, the other with its miniscule head nearly removed. Now it's bright and sterile, just like the rest of the facility, and the Kaminoan sitting behind the giant wroshyr-wood desk is very much alive. Its glassy black eyes shifted politely between Ryu and myself. I don't think he- I think it's a he; you differentiate the gender based on their head fronds, I believe- recognizes me.*
"Why not everything?" *I query absentmindedly, without looking over at him. It's odd at first, having no need for social niceties like emphasizing that someone has your attention by glancing their way, but I'm an old hat at this and it didn't take me long at all to fall back into old habits.* "Make him twice as smart and twice as fast. With excellent night vision and increased bone density." *I shrugged.* "Unregulated genetics are shoddy; a clone can very well be the epitome of organic life. In fact I'd say that, discounting all other factors, you or I could never be as powerful as our respective clones. Quite the disheartening sentiment, if I do say so myself."
*I finally look his way, if only to see his reaction. Oh, I'm always prying through the force, looking to glean the surface thoughts and emotions from those around me, but Ryu keeps a rather tight rein on his. It isn't often he displays an actual expression, either, which I think is a result of his Sight. Strange, just how vast an array of things a different type of vision will affect. Or maybe not so strange; changing the way you perceive the world will of course change the way you interact with it.*
|
|
L???? ?o R??
Member
Posts: 159
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
Traffic Light: Green
|
Post by L???? ?o R?? on Oct 16, 2013 6:57:34 GMT -8
"Oh! That sounds like an excellent idea! I was a little hesitant about the price of adding on a bunch of features like that, but, you can't put limiters on power just because of price, right? Hmm... " I make a note to increase the clone's intellect and learning speed, as well as low-light visibility. I also add that I'd like for him to have increased nerve sensitivity, so that he can be more aware of his surroundings without needing Force Sight like I have. "...do you think his bones should be twice as dense, or half as dense? If we go half as dense then he'll be lighter, and presumably more agile...but agile rhymes with fragile, you know.......hmm..."
I decide to just leave the bones the way they are, and hand the datapad back to the receptionist guy. With a courteous head-bow, the Kaminoan jacks the pad into the computer and prints out a price quote, which he hands to me. But handing it to me was unnecessary, as I read it with Force Sight while it was printing.
To increase my power with a personal clone incorporating all of these modifications will run me, according to the quote, 762,000 "7.
I am okay with that.
Presently, as we wait quietly (places like these really beg for silence, you know? You feel so uncomfortable talking!), an aide eventually comes to lead me back to the physician's office for his assessment and for the sample getting.
|
|
Ishmael
Member
Posts: 134
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
|
Post by Ishmael on Oct 25, 2013 17:33:16 GMT -8
*The waiting room is indeed uncomfortable, so after the receptionist takes Ryu's information and informs us that someone will be along shortly to collect his sample, I decide to take my leave. These things can take quite a bit of time, depending, but regardless of how quick it went I didn't feel up to spending another moment in the sterile little office. The gleaming white, dancing with some flickering of color only really visible under ultraviolet light, was giving me a headache.*
*Standing, I straightened my robes, nodded to Ryu, and stepped out into the hallway. There I was confronted with yet more white. Massaging the bridge of my nose with forefinger and thumb, I made a mental note to specify an alternate color scheme for my personal laboratory- if I ever got around to having it built, that was.*
*Meanwhile, Elisio was making his way out of the dormitories, his white lab coat an almost startling contrast to his coal black, shriveled skin. He was flocked by a crowd of attendants, most scientists of some reknown that had been assigned to aid him in completing his project: the recreation of the Blackwing virus. Rounding a corner, the group came face to face with Aire and halted, immediately ceasing their clamoring.*
*Elisio clasped his hands behind his back and straightened his lanky frame.* "Can I help you, young lady?"
|
|
L???? ?o R??
Member
Posts: 159
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
Traffic Light: Green
|
Post by L???? ?o R?? on Oct 28, 2013 8:57:47 GMT -8
These things do take quite a while.
Tal left as I was undergoing only the second physical exam I've ever had done in my life. The first was a pre-op thing done by the Five Worlds Medical Team led by Dr. Tacky Joe when they were replacing my eyes on Ison.
The interview with the doctor went...well...except when it came to him asking about the Icarii. Icarii biology is not well-known by most, and this species is very uncommon in the galaxy anyways. The only ones who really knew anything about the species were the ones who learned it firsthand in battle: the Lightning Battalion, special forces unit of the Galactic Empire in charge of the Vestar campaign.
I don't even know anything about my own species; I've never met another Icarii, I was an orphan on Coruscant, I was found by a human (Gannon no Lapay), I was raised in a typical Sith fashion and everything, to me, was normal because that's all I have ever known. Apart from mere aesthetic differences I cannot tell you, biologically, what is different about me. I don't know about my species' resilience to dismemberment, or acute susceptibility to the toxin deployed by the Lightning Battalion. So this doctor's office visit was really not very informative from my end.
In the end, they did wind up taking a blood sample from me, and I was left to go on my way, making a stop by the receptionist's front desk to put the first down-payment on this clone of mine. 30%, with the remaining 70% to be paid in-full at the time of retrieval of the clone. I gave them my comlink code and left the office to see what I could find with Tal.
...
Wherever he went.
Well, the thirty-minute physical WAS a long time to ask him to wait, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised that he wandered off. I'll find him, though, just give me half a minute to seek him out with Force Sight.
Aire had been wandering around the Dormitories for the better part of an hour before Elsio ran into her.
She had been seeking out whether a room or storage area somewhere might be housing some assembly of artifacts from the Clone Wars Era, in hopes that there might be some device that Tyranus had been hoping to use for Dimension Shifting by artificial means. Of course, how do you even start to look for something like that?
How do you open doors that are locked?
How do you feel for something that has no presence?
How do you ask a forbidden question?
How do you look if you have no Sight?
But Elsio here rounds the corner and surprises her.
"Can I help you, young lady?"
Can he help? Naturally! She gauges by his white lab coat that he must be a man of at least some status in the laboratories here. Anyone who'd been here for a while would be able to give her a good idea of where to look.
...But she couldn't come out and ask him boldly.
She also couldn't risk to ask and be denied permission to be here.
Aire takes two shaky steps backward.
"..."
|
|
Ishmael
Member
Posts: 134
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
|
Post by Ishmael on Nov 16, 2013 11:30:04 GMT -8
*He's right, thirty minutes is a long time to wait, especially when your scenery consists of white, white, and some more white, all faintly shifting with colors just beyond your ability to see. It gives me an instant and splitting headache, and I move back outside, where the near constant deluge has waned into something more akin to a drizzle. I hear a crack of thunder and lament that the nice weather won't last long; I'll have to move back inside soon enough.*
*Still...better than Mustafar.*
*In the meantime, Elisio is fairly baffled by the young woman he's been confronted with. It isn't exactly company policy to allow clients to wander the facilities unsupervised, although they are frequently given tours that comprise nearly every area aside from mine and Elisio's lab. We're both rather private people, after all, and admittedly catankerous when it comes to being interrupted.*
*With a noise of irritation and a dismissive wave of his hand, the aging scientist started forward.*
"Someone have her escorted back to the main offices."
|
|
L???? ?o R??
Member
Posts: 159
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
Traffic Light: Green
|
Post by L???? ?o R?? on Nov 19, 2013 12:48:35 GMT -8
Main Offices?
Aire is faced now, for one of the first times in her life, with the freezing autonomy of power. What choice to make..? This is the paralysis of liberty: that, given the opportunity to despise the efforts of all around you, you find that you are not sure of what will benefit you most. And that is the be-all, end-all question, is it not? Self actualization is the ultimate goal. To do that, however, all the right choices have to be made along the way. (Or so you'd think, but there is a lot to be said for making mistakes and learning from them.)
This guy is old, she thinks to herself. She could with hardly any effort whatsoever subdue him and ensure compliance, ensure her continued 'permission' to search around the facility. But what would be the point? She hasn't found anything yet. She has no promise of being on the cusp of a breakthrough. Continuing to search without bearing is not wise.
Alternatively, she can go along with the escort and simply head back to the main offices. Why? This just ensures an end to her unproductive search, no doubt. But then again, perhaps it's time to rendez-vous with Ryu and Tal. Going along with that is probably a good way to that end quickly.
Or she could run. Continue the search, maybe stumble across something fun. Again, what would be the point? She has no guarantee of finding anything good. Or she could seek out Ryu and Tal, with less assurance of finding them than simply heading back quietly, and potentially stirring up some trouble to sweep in their direction.
...Well! If you put it that way, it looks like there's no downside! When in doubt, always try to cause some trouble for your elders.
"..."
And in so few words, she firms up those back-steps and continues-- turns, breaks into a run, fleeing the scientist and his attendants. Dashing off to some part of the facility or other.
But will they give chase?
"...Ah..."
A brief yet thorough sweep of the facility with Force Sight reveals to me the locations of Tal and Aire at once. Even at low spatial resolution, such bright auras as these are not going to go unnoticed, when I focus my attention on this sensory technique. Its convenience is unparalleled. So now, I have the option to go out to Tal, who has sought refuge from the interior outdoors, or the option to intercept Aire, who is running for who knows what reason deeper and deeper into the bowels of the facility.
I'll go get Tal. We'll have to sort Aire out.
Leaving the front doors of the office, I make my way through the corridors gratefully in solitude until I, too, step through the doors which hiss and recoil at my presence to admit me to the open air. I draw in a deep breath-- it's about to start raining heavily again, you can taste the fertility of the air-- and take a seat on a bench. When Tal is finished with his musings and starts to head inside again, I'll let him know what the situation with Aire is. Which means I'll have to keep monitoring her for now.
|
|
L???? ?o R??
Member
Posts: 159
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
Traffic Light: Green
|
Post by L???? ?o R?? on Nov 25, 2013 19:25:39 GMT -8
Aire found herself spiraling deeper and deeper down.
Unlike Ryu, she lacks the level of awareness that would enable her to avoid encountering anyone. But to her credit, she is far more able to compensate for this potential issue-- anytime she rounds a corner and finds herself face-to-face with a person, she merely calls on her barely-tapped reserves and puts out a burst of speed to blaze by before they become fully aware of what has happened. As she delves forcefully into the facility, these encounters become less and less frequent, as the scientist presence is replaced by maintenance droids performing the more mundane, routine tasks. Laboratories are located in a more convenience-friendly place, which is to say that the Kaminoans would rather not travel down countless flights to perform research in the basement, when levels far closer to the surface are available.
As she presses on, it is almost as if she is traveling backwards in time; the machines housed in the various rooms here and there are the ones which have become outdated but are not justifiable to be discarded due to their still-functional status, and so occupy a state of disuse here in the former labs of scientist so-and-so and geneticist such-and-such, begging that one of their replacements will temporarily go offline and thus require requisition from this purgatory for a transient moment of shining glory, fulfilling once more that condition of necessity, before the repairs are made and the spotlight dims upon them once again.
Far more likely is that they will suffer the fate of a number of their brothers, becoming a source of replacement parts rather than a functional whole, and so turn into that half-alive, half-dead machine whose only purpose now is to become food for the ones who surpassed it.
There is probably some parallel that could be drawn between these machines and the existence of the Sith in the universe today, but sloth compels that it be omitted verbatim.
Aire eventually draws her run into a jog and then gradually down to a trot as it becomes clear to her that she is no longer pursued (if she even was given chase to begin with). Down here, there are rooms upon rooms of laboratories and to the untrained eye it could not be less clear what purpose each lab served, which is why the doors are all labeled. "Biochemistry laboratory". "Genetics lab". "Spectroscopy technician". "Nutrition synthesis". Corridors upon corridors whose pale white walls plastered with ultraviolet decorations have now become dirty and dim, treated only by custodial droids due to the unfitness of the sight for the uppity Kaminoans.
Here, Aire feels safe.
And so, it turns out, did Darth Tyranus.
Far from the prying eyes of whomever may occupy the upper levels, in the bowels of the Facility, is in fact the location where Darth Tyranus took the 23rd legion of the Grand Army of the Republic. The probability that anyone would come here was quite low back then, as is even more the truth now. And it was here that he began his experiments with Dimension Shifting. His ultimate goal was to equip the troopers with an artificial method to phase between dimensions, the motivation for which should be obvious.
Lapay no Aire has come dangerously close to stumbling upon the room which had served as the training hall. One might question whether she is capable to differentiate the equipment intended for Dimension Shifting from the equipment intended for genetic engineering, but as she opens an unlabeled door which she had presumed to be a custodial closet, only to be treated with a great expanse of a room and greeted by a discarded clone trooper helmet sitting on a table right beside the entryway, that question seems to become moot.
She has, quite by accident, stumbled upon the remains of this great experiment.
|
|
Ishmael
Member
Posts: 134
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
|
Post by Ishmael on Dec 1, 2013 12:32:10 GMT -8
*The sky, a roiling mass of gray clouds, holds my gaze as I await Ryu. I'm curious: how long will all this last? It seems to me there is too much chaos even for infinite edges of the universe to contain: the Mandalorians wage a war against the Forcefuls; Ryu seeks a power capable of shifting aside the very fabric of reality; and, somewhere in hyperspace, my brothers and former apprentice conspire to bring the universe to heel. Will any of these endeavors succeed, or will they all be reduced to a blip on the galactic timeline, like everything that has come before?*
*And what of me? What path will I travel in the coming days?*
*Questions better left to someone with a less full schedule. The doors behind me hiss apart and I to regard the one who steps through them.*
"Ryu."
*Elisio's face contorts into the Mustafarian's equivalent of an irritated grimace as the girl darts away. Briefly he considers rousing security and having them haul her in, but in truth he is unconcerned and more than ready to simply wash his hands of the whole thing. Thinking longingly of his lab and the test subjects he had abandoned there, he instead turns to the man on his right.*
"Alert security and give them the girls description. They can sort it out; I'm going back to my lab." *He shook a finger threateningly in the man's face.* "And I am not to be disturbed again, especially with such trivial matters. From now on if the batch of subjects becomes corrupted or contaminated, terminate them and start afresh."
*With a 'harumph!' he stalked away, insectoid features twitching with indignance.*
|
|
L???? ?o R??
Member
Posts: 159
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
Traffic Light: Green
|
Post by L???? ?o R?? on Dec 2, 2013 8:32:43 GMT -8
We do tend to fret over the lasting significance of our time spent. The power that we seek to purchase is used to accomplish freedom, as far as the Sith tradition goes; fulfillment of self is the ultimate purpose, but what is the point of that if it will all dissolve upon your death? (Surely this is why a number of Sith, myself included at one point, seek eternal life) If your accomplishments are for yourself only, then who are you disappointing if you fail to fulfill all that you could become with all the power you have yet to obtain? Why seek power at all?
The symptom is a sputtering passion.
The remedy is to transcend.
What I seek is not the power itself. I have already obtained my freedom, and truth be told, have no need to acquire more. I am already the most powerful being in the universe, none can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with me. I am a god. What I seek stems from this thought alone:
It is lonely at the top.
The problem for me is not the lack of power, but the relative weakness of everyone around me. And I have found this path to force others to become more powerful: to pose a threat so great that to ignore it-- and me-- would be to willingly embrace death, which no one who loves himself will do. I can do that alone, but this is not a clever way of going about it, as it would be quite simple for my presence to go unnoticed as I methodically eliminate being after being in the endless tedium of extermination. No, it must make a splash whose ripples become waves which cultivate the fields and ripen the crops, and from there the cream will ascend into the same plane as me, and the tedium will be lost: I will have opponents who will either rise to my caliber or perish. And from greatest necessity comes greatest growth. You do not obtain power when you have no need of it; it is only when you must that you do.
Not only for myself, to surpass everything that came before and will come after, but for all who inhabit this place.
This is the gift of god to the dumb masses.
In this context, you realize the irrelevance of the question of being anything more than a blip on the galactic timeline.
Each step taken along the path has the same significance as the one before and the one after it; although seemingly whimsical, they are headed in one direction. We do not move backward, but press on gallantly into the face of the unknown with the next level in sight. And once that level is achieved, the one which follows will appear. There is no end in sight, but only progress. Let us not get caught up in the doldrums which distract us of the significance of our calling to greatness.
"Tal. Are you well? The procedure is over. It seems to me, though, that Aire has gotten herself into a bit of trouble...I was just about to go rescue her, do you want to come with?"
|
|
Ishmael
Member
Posts: 134
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
|
Post by Ishmael on Dec 6, 2013 22:37:04 GMT -8
"What sort of trouble?" *I asked tersely, my eyes narrowing in irritation. I'd felt the spikes of energy the girl was throwing off periodically, and, while impressive- for a novice- I'd known such activity wouldn't bode well. Despite my forewarning, the news that Ryu's companion was running (quite literally, though I don't know that yet) rampant through my most valuable of assets was more than a little frustrating. I'd expected more from a Lapay, and if not that, then at least more from Ryu than to know his hound couldn't be trusted off the leash.*
*I snorted a dismissal before he could respond.* "Tell me on the way. I assume you have her in your Sight?"
*With that I swept past him, in out of the rain, and gestured for him to lead the way back into the gleaming interior of the cloning facility.*
*It had been impossible for the two security guards- humans in fiber armor vests, wearing DC-17's on their hips and sleepy expressions on their faces- to keep up with the girl as she streaked down the hallway. However, a simple comm to the office allowed the Kaminoan monitoring the...er, monitors, to direct them after her. She gained quite a bit of ground on them in the beginning, the officers pursuing doggedly as they were fed her newest location, but as she wound deeper into the complex she slowed, either because she was unsure of where to go next, genuinely curious of her surroundings, or under the assumption she was no longer being pursued. Whatever the reason, the guards began to catch up to her and, when informed they were closing in, drew their weapons.*
*It was only a matter of time, now.*
|
|
L???? ?o R??
Member
Posts: 159
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
Traffic Light: Green
|
Post by L???? ?o R?? on Dec 8, 2013 18:00:02 GMT -8
Aire's saving grace versus her pursuers is that she has stepped through an unlocked door while entering the abandoned laboratory. The heralding helmet is all that can tell her that this was exactly what she sought, but it alone is sufficient; so she could spend literally hours rummaging through the equipment in search of the overarching purpose of this project. (But she is not a dumb girl, so what she immerses herself in now is a notebook which had been used to keep records of the experiments run; she seeks to get familiar with the equipment and the results if possible) So she has no need to pass back through that closet door; the security forces will therefore have to come to her. She is not combat-ready, she has none of her weapons on her save the gauntlets; with her legs crossed, she sits on the table just inside, beside that archaic clone trooper helmet. She sits and reads.
Tal's snort isn't lost on me. I match his pace to walk sidelong to him, on his left.
"Hmm, what sort of trouble? ...Trespassing and general mischief. I think she's gone far enough to be considered 'hopelessly lost' at this point. She's not moving anymore, though, we'll catch up to her pretty easily."
Ever play one of those electronic games whose setting is a world for which you are given a 3-dimensional map that you piece together gradually? And it has its own screen separate from the main game, so you can plot out the route you need to take, all the while being able to rotate what you're looking at in a pseudo-3-axis system? (They generally don't let you flip it all the way upside-down, after all, so it's not a true 3-axis system of rotation) In these systems, you usually also have a HUD that incorporates a small piece of the map in the corner, too. This is what I'm doing. I'm paying attention to the map and precious little else, because I have our location and I have Aire's location pinned down, but the fairly long route that stretches out before us has a number of twists and turns that would lend themselves quickly to losing our bearings. It's nothing like Rattatak, you know; back on that planet, with its wide open spaces and cliffs, you can pick a direction and just go. Here, inside a man-made building, you have to be conscious that making a left-hand turn does not necessarily mean you will be heading left after you take it. Dead ends and switchbacks and all that. So our trek will proceed generally in silence, unless Tal decides that he wants to get wordy, because a coherent conversation is not something that is going to help my cause any.
And now it becomes a question of who will arrive at that door, and pass through it first: us or the guards?
|
|
Ishmael
Member
Posts: 134
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
|
Post by Ishmael on Dec 28, 2013 19:35:51 GMT -8
*The two security guards found themselves becoming more and more unfamiliar with the compound as they descended into its lower levels. Luckily, the voice in their ear pieces, that of a Kaminoan in the observation room, gave good directions, leading them through the seemingly endless twists and turns without hesitation. Still, even with their all-seeing guide they arrived quite a long time after Aire had settled in. Their approach was cautious but determined; while adequately trained to protect the facility, neither of the men knew if they were dealing with a threat, or simply a lost customer.
The first guard holstered his weapon and slid a hand over the door controls. His partner followed a few steps behind with his pistol out.*
"Ma'am?"*The first guard began as he stepped through the door. Quickly he assessed the woman, visibly relaxing when he saw she carried no weapons. Not openly, anyway.* "Ma'am, I'm afraid this area of the facility is off-limits. I have to ask you to accompany us back up to the main offices."
*Both guards awaited her reply, hoping it would all be as simple as escorting her back to the upper levels.*
*Of course, if they take too long to get moving we'll be upon them. Ryu's Sight, already proven invaluable, is working wonders for us yet again. We speed through the facility with no need to speak. I may be unable to literally see our destination, but I can sense the girl's direction, and I intuit enough to recognize dead-ends and wrong turns.
We'll arrive shortly.*
|
|
L???? ?o R??
Member
Posts: 159
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
Traffic Light: Green
|
Post by L???? ?o R?? on Dec 30, 2013 7:57:56 GMT -8
The door opens. Aire is put on the alert immediately and observes the two guards walk through the door. They spoke, insisting on escorting her back to the main levels.
Her eyes narrow imperceptibly slightly. There is no way that she will acquiesce to that after getting this far. After all, this is right where she needs to be.
She analyzes the situation quickly. There two security forces are armed with blaster pistols. Their pose is slightly relaxed. She, on the other hand, is equally relaxed. Cross-leggedly sitting on the table, book in hand. Blue eyes alight with a fire. After considering for a moment, she arrives at the solution. Her Sound Mimicry can easily replicate the voice of Dr. Elisio. She will cast her voice to make it sound as if it is his. Then, when their backs are turned, she will snap their necks and resume her reading in peace.
Ah, no... ... ...no, she can't do that. She had momentarily forgotten.
This complicates matters. But only just so. She sighs audibly, so that the security guards can hear it, and then nods her head. Then, unfolding her legs and setting the laboratory notebook spine-up on the table, still open to the page she had gotten to, slides herself off the table to her feet.
Force Weapon is the alternative plan that she has settled on.
She holds up a finger to the guard, indicating that he ought to wait for a second. Bending down on her right knee, she pulls off her left shoe. The turquise syncloth mesh fabric of the shoe bends easily as it slides off of her foot. She taps the heel against the ground, making the ostensible action of jostling a stone free from the insoles. With each tap of the ultra-light soles against the floor, her heart pounds in her ears as she draws her focus in close, preparing to act. Force Weapon, that was what she has settled on. Strengthen her hands with the Dark Side, augment their power...kill the invaders.
Her preparation will complete without incident.
Her strike will commence immediately.
The notion of regret that they have to die never even enters Aire's head. The closest she comes to regret is that she has to do it with this sort of method. It is not as elegant as she would like.
As she slides the shoe back on her foot, her legs engage. Again, ostensibly, she is straightening up. But the strength of the Terellian's legs are not to be underestimated. From this position, it is trivial for her to execute a lunge at shocking speed that will carry her through the air across the entire distance between her and the guards who are not sure whether she is a threat or not. The one, a few steps behind, pistol held out still...he would have time to react. She had to take that into account, but she has already made a plan to deal with him.
Her Force-augmented palms stretch out like a leopard pouncing towards its prey. She lunges with all she has; springing through the air, her empty left hand seeks out the first guard's face, primed to crush it instantly with her barehanded grip and keep moving forward. The other man's pistol is a danger, though; so she keeps her right palm lined up with the blaster's nose, in order to deflect any shots fired due to his presumably good reflexes from training before she could execute them both.
|
|
Ishmael
Member
Posts: 134
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
|
Post by Ishmael on Jan 1, 2014 10:57:22 GMT -8
*The first guard didn't stand a chance. He wore a patient expression- mixed with liberal exasperation- as the woman bent down to adjust her footwear. When she suddenly lunged at him he did manage to utter a short, strangled cry of shock before the woman seized hold of his face. Both hands came up, grasping at Aire's forearm in a futile attempt to pry her hand away. It was too late. In the same instant there was a sharp, grinding crunch as the front of his skull gave way.*
*Only a few feet behind his fallen partner, the other guard stood frozen, shocked by the sudden brutality. Urging himself to react, he instead began backpedaling on stiff legs, eyes locked on the ruined visage of Aire's first victim. Impact with the opposite side of the hallway jolted him out of his terror- or at least spurred on some other aspect of it that demanded action. Frantic, he raised his pistol shakily and snapped off two shots, both aimed for the middle of the woman's torso.*
*At this point Ryu and I are close enough to hear the blaster fire.*
*My grimace of irritation fades away at the spike of sheer terror that emanates from the remaining guard. Struck suddenly by the desire to feed, I quicken my pace, thinking that perhaps I will arrive in time to cut the woman's assault short. Alas, it is not to be. We round the corner just in time to watch Aire fall upon the second guard, knocking his blaster to the ground and seizing his collar all in one fluid movement. She delivered two rapid, bone-cracking punches to the side of his face. He sagged unconscious after the first blow, and when the second fell I felt his life slip away from him, dissipating back into the aether.*
*She dropped him there, and turned to us.*
*I take a moment to survey the scene and then approach. I know this is not some random act of violence. A Lapay would never stoop to such an unnecessary display of power. So why had she fought so hard to remain here?*
"What have you found?"
|
|
L???? ?o R??
Member
Posts: 159
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
Traffic Light: Green
|
Post by L???? ?o R?? on Jan 1, 2014 12:40:05 GMT -8
Plip. Plip. Plip.
From both of her hands, the crimson life force falls in gentle steams to the fingertips with which Aire perpetrated the murder of the two helpless beings. There it slowly pools, beads, and, when gravity finally overcomes surface tension, falls as a shimmering scarlet orb until its fall is abruptly ended by the cold metal floor with a soft plip, plip, plip. Aire stands motionless, beholding Tal and me, who have rounded the corner to the sound of the just-ended deadly assault. She glances unfeelingly down at her fingers, then back to us. Her handiwork speaks for itself, although I had also seen the whole event unfold. So I guess I was not quite as surprised by things as Tal was, evidenced by when he sped up briefly (only to realize that we were just a bit too far behind to do anything). What would we have done if we had gotten here sooner? Sided with the guards, or Aire? Defused the situation? Pointless as it is to wonder at such things now, I do wonder what he had in mind...and speaking of Aire...
7 out of 10 approve. It was messily done. I have seen her do better. Plus, now there is blood everywhere and a communications link still open to the observation room. Such is what I bend down to retrieve from the corpses this time, taking some care not to get their fluids all over my hands. By no means do I consider myself exceptionally tidy, but this is just obscene.
Tal asks the obvious.
"What have you found?"
Her response is a smile. I straighten up, the guards' in-ear pieces now in my hands, to listen to her answer.
"..."
This is ...a disappointing response. But she also bows, blood still flowing from her hands, and gestures us inside, to where the laboratory notebook is still lying page-down on the table, open to where she had just been reading. Raising one eyebrow, I wordlessly walk over to it, and pick it up from its space beside the clone trooper's helmet, and begin to read where she left off.
"...So. You found exactly what we were looking for, didn't you?"
I hand the book over to Tal so that he can read it for himself. And then, given a moment, I start inspecting the lab itself from a distance.
|
|
Ishmael
Member
Posts: 134
Affiliation: The Way of Lapay
|
Post by Ishmael on Apr 6, 2014 18:11:16 GMT -8
*Unphased by the carnage, my gaze turns instead to the glossy black eye perched discreetly above us. A negligent flick of my forefinger precedes a distinct snapping noise and the smell of burnt plastic as the security camera goes offline, circuits fried. Plucking the comlink from my waist, I turn away as Ryu studies the document procured by his apprentice, and key in Elisio's frequency. A crackling snarl serves as his greeting.*
"There's been an incident. Send some men- Inquisitorius, not staff security- to the observation room. Detain those present; I'll be along to deal with them shortly."
*I deactivated the device before he had a chance to reply; Chaos the old bug annoys me so. The comlink was clipped back onto my belt and I turned to regard the duo once more. I'll say this for Ryu: there is never a dull moment with him around. Apparently this girl-child who is to be my sister in freedom takes after him. Accepting the proferred notebook, I scan its text, brow furrowed. I'm able to follow it, though loosely. My studies have never been scientifically oriented, after all, and despite my cunning I am often confronted with topics I know next to nothing about.*
*I prefer to view them as opportunities to broaden my horizons.*
"It seems you are on the right track after all."
*Stooping to sieze the collar of Aire's first victim, I dragged him out of the room and into the hallway, where he joined his partner in a crumpled heap of disfigured remains. Straightening, I handed the notebook back to Ryu. For now, I'll simply observe and see how this plays out. Personally I think this quest of his is a waste of time. Is the weapon he seeks powerful? Absolutely. Is it necessary for his vision of transcendence? Not in any way. I have been taught that to wield power in excess is unseemly, if not outrightly disrespectful. I know that as surely as Aire was able to slaughter those two security guards without effort, so too could we three remake the universe in whatever image we so desired.*
*Child's play, really.*
|
|
