Crisis In Infinite Plexes - Second Wave

v.Western

Wraith reined in her horse.

“Why are we stopping?” Mags asked.

Some townsfolk had begun gathering at windows and doorways.

“And what's your plan?” Wraith asked her with a sneer. Marshal Wednesday Wraith was far from your typical lawbringer but she still didn't care much for bounty hunters. It was a matter of discipline, of dedication. But if Sugarcube had been friends with this one, well that counted for something.

Mags returned the look. “We ride straight on to Logollos ranch and settle up.”

Callan was studying the onlookers, trying to get a read... Were they nervous or relieved at the appearance of the ragtag posse? “I'm all for taking risks, but...” he said.

“But there's something more going on here,” Darius finished. The accounts of the duel that had lured Sugarcube's former companions to Omega Canyon, passed on by postal riders, cowboys and travelling salesmen, had all hinted at darker goings-on than a simple showdown.

“It'll take learning the truth to make this justice and not just vengeance,” Dexter said.

Mags shrugged, as if the latter was good enough for her. But she followed the group as they made for The Hanged Man Saloon.

v.Space

The Dragon suddenly lurched, the lights on the bridge flickered. The Captain steadied herself and looked to her First Officer.

“Recommend attack posture,” Comm. Washington said, his tone grim.

“Lokk?” she asked, one last time, looking for an excuse. The Lieutenant was furiously studying the transmissions from the unknown vessel, trying to interpret them, to decode them, to find any hint that they were an attempt to communicate and not a sign of aggression. With every pulse, though, their ship was taking damage.

“Chief Angellus, configure power distribution for combat mode. Commander, begin backing us off, slow and steady, with evasive manoeuvres in queue.”

Lt. Cube's voice broke in over the speakers. “Captain, the Legacy ship just one-eightied. Full-speed in the opposite direction. I'd like to take credit but we were only teasing them with target-locks.”

Magenta frowned. “Give me a full-radius Metawave scan.” It would mean diverting computing power from analyzing the mysterious pulses but Lokk obeyed the order without hesitation. His eyes widened as his screen registered the sensor sweep – the target vessel, Cube's Hangman, Wraith's Reaper, the retreating Judgement-class ship... and an approaching fleet of Ether-type Exo battlecruisers.

Before he could relay the result his peripheral screens flickered with new data. Another incoming transmission from the vessel, three-times the intensity of the last one.

v.Fallen

The Eye had eventually crashed but they had survived. The plan had worked. They crawled from the Gutter, out past Frontline, deep in the Wasteland, and saw the Demon portal.

The sky bright with falling stars. Toxic fumes swirling like dervishes. The earth itself heaving and crashing like the sea against cliffs. Orbs of green and yellow flame flickering then erupting.

At the centre of the frothing tumult, a hole of pure white, like a circular section of a painting had been scraped clean to reveal the canvas beneath.

Darius shouted over the howling, screaming winds. "Max, I'm having more of those visions! For a second we were all together again but we were superheroes! Could we be shifting again?"

Max stared at the chaos before them. There weren't any Demons, they had all marched to Haven. "I don't think so... Maybe it's a time distortion? Maybe the proximity to the portal is letting you see glimpses of our future?" He looked back to his friend, smiling. "Aw hell Darius, you know I don't really know what's going on most of the time! I just guess and try to sound clever!"

Darius smiled back. Wraith stepped between them; she was holding a jury-rigged device that they had salvaged from the Grid when they first hijacked the Eye. Wraith had been convinced that she could use it to send a signal to Haven, to let them know that the Dragons fought on, but so far she had been unsuccessful.

"Did you get it working?" Darius asked.

"I... I don't know," Wraith said. "It suddenly started receiving a transmission."

*

Now Aqua's headphones began making a strange scratching sound. Akimoto's voice getting lost in static, then a high-pitched whine. She took them off. Looked back and forth in the empty subway car.

Sometimes their car was attached to others, sometimes you could see other people in the attached cars, sometimes the windows were blurry. And sometimes, like now, there was only darkness outside the windows. Until they reached a station. Aqua hoped they reached one soon, she had to pee.

Maybe Max or Akimoto or Suki, or one of the others would be at the next station. It worked like that sometimes. She was wishing right now that she paid more attention to how things worked, but it was all pretty confusing, and she was young, and mostly she just liked the action and adventure of it all.

The door to the conductor's booth opened and Bishop's body slumped out onto the floor.

Crisis In Infinite Plexes - First Wave

v.Super 

“What is it?” Seraphim asked. She was typing some calculations into her tablet. 

The Shifter looked thoughtful. “Channel is transmitting some live media feeds to me from downtown. It's starting.” 

The Tower stood up from the table. His head almost brushed the ceiling of the hidden bunker under the old factory. “Alright team. Remember, this won't be like the regular street gangs, corporate criminals or mad scientists we've tangled with before. The Alliance of Terrorists, Tyrants and Contract Killers is a threat unlike Plex City has ever seen.” 

The Silhouette nodded. “Time to counter-attack A.T.T.A.C.K.” 

“We need a cool name like that,” The Heretic chuckled. 

“The batteries on the Holo-copter are charged and ready,” Seraphim said. 

Shifter began focusing on the images of the city that Channel was sending him. “I'll port to the scene and start recon.” And with a crackle of autonic energy he was gone. 

v.Dungeons&

Maighread had followed the strange tracks to the ruins of a Spider Temple. The Order of the Spider were famous for laying clever traps, and even though they had fallen years ago to the Children of the Pyre, it was possible that their lethal snares remained. Freeman crouched and conjured a Scrying Eye to search out the way ahead for any hidden dangers. The Faded Knight stood watch while the mage was in trance. 

“Let's just charge in,” Hammer said impatiently. “We don't want to let this thing get away again.”

Maighread didn't entirely disagree with the Changeling – this was the third time they had come across the mysterious markings and each time the maker had eluded them. If some new creature was prowling the realm then they needed to learn its nature quickly; if it be foul then to stop it from causing harm, or if it be fair then to protect it. 

“There is something strange...” Freeman whispered, his eyes closed, seeing through the Scrye into the shadows of the ruins. 

The Lady Dread suddenly dropped nimbly down from the trees. “A patrol of the Ashen Tradition approach from the ravine!” 

Hammer grinned and hoisted her enchanted mallet. 

v.Space 

“Modulating the emitters... There it is! I have the signal, Captain,” Lt. Lokk said from his station on the bridge. 

Capt. Magenta stood up from her chair. “Set an intercept course, Commander Washington. Chief Angellus, we'll need full-speed-plus if we're going to beat that Legacy vessel to the prize.”

Lt. Angellus nodded and began tapping and gesturing on the haptic display at the Engineering station, trying to maximize the synchronization of the Plexdrive with the local quantum-gravity conditions to squeeze out whatever extra power that he could. 

“Course set,” Comm. Washington said, studying vector simulations on his display. “But it's going to be close.” 

Two days ago, Lokk's routine Metawave scans intercepted a Pyro-type Exo probe registering an unknown vessel appearing near the border of a nearby Ether-type Exo territory. Anomalies like this attracted attention, especially Legacy attention, and the crew of The Dragon wasn't about to let them get the first look at it. 

Lt. Cube's voice came in over the comm from the hangar bay. “Send us out, Cap. I'll buy us some time.” 

The crew awaited Captain Magenta's order. 

“You in a Hangman, plus Lt. Comm. Wraith and Ensign Bisaillon in a Reaper. Don't get killed.”

v.Reunion 

Angst sprawled on the bed. Kicked off her shoes. They landed on the floor beside the bag from the convenience store. “I made sure to get you some milk duds,” she said, yawning. “Do you still like milk duds?” 

Frank and Goner were checking out an old local supply cache, to see if it was still intact. Max was meditating in the bathtub. Suki was peering out the motel window. 

Angst stretched. “What are we up to? Fourteen? I'm losing count, I can't remember what's been happening, what changed. After seven years of nothing...” 

Suki glanced at the revolver in her hand. She kept hoping each shift would bring back the Godhammer. Maybe some things were lost forever. She thought that she had been, but... “Maybe we should go shopping tomorrow, see if we can find you a cheerleader outfit.” 

Angst looked thoughtful. “Hm. I don't know. I don't know if that's me anymore.” 

“Is shooting things still you?” Suki asked. 

Angst sat up. “Why?” 

“Because more of those weird-eyed motherfuckers just showed up in the parking lot.”

v.Cadre 

Gauntlet leaned the shotgun beside the door, within easy reach. Peered through the peephole. Opened the door and let in Viking. 

“How do you know where my apartment is?” she asked. Then she noticed the blood dripping from his nose, staining his beard red. “What the - ?” 

“I saw it, saw everything, is what it felt like...” Viking muttered as he stumbled to her couch. “I ran an invocation of all three of the Trimurti, dosed on Type 1 Mana...” 

Gauntlet helped him sit. “You asshole! We had decided to wait!” 

“You know we couldn't, Peyton...” 

“How do you know that name?” 

“Mirk is getting too close, Cube isn't coming back... I had to try something.” 

“You tipped our hand, V. He'll know.” She moved to the window, glanced out. “I hope you got some useful intel at least.” Three black SUVs, an MK-Omega cleaner squad. She headed back to the door for the shotgun. 

Viking pushed himself back to his feet. Took a deep breath. Held out a flash-drive. “There's an audio file, I tried recording everything that came through the divination. I'll buy you some time. You need to get to the nearest subway station.” 

*

Aqua woke up. The rattle and hum of the subway must have lulled her to sleep. Her headphones were still on, but instead of music playing it was the sound of Akimoto's voice. He was rambling about all sorts of things, the kinds of things that he and Max would sometimes talk about. 

She looked down the car to where the barbarian-poet used to sit and meditate. Then she glanced back to where Max used to sit and read. The car was empty. It felt like she had been alone here for a long time. The door to Bishop's booth was closed. It felt like there hadn't been a stop in a long time.

v.Space Lt. Max Cube

Justice-class vessels were outfitted with a compliment of ten Fighters (a combination of single-pilot Hangman and Devil-class craft and co-piloted Reaper-class ships). Fighters were essential for space combat, ship defence and planet-side actions. After Magenta's decision to go rogue, only four pilots remained onboard. Commander Washington and Lt. Comm. Wraith were also trained pilots but the Wing squad needed support. The Captain decided that one of their first anti-Legacy missions would be to break former Lt. Cube out of prison and return him to service onboard The Dragon.

No one was certain how exactly Cube and Magenta knew each other, or why he was in jail. There were rumours that they had been romantically involved, but they seemed to fight a lot. Cube was the archetypal cocky pilot with the skills to back it up, but his dedication to taking down Legacy was never in doubt.

v.Space Lt. Darius Angellus

When Captain Magenta decided that she was going to fight back against the Legacy Project she gave the crew of The Dragon a choice: they could remain onboard and join the resistance or they could be dropped off at a nearby Temple Base in the Haven Zone. Many of the crew had families, many were afraid, and some – even after seeing the evidence – still believed in Legacy. Of the initial 107 only 23 stayed. Some had served with Magenta before, some were motivated by the evidence, but Ensign Angellus' reason was perhaps the strangest – he had dreamed of the Captain and had foresaw the coming war against Legacy... 

Angellus didn't told anyone else about his visions, but he started keeping a dream log.

Only three other members of the Engineering Team, all of them Ensigns, chose to stay – Angellus was promoted to Lieutenant and became acting Chief of Engineering. He worked tirelessly to maintain the ship's Plexdrive, the only thing keeping them flying and fighting.

v.Space Lt. Callan Lokk

Callan Lokk served briefly as an Ensign under (then) Lt. Comm. Magenta at the Oracle Outpost Wind where he assisted in running the Metawave transmissions that allowed for interplanetary travel and communication within the Haven Zone. Lokk was always a more talented Meta-tech than his rank or posting suggested, and when his curiousity led him to conduct some off-book scans he discovered encrypted clues to Legacy's many conspiracies. 

Lokk kept the knowledge secret for years until he was re-assigned to The Dragon. His trust in Capt. Magenta finally prompted him to reveal what he had learned. He brought his expertise to the fight against Legacy as the acting Chief of Science.

v.Space Lt. Comm. Wednesday Wraith

Wednesday Wraith was the acting Chief of Tactical aboard The Dragon when Magenta took command. The two did not always get along personally but they challenged each other professionally in a way that inspired both of them to do better. When the evidence started to accumulate that the Legacy Project had ulterior motives, it was Wraith that pushed her Captain to dig deeper. And finally, when it was necessary, to go rogue. 

Wraith's tactical skills were unmatched and she was instrumental in helping The Dragon evade capture by the Project. She led a squad of five soldiers – known as her Shadows.

v.Space Comm. Dexter Washington

Dexter Washington was the Commander-in-Charge of Fortress Base Haskins when it came under attack by Cryo-type Exos. When (then) Commander Magenta arrived with a tactical squad Washington immediately recognized her to be a powerful and capable ally. Their teamwork saved the Fortress and thwarted a large-scale Cryo invasion. 

Years later, when Captain Magenta was discovering the corruption of the Legacy Project, she knew that she would need to surround herself with a crew that she could trust. She requested that Comm. Washington be re-assigned as her First Officer. When he began learning the truth behind Legacy's lies he followed Magenta without question. His loyalty was to the people he served, not the Project.

v.Space Capt. Maggie Magenta

Maggie Magenta was a shining exemplar of the Legacy Project's mission to guide humanity to their future in the stars. She managed an Oracle Outpost within the Haven Zone of settled planets, she led a tactical squad to victory against Cryo-type Exos at a Fortress Base in the Border Zone, and she oversaw the safe passage of hundreds of refugees aboard a Chariot-class vessel.

When Magenta was promoted to Captain and granted command of the Justice-class Starship The Dragon it was the greatest day of her career, but it also marked the beginning of the end of that career. Now that she had reached the upper echelons of the Legacy Project, Magenta began to discover the true nature of much of their work in the galaxy. Secret experiments on colonists, exploiting planets' resources, enslaving alien species. Rather than succumb to the lure of greed and power, Magenta resisted and went rogue. 

The Dragon started a one-ship war against Legacy, sabotaging their experiments, liberating the aliens they oppressed, and warning the citizens of the Haven Colonies about the true dangers of life in space.