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Dumb
Hal nodded and took the bottle, emptying it with a contemplative look whilst observing the pillar of light...
He handed Gil back the bottle and continued to look in direction of the central plaza.
"Hm... maybe I will finally get out of here."
Finally he turned towards Gil and the two slimes.
"Something is there, I can feel it."
He paused and narrowed his eyes.
"Let's not waste any time, remain cautious."
Once they were done tidying up, they collectively headed towards the center, the shadows making space for a red glow, the central place itself hadn't changed particularly... yet, the pillar of light emanating from the pedestal drew the shadows longer, and making them look almost... alive. Atop the pedestal, three octagons glowed and amidst them a star of two overlayed squares.
As they strode onto the central plaza, so did the replicants, it seems they had come back just in time.

Fort_Master_Gustav
The dust itself seemed to ubiquitous in nature, whilst they could touch it and it felt almost like sand, it disintegrated before they even had time to properly analyze, likely just anoteh rgimmick of this place.
As they headed towards the central plaza, the shadows in the corners of their eyes seemed to be almost... shivering, though never when directly looking at them, although the light at the center didn't seemed to move or even flicker.
The replicants, like the others, felt the odd presence as they moved ahead and when they stepped onto the central plaza they found out they were just in time, seeing as the others had returned in roughly the same time.
Amidst the plaza was still the the pedestal, now emanating the pillar of light, on the top side glowing three octagons and a star of two overlaying squares.

        Drakador_Chaos
        The trio follows Hal from behind during the return, while the twins seemingly lagging behind on purpose.
        "Do you think that this Hal..."
        "...seems like so, but cannot confirm until everything ends..."
        Meanwhile, with the RCDS transforming back to a pack on his back, Gil turns around and faces the twins while walking backward at the same pace.
        "It's not good talking about others behind their back yall."
        That said, he gently taps the concealed headphone on his right ear, before turning 180 again and pace up to move alongside Hal.

        Drakador_Chaos Fort_Master_Gustav
        As the group finally returns to the central plaza, and notice that everyone is here as well, Gil resumes his cocky posture, tucking both hands into the pocket once again.
        "Well then......I suppose this is meant to happen, instead of being some sort of negative feedback?"

              Dumb
              "Well, I reckon that is so, I mean, something happened didn't it? That's already a step forward."

              The replicants at general spread out around the central pillar, whilst the main replicant simply stood at the edge with his hands on his hips, looking up into the newly generated lightshow.
              He awaits for reaction to the others, however, they seemed to stand back for the moment, so, he exclaims:

              "Alright then. I'll be the one to test it out."

              The main replicant moves up to the main pedestal and tries to interact with it in various ways, touching it or seeing if it reacts to any kind of stimulation it is given.

                  Dumb
                  Fort_Master_Gustav
                  Hal simply nodded in response to Gils remark, he also watched the Replicants enter the plaza and didn't make any more comments on them, it seems for now it was enough of a proof of trust to him that they did not simply wait on plaza.
                  "I would argue that if we did something wrong we likely would not be standing here, one way or another."
                  He continued to watch with faint signs of tension as the Replicant approached the pedestal, the hand reaching towards his back, or more precisely the hilt of his sword, without actually taking it.
                  Touching the pedestal seemed to be all stimulation it needed to activate, as the Replicant eveidently didn't get to do anything else before the shook and he rociled from teh pedestal, pushed by an unknown force, the obelisks seemed to be shaking and then, much like the monuments before fell to dust, carried away by an immaterial wind in all directions, out of the sight of the group...
                  The earth continued to shake, the pillar of laight began to concentrate back into a thin string and the presence seemed to intensify.
                  A mute yet deafening roar, unable to be defined, numbed their minds, as the pillar of light tore the pedestal apart and ripped open the skies...
                  Then, as sudden as thinsg had began... silence.
                  Calm, serene almost, the presence faded, the line split and opened to a elliptic shape...
                  Silence.
                  Beyond the shape was darkness, complete and perfect, yet moving almost a mind on its own, just for the fraction of a moment, then it... blinked?
                  ...and the hollow ellipse turned into a portal.
                  Descending from the portal came a figure, clad in black and red robes, slowly floating to ground...
                  It was the Herald.
                  Hal reached for his sword but apparently wasn't quite sure what to do, eyeing his fellow captives warily.
                  As the Herald descended, he clapped a couple of times, slowly, deliberatly, until he came to halt on the ground, between the fragments of the pedestal.
                  "I applaud you, seekers, wanderers. You did better than expected."
                  He smiled thinly, with an expression that was hard to read, then briefly looked at Hal who was still holding the grip of his sword at the ready, the expression dropping for visible disapproval for a moment before it returned to the former one.
                  Hal let go of the sword and approached the man, the Herald continued.
                  "I suppose, you have earned yourself a key, each of the groups, or each one of them?"
                  He seemed to ponder, for the first time, the Heralds presence could actually be felt, there was so much power behind it, it was outright oppressing, preventing them from speaking up or even thinking about doing such.
                  "Yes, yes, everyone will get a key, it will be more entertaining that way."
                  He raised his hand and select few of fragments of the former pedestal rose.
                  "Go ahead, take one, though keep in mind the journey will not get easier from here on out."
                  He turned, towards the leading replicant, apparently addressing him directly this time.
                  "As for you and your friends..."
                  He paused.
                  "...do you, have any strong desires, any wishes, that are distinctively your own and not those of your masters?"
                  The oppressive aura faded, they were able to move normally again, albeit, a bit shaken.
                  Hal moved to the group taking one of the shards without a word, whilst he kept an eye on the Herald.

                      Drakador_Chaos
                      The replicants, if given to them, would acquire the fragments in silence. However, the leading replicant stood by idle for a few seconds, before starting his speech:

                      "Ah, yer our little wolfman's friend eh? I've seen ya in the telly. Nicely met."

                      He smirks for a bit, and after a few seconds of silence, continues, fumbling into his coat, he acquires a small box, which he opens and produces one single cigarette from, turning the box upside down, nothing but a small ammount of lint falls down.

                      "Do ya know why I like to smoke? Lemme tell ya a lil' lesson kiddo, there ain't no such thing as wishes and desires."

                      He elevates the cigarette up to his face and touches the tip with his finger, the finger lights up a bright shade of turquoise and vibrant orange before dissapearing again, leaving the tip of the drug in cinders, he puts it in his mouth and continues.

                      "Now why do I smoke? Is it because I want to, or because I was programmed to?
                      Why do I want a refill, is it because I was programmed to want one?                      "

                      He takes a deep inhale and releases a small cloud, continuing.

                      "Why do you ask questions or make these riddles? All of this circus here?" - He gestures broadly towards the Herald.
                      "Is it because you want to, or is it because you were programmed to do it?
                      Do you have any strong wishes and desires that are your own?
                      Or are you a product of programming, mind ya, you don't need to computer to program my friend. The world programs, yer ties to the bloodcult program, your wolfman programs.
                      There ain't no such thing as a strong, original desire. Ah' do as I do cus' our desires align, hunoring the push 'n pull of the forces that be.                      "

                      He takes one last big swig and exhausts the cigarette down to a stub, holding it between his fingers.

                      "Now if 'yer, from the high chair right there are gonna sit me down here and tell me dat you're unbidden by anyone and that yer wishes are truly your own, well my friend..."

                      He flicks the cigarette bud towards the Herald, falling short on his feet.

                      "Ah' think yer full of shit."

                        Drakador_Chaos
                        Pulse slowly rises, body temperature increasing to somewhat uncomfortable levels, even the entire frame starts to shiver uncontrollably, typical fight or flight reaction of all organics when facing a superior predator. Everything fits what Gil learned back in Xaneroth, or during all those simulation battles, but the sheer magnitude is simply different for a face-to-face encounter with a real entity.
                        "...As if getting doused by an entire dam instead of just a fishbowl..."
                        Gil thinks to himself while signaling to stop the twins from retrieving the key. Judging from the predicted plans, a conflict is almost destined at some point in the future, while a direct confrontation is almost impossible to win, the odds can still be tilted, either by having Herald not using his full power through acceptance of ideals, or... playing weak so the Herald underestimate them. The latter is obviously the most probable with Herald's Darwinistic approach, and which is why any sort of contact with Herald must be kept at a minimum, especially for the main weapon and armor.
                        "...Next thing, myself..."
                        Obviously, Gil mustn't show any sort of hostility nor fear, or else the whole plan would simply divert from its path. He takes several seconds to reconfigure his facial expression back to the usual look, gripping his palm to suppress the shivering, and slowly approach the Herald, grabbing three keys and nothing else, even ignoring the interaction of Herald and the Replicants.

                            Fort_Master_Gustav
                            Dumb

                            The Herald looked at the leading replicant, listening carefully to every word, without any visible change in expression or trying to interrupt him, once he was finished, he just stood there for a while, as unreadable as ever.
                            The Tension began rise, afterthe ensuing silence began to stretch and at the point where it was almost certain they had likely upset or even angered him...
                            He suddenly just burst out in hearty laughter.
                            "Well, well, interesting, a very interesting point of view, I see you certainly have guts, I will give you that. You are lucky I am not the type to slaughter people for their insolence."
                            His expression returned to a more serious one and he continued.
                            "...but does that answer my question? I think not. I suppose you may have misunderstood my words, If your wish is to serve your masters because it serves your owb purposes? Then so be it. If you just retorded all this, merely to spite me? I could not care less. Regardless, I will remember your words, but I will take it as a no, at least for the purposes of this journey.
                            Your reward will be the information you gathered here, go and report it to whoever you deem fit, I will even give you one of the shards, make sure to take it on your way out."
                            He paused, as the portal above him lowered to the ground and looked at the others now.
                            "As for you. Go to the core and find where the shard leads you, your next task will be awaiting there."
                            He turned around without waiting for any answers and left through the portal, disappearing from sight shortly after...
                            Hal in the meanwhile, was looking at his shard with narrowed eyes, staring at it quite intently...
                            "The core...?"

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                                  • Post #70

                                  Drakador_Chaos
                                  As Herald is giving the instructions, Gil is busy dealing with his own problems, still.
                                  "three more steps to go, tit, tat, and......bingo, now turn around slowly..."
                                  Gil had found that using clear and simple commands to himself in cases of extreme pressure helps to perform actions more efficiently, but just like all sorts of coping mechanisms, it got its own downfall...
                                  "Oh Fuc..."
                                  The sudden disappearance of Herald almost made Gil tripped over, luckily for him, there are the twins here to record and assist. Gevurah just appeared exactly at the right position where Gil stumbled into his chest, and the mouthful of slime sure helps Gil regain his composure.
                                  "Thanks..."
                                  "No problem"
                                  "You alright?"
                                  "Yea... what did Herald say?"
                                  "something about next task being in the core, along with Hal here"
                                  "Hmm, no surprise for that, judging how the core had been mentioned along the way so many times..."
                                  Gil turns towards Hal, his pale face covered with sweat but still manages to somehow maintain a smile.
                                  "Hey Hal, we are going back to our home first for some organizing and preparation, wanna join us?"

                                    Drakador_Chaos
                                    The main replicant laughs together with the Herald, he removed his hat and bowed down in a stravagant manner, placing it back on with due haste.

                                    "Hah! At least you get it mate. I'll be having this trinket and consider this whole ordeal done."

                                    Dumb

                                    The replicant turns to the group, and points at them in general.

                                    "You all take care and make sure to do it all right, and watch yer backs for backstabbin'. I know I would've."

                                    The rest of the replicants go taking their leave from the location one by one, with the main one overseeing them. At last, he leaves as well with one of the shards.

                                        Dumb
                                        Hal looked up at him as if interrupted in deep thought, he seemed confused for couple of moments, frowing at him...
                                        Then he looked at the portal.
                                        "...yes. I suppose we can do that."
                                        He walked through the portal without hesitation, briefly disappearing from sight, before the group stepped through themslves.
                                        On the other side, they found themselves on the embassy once more, no portal in sight where they had just stepped through, some of the people passing by frowned, indicating they had likely just appeared out of nothingness, though they moved on quickly, such occurances were nothing particularly out of the ordinary here at this point.
                                        Hal in the meanwhile, was standing in the middle of the plaza, looking around.
                                        He seemed... even more confused now than before.
                                        "What... is this place?"
                                        He looked at them, tilting his head, apparently slightly intimidated by the environment, seemingly on edge, he genuinely hadn't been here before, it seems...

                                        Fort_Master_Gustav
                                        As the Replicants stepped through the portal they found themselves at just another plaza on the Embassy, the man on the pillar, sitting and thinking as ever before.
                                        Neither the Herald nor the other seemed to be in sight, indicating they had been dropped off in different locations.
                                        Although some of the passerbies gave them weird looks, understandably considering they had likely just appeared out of nowhere, nobody seemed to particularly care.
                                        Whether that was an effect the Herald had caused or if it was just natural to the embassy would likely remain a mystery.

                                            Drakador_Chaos
                                            Gillian opens his mouth as if he got some questions to ask, but then realizes where he is at as he notices the environment, postponing the questioning and did a slight shrug.
                                            "In brief, this is The Embassy, a galactic political center which also dubbed as a galactic economical center and the peacekeeping union. The leader of the Embassy is a wolfman called the Ambassador, and based on what I knew at least, was part of a former galactic threat called the Delta, so....heh"
                                            He tries to intimate a burst of mocking laughter, but ended up almost coughing his lungs out, metaphorically of course.

                                              Drakador_Chaos
                                              The replicants quickly scattered about, as to not draw much attention from the policing inside The Embassy, after all, if they gathered too much attention the whole operation could fall apart. They soon reduced themselves back into the multitude of maintenance tunnels that sprawl under the Embassy.
                                              The shard would eventually leave The Embassy in an outgoing cargo vessel from a GL&M subsidiary, and picked up by a discreet ship running laps across the galaxy between stations in the rim, finding its way back to the secretive GL&M research planet, and eventually reach the hands of The Board.

                                                  Dumb
                                                  Hal looked at him for a while with a contemplative look, then at his surroundings and eventually at the shard, there was almost something like a spark of understanding in his eyes.
                                                  He stayed silent for a while before he eventually answered.
                                                  "No, no, There are... some things I will have to settle. before going to this... core."
                                                  The way he worded it was somewhat... off, as if he still wasn't quite sure what it meant, though he seemed to be determined to handle the next few steps on his own.
                                                  "Where is your home? I suppose we may meet there eventually."

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                                                        • Post #76

                                                        Drakador_Chaos
                                                        "Hm......"
                                                        Gillian seems to be trying hard to construct his sentence......at least, before he simply slump over and give up on it.
                                                        "Aye, see that?"
                                                        He points far towards the horizon, where the faint tip of an evershifting construct juts out from the cluster of low lying scenery.
                                                        "Walk towards there, enter the wooden door located next to the tower, and tell the woman approaches you that you are here for the campaign, got it?"

                                                            Dumb
                                                            Hal looked at him and then at the horizon where teh solhouette fo the tower was and nodded.
                                                            "Very well, I will be there... in due time."
                                                            He looked back at Gil, somewhat expressionless and obviously distracted, he could almost see the cogs in his head working...
                                                            "Until then, fare well."
                                                            He looked around on the plaza and walked off into a seemingly random direction, whether he actually knew what he was doing would likely remain a mystery...

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                                                                  • Post #78

                                                                  Drakador_Chaos
                                                                  "Cya"
                                                                  "See you soon!"
                                                                  "goodbye"
                                                                  The trio walked off after waving at Hal for a couple seconds, and entered the entrance of the Forge.

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