Pale Rider

[b]Scene Title: Pale Rider

Characters:
[i]- Interferences:[/i] Azumi Ian, A.L.F.R.E.D., and K1-R4, with mentions of the members of the Collective and Batman of the DCAU.
[i]- World Characters:[/i] Liara T'Soni (in her base in Hagalaz, Mass Effect's Milky Way galaxy), Julie Farkas along with doctors of the Followers of the Apocalypse (in the Freeside of the Mojave Wasteland), and Marc "Moon Knight" Specter (of Earth-TRN009, the universe of [i]Spiderman: Web of Shadows[/i]). Reference to Drebin 893 (of the Metal Gear universe).

Context (Situation): After gathering her materials and keeping this plan a secret from most people in the worlds, Azumi Ian assumes the identity of the Wraith for the first time, making a few tests of the armor's capabilities. During this, she recalls all of the people who, knowingly or unknowingly, aided her in this endeavor. This scrapbook takes place in between "Risky Business" and the upcoming thread "Oh Stranger, Afterdark". It also takes place after the conclusion of the "Fatal Foundations" plot.[/b]

[i]Hagalaz, Sowilo System, Hourglass Nebula, Mass Effect Milky Way
2186 (months after the events of Lair of the Shadow Broker)[/i]

[i]"This room will be adequate for your practice and training."[/i] A booming, presumably male voice was audible in the room aboard the massive ship amidst these storms. This was not truly a male, however, but rather a mask for the voice. Liara T'Soni, the third known "Shadow Broker", had agreed to held the Interference Assassins, and this was a part of that, in a sense. Plus, it wasn't like it endangered her position.

The bodysuit of the subject was black as pitch, with navy blue, "ribbed" armor around her body, a full plate on her torso. If it weren't for her face, one could likely not tell any kind of gender. It seemed to have light armor, compromising defensive capability for freedom of movement and speed. A small circle was visible on the chest plate, a hologram projector able to provide an insignia if need be. This armor was unbreakable, though she could still be wounded, all of it augmented by Collector technology. Her face, with the serious brown eyes and short orange hair, was still visible for the moment, the only indication of her identity or gender.

It was easy enough to don and discard the armor, and it could be stored within an etherspace pouch if need be, making it far easier to carry than some others.

=====

[i]Old Mormon Fort, Freeside, Mojave Wasteland, Post-War Wasteland
2281
Sixteen days prior

Azumi looked over the item on the table. "So where did you find this, again?" she had to ask. "And can you explain to me what it is?"

It was a full body suit of black, unknown material, with everything below the neck covered in the black armor, and the boots seeming to be metallic greaves of some sort. Orange lights were dimmed along its curves on the sides of the chest, the shoulder blades, and down the outer parts of the legs.

A nod from the leader of the Mojave Followers of the Apocalypse. "One of our traveling medics found this stealth armor near the Hoover Dam. Pre-war technology, by the looks of things. Some of them think it's Chinese, or those who actually agree that China isn't a myth. Hei Gui, they call it. 'Black Ghost', they think it means. The stealth field technology already broke down, though, so we can't use it to get past hostile lines to those who need us. I thought that since you seem to be more in tune with handling yourself out there, you'd want to use it instead."

The soldier shook the doctor's hand. "Thanks, I will. I'll be taking it off world with me. Has anything else been found?"

A nod from one of the other doctors, who hesitantly motioned to a large, gray flamethrower with three tanks of fuel hooked up to its back, orange tubes connecting it to the front nozzle. It was on a table, and looked heavy, as if only someone with ample physical strength could use it, let alone lift it.

"The Cleansing Flame flamer," one of the doctors said. "We... were saving it for your people. We don't like to use weapons like that."

The soldier thought for a moment... but shook her head. "No, it doesn't fit with my combat style. Maybe one of mine will come and get it, though I doubt Cetea will be the one. Thanks, everyone. And good luck on those medic power armors. They were interesting. Hope you find more of those."[/i]

=====

On a thought, the black helmet came up from her collar. A face mask over her front from the front, sides from the sides, and the back from the appropriate area as well. What was left was a mesh like black helmet with blue eyepieces, a line of blue down its back, and a triangular mesh where the nose and mouth would be, with a black and blue rebreather function under the mouth.

This Recon Hood, gleaned from a copy taken off of Isaac Zivaku's occasional armor, was a type normally issued to covert action teams. This model's optic display interfaced with most possible small arms' auto-targeting software, linking hand and eye for improved accuracy and increased weapon damage. For the armor on it, ballistic-mesh fabric and composite ceramic plating provided what was needed initially, and the air filter inside of it helped in hostile environments. An advanced audio processing package integrated as well also provided an additional advantage, one that could be altered via her VISR uplink.

The bodysuit itself had been relatively easy to procure, but its augmentations were more difficult. For example, the vocal masker, a system that was activated immediately after the helmet converged on her head, sending out a genderless, perhaps even male voice as she spoke. "Thank you, Shadow Broker."

=====

[i]Computer Room, Ansem's Study, Radiant Garden
Fourteen days prior

The ODST had been talking to the two most recent artificial intelligence additions to Space Paranoids. K1-R4 and A.L.F.R.E.D. were good for finding mechanical schematics and reverse engineering.

[/i]"Carbon nanotubes?"[i] the female among the AIs asked. [/i]"Pretty advanced, I think. Light armor, I assume."[i]

A light chuckle comes from the console.  [/i]"How funny that the student gets the better equipment over the mentor."[i]

Kira would have shrugged had she had a body visible, as she probably did in the I/O Tower itself. [/i]"If he wanted better equipment, he could have asked us. Highwind's a good mechanic, but he's held to certain standards of mechanical operation. Nobody ever asks the AIs who'd know these things."[i]

Azumi did know they had a point, but the idea stood as a little inaccurate. "Most people just assume only Tron is in here, right? And I assume he's busy for now. So no, they don't know enough."

The information was transmitted to the disc she had input with barely another word. Apparently the UNSC AI assumed that the ODST at least partly knew what she was doing.

The soldier's next comment came through then. "I need a neural uplink to the Recon Hood so I can take it on or off at will. Like depolarizing my helmet visor, but for that type of tech."

A.L.F.R.E.D.'s voice was audible once more. [/i]"A wise choice.  True, it may not be truly tactically advantageous, but it does allow you a wider range for your hood."[i]

Kira's own response was different. [/i]"I assume she just wants to have tech like in this world. It probably can't be just taken off in any case. That's tough material in a Recon Hood."[i] Still, she did add it to her memory database for future reference along with to the disc, wondering on some level.

"Good. Last, I need to have the ability for voice masking. You can integrate it with the helmet if you need to, or maybe for an entire armor suit."

It was highly likely that K1-R4 was rolling her eyes within the I/O Tower. This wasn't just practicality, but also preference to avoid discrimination. Nonetheless, that, too, was added.[/i]

=====

Four holograms came up in front of her, humanoid in shape, but made from green light. Training targets.

Briefly, she looked to each of her arms, feeling the forearms. Okay, those launchers were in place, usable with a tensing of certain muscles on her arms. She did remember where she had gotten the idea for these...

=====

[i]New York City, Earth-TRN009
Three weeks ago

The woman crouched on the silver crescent disc as it flew through the city after the others. Due to her lack of swift transportation aside from her parkour as of yet, she needed to travel on this helicopter of their apparent ally. She spoke to him as they were traveling. "Just so you know, I'm more prone to using traditional weapons than any of those weird powers. So I'll need something big to blow up some of those heavier mechs. Marines didn't explain that one."

She heard the no-nonsense voice of one Marc Spector, the Moon Knight. He called himself "vengeance", just like a certain other person she knew, the Batman who was moving toward the right location. "Marines. I was one once. In some ways it's liberating. Before the padded gloves, the cowl, that cloak. The voices in my head. All gone. Back to the basics. Before the spectacle of it all. When it was a job. Not a religion. When all I knew was what I knew."

A religion? She herself served a woman with a rather hefty goddess complex, albeit in not nearly as violent a role. The affiliation with a kind of light was also pretty apparent. "I can relate."

"Oh?" A pause as he thought on this. "It's never about what you think it is. Still, someone has to do this. Still, someone has to do the fun stuff. Still, the blade must praise its lord. Still, people want to know, how can I live like this? The blood I've spilled. The blood yet to be spilled. Still, the answer is the same. How could I live any other way?"

Great, he was psychopathic and probably a multiple. "How do you live with that? With killing your enemies like that, when you might have known things about them? When you had to keep from objectifying them?"

"The risks? The times I've descended into madness? The times I've died? How can I live like this? How could I live any other way?"

"... I guess you have a point there." She paused a moment. They were getting close to the courthouse. "Just try to keep from following that Khonshu too closely, okay? Is there any other way around it, to avoid worshipping someone if they don't deserve it?"

He apparently would have none of this talk of a lack of piety. "If you do not mind, I will just go back to listening to the voices in my head."

"...considerate, truly. Just wondering, what are those dart things you use made of? The ones that look like a gibbous moon?"

"Unimportant. They are a gift of the priests of Khonshu. Usable in close and long range for possibly lethal effect if I choose."

"Okay, so like shuriken. Sounds useful. And this Khonshu? What is his role in things?"

"Khonshu, my patron, is the Egyptian God of Vengeance and the Moon. I am his vengeance--"

"--and Batman is the night, I know. I went over this." The rest of their travel was relatively silent.[/i]

=====

She held out her right arm, tensing it properly and twitching. The dart erupted out of the forearm-mounted launcher, spearing through the chest of the first target. A frown, and she aimed at the next, a neck shot. The third, a headshot. Okay, that was better. She could still get any of them anyway. These darts weren't lethal unless she needed them to be, so she opted to put different compounds in them such as paralyzing poisons from Tamriel or other places, or otherwise tranquilizers.

Two enemies came from her sides, on four limbs. They were white mechs of some sort, with flat fronts and black markings with red lights all around them. Electricity crackled from the front of these "FENRIS" mechs as they attacked, charging at her in the hope of using their electrical tasers.

She reached to her back, pulling out a thirty-five inch wakizashi from the sheath attached there. A slash took the one on her right down the center of its length, bisecting it evenly and causing it to fall, with the white-hot interior steaming from the heat of the high-frequency blade.

Still, while moderately good with a sword after a few days of practice, she was in no way any kind of expert, and still needed training. That said, she convulsed briefly as electricity coursed through her body from the mech on her other side, and stabbed hard into it as she recovered, right between its red lights on the front. It tried to back off, not wanting its core processor destroyed... but then she flipped the switch on her weapon.

A high dose of electricity coursed through the mech, causing it to screech suddenly from the force of it... and it fell silent, destroyed, as she yanked the blade out, kicking the machine aside.

[i]"Very good,"[/i] the "Shadow Broker" stated. [i]"Your omnitool has also been modified. Activate the 'shock' protocol."[/i]

The orange device was activated on her left hand, and she did cycle through its mechanisms, finding the only non-scanning item. On seeing the shortcut maneuver for turning it on, she flicked her wrist.

She was shocked by what she saw. The entire thing seemed to have reorganized itself into a kind of bladed gauntlet in a series of mechanical noises, with two needlelike projections rather than a blade on its own. Electricity coursed between the projections. "...what is this?"

[i]"The 'shock blade', I call it. Administers a high, but nonlethal dose of electricity for organic targets, akin to a knockout charge that can be increased to very high doses for different species, but is typically nonlethal. For synthetics, however... You see what it does to Hahne-Kedar mechs from your sword. There are a limited amount of doses, however, before it needs time to recharge from the tool's power cells of iridium. I also have made one more addition. You know about the modifications to your Visual Intelligence System, Reconnaissance, the thermal vision option and the sonar. You yourself did state that you do not need an identification system for destructible objects in your vicinity, nor a radar to sense foe proximity, so I did not have that added. Instead, your helmet alone has been given the capability to identify weapon types and equipment, even when equipped by your foes."[/i]

One humanoid mech came her way, also white with two red eyed dot sights. Liara spoke again. [i]"Use the shock blade on this LOKI mech. You will not need those vision modes."[/i]

She nodded, reaching forward and grabbing the humanoid by the neck and forearm in the right and left arm respectively. Pulling back as she stepped back, she turned on the spot, yanking the arm she was holding toward her as the neck holding arm pulled to the side, her right leg tripping the mech's and forcing it to lose its balance, falling on its back before her from the Yama Arashi, "Mountain Storm", throw. Reaching back, she stabbed straight forward into its neck, the electrical charge immediately fatal, or close as it could get for a machine such as that one.

It was a good kill, but her mind did drift somewhat. Drifted to a memory she had been wondering about.



[i]What is that, then, my Lady?[/i] She hated to say that, but she didn't want to overuse her insult as she was cleaning the room. Best to keep it for when it could distract her "Lady", Rikka Masami.

[i]I call it the "Vengeful Servant" card, dear. The card is a symbol of your servitude to me, and also grants a sizable amount of power to me, a new ability. I put it away while you were marveling at your room.[/i] Being called "dear" never failed to quiet her, but it seemed that, up until now, she still hadn't noticed, always looking away. In this case, she had been looking at the card. She was right, though. Her room on the [i]White Night[/i] was far better than her normal one on her Gummi ship, with a queen sized bed, blue and silver decorations, and overall just a smaller version of Rikka's own sans separation bar. Something she had thanked her for rather quickly out of shock for nice treatment of who was essentially her prisoner of war.

[i]Um... you're welcome. Would it be alright to write down your card abilities as much as possible, and anything else I can think of? It would help.[/i] She also wanted to document powers, allies, followers, enemies... anything she could use to help her, not to mention titles she had to remember and a copy of the contract itself.

[i]Yes, yes, it would be good for you. You can write it for me.[/i]

A half salute, and back to work.



"Thank you again," she said to her benefactor in this endeavor, the only one who had been told thus far of all pieces of the puzzle. The helmet pieces fell away again as she deactivated the omnitool and stood up.

Her identity hidden in this manner, she could finally subvert the authority of the Collective, so long as Ignis and the rest did not find out. She would not forego Rikka's own attempts, she knew, but the rest she did not hold in the same standard, not that the woman's was in one particularly high either.

For, though she had to serve in the hell she had dropped feet first to for a time, that did not mean she would lie down and take it. The crazed citizens of Fairport said it best, though not entirely in her intention as per her oath to her mentor.

Death follows the Wraith.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=forlC-6KDyA[/youtube]