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<shadowmyre> Location (Andre): The streets of NY. Location (Adisa): Adisa's Flat. Location (Niles): Outside of the White House.
Andre heads out to the street below. Surprisingly business seems to be no worse the wear for the looming warship in the sky. He looks around working to get a general feel for the populace. If they are nervous, or at ease or ambivalent to the intruders. He heads for the metro, digging his pass out of his jeans pocket, and looks for the next train heading to
Andre Queens General Hospital. The spirits within the morgue or in the emergency room may have some answers.
The_Physician looks around to get his bearings.
Adisa makes a call to Stark Enterprises to see how his boss is reacting to the Ne'ata.
<shadowmyre> Niles: The area is packed to the limit with reporters, police, curious on-lookers, fbi, idiots with signs saying 'we welcome our oppressors' and 'we love aliens' and other nonsense, more idiots with signs saying 'go back to where you came from' and 'God hates aliens'.
<shadowmyre> Andre: People over here seem relatively unaffected. Just going about their business. There's an air of quiet tension that sings through the environs, but whether that's from the incipient possibility of alien invasion (again) or just life in super-hero filled NYC is hard to guess.
The_Physician looks up after absorbing all of this in.
Andre heads ontot he C train, feeling the brush of humanity and marveling, yet again, at its adaptability and perseverance.
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "All circuits are currently engaged. Thank you for your call. Please stay on the line, and your call will be taken in the order it was received. You are caller: 196547. Currently serving: 196545."
Adisa waits calmly as his agents do their thing.
<shadowmyre> Niles: You start to look up, but stop yourself midway through. The object in the sky burns with a radiance seemingly equal to the sun. Through slitted eyes, you see a vast array of crystals, shimmering prisms that refract the sunlight into a blazing rainbow of colors.
<shadowmyre> Andre: The people on the street seem mostly blase, but more than one casts a glance to the sky. No one seems to be alone, always walking in groups. Nothing seems more unusual than that, though.
Andre settles himself into a freshly vacated seat between a man in a business suit and an obviously underprivileged mother of three, scrambling to keep an eye on her wards. He looks for discarded newspapers in the car.
<shadowmyre> Andre: Being a train in NYC, there are no less than three discarded newspapers, though there is no guarantee that they're complete. There's copies of Crain's New York Business, Queen's Chronicle, and, of course, the New York Times.
Andre collects the discarded pepers, briefly scanning them for information about the alien invaders before dropping them back to the seats.
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "Thank you for holding, this is Tracey. How may I help you?"
< Adisa> "Hello. This is Adisa T'Challa. I've been in my lab working for the past few days, totally cut off from TV and radio, and have just emerged for air. Imagine my surprise when I heard we'd had yet another alien visitation. What is Stark's Official position on these 'Ne'ata'?"
<shadowmyre> Andre: The business paper doesn't have any headlines that really grab you. Queen's Chronicle had a small article, but nothing really revelatory. The New York Times is, of course, the most current and up-to-date reporting currently available to you. It covers various aspects of the alien's, focusing on their inertia-less drives and crystal technology.
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "Mr. T'Challa, thank you for calling, we've been expecting you. Mr. Stark has issued no official position, but I'm certain I could transfer your call to him, if you like?"
< Adisa> "Yes. Thank you Tracey, I'd appreciate that."
<shadowmyre> Niles: Engaging your mystic vision cuts down on the ambient glare, allowing you to view the ship directly. It looks like, to all outward appearances, a cluster of crystals and prisms. You can't discern any apparent front or back, and if the ship flipped upside down or rotated, you're not sure you'd notice; you stopped counting at thirty lines of symmetry.
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "Of course. Patching you through. Please wait a moment." *scrrtchstaticstaticzzrtch* "Adisa? Its Tony. Where've you been? Ah, nevermind, not important. What can I do for you?"
The_Physician disengages his magical senses, and pulls out his cell phone.
The_Physician calls Dr. Strange's house.
< Adisa> "Well sir, I've been incommunicado, but that's neither here nor there. I was wondering if we had any data on these… 'Ne'ata' that might be relevant to my job. Changing my priorities and the like. In short, sir, is there anything I should know about them that I'm not currently getting from CNN?"
Andre leans back, closing his eyes and calling the armor slowly, allowing it to crystallize slightly on his ears so that he can hear the conversations around him better.
<shadowmyre> Niles: "Hello, Wong speaking… oh, hello Niles. This caller id thing works splendidly. What can I do for you?"
<The_Physician> I was wondering what Dr. Strange thought of the Ne'Ata?
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "Their technology is positively fascinating. Optics based, instead of physics based. A few experts I've spoken with think there's some innate psychic ability, but if so its so low-level that it doesn't even register on our scans. Whatever they use as a power-source is a mystery. I'm not ruling out broadcast energy."
<shadowmyre> Andre: There's definitely a theme of discontent running through the conversations involving the aliens, but it is more the 'talking of imminent disaster' speculative version than the 'things blew up' hard evidence version.
<shadowmyre> Niles: "The master hasn't had time to really investigate the gentlemen in question, though they have asked for, and been granted, an appointment. Apparently, they do not generally dabble in magic, but are aware enough to know who the sorcerer supreme is."
< Adisa> "Interesting. Broadcast energy would be something… but no change to my normal schedule then? I should keep on doing what I've been doing?"
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "Nothing pertinent, but are you back on the grid so I can call you if that changes?"
< Adisa> "Yes sir. I should be available, and I'll try not to get lost in my work again."
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "Wonderful! Was there anything else I can do for you?"
< Adisa> "That about covers it from my end. Just checking in and seeing if there's anything I should know."
<The_Physician> "Hmmm. What kind of meeting is being arranged?"
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "Well, unless you plan on taking one out for a drink, you should be good." <beat> "You… don't, do you?"
<shadowmyre> Niles: "A diplomatic one. More than that I have no information on."
< Adisa> "I haven't even seen one yet. Just pictures on the internet."
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "That doesn't generally slow you down."
< Adisa> "Even I need to communicate before setting up an informal appointment."
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "One should never let their limits hold them back."
< Adisa> "I'll work on that. Anything else before I let you go?"
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "Nothing on my end."
< Adisa> "All right then, goodbye sir."
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "Night." <click>
<The_Physician> "Hmm. Should i be there to ensure everything is on the up and up? I know Dr. Strange can take care of himself, but I would be remiss in my duties if I did not offer my assistance.
<shadowmyre> Niles: "Do you think they may be involved in the events you're investigating?"
Adisa turns back to my computer system. Have my agents found anything yet?
<shadowmyre> Adisa: Still processing, but there are a few hits that trickled up to the top.
<The_Physician> It seems all too coincidental. Our missing time, being put into purgatory and not being able to escape by the man in black, now Aliens on top of the Avatara? I can't help thinking this is more than a coincidence.
Adisa checks out the first few hits
<shadowmyre> Niles: "There really are no coincidences though, are there? Just correspondences."
<The_Physician> I suppose. Do you think the good doctor would mind my attending his meeting?
Andre pulls the armor back in as the electronic voice chimes that his stop is next. He readies himself, nodding tot eh woman and the man who he sat between.
<shadowmyre> Adisa: A lot of speculative message board hits. Nothing really juicy in there, though there are some correlations between appearances of the keyword "Ne'ata" and the keyword "Avatara". Threads involving those keywords tend to show up on similar boards, but no one has drawn a connection between the two, and only rarely are they mentioned in the same thread…
<shadowmyre> …much less the same post."
<shadowmyre> Andre: They wave, briefly.
Andre disembarks from the metro, the sounds of the city above trickling down to him. He heads up the stairs and blinks against the sudden brightness before getting his bearings and heading toward the hospital, just a few blocks away.
Andre he pulls out his cell and checks his work machine as an after thought on the way.
<shadowmyre> Niles: "Not at all, if you have the time. The meeting is scheduled for 8:30pm tonight."
<shadowmyre> Andre: "You. have. no. new. messages."
<The_Physician> Where do I need to be?
Adisa turns on the TV to a decent news channel.
Andre begins to look for the spirits of the dead as he approaches the hospital
<Andre> *after pulling the armor up into a pair of "sunglasses"
<shadowmyre> Niles: "Here, at the Sanctum Sanctorum."
The_Physician checks his pocketwatch for the time
<shadowmyre> Adisa: News is still heavily fixated upon the coverage of the alien ships, as generally, when aliens take the time to cruise into earth-space they at least have the decency to invade, not just hover.
The_Physician and tries to remember if he is currently in the same time zone as the Sanctum.
<shadowmyre> ((NYC and DC are eastern time, yes))
The_Physician "I will be there Wong. Be well and see you soon."
<shadowmyre> Andre: There are not many spirits of the dead wandering around in the bright sunshine outside the hospital. None in sight, in fact.
<shadowmyre> Niles: "Of course, see you soon."
Andre keeps scanning the are as he heads toward the looming building.
Adisa studies the images of the ships to try to figure out some of their technology.
<shadowmyre> Andre: The building looms very impressively. It is much darker inside, though only as a contrast to how bright it is outside.
Andre heads into the building, moving down the stairs closer to the morgue. While he may not get into it, the spirits should be thick enough to provide some insight.
<shadowmyre> Adisa: Analysis of the outside of the ship via distant photos isn't terribly productive, but you're able to glean some insights. The surface is undifferentiated, there is nothing that would appear to be wings, portals, exhaust, windows, or anything else except solid surfaces of crystal. The design is symmetrical, a series of crystals linked together at their base. All reports show that it hovers, unmoving and without vibration, roughly 300 feet above whatever building it occupies the airspace of.
<shadowmyre> Andre: There are fewer spirits here than last you journeyed, though that may be because even the dead have trouble being gloomy on such a bright day. There are some, however, hovering around the hallways underground.
The_Physician has some time to spare. He decides to wander around town, see if he can find out more information regarding the Ne'ata.
The_Physician specifically, news articles, pictures of what they look like, if people are just being stupid or if there is a reason some hate them so.
Andre approaches one that seems more aware then some of the others and pauses in front of it.
<Andre> "May I ask you a few questions?"
<shadowmyre> Niles: Finding pictures of them isn't hard (color ones are harder to get, but available). They are human-shaped and featured, though slightly slimmer and taller. They bear six fingers on each hand, and eyes that are completely white, without any semblance of color. Most of them wear suits fashioned from, for lack of a better term, crystal thread, faintly…
<shadowmyre> sparkling in even the dimmest light. None have been seen without their helmets on, so it is impossible to say whether they have hair or not.
<shadowmyre> Andre: The ghost focuses slowly on the being in front of it, eyes narrowing. As the spirit focuses, it gains greater clarity, though its voice is still as faint as a distant noise carried by the breeze. "Who?"
Adisa continues to accrue data while he waits for the others to return.
<Andre> "My name is Andre. Do you have a moment to speak with me?"
<shadowmyre> Andre: "…why…?"
The_Physician attempts to locate a side street, out of the way from the crowd of onlookers.
<shadowmyre> Niles: Takes him about four minutes.
<Andre> "The aliens. Can you tell me anything about them?"
The_Physician once there, he calls out in a low but firm voice. Cheshire? Are you available to talk for a moment my friend?
<shadowmyre> Andre: "…..aliens…..? They…search…"
<shadowmyre> Niles: An extremely feline yawn is the immediate response. "My my. Do you think I simply follow you around waiting to see if you do something interesting?" The head of the violet panther fades into view, spinning upside down. "Well, I do."
Andre lets the spirit continue, leaning in slightly to catch its words.
The_Physician smiles.
<The_Physician> I figured I amused you greatly my friend.
<The_Physician> So, what do you think about the Ne'Ata?
<The_Physician> Assuming you have an opinion on such things.
<shadowmyre> Andre: "…one…person…prophecy…"
<Andre> "Who?"
<shadowmyre> Niles: The cat shrugs, an impressive feat for one who has no shoulders. "They're far less amusing than humans. All serious and stodgy, concerned about religion and myth and all that. Their like uptight Christians, only more uptight and less Christian."
<The_Physician> Interested in religion and myth? Yet technological as well. Hmmm.
<shadowmyre> Adisa: "Ding! Analysis complete. File saved to log. Open: (y/n)?"
Adisa presses 'y'.
<shadowmyre> Andre: "…destroyer….apocalypse…"
<Andre> "To cause or to avert?"
<The_Physician> Is there anything else you know about them? Like why they are here?
<shadowmyre> Adisa: The analysis is as complete as it could be, given that the internet tends to make stuff up when information is limited. From all accounts, the Ne'Ata are unwilling to speak on their desires, save with the people who can fulfill their desires. However, their society apparently lacks concepts such as 'chain of command' and 'incarceration', each member…
<shadowmyre> …of the society empowered to speak for all members of the society. 'Incarceration' came up when a group willingly allowed themselves to be taken to jail (to be held there until the Avengers could investigate), and they had no jails or anything similar in their vocabulary.
<shadowmyre> Andre: "….both…"
<Andre> "How can it be both?"
<shadowmyre> Niles: "What makes you think I've been spying on them, that I'd know so much?"
The_Physician shrugs
<The_Physician> It just seemed to me that if their intentions are harmful to this planet, you might take umbrage and want to know this ahead of time.
<shadowmyre> Adisa: Their technology is far beyond standard earth tech (so, roughly on par with reed richards/doom/banner/stark) and works on wildly divergent principles. Most scientists can understand the broad strokes, but detailed analysis of what circuitry and such they've recovered from battles has proven fruitless, the base assumptions are simply too divergent.
<shadowmyre> Andre: "…future…not…set…."
Adisa examines what details he has. Is there any similarities or parallels to Sacred Tech?
<Andre> "How do you know these things?"
<shadowmyre> Niles: "Oh, certainly, their 'intentions' might be dangerous… but no more or less dangerous than your lot, all told. They don't like to talk to someone who isn't in charge, though."
<shadowmyre> Andre: "….I….listen….."
<shadowmyre> Adisa: There are principles similar to both, and divergent to both. It represents an entire new technological basis, running on something similar to, but not, electricity or magic.
<Andre> "Thank you for your time. Is there anything else that you can tell me about them? Where they come from perhaps?"
<The_Physician> So does that mean you know their intentions for being here?
Adisa sighs and rubs his eyes. Too many allnighters. He decides to grab a quick nap before the others get back.
<shadowmyre> Niles: "They come from Ne-Ata. Didn't you get the memo?" The head bobs in the air. "Ne-Ata, of course, isn't a planet… and I couldn't find out what planet they were from even if I wanted to…. But they're from space, in their big shimmery crystal ships."
<shadowmyre> Andre: "….heaven…."
<The_Physician> Hmm. Do you know how their ships are constructed? I swear I could sense residual magical energies in them.
<Andre> "They come from heaven? In a literal sense of stars and sky or the metaphorical one of angels and God?"
<shadowmyre> Niles: "They're a religious bunch, and what is religion but magic without the oomph? I wouldn't be surprised if they had some kind of sorcery available to them, but the majority of this lot are just people."
<shadowmyre> Andre: "….heaven…."
<The_Physician> The majority? As in there may be sorcerers or their equivalent among them?
<shadowmyre> Niles: "Well, I asked them to line up for a 'physical', but being prodded didn't seem to be in their itinerary."
The_Physician smiles.
<The_Physician> You are a funny one my friend.
<shadowmyre> NIles: "Its a gift."
<The_Physician> Thank you for your time today. How is the Queen doing?
<shadowmyre> Niles: "Putting things to rights once more, leaving me plenty of time to flit about and…. 'improve people's lives'."
Andre shake shis head
<The_Physician> Understood. One final question friend. Since the Ne-Ata have arrived, how have the spirits and the Avatara's lot reacted to it?
<shadowmyre> Niles: "Haven't paid attention. Sorry."
<Andre> "Thank you for your time." He turns to head into another part of the hospital to see if he can find other cognizant spirits that may have information to share.
<The_Physician> Alright. Thank you very much for your time.
<The_Physician> Have a good day.
The_Physician bows in thanks, and turns to head out into the street once again.
<shadowmyre> Niles: The cat head fades and vanishes.
*LOG END*