~ one

Asshole passenger on an airplane - Suspicious indignation, "So what exactly do you do ... ?"

Doe - "Save the world so assholes like you can piss me off another day on the way to doing it all over again."  He turns from him to out the window and drinks down the tiny bottle of gin, curls for sleep.

 

...

 

Asshole - "Fuck you."  Turns away with his tiny ass bottle.

 

~ Nocturne watches the plane fly over toward the distant city.

 ('Of Light and Darkness' (opening game theme)

 

Leaving the car in an abandoned lot, past a half fallen chain link fence, weeds and tall grass, a forgotten outpost that could once have been converted from a school before abandonment.  It's 'a facility'.  If you know you know.

Soldiers refitting it from lost generations, pulling old wire for new, replacing the antennae at the corner while more pass through in a jog.  A drill to keep them distracted from the details, seen as they look around curiously, the last few lagging watching their arrival.

In the distance the profane wars still, an airship ports in to attack a large four legged, more following to circle while on the ground only the above seen of a distant battle.  

Fire from the ground and bullets from the sky, an airship destroyed, swatted falling by the four-legged, the rest answer more furiously for its face.

Nocturne - "The reason we're here ?"

Pragmatism - "Inter.  Dimensional.  Aliens.  Of course."

Nocturne - "Nice !  So Why am I here."

Pragmatism - "Apparently a couple of them are 'tough guys' !"

Soldiers and suits set up basic comm gear and clear debris for landing zones while she's distracted by the falling airship, firing all the way down before the explosion, she smiles.

Nocturne - "Tough enough for you to get my marker from the creeper-spooks." She looks him over appreciating, "That must have taken some time and some talking."

Pragmatism - "And an entirely questionable profession.  But these particular inter-dimensional aliens do happen to be significant shit talkers.  You'll see.  We've got one inside !"  Walking backward with a smile and a hydraulic hop, "Come see !  He's a turncoat !"

Nocturne - "Set up."

Pragmatism - Laughing, "Oh yes.   But also an intergalactic, inter-dimensional, treaty, when we win.  He's the king's son."

Nocturne - "Fuck it."

Pragmatism - "Fuck it indeed.  Area clear ?"

Nocturne - Looking around, eyeing a distant beast heading to a further distant battle, "Mostly.   Good for at least an hour or three."

...

Pragmatism - "I am very glad I do not see those things."

Nocturne - "Me too ... hey does this make you my 'handler' now ?"  They entering the facility giggling past the guards' suspicious looks.
________

Doe - Sitting in a dark theater, movie playing, "That's fucked up."

Shady general - "What do you mean ?"

Doe - Looks at him like he's stupid, "Hang on."  He stands and the movie pauses, the lights come on as he squeezes by to the aisle.

Elizabeth attacks from behind the general, injecting him in the back of the neck with a heavy syringe. He swats the back of his neck, turning sharply as she drops an envelope in his lap from the other side.

The lights go out and the movie resumes.

Doe - A shadow over the screen, working a stuck fly and squeezing past again, "Oh good.  Didn't miss a thing."
________
____

The alien ~

Tall grey, a combination of emaciated bulk of musculature, thinly armored over in a way to assume the celebration of his form among his people. Draped fabrics from the aged metal pieces, flags torn from conquered worlds, ragged and singed.

The bones (probably) of his upper arms are separated, skin separated through leaving a long hole with decorative rings hanging and tied up the lengths.

Wide eyes as a classic 'alien' dark but with a recognizable look set in deep sockets.  High cheeked and stretched flesh over an elongated head. He stares out the window in the otherwise darkened room, watching the distant Profane Wars, unseen to the others but Nocturne.
____
________

Pragmatism - "And what will you do ?"

The room is otherwise darkened, save the window's light.  The dusty chalkboards show the abandonment of a classroom, a six minute wall clock stuck on history.

Makeshift tables pushed together to seat the assets represented, dark suits and variable security, the alien watches the distant profane battles casually from the broad but shaded, with a general's eye.

Thesis - Smiles, "I will watch."  He watches an airship circle a greater, then a soldier from our world and dimension replacing a field comm array, suited for an impromptu FOB.  "And you will break him."

Nocturne - "For you.  Why ?"

Thesis - "Because he comes either way.  And so you will break him.  And I will finish him.   Treaty."

Pragmatism - "What does he want ?  Why is he coming."

Thesis - Turning back to the window, "To dine.  To take.  To break.   To claim.  And in the end to leave a mine worthy for the minerals at your planet's core.  This is what you fight.  Is it clear ?"

Nocturne - "Let the bitches rain."

Thesis - Smiles, "Indeed.  Treaty.  You see your people are feared, in all the realms.  Did you know ?  Your barbarous ways exceed even our own and we are celebrated for it.  All across forever they fear your destiny most of all and this is a thing my father cannot tolerate.   And now the one power alone which he respects as higher than his own ... has left you."

Pragmatism - "Who ?"

Thesis - "Your very own maker, has abandoned you."

... silent room ...

Nocturne - Breaks out in giggles, "So your father's Christian ?"

Thesis turns to her.

Nocturne - "Jewish ?"

He turns his head a bit examining her, leaning over the table.

Nocturne - "... Buddhist ... ?"

Thesis - "Do they know ?"  He smiles leaning into her eyes, mocking, "They don't know, do they ?  Do you ?"  He smiles a short laugh and stands.

Nocturne - "That I'm Buddhist ?  No one knows that.  It's my secret identity."

Pragmatism - "It is an odd answer.  Honestly.   In ... this particular dimension."

Nocturne - Giggle-snorts, "Plane of existence."

Thesis - Returning to the window, profane wars in view, "I am not surprised.  But I am only still able to explain so much of this blindness you have in the time we have before my father arrives.  I would prefer to discuss your survival, and seed."

('sweeping civilization scene', voiced over by Thesis)

"On my world there is nothing left.  Neither food nor nutrient to grow it.  There has not been for millennia.  When once there was, we ... 'flourished'.  We grew and we prospered.  We 'evolved'.  'Progressed'.  And then we Expanded.  We Ate."  Turns back to them with a smile, "We were like you."

"And like you wherein we laid our seed, we too there did the same.  And so it is all gone.  You will see, in your own tomorrow.  You can see it in your world today."
__

Nocturne - "Can we blow up the gate from the other side ?"

Thesis - Thesis stares a moment, annoyed, "There would be no time.  It is generated from our planetary ring, and you have no fleet."

('sweeping civilization scene', voiced over by Thesis)

"For uncountable aeons by your calculations, we have been this way.  Our universe is dead now.  Nowhere do the crops take.  Neither seed no sample has lasted our evolution, nor can it."

"You will see."

"Our streets are cannibalized in every sense. There is neither march nor unity of our people, but to eat. And when we do this, he simply announces it, and he opens the gate.  He has just announced this place, and the gathering numbers span worlds."
__

Nocturne - "Can we plug the gate ?   Like with a mountain ?"

Thesis - "It is not a precise gating system.  It regularly appears in a mountain.  We keep a cannon near the fore mount in case of it."

... pause of alien annoyed ...

...

('sweeping civilization scene', voiced over by Thesis)

"When they march you must understand that you are food.  He will breed you.  Inefficiently.  In the vat of our farms until your pool simply runs dry.  Why ?  Because he cannot afford efficiency to feed his people, today."
__

Nocturne - "What about a nuke ?"

...

Thesis - "The gate's own disturbance would detonate ..."

Nocturne - "What about a lot of nukes ?"

Thesis - "Countless ! Aeons!  Before your EXISTENCE !"

Nocturne - "Just running down the basics, man.  I get that you need us to 'whup yer daddy's ass' for you, so maybe just skip ahead to all that food you're also about to ask us for, which I'm assuming isn't us."

Thesis - "Indeed we ..."

Nocturne - "Or our animals !"

Thesis - Stares at her, then looks around the room, "Does this ... speak for you all ?"

They all look around at each other, slow nods of shared concern ...

Pragmatism - "Yeah these are great questions actually.  Saved a lot of time in committees.  So what exactly, do you want."

Thesis looks at Pragmatism, then around the room as they stare waiting.

Pragmatism - "After we ... 'whup yer daddy's ass' for for you, I mean."

...

Thesis - "Seed.  And the right to mine your asteroid belt.   Discretely."

Pragmatism - "Our asteroids ?"

Thesis - "Yes."  With a wide smile, "They were once like you.  You will see.  We require their minerals to renutriate our soil."

Nocturne - "That couldn't be enough for all those worlds ... you're ..."

Thesis - "Cutting them off."

Nocturne - "You're abandoning them to die."

Thesis - "No.  To war among each other in a universe of hatred which I cannot allow to overflow into yours.  Or there will be no seed, as it is there."

Nocturne - "And you ?"

Thesis - Looks back at her smiling, "When their chaos has run its course and depleted them, I will conquer them again.  As my father did before me, and his before him."  He turns back to the window.  "It is our way."

Nocturne - "And to feed them ?"

Thesis - "Their blood is to nourish their own soils now.  So all I need from you is seed and mineral.  Defeating my father is a gift which leaves you with the reputation most feared among all the realms'.   Left as most sacred preserve, for seed alone, quietly.  Treaty."

... silent room ...

Nocturne - "Eggs.  Benedict.  Arnold."
________

Annoying passenger on an airplane - Breaking into a laugh, "Whatever.  So how long do we have before this ... 'Armageddon cometh' ?"

Doe - Looking at his watch, taps it and listens for the click, "Should be starting right about ..."

~ The plane's lights flicker then out.

Doe - "Now."
____

Nyx - The sound of Samal's sternum cracking in the dark ('The Rough Storybook'), "Wanna watch ?" 

 ('Lost at Birth' (power version) by Public Enemy)

The massive portal opens, the cruiser's nose exiting slowly, missiles downward at 45 degrees.  Next to it an airship explodes burning into the air, the cruiser's short guns turning to it.

____

Inside the sparking airship control, Timepiece stomps the panel while others put out fire in the smoke, gearing up and strapping in for impact.
____

~ Doe checks his watch at the airport, takes a deep breath and starts pushing the coffin's dolly toward security.

With the sparks inside the airship, they flash between various conditions, some with augmented limbs and plates, flashing to normalcy, then gone, those near mourning, then back all throughout.
____

~ Alarms sound in the meeting room as Thesis turns his head back grinning, wall siren flashing, all rising to task.
____

Taking heavy fire, the airship descends in flame.
____

~ Doe glances at the security ahead as one turns to raise a brow, then to gesture to the next. Across the greeting area a sudden commotion distracts them.

A man with a brass plate over half his head and one telescoping eye tackles a priest.

~ The security rises to deal while one pushes past Doe through the detector, setting it off.   Turning to see, then back to the commotion, the checker passes him impatiently then closes the gate.
____

The half faced crewman flickers between full and augmented in the sparks with a grin, lighting a cigar before the crash.
____

~ Doe walks toward as security crosses his path dragging the crewman.  Laughing he gives Doe a thumbs up and an eye flash.

Two female steam-clowns are seen approaching a cab driver leaning on the car outside the broad windows, one holding a boom-box, the other a sign.

~ A security tries to pull of the crewman's eyepiece and falls to the ground twitching with electricity, crewman laughing. He spits on the rolling guard and gets punched by another.
____

The crashed airship's side door kicks open in smoke, the two steam-clown crew behind the door.
____

~ The cabbie (from 'Three Days') looks up from his paper, seeing the steam clowns, one holding a boom-box, the other a sign.

Sign - 'We're Miming Documentarians !' (hearts and flowers)

~ They put the sign upright through a slot in the boombox, one takes off her hat for donations.  She looks at the cabbie, smiles, and throws some coins and cash in to start it off.

The other pulls a .35 mm camera and they start to dance, inviting the cabbie who laughs and joins in.  They pirouette each other then one him while the other grabs his keys in a hip-check then tossed and caught by Doe.   He opens the trunk.
____

They exit the craft, followed by a steady flow of uniquely armored crew, all turning directly to removing the heavy plates from the airship's hull.
____

The crew starts running with the plates, some taking hits and tumbling, getting back up and continuing the run.

~ The cabbie does another spin and stops, seeing the cab is gone.  He turns back and the steam-clowns are gone too, a lipstick kiss on his cheek after the turn.

They begin mounting the plates into the settings in the new stone wall, cruiser continuing it's slow exit in the distance.

~ Doe careens down the back road off the airstrip, coffin banging around out of the trunk.

(when the main rap starts)

Beneath the cruiser's 45 degree circumferential barrage, a protected army exits, their path cleared of rubble by the cruiser's barrage.

Wide walking machines open fire on the wall, dragging long chains to pave and stomp a smooth road, while from between the chains beneath the mammoth like walkers, guns point out and join their fire.

~ Crew continues to pour from the wreckage, the winds pick up swirling around them.

Past the first wave of walkers, a mix of army well geared and civilian aliens walking in starvation with their more makeshift weapons, occasionally one eats another too close, joined by a fast hoard before carrying on, chewing limb and bone.

~ More crew pours, disassembling the ship to it's core, storms growing in the distance.
____

Three police cars edge over the hill behind the stolen cab, an explosion between them sends the front flipped forward, the others to each side, the airship crew passing through on their motorcycles.

~ Timepiece drops the RPG and pulls ahead to look at Doe, sticks her tongue out while the rest move to flank, the man from the airport trailing handcuffs from a wrist and an arm from the handcuffs.

Military choppers fly over ignoring them, pragmatism inside with the future dirge crew.  In the distance the explosions rage amid brewing tornadoes, helicopters, bikers and cab riding to, profane wars raging with it all unseen but reflecting it.