What is an enemy? What is a friend? Is it a distinction made by rules and laws? Do the rulers and officers and commanders
determine for us who we are allowed to trust? Is it only once they cross to our side of the line that they are allowed to be seen as people worthy of trust,
camradrie, or love? Or is it that connection, that looking at them in the eye and knowing a sense of mutual respect, that you would rather talk with, fight
with, live with this person than a total stranger, that defines what it means to truly say you know them? We learned that men cannot be judged by the color of
their skin, but by the strength of their character. Is this only applicable if the man in question is human? Or are these Traditionalists, Rikti though they
may be, the first chance to look beyond the inhuman features of a faceless enemy and find a person that may become a friend?
- Incandescent, head of the Vanguard Herald Division, addressing the UN Oversight Committee regarding opening peace talks
with the Rikti Traditionalist Faction.
Riot Force Reports:
The Ties That Bind
Prologue
The conference room was in utter uproar, as the most influential men and women in Vanguard abruptly had to deal with an event that had been thought utterly preposterous only hours before.
"We need to start screening all registered heroes currently working for us," Borea said. "There has to be some sort of way we can determine if there are any more. We have to contain this breach now."
"What about the infiltrator? If she got as deep in as
she did, we don't know what's jeopardized," Gaussian said. "The Rikti could know anything. Our access codes, our transmission frequencies.
We need to rotate every classified frequency and procedure she had access to."
"Do we really know if she's jeopardized
anything?" Serpent Drummer said, frowning from his position. "She turned herself in, and from what she told us, she was infiltrating us to get
information on Hro'Dtohz. If anything, that makes her almost as much of an ally as the Traditionalists. She even sees the war as pointless in the face of
this intelligence."
"In the face of intelligence on Nemesis, which seems
to indicate he incited the Rikti War. While I agree it's proven, how do we know this isn't an elaborate plot by Nemesis with the assistance of the
Restructurists? He's tried replacing their leaders before. What if he's succeeded this time?" Levantera scowled. "We don't know that
she's telling the truth. All we do know is that she's not in telepathic contact with the rest of the Rikti, from what the Psi Division is
saying."
"We need more information. If we could interrogate
her…." Gaussian began, before a cool voice cut him off.
"No," the Dark Watcher said quietly, managing to
still the chaos despite barely being audible. "We're not touching her."
"Why not?" Gaussian frowned. "Don't give
me any of your usual mysterious bullshit, Watcher. This is a serious matter of security! We've had a Rikti in our ranks for almost a month, with full
access to our facilities, and we didn't even know it!"
"No, you didn't know it,"
the Watcher said. "I've been observing Miss W'tin for some time, waiting for the moment to intervene to prevent this from going bad for all
concerned. Us, the Rikti, and especially the young archer."
"With all due respect, Watcher, you've known about
a catastrophic breach of security for months and kept quiet without consulting anyone here?" Levantera said, a touch of shock creeping into her
voice.
"No. I explained my case to the Lady Grey, and she
agreed with my reasoning. Now, you all need to calm down. We can question her, yes, but there will be no interrogation. I also need to prepare some
eventualities in case events get out of hand. And I imagine you'll want to rotate those frequencies anyway, Gaussian, so I'll leave that to you.
Serpent Drummer, get this information to our Traditionalist allies. I'd suggest bringing along some people to help calm them down, for obvious reasons.
We're going to have to handle this very carefully if we don't want it to turn into a disaster, so everyone on your toes. Get going." With that,
the Dark Watcher opened a portal to his side, stepping through it to an unknown location, leaving the remaining members of the upper ranks of Vanguard
staring after him before grudgingly going to their tasks.
***
The Watcher stepped into a classically decorated office,
stepping up behind a large armchair sitting in front of a small fireplace.
"You are sure about this?" the Lady Grey asked
simply.
The Watcher nodded. "I think she's the break
we've been waiting for. A Restructurist who isn't fanatically devoted to Hro'Dtohz. If she comes around…it's a step towards ending this war,
once and for all."
"You speak of objectives, but that is not why you
argued this case so strongly to us before," she pointed out.
The Watcher smiled ever so slightly. "No, it
wasn't. There's more to this than war and politics. What happens next….well, things will get ugly. But I'm going to do my damnedest to give those
two kids a chance to figure this out on their own. If it helps save the world….that's a bonus."
"You're sentimental behind your detachment as
always, Devon. But we agree with your decision. Carry it out, and be careful. We would prefer not to see unwarranted damage befall anyone in this
pursuit."
"As you say, Lady Grey," he said respectfully,
before vanishing into the shadows again.
---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."
determine for us who we are allowed to trust? Is it only once they cross to our side of the line that they are allowed to be seen as people worthy of trust,
camradrie, or love? Or is it that connection, that looking at them in the eye and knowing a sense of mutual respect, that you would rather talk with, fight
with, live with this person than a total stranger, that defines what it means to truly say you know them? We learned that men cannot be judged by the color of
their skin, but by the strength of their character. Is this only applicable if the man in question is human? Or are these Traditionalists, Rikti though they
may be, the first chance to look beyond the inhuman features of a faceless enemy and find a person that may become a friend?
- Incandescent, head of the Vanguard Herald Division, addressing the UN Oversight Committee regarding opening peace talks
with the Rikti Traditionalist Faction.
Riot Force Reports:
The Ties That Bind
Prologue
The conference room was in utter uproar, as the most influential men and women in Vanguard abruptly had to deal with an event that had been thought utterly preposterous only hours before.
"We need to start screening all registered heroes currently working for us," Borea said. "There has to be some sort of way we can determine if there are any more. We have to contain this breach now."
"What about the infiltrator? If she got as deep in as
she did, we don't know what's jeopardized," Gaussian said. "The Rikti could know anything. Our access codes, our transmission frequencies.
We need to rotate every classified frequency and procedure she had access to."
"Do we really know if she's jeopardized
anything?" Serpent Drummer said, frowning from his position. "She turned herself in, and from what she told us, she was infiltrating us to get
information on Hro'Dtohz. If anything, that makes her almost as much of an ally as the Traditionalists. She even sees the war as pointless in the face of
this intelligence."
"In the face of intelligence on Nemesis, which seems
to indicate he incited the Rikti War. While I agree it's proven, how do we know this isn't an elaborate plot by Nemesis with the assistance of the
Restructurists? He's tried replacing their leaders before. What if he's succeeded this time?" Levantera scowled. "We don't know that
she's telling the truth. All we do know is that she's not in telepathic contact with the rest of the Rikti, from what the Psi Division is
saying."
"We need more information. If we could interrogate
her…." Gaussian began, before a cool voice cut him off.
"No," the Dark Watcher said quietly, managing to
still the chaos despite barely being audible. "We're not touching her."
"Why not?" Gaussian frowned. "Don't give
me any of your usual mysterious bullshit, Watcher. This is a serious matter of security! We've had a Rikti in our ranks for almost a month, with full
access to our facilities, and we didn't even know it!"
"No, you didn't know it,"
the Watcher said. "I've been observing Miss W'tin for some time, waiting for the moment to intervene to prevent this from going bad for all
concerned. Us, the Rikti, and especially the young archer."
"With all due respect, Watcher, you've known about
a catastrophic breach of security for months and kept quiet without consulting anyone here?" Levantera said, a touch of shock creeping into her
voice.
"No. I explained my case to the Lady Grey, and she
agreed with my reasoning. Now, you all need to calm down. We can question her, yes, but there will be no interrogation. I also need to prepare some
eventualities in case events get out of hand. And I imagine you'll want to rotate those frequencies anyway, Gaussian, so I'll leave that to you.
Serpent Drummer, get this information to our Traditionalist allies. I'd suggest bringing along some people to help calm them down, for obvious reasons.
We're going to have to handle this very carefully if we don't want it to turn into a disaster, so everyone on your toes. Get going." With that,
the Dark Watcher opened a portal to his side, stepping through it to an unknown location, leaving the remaining members of the upper ranks of Vanguard
staring after him before grudgingly going to their tasks.
***
The Watcher stepped into a classically decorated office,
stepping up behind a large armchair sitting in front of a small fireplace.
"You are sure about this?" the Lady Grey asked
simply.
The Watcher nodded. "I think she's the break
we've been waiting for. A Restructurist who isn't fanatically devoted to Hro'Dtohz. If she comes around…it's a step towards ending this war,
once and for all."
"You speak of objectives, but that is not why you
argued this case so strongly to us before," she pointed out.
The Watcher smiled ever so slightly. "No, it
wasn't. There's more to this than war and politics. What happens next….well, things will get ugly. But I'm going to do my damnedest to give those
two kids a chance to figure this out on their own. If it helps save the world….that's a bonus."
"You're sentimental behind your detachment as
always, Devon. But we agree with your decision. Carry it out, and be careful. We would prefer not to see unwarranted damage befall anyone in this
pursuit."
"As you say, Lady Grey," he said respectfully,
before vanishing into the shadows again.
---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."