NationStates Jolt Archive

He felt the warmth of the coffee as it made its way down his throat and he closed his eyes in a brief moment as he enjoyed the rejuvenating feeling of the caffeine. He had pulled yet another all nighter to try and get some of the work heaping on his desk done. The various teams working on Project: TITAN were doing admirably and he couldn't bring himself to tell them to slow down. Because at his end, his staff were literally overwhelmed with paperwork; they were already working overtime and losing vacation time in return for increased pay benefits. And he still had a mound of paperwork on his desk every morning. This morning was no different.

He sighed and stepped forward, his nametag on his shirt reading Dr. Jeremiah Kar. He was the director of the project and the top official of the Perseus facility, the top-secret research asteroid located deep within the asteroid belt. Considering the asteroid belt was mostly controlled by the military, who rented out the asteroids to the corporations in return for benefits and payments, no one would ever mess with them. Of course, as a precaution,they were in a section that was of no use. Several asteroids had collided and been dashed to bits. Some were large enough for a big research station and not large enough to be worth mining. One of those had been picked for the Perseus facility two years ago to house the top secret projects of the military. It was quickly built, teams brought in and equipment set up, all under total secrecy. With a large guard of Special Forces troops and a task force of ships patrolling the area, they were the most well-protected and well hidden secret the Colonies had.

"Doctor Kar." His microphone buzzed as his secretary, her voice strained from the work, tiredly called. Reaching over to the device, he pressed the button and replied.

"Yes, Kara?"

"General Thornton is here; she wants to see you."

He stared at the device like it was a snake. Why the hell was the military already here? They had just begun the project, what in God's name were they up to? He sighed and put down his coffee. "Send him in, Kara." He picked up his pen and began to work on his paperwork as the door opened ahead of him and closed. Emily Thornton, if anything, looked even more tense than she had during the war. Being the leader of the ground forces of the Colonies weighed on her shoulders and they had felt a lot of duty's weight already. She took off her hat and sat down in the chair, looking at Jeremiah.

"Hello Doctor. As you may have guessed, I am hear to do the initial checkup on Project: TITAN. I just returned from touring the Colonies, so I do not know the specifics of the project, so I would like you to enlighten me. If defense funding is going into this, I want to know what we're doing. No secret project bullshit that we see in the movies."

The doctor nodded. He had a feeling she had not been informed, why else would she be here? "Very well, if you'll follow me General. I will take you to the main room where the research is being done." Emily nodded and the doctor walked out the door, the general following behind. They passed several scientists, whom gave curious glances at the General before returning to what they were doing. They finally reached a single set of doors. Jeremiah pulled out a keycard, swiped the card and inputed the code. The green light beeped on and they entered. It was an observation room, with two scientists already working. They glanced to see whom the arrivals were but were pacified at Jeremiah's nod. He gestured at the window, where Emily stepped up. Her eyes widened at what she saw. She saw a massive room filled with some kind of containers that held human beings in them. There were rows of machines and computers with data streaming down them. There was a sealed off section which held a lab, where more scientists were mixing and working on something else. She turned to Jeremiah, an eyebrow raised. He coughed. "This is the first phase of Project: TITAN. We need to find a way to add onto human DNA with a serum that will make our soldiers faster, stronger, better and to achieve the project's goal as well without drastically altering their body structure."

She grunted. "Yes, they are to be the counter to all the bloody supernatural foes out here. If we have to come up against Jedi, Sith, psionics or any other beings, then we will need to have these supersoldiers to field against them."

The doctor nodded. "Indeed. Which reminds me, has the military shipped any of the serums in to be used?"

Emily frowned and took out her PDA, quickly thumbing through it. "Hmmm...yes. We managed to acquire large amounts of Jedi and Sith blood, and have the midichlorian counts documented. We will be dealing with the most numerous enemies out there, being those with the Force. However, you are still testing here on the volunteers and have made it sound you have not found a viable serum yet."

"That is because it has not been made yet." Her head twisted over to look at him sharply, surprise in her features.

"The board told us there would be."

He chuckled. "They were not lying. You see, we have not made a serum because we have not yet perfected the process. We have simulations and small tests to see if the body rejects the serum. So far, there have been problems cropping up with human DNA resisting such quick evolutionary changes. However, we are overcoming those quickly. I'd say by the third week of this month, we will have a viable serum ready, already tested and we can begin the first batch of TITAN 'training' soldiers. Then we can begin the project in full."

Emily rubbed her chin. "If I recall the report correctly, you have to insert these into the parents and then their child gets the full benefits. Won't that take awhile to have a 'profit' so to speak?" She hated speaking like this but it was her job and her focus was the safety of the Colonies.

Jeremiah nodded. "Yes, but we have fixed that. Included in the serum is a quick growth agent. Once those children begin military training as they are inducted at the age of eight per article 8, they will be growing at an amazing rate. They will be consuming incredible amounts of food to feed this, of course, but by the tenth year, all the children we have will be full-grown. We will be tested to keep them up mentally but with the serum, they are to be smarter and better at processing information. Mentally quick, to put it simply. So, if all goes well, we will have them in ten years ready to do the trials. And of course, more additions will come as we acquire more DNA to add into the program to protect them against other things."

The General nodded and stood up, putting her hat back on. "Very well, Doctor. I see you have this situation under control. I will be back to see the serum administered and then when the first wave is prepared."

He nodded, but paused as she spoke again. "Oh and Doctor....no science-fiction movie bullshit here. Any illegal testing of any kind will be treated harshly, am I clear."

"Yes, ma'am." She nodded and left, leaving the doctor in the observation room. Her cellphone rang and she pulled it out, opening it. "Yes?"

"What did the doctor say?"

She continued walking, moving towards the hangar. "They will have a tested serum ready by the third week and in ten years, the first batch of TITAN will be ready."

"Excellent. Have you checked the status of Project: XERO?"

"Of course, Mr. President. They are proceeding well, at a greater clip than the scientists here. As is expected, since here they are doing groundbreaking work on every part of the project, that team is dealing with technology already imagined."

"True. Any estimates?"

"They are more long-sighted than the scientists here. They saw in fifteen years, we will have a fully armed, prepared, and ready squad of four that can handle these super soldiers should anything happen."

There was a pause. "If they need to be deployed earlier?"

"It can be done. They'd like to wait if possible, to ensure they are all upgraded, but if needed, they will deploy earlier and finish the work through upgrades."

"Excellent. Keep me updated. The defense department is coming through on new shield and weapons technologies. If we can keep this up, within the next two decades, we should be able to properly defend ourselves."

"Understood, sir."

The two Avatars stepped down from the small loading ramp and surveyed their immediate surroundings with something akin to rapt curiosity. They both wore business suits of a sort, unnaturally crisp and apparently crafted of some unknown fabric. One stood just shy of six feet in height, and had the look of a gaunt and balding old man that one might see in some kind of stereotypical accountant or bookkeeper. Whereas the one seemed like the typical bookworm, the other came across as some kind of jovial giant of a man more likely to be seen either in the woods chopping trees with a big blue ox, or riding through the christmas night with a sleigh and unleashing great howls of pleasant laughter. The only thing that made him look anything different than Santa Claus was the fact that his great mane of hair was a brilliant orange red.

The two presented a striking contrast not only to each other, but to the standard apprearance of a Godulan Avatar. Where the norm was statuesque and possessed of otherworldly beauty, these two seemed to revel in their decided lack of either quality... though the bigger one looked for certain like he could easily lift objects many times his size. His apparent gut might have been significant, but his arms showed that his form had muscles to it as well. Mere contrivances for such beings, but they had their reasons for their forms.

"It is interesting, no? That we among the entirety of the Legion can bear the thought of travel into places that others would not dare to tread?"

The old man turned and held out his hand even before his musing left his lips, waving with a cougar-headed cane for their supplies to be offloaded. The larger man proceeded towards the dock officer even now approaching them, his footsteps coming down with resounding thuds even on the reinforced bulkheads that constituted the floor.

"Greetings, friend!" he bellowed, arms outstretched in an amicable gesture that seemed to suggest he wanted to hug the approaching officer. "I am Antares, and over yonder is my comrade Zodiac. We have come on business of some import, and I believe we are expected. We have some authentification papers... somewhere..." He rummaged about in his pockets for a moment then turned to his smaller companion. "Zodiac! Where are the authentication papers?"

"I thought you had them. I know you showed them to the pilot, as we would not have been brought here otherwise. And we had to have something to tell the docking control personnel or we would not have been permitted onto the station." Zodiac returned his attention to the long line of large crates that were being shuttled down from the cargo ramp. "Be careful with those!"

"Oh... that's right..." he turned back to the dock officer and flicked his wrist with lightning speed. A small folder appeared in his hands as though some sort of magic trick had just been performed. Antares smiled through his thick beard and handed the dock officer the papers. "I put them away. Everything should be in order. We would not have gotten this far had things been otherwise."

Two years later

Doctor Kar sat in his office, drinking his third cup of coffee for the day. And it was only eleven. He shook his head and pulled off his glasses for a moment, tiredly rubbing his eyes. The project had been going so well in the beginning, all chemical mixtures, mathematic problems and pretty theories that the military was all but ready to gobble up. However, as soon as they had created the viable form of the serum, all hell had broken loose. The initial trial runs were a disaster, with plenty dying due to unforeseen complications the serum caused in the human body, and it was only with a body toll that it had been perfected. Fortunately, the program was top secret and they were able to give some bullshit excuse as to why they did. Accident or some such that occurred. The body count wasn't too high for that excuse not to cause some major upheavals, and with the discoveries going on right now distracting attention, they were safe.

The military higher-ups, however, chewed his ass out. His mouth twitched in annoyance as they yelled at him for something that wasn't his fault, that wasn't anyone's fault. If there was someone to blame, it would be the ones yelling at him, for they wanted this project. They should have known it wouldn't be so simple to make super soldiers. Then came the tests with the super soldiers. Not all transitioned well into their new environment, some killing themselves with the effects of the drug. Either they didn't understand their own powers, which the scientists themselves were unsure of in full, or they were too cocky and got themselves killed in stupid accidents. The Special Forces squads tried to watch over all the candidates, but even they could not be everywhere at once.

More dead soldiers, more body bags, more hidden secrets.

But, it had prevailed in the end. A graduating "class" super soldiers had finally been realized. Utilizing research on the Jedi and Sith in the Extra-Solar Union's archives, they had managed to acquire the data they needed to insert a genetic code into the human genome, safely, to make them effectively immune to the Force. They could not be sensed in any way using the Force, nor could any Force abilities like Mind Trick work on them. They had no way of testing it, they had no access to Jedi participants to test this out, but the military promised they were working on that. Of course, with this, the soldiers could never gain Force abilities, since their DNA suppressed those genes as part of making them invisible to the Force.

He looked at his paperwork and sighed, returning to typing. They had the second wave of super soldiers ready and graduating, just working on some final things now. Now, they would have to start scouting the galaxy and searching for other abilities they could manipulate the genetic code for to add onto their super soldiers abilities. He looked up the codenames for all the soldiers. They ranged from mythic names like Anubis and Zeus, to simple things like Shield or...Edge. He ran across the name and raised an eyebrow. Edge. This one had an attached file to it, and he opened it up. Edge was a rather interesting character. While he could fight at long range like a soldier, he had a taste for close combat, and was the best out of the entire class in fighting with combat knives, going so far as to carry several throwing knives.

An idea formed in his mind and he made a note to keep track of Edge's progress. Meanwhile, the two strange characters came out of the ship and entered the docking bay area. It was a spot of activity, with boxes stacked up high, the whine of engines and roar of entering and leaving ships, and the constant sound of booted feet moving across the floor. The dock officer, with two Colonial Marines, stepped up to them. Their supplies were being off-loaded at the behest of the old man's gesture, and the officer gave them a glance, before blinking as the large man bellowed out a greeting and moved forward as if to hug him. The two marines glanced at each other, horribly confused. Both men began to bicker about where the authentication papers had gone off to, with a stray comment from the old man telling the workers to be careful with the crates.

Suddenly, the one known as Antares had summoned the folder into his hand, where it had not been a second earlier. The marines tensed and the dock officer narrowed his eyes. These were rather strange beings, exhibiting abilities no human had. He took the folder and opened it, glancing at the papers. They appeared to be in order, with clearance for everything. The officer's suspicion deepened. He held up a hand.

"Wait here." He walked into the office and opened a line to the Director's office, Doctor Kar's office. His face appeared, looking annoyed.

"Yes, what is it?"

"We have two arrivals calling themselves Zodiax and Antares. They have papers, all in order, detailing they access every part of the complex, the same authorization only YOU have. Not to mention one of them made a folder appear out of thin air."

Kar smiled at the officer's paranoia. It meant he was doing his job. "Ordinarily, that would be a pair of idiots whom thought forged documents could get past our security but those two have been expected. They are one of our friends that contacted the Colonies some time ago about help with the program. It would appear they finally came. Let them through, Captain, and see their cargo is handled with care. Send them up to me, as well. I want to talk to them."

The screen blinked out and the officer walked back outside, handing back the folder. "You are cleared for entry." He passed out two i.d. cards. "These will allow you to enter all the areas you have clearance for. Your clearance is Obsidian, so you have full run of the base. Head up to Director Kar's office, its on the fifth level in the elevator system, he wants to speak with you." He nodded to them and the marines walked away back to their posts. The officer went over to the crew unloading the crates and began to supervise them, making sure it was done right.

It was up to Antares and Zodiac to get to the Director's office. If they had that high level of clearance, they would not be allowed to have an escort, since no escort had Obsidian level clearance.

Antares bowed hugely, by virtue of his size and by the emphatic nature of his gesture, before taking up the Identification Card and giving it a short inspection primarily out of genuine curiosity. His jovial expression grew even more apparent as Zodiac accepted his and gave a sidelong glance to his comrade, the nature of the glance making it obvious that some sort of conversation had passed in that instant. With another bow, Antares began to head towards the elevator.

Zodiac returned to the cargo ship to oversee the offloading still in progress. Apart from the occasional warning to remain careful, he kept his attention on the crates themselves and muttered something about hoping there was enough cushioning.

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Antares' progress was not hindered by too much, save that he was not informed of where to go when he actually arrived at the fifth level from the elevator. He suspected that the marines downstairs would not have been of much assistance since apparently none of them had clearance to be on this particular floor. Antares was a typical godulan, however: dogged, relentless, and possibly insane (most would reply 'POSSIBLY?'). It would take more than somewhat incomplete directions to confuse him...

Antares search soon paid off as he came to a door labeled DIRECTOR KAR. He would stop and fumble with the card a moment and be about to swipe it when it opened to see a smiling, exhausted Doctor Kar sitting behind his desk. Standing up, he walked around his desk and held out his hand to the Godulan.

"Greetings, Antares. I am Doctor Kar, but in following the tradition you have set here, you may call me Michael. Come, come in and sit. We have much to discuss." He waved him in, letting the door shut behind him. After he sat down, Michael returned to his seat and began to put away certain files while taking several and putting them into a stack next to him. Once he was done, he looked at Antares and clasped his hands together. "So, you have finally arrived. Is there anything you need to know about the project before we begin?"

Antares stepped through the door immediately as it opened and enthusiastically shook Doctor Kar's hand. To the doctor, it would have felt like shaking hands with a hydraulic press formed into the shape of a human hand, though Antares did not exert enough force to cause harm or undue discomfort, so much as present a friendly but unyielding impression to the human. He looked at the chair for a moment then stood 'at ease' before the desk itself.

"My apologies, but I would prefer to stand. My present mass is in excess of one metric ton, and I suspect that if I were to sit in your chair, it would be left as a mass of flattened metal and plastic. It would make for an... unfortunate beginning to our business relationship." He looked genuinely saddened by the fact that he was forced to reject even this small aspect of his host's hospitality.

Listening to Doctor Kar speak about things to discuss and the question that followed, Antares' merry demeanor returned in a flash.

"Indeed indeed! Much to discuss and ponder! I am uncertain as to the methodologies you are employing in this project, though Zodiac and I were given to understand that it has some part in resisting the capabilities of certain supernatural elements, such as the Force. Might we inquire as to the full nature of this project? I ask because there might be certain elements rendered... moot... as a result of our proposal."

The doctor raised an eyebrow at the comment about being too heavy in mass to sit in the offered chair. These Godulans were of a different kind together, indeed. He nodded as he returned to his chair. "Very well, please remain standing then." He sat back in his chair as he waited for Antares to explain what he wanted to know from the project. When he mentioned that some elements would be rendered "moot" be their proposal, his interest spiked. Leaning forward, he tapped a holopad, which generated a holo-image.

It showed the body of a human and a streaming DNA code. "Project: TITAN, as it is known by the brass and whatnot, is a project that is part of the current desperate drive of the Colonies to get our technology up to par with the many alien powers in the universe, much like yourselves. In this project, we are trying to bring about soldiers whom will even the playing field when dealing with supernatural foes such as Jedi, Sith, the arcane foes we've seen in the ESUS archives, and any others we come across. The only known method we have known to us through our technology is to modify human DNA in such a way that it will nullify, or if not that, severely weaken the effect of an ability to the point that they become equal or inferior to our super soldiers. Whom, might I add, are enhanced in all attributes. Mental quickness, speed, agility, musculature, skeletal structure, etc."

The data changed to reveal a series of human DNA codes, all slightly different, with more changes appearing as they went down. "It works by altering the DNA of the soldiers, whom get a minor benefit from it. However, when they have children, which is obviously encouraged, the full benefits will pass down to them. And we will continue this process as we acquire the DNA of the supernatural foes we come across and continue TITAN that way. A highly inefficient and time-consuming process, and it has a moderate factor of disfigurement, horrible diseases and death, but the situation the Colonies are in is too precarious. That is why when you stepped forward with your proposal, we bid you here with all speed."

He paused to take a sip of coffee. "That is what Project: TITAN is currently. What is your proposal and how will it change our program?"

Antares gleefully soaked in every word of the Doctor's project summary, his emerald eyes riveted upon his host with what one might characterize as unshaking devotion. He scanned the holo-image with utmost precision as Kar went through the overview of genetic modifications and the overall purpose of the mods they were trying to work in, nodding knowingly when the doctor recognized that there was some risk of congenital abnormalities. When the strand of DNA was displayed, his eyes shifted slightly from one of interest to something that one might consider 'recognition', as though Antares knew the strand by sight, as well as the modifications that were taking place. As the dissertation came to an end, he nodded hugely and stood tall again.

"As you know, we have been negotiating a form of 'modernization' package to improve the strength of your nation's military and protect your people from some of the entities floating around that would seek to exploit you, control you, or destroy you. It is a very harsh universe out there, and you are a very recent entrant in the current reckoning. Several start-up technologies would be made available for your people to employ as you see fit, such as certain high-yield particle weapons, one or two generator technologies, some shield upgrades, and so on.

"Granted, such is not being offered out of pure philanthropy on our part. Though our experiments cause no physical harm, you would be surprised how difficult it is to get anything resembling a representative sampling without resorting to some form of underhanded stunt.

"Still, when we offered to include a limited run of full-body cybermods for special operations considerations, we were made aware of this program and understood why cybermods would be of little use. There was still some interest, mind you, but not in terms of special operations. However, when we told them what I will tell you now, things got remarkably... hurried.

"In the early days of our exploration of the universe, we made consistent use of a little-known dimension that we call Protospace. A dark and hostile realm, it has nonetheless provided us with a significant number of 'options' as we improved our technology and technical prowess. This realm, though hostile to normal life, was not necessarily uninhabited. There is an 'entity' there that has something of a grudge against reality, seeing as it was apparently birthed from some facet of its own essence. We liken it to the same feeling of outrage you might feel if somebody knocked you out and removed a kidney without your permission.

"Needless to say, our repeated visits to its realm caught its attention and things would likely have been somewhat painful on our end had it not been for another indigenous race that just happened to be a liiiiiiiiiittle bit more friendly.

"These beings, known as the M'Lekk'Torr, are small in stature but large in number, so it was something of a boon for us to establish some sort of accord with them. It was also something of a boon for us when we learned what happened when we followed through with our end of the accord.

"See, you might characterize the M'Lekk'Torr, after understanding their fundamental nature, as a form of possession demon. How they developed such a nature without a ready supply of corporeal bodies to possess is beyond the scope of our investigative capacity, but it was rather plainly notable when one of our ships accidentally 'infected' with some form of spectral plague. It would seem that the M'Lekk'Torr retain an odd sense of ceremony when it comes to their death cycle, as they prefer to have an ailing M'Lekk'Torr die while attempting to possess a corporeal being, so that the 'host' would essentially function as a living tomb.

"We agreed to let them do this with willing volunteers from our population, in exchange for some measure of protection in our travels through protospace. See, that 'spectral plague' thing I mentioned earlier? We noticed that it caused some interesting physical enhancements in the 'victims'... I call them victims since technically they died the moment they were possessed by angry M'Lekk'Torr. They were virtually immune to blaster fire, they hovered over the ground like some kind of ghost, they could throw punches that could put a significant dent in a hull plate two feet thick, they floated through solid material like it was fog.

"The first of our 'recruits' was only able to demonstrate limited versions of these capabilities, as we were using fundamentally weakened M'Lekk'Torr for these purposes. These agents were stronger, faster, and hardier than even our full-body cybermods could manage, and being able to walk on walls and ceilings like they were just extensions of the floor was just one hell of an awesome sight, to say nothing of their ability to swim through solid rock. They became 'detached' from reality, no longer following set rules of how fast or how strong one could be.

"And so we get from the physical boosts, to the mental consideration. It would seem that the perceptive capacity of the hosts improved to such a point that they could will themselves to see things in remarkably slow motion, and they had an almost preternatural awareness of their surroundings, as though they had some form of sixth sense telling them when somebody was trying to stab them in the back. We also learned that they have a somewhat amusing defense against mental intrusion, mindscans, telepathy, what have you.

"It would seem that if anybody were to attempt any of the aforementioned mental intrusions, there would occur some wildly powerful psychofeedback loop that caused the intruder to be overwhelmed with some random emotion. The intruder would generally fall into one of several results: Suffocating to death as a result of terrified screaming, suffocating to death as a result of unstoppable laughter, going into a berserker rage of mindless hate, or going comatose or catatonic or otherwise just becoming a vegetable. We think we had ONE instance of an intruder being overwhelmed with what we can only assume was lust, but that was a serious abnormality and I am uncertain whether you would want to know what happened.

"When we left our humanity behind, we suddenly had no means to take up our end of the accord. This angered our M'Lekk'Torr friends somewhat, and relations have been somewhat cool. So when we were told that you were attempting to make a special forces group that would be immune to various 'supernatural forces' throughout the universe, we found a method to mend relations. If you are amenable, we would seek to facilitate a program in which you make these prospective special forces operatives... M'Lekk'Torr hosts. While not without its inherent dangers, the benefits are quite more numerous.

"And we also have a few pieces of equipment that your forces might find useful in future endeavours."

Antares grinned sheepishly at the end of his exposition, though the doctor would likely have been more taken with the fact that at no point during the non-stop storytelling had Antares stopped to take a breath.

The Doctor, whom had been listening the entire time, was now looking as if Antares had hit him in the face with a hammer, his face exuding a sense of awe and complete shock. The abilities demonstrated by these M'Lekk'Torr when the "living tomb" ceremony was completed were beyond anything the brass was hoping to get out of the TITAN program. Along with the other technologies they would be given by the Godulans, this would sufficiently raise the bar of their fighting capability and give them a desperately needed edge in the galactic arena. Coughing to clear his throat and gather his thoughts, he began to speak.

"That is..well, amazing. That exceeds the expectations of the project a hundred times. While we would have accepted cyber-mods for the sake of increasing our soldiers a bit to ensure they live longer, this new method will be the best method available to us to create a small group of soldiers whom we can call on to deal with the supernatural threats and/or the hard missions that come our way that no one else can do. In tandem with this equipment and technologies you have mentioned, this will go far in getting our forces up to date on things." He stood up and began to pace as he talked, hands moving in wild gestures. Finally, when he was done, he calmed down and looked back at Antares.

"Do you mind defining what technologies and equipment you will be sending and what they do? It will help for organizational purposes and for the re-thinking of our tactics, of course. And when can we start the synchronization project for the M'Lekk'Torr?"

Antares grinned even more hugely. "It will take some time for our people to establish contact with our M'Lekk'Torr friends, and a little longer after that for them to line up their intended participants. I would say a month, with the majority of the time being taken by them, as they are rather spread out in a universe of universes and they cannot travel very fast. This would of course apply only to those closest to the point of contact.

"As for the equipment, we simply decided that the old gear that the M'Lekk'Torr Special Forces employed in their own operations is somewhat wasted on us now, so we felt such weapons might find better use in the hands of your soldiers. Nothing really special, just a fusion grenade that looks like a gumball and a sword made out of a hole in space-time... sharper than the fabric of reality holds some significance for us."

The doctor nodded. "Of course, it is understandable.. They do live in another dimension and your relations were hurt before, so time will be needed to get things going at an optimum pace. The equipment sounds perfect, we probably won't be able to have sufficient numbers for anyone but the super soldiers to be able to use. Gumballs that are fusion grenades and weapons capable of doing what our FTL drives but much more efficiently....this is too amazing. It's hard to imagine any being could come to possess such incredible technology."

Antares shrugged apologetically, showing an ever so slight discomfort with being lauded in such a manner. "We are just curious about the universe is all. It is... beautiful to us." His eyes took on a somewhat distant look for a moment, but then he regained himself and smiled.

"Of course, because of our desire to explore every facet of reality, including various aspects of anthropology and whatnot, we were somewhat forced to begin deals such as this that require our rather unique form of requested payment."

The Doctor sat back and nodded, taking another gulp of his coffee. "I understand perfectly, Antares. Well...as much as my mind can possibly understand, I suppose. Scientists in the Colonies are much like you, at least those whom are truly dedicated to science, not machines of war and other things. We simply seek to find out how the universe works. Others may say it is the work of some kind of race of god-like beings...or even a god itself. Personally, and my colleagues are much of the same, we believe its a natural phenomenon. If we think that way, the universe becomes just that much brighter."

He chuckled and sat back. "Excuse me, I tend to wax philosophical at times. Tell me, what is this unique 'payment' you speak of?"

"People," Antares said automatically, "or more precisely volunteers. It is a devil of a task to get volunteers for our biological and psychological experiments in sufficient quantities to establish a representative sampling. Therefore, our requested payment is that your government gather up volunteers as a university might seek subjects for a medical study. Each volunteer is to recieve payment for their 'participation', and we conduct our experiments. The period of these experiments is somewhere in the area of five years, as we are providing a LARGE amount of technological assistance, with somewhere in the range of ten to fifteen thousand subjects. Granted, this program will likely add another thousand or two... it all depends on how much of the package you accept.

"None of our experiments will harm these volunteers, though they might return 'freaked out', jump at loud noises, have an odd distrust of the color mauve, or have one or two strangely behaving children with them..."

Kar listened to Antares, as the Godulan laid down the Colonial's part of the deal which would help them further advance their technology. Something seemed to flicker across the doctor's eyes before they settled into a neutral tone, not showing any sort of emotion as he listened. When he finished, the doctor sat back and looked up at the ceiling. What information the Colonies had on the Godulans was limited to what the ESUS archives would give them and their own observations in the few meetings they had with the mysterious beings.

So it was natural that he felt some trepidation at sending so many volunteers to some unknown medical experiment. He risked lives everyday in the quest to protect the Colonies, but he could not just send that many out to die. But...then again....Antares said they would be unharmed, just freaked out at some things. The length of time was rather large, but the amount of assistance made it only fair. Sighing, he tapped a key on his desk, which brought up a holo-monitor of some kind. Then proceeded to spend a couple minutes typing something before he pressed the button again and the monitor vanished. "Very well, I have sent the orders for the call to be sent out for volunteers for your experiments. We are putting out a cash advance for those whom come forth. Just to make sure we can get the amount you asked for. Just keep them safe. I know you are honest, Antares, to a point, and Godulans don't like hurting people. But I have to ask nonetheless."

"We never lie," Antares replied with a smile, "though we cannot quite be trusted to tell all of the truth either. I was, however, instructed to be as definitive as possible in detailing the situation in order to sustain good faith in our agreement. No participants in our experiments will be harmed. They will also, in point of fact, be made quite comfortable.

"Though, I must express some amount of relief that you have actually shown concern in your fellow human beings. Too many spacefaring empires out there deem sentients a resource to be allocated, or squandered, as they please. One in particular disposes of entire worlds with the same forethought as one might commit a summary execution. With great power comes great responsibility, and those monsters are responsible for much indeed."

Kar nodded. "I thank you for being detailed in the situation of the deal and what we would have to give to you in exchange for the technology. It is best not to have some kind of loophole that one may use that could cause mistrust and destroy the beginnings of our working relationship here." When he heard the Godulan speak, he smiled tiredly.

"It's something all scientists face. Sort of like a Jedi faces the continual line of going over to the Dark Side. We are on a razor's edge, and if we don't watch our step, our honorable thinking could lead us down some very dark paths. All in the name of 'progress' and 'science'. I am sure for the next decade or so, things should be alright. We have corrupt and evil people, all nations do. But the memories of the horrific ravages of the Great War and the Hegemony should keep most of us on the right path. Afterwards, I worry that not enough people will be aware enough of the line as my comrades are."

He sat forward. "Well, enough about that. Now that we have established the deal and spoken about what it entails, my question now is....is there anything you want to do while you're here? Or will we need to wait until a month from now, when the M"Lekk'Torr are collected?"

"Well, we were hoping to provide a demonstration of the various things included in the deal. The swords, the grenades, a few personal shield devices, so on and so forth. There are also some mechanized things that might be of use as part of the other deals we were establishing... and I possibly forgot to mention that we have a couple M'Lekk'Torr in stasis. Their brethren agreed they were not strong enough to return to protospace after we left our humanity behind, so we still had a few prepared for eventual introduction into a human host."

Kar smiled and nodded at Antares. "That explains the crates then. Well, Testing Area Two is still open, we haven't cracked open any of the new energy weapon prototypes we have waiting somewhere, so we can use that. We can get started now, if you'd like. I only need to whistle the soldiers not busy with training and whatnot to come down and watch. As well as possibly show them the M'Lekk'Torr and what may happen."

Antares nodded happily. "Indeed, it is important that they know what to expect. We can only minimize potential casualties of the ordeal, as each person's mind is truly unique in how it percieves and responds to the environment. I dare say that some of those whom you believe to be your most staunch of willpower will fail to hold.

"If the testing area has sufficient armor against basic explosives and whatnot, it should be fine. My colleague Zodiac is requesting clearance to order the necessary crates to be transferred to the area.

"You might also wish to notify your recruits of the impromptu training exercise."

Karr was typing as Antares spoke, his eyes rapidly moving down the holoscreen as he typed. When Antares finished, he pressed a key and the screen shut down. The doctor smiled at the Godulan. "The orders for the transfer have been sent and he should be all clear. I have also sent out a mandatory, surprise meeting in the area, so all available soldiers will be there. Finally, the area is set against the those kinds of weapons, how else could we test our energy weapons?" He got up and headed to the door, looking back for a moment.

"If you'll follow me." They went through a winding series of hallways to a elevator, where they took a long ride until it stopped and they stepped out. A dark cavern greeted them, filled with starkly painted grey walls, and a line of targets and models used for testing. There were large burn marks on the ground, and a couple craters, signs of the testing Karr had mentioned. In the area was about fifty super soldiers, all at attention, looking straight ahead as they awaited orders.

"Here we are, Antares. You may begin as you see fit."

Shortly after their arrival in the voluminous training area, the elevator opened again and disgorged the other Godulan Avatar along with a pair of soldiers and a large trolley with several crates settled upon it. Zodiac waited for a moment while the trolley emerged, then walked towards Antares and Kar, his cougar-tipped cane thwapping on the ground smartly with each step.

"I must say I am impressed," he declared towards Kar as he sent what looked like some form of hilt towards Antares via an imperceptibly quick underhand toss. "Things certainly got moving quickly. There are some folks we know who would take days to get ready for this demonstration." As he strode up to Antares, he snapped the cougar figurine from the top of his cane with his newly freed hand and ignited an iridescent shaft of light just before swinging it around in a blindingly fast overhand swipe at Antares.

The other Avatar snapped his own hand out with the hilt, and with an eerie 'dwom' sound that presented a remarkable contrast to the snap-hiss of the lightsaber's activation, stopped Zodiac's swing with a blade darker than the blackest depths of space. Though the lightsaber shimmered with heat and energy in its standard form of a simple shaft of light, the other sword had a definite and recognizable shape. Like the short swords employed by the Roman Legions of old, Antares' blade held back the fearsome Jedi weapon with ease.

"Gentlemen," Antares began, not showing any signs of exertion as he began a blistering sparring match with his cohort, movements blurring into a single mishmash of light and darkness as the two stepped closer to the gathered soldiers. "You are no doubt familiar with the famous Jedi Lightsaber that my cohort Zodiac is presently employing against me. You would have to be, as the majority of your program is focused around combatting the mystical arts of the very individuals that employ these weapons. It can slice through a human with no recognizable resistance. It can burn through reinforced blast doors in a matter of moments. It can do a large number of things that are truly remarkable indeed for something so small.

"It was because of this weapon and our own desire to counter the methods of the Jedi that we developed the weapon that you see me wielding against my comrade."

With a lightning swift kick, he sent Zodiac flying back just long enough to give the soldiers a closer look at the blade, before turning back to deflect another dizzying frenzy of attacks.

"We dubbed it the Voidsword, both after the fact that it is really, really dark, and also that it is based on a similar principle to our proprietary Voidshield technology. It utilizes the same containment field as a lightsaber would, and as such can function to parry the blade as easily as one would deflect something more conventional. This weapon is also quite 'sharp', as the blade itself is a rift in space time, and as such is as sharp as the fabric of reality itself. It also has an ability we specifically intended to trump that of the lightsaber."

With a swift change of grip, the black sword altered its form into a three-pronged affair that Antares immediately used to intercept another lightsaber swing. With a violent twist, the lightsaber flew free of Zodiac's hands and went dormant, clattering to the ground at the feet of one soldier.

"It can change the shape of its blade. Granted, some Jedi might claim a similar feat, but it generally falls to some preset form that is not of the standard bladetype, or the capacity to lengthen or shorten."

He shifted his grip again, and the sword turned into a surprisingly long, if thin sword that he brought to Zodiac's neck.

"The most important aspect of combat is controlling the flow of the battle. The more you control the battle, the more you control your enemy, and with that control victory is assured."

The super soldiers stood at attention as the other Godulan representative wheeled in several crates of some kind of object and walked in using a cane. The Doctor nodded and the troops went into at ease position, arms behind their backs. The Godulans would plainly see the interest, curiosity and slight mistrust emanating from their eyes. They stayed still as they were complimented, but when the two Avatars suddenly began to fight, lightsaber against some strange darksword, they all tensed, and one of them began to go into a melee combat stance.

Kar extended a hand, giving them a glance that said to not interfere. They returned to the scene of the fight, as extreme light battled with unending darkness. They listened as the darksword wielding Godulan spoke of how the weapon works and how sharp it was, being made of the fabric of reality itself. Then they showed how the voidsword could change its shape and change the shape of battle. The soldiers applauded the fighters, and nodded in approval. Kar stepped forward and spoke.

"Great demonstration. I assume the crates hold more of these weapons?"

"You would be correct," Antares replied, not showing any sign whatsoever that he had just been involved in a pitched battle against a significantly more diminutive but no less daunting foe. However, it is important to note that there will have to be a rigorous training program just to use these swords. Even one momentary loss of control can cause one's own arm, leg, or head to go flying elsewhere without permission."

"That is the problem with such sharp weapons," Zodiac commented, also appearing unperturbed by the significant amount of exertion he had just been through. "A blade that feels no resistance has nothing to stop it from just going straight through the wielder in the event of a mishap. The voidsword would tend to favor a more... minimalist combat technique."

Antares tossed the now deactivated voidsword to Zodiac and began to walk towards the crates as his comrade reactivated the sword and began to show the assembled soldiers the third mode of the voidsword, a long and thin 'blade' intended for a swift kill.

"This is the most important blade of the three. It is intended solely for a quick strike at a vital organ such as the heart or neck. The reach is of benefit as it might allow you a killing blow even before battle is joined, or it might keep the enemy at bay beyond the reach of his own blade. Our demonstration was intended to show that even a lightsaber wielder can use the voidsword, but to truly master the voidsword, one must both dual-wield the weapons and also have a distinct appreciation for classical combat techniques. Has anybody here had any training with the rapier and main-gauche? I do not mean that showy nonsense one might see in old robin-hood movies, but the real nasty stuff they used to actually do back then."

Before anybody could raise their hand, he rolled his eyes and hopped to the right. No sooner had he done so than a small pink and yellow gumdrop fell to the ground where he previously stood, and immediately erupted into a great burst of flame and heat, as though a plasma grenade of some sort had just exploded. It was fortunate that the two were still some distance away from the others in the room, as somebody might have been harmed otherwise. Oddly surprising was that Antares had thrown the little gumdrop from behind, and Zodiac had supposedly been focusing his attention on the soldiers.

"You must forgive my friend," Zodiac said with a conscious sigh. "I fear he enjoys playing with death confetti entirely too much."

The soldiers listened intently as they discussed the problems with using such a sharp weapon as the void sword and that there would be a vigorous training program to help them learn to use the weapons. The soldiers merely glanced at each other; they had been through plenty of hellish training up to this point, this would be nothing new to them. When Zodiac asked about fencing, a couple hands from the soldiers went up. Kar looked at the Godulan apologetically. "It's become more of an intense sport nowadays, than a viable training program."

When he suddenly jumped and there was an explosion, the soldiers tensed again, a few even taking steps towards the gun rack that was only a few feet away when they saw he had avoided it and Zodiac was fine. At the name of the grenade thrown, even the Doctor was forced to blink in confusion. "Do you mind explaining what this death confetti is?'

Antares held up another pink and yellow gumdrop-looking affair and stepped closer for the other soldiers to get a better look. "Did we ever mention that we learned how to travel from one universe to another before we learned to ply the stars as we do? Methods of cross-planar travel have always come more easily to us than going from star to star. This little object is one of our foremost examples of what can happen when one enters a universe where the laws of physics operate on a fundamentally hostile level.

"In one of our earliest explored universes, we found that the laws of physics had been perturbed in such a manner as to enable hydrogen to 'coagulate' into little pink balls in its natural state. Naturally this meant that there were no stars or life or much of anything in that unfortunate realm. However, when we removed a few of these little spheres from their universe of origin for later testing, their interaction with our physical laws caused them to undergo a slight shift towards their more typical natural state. This is noted by the little yellow speckles on each sphere. What happens is that the hydrogen becomes unstable, requiring some additional energy to complete the shift.

"This 'additional energy', however, also happens to be sufficient to start a fusion reaction, considering the tightly packed nature of the hydrogen in this form. If one so much as strikes it against a hard surface with the slightest amount of strength, or drops it from eye level, it goes up like a fusion grenade."

Zodiac shrugged slightly and added: "Yes, they are quite volatile, however, we usually keep them in little stasis tubes that enable them to weather tougher impacts and various forms of wear and tear without trouble. Such also enables an amusing emergency measure, as if necessary, one can just disable the stasis effect and toss the entire tube of ten balls like some form of hand-thrown miniature thermonuclear device."

Antares grinned at Zodiac, and the other Godulan waved a finger. "I do not feel safe demonstrating that, not even here."

The soldiers glanced at each other with a mix of worry and excitement. This new grenade-like weapon was a very powerful addition to their complement, but there was a fear that had to be addressed. Kar stepped forward and began to speak after he got a look from one of the Master Chiefs.

"I must state a worry we have first. How radioactive will these explosions be? How far will they spread radiation? We need to know so as to put in safety protocols and to make sure we don't use it in areas that will leave lasting problems for generations."

"We found the radiation to be quite minimal in practical usage. The basic nature of this kind of free hydrogen prevents neutron emission during the fusion process, thereby forcing the reaction to shift more towards emission of light and concussive force. This leaves an explosion virtually clean while maximizing its own yield in terms of raw energy output. Granted the Gamma rays might cause some cellular anomalies, but only on when using the full canister rather than one pellet at a time. If you throw the canister, it is generally agreed that you would..."

"Duck behind something," Antares continued as though prompted by Zodiac. "Or use it in a situation where there is no escape but you know you'll be able to take down something important in doing so." Antares acknowledged the gathered troops and gave a slight bow. "You are soldiers, the concept of your own mortality should be clear to you. While you are generally expected to try and avoid dying all willy nilly, you very well may face the eventuality of your impending demise. In that case... 'take as many of the enemy with you as you can'."

The soldiers visibly relaxed, they would not be carrying the nukes they were used to using all the time in their hands like gumballs. It would be clean, yet powerful, weapon. They understood what they were talking about when sacrificing yourself to take out as many of the enemy as they could. They had been trained to deal with situations where they had no way out or were forced to sacrifice their lives to keep information hidden; this would make that last sacrifice a bit easier to do and more damaging. Doctor Kar stepped forward and pushed his glasses up his face.

"So, anything else you would like to show the soldiers?"

Zodiac shrugged. Antares put his hands out in a form of 'meh' gesture.

"The only other things we have are some relatively decent personal shields and the M'Lekk'Torr 'symbiotes'. The shields are not really spectacular enough though everybody will be familiarized with their use soon enough. The M'Lekk'Torr... we do not feel that it would be safe to remove them from stasis. Too many shifts into and out of stasis can cause too great of a physical strain for them to handle. That being said, I believe Zodiac was preparing to speak on the fighting style most favored by 'wielders of the voidsword' before I so unceremoniously caused his prior position to explode."

Doctor Kar smiled. "I look forward to seeing those shields in action. I also understand about the symbiotes, such things need to be handled carefully. My apologies for interrupting, please continue with the demonstration." He stepped back and folded his hands behind his back, ready to see what this demonstration would entail. The soldiers glanced at each other, wondering how many technologies and items these Godulans were going to show to them in one sitting. They already had enough to redefine warfare as they knew it. It was going to be very interesting, however, to see thie art of the voidsword. It was an interesting weapon and one they intended on familiarizing themselves with.

Zodiac turned back to Antares one more time, and everybody could sense that some conversation was taking place between the two of them, if only because of the larger Godulan's placating gesture. Another cougar figurine much like the lightsaber Zodiac had previously wielded flew through the air and was deftly caught by the smaller Avatar. Antares reached out with his hand, and the aforementioned lightsaber lying at the feet of one of the soldiers darted into his hand. Both of them ignited their respective swords at the same time, and the smaller Avatar immediately dropped into some kind of half-crouch with one blade shifting into a longer and thinner form while the other turned into the shorter three-bladed variant. The other Godulan simply brought his lightsaber back to establish a defensive position.

"The importance of using the Voidsword lies in the quick kill," Zodiac began while the two Avatars squared off, shifting in a circle around each other in perfect balance. "The style requires immense precision, both in terms of accuracy and in terms of redirecting strength. Though you will not need to employ much in the way of acrobatics or flashy maneuvers to terminate your foe, do not expect that the physical demands are lessened in any way."

Antares burst forward with such speed that many who were watching would have likely forgotten that he was ever standing there until the moment afterwards when the sound of lightsaber and voidsword colliding declared that a new fight had begun. However, it ended just as swiftly as it began, as Zodiac brought his three-pointed sword out to intercept the overhand slice of his opponent’s lightsaber, at the same time thrusting his longer sword to catch the larger Godulan in the eye.

Antares staggered back for a moment, and observant watchers could see the wound in his eye seal up. Zodiac grinned for a moment, then spoke to the assembled soldiers. “That was an adaptation of the Krav Maga concept of ‘bursting’. If somebody comes at you with a weapon, you deflect the blade with one sword and punch through with the other at the same time. It becomes the same muscle movement with practice. In the traditional art, it would have served to daze long enough to end the fight. In this case, it serves only to end the fight as efficiently as possible, as evidenced by the fact that I just put the voidsword into my compatriot’s eye and through what would have been his brain if he were actually humanoid.

“You always were better at the precision stuff,” Antares commented while rubbing his eye. “But you still have to take it a bit further. Fight like an M’Lekk’Torr agent would so they can see ALL of how they’ll fight.”

“Indeed,” Zodiac replied with a recognizable rolling of his eyes. “Are you ready to be trounced again?”

“Not if I can help it. I’m gonna go esoteric on your ass!”

“I do believe I am scared. Yes, I sense that my little booties are shaking.”

“Screw shaking… dance motherfucker, DANCE.”

Antares blasted forward again, creating an audible popping sound of displaced air as he somehow managed to ‘swarm’ Zodiac all by himself. Strikes came from all possible directions in all possible ways, and the larger Godulan even switched his lightsaber on and off with remarkable speed. The fury and sheer relentlessness of the onslaught was truly withering to behold, and the onlookers could tell that Antares was bringing forth ‘advanced knowledge’ in his latest assault.

“Vaapad huh? And a bit of Trakata?” Zodiac commented casually as his own swords worked in a dizzying blur of motion to intercept and deflect each strike, even anticipating feints and misdirection to send forth some of his own in return. “You ARE going esoteric on my ass. That is some of the most difficult lightsaber combat known.”

“Less talking more fighting!”

“This is a demo! We’re SUPPOSED to talk!”

“Oh yeah…” Antares broke off for a moment to reset himself and took the moment to address the assembled soldiers. “The Jedi had a lot of time to develop various combat styles. Some emphasize defense, others offense, some a mixture of the two through various methodologies. Really gave a lot of credence to the phrase ‘Let he who desires peace prepare for war.’ Vaapad is arguably the hardest form to master, as it supposedly requires a balancing act of light and dark side and such. It focuses on a balance between murderous fury and calculated precision. Used properly, it can turn the enemy’s own attacks against him. Trakata is a technique that both Lightsaber and Voidsword users can employ, as its cornerstone is the ability to turn the weapons on and off at whim. Get into one of those macho stalemates, and you can simply deactivate your weapon, causing the enemy to overbalance and leave himself open to a final strike. However, as you might have noticed, the little bastard doesn’t fall for it.”

“That is where the precision of strength and accuracy comes in,” Zodiac continued, “If the foe deactivates his lightsaber, he also presents an opening to strike at him, so if the weapon is deactivated, you can break forward and poke your foe in the heart. Our technique utilizes momentary breaks in concentration to the fullest extent, as well as being able to read your foe’s movements.”

Antares blasted forward once again, keeping up the assault and eventually managing to drive Zodiac towards a wall. The smaller Godulan kept up his defense, however, giving no sure sign of actually relenting though he was stepping backwards quite a bit.

As he came to the wall, however, the soldiers began to understand what they would be able to do with the M’Lekk’Torr symbiotes. The smaller Godulan did not back up to the wall, he leaped and ran several steps up the wall with as little difficulty as if he were just running along the ground. Then, with a swift turn, he brought his swords to bear against Antares, and began an offensive process of his own. With an advantage in leverage, Zodiac had his comrade on the retreat almost instantly, as the bigger Godulan had to back off or face imminent defeat.

“We mentioned that M’Lekk’Torr have the ability to defy gravity. That can mean several things, in this case the fact that you will be able to walk on walls and ceilings. You will ALWAYS have the terrain advantage against your enemy.”

Zodiac blasted forward now, leaping from the wall in a veritable whirlwind of shadowy blades as he lunged towards Antares. The larger Godulan simply moved out of the way, but it did not actually win him anything to do so, as Zodiac landed as though he had been on the ground the entire time, bringing his blades to bear again. Now Zodiac pressed the offensive, making quick strikes and intercepting his comrade’s sweeping blows and quick strikes with several of his own. Though Antares was fighting with remarkable skill and precision, the result was a foregone conclusion.

Antares had his sword in the standard Vaapad guard position when Zodiac burst forward one last time. He brought his sword around to take his enemy’s head off, but Zodiac simply ducked under the swipe and planted the sword in Antares’ foot.

“NGEH!” Antares yelped before the three-pointed blade swept up and caught him in the chin. Zodiac stepped back and nodded with approval.

“That took longer than I thought it would. You were fighting as though you know how I fought.”

“Would have been foolish to assume that the enemy does not know your techniques,” Antares said as his wounds once again mended.

“Indeed,” Zodiac replied with a smirk, then turned to the soldiers. “Though this might have seemed like a bit of a blur to you, it is important to note that you WILL be able to move this fast when you have your symbiote. That alone provides you with an advantage over your supernatural foes. If you would like, I shall remain and instruct any among you who wish to learn the techniques I employed in this battle.”

The soldiers watched as the two prepared to fight and show them the style of fighting with the voidsword fighting. Both Avatars prepared themselves for battle, with Zodiac grabbing two voidswords and changing their shapes to one long and thin and the other to short trident-like blade. Antares grasped his lightsaber and both began to fight. It was amazing, as usual, as the soldiers and the Doctor looked on with exceptional awe and amazement as both battled each other with furious skill and power. They watched as the first round went to Zodiac, whom deflected his opposite's saber with the trident and stabbed him in the eye with the other. Cries of shock and horror sounded from the soldiers, as they thought some kind of accident had occurred. Even the Doctor began to turn towards the communications relay to call for medical assistance when Antares eye simply healed up. The soldiers stared at him with shock-filled eyes. Just who were these guys?

They proceeded to go at it again, with Antares forcing Zodiac back until the smaller Avatar reminded him that they needed to explain what was going on to their prospective students. The idea of switching lightsabers on and off was not new to the Telrosians, they understood that simple concept and wondered why Jedi did not use it more. They also nodded at the descriptions of the other fighting style and took in the style of the Voidsword, which took advantage of small slip-ups. They were surprised even more when Zodiac ran up the wall as if it was the ground and landed behind Antares, before proceeding to push him back. They began to look at each other when they saw they could do such things with the symbiotes.

The fight came to a head when Zodiac plied his considerable skill against Antares and it become apparent to whom would win when Antares was on the constant retreat and ended with his foot being stabbed and the other blade aimed at his chin. When the match finished, they turned to face thunderous applause from the soldiers, and even the teams cleaning and maintaining the area, whom had paused to watch the incredible fight. The Doctor stepped forward again to speak, his eyes glinting with interest.

"That had to be some of the best fighting I've ever seen in my life. I am sure the soldiers are eager to find out about these symbiotes and what other abilities they will gain. Although, that will have to wait. If you do not mind, having a teacher whom could ensure that the soldiers learn the fighting style to the T would be preferable.

****

Time passed as the Godulans continued preparing the implementation program to start up a new branch of the M'Lekk'Torr as well as training the super-soldiers to be. The soldiers worked hard with Zodiac, learning to handle the voidsword, and taking what could be called 'classes' on how to use it, its history and learning of the fighting style. They practiced hard and their enhanced bodies enabled them to use them quite well. They preferred this fighting style, since it allowed them to swiftly dispatch enemies, giving them more time to complete their objectives and aid their fellow soldiers. Antares worked with Doctor Kar, setting up equipment, and informing him of the procedures to be used in the implementation process, as well as potential risks. Both of them agreed that the super soldiers would have to wait until the process was perfected. Both sides had no data of the M'Lekk'Torrization's effect on humans, so it had to be tested.

So it was that Kar, Antares and Zodiac stood in the control room above a series of tubes that held the bodies of the best normal soldiers the Colonies had, the Special Forces. The M'Lekk'Torr had been prepared and the process was beginning.

The scientists began to input commands and the machines started working.

"Powering up infusion system....30% and rising."

"M'Lekk'Torr signs are optimal. No changes detected."

"Infusion process begining in 10...9...8..."

The countdown quietly went down to one and then the tubes began to glow as the M'Lekk'Torr began to combine with the soldiers. Energy readings suddenly spiked and multi-color light began to fill the room. Kar could only watch in wonder as the process continued. This was what the M'Lekk'Torr did to humans as they combined? This was-

"Bad! I'm getting fluctuations in pods 5, 7, 3, and 10!"

"M'Lekk'Torr signs in those pods are going off the scale! Human lifesigns decreasing!"

The pods mentioned began to glow an ominous red and they started to crack. The cracks spread all across the tube and then exploded, and several human screams were heard before they fell out, limp and lifeless onto the floor. Kar gripped the railing as the scientists reported in.

"All other pods have successfully transitioned. Out of twenty Doctor, we only lost four, but-"

"That's not good enough." Kar turned from the window. "We just lost four good soldiers whom died in an experiment. We cannot have that kind of numbers for every transfusion we do with M'Lekk'Torr, especially with the public in the fragile state that is is right now."

"Such was normal for us at first," Antares replied, his standard huge-smile replaced by an expression of grim acknowledgement. "The losses always hurt to watch. Each host is essentially fighting off an attempt to possess them and erase their mind. Even with the greatest willpower, some will simply be unable to anticipate what the assault is like. The symbionts cannot survive their own attempt due to being so frail, but if it gets too far it ends for both of them."

Zodiac gritted his teeth slightly and sighed. "There will need to be a rigorous mental training regimen. They need to be able to withstand pain and emotional trauma without flinching, as a basic consideration. sixteen of the hosts completed successfully, which is... significantly better than what we experienced, but we also provided you with some advice as to what to expect and knowing what to expect aids immeasurably.

"Combined with similarly rigorous oversight procedures dedicated towards weeding out those who might be insufficient despite the training, you should be able to reliably keep the failure rate down from what was 25 percent for us at the start to a little under half a percent, maybe better. If you are 'breeding in' genes to assist their willpower it will be of benefit, but one cannot really tell with the M'Lekk'Torr."

"We are sorry that we did not provide more complete information at first," Antares continued, "but it is necessary to establish a baseline of sorts. When a M'Lekk'Torr attempts to take over a host, the experience changes based on cultural background and outlook. Even minor differences among our people were sufficient to mean the difference between life and death. It is required that we see how your own people experience it so that we might properly tailor the mental fitness program needed to keep them from dying in the future. Had we attempted to provide the program that we employed, the results may well have been catastrophic.

"Though they met their end during this infusion, those four soldiers did not die in vain. They deserve treatment as one would provide a fallen hero."