NationStates Jolt Archive

((OOC:The Eternal Swarm will join later, also shows a bit of a darker side to relatively peaceful Phenixican Empire))

The Phenixican Empire for several decades has been the undisputed power of the Citerian Galaxy, it was not done by traditional military might but by a mix of smart diplomacy and colonial claims have left every other power stunned and Phenixica used this to sign treaties that demanded them to pull apart their fleets and put there complete protection in the hands of the Phenixican Imperial navy.

The galaxy has about 36 billion sentient that call it home and only 7.8 billion of these are Phenixicans, the fleet has about 2-3 thousand ships which are spread out all across the Empire and only really come together in large groups during wars.

This story starts at the home of the Hursi race; these Feline/Humanoids were ruled by a powerful Matriarch who earns her position through mostly assassinations and sabotage. They were the first to be put onto the leash of the Empire, mostly through the Empire threatening to block important trade routes which supplied their worlds with much needed supplies.

Things had changed lately; the Hursi had been building battleships which under the agreement was not allowed and a diplomatic ship the IPN: Shiron was sent to talk with the Matriarch.

The Matriarchs Palace, Hursi

“The Imperial Court demands to know why you had built 213 warships; your excuse of fighting pirates is not good enough. We would know if the problem was getting out of hand since we are the ones that look over the trading routes” the Phenixican diplomat opened

“Hursi wishes to start taking responsibility of our own affairs; surely the wise Court of the Empire respects that?” The Matriarch which was a large woman with fur, long mouth, cat ears and a tail was obvious trying to tease the diplomat

“You break the treaty then the empire has every right to come in and scrap the ships you don’t need, we agreed to 145 ships because your planet did need something to protect it from attack but that’s just it all you have is one planet. 145 ships is more the enough to defend it from a bandit attack, why would you need more”

3 aliens walk in behind the diplomat, they were Orchandians the barbarians of the Citerian. The Diplomat only had one guard with him, they didn’t expect resistance.

“Not a smart move Matriarch, 213 ships is not enough” he then clicked and looked behind him again, then looked back to the Matriarch.

“Even with their help you won’t win, they have to go by the same treaty except with the amount of space they control it’s more like 600 ships”

One of the Orchandians said in its rough voice “Enough to raise doubt in your ability to protect us”

A shot rang out as the Diplomat was killed along with his guard; the Shiron was able to send a distress call before a large fleet of 400 ships arrived and blew it apart. Phenixica was at war and the call was sent out for the Home Fleet to come together and prepare for an invasion.


Home Fleet Tactical 1, On the Border
A Entire fleet could not be mustered so they decided a small well planned assault could be done, it was given to Admiral John Druk, he was the cousin of the Baron of Drukarus and one of the few in the Druk Tribe to make it into the military making him a poster boy against anti-druk prejudice in the military.

“The Hursi have somehow managed to sneak in the Orchandian fleet, they have clustered around the planet in a attempt to draw us on the offence since they are not stupid and no our ships are made for Defence” Admiral John Druk was at the helm, he was the son of the Baron of Drukarus and one of the few in the Druk Tribe who made it into the military bypassing typical anti-druk prejudice.

“This is going to be a hard fight, we could only spare 400 ships for this assault you sure you can pull off this attack Admiral?” this was Reo Frand the Imperial Commissioner of the Empire and thus in control of the Imperial Court making him the top man of the military, he was a Admiral that served with Perius before his death.

“They expect us to bicker and argue about this, what the Hursi fail to understand is the effectiveness of Phenixica foreign policy when it comes to vassals. Play ball or get out of the court”

“Good to hear Admiral, do we have permission from her majesty for the attack?”

“Yes, make them suffer for this Admiral”

Ship Register
40 Hercules Class Battle cruisers
60 Resolution Heavy Frigates
20 Bertha Carriers
120 Revelation Class Cruisers
160 Valkyrie Class Light-Frigates

The fight was bloody, the alien fleet used Brute weapons like Nuclear missiles and high-explosive shells to batter the Phenixican fleet. The Imperial ships responded with pulses of highly concentrated plasma and Torpedo's, the electronic shielding was able to absorb most of the enemies damage but things were not going well.

"Admiral we just lost the Mayflower, we are losing to many ships to continue the fight. We have to go back and request more ships"

John was pissed, being a Druk meant that any failure would be blamed simply on his background and it was right they couldn't win this battle

"Order a retreat, tell the Imperial Court to come up with another plan. The Aliens have won this battle"

The fleet was quick to enter Slip-Space and the Alien ships couldn't follow, they cheered for now but the Imperial Court already had something much more devious in mind.

Imperial Court, Devenis
"Whats the plan Commissioner?"

"Well do you remember the race called the Eternal Swarm?"

"Who could not? they killed a Sidearm and badly injured a Knight. your not thinking of releasing them are you?"

"Well we had the same idea last time did we? the Rebels in ex-qwelva space were going to be overran with a controlled infestation and then we monitor and keep tabs on it's expansion. They act as a sort of buffer against threats, we used to do it back in the Kingdom days"

"We are not talking about unleashing foreign insects into the Dragonese islands in order to eat there crop and cause food shortages, we are talking about killing most of a race simply for our own benefit"

"The Empire needs to grow stronger and these Aliens obviously don't appreciate the benefits of Imperial security, they don't have to spend a good percentage of there budget on constructing ships when they really want to build more schools. Every one ship we create takes millions and sometimes billions of Phens away from things that could make the lives of the average citizen better. We wanted to be in charge of protection so we could assure a more peaceful galaxy, we had taken this role of caretaker in order to make sure the Citerian doesn't not have a repeat of the Expansionist War where most of the galaxy was set alight because of purely imperialistic agenda's"

"What do you think empress?"

Nadine sat on the throne overlooking the oval room where this bickering was taking place, it was her call in the end to what happened.

"When my Brother rebelled against the empire, everybody who toke part in the rebellion was punished. Soldiers in great number were whipped and told to admit they were cowards and did not deserve to live. Thing is we are just as willing to kill our own men if they show this kind of betrayal, just because they are of a different species does not give them the right to hurt innocent diplomats just for trying to make them keep to there promise of dis-armament of there larger fleets. Time for them to see why we call ourselves the Lords of the Citerian"

The plan passed the court and was put into action, they were about to contact David to organize a lure to draw the Swarm into Citeria.

Border of the Hursi System
After talking with David, the knight/agent of the Empire told them the best way to get the Swarms attention is by Psiconic Energy. Apparently this was there cocaine and if they did this correctly they could force the swarm to attack Hursi and Eradicate all resistance to the Empire.

"Beacon has just entered the solar system and has been activated, it's at full power and should fool the swarm"

The next phase was something only done rarely, using about 4 seperate gates and allot of days wasted on careful calculations they could open a warpgate which would take the Swarm directly to the system and let them feed on all they found. The Hursi where to be destroyed and after that the Orchandians will run to there primitive systems hopefully going back under the thumb of the Orca-Suri.

This would be the day that Phenixica showed exactly how far it was willing to go to remain in power, Hursi would be conquered by the swarm and the remains of it's race needing Phenixica to survive.

Swarm Space
A bright white light which turned into a Blue Portal opened in what was the last documented location of the Swarms presence.

Through this portal hopefully would be the scent of the beacon, not to worry about them spreading past this one system as the Phenixican Empire had amassed a Entire Fleet to counter any attempt by the Swarm to spread further.

They were just being allowed a home in Phenixican Territory, nothing else.

Zerus, hidden somewhere in the universe....

"Zasz, what do you make of that pulse? It does not ring like our Genestealer pulse." Dangaltoh asked. Zasz and Dangaloth were two of leaders of the Swarm, and second only to The Overmind itself. Of course, since Nasagori destroyed the original Overmind, Irene had taken full control over the swarm and became The Overmind.

"Perhaps someone is inviting us to come out and play." Zasz replied.

"Well boys, I've been watching Citerian ever since I left there once before. I even left them the Psionic contact frequencies to get ahold of The Swarm. I've had The Eye watching Citerian, and it appears there's been a small scuffle within the galaxy. This Beacon was set up shortly after Imperial fleets were repelled. It doesn't take much to figure out this is a lure to use us as a weapon." Irene said, as she sat on her throne nearby. Emulating khorne, she too sat on a throne of bones, only instead of blood, flesh, sinew, and muscle ran out of hers, connecting her to the hive in which she sat.

"So what do you think we should do, attack the Imperial Government for using us as weapons?" Zasz asked.

"No, that would far too easy. For now we'll devour the world indicated. Take Leviathan and see what develops, eventually, we'll make the Imperial government pay for treating us as mindless servants." Irene said.

"Leviathan was disbanded when you ascended, remember?" Dangaloth asked.
"No, Leviathan simply became unused, integrated with the other fleets. The Swarm is occupied in at least four different activities right now, so Ultimus is out of the question. Tiamet fleet is engaged in research, Kraken's out sowing Genestealers, Behemoth is out answering the calls of our Genestealers, and Bahamut is out laying down false Hive Clusters and taking care of overt threats to the swarm to keep outsiders from finding Zerus. Here we have left Hive Fleets Thunderbird, and Leviathan, Thunderbird and Leviathan are our biggest fleets, send out the old Leviathan grouping signal, and all three of us shall pay a visit to Citerian." Irene replied, standing up.

"But what of, them? Shall they come too?" Dangaloth asked.
"And how many of us should be sacrificed for them? Let's keep The Great Old Ones in reserve, just in case." Zasz said.
___________________________________________________________________________

Near Hursi...

It started as unexplained static over Communications systems, a small flickering water like interruption. Then, in the distance, a spark of pure Chaos appeared, and from it, great bolts of energy ripped through the Materium. The rolling of thunder could be heard, but not from any speaker, it came from inside one's own head.

As the spark grew, more energy was released, and it seemed as though one could hear the materium being ripped open, screaming as though in pain and suffering beyond comprehension.

Suddenly the whole thing exploded outwards, and the deepest subconscious fears of all in the system became real to them, as Chaos rippled through the system.

In this ocean of hell, The Swarm came flying for Hursi, the sides of their armored hives beginning to swell with armored Mysetic Hive Spores.

The number of Hive ships was in the thousands, each one identical to the last, each one a harbinger of Hursi's doom.

The Portal was observed by the fleet, Admiral Druk was carefully observing it with his Scientist as the Druks gift was that of intelligence and weakness is the need for glory to be brought to themselves.

"The moment the swarm try and harm us we burn the entire system, they have given us a bomb from Project Shadow which is armed on the Leviathan (Phenixican Ship)"

"Is that overkill? the Swarm if put againts the entire Imperial Fleet would not survive" This was a writer for the Civilian Information Report (Phenixican version of a newspaper)

"The Fleet has to protect the colonies, home space is safe thanks to the years of bloated military budget thats was the Golden Age. Besides the Swarm think us just mere Terrans with a few tricks. That is where our fun will come from"

"A Part of you wants this to go wrong?"

"I just do whats good for the Empire"

((OOC:Just go crazy, butcher and destroy the world as we just watch. also anything that happens in NS2 is based centuries into the future))

OOC: Check TG's

OOC:I tried and I tried, and I tried to come up with a good battle scene, but on this one issue, my imagination has gone on strike. Sorry, but I have to cheap out of this minor and unimportant part.

IC: The Hursian fleet didn't even stand anything even remotely resembling a chance. The Swarm descended upon and blotted it out of sensors entirely due solely to the sheer mass of the swarm around it. Dim readings of weapons fire could be found, but this steadily got fainter, until, nothing.

The majority of the swarm departed, leaving an assimilated world behind. A single Hive Ship, broken, battered, and scarred, was used to test to see how far it could go before it was destroyed.

((OOC:yeah I understand, the Hursi where just a race I could use to find a logical reason for the Empire to allow you in :P any mistakes that I didnt notice is due to lack of sleep, im moving to the other side of Australia tomorrow and delibrately not sleeping so I can sleep my way through the entire flight))

John looked at the holographic map in the middle of the bridge, the fight was bloody he could tell and the Hursi wouldnt of stand a change againsts the Swarm. He turns his head around to a officer at the front of the bridge.

"The Fleet is to enter the system, the Swarm have left a small presence in the system which is a weird thing. You would think they would consider a status symbol"

"You are naive to think of them on those terms Admiral" a man walks into the bridge, he was in legionary armour minus the helmet with a sword sheathed on his belt. The only thing setting him apart was his robotic arm.

"What is that Harrison?"

"The Swarm is a glorified Parasite, they dont think on such terms as symbolism and glory. They expand simply to strengthen there diverse gene pool in hope of perfecting themselves. They live on the Chaos, Admiral where our Empire thrives under things like Centralization and Order"

"Surely they would want to expand? even a parasite likes a easy host"

"It's not that simple anymore, Irene the infested women I met on the spacestation of our first contact with the swarm has become the head of the Swarm. It is possible she has knowleadge of Phenixica and the swarm could of learnt some of our technology"

"How? Phenixica is completely isolated"

"We might not be the most well known power in the galaxy but we are known, The Swarm attacked a Terran space station and we have pretty much contacted very Terran faction in the universe by now to some extent. Besides our warp technology is quite unique, other powers dont go beyond there own galaxy and thus we open a warpgate and people tend to know it's us"

"Doesnt change the fact we have to move the fleet in, planet is infested and has to be glassed and then terraformed for future use"

Home Fleet was then moved into the system, the collection of ships scanned the system down to the smallest dust particle.....the Swarm could return if they wanted the last thing the fleet needed was a ambush.

The Leviathan was with the fleet, onboard was a single bomb from Project Shadow which when fired into the sun would destroy the entire system. If the system was to be lost they had permission from the 'Last Resort' procedure to destroy the system to give the enemy nowhere to call home.

The broken battered ship moved in close to the fleet.

"Greetings in the name of Chaos. I am a Swarmling Prophet and bring to thee the wise councel of The Gods of Chaos. Our Mortal Masters have gone away, so now we'll play.
Irene wishes to tell Harrison that she's upset over the concept of being used as a weapon, and won't soon forgive this insult to her honor. But as a sign of no hard feelings, The Swarm wishes to give you a peace offering of friendship."

"This is Admiral Druk of the Imperial Phenixican Navy in service of her Majesty Empress Nadine, you were used as a weapon in order to avoid a brutal war from erupting. Might sound selfish but the Empire has used similar tactics before to avoid wasting valuable soldiers"

Harrison then spoke over the audio transmission

"A offering of friendship would have to go through her majesty, if you are offering friendship then I suppose cleansing this entire system is far out of the question"

The admiral the butted in

"The Hursi will complain but they are now far to weak to even qualify to have there own fleet, the Empress will probably arrive with her own fleet"

"We will wait, we are very patient. Perhaps by the time your Empress arrives, our Queen will have returned. She had to leave to observe the progress of an, experiment, personally."

OOC: As I've previously been developing (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=553338&page=2) a small holding in the Citerian galaxy, and this is very much the antithesis of my agenda, would you mind me getting involved here?

Another large fleet appears in the system, all modern ships except for one which was a old Phenixican Battlecruiser. The IPN:Glory II the ship of the royal family onboard the Empress stands on the bridge overlooking the center panel where a map showed the layout of the system. She opened communications with the Swarm.

"This is Empress Nadine Cook of the Mystical Empire of Phenixica, my admiral has informed me of your intentions to begin some sort of alliance with the Empire. You have my attention"

The voice was calculating and cold, she toke the swarms intentions lightly. Races like the swarm do not forge alliances for mutual benefit but for simply a selfish benefit of there own.

((OOC:Sure, thats the whole point of those Colonial Grants. Your little voice in my galaxy))

"Well, it's simple. You give us a world here, away from everyone in the milky way, a world we can farm Biomass from, and use for testing, and we'll help keep these riotous colonials from forming an outright rebellion. We're an unknowable power, all that any of you know is that we eat worlds. What you definatly are capable of realizing, is that if the government is busy with rebels, whose to stop us from eating rebel worlds? As for us not eating your worlds? We'll make a vow to the Chaos Gods themselves to hold you as our own brethren. If you know anything of Chaos at all, you know no Chaotic dares break their vows for any reason at all. The Gods tend to get a little, upset, at such actions. As a token of this vow, I'll give you one of my very own offspring born from my own body, and not the Hive itself, a Hyper Spawnling, capable of living without a Hive indefinitely, provided it's given a half pound of biomass and a half gallon of water per day. For as long as this Hyper Spawnling remains alive and in good health, we won't attack you, or eat you, or do anything of the sort. The only problems you'll have, are the same sort of mundane everyday problems you've faced before, and shall face again, and all any rebel upstarts will have to fear, is finding themselves on the business end of a Hive Fleet. As for what we get in return, this world we've already taken, a farm world, a testing ground, all that and much more, all wrapped up in this one celestial body.

Oh yes, we should probably establish a Hive at your capital, in case there is anything of interest you might wish to pass along to a hungry world devouring swarm, but I'll let you use your imagination as to what such things might be." A beautiful female voice said. It was Irene, the Queen of the swarm.

"Your conditions seem understandable and your pet that you offer would be a interesting addition to my palace where it would be well looked after, A hive on the capital tho is a totally different matter im afraid. Devenis is a sacred world made from the devine creator, it's the most beautiful planet in the Citerian and the most rich in resources. To allow you a place for you to put a hive on our capital would insult the Temple greatly, we are a modern people but some traditions cannot ever be compromised. Our Obervation Grid which gives us eyes on every system that our empire has explored is used also for communication so we can use that if the need arises"

The map infront of Nadine then turns into a orb showing the planet Hursi, her father wouldnt approve of such tactics has he thought Phenixica can only stay strong by keeping it's security in it's own hands. Times have changes and the swarm could be like a Auxillary force which the Empire can use to help them fight back all that oppose them.

"Hursi is yours, but any sign of trickey and we will destroy this entire system"

The Phenixicans had fallen into her trap with ease, and once delivered, she would have Phenixica by the throat should they ever give her reason to eat them.

"I shall fly over personally with the Hyper Spawnling, please have a hatch or a docking port of some sort clearly marked for entry." Irene said in a manner that indicated pleasure at having resolved the situation peacefully.

True to her word, she flew over with a three foot red roach looking creature in her arms, looking for the docking port.

Nadine looked at the Swarmling and brushed it's head gently with the back of her hand affectionately, she toke it into her arms and looked at Irene....she must of been such a beautiful women before she was put into the swarm, before she became a slave in control of slaves.

"A interesting creature, my father before he passed away loved to collect insects and study them. If he was alive to see this creature it would be the most amazing thing he had ever seen" She continues to brush it, the pet had somewhat softened her personality.

"I thank you for this gift, ever since I became Empress I have had no time for exploration like in my youth. You have your planet, but I will let you know before you leave Irene" all of a sudden the coldness in her voice came back

"You try and lay a finger on the Empire that my very ancestor forged, I will personally gut you like a fish ontop of a rotting pile of your own swarms corpses. I will also say this about our view on diplomacy, it's just war with words. Never fool yourself into thinking you have our complete trust, we are not the idiotic Terrans of the Milky Way"

It was a case of two very strong women in the same room, neither of them stupid enough to actually trust the other but Nadine knew that aslong as both parties shared a sense of usefulness in continuing this Alliance it would last. The Swarm is powerful, but they are still behind the Empire.

"Burn away, kill every Swarmling in this sector including me if you wish. It doesn't matter, you don't have the power to completely annihilate us, and even if you did, we're too far flung to ever completely be killed. Like a terminal cancer, we will return time and again until you are destroyed. Kill me, and I shall be reincarnated into the swarm, returning time and again until you are destroyed. But enough of a pissing match neither of us can win.

The real reason I came over was to warn you about a man named Dr. Yamato Nasagori. He has utterly no scruples or morals at all of any kind what so ever. He experiments on innocent sentient species, and I'm not referring to The Swarm either, though we too have been targeted by Nasagori. If you see him, kill him on sight, without question. It'll save you far more trouble in the long run. I think, it'll save us all a great deal of trouble. There are only four Gods of Chaos, yet when I think on Nasagori, even now when I speak of him, I hear a new voice in the warp, a fifth deity, yet I know of no such deity, only a strange and unfamiliar name crosses my mind, and that name is Malal. Something terrible is about to happen, and Nasagori is at the center of it all. Perhaps killing him will save us all worlds of trouble." Irene said, she turned to leave.

"And never think you can control The Swarm either. We are at our core, beings of Chaos, and who among you can truly control that which is by its very nature uncontrollable?" She asked, then she left.

The Hyper-Spawnling began buzzing quietly, which was to it, what purring was to a cat, a sign of contentment.

OOC: Irene can infact be permanently killed and destroyed, you just have to have a very powerful Psion to separate her from The Overmind, at least, until she becomes The Overmind.

But that happens during the Swarmling Revolution story arc, in which Dr. Nasagori returns under the influence and control of Malal, the renegade Chaos God.

"Phenixicans are the offspring of the Phoenix itself, we never really die but are reincarnated. We will keep a eye out for this doctor, I will admit our experience with worshippers of Chaos is rare and usually unpleasant. I dont need to control the swarm infact it's the chaos of your race that shows your true potential"

She pats the Swarmling gently

"My father would be ashamed of me if I was to destroy you over nothing but Xenophobic based paranoia, He was a trusting man and a far greater leader then I ever will be. I do this friendly act in the name of my father"

She continues to pat, she holds it up to look into it's eyes.

"You will be named Zeckquillia, the name of the last Queen of the Qwelva Hive"

She puts it back down and looks at Irene

"I can give you a personal tour of the ship and tell you more about my people, our Empire is centuries old and our culture goes back even further...it seems like the right thing to do"

"Sure, but only if you let me give you a tour of The Hive next." Irene said.

She motions Irene to follow her through the corridores

"The Glory was constructed when I was about 2 years old and has served as the official flagship of the Monrachy ever since, powered by a fusion reactor it's still a bit rusty around the edges due to it's age. I have managed to personally fund upgrades in the sensory and shielding, the military refuses to fund this ship has it's seen as to out of date for useful service. All the crew and even things like matinance are paid for out of my own treasury"

They enter the bridge, where she walks over to a metal island in the middle of the room. After she presses a few buttons a galactic map shows up. Different coloured dots litter the map around the galactic center.

"It's all coloured coded depending on Colony Type and Exploration data, we have what we simply call the 'Observation Grid' which gives us eyes and ears in every system under our control. It cost most of the Empires surplus but it was worth it, since we havent really had a threat to our security since the cold war we thought we better spend the money on exploration and observation the sort of frountier stuff that created the Empire"

Nadine places the swarmling down and touches the control panel gently

"Allot of memories in this ship aswell, my father practically raised me on this ship. He was never at the Palace, he was the leader that fought on the front lines and first on over the wall and all that jazz"

She hoped that by sharing this personal information it might atleast make some sort of respect between them both.

"Before I was swarm, when I was pure Human, my Father traveled constantly. He was an explorer, always out trying to find that last frontier. Its probably why I myself agreed to go on that fateful colony ship that ended up getting me assimilated. Besides being genetically engineered from before birth for the task of being the utter paragon of all forms of arts, culture, and entertainment, I wanted to find the final frontier myself, so that perhaps my father would come home, at least for a little while." Irene said, her wing blades drooping a little in sadness at never knowing her father. There was a small catch to her voice, a small sign that this wasn't some ploy, it was the truth.

"Parents never know how valuable they are to their children, their absence leads them down dark and dangerous roads to find the love they never knew, and what they usually find is nowhere near as satisfying as the real thing." Irene continued a moment later. A truth that from any other person, would not be as fitting in the same situation.

"My father made it obvious that he loved me, when my half-brother forced him into exile from the Empire we fed me his rations for weeks starving himself. He always saw me as his little girl, didnt even tell me how sick he was when the disease in his lungs finally toke hold of him. I didnt even know he was going to die until a few short hours"

Nadine smiled a bit when she remembered one of her fathers last words

"He joked just before he died 'Dont let her out late and no boyfriends until she is 90' he always hid his emotions behind a shielding of comedy"

"It's difficult to lose a loved one. Though I know circumstances are different, it would be difficult for me to lose The Overmind. In its on twisted way, it's like the father I never had. It says I am its greatest treasure, and if it thinks I am in danger, it'll throw an entire Hive Fleet between me and danger." Irene said.

"So, is there more to see, or shall I summon a Jump Spore to take us to The Hive Ship? I don't need one, but I'm reasonably certain you require an atmosphere to survive, thus the Spore. The Hive Ship has Oxygen." Irene asked. Already, one was growing on the surface of The Hive Ship for just such an occasion.

"that is about it, the galaxy map is the only modern technology really on this ship. lets go to your Hive Ship"

Irene nodded, and closed her eyes in concentration for a moment.

The fully grown jump pod did as its name suggusted, and detached itself from the Hive ship, and jumped over to the same airlock Irene entered by, and sealed itself around the frame.

"To the same Airlock I entered by." Irene said.

The Jump Pod would be the first part of the Hive experience. The floor, though obviously fleshy, was as hard as a metal deck plate. It smelled like a patch of wildflowers inside, but gravity was in absence. As they floated in the Jump pod, it closed its first mouth air tight, then in another leap, detached its mouth, and sealed that. Irene motioned to stand on the mouth, and after that was done, the pod jumped accross to the Hive Ship, a great mouth opening to swallow it.

The mouths opened to reveal a hallway.

"This is the esophagus. We have literally been eaten alive by the Hive. Just think, you can tell everyone you was swallowed alive by The Swarm and lived to tell the tale. Your the very first human to accomplish such a feat." Irene said.

The Light came from little glowing spheres of liquid in the wall. It was as bright as Nadine's own ship.

"That is an evolved version of the very same bodily fluids Fireflies use to glow at night. It costs us One unit of Biomass per day to have lights. A drain comparable to the lights of your own ship." Irene said.

She lead the way down the halls, Eyes followed their steps.
"The Hive has many eyes. It watches out of curiosity, a form of security. Yet surely you yourself have cameras aboard your ship. The Eyes see all. What the Eyes see, The Hive knows. What the Hive knows, I know. Thus, because there are ten different eyes in this hallway alone, I am seeing you from ten different directions. I am also watching the activities aboard other Hive Ships, and on the world itself. Yet I am not the only one. Zasz and Daggoth, my brothers in the Swarm, well, for the next twenty four hours at least, then their my sisters, anyways, Zasz and Dagooth see all that I see as well. But it goes beyond that. We see what every other Swarmling sees. We know everything they know, feel every sensation they feel, direct every move they make. Overlords serve to aid us in this task, easing the burden of sensory overload. From the collective minds of The Swarm rises The Overmind. The Overmind is the eternal will of the swarm, and even if Zasz, Daggoth, and I were to all three perish, The Overmind would continue to exist.

Regardless, we've come to the main portion of The Hive. The pool to the right is a Devouring pool. Any organic substance that falls within it becomes devoured by The Hive, and turned into Biomass. Be careful you do not slip into it. We don't need Biomass that badly.

The massive organs to your right are the Swarm's reproductive Organs. From them spawn ANY swarmling needed, including replacement bodies when a Cerebrates becomes too badly damaged to continue on. In that instance, we dive into the Devouring pool, and walk out of the organs a week later.

The Swarmlings milling about are known as Gauntlings, the basic offensive units for The Swarm. Gauntlings can evolve into one of four superior forms, known collectively as The Children of Chaos. Each son takes after The God they evolve to represent. The small five foot roaches are Drones, they Mutate into The Hive and Hive Structures. They also mine minerals out of planets and Harvest the Vespene Gas that allows a Hive to evolve into a Hive Ship. Most of the Hive ship, like a Hive, is simple storage of units. I however, as a sentient swarmling, have my own room." Irene said.

She lead Nadine past the main room, and towards the back. She opened the doors to a room with walls filled with Eyes looking at Nadine from every conceivable angle. Except the back wall, the back wall was a massive living Organ. Irene pushed a few keys to demonstrate its tone, and it was as beautiful as a wood and metal organ. A grand pair of doors lead beyond Irenes room, and winged Swarmlings guarded them.

"Those doors lead to what could be considered the engine room. It is not an engine, but a living temple to Chaos that drives a Hive Ship. Unless you wish to go insane, you may not step foot near the temple. It doesn't matter how strong your mind is, or who you worship, the temples have a direct link to the very heart of Chaos itself, where madness manifests at its strongest. No one has ever been near one and survived. Even the Zealot and Prophet breeds of Swarmling that tend it are insane, and I suspect I'm insane as well, because I've been near it several times. Though, I'm not as bad as the Zealots and Prophets, for they speak every language at once simultaneously, and use their words to repeat the wise councils of the Chaos Gods. It is through the Zealot and Prophet breeds that we are strongest." Irene said.

She hoped Nadine appreciated the honesty Irene was displaying, for she was revealing some of the most important information one could have on the swarm. Yet for all this, she still didn't reveal the most important secret, how to destroy the swarm, permanently.

Nadine took everything in, this was a completely different experience to anything she had seen. A living and breathing organism used for space travel was to races in the Citerian still a fantasy subject.

The swarm were much different then anything in the archieves and Harrison was right, the Empire had never come across a race like them before. She brushed her hand againsts the wall digging her nails in to what would appear on the outside as simply a act of interest then she wipes the hand on a cloth she had in her pocket. It would not be much but Phenixican technology would be able to study this and hopefully find a weakness.

Did she want a war? no, but she was not so naive as to think this peace would last and Phenixica had to be ready for when this scorpion showed it's true nature. She had been feeling sick the entire time which was also hidden, her face went more pale and her eyes glazed as her Phoenix brand of arcane magic clashed with that of this unnatural chaos.

When they reached so near to the Chaos Temple that did not help matters any further, the Phoenix was a creature of the natural order of things. It creates life but Chaos seems to of just twisted life into it's own design, she had little understanding of Chaos as it has never had a home in the Citerian in order to spread. She stared at the door and she automatically loathed it.

"The Priest of the Phoenix Temple preach the message of enlightenment, I remember when i was young and how the Priest used to boast of the great things that could be archieved if we just looked further. Our religion in a way promotes Exploration and Colonization as a way of learning to understand the universe, the more we learn the better our people will be and thus we will be able to benefit our entire race that little bit more. Sure we have our natural imperialistic nature that comes from such a dedication to exploration and knowleadge but in the end a true understanding of everything is in how we believe to attain true peace in the galaxy"

As there were about four eyes watching Nadine as she dug her nails into the wall, and then apparently wipe them off in her pocket, it was obvious to the swarm what she had done.

Irene continued leading the tour feigning ignorance.

Meanwhile, a private conversation no Phenixican stood a chance of ever hearing or in any fashion, intercepting, took place within the Hive Mind.

"She's stolen some of our skin cells! I say we let her suffer the natural consequences of her actions. Nurgle Rot is an effective teacher." Zasz said in outrage.
"But Zasz, we've just made our first ally. Do allies not look out for one another? Their simply curious, that is all." Daggoth returned, speaking up for Nadine's behalf.
"Curiosity? CURIOSITY! It was curiosity that allowed that terran scientist nasagori to glean so many of our secrets, dissecting us, studying us, hurting us, attacking us, subjecting criminals to Nurgle's Rot, almost stumbling upon a Cure. No more. I will not allow the swarm to be subjected to such cruelty again. Ally, or no ally. That woman dies before she leaves our hive." Zasz thundered.
"And lose our foothold in Citerian? No Zasz, your not thinking clearly. We must play along with their little game. Make them gain a false sense of security, spread slowly. Eventually, after we have gained other worlds, then we can turn on them, and purge the unbelievers from the universe." Daggoth said.
"My Children, you both make excellent points. She was wrong to steal our skin to begin with, but just as they would not harm a child for asking a question, so too must we refrain from allowing just punishment from occurring. Instead we must model our course after that of a terran parent and child. But not entirely." The Overmind said, deciding the course of action once and for all.

Back in the physical world, in the Hive Ship, Irene listened to Nadine's viewpoints in religion.
"I once heard someone say that Religion was the most powerful weapon ever invented. From its wrath have sprung uncountable multitudes of deaths. Look at history, this must be so. Thus, because we believe so strongly in our respective religions and could potentially fight over it. Let us leave it at an agreement to disagree, for only in Chaos can true understanding be gleaned. Now I shall return you to your ship, for though the Swarm is infinite, I am not, and I am needed elsewhere. I am sure without your presence, trouble would stir within your own government as well. So you go first, and I shall follow." Irene said cordially, and ending this encounter.

Yet when Nadine returned to the main hall, a giant black swarmling dropped from the ceiling and stood before her, and it let out a violent and bloody roar so fierce it literally shook nearby walls to pieces.

"Zasz, settle down. We agreed not to kill her, remember? Nadine, may I present Cerebrate Zasz, his body is of a species known as a Hive Tyrant, and their terribly fierce." Irene said.

"I have a question for you before you go. Do you really wish to make your people suffer so? Why could you not ask? We would've let you study the Hyper-Spawnling to your hearts content, even told you how to prevent Mutation into Nurgle's Rot." Zasz asked.

"He's referring to when you dug your claws into the wall and to all appearences, wiped some skin cells off into your pocket. Nurgle built our bodies by his knowledge, to further his glory. Thus our bodies are composed of tightly packed clusters of Viruses. When they are separated from our bodies, our skin cells transmute into different levels of sickness and disease depending on different factors. Hives, and Hive Ships transmute into Nurgle's Rot. Nurgle's Rot is the most foul of the countless contagions which afflict mortal beings.

It is Nurgle's gift to the mortal universe, a progressive plague combining the worst of all the many plagues in existence. It is a curse that is all the more horrible because it does not end with death, for it is as much a spiritual plague as a physical one, infesting the soul as much as the body. When a mortal dies from Nurgle's Rot, his soul is forfeit to Nurgle, and from that soul-stuff Nurgle fashions his daemons, the Plague Bearers. Many sufferers undertake death quests in order to be killed and avoid this fate.

This is not religion, this is proven fact. By doing what you have done to the wall, you have voluntarily exposed yourself to Nurgle's Rot. Yet it is not too late, but you must stay awhile longer. Though it costs us greatly to do so, we shall cure you of Nurgle's Rot, before it matures." Irene said.

"Otherwise, you can leave, and spread Nurgle's Rot to every man woman and child you come in contact with, and be single-handedly responsible for glorifying Nurgle by turning your entire nation into plague ridden zombies." Zasz said.

"It's your choice. Just remember, Curiosity is great, but some things were not meant to be known, and knowledge of them only brings misery and suffering. The secrets in our skin is one of those things, when taken without permission." Irene said a moment later.

Nadine laughed at the creature, the swarm was yet again mistaking her for a common Terran. The filthy barbarians of the Citerian Galaxy.

"The swarmling was a gift from you to me, I plan to keep it as such and not make the creature suffer scientific experiments which is would not survive. Scratching your wall might of seemed like a naive attempt to learn. Besides the swarmling would of told us little of the actual DNA of your ship, being a living and breathing orgasium we can re-create the entire layout of your ship simply by cracking the very information in your biological makeup.

You see your not the first race we have come across which uses organic material to build structure or in your case 'grow', never to this extent I will admit but with our science at the height it is these skin cells with the information they contain should over time tell us everything we need to know about the typical makeup of your ship.

We are not fools, Phenixica knows sooner or later we will have to burn and destroy your presence in our galaxy. You just serve a purpose for now just like the other alien races and oh yes thats right for now you are still as deposable as the Hursi, your here for our entertainment and not because we need you"

She turns to Irene

"We have conquered this galaxy and have influence in many others, we didnt even need our weapons we just used diplomacy and economics....trust me when I say this Irene, the swarm will never survive any attack on Phenixica. We have fought and defeated much greater threats then you and you are still only a thorn in our side when it comes to a actual threat to our security"

She then turns again to the celebrate

"Cure me of the root, any attempt to do anything else will result in this entire system being destroyed. Try to infect me as you did to Irene and I will gladly kill myself for the Empire, better then living as a brain-washed slave"

Nadine stood in defiance, it was not a great start to there alliance but she knew the Swarm was still relatively small and in a military sense could not survive fighting againsts the Empire. It was the swarms nature to conquer and convert, she will request that the Phoenix Temple keep more knights stationed around Hursi.

"Religion is never a weapon, it's blind faith that is the real problem"

OOC: Actually, the Swarm presence here is going to end up dying. You won't have a thing to worry about. Irene's warnings about Nasagori come true...

IC:

"To the contrary, it is from the Spawnlings that the entire swarm manifests. EVERY form of Swarmling DNA is locked up within its body. At a command from The Overmind, it disgards all but one, and begins replicating that one at a phenomenal rate. This causes it to evolve into what that DNA strand represents. Since the advent of stage jump, we can even have one grow into an armored Hive Ship if we so desire. So no, your wrong on that point.

As for being small, You obviously never heard the tale of how the Fly defeated the giant, or you would realize size is irrelevant. You would further realize how insignificant your numbers are in comparison to ours if you knew just how expansive the swarm truly was.

Lastly, I can't assimilate you, I'm a Hive Tyrant, not a Spawnling, only Spawnlings can assimilate." Zasz said.
He looked like he was going to say more, but backed away, cringing in visible fear as Irene approached.

"Not from me, do it to Daggoth, I didn't do anything." Zasz whined.
"You are an irritating pest. I do not need a Cold War, or a warm one. We're all aware we're on volatile ground being on opposing ends of the same spectrum. It's not easy for polar opposites to get along, but Nadine and I were trying our best. YOU are only making things difficult, so no, I'm leaving Daggoth alone, and getting it from you." Irene said, her voice escalating several octaves in the process. It was obvious the swarm was not one cohesive unit like previously suspected, that or Irene was vastly different from the rest of the swarm somehow.

Her scorpion sting lashed out and punctured Zasz's neck, immobilizing him. Then she ripped his heart out of his chest, killing him, and ate it.

"Pain in the ass." she muttered as Drones ran over to dispose of the body. Her lips were still bloody and filled with gore from Zasz's heart. She knealt before Nadine and said a prayer in an obscene language that would drive one mad the more one tried to understand it. Her lips began to glow and she stood. Moving faster than most humanoids could react, she quickly grabbed Nadine and kissed her soundly on the lips, releasing her Deadly Allure to make it enjoyable. She used a free hand to keep the lip lock in place, and another to hold her close. She knew Nadine would probably have several problems with this, but it was the only method that worked. She didn't quite know or understand why, that knowledge was never revealed to her.

"Sorry, its the only way that actually works. If it was in my stinger, it would actually do more harm than good, as my stinger is loaded with a highly lethal poison designed to kill in under a minute. I could make it a pill, but it has to have Swarmling Saliva in it. I don't have an injection, but on the plus side it is always highly satisfactory to murder Zasz. Unfortunately, the bastard keeps coming back, and we need him too much to sever his connection to The Overmind and thus destroy him permanently. Though I suppose I could accidentally send him to The Rotan after aggravating him, they hate us with unequaled Vigor, but have an adherence to order that is unparalleled. You should talk to them sometime. You might like them." Irene said via Telepathic thought, and inadvertently revealing the Two Pieces of information more valuable than any Genetic study. The first was how to kill them and keep them that way, the second was of the one mortal agency they feared, for as the Irene thought of the Rotan, fear filled her thoughts, and was obviously detectable.

Several uncomfortable minutes later, Irene finally released, and clearly expected to be hit or verbally abused for her actions.

Meanwhile, a door opened, and another Irene walked out, only with slight physical differences, and in a black theme, instead of the first one's purple.

"Zasz, you look so pretty in your new female body. I told you, Daggoth and he lost a bet with me, and he had to finally adopt my form for awhile. Quite technically, Zasz is now a she, and is not a Hive Tyrant, but a Dominatrix." Irene said, smiling at Zasz, who looked a bit dizzy and unsure of herself.

"Damn women, how can you get along with all these unneccessary extra chemicals floating around in your blood?" Zasz asked in a voice similar to Irene's.
OOC: The Deadly Allure: Greatly empowered Pheromones capable of causing any living thing with a pulse to become attracted to Irene. It's actually a Psychological weapon, as how can you hurt what you love? Sure most come over it, but it's that few seconds hesitation that causes untimely doom for those hit by it.

((OOC:I wasnt worried, would of been a good war :P))
The sensation of Irenes touch was intoxicating she had not felt at such peace since before her father had died, after the embrace even with the information she had learned she looked at Irene with a look of shame on to herself and all the emotions of that day came flooding back. She couldnt been seen as weak, the Imperial Governments would love to see her get upset.

A single tear went down her right eye before she wiped it off and started to talk again obviously shaken up.

"Your lucky that Phenixica is amazingly quite liberal about such things Irene, I do thank you for your help. Like agreed you have a planet, what is left of the Hursi will bicker and argue over it but they are now not a threat to our security. There Matriach is dead, the Orchandians will hopefully return to there Orca-Suri masters and il make sure my fleet stays in the area to try and stop them froming raiding this system and dying quite brutally"

Also because Orchandians are quite gullible and could full easily into the sway of Chaos, only the Phenixicans worshiped the Phoenix. There religion never put a priority on conversion so they simply allow other races to worship whoever they want aslong as they keep things civil with the empire as a whole.

"I will say to try and not convert the natives, we will be able to monitor your movements anyway thanks to the Observation Grid. Naturally we are quite accepting of all beliefs and points of view but that thing is Chaos seems to clash with our religion so much that even when we stand in the presence of something from the swarm we feel physically sick. We dont know if it's your unnatural evolution or the actual presence of Chaos inside of you but if that was to expand it would naturally leave the Knightly Order of the Burning Sky quite unable to fufil there roles as my personal bodyguards and assassains"

((OOC:Decided that will be the chosen weakness, Phoenix Magic and Chaos cannot get close to eachother without it. Since the Phoenix is the guardian of a god and not a actual god Chaos will tend to be the one that dominates. Where the presence of the Phoenix is strongest is at Devenis so if your ever on the capital you could decided if that effects the swarm or not, that is why Devenis is meant to be such a beautiful world because it was sculpted by the Phoenix to the finest detail and that is where the Phoenix crashed after it fought the Dragon and all that religion stuff. The idea is the power in the world itself is what makes it appear so beautiful and a lack of Deserts and arid area's :P))

OOC: I didn't say we couldn't ever fight, just that the Swarm presence resolves itself. Also, though the spawnling itself won't be effected, most Swarmlings would become sluggish near Devenis, and if they set foot on the world, they would either spontaneously combust, explode, or go into deep hibernation until they re-entered The Warp. The sole exception to this are "Hero Units", that is, any Swarmling with a name, including The Great Old Ones, and the four Chaotic Princes. But that's thirteen units total. (Chaotic Princes not yet revealed. There are no Chaotic Princes...) However, it would take a great deal of effort to get even one Hero Unit onto the planet's surface, as I'm sure you would be throwing everything including the kitchen sink at me in such a situation, provided we were at war. Other times, I'd use Irene, Zasz, or Daggoth.

~~~
IC:

"Well, I doubt one simple Spawnling will effect things very much either way. If you need a few minutes to recover yourself, go ahead. The Deadly Allure is quite effective, even if they are hyper-powered Pheromones. I only intended to decrease discomfort with the sudden kiss, not put you into such a state. As for the rot. It is gone. At most, you might be more susceptible to the common cold next time it's in season, but after that, business as normal. But that's a very big might. The Swarm cannot cure Nurgle's Rot for another ten years, so try not to catch it.

I find it interesting to note that our mere presence effects you so. I will see to it we stay in this one system, and venture no further. You Remind me of The Rotan. If your seeking an ally similar in nature to yourselves, you might look them up, their just starting to venture out into the universe." Irene said.

By this point they were back at the Jump pod.

"When your ready, step in, and when the gravity muscles release, stand on the door like last time, and then move back to the floor. It will automatically return when your doors close." Irene said.

OOC: I am the Rotan, just pimping myself out if your interested.

"It is not your fault, it has been a hard year and a half. Economic Recession then revival, wars to put down rebellion and consolidate our holdings. A shrinking military budget due to the huge population boom and worst of all stupid republican propaganda trying to make my father out as a evil tyrant when he brought the very golden age we benefit from"

when in the jump pod she continues

"You have picked a interesting time to decide to become part of our family in this galaxy, the Hursi will be the first of a tide of rebellion and the other races will demand there rights back. Probably want to reform the Empire to allow aliens the right to Auxil-Citizenry so they can benefit more from what we have made, it's like Earths 'Roman Empire' with the barbarians at the gates wanting to share the wealth they havent earned"

((OOC:Aliens in the Citerian rule themselves but they arent protected by Phenixican Law, Security, Healthcare, Trade rights and they have no voice in the Imperial Senate or Court which means they have no real say in waht happens in the galaxy and they have to pay tribute so they can get protection from a Phenixican Fleet. A plot device I plan to use someday))

"Well, we're always hungry, if someone needs devouring. Just try not to lead us around by the nose next time, just ask." Irene said, flashing an evil grin as the door closed.

The pod jumped over, deposited Nadine, and jumped back, then the ship jumped into The Warp and was gone.

Nadine smiled back as she put her arms behind her back, Admiral Druk awaiting her in her private quarters.

"You failed me Admiral, you couldnt even win a fight againsts mere barbarians and you expect the Imperial Court to grant you a seat?"

"Empress there was not enough men, Orchandians and Hursi are known for there aggressive battle tactics we were not prepared"

"A Admiral must always be prepared, we dont have the manpower of the galactic empire we have to always be ready for what might happen. This task was to prove you were worthy of finally bringing your tribe to equal status and appointing you the first Druk to have a seat in government. But the Court does not reward failure"

"I will do whatever it takes your majesty" he knelled when he said this, almost begging for some way to prove himself worthy

"Infact yes I have, David Harrison is to be the knight assigned to watch over this planet but he will need ships. Your fleet will be spread but I think that the ships you use for your personal protection like every Admiral are to be stationed in the system of New Mitra to watch over this system that should give you a response time of 2 hours if sometimes happens in Hursi"

"New Mitra is still quite far away from Hursi, why not send me to a mining outpost closer?"

"New Mitra is a Imperial Colony and thus has money to poor into it's defence from the Treasury itself, it's well fortified and will be a good system until we find a system to fortify"

"So what is it you want me to do exactly?"

"Overlook Hursi, Harrison will be appointed as your advisor on the Swarm your ships will be used to patrol and make sure that if the swarm does anything funny we can retaliate"

She motions him to leave and he returns to his own ship, Nadine looks out the window as the fleet prepares to go it's seperate ways until called together again. Naturally her personal fleet was to as always safeguard her to her destination which would naturally be Devenis so she can handle the political side of this matter in person, the politicians always lost there backbone when she faced them in person.