Questioning Mirror Crystal Captives (with EEF in Simonsburg)


#1

Vektor made the trip to Simonsburg to manage this personally. He reached out to the Earthers using their special comm crystal to meet. The majority of the Mirror Crystal prisoners were still being held in various locations as prisoners. But he brought the ones that would closest match higher ranking members of the United Tribes army for questioning. Shirley told him that there weren’t any Brezans in the army, and he wanted to know why. If they were going to prevent a similar fate here, he needed to know what happened and why.

And then, when it was done, he wanted to be rid of them. Give them to the Earthers, Urog said. Vektor didn’t like giving away something that the other gangers would think of as a gift. It would appear weak.

He turned on the Earther comm crystal. “Hello Earthers. I am Vektor of the Gang of the Uf Mag’og. We have a matter of 50 prisoners from the Mirror Crystal Fleet that we’d like to handle. The Great Goblin King Urog wishes that you join us in questioning some of the prisoners. When we’re done, he’d also like to arrange for you to take the prisoners as part of a CEREMONIAL trade, to do with as you wish. If you like, we can meet at the same place as last time. Or somewhere quieter. You pick.”

Vektor waited for an answer.


#2

The comm crystal crackled for a moment before a reply came. "Greetings Vektor, This is Captain Jeffers, aide to the Field Marshal. We thank you for the offer. We will send an expert in interrogation to work with you and take charge of the prisoners once the questioning is over. He will join you in Simonsberg for the time being. An advance agent will be arriving there shortly.

A few hours later a black AAV flew low over Simonsberg. As it dropped toward the ground a single person leapt out while it was still a few feet above the ground. The pitch of it’s engines changed and it rapidly climbed and disappeared into the sky. As the dust cleared the figuer was revealed to be a male earther with many intricate tattoos covering nearly all of this exposed skin. He walked toward the gate. When reached it he looked at the guard and spoke.
“I’m Exorcist Holbrook, I’m looking for a gog named Vektor.”


#3

AAVs were common in Simonsburg. The EEF had a base here, thought Tla’al, so nothing out of the ordinary. Just in case, she had sighters track the vehicle, just in case it was Mirror Fleet…or something else. If Kalok’s invasion taught Tla’al anything, it was that you never know where your enemies lie.

When the Earther dropped from the vehicle, it didn’t catch anyone by surprise. However, it did look cool. One of the local guards, an Earther male named Gladius, envied the tattoos. When the Earther introduced himself as Exorcist Holbrook, Gladius nodded. “Ok, come with me.” Gladius led Holbrook indoors, to a known drop point into the underground shelters. The underground shelter was barren, but not uncomfortable looking. Relatively dry, and lit using light leyas, not fire, so not overly warm. The deserts made it warm enough around here.

From the other side, through a connected tunnel, Tla’al made her way to the meeting point. She was growing up. She no longer looked as gangly as she did when she first invaded Simonsburg with Gul’al a few years back. She was still young, and not fully grown into her body, but she no longer looked wet behind the ears. She was wearing simple nightmare hide armor, a hobtor axe hung at her waist, and her garb was a mix of Earther and Brezan.

Tla’al asked Gladius, “Why was I called here?” Holbrook had not seen Gladius do any calling. Gladius responded, “He asked for Vektor. Since Vektor’s not here, we implemented standard protocol.”

Tla’al responded, “Standard what? No wait, nevermind, I remember.” She was picking up on Earther habits, and their weird words. Tla’al looked at Holbrook, “I apologize for the…what’s the term…right, cloak and dagger stuff. Gladius, thank you. You can go now. Good job.” Gladius nodded, smiling despite himself, and went back above ground.

Tla’al looked back to Holbrook when Gladius went back above ground and closed the entrance way. “I’m Tla’al of the Gang of Uf Mag’og and the Great Northern Army. Right, so not everyone knows what we’re doing here. Vektor should have told you to ask for me. It would have been a lot less trouble. Sorry for that.” She takes a swig of water from a flask, and offers it to Holbrook. “It’s customary when offering a container for the person offering to drink first, proving it’s not poison. If you need more water, we’ll have some where we’re going, but I don’t want to make you wait if your travel made you thirsty.”

After Holbrook’s decision, she continued, “Well, Exorcist Holbrook, let’s get you to Vektor. It’s just a few moments walk. No need to worry about nightmares, the light wards against them.” She used the Earther term for light, instead of the customary ur’sa’or.

After a few minutes walking through tunnels and passageways that kept Simonsburg safe from the Mirror Crystal, she made her way to a wall. The wall looked common, but she made a few knocks, and a doorway appeared. She smiled at Holbrook, and led him in. There he saw Vektor, wearing an armorfiend vest, his customary Krato poleaxe leaning against a wall, and a small hobtor knife at his side. In the room with him were two more ur rhug, wearing obviously Brezan garb, and Harle, a female Brezan wearing scavanged armor with a metal sword at her side, obviously taken from a Church of One Paladin. She looked at Vektor with deference as they waited.

Also in the room were three prisoners, currently sleeping and/or unconscious. It was hard to tell. Vektor nodded to Tla’al and Holbrook when they got into the room.

Tla’al spoke first. “Vektor, I bring you Exorcist Holbrook, asking for you by name. I presume he is the guest you have been waiting for.” Vektor nodded, “Thank you Tla’al, you may go.” As Tla’al left, Harle concentrated and closed the passageway using Earth Leyas.

“Exorcist Holbrook, I am Vektor of the Gang of Uf Mag’og and the Great Northern Army. I am happy you are here. The prisoners have been drugged into a stupor, so we can chat until they’re ready to wake up.” While his words didn’t ring false, Vektor didn’t look happy. Not at all. He did, however, offer his hand in a handshake, just like Urog told him to do.


#4

Holbrook didnt speak as he was lead form tunnel to tunnel thought for the sake of politeness he took a sip Tla’al’s flask. Once he was at least bought to Vektor he took the offered hand and gave a firm shake.

“So you’re aware I’m just the first one here. We have addtional Exorcists and EEF interrogators on the way. But it was decided that it might be better if we didn’t all show up at once. Command figuered the people here have had enough surprises for awhile.” He walked a it closer to the drugged and bound prisoners. “I guess we should decide what we’d like to ask them while they’re out. Personally I’m concerned with just how many of them are carrying demons.”


#5

Vektor nodded. “Smart move.” He activated his comm crystal, “tla’al, more are on their way. As they come in, gather them, when they say they’re all here, then bring them all here at one time.”

He waited for acknowledgement and turned off the crystal. He looked at Holbrook. “I want to know how they took over their universe, what happened to the Brezans, and figure out how to prevent it from ever happening here. And, now that you say it, it makes sense to make sure there’s no lingering influence of Kalok here.”

(Ooc- if you have other questions, let me know, then we can just have your team appear my next post and we’ll bring narrator in).


#6

Holbrook nodded “Yeah we need to know numbers as accurately as possible. There could be a serious infestation brewing down here. My team can show your people want to look for so they don’t sneak up on you.” Holbrook’s earpiece buzzed briefly. “Acknowleged,” he said. The rest of my team is heading here now. They’re landing about a mile out and walking in. They should be at your gates in about ten minutes. My team which is four more exorcists and three EEF interrogators.


#7

It took only a bit of time to get Holbrook’s team through security and out to meet with the prisoners. The Exorcists moved first, asking casual questions to each prisoner about seemingly mundane elements of their lives. Purposely avoiding anything that resembled actual intelligence or gathering intelligence, seemed just to be gauging reactions for a baseline.
At the end of each meeting, the Exorcist would nod to the Brezan handler each time, either signalling yes or no. One in ten of the olgog captives was discovered to be hidden Kalokian hosts, and were isolated from the rest of the prisoners and each other. The Exorcists were fully prepared to drive out the demons, but first the order had to be given by the Brezan leaders as well.

Meanwhile, the EEF and Brezan teams had separated the Mirror crystal captives into two other groups. The Majority were Tla’loc’alan and Karovian Olgogs with a few Unenese spread between them, and truly believed that Auf Lalder had saved them from extinction. They cited examples like the EEF attack using Orbital Weapons (the OtO Attack), the Yyan Empire invasions with their Neliff and Der’al Collective allies (mirror crystal only event) , and the food shortages caused by Dunesphere attacks (occurred in both timelines). They were beyond offended and up in arms over the 10% decimation that they faced with the authorities grabbing so many kalokians.

But the second group was a minority, and made up mostly of Unenese Pirates and half-Brezan/half-Karovian Militiagogs (conscripted from the defeated Kolgul Militia). They spoke of a very different UtR. One that attacked many of its own potential allies out of fear and retribution.
It was one of these, an Ex-KGM Militiagog named Stuzy Quarain. Stuzy had been a fairly well respected veteran, and she said,

"I looked at the UtR as simply another job at first. A place where an Olgog gal like me could earn a good place by fighting an honorable fight. But then the Kalokians used Brez proper as their birthplace for Kalok. They gave him form there, and the Brezans never forgot that betrayal. I understand the Kalokians used Simonsburg here instead in this timeline.

The Brezans kept pushing for the Kalokians to be considered criminals or at least censured. But when the GulTor’Gor helped their own demon lord rise in the form of the Dark God Krodnok, Lalder pressed for no action to be taken against the Kalokians until the threat of the Greater Evil Krodnok was ended. Lalder demanded Krodnok stop his taking of souls and end the spreading of his evil religion in UtR lands.

In that moment, the UtR leaders decided they needed Kalok to offset Krodnok. Krodnok demanded the religious freedom to send missionaries where he chose, and the legal right to protect his followers from persecution. When Kalokians began tossing Krodnok’s Disciples into Volcanos it all went bad.

The Brezans refused to choose a side, saying both Kalok and Krodnok needed to be banished forever.

The UtR leadership refused.

During the battles between UtR and DC forces, the Tower of Resugent was toppled and an entire K’ias army escaped from underneath. The UtR leadership became even more paranoid, and when the Nine revealed themselves in the cleanup efforts in the area, they were deemed terrorists.

The Nine fled to Brez, where they were welcomed by the now fearful Brezan tribal leaders who hoped the Nine could keep them safe. But it was not to be. Instead the United Tribes leadership demanded the Nine be handed over, which caused the Nine to attack much of the United Tribes Fleet. This brought things to a violent end for all involved.

What we saw in the campaign against the Brezans showed me what the United Tribes had become under Kalok’s influence. The stuff I saw still haunts my dreams…but once the Brezans were handled, the United Tribes learned that the Warmaster Rapi’og had fled to your dimension.
Auf Lalder and the rest were worried about your side learning about the culling in Brez and siding with Rapi’og as a result."


#8

Vektor and the EEF exorcists separated the terrorists and began the process.

Whenever the EEF soldiers found a demonhost of Kalok, Vektor and the gang-members nodded at the EEF Exorcists present to handle it however they seemed fit. Demons were not something that the Great Northern Army knew how to deal with.

At first, Vektor wondered if the Mirror Crystal realm was just certain things happening different…until he heard Stuzy’s story.

It made sense why there were no Brezans in the army if Urog was the voice of reason. Considering how bad the devastation was in Simonsburg, it would have been so much worse in Brez. Vektor’s blood boiled just thinking about it. Especially knowing everything they know now about Kalok, the betrayal runs even deeper.

He turned to Stuzy and asked, “Stuzy, if the purpose was to capture Rapi’og, why bother invading the rest of the area. Take out Brez, find Rapi’og, keep going. Why did Lalder order the rest of the tribes, especially the Earther ones, be invaded?”

(Ooc - gives authority for EEF to do what they please with demon hosts. Narrator, I have 2-3 follow-ups in mind after this, including how’d they develop the weaponry, I.e. technomancy, how were the 9 actually defeated, and what happened to mag auf yyanyi (since Urog thinks so highly of him))


#9

The Exorcisits split up two stayed to guard the hosts while the others moved them one by one to another room to be banished. Holbrook did all the banishing himself while his team’s covered the host with their hellforged weapons in case any decided to try to run it make a fight of it. Anyone who watched could planly see his tattoos glowing and pulsing with energy as he worked.


#10

Stuzy adjusted her shoulder strap and said, "Truth be told you are probably right. Take Brez, take the Mirror Crystal, Capture Rapi’og. Easy plan. The problem was the Kalokians. The Kalokians would boast that their Prophet demanded Lalder free Kalok in this timeline, and Lalder had to agree to keep their alliance.

Since the Kalokians replaced the Brezans as the heavy infantry, the UtR Army needed them.

Especially, as you all discovered, the GulTor’Gor had already come through and stolen a K’ias Ziggurat. Lalder knew they couldn’t win against a Ziggurat without Kalok…so…well…you…saw what they did.

Though I heard through the nanye vine that other leaders within the United Tribes government were excited to land grab once they came through."


#11

Holbrook finished the banishing of the Kalokians, not knowing if they would be returned to the hell dimension of Mt. Rhug in this timeline or in the mirror crystal from which they came.