[IC] Eternal Galaxy: Shards of Starlight - Part I

[S121]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

"Well, I did add a couple of things to myself. I'll actually be able to rival Chief in terms of strength and speed. I'm sure he wouldn't object to teaching me how to use guns, even if I do have some experience by observing him.", Cortana said to Mara

"As for the connections , I upgraded that feature so that I only have to touch a machine to access it. I modeled it after the MJOLNIR Mark VII GEN 2 Powered Assault Armor.", Cortana finished.

[Cucoo5]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

"Actually..." Kiara attached a dark purple wrist band-like device with dark blue conduits on both of Cortana's wrists. "This is what's known as Aura Tech. It channels your life-force into various computer outputs or can even use it for inputs. You can channel your computer self into a system when you have access to open crystal conduits. In theory you can be in two places at once now, because your body itself has its own life force and your AI version can be channeled into the virtual realm. Though...I would think it to be risky to do so...It's never really been done before. Oh and if you're wondering: only living beings can use Aura Tech. This means you really are alive."

---

Sol Inceneron
Inopia - Underground Temple

Dalia looked to the far side of the plateau area. "Hmm...I would say around forty some minutes." She turned back to Nhiome. "No big deal. If worse comes to worst, If you don't want the rogues to get your hands on your ship, I would say destroy it. But ah, let's try to get down to that cavern! If we make it, we make it! Even if there's a possibility of causing the cavern to crumble and we'll wind up eighty floors underground in one of the temples! C'mon! Excitement! Let's go!" Dalia ran into the ship and went for the cockpit.

[S121]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

Cortana smiled at Kiara's last sentence and looked at the wristbands. It was true, she was really alive. Before, she was just an electronic ghost, but now she could do everything a normal person could do, and then some.

"Hmm, I wonder if I can integrate it...", Cortana said as she touched the wristbands and began to assimilate the the wristbands' design into her body.

Cortana copied herself, sent her copy into the wristbands to gather data, retrieved her copy, hacked into her own nanobots, and programmed them to generate microscopic alterations to her original design, integrating the Aura Tech and removing her need for the bands.

"Thank you, but I don't need them now. I just upgraded myself by using the nanobots to create high-capacity Crystal Conduit nanotubes over the MJOLNIR energy transfer nano-wires, kind of like the rubber coating you see on electrical circuits.", Cortana said with a smile as she handed the wristbands back to Kiara.

[Cucoo5]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

Kiara seemed to grow worried. "...ok. Just...be careful with that, because like I said: if organics are exposed to long to direct crystal energy current, it gets bad. It's the reason you don't want to touch crystals directly and why crystal energy weapons are lethal."

[S121]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

Cortana remembered what Kiara said and decided to make modifications to her most recent design. After hacking the nanobots yet again, Cortana added a thin layer of insulation over the Crystal Conduits. After 2 minutes, Cortana spoke again.

"Okay, third time's the charm. Hopefully, 3.0 does the job. I added a durable insulation to the Crystal Conduits, so I should be safe.", Cortana said to Kiara.

"Why is coming into contact with crystal energy bad?", Cortana finally asked Kiara.

[Cucoo5]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

"Crystail energy, or Aura, seems to be a double edged sword: it bears properties that can only be explained as the physical embodiment of life force in the form of energy." She started. "It can give as well as take life energy out of anything that has it. The crystal itself gives life, the energy it produces and is 'extracted' takes it away. It's...not the easiest thing to explain since scientists can't seem to make perfect conjectures on what it really does..."

[S121]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

"Maybe it's because the crystal's energy becomes unstable when it's extracted from the crystal itself. Think of it as a sort of chemical reaction, like salt, only in reverse. Sodium and Chlorine are dangerous, but when combined, you get salt and heat. With Crystals, it would be reversed. You are taking something away from the energy crystal compound. If that's the case, then something happens in the energy extraction process that strips something away from the energy, causing it to become unstable and kill. That also means that there might be another set of energy waves being generated from the Crystals. Have the scientists looked into that?", Cortana asked Kiara.

"Of course, I'm only guessing at this point, but I could be right.", Cortana said as she threw away the finished apple Mara gave her.

[Kristia]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

Mara pondered about it and spoke to both women "Since the discovery of these crystals, the humans have tried to decipher thir true purpose, but then again, they are still a mystery. When you take energy from it, the crystal will take something from you, it is an equivalent exchange. The vrystals have energy like we living beings also have. The crystals are like living beings"

The bioroid relaxed on a chair "The unstability is caused because we are forcing our way into the crystals´ secrets, like if we are invading a new territory, what we must do is act in harmony with them."

[Cucoo5]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

"You both are right...as far as the theories go. The thing is, Mara...if we did use the Sentient Theory, then we have this observation: The Crystals want us to go deeper into the secrets. The only problem is that every test performed since the beginning of Venturia has proven that the crystals themselves are not sentient. So it doesn't add up when you consider the second theory which Miss..." Kiara then paused. "Oh...! I never did catch your name?"

[S121]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

Cortana realized that that this entire time, they had been helping her without even knowing her name.

"Oh! I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Cortana.", Cortana said to Kiara and Mara.

[Kristia]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

"A nice name for a nice woman" Mara said in a calm tone and then adressed herself "My name is Mara"

Still relaxing on her chair, the bioroid glanced at the ceiling "And so the things get bigger and bigger" she said and looked at the blue eyed girl

"You are froma different time, you and the armored soldier called John, aren´t you?" she asked to Cortana

[S121]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

After hearing John's name and how Mara knew that they were from a different time, Cortana gave an interested smile.

"Well somebody knows their history.", Cortana playfully remarked.

"Yes, we're from the year 2557, 519 trillion years in the past. We arrived here when the Longsword's Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine malfunctioned and caused a Slipspace anomaly. You see, the reason we were using the Longsword in the first place was because John somehow found a way to save me. The reason why is because I ended up dying when I protected John from a nuclear explosion. I was going Rampant, but I was still able to keep it together and protect him one last time. I honestly expected myself to be long gone, but John found a machine related to the Composer. It was a large data storage unit used for storing encrypted lifeforms. When I took control of the Didact's ship, I unknowingly lost a part of myself to the Composer. One of my fragments were transmitted off to another location. I honestly thought most of me was destroyed, but it was that most of me was encrypted and transmitted. The part that was transmitted was still receiving data from me, but I couldn't receive any data from it. Anyways, despite me dying with no hope of recovery, John still didn't give up. He kept looking for me. He told me that he searched two planets before he found me. After he fought past Promethean forces, John eventually reached the data core and extracted me from the system. I was still dormant, so what he did was that he inserted me into his helmet and used the neural link to give me a sort of jolt. It jump-started me and I woke up. After we left the planet, John activated the Translight Engine, but it malfunctioned, bringing us full circle to the beginning of this conversation.", Cortana explained.

After a brief pause, Cortana asked Mara a question.

"So how do you know about us? Was it the scans on John's armor, or maybe you heard about us in a history class?", Cortana asked Mara.

[Cucoo5]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

"The Archives might be detailed, but Old Earth is one thing that doesn't have too many specific entries. When Old Earth died, so did most of the records. The only thing we have in the Archives is whatever the original human survivors brought to Venturia 519 trillion years ago." Kiara explained.

***

Nero nodded. "Right. Anything in particular you would like? Tea? Coffee? Water? Something else?" He then started for another portion of his study.

[S121]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

For the first time in a long time, Cortana was confused. What exactly happened to Earth? Why was there no records of Humanity's history?

"What about Reach?.. Eridanus II, Harvest? We had many other colonies. Wouldn't they have kept knowledge on our history? What happened?", Cortana asked Kiara in a slightly concerned tone.

[Cucoo5]

Helios System
Delta Division Flagship | Excalibur

"Oh- the colonies?" Kiara blinked quickly. "It's possible if they still exist. Though whatever knowledge they have wouldn't make it here. Venturia is sort of isolate. The chances of something from other Galaxies finding this Galaxy is extraordinarily rare. The only reason Humans got here was via some sort of wormhole."