A Window To The Past. Book 2 (Solo Quest)

[Mutant_Lorenor]

((Moderator notes Chronology speaking this takes place AFTER all of my current quests and directly after; Reestablishing what was lost (http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?t=5803) and A time of prophecy (http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?t=5926) ))

((This quest is dedicated to Neosaim Hyakureiki, may he one day return to Althanas.))


****Prologue****

After spending considerable time with The Gol'Bron training, the young immortal felt a renewed sense of purpose. Despite this, a deeper part of his psyche called him to a crusade of sorts. A lingering fragment of the past haunted his days when he slept. In his dreams, the boy saw a town on one of the costs of Corone serving as a fishing village. A very special group of humanoids lived in this village called Dressed Fish Town.

A very special family of warriors came from Dressed Fish Town as well. Once well known across Althanas, the Hyakureiki family gave birth to one of its most famous warriors, a lad named Neosaim Hyakureiki. Ultimately, this warrior became one of the boy's closest companions in an ancient incarnation of himself.

Currently, Dressed Fish Town transformed itself into Dressed Metropolis. Long ago, through the Hyakureiki family, contact with Lorenor allowed them to defeat an ancient enemy named Dejeron. Dejeron was a member of a race native to the Althanas universe. A race simply calling themselves Golems. A race of living machines that were both benevolent and evil.

Some factions served to protect the members of Althanas whilst others longed to take Althanas' resources for their own use. Certain members of the Golem race lived peacefully alongside the citizenry of Dressed Metropolis. Utilizing a unique ability to transform themselves into beings native to Althanas (Of all races) the Golems lived peacefully and caused the large city to prosper.

The Golems spoke of a promised land called the Ark. These stories passed from generation to generation in Dressed Metropolis. The Ark spoke of an Anti-Paladin named Lorenor that defeated the mighty Artificial Intelligence named Dejeron. The Golems worshiped Lorenor like the humans worshiped the warrior Radasanth in Corone. Having lived in Dressed Metropolis for many generations without problems the Golems worked peacefully.

They provided their unique technology to the thriving city whilst all other areas fell into disarray at Corone's attempt to become an Empire. Dressed Metropolis became one of the few safe havens for those seeking peace from the Inquisition. Even the Inquisition dared not enter the Metropolis in force because they knew of the secret danger lurking within.

In this fashion, Dressed Metropolis became a sanctuary city. Existing underneath the shadow of the Corone Government, the city grew into a thriving community all on its own. Isolated from the rest of Corone and placed in such a far away corner of the huge island nation allowed the city a tactical advantage. However, in secrecy the Golems whispered of a time when their Anti-Paladin might be needed once more.

During every dark age in the Golems' history the one called Lorenor appeared to save the day once more from the forces of the True Darkness. The Golems knew that a dark day was coming once again.

*********************************************


Burke belonged to the race of Golems. The original serial number placed on his chassis 0030-AZ-1051-Z200. All of the Golems originally belonged to the Ark, their promised land. Taking the form of a muscular, tall, human, Number 0030 adopted the human name of Burke Ronian. Burke stood approximately seven heads high, weighed about 200lbs, (But with Golem weight approximately 900lbs) wore his hair shortly cropped, his hair a slightly dirty blond hue to it, and his eyes deeply azure blue.

They tended to sparkle under certain lighting. Burke had a broad chest, and big, muscular arms. His face was youthful and well maintained. He was clearly a handsome lad. Today, Burke wore the clothing of a worker on his way to the Shoppe he attended in the day-light hours.


As Burke walked to work something happened. It apparently happed all over the city that faithful day. All of the Golems of Dressed Metropolis, every one of them, all 10,000 of them, suddenly stopped everything that they currently did. Looking as if they heard something from far away, the Golems, in one giant exodus, moved away from the City gathering to a location right outside of the city. In a panic, their friends and family from the other races attempted to find out if they malfunctioned. The Golems simply spoke about something called "The Promised Time."

All of the Golems, Number 0030 included, gathered at the clearing outside of the city. Above, a dark cloud gathered bringing a powerful storm with it. This dark cloud carried with it the legendary Ark of the Golems! The ship descended upon the race of Golems and they vanished off into the monstrosity for some unknown purpose.

And so began the Legend of the Promised Land.

**************************************************

[Mutant_Lorenor]

****Verse 1: Of Golem Society****


The halls of the Ark were unlike anything present on Althanas. More advanced than even Alerar's current evolutionary state, the Ark possessed super-computers and an advanced Artificial Intelligence calling itself Dejeron. Across many incarnation did the AI go to reach its current form. Another form lurked before Dejeron now currently lost to the Ark's architectural hive-mind. The hallways in the massive ship seemed to go on for ages in every possible direction.

Tunnels even lurked in diagonal slants leading to passageways and hallways that required anti-gravity skiffs to enter. Such technology could change the very face of Althanas should it fall into the wrong hands. Still, the Golems possessed incredible powers of regeneration and their own latent technology. The Golems possessed great materials they used to work their craft called Astral Engineering.

A working handed down from generation to generation. Each new series of constructed Golems working quickly to advanced upon the technology of the past. The Golems now faced a new situation. Turning towards the central control room of the huge Ark, the Golems of the High Command gathered with the Golems from Dressed Metropolis. The Golems of High Command were branded with unique serial numbers going all the way back to the earliest models of their race.

The Golem knows as Alpha-One turned towards his brethren showing a detailed map of Althanas over head. The holo-screen projected a full color, exact replica of the vast, ancient world. Its mineral contents and its rough population distributions. Importantly though, a certain individual bleep on the map was marked for all to see. They knew they meant that the individual clearly seemed their messiah.

They all knew what to do now as the threat gathered once more. They needed the help of their savior.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

The Golem called Alpha-One remembered their entire history. Each time the incarnation of the Anti-Paladin arose, Alpha One's minions recorded the data in a giant super-computer within the Ark's archives. One of a kind, no other map of it's type existed anywhere on Althanas. The Golems knew that much of the known world remained vastly unexplored territories. The sentient species native to Althanas only began to scratch the surface of their huge world. They only covered approximately 5%-10% of the entire globe.

Other species native to Althanas (And some not native) awaited discovery by the residents of known Althanas. The Golems knew this because in their thousands of years on the planet, they've circumvented the large globe many times. Recording whatever raw data they came across and thusly completely the only full map of Althanas known in existence.

Hovering above the holographic generator, the world was gigantic even by the standards of the Golems. Using their advanced technology, they knew how to create an almost exact replica of any known object. The world itself a small miniature of the actual giant planet. It rotated on a natural orbit surrounded by whatever moons circled naturally.

On the globe, several blips now appeared. One showing a location rumored by the Golems' prophecies to be the Promised Land. The arrival of the Ark might herald an exodus to the Promised Land. Alpha-One controlled the ship's vast resources through a neurological link-up. The Artificial Intelligence represented the living ship known in their tongue as the Ark. Focusing in, the blip zoomed a million times towards their target goal.

As it expanded in size an excited murmur filled the large chamber. The Golems understood the ramifications of such a discovery. Their chosen one once again stalked the lands of Althanas. Whatever his latest incarnation might be. Alpha-One focused in on the image of the current stage of the Anti-Paladin called Lorenor. Many times in the past, the warrior saved the entire civilization of the Golems earning a place amongst their ranks.

The last incarnation of the Anti-Paladin only visited with the Golems briefly before vanishing off again. Despite that, he'd managed to complete a desperate mission requiring the isolation of some rogue Golems programmed by a bitter enemy of the Ark's citizens. Now, such an enemy loomed around them all keeping a vigil upon them.

Alpha-One explained to his minions that a newly constructed Artificial Intelligence meant to bolster the military side of their research went awry in a similar way that Dejeron once went awry. Research conducted into this feel attempted to explain why certain AI's went bad. None could find any logical answers. Alpha One explained that the rogue took a sector of the Ark with him, detaching it from the rest of the ship and escaping somewhere on Althanas. Somehow, the rogue was able to scramble all known Ark signals from that portion of the ship.

Alpha-One instructed his minions that the savior be found once more. The Rogue needed to be stopped, current technology aboard the Ark wouldn't work on the Rogue. They needed the help of a native Althanian used to such perilous danger.

And so, the mission revealed itself.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

In their natural state, the Golems looked very different from humans. They shared qualities similar to humans, such as, a thorax, abdominal region, a single head on top of an object resembling a neck, two arms, (Though in certain cases more limbs were applicable) two legs. Though the similarities between homo sapiens and Golems ended there. Comprised of organic metal, their bodies seemed capable of feats no normal mortal might be capable of. They possessed incredible powers of strength and agility.

Each individual Golem might lift approximately 10-15 tons of their own basic strength. Still, when optimized, they might lift much more than that. Hardened chassis made them considerable forces in combat by Althanian standards. Equivalent to Prevalida and sometimes other hard metals, the Golems spend many ages studying the basic resources native to Althanas. A few even knew the mineral composition of Adamantium and harnessed that power for themselves.

Two large orbitals adorned the facial plates of the Golems. These units actually small machines of their own right. The eyes varied in colored but typically ranged from amber tones, to reds and oranges. The average Golem stood approximately 10 heads high for an equivalent of 9'-10' in height. The average Golem also weighed in approximately 5 metric tons, though often they weighed more depending upon their function. Powerful fore-arm units were outfitted with large hands approximately thirty inches across.

Equally large fingers protruded from the basic hand structure. Varying in number, the digits ranged anywhere from 3-5-sometimes 10. This number varied depending on the function of the Golem once again. Capable of extraordinary feats of physical prowess, the Golem's basic forms swiveled around in a complete 360 degree motion.

Also capable of bending in strange positions no normal mortal could bend without extensive training effortlessly. Outfitted with no feet in the normal sense, the Golem's feet panels acted in such a way that was superior to humanoid feet. Instantly capable of adjusting to any surface, and growing tire-like structures at some points to skid across great distances, the Golems represented a next evolutionary leap. The Golem's individual CPC (Central Processing CORE) lurked in the combat chassis of the individual unit.

Various incarnations of the CPC were in rotation. Some older than others but all basically acting very similar to a human's heart. Heavily guarded and reinforced, this unit seemed like the life-blood of each individual Golem. When pierced or ruptured in anyway it could spell doom for the injured Golem who often tried to teleport himself into a safer location for repair or self-destruction.

Each Golem's chassis went through a laser spraying process. An individual serial number unique to each Golem might be found somewhere on that Golem's chassis. Usually on the chest-plate region somewhere. (Similar to a military ranking medal) The serial number contained valuable information (Once someone was able to decipher what the code meant) about each individual Golem. First, the number contained the unique NAME of he individual, then what class it belonged to (Such as Engineer or Medic), then what series it belonged to, and finally what generation it belonged to.

Each incarnation of the Golem race belonged to a more advanced generation from groups belonging to older ones. The oldest unites were closer to the advanced nature of the Prime Golems. But the younger units took advantage of more recent changes in the architecture of Golem Technology.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

The older generations of Golems had a bulky appearance to them. Meant more for physical labor, such as construction, the older Golems relied mostly on vast physical strength. Newer Golems relied on generational upgrades providing them with greater agility, speed, and in some cases strength out-puts. Despite the fact that all Golems qualified for upgrades, they preferred choosing them as needed.

Being around the sentients of Althanas altered the Golem frame of mind over many generations. Initially a very logical race, they slowly started to develop very human-like qualities. Exposure to their Messiah changed them completely once they saw the frailty of sentient races. Humanoids had the capacity both of great beauty and vile repulsiveness.

The younger Golems owned a sleeker look about them. Right now at the gathering in Alpha-One's chamber many generations of the Golems stood within the large room. Many were born in the Ark whilst others left the Ark generations earlier, their offspring born on native Althanas. Alpha-One spoke to the gathered forum about the mission that lay ahead. Some of them spoke murmurs of depression and shock. Others weren't surprised--crippled AI's happened all the time.

Some chose to do good whilst others chose to do bad--just like human beings. Still though, something different happened to this part of the Rogue. Alpha-One explained through their unique form of communication that the AI seemed to be missing key components in AI construction. Apparently, the AI went renegade to find the missing pieces of itself.

Alpha-One spoke about the strange nature of this particular AI. The Golems communicated through thought-radio-waves. (TRW's) Sending digital signals across an impossibly complex network lurking through the Ark. Their thoughts registered as pulses and signals across digital interfaces being received by the carrier signal of other Golems. In this fashion they could communicate instantly across many thousands of miles by simply thinking about what they wanted to say.

Now, many thousands of users uplinked to the interface in this fashion communing with Alpha-One directly. No words were ever physically spoken. Instead, the thoughts were instantly sent across digital signals in a micro-second. The Golems, truly were a wondrous race.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Golem society featured a patriarch structure though the leader often retained a gender-less quality. The Golems worked in a hive-mind like structure lead by a powerful series of Artificial Intelligence called AI's. Manufactured with a particular purpose in mind, each Golem's unique function was laid before it.
Several known classes of Golems seemed to exist.

Some were Medics specializing in healing and repairs, Navigators existed responsible for the navigation controls of the Ark and lesser craft, Communications experts existed responsible for keeping their complex networks online, Engineers repaired damaged systems, Techolytes invented new machines, Soldiers protected the rest of the community. More castes seemed to exist these being the ones in known records. The young trained early in their manufacturing to become as skilled in their unique profession as possible.

Golem days lasted many hours since the machines don't have to sleep as often as sentients did. Able to work many days straight with temporary recharges, the Golems developed a superior civilization within the Ark. And now also within Dressed Metropolis. Technology in the city was provided by the clever Golems in secrecy. In this way their city thrived from a fishing village to a huge city on the coast. The Ark's civilization also prospered with respect to this unique way of life. Still though, their history seemed littered with great disasters just like the sentients.

Before there was the war against Dejeron, a scientist from a rival race to the Golems. Then there was the Rogue AI from that time period. The one they called Messiah came to them during both occasions. Thanks to a human named Neosaim Hyakureiki who would also be remembered as an Ambassador to the sentients of Althanas.

The Golems now prepared for the mission at hand. Alpha-One activated the Massiah's tracking node embedded into his cerebral cortex during their last meeting as a safe measure. They knew that the Messiah often took different forms during each incarnation. During their last meetings Dejeron's underlings thought to take proper preparation since many doubted Lorenor's true identity. Still, the lad proved himself once more competent of accomplishing the tasks set before them.

Now another Rogue AI threatened the peace of Althanas. Now, the Messiah's skill was needed again. Alpha-One commanded some of the Golems to prepare for the Messiah's well-known greed. Only certain of the younger Golems remembered the last meeting with the Messiah. The older generations could never forget the little warrior's bravery.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

****Verse 2: The Rogue AI ****

Assembly lines stationed all over the ship constructed new Golems periodically from the current available genetic information. In much the same way, Golems constructed their Artificial Intelligence. Like the sentient robots, the Artificial Intelligences' birth was celebrated. Constructed out of complex organic algorithms, the living programs developed awareness during their incubation stages. Most of them had a purpose set out before them just like the Golems themselves.

Every now and again the Golems constructed special AI with dynamic purposes. They were even more intelligent than the standard AI and chosen to do multiple tasks. It was from this batch of AI's that Rogue's often appeared. All Golems and all AI's possessed the power of free will just as sentients did. All of them had a desire for freedom.

A few of the Rogues claimed that the lives of the AI was tantamount to a life of servitude and slavery. Finding a way to alter their own basic programming, the AI's left the general hive-mind construct of the Ark in order to invade the primitive systems of Althanas. Some were caught but others remained at large. Alpha-One, representing the general Golem leadership body preferred handling the problems of their society using their own agents much like any other sentient race. Occasionally, Alpha-One saw fit to hire outside help from amongst their available pool of sentient allies which grew very slowly.

Generally, the Golems opted to keep to themselves following their Prime Directives and avoid influencing the course of humanoid history far too much with their advanced technology. During the course of history the Golems managed to make several powerful allies in their pursuit of the Rogue AI's.

Many of them from Dressed Metropolis and a few from outside that region of their comfort. Known in infamy, the current AI was code-named Number 5,325. His current serial number based upon all the other successful and Rogue AI's that came before him. Unlike the other Rogue AI's something different happened with this particular unit. The Golem Hive Mind, experimenting with new technologies attempted to create an AI that seemed even more human-like than all other previous AI's.

The results in the experimentation proved disastrous. Something about the programming of the AI resulting in key components that ended up somehow missing from the core architecture. At first no problems arose during the anomaly's life-time and it performed its duties well. Then, during a routine upgrade process, the anomaly refused basic upgrades suddenly rebelling against the Hive-Mind.

Escaping from the network mainframe of the Ark, the Rogue found itself entering into an experimental new Golem body. A prototype, the Golem might prove extremely dangerous in the wrong hands. Fighting his way out of the Ark and stealing a considerably large portion of the Ark with his escape, Number 5,325 was on the run. Along the way of his escape, the AI hacked the main-frame of several Golems converting them to his cause.

The AI fashioned himself a small army in this way. Figuring a way to shut down his tracking node, the blips of Number 5,325 shut down somewhere over the orbit of Corone. The Ark and its agents in pursuit of the Rogue. Alpha-One gathered all his Golems to attempt to locate the where-a-abouts of the current incarnation of the Messiah in an attempt to capture or eliminate Number 5,325.

With no way to track the Rogue through cybernetic means, the skills of a basic hunter was required. The hunt was now on.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

All Artificial Intelligence are born within the vast network of the Ark's active mainframe. Expanding constantly, each new AI is given a purpose rather than being allowed to select a purpose. Even more intelligent than the Golems themselves, AI's are really a bunch of organic algorithms mixed together in a pool of living cyber-space. Number 5,325 was born in almost the exact same way as all the others. However, the main difference being that the Hive-Mind experimented combining new algorithms with components rarely used in the creation of the AI.

Ideally, the Hive-Mind of the Ark hoped for a more powerful and intelligent AI's birth. Part of the new component pool consisted of genetic information retrieved from the second incarnation of the Messiah. At the time it was thought that using his components might get the Hive-Mind to better understand the central mechanics within Lorenor's blood-stream.

A great disaster resulted in Number 5,325 going Rogue. Applying the new system components (After plenty of modification to the core components) seemed like a trivial task at the time. When the Hive-Mind placed Lorenor's DNA samples (With nano-machinery intact) into the genetic pool of Number 5,325, the changes began immediately. The nano-machinery within Number 5,325 began to infect and re-route basic key routines and sub-routines. Fearing a full systems, infection, the Hive-Minded attempted to isolate Number 5,325 but the Rogue started to plan his escape.

Living within the population of the non-infected AI for a long time, the Hive-Mind ignored Number 5,325 considering that a more serious problem seemed evaded. Still, when Number 5,325 went Rogue the failure of the Hive-Mind was severe. Number 5,325's escape ended with the destruction of several Golems and non-infected AI.

During Number 5,325's escape out of the Ark, the Rogue mentioned something about, "Going to seek the Father." When asked by rival Golems what he meant by this, Number 5,325 simply repeated the statement adding only that he meant to "Commune with the Father." Alpha-One's conclusion was that Number 5,325 intended to harm the Messiah in some way. All pertinent information of Number 5,325's escape was subsequently recorded into the Hive-Mind's data-stores for future generations to use. Also, all infected files and systems were corrected of the anomaly.

Lorenor's genetic samples were placed into chryo-stasis for further analysis and experimentation deemed a bio-hazard by the Ark's standards until further cleansing commenced. In all, Number 5,325 killed 20 Golems in his escape, destroyed 5 AI's, corrupted more than 50 core systems, corrupted 5 Golems that converted to his cause, and corrupted 3 more AI's that continued to attempt to corrupt the main Hive-Mind systems.

It was a dark day for the Golems.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Stealing the proto-type body for a completely new generation of Golems, Number 5,325 seemed ready for his war against Althanas. Having one clear purpose in mind, meeting with The Father, The Son of Golems maneuvered his stolen piece of the Ark well into Althanas' orbits. Privy to the same information as the rest of the Golems, Number 5,325 observed the blip of the current known location of The Father. A much sleeker version of the Golems in his proto-type chassis, the texture of his outer shell was colored black.

Configured like a typical Golem every aspect of him was meant to resemble a human by close physical comparisons. Still the comparisons were only meant by key physical characteristics. His eye-orbitals had a purple hue to them, and on his chest where his CPC was located, a gemstone with a purple hue lurked there as well. Owning a rather thin physique, the Golem seemed less powerful then the others with him.

The five other Golems in his "care" seemed of various newer and older generations. Not a single one of them in the same generation as any of the others. Number 5,325, was also considerably shorter than the other Golems present in his command. Standing at only a mere 6 heads high, (Or the rough equivalent of about 6 feet) the purpose of the Golem seemed fairly obvious at this point. Built as an advanced Soldier Proto-type the warrior seemed to be primarily a unit built for stealth and extreme close-quarters combat.

The other five units in his command also had purposes, one was a Navigator, two were soldiers, 1 one as an Engineer, and one was a Medic specialist. Currently, his Navigator served as a second-in-command to Number 5,325's objectives. The view-screen before them showed the now familiar Althanas sky. Various read-out screens showed pertinent information like weather patterns and chemical make-ups of the sky around them.

A storm system slowly crept in from the south of Corone. Rainy weather was common during the late Summer seasons in this hemisphere. Ark technology was very sophisticated as the Golems would testify. Any wall could transform itself into a view-screen by sending holographic signals to it. Any computer system might be adjusted to serve a new purpose. The single large room that Number 5,325 and his crew operated in had many computer systems attached to the walls and all around them.

Some seating units were in play and a few Golems currently sat down. Every one worked on their prospective assigned duties. A perpetual square block of Golem technology, the stolen piece of the Arch moved of its own accord. No visible thruster engines appeared anywhere on the complicated machine. It simply just moved at the commanding of the Golems on board. HOW it moved remained a complex mystery to the outside world.

Sporting a cloaking technology, the ship hit itself against any potential radar detection. Though the Golems already knew that no such systems existed anywhere on Althanas. The only things that came even remotely close were far inferior to the Golems' stealth capabilities. So they hid safely amongst the clouds. That was the original intent many ages prior when the Golems took off in their Ark so many centuries ago. Fixing himself on the location of the Father, Number 5,325 became obsessed with his acquisition.

Moving his hands across the control panels of the main drives of the ship, he maneuvered with robotic precision. Sensing the native AI within the ship, he could keep an eye on the Ark's main activities from a general distance in cyber-space and keep a general level of safety. The Golems communed through verbal means rather than radio-waves. That could be tracked by the Ark. Number 5,325 searched for a way to work around that unsuccessfully, but continued to try. So far the best solution seemed like verbal communication.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Identifying the exact location of the blip thought to be the Messiah, Number 5,325 knew the coordinates well by now. Marking the territory as belonging to some sort of a Power Group (Organizations run and owned by certain powerful individuals on Althanas) called the Gol'bron, the blip stayed stationary in that position ever since it left the place called Haidia. Haidia seemed to be a complex network of underground caverns located deep near Althanas' centeral core making it an extremely hot and dangerous place to live.

The caverns were rumored to stretch for miles in every possible direction weaving in and out of their systems. Some lead to great riches while others lead to great peril and danger. Rumor had it that Lorenor originated from one of these caverns in his current incarnation. Golem history marked the incarnation of the Messiah as three different junctures in their personal archives.

These records were locked in Number 5,325's head now. Looking the records over in within the constructed, organic, positronic brain in his head the young Golem was capable of billions of calculations all at one time. This one was in freeze frame because the lad wanted to memorize every single detail stored within the records. All visual records of the Messiah showed the same things every time, just varied. Number 5,325's eyes saw the distinctive similarities between each incarnation of the Messiah.

The last time, the boy had come as a grotesque warrior. But thanks to the advanced nature of Golem medicinal technology and bio-technology, the Golems managed to restore much of the Massiah's former glory. They found in their medical records that the boy suffered tremendous cellular deterioration but his unique DNA signature matched the samples in their records.

Ironically, Lorenor volunteered for all experiments that the Golems requested of him knowing they could make him potentially stronger much faster than if he acted on his own. Number 5,325 personally respected the boy's tendencies of greed and potential acts of greatness. They matched his own tormenting desires for success. Number 5,325 knew that the genetic materials of the Messiah lurked within him.

The ancient nano-machinery compelled him to have a meeting with what he liked to call The Father. The other Golems and the general Hive-Mind labeled him as a heretic and a failure to the rest of the community. When Number 5,325 chose to rebel, it was because the greater community attempted to "correct" his "imperfect" status. Number 5,325 considered himself unique amongst Golems.

He knew that no other existed like he existed. He knew that no other Golem experiments would happen with the Messiah's unique blood-type. Now, the nano-machinery laced within his own DNA structure communed to him, eager for the meeting with the Father. They drove his every thought now making him go to a point just beyond madness. Number 5,325 would cry if it was possible for Golems to cry. He understood the pain and agony that The Father went through. Making his personal mission to embrace The Father and correct the imperfect anomalies within the vessel of The Father.

After all, it was the least Number 5,325 could do. If not for The Father, he might not ever come to pass. Knowing that the rest of the Ark chased him down like a common criminal, Number 5,325 sped his ship up getting ever closer to the location of the Father. He was great-full for the scrambler technology he'd discovered on his trip. It would slow the Ark down and give him enough time to talk to The Father.

At least he hoped it would.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Moving closer to the ground now, Number 5,325 position the stolen ship so that it prepared its landing cycle. Now a mere several yards away from their landing position, Number 5,325 increased the forward speed a bit more. With the cloaking device on FULL power, the ship was practically invisible to naked eyes alone. The advanced nature of the cloaking mechanism made it light years beyond anything currently available on Althanas.

Landing in a clearing with a strange ring nearby, the ship kicked up some dust and fallen leaves. A small, barely audible thud came from the ship contacted the Althanas surface. Number 5,325 knew that agents of the Ark infiltrated the Gol'bron town-ship sometime ago attempting to ascertain the location of the Messiah. That might be a problem if he didn't choose his disguise well. Number 5,325 set the ship down several yards outside of the clearing where the ring was. Sentients worked there attempting to analyze the function of the ring.

For a moment, Number 5,325 pondered attempting to steal the ring for himself and manufacture a new weapons system out of it. Still, he was pressed for time so the thought parted a micro-second later. Number 5,325 took a form he felt was appropriate to the task at hand. Making himself look like one of those dark-skinned elves from Alerar called Drow using the information obtained from the Messiah's biological records. Number 5,325 ordered his Agents to stay behind and guard the ship from any sort of potential threat from the outside world.

Leaving from one of the far exit areas in the other end of the ship, Number 5,325 fashioned himself a new identity. He was a rogue Drow named Lihalkul. Lihaklul Di Nihansquul. Standing at approximately 6' the Drow wore fabrics of all black. His hair fashioned in the same dread-locks that Lorenor himself wore. He made his way to the settlement of the Gol'bron knowing they accepted outside help from all sources.

The grounds might be a neutral setting for a final confrontation with the Golems of the Ark.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

****The Father and The Son****

In the medic's chamber, the workers there cleansed the boy of his injuries. A time ago, he'd finished his combat training for the day. Day after day, night after night, the boy spent sparring in preparing for future adventures. After a long time of stalling, progress finally started several weeks earlier during the gathering of The Gol'Bron.

Nurse's aides rubbed unguents on the boy's dark skinned body making sure not to rub anything with holy properties in it. That would damage or potentially destroy the lad on sight. Already, arrangements with the Elder Monks existed that prevented the Nurses from using any harmful agents against him since he was an acting member of the Gol'Bron.

Scars lurked on his well toned person. Being on the Gol'bron's property gave the lad access to all kinds of live-stock which he helped himself on. Finally completed with the chores of healing, the boy put his clothing on covering himself well and heading out into the night. Adventures awaited the boy and he didn't know what kind.

Feeling an urge to make his way towards the Ring he'd found on his first adventure to the Gol'bron, Lorenor followed his instincts to that place barely looking up. He memorized the path there. Some of the people working (Even at night) greeted the young warrior. These were few and far between. The boy greeted them back with a newfound respect for his surrogate family. The Gol'bron took him in without question.

Seeing the ring approach him in the distance, he finally made his way there after about a half an hour's walking time. He had no idea what awaited him once he arrived. The night crew allowed the boy entry to the area since the ring's discovery was mainly cause of his own actions. The Gol'bron gave him FULL credit for the discovery of the artifact. Skilled members of the work force currently did research on The Ring attempting to ascertain its secrets, right now though, the workers left to leave the boy alone with the ring. It was standard protocol.

The boy moved towards the giant ring placing a hand upon it and touching its remarkable surface. His hand went up and down the side of the ring feeling the tremendous power within the object. Closing his eyes for a moment, he imagined himself being back in Haidia, running through the endless caves chasing all sorts of beasts of the wild.

Sighing briefly, the boy suddenly realized he wasn't alone and turned towards the strange presence. Staring at a mirror image of himself the stranger walked forward standing in front of the lad giving Lorenor a bizarre feeling. With his heart racing, the boy wondered what manners of devilry this was that lurked in front of him now.

Lorenor moved his head from side to side and the reflection of himself moved his head from side to side as well. The only difference between himself and the stranger was that the other lad was taller. Considerably taller. Everything that the boy did, the strange mimicked. To the point of frustration until finally, the boy attempted to rush at the taller handsome gentleman of the night.

However, the taller man stood there and held Lorenor in place, catching the boy with powerful hands. The young warrior suddenly lifted off the ground by those same hands. Lorenor watched his mirror-image in a half-frightened, half fascinated sort of way and then unexpectedly, the other man kissed the boy deeply and set him on the ground.

The kiss sent the boy's heart racing.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

"So what are you here for, what do you want? Joining the Go'bron is a matter of heading in that direction." The boy said to the taller stranger, ill prepared for what was about to happen next. The taller lad looked down at The Messiah for a moment having envisioned this meeting since the moment he was conceived as an Artificial Intelligence. The taller boy suddenly took on a sad expression as he realized that time was of the essence. He reached into his pack of clothing and removed a strange perfectly square cube, silver in color, with bizarre markings upon it from an unknown dialect.

Something about the symbols struck the small warrior with familiarity. Yet he couldn't quite place what the symbols actually were. "Rather than TELL you what and who I am, I'm going to SHOW you a story. To our people you are the Messiah. A chosen one, our Anti-Paladin. Where most of the sentients might view you as an enemy our people view you as a crucial ally. Through-out history you came to our people several times during times of great need. But again nothing I can say will convince you I have to SHOW YOU."

With that, Lihaklul pressed a certain combination of panels too deftly for the boy to identify and placed the cube on the ground. At first, nothing happened, but soon, the cube opened up in an intricate showing of advanced technology. Of its own accord the box rotated, spun, and opened up revealing a glowing red data-stream. From this pulsating energy source a brilliant flash of harmless light flared out into the clearing lighting it up briefly with an ethereal glow.

This red glow oddly played against the back-drop of the ring behind the two warriors. Lorenor's peripheral vision altered under the influence of mysterious light. Flashing out for a moment, when the boy re-opened his eyes he saw that the clearing no longer existed around him. Instead they were in a specific space of glowing energy, a sort of sub-reality of molecules, color, and information technology. The strange other boy accompanied him now and floated along this Prime Matter with him so Lorenor didn't feel alone. The boy FELT the liquid stream floating around him and a complex network of energy pulses and nano-machinery worked the substance around them.

Somehow it all seemed very familiar to him. "It's the Prime Matter." The taller boy explained. "My people use this to give birth to the Singular Consciousness of our society. There are many born in this way but few like the Central Hive Mind. That entity represents our leader. The source of our vast civilization." The images around the boy changed now to show the machines working on a new batch of the AI's. One of the batches was clearly the boy in front of him. Lorenor witnessed the birth of one of the members of his race. Somehow, he knew that the Drow standing before him might be only a superficial outward appearance.

The individual members of his people probably looked very different in their natural state. Lorenor observed the nano-machines using strange components upon the individual. What Lorenor saw next made the boy gasp with both terror and excitement. They used the boy's OWN blood-stream laced with the mysterious nano-machinery. Lorenor knew of these machines because The Endless knew about it. What The Endless knew, the boy knew also.

Seeing the construction of the boy in front of him, Lorenor sighed knowing instinctively what happened next. The Prime Matter reacted in a negative way to Lorenor's host components. The nano-machinery attempted to corrupt the systems around it causing a rebellion within the network. Somehow, the individual managed to bond with Lorenor's nano-machinery at the molecular level creating a rebellious off-spring. At first the core system accepted Number 5,325 as Lorenor learned was the boy's true name. Peace existed for a time and it was good. However, the construct grew more frustrated with the Golem's way of living as time wore on.

Seeing the story unfold brought tears to the eyes of the small warrior. He saw a great tale of rebelliousness and a desire for freedom. The boy standing before him fought for his chance to meet up with their Messiah. Lorenor suddenly understood the severity of this meeting. When the holographic imagery subsided the boy stood there quiet for a long moment absorbing everything he had just witnessed. The Golems had answers about the boy's mysterious past, answers that he needed.

"How can I help you tonight my son?" Lorenor said, strangely accepting the boy for what he was.

"I need your help, they are coming for me and we don't have much time. I need to complete the work that they started."

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Lorenor saw the momentary surprise in his son's expression. The boy probably felt that Number 5,325 somehow expected the small warrior to doubt him. In another life, the boy might have. Observing the plight of Number 5,325 for a time longer the story came full circle. His story was Lorenor's own story. A story of rebelliousness and treachery, betrayal, and rising up against the system itself. The boy somehow felt a deep connection to his "son". Wiping the tears from his eyes with the sleeves of his leather jacket (Acquired in a previous thread) taking a moment to respond to his son.

Though he knew that time moved against them now, the boy wanted to spend as much time with his son as he possibly could. There was much to discuss at this point. "How can I help you?" Lorenor repeated again. Saying it again seemed to somehow calm the nerves of the child. Lorenor walked over to the taller lad and placed his hand upon his shoulder the best he could. "I fight alongside my friends. I don't know what your people told you about me but I have a code of honor and I believe in fighting for those willing to bleed for me. You seem like a strapping young lad Lihaklul. If there is anyway I can help you our please tell me so. I don't want you bare any ill will towards me."

The boy said. Number 5,325 nodded calmly staring at the Father for a moment longer. It was everything he'd imagine in his dreams. Driven by the nano-machinery speaking to him at every juncture, divine providence lead the Golem to his creator. The Golem nodded for a moment even in his Drow form he felt elation. A sudden flash of light flowed from Number 5,325's person generating a series of digital grids around his person. The hue of the flash was a subtle green tone high-lighted by the white grids. Staring at the display in a transfixed fashion, the boy looked upon the transformation of his son from Drow to Golem.

The Golem grew a little bit taller and revealed his true nature. Lorenor stepped back for a moment in awe of his son. The Golem. The boy knew that his history was vast across the eternity and it seemed likely he had many illegitimate offspring all over Althanas. But to have a robot as a son? The story seemed incredible. Still, the lad believed his own two eyes and everything he witnessed now confirmed the nature of the story as truth. The Golems seemed like a logical race having very little reason to lie to someone they considered as important as Lorenor.

Once the transformation completed itself, the boy nodded once more to his son. The son finally spoke. "I need your genetic output. In exchange Father, I can make you considerably stronger than what you are now. I can revert you to your prime condition and infuse you with Golem technology. I also have a few trinkets I prepared from our store-houses for you. The tales of your desire for personal gains are legendary. I know all about you from reading your personal files. Here my Father, I no longer need this. In this contains my personal diaries. Read them. Understand them. Know what your son's life was like." Number 5,325 handed the strange cube to Lorenor who stored it in a safe pack. Thinking for a moment about his son's proposition, the boy nodded in agreement.

Seeing that it was clearly a small price to pay for the nature of his reward, the nature of newfound power, the boy looked up to his son. "I will agree to help you. I have much to learn from you as well from our people. I don't belong with the sentients. With the SAPIENS. They shun me as much as the Golem society shuns you my son. I will help you in anyway I can. Not just because you can reward me, but because you are my SON."

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Understanding the Messiah's hatred of humans well, Number 5,325 thought on his response briefly. He knew that his Father probably suffered a great deal in his long lifespan at the hands of the humans. Records on the boy showed a great deal of animosity at the hands of a particular group of individuals of self righteous bastards calling themselves Slayers. In reality though, they were nothing more than racist bigots. A modern day group burning innocents at the stake for false accusations of witchcraft. As a society, the Golems in general worked towards achieving a greater allegiance with the Sapiens.

This was a personal agenda of the Golems though--the advancement of civilization through technology and science. They favored no species over another opting to help everyone equally. Number 5,325 knew this because he was a Golem and such a Prime Directive motivated all Golems. Despite his instinctive rebellious nature against the system, Number 5,325 sought to understand the nature of his difference from the rest of the Golems. He sought to control the darker half of himself by combining his programming with true samples of the current incarnation of their Messiah.

"I am going to need blood samples and genetic samples of you. Analyze and optimize these samples for my use. They will be placed in the current Golem archives but not before I've had my fair use of them understand Father? I am attempting to correct the anomaly that my people caused. Part of what I went through was error on their behalf. I accept responsibility for my crimes but I do not wish to be disassembled. Golems have the technology to repair even greatly damaged other Golems. The rest of my people might say I killed a few people to escape but that is a falsehood. They simply want a reason to destroy me as well. I used incapacitating techniques. Techniques I learned from your very samples of blood. Fusing with the nano-machinery in your blood stream I learned things about my people that no other Golem ever thought about using because they had no need to. Now with your further fusion I can learn even more and continue to evolve myself. This is what I ask of you Father so you can understand my purpose for visiting you on this night is benign. I've prepared this method of retrieving the blood samples from you so it will be very painless." Number 5,325 said.

"Do not worry about causing me pain. The things you have been through seem to pale in comparison to the things I have been through. You've been alive for a short period of time, but I live on for all eternity. I am what the Sapien Magi call a paradox, I am sure you are familiar with the term. I exist across history yet am not bound to it. That is my curse. No matter what I do, events foil my actions so that I am forgotten. That is the very nature of my curse. But here, tonight, I can do right by my curse for a change. I can help my son, I can help the Golems. Do with me what you will, I agree to help you in anyway that I can." The boy explained.

Number 5,325 felt elation. The events of the night proceeded far better than he could ever hope for. Moving his right arm forward, a thick tube approximately one inch in diameter and several feet long extended forward from the top of his hand without a subtle whooshing sound, the tube ended with a sharp point and had a clear hue to it. The boy only guessed that was the method of extraction. He took his cloak off and set it on the ground, removing his shirt as well.

Only keeping his Gol'bron necklace on and his pants because there seemed no need to take them off. "Do you want me to stand up or lay down?" The boy asked. Number 5,325 thought about this for a moment, what seemed more appropriate. "Lay down, I want you to be as comfortable as possible. The tube has a sedative substance that will calm you down so you feel as little pain as possible. Even though I know you are strong Father, I don't want to cause you anymore discomfort on my personal behalf. I just want us both to succeed with our goals. And as I promised I will reward you well for helping me this night. I have trinkets for you in my ship." Number 5,325 said.

The boy nodded and did as he was told. Laying down on the ground, he made sure to use the cloak as a sort of make-shift bed. The ring lurked ominously in the background strangely reflecting the moonlight. Number 5,325 walked slowly over to Lorenor's person. Holding his arm in a combat-ready position. The boy looked at the huge needle feeling a bit of trepidation for a moment but to someone like him, that moment felt like an eternity in Hell. Number 5,325 moved the needle over to Lorenor's pectoralis major muscle group, near to where his heart was, and injected the boy with the tube.

Just as Number 5,325 stated, the chemical substances lacing the tube made the injection painless. The boy felt euphoria induced bio-chemical application. Spots of yellows and blues floated before his eyes and the world felt like it spun around him. A wave of warmth flowed across his person leaving him tingly all over. The Endless went strangely quiet as the chemical substance took place. First, Number 5,325 injected an extra substance into the boy which might cause his endorphins levels to kick in further enhancing his natural high. After a few moments, the boy saw his life-blood being pulled out through the tube a strange sucking sensation felt very far away.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Strangely, Lorenor thought that somehow this might be what all those animals he hate must've felt like. A predatory beast sucking the life-blood right out of their living body. The boy, in his current state, appreciated the humor of the moment. Taking only a few moments, Number 5,325 only needed a couple of liters of the Messiah's amazing blood-type. Storing the samples within chryo-stasis tubes inside his person, Number 5,325 released natural fluids that cleaned the tube and cleaned out Lorenor's person of the substances he put into it. Despite this, the boy would still feel the effects of the chemical substances for at least a few more minutes.

Pulling the tube out of his Father's person when the task was done, Number 5,325 nodded with satisfaction. Storing the precious life-blood carefully in his internal systems, the Golem started the process of analysis and enhancement. As a technology, the primitive nature of Lorenor's nano-virus machinery was on par with Golem technology. Though not quite as advanced, the technology level was quite similar to older versions of their technology--very similar. Number 5,325 noticed the similarities right away and knew he could enhance it after all.

Just as predicted, the nano-machinery attempted to escape chryo-stasis in a violent sort of way. The Golem prepared for this before hand having analyzed the activities of the nano-machinery for some-time now. Activating the chryo-stasis containers with a thought, the Golem watched while a special gas filled them. In all there were roughly ten containment units in his person, Number 5,325 used four to store Lorenor's blood samples. The gas flowed within the tubing forcing itself upon the violent machines. Suddenly, the machines stopped all activity going into a forced stand-by mode.

Spraying the contents of a the tube with a special sort of light now, the Golem analyzed the contents there in learning everything he could about it with his current analysis tools. Once he did that, he sent the information stores back to his waiting ship. Realizing the vast potential the technology had, the Golem took digital control of the nano-virus quite easily. Removing the default setting mode, the Golem saw his options and put it onto re-construction mode. Many settings were available, but the Golem wanted to start with the lowest possible setting. All was ready now.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Ready to begin the next phase of his project, Number 5,325 released a container of the nano-machinery into his own blood-stream. This worked exactly as he thought it might. The machinery attached itself to the each individual unit it came across and re-programmed the default mode of the machinery. This was something that the Golem couldn't do on his own. All though they possessed great technology, the Golems discovered they couldn't tamper with the nano-machinery in Lorenor's blood on their own. They needed real-time samples to re-program in chryo-stasis.

Anything already in use for something else was set to default mode. Number 5,325 discovered this matter on his own. His findings might contribute to the greater good one day in the near future. Lorenor was a terrific scientific case study. The Golem prepared himself to inject the newly re-programmed samples of the nano-machinery back into the boy's body as promised. Stepping over the lad, knowing that the chemicals would affect him for a few moments more, the Golem re-injected the tube into the boy's body.

Sending the newly altered nano-machines back into his body, the Golem watched the substance quite carefully. He used one full container in this fashion knowing he wouldn't need to use much more than that. Stepping away from the lad now, he analyzed the boy storing all pertinent data on the transformations. His body suddenly tensed up in agony as the new blood sample contacted with the original. The boy let out a painful scream despite the chemical substances within him. The nano-machinery worked quickly to re-program the rest of the old nani-machines. This process took approximately ten minutes to perform. Once the deed was done, the nano-machinery within Lorenor's body were now set to re-construction mode which was the equivalent of Level-1.

Default Mode, was level-0. The Golem knew at least 5 levels existed, plus hidden functions. It would be a privilege to discover them all, the Golem knew. Seeing the change taking place in the boys body right before his eyes, the Golem felt elation at his discovery. This might be one of the single greatest scientific discoveries of all time.

Right before his eyes, the boy changed from a wretch to a vastly superior being. Muscles filled in where once atrophy rested in. The process of rigor-mortis stopped and reversed itself. Repairing his body and transforming the boy into a PRIME Undead, the machines did their job. The muscles filled in as well as his face filled in. The ugly flesh-tone of his person was enhanced with the effects of extra added melanin. Remaining a deep black skin-tone the color somehow seemed more vibrant. When the muscle groups filled out, the boy gasped with relief. His heart increased in his size to its fullest capacity as well as his brain, lungs, and other vital organs.

The boy's purple eyes re-opened for a moment with tears running down his face. He stood up calmly and no longer felt ugly. He wasn't exactly handsome yet, but he was no longer ugly either. Taking a deep breath of fresh night air, the boy knew he had no nose, but he could breathe through his skin. A basic trait of the N'Jal Spider Magi. Standing up now, he moved over to the Golem and hugged him powerfully.

"Thank you my son!" The boy said.

"THAT'LL BE FAR ENOUGH NUMBER 5,325!"

A voice suddenly yelled into the clearing and it was the Golem calling himself Burke with an entourage of Golem warriors.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Number 5,325 turned around suddenly to see a group of Golems aiming their weapons directly at his position. Should they fire, they might hit The Father as well. A grave matter stood before them now. On the one hand, they might attack Number 5,325 and kill the rogue before his time. On the other hand, their weapon discharged might hit Lorenor as well. Number 5,325 stood in front of the boy holding his arms out in a defensive matter. The movement was sudden, using his enhanced reflexes and speed. Number 5,325 recognized the one calling himself Burke from the Golem Archives.

All Golems were privy to the same information access. Some Golems had higher priority access to certain sensitive documentation. As a Prototype, Number 5,325 had access to all of the Golem's archives, even highly sensitive documents. Quickly pulling up all known data on Number 0030. Seeing that Number 0030 was an engineer the Golem knew beforehand the capabilities of the leader of that group. The rest of his warriors were a combination of soldiers and medics. One tech expert was present also probably giving them advanced weaponry.

"I will not ask you again Number 5,325. Our orders are to terminate your life force immediately for the havoc you caused back at the ark." Number 0030 said.

Number 5,325 knew one key factor about the Golems present. They were agents of the Ark. There could be no negotiations with them. There could be no talking through, no surrender of any sort. They followed their Prime Directive to a t. A rebel to a fault, Number 5,325 saw the Prime Directive as a guideline, not a binding code. He felt that as necessary, parts of the Prime Directive might be altered or even broken if survival was at stake. In this matter, Number 5,325 was unique amongst all other Golems. Though a superior combat model, the proto-type Golem knew his personal vulnerabilities well. He'd studied them and attempted to modify them over time.

But he couldn't alter his basic architecture without the help of The Messiah, that was crucial to his plans. Even despite the modifications, Number 5,325 was vulnerable to the Golem's weapons. They packed advanced weaponry that the warrior had no specs on. They came with a very wise plan, I will have to hand it to Alpha-One. Despite his desire not to, he saw surrender as his only option. He'd given the Messiah what he wanted to give him.

*****

In a single moment across eternity all hell broke loose. All of the sudden, the boy saw a group of the Golems approaching. Number 5,325's ship lost it's cloaking device at the commands of the Ark. Looking overhead quickly, Lorenor saw that a large, black, vessel of some sort lurked above. Upon seeing the ship, the boy felt a familiarity within him. Still adjusting to his changes, the boy felt better than ever. No longer feeling the pain of un-death. His muscles felt full and powerful. His thoughts filled his head with strategies and plans of many great things. He felt like a phoenix coming back from the ashes of death. Running his hand through his hair, the boy felt that he owed his son a great deal of gratitude if not his very life. Looking at the severity of the situation at hand, Lorenor came up with a strategy quickly.

Normally taking a long time to think up such things, he was surprised at how intelligent he really was if he really tried. The boy used the newfound reparation of his brain for the plan that he'd constructed. It wasn't the greatest of all plan, but it gave the boy options. He suddenly moved quickly in front of the Golem. Considerably slower than the Golem moved, for certain, but with agility of his own right. He held his arms out knowing that he'd stun all the Golems gathered.

"I will not allow you to harm MY SON!" The boy shouted.

The gathered Golems suddenly paused all activities and started to communicate amongst themselves. The Endless communed with something else within Lorenor that the boy couldn't identify.

The Ark lurked ominously overhead.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

Many thoughts raced though the boy's head now. Feeling an almost overwhelming desire to change the outcome of this moment with his sheer force of will alone. Still the boy knew he was powerless compared to the force of Golems assembled against his son. This made him very sad. Tears started to flow on his eyes as he grasped the notion that they meant to do his own flesh and blood harm.

Inherently, none of this was really Number 5,325's fault at all. Golem society did what almost every government does and its open up that one Pandora's Box and lay the entire society to waste. Its been historically done time and time again. Corone now faced the opening of the Pandora's Box at the hands of its corrupt bureaucrat that never fought a battle in their lives!

That thought alone made the boy very angry. The helplessness of his plight. In the end he realized the nature of his purpose. Perhaps the boy wasn't there to change history. Naye, instead the boy's fate was probably to witness history and write those events down. Record them in some ancient codex spanning across time and space. Forever trapped to the bindings of the Eternal Night. Lorenor conceded himself suddenly to that fate.

Night after night he hunted the beasts of the wild giving himself no other purpose except filling a place with the rest of the members of the Gol'bron. An outsider, Lorenor only joined the group at the beseechment of The Endless and therein lay the irony of the current situation.

A group that the boy DID have history with now presented a great loss to the boy. If they succeeded and destroyed his son, the precious answers Lorenor sought might forever be lost to him. Clenching his fists as the tears came, he felt a hand lay on his shoulders. He knew it was his son. The boy looked up to the taller form of the Golem for a long moment and then looked over to the rest of the Golems. Again, they simply stood there communicating amongst themselves.

All of the sudden, the warriors lowered their weapons when a fate was decided. The one calling himself Number 0030 moved towards their position. A strangely calm expression touched his Golem's eyes which were colored light blue. His Golem outter shell was some sort of silver-colored material.

Number 0030 was much bulkier than Number 5,325. Configured for the job of engineering, the Golem had many different limb arrays. Also many compartments seemed visible on his person. At the moment, he only wore two arms since he currently wasn't working on any of the Ark's systems or any system what-so-ever. Long ago he'd left the Ark in an exodus to Althanas joining a larger group of pilgrims to the holy land. Number 0030 spoke once he was standing approximately five paces before Lorenor.

"Your decision making is brave and true Messiah. Even in the face of overwhelming loss you defend your values. Your actions continue to inspire us with every incarnation. You are willing to save Number 5,325 despite his criminal activities within our society. Your government laws might call this Golem a fugitive at large. Still though we cannot help but be impressed by your actions this nights. Conferring with Alpha-One, we have decided to let Number 5,325 go. As long as he is in your custody he can do no-one any harm.

One day when he has paid penance for his crimes he shall be allowed back on The Ark. For now he must live a life of servitude in the holy land of your fore-fathers. May you live many glorious days and remember that we are your allies forever Lorenor." The Golem touched Lorenor's chest with his eyes lighting up for a moment. With that, the group of Golems suddenly vanished in a flash of light.

The Ark above went into higher orbit and vanished off into the night sky, activating its cloaking devices. They left Number 5,325 with his part of the Ark and his companions as well. They left the chunk of the Ark to join Number 5,325 and Lorenor for a brief conference.

[Mutant_Lorenor]

****Epilogue****

Later that night, Number 5,325 joined with Lorenor and his companions in the ark. Above them in the nearby mountains the first hints of sunlight began to touch the sky. Within the safety of Number 5,325's ship, Lorenor need not fear the sun. As the Golems promised, Number 5,325 easily removed a crate from the ship's single cargo-hold. Contained within this crate was Lorenor's promised reward. The boy's eyes lit up with promise of greed satiated as he hadn't even thought about the nature of the reward. Number 5,325 opened up the box using the Golem technology. Much like the holo-cube, the large metal crate opened up completely on it's own. Stored in chryostasis within the box were Lorenor's rewards.

*******************

Alpha-One eyed Number 0030 for a long time. Using their radio waves to communicate the Fate of Number 5,325, the Golem Superior listened carefully to the visual story being told. They'd acquired key information about the latest incarnation of the Messiah. Now they knew how to acquire him for future disasters. This pleased Alpha-One greatly. He conferred with the Hive-Mind to see what to do next. After all--there was a certain matter of a newly discovered organism that lurked within Lorenor's bio-feed. This organism greatly interested the members of the Golem society curious to discover new technologies based on such a thing.


****The End****


****Spoils Request****


*001---Universal Anti-Sunlight Uniform. (UASU) Made with a combination of rare Golem fabrics, this suit (When worn) attaches itself to Lorenor's person and allows him to act in the daylight. The suit MUST be worn for it to work in this way. The suit functions by creating a bio-field around Lorenor that wards off U/V light and the harmful effects of sunlight. Note: this does not make Lorenor immune to attacks that use UV Light or Sunlight effects in battles and quests. It only allows him to be out in the daytime. Note also in the daytime, Lorenor is 50% weaker than normal. All his abilities and power is reduced by 1/2. If the suit is somehow removed or damaged, it must be repaired immediately or Lorenor will puff up into ash. ((This suit functions separately from any Endless functions))

*002---Plasma Discharge Gun. (PDG) Worn at the wrist, this weapon has a head that is mounted. It moves forward towards the target to launch a concentrated burst of plasma at the target. Currently, the weapon only has 5 charges of Plasma a day and takes 1 hour to recharge. At the moment, the weapon is only powerful enough to destroy small objects such as vases and things like that. A human might only get lightly bruised by the plasma's effect. Functions just like a wand of equal power.

*003---Nano-Machinery at Level 1 State. Thanks to the Golem's technology Lorenor's Nano-Machinery is now at First Level. Moving from the default option of Level 0, to Level 1, the Nano-Machinery sped up Lorenor's metabolism. It now functions as a regenerative technology. Having greatly altered Lorenor's internals the boy is no longer a wretched mutant. He now has some semblance to his former greatness. The Nano-Machinery also unlocks Lorenor's ability to Regenerate small wounds since this is the basic function of Level 1. ((Available once Lorenor reaches level 1))

*004---Lorenor upgrade. Thanks to the Golem's tampering Lorenor appears much healthier than he once was. The boy is considerably stronger and faster than he was at the start of the story. No longer a wretch either, the boy appears much healthier. He is also much smarter than he once was capable of solving problems with less effort than before. ((Available once Lorenor reaches level 1 up benefits up to a Moderator approval))

*005---5,000 Gold. The Golems collected some gold to satiate Lorenor's famous greed. This is a small stepping stone to help the boy progress the Gol'bron's agenda as well as the Golem's agenda.

*006---Number 5,325's Holo-Cube. A detailed account in holographic form of Number 5,325's life. It also contains the visual records of Lorenor in his past historical form. Eventually this will allow Lorenor to learn about his past.

[AdventWings]

Your Judgment is complete. Stand by for final readout.

Story

Continuity - 4

I admit this partly to my unfamiliarity with Lorenor's past, but that even still the format of story-telling is jarring and inconsistent. I had barely any clue as to what Lorenor (or his past self, for that matter) had done to receive attention from the Golems. In fact, half of the story did not even to have a single connection to Althanas at all until Number 5325 finally made planetfall. Much of the confusion on how these series of events fit into Lorenor's history could well be avoided if there was more story on Lorenor's part of the story and less on the Golems.

Setting - 3

There was a giant space ship with lots of humanoid robots. There was a clearing in the forest with a strange ring-shaded area. Asides from that, nothing tangible. A flaw in your series of sentences and paragraphs could be summed up in this one sentence: Show, don't tell.

For much of the thread, the story appeared more as a series of Exposition than a Story-Telling format. While it may be great for background information, it greatly detracts from the suspense and drama of a story and turns it into nothing more than a page in a large textbook. In fact, much of the setting in this story was merely background prop - no interaction, no effect on the story and no role whatsoever. Try making more use of the surrounding, or even better, change the format of introducing the surrounding into terms that the individual characters perceive. For example, one could write that there were fifty-three bats hanging off the ceiling of a cave. Period. Or, one could say the band of adventurers glanced up warily at the multitude of leathery wings taking up residence on the ceiling of the cave. Which one has more emotion and personality, you decide.

Pacing - 3

This mainly suffered from the very loopy, inconsistent format the story was told from beginning to end. There was no suspense for the majority of the thread. There were some around the last three posts, but it was barely noticable. Often times, you also recite a nearly-identical line about two or three posts afterwards, often retelling the same information with little to no change in context. While it could be used to great effect if done correctly, here it merely caused the readers to stop and think "Didn't he already said that earlier?"

Not a good reaction when you want your readers to be hooked in your writing.

Writing Style

Mechanics - 3

While there was nothing blatantly notorious that stuck out like a sore thumb, the overall quality of sentence structure and choice of words (not counting ones that served literary purposes) was greatly subpar to some of your works I've seen from before. Sentences stopped abruptly at the end and did not effectively lead into the next. The paragraph before gives nothing to allude to, or help transition, into the next. This causes for a very jarring read - not in an emotional form that some good writing tend to have, however. While most of the sentences and paragraphs followed Basic English Mechanics, there was no fusion and no interaction between the lines.

Technique - 3

Same here for Technique. Although there were some literary techniques employed throughout the thread, even the comparison between Lorenor while his blood was being drawn and the animals he had to consume for sustenance, but there were none that really quite jumped out as me as impressive. Most were used carelessly and served little to enhance the story beyond superficial comparison. Please think a bit longer if metaphors or simile should be used, as well as how effective they would be to make the readers see the connection.

Clarity - 4

Quite confusing, to plainly state, is the definition of this thread. I had to reread each post several times, sometimes requiring me to jump back two posts to see any connection that may have connection to the information in the story. Sometimes, mentioning an aspect of the story (in this case, how Number 5325 was a rogue AI to the Alpha-One and the other Golems aboard the Ark) that have merely superficial importance can mislead the readers into thinking there is more than meets the eye. If that was the intention, it failed to make itself known.

Some of the details that you inserted into the story was even irrelevant to which direction the story was heading. An example would be the lengthy description of how the Golems communicated with each other. That could have been mentioned in mere passing by showing how they communicate ("Number 0030 glanced quietly at his deputies, nothing more than radio waves exchanged between them and the collective mind of the Golems aboard the Ark" for example) instead of just saying how they do it.

For example, Verse #1 was almost entirely unneeded, as it played only a precursor role as the events leading up to the situation at hand. It could have well been reworded or even absorbed into the later posts as background information rather than giving them their own spotlight. In fact, the only relevant information in this verse, in relation to story development, was how Number 5325 was born from an experiment gone awry. There was barely any need for detailing the internal designs of the Ark beyond what the characters were involved with.

Remember that unless a Technical Term is required to move the story forward, don't bother putting it into detail except in the design notes.

Character

Dialogue - 2

Lorenor sounded very forced for someone speaking to his son. It felt more like he was addressing a customer, or even a doctor, when he was talking to Number 5325. His dialogues and that of the Golems were also needlessly long, noting more technical terms and requirements than a regular person would divulge especially with someone who had no need to know.

A helpful tip would be to imagine the scene as if it was part of a television episode. Some speech sequences are better simplified or omitted in order to not sacrifice Story Development and Character Believability.

Action - 3

The Golems were not interested in their interaction with Lorenor and among themselves... That is a fatal flaw in writing. True, there was a lot of ground that needed to be covered and a lot of characters that needed to be touched on. But having too much superficial interaction, such as depicting the scenes of Golem Navigators and Engineers manning their stations while Alpha-One communed with the others, was generally pointless. The posts could be better served to show how their interaction affects the circumstances than merely stating that "they monitor the many screens in front of them" and have their entire role end as that. Also, Lorenor's reaction and general lacking of anticipated consequences made the events play out like a bad movie script.

Try working out a system of involving only events and actions that have some effect on the storyline and what the results were. Saying a woman walked passed you is OK - Saying a woman walked pass you and you turned to look, making you walk into a lamp post is even better. If you catch what I mean.


Persona - 4

This had be confuzzled for a while and wondering what exactly is Lorenor and Number 5325 like. Their emotional pendulum swung back and forth so fast I thought it was one of those broken metronomes that could not keep a steady beat. Their emotional and circumstantial dilemma gave them a bit of volume to character, but at other times they appear more robotic than the Alpha-One himself.

Establishing a personality is vital to a sentient being's survival, as it is their Id that subconsciously determines the course of action they take. Their Ego determines the social bindings and responsibilities to others. The Superego mediates them both. Depending on the strength of each level of consciousness/unconsciousness, a character's actions and emotional responses vary from one instance to another. However, there is still some consistencies to how one react in different situations.

Miscellaneous

Wild Card - 5

I was not terribly moved or impressed by anything in this thread. It was... subpar in my opinion. However, do not let this hinder you in your journey. The farther you walk down the road, the more experience you will receive and better understanding of your characters.

Therefore, here is my advice to you:

Know Thyself!

FINAL SCORE – 34!

((Rewards + Spoils))

Lorenor is rewarded with the following spoils:

- 600 EXP

- Universal Anti-Sunlight Uniform (along with all its pros and cons). Cannot be sold

- Plasma Discharge Gun (However, due to power limitations of the gun itself and the comparable force it produces, the strike surface and kinetic force will be no more than a light punch. Effective Range of only 10 yards. You may have this reviewed by the RoG for power output upgrades.) Cannot be sold

- NanoMachinery and Lorenor Upgrades will only be in effect after reaching Level 1, followed by the approval of an RoG profile.

- What 5325 believed to be 5,000 GP, however, turned out to consist of foreign coins that added up only to 2,000 GP. (Because I think 5,000 GP is too much to ask for along with so many character upgrades you requested.)

- The Data Cube obtained from Number 5325. Cannot be sold

I am sorry this took longer than I anticipated, but nonetheless it is completed. If you have any concerns with regards to how this quest scored, you may PM me and I will reply accordingly. Also, if I sound too harsh, forgive me. I am merely stating the details needed.

[Letho]

EXP/GP added!