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UNAROSHI

There is no immediate reply. The sounds of whatever it was that addressed him, were now fainter and fainter. Presently, quite far in the distance, what seems to be an electronic door opens. Now the sounds, two almost identical pairs of footsteps, get louder again until it sounds like there's something right outside... wherever he is.

"Welcome to Headquarters. State your identity."

This voice belonged to something different...

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SAKER

The woman goes on and on and on... strangely enough, without encountering a single living organism. After a long while, the path begins to rise, and becomes steeper and steeper. It then levels out again and Saker can sense... something. It's nearby, and it's somewhere on the other side of whatever she's facing. She taps the surface, and it lets off a low gong noise as though she'd taken a mallet to it. Saker's eyes dilate for a moment as she prepares for the reprecussions for such an action.

But nothing happens. No other noises, no approaching dangers, no senses disturbed.

Saker turns back to the wall and begins to think.

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MAXINE, SHEPARD, GUNROD, MIRA

Avarice's head tilts from one member of the party to the other, every half-second. Presently he draws it back and makes some clicking noises, and then addresses Shepard.

"Too bad for her. Evading mandatory interrogations is quite unforgivable..." He made some more clicking noises. The smaller machine looked right at Avarice and also made some clicking noises. It really began to get on Maxine's nerves, but Mira tried to calm her down.

Avarice addresses Shepard again. "Our intentions must be kept, ah... confined. You see, though we are an exponentially vast species, there are many defectors and sleepers in our empire, wishing to gain information and use it to our destruction. They must be - " Avarice swipes his claws together violently. "Crushed."

Shepard gulped.

"But you can rest assured that we mean the very best for this world, and that is an absolute honest truth. That IS what you are seeking, is it not?"

"Um..." began Mira.

The mantis mechanoid spies Mira next. "I see, you're one of those beings, aren't you. An Illuxion, yes..."

"How do you know what I am?"

"Quite simply that one of the previous beings that entered through this world was one, and it confessed itself and its powers. In the end though, it was quite uncooperative after a while and left us," growled the machine. "We have no reckoning of where it may be in the universe, but provided you are of the same race, we would ask you to play a better team member role than it.

"As for light... thanks to that other Illuxion's temporary cooperation, we were able to harness some of its power for ourselves. You see, the star known as what the humans called the 'Sun' does not give light to the planet's surface anymore. But there is another way. If you will come with us, we can restore you, and quite easily.

"What do you all say? Speak. If you are enemies... I for one will not hesitate to eliminate you here and now."

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