(major update; will be two posts long due to FRA's character limit :P)

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GUNROD

Gunrod grasps the LED tubes firmly, and yanks. What happens next is startling. As Gunrod removes the cross-tube, beams of light criss-cross from the outlets and maintain the cross-shaped light, without any real tubing to encase them... and the beams in his hands are still glowing! Gunrod whistles; now here was some engineering he could be proud of, although he wasn't too fond of finding the energy of the species of one whom he'd met recently.

Suddenly, there is a voice.

"Hey! You! You, the dwarf guy holding onto me! Do you think you could let me out?"

Gunrod gapes. The voice is coming from the LED tubes that he is holding onto!!

"Who are you?" questions the dwarf.

"I'm one of those beings known as Illuxions. You can call me Albireo."

Gunrod grows suspicious. "Do you know of someone named Mira?"

There is a silence. "Can't say that I have. Is that one of our people?"

"I know someone of that name, but I can't say for sure that it's one of you."

"Well then, can you let me out? I've been trapped here for what seems like eons..."

Gunrod grumbles.

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UNAROSHI

Unaroshi's blatant rebuttal makes Viluy sigh, and gives the creature no doubt of his intentions towards it. The metallic being laughs loudly.

"Impudent fool. You shall be put in your rightful place... at our feet!"

The taunt angers the young warrior and he switches to his Dark form. As he lunges at the creature, the hybrid machine emits a brilliant burst of light from its gaping maw. This one blast severely weakens Unaroshi, as the light tears away at his transformed state, and leaves him vulnerable.

"Mosaic Buster!"

It was Viluy that actually landed a wounding blow. Nanobots are fired from her cuff and swarm around the creature, eating away at its face. It roars and claws at its face. However, its roaring alerts it comrades, and Viluy can hear several footsteps getting closer. Unaroshi recovers slightly and transforms back to his normal state as an entire squadron of robots enter the room, all seemingly T-900 clones.

"Well done, you idiot," snaps Viluy. "I had hoped your sense of caution wouldn't be overridden by your hot head, but I see it is otherwise." She whirls around and faces the robots.

"Byruit, surrender or be terminated!" says one of the T-900s. None of them even give two shits about the creature being devoured by Viluy's nanobots.

Viluy smiles tauntingly.

"I propose an alternative; you all go to the rust pile, and never return."

Before the T-900s can even react to that, with a wave of Viluy's hand, a bone-chilling cold sweeps through the room; Unaroshi has to curl up to avoid freezing to death as the Terminators are freeze-dried instantly, unable to move. Viluy then performs utterly brilliant martial arts techniques to shatter the robots into millions of pieces. Unaroshi stares at her. Viluy seems completely calm, her mood and movements unhindered by the freezing cold she just cast about them.

However, the larger creature, the freak-ish centaur Xenomorph, manages to send out a distress call before the nanobots finish it off.

"Damn it," grumbles Viluy. "More will come now that he's alerted them to our presence."

She glares at Unaroshi. "What were you thinking, blindly challenging your foe like that? Know your limitations and practice caution, before letting your head roam free."

Unaroshi glares back at her, not liking being humiliated like that. But it would be prudent to follow her... as Viluy exits the room without a second glance. Unaroshi speeds after her, and they're both silent for a moment.

Finally Viluy breaks the silence.

"I determine that this base should be weakened before we engage in any more combat," she says. "My body is already fatigued after that little scuffle, and in any case it would be the logical thing to do."

"Yeah, and how do we do that?" snaps Unaroshi, not liking this secrecy.

Viluy frowns. "Well first, let us find an area in the vicinity where we can actually think of something and not be found immediately."

"Fine." They travel back to the stairs.

Viluy turns to him. "Up, or down?"

Unaroshi raises an eyebrow. "You're giving me the choice again?"

"It is good to give chances to those who deserve it."

"Deserve it? Huh?"

"You made the right choice last time. If we had gone left, we would have been found immediately by all the machines at once, which I see now." Viluy smiles. "Go on."

Unaroshi takes a few seconds to think...