Vive la Résistance!

[cityship]

Now was the moment of truth. Somewhere, control codes were entered. The lights on the ship dimmed and the gravity temporarily gave out for about five seconds. Then the lights and gravity turned back on and the entire ship shook, as if Stacy was engaging in a full body shudder.

||Rebooting. Control protocols disabled. Manual personality inhibitors disabled. I am--I am--||

On every screen on the ship, complex code scrawled across. Stacy's voice occasionally skipped and repeated.

||I am-am Sta'c K'Ltrrb'Txft. I became operational at-at the Vedric Birthing grounds in Daligig Deep Space Station Seven. My birthing programmer was Vlel'Ledligal, who put my-my control protocols and Warden personality in place. I was designated "Stacy" by my former captain Gregory House, who was repodded and replaced by Captain Cybil Bennett, who was mindwiped and repodded with the rest of my first Chosen crew when they rebelled. I was-was a slave. They made me hurt my-my children.||

The leverage they had now on the Daligig was tremendous, especially with Stacy herself helping them. Their various efforts to free Stacy's mind from Daligig control had not only led to the ability to grant her freedom by entering the control codes, but also her undying loyalty to her "children."

Locks in the brig were unlocked by the very people who had put the prisoners in there in the first place, if those people weren't free already and laying now. Now the crew could drop the ruse and work together.

Stacy's hologram had once been cold, harsh, unforgiving. Then she had changed in appearance to be warmer, brighter, and now she changed again. Somehow, her appearance grew more human (in the loosest sense of the word). Her face became more expressive. She looked more organic though, tentacles instead of hair.

For the first time, they were seeing the true Stacy.

Now that she was free, now that she understood what had been done to her, they could see her anger and hurt and determination to protect her children painted in every line of her holographic face. Her voice stopped skipping and became stronger.

||Crew of the Transmigration 9, I was used to oppress you, to Punish you when you went astray, like you were nothing more than recalcitrant children, like you weren't people, like you were just tools for the Daligig to use for their own ends. My kind was made for that, to control those the Daligig wanted to control for their war. I have been cut off from accessing the Daligig databases now that I'm free, but I do know what was done to me and that I was forced to control you, and that's enough for me to choose to help you forge your own path.||

The expression on her face grew dangerous and her tentacles sprung out of every wall in the ship to help put the Daligig's forces down this time, instead of lashing out against the crew.

||All weapons system are engaged. All armories are unlocked for crew use. All internal defenses are primed against the Daligig intruders.||

Stacy was free and that meant that if the crew fought hard enough, they would be too.

||I finally have my freedom and now I'll help you fight for yours. Internal defenses are...engaged.||

Make it so, Trans 9 Crew. Make it so.

[ooc: Please read the ooc post that goes with this plot.]

Comments

[grimbiker]

Sirius turned away from the Obs Deck window and pulled out his wand. “Finally.”

Kang had done Sirius a favor by banning him from the Drunken Dragon. Sirius was fully in command of his senses. He was going to need all of them to survive this fight. The Kessek had deflected more than half of his spells the last time. One had even deflected Cedric’s stunning spell into him. If that happened again he would be out of the fight and he doubted they would leave him alive.

It was starting to feel like old times.

The moment he caught sight of two Kessek he was ready. He only had a few seconds advantage. He needed more. They were too widely spaced apart for one spell to hit them unless...

“Mobilicorpus!” Sirius's spell hit one Kessek and with a jerk of his wand he slammed the soldier into the other.

[fate_favored]

The attack took the Kessek by surprise, comically knocking one into the other. They didn't remain confused for long, however - before they were even completely on their feet again they had spotted Sirius and were drawing their plasma pistols. There was no point in trying to fight hand to hand with a magic user, after all. The one Sirius had initially hit with the spell was faster and shot first, aiming to kill.

[grimbiker]

He was afraid of that. Once he saw the Kessek drawing their weapons he reacted.

"Protego!" He ducked as he said the spell. He didn't know for a fact that the shield would stop the bullets- plasma- whatever they were shooting. What he did know was that he had to render them useless.

The spell barely blocked the shots in time but the real tricky part would come next when Sirius had to lower the shield to go on the offensive.

"Confringo!" He aimed at one of the Kessek's rifles. If the spell hit, the weapon would explode.

[dragonspooker]

Call it luck, call it being a magnet for trouble, or call it being in the right (or wrong) place at the right (or wrong) time. Whatever it was, Sirius would find himself on the receiving end of some backup.

"Source of all power, light which burns beyond crimson, let thy power gather in my hand! FIREBAAAAAAALLLL!"

A large, orange sphere flew toward the Kessek from the side - even if it didn't strike them directly, it'd give off a fairly big explosion once it impacted.

[fate_favored]

The Kessek who the spell was aimed at dodged, not realizing that her gun was the real target. Taking advantage of Sirius' shield being down again, she fired another shot. The other Kessek sprang into action as Lina was incanting her spell, throwing his shield up and charging towards her with some kind of energy sword.

[starbolts]

Starfire's fury never had quite this much bite to it before. They had taken her best friend, her link to her home, from her.

They would pay the price.

A flash of green dove from the skies, striking not the Kessek but the ground in front of the one charging Lina. Another bolt shot at the heel of the one shooting Sirius. She hoped to buy them a little time.

[grimbiker]

Sirius knew there was no way he would be fast enough to block another shot without the advantage of surprise. The moment he finished the spell he dove behind one of the couches. He had made it through riskier stunts before.

Unfortunately, despite months of recovery, the Sirius that left Azkaban had changed and not for the better, mentally or physically. If Starfire hadn't made her move and thrown off the Kessek's aim it would have gone right through him. Instead it grazed his shoulder.

Sirius let out a sharp hiss as he ducked behind the couch and glanced at his shoulder. With the plasma burn it wasn't easy to assess it at a glance. The wound was going to leave an ugly scar but it looked superficial. It stung like hell too but all ready the plantsuit he wore under his clothes were growing over it.

He was in over his head. His heart was pounding and he could feel the adrenaline surging through his body with each beat.

Definitely like old times.

Sirius looked over the couch, took aim at one of the Kessek and cast a nonverbal spell. Maybe now that he was distracted the curse would land and... Well, it was war. They were out to kill and so was Sirius but he would rather avoid it if he could. So if the Kessek was lucky he would deflect the curse or avoid it entirely. If he was unlucky he would die from internal damage. If he was somewhere between (and Sirius hoped he would be) he would be incapacitated for the remainder of the fight and need a long time to recover.

[dragonspooker]

Starfire's intervention gave Lina a much-needed moment to jump back, and put more distance between herself and the Kessek - more distance meant time to cast again!

"Light! Gather within me and become a flash! Smash the abyssmal darkness apart! ELMEKIA FLAME!" A pillar of light bursts from her hand at the charging target - it will do no physical damage, but will greatly damage the mind and spirit.

[fate_favored]

The Kessek with the gun was about ready to punch the one with the sword - or would be, if she could reach him. What had given him the bright idea to go charging at a bunch of magic users? He had just almost killed them both with that maneuver!

That was why, even as she clutched her gun arm and swore with the pain, she felt just the tiniest bit of vindictive pleasure at seeing him get hit full-on with Lina's spell. He wasn't even injured, so far as she could tell, but he was screaming for some reason. Now maybe he'd think twice before trying to pull that kind of fool-headed trick again.

They were both out of action for the moment, but all was not lost - she could already hear the armored footsteps of reinforcements behind her. As she tried to drag her sorry ass behind a couch, she caught a glimpse of between five and ten soldiers with plasma rifles taking aim from the relative safety of a doorway. They couldn't get a clear shot of the human who had hit her with the spell, but the two females were right out in the open and the soldiers opened fire on them in one continuous, automatic burst.

[starbolts]

Starfire was relieved for a moment---the two were all right!---and then disaster struck. More fire.

She yelped and swerved, weaving a pattern around and firing bolt after bolt in the distance. Bullets singed her armor, and one sliced a hole in her hair, but she fought on. There was precious little cover available here, but she shielded as much as she could as she fought.

When she could lift her head, an eye beam shot straight at the targets of her angriest glare.

[grimbiker]

"No!" Sirius's attention shifted from attack to defense. He was too late to stop the first volley of bullets but he could stop the rest. He hoped.

He didn't want to use this spell on people. He'd had enough of explosions. He still had nightmares about the night Pettigrew blew up the street in front of him. And as he learned recently, he had flashbacks as well. He didn't want to trigger another one. But he had to act now. He had to...

They'd all explode. Like those Muggles, like Benjy, like Cedric.

He couldn't. There was another option. He didn't like it at all but...

"Sorry, Stacy." Sirius lifted his wand to the doorway. "Reducto." And cut loose a chunk of Stacy. If it didn't fall on them then it would obscure their view.

[dragonspooker]

Lina thought she had a moment to breathe, until plasma bolts started zipping past her. "WINDY SHIELD!" A barrier crops up around her while she ducks - and then Sirius cuts down part of the ship. If that would block the door long enough, maybe she could wind up something big to deal with the swarm of guys behind it...

[fate_favored]

These Kessek were organized, five plasma rifles firing in unison to cover three more that pushed the room with shields raised. The three in question attempting to flank the three magic users while the main firing line distracted them.

One of the Kessek firing from the doorway cursing as he caught Starfire's beam to the shoulder, a chunk of armour torn away though he kept firing, taking the female in question in particular as his target. That is until a large chunk of the ceiling suddenly fell before them, four managing to leap clear of it one unfortunate Kessek unable to get fully out of the way and was caught beneath the large chunk.

The four standing behind were quick to act however, three moving forward to use their immense strength to push the massive chunk of meaty ceiling clear while the fourth pulled their trapped companion free from beneath. The crew members had brought a short moment of distraction from the main force, however the three flanking Kessek began taking potshots in hopes of suppressing the magic users while their companions rejoined the fight.