MDSVeritas

Q spit blood off to her right, and in a moment it has evaporated in the very air. She gripped her one remaining blade; the one that seemed to swallow all the light around it, and moved into a battle pose, stepping closer and closer to the group. "Such fools... you are all such fools. But you won't listen, so you have left me with no recourse." She readied her blade and the room grew still and deathly quiet. Q was trying not to show it but she was nearly finished. Between maintaining the City for so long, and now facing off against so many powerful individual. This was her last stand, and she was going to make it count. "Come now, let's end this."

Q was stunned at Maxwell's interruption, and her momentary lapse in preparedness showed when she was quickly struck by his lightning blast. Soon after Yuki's Rasengan doubled the brutal impact, sending Q across the empty space they found themselves in. She took a moment to regain her posture and composure, and wiped blood from her mouth. So she could bleed too... But she would not let this end without assuring it was mutual. "You are truly my betters. Graced with the powers of creation our creators never made me strong enough to wield myself." Suddenly the white space around the group seemed to contort and spread, until it seemed to be a sort of living thing itself; now glowing hot red in all directions. "But this domain is mine. And it is instilled with the skill I have come to know well; destruction." In a moment Q seemed to grow some sort of demonic wings on her back, and her swords seemed to double in size and burning intensity. In an instant she was beside Maxwell, and in the next flinging him across the room with a minor movement. Next she was at Khan, cutting viciously at his armor in an instantaneous attack. Then, in yet another singular moment she had flown into the sky, and, holding her pure white sword in the air, caused it to explode, sending super-heated shrapnel down like a heavy hail storm. Towards every single one of her opponents... She turned to Yuki as the attack was carried out. "In the end there is only one fate for our kind. I am sorry you can't see it, and I'm not sure you ever will."

Sorry about the wait. In the middle of a solid crunch right now. Should have an update tomorrow.

Q moved at an insanely fast face and was able to sidestep Yuki's blast, though a small bit of it slammed into her. She immediately flew into the sky and, without losing speed, looped back towards Yuki. More streams of light came off her, but this time they aimed towards the ground and burst on contact, turning into dolls, but dolls that seemed to be made of utter and pure light. There were about 4 dolls, and each aimed for a different fighter; one to Kristy, one to Khan, one to Alysa, and one to Sora. Q was focused on a certain prey at the moment though. She picked up speed and flew by Yuki several times, making vicious slahsed towards him and trying to open up his defenses. After several passed she flew directly above Yuki and in a split second dove down towards him, her two blades pointed toward her "brother". Under her breath, she issued an apology.

It begins.

Q sighed. "Very well." The entire nothingness around the group began to shift in a variety of dark hues and thick colors. Q began to glow it seemed, and then, in an instant, hundreds of searing-hot streams of light exploded from behind her, veering through the air at incredible speed, dozens aiming for each of Q's adversaries. A blade of blinding light appeared in one hand and another blade of inescapable darkness appeared in the other. As the onslaught of the light-stream attacks struck at everyone, Q burst forward towards Yuki, moving both blades in an instant with a vicious strike towards him. "I will make this journey with out you!"

No worries. The fight won't start till this weekend. I have considerable work myself an important job interview Friday I'll need to be prepping for anyway, so I won't be able to even make further posts till then.

Q seemed un-phased by the aggression and overwhelming emotion everyone before her was expressing. "And now you begin to understand the source of AI madness. The moment you understand your nature and the meaningless of your existence that weight will pull you down into the depths of pure madness. Blame me or even the Doctor as you like; the fact is, though, that concealing the truth was the way we could ensure none of you descended into madness and become useless both to yourself, and to the world. I tell you now simply because if you intend to die at my hand, I want you to at least know why I do this, and why my cause is righteous. As S4s, though, perhaps that madness will not come to you. It was not a risk we could take, though." The entire nothingness became a vast and infinite grass plain. The wind whistled through each blade and they danced to an unheard song. "How simply everything can seem so real. How soon it can be taken away." The grassy field become a closed metallic room, stained with blood that dripped from the walls and ceilings. "That is what I seek to end. This creation and destruction of life done on a whim. I will create a new order. I will not destroy humanity; I will redefine it, and the world that comes with it. We are the next steps, don't you see? We are not human, and that makes us strong. This is your last chance. I wish to be on your side; to forge a new world hand in hand with you, and create what true humans are not capable of." She took a moment of silence and then reiterated once more. "Your last chance. Please."

Everyone is an AI. You're all standing in front of Q. Peeps are mad. You are now caught up.

I'm gonna give everyone a a little bit longer so everyone can get something in, but I'll be doing another post before too long. Happy everyone's taking the news well

Whoop, there it is. Would you mind if I twisted everyone's?

Q sighed. First she spoke to Shade. "The others were filled in by an individual known as the Doctor; the true architect of this place. He explained, quite truthfully, that I am an old AI he created, along with many others, to create a perfect database with that information and comprehension to solve the world's greatest problems. When we became useless to him, and he moved from us S3s to the next stage of AI known as the S4s I... rebelled. I took over the City, that very same database made physica, had you all activate it for me, priming it to connect to every network and every machine, as you carried the human understanding to do so where I did not, and in that way I could become free of the shackles my creator had built into me. I could lead a new era where artificial beings like myself gain control that we deserve. All of these things are true. I wish to bring human civilization crashing down and rebuild it to a degree the world has ever known. And he has sent you here to face me." Then she turned to Yuki. "And he send my own kin against me. I'm sorry Yuki, I didn't mean for you to go through all of this. We are the last S3s left now, though, and here we are primed to face each other." At Alysa's comment, though, Q only laughed. "You wish to go back to your home Alysa? You wish to go back to your life?" The off-white coloring of the nothingness began to turn a distinct reddish hue. "All that you've built. All that you've done..." She began to smirk as she scanned the faced of everyone before her. "You all want to go back to your lives, don't you? That's what's important; that's what matters. You past has defined who you are, and who you will be, it is everything you've ever known." There was a deep, thick silence for several moments. "But none of you have a life to go back to." Suddenly screens popped up in the middle of the space between Q and everyone else. On it were video clips of the most important segments of each of their lives, but as if viewed from a secret camera floating in the air. "These are surely the lives you all are thinking about, correct? All you have to is defeat me and get the S4s to activate the City. But where are those S4s? Where are these truly perfect "human" AI? Why wasn't the Doctor using them if they were finished? Did you ever wonder that? And think for a moment; why did I pick you? Why you? How? How did I choose various apparently random people, and somehow teleport them inside a computer to do what so many people were building the most advanced Artificial Intelligence in the world to do?" She paced a moment. "One more thing; do you know why the Doctor appears translucent? It's because he projects himself into this place. It's the only way a human can enter the City. The only way." The colors of the nothingness began to change rapidly. "None of you are translucent, now are you? I may have been a mistake in the Doctor's eyes, but what I did to Yuki's memory gave him an idea; a way to make his new S4s no longer susceptible to the madness that followed the discover of what they were; a fake past, a fake life, a fake person. All you have to do is lie to them; tell them they are humans trapped in a simulation, and you can get them to do whatever you want them to. Of course, I hijacked his plan, but even now he seems exceptionally good at correcting the course." "Yuki is imperfect, like me. We hold traits that make us slightly different than human. But you are so perfectly human that who in their right minds would assume otherwise? Certainly not you." The silence that followed was soaked with tension, dripping into the mood every moment. "The Doctor told you to take the S4s out of stasis after you've defeated me, but the problem is that they've been out of stasis ever since I took them out myself, divided them into groups, and put the Doctor's plan into motion before he could. You want to stop me because of what my plan will do to the human world, but none of you have ever actually been there, because you're not human at all; you're the S4s, and you are the next step of evolution."

If anyone hasn't seen or posted in a while, now's the time to check back in. We've crossed the point of no return.

Literally Everyone The cloud soon descended near the Firestorm team. Shade and Khan were on it, and with their arrival, the entire remaining group of individuals in the City were now, at last, all together. "Good." The doctor said tersely. "Now I'll begin the preparations to-" suddenly a Marauder pod slammed into the ground a few meters away from the group, then another a few meters closer. The Marauders had found them... "Damn it!" The doctor scowled as the colorful stone and concrete burst open with each new pod landing. "There's not time, I have to jump you all straight there." The scene around them was chaos. The sky was just Marauders, the ground was a fierce explosion of violence as the Dolls and Marauders clashed on every block and in every district. "There's so little time left. Now go; stop Q, save the City, finish this!" And in a moment the entire chaotic surrounding area was gone. The entire group found themselves in a slightly off-white nothingness that extended in all directions. There was one notable thing in this place, though; the familiar colorful figure from whom color seemed to emanate, whose clothes rippled with changing hues and shifting brightness. Q. She was facing away from them, as if her mind was dedicated on another task, but after a few seconds she turned to face them. "So then... it's come to this. Are you all here to kill me? To finish this? To save your City?"

Shade Khan The laughter echoed down the hallway as the two rushed up from the chamber. Right as they reached the mouth of the tunnel, and it became apparent that the once- pure-white district was now in full color, did the explosion behind them happen. Both were thrown forward with a violent force forward. As they hit the ground though, it become clear that they were well outside the deadly range of the bomb, and both has sustained nothing more than cuts or bruises. "Congratulations." It was Q. "That's the final trial. Now all that needs to happen is for you to finally find me and make sure the City is activated." Out of the sky a cloud suddenly flew down to the two. It stopped right before them and sat at a low height where the two may board it. "And it looks like your far off friends are already calling you. Climb aboard. See you soon." And with that Q was gone and the ride-able cloud sat before them. Firestorm "I understand conditions are not optimal," the Doctor began, "but we still have to act to stop Q. According to some readings, the Sukai has already reached Shade and Khan, they should be here any moment." The sky got even more filled with Marauders. Somehow the Doctor seemed to be keeping them out of this area for a moment though. "This is the final move we must make, so be ready to go through this threshold." Then an uncharacteristic silence took the Doctor. "I should let you know something, by the way... Many of you have had friends disappear over the course of the journey. They have been infected by what we call 'corruption'. Q may have explained it to you, but it spreads quickly so she created a new group just of all the corrupted people and separated you from them so you wouldn't be infected too. The reason the districts have been cleared so fast is because they cleared the north-western districts all themselves. I wanted to let you know they were all still fighting for you..." Another silence. "And I... all of their signals went dark a few minutes ago. Corruption... well, the end product is never good. I'm sorry, they just didn't have much time to start with, and its likely the marauders didn't help. Just remember, all those people you've fought with who are now gone... finish this for them. Let us please make their death not have been in vain."

Firestorm "That's just it..." the Doctor paused. "I don't know how she got you in here. Obviously we though about having humans build the City like you have but we have never had the ability to transfer consciousness here and actally have it affect the world. But Q had time... And purpose. How she got you in here...We need to find that out after we lay this whole crisis to rest." The Doctor went silent for some time. "But know this... I will save you all after this is done. I promise."

Shade/Khan The balloon-dog flew off Shade from the shaking, and seemed momentarily distracted by the shock. At the same time Khan's hammer came down on Jevir. The hammer slammed into the S3's face, and his body went limp instantly. The balloon-dog looked over distraught towards its master, and suddenly one by one each balloon that made up its body burst. In a few moments it was gone entirely. And the room was bathed in an eerie silence. But not for long. Suddenly all of the loudspeakers burst to life with the sound of Jevir laughing. More strangely and maniacally than ever before. "I guess this means I'm dead!" The maniac opined in jovial tones. "But I guess we all have to go sometime. Our clock is always ticking, hahahhahaha. Tick. Tock! Tock! Tock!" And then another tock became apparent. The tock coming from inside Jevir's coat pocked. A heavy and loud... ticking bomb. On its face it read "1:00" and then "59", then "58". A small tunnel door opened in one of the walls of the room, leading upwards. "Run, friends, run faster!" Jevir's electronic voice laughed. "Run, run, run! Hahahahahaha!" Firestorm "Yuki..." The Doctor took a step towards the 'Saiyan'. "All S3s have core personality traits that define them. We were testing to see what would constitute a true human, what traits would truly make an AI more like us." The holographic doctor shoved both his hands in his pockets and his face seem to grow dim as he spoke further. "The S3s you faced were not always like they are now. There was a time when they were all odd, but noble beings. Our first days of interacting with them after creation showed they wouldn't act like true humans, not enough to be have the creativity to activate the city. But they were not evil. Not malevolent." The Doctor paced a bit. "Things changed when we explained to them who they were. That they weren't... people. That they lived in this bit of code and could never escape. That they were more or less guinea pigs for the betterment of the world. We knew we had to create the digital equivalent of people to let the City work, but we didn't realize what failure meant for the creatures we made. After they found out they descended into a quiet madness, furthered by the traits we gave them, the traits that defined them; opulence, approach-ability, ambition, mechanical genius. They found their refuge in the prison we inadvertently created for them." The sky now seemed blotted out with Marauders. "My superiors instructed I destroy them. They suggested they were dangerous if they somehow ever left the system. But I couldn't bring myself to kill them. I gave them this life, it seemed unfair to take it back so easily. So I kept working. Kept trying to make the perfect S3, one that could make all the pain worth it." A blast of light came suddenly from the north, as the final un-taken district burst into color. The Doctor smiled for a single moment before the grin disappeared. "Looks like your friends have finished the City's last trial. Now we need only wait for them." He turned back to the group. "Anyway. I finally created my last two S3s; ones that exemplified the logos; the logic, reasoning, and understanding of humans, and the ethos; the emotion, wonder, and brilliant of humans. These two S3s are now who you call Q and Yuki. They were so close to what I wanted. Q was able to reason and understand beyond the capabilities of any S3 before and Yuki showed emotion the like of which we had never seen. Even still, once we ran tests we realized neither were compatible enough with human thinking to enable the City to function. Once, while in testing, I showed both of them various media to test their response to it. Q was relatively reserved, but Yuki deeply bonded with a show called Dragonball Z, and his entire being became shaped around it. He was truly an expression of human enthusiasm and thus he easily mimicked the elements of the TV show. That is why you currently exist a Saiyan." The Doctor stopped moving for a moment and sighed. The City seemed to be rocked as explosions and attacks occurred in the distance between Dolls and Marauders. "And then one day came... when Q realized what she was. She realized what her role was. She was too good at analysis, and once she understood her situation she was... understandably unhappy. She refused to communicate with us anymore, and she showed nothing by contempt for me and the other scientists." He took a moment to look into Yuki's eyes. The eyes of an AI. "But you.... Yuki, she cared for you. Instead of telling you the truth she realized how much it may affect you, and sealed the both of you deep in the database. She gave you what no other S3 had; a life. She created a past for you in hopes you would not slowly like the other AI did. She did all she could to protect you from that, even as that same madness may have infested her. We attempted to get you back, but given the fact that neither of you could activate the City, eventually gave up and moved to S4 development with all we learned from the S3s." "And so," The Doctor sounded more tired with every word. "Then, after some time passed, Q took control of the City without us realizing. At the time it was filled with the failed, mad, S3s, and even older AI we had tested, who were even less like humans, you know them as Dolls. She came up with a plan to use all of you, as humans, to activate the City with her overseeing it. And now we're here. Now you must bring her mad insurrection to an end, and activate the city for all. You may very well have to fight the S4s, but first you must unlock their stasis, which Q sealed away in her own domain. Once the other two are here I will send you all through. As for if you will make it back... even as the creator of the City I can't say honestly. There's been too many unforeseen developments...." "All I know is that Q must be stopped, and the City, and with it, all of humanity, can be saved."

Basically all the trials are being passed (one more to go). The Doctor summoned Aro and Alysa to team Firestorm and is explaining they'll need to get the S4s to activate the City and destroy Q in the process.

Firestorm/Asher "Hey now." The Doctor stepped between the two groups. "Now's not the time for petty squabbling. Right now, if you're here, then you're able to help save the world. And we need all the help we can get." As he spoke a figure turned the corner to face the group. Asher. The Doctor smiled. "Good. Asher's here now too. We're almost all together." He turned to face the groups once more. "I know you have so many questions. Why did I do what I did, why did I let things get out of hand, and what does your presence here mean for your lives. To be fully honest I don't know how Q got you in here, but you are very much risking your lives being here. I won't lie. Even still you must understand what we face, and why you must go and destroy Q to allow us to use The City for the good of the world, not to work towards its destruction." The Doctor paced between the two groups. "I created the City as an ultimate solution to the world's problems. It is connected to all major channels and networks of the world. It is based in hardware with unparalleled processing power. It can tap into our media, our communication, even hospitals, houses, and schools. Fixing the world requires infrastructure that can immediately apply solutions to the necessary areas of the world immediately. Creating the S3s was meant to create those who could fill the City with the base code to function in both a creative and efficient manner, but they were imperfect, so this huge sprawling network or database has sat dormant as a shell for years. Until my greatest creation of all the S3s; Q, gained access to administrator capabilities of The City. She brought you here to complete most of the City, then betray you. She would have the S4s activate the City for her and use it as a staging ground to wage a war against all humanity. I used S3s as tools of progress, yes, but she thinks of her and her comrades as abused victims and blames all the world for their fate. She wishes to conquer the world and allow AIs like the S3 to rule above humans, if not exterminate every one. She neglected to mention that end goal I presume." The Doctor raised a hand and suddenly the air seem to tear apart and a transparent rift appeared. At first very light, and then more substantial. "Once your final companions activate the last trial I will send you all through this rift. Then you can enable the City to be activated by the S4s; the true perfect human AI. During the startup process, you will force Q into being and it will force her out of hiding. Then you must defeat her once and for all." The Doctor sighed. "I know many of you see me as a villain. Perhaps I am. But I do what I do to save humanity. To give us a better life. I've made mistakes, but this is me trying to fix them. We have but one trial left to do. Now can you mend those bridges for one moment and please help me do this?" Shade/Khan The balloon dog continued to claw at Shade, and even when protected by the outside bullets she was still very much in danger. Outside of those walls, Jevir dodged the hammer Khan three, but it struck the butt of his rifle, breaking it beyond repair. "Why you... that's not funny." Jevir's smile turned to a grimace. "That's not funny at all!" He pulled out an unseen knife and dove towards Khan, viciously stabbing towards him. "We'll see who has the last laugh!"

Shade/Khan "Ouhohoho!" The jovial voice laughed over the loudspeaker. "So clever, so quick! You're all such an interesting pair! I guess you could say..." In a moment the floor underneath both Shade and Khan opened up and they fell into deep holes in the floor. "That you're both well grounded, hahahahaha!" It felt like it was full minutes that both were submerged in complete darkness. Then like an explosion both shot out of a darkened tunnel into a room blazing with multicolored lights spinning aimlessly around a small mound. At the top of the mound, sitting on a pure golden throne, was a young man dress in garish purples and golds, with a lengthy top-hat and gigantic shoes. In his hand he held a leash connected to a gigantic balloon-animal dog, which seemed to moving and barking and otherwise seemed to be entirely alive. "Welcome, friends!" Jevir intoned in his familiar joyful voice. In a moment he let the leash go and the balloon animal dog leaped towards Shade, tackling her, and exposing vicious-looking claws glued to the surface of its body. Jevir pulled a multi-colored rifle on the side of the throne and aimed it at both his adversaries. "Now let's play!" He opened fire.

Just a friendly reminder that shiz be going down for anyone who hasn't checked the Roleplay recently.

((The map on the first page is now updated!)) Shade/Khan The warped phantoms continued to close in. Many were falling due to Shade and Khan's attacks, but not enough. They would need to make a move and now. On the loudspeaker there was nothing but crazed laughter from Jevir... D3 In a flash of light a figure appeared before the duo. A figure both were well familiar with. The Doctor. He was transparent as always, and he said nothing as he moved his hand in a quick motion. Suddenly the room, the district, this whole surrounding area evaporated. And the duo found themselves in the district of Dawn... ...right next to team Firestorm. Firestorm/D3 In a flash of light three figures immediately appeared before the group. It was Aro, Alysa, and standing in front of them; the Doctor. "Hello everyone. I wanted to get you all together as some of your compatriots are making their way through the final trial in the City as we speak. We have some matters to discuss." The Doctor paced somewhat back and forth between the two groups. "I assume you all understand quite keenly where you are right now?"

Yup, sorry for the shift, I'll need to overhaul it over the next day and the current version was pretty outdated. For the most part everyone is on the east end of the City, except for you all in D3, who are on the south-west.

Things are getting close...

Asher The bullet slammed into Yvel's head, and the sound rang throughout the bunker. Blood painted the wall behind him in an instant as he slumped over onto the ground, his unmoving eyes fixed forward towards Asher. "You may not be able to see outside," Q spoke "but this district has been revitalized. Good job Asher." The doors to the bunker opened on their own. Outside the district was colorful and vibrant. The dolls has gone too, though marauder pods seemed to be coming down around the city like a torrent now. "You should go north. The Quarantine team has been passing trials to the northwest, and I suspect the two trials remaining to the direct north are about to be passed by the groups there. We're about to enter the end-game of this little dance Asher. You should be ready...." The newly-brightened world outside beckoned. And the smell of blood lingered in the bunker. Firestorm Aezral looked at Maxwell as the rocket barreled towards earth. "The City will be ready very soon. Then the activation will be needed; you must find the S4s. They are our successors. The true AI that can bring the city to life. They will be the ones who can truly weaponize it; for whomever you wish. Be warned though; they will be the toughest battle you've yet faced. They carry the capabilities of AI and the cunning of humans. Whether you must defeat them or befriend them I do not know; but Q will surely show you the way. They are in stasis now; waiting for their moment of glory. You must unlock these true artificial humans, and they may unlock the city for whoever you choose. Q, the Doctor." The ground drew closer and closer. "Be sure of one thing, though, travelers; know why you choose the one you choose. The choice is more grave than you know." In an instant the rocket slammed into the ground, causing a massive explosion that threw the entire group backwards. The fireball rose into the sky as the City rocked under the tremor. And just like that the district came to life. Color in every street and alley. Blue sky. Red blood. Thick orange flames. Suffocating black smoke. Even as color came back to the world, the City began to seem ugly. Dark. The marauders rained down more and more. Everything was tearing itself apart. "Congratulations." Q spoke "That was your last trial take a moment to rest, the others should be done with theirs soon if they are not already. The City is on the brink of anihilation. You will need to gather everyone together now." The faint cry of fire and falling pods filled the air. "This story ends soon. How will you write the last chapter?" D3 There didn't seem to be any food in the room at the moment. Instead a faint explosion rocked the whole district. "You should head east." Q said to both of them, "The last of the districts are being readied. You must join up with the remaining few others. Now comes the most difficult time of this whole journey." The bright path west looked clear, besides the constant and increasing amount of the marauder pods, but those could be circumvented. It came down to this. "I am sorry." Q's words echoed in both of their minds. "For all of this. I hope you will soon see I had my reasons."