6994/Shi'ar: On the Run from the Law

Shi'ar: On the Run from the Law
Date of Scene:	19 July 2021
Location:	Hyperspace
Synopsis:	Picking up her distress signal, the Milano rescues Lilandra from pursuit by the heavy cruiser T'Korr. There's a bit of 'Imperial Diplomacy' with heavy weapons and energy constructs, a zero-G rescue, and Rocket flips off a galaxy-spanning Empire. Typical day for the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Cast of Characters:	Jean Grey, Groot, Peter Quill, Phyla-Vell, Gamora, Rocket, Drax

---

Jean Grey has posed:
Space IS in fact really big, and for all its grandeur, mostly empty. It functions at a scale incomprehensible to the majority of it's own inhabitants, beings bound to finite planetary existences. Near endless trillions, living and dying within a veritable stone's throw of their place of birth. Yet in all its great vastness comes an equal diversity, in the forms and variety of life, and in their development, their technological communion with the larger universe.

Take the oddball, mishmatched crew of the Milano, for instance. For them, space is just their great big back yard.

The ship had been traveling for some time, between whatever points A and B constituted the most recent of its crew's many adventures and their next. Even this is a simplification: to get anywhere useful in a place so large, A->B travel becomes more complicated, a straight line only when one reckons more than three dimensions. To some, this would be mind blowing, but for the crew, it is... a slow day. Night. Whatever. They are traveling, and for once, not much is happening.

That can't last.

A signal. It comes across faintly at first, pinging the equipment in earshot of whoever happens to be up and about. Like their mode of travel, it is exotic: When the typical planetary citizen thinks of communication, they are really imagining the shockwaves that constitute sound, perpetuating through the air... an impossibility in space. Or perhaps they think of electromagnetic communication, whether by wire and cable (this too quite impractical in an empty void) or even by radio, the latter still bounded by the sluggish speed of light. Still far too slow, in something so big as all of this. This signal is none of those things. It has an EM component, true, but one contained within a spacial flexure, bent along similar strange geometries as their present mode of travel. To a traditional terrestrial triangulation, it would be incomprehensible, seeming to come from every point in space simultaneously.

But to a citizen of this great nothing, it's not that strange. There is some mild signal preturbance, distortion, but it is quite comprehensible to someone proficient with this sort of technology. It's precisely what you would get if another ship traveling outside of real space (and possibly not precisely in the same hyperspace, but on a vaguely adjacent higher-dimensional trajectory) was blasting a signal in every direction while careening toward it's ultimate 3-dimensional endpoint.

It seems like a distress signal. "... message ... aid ... Neramani ... under attack .... please ..."

Groot has posed:
Groot says, ""I am Groot" He looks concerned and tries to boost the signal trying to determine what it is saying twisting several knobs back and forth, boosting the signal again and again but attempting that and stroking his chin in though."

Peter Quill has posed:
Peter Quill has ELO's "Mr. Blue Sky" blasting over the speakers as the distress call comes in, he's got his feet up on his console tapping his hand on his leg to the music until the blinking light announcing an incoming message catches his eye.

The music is turned down and Quill says, "Guys got something..." but then Groot's already boosting the signal. "Good job, Groot, you seeing any signs of who's on the other end. I don't recognize that name, Neramani."

Phyla-Vell has posed:
    Phyla's foot is tapping to the beat of Mr. Blue Sky. She shakes her head and takes another bite of the gnug leg in her hand. "Where did you say you found this meat Drax?" The big guy is full of surprises, the least of which is his excellent choice in meats. "Because I have to say.. this is really really good."

    Her meal and good tunes are disrupted by a *sqrkl* on her left Q-band. The signal comes through 'under attack'. She turns suddenly and peers toward the cockpit. Groot is already there working that angle.

    Phyla puts down the gnug leg and moves to the cockpit, "Who, where, what?"

Gamora has posed:
    Groot's starting to make a little sense to Gamora, and that's vaguely worrying.

    Luckily(???) she has too much on her mind right now. They're rapidly approaching the boonies of space, her sister is willingly-but-not-super-willingly in the clutches of the most dangerous known man in the Galaxy, and Rocket has already vomited on the bridge once in recent memory.

    Also there's a distress signal now.

    "Who but us would come out here? Gamora asks somewhat rhetorically in response to Quill, before she turns a more focused ear to the broadcast. Gamora frowns. "That's... Neramani is the Royal Family of the Shi'ar Empire." That is incredibly hard to believe, but the Guardians' collective luck IS baffling, historically.

Rocket has posed:
Rocket's been down in the lab, the workshop, the creation center, whatever fits. Working on a project, which in his case typically means another gun of some kind.

One of the nice things about the void and emptiness of space is it's easier to do things and get away with them without others finding out. It could be ages before someone learns of some random thing on some outpost that's even more out of the way than the last.

Though he's busy with something he considers important, he's got ship's comms up in order to catch any chatter that means anything. When the signal comes in, he pipes up. "Neramani? Sounds like something I ate on that planet you come from, Quill. But where I hear 'under attack' and 'please,' I hear 'profit.'"

He's not especially political, so the name doesn't trigger any recognition in him yet. Presumably they'll let him know if they need to see him, and he adds, "Shi'ar? I heard a little about them. Bird-like or something. Probably stuffy. Anyway, keep me posted. I'm in the middle of something down here for when we pay Thanos a visit."

Jean Grey has posed:
A few adjusments and subsequent scans quickly reveal more facts of relevance:

The relative coordinates (expressed in the bizarre higher math that is necessary outside of 3d space) of them and the signal. Soon, a reading of a vessel at the source of the signal. Low mass, but high energy output.

And soon after, a second vessel. Much more mass, and even higher output, although the increase in the 2nd is not quite proportional to the increase in the first.

As they improve their scans, the message also quickly resolves: "To anyone receiving this message, I implore your aid. I am Lilandra Neramani, second daughter of the royal family of Chandilar. My ship is under attack, an extrajudicial execution for fabricated crimes. Please: you are my only hope."

Drax has posed:
"Mengani.  Yes.  I know this place."  Drax announces as if he spends his summer months there just after Peter admits he doesn't recognize it.  "The man who eats rats came from there."  This was a guy Drax let talk at him for 2 hours while he ate a pile of sandwiches at one of their pit stops.

"I found it in a trap in the hangar."  Drax looks over to see the precious gnug leg.  "Oh.  We still have those?"

Then, before anyone has a chance to reply, "We are her hope!"

Groot has posed:
Groot says, "I am Groot...." He crosses his arms but his eyes say what needs to be said. He is fully in support of engaging the ship engaged in the assault. And in point of fact he is, while he doesnt think himself a hero he grows tired of the thuggery exhibited by so many out here and is up for finally doing something about it.

Peter Quill has posed:
Daughter, royal family, only hope, that's all the mysterious voice on the other end of the distress call had to say. "Time to play Star Wars guys," he says as he checks the distances and tries to get a scan on the attacking ship. "I mean I'm more of a Han Solo than a Luke, but hey this'll do," rambles the guy from the middle of knowhere with strange powers and never knew his dad.

Snappointing to Drax, "Right you are, let's go help her out," he taps the intercom. "Rocket, looks like we might need you up here. Phylla, you too."

Gamora has posed:
    "... Sounds complicated." Is Gamora's appraisal of the complete message. Ironically it took her a little bit to say that as she tried to mentally work her way around the longer way of saying it that's been her habit the last lifetime or so.

    Gamora stares at Groot blankly for a moment, trying to process his speech, and then looks out to the viewscreen. Her response to what she THINKS Groot said is: "There will be no earth cheese there. Only war-" Gamora winces at Drax's sudden outburst, looks from him, to Peter, to her instruments, and flatly says, "... Indeed." Before she begins to fiddle with her console. "Arming weaponry."

Rocket has posed:
Rocket grumbles from his safe space. "We keep doin' stuff like this, others are gonna start expecting it all the time. All along, I thought 'Guardians of the Galaxy' was just a way to get everyone to think we're heroes or something, and give us free drinks and shit for it."

They /have/ been living up to it more often than not, and it bothers the irascible little creature.

"Fine, fine. I'm on my way. This better be good. Star what, Groot? What fake moons?" Leaving his project to be continued later, assuming there /is/ a later, he trudges his way along in the ship until his head's poking up into the bridge with the rest of them already mostly present before he climbs up into his own seat in the forward cockpit. "So what's all this about made-up crimes? I gotta deal with that crap all the time. Are we shooting someone again?"

Phyla-Vell has posed:
    "Royalty. On the run? Huh.. this is going to get messy." Phyla states the obvious and moves behind Gamora. "Can we get a visual on what's chasing her. I'll literally go out there and punch them if I need to." The trajectory, intercept, she knows the crew knows their stuff. For this, she is a weapon. A weapon ready to move on a moments notice.

Jean Grey has posed:
In this higher-dimensional mode of travel, 'where,' 'which way,' and 'how fast' can all yield somewhat vague answers. But as Quill runs his scans and normalizes their courses towarrd an intercept, a certain fact may stand out: the smaller ship's original heading is set toward a familiar G-type star located on the Orion arm of the Milky Way, at about eight parsecs from the galactic center.

Sol.

But it comes up a little short.

Scans register a few things, an energy discharge, and the rather abrupt and unceremonious return of one vessel to realspace, followed by the other. Although they are picking up the chase from... hundreds? Maybe more light years away, the different spatial geometries mean they catch up very quickly once the other two vessels have left Hyperspace. And there, as the 'real' space comes snapping back in, a vast canvas of black dotted with distant stars, they see a not unexpected scene: Big ship (its hull two large crescents set perpendicular, like a cross made of wings), small ship (oval, with a front cockpit that looks kind of like bug eyes), and weapons fire between. It IS a little like Star Wars.

But the Millenium Falcon wasn't there to save the Tantive IV. They're changing up the script. And not surprisingly, the Empire has something to say about it:

"Unidentified vessel, this is the Shi'ar cruiser T'Korr. We are in pursuit of a dangerous criminal, and advise that you hold distance." The message is sent in both audio and video (if one cares to look, the latter depicting a human-like face with a large crest of black feathers in place of hair.

Also, 'advise' might be underselling it. Because as soon as the Milano gets much closer, the larger vessel immediately fires, missing off the port bow.

A warning shot.

Phyla-Vell has posed:
    "Earth? Why is everyone headed to Earth all of a sudden," Phyla-Vell wonders. This whole crew had been there and apaprently they were 'less insignificant' than everyone claimed. May be that's why Mar-Vell went to live there. She will find out soon enough.

    The immediate attack upon the small vessel is absolutely not how one takes in a 'dangerous criminal'. "Right. You goes go offence and retrieval. I'll go defence." She frowns and turns, running to the airlock.

    Jumping out in to the dark of space, her body begins to glow as bright as a small sun. Quasar is here. She shoots across the void to move between the big ship and the little ship. Over her Q-bands she tunes in to their frequency, "My name is Quasar and if you do not stand down there WILL be repercussions."

    Quasar is not not known. She is half Kree, half Titan and works with both Xandar and Hala. She has been known to stop wars single handedly. Reputations are great like that. And now the glowing figure floats in space, keeping pace with the two vessels.

Groot has posed:
Groot says, "I am Groot." He makes a vague wookie like sound that is....odd to say the least. The least human sound to ever come out of him, almost bear like with a side of seal and a dash of buzz saw. He is now messing with the shields in an attempt to strengthen them since he cant do what he really wants to do. In a hand to hand fight he can shoot or crush about 99% of any foe he fights, and its rare that he isnt the strongest or close to the strongest being in the room, but right now he wishes the Milano was a bit heavier armed.

Gamora has posed:
    Gamora's lips press into a tight line as the warning shot flies past them, taking a deep, calming breath throug her nose, before softly announcing, "I want to kill them."

    That is impractical, at best, but... they just killed the Dark Aster with the power of friendship. She kinda feels like they could.

    "Wait!" Gamora calls after Phyla as she leaves, eyes wide with alarm, until the viewscreen picks up Phyla flying towards the dreadnaught. "... She can do that?" She asks blankly, before shaking her head and manning the controls. "Moving to intercept." She says as she assists in the various controls to bring them closer to the comically outclassed fugitive's ship, and opens a channel of communication to them. "Milano to Neramani, approaching your vessel; prepare to board immediately, we are..." Gamora leans a bit to glance at their weaponry's energy output, "... *not* equipped to destroy your persuer right now."

Drax has posed:
"They have shot us first!  We must respond!"  Drax looks to Phyla-Vell and says, "They have good meats.  More than all you can eat," he explains.  "It would be obvious to you if you had stepped in my steps."  Apparently this is important enough to impart at the moment, or maybe it's just this might be the umpteenth time some big ship has interrupted his conversation in the last week.

Drax gets up.  He's one of those guys.  Likes to walk around when the fasten your seatbelt sign is still on.  "Board how?"

Rocket has posed:
The travel is about the most normal thing about this for Rocket. There have been moments he's shown a willingness to help those in need, and it hasn't always been for personal profit first. Somewhere in there is a being that will do the right thing from time to time, particularly when it involves someone he's come to care about.

Don't tell anybody.

As they arrive on the scene, he rests his head in his little hands. "Why did it have to involve Earth again? I mean, I know we were already supposed to go there for a different thing, so this is kinda good timing, but--" His eyes narrow as the warning is issued to them, the warning shot sent in their direction. He can tell by the trajectory of the fire that it's meant to miss, but it only draws a low hiss out of him.

"And I was about to ask if they were compensating for something with the size of that ship. Nobody fires on me without a good reason and gets away with it."

But Gamora kind of said it: they don't have the firepower to retaliate properly. It's going to mean some creative flying. Fortunately, Rocket's on the job. "These birdbrains can get bent. The ones that shot at us, I mean. The other birdbrains, I guess we gotta get them out of here." Such an inconvenience.

Jean Grey has posed:
There is a brief pause in the communications. Perhaps someone is checking who the lone woman in space is.

"This is a matter of Shi'ar internal security, regarding an Imperial citizen. We do not recognize the jurisdiction of any of your patron worlds in this part of space. Kree intervention would be a treaty violation. Stand down."

And then the ship fires again, a more extensive volley, although it is perhaps noteworthy that they do not target any of the weapons on the woman floating in space, tiny by comparsion even to the fleeing vessel. Still, both the Milano (and maybe her, if she detects such things) can register the cruiser's shield output going to max in anticipation of whatever she might do.

Regardless, peace will not carry the day. At first, they are firing only on their apparent main target, although as the Milano begins maneuvering in, the weapons batteries on the nearer of the ship's 'wings' begin firing on the new arrival.

Meanwhile, as the Milano nears, the fleeing ship is obviously already damaged, an engine leaking burning plasma in space behind it. Still, it veers closer, as best it can.

"-vessel. This ... Lilandra Neramani. I must ... Earth. Must warn-" Then a pause, as she registers Gamora's request. "-porter offline. Integrity failing ... docking seal ..."

Groot has posed:
Groot pushes a lot buttons trying to make the ship go faster and trying to strength shields and increase communications and readying the docking clamps primarily from frustration at not being able to pick a large rock and throw it at the Shiar cruiser. "I am Groot." He grumbles to himself muttering a bit like a crazy person.

Phyla-Vell has posed:
    Phyla said she'd be on defence. Now she wishes she said she'd be on offence. But they have a point.. she can't attack them. That doesn't mean she can't defend from them. As the volley of shots are taken at the smaller ship. She moves like a swish of light.

    The Shi'ar are about to see Quasar in action for the first time. Quantum energy begins to build up about her which can be picked up by their sensors. The cosmic energy flows through it and a physical object is created from nothing. A shield, a large shield that intercepts the blasts toward the ship. Phyla leaves it floating there as she moves again, making another, an array of shields that bob in space obscuring the shots at the smaller ship.

    "I acknowledge your condition, but I will not allow you to shoot either of these vessels. Stand down and we can resolve this peacefully." She scowls, "And damnit Shi'ar vessel if you take one more shot I will MAKE this an intergalactic issue. If you think the Kree Hegemony won't willing fight you for this aggression you are sorely mistaken."

Gamora has posed:
    Gamora furrows her brow. They don't really have a teleport receiver, anyway, but. "Is she saying her dock isn't working?" Gamora ponders this. "Milano to Neramani - do not fully copy. Reccommend you acquire a space suit, step away from the dock, and hold onto something very tightly." She broadcasts to Liliandra, then looks to Rocket, "Can we blow their dock open without destroying the whole ship?"

    Another volley of laser fire goes past them, and Gamora barely resists the absurd impulse to try to duck under it. "... Quickly preferably."

    "Groot, focus!"

Rocket has posed:
"Yeah, Groot. We get through this and we'll get some better weapons on this thing. First things first," Rocket says hastily to his wooden friend, clearly more focused on flying with all the evasive maneuvers he can manage. "You keep those shields up, and that'll buy us a little time!" he relays to Quasar.

He gestures toward the rest of the crew, pointing toward below-deck. "If we can't dock, I'll get us close and we can make an opening. You'd better suit up too, 'cause I'm thinking opening the cargo doors is the way to go here. Get there, get things open, get them on, boom. Maybe we just go down to Earth after all. And if anyone wants to try stopping us, we got Drax to punch 'em."

Gamora has posed:
    Gamora nods sharply and dashes out of the bridge without a word, suiting up quickly and moving to the cargo bay.

Groot has posed:
Groot says, "I am Groot," and does just that, focusing on the shields. And as he focuses, he finds reserves of power he hasnt tapped before to be a shield within the shield Quasar is making."

Jean Grey has posed:
"No daughter of the Empire fears the Kree!" Apparently that threat riles up a certain patriotic fervor, the even, bureaucratic tone of the prior messages replaced by one more ardent.

But where Quasar's diplomacy may fail, her shields do a better job. Springing into existence one-by-one, each blocks a shot, the huge energy output of the cruiser's guns redirected a into the cosmic fields, creating a unique sort of light show between the vessels. But they do not stop shooting. They are the vanguard of the Empire, and their conduct carries the spirit of their people. They are Empire builders, and they do not bow to any threat.

"-understood," comes Lilandra's voice, amidst the chaos. "-can make ... opening. Please... ready."

It is up to Phyla-Vell how she chooses to retaliate, but the awesome firepower of the cruiser does not relent, and as a simple matter of practicality, it is difficult for her to stop every shot. She stops enough that there is room for the Milano to maneuver, but it's shields flare with the occasional near-hit. And somewhere in there, the smaller ship takes another one. Although the ship doesn't explode, its own shield bubble flaring one last time, that is apparently the last of those defenses it has, the energy overload from the impact causing the burning engine to flare out in a small plasma explosion and then go dead.

The small ship continues, because things always keep moving in space, unless you stop them. As it sails, uncontrolled, a hatch blows out on one side, and a figure steps out. A lithe humanoid, in a silver suit with a crested helmet. Like the vessel trying to destroy her, she shows no hesitation:

She jumps.

Phyla-Vell has posed:
    "Ahh hell," Quasar says and turns on the cruiser. "Forgive me Moondragon.. you know I cannot help myself," comes the soft little prayer over the Guardian's comms. This cruiser isn't going to stop. Odds are they won't go to war with the Kree over this. The two empires aren't that stupid.

    The quantum energy begins to build again and this time she constructs a dish, not a shield. She moves in to position and reflects the next blast from them back at them. Back at those max shields. She smirks and drags her new dish with her as she moves. That beautiful lightshow becomes an intense beam between the glow of Quasar and the glow of their own shields absorbing their own fire.

    "Be quick, I won't be able to keep this up forever," Phyla warns her friends on the Milano.

Gamora has posed:
    Gamora swiftly attaches a lifeline to her suit, and smacks the button that opens the cargo bay's ramp. It opens gradually, but Gamora doesn't wait for it. She runs towards the ramp and leaps out into space towards Lilandra, reaching out to catch Lilandra by the hand, and reel them both in to the Milano, if she can.

Jean Grey has posed:
The cruiser keeps firing... until the point where it's own batteries are turned back against it. 'Stop hitting yourself' may take on a bit of a new meaning here. And while no communication reports their thoughts for posterity, it is not hard to imagine some confusion and frustration upon the cruiser's bridge. Finally, they stop.

For a few moments.

Then they start shooting against, although Quasar can feel the change: they've changed the output of the weapons, firing at lower intensity, perhaps at a point where they've calculated their own shields can outlast the returned fire until her own deflection field gives way. Maybe. Or maybe it's just pride at this point. Either way, someone on that bridge is shouting about reversed polarities and Shi'ar equivalent of EPS conduits.

Regardless, its cover, cover enough for Lilandra and Gamora as they sail toward each other through the blackness of space, and for the Milano as it sails alongside her now exploding scoutship. Through the void, a silver-gloved hand reaches out and grips her own. They hang there a moment...

Just in time to see a half-dozen glowing forms energize into existence around them in space. Each wears a strange black and silver armored suit, with a crystal set in its chestpiece, and huge, metallic wings over their arms.

A flock of raptors.

... and then the cable retraction pulls, and they're sailing back toward the cargo bay of the Milano, the strange suited soldiers turning as one to pursue.

Groot has posed:
Groot operates cargo arms and thrusters and small bursts of the shields as he can. The Milano isnt his but it is his home and he is adept at using her and so several of the things trying to grab the ship are held off for a bit.

Rocket has posed:
Rocket keeps tabs on the proceedings outside the ship, Gamora's suit having a beacon in it that makes it no trouble at all to track the location of in relation to the Milano. She's still tied to the ship as it is, with the line clipped to the suit, and he pulls up a visual of the rescue in progress. "Shiny," he muses, regarding the armor-like suit the one being rescued wears.

Once they're back on board one way or another, and the door to the cargo bay is shut again, his voice comes through. "This is your captain speaking. I've turned on the fasten your seatbelt sign, 'cause it's about to get a little bumpy in here." And, he doesn't say, upside-down and sideways and various other directions, for he jerks the ship toward one side in further evading what's fired their way after the scout ship has been destroyed.

"And hey, rescued lady, you got a place you want us to take you? This ain't a free ride." In the process of asking this, he brings the Milano past the bridge of the extra large ship, pulling up the hailing frequencies. This time it's /his/ voice and a video image of him /they/ see. "Hey, losers. You just got beat by the Guardians of the Galaxy, and we got a little message for ya."

While buzzing the ship, he very clearly shows them the middle finger of both hands, along with a sneer.

Phyla-Vell has posed:
    Quasar smirks to herself as they stop firing, then switch to low intensity shots. She lets the mirror float away and turns to see the Milano doing a fly by. <See you on Earth> A small salute to her friends. Yes friends. She even likes Rocket. Hard not to, he's all truth and attitude. <I'll blind their sensors while you escape. May be hide on Earth>

    Phyla turns and moves in a swish of light and then draws her gauntlets up as if to shoot at the cruiser. Hopefully they flinch on that bridge. The two Q-bands clash together in a bright flash that rips through the sensors as she jumps to light speed and disappears.

Gamora has posed:
    Gamora closes the cargo bay ramp, and grunts as she lands in a crouch when gravity comes back into affect. Breathing heavily, she merely notes to Liliandra, quickly, "You should hold on to something."

Groot has posed:
Groot grins and looks at Peter as Rocket calls himself the captain. He joins in a split screen with rocket at the middle finger.

Jean Grey has posed:
Those video communicators do work 2-way by default, which allows Rocket the satisfaction of seeing a bridge full of Shi'ar -- along with various officers of a few other alien species, familiar and otherwise -- looking on, and then back and forth amongst themselves, with varied looks of shock, indignity, confusion and perplexion as they watch a small racooon-like being flip off their mighty galaxy-spanning Empire. This is a new one in the history of the great Shi'ar, although one imagines it will not make the books.

And since they just happen to be up on the display, it is possible to see a few of them suddenly squint or just look (or frustratedly jab fingers) at their control panels before the video feed cuts out, presumably alongside their sensors.

It's time enough for them to power the engines and be gone before their pursuers have recallibrated.

Meanwhile, on the floor of the cargo bay, Gamora finds that the silver-armored woman may be a little worse for the wear of the whole thing than her stoic demeanor let on. She has strength enough to reach up and touch the side of her helmet, causing the faceplate to retract while leaving the metal feather-cover still raised, revealing her delicate features beneath. She coughs once, perhaps a sign of mild oxygen deprivation from the plasma fires, or other hardships. "T-thank you, I-" The ship jerks, and she clutches closer to Gamora for support. "Please you must... I must find Charles Xavier, on Earth."

With that, she passes out in the assassin's arms, as the Milano leaps back into Hyperspace.