16 Planetary Domination

Ordis is happily calculating the Limbo Theorem, Helminth is working on the intermediate Nidus strain, and Nyx is here with me on Olympus, Mars. I had Ordis construct an accessory for Nyx's frame that would allow her to act as ship Cephalon, while in contact with the primary interface, as well as a device for detecting and reading void imprints. As soon as those were ready, I transferred inside Gara, left the others to their tasks, and headed here, with Nyx, to begin the search for Mirage. For her first task as acting ship Cephalon, I tasked Nyx, with using the special glass made by Gara to fashion a war hammer, a shotgun, and a throwing weapon, based on my design suggestions. Once they were finished constructing, Ivara, Nyx, and Myself left the Orbiter and headed for Olympus. 

     Once we arrive, our scanners lead us to an Infested Ship wreck. I head in with my newly acquired Gara to soak up that sweet not so juicy dispersed energy. Ivara and Nyx follow a safe distance behind, while remaining invisible, scanning for void imprints, and picking off any strays. 

     By the time all of the Infested have been cleared out, Gara is at level twenty and we've acquired a broken piece of equipment, a type of armor maybe, that holds the void imprint. We head back to the Orbiter and begin extracting and deciphering the void imprint. The imprint reveals the genetic code required to synthesize a Hemocyte Progenitor Cell of the Mirage warframe. It also contains a riddle that hints at the location of another imprint. When asked about this, I tell Nyx not to worry about it as I already know the next location. 

     We then leave for Calypso, Saturn and Charybdis, Sedna. We retrieve the respective imprints, from each location, and return to The Tau-er. Once all of this is done, Gara and her weapons are all level thirty. 

     Inside the Tenno Lab, Nyx takes to the task of crafting the Bio-cartridge. With the Bio-cartridge finished, we immediately set the Founder to making our Mirage a reality. 

     "Ah, Operator, it's good to see you. I apologize for not greeting you upon your arrival. I was quite engrossed with the Limbo Theorem. It's truly an astonishing concept and the practical applications are even more impressive."

     "Not a problem, Ordis. I was the one who tasked you with solving the Theorem. I fully expect you to be engrossed with it. Tell me, have you made any progress?"

     "Indeed, I have, Operator. While I haven't quite figured out how to construct the Limbo warframe, I am rather close to being able to detect the rift itself. An accomplishment that will make solving the rest of the Theorem quite a bit easier. Of course, I almost certainly could not have accomplished even this much if not for your insights, Operator. The advice you gave me at that time has been immensely useful."

     "Well, I'm certainly glad to hear my advice was useful but even more excited at the prospect of being able to detect the rift dimension. This is truly wonderful news, Ordis. Keep up the good work and keep me updated on your progress."

     "Of course, Operator. I'm also finding the nature of this Mirage to be quite intriguing as well. Not as interesting as Limbo but more so than Gara. That being said, I should get back to the Theorem. Good luck with your new frame, Operator."

     "Thank you, Ordis. We'll speak again later. Nyx, access the comms array and patch me through to Darvo."

     "Ah, Tenno, what a joy to speak with a friendly frame in these trying times. What can I do for you today?"

     "Errr, trying times you say? Did something go wrong with the galleon? What's this 'trying times' business all about?"

     "The galleon? No, no, no, Tenno. The galleon is fine and business is actually booming. I apologize. It didn't occur to me that you would be unaware of the situation. Also, it has been mostly a Corpus problem, with a few reports here and there of it affecting the Grineer. That said, you should be warned that there is a massive Infested Amalgam roaming the system and making ships disappear. It apparently takes on a form very similar to the ship it's approaching, positions itself above the target, and then consumes the ship whole. No ship that it has struck has ever been heard from again. The only reason we know about it is thanks to broken static filled transmissions from the crew's last moments."

     "Ummm, so it's an Infested Amalgam? Large enough to cover an entire Corpus ship? And apparently autonomous? Roaming about the system? Eating ships? Did I miss anything?" I ask, dramatically. 

     "Listen, Tenno, I understand your skepticism but this threat is real. Every single board member and investor I've spoken to has confirmed this and is taking it very seriously. If it weren't the case, I'd be laughing right along with you. The board members are not a humorous or frivolous people, if they take something seriously, it is either because it can make them money or lose them money. You should be careful, Tenno. Aside from being my best supplier and customer, you're the only Tenno that I can call my friend and I'd hate to see you end up corrupted by that abominable Technocyte."

     "Well, Darvo, I must say I certainly appreciate your kind words and your concern. However, rest assured that our friendship will not be ending anytime soon. Even if this amalgam does exist, it would quickly discover that I'm not that easy to kill. Not only will I keep my guard up thanks to your warning, I have quite a few tricks up my sleeve. So, if you ever hear rumors of my death, outside of some cataclysmic event, you can rest assured that they are greatly exaggerated and most likely completely false."

     "That's good to hear, Tenno. I don't doubt your resourcefulness for a second. That being said, what can I do for you?"

     "Yes, well, you may be aware of a certain board member by the name of Alad V. I need you to keep me updated on his activities. I have information that leads me to believe he may be capturing Tenno and using their frames, in some kind of experiments. 

     "Also, this conversation has made me realize that I'm a bit out of the loop in regards to recent events. If you could come up with a reasonable price, I could send you recurring payments at regular intervals for news about what's going on in various corners of the system. Also, feel free to add a premium option, for information that may not be common knowledge and perhaps required a bit more risk to obtain. Now that I'm thinking about it, that kind of service might actually be popular with a lot of Tenno and others as well. You could call it the "Darvo Daily," assuming that you can manage to put out substantive updates on a daily basis. Quality, of course, is always important. If substantive daily updates aren't possible, maybe you could call it Darvo's Data Services. Oh well, whatever, maybe I'm giving too much attention to the naming of the thing, especially considering that it's not even my service. What do think?" I ask, Darvo, as he smiles broadly at me through the holographic screen. 

     "Haahahaha! What do I think, Tenno? I think the same thing that I do about every proposition you've had for me. Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! Whatever it ends up being called, I'm certain it will be a hit. As for your personal subscription, to my not yet unveiled information service, I'll setup a transference schedule with your Cephalon as soon as we conclude here. It'll be completely free of charge, for any basic information, and the basic price, for premium information. You deserve at least that much, for dropping such a deliciously prepared business proposition onto my plate. As for this Alad V, I'm certainly aware of him. Head of Grineer Relations if I'm not mistaken. My connections can find out what he's up to and I'll send that information over as soon as I have it. Is there anything else I can assist you with, Tenno?"

     "That's it for today, Darvo. I'm glad to see your business is doing well and that your able to capitalize on the information service. I'll be waiting for your report on Alad V, until next time."

     "Until next time, Tenno."

     'I think that went well. It seems that the amalgam was a successful distraction from the actual culprits and now I'll be able to keep tabs on major events in the system without relying on the Lotus' decision to include me. I should also be able to use this new information system as another tool for distraction, by covertly causing major events away from where I'm going to be operating… Ah, it seems that Mirage has finally been completed.'

      Gara and her weapons are already at level thirty so it's time to take Mirage out on her Maiden Voyage. I equip my Synoid set and task Nyx with analyzing Mirage's abilities, during our next mission, to see if she can devise any weapons that might synergize with them. We jump in the Orbiter and head towards Mars. I fully intend to turn Mars into a Tenno controlled planet. Given that it's currently under dispute between the Grineer and Infested, neither of whom are my friends, it seems the perfect place to bring the Tenno into a more solidified position within the current power struggle. 

     "General Nyx, I want you to take Ivara and the pods we received from Helminth, with the rest of the Specter Force on standby, and head to the half of the Grineer outposts I indicated to you earlier. I will go alone to visit the other half and bleed these dogs dry of dispersed energy. You already know what to do. As soon as I've reached level thirty, with Mirage, I'll contact you to regroup. We'll then let the Infested do their work. Once all of the Grineer are done for, we'll drop cascade bombs on the most densely populated Infested areas and then you can begin your analysis of Mirage's abilities as we clean up the rest. Are you clear on what this mission requires of you, General?"

     "Absolutely, Operator! Requesting permission to begin Operation Prelude?"

     "Permission granted, General."

     Nyx and Ivara take off towards their targets and I towards mine. It takes about eighteen hours to reach level thirty mostly because the outpost are so far apart and aren't as densely populated as the ships I've assaulted. As one might expect, there are far more outposts here than just the ones indicated on the ingame star map. Once we've regrouped, we take the rest of the day off and let the Infested thin out the Grineer for us. 

     The next morning we get an early start on the cleansing of Mars. It's going to be just me and Nyx today. She needs plenty of opportunity to analyze my abilities and we've got all day and a shit load of enemies. We blaze through some areas and take our time in others. Sometimes I limit myself to just one ability and other times I attempt to use all my abilities in as many different scenarios and environments as possible. By the end of the day, we've cleared several outposts and Nyx assures me that the data she collected is sufficient for the task I've given her. Despite all the effort we've put into clearing this planet, it will probably still take a couple of more days just to eliminate the Grineer and then a couple after that to take out the Infested. At least by that time, Helminth should be closing in on that Intermediate strain. 

     With Nyx fast at work creating Mirage's new weapons, the Specter Force and I spend the next few days hunting Grineer. Soon after the Grineer have been dealt with and we've dropped our cascade bombs, Nyx finishes the weapons she's been working on. 

     "Operator, I've finished the task that you've assigned me. I have designed and constructed three different weapons to synergize with the abilities of the Mirage warframe." She informs me as she picks up a bow that resembles the Lenz. 

     "This bow I fashioned with inspiration from the bow called Lenz, within the Operator's Arsenal. If the truth be told, this is almost exactly the same weapon but with some very critical modifications. While analyzing Mirage's abilities, it occurred to me that she utilizes light mainly to distract and disorient her foes. While Hall of Mirrors and Eclipse can increase her damage output, Prism is the only ability that deals damage directly. With that in mind, I utilized a few of Mirage's cells to craft replacement parts for some of the Lenz's pieces. Even then, it wasn't easy to make this thing do what I wanted it to. This version of the Lenz fires the same type of arrows as its predecessor but the lens of the Lenz actually closes completely on command. It can then be utilized to suck in all the light within a ten meter radius in a sort of reverse laser beam. The Lenz will act as a point on the perimeter of the radius and the light will coalesce into the center and then travel in a laser beam fashion right through the Lenz's lens and into a specialized battery. This battery will allow you to utilize the stored light as ammunition for specialized arrows. These arrows will apply a mirage to the target causing them to take on the appearance of your doppelgangers. Of course, you must sacrifice some psionic energy in order to activate these effects. That, however, isn't all it does. You can also channel your Prism ability,  through the lens into either an incredibly potent single beam or a conical spread of smaller beams." I'm mentally drooling, at this point, as she places the bow back and picks up what looks like a Dual Cestra. 

     "These were crafted in the vein of a Corpus laser pistol called the Cestra. If you channel your Sleight of Hand ability into these pistol's ammo you will be able to booby trap enemy robotics like Moas, with enough shots. They essentially act as an amplifier and extender for that ability."_ 'My God! What is...no...it can't be! But this IS the Warframe Universe, so maybe it can be. I mean it looks exactly like one. What else could it be?' I witness Nyx replace the Cestras and grab a short metal baton, that in my old Universe could easily pass as a flashlight. 

     "This weapon was partially inspired by the whip, called Lecta, and is partially a unique design of mine." She pressed a button on the baton and a shaft of light erupted from the end only to stop after about a meter. "After the success using Mirage's cells in the Lenz, I decided to try it the other way around and create a weapon with Mirage's cells as the centerpiece and additional weapon parts as a supplement. Instead of a traditional ammo clip I designed a psionic energy battery that can be used to power this potent beam of controlled light. It can also be switched to its alternate state which thins and stretches. It also becomes much more pliable in this state and can be utilized in the same manner as a whip." She fingered another button and the shaft of light became increasingly longer and thinner, until it reached a bit beyond three meters. Once in this state, she swung the whip around in a dramatic fashion and then returned it to its former shaft like state. 

     Never in my life have I been happier to not have a face. I walk over to the weapons and examine each of them thoroughly. 

     "Nyx, these weapons are truly impressive. I couldn't be happier with the work you've done. Thank you."

     "I'm pleased that you like them, Operator, and I look forward to crafting more weapons for you in the future."

     The thought, of Nyx creating an entire arsenal of sick ass weapons like these, brings my mental smile back to full dimple. I reckon if she going to be cranking out more masterpieces like this they should have an official name. 

     "General Nyx, from now on any weapon you craft will possess the modifier 'Scionic' to indicate that you are its designer. I also grant you the additional title of Weaponsmith Scion and task you with designing an emblem to act as your maker's mark."

     "I'm truly honored to receive this title, Operator, and will work diligently to be worthy of it. The emblem you've requested will be finished before the sun sets on this planet."

     "Excellent, General! Although, you can take your time with the emblem. I'll be taking the Specter Force and my new kit to clean up the rest of these Infested. Once that's completed, go through the entire Arsenal, familiarize yourself with every weapon's design, organize every weapon into a list for Darvo, contact him, and request crafting information on any weapon not on the list. Since you were constructed with weapons use and manual operation in mind, I want you to spend an extended period of time immersed in everything you can learn about weapon crafting and design, while I'm gone. I'll contact you, as soon as I'm finished, to let you know I'm returning." I turn towards the exit and begin to leave. 

     "Consider it done, Operator, and good luck with your mission."

     I spend the next thirty six hours going all Luke Skywalker on these filthy rotten Infested. I must say, operating Mirage is already a blast in and of itself but with these new weapons in hand it's like mutha fuckin candyland. I. Just. Can't. Be. Stopped. Regardless of how much fun it may be to make light of these Infested, all good things must come to an end and there are only so many Infested on Mars. Once they're all blasted to bits, I contact the General and head back to the Orbiter. 

     "All right General, can you run a scan and confirm that we are the only sentient creatures on Mars."

     "Certainly, Operator...scan complete. I can confirm that no other sentient creatures are currently on Mars."

     "Excellent! First, I want to take a look at your emblem and then we'll need to have a lengthy discussion. The Opening Scene is fast approaching and you're going to have a critical role in it."