• Nobles of Null is a forum based roleplay site where sci-fi and magic collide. Here, Earth remains fractured and divided despite humanity reaching out to the stars. Worse still, the trans-human slaves of one major power have escaped, only to establish their own Empire, seething with resentment at abuses of the past. Even the discovery of aliens, though medieval in development, has failed to rally these squabbling children of Earth together with its far darker implications. Worse still, is the discovery of the impossible - magic. Practiced by the alien locals, nearly depleted and therefore rare, its reality warping abilities remains abstract and distant to the general populace. All the while, unseen in the darkness of space, forces from without threaten to press in. For those with eyes opened by insight, it is clear that an era is about to end, and that a new age will dawn.

Pearl of Heaven

Ray of Meep

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Early 2320's

Tiangtang, Ping Qiong System

Airspace above the Tunzhong Jungle


The Tunzhong Jungle growled and reached for the rotorcraft above, its green-black leaves, the parasitic vines, all wanting, seeking the foreign intruder's demise. Named after its ability to swallow drones and personnel in large quantities, without a trace, Tunzhong Jungle was not unique on Tiantang. It stretched from the equator in all four cardinal directions, only stopped by equally hostile mountain ranges and oceans.

The rotorcraft was largely windowless, but the snake-form scientist onboard could see everything outside by sharing his consciousness with that of the pilot, then connecting to the rotorcraft's sensors. He could see the two drones escorting them, ready to kamikaze themselves into the aggressive, flying wildlife that are akin to mythical beasts of Earth Western culture. There was of course the endless flora below, bordering a local mountain ridge, a sea of angry life crashing upon a wall of earth and stone. He then finally saw a clearing that they were lowering down to, an artificial circle of flat ground, charred, black soil, with a large rocket-tower in the center, the culprit behind the clearing. Surrounding it were housing and storage units in the shapes of tubes and blocks, dots that were personnel and drones scattered, all encompassed by a hastily built wall of cement and steel, towers and auto-turrets defending against the native life that dares to strike at this outpost.

As the scientist stepped out of the rotorcraft, onto the landing pad, he was greeted a rabbit-form, clad in ground-armor, camoflauged for the black forest surrounding them, covered in pouches. His large legs were springy in typical rabbit-form fashion, as if the entire person was ready to leap a full story off the ground in a moment's notice. The man's long ears were perked up, the base covered by black hair. His eyes were leery, constantly darting to the sides and looking behind the scientist.

"Good to see you making it safely." The rabbit-form failed to introduce himself as he coldly but politely put a hand over fist in front of him as a greeting. The scientist already knew though: he was Zhao Gang, an army engineer who oversaw the expeditionary team of this outpost.
 
"The trip here was the easy part," the serpent hissed as he slithered along. He was armed only with a sidearm and a decent protection suit. He was not a combatant, but as per The Empire's existence he was still capable of damage. Hopefully that would be remotely enough to get him through these next few weeks. Maybe longer, he sighed to himself. Red and black scales slithering forward, he looked at the familiar bunny man and then to the hellscape around them. "Good work so far, it seems. I wonder if the wildlife will develop siege technology just to spite us while we're here."
 

Ray of Meep

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"Give them enough time to evolve and they will. That, or the Aos Si will try first." Gang snorted in meatspace, tossing the snake scientist a nutrition bar as he led him to a gate, skipping along like a bunny, a contrast to his militant attitude. Meanwhile, in virtual space, the engineer started to debrief him. "Fang Zhao, as you understand we're here to extract Wofleonium underneath our feet, but the mining process triggered a landslide and made the fauna angrier than they already were at us. Additionally, some old Aos Si structures were detected, originally buried under the mountain. We need to scout out what new threats we'll be dealing with."

Fang Zhao found his vision expanded in VR to that of two other Daqinren: a monkey-form who was covered head to toe in protective gear, wearing specialized, padded yet touch sensitive gloves that covered his hands and his hand-like feat, a rifle on his back, a sensor pod on his shoulder. The other was similarly equipped, but she was a fellow snake-form. They were waiting at the gate with backpacks filled with survival equipment; Fang Zhao could see their entire inventories.

"Pa and Yin will cover our flanks as we move through the jungle; you're with me." Gang explained in VR so that the other two could hear the briefing. The jungle stretched out, its nooks and crannies made visible to Fang Zhao, but only a small distance until it stopped in the fog of war. "We are to document the flora and fauna we encounter as we make our way to the Aos Si ruins."
 
"Understood." The separation between the real world and the virtual world was one Fang Zhao had always struggled with. He'd grown up in it, saw how the Empire moved to make the distinction meaningless. Even on this planet, especially on this planet, the virtual world was an escape and a tool. But their bodies were still physical, and pain still hurt. Fang was careful to remember the difference. The Aos Si, for instance, lived entirely in the real world. How must they view the concept of something connecting a people entirely? Without escape, without peace. If only the Empire hadn't been so ready to make war with the natives, they'd have a far easier time.

All Fang could do right now was follow the military to this destination through the hostile forest.
 

Ray of Meep

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As the team of four left the safety of their walls, Pa and Yin disappeared from sight, but Fang Zhao could still feel their presence through their connected reality, slithering and darting through the tree lines left and right of them, being their eyes and ears where technology failed to reach. Sunlight barely penetrated the black leafed roof above head, giving the surrounding air an eerie, grey scale tone. Roots and moss-analog littered the jungle floor, making knee-high and waist-high hurdles. Vines hung down from tree branches like snakes, making themselves nuisances, taunting the explorers.

Gang pranced forward nonchalantly, two rotor-drones flying at his side to watch his flanks. Various flora and fauna were pinged, sent over to Fang Zhao's HUD for him to examine: a completely black, colorless flower-analog that gave off odd infrared signatures, suddenly snapping shut when an insect-analog crawled to its center; a millipede-analog, brightly colored in purple and yellow, wriggling on bark, leaving behind a trail of slime; and a raptor-bird analog, which leapt on top of a tree branch, then viciously cutting one of the vines, before swinging it to wrap around its snout and neck.

The rabbit-form stopped, giving Fang Zhao a few minutes to study the wildlife. Wordlessly, Pa and Yin also halted, taking rest beyond their sights. As Gang looked around, adjusting his grip on his rifle in his hands, he asked the snake-form through VR, "So, how's everything in the void cities? It's been quite a while since I went back up home. Anyone up there waiting for you to head back once you're done in this hellhole?"
 
Fang Zhao gathered information and noted it, marking it in folders in their digital world. Later he'd write it down on more primitive technology, just in case the worst happens and the Daqin lose their precious Otherworld. "My family would no doubt prefer I were not here, however I prefer real air, even on a world as dangerous as this. Created by the trees around us, filtering our exhalation, and making new air. It's far more natural than the habitat." He slithered forward, eyes moving about the forest, alert. "Besides, if I die, I die." He hissed moodily.
 

Ray of Meep

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Gang snorted out loud, following the snake scientist once he was done with his work. Their flank escort wordlessly continued forward ahead of the two, sneaking from tree to tree, continuously scanning the area, updating their shared virtual space where they exchanged information of the environment. Fang Zhao saw outlines of vegetation, cold-blooded fauna, small warm bodies that popped up colored yellow and red. Two dozen alien species and counting, all to be cataloged and studied.

"'If I die, I die...'" Gang repeated in VR, while staying vigilante in real space. "I'll have to disagree with that, doctor. My wife and husband wouldn't be too happy with my death. Neither will I." He smirked, bringing his partners up to show Fang Zhao, a rabbit-form and a rat-form. "I do suppose there's something primitively nostalgic about this hellhole." He crossed his arms for effect in the false space, examining the data and images of their surroundings that they've gathered thus far. "We started off as test tube babies, but our original creators are basically just hairless apes, right? They came from jungles like this too. Did we inherit the jungle then?"
 
Wife AND husband. Hopefully they got along, otherwise date night would be awkward as hell. Must be nice, having two people to tolerate you for extended periods of time. Fang Zhao barely had time for himself. As the alien species around them revealed their positions by their movements, and even now he was cataloging and categorizing them all, he slithered forward. He only barely glanced at the images of this soldier's harem. He didn't really care. He didn't dislike the idea, he just felt... apathy towards them. Surely that was bad right?

"We inherited much from our creators. Even the Dread Machines inherited quirks and personality from them. As I'm sure you've been told, the only thing we've inherited from them is life. This is a lie." He'd said it before, and was shouted down in many places that they were on the fast track to extinction by hostile life-forms. "Pride, Vainglory, Avarice, and a deep Envy of others. We have it all. It is part of us. Ancient literature remains understandable, because the only thing we've gained since freedom is better bodies."
 
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