Snippet #1207420

The ship touched down about a half mile from Timber, an Esthar Elite wearing dark armor descended the ramp. Speaking a few unintelligible words the young warrior took off with an almost inhuman speed toward the city. The training over the past two and half years had really paid off. In the past this would have been very taxing. Magic took some getting used to. With his body and mind not used to the sensation or the draining effect, he often found himself greatly fatigued after performing the simplest of tasks. It was amazing how much he'd grown and if his research was correct, there was lot more growing to do. Words were a focal point, a formality that wasn't really needed, a true master of the craft needed only to think it and it would be so. For now however, he'd have to use the words which roughly translated to {I will it to be so} or {By my will alone} followed by what ever effect he was looking for; in this case it was Haste.

While studying in Centra he learned a great deal about himself, though some things remain hidden. His affinity is to the Time and Space variety of magic; manipulation of these energies give him power over gravity and individual time. In theory this gives him access to a very powerful forbidden attack known as Meteor. The Para-Magic version of this attack is frightening, unpredictable and usually comes with high a rate of collateral damage. Even if his version were only slightly more destructive he'd never use it; any form of magic that puts noncombatants and allies in danger is never good. You'd have to be pretty damn sadistic or desperate to gamble on something like that.

Once he reached the city he canceled haste. To his surprise there was no sign of the riot that he'd seen on the monitor in Esthar. In fact there was no evidence that such an event had taken place save for a rather odd anomaly. Soldiers wearing elite armor were found in various places in very poor condition. Kneeling next to a fallen soldier he reached down with two fingers and placed them on the side of the mans neck. The pulse was weak but he was alive; interrogating him however would be impossible. Even if the man were conscious he wouldn't be able to talk, whatever had happened to him it caused him to bite through his tongue. Diablos, data-pad

“What the hell?” Scanning the body revealed almost nothing. The body had sustained quite a few internal injuries no doubt the result of combat, but there was nothing explaining the man's condition. The evidence seemed to point to a seizure of some sort, but brain wave patterns were normal for the most part. There were a few variables but nothing that warranted this kind of trauma.

It's as if they were hit with very powerful Pain spell, but Pain uses poison and this man wasn't poisoned, at least not by any known substance. Could it have been a nano virus?
A what
A man made programmable virus. If this were the case though why use it like this? According to the satellite footage the fugitives were all but finished.
Are you certain
I am. This was a trap from the beginning. Wolf and his team were used as bait to lure the rest of the former SeeD members. These elites were positioned in key locations through out the city along with a small surge force to drive the SeeDs into an inescapable position. When you look at the data, this should have been an easy checkmate.
If that is the case then...
They were allowed to escape.
Why would SCORPIA give up a sure thing?
That's a good question. There is no reason to give up an easy victory unless...
SCORPIA is planning something big and they need SeeD or the 'terrorists' to take the fall.
The question is why? They have the world now, what more could they possibly want?
The plot thickens

As his investigation continued he found more fallen soldiers, some had been killed while others suffered from a similar debilitation as the soldier he examined. Not all of them had suffered a seizure, but they may as well have. Not one was capable of talking; not intelligently anyway. As he made his way to the main street he found it strangely quiet, at least here there was evidence of a disturbance. The place was like a ghost town. Had the people gone into hiding? Glancing around he saw no sign of any life save for single familiar figure up the street. What was she doing there alone? As he approached he kept his helmet on and his weapons in Item Space. Hopefully appearing unarmed would keep her from seeing him as a threat. “Are you alright miss?”

What are you doing?
Now is not the time for a reunion
I understand that, but have you not noticed?
Hmm?
You look like the enemy. The armor Kessler gave you is almost identical to theirs
Now that you mention it... I'm sure it'll be fine