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Denak Kalamari
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
1370
   |
Posted - 2014.03.24 19:16:00 -
[1] - Quote
Quote:Greetings Immortal,
We are requesting your services to help us resolve an issue. The issue is time sensitive and requires your immediate response. You come highly recommended by several reputable sources. Below you will find a contract as well as terms for payment. If you accept the contract 1/3 of the payment will automatically be transferred to your account and further instructions will follow. We hope to see you soon.
'Another contract, no issuer. Hm, I guess I'm a valued commodity then.'
Denak sat atop the desk on his mercenary quarters, the pale blue light of the Neocom illuminating otherwise dark room, highlighting the wrinkles and scars apparent on his face. It had only been two days from his last special contract and now it was already going for another one. But more ISK was always welcome, so it didn't take long for him to decide to accept the contract and get deployed.
In less than an hour, Denak had already accepted the contract, packed his belongings and headed for the designated hangar, his trip with the shuttle didn't take that long either.
As soon as he stepped out of the shuttle, Denak scanned his surroundings. Seeing a familiar face made him somewhat relieved, giving Galm his usual slight bow of head and a greetingnin Intaki.
Grahisha of ILF // Writer of Thoughts of a Clone Soldier // Latest entry published Mar. 22nd
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Denak Kalamari
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
1375
|
Posted - 2014.03.25 20:22:00 -
[2] - Quote
Denak was mostly focused on scanning his surroundings, observing as more and more mercenaries exited the shuttle and gathered around the conference room while leaning against a wall. Some faces looked familiar, others not so much, he had plenty of time to get to know them during deployment in any case. He was soon distracted though when he heard Junko address him. He politely bowed his head in greeting, keeping his arms tucked behind his back as he spoke:
"I'm good. I trust contracts have been good for you as well?"
As Denak gave a brief glance of the conference room, Sergamon's behavior caught his attention, especially when he was acting like he was about to be attacked, and definitely hiding a gun under his black robes. He gave a silent sigh to the man, uttering out a dismissive: "Amateur". Soon his attention was grabbed by Junko again when she spoke. In response he gave a nonchalant shrug, lifting a hand up to scratch his bearded chin.
"It was hectic at times, but nothing I can't handle." He spoke, glancing over to Sergamon again, this time talking to another man he wasn't familiar with. Being back in his leisure clone, all the physical damage his clones suffered during the last battle had long ago been biomassed. The mental stress the mission had on Denak took a little longer to recover from though.
Grahisha of ILF // Writer of Thoughts of a Clone Soldier // Latest entry published Mar. 22nd
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Denak Kalamari
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
1377
|
Posted - 2014.03.26 10:20:00 -
[3] - Quote
"Hmm... mental recovery and all that jazz eh? I've been mostly hauling cargo, to and from Cal-space. you wouldn't believe the amount of planetary goods needed to bring the damaged sections of Malkalen Station back up to speed, much less the minerals needed to actually make the repairs. But Ishukone pays good, better than some of the contracts I've taken as a merc."
Denak replied with a slight shrug and an annoyed look on his face, he didn't like people peering into his private matters. He switched his focus back to the mercenaries flowing out of the shuttle and filling up the conference room, keeping his hands hidden between his back and the wall behind, rolling a small piece of metal in them. Spotting Kador and Satja, he lifted his hand to give the couple a brief wave from across the room, even managing a brief smile before he switched his gaze to observe the other mercenaries present. Seeing Hawk-eye rest what was obviously an HMG on the glass table coaxed a perked up eyebrow of Denak.
'Why does everybody have to bring weapons with them?', he thought to himself, he never understood it. Once again his focus went back to Junko when she spoke once more.
"This mission, what do you think of it; simple smash and grab? Or something other than turning rogue drones into scrap?"
"I've grown to to expect nothing to go as planned when going on these kinds of deployments", was his simple reply, inhaling with a slight sigh. Denak did look a little exhausted from his last deployment, even though he had done barely any contracts after his Blood hunt. The battle was such a mess he was lucky he didn't end up being captured by the Raiders for a long time. Regardless he did his best to keep it in control, continuing to stand up straight and keep his posture straight.
Grahisha of ILF // Writer of Thoughts of a Clone Soldier // Latest entry published Mar. 22nd
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Denak Kalamari
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
1391
|
Posted - 2014.03.27 21:36:00 -
[4] - Quote
As the others were making their introductions, Denak remained silently standing further back, his eyes switching between the various different people and their weaponry. He may have gruffed his name to the public, but it would have been mostly drown out into the idle chatter going on between the mercenaries. In general, he seemed utterly disinterested in socializing with other people, much rather focusing on his thoughts and the quiet tune he hummed. When the actual briefing started, Denak's instantly snapped towards the Gallente, and then to the holographic representation of the Noctis.
He took mental notes of all the points displayed in the hologram, from the last know location of the artifact and deployment point to escape routes and possible chokepoints.
'I need to download a map of it later', he thought as the briefing continued, his gaze tightly focused on the hologram. He took another glance of the group gathered, slightly concerned about the mental state of some of them. If they were paranoid or crazy enough to bring live weapons into a briefing, the mission was begging for a friendly fire incident. As soon as the briefing ended, Denak was the first one to follow the blue lights leading to the stasis pods, leading the way and showing an example on how to use one for the inexperienced, since he was one of the oldest mercenaries in the group.
The pods themselves looked very similar to the ones capsuleers used, but they were more archaic in shape and simplified for the non-capsuleer kind. Each one was opened with an empty chamber inside, and a helmet connected to various tubes hanging in the middle. Drones hummed and flew about as Denak stepped in front of the middlemost pod, glancing to his left, then to his right to see who were going to be next to him. In the end it mattered little though, as in any case he needed to strip before entering the pod.
Methodically and withouth shame or embarrassment, he removed one layer of clothing after another, first his vest and boots, then his shirt and finally his trousers, until Denak was reduced to nothing but his underwear. Scars and burns covered the right side of his chest and his right shoulder, connecting up his neck to the burnmark spanning across the right side of his face. His hand reached behind his neck to feel for the round hole, his neural jack, as a small drone collected the pile of clothing he discarded, saving them for the time Denak would return.
After another glance to his left and to his right, Denak stepped into the open cavity of the stasis pod, grabbing the helmet hanging there with both hands and starting to attach it while a drone w?also crawled into the small space, assisting with the process. Before long the helmet covered his ears and eyes, with two tubes attaching to his nostrils. Finally, he felt the cold sting as his neural jack was plugged in, feeling the slight drumming sound the drone made on the floor of the pod as it crawled out to assist another mercenary. Then the hatch closed with a small hiss, leaving him alone in the dark pod.
Before Denak noticed that the pod was starting to be filled up with the cold, thick and sticky stasis fluid, his consciousness was already slipping off elsewhere...
Grahisha of ILF // Writer of Thoughts of a Clone Soldier // Latest entry published Mar. 22nd
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Denak Kalamari
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
1392
|
Posted - 2014.03.28 20:10:00 -
[5] - Quote
As the darkness enveloped Denak, dulling his senses and floating him idly in the stasis fluid, he finally was given the small moment of solitude. The only feel persisting through was the cold metal plugged into his neural jack on his neck as his mind was being copied, and eventually transferred to his combat clone. Even if the actual transfer lasted mere seconds, the time he spent exploring the depths of his mind felt like an eternity. Images flashed before his eyes, familiar sensations tickled his fingertips, as were familiar scents and tastes triggering his senses.
Then he lost all contact with his body.
***
In the brief time Denak spent between the two worlds, "The Void", as he liked to call it, he had an opportunity to think about his upcoming mission. And he had a lot to think about.
'Why did I even accept this contract? I've barely recovered from the last deployment, and now I'm already going for another one.'
'At least Kador's here, Junko seemed nice too. And what's Galm doing with him? His behavior was just stupid when jabbing Kador like that.'
'Draco is an unstable, non-comprehensible idiot as always, I'll need to keep an eye on him.'
'And why the f*** do people have to bring weapons to a conference? How f****** stupid are they?'
'Sigh, we'll see if I end up slogging through another torture fest.'
***
INITIALIZING DROPSUIT CORE SYSTEMS....
ACTIVATING HEADS-UP DISPLAY....
BOOTING WEAPONS SOFTWARE....
ALL SYSTEMS INITIALIZED, DISENGAGING MAGNETIC LOCKS....
The dark green messages were the first thing Denak saw after the consciousness transfer was complete, followed by the hiss of decompressing air and the hum of the magnetic locks being disengaged, releasing his dropsuit from the racks it was being held in, landing with a metallic thud on the floor. The skin-hugging armor of his Scout gk.0 dropsuit pressed firmly against his body from toes to neck, acting as a second skin for the operator as one by one elements of his heads-up display activated, all the information he needed displaying in the dark green color and with the Intaki script. He felt it very clearly when the various drones and the single human technician prodded and investigated his dropsuit to make sure everything was working properly. For his surprise, this technician didn't seem to be scared motionless unlike in his last deployment.
He glanced on his right, he could see the last few mercs still stripping and boarding their stasis pods, paying close attention to his own pod, where he could see himself suspended in the blue liquid through the glass chamber. He had never seen himself like that before, and seeing his own body, the one he had nurtured his entire life, suspended in fluid with a large helmet and tubes attached, made him oddly amused.
After the technician and drones cleared Denak's dropsuit to be fully operational, he simply stepped off the small platform, heading towards the armory to get himself geared up for the battle. As he wandered around the hallways, his Neocom was downloading the latest map of their deployment point, looking up information of Noctis technical specifications and bluebrints, all the while making sure he wouldn't hit any drones and technicians. Upon discovering the armory, he found himself a corner of the room, taking his own weaponry and gear he selected for this particular mission from the drones flying and skittering about.
Grahisha of ILF // Writer of Thoughts of a Clone Soldier // Latest entry published Mar. 22nd
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Denak Kalamari
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
1413
|
Posted - 2014.03.29 20:31:00 -
[6] - Quote
The armory quickly began filling up with mercs flowing out of the deployment room, some conversing with each other, like Ermac and Galm, and some gearing up for the battle, like himself and Kador. Drones buzzed around delivering all the equipment and weaponry requested by the mercenaries, carrying each piece of gear in large metal racks high on the ceiling to avoid collisions with any of the people present.
One of them delivered Denak's requested gear.
First he collected his shotgun, the specialist variant given by the Federal Marines from their store. From the outside it looked like any other CreoDron manufactured shotgun with the corporation logo plastered quite obnoxiously on the blast shield and the pitch black paintjob with the glowing orange parts of the cyclotron reactor. But the software utilized within the weapon was extremely advanced, minimizing power need while retaining its firepower. Combined with the very power-hungry cloaking system, the shotgun was a perfect match. The moment his hand's gripped on the grip and side handle, its systems synched up with the dropsuit connected to it, activating the reactor with an orange glow and a low, steady hum. Swinging it around a few times and feeling the metal surface with his fingers, he eventually placed the shotgun to rest down on its side next to him, instantly powering down the moment he let go.
Next came his backup weapon, the trusty Matari-made submachine gun. It had no tricks up its sleeve, no special firing mechanisms or streamlined software, the only remotely high-tech feature of the weapon were the standard target intel system, and the flip-up holographic sight. Other than that, all it did was send a massive stream of bullets down range when the operator squeezed the trigger, which was perfect for the situations Denak intended it to be used in.
One the final run, the drone gave him the explosive devices, two M/1 Locus grenades and three remote explosive charges, all of them making their own distinct beep as he activated and tested their firing mechanisms. His cortex gave an OK signal on all of them, giving a small nod to himself as he maglocked the explosives around his belt. He was going to proceed with checking his cloaking systems, when he heard the sudden voice of Roy trying to address all the mercenaries:
"You guys trying to fail this mission?"
'Excuse me?', Denak thought, instantly snapping his gaze towards the Gallente and stopping what he was doing, the three slits of his scout helmet peering over him thoroughly.
"The way you're acting. Here we are, a group of right mercenaries who've been contracted by some group because we have outstanding reputation. Look around you and think about that for a second."
'Really?'
"Something weird is going on but that's only the half of the issues. The rest comes from you guys. We need to act like a team. Right now, I don't trust the majority of you enough to shoot a dog."
'Uh huh?'
"How do I know if you'll save my ass? How do you know if I'll save your ass? We can't go out there facing an unknown threat like we're invincible when the mission intel clearly states different."
At the end of his internal monologue, Denak canted his head to the side slightly while keeping his gaze fixated at Roy, a quiet sigh muttering through his lips. Normally he would ignore such questions, but something about Roy always ticked him off, and he couldn't hold himself anymore. Seeing as nobody else had spoken yet, Denak decided to be the first one to do so:
"My last deployment wasn't much different and we came through alive", he started as he stood up and took a few steps forward from the corner he was sitting in to be more towards the center of the group. His arm waved around to gesture towards Hawkeye, Ermac, Galm, Jacques and Kador.
"I have fought with and against over half the people present in this room, and I know what they are capable of. I can personally trust my life in their hands", he continued as he was standing a few meters away from Roy, glancing at everyone he had his trust in. Compared to Denak's scout dropsuit, Roy's packed more height and slightly more muscle around the bones, but both had their signature Gallente design.
"I, however, do not know you, nor have I ever seen you in battle. It takes more than just small-talk to gain my trust. But no, I will not ditch you the moment you turn your back, we are, or we should be, professionals here," he further explained with a firm voice. And from that, he suddenly snapped his head towards Galm.
"Speaking of being professional, stop being a **** to Kador before I rip your head off", he warned with a very hostile tone, he was getting agitated. He paused for a brief moment after that line, taking a deep breath in before his head turned back towards Roy.
"Suffice to say every one of us have been through some tough situations throughout our careers. If you do not feel like you can trust us with your life, or that we can trust you with our lives, the exit is over there. Thank you."
After giving a brief gesture towards the exit hallway, he turned back around on his heels to take a seat in his corner again, resuming his equipment check.
'P'fogadal p'vamulaavy.'
Grahisha of ILF // Writer of Thoughts of a Clone Soldier // Latest entry published Mar. 22nd
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Denak Kalamari
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
1419
|
Posted - 2014.03.31 20:28:00 -
[7] - Quote
Just unbelievable what stupidity was going with some of the mercs, with very hostile words being exchanged with someone. The whole debate with Roy was going out of control and there was Sergamon trying to intervene and act like a leader when he clearly wasn't. After the comment he heard about Galm's heritage, Denak simply tweaked his Cortex to mute all outside noises, trying to focus on doing something to get his mind out of the heated moment, and it did succeed initially. That is until he noticed that Sergamon was throwing movables at Hawkeye, which was the moment when he just snapped.
Whatever Hawkeye replied afterwards went to deaf ears as without second thought, Denak detached the large and heavy tritanium shield from his shotgun and made his way over to the arguing pair. Without a word, he stepped in between Hawkeye and Sergamon with the shield in his hands, smacking it right against Sergamon's helmet with a large amount of force. After a single, loud clang and grunt, the shield was now dented greatly and twisted out of shape to an unusable state. The impact did little actual damage, but it did hurt. After a few deep inhales and exhales, he shouted to Sergamon:
"WHAT THE F*CK IS WRONG WITH YOU?! You come here waving your guns around, pretending to be the leader of this group when you're barely sane! I'm surprised anyone saw any potential in you when half the things that comes out of your mouth is nonsensical dribble and the other half is ignorant insults! Who are you to call us nagging when you're acting like that and f*cking throwing things at your own teammates?! If anything, you're the reason this whole mission will go to sh*t is because you can't tell the difference between blue and red!"
After speaking all that in a single breath, Denak paused for a while to breath deeply. His three slitted scout helmet still looked the same from the outside, but on the inside he was boiling with anger and frustration, his fists clenching tight. Next he spoke a little more calmly, but with a still-hostile tone.
"If you disagree with Hawkeye, fine, explain why. But throwing movables at him and calling him names just makes you look like an idiot, not to mention your feeble attempts of trying to lead this group when we already have one."
He paused once more, gazing straight through the eyes of Sergamon's helmet, giving hkm one final warning:
"Get your f*cking sh*t together and never do that again, or I'll throw your out the airlock and rip off your clone's head off myself", afterwards throwing the shotgun shield at the nearby wall to vent his anger, exiting the room in search of a more reclusive place to clear his head, all the while muttering curses. The whole complex probably heard his rant but he couldn't csre less right now, all he wanted was to get out of the situation.
Luckily, he found Noah and Kador within a room of worship from what he saw. He stood there leaning against the doorway for a moment or two, before he spoke:
"Would you mind if I joined you two?"
Grahisha of ILF // Writer of Thoughts of a Clone Soldier // Latest entry published Mar. 22nd
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Denak Kalamari
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
1433
|
Posted - 2014.04.02 17:21:00 -
[8] - Quote
Denak responded with a small and firm nod, keeping his helmet secured on his suit, masking any expression he made beneath the visor. With quiet steps he moved past Kador and Noah, doing a small spin to examine the room of worship and solace he found himself in. His movements were swift and slightly rigid as he sat down on the floor across from the pair with his legs crossed, his hands placed on his knees. The past 20 minutes or so dealing with the two Gallente had been extremely frustrating and draining, thus finding himself in that particular room. His distress was apparent to others it seemed, when Noah asked about his well being.
"I just doubt the mental condition of some of the mercenaries here being able enough to survive through the mission without friendly fire incidents." He spoke with a snarky and slightly bitter tone, flicking through all the menus on his Cortex to disable the HUD, enabling only the voices of other mercs to go through his speakers.
"I will manage", he added as his head dipped down slightly, taking a deep breath in and attempting to shut down his distracting thoughts. He did notice Sergamon enter the room and request an audience from Kador, but Denak did nothing to greet, or even acknowledge the presence of the Gallentean, simply remaining quiet and still.
Grahisha of ILF // Writer of Thoughts of a Clone Soldier // Latest entry published Apr. 1st
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Denak Kalamari
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
1441
|
Posted - 2014.04.04 14:44:00 -
[9] - Quote
Noah wrote:GÇ£Faith is a funny thing isnGÇÖt it?GÇ¥ Denak had already descended down into a half-conscious state by the time Kador left with Sergamon to discuss private matters, his upper body heaving back and forth ever so slightly to his slow breath while head remained dipped down. That phrase caught his attention, but didn't coax a physical response, he opted to remain quiet, listening to what he had to say.
Noah wrote:GÇ£Some men can put all of their faith into a single ethereal being, others put their faith in themselves, believing that their own abilities will see them through.GÇ¥
GÇ£I find myself deep in the dark woods, I have strayed from the path, I fear the right road lost." Denak didn't think Noah for pondering of such things, and he was pleasantly surprised about that. His gloved index finger tapped against his knee, his head rising up slightly to gaze back at Noah for his finishing words. His helmet still had the dead and hostile look of the three slits and dark color. Beneath his visor, all that was displayed to him was the HUDless video feed from his suit sensors, opting them turned off when he wanted to focus.
Noah wrote:GÇ£DonGÇÖt doubt, have faith in yourself, and if you can not do that then put your faith in those that surround you.GÇ¥ As soon as Noah had finished, Denak in turn spoke up, sounding much less agitated and much more calm this time:
"Idama have a proverb: "What you see in yourself, is what you see in the world". In myself, I now see is bitterness, cynicism and an endless stream of death and rebirth, which I see in the world as well. I commend you for your optimism which I lack, and I wish you success."
With those words, he fell quiet again, deactivating his comms and sinking his head down to its previous position. Within the silent dropsuit, he began humming a low tune, a chant of sorts, although the only way an outsider could have heard it was if he got very close to Denak.
Grahisha of ILF // Writer of Thoughts of a Clone Soldier // Latest entry published Apr. 1st
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Denak Kalamari
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
1502
|
Posted - 2014.04.12 20:34:00 -
[10] - Quote
No forums, I don't want to post right now when I'm not done.
Edits pending.
Grahisha of ILF // Writer of Thoughts of a Clone Soldier // Latest entry published Apr. 1st
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