If you needed information in the Archanius Alliance, RLS-90 was the go-to ship. He kept cross-referenced records on every fact or rumor that made its way through communication lines, every alien and slave and agent that were even remotely worth knowing about, all locked up in the hundred-fold-encrypted vaults that were his memory banks. His former self had been bored to tears by studying, preferring action above all else. But with his mind expanded as it was, RLS understood now how valuable knowledge could be.

For example. If he didn't make a habit of studying the rumors that passed from member to member, he would never have heard about the fascinating gypsy girl who'd been spotted on a space station out by the seventh nebula. A lovely dark-haired thing, asking around about her dearest sister. But he'd checked security cameras, mildly curious, and found her body language and demeanor... a bit suspicious. RLS had a feeling there was more to this girl than met the eye. And he wanted to find out more.

So the living spaceship put together a compositeof the features this gypsy ("Lark", she'd called herself at one point) had described when asking around the station. A few small favors called in and his sources began to spread a new rumor around: a woman resembling Lark's sister had been seen at one point, ferried from seller to buyer on the ship RLS-90. It might even have been true. RLS remembered many women of that description in the years he'd been with the Alliance. Had one of them been the woman Lark was seeking? It was possible.

Time passed. Among the new jobs RLS took on was a simple collection job for the Alliance. He needed to take care of a delinquent debtor on Tabla V and confiscate what he had to to close the debt. So as he sent his Model 05 out to deal with that, he did something that to an outside observer might seem spectacularly stupid. He landed the main ship in Tabla V's central port- and purposely left the outermost level of security lax. This was actually not the first time he'd done this. In the past thieves of all types had attempted to break into his "body." They quickly found out nothing happened on his ship that he was not in full control of. The male thieves were pressed into Alliance service- the females were trained and sold as sex slaves. And now RLS was looking for new prey....

Lark looks over the reports again as she pilots her ship, Star Dancer, towards Tabla V, and sighs. The planet itself is next to worthless - not as bad as that space station a while back - but it is not on the main paths. Not even a primary lane for smugglers and slavers. She wouldn't be able to find any kind of creditable information HERE.

Which brings her back to the stories she has heard.. that her sister had been on this ship.. RLS-90. A ship that was headed to Tabla V of all places. She reads over the notes again and again. So vague - they couldn't even tell her WHEN her sister had been transported on it.. some say last month.. others six months.. some claim that it was the ship that originally took her almost two years ago now. No one really seems to know anything about it. Except that they all agree she had been on this ship.

So be it.

The Star Dancer comes in to land on Tabla V, and after arranging for her fees, a little extra money gets her the information that the RLS-90 is already here, and docked at the same port. Landing complete, she goes back to change into a less conspicuous outfit - tight heavy weave work pants that cling to her curves, and pale scoop neck midriff shirt that is tight enough to show curves, but loose enough as to not cling to them and reveal them clearly.

She walks off of her ship, and sets the locks and security on her vessel - it would not be easy for anyone to get onto HER ship - before starting to walk through the port and looking at the other vessels. *Recon first* she thinks to herself as she heads towards the bay where RLS-90 is docked. *Let's see what kind of security they have first*.

She'll walk through the port, not lingering in any one place, but making several passes by RLS-90, trying to spot guards or even the pattern of the crew coming and going. Looking for the weak spot where she might be able to sneak on board. If there is one thing she has learned, a straight on approach would not get her the information she wanted - she needs to be inside, and in control to negotiate with people like these.

When the Star Dancer lands, RLS is in the midst of "negotiations" with the delinquent he'd come to the planet to find. The virus he's released into the port's computer systems relays the name of the ship to him, and he smirks evilly. So she'd taken the bait after all. Excellent. Now to wait for her to step into his body. He can't make it too easy, or she'll get suspicious....

As Lark roams around the port keeping watch on RLS-90, she'll eventually notice something peculiar. There are no living beings leaving or entering the ship. At all. It's receiving some deliveries, but the cargo is carted up to the storage bay door by a port employee, who turns around and leaves once the boxes are inside the door. Is the entire ship empty? Surely there is someone inside.

The doors to the cargo bay as well as the entry port seem to be locked up fairly tight. However, about thirty feet up from ground level, Lark may spot the weak spot she's looking for. A vent outlet has been damaged by stray space debris and is torn slightly open. It seems to be large enough for a human to slip into, with some difficulty. The port's security officers (sucha s they are) aren't around, so now seems the perfect time to act.

Lark's curiosity, but also her caution, are raised as she keeps up her lookout on RLS-90. It's very strange she hasn't seen any crew. Then again, the ship was already here when she arrived. It's possible the crew are all out on duties - getting supplies, looking for work, hiring workers, who knows.

It is strange that the ship would be left open like this. She's done the same thing of course, but Star Dancer is a small two-person craft. RLS-90 is considerably larger - she'd expect SOMEONE to still be on board.

That's when the gypsy notices the open vent.. and curses softly to herself. This may be the opportunity she was looking for - but she didn't bring all of her equipment with her. But if she left to get it - the crew might return.. or perhaps the vent would even be fixed, or at least found and monitored by then. If she wants to go in - it HAS to be now.

She curses and mutters on her breath - cursing the fates for presenting this opportunity now, when she's least prepared. Cursing herself for not being more prepared - carrying only a few of her blades and weighted beads as weapons, being dressed in casual clothes, rather than her 'blacks' for stealth. At least she's not wearing a skirt, the thinks as she begins to try and make her way over towards RLS-90.

It's not as easy as it may seem to approach casually - after all, the gypsy turns heads and draws attention, even in her plain clothes - her curves, her tanned skin, the huge lustrous length of her black hair - all of them eye catching on their own. Together, it's nearly impossible to go unnoticed - something she has fortunately learned to use in its own form of stealth. They remember HER - but perhaps not what she was doing or where she went.

Approaching the ship is easy, but reaching the vent three stories up is another matter. For Triella, the answer comes in the form of a nearby cargo hauler. In her 'working' clothes, no one seems to think anything of the woman climbing up onto the hauler, and driving over towards RLS-90. The large cargo container on the hauler's lift gives her just enough height as she raises the container towards the vent. She then climbs around the front of the hauler, and up onto the container. The vent is just above her head.. and with a little effort, she is able to pull the vent open the rest of the way, and pull herself up into the hole.

She doesn't know what she will find inside - but it's time to find out.

Halfway across the city, RLS's Model 05 body grins evilly. The game has begun. Deep within the ship, the computer systems- the true RLS plots just how to introduce Lark to what the ship has to offer. A path is charted through the vents and doors open and close to lead the woman where he wants her to go....

Lark will find herself in the ductworks of the ship, large enough for her to crawl through with a little room to spare. Hot air blows through constantly, enough that she will begin to overheat in the relatively heavy clothes she has on. The tunnel itself branches off in all directions, but most routes are blocked off by heavy metal bars or mesh. Of course, Lark isn't seeing those blockades shift around out of her sight and earshot, to force her in a certain direction. Every few dozen feet, an outlet will show her a view into one of the many rooms in the ship, but the outlets are barred and locked up to prevent anyone from breaking through. She sees storage rooms, empty rooms and rooms that contain what could only be called torture devices.... And all the time she never sees or senses any living beings at all.

But as Lark goes on, her empathic powers will suddenly finally pick up several life forms in a room ahead. As she gets closer, she'll quickly realize the situation even before she sees it through the next outlet. Not crew members- slaves. A dozen human women strapped to various devices like those torture devices she saw earlier. But these machines are designed for pleasure not pain. The women are being sexually tortured, filled in mouth, pussy and ass by buzzing metal cocks. At any given moment at least one of them is shrieking as a forced orgasm rips thrpugh her body.

If Lark wants to get into this room to try to help the women, she'll have trouble. The vent outlet is locked up like all the rest. But coincidentally there's an open one a few feet down that leads into the next room over. It appears empty except for a door on either side, one of which leads to the room with the captured women in it.

Lark sighs as she crawls through the hot ductwork.. groaning as her clothing becomes more and more uncomfortable. She loosens the tie at the neck of her top, letting it fall open (and revealing more of her cleavage), hoping that it will feel a little cooler.

It doesn't really work though, and soon her entire body is slick with sweat, and the shirt clings tightly to her curves as she continues to crawl down the ducting. Dead ends and blocked branches frustrate her, but sooner or later she knows she'll come across a room she can get into.

Then she feels it! First comes the sensation of heat in her breasts.. the gentle ache of need and pleasure as her nipples tighten. Then the pressure inside her sheath - of something hard and thick sliding against her walls, causing moisture to start running down her channel and over her thighs. Only as she continues to crawl forward does she start to feel the emotions - the pleasure.. the despair.. the hopelessness and the orgasms. Triella pauses and collapses in the duct work, gasping as the sensations of so many women ride over her. She groans softly at the sensations - but this is not the first time she has felt such overwhelming stimulation - and eventually she gets herself under control and starts forward again to investigate what the cause of these sensations are.

The vision of the women subjected to those machines, raping them ceaselessly sends a blaze of anger through her that helps her ignore the physical and emotional stimulation of her empathy. A fury that gives her focus.. a mission.. something to grab onto other than the waves of pleasure that are arousing her body.

Lark momentarily considers trying to pick the locks on the grating in front of her.. to force her way in to rescue the women immediately. Then she notices the next branch, which appears to be open. She quickly crawls down, and finds the empty room. She scans the room again, both visually, and empathically, before she unfastens the grill to the ducting, and silently slips into the empty room.

She then pulls out a set of lock picks, and walks over to the door where the women were being held and starts trying to open the door to rescue them.

If Lark's hearing is keen enough she'll hear machinery begin to move behind the walls and under the floor, as soon as she lands in the empty room. The purpose is unclear though- until the lights cut out, leaving her in complete darkness, and the floor itself starts to shift beneath her. A seam opens across the center of the room as the two halves of the floor slowly flip down like a trapdoor. Which is clearly exactly what it is. This entire room is a trap to drop people into... what? Every surface in the room is smooth metal with nothing to grab hold of, so unless she has something special up her sleeve, Lark will soon find out.

The drop is only a short distance into the room directly below. The lights are still out, so Lark will only feel what she's landed on- a large net that catches her safely with no injury. But the ropes of the net are made of some kind of adhesive and stick tight to her clothes and skin. She can probably pull away with great difficulty, but her clothes might tear in the process. Not to mention she'd only be pulling into another part of the net.

So there she is, in complete darkness with still no sign of any crewmembers or life beyond those captured women. But is that the sound more machinery moving to one side? And what are those eight glowing red lights in the darkness?

Lark gasps as the floor gives out under her, but she manages to not scream as she falls. She can't do anything to stop her fall, but she is able to use her telekinesis to try and soften the fall and protect her from any spikes or other dangers.

But instead she falls into a net. A STICKY net. The gypsy considers this as she tries to pull free.. only to cause her loosened peasant top to start to rip. She pauses to see if anyone or anything has heard the sound - but her empathy still detects no life but the women from the other chamber.

Deciding it is better to get out of here, then be caught here, she slowly pulls herself up from the web. Her shirt clings to the web, and the adhesive seems to almost eat away at the surrounding cloth, causing the light fabric to all but fall away from Triella's body, baring her large, yet firm, breasts.

The pants she wears are made of sterner stuff though and survive - but not without damage. Large patches of the fabric rip from the garment and cling to the web, leaving open holes that reveal a great deal of the gypsy's shapely legs, and the tight swells of her ass.

Between her natural agility and some assistance form her telekinetic ability, she is able to actually stand and walk on the web. The webbing sucks and pulls at her feet, trying to trip her up, and making any progress very slow going - but she is able to remain standing and slowly make her way along the web. Until she sees the glowing lights.

"This can not be good" she thinks to herself as she tries to peer deeper toward the lights and see what is there. Still - those things are the only light in this entire pit - so having no better chance at getting out of here, she continues to slowly make her way towards those lights.

"Hmm. Very interesting...." RLS says to himself as he watches Lark deal with the webbing. Not only did she fall more slowly than his prediction, she is managing to balance on the web far more easily than any normal human woman should be able to. How does she do it? There is more to this woman than met the eye. He'll have to do some further tests once she's out of this room.

Of course he's also admiring the flesh that had been revealed by her torn away clothing. Before anything else, he plans to have a bit of fun with her....

As Lark approaches the red lights, they shift and move in the darkness, circling around her smoothly as if a predator stalking its prey. Soon whatever the lights are shoots something at the gypsy, a projectile of some sort flying at her arm, then another one at her legs. If either projectile hits her, she'll find out that they're webbing similar to the ropes she's walking on, and they will knock her backward and stick her to the metal wall, back against the cool steel.

Whether or not Lark is captured by the webs, the robot that fired them will move toward her, revealing itself as it approaches and the lights in its eyes brighten. It's a giant robotic spider, about half again as long as she is tall, balancing on the webs effortlessly. The spider stalks toward Lark ominously as it clicks and beeps robotically....

Lark slows her approach as she notices the lights moving and circling around her. She barely hears the sound of the first shot. In an almost impossibly quick and graceful maneuver, Lark makes a dance-like turn and avoids the first net - but that only leaves out of position to avoid the second web which catches her around the waist and thighs.

She shrieks as the ropes knock her back into the wall and pin her legs against the metal shielding. Her head smacks into the steel behind her, dazing her for a few seconds. She groans softly, shaking her head to try and clear it before looking up to see the approaching spider-bot.

She speaks in a rapid (probably unfamiliar) language - but the language doesn't need to be understood, to be recognized for the colorful cursing that it is. Still, she isn't ready to give up yet - her hands are still free thanks to avoiding that first shot. She manages to pull out a couple of the weighted bearings from a pouch at her waist, and tosses them into the air, before they suddenly shoot forward towards the robot like bullets. The balls shoot at the robots legs, trying to break the joints that give it mobility. They strike with solid force, similar to normal bullets would hit - a surprising amount of force given they weren't launched from any apparent weapon.

(sorry this is so late! 2009 has been a seriously busy year for me so far.)

The spider can't react quickly enough to the ball bearings Lark shoots at it. They smack against its joints with amazing accuracy and sparks fly from the contact. The joints are better armored than she hoped though. They appear damaged, but not enough that the spider can't still move- though the legs she hit are making creaking noises now. A few more shots might take the joints out for good. But that's just what the spider attempts to prevent with several more shots of web- one to cover the pouch, two more aimed at her arms. Now that she's stuck to the wall already, these should have better luck than the first shot....

Meanwhile RLS stares at the readings his sensors are giving him. Those little bearings had shot forward with near bullet speed. What is this woman? He can't let her get away before he's done his research.

((NP - I understand - just glad you're back. ))

Triella smiles slightly as the bearings strike home perfectly.. only to start cursing as the spider-bot keeps moving closer. She's obviously damaged it - but not severely enough.

She tries to ready another salvo of the bearings, just as the spider shoots out several most globs of that glue-webbing.

RLS might wonder if the bearings did more damage than first indicated though, because one of the bot's shots goes wide by a far margin - not even anywhere in the right direction. But the other two strike home perfectly -- covering the gypsy's bag of ammunition with one, and pinning one of her hands with the other.

The girl swears vehemently in her native tongue, as she uses her free hand to try and free herself of the sticky ropes before the spider can reach her.

"WHAT?!" Halfway across the city, RLS jerks out of his chair and stares at a wall in the direction of the ship. "How the HELL did-"

The portly creature he was negotiating with stares at him. "Errrr, is something wrong sir?"

RLS growls "It's nothing" and gets back to haggling over stupid little contract details. But the ship is seething. It seems that Triella is trapped, with only one arm available and her ammo blocked too. But she's apparently been able to damage his Model 31 enough to throw off its aiming- aiming servos and programs that he designed personally. This woman is dangerous- letting her inside his body was more risky than he'd thought. There's no telling what she may be able to do to him if he continues to play with her. Which means playtime is officially over until she's properly subdued.

Back on the ship, the spider leaps forward- and once again it seems that Triella did more damage than it seemed. It fumbles the landing and the legs she hit slip through gaps in the webbing. The robot tilts precariously but still has enough leverage to lash out with one clawed leg to pin her free wrist against the wall. Whether or not it succeeds, it starts firing out webbing in a steady stream,far faster than before, intending to make the gypsy completely immobile from the neck down.

Triella shrieks as the spider jumps at her, still desperately trying to free herself from the wall. Fortunately the robot seems to have misjudged its landing and has to fight for purchase.. but manages to pin the nearly naked gypsy against the wall and starts to spray out webbing as fast as it can.

Triella shakes her head, and struggles against the robot but to no real advantage. Some of the webbing shoots wide of the girl, even at that range, but it still quickly manages to cover her almost completely in the thick, sticky strands.

The robot though still seems to be struggling to recover its balance and get back onto the webbing the crosses over the room. The strangest thing that RLS might detect though is that all of the spider's diagnostics indicate that there is no serious damage to either its motor systems, or its aiming systems. It's almost like something is pushing at the spider-bot, and deflecting its aim and controls.

(sorry this took so long! this year has just been insane.)

That's more like it. RLS relaxes- partially. As the spider struggles to approach Triella, he focuses most of his brainpower on analyzing those diagnostics. By all accounts nothing is broken- no, that's absurd. something has to be broken or it wouldn't be performing this poorly. It's like some invisible force is pushing on the robot and forcing it off course....

Of course. Telekinesis. Some kind of psychic power. He feels like a fool for not connecting the dots sooner. But then again, psychic abilities like that are well known in certain species, but rarely seen in humans. He's finally pinpointed what makes this girl unique. And now he wants to know where that uniqueness comes from. The chances to study psychic ability are few and far between for RLS. If he can replicate this gypsy's abilities....

But that's for after she's subdued. this woman is not going to make a fool of him. RLS moves the spider forward very carefully, compensating for any further pushes from the girl's power. It detaches her from the wall with its claws and winds more webbing around her to cocoon her completely. Only her head is left unbound, and he even aims one last stretch of web to cover her eyes- although if she is psychic, he doubts that will completely stop her. That task complete, the robot starts to carry her off in an unknown direction. Triella will feel the minds of those captured women grow fainter- wherever she's going, it's not to join them in their torture chamber.