Everyone has a Hobby...

.. and mine is science. Kind of a busmans holiday really. I took time away from my weapons research in order to assist Vanguard with their Rikti autopsies.

Yes, I know... yesterday I sure for peace and today I'm dissecting their brethren. Such is life!

The improved armour appears to be merely cosmetic, but the biology of the creatures is fascinating - most especially their enhanced psionic capabilities. I expect I can probably devise something to shield myself from the effects if I give it a little work...

... ZR Mind Shielding... yes...

Peace in our time? I doubt...

I'm glad that the Traditionalist Faction continues to petition us for peace. The last thing I need is the constant war impinging on my research. I've lost too many prototypes so far during these brief few weeks of war - my first attempt at co-opting Vanguard HVAS technology and my prototype Impervium Armoured Suit to name but two.

I guess my previous experience with Ambassador Kuhr'Rekt means that Vanguard put me forward as the representative to the Rogue Isles during the recent peace negotiations. Cleared by Lord Recluse himself, by dint of my "Chosen One" status, I was given full diplomatic authority.

The Traditionalist Ambassador Il'los was most attentive to what I had to put forward, though more reticent about my attempts to "suggest" trade arrangements for the Rogue Isles.

I spent some time after the official talks to chat with a few of the Rikti and human dignitaries in attendance. It seems, unfortunately, that the Traditionalists are the minority faction here on Earth and while they seek peace the Restructionist faction wields the greater power.

Peace in our time? Perhaps not. But perhaps, we can redirect and calm hostilities (preferably towards Paragon City and away from the Rogue Isles!)

Setting them up the Bomb!

Well, this is the first time in a while I've had opportunity to leave an entry - the assaults on the Rogue Isles are nearly non-stop and I have barely slept. During the time I haven't been on the front lines, I have managed to craft a prototype rudimentary psychic shield from the remains of Rikti Assault Forces and also perfected the stealth field generation from the ZR Force Wing technology.

The only other thing of note is that trying to herd heroes is much akin to herding cats! I have been, on several occasions, asked by Vanguard to lead multiple assault teams on to the saucer in the Rikti War Zone to plant bombs and keep the damned thing grounded.

This means, destroying all the Rikti Pylons set up to maintain the ships' shielding and then blasting into a likely looking grate to plant the bomb. Of course, your average hero doesn't know a strategy if it comes up and bites them on their spandex-clad asses, so I've been shouting directions!

I've been fairly successful at placing the bombs - a combination of my Personal Forcefield and the prototype psychic shielding has worked a treat. Alas, on multiple occasions I and my assault teams have been faced off against the giant Rikti U'kon Gr'ai - their Master at Arms.

It seems that when he finds he can no longer keep us occupied, and he incapacitated form is teleported off the ship surface, Rikti repair systems re-establish the Pylons and shielding and force us off the hull.

We must work on a way to keep the shields down longer so we can do more damage to the invaders!

Lady Grey's Strikeforce

Well, it would seem that Vanguard know which way to turn when a dangerous task needs to be undertaken. I was contacted by Aero at the behest of Vanguard. They required three strike teams to try and penetrate the secrets of the Rikti's new portal and to stop what perhaps is best described as the Apocalypse.

Three teams set out - one completed the objectives first. I have no need to state my own teams supremacy here. My team was as pictured above. From left to right: Randel, Womble, Domenice, Myself, Lady Grey (remained at Vanguard Base to co-ordinate), Buzzsaw MGee, Navi and Dr Liah Phillips (unfortunately, while Doc Bot of ARAD joined us for the initial missions, we was recalled to Grandville to help coordinate Rikti Defense Forces).

It would appear the new portal technology that the Rikti have, unlike that of Arachnos, is unstable and they were attempting several alternate power sources to make it so - mainly psychics as we uncovered. First, they kidnapped some powerful hero psychic kid called Penelope Yin. This, unfortunately, meant that her paramour the Clockwork King came charging in to save her and we had to "liberate" both her and disable the King.

After this, destroying a few Rikti Assault Suits, a Rikti Commander, rescuing some further psychics and two members of the original Omega Team we had to face on of my personal horrors - the Hamidon. Yes, the Rikti were attempting to drain the Hamidon in order to fuel their portal.

While we stopped them in the act, we also had to set forth and destroy the weakened Hamidon nucleous. It was a very tough fight and I was incapacitated more than once until I began to send wave after wave of my own robots to destroy each of the remaining mitochondria before we turned our attention to the nucleous itself.

Finally, we struck at the portal and its generators directly - only to be confronted with something quite abominable. Hero One, who led the Omega Team, mutated into a Rikti and forced to do their bidding.

Still, I was gratified to see that my ZR Autonomous Combat Systems are more than up to the task of beating such a well regarded "hero" down.

Ack - all this saving the world lark is making me sound like a hero...

Armoured Suit Improvement

After a number of skirmishes with the Rikti forces, it has become apparent that the anti-gravity technology I am using for my flight is not sturdy enough for some of the more... intense engagements. As such, I have had to develop a more mechanical method of staying aloft.

And here is the fruits of my labours - ZR Force Wings. I've fitted them to my improved Bane Spider armour. I am also currently working on them further to see if I can induce the membrane field to provide a level of stealth generation like that on one of my other experiments - Assault ZR-Beta (an assassination bot, I must film him in action some time).

Source Identified

I have been contacted by one group I never thought I'd hear of in the limelight again - Vanguard. The UN Metahuman Force tasked with dealing with the Rikti during the first war. And, it seems, this one.

I have no idea how they constructed them so quickly, but Vanguard DPO's have popped up around the Isles and portals that teleport into the heart of the Rikti Crash Zone in Paragon City have been constructed. Perhaps we sould more accurately call it the Rikti War Zone now...

Regardless, I was introduced to the senior members of Vanguard and given a brief tour of their base in Paragon. I was particularly impressed by their robotics technology, even if they did not respond to my commands...

Meeting with Dark Watcher, the head of Vanguard Intelligence (or Helm as they call it), he briefed me on the situation - Vanguard are calling in all metahumans "good" and "evil" to help fight the Rikti.

It seems, according to patchy intelligence, War Leader Hro'Dtohz of the Rikti (intelligence photo attached) has managed to establish at least a partially stable portal back to their own dimension and have been porting in new forces and technology. The portal is located somewhere in the Rikti War Zone hence the "free access" from the Rogue Isles.

What else could I do? I've agreed to help Vanguard, in exchange for access to their research facilities.

On the Front Lines

It's taken me a few hours to get the laboratory in order - activating and developing defenses against Rikti teleportation technology, and scanning so that I may have a safe bolthole during the war. Somewhere for ARAD to regroup.

With that done, I set out to the rest of the Isles to find the invaders. It seems that Lord Recluse is issuing all frequency alerts tied to an early warning system so it was relatively easy to identify an assault on Port Oakes.

Transporting in via the Lab teleporters, I quickly teamed up with more citizens of the isles to create a defense force and began to repulse the Rikti invaders. I managed to capture the following image of some form of formidable Assault Suit the Rikti now have... looks like new technology is being shipped in from somewhere.

That said, we still saw them off with minimal structural damage to the island.

And So, War Begins

24th of July 2007. A day that will stand out in my memory for a long time to come. From all my exploits, achievements and failures, this is the date that will haunt me. I expect they'll call it the Second Rikti War.

I remember the first war - it was what drove me to robotics, to design tools that could fight for man, without man himself being in harms way. Willing tools of destruction, endless in their number the way the Rikti seemed to us during those terrible years before the Omega Team made their sacrifice. I had almost forgotten...

And the Rikti are back in force.

Oh, they never went away - small enclaves of them up and down Paragon City and I am sure around the world. We even had them here in the Rogue Isles where Lord Recluse tolerated them, and even allowed a Traditionalists Ambassador who I have worked with in the past. I have worked and fought alongside the Rikti - I have even liked them.

But now, the Restructurists have got reinforcements and new technology - there must be a new portal open... but where?

I must go, air raid sirens are calling the Rogue Isles to arms - for the weal of Arachnos, and the sake of our planet, I and Arachnos Research and Development must respond.

Released?!?!

NOOOOOOO!

Curse you Aeon! How did you do it? Robotic simulcra? Demonic illusion? No not quite your style even if you do harness the demon Bat'Zul... Time travel, yes! You fiend.

Arbiter Daos wouldn't listen though - oh how I pleaded with the man. Debased myself before him - if only to keep Aeon incarcerated, if they wouldn't let me slay him. All to no avail - the hack has been released.

Dr Aeon, I reaffirm my promise to you that some day, some time in some place I will end you. For this, and all your meddling!

Capturing the Meddler!

Yes! Arachnos have given me approval to haul in Dr Aeon's posterior for questioning. I have him this time - video surveillance of him captured by the ZR Aegis Transponder means that his ass is mine!

Fighting past the disloyal Arachnos troops that were defending him were no issue at all, though I see he has a few Commandos and Scouts now plus a Night Widow or two. Is that hack enlisting help from Ghost Widow?

Still, as I cornered the wretch and he ran around his lab he was protesting his innocence. Truly, what kind of fool does he think me, Master Zaprobo, the true Chief Scientist of Arachnos, to be!

His inventions continue to pale agains tthe might of my robotics and forcefield technology - I barely had to expend any nano-bots to repair the six units I took with me, and the few paltry blasts of energy he hurled at me bounced off harmlessly.

In all? Around two minutes to subdue the duplicitous traitor. Now, he answers the wrath of the Arbiters for daring to interfere with Project DESTINY.

Project DESTINY Begins!

Well, it seems that I have reconciled my dispute with Black Scorpion, who is finally allowing me to work directly on Project DESTINY. The first task, to fine-tune the Arachnos Portal Technology.

It seems Lord Recluse has used his Fortunatas to divine a future where he triumphs over the hateful Statesman. They prophesied that a great portal would allow access to this future, and that the key to zeroing in on this future would be a villain who rose from obscurity to notoriety - the elite of Arachnos.

They say its me. I'm the Destined One. Over the years I've seen thaumaturgy used as blithely as I use electricity - demons, spectres, mages and other manifestations. Back in my day I would have dismissed this out of hand. Now... no, no I stand by my findings. I am no such thing - but if my Lord and Arachnos needs me to assist I shall.

My preliminary tests, however, were strange. The portal would not lock on anywhere but a single point in time, 15 years from now. I couldn't get it to zone in anywhere else.

I had to go through and eliminate the interference. My ZR Aegis Transponder was affected by the machinery there, and the imaging circuits were affected but I managed to capture these images.

Massacring the Rogue Arachnos Troops, I turned and was faced with the one man I could have guaranteed, really, to be trying to foil mine and Arachnos' plans.

Dr Aeon. The one scientist who dares to oppose me, time after time, with only a thin veil of respectability from Arachnos (and his time teleportation technology) to save him each time we clash.

As he did this time - muttering about a ruined city.

Seems that Dr Aeon has been watching me my entire career, and a hand-scrawled journal testified to the fact. Hopefully, this will be all the evidence I need to get Arachnos to let me shut him down for good this time.

Rikti Wrecked-ti

While Lord Recluse maintains communication with the Rikti through my erstwhile colleague Ambassador Kuhr'Rekt, not all factions of the inter-dimensional pest actually respect the rule of Arachnos in the Rogue Isles.

It was one such faction that Operative Grillo sent me after this evening. Seriously, did these degenerates ever pose a threat to the human race? My ZR Autonomous Combat Units shredded their drones and battle armour without a second glance.

Pitiful.

Relaxation through Inventing

Well, the rest of the month has been quiet, and has left me with time to dedicate to working on the Hypothetical Framework Invention System.

Its hard for an old dog like me to learn a new trick, but I am working on a-pace. I haven't tried anything too fancy yet - just working on some generic Inventions to reduce power consumption, and increase damage thresholds.

Much of the work is earning me great infamy through the network of sellers in the Black Market, which is furthering my work. Hopefully I shall get a call from Black Scorpion soon - if anything I could do with breaking up the tedium!

Assault on Grandville!

Back to laying the groundwork for Project DESTINY today, though Black Scorpion still has not divulged the nature of the project to me. This time, apparently the Nemesis Army have got wind of something about the program and I was sent to one of their Shadow Shard Dimension bases to find out what.

It turned out that the Nemesis Army was executing a full scale attack on the heart of the Rogue Isles - Grandville! Teleporting back to my lab to exit directly in Grandville I found myself almost too late.

All of Lord Recluses' loyal lieutenants had taken the field, and I was bid to join them. While Scirocco, Black Scorpion and Captain Mako held a defensive line, Ghost Widow tortured one of their commanders. Weak minded fools - the time was for action when the wolf is at the door.

Summoning my ZR Automated Assault Platoon I marched down onto the beaches where I was faced with many of the Lord Nemesis' fake automatons. Until... well what I found on the beaches took my breath away.

A perfect design of form and function - mole machines! Of course, I had to destroy them on sight as they were being used to ship in reinforcements, but still they where worthy behemoths like something out of the Science Fantasy Comics I read as a child.

Judicious use of a Force Bubble ensured I was not bothered by the Warhulks on patrol around them, and the invasion was repulsed.

Acquiring Parts

It would appear that my erstwhile colleagues are otherwise engaged, and with me closeted doing research for Project DESTINY, I have been seldom around of late.

The only times I've been seen outside of The Fab has been to frequent the lovely new Black Market in Cap Au Diable - really, they should have had this around when I was of a lower Threat Clearance as I would have made much more use of it.

Still, with the Hypothetical Framework now available in the Rogue Isles, I have been utilising the shady characters to acquire parts for my new inventions. Nothing of note yet.

Monkey Madness!

I heard tell from my fishing partner the other day that the northern isles of Peregrine were full of Rikti Monkeys.

Well, having enjoyed their antics I went along to have a look at the little blighters, prior to a later appointment that day. Alas, my partner was right and they were scaring the fish so I summoned in some ZR Units and set to eliminating them.

And you know, it was quite good fun!

AAAAAEEEEOOOOOOOOONNN!

Aeon! Can I never be rid of this infernal thorn in my side? I break in to one of his facilities to extract research that rightfully belongs to Arachnos and he has the audacity to attack me in the course of my duty?!

I barely noticed the hack as I was busy dispatching disloyal Arachnos troops, and only realised he was there by the colour of the energy blasts bouncing off my shields.

That's right Aeon! Your energies no longer breach my ZR Aegis Shielding. I found it pathetically easy to defeat you and if only you hadn't teleported out I would have dealt with you for all time.

You hear me? I will end you!

Snaake! Snaake, it's a Snake!

Well, this is taking me back. Back to when I was first broken out of the Ziggurat and my Threat Clearance Level was a paltry single figure. Operative Grillo, one of my peers from Arachnos Research, asked me to go and have a word with an old contact of mine - Mongoose, on Mercy Isle.

Seems the old exterminator has found a nest of snakes too big for even his boots. And called in a real professional.

I have to admit that he was right though - these new snakes are a lot more powerful than as I remember them. In the day a pair of Drone ZR's could hold them at bay - now a full squad of ZR Autonomous Units are hard pressed to deal with them. Still, with the ZR Aegis Transponder and my other devices I was able to deal with them effectively.

Although I doubt I have seen the last of this resurgence.

Quiet Time

So, what does an evil genius do on his rare days off when Black Scorpion is not harassing him, or the threat of Paragon City does not need thrashing back to its own shores?

Why he goes fishing of course!

But, the best fishing is in Paragon City, so I hitched a lift on an Arachnos Sub and in the shores north of Peregrine Island, settled down for a delightful evening.

Caught nothing. Didn't care. Bliss!

Council Technology Assimilated

My research into the technology of the Council and its former incarnation the Fifth Column has finally bourn fruit. A design for a Council-style Mek-man

Unfortunately, there is no way for me to currently replicate the weaponry or AI of the originals without it simply being a retooled ZR Combat Unit.

As such, I have just created a single prototype with no weapon systems - designed as a infiltration unit. Alas, I haven't managed to miniaturise the AI for it, so the thing simply follows me around for now.