Kaleor, Ralea, Teira and Luran arrived to Caelor, a small military outpost. Aruna, Teoros, and two more of Commander Arlon's Inquisitor regiment were waiting.

"Did Lok explain the nature of this mission?" asked Teoros. "He only said it was an unusual assignment. He gave us no details", Luran replied. "We are to capture one Tauron. Which means no explosives, electro guns, and preferably no swords or darts. Commander Arlon said they need a living Tauron. They are building something here, and they need a test subject", said Teoros.

"Whatever it is, it most certainly is unusual. And it will be far more dangerous than it already is. Stay close and follow our lead", said Ervalon, another of Arlon's regiment.

The 8 Inquisitors jumped on their speeders, and headed off to Ranveor, where a lone Tauron was spotted.

When they got there, Aruna activated her bio scanner, and her eyes narrowed. Amongst a sea of red dots, was a black dot. "Tar. We are in for a rough fight", she said. "Then explosives may be the only way to take it down", said Aira. "Let us hope it doesn't come to that. Come on. Let's get this over with before they escape", said Ervalon. The Inquisitors jumped off the speeders and ran after the retreating mage.

Durial turned, and spotted 8 Inquisitors running after him. He opened a portal, but before he could jump into it, one of them ensnared him with a cable. Steel balls were hurled at him, which he batted away with his shadow bathed hands. He conjured a sword out of pure shadow, hardening it with the dark essence from inside him. The Inquisitors attacked with their swords and sword staffs.

Durial blocked their attacks with difficulty, and leapt away. The points of contact of their blades were marked by black and burgundy spots. The Skallos steel that was used for forging their swords was incredibly durable and light, which allowed them to withstand the impact of a shadow essence weapon. But even it was not indestructible. Prolonged contact would melt the steel, and any exposed skin would be immediately burned away.

The Inquisitors attacked again, careful to stay out of his sword's reach. Durial evaded several strikes and grasped one's sword. The shadow swirling around his hand heated the steel, and it began smoking.

Kaleor struggled to free his blade, but the Tauron's grip was too strong. The others rushed to his aid, but his foe conjured a shadow bubble around them, and their weapons ricocheted off it. Dark tendrils emerged from portals, and attacked them.

Meanwhile, Kaleor's sword was burning. In desperation, Kaleor kicked his foe in the gut. Durial released a grunt of pain, but maintained his grip on the Inquisitor's blade, and raised his sword for the deathblow.

Kaleor abandoned his weapon, and ducked just in time. He tackled the Tauron and wrapped his hands in his cable. He unleashed a barrage of hammer blows, which the mage blocked with his wrists, and brought his elbow down on his exposed chest.

Suddenly, the cable binding the Tauron's hands snapped, and Durial sent his foe to his back. He placed his hand on Kaleor's chest, and the shadows burned. Kaleor writhed in pain, unable to focus. Then, he felt instant relief. The Tauron's hand slid off his chest, as Ervalon's sword sliced through his arm. The Tauron's other hand flickered a deep purple, but Ervalon slammed the pommel of his sword in the mage's temple, knocking him out cold.

Ervalon ripped open the remains of Kaleor's jacket and the shirt underneath. He sprayed water on the burgundy burn mark, and took a flask of green liquid out of his med kit. As the liquid came into contact with Kaleor's skin, the pain turned to a dull ache, and Kaleor relaxed. Lastly, Ervalon soaked a strip of bandages in blue liquid from another flask, and wrapped it tightly around Kaleor's chest.

"Thank you. My sword?" Kaleor said. "You will have to get a replacement", Ervalon replied.

The group headed back to Caelor, and the prisoner was drugged, and placed in a reinforced steel chamber. Commanders Lok and Arlon led the Inquisitors to a secret chamber. Several Tudor engineers and scientists greeted them. Commanders Lok and Arlon were present as well. A 10 foot tall suit of armor stood next to them.

"Welcome to our lab. For the last 4 years, we have been working on a new weapon, to counter the various powers of the Tauron. A mechanized suit with enhanced resistance against them. It has a heat shield against fire, electro rods for lightning. The metal is impervious to rust. The suit can be anchored against any wind, and the whole suit is heavily padded from the inside. It is not particularly fast, but it's durable, and completely impervious to matter manipulation. The operator will be safe. The suit is armed with a flame thrower, steel nets, a sword, and plasma projectors in its chest and hands. It also has a small electro cannon mounted on its head", the lead engineer said.

"Who is willing to test this weapon?" said Commander Arlon. "I will, sir", Ervalon replied.

The suit of armor opened, and a small ladder lowered to the floor. Ervalon stepped into the suit. The ladder pulled back, and the suit closed.

The lead engineer activated his comlink. "Raider 1, up."

Two gold lights flickered to life in the suit's head, and another in its chest.

"Ervalon, strap yourself in. Do you copy", the engineer said. "Copy." "Do you see the big joystick to your left?" "Yes." "Push the switch forward."

The mecha suit took a few steps forth. "Now pull it back." The suit returned to its original position. "Two steps left, and then right." "Good. Now push the switch down." "Now up." The mecha suit rose from its squatted position, and jumped several feet up. Thrusters in its legs brought it down with a gentle thump. "The arms and head are controlled by your own movements. Close and open your fists." "Punch. Uppercut. Wave your hands. Rotate your head. Kick." Ervalon did as instructed, and nodded his head.

"Very good. On your right are the weapon controls. Red button is the flamethrower, blue is the electro cannon, and the three gold buttons are plasma projectors. The big one is for the chest, the small ones are for the hands. The black button is for the ground locks. The silver ball is the steel net, and the black tube next to it is the sword. Move your left arm to 9 o'clock. Gently press the red button." A burst of fire came out. "Blue. Gold 1 for the left hand, Gold 2 for the chest, Gold 3 for the right hand. Black, silver ball, black tube." A torrent of lightning came from the head mounted cannon, followed by plasma beams from the suit's hands and chest. A large steel net came flying, and a 1 and a half meter sword sliced through the air. "Very good. Now, move the suit to the gold circle."

The mecha suit rotated 180 degrees, and took four steps back to its original spot, before turning back to face them.

"Remarkable. But, before we can make a final judgement, we have a test subject that we'd like to get rid of", said Commander Arlon. "Of course."

The chained Tauron was pushed into the room, before the mecha suit.

"Listen carefully, scum. You will not survive. Even if you somehow destroy this weapon, you will die. But you can at least die with honor. We will unchain you, but if you attack, you will be put down. Once the mecha suit attacks, then you can do as you please. Nod if you understand", Commander Arlon said. The Tauron glared at him, and nodded. "Release him." As soon as the chains were off, the guards hurried to the back of the room, under the Inquisitors' protection.

"Ervalon, he is all yours." The mecha suit activated, and a torrent of lightning shot at the Tauron.

Durial evaded the attack and conjured a dark shield, blocking a plasma beam. He wielded shadow, forming it into a sword, with which he repelled a burst of fire. He evaded a net and sprinted towards the mecha suit, ducking under its long range attacks. He sidestepped its sword, and ducked under a kick. He rolled between the mecha suit's legs and jumped on its back. He struck its head with his shadow sword, and pressed the blade against the metal.

"Pull the left switch up and back!" Ervalon did as instructed, and the mecha suit slammed into a wall, landing with a thud. The Tauron scrambled back to his feet, and swung with his weapon. Ervalon met it with the suit's sword, and launched another steel net, tangling the Tauron.

Durial pushed out with his hands, and torrents of dark energy slammed into the mecha suit, keeping it at bay, but dealing no damage to it. Durial redirected the power to the net, but the mecha suit was upon him, and he found himself pinned, unable to move his legs or torso.

"End this wretch", Commander Arlon ordered. Ervalon pressed Gold 3, and a gold beam shot out. The Tauron's head moved away just in time.

Durial poured shadow energy into his arms, strengthening them. The mecha suit raised its sword, and swung. Durial's hardened hands met the tip of the blade with a deafening clang, and pushed it off to the side. While the suit was unbalanced, he thrust his hand into the gold light in its chest. The mecha suit reacted quicker than he had expected. With a sudden, violent jerk, it dragged him back up and hurled him against a wall. It ran forward, its heavy footsteps causing the room to shake, and staggering the Tudor personnel.

Durial dove out of the way and released a beam of darkness at its back joints. The weaker metal started giving way. The mecha suit quickly rotated, and before he could do anything, a gold plasma beam struck his shoulder, the force of the impact sending him into another wall.

The mecha suit stumbled toward him, its mobility severely decreased. What I wouldn't give for wind right now, he thought, as he called on his power.

Ervalon pressed the red button, and fire poured out of the flamethrower on the suit's left arm. A dark purple shield met the attack, and a shadow beam launched at his knee, followed by several to his elbows.

"Should we intervene, sir?" said Luran. "No. This is a battle between them. If Ervalon falls, we will. But while he holds, we stay put", Lok replied. "This is madness, sir. There is no way he will survive this!" "No! We must stay put. We can not have external influences on this experiment." Lok snapped.

Durial evaded a volley of lightning bursts, and another steel net.

"We did not sign up for watching our friend be slaughtered by one of them." Teoros said. "No! We can not intervene! We must let the test play out as it will!" Lok ordered. "We've seen enough." Commander Arlon said.

Durial saw several of the Inquisitors move towards them, weapons drawn. He leapt back, just as the mecha suit's sword crashed down where he stood a second ago. He slammed his hand into the floor, creating a shadow bubble. Plasma, fire, lightning, and the Inquisitors' weapons struck the bubble, shaking it violently. He worked quickly, but the attacks were draining the bubble even faster. Just as the portal was ready, one of the Inquisitors tackled him. Both went into the portal.

Teoros scrambled back to his feet, and saw the Tauron a few feet away. He attacked, but the mage blocked with his shadow sword and pushed him back.

Durial struggled to repel his foe's attacks, exhausted and wounded as he was. He was barely able to defend from his quick attacks, and had no strength to fight back.

Teoros kicked his foe in the gut, and slammed the pommel of his sword into his jaw. He tackled him, and drew his dagger. He pushed down with all his strength, and his exhausted foe gave way. The dagger did not pierce his chest, however, but entered his arm instead. Before Teoros could attack him again, the Tauron grasped his neck and chest with his hands, and the dark tendrils burned him, the intense pain paralyzing him.

Durial pushed his foe off, and his shadow coated fingers slammed into his neck, burning through. The Inquisitor  released one last breath, and was still.

Durial belted his sword and electro gun, and activated his comlink. "This is Durial. Can anyone hear me? Is anyone there!" he spoke frantically. Static followed, and then he heard a familiar voice. "Durial? This is Alenar. Where are you?" "I am on the outskirts of Ranveor. I have urgent news to report. I need pick up immediately." "We are en route. Stay where you are."

Sure enough, two rebel frigates, 5 corvettes and a cruiser appeared. Just as a gunship flew down, four Tudor destroyers and a battleship arrived, and attacked the capital ships. A pack of Tudor fighters flew towards the gunship. The rebel fighters escorting the gunship formed a protective sphere around it, a few of them shot down.

Alenar and Tailen sent out torrents of wind, staggering the Tudor ships, keeping them at bay for the moment. Shadow beams appeared, and several more Tudor fighters went down.

A rope dropped down, and Durial grabbed on. "Pull him up and let's get out of here!"

Alenar grasped Durial's wrist, and helped him up. "Get him to the med bay immediately!" Alenar ordered. "Yes sir!"

The gunship and its escort returned to the fleet, which quickly retreated, though not before two of their corvettes were blown.