Portal mechanics were something every Pathfinder trained by the League of Aquitaine was expected to at least understand theoretically, in that such a means was a 'common' means of travel between realms, and often within realms. Tarvek's own skill with such mechanics was quite good his instructors had rated, and it work well here when the alien 'stargate' ring-portal themselves were strangely helpful in an idiot-proofing sort of way. In both Janet's dimension and this one. The ring-portals were clearly meant as fixed points, but were not limited to that either – they could receive a 'signal' as Tarvek was intending now as the power flowed into a large, faux, ring device within the human base.
The native humans comp-tech wasn't all that impressive, the entire room filled with such machines kludged together in a rapid, ad-hoc, manner to provide the necessary computation power, as well as serving as the transmission system for the comp-plague attack. Tarvek had slaved the systems to his own pip-boy wrist-comp, holo-graphic display shimmering as the device now covering the wall pulsed to life before his, and dozens of human scholars' eyes. Their ruler was already evacuating above, taking flight with his war-leaders, just as Tarvek had advised as the activation of this device would be detectable by the not-Asgard, and he expected they would come here afterwards.
His, and Janet's escape craft was arranged as well, and he was eager to go as he ignored the babbling of the human scholars, activating the ring-portal at the agreed time, all devices in readiness. That they were excited by the process and the device was, well, irrelevant at the moment. Surviving and using it as a weapon was the goal this day for both he and they as the boxes forming the faux ring pulsed and sparked. The ring-device called a stargate would revolve while generating this effect, but the crude and inferior materials and design Tarvek had had to use merely pulsed in place instead. Pulsed and shrieked as a ring of white-blue energy cracked into existence at the edge of the inner ring of the device.
Lights flickered around the great laboratory hanger room, the device sucking in energy as runic sigils ignited one by one within. With harsh words he shouted at the nervous and wavering soldiers to prepare themselves, and to stand outside of the marked area. The 'true' ring-device had in-built safeties…
Tarvek watched a corona of lightning flashed before his suited eyes, expelled as the gate activated, the roaring crown of electricity illuminating the room as the lights dimmed for seconds. They reset as the gate event horizon flashed outwards, thankfully no-one being hurt as he'd marked the danger area somewhat conservatively just to be sure. It felt like a worrying eternity as the 'gate' 'opened' to the eyes of his watchers, the connection made, Tarvek seeing the watery-oil like surface of the portal shudder and reveal the image of a gloomy cave-like area, or perhaps a bio-mechanical area…
"Bring through the Device!" he roared out, his heavy repeater taking aim as he stood before the humans, advancing first into the zone "Transmit Comp-plague attacks! NOW!"
Targeting data flooded unto his HUD, identifying potential enemies beyond the ring-portal, heavy repeater raising up even as he strode forward, then went to one knee as he'd warned he would. Those other humans, about six, assigned to be the 'fire-team' came up and flanked him, taking their own aimed shots at the things beyond the gate. In theory the fire should be only one way, though Tarvek did not want to risk it being so or not due to his crude, ad-hoc, safety overrides to create this bridging portal. There was also a desperate need not to shoot any of the machinery he'd set up, with each of the humans assigned to firing being, in theory, trained marksmen and had been strenuously warned on not hitting the equipment. Nor the weapon being wheeled forward between them, as no shots echoed out after the first thirty-nine seconds.
Tarvek watched as the device, a relatively low-yield weapon used because it was easiest to get access to and to do what madness they were currently attempting. It should be sufficient though, the gate infrastructure shuddering and sparking after the sixty-two second mark, then causing the lights around them to dim and pulse as the atomic device was pushed through the event horizon. Comp-plagues too, with a count down activating on the atomic device inside its sealed crate, tracking systems showing its transit across the continent and ocean in mere seconds. Sufficient time to complete the final transmits as Tarvek forcefully ended the connection as ever more power was drawn into the faux ring-device. Calling for everyone to get clear of it as he did so on a timer, falling back as the device shrieked and sparked wildly, emitting that savage crown of electricity once again as it burned itself out. Now came evacuation for Tarvek as he polymorphed to a human guise, Janet falling in beside him as they were escorted from the facility towards a waiting aircraft above…
"Please fasten your seatbelts…"
Tarvek ignored the words of the pilot as he felt the human craft began to move on the runway, bringing up the synced comp-device installed on this craft, adding in his own equipment as he sat, linking it to his pip-boy wrist-comp. The attack on the not-Asgard seemed to be working, as his own access to their comms showed a collapse in the comms, and general chaos as Tarvek brought up a more coherent image of things as Janet sat beside him. For now he focused on the screen of the small comp placed on the table of the flight, ignoring the humans around him who were also watching his movements, and seeking information.
"What's happening?"
Janet was worried, the aircraft starting to move, and she voiced what all the others were thinking Tarvek suspected "Did it work?"
The twin screens Tarvek had set up flickered to life as he used his pip-boy wrist-comp, a holo-screen shimmering above his currently human right lower arm and wrist. Another flick of buttons shifted the data to the more easily useable physical devices, Tarvek turning off the holo-imager as the screens showed collated data from the local military. They hadn't cut them off at least, even as they evacuated the facility, mission complete, and a very visible, to advanced sensors, energy discharge in their wake. All around their craft there was a flurry of activity, Tarvek ignoring the rumbling shakes as the craft accelerated and began to rise off the ground, an escort pair of fighters already in the air.
"The mothership seems to have survived…somewhat, but it's after falling into the oceans. No, it has fallen…" he voiced as he began reading through transmissions translated by his wrist-comp "The queen of the hive is dead…yes, that is most likely the outcome…"
"Transmitting" he corrected himself, sending to the native military as he'd agreed "Enemy systems compromised. Shield and engine failures in progress across their systems, comp-plagues are spreading and infecting their systems"
That was what he wanted to see, and what the natives wanted to hear, as some muted cheers arose from those 'Australian' ones he still had acting as hosts of sorts. The elimination of the Hive Queen was the vital part it seemed, as, if she had survived, the comp-plagues wouldn't work nearly so well as they seemed to be doing with such primitive systems. Tarvek was watching in real-time as the not-Asgards comms went from a stead stream of commands and focused orders to….childish confusion and crude-mental thoughts turning into words on his screen. That was likely due to the various 'drones' as they were noted to be having limited sapience and thinking seemed to come in requests for commands, or simply issuing commands based on rote or previous commands from above.
He watched as, his craft now airborne, as reports of a warship simply falling from the sky to crash into the sea were matched with others where atomic devices took down several more. Watched as the not-Asgard reacted individually, without strategy or coordination, without battle plan beyond reacting to human forces. It was the crude tactics of an untrained, limited, 'dumb AI' system at best, or perhaps that of a beast lashing out to its hunters. Tarvek's worries began to melt away…
As the not-Asgard forces began to melt away, like snow warriors under a hot sun. They still had superior weapons of war, even crippled by the comp-plagues and loss of their hive ruler. But shorn of that command they were no longer a host made for war, nor truly able to coordinate to fix the problems their technologies and power should allow them to overcome. They were psionic after all, yet they persisted in their comm-heavy usage even as such systems crumbled or struggled to be maintained at a level adequate for battle. Yet they failed, the native humans flinging their forces against them relentlessly now weakness had been detected, a hunter stalking its prey, dangerous predator that they prey might be.
Sitting aboard the flying craft, within mere hours, Tarvek's words with those humans changed from battling the invasion, to what his needs would be in the coming days. As the destruction of the not-Asgard fleet was now an unstoppable cascade as overwhelming human air fleets descended upon the vessels one after, returning to rearm and refuel before vast armadas hunted down the next, then last, targets as armies were hurled at those vessels forced to land. What had seemed an impossible, perhaps hopeless, defence had turned into a slaughter of the attackers across the globe.
Tarvek could only nod in relief. There was a chance now…