I reattach the repair kit, take off, and fly to the gravplant.
Once there, I land at the designated position and get out, tethering myself to my CASKET and bring my first aid kit, harness, and guns.
I follow Brom's orders for movement, unclipping when it's time to move.
((Consider the following a continuous order for the duration of the turn))
After Brom makes his speech regarding surrender, I fire upon the nearest still-hostile target with the assault rifle, firing at most thrice.
Post
Sun Mar 04, 2018 3:23 am
#482
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
"Since I have nothing to do here, I guess I'll go fetch Lemon's CASKET? Since you guys crashed yours..."
During my turn, I keep an eye on the cqptive squid - if it tries to do something funny, I stasis her (up to 4 times) (( insofar I can actually see it of course, I don't expect this to work while I'm flying or something))
I stroll back to my CASKET, get in, and fly to the top of the nacelle, hovering about Lemon's.
I gently lower onto his CASKET and pick it up with my magnetic landing gear stuff.
Then I fly up, back towards an empty spot (not where I was landed just now), gently land, release the CASKET, fly back up.
I fly up to the left top of the hole in the nacelle. Using my PSI unit to control them, I pick up my hook in my ship's right hand pincers, and attach it to where it's supposed to go.
Finally, I go land back where I was parked at the start of the turn.
I get out again, and go loot the dead AA gunner squid person, sticking interesting stuff in my backpack.
Then I go get Lemon's hook thing from his CASKET and attach it in the center of the bottom part of the hole in the nacelle.
Finally I stroll back to the entrance of the nacelle and see if someone wants to go exploring with me now.
During my turn, I keep an eye on the cqptive squid - if it tries to do something funny, I stasis her (up to 4 times) (( insofar I can actually see it of course, I don't expect this to work while I'm flying or something))
I stroll back to my CASKET, get in, and fly to the top of the nacelle, hovering about Lemon's.
I gently lower onto his CASKET and pick it up with my magnetic landing gear stuff.
Then I fly up, back towards an empty spot (not where I was landed just now), gently land, release the CASKET, fly back up.
I fly up to the left top of the hole in the nacelle. Using my PSI unit to control them, I pick up my hook in my ship's right hand pincers, and attach it to where it's supposed to go.
Finally, I go land back where I was parked at the start of the turn.
I get out again, and go loot the dead AA gunner squid person, sticking interesting stuff in my backpack.
Then I go get Lemon's hook thing from his CASKET and attach it in the center of the bottom part of the hole in the nacelle.
Finally I stroll back to the entrance of the nacelle and see if someone wants to go exploring with me now.
Warning: do not ask about physics unless you really want to know about physics.
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The LT IRC / Alternate link || The REKT Wiki || PUDDING
Post
Sun Mar 04, 2018 4:32 am
#483
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
Arrr, that be no good, she'd be slipping my Amp's restraints any moment now. And her soul would be damned forever. I must try to sow a seed of faith in her - only then I would be able to look in His eyes without shame or remorse.
"Gearhead, esteemed engineer, I might need your help in restraining the prisoner sometime soon."
Look at Aloka kindly and try to make her less distressed.
Use charismatic amp for some non-relevant questions:
"Aloka, child, I have no quarrel with you. You are a mercenary - and however distasteful I find the Ninja-spawn, who am I to question one's life choices? I don't think you've got anything personal with us, either, do you?"
Wait a bit in case she answers or comments on that.
"If it were up to me, I would have let you go right away. But we have our orders - to deliver at least one prisoner for questioning. I can't fathom what could you tell us beyond what you've already told - you are not a commander, you weren't privy to their battle plans..."
"Since you don't appear to have any particular attachment to the people who might wait for us inside the nacelle, I propose a deal."
Use charismatic amp:
"You tell us what you know about who's waiting inside, and if we manage to get any of them prisoner, we'll set you free. We'll even return you your weapons and let you have any of the ships here. I know it's a bit of a stretch, but it's the best chance you've got. Even if we don't get any prisoners there, your cooperation will be noted, and you'll be set free as soon as we arrive to a neutral port. What do you think?"
IF she agrees to help:
- relay what she says to the squad
- signal Gearhead that I need his help with restraints
- lead her to the nearest ship to be restrained there
- tell her she'll have to wait there
IF she disagrees:
- signal Gearhead that I need his help with restraints
- lead her to the nearest ship to be restrained there
((I'll add some more irrelevant actions later))
"Gearhead, esteemed engineer, I might need your help in restraining the prisoner sometime soon."
Look at Aloka kindly and try to make her less distressed.
Use charismatic amp for some non-relevant questions:
"Aloka, child, I have no quarrel with you. You are a mercenary - and however distasteful I find the Ninja-spawn, who am I to question one's life choices? I don't think you've got anything personal with us, either, do you?"
Wait a bit in case she answers or comments on that.
"If it were up to me, I would have let you go right away. But we have our orders - to deliver at least one prisoner for questioning. I can't fathom what could you tell us beyond what you've already told - you are not a commander, you weren't privy to their battle plans..."
"Since you don't appear to have any particular attachment to the people who might wait for us inside the nacelle, I propose a deal."
Use charismatic amp:
"You tell us what you know about who's waiting inside, and if we manage to get any of them prisoner, we'll set you free. We'll even return you your weapons and let you have any of the ships here. I know it's a bit of a stretch, but it's the best chance you've got. Even if we don't get any prisoners there, your cooperation will be noted, and you'll be set free as soon as we arrive to a neutral port. What do you think?"
IF she agrees to help:
- relay what she says to the squad
- signal Gearhead that I need his help with restraints
- lead her to the nearest ship to be restrained there
- tell her she'll have to wait there
IF she disagrees:
- signal Gearhead that I need his help with restraints
- lead her to the nearest ship to be restrained there
((I'll add some more irrelevant actions later))
Survivor of the Josh Parnell Blackout of 2015.
Post
Sun Mar 04, 2018 4:43 am
#484
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
Mr. Gearhead, you need fix Bob-boss casket.
Walk over to the nearest enemy ship, look for ship weaponry and try to tear it of using my crowbar.
If this succeeds:
- say: Oh, Bob has present for Jimmy and bring it back to my ship and try to tie it down to my ship
Else:
- start idly wandering around the battlefield and pick up anything that looks cool and put it in my backpack.
- Get bored after a while ((I leave it up to you how long 'a while' is tal)) and wander inside the nacelle ((not too deep but farther than the entrance if there's time left in the turn))
If I encounter enemies within melee distance:
- smack them with my crowbar
Else:
- Try to have a chat with them ('Hello, Meh Bob, who you?' etc.)
- if they try to attack me:
-- fire at them with my semi auto pistol
((not more than 4 attacks in total))
Walk over to the nearest enemy ship, look for ship weaponry and try to tear it of using my crowbar.
If this succeeds:
- say: Oh, Bob has present for Jimmy and bring it back to my ship and try to tie it down to my ship
Else:
- start idly wandering around the battlefield and pick up anything that looks cool and put it in my backpack.
- Get bored after a while ((I leave it up to you how long 'a while' is tal)) and wander inside the nacelle ((not too deep but farther than the entrance if there's time left in the turn))
If I encounter enemies within melee distance:
- smack them with my crowbar
Else:
- Try to have a chat with them ('Hello, Meh Bob, who you?' etc.)
- if they try to attack me:
-- fire at them with my semi auto pistol
((not more than 4 attacks in total))
Post
Sun Mar 04, 2018 8:48 pm
#485
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
((Thread is soft-locked. Already copied everything down and started writing up the next turn.))
Have a question? Send me a PM! || I have a Patreon page up for REKT now! || People talking in IRC over the past two hours:
Post
Mon Mar 05, 2018 3:50 am
#486
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
(( Corn didn't post ))
Warning: do not ask about physics unless you really want to know about physics.
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Post
Sat Mar 10, 2018 1:15 pm
#487
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
TURN 14
((Apologies for the delay. This update contains some pretty, fancy artyness that I hadn't yet fully prepared, as well as something... different.))
Map:
Squad Alpha:
Brom
You immediately set your ship down, prepared for combat, and reach under your seat to grab the tether, which you latch onto the belt hooks on the front of your suit. Then, you get out on the left side, shield raised to cover yourself from the left.
Buck's voice comes on over the comms. "Hey, fellers, if any unarmed squids come out, don't shoot 'em! Me and 'em have a deal."
Without any delay, the two remaining hiltorel guards from earlier reveal themselves - and they most certainly are not paying any attention to Buck's mentioned deal. One of them charges directly at you, a melee weapon drawn back and ready to strike. But your pistol is ready - you fire a single powerful round into the squid's head as it approaches, and in the low gravity field it tumbles lightly to the ground, already dead. From behind, the remaining squid shouts, firing at you. You duck back, barely getting missed by a few plasma bolts that whiz past - two of them exploding against the riot shield with a force that causes it to vibrate in your hand. Only instants later the squid explodes in a mess of steaming gore - gore that boils and turns a lightly-toasted brown: the MFMs of Frank and Buck.
The coast is clear. That wasn't hard at all - the squids were almost painfully ineffective. You reload your pistol, just to make sure you don't run out of ammo.
After a few more moments, Vynkor arrives, hovering above, RCS thrusters firing full blast as she sets her CASKET down next to Gene's. You give the hand signal to Buck and Frank (still hovering above) that they should set down as well, and they do so. In the meantime, you head to the back of your ship to check out the stellaplex gear.
It's busted - and very much so, you find. While originally contained in a container, the lower part of the container has broken away from a solid laser strike that cut a deep gash through it and the surrounding metal of your CASKET. Your gear is useless. On the plus side, this means you don't have to worry about dragging it along with you, and the gear of your other squad members should more than suffice. Instead of grabbing the gear, you decide to climb back into your ship, unhook the other end of the tether from your seat, and bring it along with you.
((Continued at bottom of Alpha's portion))
Buck
You make an attempt to hack into the building's comms, or internal loudspeaker unit, if any. This seems to be mostly successful: you can't entirely tell how loud the volume settings are, and you get the feeling you're either at whispering level or blow-the-eardrums level as you broadcast this message: "Y'know, y'all dun have to die here, defendin' some shitty buildin' you dun care 'bout. We ain't go no quarrel with ya. Just lay down them weapons o' yers and come out. And don't ya dare look any of us in the eyes, I know yer tricks!" Then, you radio out to your squadmates: "Hey, fellers, if any unarmed squids come out, don't shoot 'em! Me and 'em have a deal."
At that moment, two squids bust out of the leftmost airshielded entrance - and they either didn't hear you, or didn't give your deal a lick of consideration: they're both fully armed. One of them charges at Brom, so you decidedly target the other one, blasting it wide open in a mess of gore and well-cooked innards, thanks to both you and Frank roasting it simultaneously.
After a few moments, Vynkor flies in from the northeast and lands. Down on the ground, Brom gives the signal, and you set your ship down next to everyone else's. You then disembark with all your gear and head toward the building.
((Continued at bottom of Alpha's portion))
Frank
You attempt to hack into the complex's camera systems so you can control them and see everything they see. Surely such a thing exists. After breaching a few systems, you take a short look around and find out that, indeed, they do. You also find out that it's altogether too well protected for you to make that kind of hack with your current toolset - at least, unless you gave it a bit more time and thought.
For now, you're needed for protecting Brom and Gene on the ground: two squids just appeared - one rushing out and charging Brom, and the other standing in the doorway. Worried that you might hit Brom, you focus on the one still standing in the doorway (which proves the correct choice: Brom easily dispatches the one near him, and when you hit the big red button, the enemy explodes in a mess of gore and well-cooked innards, thanks to both you and Buck toasting it at the same time.
After a few moments, Vynkor flies in from the northeast and lands. Down on the ground, Brom gives the signal, and you set your ship down next to everyone else's, taking care that you don't squish anyone. Then, you grab your gear and disembark - after making sure that you've latched the tether to the front of your ship, of course. Following this, you swap out your bolts for a sharp one and head to the rear of the ship.
Upon reaching the back of your CASKET, you unhook the Stellaplex gear and take a good look at it. Everything is labeled quite neatly. It's not a "harness" as such, and more of a two-part gravity-levitating container. You're supposed to plug your half into someone else's. Included of course, are tools for opening the reactor and extracting the Stellaplex itself - including what appears to be some kind of computer module designed to hack in, getting it to open of its own accord. It couldn't be easier to use, according to the (fairly sparse and somewhat misspelled) instructions: place it on the reactor, hit the button, and wait about five minutes while it hacks in.
The "five minutes" part disconcerts you. A lot can happen in five minutes. You stand, pick up the (somewhat heavy) container, and carry it to rightmost entrance of the building.
((Continued at bottom of Alpha's portion))
Gene
"Acknowledged, Mr. Keegan. Godspeed. Over and out," you radio back, and land your ship in time with his. Then, you grab your gear - weapons and everything else - and latch the tether from beneath your seat to the hooks on the front of your suit. Then, you get out of your ship... and immediately get into cover behind your ship as two hostiles appear from the leftwards door to the grav plant. One of them starts charging at Brom, but before you can even get your weapon out, Brom has already killed the first one. You try firing a shot at the one hiding behind the doorway - but your attack merely impacts on the side wall, leaving a mark. Fortunately, Frank and Buck, your air support, have you covered: they immediately toastyfry the remaining squid into an explosion of well-cooked gore.
And that's it. The hostiles are dead. You straighten up, look around, and see that Brom is giving Frank and Buck the signal to land. Everyone files off toward the rightmost entrance to the plant, and you head in that direction, too.
((Continued at bottom of Alpha's portion))
Vynkor
With your arm patched up, you re-open the cockpit, climb out, reattach the repair kit, and then climb back in. Your arm still hurts, and you're feeling a bit woozy, but now that you're somewhat calmer, it's not quite as bad. You take off, leaving the hiltorel park behind you as you fly toward the objective.
~~~
When you arrive, Gene and Brom have already landed. You set their ship down next to theirs attach the tether from the bottom of your seat to your suit. Then, you grab your gear and disembark.
Everyone in Alpha
Squad Alpha has assembled at the right-most entrance to the grav plant facility. Brom struts before them, puffing out his chest with importance as he gives what he intends to be a very rousing speech.
"We're finally going to make our entrance," Brom says seriously, addressing his squadmates. "Look alive! I've explained the order in which we'll enter the building, so please stick to it. Under no circumstances are you to sacrifice yourself for me should we come under fire; I can handle myself." Brom flashes what he intends to be an award-winning smile. Then, to Buck: "Buck, I expect you to wait until we have a long corridor to fire your grav gun. Use it right, and they'll be cleaning up the resulting mess for weeks! Use it when we step in the door... and you'll never get to use your bomb." Then, to everyone again: "Lastly, I want you all to keep your eyes peeled for traps. I can't name a single fan that wouldn't like to have me live with them. Some will offer me a place to stay, but others will be more forceful - I expect these are the latter kind. Now - with all of that out of the way... Onward! Glory awaits us!"
No one cheers or applauds. Instead, everyone files single-file through the grav plant air shield... and are greeted with what, for some, is a fully unexpected sight. If they had known hiltorel culture a little better, however, it would have been quite obvious what to expect.
The interior of the grav plant is quite humid - almost steamy. Large rocks - or what are apparently rocks - tower in the back corners of the greenhouse-like building, under the ribbed, translucent roof, making a natural backdrop for the steamy pond directly before it. Trees and shrubs grace the edges of the pool, and a path of cobblestones and stepping stones curves its way through the mossy antechamber, towards and around the computer equipment located even deeper in the complex. The antechamber itself has computer equipment lining the walls.
Brom and Frank take it upon themselves to hook their tethers onto one of the sturdier points, and then Brom begins stepping forwards - only to immediately jump back as a laser traces a burning path across the floor. The cameras Buck discovered before may not have been merely cameras - in fact, the more vigilant members of the squad can make out the outline of a camera-slash-turret perched atop the rocks to their right, just barely out of view.
A howling noise echoes from deeper in the complex - something primal and not quite human... or squid. Everyone not drunk out of their mind immediately feels a deep sense of foreboding.
Buck, naturally, is unperturbed.
Squad Beta:
Saoirse
You stroll back to your CASKET, making sure you keep an eye on the prisoner over your shoulder every now and then. If it tries to do anything funny, you'll stasis her... but fortunately, this doesn't happen. She doesn't make any attempt to resist. You climb up the side of the CASKET and slide into the cockpit, buckling yourself up as you close the canopy. Then, you take off, headed for the top of the nacelle, right above where Lemons' body was.
Lemons' CASKET is seated neatly atop the nacelle - and it's in horrendous condition. The hull integrity mostly doesn't even exist at this point - it's riddled with holes and deep gashes from laser beams. Honestly, you're surprised he had the RCS fuel to even land - and it's clear, judging from how the ship has crushed its landing gear into itself, that it barely managed it anyway. Nevertheless, you position your CASKET (from what you can tell) directly above it, and lower yourself downwards, your electromagnetic clamps on at full power.
With a loud CLACK that reverberates through your hull, you catch hold of Lemon's ship. Then, revving your RCS to full blast, you take back off slowly - gently - trying to keep it from rocking too much. Without warning, your ship suddenly lurches sideways to the sound of a loud, ear-blasting shriek of metal - something in Lemons' CASKET giving way. Two of your clamps still have hold of it, but not for long - as you leave the top of the nacelle, looking for somewhere to land, the rest of it falls away with a clatter, a shriek, and an explosion as it hits the dusty Nanyejian earth forty meters below.
That didn't go quite as planned, but you're not willing to throw in the towel just yet. Heading down somewhat, you find a nice, flat spot on the side of the nacelle, and lean back into your chair. You feel a coldness on the back of your neck as the PSI unit hooks up, and a very brief, stabbing pain. Gradually you become aware of the space around your CASKET. You have a faint sensation of existing outside the ship entirely - and you can almost picture it from here - wherever "here" is.
Moving the robotic arms completely with your mind, you let the robotic controls go limp as you move one of the arms backwards, letting the pincer pass between the arm's beams as you reach for the back of the ship - where one of your hooks are. carefully, delicately, you spin the pincer around enough to lightly grab the hook, pulling it from the clasps mounted on your hull, and spin it back toward the nacelle, lengthening your arm to move it into place. As you press it into the side of the nacelle's sheared column, you feel it lightly "cling" to the surface, and release the robotic arm, moving it backwards, and then forwards again, to hit the big red button in the middle.
Sparks fly as the two ends of the elongated bar glow red-hot, melting the surface where you've pressed it and welding it securely. It'll take some time to cool... but by the time it does, you'll already be headed back to the nacelle, your job done. Speaking of which, you want to head back to Lemons' ship to see if you can get one of those hooks off of it. Now that you know for sure what to do with it, you're pretty positive you ought to be able to do it just by hand.
~~~
Lemons' ship is a scrap heap. The destroyed remains - apparently having exploded due to some kind of fuel leak - are scattered across the earth, just like its late owner, and you're not dumb enough to try to approach the smoldering wreckage.
You shift a little and survey the scene, redistributing the weight in your backpack on your shoulders as you do. You just got through looting the dead squid-guy that tried to kill Bob, and found a few interesting pieces of equipment - including what is very definitely an exceedingly crude PSI unit. It looks like it would overheat every time you used it, and the generator is bulky and hardly suited for the job, wired in with makeshift power adapters. Still, it's loot, and the folks on the Nemesis aren't likely to turn up their noses at anything, from how SCAMPS put it.
And now it's time to venture into the nacelle, if anyone wants to go exploring with you.
((continued at bottom of post))
Bob
"Mr. Gearhead!" you call. "You need fix Bob-boss CASKET!"
Gearhead makes no move to approach.
You sit there for a moment, mildly disgruntled by his lack of initiative, and then re-open the canopy and climb back out of your cockpit. You don't realize it at the time, but you just left Jimmy on the dashboard. You won't realize this until much later, however.
Instead, you walk over to the nearest ship, pull out your crowbar, and start hacking away at the nearest weapon, trying to pry it away from the ship. It's just a light machine gun - standard private ship self-defense - but you really want it. You hack at it, pry at it, irreparably damage it, and eventually decide... you're simply not going to be able to pull it off with just a crowbar. Or, no, you could, but you'd have to keep whacking at it and prying at it for a lot longer than you'd like to right now.
Instead, you start wandering around, looking for anything interesting to put in your backpack.
After a couple minutes of searching, these "interesting objects" include:
Eventually, you grow tired of wandering the battlefield - and your backpack is growing quite full anyway - so you decide to head to the nacelle, to explore inside there. Maybe you'll find something fun to play with.
((continued at bottom of post))
Caleb
"Hey, Gearhead!" you shout over your shoulder, keeping your electrorifle squarely pointed at Aloka. "Hey, could you give us a hand securing the prisoner here? Also, think you can use your blowtorch to melt any of her weapons we can't take with?" Gearhead makes no response, so you turn back to the prisoner. "Sorry, but I just don't trust you not to shoot me in the back at the first opportunity -" here you pause for effect, "- a suspicion you helpfully corroborated." You grin slightly in amusement, and she glares at you. The squid has no eyebrows to make the traditional human v-shape of anger or irritation, but she's able to wrinkle her forehead in a manner that emulates it closely enough. Most of her ire, however, seems to be directed at Ishmael.
You feel a bit of sympathy for her, but not really that much. This is war. You know war - if she gets an opportunity, does the doc really think she wouldn't hesitate to put a bullet through your skulls? Of course she would - and give her her guns back? Really? Hell no, you're not giving her a chance to pull that shit. Ishmael's just lucky he didn't try to return the weapons, or someone would've gotten zapped.
Ishmael continues to try to interrogate her, but his results this time are... less than satisfactory. She clearly doesn't like the gun you have pointed at her (although she at least understands why you're doing that) - but she very much dislikes Ishmael rummaging around in her brain. She knows for sure that he's doing it now, and she's putting up a fight. Meanwhile, Saoirse is trying to carry Lemons' CASKET from the top of the nacelle - and she fails. It clips the edge of the nacelle and plummets to the ground with a short, fireball-less explosion and a cloud of smoke.
Eventually Ishmael grows tired of the pointless interrogation, and leads Aloka over to the nearest ship so that Gearhead can tape her up. You follow along behind, electrorifle trained on her for the duration, but she doesn't try to escape. Gearhead just seems vaguely amused by the whole things, muttering to himself about meatbags. He makes no move to secure the prisoner.
Ishmael
"Gearhead, esteemed engineer, I might need your help in restraining the prisoner sometime soon."
Gearhead makes no movement to help you. Caleb repeats what you said (with slightly less respect) but it has no effect. You grow tired of waiting on him and turn back to young Aloka. She's been glaring at you for a while now. She clearly doesn't like or trust you much. There's no way it could have anything to do with messing around in her head, right?
"Aloka, child," you say, "I have no quarrel with you. You are a mercenary - and however distasteful I find the Ninja-spawn, who am I to question one's life choices? I don't think you've got anything personal with us either, do you?" You concentrate slightly with the charisma amp. She fights it - forcefully. You feel her pushing in return.
With some noticeable effort, she forces out a sentence. Every word seems to be a struggle for her. "They're... fine," she manages, almost gasping as she casts glances meaningfully at Gearhead and Caleb. "I don't like... you."
You sit in silence for a moment, watching her. She makes no motion except to glance at Caleb, who still has the electrorifle pointed at her. Finally, you continue, "If it were up to me, I would have let you go right away. But we have our orders - to deliver at least one prisoner for questioning. I can't fathom what you could tell us beyond what you've already told - you are not a commander, you weren't privy to their battle plans..."
You're interrupted by a huge explosion down the side of the nacelle: it seems Saoirse just dropped Lemons' ship. This gives you pause for a moment, but then you re-focus on the interrogation and continue.
"Since you don't appear to have any particular attachment to the people who might wait for us inside the nacelle, I propose a deal." You pause for a moment to make sure your amp is working, and continue, "You tell us what you know about who's waiting inside, and if we manage to get any of them prisoner, we'll set you free. We'll even return your weapons and let you have any of the ships here. I know it's a bit of a stretch, but it's the best chance you've got. Even if we don't get any prisoners there, your cooperation will be noted, and you'll be set free as soon as we arrive to a neutral port. What do you think?"
Her mouth twists about. You can feel her mentally struggling like a fish on the end of a line, and forces another sentence out - this time with less effort than before. "I've been... taken prisoner before," she says, narrowing her eyes. "You won't just release me. I'm not... stupid, Ishmael. I'll have seen too much... to be let go." Then, after a pause, she adds with one final effort, "And... get out... of my head!" This is punctuated with a clear, pointed expression of disgust. While she clearly hasn't encountered charismatic amps before, she's a fast study.
Frowning, you signal for Gearhead to come over and secure the prisoner. You'd hoped she would prove more cooperative. "Come," you order her, and she obeys of her own accord, following you to the nearest ship. You instruct her to place her back against it, and she does. Caleb keeps the rifle trained on her for the duration.
Gearhead
Everyone is yelling at you. First Bob "orders you" to repair his CASKET. Then, Ishmael and Caleb both yell at you to tape the prisoner to one of the ships in the area. In the meantime, Saoirse is doing an excellent job of dropping Lemons' CASKET 40 meters, whereupon it promptly splits open like an overripe melon. You imagine doing this to a few heads in your general proximity, as Ishmael continues ordering you around. You ignore everyone and continue packing up your medical kit at your own pace, grumbling under your breath about their impatience. You'll get to everything, on your own time. They don't have to get their panties in a twist.
Bob and Saoirse, end of turn
Bob and Saoirse stand before the entrance to the nacelle. The entrance - a jagged, twisted wreck of metal, sheared from the hull of the Nemesis proper - has had metal ramps laid atop each other in an attempt to bridge the several-meter vertical gap. They look stable enough, but more foreboding is the gaping darkness that lies beyond, lit only with a small handful of dim lights.
"It's big," Bob says. Saoirse nods. It is indeed 'big'. Forty meters of big, in fact, and nearly 300 meters of long. That's a lot of big and long. Saoirse understands any apprehension that Bob has right now, as a result - or, at least, she thinks she does. Unbeknown to either of them, Bob is still one Jimmy short of a good time. This fact, of course, does not yet reveal itself.
"Well, let's go inside," Saoirse says with a sigh. "We might as well go in and take a look around." The girl had already been inside once - but not much farther than the first, rather wide hallway. They were designed, clearly, for moving large pieces of cargo - pieces of cargo she had yet to get a good look at. This time, she'd like a better view. "You coming, Bob-boss?"
Bob laughs a little, pleased that his friend calls him 'boss'. "Coming, Saoirse-boss!" Bob makes a childish attempt at a salute, and laughs again, happy to be exploring with his friend. After all, it's much more fun to explore with friends than by yourself.
Unfortunately for the both of them, Bob's pleasant demeanor soon turns to one of anxiety as they venture inside. The nacelle seems to be alive to Bob's imaginative mind - and much more than any other ship he's been on. He can hear distant leaks, the creak of stressed metal, and occasionally, falling scrap. Saoirse hears all this too - but to her somewhat less imaginative mind, it is simply a warning that she needs to be on her toes. She makes careful note of the quantity and direction of the noises, and continues forward.
The young pair ventures into the darkness.
~~~
"Saoirse-boss?" Bob says shakily. "It's dark..."
Saoirse nods. "It is," she agrees. The area around them is almost pitch-black. Here and there, the walls are dotted with battery-powered torchlights - but these serve less to clear away the darkness, and more to provide markers forward through the gloom. There's a very unpleasant sense of intrusion, as though they most certainly shouldn't be here, and in the darkness, Bob's hand creeps into that of Saoirse. She closes her fingers around it. "It's okay, Bob," she assures him. "We'll be fine."
A loud creak in the distance - followed by a crash - makes them both jump. Neither of them think to turn their helmet lights on - perhaps they've forgotten they were there, or perhaps even, they never knew or thought to look. Had they turned their helmet lights on and taken a good look around, they might have noticed the shadowy individual stalking them in the distance - but unfortunately, this thought never occurs to them, and they continue on into the first room.
Bob is growing increasingly anxious. Saoirse's gloved hand is slowly ceasing to be enough to calm him, but he tries to be brave for her. Even this, however, is gradually failing.
A great room stretches out before them. While not particularly tall - perhaps only four or five meters to the broken, haphazard ceiling - it nevertheless feels like a cavernous expanse. Across the way, they can see a number of box-sized crates piled about - some jumbled in heaps, others in perilous stacks and piles - and against the far wall, a massive heap of scrap and debris. It's eerily silent. Bob notices little but the darkness, although he fears he hears footsteps in the gloom - and noises from above - some directly above, in fact. Moreover, he believes he hears a quiet hissing sound coming from the crates over on the right, and a rattling from something further in the room. Saoirse takes little notice of any of this herself, as she's busy examining an abnormally large crate to her left - of which there are several scattered about the edges of the room. It's labeled with radioactive warning signs, but the packaging itself doesn't seem to be thick enough to contain radioactivity - in fact, it's torn in more than one place, and seems - while mostly sturdy - rather thin. For a moment the woman ponders whether or not she should try to open it up, but a tug on her hand - by Bob - distracts her.
"It's okay, Bob," she reminds him again, ever patient. "Really, it's okay. You have both me, and Jimmy here."
And, by complete serendipity, this is the exact moment that Bob realizes that Jimmy is not, in fact, with him.
The previous paragraph may have been somewhat misleading. This event is not remotely serendipitous. For you see, Jimmy has always been Bob's primary (and sole) defense against his phobia of the darkness. While he mistakenly believed that Jimmy was there, he was okay - to some extent, of course. Now, frantically searching his suit, his holsters - even his backpack, hastily removing the thirty-seven pieces of random debris he collected earlier (that he is now very much having second thoughts about), he is no longer "Okay". In point of fact, he is quite far from it.
Before he has a chance to properly panic, however, something very unexpected to either of them occurs.
A hiltorel podlight flips on in the center of the room, revealing a well-groomed man in what appears to be some form of casual dress wear. He wears no discernible helmet, but the lack of oxygen doesn't seem to bother him. Indeed - as he takes a step forward into the light, Saoirse notices that something about him seems to be slightly "off", in a way that dips almost imperceptibly into the uncanny valley.
When he speaks, it is in a stiff, well-articulated Galactic Standard. He is quiet, almost as though musing to himself. "Hmm... you arrived twenty-three-point-two seconds earlier than I expected." A faintly audible clicking noise is heard. "Most curious..." Then, louder, he addresses both inmates clearly - primarily focusing on Saoirse. "Greetings," he begins, brushing a few flecks of dust from his sleeve with an absent-minded gesture. "Your ship has crashed, and you are here. Nothing happens without a reason, but in this case I find them anomalies. It is unusual that two such anomalies would occur in such close proximity - and to such effect. It raises... questions." Here he pauses, during which the soft clicking continues. "When the rest of your unit arrives, we shall begin, Saoirse, but in the intervening time, perhaps you'd like to address the dullard's predicament. He is suffering from acute nyctophobia." He glances up calmly, seeming mildly curious about their reactions to this statement.
Saoirse glances at Bob. He looks quite panicked - but not because of the figure across from them.
((Apologies for the delay. This update contains some pretty, fancy artyness that I hadn't yet fully prepared, as well as something... different.))
Map:
Spoiler: SHOW
Squad Alpha:
Brom
Spoiler: SHOW
Buck's voice comes on over the comms. "Hey, fellers, if any unarmed squids come out, don't shoot 'em! Me and 'em have a deal."
Without any delay, the two remaining hiltorel guards from earlier reveal themselves - and they most certainly are not paying any attention to Buck's mentioned deal. One of them charges directly at you, a melee weapon drawn back and ready to strike. But your pistol is ready - you fire a single powerful round into the squid's head as it approaches, and in the low gravity field it tumbles lightly to the ground, already dead. From behind, the remaining squid shouts, firing at you. You duck back, barely getting missed by a few plasma bolts that whiz past - two of them exploding against the riot shield with a force that causes it to vibrate in your hand. Only instants later the squid explodes in a mess of steaming gore - gore that boils and turns a lightly-toasted brown: the MFMs of Frank and Buck.
The coast is clear. That wasn't hard at all - the squids were almost painfully ineffective. You reload your pistol, just to make sure you don't run out of ammo.
After a few more moments, Vynkor arrives, hovering above, RCS thrusters firing full blast as she sets her CASKET down next to Gene's. You give the hand signal to Buck and Frank (still hovering above) that they should set down as well, and they do so. In the meantime, you head to the back of your ship to check out the stellaplex gear.
It's busted - and very much so, you find. While originally contained in a container, the lower part of the container has broken away from a solid laser strike that cut a deep gash through it and the surrounding metal of your CASKET. Your gear is useless. On the plus side, this means you don't have to worry about dragging it along with you, and the gear of your other squad members should more than suffice. Instead of grabbing the gear, you decide to climb back into your ship, unhook the other end of the tether from your seat, and bring it along with you.
((Continued at bottom of Alpha's portion))
Buck
Spoiler: SHOW
At that moment, two squids bust out of the leftmost airshielded entrance - and they either didn't hear you, or didn't give your deal a lick of consideration: they're both fully armed. One of them charges at Brom, so you decidedly target the other one, blasting it wide open in a mess of gore and well-cooked innards, thanks to both you and Frank roasting it simultaneously.
After a few moments, Vynkor flies in from the northeast and lands. Down on the ground, Brom gives the signal, and you set your ship down next to everyone else's. You then disembark with all your gear and head toward the building.
((Continued at bottom of Alpha's portion))
Frank
Spoiler: SHOW
For now, you're needed for protecting Brom and Gene on the ground: two squids just appeared - one rushing out and charging Brom, and the other standing in the doorway. Worried that you might hit Brom, you focus on the one still standing in the doorway (which proves the correct choice: Brom easily dispatches the one near him, and when you hit the big red button, the enemy explodes in a mess of gore and well-cooked innards, thanks to both you and Buck toasting it at the same time.
After a few moments, Vynkor flies in from the northeast and lands. Down on the ground, Brom gives the signal, and you set your ship down next to everyone else's, taking care that you don't squish anyone. Then, you grab your gear and disembark - after making sure that you've latched the tether to the front of your ship, of course. Following this, you swap out your bolts for a sharp one and head to the rear of the ship.
Upon reaching the back of your CASKET, you unhook the Stellaplex gear and take a good look at it. Everything is labeled quite neatly. It's not a "harness" as such, and more of a two-part gravity-levitating container. You're supposed to plug your half into someone else's. Included of course, are tools for opening the reactor and extracting the Stellaplex itself - including what appears to be some kind of computer module designed to hack in, getting it to open of its own accord. It couldn't be easier to use, according to the (fairly sparse and somewhat misspelled) instructions: place it on the reactor, hit the button, and wait about five minutes while it hacks in.
The "five minutes" part disconcerts you. A lot can happen in five minutes. You stand, pick up the (somewhat heavy) container, and carry it to rightmost entrance of the building.
((Continued at bottom of Alpha's portion))
Gene
Spoiler: SHOW
And that's it. The hostiles are dead. You straighten up, look around, and see that Brom is giving Frank and Buck the signal to land. Everyone files off toward the rightmost entrance to the plant, and you head in that direction, too.
((Continued at bottom of Alpha's portion))
Vynkor
Spoiler: SHOW
~~~
When you arrive, Gene and Brom have already landed. You set their ship down next to theirs attach the tether from the bottom of your seat to your suit. Then, you grab your gear and disembark.
Everyone in Alpha
Squad Alpha has assembled at the right-most entrance to the grav plant facility. Brom struts before them, puffing out his chest with importance as he gives what he intends to be a very rousing speech.
"We're finally going to make our entrance," Brom says seriously, addressing his squadmates. "Look alive! I've explained the order in which we'll enter the building, so please stick to it. Under no circumstances are you to sacrifice yourself for me should we come under fire; I can handle myself." Brom flashes what he intends to be an award-winning smile. Then, to Buck: "Buck, I expect you to wait until we have a long corridor to fire your grav gun. Use it right, and they'll be cleaning up the resulting mess for weeks! Use it when we step in the door... and you'll never get to use your bomb." Then, to everyone again: "Lastly, I want you all to keep your eyes peeled for traps. I can't name a single fan that wouldn't like to have me live with them. Some will offer me a place to stay, but others will be more forceful - I expect these are the latter kind. Now - with all of that out of the way... Onward! Glory awaits us!"
No one cheers or applauds. Instead, everyone files single-file through the grav plant air shield... and are greeted with what, for some, is a fully unexpected sight. If they had known hiltorel culture a little better, however, it would have been quite obvious what to expect.
The interior of the grav plant is quite humid - almost steamy. Large rocks - or what are apparently rocks - tower in the back corners of the greenhouse-like building, under the ribbed, translucent roof, making a natural backdrop for the steamy pond directly before it. Trees and shrubs grace the edges of the pool, and a path of cobblestones and stepping stones curves its way through the mossy antechamber, towards and around the computer equipment located even deeper in the complex. The antechamber itself has computer equipment lining the walls.
Brom and Frank take it upon themselves to hook their tethers onto one of the sturdier points, and then Brom begins stepping forwards - only to immediately jump back as a laser traces a burning path across the floor. The cameras Buck discovered before may not have been merely cameras - in fact, the more vigilant members of the squad can make out the outline of a camera-slash-turret perched atop the rocks to their right, just barely out of view.
A howling noise echoes from deeper in the complex - something primal and not quite human... or squid. Everyone not drunk out of their mind immediately feels a deep sense of foreboding.
Buck, naturally, is unperturbed.
Squad Beta:
Saoirse
Spoiler: SHOW
Lemons' CASKET is seated neatly atop the nacelle - and it's in horrendous condition. The hull integrity mostly doesn't even exist at this point - it's riddled with holes and deep gashes from laser beams. Honestly, you're surprised he had the RCS fuel to even land - and it's clear, judging from how the ship has crushed its landing gear into itself, that it barely managed it anyway. Nevertheless, you position your CASKET (from what you can tell) directly above it, and lower yourself downwards, your electromagnetic clamps on at full power.
With a loud CLACK that reverberates through your hull, you catch hold of Lemon's ship. Then, revving your RCS to full blast, you take back off slowly - gently - trying to keep it from rocking too much. Without warning, your ship suddenly lurches sideways to the sound of a loud, ear-blasting shriek of metal - something in Lemons' CASKET giving way. Two of your clamps still have hold of it, but not for long - as you leave the top of the nacelle, looking for somewhere to land, the rest of it falls away with a clatter, a shriek, and an explosion as it hits the dusty Nanyejian earth forty meters below.
That didn't go quite as planned, but you're not willing to throw in the towel just yet. Heading down somewhat, you find a nice, flat spot on the side of the nacelle, and lean back into your chair. You feel a coldness on the back of your neck as the PSI unit hooks up, and a very brief, stabbing pain. Gradually you become aware of the space around your CASKET. You have a faint sensation of existing outside the ship entirely - and you can almost picture it from here - wherever "here" is.
Moving the robotic arms completely with your mind, you let the robotic controls go limp as you move one of the arms backwards, letting the pincer pass between the arm's beams as you reach for the back of the ship - where one of your hooks are. carefully, delicately, you spin the pincer around enough to lightly grab the hook, pulling it from the clasps mounted on your hull, and spin it back toward the nacelle, lengthening your arm to move it into place. As you press it into the side of the nacelle's sheared column, you feel it lightly "cling" to the surface, and release the robotic arm, moving it backwards, and then forwards again, to hit the big red button in the middle.
Sparks fly as the two ends of the elongated bar glow red-hot, melting the surface where you've pressed it and welding it securely. It'll take some time to cool... but by the time it does, you'll already be headed back to the nacelle, your job done. Speaking of which, you want to head back to Lemons' ship to see if you can get one of those hooks off of it. Now that you know for sure what to do with it, you're pretty positive you ought to be able to do it just by hand.
~~~
Lemons' ship is a scrap heap. The destroyed remains - apparently having exploded due to some kind of fuel leak - are scattered across the earth, just like its late owner, and you're not dumb enough to try to approach the smoldering wreckage.
You shift a little and survey the scene, redistributing the weight in your backpack on your shoulders as you do. You just got through looting the dead squid-guy that tried to kill Bob, and found a few interesting pieces of equipment - including what is very definitely an exceedingly crude PSI unit. It looks like it would overheat every time you used it, and the generator is bulky and hardly suited for the job, wired in with makeshift power adapters. Still, it's loot, and the folks on the Nemesis aren't likely to turn up their noses at anything, from how SCAMPS put it.
And now it's time to venture into the nacelle, if anyone wants to go exploring with you.
((continued at bottom of post))
Bob
Spoiler: SHOW
Gearhead makes no move to approach.
You sit there for a moment, mildly disgruntled by his lack of initiative, and then re-open the canopy and climb back out of your cockpit. You don't realize it at the time, but you just left Jimmy on the dashboard. You won't realize this until much later, however.
Instead, you walk over to the nearest ship, pull out your crowbar, and start hacking away at the nearest weapon, trying to pry it away from the ship. It's just a light machine gun - standard private ship self-defense - but you really want it. You hack at it, pry at it, irreparably damage it, and eventually decide... you're simply not going to be able to pull it off with just a crowbar. Or, no, you could, but you'd have to keep whacking at it and prying at it for a lot longer than you'd like to right now.
Instead, you start wandering around, looking for anything interesting to put in your backpack.
After a couple minutes of searching, these "interesting objects" include:
- a bottlecap
- a shiny rock
- a bird feather
- it might not actually be a bird feather
- some kind of ray gun that makes you look cool when you pose with it
- a neat mask-thing you found off a dead guy, and it's fun to look through
- something that looks almost like a grenade, but you can't find the pin to pull to test it
- a piece of ship paneling that almost looks like a map, but you can't read it
- a pretty box you can't get the lid off of
- exactly thirty-seven pieces of debris that you thought looked cool at the time, but may have second thoughts about later
- a lumpy pebble that reminds you of Jimmy
Eventually, you grow tired of wandering the battlefield - and your backpack is growing quite full anyway - so you decide to head to the nacelle, to explore inside there. Maybe you'll find something fun to play with.
((continued at bottom of post))
Caleb
Spoiler: SHOW
You feel a bit of sympathy for her, but not really that much. This is war. You know war - if she gets an opportunity, does the doc really think she wouldn't hesitate to put a bullet through your skulls? Of course she would - and give her her guns back? Really? Hell no, you're not giving her a chance to pull that shit. Ishmael's just lucky he didn't try to return the weapons, or someone would've gotten zapped.
Ishmael continues to try to interrogate her, but his results this time are... less than satisfactory. She clearly doesn't like the gun you have pointed at her (although she at least understands why you're doing that) - but she very much dislikes Ishmael rummaging around in her brain. She knows for sure that he's doing it now, and she's putting up a fight. Meanwhile, Saoirse is trying to carry Lemons' CASKET from the top of the nacelle - and she fails. It clips the edge of the nacelle and plummets to the ground with a short, fireball-less explosion and a cloud of smoke.
Eventually Ishmael grows tired of the pointless interrogation, and leads Aloka over to the nearest ship so that Gearhead can tape her up. You follow along behind, electrorifle trained on her for the duration, but she doesn't try to escape. Gearhead just seems vaguely amused by the whole things, muttering to himself about meatbags. He makes no move to secure the prisoner.
Ishmael
Spoiler: SHOW
Gearhead makes no movement to help you. Caleb repeats what you said (with slightly less respect) but it has no effect. You grow tired of waiting on him and turn back to young Aloka. She's been glaring at you for a while now. She clearly doesn't like or trust you much. There's no way it could have anything to do with messing around in her head, right?
"Aloka, child," you say, "I have no quarrel with you. You are a mercenary - and however distasteful I find the Ninja-spawn, who am I to question one's life choices? I don't think you've got anything personal with us either, do you?" You concentrate slightly with the charisma amp. She fights it - forcefully. You feel her pushing in return.
With some noticeable effort, she forces out a sentence. Every word seems to be a struggle for her. "They're... fine," she manages, almost gasping as she casts glances meaningfully at Gearhead and Caleb. "I don't like... you."
You sit in silence for a moment, watching her. She makes no motion except to glance at Caleb, who still has the electrorifle pointed at her. Finally, you continue, "If it were up to me, I would have let you go right away. But we have our orders - to deliver at least one prisoner for questioning. I can't fathom what you could tell us beyond what you've already told - you are not a commander, you weren't privy to their battle plans..."
You're interrupted by a huge explosion down the side of the nacelle: it seems Saoirse just dropped Lemons' ship. This gives you pause for a moment, but then you re-focus on the interrogation and continue.
"Since you don't appear to have any particular attachment to the people who might wait for us inside the nacelle, I propose a deal." You pause for a moment to make sure your amp is working, and continue, "You tell us what you know about who's waiting inside, and if we manage to get any of them prisoner, we'll set you free. We'll even return your weapons and let you have any of the ships here. I know it's a bit of a stretch, but it's the best chance you've got. Even if we don't get any prisoners there, your cooperation will be noted, and you'll be set free as soon as we arrive to a neutral port. What do you think?"
Her mouth twists about. You can feel her mentally struggling like a fish on the end of a line, and forces another sentence out - this time with less effort than before. "I've been... taken prisoner before," she says, narrowing her eyes. "You won't just release me. I'm not... stupid, Ishmael. I'll have seen too much... to be let go." Then, after a pause, she adds with one final effort, "And... get out... of my head!" This is punctuated with a clear, pointed expression of disgust. While she clearly hasn't encountered charismatic amps before, she's a fast study.
Frowning, you signal for Gearhead to come over and secure the prisoner. You'd hoped she would prove more cooperative. "Come," you order her, and she obeys of her own accord, following you to the nearest ship. You instruct her to place her back against it, and she does. Caleb keeps the rifle trained on her for the duration.
Gearhead
Spoiler: SHOW
Bob and Saoirse, end of turn
Bob and Saoirse stand before the entrance to the nacelle. The entrance - a jagged, twisted wreck of metal, sheared from the hull of the Nemesis proper - has had metal ramps laid atop each other in an attempt to bridge the several-meter vertical gap. They look stable enough, but more foreboding is the gaping darkness that lies beyond, lit only with a small handful of dim lights.
"It's big," Bob says. Saoirse nods. It is indeed 'big'. Forty meters of big, in fact, and nearly 300 meters of long. That's a lot of big and long. Saoirse understands any apprehension that Bob has right now, as a result - or, at least, she thinks she does. Unbeknown to either of them, Bob is still one Jimmy short of a good time. This fact, of course, does not yet reveal itself.
"Well, let's go inside," Saoirse says with a sigh. "We might as well go in and take a look around." The girl had already been inside once - but not much farther than the first, rather wide hallway. They were designed, clearly, for moving large pieces of cargo - pieces of cargo she had yet to get a good look at. This time, she'd like a better view. "You coming, Bob-boss?"
Bob laughs a little, pleased that his friend calls him 'boss'. "Coming, Saoirse-boss!" Bob makes a childish attempt at a salute, and laughs again, happy to be exploring with his friend. After all, it's much more fun to explore with friends than by yourself.
Unfortunately for the both of them, Bob's pleasant demeanor soon turns to one of anxiety as they venture inside. The nacelle seems to be alive to Bob's imaginative mind - and much more than any other ship he's been on. He can hear distant leaks, the creak of stressed metal, and occasionally, falling scrap. Saoirse hears all this too - but to her somewhat less imaginative mind, it is simply a warning that she needs to be on her toes. She makes careful note of the quantity and direction of the noises, and continues forward.
The young pair ventures into the darkness.
~~~
"Saoirse-boss?" Bob says shakily. "It's dark..."
Saoirse nods. "It is," she agrees. The area around them is almost pitch-black. Here and there, the walls are dotted with battery-powered torchlights - but these serve less to clear away the darkness, and more to provide markers forward through the gloom. There's a very unpleasant sense of intrusion, as though they most certainly shouldn't be here, and in the darkness, Bob's hand creeps into that of Saoirse. She closes her fingers around it. "It's okay, Bob," she assures him. "We'll be fine."
A loud creak in the distance - followed by a crash - makes them both jump. Neither of them think to turn their helmet lights on - perhaps they've forgotten they were there, or perhaps even, they never knew or thought to look. Had they turned their helmet lights on and taken a good look around, they might have noticed the shadowy individual stalking them in the distance - but unfortunately, this thought never occurs to them, and they continue on into the first room.
Bob is growing increasingly anxious. Saoirse's gloved hand is slowly ceasing to be enough to calm him, but he tries to be brave for her. Even this, however, is gradually failing.
A great room stretches out before them. While not particularly tall - perhaps only four or five meters to the broken, haphazard ceiling - it nevertheless feels like a cavernous expanse. Across the way, they can see a number of box-sized crates piled about - some jumbled in heaps, others in perilous stacks and piles - and against the far wall, a massive heap of scrap and debris. It's eerily silent. Bob notices little but the darkness, although he fears he hears footsteps in the gloom - and noises from above - some directly above, in fact. Moreover, he believes he hears a quiet hissing sound coming from the crates over on the right, and a rattling from something further in the room. Saoirse takes little notice of any of this herself, as she's busy examining an abnormally large crate to her left - of which there are several scattered about the edges of the room. It's labeled with radioactive warning signs, but the packaging itself doesn't seem to be thick enough to contain radioactivity - in fact, it's torn in more than one place, and seems - while mostly sturdy - rather thin. For a moment the woman ponders whether or not she should try to open it up, but a tug on her hand - by Bob - distracts her.
"It's okay, Bob," she reminds him again, ever patient. "Really, it's okay. You have both me, and Jimmy here."
And, by complete serendipity, this is the exact moment that Bob realizes that Jimmy is not, in fact, with him.
The previous paragraph may have been somewhat misleading. This event is not remotely serendipitous. For you see, Jimmy has always been Bob's primary (and sole) defense against his phobia of the darkness. While he mistakenly believed that Jimmy was there, he was okay - to some extent, of course. Now, frantically searching his suit, his holsters - even his backpack, hastily removing the thirty-seven pieces of random debris he collected earlier (that he is now very much having second thoughts about), he is no longer "Okay". In point of fact, he is quite far from it.
Before he has a chance to properly panic, however, something very unexpected to either of them occurs.
A hiltorel podlight flips on in the center of the room, revealing a well-groomed man in what appears to be some form of casual dress wear. He wears no discernible helmet, but the lack of oxygen doesn't seem to bother him. Indeed - as he takes a step forward into the light, Saoirse notices that something about him seems to be slightly "off", in a way that dips almost imperceptibly into the uncanny valley.
When he speaks, it is in a stiff, well-articulated Galactic Standard. He is quiet, almost as though musing to himself. "Hmm... you arrived twenty-three-point-two seconds earlier than I expected." A faintly audible clicking noise is heard. "Most curious..." Then, louder, he addresses both inmates clearly - primarily focusing on Saoirse. "Greetings," he begins, brushing a few flecks of dust from his sleeve with an absent-minded gesture. "Your ship has crashed, and you are here. Nothing happens without a reason, but in this case I find them anomalies. It is unusual that two such anomalies would occur in such close proximity - and to such effect. It raises... questions." Here he pauses, during which the soft clicking continues. "When the rest of your unit arrives, we shall begin, Saoirse, but in the intervening time, perhaps you'd like to address the dullard's predicament. He is suffering from acute nyctophobia." He glances up calmly, seeming mildly curious about their reactions to this statement.
Saoirse glances at Bob. He looks quite panicked - but not because of the figure across from them.
Have a question? Send me a PM! || I have a Patreon page up for REKT now! || People talking in IRC over the past two hours:
Post
Sat Mar 10, 2018 1:28 pm
#488
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
"Gearhead, Caleb, please help me with securing the prisoner. I think we might lock her inside one of the ships and disable the controls...a ship with no rudder will not steer, arr!"
Survivor of the Josh Parnell Blackout of 2015.
Post
Sat Mar 10, 2018 2:13 pm
#489
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
"Heh. I can howl louder than that! Y'all wanna see?"
Post
Sat Mar 10, 2018 2:26 pm
#490
"Sure, have a go! Sounds like one hell of a plan!"
I should've stayed with Beta! This whole exchange was a mad decision! I'm sure they have the time of their unfrozen, imprisoned life over there! Lemons probably offed himself somehow! Friggin hell!
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
*slightly distrought voice*
"Sure, have a go! Sounds like one hell of a plan!"
I should've stayed with Beta! This whole exchange was a mad decision! I'm sure they have the time of their unfrozen, imprisoned life over there! Lemons probably offed himself somehow! Friggin hell!
Apparently, sometimes stuff might happen.
- - - - - - - -
Post
Sun Mar 11, 2018 12:51 am
#491
A professional would wait until they were right on top of the enemy. You'll scare them senseless that way."
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
"Now now, Buck. We can't go around giving away our location whenever we feel like it.
A professional would wait until they were right on top of the enemy. You'll scare them senseless that way."
Breaker of fortune cookies
Post
Sun Mar 11, 2018 5:06 am
#492
Start taking a deep breath...
"Scared!? I ain't scared o' nothin'! That howlin' thing can come try me!"
Shout loudly towards the interior of the base: "Hellooooooo!? If any of y'all in there got some problem with us, you can take it up to me personally!"
To my squad again: "A'ight, 2 creds says I'll beat the shit out of whatever that there was with my plasma baton! Any one of y'all wanna take me up on that bet?"
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
"Ahem."F4wk35 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 10, 2018 2:26 pm*slightly distrought voice*
"Sure, have a go! Sounds like one hell of a plan!"
I should've stayed with Beta! This whole exchange was a mad decision! I'm sure they have the time of their unfrozen, imprisoned life over there! Lemons probably offed himself somehow! Friggin hell!
Start taking a deep breath...
...only to be interrupted by Brom
"Scared!? I ain't scared o' nothin'! That howlin' thing can come try me!"
Shout loudly towards the interior of the base: "Hellooooooo!? If any of y'all in there got some problem with us, you can take it up to me personally!"
To my squad again: "A'ight, 2 creds says I'll beat the shit out of whatever that there was with my plasma baton! Any one of y'all wanna take me up on that bet?"
Post
Sun Mar 11, 2018 8:36 am
#493
*exasperated*
"And you really want to get close to something that sounds like that? Beating it to death with a glorified club?"
((I have to admit, I'm tempted. Sorely tempted!))
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
"Given that they have cameras and, apparently, turrets in the complex...and we weren't exactly stealthy...And another thing...the manual for the Stellaplex-harnesses says we need two of those to work in conjunction and about 5 minutes for them to open the reactor!"
"Turn your comms off next time you do that! Heck, my ears!"Hapchazzard wrote: ↑Sun Mar 11, 2018 5:06 amShout loudly towards the interior of the base: "Hellooooooo!? If any of y'all in there got some problem with us, you can take it up to me personally!"
To my squad again: "A'ight, 2 creds says I'll beat the shit out of whatever that there was with my plasma baton! Any one of y'all wanna take me up on that bet?"
*exasperated*
"And you really want to get close to something that sounds like that? Beating it to death with a glorified club?"
((I have to admit, I'm tempted. Sorely tempted!))
Apparently, sometimes stuff might happen.
- - - - - - - -
Post
Sun Mar 11, 2018 9:05 am
#494
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
Saoirse?
Bob need Jimmy
Jimmy protect Bob from darkness
Bob not doing anything until Bob has Jimmy back.
*Bob pouts*
*Bob starts to sob*
BOB NEED JIMMY
Bob need Jimmy
Jimmy protect Bob from darkness
Bob not doing anything until Bob has Jimmy back.
*Bob pouts*
*Bob starts to sob*
BOB NEED JIMMY
Post
Sun Mar 11, 2018 12:15 pm
#495
((Well, the odds are certainly on your side. I hope this thing isn't half as ferocious as the boarbear... otherwise you can have your 2 credits ))
Re: REKT: BTE Mission 1: Nanyej Colony
"Pfft. I've been trained to fight by a hundred barfights, I ain't gonna be scared off by some squid's pet!"
((Well, the odds are certainly on your side. I hope this thing isn't half as ferocious as the boarbear... otherwise you can have your 2 credits ))