Campaign Turn 20 – Marduk Station – Of Snakes And Scarecrows
Selene entered the quarters the group was renting while their ship was being refitted. As she expected, Jaxx was at the ship, annoying the workers, and the rest of the team, except for Kazi, were out on errands.
"Kazi, sweetie! Have I got an awesome idea!"
Kazi looked at Selene nervously. She had been training - her last outing had shown her just how much she had lagged behind the team - and was dripping with sweat. "Selene, you're scaring me. You're never this chipper."
"Remember how Jaxx saw those bums that say they own the RenPig? They've followed us since day one, and I know it's been stressing the old man out."
"Yeah. He had been in a good mood until then. He almost had the workers seal up the ship so we could blast through the Unity quarantine."
"I tracked them down. If we move now, we can take 'em out and not have to worry about them again."
"Did you tell Jaxx you were tracking them down?"
"Seriously? Naw - then I'd be embarrassed if I didn't find them. This way, it'll be kind of like a birthday present!"
"Selene, it's nowhere near his birthday, and he doesn't like to celebrate his birthday anyway."
"We'll give him a reason to celebrate this year! I'm going to round up the gang. Get cleaned up, and we'll be off!"
Selene gathered the team. Vonthos and Ginny were down at the trade post - supplies were getting scarce because of the quarantine, but Vonthos somehow scored a suit of combat armor. Damaged, of course, but he was certain Jaxx could fix it. And Ginny had convinced one of the merchants to part with some trade goods cheaply. The benefits of being an empath.
The crew set out. Their weapons were packed inside quick-opening luggage - a trick Selene had pulled before. She was wearing a very oversized duster over her combat armor - the oversized duster was in style about six years ago, but covered the armor reasonably well.
As they were making their way through the maze that is Marduk Station, they were abruptly stopped by the sound of someone whistling. "Hey little scarecrow! Did you miss us?"
Ginny froze, her face draining of color. "No..."
"That's right, little scarecrow. We knew you were missing us, so we flew over here just to say 'hi'".
Selene whispered to Ginny "What's going on?"
"The Snakes"
"The who?"
The voice rang out again. "You mean she didn't tell you about her family? We dug her out of the slums where her folks dumped her, and brought her up as family. Then she abandoned us while we were pulling a heist and got some of her brothers arrested. We saw her cuddling up to the big guy there, and then she was gone. We don't like people who treat family that way."
The crew looked at Ginny, who looked diminished and afraid. "They weren't nice to me...."
The 'snakes' were moving around them, attempting to flank.
It took only moments for Selene's face to take on what the crew affectionately called her "Hit the Fan" face. "It's on."
Her duster hit the ground, and the clasps on their luggage opened almost simultaneously, their weapons almost jumping into their hands. "She's our family now, Snakes. And we're gonna tread on you so %#$%##* hard!"
The snakes were armed with handguns and cling-fire pistols.
They were scattered around the area, but none were close enough to fire. 
They moved cautiously closer, sticking to cover as best they could. 
By quick count, Selene believed there were more than ten of these punks. 
Could be as many as fifteen. Oh well, Selene thought, that number would be going down. And quickly.
Selene moved to a point where she could get a bead on one of the Snakes. Her fury rifle screamed as the beam discharged, killing the closest Snake. Vonthos moved forward a bit, still under cover, and fired two blasts from his Plasma Rifle. One hit close enough to a Snake to shake him up, but not kill him. "I didn't touch it!" Vilem cried out as he moved to cover.
Ginny launched a grenade from her Shell Gun, exploding near a couple Snakes. The Snake that Vonthos had shaken up couldn't dodge the blast, which sent him ragdolling against a wall. The other Snake nearby dove for cover, avoiding the blast.
Miak, eager to try out his newest toy, used his jump belt to fly on top of some nearby industrial equipment, his rattle gun belching rounds as he flew.
Another Snake dropped dead, and another was injured.
Kazi had started to move to engage the two Snakes coming up the right flank, but those two were among the now-dead. She continued that direction to try to outflank the Snakes.
Vonthos took another shot at a Snake - his Plasma Rifle was too hot to double-tap - but the one shot was enough to drop his target. Miak remained on top of the equipment, and fired at one of the leaders. The leaders armor stopped the rounds from killing him, but the impact still knocked him senseless.
Selene, seeing that Miak had a great firing position, quickly climbed up next to him.
As soon as she reached the top, she fired at the big boss, Mr. Captain Punk Snake. But, because of the climb, her shot was too quick, and while it hit, it didn't kill him. But, it shook him up, then slammed him backwards into another piece of industrial equipment, ringing his bell a second time.
Ginny's second grenade landed near two Snakes moving up from under a staircase. Neither dropped, but they were clearly stunned from the shockwave.
But the Snakes were close enough now to start firing back. One of the punks with the clingfire pistol fired at Ginny - the burning gel barely hit her, but in her panic, she leapt for cover and cracked her head on the wall. As she was standing up, another snake shot at her, his pistol shot striking her armor - not injuring her, but knocking the wind out of her. Together with the other injuries, she was overcome, and just slumped to the ground, vomiting from nausea.
"Ginny!", Selene shouted.
The snakes continued to advance, firing their weapons, missing their targets.
Vilem fired his Blast Rifle, stunning one of the Snakes, while Kazi continued to move behind cover. She notied a small military Medipouch laying on the ground, and decided that if they had time, she'd grab it. The crew could always use meds.
Vonthos' continued firing dropped another of the leaders, while Vilem killed the punk with the clingfire pistol that shot at Ginny. Miak took out another clingfire pistol-carrying punk, while Selene shot at the leader again. Her shot wasn't lethal, but once again, it slammed him into equipment, and this time, he was down for the count.
One of the punks had climbed a set of stairs, and fired at Miak, but missed. Two others advance at Vonthos, missing their shots. Kazi lined up a shot at one of the punks who had climbed up the stairs, but missed.
While the shooting had been going on, additional punks had been arriving, but it had become clear that all the punks that were coming were already here.
Sixteen in total, by Selene's count, and at this point eight were dead or out of the fight.
Vonthos dropped another clingfire pistol-carrying punk, while Selene dropped one carrying a handgun. One of the punks charged Miak, shouting "Snakes Forever!". In one fluid move, Miak drew his Boarding Saber, cut down the punk, and re-sheathed the blade.
Vonthos took some fire from three punks, and almost went down - a stim pack keeping him standing.
Miak, a bit slow to fire because he had to draw his sword, was still able to gun down two Snakes with a burst from his rattle gun. Kazi actually hit one of the snakes with her needler rifle, but only stunned him. Vilem lined up a perfect shot on a Snake, but the Snake's armor deflected the blast, saving his life.
However, the blast struck a tank, causing a large cloud of fog to start to form. "Masks!" Selene shouted, as the crew quickly donned their portable respirators. They had no idea what that cloud was, but certainly weren't going to risk breathing it in.
However, the clouds blocked their view of the snakes. While Vonthos moved to position himself for a better shot, Selene just stood and waited, her finger on the trigger. As soon as the first punk was visible in the cloud, she fired, blowing him away.
One of the punks was able to get out of the fog, and fired at Miak, missing him.
The crew's continued firing dropped the few remaining punks as the fog dissipated. Apparently it was not terribly toxic, as Vonthos and Miak noticed the leader, Mr. Captain Punk Snake, was still alive and starting to stir. While Selene and Kazi went to help Ginny (with Kazi snagging the medpouch she had seen earlier), Miak and Vonthos approached the leader. Vonthos stepped on the leader's chest, putting much of his Uplifted Rhino weight on the punk's chest. The punk gasped and turned to look at the pair.
"You're gonna live because Ginny's not hurt" Vonthos said. "But you're going to forget all about her. We see you again, you're going to think this was a tea party."
The punk, his face turning red because he couldn't breath, nodded his head to acknowledge. So Vonthos and Miak backed off, keeping their weapons trained on him until they met up with the rest of the group and returned to their accomodations.
On the way back, Ginny kept apologizing for putting the crew at risk, especially since the little fireflight spooked Jaxx' rivals, meaning Selene would have to track them down again. "Sweetie, don't worry about it. We got those punks off your back, grabbed some loot, and no one died! Well, no one of importance, anyway!"
"And look - a new toy!", Vilem said, as he showed the group a large case he was carrying, in addition to his weapon case, "A shiny new suit of combat armor, current spec, manufactured by Integrated Services. Found a data slate with it. Probably has all sorts of Vital Info on it. I'm gonna run the slate over to their office, see if there's a reward."
Selene's expression turned contemplative. "What's wrong, Selene?", Kazi said. "We've been at this for a while. Scraping by, feeling awesome for digging up frag vests. But now we're on Marduk Station. With squid-headed aliens that the powers-that-be deny exist. And a Unity Fleet on its way. And we've found three - count them - three suits of combat armor since getting here. Call me superstitious, but I'm worried."
"Baby, you worry too much! Marduk Station's just a happening place, of course they have combat armor just laying about."
"Vilem, you'll see. Things are going to get ugly. Mark my words."
Kazi took a peek into the medpouch she found. Two doses of something called "Rage-Out". She sighed. She was hoping for meds, not combat drugs.
Fight against 11 Elite Punks - 5 regulars, 3 Specialists, 2 Lieutenants, 1 Captain, plus Respawn 5.
Turn 2 Event: I found Something! - 2 doses Rage-Out
Turn 4 Event: Fog Cloud
Held the field.
Earned 6 Credits
Battlefield Find: Vital Info
Loot Roll: Hand Cannon or Combat Armor. Duh!
Used 1 Stim-Pack
First Kill: Selene
"Kazi, sweetie! Have I got an awesome idea!"
Kazi looked at Selene nervously. She had been training - her last outing had shown her just how much she had lagged behind the team - and was dripping with sweat. "Selene, you're scaring me. You're never this chipper."
"Remember how Jaxx saw those bums that say they own the RenPig? They've followed us since day one, and I know it's been stressing the old man out."
"Yeah. He had been in a good mood until then. He almost had the workers seal up the ship so we could blast through the Unity quarantine."
"I tracked them down. If we move now, we can take 'em out and not have to worry about them again."
"Did you tell Jaxx you were tracking them down?"
"Seriously? Naw - then I'd be embarrassed if I didn't find them. This way, it'll be kind of like a birthday present!"
"Selene, it's nowhere near his birthday, and he doesn't like to celebrate his birthday anyway."
"We'll give him a reason to celebrate this year! I'm going to round up the gang. Get cleaned up, and we'll be off!"
Selene gathered the team. Vonthos and Ginny were down at the trade post - supplies were getting scarce because of the quarantine, but Vonthos somehow scored a suit of combat armor. Damaged, of course, but he was certain Jaxx could fix it. And Ginny had convinced one of the merchants to part with some trade goods cheaply. The benefits of being an empath.
The crew set out. Their weapons were packed inside quick-opening luggage - a trick Selene had pulled before. She was wearing a very oversized duster over her combat armor - the oversized duster was in style about six years ago, but covered the armor reasonably well.
As they were making their way through the maze that is Marduk Station, they were abruptly stopped by the sound of someone whistling. "Hey little scarecrow! Did you miss us?"
Ginny froze, her face draining of color. "No..."
"That's right, little scarecrow. We knew you were missing us, so we flew over here just to say 'hi'".
Selene whispered to Ginny "What's going on?"
"The Snakes"
"The who?"
The voice rang out again. "You mean she didn't tell you about her family? We dug her out of the slums where her folks dumped her, and brought her up as family. Then she abandoned us while we were pulling a heist and got some of her brothers arrested. We saw her cuddling up to the big guy there, and then she was gone. We don't like people who treat family that way."
The crew looked at Ginny, who looked diminished and afraid. "They weren't nice to me...."
The 'snakes' were moving around them, attempting to flank.
It took only moments for Selene's face to take on what the crew affectionately called her "Hit the Fan" face. "It's on."
Her duster hit the ground, and the clasps on their luggage opened almost simultaneously, their weapons almost jumping into their hands. "She's our family now, Snakes. And we're gonna tread on you so %#$%##* hard!"
The snakes were armed with handguns and cling-fire pistols.
They were scattered around the area, but none were close enough to fire. They moved cautiously closer, sticking to cover as best they could. By quick count, Selene believed there were more than ten of these punks. Could be as many as fifteen. Oh well, Selene thought, that number would be going down. And quickly.Selene moved to a point where she could get a bead on one of the Snakes. Her fury rifle screamed as the beam discharged, killing the closest Snake. Vonthos moved forward a bit, still under cover, and fired two blasts from his Plasma Rifle. One hit close enough to a Snake to shake him up, but not kill him. "I didn't touch it!" Vilem cried out as he moved to cover.
Ginny launched a grenade from her Shell Gun, exploding near a couple Snakes. The Snake that Vonthos had shaken up couldn't dodge the blast, which sent him ragdolling against a wall. The other Snake nearby dove for cover, avoiding the blast.
Miak, eager to try out his newest toy, used his jump belt to fly on top of some nearby industrial equipment, his rattle gun belching rounds as he flew.
Another Snake dropped dead, and another was injured.Kazi had started to move to engage the two Snakes coming up the right flank, but those two were among the now-dead. She continued that direction to try to outflank the Snakes.
Vonthos took another shot at a Snake - his Plasma Rifle was too hot to double-tap - but the one shot was enough to drop his target. Miak remained on top of the equipment, and fired at one of the leaders. The leaders armor stopped the rounds from killing him, but the impact still knocked him senseless.
Selene, seeing that Miak had a great firing position, quickly climbed up next to him.
As soon as she reached the top, she fired at the big boss, Mr. Captain Punk Snake. But, because of the climb, her shot was too quick, and while it hit, it didn't kill him. But, it shook him up, then slammed him backwards into another piece of industrial equipment, ringing his bell a second time.Ginny's second grenade landed near two Snakes moving up from under a staircase. Neither dropped, but they were clearly stunned from the shockwave.
But the Snakes were close enough now to start firing back. One of the punks with the clingfire pistol fired at Ginny - the burning gel barely hit her, but in her panic, she leapt for cover and cracked her head on the wall. As she was standing up, another snake shot at her, his pistol shot striking her armor - not injuring her, but knocking the wind out of her. Together with the other injuries, she was overcome, and just slumped to the ground, vomiting from nausea.
"Ginny!", Selene shouted.
The snakes continued to advance, firing their weapons, missing their targets.
Vilem fired his Blast Rifle, stunning one of the Snakes, while Kazi continued to move behind cover. She notied a small military Medipouch laying on the ground, and decided that if they had time, she'd grab it. The crew could always use meds.
Vonthos' continued firing dropped another of the leaders, while Vilem killed the punk with the clingfire pistol that shot at Ginny. Miak took out another clingfire pistol-carrying punk, while Selene shot at the leader again. Her shot wasn't lethal, but once again, it slammed him into equipment, and this time, he was down for the count.
One of the punks had climbed a set of stairs, and fired at Miak, but missed. Two others advance at Vonthos, missing their shots. Kazi lined up a shot at one of the punks who had climbed up the stairs, but missed.
While the shooting had been going on, additional punks had been arriving, but it had become clear that all the punks that were coming were already here.
Sixteen in total, by Selene's count, and at this point eight were dead or out of the fight.Vonthos dropped another clingfire pistol-carrying punk, while Selene dropped one carrying a handgun. One of the punks charged Miak, shouting "Snakes Forever!". In one fluid move, Miak drew his Boarding Saber, cut down the punk, and re-sheathed the blade.
Vonthos took some fire from three punks, and almost went down - a stim pack keeping him standing.
Miak, a bit slow to fire because he had to draw his sword, was still able to gun down two Snakes with a burst from his rattle gun. Kazi actually hit one of the snakes with her needler rifle, but only stunned him. Vilem lined up a perfect shot on a Snake, but the Snake's armor deflected the blast, saving his life.
However, the blast struck a tank, causing a large cloud of fog to start to form. "Masks!" Selene shouted, as the crew quickly donned their portable respirators. They had no idea what that cloud was, but certainly weren't going to risk breathing it in.
However, the clouds blocked their view of the snakes. While Vonthos moved to position himself for a better shot, Selene just stood and waited, her finger on the trigger. As soon as the first punk was visible in the cloud, she fired, blowing him away.
One of the punks was able to get out of the fog, and fired at Miak, missing him.
The crew's continued firing dropped the few remaining punks as the fog dissipated. Apparently it was not terribly toxic, as Vonthos and Miak noticed the leader, Mr. Captain Punk Snake, was still alive and starting to stir. While Selene and Kazi went to help Ginny (with Kazi snagging the medpouch she had seen earlier), Miak and Vonthos approached the leader. Vonthos stepped on the leader's chest, putting much of his Uplifted Rhino weight on the punk's chest. The punk gasped and turned to look at the pair.
"You're gonna live because Ginny's not hurt" Vonthos said. "But you're going to forget all about her. We see you again, you're going to think this was a tea party."
The punk, his face turning red because he couldn't breath, nodded his head to acknowledge. So Vonthos and Miak backed off, keeping their weapons trained on him until they met up with the rest of the group and returned to their accomodations.
On the way back, Ginny kept apologizing for putting the crew at risk, especially since the little fireflight spooked Jaxx' rivals, meaning Selene would have to track them down again. "Sweetie, don't worry about it. We got those punks off your back, grabbed some loot, and no one died! Well, no one of importance, anyway!"
"And look - a new toy!", Vilem said, as he showed the group a large case he was carrying, in addition to his weapon case, "A shiny new suit of combat armor, current spec, manufactured by Integrated Services. Found a data slate with it. Probably has all sorts of Vital Info on it. I'm gonna run the slate over to their office, see if there's a reward."
Selene's expression turned contemplative. "What's wrong, Selene?", Kazi said. "We've been at this for a while. Scraping by, feeling awesome for digging up frag vests. But now we're on Marduk Station. With squid-headed aliens that the powers-that-be deny exist. And a Unity Fleet on its way. And we've found three - count them - three suits of combat armor since getting here. Call me superstitious, but I'm worried."
"Baby, you worry too much! Marduk Station's just a happening place, of course they have combat armor just laying about."
"Vilem, you'll see. Things are going to get ugly. Mark my words."
Kazi took a peek into the medpouch she found. Two doses of something called "Rage-Out". She sighed. She was hoping for meds, not combat drugs.
Fight against 11 Elite Punks - 5 regulars, 3 Specialists, 2 Lieutenants, 1 Captain, plus Respawn 5.
Turn 2 Event: I found Something! - 2 doses Rage-Out
Turn 4 Event: Fog Cloud
Held the field.
Earned 6 Credits
Battlefield Find: Vital Info
Loot Roll: Hand Cannon or Combat Armor. Duh!
Used 1 Stim-Pack
First Kill: Selene
