Futuristic Starpath X: For All Mankind

[Infab]

Adam listened silently as Krawczyk and Atlas spoke, his facial expressions hidden by the helmet he still wore. The fishman wanted to gag him, and the Sergeant spoke of his execution. He was simply trying to help keep them alive, and this was the thanks he was getting for his help. Why bother? He shook his head once more, his gaze shifting towards the ground as they finished speaking and soon got moving. As Sam got moving, Adam followed close behind.

Once they happened upon the streets with the MG, APC, and mortar team, Sam stuck close to Boyan. Intending to provide him with some cover in the event he had to use the rocket launcher he was carrying. He kept an eye on the mortar team, however. Should they try to fire off another shot at them, some peppering from his rifle would hopefully distract them. Adam simply hugged the wall behind him, wondering just what he was supposed to do if they get rushed. His arms were bound, and he had no weapon. What could he do, kick them?

 

[Breadman]

"You heard him, can't just shoot a rocket at that thing." Boyan said as he knelled down, poking a head to take a look again and instantly returned behind cover to avoid getting ventilated with a few extra orifices in the skull. "We need him alive, so no walking in front of us." He said looking at Adam, then back to Sam "The mortar is our biggest problem at this range. If we rush ahead, we're gonna get killed by the MG." He paused for a moment. "Maybe we should run from cover to cover? Take potshots as a distraction so the others can get a clean shot."

 

[K0mori]

Atlas took the initiative, running straight south from the duplex which was shielding the humans from the machinegun on the prior street in order to not expose himself to that threat. However, his heavy, thumping footfalls and bulky suit made him an obvious target for the APC, which immediately turned its turret in his direction as it rumbled across the grassy lawn toward the human unit. Thankfully, after about four seconds, Atlas had crossed to the fence line of the property nearby and found an entrance to a sunken pathway through the garden, partially obstructing the APC's view.

APC rolls to use MG against Atlas (Marginal): 4/3: Passed
APC (MG) vs Atlas at Long Distance: 9 DMG
Atlas: 6 HP

As the machinegun rattled to life, it split the air with a stream of bullets, pelting through fence boards and plants as Atlas thumped across the final twenty feet or so from the nearest entry to the townhomes dead ahead, running almost doubled over in order to reduce his profile and duck under the enemy fire. Unfortunately, one stray bullet managed to connect with his armor, knocking the fishman completely off his feet. He slid to a stop on the concrete, waited a moment to process whether he had taken a direct hit or a glancing one, and then cautiously rolled back onto his hands and feet so that he crawl the remaining distance to the door and push through.

The bullet had struck one of the thickest points of armor on Atlas's upper torso, embedding itself in the metal and filler compounds beneath, which prevented his body from being harmed. However, the damage to the armor plating was extensive, leaving him badly vulnerable to further attack. Once inside the building, he moved to a stairwell which took him to the second floor, where he turned and moved into a bedroom which overlooked the APC from one window, and the cul-de-sac through the other.

His action helped to provide a distraction for the rest of Patrol 2 to scramble away to safety. Mazurek slipped around the side of the building, in full view of the mortar team, who were now beginning to realize that they were under attack from a larger unit. There were six of them in total - three pairs of operators for three mortar tubes - now scrambling for their rifles to defend themselves, but none of them would be ready in time to shoot the Corporal as he bashed his way through a side gate, shot the glass out of a sliding door, and crashed into the living room of an abandoned home.

On the other hand, Novy seemed uncertain of which direction to move, fearing that he would make himself a target for the enemy machinegun on their far left flank if he moved. Caine, having already decided to stick close and provide support to him, similarly hesitated, especially since he had been tasked with keeping Zetter safe. Exasperated, Krawczyk yelled at them. "MOVE!"

Haphazardly, they stumbled around the corner of the duplex and, sensing the danger posed by the machinegun mentioned before, but unaware that the building in the northern distance was not the building in which the gunner was posted, they immediately turned to their left and jumped through an already-broken window. Novy, Caine, Krawczyk, and Kang all fell onto the carpeted floor beyond before turning and yanking Zetter through the window to safety, and they were quickly joined by some of Squad 10- namely Dawson and Palencia, who had both followed Caine's lead after fighting alongside him in the prior battle.

Oberto, Chou, and Hilmarrson, meanwhile, were eager to be part of the action up close, and set out to follow Mazurek. Unfortunately, by this time, the enemy mortar team was focused and ready to intercept them, and in a panic, they diverted to the right and inadvertently worsened their situation. As they closed in on a smaller duplex at the street corner, they were caught in a hail of fire.

Upyri Marines (Rifle) vs Oberto at Medium Distance: 12 DMG
Upyri Marines (Rifle) vs Hilmarrson at Medium Distance: 12 DMG
Upyri Marines (Rifle) vs Chou at Medium Distance: 12 DMG

Oberto: 3 LP
Hilmarrson: 3 LP
Chou: 3 LP

All three of them were quickly cut down, badly wounded in the yard. Hilmarrson, who was carrying one of Squad 10's launchers, dropped it out in front of himself onto the grassy lawn. Pvt Acheson witnessed this, and being his squad's medic, was sorely tempted to run out after them and provide help. But he knew that it was very likely he would be killed by the APC if he did not find cover, so he instead darted toward the same building that Atlas had run into, narrowly avoiding machine gun fire over their heads as they crossed through the garden. His intent was to cross through and exit the townhomes through a different door and locate his fallen comrades at the first safe opportunity.

McFarlane and Bongani, equipped with a rocket launcher and slow to move, arrived at Mazurek's building a moment later, as Oberto, Hilmarrson, and Chou had drawn fire for them. McFarlane, dropping the launcher as soon as he was in the building while dropping a line of profanity, informed Mazurek of the situation: "Sir, Squad 10 just lost its officers!" he informed between labored breaths. Bongani, similarly winded and angry, drew his pistol and found a window overlooking Oberto, Chou, and Hilmarrson. He lingered there for a moment, as if prepared to kill anyone who would approach his commanders, before he finally pulled himself away to check on the enemy mortar position.

As he did so, he was joined by Mazurek and McFarlane, who watched as the enemy soldiers ducked back down behind their sandbag walls, where they seemed to be discussing something. Then, while one team remained on guard, the other four worked to get their mortar tubes ready for launch. The two on guard began to fire, and the trio inside the house turned to witness AUTO-262 sprinting across the open ground toward Hilmarrson. It dove, picking the rocket launcher the private had dropped off the ground as it passed, before proceeding all the way to the smaller duplex.

Now, with everyone finally in position, it was time to return fire.

Atlas rolls to shoot the APC's front-facing camera (Marginal): 4/3 - Passed.

Pressing himself up against the window overlooking the APC, Atlas held his gun aloft over his head, linking its scope to his helmet's HUD to display the scope's field of view. Although it was awkward, angling his hands properly, he was able to zero the crosshairs onto the small protruding camera at the front of the vehicle. With a quick squeeze of the trigger, he fired a bullet which struck the device dead-on; it was an impressively difficult shot, even if the target was only about ten meters away at the time. A moment later, a crease appeared in the frontal armor of the machine, just as Lt. Zetter had described- the driver was forced to open a small hatch by a couple of inches so that he could see.

By this time, Krawczyk and the others had picked themselves up and took to the windows. Now with more time to address Novy's concerns about the mortars, she replied to him. "I know you're worried about the mortars, but the APC would've run us over if we had spent any more time sitting there," she said, and a moment later, she paused and received word over the comm that Squad 10's leaders had been shot. "Oh, fuck!" she spat, snatching up her rifle and searching for the mortar teams in the distance. Unfortunately, they were obstructed by the abandoned house that Mazurek was now occupying.

"We have to take the APC out so we can recover the sergeant. Understood?" she asked. The crowd around her acknowledged the order, but having been reminded of the mortars, and due to the smell of smoke hanging around in the duplex from the shell which had landed only a few minutes ago, they were all nervous and wanting to press on. Even Kang, as inexperienced as she was, felt urged into attacking, and so she grabbed onto the Kosok pistol in her belt and primed it for fire.

Kang rolls to aim at APC Driver (Marginal): 2/3 - Failed

She pulled the trigger, and a flash of plasma fired from the weapon and splattered on the frontal armor of the APC just below the hatch. A bright splatter of paint and embers nearly reached the driver, who ducked away for a moment before jerking the controls. The vehicle rumbled and began to turn so that its turret would face the duplex. Kang went wide-eyed, but Krawczyk and Zetter recognized something far more promising: to this point, the APC's automatic machinegun had been firing at anyone who crossed in front of the vehicle, but the main turret had not only not been fired, but it hadn't turned a single millimeter in either direction throughout the fight so far.

"The driver's alone!" Krawczyk shouted. The soldiers looked at each other in shock, but then realized that the mortar team had been deployed from the vehicle. There was no one left inside to operate the turret unless the driver were to switch seats. All at once, Novy, Caine, Dawson, and Palencia scrambled to get a shot through the hatch before the driver could man his own gun.

Novy rolls to aim at APC Driver (Marginal): 1/3 - Failed
Caine rolls to aim at APC Driver (Marginal): 5/3 - Passed
Dawson rolls to aim at APC Driver (Marginal): 4/3 - Passed
Palencia rolls to aim at APC Driver (Marginal): 2/3 - Failed

Caine (rifle) vs APC Driver at Medium Distance: 6 DMG
Dawson (pistol) vs APC Driver at Medium Distance: 9 DMG

Of the four that managed to find a spot in the window, two hit their marks, planting a bullet in the upyri driver's head and neck. He immediately slumped over, causing the vehicle to lurch forward until it crashed into the corner of the duplex. While the others scrambled backwards and nervously checked the roof for signs of a cave-in, Krawczyk rushed forward, grabbing onto the hatch and lifting it out of the way. She grabbed the dead driver and pulled him up and out of his seat, dumping his body onto the floor next to Kang, before crawling in, herself.

The machine reversed away from the building before coming to a halt just short of the townhomes' gardens across the open lot, near where Atlas had taken a bullet moments earlier. Krawczyk then changed seats, seating herself in the gunner's position, where she located the automated machine gun's arming switch. Once it was disabled, she alerted everyone on the comms: "Patrol 2, the APC is captured. Over."

Acheson jumped up from where he was, inside the townhomes with Atlas. Now knowing that it was safer to advance, he did so, running past the small house toward the second duplex where AUTO-262 was situated. With just a little more cover, he could reach the wounded trio and get them to safety. That cover would come from Mazurek, McFarlane, Bongani, and AUTO-262, who each opened fire on the mortar team from different angles.

Mazurek (Rifle) vs Upyri Marine at Medium Distance: 6 DMG
McFarlane and Bongani (Pistol) vs Upyri Marine at Medium Distance: 18 DMG
AUTO-262 rolls to fire rocket at Upyri mortar position (Likely): 3/2 - Passed

The trio of humans opened fire, and killed one of the marines in the cul-de-sac nearby before a rocket came streaking in from the smaller duplex on the corner, which impacted the ground at the center of the three mortar teams' position. Not only did the rocket explode like a powerful grenade, but it detonated the stockpiles of mortar shells behind the sandbag walls and, in a spectacular display of shock-and-awe, utterly annihilated the Upyri position, killing them all in one go. Krawczyk's voice crackled over the comms again: "Fuck yeah! Nice work, everyone. Over!"

Now emboldened, the majority of the unit that had been pinned down in the larger duplex began to venture forward from the crumbling building at the same time Krawczyk located the controls for the main door at the rear of the APC. The doors swung open, seemingly inviting others to ride along during the advance, but instead Krawczyk moved back to the driver's seat and put the machine in gear. Acheson had emerged from the smaller duplex and was already giving basic aid to his wounded comrades when the APC rolled up next to him like an ambulance.

Shakily, Oberto, Chou, and Hilmarrson climbed back to their feet with his help, and one by one they were taken into the APC for their protection. Acheson pulled out his medkit and was preparing to patch Oberto's wounds, but the Sergeant insisted that he could take the pain a while longer. "Help Pvt Hilmarrson," he insisted. "That was our fault, we led him in..." he struggled to say through clenched teeth.

Oberto: 1 HP
Chou: 1 HP
Hilmarrson: 6 HP

While Acheson worked to save the life of his comrades, there was a distant rumble as a pair of main battle tanks now seemed to be closing on their position from the far side of the block. "There's no telling how much trouble that blast is going to attract," Krawczyk muttered from the driver's seat. She activated her comm system. "Everyone, get ready, we've got two MBTs closing on our position from the east and northeast. Caine, I need you in the APC. Bring Zetter. Over."

 

[joshuadim]

Mazurek had looked on in awe to the sheer destruction of the Upyri mortar teams as they - quite literally - went out with a bang. Watching the fireball rise into the air gave the hardened soldier no small degree of satisfaction, as with any Upyri death, but he quickly returned his attention to the battle at hand. Their fight was nowhere near over as Krawczyk made it clear that the tanks were on their way. Fortunately, Mazurek's current position offered a perfect vantage point to see one of the tanks on approach; Mazurek, McFarlane, and Bongani quickly got into position on the former's hushed orders, pulling out the launcher and setting a rocket in its tube.

Once primed, they took position on the far end of the house and prepared for the tank's arrival. Mazurek took a rifling post on one window, leaning to the edge of the window to reduce his profile while the other two with him primed the launcher. "Wait for my mark. Until we're sure we can hit that shot." Mazurek spoke quietly to McFarlane and Bongani, before speaking into his comms with a hushed tone.

"We're in position, ready to fire at enemy armour when it's close. Over."

 

[Infab]

"Everyone, get ready, we've got two MBTs closing on our position from the east and northeast. Caine, I need you in the APC. Bring Zetter. Over."

"Copy. On the move." responded Sam through his comms, before glancing to Adam. "TIme to go. We're needed at the APC."

The upyri lieutenant simply nodded. There was no point arguing against it. If they stayed here, the tanks would probably start taking pot shots at them when they arrived. Then again, they'd probably take shots at the APC if they discover its been hijacked by humans. Both soon moved quickly, sprinting towards the APC and rounding the back so that they could enter through the rear. Both quickly moved inside, with Sam soon taking note of the three wounded being patched up.

"Need me to help, Sarge? Or what's my orders?" he soon called out, towards the front where Krawczyk was sitting in the driver's seat.

 

[K0mori]

"We're in position, ready to fire at enemy armour when it's close. Over."

"Copy that, corporal. Remember the weak points; hitting it from the front will do fuck-all. Over."

Krawczyk looked back as Caine and Zetter arrived. She gestured to the empty seats. "Sit yourself down, Zetter. You're gonna ride this out with the wounded. Caine, Sgt. Oberto and Cpl. Chou both need help. I'm not a doctor; you figure it out."

Caine looked at them and realized that both were in similarly terrible shape. Oberto seemed to recognize the dilemma on the medic's brow and tried to reassure him by forcing a grin. "Flip a coin or something, amico," he said. Chou, meanwhile, rolled her eyes while clutching at her bloody midsection.

She put the machine back into gear and it started to roll forward, before she grabbed the control stick and tilted it to the left. The APC's four-wheel steering activated, and the machine began to face toward the north, toward the cul-de-sac and the lawns where the tanks were due to appear at any moment. "Acheson, close the doors!" she called out, and as the medic did as he was told, she pulled back on the stick so that the APC reversed down the street until it was positioned between the duplex where AUTO-262 was posted, and an empty building to the right.

Immediately, the occupants understood the Sargent's thinking: turning the vehicle south would expose its weak points to the enemy, and so the only option was to face north and roll backwards. "Hilmarrson, get on the gun," she directed. The private shakily lifted himself until he could hold onto the autocannon, his freshly-patched wounds aching under his body armor.

"Got it, Sarge," he replied.

"Hold your fire unless you see the ass-end of upyri armor, understood?"

Hilmarrson grit his teeth as he kept his eye on the periscopic sight. "Yes ma'am!"

Krawczyk nodded. "Good. Now, we wait," she said, dropping the frontal hatch closed so that she could no longer see out of it. They would rely on Hilmarrson's limited line of sight and reports over the comm to gauge the enemy's position, going forward.

Moments later, the tanks surged forward. From their advanced position, Mazurek, McFarlane, and Bongani watched the eastward tank growing larger without deviation left or right until it nearly reached the cul-de-sac. To the northeast, the second tank appeared only for a moment in the distance between buildings, as it continued westward in a flanking maneuver. Soon, it began a leftward, sweeping turn which would put it in line with the large duplex where Kang, Novy, Dawson, and Palencia were posted.

Then, both turrets rotated to the south, with one gun lining itself up with Mazurek's position, while the other moved toward the stationary APC, as if to inspect it.

 

[joshuadim]

Mazurek motioned, slowly, a finger to his lips to signal his companions to maintain operational silence. The message was clear: don't move a muscle. Maintaining cover alongside his peers as best as they could he prayed that, once the action started, attention would be drawn off them to get a good shot onto the enemy tank.

 

[Infab]

"Sit yourself down, Zetter. You're gonna ride this out with the wounded. Caine, Sgt. Oberto and Cpl. Chou both need help. I'm not a doctor; you figure it out."

"Got it." responded Sam, before switching his attention to the wounded. His eyes darted back and forth between them, trying to figure out which needed attention first. Eventually, however, he chose to focus on Chou. That bloody midsection could mean several things, but hopefully nothing that couldn't be mended in the field long enough to last till she received proper medical attention. He knelt next to her, setting his own medical kit down and opening it up.

Meanwhile, Adam simply sat down in the seat next to them. As he did, though, he called up to Krawczyk. "I could be a lot more help if you gave me access to the APC's comms." he said, "I can feed the tanks false intel."

 

[bat_hacker]

Atlas withdrew his rifle from the window and switched his heads up display back to its normal view. The round to the chest hadn't breached his armor but its kinetic energy had penetrated deep enough to bruise his flesh. His species' equivalent of adrenaline had kicked in and masked the pain long enough for him to take a hell of a shot but in the brief calmness that followed it had come back to him and he slumped in his cover slightly, quickly inspecting where the round had buried itself in his armor to ensure it wasn't leaking. The heavy plating had done its job as best it could, fracturing as it had spread the force of the bullet outward rather than into his body. It wasn't intended to take rounds of this caliber, but it had caught him at a shallow angle. He'd survived by a margin of degrees.

With a morbid fascination he pressed his thumb against the back of the round and pried it out, sending it and a few fragments of his suit's armor scattering across the floor. As he watched the round roll away, he was dumbstruck--not by fear or relief--but an uncanny elation. He felt righteous and empowered, as if some heretofore unknown power had sanctioned his crusade. Gripping the window sill he pulled himself up to peer over the edge, watching as the helplessly-blinded APC opened its hatch to expose the blackblood inside. He scrambled for his rifle but by the time he got a bead the vehicle had repositioned and he no longer had a clean shot. Not to be deterred, he took a couple of pot shots at the hatch anyway, gleefully watching the sparks skip off the armor and hearing the ring of metal against metal. He wanted the coward to know he was there, if nothing else. A hail of gunfire from another angle and a splash of blood announced his team's successful assault from another angle. He maintained his aim for a brief moment, ready to slay anyone else who may be inside, until Krawczyk radioed the successful capture of the vehicle.

He spotted and readjusted his aim on the mortars just in time to watch the rocket sail in and detonate the enemy ordinance, sending up a beautiful fountain of red fire and ink-black smoke. The blast took him by surprise, but he couldn't turn away, thrumming with excitement as he was. His pulse pounded in his ears as he impatiently scanned for another target. He was convinced: They were gaining ground due to the righteousness of their cause. They must press this advantage, whatever the driving force behind it was. As another enemy tank rounded a corner into his line of fire, he aimed his rifle and searched for any ingress or shot on the camera, relying on his dive suit to steady his aim as his hands trembled in anticipation. It took all of his willpower to avoid opening fire. Instead he squeezed his index finger into the grip of his rifle to steady himself. Opening comms, he flashed a message to his squad with his bioluminescence.

"Ready to hunt. Eager. Awaiting."

 

[Breadman]

Boyan let out a chuckled when the mortar team went up in smoke. Bastards got what they deserved. But there was little time to enjoy the show as the enemy tanks were on the move. The rocket launcher was going to come into play then. While the smoke was still clearing, he made sure to put some distance between himself and the others. If he was singled out, it would be only him targeted. He hoped at least. He peeked where the tanks were positioning themselves. One scanned the building, but turned its turret southwards. Just needed to get the right moment.

"Ready to strike. Just give the word."

 

[K0mori]

A tense moment passed as the tank in the distance kept its sights on the APC. Hilmarrson, having held his breath for half a minute, now slumped as the pain from his wounds combined with the exertion of standing perfectly still weighed heavily on him. "They're staring right at us..." he grumbled, before going wide eyed and pressing his face back up to the periscope. "Wait..." They're moving ahead slow, gun is still on us, Sarge."

As they waited in stricken silence, Caine set to work stitching up Corporal Chou. In between his dexterous movements, he spared a number of glances at Oberto, whose eyes were rolled back in agony as he dutifully waited for his turn. Unfortunately, by the time Caine had finished treating Chou, there was a lack of supplies on hand for him to get the man into fighting shape. All he could do was stop the bleeding and kill some of the pain, leaving Sgt Oberto in a cold sweat, barely functioning at all.

Chou: 6 HP

"Ready to hunt. Eager. Awaiting."

"I could be a lot more help if you gave me access to the APC's comms." he said, "I can feed the tanks false intel."

Krawczyk looked at the situation and, for a moment, seemed to relent. However, a rush of anger came back to her just as Zetter expected her to ask for his help. She turned around and opened her comm. "Copy that, Atlas," Krawczyk replied, quietly. Her knuckles were white on the controls, and it was obvious that she was trying to avoid looking back at her wounded comrades. She swallowed hard.

"Take the shot. Over."

Atlas rolls to shoot the tank's front-facing camera (Unlikely): 1/4 - Failed.

The bullet impacted the frontal armor of the tank several inches away from the small camera. At once, the vehicle stopped its roll and began to scan its surroundings using its machinegun. Atlas, meanwhile, pulled his gun down and out of view, preventing the enemy from spotting him. Regardless, the tank opened fire on the building, spraying the exterior with bullets in hopes of removing the threat.

Upyri Tank rolls to attack Atlas through cover (Unlikely): 5/4 - Passed.

Upyri Tank (Machinegun) at Long Distance: 9 DMG
Atlas: 2 LP

Bullets ripped through the building as Atlas laid low, clutching his gun against his chest and waiting for the danger to subside, when suddenly he felt a horrible pain in his upper arm that radiated all the way down to his fingertips and up through his neck. A large-caliber round had gone through the armor and directly into his flesh, shattering bone and tearing open blood vessels on its way. When the gun finally stopped firing, the entire rear wall of the room in which Atlas lay wounded had been perforated to such a degree that large chunks of drywall were shedding from the frame and falling to dust.

The fishman sent out his distress call, knowing that he would not be able to continue without help, and then lost consciousness.

The enemy tank now rolled forward aggressively, closing to within about 20 feet of the APC, before turning hard to the west, to where it had been shooting at Atlas, moment's earlier. This caused it to expose its rear-end to AUTO-262, which had reloaded its rocket launcher and was ready for the opportunity.

AUTO-262 rolls to hit the turret of the Upyri Tank (Likely): 2/2 - Passed.

The rocket screamed out of a window close by, slamming hard into the back of the gun. The tank once again stopped in its tracks, before its turret swiveled around to face toward AUTO-262. This maneuver opened the tank to direct fire from Mazurek's position. The corporal gave the signal to McFarlane, who hefted the launcher onto his shoulder before standing up enough to see through the window, which had been completely shattered by the mortar explosion moments earlier, and squeezed the trigger as soon as his rangefinder's laser made contact with the tank.

McFarlane rolls to hit the turret of the Upyri Tank (Marginal): 3/3 - Passed.

Another rocket screamed through an open window, striking the rear of the Upyri turret, where the reactive armor plating was already crumbling away from the first impact. The explosion was followed by a second detonation which created a column of black smoke, several stories high. The entire turret, having been popped off the vehicle like a cork out of a champaign bottle, landed in the grass a dozen yards away with a solid thump. The shockwave knocked McFarlane, Mazurek, and Bongani off their feet.

This time, there weren't any shouts of excitement or elation. Without a word, Krawczyk put the APC back into gear and then quickly reversed away from the carnage, whipping around the corner before coming to a stop before she shifted into an advancing gear and motored toward the west, to where Atlas had been when the shooting began a moment earlier.

"Ready to strike. Just give the word."

"Fire at will, Novy! Over!" Krawczyk snapped. As the vehicle rumbled forward, Hilmarrson could barely stay upright against the periscope, and so Krawczyk pushed the hatch open far enough that she could see her surroundings.

Meanwhile, the second tank had spotted the APC moving behind the townhomes and began to roll forward alongside the duplex where Novy, Kang, Palencia, and Dawson waited for the right opportunity to strike. As it moved past the window where Novy had taken up position, he did as instructed and let a rocket fly, aiming for the engine of the tank rather than the turret. He knew that the armor would be too strong there for a single rocket to pierce through.

Novy rolls to hit the engine of the Upyri Tank (Likely): 3/2 - Passed.

Another rocket slammed into upyri armor, hitting the vehicle where Zetter had described and causing a fire. However, even as the vehicle drifted to a stop in the yard just north of the townhouses and east of the duplex, its turret remained in operation. It swung around 180 degrees toward where the operators believed the strike had originated.

Upyri Tank rolls to attack Novy through cover (Marginal): 1/5 - Failed.

The cannon gave a thunderous boom, sending a shell through the window of a bedroom adjacent to the room in which Novy was taking cover, and the explosion which followed sent splinters and dust flying through the building. The smell of smoke was now overpowering, and the four humans inside sensed an uncanny groaning in the structure of the building. As if by instinct, all four burst out of the building in time to avoid becoming trapped in the collapse, but this placed them directly into the line of sight of the tank's machinegun.

Upyri Tank (MG) vs Palencia, Dawson, and Kang at Medium Range: 7, 7, 7 DMG
Palencia: 3 HP
Dawson: 3 HP
Kang: 3 HP

The gun spun itself to life automatically and blasted away at the unprepared humans, each of whom took glancing shots as they struggled to escape around the southern corner of the building, where they had been prior to entering the duplex.

"Sarge!" Palencia called out, "Sarge, we're getting shredded over here! Over!"

 

[joshuadim]

Mazurek coughed for a moment as the dust settled following the explosion, which was then followed by a dry laugh as he saw one of the tanks be sent to kingdom come. "SCRATCH ONE HOSTILE!" Mazurek shouted into the comms, before scrambling back onto his feet. He quickly turned to McFarlane, who also was getting his bearings after the shockwave and shouted: "RELOAD! WE'RE TAKING THAT OTHER FUCKER DOWN!"

 

[Breadman]

It hit, but didn't kill it. Boyan prepared to take another shot at the tank. It hadn't narrowed down his position yet, but was now trying to kill everyone else.

RELOAD! WE'RE TAKING THAT OTHER FUCKER DOWN!

"Taking another shot." With the launcher rearmed, he pointed it towards the enemy tank.

 

[K0mori]

Novy, having exited the collapsing duplex further to the north than his comrades, found himself behind the tank with his rocket launcher freshly-reloaded. At the same time, McFarlane had prepped his launcher for another strike, and the hatch of the tank came open so that the crew inside could escape the growing fire. They wouldn't be able to climb off the vehicle before the first rocket was let fly.

"Taking another shot."

Novy rolls to hit the compromised armor of the of the Upyri Tank (Likely): 2/2 - Passed.

The rocket slammed into the rear of the tank where the fire was raging, and there was a sound of a deep detonation and screaming; a flash of light and large amounts of smoke poured out of the open hatch as the last man to successfully escape the tank collapsed onto the ground, his legs bleeding and his uniform on fire. Two other men were more lucky, having jumped off at the last moment to escape the carnage. Apparently, the strike also disabled the turret, which seemed to freeze in place as the wounded humans escaped around the corner.

Inside the eastern building where Mazurek was commanding McFarlane and Bongani, the trio ultimately decided not to employ a rocket, as the enemy tank appeared to have been fully disabled from Novy's efforts. Instead, Bongani moved up to take a shot with his pistol at the disoriented upyri crew, and quickly Mazurek and McFarlane followed suit.

Bongani, Mazurek, and McFarlane (Pistols) vs Upyri Marines at Medium Range: 9 DMG to each.

The burning marine was the first to die, as he was already on death's door, but the other two seemed to nearly shrug off the shots they had taken. While one turned to look for the source of the pistol fire, the other remained focused on the corner where the humans had fled and began to jog toward it, pistol drawn. As he reached the corner, however, Dawson was waiting for him with a knife, ready to make a final stand.

Dawson rolls to ambush the Upyri Marine (Marginal): 1/5 - Failed.

As the enemy arrived, Dawson leaped out with a scream, thrusting the blade down on the Upyri from the front, but at the last moment, the marine turned his body and was able to grapple Dawson and throw him down to the ground. Towering over the human, the Upyri nonetheless appeared shaken, and fired his entire pistol magazine into him.

Upyri Marine (Pistol) vs Dawson at Close Quarters: 9 DMG
Dawson: 0 LP
Pvt. Dawson has been killed.

The last bullet put a hole clear through Dawson's head, the gray matter spattered on the grass below. Now realizing how close he was to his other opponents, the upyri frantically reached for his knife, but Palencia was already gripping his pistol with both hands and screaming in rage.

Palencia (pistol) vs Upyri Marine at Close Quarters: 9 DMG

Squeezing the trigger multiple times in a row, Palencia made sure to repay the upyri bastard for what he had done to his friend, but every fiber of his being was shaking; if only he had been faster. The upyri collapsed right next to where Dawson lay, his body twitching as he groaned his last. Kang was still nearby as well, pressed up against the wall, gripping her wounds and holding back an emotional outburst of her own. Everything had happened so quickly that it made her head spin. There was still a second survivor among the upyri, and so Kang took out her Kosok pistol and fired on him.

Kang (Plasma Pistol) vs Upyri Marine at Medium Range: 12 DMG

The weapon screeched to life as she pulled the trigger, ignoring the small jet of flame above her knuckles. White hot plasma impacted the marine at center mass, splashing into a horrific web of molten hatred on the man's chest. He didn't die immediately, but rather collapsed to his knees screaming, tearing at his own armor in a futile effort to remove it as it apparently melted against his body. He eventually clenched into a ball and expired.

"Dawson is dead," Kang said after a moment, forcing herself to breathe and calm down. "Over."

Moments later, Novy confirmed the destruction of the second upyri tank.

Krawczyk had just brought the APC to a halt next to the townhomes. She appeared white in the face, now. "Caine, Acheson, go get Atlas, if he's still alive," she said slowly, allowing both men to disembark and run inside. Then, regaining her discipline, she opened the comms. "Regroup on me. Over," was all she said for the moment. The two medics climbed the stairs to the second floor and soon discovered Atlas collapsed on the floor. Using what supplies they still had, they formed a plug for the suit to prevent any more water from leaking out before working together to lift him and carry him back.

When they returned to the APC, the rest of the unit was gathering around, readying to continue their trek to the northeast looking much worse for wear. "He's alive," Acheson said, "but he won't be much use unless he gets some real help, and we can't do much without medical supplies."

By now, all the jostling had roused Atlas from his unconsciousness; he felt weak and his entire arm was in agony, but at the very least he could communicate with the others as he was laid down inside the make-do ambulance.

 

[joshuadim]

The fight had ended against the tanks, with both having been destroyed or rendered inoperable, as the chaos died down following the final deaths of the Upyri in the area. But, unfortunately, they had taken some casualties - including the loss of Pvt. Dawson - which left Mazurek more reserved than his two counterparts who had high-fived one another and remarked on the now harmless tanks. The Corporal made his way down, taking note of the distant gunfire and explosions that raged on in the distance. The Ursataari were still fighting, it seemed, which made him smirk for a moment before returning his attention back to everyone else.

The amount of wounded began to pile up already, which made their situation worse given their objectives, but Mazurek was more concerned about Kang as he quickly walked over to her and knelt to take a look. "Shit, can you walk?" he asked, "You look pretty banged up."

 

[Infab]

"He's alive," Acheson said, "but he won't be much use unless he gets some real help, and we can't do much without medical supplies."

Sam nodded, looking in Krawczyk's direction. "Pressing on with so many wounded would be potential suicide." he said, glancing towards Atlas before letting his gaze drift to the rest of the group that had suffered injuries. Dawson was dead, Oberto and Atlas were barely hanging on. They just didn't have the medical equipment to continue this assault, at the moment. "Any idea if we can pull a medic from one of the other groups?"

Soon enough, another slightly muffled voice spoke up from inside the APC. Adam, who was looking out to where the group was gathered. "...Check the bodies of the Marines. Individual medical kits are standard issue for most Marines, so its fairly likely you'll find something of use." he said, his head shifting about as he looked between the members of the group.

 

[Breadman]

"EAT SHIT! DA GO DUHASH!" Boyan cheered as the rocket hit the tank and knocked it offline. He waited a few seconds before reporting the confirmed kill, making sure he wouldn't be caught off-guard just in case. He muttered a curse after hearing that Dawson didn't make it. "Tank confirmed disabled." He radioed in the confirmation they needed. He stood up from behind cover and hurried his way to the commander. State of the squad wasn't the best, but it could be far far worse.

"Need me to go and check for anything?" He pointed towards the dead marines. He used two rockets, but had two more in the pipe. However he could still scrounge up something of use if they had the time.

 

[bat_hacker]

Atlas awoke in a new location with his face touching air. His suit was apparently only half full of water, but it didn't seem to be leaking any more. Thankfully, it was enough to submerge most of his gills as long as he was laying prone. He attempted to instruct the suit to sit him up so he could take stock of his new situation. He caught a glimpse of his squad, relieving him of the fear that he may have fallen into enemy hands, but the motion caused his water to slosh dangerously close to his waist, adding the familiar prickling feeling of impending suffocation to the cacophony of sensation currently washing over him. His right arm was broken and bleeding, and the rest of his body was bruised and aching. His healing factor wouldn't activate without being completely submerged, but with a few quick configuration changes he was able to at least cycle the water in such a way that it washed over his skin, rehydrating it a bit and keeping it from drying out and chapping more than it already had.

He struggled to remember what had happened in the events leading up to his incapacitation. It was extremely hazy, hidden behind the pain and a peculiar emotion he'd never experienced before. It all seemed like it had happened to an entirely different fishman whose memories were intruding on his. The harder he tried to remember the more pain he seemed to feel, so he was quick to give up the effort and focused instead on speaking a message with his bioluminescence. His right arm was almost non-functional in this regard, damaged as it was, and the bruises and welts on the rest of his body didn't help either. Still, he managed to produce enough to hopefully get the message through, even if it was stilted.

"Everyone. I... return. You. Water. Heal. Pain. Help. You. Give. Please. Everyone."

 

[K0mori]

Mazurek was more concerned about Kang as he quickly walked over to her and knelt to take a look. "Shit, can you walk?" he asked, "You look pretty banged up."

Kang looked miserably at the Corporal for a moment before she swallowed whatever complaint she was prepared to give. Most of the Patrol was wounded in some way, with many of them barely having survived the fight. "I'm okay," she said quietly, grabbing Mazurek's hand and pulling herself up. "We're still not even at the fuel plant. How are we supposed to handle things if the Upyri come out in force to defend it?"

Meanwhile, Palencia stared at Dawson's body, clearly shaken by the loss of his friend. It took him a while to turn away, but finally, he did, and shakily reloaded his
pistol as he walked back toward the APC where the COs were. The rest of the group began to follow him, until they had arrived at the relative safety behind the building where the vehicle was currently parked.

Sam nodded, looking in Krawczyk's direction. "Pressing on with so many wounded would be potential suicide." he said, glancing towards Atlas before letting his gaze drift to the rest of the group that had suffered injuries. Dawson was dead, Oberto and Atlas were barely hanging on. They just didn't have the medical equipment to continue this assault, at the moment. "Any idea if we can pull a medic from one of the other groups?"

Krawczyk was already shaking her head before Caine even finished his question. "Das would just call us back to Six-Point Park," she replied, as if the notion of backtracking was all that was necessary to rule out the idea of asking for help. "Anyone got any other ideas?"

"...Check the bodies of the Marines. Individual medical kits are standard issue for most Marines, so its fairly likely you'll find something of use."

Several seconds passed in silence. Oberto looked to Zetter tiredly, beads of sweat rolling off his forehead, and then to the blurry, indistinct light of the vehicle's open hatch. "...Iga?" he finally, nervously spoke, unsure if the Sergeant had heard their captive or if she was intentionally ignoring him again.

"Yeah, I heard him," Krawczyk replied, darkly.

"Need me to go and check for anything?"

The Sergeant turned to her battered unit and instructed them: "Yeah. Let's gather up what we can off those dead marines; there's got to be some medical supplies around here. Any more tanks show up, we regroup and wheel out of here in the APC. Can't be too long before backup arrives behind us anyway. Grab anything else you find that we might be able to use."

They began to disburse, with some of them, especially those from Squad 10, grumbling audibly about the circumstances.

"Everyone. I... return. You. Water. Heal. Pain. Help. You. Give. Please. Everyone."

Acheson sprung into action immediately. "There's drinking water on this rig, isn't there?" he asked Zetter, who nodded and described the location of the water supply, just inside the hatch. A hose was already attached for filling external water containers, and so Acheson quickly got to work connecting it to the fishman's suit. A stream of cool, clean water gradually mixed into Atlas' personal environment until he was fully submerged again, and although water continued to trickle out around the "plug," it was at a slow enough rate that more permanent repair work could be conducted.

Atlas: 2 HP.

---
​

From a distant vantage point, high above Achenar Gateway, a hidden presence smiles behind a pair of binoculars as he watches the alliance close in on his position. Below, the fuel plant was nearly empty, as most of the workers had already been liquidated. The few who remained were simply keeping the fuel flowing without regards to replacing it. After all, once the remaining ships had departed, there would be no need for any more fuel to be refined at this plant, and he couldn't wait to set the raw materials on fire. It didn't matter if the xenos brought their plasma, their fangs and their claws. They wouldn't find an army of 'Upyri traitors' or 'bokema-teresen' here to greet them. They'd only find a fiery death.

Somehow the small fish think they can take on a tiger shark if they all swim the same direction, he mused.

But something gnawed at him nonetheless. Smoke was rising to the south, perhaps only a block away. If the marines at the front line couldn't contain the second prong of the enemy's attack, they might end up getting flanked, which would press his own position before their plan could be set in motion. If that wound up being the case, then it would fall to his own unit to protect the withdrawal. It wouldn't be nearly as flashy, but at least if it came to that, he'd have the satisfaction of seeing his victims up close. He almost wanted it to happen.

Let them come here, he silently wished. Let the vermin think they've got something going, just to get stamped out under the Honor Guard's boots.

 

[joshuadim]

"We're still not even at the fuel plant. How are we supposed to handle things if the Upyri come out in force to defend it?"

Mazurek grimaced for a moment as he tried to find the right words for morale. Kang wasn't wrong, they had taken quite a beating already even with their success against the tanks. Being this tattered already meant that the fight would be an even steeper hill to climb. But another distant explosion reminded Mazurek of the nearby commotion being wrought as he gave a half-smile. "Well, we still got friends out there. The Ursas are probably kicking ass like they did on Terra." the Corporal commented.

And his mind wandered to also another aspect of the offensive: "There's also the Kanads out there, with their heavy armor. Both will draw attention away from us, I'm sure."

 

[Infab]

Sam stayed with the APC, keeping an eye on Atlas and the other wounded as he sat across from Adam. The main two he was focused on were, in fact, Atlas and Oberto. He silently hoped that the others were able to scrounge up those medical kits that Adam spoke. If not, they'd be screwed if they pushed forward. Medics can't keep people alive without medical supplies.

He twitched, however, when he heard Adam speak up again. "Hey, you." said the Upyri lieutenant, looking straight at Sam.

Sam glanced over. What the hell did he want? He wasn't in the mood for small talk. Not now, at least.

Adam tilted his head forwards. "Pull my helmet off. Please." he said, holding perfectly still. Waiting.

Sam eyed him for a few moments, before sighing and setting his rifle down in the seat next to him. He then reached over, placing both of his hands flat against the sides of the lieutenant's helmet.

"Gentle twist to your right, my left, unlocks it. You can then pull it off." muttered Adam. Sam nodded, before gently twisting the helmet to the right on Adam's head. He heard a click and hiss, then a beep. Then, Sam simply pulled it off. Surprisingly light hunk of armor.

Adam's face was revealed soon enough, as the helmet came off and was moved aside. Lightly tanned skin, almost medium length brown hair, brown eyes. He hadn't shaved in what appeared to be weeks, a nice beard marking his face. He apparently hadn't been sleeping well either. Dark circles sat beneath baggy eyes. Stress lines marked his forehead, and his cheeks were slightly sunken in. He looked worn out.

"Thank you." he soon said, "You can toss it anywhere, really."

Sam did just as he said, tossing the helmet out the back of the APC and onto the ground outside. Adam watched it go sailing out into the light, eventually clacking across the ground and rolling away.

"I... didn't mean it like that, but whatever." muttered the Lieutenant.

"Not like it was going to save you anyway, if someone wanted to take a shot at you." responded Sam, grabbing his rifle back up as he returned to watching Atlas and Oberto. However, as he returned to his duties, Adam decided to speak again.

"...The El'uth mentioned earlier that there were others in the area that could probably assist you in your push towards the fuel plant. A good group of scouts would be useful going forward. Especially with the number of wounded you have." he said, glancing out the back of the APC again. "Getting in touch with them is the tricky part, though. Any of you fluent in their language?"

Sam shrugged. He certainly wasn't.

Adam sighed. "[Well, fuck. I should had kept that damn translator alive. He'd have been plenty useful now.]" he muttered, switching back to his own native language briefly. He thought for a few moments, staring down at the metal floor of the APC's interior. Maybe they wouldn't have to worry about it too much. With how much damage they had already done, it likely alerted any El'uth in the area. Hopefully some were close enough to investigate.

 

[Breadman]

Yeah. Let's gather up what we can off those dead marines; there's got to be some medical supplies around here. Any more tanks show up, we regroup and wheel out of here in the APC. Can't be too long before backup arrives behind us anyway. Grab anything else you find that we might be able to use.

Boyan didn't need much else to go on so he can get to plundering. With a nod, he turned around and went to work with the grizzly task he signed up for. It was a necessary evil for them to survive the battlefield. Ammo, grenades, med kits and maybe some accessories for their equipment if they could be put to use. Nothing was off the table to be picked up. Even some personalized items. Nobody would miss a loose credit chit here and there that some poor sap was carrying on their person.

Others might find it unnerving and despicable and they would be right. Boyan wouldn't blame them if they thought that, but they didn't live what he lived through and maybe they were better for it. Still he would do his self-assigned tasks with a melodic tune that he would whistle as he picked out what they would need.

 

[joshuadim]

Elsewhere...
​

The Ursataari advance had, by sheer ferocity and firepower, caught the Upyri defenses off-balance as they panicked at the sight of the lumbering, armoured ursine aliens on approach while their surroundings came under fire. One of the panicked Upyri survivors from the first defensive line, comprising rudimentary defenses in front of what used to be a judiciary house, fired wildly at an approaching Jemmez. A personal shield extended from his wrist device, absorbing the laser shots with ease until he was in range for melee. It was there that the leader of the Ursataari pulled out a warhammer from his side and swung at the soldier's side. The strength of the blow send the Upyri screaming as he flew towards a nearby pillar, which he collided with as a sickening crack filled the air.

["REGROUP! ON ME!"] Jemmez then roared, bringing the rest of his unit up front to take cover at the Upyri first line. Thanks to their heavy armor and personal defenses, practically everyone was unscathed save for one of the younger warriors as she gripped at her side in pain. Jemmez was concerned and was about to speak, but she caught wind of his gaze and quickly grunted. ["I'm fine, I can still fight."] she insisted, ["It's only a scratch. The leeches got lucky."] For a moment he considered contesting her assessment, but Jemmez relented as he gave a nod before turning to the main matter at hand. The second defensive line was within the building itself, which created the problem of close quarters combat.

There, the Upyri would have the advantage of ambushes and tight kill zones. By closing the gap, their weapons would assuredly cause significant casualties on their limited group. But given the region was abandoned of civilians, Jemmez recognized that he could afford a more blunt solution to the entrenched problem. ["Tamakh, Ja'llor. Prep the canisters. If they want to keep the building, they will get their wish."]

The two explosive experts nodded as they pulled out four large canisters, the contents of which were spelled clearly in the Ursine language: Magnesium-Phosphate Gas. It would spread quickly, before igniting from a chemical primer inside the canisters themselves to create a chain reaction that in turn would result in a chemical flash fire. It was a weapon seldom used, but one that found necessity in urban combat. Jemmez would sacrifice the chance for direct combat in exchange for preserving the lives of those entrusted under his command. Both the Ursataari explosive experts then pulled out launchers and launched them into the building, the faint hissing of gas being heard as Jemmez and the others quickly retreated to safer ground.

Moments thereafter, a massive explosion rocked the building as three floors of the building simultaneously went up in flames. Fed by the oxygen that flowed in with bursted windows, it grew rapidly and encompassed the structure entirely. Screams of terror and pain could be heard from within as their defensive positions became their tombs. A few even jumped out of windows out of desperation, their bodies wreathed in chemical flames, before thudding to the ground with dying squirms. This allowed Jemmez and his warriors to cirumvent the second line of defenses entirely, much to the surprise of the third line - as they witnessed their comrades dying in horrifying fashion to their shock - as they scrambled into combat positions in a series of entrenchments committed to a residential area.

With their momentum already in place, Jemmez committed to another frontal assault as the Ursataari forces charged headlong into enemy fire. While already demoralized and panicked by the felling of their comrades, this proved to be the greatest challenge to the Ursataari thus far as they found themselves pinned for the time being. This time, it would require close quarters combat. Jemmez knew that he would lose people, but the thought of ordering it made it all the more unappealing. He steeled himself through the thoughts, and roared: ["PUSH! GET TO THE HOUSES! CLEAR THEM OUT!"]

Without hesitation, and eager for more combat, the warriors roared in unison as they charged heroically under enemy fire. With a combination of smokescreen bombardments from Ja'llor and Tamakh, and suppressive fire from Kazkhar, the Ursataari pushed forward with a few taking some damage to their armour. But it was inside the houses that ended bloodily. Though one by one the houses fell as the Ursataari used their imposing height and strength to overpower their enemies, it was Upyri tactics of ambush that created the first real casualties for the Ursataari.

Jemmez himself was nearly victim to a close range shotgun blast as he barely managed to bring his shield up in time, only for it to finally expend its use as the shot had hit its main control unit. He retaliated by bringing his claws down into the mans side and thrashing him into the walls of the house before finally slamming him into the ground with a crunch; the Upyri's brains splattered onto the ground beneath Jemmez from the force, and he let out a triumphant roar. ["CLEAR!"] he shouted into his comms, which brought forth affirmatives from many others. But a cry of panic then shouted: ["KAZKHAR'S HURT! SO IS LORTI!"]

This forced Jemmez to rush outside, seeing the wounded being tended to as he came by their sides. The latter, the warrior from before who had been hurt, was now missing a few fingers and an eye as she groaned in pain. The group's combat medic quickly applied medical foam so as to stem the bleeding, and she was stabilized. But Kazhkhar was in far worse condition. Looking him over, Jemmez's eyes widened as he saw there was a significant hole punched into the young gunner's gut, to where he could see bits of his entrails. ["Fucking... sniper..."] Kazkhar managed to get out in between laboured breaths, blood pooling in his mouth as he weakly clutched at his wound. But even the medic could see that there was no chance as he gave Jemmez a knowing look.

["You fool, why didn't you play it safe?"] Jemmez muttered as he tried to comfort his dying friend, only to receive a raspy laugh in response.

["Agh... you're right... again."] the young gunner spoke, before coughing up more blood. A silent understanding passed between the two, and the others who began to gather around, until he drew his final breaths. Jemmez rested his hand gently upon his fallen comrade's head and closed his eyes: ["Find your way to your ancestors, in whose mighty company you will not feel shame."] he said as parting words, as the other warriors rested their hands on their chests. It was then that Jemmez pulled out one of Kazkhar's teeth, wrapping it with some binding straps before wearing it as a necklace tribute.

["Get the comms to contact the small ones."] Jemmez then said flatly, ["I want to know where they are currently."]

---

Back where Krawczyk and the rest were, there comms crackled to life with a familiar voice on the other end: "We have broken through Upyri defenses. What is your status?" Jemmez asked, to which everyone in the squad could hear. Mazurek perked up on hearing this and looked like a different man upon the news reaching his ears.

"Shit, they really are a walking battering ram." the Corporal said with a smirk.

 

[bat_hacker]

Atlas had slipped back into semi-unconsciousness, exhausted from the effort of sending his message.

An indeterminable amount of time later, he felt the water level rise around him, submerging his body and helping to assuage some of the pain. His arm itched as his body's enzymes, activated by the presence of fresh water, began breaking down the shattered cartilage and torn flesh in preparation for repairing the limb.

He instructed the suit to sit him up again, startling a couple of the humans who were standing nearby him. They seemed to encourage him to lie back down but Atlas didn't bother to read the translation. With his good arm, he reached to a small storage panel near the small of his back to withdraw two containers. The first was a liquid ration, which he flipped open with his thumb and fed into the same intake valve as the water. Nutrient-rich water would help the healing process and help him get back on his feet. The second canister had a taller cap that he popped off by pulling the lid against an armor plate on his leg, revealing a small spray nozzle. Doing his best to avoid moving his broken arm, he brought the can to the leak and directed a spray of liquid polymer to the trickling cracks. The polymer hardened almost immediately upon hitting the open air, forming a tough, resin-like patch over the hole and plug together, stopping the leak.

With that, he flashed a quick message: "I am most thankful. What happened? Are we safe?" He would likely be able to stand and run with the dive suit's help but with his arm immobilized he would be unable to handle his rifle and would have to stick to his sidearm for the duration.

 

[K0mori]

Port Street - North of Patrol 2's Position
​

The Kosoks had advanced another block behind their tank, and were now pressing on the entrance of Achenar Gateway's main entrance, a panoramic architectural achievement like many of its kind throughout humanity's periphery. Despite its massive size, its wide-open spaces and large glass windows made it a poor defensive position, and so the aliens quickly surmised that the real fight would be waiting for them beyond, at the terminals and in the hangars, and especially at the southern end of the landing pads, where the fuel plant was located.

Behind their tank, Naghan projected a holographic map of their surroundings, adapted from human-supplied data. The Ursataari had moved at a more rapid pace than he had anticipated, and as a likely result of this, the humans had made a similar stab to the east that had apparently met an unorganized resistance. The kanad nodded approvingly; he was more than happy to keep his slow and steady pace that was gradually bleeding the Upyri dry. He then realized that the unit identifier tag attached to the human vanguard was the same as before; the same reckless humans who took the bridge over the Mandela River were again attempting to get out in front of the coalition. A bit of disgust welled up in the pit of his stomach. [They want this too much,] he thought.

Suddenly, there was a twang and then a powerful blast. The tank seemed to lurch backwards as dust and rocks rushed past Naghan and Ikrye's feet, staggering them, before the tank seemed to collapse forward on one corner.

"[Sarge, we've hit a mine. Suspension has collapsed on the front-left,]" the driver explained via the comm system. "[We can't push on like this.]"

Naghan sighed. "[Understood. Defend your position; we'll clear out our surroundings so you can get it back up and running.]"

"Yakka," the driver replied, calmly.

​

The Upyri, sensing that the Kosok tank was badly damaged, began to close from all directions. They knew that if they could finish off the machine, their diminutive opponents would be overwhelmed, and the entire left flank of the coalition attack would collapse. With their machine guns, rocket launchers, and mortar teams, they took up position in nearly every building that the enemy hadn't already scorched with plasma.

"[Sir?]" Ikrye asked.

"[It's time we start fighting,]" Naghan replied, taking out a grenade. "[Cavalry, give us some smoke.]"

A series of small rockets shot out of pods mounted on the body of the tank, arching about twenty feet in the air before falling back to the pavement and exploding into large clouds of grey smoke. Naghan, Ikrye, and the rest of the unit's infantry touched the sides of their helmets, lenses within instantly switching to an enhanced optical solution which revealed their obscured surroundings. Several of the Kosoks took out their grenades, which were oblong in shape, and threw them- they deployed fins and rocketed forward in a spiral, which the soldiers directed with the aid of motional controls built into their gloves.

Several upyri positions which were still in the process of deploying, mistakenly believing themselves to be safe behind cover, now witnessed the grenades zipping through the air before tumbling down into their positions, behind walls and sandbags, and detonating. Soon after the chaos, the Kosoks emerged from the smoke in every direction, including the air, as Ikrye and another Lirya took flight, using their batlike wings to deftly maneuver onto the rooftops. Having made their introduction properly, the Kosoks pushed the advantage while the Upyri were still off-balance. The sound of whining plasma coils and Upyri machine guns firing almost blindly filled the air with a sound of panic.

Within seconds, dozens of Upyri marines and three Black Fleet troopers lie dead on the pavement. Naghan, moving more aggressively than any of his unit, rushed a machine gun's nest and took a bullet right to the helmet that would have killed, had the design of the armor not been a century beyond the comprehension of the human race. Suddenly on his back, Naghan grabbed his collar and jerked the helmet open, disposing of the compromised upper shell as he rose to his feet. More bullets struck his chest and shoulder pieces, which staggered him, but he merely raised his rifle and planted three shots on target to his enemy's chest and head which sizzled through the primitive armor plating, frying him alive.

Baring his snaggletooth-fangs, Naghan rushed forward, ignoring the pain reverberating throughout his torso as the partially-disabled tank behind him turned its own guns on the shooting gallery in front of him. The upyri were already falling back screaming as they were doused in plasma, trying to find cover from the overwhelming attack, when Naghan and one of his soldiers leaped over the wall and took hold of the abandoned Upyri machinegun. With the help of their power-assisted armor, the two kanads hoisted the weapon and began walking with it, blasting out the windows of nearby buildings with a shower of bullets.

"[WHO ELSE!?]" Naghan roared. "[WHO ELSE WANT'S TO JOIN THE DEAD? I'LL BURY YOU MYSELF!]"

As if pushed back by his screaming, the upyri front line seemed to evaporate within seconds. In truth, they had realized that their apparent strategic advantage was a mirage, and that a counterattack was not yet possible. As they shrunk into the Gateway's buildings, the Sargent felt light-headed and finally dropped to one knee. His soldiers quickly occupied every strong position they could find, and the battle abruptly turned from a chaotic shootout to a gallery for snipers. Both sides were therefore stalled right there at the front entrance to the port.

Out of breath, Naghan was helped to his feet by a trooper who started to remove his helmet's upper shell so that he could replace his commander's, but Naghan furiously grabbed the soldier's wrist and yanked his hand away from the ring of his collar. There were no words exchanged, but the meaning was clear- the Sargent would not allow any of his unit to take a bullet that was meant for him. They limped their way back toward the tank, whose turret still pivoted slowly and scanned their surroundings, even after a technician had climbed out to survey the suspension damage.

---
​

"We have broken through Upyri defenses. What is your status?" Jemmez asked, to which everyone in the squad could hear.

"We've disabled two enemy tanks," Krawczyk answered. "We have some wounded, one dead. We're evaluating our combat readiness. We will try to cut north, soon, but Squad 10 will be unable to join you as we originally planned. They'll be staying with us. Over."

Oberto's head lolled to the side as he wore a confused, almost alarmed look on his face. "What? I didn't...."

Soon after, Caine tossed Zetter's helmet out of the back of the vehicle, and it tumbled to a stop nearby Krawczyk's feet. She stooped down, looked it over, before turning back to the APC. Her eyes locked onto Zetter from a distance for a moment, but she quickly and furiously turned away rather than acknowledge him. "Let's go, let's get some medical supplied!" she barked at her Patrol as she joined them in the search.

A painful ten minutes passed by as the unit sifted through the wreckage and gore of their fallen opponents' position, gathering up what they could to help treat their wounds. During this time, the Upyri tanks appeared to be moving north to join the battle on Oceanic Avenue, as the Patrol caught glances of them at a long distance. Meanwhile, other humans began to enter the residential areas on the Patrol's right flank, meeting almost no resistance as they marched. By the time medical supplies were gathered, it truly would have been possible to borrow a medic from another unit, but Krawczyk seemed intent on minimizing their losses to the fullest extent that they could manage.

Novy rolls to gather more than just medical supplies (Likely): 2/2 - Passed.

While searching the grotesque remains, Novy noticed an unusual bag clipped to the waist of one of the corpses. Opening it, he discovered a device which appeared to be an injector of some sort, along with several empty vials. One, however, appeared to be filled with blood. He stopped and stared at this for a moment, beginning to suspect that the tool wasn't meant for injecting anything, but was rather a tool for extraction. He put everything back into the bag and clipped it to his own belt, for the moment, knowing that this was not the time to be asking questions.

Back at the APC, Atlas' suit had finally finished filling with water, and the fishman tended to the damage in order to properly seal it. His comrades began to gather round distributing what supplies they were able to find.

With that, he flashed a quick message: "I am most thankful. What happened? Are we safe?"

Cpl Chou chuckled at the question. "I guess for the moment, we are, but it can't be long before the vamps come back for us," she replied, ignoring the sidelong glance from Zetter. "What do you think, Sarge? Are we really pressing on, like Krawczyk said?"

Oberto was now sitting up, with Acheson tending to his wounds. He seemed to have a dark look about his eyes - apart from the sunken appearance he was carrying simply from his close brush with death. He seemed tired and angry. Still, he kept his mind on the prize. "This battle's not over until it's over. We owe it to the coalition to keep the pressure up."

"We owe it to Achenar to keep it up," Krawczyk interjected as she sat down in the driver's seat again. "We've got one more block to cover, and then we'll be at the fuel plant. If we can't push through there, then we'll hold the door open for the UFS."

The rest of the Patrol either piled into or clung to the outside of the APC as its engines rumbled to life again. They were getting stronger by the moment, and as they rolled up the street, they suddenly found less in the way of machine guns and mortar positions. They began to wonder if the Upyri had simply redeployed, or if something was taking them out. They rolled to a stop between two houses, and AUTO-262 was deployed to scan ahead. The drone soon returned and reported that a pair of enemy tanks were positioned at the end of the following street, facing northward, as if to attack the Ursataari from the flank or the rear. Beyond them, the outer fence line of the fuel plant was visible.

"Alright," Krawczyk grumbled. "One more time, with feeling..."

The Patrol dismounted from the APC and crept up on the parked vehicles. A few rockets later, and the two machines were reduced to burning hulks. Even when the marines got out on foot and began to sweep the road to their south, the coalition was prepared. A series of shots rang out from a hidden position in plain sight, as two El'uth snipers emerged from a nearby dumpster, from which they had a decent view of the street.

Oberto approached them with an informal salute. "Eyy, thanks for the assist!" he said. "Mind coming out here for a minute? We could use some help."

Behind him, Krawczyk seemed surprised and skeptical, but said nothing.

(All characters are at full HP.)