Futuristic Starpath X: For All Mankind

[Breadman]

Make yourself at home.

"Ah, splendid." Kumcho's ears perked up as he was allowed to stay for the night. "I only need a small amount of space to be comfortable. Living as a bounty hunter is...how do you say it...it makes you give up on a lot of comforts." He looked to Kang "Sometimes it makes me wish I was still in our military serving as a guard, but I think the boredom would kill me sooner than any stray bullet." They could make out a smile on his face. At least it looked like a smile. "Call me Kumcho. Clan Vulchishte, scouting pack etc." He waved off the additions to his name "Formalities my kin like to add to our name in order to impress outsiders, but you humans don't seem too interested in those." The wolfman looked around the camp before looking at the two humans before him "How large is your pack exactly? I see many of your kind bearing similar markings, but your smells are all different."
---
While the other Vultures were off somewhere either looking to stick their nose in sensitive business, be a nuisance or relax for the evening, Loren would walk through the night to clear his own head. The sniper wasn't much for hanging out with groups, least of all those full of strangers. He figured keeping his distance was what made him good at his job. An amusing thought at least. In any case it was nice to just take a night stroll without all the gear they had to carry while out in the field.

As he walked in the night something caught his eye. Near one of the campfires the soldiers had set up was a barrel with someone standing on it. It didn't seem like he was having a good time. His initial impression was that it was someone who's had his squad wiped out, but then he saw the armor strewn around the barrel. Upiry armor. Was that a prisoner? They wouldn't leave him out like that if hew as. His curiosity was getting the better of him.

"Hardfought day, huh." He spoke as he approached the depressed figure, trying to make small talk. "Got a few spare cigarettes to pass around. Want one?"

 

[Infab]

As Adam sat there on his barrel, gazing down at his Nyx pin, he eventually heard footsteps on approach across the concrete. He glanced up, thinking it might be an officer wondering why an Upyri prisoner was out here alone. Instead, it was someone else with visible cybernetics. They looked like spec-ops, really. Probably one of Earth's more discrete ones.

"Hardfought day, huh. Got a few spare cigarettes to pass around. Want one?"

"...Sure, why not." he soon said, tucking the Nyx pin into a pocket on his thigh before reaching out and taking the cigarette from the human. A moment later, a light was offered, which Adam used. After a short puff on the cigarette, Adam motioned over to where the rest of the group was. "I'm Adam. I'm with them, if you're wondering. I'm... well, technically a prisoner, but I guess they decided to leave me uncuffed. I helped them take the refinery."

He then glanced down to the armor. "...Killed a few Upyri on the way, and beat the hell out of the Honor Guard captain before we captured him, so I guess that makes me a full fledged traitor and defector too. Whatever it takes to end the war, right some wrongs, and go home, I guess."

He then looked over to the human, raising an eyebrow. "...You spec-ops or something? Haven't seen anyone like you in the field before... though I used to be in charge of a heavy weapons group, so all we focused on were tanks and APCs."

 

[Breadman]

"Spec-ops...I guess you can call us that." Loren said as he pulled a pack of cigarettes from one of his pockets. He gave one to Adam and even did the favor of lighting it up before doing the same for himself. "Tho to be honest with you, we're not the covert type." He savored the taste of his cigarette "How much trouble would I get into if I told you what we are, exactly?" He was silent for a few seconds as he thought it through. He glanced to Adam and vaguely smiled "You're a traitor, you're not going back to tell anyone anything. Not after that stunt on the roof."

"We're vets from the war back home on Earth. The broken kind. Boss lost her arms near Montreal. Her second had shrapnel break a part of his skull and take an eye out during the Las Vegas purge. I was hold up at Bruges when a missile hit the base of the sniper's nest and caused the whole thing to collapse. You get the idea." He rolled up the sleve to his right arm to better show the prostetic that was placed. Adam could make out that it wasn't some standard bionic make vets would get. There were more moving parts to the arm. "Shock absorbers, strength enhancers, etcetera. All so I can fire a higher calliber riffle without ripping my arm off."

"We're toys for the army to play with." He finished off bitterly. "What was your tipping point?" He suddenly switched subjects "What got you so angry?"

 

[K0mori]

He then leaned over and stuck the tweezers into his kit for a moment, drawing out a bottle of antiseptic. He paused again, however, before opening it. "...How long had you known Oberto? I don't think I've got a clear answer on that from any of the others." he asked softly, taking the lid off the bottle of antiseptic. "...This will sting, okay? Not trying to hurt you." After his warning, he gently rubbed some of the antiseptic around the wound, and poured a little on the wound itself. That would take care of any bacteria.

Although Caine had advised her to "let it out," Krawczyk kept quiet. Tears streamed down her face as he worked, tried to reassure her, and told of his own introduction to the war. The sting of the antiseptic was a welcome distraction from her thoughts, which were troubling her far worse than her wounds. She took a few deep breaths, and then answered him about Oberto.

"I did my basic on Mars. It's the closest I've ever been to Terra... When the upyri had us all boxed in and the main battle was happening down there, me and all the other half-baked privates were holding out at Olympus," she explained, referring to one of the oldest off-world training schools in the UFS, which had been a museum until the civil war began and forced the school to reopen operations. "I met Cesare there. He... He was a good man. He helped me through some things," she said.

After a moment of silence, in which Krawczyk seemed to stare off into space for a moment and remember something Oberto had said or done that made her smile, she spoke again. "I never thought they'd get him... I thought it would be me."

---
​

"Call me Kumcho. Clan Vulchishte, scouting pack etc." He waved off the additions to his name "Formalities my kin like to add to our name in order to impress outsiders, but you humans don't seem too interested in those." The wolfman looked around the camp before looking at the two humans before him "How large is your pack exactly? I see many of your kind bearing similar markings, but your smells are all different."

"There's ten of us. Twelve, if you count the prisoners we're bringing along," Kang answered. "We took some losses while we were taking the fuel refinery over there, but all things considered, it could have been a lot worse. ...Oh! If you have any comms device on you that can take allied protocol, we can share our unit data so you can tell who's who," she said, her eyes brightening up.

 

[Infab]

As Sam wiped away the residual antiseptic, he listened in while Krawczyk spoke. She was trained on Mars? Huh. She must be a colonist, then. That, or a spacer. Not much difference, beyond either being born on a orbital station or being born planet-side.

"I met Cesare there. He... He was a good man. He helped me through some things."

"...From what I knew of him over these past few months, yeah. He was a good person all around." responded Sam, as he began to apply gauze and wrap the wound.

"I never thought they'd get him... I thought it would be me."

"...They almost did get you." he said softly, "...Fate's twisted like that. Maybe it decided that you're the one we need more during all of this."


Ahhh, high grade cybernetics. Similar to what some Upyri soldiers got should they suffer injuries in the field. Adam listened quietly, the cigarette jutting from between his lips as Loren spoke. Eventually, however, Loren would change the subject to something else. Something more personal.

"What was your tipping point? What got you so angry?"

Adam surprisingly chuckled. "Hell, I've been upset since the fucking start of the war." he responded.

He exhaled some smoke, then spoke again. "I'm from Nyx. Its one of the eastern-most colonies in Imperial space. Major trade hub for that particular sector. Let's say that Nyx doesn't particularly like how things are run in the Imperium. Can we do anything about it, though? Not really, unless we want Ker or one of the other hard liners to come and kick our doors in for insurrection and traitorous behaviour."

"I was called up to serve early in the war, and thanks to my skill set and aptitude for combat, they placed me in the Honor Guard. The name 'Honor Guard' was supposed to be sort of inspiring for the others in the Imperial armed forces and general public back home. Someone the others could look up to and be proud of.... The Guard is certainly in no way, shape, or form 'honorable'. I've done nothing to be proud of except defect."

"...Eridia was the final straw for me. What happened there should have never happened, and I had to watch it all from orbit. The orders for what we were supposed to do to that colony came from above. A direct order from the Imperator himself, and it was after a suggestion from the IIS... the Imperial Intelligence Services. I knew they were going to do the same to Earth if humanity didn't capitulate."

Adam smiled. "Kosokom showed up to help you before that could happen, thankfully. The rest of the xenos followed suit over the course of the past several months."

 

[Breadman]

We took some losses while we were taking the fuel refinery over there, but all things considered, it could have been a lot worse. ...Oh! If you have any comms device on you that can take allied protocol, we can share our unit data so you can tell who's who,

"Lucky that I do." Kumcho looked at his helmet for a brief moment and with a finger gently tapped on a small button located near the 'ear' area. "Something you learn while working as a bounty hunter is to keep your communication equipment upgraded and to find friends where you can." He smiled. He wanted to spare a brief comment for their fallen, but avoided it for now as Kang seemed to not dwell on it. Instead she seemed more interested in talking. "Your commanders were kind enough to clear me for your protocols as part of my contract." He put the helm back on to see if everything was in order "Sargeant Kang and corporal Mazurek. These names do not sound like they come from the same region of Earth, am I correct?"
---
"Yes, we're friends with a whole lot of aliens now. Mostly because your leaders decided to piss everyone off so backing us in the conflict made the most sense." He exhaled a cloud of smoke away from both of them. "I remember when we heard about Eridia. Galvanized every part of our society into action. Dont let them do to us what they did to Eridia. Don't become another bloodbag for them and other patriotic slogans."

"I'm surprised they let you walk around if you're honor guard. Betraying your own probably earned you a lot of side glances, but they must have really liked you beating up Darwin." He realized he let that name slip along with a comment he made about the roof fight earlier. "Don't worry about how I know that. I had a good seat for it." He pointed in the general direction where his sniper position was during the fight.

 

[joshuadim]

"Sargeant Kang and corporal Mazurek. These names do not sound like they come from the same region of Earth, am I correct?"

"Sure, and further still not from the same planet." Mazurek explained, leaning onto one of the nearby support beams so as to take the pressure off his tired legs. "...my family is several generations removed from our home world. Wound up as the second wave of colonizers onto Eridia, after the initial infrastructure had been established. Made it easier for new arrivals to settle in as there was a power grid and running water and so on."

He then looked at Kang for a moment and shrugged: "I think my last name comes from the region known as Poland, on the eastern part of the European continent. Though it's not exclusive to that. I know I have ancestors from all over that region, not exclusively to Poland."

 

[K0mori]

"...They almost did get you." he said softly, "...Fate's twisted like that. Maybe it decided that you're the one we need more during all of this."

Krawczyk gave a sigh that was laced with pain. As Caine finished his work and she pulled her pants back up, the sadness in her eyes faded and she merely seemed tired, for the moment. "...We still have our other objectives. Das wants us to move on to Zeta-Shimizu and join local units in the push to take the factory. He says there's autonomous weapons that the upyri have activated to keep it a hot zone even after the pullout. I think we'll take it slow, from here on. Nobody else..." she began to say, before the futility of expression robbed her of the words. She came back around however, and committed to finishing her statement with a defiant spark of hope: "Everyone goes home," she said. "Everyone."

---
​

Minutes later, the Sergeant and Caine emerged from the hangar to rejoin the camp. From afar, they spot the newcomer speaking with Cpl. Mazurek and Kang, although they fail to notice the other new company speaking to Zetter, and so they moved toward the former.

He then looked at Kang for a moment and shrugged: "I think my last name comes from the region known as Poland, on the eastern part of the European continent. Though it's not exclusive to that. I know I have ancestors from all over that region, not exclusively to Poland."

Coming in at this point of the conversation, Krawczyk spoke up without really knowing what question had prompted Mazurek's statement. "...Interesting. My father once told me that's where my name comes from; must be a big country," she said with a shrug. "Who's this?"

"This is Kumcho, Sarge," Kang replied with a quick salute. "He's joining our camp for the night ahead of tomorrow's operations, so we were just discussing allied unit data."

Krawczyk nodded in response, tiredly. "I was just thinking about getting some shuteye myself, now that Caine's patched me up proper. Kumcho..." she repeated the name. "Watch out for the Kosoks; they're trigger happy. We lost some allied-xeno help today because they ignored the unit data and opened fire on a structure it was in. If you're alone, then I'd stick close to us tomorrow unless you know exactly what you're doing."

 

[Infab]

"I'm surprised they let you walk around if you're honor guard. Betraying your own probably earned you a lot of side glances, but they must have really liked you beating up Darwin... Don't worry about how I know that. I had a good seat for it."

"They really didn't want me to do anything beyond just stand there. I gave some pointers here and there about upyri tanks and medical kits, and where the water tank was located on an APC. Beyond that..." he responded, before his mind went back to him getting shot in the shoulder by Krawczyk. Nah, he wouldn't bring that up. "...Not much else happened. Got loose during the assault on the refinery, took the medic's sidearm, and went to work... Hopefully I earned at least a little respect, in regards to Darwin."

He'd soon glance over and see Krawczyk returning with Sam. He must have been checking on her wounds. Adam sighed, taking another drag on the cigarette he had. "...Wonder if I'll be stuck like this in the morning?" he said, glancing down to his bodysuit. "Maybe they'll hand me off to their superiors. Who knows?"


Sam quietly listened as the others talked, glancing over to the... well, the wolf that had joined their squad. First bears, now wolves? Strange galaxy we live in. He smirked at the thought, before glancing over towards the rest of the patrol. Specifically, towards Palencia who was still staring into the fire. They had lost their partner, marksman Dawson, during all the fighting. The two worked well together, and seemed to had been working together for quite a while.

Sam soon stepped over near Krawczyk, and whispered into her ear once he got her attention. "Sarge, I think we might need to keep a check on Palencia. Make sure they're alright. Dawson's gone, and now Palencia's been... kinda quiet." he said, before stepping back.

 

[Breadman]

"Interesting." Kumcho scratched his chin with a clawed finger after Mazurek shared details of his ancestry. "I read that you were several countries united under one banner, but I did not know that entire nations would have their own cultural exports to your colonies. It makes sense. Our clans are the same-spread around the planets we colonized. Clan Vulchishte has spread to four." He quieted down as they were joined by other officers. "Of course." He nodded as Krawzyc warned him about friendly fire "It does not surprise me. The Kosoks have a reputation of being rough to work with." He beared his teeth as his smile was replaced with an annoyed look "Terrible clients to have."
---

..Wonder if I'll be stuck like this in the morning? Maybe they'll hand me off to their superiors. Who knows?

"You might be better off staying with them." Loren glanced to the soldiers still up and about. "I imagine that they're rough, but their officers would hand you over for interogation and that where the real hardasses and nutcasses hang out." The vulture looked behind and spotted Saintclair and Mordecai still having a conversation with that one soldier. He lingered for a few second trying to figure out what possible shit he was up to. Eventually he stopped trying. He'd find out sooner or later.

 

[joshuadim]

"And speaking of the Kosoks," Mazurek winced as he straightened his posture and rolled his shoulder, "I need to get myself a battery cell for my weapon from them." He eyed the distant alien allies with a bit of apprehension before nodding to Kang: "Will you help translate for me?" he then asked of the Private, "Though you need to make sure to get across my roguish charm so that they don't try and kill me."

 

[K0mori]

"Of course." He nodded as Krawzyc warned him about friendly fire "It does not surprise me. The Kosoks have a reputation of being rough to work with." He beared his teeth as his smile was replaced with an annoyed look "Terrible clients to have."

"Yeah?" Krawczyk replied. "They saved our asses on Terra. If not for that, I don't know what I'd think of them."

"And speaking of the Kosoks," Mazurek winced as he straightened his posture and rolled his shoulder, "I need to get myself a battery cell for my weapon from them." He eyed the distant alien allies with a bit of apprehension before nodding to Kang: "Will you help translate for me?" he then asked of the Private, "Though you need to make sure to get across my roguish charm so that they don't try and kill me."

Kang, who had just seemed uneasy at the implications of Krawczyk's remark, brightened up at Mazurek's suggestion. "Oh, um, yeah! That's what I'm here for, isn't it?" she said before smiling. "...The translating part, not the 'roguish charm' part."

"Sarge, I think we might need to keep a check on Palencia. Make sure they're alright. Dawson's gone, and now Palencia's been... kinda quiet." he said, before stepping back.

Krawcyzk nodded, tiredly. "...We'll be over by the fire. Let me know if there's any trouble from the Kosoks," Krawczyk said to Mazurek and Kang before leading Caine over toward Palencia to check in on the man.

 

[Infab]

Sam followed quietly, glancing back to the others before looking back to Krawczyk. "First bears, now wolves. Galaxy is full of surprises, isn't it?" he said, with a hint of a chuckle. He then redirected his attention back towards their target. Palencia.

As they neared, Sam mulled over what to say. What could he even say? The man lost his friend and squadmate. Asking him how he was doing, or how he was holding up, would be just... stupid. He clearly was barely holding it together if he had gone this quiet. Probably dealing with the trauma upstairs. When they arrived, Sam looked at him for a moment, before simply sitting beside him at the fire.

I could apologize. But that wouldn't change anything. May not even help with how he's feeling.

...Wow, I feel kind of useless here. I treat physical damage, not mental.

Eventually, Sam just spoke. "...You can talk to us, Palencia. If you need to. We're all grieving." he said. Maybe that would help. It was the truth.

 

[joshuadim]

Mazurek, trailed by Kang, made his way over towards the Kosok camp closest by - who were in the midst of cleaning their equipment or simply relaxing after a day's worth of fighting (and dying) - and looked about as he passed by a few of the aliens. They mostly seemed to ignore both of their presences, though a few judgemental eyes trailed their path as Mazurek searched for one who could help with his ammo problem. He took note of this and leaned over to Kang: "We aren't getting the red carpet treatement, that's for sure." the Corporal muttered, though kept his eyes on what would hopefully be his prize.

However, off first glance, nothing stood out to him as being a source of available batteries which left Mazurek crossing his arms. He then had an idea, as he approached a Kanad who was sitting on a small railing nearby - polishing their armour - and nodded to Kang. "Greet this one and tell them I would like to speak to their commander about getting ammo." he asked of Kang.

---

Elsewhere on the Front, Clan Blacktooth Encampment

The Ursataari force was mainly in a joyous celebration, as their advance had been ruthless against Upyri forces and in turn had led them to be the tip of the spear in crushing their hated enemy on this rock of a world. A bonfire had been set from the remains of the houses nearby that they had pushed towards, with new supplies having made their way over to them that included rations and a large keg of sweet, honey-like alcohol from their homeworld known as Zwarlan that came alongside a traditional belief for good luck in a coming fight once consumed. It also had the effect of making the Ursas rowdy as they shouted and lumbered around with their hulking forms in celebration - all the while throwing curses over to a fair distance away, where the Upyri had fallen back to and then some.

An additional Ursataari ship had landed some hours ago, eager to reinforce their bretheren with additional footsoldiers as well as to join the fight in the next day. The lines of supply had been secured enough that a steady flow of Ursataari expeditionary forces began to touch down elsewhere on the planet, though were mainly situated around the city itself. More fresh faces joined the forces of the initial attack, and were also partaking in the drinking that was befitting of their status.

But Jemmez was not among them as he knelt behind cover atop a ruined concrete structure not too far from the camp and kept his gaze affixed through scouting lenses to where the Upyri were. It was partly out of a need to keep an eye out just in case for any attempts from the enemy to bombard their positions, though it seemed as though they were hiding under the cover of darkness for fear of aerial and orbital bombardments. But the death of Kazkhar weighed heavily on the Ursa's mind, and thus he was not in the mood to celebrate when one of their own had fallen so unceremoniously. Setting the lenses aside when nothing came to view, he twirled the tooth of his comrade in between his digits and snorted with frustration. Could he have done something differently? Did the young warrior need to die on this day?

"Spot anything?"

Jemmez turned his head to see Ja'llor, his trusted grenadier, standing a few paces nearby. The commander merely shook his head, turning his gaze back out into the darkness and ruins beyond.

Ja'llor stepped up next to his commander and knelt down, joining him behind cover as a silence pervaded across the area - save for the revelry nearby. It was almost peaceful, with a gentle breeze blowing, to where one could almost forget they're in a devastated city. But it was then that Jemmez spoke up: "...Kazkhar didn't need to die."

"That wasn't your fault. He charged out-" Ja'llor turned, trying to ease the guilt that weighed down upon his compatraiot. But Jemmez shook his head solemnly.

"I could have commanded better. Kept him in line... instead, I was too focused on my own glory on this day."

For a moment, Ja'llor was silent until he let out a snort. "Glory or not, you led us this far already. You've done more than many greenboots have on their first missions. There will always be losses, but it is up to us to carry their memories and courage with us to the next day." The silence afterwards carried in the air for a moment as Jemmez pondered this, before hesitantly relenting. "Come on now, we ought to get ready for tomorrow."

Jemmez took one more look out into the ruins beyond and nodded, turning back towards where the festivities were and walked with Ja'llor back to the fires of victory.

 

[K0mori]

However, off first glance, nothing stood out to him as being a source of available batteries which left Mazurek crossing his arms. He then had an idea, as he approached a Kanad who was sitting on a small railing nearby - polishing their armour - and nodded to Kang. "Greet this one and tell them I would like to speak to their commander about getting ammo." he asked of Kang.

Kang nodded and then looked cautiously at the alien. "Okay..." she breathed, psyching herself up. "Spaska," she said, "ke'm Vinka Kang, a re veramat Arkah Mazurek. Kezi sekika vlaeda-rhagira-ignatra tyrsengra," she says, getting a bit tongue-tied in the process.

"Kuptim," the kanad interrupted. "Vlaeda-rhagira-ignatra?" he asked, gesturing at the plasma weapon Mazurek was carrying. "Viri! Kaderim? Viri."

"Viri," Kang repeated, uncertainly.

The kanad grinned. "Yakka. Kezi virima hez viri."

Kang then turned to Mazurek to explain. "I told him we were looking for ammo for your hand-held-gun. He told me they call those 'viris.' I don't really know... oh, wait. V.R.I. 'Viri," I get it," she turned back, continuing to muddle through the conversation with numerous awkward pauses. The kanad, for his part, taught her a number of new words in the kanad language before climbing to his feet to lead them towards a stockpile. Along the way, he introduced himself as Kaskada.

"Arkah, hezik teres sekikat Kosok tyrsengra!" he called out to the officer that Squad 9 encountered earlier in the day. Naghan looked up from the fire and saw the humans milling about in his camp, before getting to his feet and looking around rather alertly, as if he was either concerned about intruders or he was trying to find someone else. Then, seemingly annoyed, he approaches the two of them.

"You," he spoke in rough English, pointing at Mazurek and then the VRI in his hands. "Give... me... now."

---
​

Eventually, Sam just spoke. "...You can talk to us, Palencia. If you need to. We're all grieving." he said. Maybe that would help. It was the truth.

Palencia could barely lift his head; he had been staring at the fire for so long that his eyes were dry and he had fallen into a sort of trance. "H-huh? Oh, it's you," he said, tiredly. "Hey, Sarge," he the said with a vague salute toward Krawczyk. "I know I don't look so good, but, I just... I needed some time to think," he explained, shaking his head a bit at the thought of everything that happened on the way here."

"I get it," Krawczyk replied, sitting down next to him. "Listen, I had a good long think about things myself. I don't want any of the rest of you getting killed. The upyri have started pulling out, so it's all cleanup now, anyway-"

Palencia seemed to get angrier at the thought of holding back in the morning. "No, no... Ma'am, we can't just lay back after what happened. We've got to win this thing!"

"Not on our own," Krawczyk replied. "That kind of thinking is what cost us so much today. We wake up tomorrow, we do our jobs, we go home." Palencia started to object, but Krawczyk cut him off: "Private, your orders are to carry on and survive. If you make me think you're trying to get yourself killed, I'll sit your ass down on the back line with Champlin."

Palencia, then appearing fully awake, looked disgusted at the Sergeant. "I wanna fight, dammit! I need to know..."

"Know what?"

"...I need to know I did everything I could," Palencia said, getting a bit emotional and cursing under his breath.

Krawczyk was quiet for a moment, letting the man have his space. Then, finally, she said, "get some sleep - if you want to give everything you can tomorrow, then take everything you can get tonight. I can't use you if you don't get any sleep."

Having seemingly snapped out of his trance, and then his anger, Palencia calmed down. "...Okay, Sarge. I'm sorry, Sarge," he said, rubbing his eyes and trying to hide his vulnerability. "I'll, uh, see you guys in the morning," he added before finally moving to get his bedroll unfurled.

 

[joshuadim]

Mazurek greeted Kaskada with the wave of his hand as Kang talked with him, and let the private take the lead on this one. He only hoped that she would be able to carry the conversation, and it seemed successful given that they were being led towards the Kosok stockpile. But it was until they were approached by another that Mazurek stopped in his tracks.

"You," he spoke in rough English, pointing at Mazurek and then the VRI in his hands. "Give... me... now."

Mazurek looked to Kang, then back to Naghan and then down to the VRI with some hesitation. He couldn't tell if the kanad wanted to confiscate it off him, or it was about something else entirely. And so, with measured caution, Mazurek simply asked: "Why?"

 

[K0mori]

And so, with measured caution, Mazurek simply asked: "Why?"

Naghan seems mildly disgusted with the question, compounding his apparent frustration with trying to speak English without his own translator to assist. He then glances to Kang and finally recognizes her from earlier in the day. He says only a few words, but calmly, which Kang quickly translates:

"He says it's an allied order. ...He's pulling rank with you."

 

[joshuadim]

Mazurek is silent for a moment, contemplating the move; did the Kosoks really hold authority in this operation enough to boss around UFS forces like this? The way he stated it with confidence made it seem like so, but there was an uncertainty through all this that made the corporal hesitate. "With all due respect, I and others take orders from the UFS military command under authority of Grand Admiral John Crichton." Mazurek measured his words carefully to Kang, hoping that she could get the point across poignantly enough.

 

[K0mori]

Kang looked at Mazurek uneasily, as she knew that challenging Naghan like this would probably cause a confrontation - one that she'd be forced to communicate. As she hesitated, the ugly kanad already seemed to recognize what was about to happen.

"Arkah Mazurek shtyka mokhtin sar dar viokhmar vom teresen kast, tya kaderim."

Cpl Mazurek listens only to the authority of human officers, please understand.

Naghan's reaction was difficult to place. It was clear that he would soon be furious, but for a brief moment he was so taken aback by Mazurek's nerve that he couldn't help but grin, further revealing his prominently-missing fang. Then, he finally boiled over, snapping his head to the nearest Kosok soldier who was wearing a helmet. "Vinkah, logorim Ikrye ohr ke! Ghodim raht sekikat ohr ke da dar teres meckhaki!"

Kang tugged on Mazurek to let him know that they needed to move; "he told a private to find someone named Ick-ree or something like that and meet him in our camp!"

As the pair began to follow the Kosok sergeant back to the UFS encampment where Patrol 2 was resting, they noticed him picking up and arming a similar pistol to the one Mazurek was carrying. Between the unnerving, whirring sound of the "viri" and the heavy, purposeful footsteps of the alien, the rest of the Kosok camp grew quiet to watch his departure, and to eye the pair of intruders with disdain.

Across a concrete field of darkness, one could see islands of light surrounding the various campfires, and even from far away, Mazurek could make out the shape of Sgt Krawczyk rising from the edge of the fire with Caine at her side. She, in turn, could spot the glow of the plasma pistol in Naghan's hand, although she couldn't quite make out the trio of figures approaching. But when she saw the green-skinned officer emerge from the shadows with a look of righteous fury in his eyes, she sprung into action, grabbing Palencia's sidearm and switching the safety off.

"What's the problem, Naghan!?" she yelled at him, startling a few onlookers.

"Kir misrahten rhagirat ignatraen vom verkuptat Kosok kadaren!"

Mazurek looked to Kang in the dark to see her expression had changed, turning from fearful to horrified. "Oh fuck," she said, "he thinks we've been looting the dead. ...It's probably still Kosok property in his eyes."

 

[joshuadim]

Mazurek audibly guffawed at the implication, quickly moving his gaze between her, Krawczyk, and the Kosoks and was - at the moment - lost for words. He looked over to Krawczyk again, exchanging both visible surprise and confusion from this turn of events, before managing to find the words to speak again. "That's obviously not fucking true!" the corporal responded to the accusation, gritting his teeth all the while. "We found the weapon we didn't loot it! You just can't stand the fucking fact that we're more than capable of fighting and dying for ourselves, instead of being coddled and mustered along like whatever other species you command. And all the better are our fortunes if we come across something to help kill our common enemy." Mazurek then elaborated, dangling the VRI in one hand to emphasize his point.

There was also the added effect of drawing attention away from Kang and the rest of the squad so as to redirect any fury towards him. He would rather that he be hurt alone than someone else take a share of something they didn't do. "So YEAH, I used your fucking weapon to KILL those fuckers who gunned down most of my squad today. To DO MY FUCKING JOB." Mazurek said, his anger nearly boiling over completely and blinding him from what was currently a delicate situation.

 

[Infab]

Sam climbed to his feet about the same time as Krawczyk, glancing over to see Mazurek, Kang, and the Kosoks on approach. Oh, great. What did we do wrong? He instinctively reached for his own sidearm, drawing it out and checking the cylinder really quick before pressing it back inside and cocking the hammer back. Just a precaution, in case things got ugly.

He would remain by Krawczyk, as she shouted over to towards the incoming Naghan. Kang's response was, of course, not very good. They think we're looting their dead? Bullshit. We have enough on our plate.

He then listened to Mazurek yell back, obviously insulted and angered by the accusation. He's just going to make this worse. All he has to do is hand the thing over. Besides, we don't have the equipment to keep that thing loaded, anyway, and the Kosoks likely aren't going to give us the ammo for it if they think we looted it off one of their dead.

Adam, meanwhile, redirected his attention in the direction of the shouting as the cigarette hung loosely from his lips. "Oh great. The snaggletooths are here." he muttered to himself, before taking a final drag on the cigarette and tossing it away. He exhaled the smoke as he hopped off the barrel, glancing back to Loren. "Check it out. The goblins think that we looted their dead now."

 

[K0mori]

"That's obviously not fucking true!" the corporal responded to the accusation, gritting his teeth all the while. "We found the weapon we didn't loot it! You just can't stand the fucking fact that we're more than capable of fighting and dying for ourselves, instead of being coddled and mustered along like whatever other species you command. And all the better are our fortunes if we come across something to help kill our common enemy." Mazurek then elaborated, dangling the VRI in one hand to emphasize his point.

There was also the added effect of drawing attention away from Kang and the rest of the squad so as to redirect any fury towards him. He would rather that he be hurt alone than someone else take a share of something they didn't do. "So YEAH, I used your fucking weapon to KILL those fuckers who gunned down most of my squad today. To DO MY FUCKING JOB." Mazurek said, his anger nearly boiling over completely and blinding him from what was currently a delicate situation.

As Mazurek unloaded on Naghan, the latter stared back unflinchingly, patiently waiting for the translation to come, but Kang simply shook her head. After the terrible misunderstanding had made itself apparent, she wasn't willing to add any more fuel to the fire and risk things turning violent. However, as the corporal finished his rant, another figure appeared from the shadows: a lirya, having dropped from the air to the concrete landing pad almost silently a moment earlier.

The bat-like creature then proceeded to speak to Naghan quickly and quietly in the Kanad language, but Kang was able to overhear enough to determine the identity of this newcomer: it seemed the Kosoks had their own translator. Maybe this was Ikrye? Kang wondered just how much of Naghan's earlier frustration was caused by Ikrye's absence when she was needed. Maybe he had said less than he wanted to say out of a lack of confidence in her ability to understand Kanad...

"[I was asleep, sorry... He denies looting the gun,]" Ikrye explained. "[He also accused you of being angry because humans are strong... enough that they don't need our help. He seems angry that you would question him while he was doing his job.]"

"[And what job is that?]" Naghan asked.

Ikrye looked critically at the humans, having mostly understood Mazurek's words about coddling and 'mustering along' the other species under the Black Fleet's command as a remark on the apparent superiority of the kanad race within Kosokom and a latent accusation of other races, including her own, of being weak in comparison to the humans. "[...To exterminate the attack-humans,]" she said.

"[Our job is to fight!] Kang interrupted fiercely, knowing how badly Mazurek's words had been twisted. "[We're soldiers; we only win if we fight! You know this!]"

Naghan then shouted something which made Kang turn pale. When she didn't translate, Ikrye did, gesturing broadly to comment on the entire conflict: "He say Kosok soldiers. You, all animals - want war, want Achenar... Fight for same bone!"

Krawczyk then finally broke her silence, having turned red at the accusation. "Is that what this is to you!? You think Achenar is nothing more than a fucking trophy to us!? You call us all teres like we're all from Terra, but you know what? ...I was born here. This is my fucking world. I didn't ask for jack shit, and all I want to do is go home!"

Ikrye's posture seemed to weaken as Krawczyk berated her and Naghan. "[...She says she was born on this planet and didn't want the war.]"

This time, Kang translated: "Rah virimat nil zhiki sohmaki, makah." She knows no other home, Sergeant.

Between the translations and Krawczyk's bitter and emotional expression, something came over Naghan, and his fury was replaced with a quiet bitterness. He then muttered something, which Kang translated: "He says he needs the serial number off that pistol, and then he'll leave us alone."

 

[joshuadim]

Mazurek looked over to Krawczyk as she entered the conversation and unloaded her own verbal anger onto the arrogant kanad, and stayed quiet as it was enough to finally ease the tensions of their Kosok counterparts and ultimately get Naghan to settle down - if only a little - before continuing with a simple request. Mazurek looked over to Naghan for a moment before finally turning the weapon over to search for the aforementioned number. While he wasn't familiar with the language whatsoever, he could guess that the markings at the end of the grip was what their equivalent was to UFS serial markings.

"I think this is it." Mazurek muttered, his own temper cooling off as well as he showed it to Kang for confirmation.

 

[K0mori]

Kang reached out and grabbed the pistol, surprising Mazurek a bit as she took it from his hand. She inspected the number herself, then walked over to the two Kosoks and displayed the weapon to them. Naghan nodded in Ikrye's direction, who activated a comm link to somewhere so that she could read the numbers out over the link. After a moment, an answer apparently came through over the same channel, and Ikrye repeated what only she could hear:

"[It was issued to a private in Group C, Unit 9. He's missing.]"

"[Where did you find this?]" Naghan asked Kang quietly. He turned and motioned to Ikrye, who projected a holographic map of the city onto the ground at Kang's feet. She tilted her head, spotting the roadways the Patrol had taken on their way to the spaceport, before kneeling and pointing at Six-Point Park.

"[Here.]"

Naghan closed his eyes a moment. "[...Thank you,]" he said. He then deactivated his plasma pistol and removed its cartridge, offering it up to Kang before signaling to Ikrye that it was time to go. However, the lirya had one more thing to say:

"We, you, stay on comm. Talk when need talk. Talk of dead. Talk places of dead."

She then turned and followed her commanding officer back to the Kosok camp, leaving the humans to react to the intrusion in much the same way as the Kosoks did to Mazurek and Kang moments earlier. The latter turned to the former, handing him the pistol and its fresh new cartridge. "...I think I'd like to get some sleep, now," she said.

 

[joshuadim]

Mazurek had little to say in the aftermath, only nodding to Kang as he felt both deflated from the tenuous exchange and also somewhat ashamed of his outburst. But he was surprised to learn that Krawczyk was from Achenar, which - in hindsight - made a lot of sense considering how hard she's been pushing everyone in their offensive... this was home. Something she could still fight for. Something she could return to. He took a moment to insert the new battery cartridge into the VIR before switching on the safety and holstering the weapon. "...thanks, Sarge." Mazurek said quietly, averting his gaze from her towards the concrete below.