UEEF Marines - IC Thread

[Sherwood]

Over the course of the next several hours, with the aid of a few of the maintenance staff, the Cyclones are prepped for action and are safely stowed away. It quickly becomes clear that while Pyrrah and Keith both try hard to pull their own weight, their technical skills are a bit . . . lacking. Keith makes several snarky comments about how if he were dealing with a bullet wound or nasty broken bone, he'd be all over that without any problems so don't give him any guff for him being all thumbs with a torque wrench or hammer.

Lucky for the rest of the team, his medical skills are not needed here today. Torni manages to show off some of her own know-how with her electronics skills, and you are able to get the Cyclones unpacked from their storage crates and safely stowed away, ready to use at a moments notice. All of this is finished up just in time for you to get cleaned up and hit the mess hall for some much needed fuel for your bodies.

With everyone tired and hungry from a long day of working on your mecha, you can hear talk from other parts of the mess hall that the work on the Normandy is going ahead of schedule, and the Garfish-class troop carrier will be ready for space the next day to return to active duty once more. It turns out that there was a minor glitch in the targeting system for one of the point-defense turrets that was easier to fix than expected, and the airlock for the Garudans' quarters was an easy upgrade thanks to the modular nature of the ship.

Pyrrah finds that she's bunking with Torni, and while it is a bit cozy, at least the two of you have a little bit of privacy thanks to your status as officers on the ship. Most of the enlisted are in sixteen-man bunk rooms, so being just two beings to a room is almost considered luxury living. Onni is in an environmentally sealed room with two other Garudans, both Veritech pilots.

The crew of the Normandy have a bit of a bounce in their step the next day as the final preparations are completed to get the ship out of drydock and into open space once more.

 

[Sherwood]

With very little in the way of fanfare, the Normandy is sealed up and the drydock chamber has its atmosphere pumped out to make it possible for the Garfish to slowly and carefully make its way out into open space once more. The longest part of the process is the venting the chamber to vacuum, and the actual act of flying out is relatively quick and easy, showing the skill of the ship's pilot.

Over the course of the next several days, things settle down into a routine on the Normandy for you. PT in the morning, followed by whatever duty assignments you are given for that day. With over four hundred infantry and Cyclone pilots onboard, you have plenty of company on the ship to split up guard duty with. Most of the time, you are free to train on your weapons, practice your marksmanship, and get used to assembly and disassembly of your weapons even while blindfolded.

After your duty shift, you have a few hours every evening to yourselves to do whatever it is you wish. There is a large selection of movies from before the arrival of the SDF-1 to Earth and the ensuing First Robotech War on file, along with millions of books for personal reading. Games aplenty are also available to play, either solo or with others, designed to be able to entertain you - or at least, stave off boredom well enough to keep you from going nuts during the long days of space travel.

Right now, the Normandy, along with five other troopships, are escorting the Arc Royal-class escort carriers, Potemkin and Enterprise, the Northampton-class cruiser New York, and the Ikazuchi-class Command Cruiser, Rhabwar. This piece of the UEEF fleet is on its way to one of the many colony worlds of the Robotech Masters. It is the intent of Rear Admiral Diane Conway on the Rhabwar to investigate reports that the Invid have taken control of this world, and if so, to liberate the populace.

The plan is to have the fleet exit Fold Space at the outer edge of the solar system before working in towards the inhabited planet, carefully scouting to see just what level of Invid occupation this system has, with the higher speed Garfish class ships ranging ahead of the larger ships, and even exiting from Fold Space first to help secure the entry point of the rest of the ships of your task force.

As time draws closer to your emergence into normal space, the Normandy goes to general alert, making sure that all personnel are up and at their stations, ready for any combat that might be called for. At the moment, your squad is in the Cyclone storage bay, prepping for whatever might be out there. Since you are going to be in the outer edge of the system, the two space Cyclones, the Nova and the Comet, are the mecha that you are checking on to be deployed in.

Eonivar and Psychie What kind of Cyclone are you taking, and what hand-held weapons are you going to be packing?

Obviously, C'osmo is getting his Silverback ready, and for a space deployment, the ATV has a mecha jet pack hooked up to its back to provide you with space maneuverability and a flight speed of 400 miles per hour. The pack is small, but it does prohibit your ability to shift your Silverback into its vehicle mode. Because of this, the jet pack is detachable to allow transformation, and can be re-attached to the back of the vehicle in just a few minutes of work.

Purr What weapons do you have attached to your wheel hard points? And what weapon on your rear turret mount?

 

[Eonivar]

After his duty shift, a very tired Onni went to the special Garudan quarters. There he met the two Garudan Pilots, Kovo and Zana. They all knew each other as the Hin bonded Garudan do, but also because they fought together in the resistance. Onni had maintained all of the Garudan vehicles. Nonetheless both of them were happy Onni was here but only wished he was the one who maintained their veritechs. Onni waved them off saying he wanted to fix things AND fight thus why he picked the path he chose, and then promptly fell asleep.

The days played out basically the same for Onni, he would work himself hard to keep focused and then sleep soundly when he could. Also on his time off, when he had not connected earlier in the day before he went to sleep, he would directly connect to the Hin to reach out to the others he knew and to those back on Garuda. It was advised to all of the Garudans who spend their days in a mixed atmosphere environment to fully connect at least once a day.

Onni also got to know his squadron. He would patiently listen to everything that C'osmo would tell him, usually about some sort of tangential topic related to science or culture. He would often talk to Pyrrah about strategy, his observations about the rest of the squadron and their battle readiness, nuances of the mecha they use, as well as what he knew about the Invid and their tactics. He would also routinely check in with the others of their squadron, asking if they needed anything or if they needed someone to talk to, he was happy to provide a Garudan ear to listen to their issues and problems. All and all this kept him very busy, Onni was not a lazy soul at all.

When they were mustered to prep for a space mission, Onni was there and ready. Standing there, his much smaller form compared to the others in the squadron, his tail tucked the special rear compartment in his black and grey painted CVR-3, with the helmet that had two fox 'ears' on it to fit his ears.

The Garudan stood next to his custom modified VR-021 Space Cyclone, dubbed by the design engineers he worked with "The Vulpera". It was the same size as the others cyclones of the same model but the pilot section of it was modified for his size. It was also painted black and grey for the space mission they were going on.

 

[Psychie]

Pyrrah quickly settles into a routine on the ship. Sleep, eat, drill and sleep again. She drives herself hard with whatever it is that she does, and at the moment, she is pushing herself to learn the human sport of boxing. Whenever she is not on duty, it is likely that you'll be able to find her in the gymnasium sparing with whomever she can get into the ring with her.

When she is 'working', Pyrrah is in her armor and is wearing a sidearm, standing watch over whatever post she is assigned to. This is nothing new for her. When she was still serving with the Zentraedi, it was expected that the captain would have guards with her at all times, so it is a normal thing for the woman to stand at a post to keep the secure parts of the ship safe.

But now, Pyrrah finds herself in the Cyclone bay, personally checking each missile on her Comet space armor to make sure that they were properly loaded with her selection of six plasma and twelve HEAP warheads. To go along with that, she draws from the weapon locker her prized AP cannon, Mikah.

Pyrrah learned from her instructor at the sniper school that all good stalkers named their rifles, so she selected Mikah as the name for her own weapon. She thought it was a silly tradition, but that doesn't mean that she is not extremely protective of the weapon, and has on more than one occasion come close to breaking the offending hand of the fool that tried to touch her baby without permission.

While Pyrrah is going over the checklist of her selected Comet, she makes sure to check out how the others are handling this first actual deployment. Are they nervous? Calm and confident? Each says something about the person, and it sometimes happens that a warrior has the shakes before a fight but it is not fear, but anticipation of action that gets to them.

Out of all her squad, it is C'osmo that has her attention at this moment. From what he told her, his past commanders never trusted him with a weapon so this might be his first combat. Pyrrah goes over to where he is examining his Silverback. "LT C'osmo, how's it going over here? Is your mecha fully prepped and ready to fly?"

OOC what are Keith and Torni taking?

 

[Purr]

Psychie

On a cargo block-turned-Karbarran-sized-table, C'osmo is carefully slipping a thick black rubber pad onto an automatic grenade launcher's buttstock. Once it's secure, he hefts the weapon up as if the entire weapon 50+ pound system were a simple shotgun. He slips it into the crook of his right shoulder and literally snuggles with it to see how it fits. Then he makes heavy jerking motions with the launcher to simulate the recoil of live fire. Satisfied, he switches shoulders and repeats the process in his off-paw as he notices his Meltrandi squadmate nearby. He breaks into a smile.

"Heeey, LT Pyrrah!" C'osmo carefully puts the grenade launcher weapon system on the table and gives his squad leader a warm salute seeing as she has addressed him using his rank. "It's going good. Reeeaaal good!" One close look at his Silverback shows that it is pedal-to-the-metal ready to go. "Yeah, she's all ready to get in there. Let me catch you up to date."

C'osmo indicates the OSS-88 Scout Suite atop the Silverback's rear rack-mount with a grin. He speaks unhurriedly while pointing to various parts of the clean machine. "I've turned her into a mini-missile boat with ECM gear except that I'm not yet ECM-qualified. I just know the basics. So it'll be up to my current level of training and this thick ol' head of mine to put her to good use. Amplifying my squad's abilities has long been an interest of mine. I'll make Boosting you guys a top priority out there so you guys can get the big hits in while getting out of the way of danger! How's that sound to ya?"

 

[Psychie]

Pyrrah eyes the Silverback with interest, taking in the selection of the modular weapon mounts. She looks up at the huge bear and nods. "Outstanding. If you have any questions on getting the most out of that electronics suite, talk to Torni. She's been trained in EW, and should be able to show you a thing or two about the system."

She then shifts to another topic. "How are you doing, C'osmo? Any stress or anxiety that you need to address? Remember, you are not a liability unless you don't rely on the strengths of the team, and let us do the same with you."

 

[Purr]

Spoiler: Instrumental mood music

"Tradewinds" by Brothertiger

"Outstanding. If you have any questions on getting the most out of that electronics suite, talk to Torni. She's been trained in EW, and should be able to show you a thing or two about the system."

"Yeaaah! Great idea!" C'osmo realizes. "I'm in a squad now! I can ask people without getting shouted at or handed a load of dirty mistreated guns!" Nearby, Norwood briefly bobs up and down in what appears to be excitement.

She then shifts to another topic. "How are you doing, C'osmo? Any stress or anxiety that you need to address? Remember, you are not a liability unless you don't rely on the strengths of the team, and let us do the same with you."

"Huh?" he pauses. Then the young science-bear realizes what he thinks Pyrrah is really asking. Does he feel ready for the big time?

C'osmo takes a deep breath and thinks back.

Spoiler: C'osmo's thoughts.

Master Lee steps forward and places a comforting hand on C'osmo's huge bicep. Looking up to the bear, the master nods sincerely and speaks as if drawing from the well of his deepest purpose. "Remember, success is a journey, not a destination. Have faith in your ability. You will do just fine."

The results of his thoughts bring him calm and make him smile. C'osmo turns and looks down to Pyrrah thinking... she really does care! And why couldn't he have joined the Dragon Slayers first? He shrugs off the last thought and takes a breath of self-control. Speaking calmly, his soft speech and nerdy lisps slip in from time to time. "Stress? Anxiety? Plenty of both, Kemma." C'osmo chuckles softly as he uses the Zentraedi word for "lord" or in Pyrrah's case, "lady."

"But only a fool or a total lard-head isn't scared during combat. At least, so I've read. I don't imagine I'll be any different. But I have faith in my abilities. I'm eager to see how I face my fears. Sure, I don't have any experience. But don't worry, Pyrrah - you've let me in here - I won't let you or any of the Dragon Slayers down."

His gentle smile to her is more than reassuring - it is the look of a readied soul at peace with his new future.

 

[Psychie]

With a satisfied nod, Pyrrah says, "Excellent. Just remember, I don't expect perfection. You will make mistakes. Just learn from them and you will do well here."

Moving on, she heads over to see the other members of her team, Torni, Keith and Onni, to evaluate how they are handling the pressure of impending contact with the enemy. Pyrrah does her best to exude confidence, because if she is tense, it will be sensed by the green members and make them wonder what is wrong and start to worry.

It's not like she doesn't have anything to be worried about. The last time Pyrrah was in combat it was against other Zentraedi under the command of High Lord Bretai on the side of the Earth defenders, and she was most certainly not in command of anyone. If things go badly, she is the one that will be held to account for the actions of her squad, and that is rough to make her nervous.

"Onni, how are you hanging on? Any problems that we need to address?"

 

[Eonivar]

Onni was making final checks and inspections on each of the squadron's mecha, walking from vehicle to vehicle, going through checks on his wrist mounted computer. His short black armored form looked strange without his tail as well as his "helmet with ears". He was finishing up final prep on his own cyclone when Pyrrah approached him. The lower part of his helmet covered his mouth with its built in breath mask, so only his golden eyes peered out from under the raised visor as he looked up at his Meltrandi commanding officer. His voice had a different echo to it since he was not speaking through his normal breath mask but the one built into the CVR-3.

"Ready to go Lieutenant." There was that ever present chipper exuberance in his voice, the only time she had ever heard him not so happy was the one moment back when they arrived when he spoke of the experimentation done on him by the invid. Beyond that one moment, the Garudan always seemed to be a very spirited and happy individual for a soldier. "All of our squadron's vehicles have checked out, are loaded for combat, and are ready to go. I do worry some about the rest of our squadrons ability to perform in zero G, as I am not certain all of them have been through the training or have the experience, but I think, given what I have seen, that they will come out fine. Do know that we are all ready and eager to take the war to the Invid."

 

[Sherwood]

There is a lot of hurry up and wait in the military, and right now is no exception. The Normandy exits into normal space and begins to accelerate towards the inner system, her sensors reaching out in a silent hunt for any signs of the enemy.

Keeping in formation with her sister ship Discovery, the two Garfish troop ships move closer to the world with the Robotech Master colony on it. It is several long hours of tedium as the crew remains on standby before there is the sudden blast of noise of the alarm calling everyone to full alert.

Precious seconds go by as everyone jump into action, slipping into your small mecha. Radio chatter fills your helmets as the communication officers on the command deck begin to relay info to you.

A distress signal has been received, the source being a pair of large ships of alien design. They appear to be under attack by scores of mecha, swarming about, attacking the large ships and the very few defenders that are trying to repel the onslaught.

Pyrrah recognizes the large ships as Robotech Master carriers, capable of deploying hundreds of bioroids on their hover sleds each (even if there are much fewer deployed at the moment) all three of you can tell at a glance that the attacking force is the Invid, and the bioroid defenders are vastly outnumbered.

"Attention all flight crews. We have been ordered to engage the targets marked on your displays in red, designated as the Invid. Do not engage the defenders on the hover sleds unless attacked by them first. They are potential allies, but watch your backs. All units acknowledge orders."

The Normandy shudders as the first of the high speed Alpha and Beta fighters launch from their bays, and red lights go on in your section of the hangar to indicate that it it's going into vacuum in preparation to deploy your team along with other Cyclones to form a inner defense layer to protect the ship.

Pyrrah's team of Strike Marines are getting a different set of orders than hull defense. "Lieutenant Pyrrah, we have reports that several of the Invid have boarded one of the ships. Get in there and clear them out without causing massive amounts of collateral damage. The Fire Cats (one of the Alpha squadrons) will help clear you a path to the target ship. These ships are filled with refugee civilians, so watch your fire and be careful. Standby to launch."

 

[Psychie]

Pyrrah nods to herself, then says on the radio, "Acknowledged, Command. Do not engage the bioroid defenders; only the Invid are valid targets. Fire Cats will clear a path and we will clear or any Invid infestation on the ship. Third Squad standing by, ready to launch."

Switching to a squad-only channel, she says, "You heard the good word from the higher-ups. This is a rescue mission with friendly non-combatants in the mix. Check your targets and watch for civvies in there. Torni and Keith, we are dealing with the Invid here. There is no quarter asked by them and none is to be given. Shoot to kill, but like we were told, be careful in there. Am I clear everyone?We will kick ass and save the day, because we are Strike Marines and that is what we do. Any questions?"

 

[Purr]

Psychie "Galileo copies, ma'am." C'osmo chimes in using his call sign as Norwood hovers nearby. "Two concerns. What's the plan if the bioroids do decide to open up on us? There is no rescue if it turns out there are no friendlies, right?"

C'osmo pauses for her answers and asks, "If the Tirolians are friendly and require medical attention during the fight, do we continue to clear Invid or do we stop to treat them?"

 

[Psychie]

Pyrrah says, "I would hope that these people wouldn't be screaming for help then stab the hand of those that came to their aid, but if so, we engage any combatant that does fire on us but we do not attack any civilians." She considers her next response carefully. "Any wounded we run into will be treated as best we can given the circumstances. I don't want to lose anyone to enemy fire, be it a member of the team or a civilian."

 

[Purr]

"You got it, ma'am," C'osmo replies with confidence.

He grins as he gets comfortable in his Silverback. His first battle is going to be a rescue mission in space with the Invid already having the upper hand, er, claw! C'osmo is delighted at the idea of such a challenge! The Dragon Slayers were not only going to take on an enemy that knew the UEEF was here, but they were going to board alien vessels and rescue alien civilians from whatever the Invid force had already been successful with! It was the kind of uphill-climb mission that Marines were meant for!

"Let me at 'em!" he found himself saying as he chomped at the bit, ready for action like a real Marine. So many times had he been left at the dropship or ordered to "guard the squad's rear" from a such a far-back position no Marine could appreciate. No more hours of taking science samples and listening to the battles off in the distance wondering when it would be his turn to dig in with his Karbarran War-shovel. Someday was today!

"You ready for this, little buddy?" Norwood bobbed up and down, its versatile Praxian hover-jets helping the droid express its eagerness. Norwood was going to record the whole show from a Marine's-eye view! And not with those military-grade sturdy-but-featureless electronics but with C'osmo's own computerized hologram-capable suite!

"Heyyy..." he slowly turns his Silverback's computer console with a widening grin. His squad hadn't launched yet. Why not try and learn something useful that might help his fellow Dragon Slayers? (See OOC).

 

[Eonivar]

Onni listens carefully to the mission and the questions being asked. He shuts his visor and seals it. He mounts up on his cyclone which is more like entering a vehicle for him than mounting a motorcycle. He tilts his head in thought as the readouts for his vehicle display run across the inner visor.

Onni's voice through the com was very different than his speaking voice. Through the com, there was no interference with his mask, his chipper voice was for once, pure and unfiltered.

"Please be mindful that we will have to approach the target carriers from a distance, though a battle in space. We will probably want to pick a good vector and try to approach without power. That way in the vastness of space we will just look like debris. If we power up too soon, the invid will see our protoculture and attack us, and while we should have cover and escort, it would be easier to come in silently and use the battle as cover. If do get discovered, we power up and make our way as fast as we can to the carrier, just remember to be aware of your velocities so you do not splatter on impact with the target, use your breaking thrust. Do not get overzealous and use our ammunition on the foes on the outside of the shuttle, there are many veritechs deployed to take care of them, our focus is getting in and taking care of the enemy within. Once we get there, we should be ok with our systems powered up as there will be many protoculture signatures together in a small area, they should not be able to distinguish us from the other mecha and invid in the shuttle."

Onni makes sure his vehicle mounted computer and tools are attached to his cyclone and looks at the readout for the shuttle and tries to remember if his boarding training included Robotech Master Carriers.

<Rolling Boarding Spaceships skill here, for Onni it is 61%> Roll = 40 = Made Skill Check

Onni begins to prep his computer code and details to be able to access the Robotech Masters Carrier and send those same details and codes to the team so if one of them gets to the ship first they can activate access.

"Here are the ways to access the Robotech Master Carrier, including the possible access codes, and details on how to enter the airlocks and hanger bays."

 

[Purr]

C'osmo comes over the squad channel sounding satisfied and pleased with himself. "Hey-hey, Boss-lady! I think I found something we can all use to help us save the refugees."

Spoiler: Per Sherwood in OOC

C'osmo is not able to recover an exact deck plan, but you do find some general info. Most of the ship is built with a ceiling height of 25 feet; too small for a Zentraedi, but large enough for your Silverback to enter without any problems. There are six independent mecha bays spread over four decks, with enough room to be able to carry over 350 of the bioroids and their flying sleds that the Robotech Masters use as their primary mecha.

The ships are atmosphere capable, and some are equipped with a fold space engine. As far as you can tell, these ships are not armed with anything other than point defense guns designed to keep smaller targets at bay.

At this point there is no way to tell how many passengers ate on each ship.

C'osmo attempts to send this data to everyone in his squad.

"Just some speculation here, ma'am, but if these Robotech Master carriers are armed only with deck guns and bioroids with power sleds, the ships themselves might have been stripped of big guns to hold more refugees or supplies or maybe they stole the carriers somehow while they were in dry dock. I think it would help us to find out where these Invid are coming from though. Don't tell me they flew all this way out here by themselves. Maybe they've got Clamshells nearby?"

 

[Psychie]

Pyrrah looks over at the others, and says, "Right now, our focus is not any other possible Invid carriers, but it is with the boarders on the ship in front of us. If I would hazard a guess that Capt. Kutzuzov is busy calling for more aid from the fleet to haul ass over here." She thinks for a moment, comparing her knowledge of the Invid with their own gear. "Even if we go in as fast as we can, our top speed as a squad is capped at the 500 mph of the Silverback, and the Invid can beat that speed in space. Keep powered up, and use our maneuverability to our advantage to evade any hostiles that come our way and get past the Nova Cats."

She waits for the green light to go out into the void.

 

[Eonivar]

It did not bother Onni at all that his idea was not taken. To Onni it just was a a possibility in a list of possibilities.

He powered up the engines on his cyclone to be ready to go and replyed to Pyrrah’s commands with a cheerful “Aye, sir!”

He took a deep focusing breath and closed his eyes while waiting. Even through his partial connection to the Hin he felt the presence of the other organics, he knew that Kovo and Zara had already launched and were out there in the fight. He could feel the distant flare and fade of other souls, Garudan, Invid, Human, Karbarrian, and others in the fight out beyond in the black.

He and the other Garudans did not fear death, as long as they were connected to the Hin, if their physical body would die they would just rejoin the collective. Physical existence was just a phase to the Garudan.

Onni opened his eyes again and focused on his cyclones readouts and sensors. He revved his thrusters to make sure they were ready to go and selected his weapons trigger to his cannon. He then waited for the green to launch into the void of space.

 

[Sherwood]

With everyone chomping at the bit to get into the action, the signal from the Command Deck comes through loud and clear, "Third Squadron, stand by. Launch in thirty seconds. Your target is designated on your HUDs. Good luck, and good hunting."

Time counts down, and the large bay doors open wide to give you easy access to the void outside. When the final second ticks away, everyone hits their thrusters to boost your way into the fight. Immediately, you can see that the sky around you is filled with plasma blasts being fired from the Invid, aimed at the Veritechs of the Discovery and Normandy. The human-built mecha are seriously outnumbered by at least ten to one, but the exceptional level of the training of the UEEF pilots are making the difference in this fight.

As you accelerate out of the launch bay, three Alpha fighters form up around you in a rough triangle. One of the pilots calls out to you, "This is Babs of the Fire Cat one. Keep on your best speed and leave it to us to clear the path for you to the ship. Just focus on going full defensive and keep your heads down so you don't draw any extra attention from these slugs out here."

The ship in question is close in space combat terms, being just over a mile away. Even from this distance, you can see the ship with the good ol' Mark One Eyeball, and you can see that it is a space going wreck. Heavy damage has been done to the ship's hull, both from the blasters of the Invid and the razor-sharp claws of their mecha. A hazy fog seems to be surrounding the stricken vessel, showing that it has had both its inner and outer hull have been breached and it is venting atmosphere from multiple rents in the hull. Not a good sign.

There are several possible ways into the ship that you can go for: First, there is one of the larger mecha bays that has one of its blast doors hanging off at an angle, leaving you enough room to fit into the bay. Next, there are several smaller airlocks that can grant access to the interior of the ship. I say 'smaller', but most are large enough to fit C'osmo's Silverback. Finally, you can try to fit your way in through one of the blast craters on the hull.

What do you want to try?

Psychie Purr Eonivar cthuluneedsahug

 

[Purr]

"Lead the way, boss!" C'osmo says to Pyrrah with a tone of encouragement. "I'll get us all linked up."

With faithful Norwood flying by his side, C'osmo tries not to focus on the galactic hell being wrought all about them. Bright streams of laser fire, salvos of teamed missiles with armed warheads, sweeping Invid claws, and the bloody painful destruction of both mecha and the people inside of them are happening everywhere.

Spoiler: Linking up

C'osmo would like to use his Silverback's Scout Suite to link everyone up for the combat bonuses they will certainly need in a few moments.

He has a 61% chance of making it happen and I would like to spend an Action Point for another 5 to 30%, please.

In an effort not to get caught up staring awestruck at the deadly battle being fought all around them, C'osmo tries to think of anything besides either getting his first confirmed kill or being someone else's confirmed kill!

"We could really use a cool squadron name like Fire Cats!" He mutters to himself as he operates the OSS-88 Scout Suite for the first time in live combat. If an enemy gets me, I'll be a flat cat. But if I take them out first, I'll be a really cool cat! But why on Karbarra am I thinking about cats all of a sudden?"

In history, there are those who say that combat alters the mind. Combat teaches lessons unknown to the meek, the docile, and the less watchful.

Combat is its own teacher.

*Interlude*

C'osmo suddenly hears the sound of crunching leaves and looks up. Leaves? He wonders. In space?

C'osmo's mind drifts like the many pieces of debris and former living creatures now floating all around. For one long moment, he is not in space at all, but standing alone unarmed and unarmored in a huge warm savannah filled with gray mist.

His squad is not there. Norwood is not there. But C'osmo is far from alone.

Before he can think too deeply as to what he is doing here, he hears the sound of a heavy something crunching through tall grass. He turns and there in the mist, far above his own head, is a humongous form looming down over him. C'osmo quickly realizes just how small he is compared to this thing, this new thing, that has just discovered him.

It begins to move. Slowly. Dangerously. Unstoppably. It moves straight at C'osmo.

He cannot flee. The creature is far too large to fight. C'osmo freezes, his limbs locking up in paralyzing fear. He finds himself shivering despite the savannah heat. He tries to look up and up into the eyes...

... and just like that he finds himself right back inside his Silverback, Norwood nearby, his squad all around, and his furry hands calmly working the controls of the Scout Suite.

What just happened? He wonders.

But there is no time to think about it. His team needs him now.

 

[Psychie]

Pyrrah does her best to keep her head on a swivel as the squad flies across the space between them and the ship, hitting her maneuvering thrusters in random bursts to keep herself out of the line of fire of one of these Invid that are out here.

Keying her radio to the squad channel, she says, "Head for the open launch bay at top speed! Once we are in, be ready for gravity so don't crash and eat the bulkhead! Move move move!"

Current missile payload:
Plasma 6
HEAP 12

 

[Eonivar]

The void of space opened up before Onni as they were deployed. The massive blackness that overwhelmed everything but the flares of propulsion, the flash of weapons fire, and brief lights of explosions that happened every so often around them. The Normandy shrank behind them, getting smaller and smaller while the carrior gradually grew larger and larger. Onni's cyclone put together data from its own sensors as well as the datafeed from his team and the Normandy, his brightened HUD outlining the Robotech Master carrier, and identifying the possible points of entry.

He felt the familiar vibration and pressure of velocity as his cyclone moved at half speed to keep in formation with the SIlverback, he adjusted his velocity and then cut his engines to float foward silently, still powered up, using momentum to maintain and being ready in case they had to move quickly. His maneuvering thrusters would periodically fire to stay on their trajectory across the blackness of space with the occasional flash of light occuring around them.

Onni heard no sound other than his breathing and the chatter of his squardron. Onni unlike most others had enjoyed his Zero G training and being in space. Being a part of the Hin made him comfortable with being a "small point in a large vastness" which often made others very uncomfortable.

He he was very calm even though he heard excitement and a bit of fear in the voices of his squadmates. He heard Pyrrah's command and responded accordingly, inputing new coordinates and calculating a flight path.

"Hanger? Aye sir, I am adjusting our linked group trajectory towards the open hanger at heading 220 by 095 by 110...all mechs are responding to the course change affirmatively. Hanger contact in two minutes thirty four seconds...starting braking sequence now... please notify our escorts of our target. I will move ahead of the squadron three hundred feet, and once we reach the hanger, I will convert to battleloid and land on the outside lip of the hanger entry to cover the entrance for the squadron. Copy that?"

 

[Sherwood]

OOC Thanks to the electronic reach of C'osmo's Silverback, everyone in the squad gets the following bonuses:

+2 to initiative, +2 strike and +3 to parry/dodge to all mecha.

Your trip across the vastness of space is rather exciting, with the squad members weaving and bobbing around, trying to keep the Invid having an easy line of fire on you. The Fire Cats are all busy blazing a trail and doing their best to keep the Invid off of you with a combination of missile fire and blazing gun pods, discouraging any of the offending targets from getting too close. Even so, the sheer number of Invid does make it possible for a few strays to thread the needle and make poor efforts to tag you with their plasma cannons, but the maneuverability of the Cyclones and the Silverback keep you from getting hit long enough for one of the three Alphas to turn their fire on them.

As you get closer to the ship, the three Alphas slow slightly to cover your back as Onni jets forward to take up a guard position in the entrance of the hangar bay. Babs calls out on the radio, "Good luck in there! We would join you, but we kinda have our hands full in a target rich environment out here. Go get 'em! Chaser, you have three targets coming in, five o'clock low!" With that, her signal cuts off as their focus goes from providing cover to just dishing out as much hurt as possible.

At the edge of the hangar bay, Onni can see that there is a shimmering of a low-level force field in place, designed to keep the air in the bay while the doors are open. It feels like you are sliding through a sticky layer of molasses, but other than that, it doesn't stop you from entering and setting down and taking up a guard position as the rest of the team advances in.

Onni is the first to see the interior of the bay. What is normally a pristine mecha bay is a shambles of leaking pipes, broken machinery, and rusted metal that has been stuffed with perhaps two hundred people, men, women and children, all huddled in groups at the back of the room, all obviously terrified. There are the remains of six bodies that had been wearing a bit of MDC armor that have been blasted to sticky red paste, most likely from trying to stand up against the Invid and dying in a very spectacular manner. There are several hatches that lead into the heart of the vessel, but one has been clawed and shot to pieces, showing you the path that the attackers have taken, most likely towards the power reactor.

Next into the bay is Pyrrah and Keith, followed by C'osmo and Torni. Thanks to the effects of the force field, it helps to slow you down to a safe speed to be able to land inside the wrecked bay without crashing. Everyone is now inside and in their mecha mode, and are ready to move out.

Psychie Eonivar Purr cthuluneedsahug

 

[Psychie]

Pyrrah pauses for a moment to think. If the Invid are heading to the power reactors, is there a way through this ship that might get us there first and will let us cut them off? "Keep your guard up. There is no telling when we might run into trouble."

OOC would a Boarding Spaceships roll help here? I'm hoping for a good roll, and I'll spend an Action Point to boost my results.

Edit: not good enough, even with the AP
Edit 2: my skill roll is only a 56%, not a 61%. Either way I failed my roll, but I don't want to have the wrong number for my roll. Sorry.

 

[Psychie]

With a frown, Pyrrah says, "I don't know of a way to get ahead of the Invid, so I'm guessing our best shot is to follow their trail and how we run into them before they can do too much damage to the ship and the passengers. I'm taking point, and C'osmo, you are our Tail End Charlie, since you can shoot over our heads from as tall as you are. Remember to watch your fire. As beat up as this ship is, it won't take much to make it blow."

Missile Payload
Plasma 6
HEAP 12

AP Cannon 60

Hit Points: 31 +2d4 per level
SDC: 111
Action Points: 6 / 5

Combat Bonuses
On Foot / In the Cyclone
Number of Attacks: 6 / 7
Strike: +6 / +7
Parry: +8 / +10
Dodge: +8 / +10 auto dodge
Roll With Punch: +8 / +10
Initiative: +3 / +4
Perception: +5
HtH Damage: +2
Critical Strike on a Natural 20
Death Blow on a Natural 20