Iron Stars - Ground investigation

The ground Investigation team prepares to be ferried down to the surface of the planet by wraith shuttle, a specially modified cargo lighter meant for stealth insertion work. Refugees are fleeing the cities on the surface below , trying to escape anything that might be a bombardment target to risk it in the countryside. This attack was not something born overnight by an opportune group of scumbags but was a carefully planned operation. Someone on the surface knows something and the team has been instructed to be on the lookout for leads amid assisting with the growing humanitarian crisis on the planet. Any large gatherings are shunned it is thought concentrations of people will be bracketed for orbital destruction.

( @Gurk Samson | Glaikit | Gilbert @Kila Stosk | Konya [Nurrun] @Talos Corda @Thulee Blue @Kodo just tagging folks for visibility so everyone knows the threads up! )

1

(may I join in?)

(I thought you were part of it already, either way, go ahead) (edited)

(My bad Lori!!)

Gurk is combing through the data already available: distress signals, reports of refugee movements, and damage reports. He looks for any sign of where they might begin, and moves in his seat so that the other team members can see the information as it arrives.

(Edit: a glitch in the matrix caused a future action to happen too early, don’t worry the matrix has been repaired) (edited)

(We didn't launch yet, but i can move us along if we're all eager to get to it|)

10:56 AM

(I just didnt want to get too far ahead of anyone)

1

(Heck, whoops)

(Happy to get on with it if the others are!)

(I am happy to move on if thats what everyone else wants to do)

(I’m raring to go)

(Good to go!)

As the team prepare to launch Thulee notices a couple of familiar faces and gets a little sidetracked... "Gurk! Great to see you so soon again, although the circumstances... mmm, this is tough." Mushk sidles up to Gurk to say hello while Thulee gives Gurk a warm greeting. "Oh and Lori... hey, lovely to see you. How you been since the ritual?"

“Pretty good, I went on a hike with Hailey.”

"Hi, Thulee," says Gurk. "We found a fish." He pats Mushk, pleased to see her recovering from her injuries on Parnika.

Talos joins the rest of the ground team in the shuttle with a quick wave and and begins nearly ritualistic process of checking, zipping, taping, tying and re-checking his packs of gear. Taking a seat near Gurk, he begins to scan the display as he works. "Any idea what type of weaponry was deployed by the station? Any risk of radiation or lingering hazards?" (Talos would have purchased and packed a comm server, type b cell, and 6 medpaks [1700 credits] enroute)

The wraith shuttle begins to vibrate gently and the bay door at the end of the hangar begins to winch open. You can see the scarred green/brown hall of Chloe below you and the first destination is looking for survivors in the ruins of the bombarded village

6:47 PM

The orbital transit is quiet , twenty minutes between departing the ship and passing through the atmosphere. From above the village reminds you of the photos of cities devastated by crude atomics.

6:48 PM

This is a moderate village. A few thousand people lived here once.

Kila starts preparing to disembark the shuttle, feeling a little overwhelmed by the view. She briefly looks over Gurk's shoulder at the displays, but they don't make sense to her. "What are we looking at out there?"

Iumi's tongue flits rapidly from her mouth, nervously preparing to exit the craft. She moves to pull her hood up over her head, then hesitates before turning to the person next to her, Thulee, I think they said? "Hey, um, I've never been on-world this far out before, so I'm not sure how things are... I uh, well, I'm not going to scare any kids am I?" her voice carries a bit, so others nearby would be able to overhear her concern. (edited)

Thulee turns to the Slyth and really takes in their presence, feels the anxiety. "Hey, hmmm, honestly... I'm not sure. That said, these systems were previously Remnant, they have interstellar histories. I'd imagine they are quite used to.... wide and varied intelligent life." He gives a warm smile "Thulee, by the way." (edited)

4:12 PM

He then starts rummaging in his bags looking for his Stationkeeping Drone.

Reflections of ruined husks of buildings fill Talos' eyepieces as he gazes down at the approaching city. The Ashen one tightens his hood and turns to lumi "I think...the appearance of visitors is the least of these people's concerns." After a moments pause his voice crackles to life again "Do we have a contact on the ground?" (edited)

"Not sure yet," says Gurk. "I suggest we hit the ground and move to the outskirts of the village. We can try to assess the extent of the damage and gauge how many might have survived. That will help inform follow-up support."

"Sounds like a plan, hopefully they made it to the shelters." She turns to Iumi, "Thulee and Talos make good points. Still, they might be reluctant to trust any of us, we should be prepared for that."

"We should also be prepared for agents of whoever did this," says Gurk, "either acting openly or pretending to be locals." He finishes fiddling with his gear: he is ready to go.

Iumi lets her hood fall back to her shoulders. She pats her gun, her pockets, and her sides, making sure everything’s where she thought it would be. “Alright, let’s go when everyone’s ready.” She says, then turns to Lamarck. “Anything in particular you’re keeping an eye out for when we get down there?”

He looks at Iumi seeming surprised to have been addressed. "I'll be honest I'm not really sure what to expect here, I've never seen an active warzone before. I think we just need to try to make it clear that we're here to help people' he turns to Gurk as he pulls a gun out of his bag " do you think we should bring these? You're right there may be agents but it also sends a different message if we show up armed."

(We will be setting down in the park in the center )

2:21 PM

The city is ruined in every direction and you can see that many rose things out in cellars or just plain getting lucky. The shot was a glancing blow, a direct orbital hit would have atomized everything in sight. None the less the village is ruined and there is evidence many people have fled south. The burned skeletons in the street is evidence many more did not make it to flee with their friends and kin

"I think we should stay armed," says Gurk. "Just in case. How about we check the bodies and damage to see what we can learn then head south?"

(I still haven't completed my first mission yet and don't have a weapon, is there a laser pistol or something on the ship I could take?)

(For some reason I have two laser pistols but only use one, you can have my extra one if you want)

(There is probably a ships locker on the shuttle if anyone wants something.. Neko?)

"Armed but unobtrusive, sounds the way to go..." Thulee says out loud to nobody in particular as he wrestles with a case. "When we set down I'll get this drone airborne... it has infra-red and UV sensors, it should help us locate survivors." With all gear ready to go, Thulee takes another look outside. His eyes go wide as the scene really hits home. Muskh gives a little cat-wince, responding to what Thulee sees outside. Devastation. Turning back to the rest of the team, he then sees if anyone needs help getting ready to go.

(Thanks Iumi, that would be awesome - I'll return it when we're done!) Kila straps Iumi's spare laser pistol to her belt and covers it the best she can with her top. "Couldn't have said it better, Thulee. I've...never shot a gun before, hope it stays that way." Ready to leave, she turns her attention back outside, jaw set hard.

Talos assembles the standard issue UNW pistol he carried in the field on Tsatsos. Ostensibly carried if the time ever came where he needed to fend off one of the infernal worlds nastier critters, the prosthetist had never had to fire it outside of practice. Tucking it back into his harness he makes a final inspection of his equipment. "Agreed on linking up with survivors. If we are truly the first to arrive, they may still be in need of assistance establishing emergency infrastructure and medical support." Inspecting Thulee's drone, he adds "Will this device be able to detect any radiation hazards? The level of damage is .. concerning."

“Kila, I just shot mine for the first time last week. Best advice I have is - shoot before they get too close.” Iumi warns. Her gaze shifts to the drone equipment currently being examined by Thulee, and in an instant her hesitation and self doubt seem to dissolve as she becomes absorbed in her excitement for science. Having previously been timid and fearful around Mushk, Iumi walks past the great cat without a second thought as she seeks a closer look at the drone. “Wow, I’ve never seen this model before. This is a fine piece of tech you’ve got here! Wait, detecting radiation? Can it DO that?!” she says with an almost childlike sense of wonder. (edited)

Thulee hands Lumi the controls ..."Yes, it does detect radiation as well... see, here" as he points on screen to some red counters and graphs. He leans back so Talos can also see. He loosens up a little at the welcome tech distraction "... its decked out with Observation Suite, Expert System, Station-Keeping, Grav Mufflers and Holoskin. I use it for observing crops and growing. And now I suppose... rescue." He watches Lumi fawn over the drone and says "Did you want to drive..?"

If Iumi had been warm-blooded, she might have blushed at the suggestion. “Oh! Oh, well, I couldn’t… that’s such a big responsibility and I’m barely even worthy of controlling an RC car!” She says, eyes burning with curiosity as she examines every aspect of the controls in her hands and gingerly avoiding any buttons.

Thulee smiles, "Its robust and quite forgiving. You can drive it manually with these controls, or instruct... like program it... via the Expert System. I'd suggest we just get it up above us and keep an eye on radiation and heat signatures of survivors. I can help you get it going for you. It would be useful for me to have my hands free, Mushk and I will probably try to track survivors by scent." He sniffs a little at the same time as Mushk, realises that probably sounded pretty strange, then adds "...we share quite animlistic senses." (edited)

7:35 PM

(Lumi all good if you don't wanna drive the drone, just thought you might be interested!)

(Definitely interested just very worried about doing something that will destroy something you spent credits on!!)

)the ship has a locker and armory. Iumi, the roll20 sheet duplicates things sometimes. If you don’t remember adding a second you only probably had one but either way Kila has a weapon now)

8:17 PM

(Whoever is handling the drone can give me a notice/wis)

(Thanks good to know) (I'll pilot! ahh)

8:21 PM

(8)

(Thulee can totally afford to loose this drone, go for it!)

1

The drone spots thin trails of smoke in the uneven wasteland to the south that look like cook fires. You also see wagon ruts in the ground or tire tracks. They’re hard to see from the ground. Nothing looks to be moving in the settlement itself. The structures are free standing but hardly. Nothing has escaped damage

Fascinated by working the drone, Iumi excitedly relays the info. “There’s definitely someone to the south, but we should still make a quiet approach.”

Once it's clear that there is no immediate threat, Talos nods to Gurk and disembarks from the shuttle. He approaches some of the bodies in the street and attempts to determine their cause and time of death. (Talos is trying to determine if the causalities were caused by the attack itself or in the aftermath of the initial blast)

Gurk looks at the surrounding area. While Talos checks the bodies, Gurk looks at prints and debris, trying to establish if the people left together as a group - which might imply some kind of organised plan - or as a disorganised mass.

Aware that her skills aren’t particularly useful here, Kila hangs back a little so she doesn’t destroy any tracks or evidence.

(Heal/int Talos, and notice/wis Gurk)

(9)

(Talos is a doctor by background so I should not have asked for a heal check, this is within what he would know as a doctor, and I've added in Gurk;s observations as to the grouping) This was a disorganized exodus, and might not even have been an exodus at all. A lot of the bodies have burned outlines into walls or into the street and looked to have been about their morning errands as the close range impact of the platforms macro scale weaponry hit close by. THe heat and over pressure still killed them just as handily as a direct hit, while those inside structures who avoided being punctured with debris had the opportunity to leave but at the time the air would have still been incredibly hot and smoke filled. (edited)

"Whoooa" Thulee breathes in deeply to calm himself as he surveys the carnage. "Looks like there is little to nothing left here. Damn, that orbital better not fire again, this is madness." Mushk homes in on the tracks Gurk has been examining, trying to pick up scent of the survivors.

Lamarck takes in the scene around him, slowly nodding as the others detail what likely happened. "These people must have been terrified, imagine sitting down for breakfast and then... This" he broadly gestures. "I'd imagine they took the injured with them and can't get far. We should go as soon as we can, Talos if you're a doctor I think we lead with that when we find everyone. You may be in just the right place. Did anyone bring food and medicine? I have some rations but I don't think that will feed all these people."

"I think I only loosely fit that definition for anyone other than my people, but I will do what I can." Circling his arms around his billowing cloak he continues "I have some medical supplies, but there are likely more survivors than we can provide for on foot."

"If any of the shelters have survived, we might be able to access them - and their supplies," says Gurk. "We should keep an eye out as we look for refugees."

(We can def sweep the town for anyone lingering in shelters first if we want to)

(Gurk is happy either way, but seems like we might learn something)

(If there's a chance there are survivors here, Kila would definitely like to do a sweep. If they find any other evidence then bonus)

(Talos would lean towards doing a search of the town)

(Iumi is in but scared about it) (Would I have gotten any info about the actual town with the drone recon, or is that something I can do again choosing a different area to focus on?) (edited)

( I agree let's look through the town, I also though that the drone did that and found nothing)

(Yeah I just re read thru, my bad) (edited)

(We've got the battle map I posted from the drone overflight, and the distant possible survivors. THere's really nothing else to see from above, without going into structures)

Gurk heads into the town, moving slowly. He's looking for signs of continued occupancy: recent tracks leading into buildings, ash displaced from what might be concealed openings, and large, well-constructed buildings that might be important enough to have their own shelters. If nothing more can be learned from outside, he suggests prioritising the major buildings: any town halls, schools, police stations and residences of local worthies.

(i think with how confused, burned, and otherwise distressed the area is we wouldnt be able to get ny more info from the tracks than what we have already from our earlier looking at them)

“That’s a good place to start, Gurk.” Iumi says, scanning around for any discernible signage on buildings indicating their purpose. “If all else fails, maybe we just check out the biggest one?”

Lamarck also starts looking for building signage/signs of life/ signs of building stability. "Is there any sense on us yelling or trying to get people's attention? Or does anyone have something that can amplify our voices? Is that even a good idea?"

Gurk looks for a likely building. “I don’t know if yelling would help - maybe see if we can find a shelter first? Getting them to come out at all may be hard.”

"I agree Gurk, I think they're probably going to be scared and won't respond to us yelling. Hopefully most of the stragglers who haven't made their way south will have congregated in a community building so I'd suggest we try and make contact there." She pauses, thinking for a moment. "We should probably have a signal we can use if we suspect foul play too - maybe put your left hand on your left hip if you suspect something isn't right?"

Following the conversation in silence, Talos removes his AO net comm server from it's pack and begins to manipulate the device. He attempts to use the commutations to device to scan for and receive emergency broadcast signals, distress signals, and the like that might indicate activity closer than the fires in the south.

Thulee looks distracted as he wrinkles his nose Can't track anything here, and the smell... oof. Shaking his head he motions to Mushk to return to his side. "Sounds good everyone - let's target the biggest, most stable looking building... see if we can find some survivors in whats left of this town. Kila - good idea on the signal, hopefully we don't have to use it." He then lines up the most suitable building with those already looking, following Gurk and Lamarck's lead.

Nekosmash pinned a message to this channel. 2/15/2022 5:44 PM

From the building south of the town square that seems to run almost contiguous for most of the squares south border it looks like there is some kind of radio signal or phone in use from an underground shelter

Hunched over his bulky equipment, Talos adjusts dials as his eyes dart rapidly between the display on the server and his personal dataslab. He cocks his head to the side and a jagged metal finger emerges from his bulky coat sleeve as he rasps to the group "Something there, south end of the square. Below ground" Satisfied with his contribution, he packs up the equipment prepares to follow the rest of the group.

Lamarck goes to clap Talos on the back "Well done!" But catches himself before making contact, trying to smoothly turn the clap into a aggresivley put foward thumbs up. "Lets head for the building, anyone want to volunteer to lead? I can but but I'll admit I've never done anything like this before"

"Me neither... I should probably stick to the back of the group."

"We'll do it... come on Mushk." Thulee's eyes narrow as he focuses himself. Mushk pushes out in front as they move over to the nominated building. He takes a good look at the door whilst Mushk checks out any windows.

Iumi's focus remains on controlling the drone, taking her responsibility more seriously than perhaps needed, but wanting to make sure she does a good job.

10:07 PM

(just rp, not tryna roll anything with it)

Lamarck falls in behind Thulee and as they move leans foward and says in a low voice "Thanks... I was trying to be brave there but I'll admit going second is alot easier than going first." He straightens up and keeps an eye out for any movement as they move to/into the building.

Approaching the banded wood and metal door you can see the thick planks have been heavily scorched and partially burned. They are warm to the touch but not hot. Every window has been broken and every single personal effect inside the building has been smashd, broken, torn, overturned, scattered, or otherwise taken from its place of order to be damaged and scattered about the living space. It looks like some sort of multi generational home or boarding house for many different families, based on what you can see of the inside.

Gurk peers through the door from behind Thulee and Mushk. This is unexpected. "Can you get inside?"

Iumi brings the drone down for a soft landing and lets her bottom right hand, gripping the control pad, drop to her side. Her left hands gently probe across the door’s surface feeling for signs of fire inside, trying to determine if the soft warmth is residual or not. She examines the latching/locking mechanism for any signs of traps.

The warmth is residual but the locking mechanism has fused. There are still several ways to get through a locked door between the assembled talent here.

“Lock’s melted together, probably from the blast.” Iumi shares, looking to the group hopefully.

"Sorry team. I don't think the door will respond to me talking at it. There might be an alternative entrance - I'll have a look while you guys work on this." Kila looks for any likely spots that would give stealthy cover for an entrance.

(notice/wis Kila)

(9)

Talos shuffles over the door and takes a closer look at the lock and hinges. "Ah, this is a common problem on Tsastos. I can perform a doorectomy if required. But perhaps there is an easier way in."

(omg, doorectomy

)

Gurk is at one of the windows, scanning the interior and listening for movement. It is possible someone is in the shelter and monitoring the situation; if the resident reacts poorly to the upcoming breaking and entering it would be better to know sooner rather than later.

"We can remove the door but it will take time. How about some of us get in there and search? No point messing with the door if nobody is home. We can open it if find peoples." As he finishes Mushk scowls Yeah, the window he retorts to her. She bounds along and jumps right through the largest of the broken window openings. Thulee follows her in there, being a little more careful not to slice himself on any glass. He says "search and rescue... looking for survivors" in a reasonably loud voice. (edited)

Iumi's tongue flits rapidly until she decides to follow Thulee carefully through the broken window.

Kila sees a gutter that looks sturdy enough to be climbed to the roof. Some of the roof has fallen inside and the interior of the structue can be seen through it if someone climbs up there.

7:30 AM

(dropping down with the route Kila found is probably going to be the safest, we're getting some chandler effect on some of the other variables being written in)

Kila shouts back to the group, "Good news, there's a gutter here that can get us in, anyone good at climbing?"

Gurk looks up. If it seems like a simple job he'll go for it; if not he'll let someone more vertically-inclined go first.

(if someone gets to the roof we can probably get enough people up there to boost, drag, pull everyone up)

Talos approaches the building and eyes the roof. After rubbing his palms together he jumps up to the gutter and skitters his way to the roof, his cloak and bulky packs swinging wildly side to side. After surveying the roof he turns to help the rest of the group up.

"Anything interesting up there?" Lamarck starts to climb up with Talos' help and will also offer help if needed

(I think everyone would be able to make it to the top between Talos being up there and Lamarck being good at climbing)

Gurk clambers up after them.

After a little boost from below and Talos and Lamark's help, Kila scrambles to the top.

“Thulee, sounds like they found a way in through the roof, maybe we should head that way.” Iumi says, gesturing toward the window they just slid through.

"Oh, thanks Lumi... beats crashing through a window." Thulee follows the rest of the team up the climb, bringing up the rear.

Looking down into the ruined building from above you can see a large beam leads from the hole down to the floor- depositing you into the middle of the devastated common room. You can see the twin metal doors to the storm shelter in the western corner of the room, semi buried by other debris.

Gurk watches his step as he moves about. He takes a cursory look at the doors, mostly to assess what type of lock mechanism they might have, then studies the room itself. He's particularly interested to see whether the damage was caused by the initial blast, or afterwards - when desperate people tried and failed to gain entrance to the shelter.

The doors leading into the shelter are two metal storm doors

7:21 AM

(I'll post a pic, they're fine, just buried)

7:21 AM

(this, but set into the floor inside

(How many days ago was the attack? Roughly a week ish right?)

(yeah, we're at about a week now)

“There must be someone down there, I’m just not sure if it’s someone we want to find.” Iumi says. “All the debris on top of the doors looks like it hasn’t been moved since the attack, though. Whoever’s down there is probably running low on supplies.”

"Agreed. The debris on top concerns me... it could have collapsed after survivors got in there, but whoever's in there might be part of the attack. What do we do if they're hostile? I'd like to get information from them if we can. I could try and get a telepathic read but my skills aren't that advanced. I could bluff, threaten or charm them. Or we could let our weapons do the talking. Any other ideas or thoughts?"

“Well, we’ve got evidence that they have comms capabilities and radio signals. I could patch us into their frequency and open up a dialog. Or we could just go in. But whatever we do, I’m thinking times of the essence since we know there are refugees to the south of town that need help too.” (edited)

(Haven't heard from Lori, Talos, or Thule in a bit, just want to give everyone a chance to voice an opinion)

5

12:47 PM

(You guys are all doing great though!)

The aperatures of Talos googles narrow as they they adjust to the shadows of the buildings interior. "It looks like they are trapped, and have been trapped for some time. I would suggest knocking." (edited)

Lamarck nods. "I agree, let's give them the benefit of the doubt and just ask if they want help, if they've been trapped this long they probably need it"

(happy to go along with this)

(me too)

(Roger that)

"Benefit of the doubt... let's knock." Thulee says as he joins the others.

Digging out the shelter doors takes just a few moments between all of you. Ash and broken wood splinters coat everyone's arms and stick into clothing. Aside from some heat peeled paint it looks like the doors held, and the people inside would have been spared the initial heat and force

Anyone in there almost certainly heard them moving the rubble, but Kila kicks the door a few times. "Search and rescue, are you in need of assistance?" Kila remains alert, if they're not openly hostile when they come out, she will try to make telepathic contact and get a read on their intentions.

The fingers on iumi’s upper right hand flex and wiggle near the gun on her belt, ready to grab at a moments notice if needed.

Gurk moves away from those at the door. Spreading out seems like a good idea - just in case.

There is a muffled banging on the inside of the heavily insulated door. They can hear you but barely, and they seem to want out.

Since she’s next to the door Kila tries to pull it open, not expecting it to work. “If this doesn’t work I think it might be doorectomy time, Talos.”

Talos settles in near Kila with his toolkit and sets up, ready to cut pry and grind his way down to the survivors as needed.

There is a pop as the lock releases. Light floods the vaulted space and you can see about twenty filthy looking people scattering from the sudden burst of sunlight from the surface above. The cement floor of the shelter is slick in some places, you're not sure if it is water or blood.

"Nice one Kila." Thulee lets his eyes adjust for a moment before hopping down on to the cement floor, trying to look as unthreatening as possible. Mushk re-joins the team and gently hops down to join Thulee. "Hello-hello... rescue here... is anyone hurt? We need to get you out of here" he says using his sharp senses to get a better look at the survivors. He has a sniffs the air to get a vibe for the volume of blood.

It is consistent with injury, not complete exsanguination. No one has been killed here by the hands of the others from what your companion can smell

Slightly relieved but alert, he continues "We are a UNW rescue team. Does anyone need medical attention? We need to get you out of here, it's not safe. This place has been bombarded by terrorists from an orbital station."

Lamarck tries to look at some of the people closer to the door and get an idea of their state. He adds to Thulee's statement "Please it looks like you need help"

Gurk looks at Talos. "I also have medical training," he says. "We should try to triage the wounded, and get the most vulnerable back to the shuttle - if we can. I have some rations, and a water filter we can use if there's a stream or pond we can get to. We can give them a bit of support that way."

“Help!” A weak voice calls out from the shelter. “We have injured. We are weak!”

6:39 AM

You hear the long days of little water and food in the voice crying out to you. These people may not have the strength to escape

Gurk will prioritise the water supply. "I'll try to deal with the water," he says. "I'll check the taps in case there's a bit of pressure left, then see if there's a well in the square." He moves off, fetching his water filter and sample jars. (I wasn't 100% sure from the map if there was a stream on the north side of the square/river on the east side of the square or if they were damage/paths - if they are water sources Gurk will move there as soon as he checks the taps/well option)

"I'm sorry, I know you must be hurting. We'll do our best to help." Kila calls back to them. Turning to the group she says, "I agree with Gurk, patch them up then think of how to get them out if we can." Kila clambers in to the shelter. She approaches the survivors and attempts to comfort them if they let her.

“Ask them about their radio signals - have they already been calling for help?” Iumi calls after Kila. “We need to know whether to expect company and from whom”

Talos repacks his toolkit before descending down into the shelter. "I can offer medical assistance. Whom among you is in need?" He cocks his head to the side and scans the survivors.

(We can do a skills contest here if we like, we have more than enough people and doing it successfully will handle the town's immediate problems. I can go over the premise if it is needed)

1

(I’d appreciate that please - not really sure how it works)

(Yes please!)

(Sounds great to me!)

(sure)

(THe scene becomes a skill challenge. Each skill can only be used once, and represents the entire group's best attempt at using it. So you would name a skill, describe how you would use it in the context of the scene/solving the challenge, and we would roll it with the relevant attribute. I'll post a link to an example one we did recently https://discord.com/channels/345912178072879106/833682194752471040/940741285789171722

(Gurk would like to attempt to use know, at which he is a specialist, unless someone else would really prefer to use that skill - if nobody objects I will describe what he will attempt to do)

(Are only skill checks allowed, could someone use a Foci ability or psychic technique?)

(Make a case for it when it comes up and we'll see if we can make it work)

(Ok thanks. Just need someone to find out how bad of shape everybody’s in)

(That sounds like a good way to resolve it. I’d like to use talk (specialist) when it comes around if no one objects.)

(anyuone can kick it off)

A refugee crisis is as much about logistics and prioritisation as anything else. Gurk has knowledge of many well-studied disasters, and is familiar with the consensus on how to best organise a group of stressed, sick individuals to prioritise care and ensure necessary resources are delivered to those in need. Combined with his knowledge of the planet, its ecosystem, and customs, he formulates a structured plan to monitor and deliver care to the residents. (know/int 14)

The survivors are clearly stressed and desperate and it's important they're calm if they're to remain organised. Kila wanders through the group, offering words of comfort and reassurance, and convincing them to follow her companions' instructions and plans. (Talk/Cha - 12)

Talos gets to work, moving from person to person and checking them over for injuries. Those with minor wounds get a spritz of antiseptic and some mild painkillers, and those with more serious wounds are sent to a well lit corner where the Ashen one begin to treat what he can. (Heal/Int -5, expert reroll to Heal/Int 6. Ooof)

Iumi examines any tech she can find in the room (dataslabs, comm pads, radio transmitters, etc) and downloads information to her own dataslab for relay back to central command. She sifts through the data for useful information (personal logs, atmospheric data, biometric data, etc) that might be useful in piecing together a timeline of events in the past week. (Program/Int 11)

(If I wanted to search the building/ find us an exit that doesn't involve climbing what would that be? Since I assume these people aren't in any shape to climb out the way we came)

(I think you could use survive for pathfinding, or notice to try to spot another way out others might have missed, It does not look like either of those skills have been used

12:07 PM

(We have 3 successes, and 1 failure, with Know, Talk, Heal, and Program being used by the group as everyone acts at once to control the scene)

Lamarck looks back at the way we came in then looks back at the survivors. He mumbles to himself "That won't work". He begins looking around the room trying to notice a way to get everyone out of the building safely. (Notice/Wis 9) (edited)

(Does that update mean it’s a new round?)

(Sorry, catching up now! We are at 4 successes and 1 failure, I want to give Lori a chance to try something, since everyone else has acted and we will move along!) (edited)

(Thulee as well..!)

Surveying the scene, Thulee feels a number of people will be challenged moving out of here under their own steam. He pulls out his toolkit and scavenges whatever materials are lying around to repurpose, join and build some makeshift stretchers and crutches to help get people moving. (Int/Fix 8)

(We are shooting for 10 successes this time. We have 5 with fix, know, talk, heal, notice and program used, still gonna give the others time to try something and then a new round )

(Reading up on this now, I'm not sure how I can help but maybe something with helping Iumi?)

(, she used program to get some nearby signals so that skill has been used already. I suppose you could use your hacker foci to help her work faster, or if you can think of some other skill that might help the situation as a whole )

(Maybe I can find and collect the data with program and you can use hacker foci to patch into their network to get the data transmitted?)

(That could work)

(should I roll program/int then?)

(We used program already, so we will just say the hacker foci has been used)

7:09 AM

(okay, so 6 successes, 1 failure, with hacker, program, fix, notice, heal, know, and talk used- new round)

Gurk unpacks his survival kit. He uses the water filter to ensure the refugees have clean water to drink and wash wounds with, and uses the firelighter to start a small fire so they'll have some warm food. The thermal blanket goes to who needs it the most. He travels the edge of the town, identifying edible foodstuffs to take the edge off their hunger. (survive/wis, took the +1 circumstance bonus for using the survival kit in a way that's relevant, and used the expert reroll = 9 with the kit, 8 without)

(Might be a stretch but if they have any devices that need powering, like maybe a generator or if someone has like a medical device, I could use EK-Conduit? I’m almost out of trained options so tryna get creative)

(sure that works Lumi)

While traveling with the haggard survivors, Iumi notices the burnt out lantern carried by the individual who has emerged as the apparent de facto leader of the group. “May I?” She says, gesturing one pair of hands towards the lantern, channeling a tiny flow of MES to create a visible static zap between her fingers to signal her intentions. “Or if anyone has any critical medical devices, like an oxygen tank or something, I could do one or two of those too. I’m sure after all this time your batteries are shot.” (EK Conduit lvl 2 - power 2 objects within 10m that use Type B cell or lower) (edited)

(Probably a stretch but since Talos has used heal and at least has an idea of how hurt people are could I use Psychic Succor on whoever seems the worst off? Just to help stabilize them? Otherwise I could try connect and see if I can find any among them who have skills we could use to help everyone?)

(I think connect is probably the better of the options )

(Okay! Connect with CHA i assume?)

(yessir

(Connect/ CHA 7)

(In case it’s helpful for anyone, remaining skills are administer, exert, lead, perform, pilot, punch, shoot, sneak, stab, trade, work)

(Could I use authority lead/cha to get any recollection of the events and info about what lies south from the more stable and well survivors? Not sure if that necessarily counts towards solving the current situation) (edited)

(Sure, i think it applies)

Kila looks for someone among the survivors who's less injured and looks most together. She asks them for information about what lies south, if there are any shelters there, and for anything they can recollect about the day of the attack that would be useful. (Authority - Lead/Cha 10) (edited)

As Talos works triage, he chats up the locals that are in good enough shape to do so. He questions his patients about the local economy, infrastructure, and nearby industries - somewhat to put them at ease, but more so gain an understanding of what types of facilities, equipment and resources that might be available to help the survivors through the aftermath of the attack. (Trade/Wis 9)

(All good so far. Let’s see ifThulee can bring us home)

(just trying to work an option...)

(bit of a stretch - what about Int/Admin to sift through the digital information lumi has collected to attempt to find out more about who these people are and where they fit in on Chloe)

(sure, lets try it) (edited)

Seeing most practical needs are taken care of, Thulee gets comfortable and taps Lumi's recently acquired data cache via his dataslab. He reviews the information to try and piece together who these people are, what they do, and how they fit in on Chloe. He's rusty with the task, it calls on essential skills learned on his home planet of Rawhani during the reign of the Megacorps. (Int/Admin 8)

2:20 PM

(apologies for the timezone delays!)

Between each of you and your efforts, it takes four hours to scour the town, begin the process of triage, collect signals intelligence, and interview the locals. They know some people survived the bombardment and headed south but everyone here was buried in shelters or too injured to move. You have control of the scene. (i can answer more specific questions, we have success here but there is a lot of data)

(any leads... persons or group responsible for the takeover and bombardment?)

(Gurk would particularly like a detailed timeline, if possible - whether anything strange was noticed before the attack, when it happened exactly, length - what they might know about those heading south)

From the ground the attack came suddenly. The platform did not announce anything once in the hands of the terrorists and no official statements were made until the shot that devastated this settlement- this was an example.to prove their mettle and willingness to fire again. There were many people not from Chloe passing through the settlement, and through the orbital platform in general in the weeks leading up to the attack. The demonstrations that crippled the orbital trade and defense platform seemed to spring up out of nowhere

3:23 PM

(we dont know w hat evidence the orbital team has yet)

(Any potential reasons this settlement was targeted or were they just the closest thing worth shooting at)

This settlement was a mid sized settlement that was located in the midst of what was once rich farmland. They don't know if there was anything special about the town. One of those hiding in one of the bunkers theorizes that too many casualties or destroying a major city might have turned the UNW entirely off to negotiations. He used to be a hostage negotiator for the Chloe Civil Defense Forces, but has been retired for a year and a half. (edited)

(was there anything memorable or odd about the strangers passing through - either dress, behaviour, accent or equipment?)

(What was the nature of the weapon used? This is a relatively populated planet, How come snuffers / shields weren't able to negate the attack?)

This settlement does not have nuke snuffers and they’re little good against plasma beams from the platform. The people here weren’t on the platform. They don’t know too much about the people who were on the platform , just rumors that they were foreign.

(can they tell us anything about the region south; any major hazards, navigational points to watch out for, and what the refugees might be heading towards?)

The refugees are probably going to scatter from any major population centers at this point, since they'd just be running towards another likely target. The land to the south took a direct plasma beam hit. It is hot and irradiated, and should be passed through as quickly as possible. Those who fled might not be aware of the dangers. You also have the added danger of desperate people and their unpredictability

(I don't have any further questions, but I would like to check if we can resupply at the shuttle - even if only to swap in gear in our "luggage" and whether we can figure out a plan to deal with the radiation ahead of time)

(ooh, late to the party - you guys were thorough, no other questions from me)

(The shuttle can transport things to and from the Dark Star for you. The Dark Star also has an armory and locker if we need things )

(so looking at the rules, there's not much that can really "deal" with radiation, but potentially vacc suits might make for a safer crossing? Is it feasible for us to get hold of anti-rad and radpacks? If we can wrangle a porter-bot or a floater-ruck that would be nice)

(there are rad packs and a floater ruck, we can also get vac suits if we want them, but its AC value is used since its your current armor at that point )

11:51 AM

( i know some people are reluctant to part with their combat field uniforms sometimes, even if its just for a bit)

(seems like it would be good to get that kit, plus maybe make sure we have rations - I don't have anything else to ask or discuss kit wise, what do other people want to do?)

(Vacc suits and rad packs sound like a good idea. I’m not really familiar with all the equipment yet so not really sure what else, if anything would be useful.)

(So whats the plan - park the peoples we've found and look for more south? Agreed on the rad packs, maybe on the vacc suits - I'll go with consensus there. Our survey scanners should give us radiation readings. I wonder if there is any transportation we could use for expediency; grav bikes, flyers or other vehicles? Not sure if that would be helpful?)

(nothing available right now, the Dark Star doesn't have that kind of tonnage and local stuff is tied up)

(Talos will opt for a vacc suit and rad packs. Do the locals in the shelter know of any other shelters? Is there equipment we can set them up with to help looking for more survivors in the city?)

(During that skill challenge a few hours passed but we saved everyone in town that can be thanks to everyone’s hard work. Our challenge now is the refugee column heading south and any clues they might drop ) (edited)

(can we park the vacc suits on the ruck; and therefore change into the suits when/if we approach the rad zone?)

(Yes we can!)

(Gurk doesn't need anything else other than what's been noted; happy to set off once everyone has decided what they want/need)

(Talos is ready to go)

(Kila's good to go)

(excellent, yeah Thulee's good to to go)

(only thing I'd add is make sure we bring some medicine/water purifier stuff if we can, might be good to buy us some goodwill if words fail! If that's logistically possible of course)

1

(would "trade goods" count for that? if so maybe we could get some)

(Good to go)

(the survival kit has that stuff in it, so we can include them)

1

(I'm ready to go then!)

The land to the south of the city is a broken steppeland of once grassy plains and fruiting trees, reduced to burned remains of their former greenery now. You see the cookfires about three kilometers ahead of you still and the radiation counter on the ruck slowly begins climbing the closer you get to them, it is evident these people have stopped well within the danger zone and do not realize they are indeed in danger of becoming very sick without intervention.

(would now be a good time to switch to vacc suits and take meds?) "Can the drone get a clearer picture of what's up ahead? Or we can skip technology I suppose, does anyone have binoculars?"

Upon hearing the word “drone” iumi’s eyes dart to Thulee and widen to puppy-dog size. She then realizes she lost her cool for a second and very badly performatively chills out. In a nonchalant tone, she says “I mean, I don’t see how the drone could hurt… I know you’re busy, Thulee, I could probably pilot it again and get some recon done as we get closer…”

Gurk pulls out his binoculars: he'll have a quick look while the drone discussion proceeds. (edited)

Lamarck nods approvingly. "Finally something I can understand, if you don't mind I'd like to see when you're done"

The binoculars spot a few campfires intermixed with the dying trees ahead. You see about a dozen figures moving between them and keeping watch. They appear to be armed but don’t handle their weapons the way you’d expect from a professional.

4:50 PM

There are no doubt others there but from this distance additional details are hard to make out

"All eyes and ears will help methinks..." Thulee passes the drone controls over "...all yours Lumi, take it up, up and away". He then takes a closer look at the radiation counter on the ruck to get a sense the level of danger. "I'd suggest we get in there as quickly as possible and get people to safety. We could pop the vac suits on now although I do wonder if that will scare the survivors..?"

Lamarck eyes the suits. "They'd scare me at least, but then again it might show them how serious we are. Do we have any idea of where we would send them? Assuming they listen..."

Talos starts to change into a vac suit suit "As I said...my kind doesn't mix well with radiation. It's not optional for me." As he struggles to fit the oversized suit he weighs in on what the others have seen. "They have either seen trouble, or are the trouble."

Gurk passes the binoculars to Lamarck. "On the other hand," he says to Talos, "we might be the trouble they think they see. We're heavily armed, and have military-grade equipment. Convincing them to disarm is going to be difficult. I wonder why they haven't noticed the risk of radiation at all?"

Kila starts pulling on a vacc suit. "Yeah, a bit worrying Gurk. Like Lamarck says, vacc suits could convince them the threat is serious. If they're not survivors...well don't forget the signal."

As Thulee puts on his suit he turns to Mushk "no CatSuits, sorry Mushk. I'll let you know if you need to retreat - you can circle back here. Your extra set of senses will be helpful". She gives him a head tilt, a little growl and a nod. Not super happy but committed. "Next time we'll get you a UNW rescue coat... actually some signage would have been helpful." Turning to Kila, Gurk and the others "It's worrying alright. How about we try to get them to move back here - where we are now, as a start?"

Gurk climbs into his suit. "That sounds workable. I don't think they'll trust us though - we'll do better if we can help them realise themselves they cannot stay here. "The plants are dying: we can point to that to show the area isn't safe for living things. And Talos, if you can tell them about the early symptoms of radiation sickness, they'll probably recognise the symptoms among themselves. If we can then get them back here, we can maybe treat them and find out what they know. "... We should also find a defensible position on our approach in case things go really badly."

Iumi slides into her vacc suit and gets ready to head south.

(Since Mushk is more of a metaspace construct I think they’d be able to come with. If that’s not what’s in the rules we can allow it this time until I get a chance to re read that one)

1

The team begins pushing into the region now protected from the environment. The approach is noticed as you draw another kilometer closer and it looks as though the armed men have decided to send a small group of four out to meet with you before you walk into there they’ve settled.

Kila positions herself towards the front of the group ready to talk. "They're approaching, that's probably a good sign that they might be willing to listen. If they are I'm happy to do most of the talking with others chipping in their expertise as it comes up. Everyone OK with that?"

"Sounds good to me."

Both of Iumi’s right hands make a gesture as if to say “ok”

(Gurk is happy with this plan)

Talos nods in agreement.

"Sounds good Kila"

Lamarck also nods. "I heard how you talked to those people in the shelter, with you in charge we'll be fine!" He grins at you, its slightly too large but seems geniune. He also gives you a thumbs up, as he finishes donning his vacc suit.

The four travelers post up a few hundred meters from you and stop moving, indicating you will have to cross the rest of the distance between here and them. Their rifles are old models, hung low and look more like family heirlooms or things meant for hunting than weapons of war.

"Should we all approach as a group or would it be better to send a few? I'd imagine both approaches have their benefits. As a group we show more power but it could ..." He catches himself from rambling and adjusts his glasses. "Kila should obviously go, my question is do we all go?"

"Let's send four, match their strength. The rest of us can wait here in case anything goes awry." Iumi nods. "Kila's trained for this, I can go if needed, but I'm happy to stay back. Gurk, Thulee, Lori? Any of you want to go?" She thinks to herself for a minute, "Actually, Talos, maybe you should go and conspicuously display your medical kit. Isn't it a war crime to harm a doctor trying to provide aid?"

Gurk eyes the figures thoughtfully. He's reminded of frontier settlers who, confronted with the overwhelming threat of some xeno-beast, take up whatever tools to hand to try to save their friends and family - no matter how inadequate they might be. "These people have been through a lot," he says, "and may believe their actions are key to putting events back under control. It is important we're not dismissive of them, or their abilities. We're going to have to be respectful. I can go with the party - I might be able to draw their attention to the environment, show them the risks." Gurk will keep an eye out for anyone concealed behind this advance party, and for some place the UNW team can rapidly retreat to in the event of hostilities breaking out.

"I'd say Talos is essential. Gurk is volunteering, anyone else coming? Best not to keep them waiting long." Kila picks up her pack, ready to head over.

Thulee listens to the professionals shape plans, "I'll come along if thats ok, I might be able to help if things get weird."

"I'm probably not the best at playing at diplomat, I'll leave it to you all. I'll keep an eye on the surroudnings and if I see something fishy I'll yell about the rucks radioactivty meter getting really high, Gurk mind if I hold onto these binoculars in the meantime?"

"Sure thing," Gurk says.

1

(That thumbs up represents Lamarcks way over the top thumbs up)

"Alright, you four should get going. We're here for backup."

"Thanks Lumi, Lamarck, you've got our backs" Mushk makes a little meorraw and starts to get moving. Looking at his Cat he motions with his hands forward "Shall we..?"

"Lori's got your back too. The three of us make some formidable foes, no?" Iumi jokes, then realizes the gravity of the situation and clears her throat. "Sorry, I uh - sorry. We'll be watching."

(oh sorry Lori, Thulee had a brain fade!)

(hehe sorry didn't mean for a call out just wanted to loop us all in

y'all got this!)

Talos spends a few minutes sorting his gear. He tucks his medical kit under his arm, the UNW First Aid symbol prominently displayed. "Agreed on broadcasting the medical assistance. Our priority needs to be getting these people outside of this irradiated zone."

Turning to Iumi, Lamarck and Lori Kila smiles. "Thanks for watching our backs, hopefully this goes smoothly." She flexes are shoulders, stands tall and keeps her body language neutral hoping to show the others they're not a threat. Turning to the rest of the groups she says, "We ready? Let's head over there." Kila starts to make her way confidently towards the group waiting for them. As they get closer Kila tries to identify the leader of the group.

"Hello!" one of the sentinels calls out. "That's quite close enough! Who are you, and what do you want?" The conversation is shouted over 30m

Kila calls back. "We're a search and rescue team. We helped some survivors in town and we're now investigating the attack. Who are you and what's your situation?" She hopes giving them some power in the rhetoric, and not assuming they're helpless will build some trust.

(talk/cha)

(8)

The tension they felt at seeing their group being tailed seems to fade away. "Rescue? Thank god you're here. We've got sick, and injured. Where did all of you come from?" the lead rifleman asks, looking past you out onto the plains.

"We're UNW. We have a doctor and other people skilled in healing that can help." She gestures to the companions with her and then back towards the others they left behind. "We believe they're in immediate danger here." Kila steps back slightly to allow the others to pitch in.

"The survivors in town reported a hot zone to the south, with high levels of radiation. That's why we're kitted out like this." Gurk gestures at the suits. "We've seen a lot of signs that the radiation level is getting more intense the further south we go. Particularly, the plant life is doing very poorly, and many of the trees are already dying." Gurk looks at some of the nearby plants. Given the town was set in farmland, at least some of these people should be, or know, farmers. They should recognise the signs of plant ill-health, and Gurk tries to highlight some of the visible features of sickness to them. When finished, Gurk looks at Talos. Hopefully medical knowledge will persuade this group that the "sick and injured" are probably irradiated and need to be evacuated ASAP.

Talos glances up from his dataslab at the group and adds "There are airborne radioactive particles, likely dispersed from the attack. It's extremely dangerous for you to breath or consume these particles. I can offer medical assistance, but it is imperative that you move your people from this area."

"Where should we go? It wasn't easy to get here, we have sick and injured" the rifleman asks. He is nervous now with this sudden drop of bad news, on top of an already terrible situation they've faced just a few days ago. (Notice/wis checks for Lamarck, Lumi, and Loriya) (edited)

(5)

(8)

(just gonna see how Lori does and 'll bring this all together)

(11)

7

Lamarck notices five figures moving east through the woods approaching the gathering. No one actually in the conversation 200m away from you seems to have noticed them. The figures are armed. Two of them are carrying what looks to be braces of grenades. Loriya is especially sharp eyed and notices the symbol of Phemno Mining Guild on the shoulder of their combat armor. The guild has been defeated for months now but news travels slowly and this operation must have already been in the works.

(I'm assuming the mining guild is about to like. shoot at us or something)

(They’re going to open fire on the refugees )

Lori's eyes widen as she pieces together what's about to happen. "Guys- We've got company-!"

Lamarck squints in the direction. "I see the people... they're carrying something dark... GUNS! We've got to tell the others!"

Startled by Lori’s info and Lamarck’s warning, Iumi quickly clears her throat, collects herself, and begins to make her way quickly but calmly toward the forward group. As soon as she’s within non-yelling earshot of Kila and the others, she says “men with guns approaching from the woods - they do not look friendly.” Looking back toward the east, her lower right hand comes to a rest gripping the hilt of her laser pistol. “As if these folks haven’t been through enough.”

(How far away are they from our forward group, and the other survivors who are camped?)

(Have they noticed us, or are they focused on the refugees?)

(They are focused on Kila’s group and the refugees and have noticed all of you)

6:01 AM

(They are 50m from kilas group and the refugees )

(When you say refugees you mean the folks who have come out to meet us right - not the sick and injured further back in the rad zone?)

(no, they're going for the sick and injured)

(ok so how we gonna handle this? i have zero combat experience but we outnumber them with our forward group, and the refugees we're talking to can probably signal back to their camp. since they've noticed us already we're not going to lose any element of surprise by warning the refugees with us, so my vote is warn them and then unload on the bad guys.)

(Agreed Kila)

(we at the forward group might need to try to get some cover, given we're in vacc suits - and we might need to try and shoot the grenadiers first)

(Loriya called out to you, so the Guild's attempted ambush has failed)

9:03 AM

(both groups can engage them)

(oh, i thought she just said that to Lamarck and Iumi, ha)

(Lamarck and I both have high move speed, we can run to the other side of them and set up a flanking situation if need be)

(It wasn't clear, but two people passed the check, so you'd know in a matter of seconds anyway when someone radios you)

1

10:22 AM

(So we can all jump into initiative)

(2)

(7)

(2 also sorry for the spam my phone was very unhappy!)

(3)

(I cannot get this to work on my phone at all, won't be able to roll until I get home)

Talos Corda

(I cannot get this to work on my phone at all, won't be able to roll until I get home)

(I'm glad someone else had a hard time, I had to force close it in the end)

(no worries all, its PbP for a reason)

(Same here I’ll roll when at a computer. We have to get the people with the bombs first?)

1

(agree)

(7, rolled twice... alert. Looks like the responses are not going back to roll20)

(4)

(3)

(okay, order is Thulee, Iumi, PMG hit squad, Talos, Gurk, Loriya, Lamarck, Kila)

3

Nekosmash pinned a message to this channel. 3/4/2022 7:31 AM

Thulee’s eyes widen as he locks onto the advancing group and sees the braces of grenades. No way, noooooo way! Immediately Mushk takes off low and fast to get between the enemy and the refugees (move 20m towards the enemy) and makes herself a distraction (total defence, main action), growling, snarling and trying to be as badass as she can. Thulee follows her and gets behind whatever cover he can find (move 10m). “The bombers, BOMBERS..!!” he shouts as he squeezes off a shot from his laser pistol at the closest grenadier.   (22/2) (edited)

Iumi books it in the same direction as Mushk (she uses EK-Static Thrusters increases movement by 10m) and once in position, takes aim at one of the grenadiers (preferably IN the actual grenade) and shoots. (14/3)

(Static thrusters is a main action, so we wouldn't be able to both activate it and shoot)

(Ah gotcha, I’ll do thrusters this turn, my bad)

One of the grenadiers is wounded, and it does not deter them quite enough. Each of them throws a grenade into the mass of refugees, and you're unsure how many are wounded or killed from here, only seeing two plumes of dust going skyward.

11:21 AM

(Talos)

Talos fumbles for his pistol. As his hand finds the holster, bits of earth strike the visor of his vac suit. No. Hands shaking, he runs full speed toward the refugees with his emergency kit at the ready, looking for wounded refugees that he might be able to stabilize.

Gurk scrabbles for cover, and shoots at the already-wounded grenadier. (7/9)

Lori also scrambles for cover, and uses her Colonial Arms rifle to shoot at the grenadier. (0/12 RIP)

6

Lamarcks hands can't stop shaking as he raises his rifle and points it at the grenadier, he closes his eyes and pulls the trigger (18/3 burst if that matters?)

6:00 PM

After shooting he opens his eyes, and begins to run for the treeline hoping to flank the group.

(I'll almost certainly miss, but will wait for Neko to come back before I take my turn as that last shot might change things) (edited)

(Lamarck - I believe burst is +2 to hit and damage)

1

(Had a look at his roll - roll20 added the bonuses already)

2

(thanks for double checking, I've never rolled an attack in this before so I wasn't sure!)

(Talos can use his move and main to move again to get to those who need help and can render aid on his next turn. Gurk and Lori both miss , Lamarck will wound one )

6:24 PM

The shots punch into the armor of one of them, staggering him but it’s not enough to put the well armored and robust hit team down.

6:25 PM

(Kila up)

Kila stumbles to whatever cover she can find and takes what she thinks is an aim at the grenadier, squeezing the trigger with shaking fingers. (3/3)

(Recapping... how far are Thulee and Mushk from the hit team? Did they move at all? Another question - are there any random animals in sight whatsoever?) (edited)

(The cat is 20m from them. You’re 30m from them)

Mushk charges at the Grenadier who is already hit with full force (move 20m). Her attack is a blur of motion involving fangs, paws & claws... although her efforts seem to be causing more distraction than harm (11/1). Have to get close, none of us can shoot straight Thulee's hair fizzes and parts turn to green grass shit, anxious. He continues to move towards the hit team, using whatever cover he can... hoping Mushk is side-tracking them (using main & move action to move 20m).

(you're 10m away and Iumi is up)

Having zipped a bit closer to the hit squad, Iumi yells to the group of refugees the UNW SAR team came south to meet. “If any of you know how to shoot, now might be a good time!” She aims her laser pistol at the hit squad and prepares to shoot. (If the shout needs a talk roll let me know and I’ll save the shot for next round. If not, the shoot roll is 7/6)

(its just a warning, so no check needed)

10:47 AM

(shot misses though, I'll roll for PMG shortly) (edited)

(one evasion save for Talos, since one grenade is going to get thrown, the other is in melee) Gunfire peppers into the group, missing one shot, while the other strikes Gurk (20/7)

1

(does the evasion save for talos and gurk getting shot count as their turns? or are they missing their turns because of those things?) (edited)

(gurk getting shot it just damage he is taking. I don't think that brings him to 0 so he should be able to continue acting normally. Talos is either taking full or half damage from a grenade depending on if the save is passed or failed, but yeah i got the order mixed up, should be Talos up)

(Gurk is now 5/12 hp)

(14/13 passed)

(3 damage and now it’s your move) (edited)

The blast from the next grenade sends Talos tumbling. He recovers as he reaches the refugees, his mouth full of the taste of iron and a thin spatter of blood running down the inside of his visor. Wasting no time, he gets to work stabilizing one of the critically wounded survivors. (Healer) (edited)

Talos does what he can to provide gallant first aid work at cost to himself amid the firefight, gunfire and explosions blossoming all around him

6:31 PM

(Gurk up)

Gurk staggers under the impact of the hit, and returns fire at the wounded target (12/11)

Lori attempts a burst fire at the grenadier, from behind her cover. (10/12)

Both shots strike the ground around the assault team but nothing makes contact with the heavily armored PMG squad

7:41 PM

(Lamarck and then Kila)

Lamarck takes a deep breath and closes his eyes to shoot again as he feels the lasers shoot out and opens his eyes as the beams are leaving his rifle (7/4). As he hears Gurk cry out he realizes his primitve flanking tactics may not be as useful as he thought and heads toward the refugees.

(Miss there. Kila up and then Thulee if you guys get to it before I wake up)

Growing increasingly frustrated, Kila takes aim at the injured fighter once more. She tries to calm herself this time though, takes a deep breath and fires. (15/5)

Kila’s shot fizzes past Mushk as she continues to tangle with the injured grenadier. She lashes out again, trying to land a telling blow (18/1). Thulee continues to duck, weave and move (10m) right up to the grenadiers as fire hits the ground around him. Insane… this is insane. How have I not been hit? As he gets close to the grenadiers he raises his hands, palms up... like he is lifting an imaginary weight with two hands. As his hands rise the earth starts to vibrate. The dying grasses and plants on the ground around him all stand up to attention… towards his hands, shimmering in meta-energy. He stops. "Enough... ENOUGH…!" He throws his hands up, above his head. The land groans as all flora around him bursts wildly with growth - enormous fluorescent green grasses, grotesque radioactive flowers on spiked stalks, a kaleidoscope of colour and motion for 10 metres in all directions. They whip, moves and slash at the Grenadiers and anyone else in the vicinity. (Metaflora. Anyone caught in the area can make an Evasion Save or be either attacked by lashing flora for 1d10+WIS/mod damage or restrained until they use a main Action. 3/4 effort remaining)

1

Kila manages to take one of the grenadiers down, he vanishes into the undergrowth as the metaflora swallows the corpse. (mushk needs to make one as well, since they were in melee with the grenadier)

7:25 AM

(I've got two passes and a fail)

7:26 AM

Mushk manages to wound another before the confusion of the sudden plant growth has her and her target out of sight for a moment. One of the three survivors is swept from his feet and bludgeoned hard against a rock by the flailing vines. There is the unmistakable crack of a head breaking like an egg on stone and the hit team member moves no more. Down to half their strength, they press the attack. (Iumi is up)

(is that two left up and shooting or three?)

(two up and left shooting. One was downed by the metaflora attack and Kila killed one we previously injured)

Iumi takes aim and shoots again. (10/1) (edited)

The shot misses, and the dogged survivors of the PMG hit team continue firing into the group., now concentrating on the psychic and his battle cat in their midst. Conserving ammo and refraining from burst fire, both of their shots miss the well armored psychic.

1

9:30 AM

(Talos is up!)

Oblivious to the lethal fire crossing over his head, Talos concentrates on the wounded refugee in front him. His hands move deftly despite the awkward vacc suit, slipping a tourniquet across the mans arm. Satisfied that the shrapnel-torn arteries flow has begun to abate, he moves to the next of the wounded and continues to work (Healer).

Gurk takes another shot. (11/8)

The shot misses as Gurk tries to support the team. The heavily armored gunmen do their best to stay in the fight despite the amount of fire pouring in at them. (Lori up)

(Mushk save 7 v 11 is a fail... Metaflora will have to restrain her, don't really want to attack her!)

(Sounds good. We will see how loris shot goes and we can keep it movin)

(We will move on to Lamarack and if lori makes her way back she can take her turn whenever)

Lamarck keeps running towards the people who are injured, as he runs he remembers he has a gun and tries to shoot (9/2), but is distracted by the efflorescence overtaking the soldiers and pulls his shot up in shock. (I'm hoping to get to the injured people after using my next movement, does that sound right?)

Hoping for another stroke of luck, Kila fires her pistol at the remaining hostiles. (3/6) (Sorry, I'd decided I was going to try and convince them to surrender but my sleep fogged brain already rolled the shot this morning!)

(I'm tracking that as well Lamarck, if you want to try Kila, you can redo)

(aww thanks Neko, will give it a go) They've lost half their men and they're heavily outnumbered, why aren't they surrendering? Maybe they think we'll kill them anyway. They were willing to die for a successful mission, but maybe not for a failed one. I just killed one of their men, maybe they'll listen to me. It's worth a shot. Summoning all the conviction she can muster, Kila keeps her gun tracked on the two remaining fighters and shouts, "You're down two men, you can't win this fight, and you can't complete your mission. You're outnumbered 3 to 1. Surrender now, we'll spare your lives and you'll get quarter."

(Talk/cha)

(9)

Ammunition running low, metafloral vines and a psionic cat attacking them, and half the team now dead, even the most hardened corporate legionary would be hard pressed to continue fighting. They attempt to surrender. (their held action is going to be to keep shooting if anyone attacks them, so if someone does, we'll resolve their move first)

Gurk lowers his weapon. Once they’re disarmed he will go to help Talos and Lamarck with the refugees. (Gurk would prefer not to try shooting them) (edited)

(I also won’t attack)

(A few of you should process their surrender, and i know a couple wanted to help the wounded, so we can move the spotlight back and forth)

(If we're assuming the surrender is going through, Gurk would like to apply a medpak (to himself - rolled 2d4+1 = 8, adds 1 system strain, puts him back to 12/12 hp) then grab the ruck and haul it over to Talos + Lamarck) (edited)

(Kila will help process the surrender, but first she'd like to check on the refugees we were talking to to make sure they're ok, then send them back to their main group to help so they don't anything to compromise the surrender because they're probably furious at these guys - will RP it once everyone's decided unless we're doing a skill contest again) (edited)

Iumi will stay with the Phemno group and process the surrender, channeling a visible but actually harmless stream of MES into a static zap between her finger and thumb as a threat in case they try any funny business. Hopefully they don’t know I can’t actually hurt a fly with this…

(there won;'t be any other checks)

4

Thulee untangles himself from the mess of plant life he conjured from the ground, and helps process the surrender. Mushk does likewise and keeps close eyes on the surrendering pair.

Iumi is visibly hesitant around Mushk still, but has warmed significantly after having spent this much time with the cat and not been eaten by her yet. She hesitantly scritches behind Mushk’s ear with her bottom left hand.

(sorry y'all, I was super busy) Lori peeks her head over the cover she hunkered down behind. "Is it over??"

The fighting seems to be over. Thulee, Kila, and Iumi begin moving to take the Phemno Mining Guild hit team into custody, relieving them of their arms and armor while the others begin moving in to render aid to the refugees.

9:39 AM

A dozen have been wounded, four of them critically so.

Lamarck pants as he makes it to Talos and the injured, he looks around trying to take in the situation and his eyes land on the nearest critically injured refugee. He kneels down beside him and mutters to himself, "I'm going to try something here, I've only ever done it on animals but it might work on you too. It might be your only shot since Talos is only one person." He takes a deep breath and puts his hand on the wound. (Trying to use the Biopsionic Level 0 Psychic Succor, never used this before!) (edited)

(do you have 0 or 1)

10:20 AM

(Predictably, I can't get roll20 to load)

(Just 0, well it is a day that ends in a y)

(critical only, you're right) You manage to stabilize one of the downed refugees as Talos works near you, doing his best to render aid and triage as many people as he can.

1

Gurk comes to a halt next to the group, and untangles himself from the ruck. After assisting the critically wounded, everyone will probably need the anti-radiation meds. He moves towards the closest critically-injured refugee, to do what he can for them.

(If those with the surrendering guys want to ask questions, we can try to collect some info)

Iumi’s forked tongue flits in and out as she focuses on relieving one of the PMG members of his weapon. Standing out in the open, Iumi takes in what these guys look like. A thought occurs to her. She leans in to the one she’s de-arming and hesitates before asking him to take off his armor. “Other than that suit, do you have anything on you that can protect you from the radiation? You deserve a day in court, I’m not going to sentence you to death by radiation sickness right here.”

"Nothing else. This was all we were issued for the operation|"

Kila nods, "We offered you mercy and you'll get it. We have rad pills, we'll give you some once we're out of this radiation." She pauses, considering for a moment. If this is all they were issued then they're probably grunts, so no point interrogating them too hard. Was this a suicide mission? She takes the gun from one of the men and weighs it in her hand, "What was the operation here, what was your goal?"

"Revenge for the UNW destroying he planet cracker and the death of our CEO Eduardo"

Talos is so focused on the wounded, he hardly noticed that the firefight has stopped. Focusing on the most critically wounded, he clamps, cauterizes, and stitches what he can so that they might survive the attack. He watches Lamarck stabilize a particularly perforated refugee with a neutral expression, but catches the man's eye and gives a grateful nod. Once the most critical wounds are dealt with, Talos begins to deal out bandages and painkillers, enlisting Gurk and Lamarck to help care for the rest.

Iumi grimaces hearing the soldiers response. “Revenge? Against civilians? I doubt a single one of these people has ever set foot in Brizeno space. Why go for people who had nothing to do with the battle?”

"They belong to the UNW, and the UNW did this to us.

Disgusting. That's an indoctrinated response if ever I heard one though, arguing the philosophy of war crimes with these two will be fruitless. Still they valued their lives enough to surrender, offering leniency might get them to give up important details. Kila's nostrils flare, but that's the only sign that she's angry or annoyed. "Who ordered your mission, and where are they now? Remember, every bit of information you give us will count when you're facing trial." (edited)

“Phemno mining guild and the board, two weeks after the planet cracker was destroyed. It took months to get everyone into place and stir up trouble “

3:15 PM

(August of the protectorate killed their board recently in game. We wouldn’t know it yet but I didn’t want people jumping after a mission that doesn’t exist anymore

(there's a couple of things Gurk would like to see asked, if nobody else has anything - but since he is supporting the refugees maybe needs to wait until that side is dealt with?)

(We can ask. )

6:58 AM

(So this keeps on moving)

Gurk looks up. "How did you capture the station? It was a hardened target, and well-defended against exactly this type of assault. "Did you pass through the town further north, and if you did, why? "What you were you going to do next if your mission here had succeeded?" (edited)

"Hide in the countryside, and wait for new orders, attacking other targets of opportunity as we encounter them"

Growing tired of the minimal information and clipped answers, Kila figures it might be worth trying to make them doubt their masters. "The message we received said we had a week to meet demands or they'd total the rest of the planet. That would include you, did you know that was a possibility?"

"There is no greater honor than to give your life for the guild. The guild took care of us, it provided for us. We were going to grow into something strong and your people took that away. We're going to take it away from you too, and dying in the attempt is something we were all prepared for"

Kila looks him straight in the eye. "If you truly believed that, you wouldn't have surrendered."

2

Iumi looks at Kila and Gurk, side eyeing the soldiers. “Think they even get paid a wage or…” her voice trails off, recalling horror stories she has heard about Phemno, and how the Guild traffics in human capital.

Their weapons only had a few shots left in them upon inspection. They were not issued sidearms, and the stock of grenades has been used on the refugees already. This deep into the countryside, the preliminary bombardments would have been used on population centers , and out here only a miss or freak accident would have seen them killed in the first wave

8:34 AM

It also appears their link with the platform was severed ten minutes before the shootout took place.

(can we search the rest of their equipment, to see if there's anything notable?)

Each of them is armed with a Phemno Mining Guild assault suit, a laser rifle, two Type A energy cells, a compad, and two grenades, all of which were thrown to various levels of effect during the ambush.

Lamarck walks over wiping blood off his hands and sweat off his brow. He looks down at the equipment and glares at the emptied grenade braces. The glare follows to the soldiers. "Tell us if there are any other cells, it'll help your chances in court." He leans down and picks up the compad and hands it to Iumi. "Better hurry she's pretty good at hacking. Even I can already see the station has been taken. Your surrender tells me you value your lives, this could be another life changing decision for you. " He taps his head" You've been reasonable so far, let's hope that continues... Enough bad has happened here today already"

The station was the bulk of their effort. If there attacks planned in other polities, it is unclear. This one happened first almost by luck or an accident, when an unscrupulous Protectorate trader named Jimmer Pitkins simply gave up the contents of his armory to the first people that approached him with credits. The protestors on the platform, all paid by the guild to cause trouble and distraction for its hit teams, now found themselves armed and paid, and opportunity was made from the situation.

2:14 PM

(PMG had quietly been moving people out, mayb be some kind of alliance between their remnants and the Azure Eye, who is a new group inside the UNW causing trouble. EP threw gas on the fire by handing out weapons to anyone who wanted one to make a quick buck, without vetting who they were going to )

2:14 PM

(and by EP we mean right now, one person, and not EP as a whole, though I'm sure some kind of repercussions for this will be on the table once this mess is resolved)

With Gurk moving in to help question the soldiers, Iumi steps aside for him and moves toward Lamarck’s outstretched hand holding the confiscated compad. Adrenaline pumping, as the device changes hands she almost drops it before steadying herself. Taking a breath, she pulls up a command line and begins a preliminary dig through the comms history as well as any potentially encrypted files available locally. Might be better to wait until we’re back onboard the ship to dig into this… but I don’t want to risk anything being wiped remotely, especially if the guild could be planning something similar elsewhere. “I’ll look through this for now, let me know if you need an extra set of hands - or two I guess - dealing with them.” She nods as she replies to Lamarck.

Thulee shakes his head... partially at hearing the PMG responses, partially at the pain of connecting with the radiated ground. He moves over to Iumi to see if he can help with data sleuthing "Can we tell if they communicated with anyone other than the orbital?"

These hitmen have not communicated with anyone other than the orbital.

(so to summarize right now we know.

Possible link between Azure Eye and the survivors of Phemno Mining Guild, we're not sure of PMG or AE is pulling the strings here but it seems likely AE arranged this attack , we do not know of other AE sites, of if they;re operating beyond the UNW borders

EP as a whole is not responsible for this, but one of their more reckless far traders is, and the weapons he sold from the ship armory accelerated a plot or perhaps made one of their plans take on a different direction

)

(not totally sure how out of contact the bridge team is; is there any way we can convey this info to them now? Doesn't sound like it would help them much but keeping an eye out for the AE connection might be useful)

(We can reach them. You can put it in the #chloe-terrorism-theatre thread, since its a group communication)

(Update done; Gurk doesn't have any more questions)

(all good here)

(great questions everyone, Thulee has nothing to add)

(Kila has no more questions)

(I'm good as well, Gurk summed it up nicely and hopefully they can do something with that)

1

(6xp, 50,000 credits everyone. I think we've done what we can do here, but for his selfless actions Talos is going to be awarded the United Nations of Worlds Medal of Heroism, with a V device for Valor , for selflessly throwing himself into harms way to treat casualties without thought given to defending himself. Medical personnel around the sectors will be friendlier and more willing to render aid, and his med kits no longer run out of supplies after use)

8

( o7 )

(Well deserved!!)

(We can go to individual threads, ill read up and refresh myself on what we're all doin

(Epic, Talos!)