"Damn!" Brian curses as the jackals activate shields and fire at him, feeling the plasma bolts' dull thuds into his own defenses. He considers moving to cover, but then watches as Elwood charges in and slashes the shields from one jackal, even as Charlotte blasts away the other's defense. Grinning under his helmet, Brian follows Cudley's suit: he drops his pistols, not having time to holster them , then charges the same jackal as the lieutenant, drawing and activating his energy swords as he does so .
Within the bullet storm, you all are able to kill one of the Jackals. The other one uses a Withdraw action to escape Brian and Elwood. As he runs, Brian and Elwood are able to see six more Jackals in the entrance way where the two entered. Before the Jackal who was still alive is able to get near the entrance, the ship's doors shut, leaving the Jackal in your capable and deadly arms. The doors to the Gorgon were used to board the ship, and thus shut themselves when the other ship leave. The Jackal turns around slowly, with nothing but fear in its large, misty eyes.
Those who are near a port-hole are able to see the ship as it leaves. It is half as big as the Harbinger of Justice, but twice as big as the USS Gorgon. Knowledge Engineering or Knowledge Local may be used to determine what kind of ship it is.
Batista and Ram'Dain recieve the order to leave as soon as the emergency signal starts. The order is issued by the Colonel.
Upon receiving notice of the emergency signal, Ram'Dain has the Herald II placed into the magnetic loader on the cargo bay of the Pelican that is to be the retrieval ship. There is plenty of room inside the Pelican for the Field Team and have the probe out as well.
When he is finished preparing some of his equipment, he gets himself into place in the Pelican, taking the co-pilot seat. He's almost ecstatic to be able to go out into space.
"Oh boy, this is gonna be great. Flying in a Pelican is gonna be so much better than those Longsword they flew us up in. Didn't get a good enough view. Oh!" He reaches for his PDA, taking a picture of him and the cockpit of the Pelican. "That's going to Facebook."
Brian curses as the rest of the pirates flee the ship, but he can't help grinning as the jackal turns, terrified. "Lieutenant Cudley, if you'd be so kind as to take priority over our unexpected guest?" the SPARTAN says, idly pointing a pistol at the jackal's head until Cudley moves forward.
"Alright, friend," Brian says to the pirate, "you've managed to get yourself in a load of trouble. I'm very interested in hearing your story..."
First, though, Brian turns to the others on the vessel. "Alright, I want that body searched, weapons checked, everything gone over. Stay alert, people; I don't want to be surprised if those pirates come back. Corporal, you're a sniper, right? Keen eyes: tell me what that ship looks like."
With that, the Master Chief returns his helmeted gaze to the jackal, the reflective visor giving away nothing of his pensive expression. Let's see what we can learn...
The Jackal says timidly "Yap Yap Yap Sqwark Yap!"
Elwood searches the jackal for any further equipment, stripping it down to its clothes. Then he marches it over to a corner where there is only one crate, and sits across from it on the crate with his battle rifle trained on its head while it stands in the corner. "Don't move sh*thead."
"Sqwark Yap Yap!" says the Jackal.
"Aye-Aye, Chief." the Corporal bounded up to a port hole, trying to get a good look at the pirate ship as it flew away. Brendan wracked his head as he tried to figure out what type of ship it was from the profile and his time with the ODST.
"It's about twice as large as us- about half the size of the Harbinger. I'm surprised they didn't just blast us out of the sky once they retreated though. Not complaining though, just means that they either don't have weapons, or don't want to use them for some reason."
Charlotte watches the Jackal from the corner of her eye listening carefully to see what she can figure out for the squawks and yaps that were starting to get on her nerves. "Can we shut this little thing up before I shoot it myself?" She grumbles as she sits on a crate watching it. "That was easy...perhaps a little to easy for my taste."
He runs up to the pelican to see the elite saying something about facebook and just reaches over and pulls him off the pilot seat so he can start flying. He will not make a strength check for his because of the fact he needs to get going and knows the guy will get out of his way. Oy Move yer arse "Bill" we need to get goin! We have spartans and one of your blood kin to pick up! He sits down once he is in the seat and starts firing up the bird, then puts on his headset to anoy the flight control a little. Ok flight control here is the deal...I apparently need to go pick up "The Police" and their groupy from their concert. Something about having too much fun at the party...sounded drunk to me...anyway Im just going to steal this bird and head on my way with Bill Nye the Science guy here so Ill bring her back, hopefully without a scratch hehe he makes a slightly evil laugh as he launches. Everyone knows what the mission is so meh but he wondered how many would get that reference. He hums every 60s to 80s song he could think of to pass the time.
I'll need a fortitude save from Ram'Dain and from Batista. While flying through the Asteroid belts that were previously mentioned, you start bumping into various debris. The Pelican is strong enough to avoid any serious damage, but you guys are knocked around a good number.
Charlotte, your Linguistics wasn't good enough to translate. It just sounds like a bunch of Yaps and Sqwarks.
Because the Pelican isn't carrying such a heavy cargo, it is able to reach the Gorgon in about 1 day. I want to know what everyone is doing that day, and what you shall do with the prisoner.
Carlotte is going to do her morning exercise before watching the prisoner for a while twirling one of her pistols in her hand. The Jackal startin to get on her nerves. "Ich schwöre, das kleine Scheißer Gesicht kriegt schießen, wenn sie nicht aufhören, Lärm. Es hielt mich fast die ganze Nacht." She grumbles in german as she walks to the back of the ship to wait on the pick up.
"Huh," Brian says, moving to the porthole where Brendan's watching the ship depart. "Strange..."
Brian takes shifts with the others to watch the Jackal through the night, resting fitfully and doing exercises when it's not his turn. If the other members of the crew want to pass the time with cards or sparring, he's happy to do that, but he always keeps at least one pistol on hand in case the Jackal gets loose. "Jeez, I wonder what the Colonel's gonna say..." he murmurs when the Pelican gets close enough that they can hear it.
The pirate's ship is an Albatross, the odd combination of a Cruiser and a Cargo ship. These ships would be considered to be like Yachts... a hundred years ago.
When Ram'Dain posts I'll tell you what happens next. It's only slightly important.
Eldwood will pace back and forth in the cargo hold while waiting for the others to come pick them up. He gets a kick out of startling the jackal a few times, by jumping at it and saying "Boo!" But after all this gets old he just sits on one of the crates tapping his feet.
It takes you an extra half-day because both Batista AND Ram'Dain got a little Nauseated. If you plan on driving back, I'm going to need 4 more Ride checks. Or, while you are on the ship, you can set it to auto-pilot and bring you back to the Harbinger of Justice, cargo and everything.
Mar is not too pleased that their is a jackal on board or that the others got away. He eyes the jackal and mumbles something about if it looks at him wrong he's going to kill it.
The pilot looks a little nausiated as they make their way to the hanger. ....some roller coaster right Bill?... He mutters ths as he lands the ship onto the Gorgon, opens up the hatch and basicly falls out of it from the wacky manuvers he had to pull while the ship was being pelted with astroids. He basicly just lays there on the hanger floor for a minute before he gets up and ventures forth to pick up the the trigger happy people compleatly unawere they have a prisoner he can actually talk to!
Ram'Dain also seems as though he's gonna fall at any moment as he enters the Gorgon. "Next time...let the AI drive..." he lets out a burp as he covers his mouth. "Worst flight...ever...of all time..."
Needless to say, he takes a moment to compose himself before standing up straight. He walks over to Grave and nudges him with his foot. "Grave, get up."
oh come on...it was only bad that 3rd astroid field..... He gets up and sorta...staggers in toward the rest of the groupies wherever they may be on the ship Oy! anyone home?! We have a pickup order for 3 lazer whores and a buggerd that looks like him? as he says that last thing he taps Bill on the chest with a closed fist just for fun
"Very funny, Grave," Brian says as the major staggers in. Noticing the odd gait, the MCPO quirks his eyebrow up, removing his helmet so Grave can see his expression. "What, rough ride there, flyboy?" Brian grins and says, "Hope there's AI for the flight back to Harbinger."
Then Brian claps Grave and Ram'Dain on the shoulder, guiding Grave deeper into the ship. "Major, correct me if I'm wrong, but I seem to remember that your portfolio mentioned you speak Jackal..."
Well, not often you see an Albatross around. Particularly for a pirate ship. Brendan murmured as he walked towards the Major.
I saw you guys fly in. For a trained pilot, I can't really say that it was your best performance there Major, maybe you should let the autopilot take over next time there. The corporal said sardonically as he stepped into line beside the Spartan and the pilot.
"Maybe you should rest before we fly off Major." Charlotte replies softly as she glares at the Jackal fire in her eyes.
Elwood grabs the Jackal by one arm and drags it to its feet with his battle rifle stuck between its shoulder blades when he sees Grave and the others coming back to talk to the prisoner. "Yippy bastard won't shut up. Can you figure out what his deal is?"
"Yap Sqwark Yap YAP!" says the Jackal.
This is the part where you roll for Diplomacy, and ask it as many questions you see fit. The higher the diplomacy, the more questions he'll answer. Pick the important ones first.
ya...had a little bit of a rough chunk of space comin in...Astroid belts are a pain in the ass to go through and I had to do a few berrel rolls just to make sure Bill back there would yarf before me. *he lets out a smirk as he makes te bad joke then is suddenly starts being dragged into the "interegation" room. ya I can speek with jackles...kinda had to at one point because of a certain somethin some- He stops as soon as he catches the glimps of the prisoner and then he gets a smirk on his face. I will take it from here. If anyone has any questions that you want me to translate for you just let me know...Jackles are hard headed creatures that need a little...persuasion and my speeking ability in english is not the best so lets see what I can do... He walks infront of the prisoner while still looking a bit out of it but looks better now that he has a distraction. He starts Yapin and Sqwarkin just like the jackle sounds.
Give me a Sense Motive to see if the information he is telling you is correct. When you plan to leave, give me 4 more Ride rolls, or tell me if you plan on using the ship's AI functions to head back to the ship.
He grins as he hears the answers. Oh we got a funny one here...
He reaches forward and pulls the creatures head closer and wispers while speeking in the prisoners tongue. [b] You know...you look like the first jackass I murdered. I tortured him till he gave me everything I watned. When I was through with him he BEGGED me to nd his suffering. I took away...EVERYTHING that made him what he was. Now, if you wish to keep yourself intact...and a prisoner of our humble, forgiving UNSC...tell me what I want to know...before I turn your world inside out. I will make your intrails your extrails. I will make you suffer. Whatever you know as pain before now...you will want find it to be nothing more then a simple raindrop hitting your skin. Now tell me what I wish to know.
Nothing impresses this Jackal.
Mar continues to eye the Jackal riffle ready for any sudden movements.
He glares at the pirate then looks over to the others. You best not leave me in the same room with this one alone...I will kill him....
"I think we all want to kill him by now...lets get him back to base and let the commander deal with him. "
"Agreed," Brian says. "Little bastard was squawking all night, who knows what he was saying..." The MCPO shakes his head and replaces his helmet.
"Alright, team, let's get out of here, there's nothing left to be done. Sweep to make sure we've got everything we need, and I want that prisoner restrained and guarded at all times. Major, you can inform me of his information on the way back. Auto-pilot should get us home safely, but be ready to override if something goes awry."
With that, the SPARTAN boards the Pelican, placing his weapons in racks and stretching, his back audibly cracking under the armor.
I'll post what happens when you get back tomorrow. If you haven't posted by then, I'll assume you'll do exactly what Brian said.
Ram'Dain stumbles back into the Pelican the next morning, engaging the Auto-Pilot before Grave can take control. He does, however, let the auto-pilot be disengaged if Grave does wish to fly, though he hopes Grave doesn't
He just let auto pilot take them home. He did not want to do any more barrel rolls and let the computer do the work. He told Brain everything and said it loud enough for everyone to hear so the did not have to repeat himself. I do not want to hand him over to the pros but we may have to....Like I said before...Jackles are a pain in the royal ass to deal with....I think he will be quiet on the way back... He glares at the prisoner now that he knows there is someone that speeks his language me may shut up...
"Yap yap yap Sqwark! Yap Sqwark Yap Yap!"
While heading back, the cabin filled with the chatter of a certain Jackal irritates its cabin mates. After a long day of cruising in the Pelican, the team finally reaches the Harbinger.
"Welcome back, team. I see you have a... guest. We'll let the professionals interrogate him. Go get some rest. I expect a report by morning, Spartan 213." says the Colonel.
"Doesn't seem like that's gonna happen, Major," Brian says, also glaring at the Jackal. "And, just so you know, the name's Brian. Not Brain."
- - - - -
The SPARTAN is the first to get off the Pelican, saluting smartly to the Colonel as he dismounts. "Sir," he says, standing to the higher-up's side and watching the others leave the ship. "Yeah, he's a talkative one, but we didn't get much out of him. Didn't help that the genial Major over there is the only one who can speak the language." Brian shakes his head, then removes his helmet and nods to the Colonel. "Yep, I'll get that to you, no worries."
To the team, the Master Chief says, "Good work out there, men, Charlotte. A pleasure working with you. At ease, and get some rest."
Brian then heads off to his quarters, where he removes his armor and does some cool-down exercises. After this, he heads down to the mess hall to get some dinner.
Charlotte nods to Brian and the others. "Nice working with everyone." She says softly as she removes her helmet before starting to head off to her quarters to change into something more relaxed and shower. She sighed a little before letting out a giggle about what would happen to the little annoying Jackal.
Aye aye Mr. Brain....as for you... Points at the jackel best hope they do not break out the lotion...some of those interegators have a thing for the freaks of nature you guys are... He walk off jokingly after everyone is dismissed and walks over to Gaffer again. please gaffer...for the love of the all mighty...you make that little b!$+% suffer... He sits back down on his sleeping chair on the bridge infront of his consol and leans back, proping his feet up on his part of the ship hud that is disabled like he always does.
"Yap yap Sqwark!"
"Geneva convention says we can't make him suffer. Personally, I think we should just lock the little thing into a small room with no lights and see if he's willing to talk in a few days." says the Colonel.
The spartan leaves her room in a tank-top and a baggy pair of jeans to go get something to eat. She stretch and yawn for a second as she passes by Ram'Dain letting off a small wave not sure if he noticed or not.
He basicly just takes off everything but his pants and a short sleve shirt with "Marine" on the back. He leans back in his chair. If one could look closely they could see several scars on his arms from all the fights he picked in his years of service. I say screw the Geneva Convention...nobody needs to know that we...roughed him up a little.... He grunbles a bit as he said that then gets up and heads for the mess to get omething to eat himself. He gets his food and sits in his corner of solitude as he eats, contemplating on the matters at hand about the pirates.