Ounce wakes and joins the confab around the injured Barbara. After seeing the problem, she steps back to her stowed gear, pulls out a trauma kit and sets to work.
Modifier: +1 (trauma kit)
Barbara groans and grabs for someone's hand.
"It's the cyber-parts, one was punctured and I think maybe the healing magic didn't fix it up. They patched up my body but I'm not all organic anymore, not since the last time I took a wound this bad."
Barbara groans and grabs for someone's hand.
"It's the cyber-parts, one was punctured and I think maybe the healing magic didn't fix it up. They patched up my body but I'm not all organic anymore, not since the last time I took a wound this bad."
"Let me get this mechanical leak sealed up and then we can stop the bleeding and close the wound again."
Sunday, December 29th, 109 PA (2395CE). 1523 hours. 34 Degrees F (1 Degrees C), Light Wind (2 mph (3 Kph), Wintry Mix). Northern Arkansas Territory, Castle Refuge. (Lead Hill, AR)
Knowing the route you took to get here, Josiah expertly pilots Elsie through the intervening terrain and over the hills and valleys that make up most of the southeastern territories of the Coalition. Though their hold is tenuous at best, their presence is still felt in many areas. It is this presence that gnaws at you as maintain vigilance heading back to Castle Refuge, a place of relative safety and for the charges with you, the possibility of a new life.
The prisoners are another matter. They are mostly tight lipped about their work with the Coalition and most of what you get out of them is about how much money they were getting paid to collect the slaves, especially the blue ones. However, the mercenaries do not know what the Coalition is doing with them. There is one thing that their leader mentions that sparks a bit of interest. Apparently, some of the soldiers had markings on their armor that the mercenaries hadn't seen before. They were marked with RCSG. Some of you may have heard of it.
RCSG is the Coalition Rifts Control and Study Group. Their secret purpose is to gain command of Rifts and their activation so as to send many of the D-Bees back home and use them in battles against foes they otherwise could not defeat.
The RCSG has been ostracized from the CS main forces and is considered a black sheep operation. While they still receive funding, most of what they do is considered illegal in CS territory.
After sending Elsie and the Glitter Girl to maintenance, you get some dirty looks from the mechanics as to the state that they are in. You know they will be in good hands though and continue to the briefing rooms.
Lt. McDare is nowhere to be found when you report in, but Major Grimjack certainly is and his usual gruff dwarven demeanor is more abrasive than the norm. "I suppose you yahoos finally found something useful. Else, why are you darkening my office door?"
RCSG means nothing to Bart.
Being sequestered during training didn't help, Terry knows nothing about that group.
Ounce is talkative and listens well. She gladly tells about how she came to be associated with the Legion and is interested in the stories of others.
Modifier: -2 (GM)
Ounce is new to such briefings, so she sits at attention and waits for the debrief.
Modifier: -1 (Clueless) - 2 (GM)
Result = 6 + 3 - 1 - 2 = 6 Success
Gummitch relates a story from a time recently when he was attacked while foraging for food by pair of alliance goons, both of whom had the RCSG emblem. "In defending myself, I killed one and captured the other. I threatened to light him up with electricity if he did not tell me about what those letters stood for. He said RCSG is the Coalition Rifts Control and Study Group. Their secret purpose is to gain command of Rifts and their activation so as to send many of the D-Bees back home and use them in battles against foes they otherwise could not defeat."
Gummitch wasn't sure what to do with the guy, so he put all his gear in a pile and fried the lot and sent him off to fend for himself against the elements.
Gummitch assumes a snow leopard form and sits next to Ounce for the meeting.
"It would seem fate brought our two teams together," Ounce offers. "Our two groups came across the same situation at about the same time: Coalition forces holding a group of DBs in captivity and planning to transport them back to their base, perhaps, as Gummitch has explained, to exploit any that can fight. The Faelerin have magical powers but are essentially peaceful. We're glad we were able to free them and escort them back here. Perhaps going forward, we could join forces on a new mission?"
Our team, was doing the look around like you ordered, until we ran across a situation with some DB's that required rescuing.
We proceeded to do that, and found out that we were hitting the same group as Ounces group, fortunately, as it turns out.
After rescuing the DB's, we were attacked by a group of deadboys using the symbol of RCSG. I never seen this symbol at Tolkien either.
Thinking that we should group up with Ounce, Burgurk, and others, as we compliment each others strengths
"I have felt our small group, while it is strong, has sometimes faced situations I wasn't sure we'd get out from alive. I'd be glad to merge our groups."
Major Grimjack looks at each of you, his face screwed into a scowl. "RCSG you say? We need to make certain of that. It sounds like those mercs you hauled in were being paid by them to collect more specimens. For now, the Faelerin you rescued will be put with the rest of them here at Refuge, but I have a feeling there's a lot more out there. One of the shamans estimated over a thousand came through the Rift that brought them here. We have less than a hundred here. Whatever the RCSG is up to, it can't be good if they are collecting living magic batteries." Grimjack stops as Lieutenant McDare walks in. She is more disheveled and frazzled looking than you have ever seen her.
"Sorry, Major, but we've just heard that the Coalition is mounting a large offensive into northern Arkansas. It's getting awfully close to our territory. Command was going to have these guys go and help, but we just got some more bad news. We may have found some Federation units working with the RCSG. While the intel isn't confirmed, the implications are not good. The Lady of Owls herself has tasked this group to go and find out what's going on. We have the coordinates for the facility they are using, and we can provide air transport. We need you ready to go by morning. While Josiah is being temporarily reassigned, Barbara's Glitter Girl has been moved up in maintenance and should be fully repaired before you leave. Do what you can to prepare for combat and be ready to take on some mages. If the Feds are involved, it could be real bad. I'll be in my office if you have questions or Major Grimjack here can fill you in on the details of who we think you'll be facing." With that, she salutes Grimjack and then turns to leave.
Grimjack turns to the rest of you. "Look like you got your wish. You're a team now. Go act like it. Get ready for a fight. I'm sure that if you're going up against spellslingers, you'll need all the help you can get. Dismissed."
Ounce meditates and works on her focus as prep for the big assignment.
Gummitch sets up some targets and practices sending his lightning breath at them.
After the meeting Bart leaves,a very serious look on his face.
He keeps busy for a while, restocking ammo, checking on the Glitter Girl and Barbara and just walking some energy off.
Mentally he's back in those forsaken wooded areas watching his friends be killed by the uncaring federation, one after another.
After an hour of feeling bad for himself he finally heads towards the armory to see if there is something he can beg, borrow or purchase to kill some evil magicians.
The quartermaster looks Bart up and down and says, "Ammo is on the house, but if you want some extra firepower, you're gonna need some requisition papers."
"Yeah, possible tough fight coming up. looking for some more serious hand held firepower. You wouldn't happen to have a TX-26 particle beam pistol or even a NG-45LP long pistol, would you?"
"No? Ah, well, what ya' got in grenades then?"
Not sure if this is a one and done or you can ask for other things..
Bart mentally shakes off the images he was having of evil federation mages being disintegrated.
After her rather traumatic night, Barbara returns to her soldier's routine. Once her implants are repaired and she's patched up, a bit of cleaning and a fresh jumpsuit makes it almost like nothing ever happened.
She spends a good deal of time puttering around in the repair bay while the Glitter armor is overhauled. While the technical aspects are beyond her skills, she is anxious about the repair process, constantly looking in and annoying the technicians like an overprotective mother hen.
Later she sneaks up on Bert while he's haggling with the requisitions team.
"Hey Bert. Looking for a phased plasma in a 40 watt range?" she says.
Clasping her hands she adds more seriously, "Thank you for checking in on me while I was, uh, leaking out. Bad night. I appreciate it."
Bart smiles, looks like he was going in for a hug but holds off. "Well, yeah, you know, we're a team. You help your team mates. You're looking good! Feeling better I hope! Actually, I was hoping to find something related to a plasma gun but nastier. No luck though."
The quartermaster watches the interaction between Bart and Barbara with a smile. "Teammates is one thing, but finding good friends in the field is quite another." Pushing a crate of frag grenades to the counter he says, "Take what you need. We have lots of these."
Bart raises an eyebrow. "Well, don't mind if I do.."
He slowly takes one grenade at a time until the QM tels him to stop or he has 4 more in his pack.
As Bart turns to pick up some grenades, Barbara grabs him in a hug from behind. She leans her head against his back and says, "Seriously, you kept me in one piece, you big lug."
She lets go and says, "Appreciate the grenades, sir. This guy will put 'em to good use."
By the time Bart starts to bring a hand up to put it over Barbara's she's moved. He just smiles at the QM.
"Oh yes. I've heard that Fed mages love it when someone pulls the pin on a grenade, shoves it in their robes or armor and jumps away before it explodes!"
He brings his hands together, then pulls them apart while making a "Boom!" noise.
Terry walks in as Barbra and Bart are hugging.
Am i interrupting something?
He chuckles and grins.
Good to see you up and around barb
He then looks at the grenades on the counter.
You got any first aid kits avaliable?
As he helps himself to 2 of them
"Well, at least you aren't asking for a Behemoth or something." The quartermaster chuckles at his own joke. "Oh, Specialist Lance, we just got word that your machine will be ready by tomorrow morning. You should be good to go by then. Gotta say, I'm a bit on the jelly side. You guys get to ride in a Hu- E. I've heard they're pretty wiz."
"We're just grenade-bonding," says Barbara.
"Thanks for the update, Q," she adds. "Gotta get back in the field!"
Monday, December 30th, 109 PA (2395CE). 0630 hours. 10 Degrees F (-12 Degrees C), Light Wind (43mph, 69 Kph), Snowstorm). Northern Arkansas Territory, Castle Refuge. (Lead Hill, AR)
You knew you felt something off before you went to sleep last night. The air seemed colder somehow and you felt a stillness that wasn't calm. Sure enough the next morning brought on a blizzard from out of the nearby Rifts and it was a strong one. While at briefing, you decided to put your armor on just to turn up the heat.
"... so all flights are grounded until we can get through this storm. " Lieutenant McDare was saying as you tuned in. "We can't risk sending aircraft out there at the moment. Our weather forecasters tell us it will last a few more hours and then clear up." That's when she turns to your team. "Except you. We have to move on this Intel and we have to move now before they move their operation and we lose them for good. We have a pilot that can get you there relatively safely, but the weather will be both a benefit and a hindrance. They won't be able to see you right away, but that means you can't see them either. It's going to be tough, but I think your team can handle it."
Cursing your luck, you head to the hangar, which is already full of snow that the custodians are attempting to push out with brooms and a bit of magic. You spot your ship and its pilot right away. The machine is what looks like a kitbash of pre-Rifts aircraft engineering and technomagic. You have been told that it is called a Hu-E, but the model is an ancient MH60 Shadowhawk. This was a special operations aircraft from the American Empire long ago. Its pilot, on Captain Tiller, blonde-haired, blue-eyed and full of wit, is more than happy to tell you its history along the way.
"Well friends, it looks like we're on the way to something important. I got your Glitter Girl all packed up nice and tidy, she'll be ready for you when we get there." He thumbs towards the craft and you can see Barbara's GG strapped to the underside of the aircraft. "Before you ask, I know how much she weighs and yes, my girl can carry yours. It's not the first time." You notice a tear form in his eye which he quickly wipes away. "Anyhoo, let's get your crew all bundled in and we'll have a nice flight in a blizzard. Can't beat that, right?" He grins and he seems awfully sure of his piloting abilities, even despite the cold and blowing snow outside.
Bart happily asks about the history of the man and machine and eventually asks about his previous instance of carrying precious glitter cargo.
About 45 minutes in a strong wind gust pushes the craft to one side and the Nav Computer makes a 'Bzzzzz.' sound and dies.
"I got this." Bart says as he pulls out a few tools..
Using a Benny, hoping for an early raise.
/grumble.
As the ship is buffeted by the shifting winds, a large piece of equipment comes loose from its moorings and threatens to wreak havoc on the people and machines in the bay area. Burgurk shouts "I got this!" and activates his Mega Telekinesis :
= 7
And he pushes the 800 pound object back to the wall with his mind until others can secure it with heavier chains.
After some percussive maintenance, Bart gets the navigation system going again. The cold, despite Captain Tiller's assurance, is messing with the aircrafts systems. Some of the gear inside the cargo area shifts a bit, but Burgurk's quick reaction and powerful psychokinetic strength keeps it from hitting anyone.
Tiller calls back over the howl of the wind outside. "Yeah, I've flown your team before. They had a Glitter Boy pilot back then too. She was as sweet as could be. Jonis Witta, her name was. The reports say she was killed in action defending the team from a horde of nasty things from a Rift. They never found her body though. We still miss her around the castle." He changes his tune though, realizing that you are in a dangerous situation now. "We got this though! You guys are doing great back there!"
Gummitch is excited to fly in the bracing weather, but Ounce convinces him to wait while she gives him some protection from the cold. First, however, she gets her pal, in snow leopard form while a passenger on the copter, into the cockpit near the pilot. She casts a spell that should grant the pilot and Gummitch the ability to see even in pitch blackness. Although this won't help see through the snow, it could reveal trouble before it arrives and help keep an eye on the landscape if flying low.
Gummitch wants to get out and fly ahead of the helicopter but his flight speed is perhaps not enough to stay ahead. He does offer to fly in front of the helicopter if it is flying slowly through uncertain areas perhaps close to the ground.
Instead, Gummitch calls on his magic powers to attempt limit the force of gusts of wind on the helicopter when it hits a patch of turbulence.
Modifier: -2 (weather)
Result = 7 - 2 = 5
Terry just tried to keep an eye out ahead for trouble
But he cannot see anything from the back
Captain Tiller appreciates the newfound ability to see better through the snow and the winds buffeting the craft die down a but as Gummitch attempts to negotiate with the spirits of winter. The next 20 minutes are a bit calmer, but as you get closer to your destination, the winds pick up again.
Ounce sits crosslegged near the cockpit and concentrates, trying to communicate with the spirits of the air that are giving the flight and Gummitch trouble.
After about a minute, she speaks with sounds like the whistling wind, asking, "Great spirit of the air, we honor you and ask your help in navigating this storm. Our intentions are good. We wish to reach a place where evil threatens our kind. Can you guide us past the worst effects of the storm?"
Ounce shares the information she receives with the pilot to provide advice on the safest headings. After about five minutes, she loses contact, thanking the spirit before the channel ends.
With the wind picking up Bart is checking and looking to see if there is anything he can do to help.
A hard gust of wind brings the craft lower and Bart sees some terrain coming up. His mind quickly calculates the wind and looking at the altimeter he tells pilot, "That hill ahead, Looks like the ground slopes down after that point. If you steer to the left of it you should have calmer winds for a while!"
That's what he thinks, anyway...
Terry, hanging on tight, continues to try and spot anything he can.
=10
Through a brief lull in the flakes, He notices the blades are close to a set of trees.
Umm, you might want to gain some height. The blades on the right side are almost hitting some trees
He comments over the intercom as the continue to fly.
Captain Tiller looks back quickly, yelling over the wind. It seems to die down as he speaks when Ounce begins her communion. "I see it! I'll dip down and then hang a hard portside turn. Everyone hang on!"
The winter spirits that Ounce connect with seem angry. "Someone has brought us here against our will. We wish only to return to our realm."
The buffeting of the plane by the heavy winds makes the pilot call out "I can't control the steering wheel - it's jiggling back and forth too much!"
Burgurk activates his his Mega Telekinesis :
Burgurk reaches out with his mind, and mentally grabs the wheel, clamping it in place. "Just tell me if you need to turn left or right, and by how much, and I'll take care of it."