Even the most helpful six-armed heroes sometimes need a little rest and relaxation. But while on vacation to their homeworld, our veteran skittermanders come face-to-face with a threat far more dangerous than they could have expected. Once again, this fuzzy crew must save the day!
"Hey hey! The Skittermanders are here to save the day! Did I hear someone say they needed help?!"
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I will take Nako :)
Pacts world! Who needs Pact worlds when you have the Veskarium. Eight planets under the iron fist of the Vesk empire. None of the planets have names, save for Vesk Prime, the homeworld of the Vesk. The Vesk being the dominant species in the Veskarium, have named all planets simply in ascending order: Vesk-2, Vesk-3, you get the drift.
Not that they're all the same, mind you. Take Vesk-3 for example, the home of the Skittermanders. Vesk-3’s two moons are known as the Big Mother and the Firstborn, with the latter being the smaller of the two.
The seaside city of Morandomandrana—the oldest skittermander settlement on Vesk-3—is an architectural wonder, made even more stunning by the thousands of colorful decorations hanging from every building and streetlight. Built around a series of wide canals that allow the pink waters of the Vermilion Sea to surge and wane between the buildings with the tides, the city many outsiders simply call Mandrana also boasts expansive plazas surrounded by skittermander-owned and -operated businesses advertising special sales for the festival of Reetamander, which celebrates an eclipse of the planet’s two moons.
The streets and plazas are packed with residents and visitors—mostly skittermanders, with a few members of other species of the Veskarium standing head and shoulders over the rest—all excitedly chattering and laughing. The revelry of Reetamander is already underway, though the eclipse that is the focus of the celebration is still a few hours away.
It's here that we meet our adventurers, four Skittermander who work for Nakonechkin Salvage, a small but scrappy company that operates all throughout the universe under the management of its owner, the vesk whose name the company bears.
Gaz-i-Gaz looks around excitedly, reflexively grooming his fur.
"It's good to be home! I wonder what the latest party styles are; we should go shopping!"
Dakoyo gazes up at the sky as he disembarks. "Constellations are always strange in space. I always prefer the ones here. The helping hands, the six guns, the sixguns..."
Gaz-I-Gaz quite quickly figures out that the latest party style is bowties! And coats! Oh, and colors are in style, as they always are. Bright colors.
As is also customary for this special event, ther are carnival-style games with enticing prizes, and all kinds of competitions.
No doubt the best game is the one run by Honx, a lavender-furred skittermander. In this timed game, four skittermanders are working together to build as tall a structure as possible from a random assortment of objects of various shapes and materials.
There's also a stout Vesk named Yoloveda, who is wearing a wearing sunglasses and a neckerchief emblazoned with jojokoleas, the murderously spicy pepper native to Vesk-3. Only a Vesk can think of such a contest: eat as many of the demonically spicy peppers.
Beyond that, there are many more games! There's all the popular ones that the skittermanders are familiar with, and if playing games is not your thing, you can always go to the festival stalls to get some food or buy yourself that Yufriend Nufriend plushie!
Gaz-i-Gaz bounces up and down excitedly, making appreciative oohing and aahing noises as he looks over the carnival games.
"Anyone wanna give them a go?"
Dakoyo will happily pay the entry fee for his team to enter the building contest, as well as giving the spicy pepper contest a try.
"Next to the flames of the stars that birth us, a pepper is as ice," he says, not entirely believing himself.
With an eager smile, Yoloveda lays out eight of the unfathomably spicy jojokoleas. With a smooth gesture, he waves welcomingly over the line of pepper and says a single word Eat! He then goes on to adjust his sunglasses and cross his arms.
Dubious but unwilling to refuse the challenge, Dakoyo downs the first pepper.
It's...
Well, what did you expect? It's hot, really rather spicy. It's got a good kick to it, that's what it's got. As if the skin of the pepper is covered in tiny little doshkos, all etching away little plasma burns into Dakoyo's esophagus as it makes its way down.
Still, Dakoyo manages to keep it in. One down, seven to go.
Think you can handle another one? Yoloveda says, which a face that gives away he severely doubts it.
Dakoyon tries not to spontaneously combust.
Did you know that skittermanders can sweat? If you watch closely, you can see Dakoyo doing so now, trying to contain the intense spice of the pepper that might just be trying to burn a hole back out through his stomach.
Nako gladly takes the credits from her nufriend Dakoyo!
She joins her into the eating contest!
While Dakoyo is carefully snacking away at the biological murder peppers, Nako steps in and throws down the gauntlet. The first of the spicy things goes down without problem, but the second is already more troublesome. She finds her form, gulping down number three and four, but then...
Did she just change color? Did she actually change color? Maybe it's just a trick of the light, but it sure looks like Nako is turning a bright red, while the eye-watering burn of the jojokolea pepper runs its course. Every attempt to hold in the burning matter is for naught and Nako does her best impression of a green dragon, burning acidic breath and all.
That's enough peppers for today, Yoloveda says with a sardonic grin.
Dakoyo keeps munching.
He barely tastes the third pepper, which makes him overconfident when the fourth goes down. And comes up.
Vesk are tough! Yoloveda says, but the conspicious absence on any red sap on his teeth suggests there is something else going on altogether. Perhaps Vesk know better than to put these in their mouths...
Dakoyo and Nako recover well from their gastro-intestinal disaster, but should probably also avoid rubbing their eyes for the time being.
It is almost time for the "great birthing". Reetamander celebrates the semi-annual eclipse of the Firstborn (the smallest moon) by the Big Mother (the largest moon), and the excitement grows!
It is clear that the eclipse, the main event of the festival, has begun! Skittermanders around Central Common pick up various musical instruments and commence playing upbeat melodies, many of them singing lyrics they’ve concocted on the spot:
Lalala, come on out
Don't be afraid
We're here to help
While most everyone else looks up at the lunar phenomenon and marvels. Over the next hour, the Firstborn slowly disappears behind the Big Mother. The crowd lets out a massive cheer when the eclipse reaches completion.
Quite soon, however the cheers to startled screams of sheer panic! Strings of lights and colorful pennants snake down to grapple and squeeze
any Skittermander and other creatures that cross their paths. Of course, with other Skittermanders rushing in to help, quite soon a host of furries creatures are entwined by the lights.
Our heroes are no exception to being entwined! Dako gets completely constricted in the twirling lights, and Ayo looks to be in trouble as well!
---
Nako
Dako
Ayo
Gaz
---
Lights
---
"Oh no! Let me help!"
Gaz-i-Gaz rushes over, and attempts to free Dako by peeling the twirling lights off them.
|
Ayoka has a camera on a small telescope tracking the First Born and, at the time the Great Mother comes into view, pictures start being automatically taken.
Once it is over, Ayoka is about to check the results when things start going weird and she's grabbed by streamers.
She attempts to get herself out
Dakoyo also tries to free himself from the lights.
Help me! Help! An aquamarine-furred skittermander is also caught in the wriggling strands. Gaz-I-Gaz gets the upper hand on the wriggling strand, and manages to free Dakoyo, but the strand remains a threat. Akoyo - who now has some nice eclipse photos in her collection - tries to slip out of the stranglehold, but doesn't manage to untangle herself.
---
Nako
Dako
Ayoka
Gaz-I-Gaz
---
Strand (Dakoyo is free)
Strand (grappling Ayoka)
Strand (grappling bystander)
---
Nako seeing another skittermander in danger, quickly gets to them and tries to free them!
Helping!
Nako tries to help out the other skittermander, but is unable to free the blue-furred creature.
The strands keep squeezing the bystander, but Ayoka manages to wiggle free from its hold. In return, though, Gaz-I-Gaz is caught in the tangle
---
Nako
Dako
Ayoka
Gaz-I-Gaz (grappled)
---
Bystander (6, grappled)
Strand (1 escape, grappling Gaz-I-Gaz)
Strand (1 escape)
Strand (grappling bystander)
---
"No!!!!"
Gaz-i-Gaz struggles mightily...
Dakoyo tries to determine how much of this the other skittermander can take.
Assuming they won't die instantly, he will help free them.
Again, Nako tries to help the bystander
Ayoka and Gaz struggle against their strand, and finally break it!
Dakoyo and Nako work together to free the bystander and are Just able to free him! The hapless skittermander immediately puts some distance between himself and the strands
---
Nako
Dako
Ayoka (grappled)
Gaz-I-Gaz
---
Bystander (6, FREE)
Strand (BROKEN)
Strand (1 escape, grappling Ayoka)
Strand (1 escape)
---
"Let me help!"
Gaz-i-Gaz tries to return the favor, and help Ayoka.
Dakoyo also tries to help Ayoka.
Nako does the same.
Helping!
With united the force, the skittermander manage to free Ayoka from that strand, which snaps as she gets liberated.
The aquamarine skittermander says to the group I don't know how to thank you. Here, have this. If you ever need anything, look for Spacko, ok? He then rushes off after giving the group a credstick.
The festival is in complete uproars, and there's pleads for help coming from everywhere! Just now, there's a pahtra running in the direction of the group shouting The armor just came to life! pointing at a small that was selling armor. Another surprised sound echoes ahead, and a ruined stall can be seen with a groaning Vesk lying under two heavily armored mannequins.
Even worse, a massive suit of armor seems to have taken up a life on its own, and is now standing over the Vesk with a laser pistol drawn!
---
Nako
---
Armor
Vesk
---
Ayoka
Gaz-I-Gaz
Dakoyo
---
Oh no! Says Nako seeing the chaotic scene.
Helping! Helping
Says Nako as she uses her innate ability to go faster!
Once next to the bad armor, she strikes!
Nako rushes in and hack at the armor plate, connecting. Somehow, the inexplicably animated set of armor seems to prioritize the prone vesk, and shoot him straight in the face, causing the agonized scream of the stand owner to cease.
That's going to require some urgent medical attention...
---
Ayoka
Gaz-I-Gaz
Dakoyo
Nako
---
Armor (14)
Vesk (dying)
---
---
Gaz-i-Gaz rushes forward.
"It's not actually that bad! 'Tis only a flesh wound! You're a big tough vesk - you can walk it off!"
"Don't worry, nufriend, I'll... watch while my other friends heal you."
With his usual job taken, Dakoyo fires off a shot at the armor.
Eh! I may be small, but I count for something!
Says Nako while striking twice at the armor.
Gaz and Ayoka focus on keeping the merchant among the living, as Dakoyo shoots a needle at the armor, which just plinks off. Nako hits with a single blow, and catches the attention of the armored plate
---
Ayoka
Gaz-I-Gaz
Dakoyo
Nako
---
Armor (26)
Vesk (stable)
---
"You can do it, Nako! That dummy is just a big ol' dummy!"
He then waves a hand at the dummy.
"Get 'Em, guys!"
Thanks for helping! Feels like a breeze!
Says Nako happily before turning her attention back to the armor.
Now, lets talk between grown-up, armor.