Contract #4: Formula 42

[John]

Max takes the near victory as victory enough for the time being and swings Marlowe to the elf phantasm closest to the right of center and fires a single slug at center mass.

[GM Nick]

Ranged Combat (Max)

[Shotguns (8) + AGI (10) + Smartlink (2) = 6]
2 4 1 4 6 3 6 1 6 1 5 6 1 2 4 2 4 4 3 5
[REA (6) = 4]
6 6 6 1 6 4

Damage Resistance (31)

[BOD (5) + Armor (4) + AP (-4) = 1]
3 2 1 3 6

(( 8P DAMAGE! ))

Max's second slug penetrates another image, distorting it.

[Drew Buddy]

Doc has barely had time to process the rapidly changing situation before he finds himself staring down several--what the frag are they? He thinks--with only a stick-n-shock loaded submachine gun in his hands.

Frag it

With a thought, he switches the small bull-pup weapon to full-auto (( free action )), and slams the trigger back, spraying fire in an arc around him. (( suppressing fire ))

[GM Nick]

(( They're spaced too far apart for a suppressive fire. ))

[Drew Buddy]

(( Go ahead and remove my previous post, then. ))

Letting the submachine gun rest on its sling across his chest, Adams raises the battle rifle (( ready weapon )), and fires a burst at the nearest undamaged entity.

[GM Nick]

Ranged Combat (doc)

[Battle rifles (8) + AGI (10) + Smartlink (2) + Ref. Rec. (1) = 6]
3 5 1 4 3 2 3 2 5 6 2 5 3 3 5 2 1 3 5 4 1
[REA (6) = 1]
1 4 4 5 3 4

Damage Resistance (31)

[BOD (5) + Armor (4) + AP (-4) = 3]
6 2 5 6 4

(( 11P DAMAGE! ))

Doc's burst very nearly annihilates one of the mirror images.

[GM Nick]

(( Val's up! ))

[Stephen]

Though thoroughly confused and more than a bit shaken by the elven simulacra advancing on the team, Val's muscles know what to do and act of their own accord. His abnormally quiet mind seems to observe his body from a distant place as he brings his rifle to bear on each of Max's former targets, firing a volley of death at each in turn. The experience is not unlike the AR sensation of guiding his 5hade's hand in the cold vacuum of matrix space.

[GM Nick]

Ranged Combat (Val)

[Automatics (5) + AGI (5) + Smartlink (2) = 7]
6 3 6 4 6 5 5 6 1 3 5 4
[REA (6) = 3]
6 2 6 2 6 1

The first mirror image shatters into crystalline fragments as Val's burst decimates it.

Ranged Combat (Val)

[Automatics (5) + AGI (5) + Smartlink (2) = 3]
4 1 1 1 2 1 5 5 2 1 6 2
[REA (6) = 0]
3 1 2 3 1 4

The second is reduced to naught in the same fashion.

[GM Nick]

"Insects! Your violence is comedic!"

A brilliant blast of light erupts from the fingertips of each remaining image.

Lightning Bolt (8) (31)

[Spellcasting (6) + MAG (6) = 4]
5 5 1 5 2 4 3 3 3 2 3 5
[REA (9) = 6]
5 1 5 1 6 3 6 6 6

Max leaps out of the way as the bolt slams into the floor, temporarily scattering the mist.

(( Tyros is up. ))

[John]

Max bounds up from his roll in the mist and shouts to 31,

"NICE AIM, DREKBAG!"

[Elliott]

Tyros is clearly put off by this clearly upstart mage who happened to accidently inject himself with too many steroids, astrally speaking. The temptation to start slinging spells is alluring, but that way leads darkness, as the fool in front of him is testament. Tyros focuses his mind, willing the mana around himself and his team to divert harmlessly away (counterspelling) as he steps forward and slashes his sword at one of the remaining images.

[GM Nick]

Melee Combat (Tyros)

[Swords (8) + AGI (5) + Reach (4) + W. Focus (2) = 7]
3 6 6 4 2 2 3 3 4 5 4 1 6 4 3 6 6 5 2
[REA (6) = 2]
4 3 6 3 1 6

Damage Resistance (31)

[BOD (5) + Armor (4) + AP (-3) = 2]
1 5 3 5 1 1 **Glitch!**

Tyros slices through a mirror image, separating it into two distinct parts, which then dissolve.

[GM Nick]

(( Sinjin's up. Two mirror images remain! ))

[Conway]

Tucked low, Sinjin's ninja roll places him between the two remaining magical foes. Feinting a roundhouse kick to his left side, his leg drops low at the last second, firmly planting his feet for a reversal. Launching his body weight back toward his right, his body untwists, elastic force adding momentum as he drives a massive uppercut to his opponents chin.

((Crit+Kill. If he doesnt shatter, I will follow up with Finishing Move))

[GM Nick]

Melee Combat (Sinjin)

[Martial Arts (8) + AGI (5) = 4]
3 3 3 6 1 5 4 5 3 4 3 6 1
[Unarmed Combat (3) = 2]
3 5 6

Damage Resistance (31)

[BOD (5) + Armor (2) = 2]
5 4 3 1 5 4 1

(( 9P DAMAGE! ))

Sinjin's brutal physical trauma creates a rift in the image, but does not dispel it.

[GM Nick]

"You will not take it from me! Perish in the flames of the desert!"

A brilliant fountain of blue-white fire erupts from the fog and begins snaking towards every member of the team.

(( All actions will incur a movement penalty now, as well. ))

[ Max = 64 ]
[ Doc = 55 ]
[ Val = 37 ]
[ Mirror Image = 35 ]
[ Tyros = 33 ]
[ Mirror Image = 28 ]

[John]

Max instinctively recoils at the sight of the magical flames, but steels himself and stands his ground. The elf sneers and fires a single slug at both of the remaining mirror images.

[GM Nick]

Ranged Combat (Max)

[Shotguns (8) + AGI (10) + Smartlink (2) + Moving (-2) = 2]
3 6 2 4 3 2 3 4 2 4 4 2 4 6 4 3 2 2
[REA (6) = 5]
1 6 6 5 5 5

Max's first slug passes over one of the mirror images.

Ranged Combat (Max)

[Shotguns (8) + AGI (10) + Smartlink (2) + Moving (-2) = 6]
2 2 4 1 5 2 2 1 2 6 4 6 5 6 2 5 3 4
[REA (6) = 2]
4 2 4 5 6 4

Damage Resistance (31)

[BOD (5) + Armor (4) + AP (-4) = 4]
3 5 6 5 5

(( 7P DAMAGE! ))

The second-to-last mirror image disintegrates.

[Drew Buddy]

Adams sights in on the last image, and opens fire.

[GM Nick]

Ranged Combat (Doc)

[Battle Rifles (8) + AGI (9) + RR (1) + Smartlink (2) + Moving (-2) = 4]
1 4 3 6 1 4 6 2 3 4 1 6 4 3 2 3 4 5
[REA (6) = 1]
1 2 1 5 4 2

Damage Resistance (31)

[BOD (5) + Armor (4) + AP (-4) = 1]
4 6 3 2 3

(( 10P DAMAGE! ))

The last mirror image shatters and an inhuman howl pierces the air.

The fog begins to gather and creep towards the center of the room. Gradually, the walls of the storage area become visible as the illusion falters. The roiling mist collects dead center to form a kneeling humanoid figure. It rises slowly--a man made of shifting vapors--and stares at the team with a featureless face.

31 raises it's arm and a shock wave belts outwards, knocking the team from their feet.

[John]

Max tumbles to the ground and lands with an heavy thud which partially knocks the wind from his lungs. In the split second for which he is supine he considers how badly he wishes he had more than two slugs left in Marlowe.

[GM Nick]

(( Trying something a little different here. Go ahead and act, don't worry about initiative. ))

[John]

Max rolls to his front and hoists himself to one knee, bringing up his shotgun in a jerkier motion than most actions he takes in combat. As 31 falls into his sights, the elf squeezes the trigger to send a volley of death at his target. The shotgun report adds to the off-beat patter of suppressed explosions that whip through the room.

[GM Nick]

31 vanishes, the mist extinguishing in a whiff of effluvium. He re-forms behind Max and coils his murky hands around the elf's neck, lifting him off his feet.

[John]

Marlowe clatters to the floor as it falls, empty, from Max's grasp. The nimble metahuman bats at the creature which not holds him, his not insubstantial strength seeming to have no impact upon its form.

[Drew Buddy]

With a thought, Adams fires up the Knight Errant Self Defense skillsoft, and charges at the struggling pair. Wrapping his left arm around the creature's neck, he uses his right hand to try to pull its hands away from Max.

[GM Nick]

The mist is cold and slippery, but solid. Doc gains a true grip but is astonished at the pure strength within. He realizes, with rising panic, that his struggle alone will not free the gasping elf.

[Drew Buddy]

After struggling with the immovable creature for a few seconds, Adams takes a step back.

"Ah, frag it," he says, moving to the side where he has an unobstructed line, and jamming the barrel of his rifle against the thing's torso. He dumps three rounds--and their expanding propellant--into the creature.

[John]

Max's struggle weakens as his face deepens in shade-- his usual ashen pallor being overtaken by a shade of red that begins moving to purple. Dropping his right arm to the loops which carry his grenades, the elf extracts one of the explosives from its loop and brings it up in front of his face. The lights are dimming as Overstreet threads his left index finger into the pin and yanks it free.

[GM Nick]

The shots from Doc's battle rifle create a pumpkin-sized exit wound, which rapidly begins to close. Using a free arm, 31 swings a clumsy backhand at Doc, which catches him in the torso and sends him sliding several meters across the floor.

Max manages to gulp down some oxygen as the grip lessens slightly.

[John]

As he heaves for air, Max grips the grenade as tightly as he can in his failing hands. With what feels like the last of his strength, the elf winds back his hand holding the grenade and thrusts it forward into the rapidly closing hole created by Doc's well placed shots.

[Elliott]

Tyros curses as he sees Max and Doc's physical struggle against the abomination. If this fool mage has taken on the aspect of a spirit by his exposure to whatever arcane substance created the mist, wrestling and shooting the beast is going to have sadly little effect.

As the spirit comes from mana, this battle is probably best conducted on the same plane. Shifting his claymore to one hand, Tyros cups a glowing ball of power in his other (centering), its flickering frighteningly larger than Tyros intended, and hurles the energy directly into the mage-thing's misty form (Manabolt, F4).

[Stephen]

Val attempts to draw a bead on the incorporeal elf struggling with Max and Doc, but the old familiar fear has reasserted itself at being confronted with this unfamiliar breed of peril. He doesn't dare fire upon the thing with shaking hands with Max and Doc in such close quarters. He curses softly and lets his rifle fall on the sling. He runs toward the phantom, catches the briefest glimpse of a palmed grenade, and reverses direction with unrivaled alacrity.

[GM Nick]

Tyros' manabolt bounces from the creature's frame and blackens the concrete floor.

31 hurls Max aside like a rag doll. It reaches to pluck the grenade free, but the explosive has already been sealed inside the monster's torso.

"If I go, you're coming with me!"

The air--make that, everything--in the room starts sliding towards the twisted mage, as if he had suddenly become a black hole.