Run #1: Trial by Fire

Post by **GM Nick** » Thu Jul 10, 2014 4:36 pm

Yuri grins, displaying blood stained teeth from the half-pint he swallowed earlier. The gruesome image only serves to illustrate his words.

"You have no guarantee. That's the rule of the street. But at this moment, I need your help--trust in leverage, it's the best you've got."

Drew Buddy · Post by **Drew Buddy** » Thu Jul 10, 2014 4:42 pm

"Sielle, I see our aims are the same for now." Anon says, "So what do you have in mind for these versionelsa?"

Post by **GM Nick** » Thu Jul 10, 2014 4:50 pm

The sound of revving motorcycle engines trickles in through the open doorway as the errant Halloweeners return.

Yuri arches a brow. "This just got a bit more interesting. There are 3 more upstairs, as well. Toss me a pistol and we can even the odds."

John · Post by **John** » Thu Jul 10, 2014 5:04 pm

A surge of adrenaline shoots through Bradbury, and his senses are all suddenly alight. The sound of the approaching choppers is the harbinger of the team's doom unless they act swiftly. The hurry is evident in his voice. "Give him a gun quick! We rush up and take the top floor now-- we can't afford them storming through the front door and starting a firefight while we can be flanked from behind! If we get pinched on two fronts, we're fragged! If we take them upstairs first, we can at least momentarily control how many men we're fighting. What does it look like upstairs for cover?" The ork is scarcely staying put waiting for an answer, as he moves quickly and quietly toward the staircase.

Conway · Post by **Conway** » Thu Jul 10, 2014 6:01 pm

Cursing, Loki springs into action as the sound of voices and the heavy throb of motorcycles echo from beyond the entry. Steps lively, his relfex for survival guides him toward the stariwell after Bradbury. A flick of his upturned wrist produces a heavy black Ares Predator, the finish worn but no less intimidating for it. Flipping the safety catch and checking the chamber, he turns the weapon butt-first and hands it to the bloodied Russian. Before letting it go, he holds eye contact for a lingering second with the man, who grins at him. "Dont lose that."

Feeling rather like an action trid hero, he produces a second-hand Ingram Smartgun from a sling beneath his jacket, tucked in the small of his back like a smuggler's dope stash. Safety off, weapon ready, he nods to the adrenaline livened crew and follows the burly ork, qeueing into position at the foot of the stairwell.

Elliott · Post by **Elliott** » Thu Jul 10, 2014 8:40 pm

Aremys eyes the Russian with distrust, but lowers the his weapon.

Looking over his shoulder at Bradbury, "What are you, some sort of general? What color is the boathouse at Hereford?" Waving his hand to dismiss the rhetorical question, he chuckles softly to himself at his inside joke. Unlikely anyone has seen that ancient pre-tri-vid to get the reference. Scanning the layout of the warehouse, "we can ambush the goons coming back in when they don't expect us, a few good shots and we can take them down. Then we have the fraggers upstairs trapped. Better them than us if we succeed in taking them out only to find ourselves stuck there with these bastards holding the only way out."

Looking with untrusting eyes at Yuri, he points to the stacked crates in the middle of the floor,"Are these your goods or are they upstairs?" Aremys moves swiftly to take cover behind one of the random crates that provide a clear view of the entry way where the gangers sounds are approaching. He motions the others to follow and holds a finger to his lips to indicate silence. Leveling his pistol at the doorway, he waits (Aim, Delay Action) for the unsuspecting Halloweeners to come meet their death.

Post by **GM Nick** » Fri Jul 11, 2014 7:09 am

Yuri turns the Predator over in his hands and nods appreciatively. He racks the slide and stacks behind Bradbury.

"We'll take the upper floor." His eyes drift to Aremys. "Good idea, that door is a chokepoint. Keep them occupied while we clear house."

The Russian pats Bradbury on the shoulder to indicate his readiness.

John · Post by **John** » Fri Jul 11, 2014 7:52 am

Bradbury eyes Aremys near the front door, his marked distaste for the man beginning to mount. There's something about him that is just disagreeable-- a notable and insistent pushiness-- a sense that he believes he is always right, and expects others to fall in line with his thinking immediately. Bradbury would have preferred to go upstairs with an overwhelming force versus the three remaining Halloweeners, but Aremys apparently decided that it would be best to divide their force while leaving open the possibility of getting pinched from both sides. Bradbury is not interested in that, and if Aremys would prefer to stay behind, he's not going to argue.

The ork shakes off his irritation, and refocuses his attention on his teammates lined up behind him on the stairs, their eyes on him. A bead of sweat stands out on Yuri's brow. Bradbury is surprised to find a pair of rather soulful eyes staring back at him from the distinctly Russian visage. His hands tense and clawlike, the ork turns his head and looks back up the staircase, takes a deep breath, and slides up them to the point from which he can look into the room on the second floor.

Drew Buddy · Post by **Drew Buddy** » Fri Jul 11, 2014 11:09 am

Anon pauses for a moment, and appeals to the bear for guidance. He gets no immediate response. In unity there is strength, but I fear it is too late for unity now. So more strength will have to suffice.

He reaches out into the spirit world, searching for the right signature. Finding it, he calls it to himself gently, guiding it to him, a dram of reagents ready in his hand as offering.

(( Summon beast spirit, F3, optional power: noxious breath ))

Stephen · Post by **Stephen** » Sat Jul 12, 2014 2:14 pm

Ceasing his stoic attention to the exchange between the team and their new "friend," Little-Hawk starts toward the stairs, then eyes Aremys with a sideways glance. Tianwe watches the muzzle of Aremys' weapon tremble ever so slightly as he paints the open doorway, but his attention never wavers. Brave, this one. But bravery quickly becomes martyrdom against such odds. Eyes scanning the warehouse floor and noting the western side door, Tian grimaces at the tactical situation. Aremys needs help here.

Tianwe stops, turning to the stairwell and gesturing to Aremys. "I will help this one to slow them down. Work quickly above." Hunkering down behind the crates next to his teammate, he taps a few softkeys on his deck before nodding to his comrade. "Be right back. I am hopeful to give them little surprise."

A traditionally clad Salish warrior, complete with war paint and intricate tribal tattoos, flickers into existence in VR space. A larger-than-life crest of hawk feathers ruffles in a non-existent breeze as his gaze homes in on the icon of a grimly-adorned motorcycle rushing toward him through the vaccuum. In a matter of nanoseconds, a bow of coruscating binary integers appears in the avatar's hands, trains on the target, and sends a digital arrow streaking home.

(( Deck Config: A(4+1), S(1), D(3), F(3). Running: Virtual Machine => Hammer [+2 DV], Decryption [+1 Attack] ))

(( Might as well try out this whole Data Spike thing! Hot-Sim VR. Target: Lead Bike ))

Post by **GM Nick** » Wed Jul 16, 2014 9:49 am

Anon - Conjuring Test

A pool of black pitch bubbles and seeps up on to the ferrocrete floor from unseen cracks. It spreads out until it's about a square meter and continues to roil. Slowly, horrifically, a four legged canine of indeterminate type rises from the primordial soup. Glowing red eyes, slavering fangs and matted black fur all accentuate the spirit's nightmarish body. A guttural sound escapes its frothing maw before placing its snout in the air and searching for its prey.

Post by **GM Nick** » Wed Jul 16, 2014 9:55 am

Tianwe - Data Spike Test

There's a tremendous crash and the sound of metal scraping pavement as one of the incoming Pathfinders drops into a slide, it's navigation system suddenly having shorted out.

Post by **GM Nick** » Wed Jul 16, 2014 9:57 am

Bradbury reaches the top of the stairs and peers around the railing. The immediate corridor is empty, but he can clearly distinguish voices coming from inside the two areas partitioned as make-shift offices. He quickly identifies 3 separate speakers. Yuri pats Bradbury's back and points towards the corner facing the stairwell, indicating a cover-2 formation.

John · Post by **John** » Wed Jul 16, 2014 10:03 am

Bradbury checks his trailers for their readiness, turns to the empty corridor, and slinks forward through the shadows.

Drew Buddy · Post by **Drew Buddy** » Wed Jul 16, 2014 11:27 am

Anon kneels beside the terrifying dog in wonderment. He had never pulled a spirit from the other side like this. It had been far too early in his training. His hand trembles slightly as he strokes the spirit's head. It makes a squelching sound as if being dragged through oil, yet his hand remains dry.

In Sperethiel, he addresses the spirit. "I am sorry to call you up like this, friend, and I pray that you bear with me." He places the vial of orichalcum into the dog's jaws. "We are in dire need of your help. In a few moments, bad men are going to come through that door. I ask that you stay here, and protect the young, lost adept and the man with dead eyes until we are all safe. I will join the others upstairs."

He gets up with no further word, and sprints after Loki and Bradbury.

Post by **GM Nick** » Thu Jul 17, 2014 8:53 am

Bradbury - Sneaking Test

Bradbury toes around the corner, attempting to stage at the first doorway. An unseen lightbulb socket grinds under his boot, alerting the gangers inside to his presence.

Post by **GM Nick** » Thu Jul 17, 2014 8:57 am

[ Initiative ]
[ Bradbury: 28 ]
[ Anon: 22 ]
[ Yuri: 13 ]
[ Ganger 1: 13 ]
[ Ganger 2: 9 ]
[ Ganger 3: 11 ]
[ Loki: 8 ]

John · Post by **John** » Thu Jul 17, 2014 9:21 am

The crunch of the lightbulb underfoot is like a stater's pistol to Brabury-- his already surging adrenaline set afire and peaking, dumping like a blaze of ferocity and grace into his system. His step down onto the glass bulb moves seamlessly into his launch forward toward the enemy, and he moves with a preternatural speed and fluidity. The ork's coat trails behind the sudden burst of forward movement, playing at the air where its wearer had stood just a split second before. Like before, he is a passenger in his body. His awareness of what is going trails a moment behind his body's burst forward, and he can feel the imminent killing coiled in his hands. Before he's even taken a breath he is around the corner, the Halloweeners there before him still in the first stages of reacting to the sound of the crushed bulb. Just as the nearest ganger turns and makes eye contact with him, Bradbury is in on him low and close, springing upward from a crouch and driving his right elbow viciously upward into the ganger's chin.

Post by **GM Nick** » Thu Jul 17, 2014 10:34 am

Bradbury - Unarmed Combat Test

Bradbury charges into the closest target--which happens to be a hulking troll ganger with a bad facial tattoo and an even worse haircut. The ganger's eyes widen in surprise at the quickness of his adversary. He lifts the sledgehammer in his hands to block the oncoming attack but reacts far too slowly.

Ganger - Damage Resistance Test

{{ 13P DAMAGE. }}

The elbow drive connects savagely with the ganger's face, twisting the troll's head with pure kinetic force and snapping his neck in a single blow.

Drew Buddy · Post by **Drew Buddy** » Thu Jul 17, 2014 11:44 am

Time slows down for Anon as he rounds the corner. An arcing spray of blood hangs in the air in a trail terminating at the broken troll's mouth. He can feel the sharp eyes of a large animal boring into him from behind, guiding him. Grabbing the threads of magic around him, he pictures a large hammer and swings it with his mind into the face of the next troll ganger, following through with all the force he can muster.

(( Stun Bolt, F7 ))

Post by **GM Nick** » Sat Jul 19, 2014 6:44 am

Anon - Spellcasting Test

{{ 3S DAMAGE. }}

A crackling ball of purple energy erupts from Anon's hands, hurling through the skirmish and slamming into an orc ganger in the rear toting a shotgun. He jerks upright, as if being electrocuted and lets out a pained, "Frag!"

Post by **GM Nick** » Sat Jul 19, 2014 6:54 am

The Russian's eyes slide from the bloodied, inert troll on the ground to the gyrating orc. He instinctively trains Loki's Predator on the remaining healthy ganger--a rather smallish troll fumbling with a Remington Roomsweeper. He snarls as he takes aim to disarm the bumbling Halloweener. "сукин сын!"

(( Yuri, simple action, take aim. Fire semi-auto. ))

Yuri - Ranged Combat Test

Ganger 3 - Damage Resistance

{{ 9P DAMAGE. }}

Yuri's well aimed shot catches the ganger in the gut, just below the cut off of his leather jacket. The exit wound splatters blood against the deteriorating stucco and the troll yelps in pain.

John · Post by **John** » Sat Jul 19, 2014 2:30 pm

The whole world is a rapid succession of cracks: the crack of the troll's neck as it wrenches violently backward on his shoulders, turning him into the land's most ghoulish bobble-head for the blink of an eye before he crumples to the ground like a sack of potatoes; the crack of lightning-like electricity as it surges through the ork ganger, sending him into a short fit of convulsions, his muscles contracting and his fingers twitching as a whiff of smoke rises off of him with a sizzle; the crack of Yuri's gunfire as a burst of bullets rips through the second troll and paints the wall behind-- a ghastly Pollock of viscera and flesh, arterial and abstract. If Bradbury were to stare at it long enough him might see a woman getting ready to giver herself to him, or a pupal butterfly emerging from its cocoon, or the face of the father he can't remember. There's no time for the amnesiac to stop and admire the artwork, though; in a world overcome with cracks, one never knows from what origin the next one will come.

Elliott · Post by **Elliott** » Sat Jul 19, 2014 3:06 pm

Aremys gives the strange Native American elf a nod as he settles in behind cover, glad to have a little backup in the impending confrontation. The nod turns to a grin when he hears the screeching of a crashed bike outside, impressed with how well the elf can take control of another's vehicle.

Remind me to drive around in wireless mode!

The grin fades immediately as the demonic dog spirit rises from the floor. Aremys is no stranger to magic but he is uncomfortable with it nonetheless. Magic and the machine are constantly at odds and Arenys knows with which he holds faith. If the spirit dog serves it's apparent purpose of eating bullets for the team, then Aremys will appreciate its usefulness at least.

Focusing again on the entry, Aremys waits, eyes down the iron sights of his pistol, hoping that surprise remains on his side just long enough to get out of this alive.

Post by **GM Nick** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 5:08 am

The gut-shot ganger--conscious no doubt due only to a cocktail of drugs--raises a bloodied arm and fires twin shotgun blasts at his aggressor.

Ganger 2 - Ranged Combat Test

Yuri pivots away and winces at the hail of ferrocrete and drywall dust snow down on his his shoulders. "Aim a little lower next time, уродливый!"

Post by **GM Nick** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 5:12 am

The remaining ganger shakes off his magic-induced stupor and ducks behind a ferrocrete support beam. Leaning out, he fires off a quick blast at Anon.

Ganger 3 - Ranged Combat Test

A puff of faux-goose down erupts from the shoulder of Anon's coat as white-hot buckshot skims the material off the edge.

Post by **GM Nick** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 5:16 am

Aremys and Tianwe strain to separate the cacophony upstairs with the grunts, curses, and slamming of heavy chrome just outside. After a tense moment of waiting, silhouettes fill the doorway.

[ Initiative ]
[ Tianwe: 19 ]
[ Spirit: 14 ]
[ Ganger 5: 12 ]
[ Aremys: 11 ]
[ Ganger 6: 11 ]
[ Ganger 4: 9 ]

Stephen · Post by **Stephen** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 6:45 am

Tianwe stiffens as the shadows rush to the doorway, finally obscuring the rain-diffused light of the few functioning streetlights outside. Like fish in a barrel. But so are we, he thinks grimly as his finger creeps into the trigger guard. Exhaling a long breath, he fires two heavy slugs into the doorway to welcome the gangers home.

Post by **GM Nick** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 11:05 am

Nailface the Halloweener comes barreling through the warehouse door. The speed of the drugged up ganger is uncanny but no match for Little-Hawk's reaction time.

Little Hawk - Ranged Combat Test

Ganger 5 - Damage Resistance Test

{{ 8P DAMAGE! }}

Blood spackles the entrance-way as Tianwe puts a slug right through the ganger's pelvis.

Little-Hawk - Ranged Combat Test

The second shot is wide and ricochets off of the door frame.

Post by **GM Nick** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 12:47 pm

With an unearthly snarl that resembles more scream-in-a-wind-tunnel than an animalistic noise, the tar-covered canine rockets forward and lunges for the stumbling ganger's carotid artery.

Spirit - Unarmed Combat Test

Ganger 5 - Damage Resistance Test

{{ 6P DAMAGE! }}

The spirit becomes an amorphous shadow as it bounds and deflects off of the wounded Halloweener's torso. The surprised ganger fumbles with bloody fingers at where his larynx had been a second prior, gurgles in agony and collapses forward.

Elliott · Post by **Elliott** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 1:41 pm

Aremys squeezes the trigger once, heartbeat, twice. A small flicker of flame from the suppressed muzzle follows each pull as a barrage of bullets fly towards the ambushed gangers. Small, sharp cracks accompany the the explosive rounds as they leave outsized holes wherever they land. (Two bursts, from cover, with aiming on the first one.)

Conway · Post by **Conway** » Mon Jul 21, 2014 3:21 pm

With his back pressed hard to the wall behind him, Loki winces as gunshots report loudly from the hallway adjacent. A stray bullet wings the doorframe inches from his head, sprinkling bits of paint and wood splinters onto his boot tops. More shots echo in chorus up the stairwell from the ground floor, washing over him in lung rattling waves of concussive, high calibre detonations. Pivoting into the open hallway, gun raised, his snarl is heard between the quick bursts of his Ingram as his targeting reticle blinks over the wounded ganger.

Post by **GM Nick** » Tue Jul 22, 2014 5:32 am

The world is rendered in extreme precision within Aremys' cybernetically constructed eyes. Glare is reduced to nil. Low-light is compensated. Colors are sharpened to provide better contrast. Movement is tracked at a rate that far exceeds the human ocular ability, leaving the faintest of trails that allows the talented to predict movement. A glowing crosshairs tracks the silhouettes moving towards the doorway. Logistical data explodes in the corner of his vision; calculating trajectories, velocities and possible ricochet scenarios. He ignores this information and allows the crosshairs to settle as a whiff of carbon-dioxide leaves his lungs. The next sensation is the faint heat from the Predator's vent system against the top of his hand and the acrid aroma of cordite.

Aremys - Ranged Combat Test

The fringes of the ganger's jacket light up like angry fireflies as the trio of exploding rounds narrowly grazes the Halloweener.

Aremys - Ranged Combat Test

The second volley of automatic fire riddles the doorway, sending sparks and debris glittering into the skirmish.

Post by **GM Nick** » Tue Jul 22, 2014 8:55 am

Loki - Ranged Combat Test

Ganger 3 - Damage Resistance Test

{{ 13P DAMAGE! }}

The volley of automatic fire from Loki's smartgun tears the Halloweener's head open like rotting pumpkin, spilling gore across the dusty ground. The punk shaman spins, bringing the weapon to bear on the last ganger standing and squeezes the trigger.

Loki - Ranged Combat Test

The whistling slugs catch the Halloweener in rapid succession like a triple-combo from a heavyweight boxer, sending him reeling backwards. His heavy frame collides with a plastiglass window--made brittle by a decade of neglect--which shatters under his weight. A shocked groan manages to escape the ganger's lips as he careens backwards into space, plummets a very short distance and then bifurcates messily on the razor-edge of a dumpster.

Post by **GM Nick** » Tue Jul 22, 2014 9:06 am

Yuri slowly lowers his borrowed firearm and squints sidelong at Loki.

"Where you get this guy--an action trid?"

Run #1: Trial by Fire

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