A Fast Exit — Legacy Forums — Strolen's Citadel

Re: A Fast Exit

#441

Autumn quickly tossed the hunting rifle to the scaly woman, drawing her hand cannon in a smooth motion and triggering two shots as soon as it was properly extended, the rush of battle causing the pain from her injuries to momentarily fade into insignificance.

"Time to-" *blam!* "teach thing thing some-" *blam!* "manners!" The sharp crack of her plasma propelled depleted uranium projectiles was deafeningly loud in the confines of the canyon, her hearing filtrating cutting off the loudest parts and making extended conversation all but impossible.

Re: A Fast Exit

#442

The Alpha roared, bud did not seem too impressed at the pock marks left in his flesh by the firearm. His many eyes glinted with evil understanding from the nooks in his horned face-plate. He did understand very well that the small firearm that had taunted him so previously was inferior to Autumn's shotgun, and he bared his rows of fangs at the sight of a larger still rifle being handed to his primary prey.

"Distract him" Irina gasped as she sped up a ravine, hoping the treacherous footing would impair her heavier pursuer far more.
The jaw snapped at her heels, and the many legs ripped the ground, sending a storm of boulders downhill. A great gash in the ground appeared where the hillside gave away under the frantic pursuit. With long leaps and feline grace, the captain made her way uphill, to a rocky outcropping, while the Alpha rolled down in a shower of stone and cloud of dust... to emerge from it bruised, but no slower, and about twice as angry.

"Your friend?" it looked at Autumn, and purred akin to a sadistic tiger in glee. "I kill."

"Line him up for a good shot!" Irina called from her vantage point, the beast in her sights.

Jerome appears after the girls and the Alpha had another turn.

Re: A Fast Exit

#443

Autumn growled louder, the beasts bulk and resistance to her current weaponry more than a little unsettling. it's taunting statement of it's intentions for Irina deepening her resolve. "Your young, I eat!" She howled the words and she flicked the arming switch on her hand cannon to the 12 gauge flechette round, hoping somewhere in its primitive brain the threat of harm to its offspring would trigger an instinctual aggression response and focus it solely upon her.

With a roar of bestial fury she rose her handgun and fired, aiming for the beasts blood shot eye socket, trusting the spread pattern of plasma propelled flechettes would be more effective against such a soft target not to mention far more painful and infuriating.

For being a quality distraction: (12:13:59) Minion: Silveressa rolls 3d6 and gets 3,1,5. =9
For shooting it in the eye/face with her hand cannon: (12:14:21) Minion: Silveressa rolls 4d6 and gets 1,5,1,6. =13 (took 1 die of penalty for an additional die of damage, but I don't know the 12 gauge damage code so feel free to roll for damage for me Echo.)

Re: A Fast Exit

#444

The hound proved to be an excellent distraction. No wonder the Alpha was an apex predator - before she could finish her sentence, the beast was upon her with a mad dash, its maw seizing her leg and thrashing her around akin to a rag doll in a dog's maw.
Alpha seizes Autumn, deals 1 health level of damage.
Luckily, it was intelligent enough to be sadistic, and took definite glee at seeing her pain. It played instead of going for the kill, savouring her taste and screams - until she overcame her pain long enough to feed it a face full of flechettes. 'Savour this' she thought.

The needles failed at piercing the nictating membranes of its eyes - but certainly made it less playful, and way more mad.

"Taking your anger out on women, I see?" Jerome quipped as he entered the scene, guns ready. The thing would look good mounted above a fireplace.

Re: A Fast Exit

#445

Jerome was pulling the trigger even as he pulled the trigger - controlled bursts due to Autumns's proximity.

Maybe shaped-charges would work where flachettes failed. Would certainly get its attention...

Re: A Fast Exit

#446

There was no time to waste - the Alpha could bite down on Autumn any moment, especially given that she had bestowed a blast of civilization upon its face. The thousand small bleeding sores in its hide were testimony both to the toughness of its scales, and to the anger it had to feel.

Jerome fired the first rocket before coming to a halt, heart racing from the long run, head swimming with the extra oxygen, just to get the beast's attention, not caring whether it struck.
The canyon wall exploded with rock splinters, ancient fossils dying a second time, flames flickering in the debris. The creature spat out Autumn like a spiteful child would a treat that fell in disfavor, its angry gaze following the trail of smoke from the crater to the rifle. It knew.
So what.
Jerome lined up for another shot. "Smile."
Right between the eyes it would go...
It ducked the moment his fingers pressed the trigger, the rocket sailing wide down the stony crevasse.
The Alpha leaped the distance, a coiled spring of green-black death, sinking its fangs and claws into the soldier - ever so surprised that something so small could be so tough. Jerome could see the remains of its former prey amongst its teeth, the rest of a limb still dangling from between serrated fangs.
That's metal for you, you bastard.
Two health levels of damage for Jerome.

Plink. A bullet ricocheted off the predator's skull, courtesy of Irina. Might need a little more than that - or to hit the beast at a better angle with that large-caliber rifle.

Re: A Fast Exit

#447

Autumn took a breath and steeled herself, quickly reloading the 12 gauge flechette in her hand cannon as the monster bit down onto Jerome and pulled back, a risky plan forming in her mind. With a low growl she pushed herself from the ground running headlong towards the beast her free hand extended, claws outstretched as if she planned to fell the beast in a singular claw strike, powering herself into a leap towards it looming head, extending her pistol with her right hand and attempting to force it up the creatures steaming snot box before pulling the trigger of her hand cannon.

Lets see how well you handle flechettes administered directly to your gray matter monster..

She knew getting this close to its mouth was a risk, and it's death throes may well kill her, but she could think of no better way to greet the pale hound then fighting to save her pack from certain death.

(20:36:05) Minion: Silveressa rolls 5d6 and gets 4,6,2,5,6.
rerolling the 2 6's gets me: (20:36:28) Minion: Silveressa rolls 2d6 and gets 3,3.
Not sure what the damage code is for the 12 gauge yet, but hopefully up the nostril will prove sufficient.

And some music with which to fight the dragon by:

http://youtu.be/MM_c_avPlx4

Re: A Fast Exit

#448

Jerome stepped back in the middle of Autumn's attack, his thoughts of grenade use banished. Even rocket fire would be too risky. He attempted to guess where they would be a few seconds and readied his rifle. Once she was clear a few feet, he'd try to finish what Autumn started.

Fuck he needed a real vacation...

Re: A Fast Exit

#449

The Alpha's nostrils were hidden, but Autumn managed to cling onto the beast's head, lifted as if by a monstrous mount, roaring as it reared up above Jerome.
Holding on as tenaciously as she held on to life, Autumn grasped on with the duranium claws as the head on the serpentine neck flailed hence and forth, then plunged the muzzle of the flechette gun into the nearest orifice on the head, and pulled the trigger.
Autumn rolls a critical, two health levels to the monster.
Her chariot of rage became one of blood as the creature sputtered and roared, belching bloody fumes, and rolled and thrashed on the ground, threatening to mangle the hound to shreds.
"Jump clear!" Jerome yelled, and she did, sailing in an elegant arc and landing on all fours, still wincing - for she was no cat.

The creature re-focused, the glimmer in its eyes restored even as blood dripped from its maw.
At point blank, Jerome sighed as he spent some of the last rockets.
Through the first fireball, it came charging, the wound on its chest revealing layers in the semblance of composite armor.
The second, it shook, visibly shaken, still charging.
The third struck it square, burying deep in the chinks left behind by the previous blasts, and tearing off flesh in a massive blast. Its ribs could be seen, the body scorched in part, heaving, defeated yet not dead.

"Traitors" a furious girlish voice came from speakers above, the roar of engines now evident that the fighting had died down. "Trying to steal me from the good captain, nefarious blackguards? Blundering buffoons! Artless scoundrels! You shall burn in fires of righteous vengeance!"

Irina approached, bleeding, and nude save for her scales, running towards Jerome, and shouting into his comm: "Artemisia, stand down!"
The metal shape above seemed almost disappointed at the lack of carnage.
"Thanks for bringing the ship here - and saving me from the jackass here" she kicked the gravely wounded beast.

The glorious crew has prevailed.
Now, you decide how to handle the relationship with your captain:
Should she leave Kotir behind?
Should she stay and subdue the Alpha?
Should she become the Alpha?
Or do you have other devious ideas? :)

Re: A Fast Exit

#450

With a snarl Autumn reloaded her hand cannon an gave Irina a nod of acknowledgement, "Life debt paid in full," She told the captain, any further conversation rendered impossible for the next few seconds as she coldly emptied her cannon into the fallen Kotiri monstrosities skull, using as may rounds as it took to ensure it was thoroughly dead. "It wanted to find a way to the stars, had it succeeded it would have been the end for the Kotiri here, at the very least."

She glared at the still twitching corpse giving Jerome and Sunny a tired look, "After we get patched up, I think this beast will finish filling our freezes well enough, assuming it's edible." She holstered her cannon with repressed whine, the ebb of adrenaline reminding her of the true extend of her injuries. "I bet you taste just like chicken you scaled bastard." She told the corpse, withdrawing her knife and setting about removing it's fangs and largest claws while the ship settled into a suitable clearing.

Re: A Fast Exit

#451

"I'm not sure I can stomach that thing any longer, food or otherwise. It fucked me up a bit. Kind of lost my appetite for the local cuisine."

Listen to me whine, Jerome thought.

"Lets get out of here before any one else gets some bright idea to become Columbus."

Re: A Fast Exit

#452

"I should have been the one to kill him, or otherwise" Irina lowered her head, voice hollow, eyes fixed upon the lifeless body, the face expressionless.
"It was me who taught him of ambition when we bonded, of humans and whatever filth the recesses of their minds hold. I should have taught him the knowledge of good and evil before I told of the rest. He took to his first lesson well, though. The fool I've been."
She turned then, beckoning to the Artemisia to lower her ramp, and open that welcoming flower of artifice in the face of the pristine world.

"We should not let him come to waste, Autumn; we will take what we can carry - but you two, join the good doctor in the infirmary; also find Quan - the panel was set to stun, but make sure he is alright. Sunny, warn me before you release them to celebrate, to allow me to prepare."

The captain turned to her bloody work, sighing: "I must learn more of men before I can teach of them." Methodically, she prepared the meat, but even the casual observer would discern that her mind attended to entirely different tasks.

The Thinker was standing on the cliff-side as the Lilarcor took off, his eyes deep and mild, the hands folded in contemplation. Death had taken some, but all knowledge had its cost. He nodded, hoping that his effort on Irina was well spent.
He gazed at the fading trail of fire, long after the ship had left, contemplating what the skies would bring next.

***

Space had them back, and the Lila was eating away light years at a slow, methodical pace. Irina had shed her scales, the features human again, pink and supple. Long hours had she spent in her quarters, likely tired and engrossed in the transformation. Autumn though had heard muffled sobbing at the door once, but did not intrude.

***

The comm on the bridge beeped, the captain scanned the lines, the pictures, and grinned: "Let's move, crew, we've got a job, merchandise to sell, and fuel on this thing to pay."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZ7pyiHg2BY