Operation: Powered Ranger- The Invasion

[DCrane1]

Fort Able is a hideous looking building – an enormous prefabricated rectangle of dull-gray synthetic steel. As architecture, the Fort is a disaster but as a makeshift home for 280 thousand residents of Mariner Bay, it is serviceable.
Two days have passed since the thinners appeared, and the grotesque, gaunt, faceless creatures have forced total evacuation of Mariner Bay. When the thinners attacked, they focused on the factories and military installations in Mariner Bay. While this inflicted heavy causalities on Corporation soldiers, it allowed all but twenty thousand civilians to be successfully evacuated.

The evacuation plans were created during the Urgnar Crusade twenty years ago, when fifty million fanatical Urgnar declared the Corporation’s presence in the Colonization Regions to be an abomination to their gods. It was then that emergency shelters were built throughout Mariner Bay and connected by subways to sprawling underground living quarters in Fort Able. These living quarters are spartan, just row upon row of tiny rooms shared between two people, similar to a huge college dormitory.

Each of you were in your room when two men dressed in the short-sleeved light blue uniforms of Corporation police officers came and asked you to come with them. They would not reveal where you were going, simply saying all questions would be answered shortly.

You took an elevator up to the Fort’s main floor, and were led down a long hallway and through a doorway marked “Command and Control.” The first few rooms of the Command and Control area were filled with men and women sitting in front of large real-time tactical maps relaying orders and information to the soldiers still fighting in Mariner Bay. You then reach another room which is flanked by two police officers. The guards open the door with a key card and lead you inside.

The room is large but nondescript. The walls are dominated by holographic viewing screens currently out of use and therefore shrunken down from their wall-filling full size. In the middle of the room is a conference table occupied on one side by three women and two men. You recognize two of them immediately, the middle-aged woman with shoulder length black hair is Governor Susan McDavis and the balding man in a military dress uniform is Colonel Nathaniel Vargo. Governor McDavis, with her black pantsuit, a thin face with high cheekbones, and lifeless brown eyes, looks tougher than her military counterpart, a dark-skinned man who has the jowls and bulging gut common in aging men whose fondness for beer outweighs their fondness for exercise.

You are led in one right after another and Governor McDavis greets you by name: Chloe first, then Clinton, the Michael, then Emmett, and finally Elissa. When you are all assembled, Governor McDavis introduces the conference table. In addition to herself and Colonel Vargo, you are joined by Sarah Harrington, Dr. Rebecca Quinn, and Alistair Crane. Harrington is the Governor’s aide, and is distinguishable from her boss only by virtue of her blonde hair, light gray suit, and younger age. Doctor Quinn, introduced as a Corporation scientist, is a rather mousy looking brown-haired woman in her late 30s, casually dressed in a light blue sweater and dark jeans. Alistair Crane smiles when he is introduced as the Deputy Governor, showing a row of perfectly white teeth. An older man in his late 60s, Alistair has thick silver hair and a well trimmed beard. Dressed elegantly in an expensive double-breasted navy blue suit, a crisp white shirt and golden cufflinks, and a silver necktie with a white pocket handkerchief, Alistair seems out of place in the dull conference room.

Once introductions are over, the Governor says, “You are probably wondering why you are here. The answer is rather peculiar, but you may be the only people who can save us from those monsters.” She pauses for a moment, as if confused by her own words, and then goes on. “We have recently come into possession of,” McDavis pauses and searches for the right word, “devices that will transfer great power onto people who can use them. That power will allow us to defend Angel Grove against the invaders. We believe you are the only people who can use them effectively. Doctor Quinn?”
Doctor Quinn takes out a attaché case that was next to her chair and opens it on the conference table. She then places five golden rectangles onto the table. The devices are covered in strange etchings that look like letters, but are of no language you recognize.

The Governor continues, “I know most of you are civilians and strangers to each other. I know this is a lot to ask. But I fear we have no other options. Even with the reinforcements we’ve gotten from the outlying outposts, our soldiers are being overwhelmed.” Her eyes remain cold and lifeless, but a note of panic strays into her voice, “Will you help us fight for Angel Grove?”

OOC: This introduction is a bit long, but I'm trying to kickstart the plot without getting bogged down. How long each and every scene takes is up to you, if something is dragging on or going to slowly, bring it up on the OOC thread.

[The Dark Fiddler]

Emmett

Anybody who watches Emmett during the introductions and explanations can clearly see that he's thinking heavily. His tanned brow is furrowed in thought, and his blue eyes are a bit vacant. When The Governor finishes speaking, he speaks slowly but surely as he reaches out for a rectangle. "How could we not?" He thinks for a few seconds, looking over the strange device in his hand, before speaking again. "Why only us, though?"

[DCrane1]

Emmett

Anybody who watches Emmett during the introductions and explanations can clearly see that he's thinking heavily. His tanned brow is furrowed in thought, and his blue eyes are a bit vacant. When The Governor finishes speaking, he speaks slowly but surely as he reaches out for a rectangle. "How could we not?" He thinks for a few seconds, looking over the strange device in his hand, before speaking again. "Why only us, though?"

When Emmett takes his device, the relief is visible on everyone's face. Sarah, the Governor's assistant, even grins widely and looks hopefully at the rest of the assembled refugees.

As for Emmett's question, nobody speaks for a moment and an awkward silence replaces the hopeful mood. As Governor McDavis glares at her, Dr. Quinn clears her throat several times before saying, "These devices, my team and I have taken to calling them morphers and, um, we discovered them months ago but had no idea what they were. Then we bombarded them with radio waves and a message played, all in pictures, perfectly lifelike pictures. The pictures showed people taking the morphers and having a suit of armor materialize around them out of nowhere. Armor that would give its wearer extreme strength and fighting prowess. The pictures showed them fighting and defeating monsters identical to the thinners that are now swarming all over Mariner Bay. The people in those pictures were you. Not people who looked like you, but people who were identical to you."

Colonel Vargo looked visibly uncomfortable while Quinn was speaking, repeatedly adjusting the black necktie on his dress uniform and smoothing out his pants. When she finishes he immediately says, "I didn't believe it either. But I saw it and then we saw you in our databanks, and... that was it."

[KnightDisciple]

Michael

When Mike came into the presence of not only the planet's Governor, but also the leader of the planet's military contingent, he saluted on instinct, before assuming "parade rest". As he listened, he remained still, his brows furrowing slightly as he tried to process it all. It was rather sudden, and Emmett's question had been rather prominent in his own mind. When an answer was provided, he gave a slow nod before crisply reaching forward and taking one of the "morphers".

"Wouldn't be right to shirk a duty like this, ma'am. Have to say, all seems a bit odd, though. This is a rather...random...group."

'I think I'm the only one with anything like military experience out of all five of us!'

"Doesn't really matter, I guess. I'm happy to be able to actually help. Guess I'm signing up a bit earlier than originally planned."

He gave everyone in the room a wan smile at that remark.

[The_Admiral]

Clinton tiredly responds, "That, that actually makes a, decent amount of sense. What with all the crazy hullabaloo going on. I probably don't need to ask why because you lot don't look like you now why these things are here. So when do we start?"

[Buwh]

Chole Campbell stands by, quiet and intrigued. After her earlier entanglement with these creatures, well perhaps I should say near-escape, she'd been wishing for a way to help out more and show those things out there she meant business.

She was gathered in front of some of the most important people in Angel Groove and they were telling her that she and this other random assortment of people were the only hope. She only knew what Dad had taught her and that wasn't enough, was it? The girl wanted to protest, wanted to make a noise of derision, but she could only stare on in shock as the video played and their destiny was revealed.

Chole wondered where her parents were. Did they have her Dad out fighting these things somewhere? Was he helping people? What about her mom, working on some experiment.. had she studied these things, did she know that they were for her daughter? She wanted to ask these questions so bad but they had more pressing matters. Tentatively she reached a caramel-colored hand out to take the device she knew was hers.

"Nobody loves Angel Groove more than my Dad.. and me." Chole tried to say, strongly, in front of these imposing figures.

[DCrane1]

"That, that actually makes a, decent amount of sense. What with all the crazy hullabaloo going on. I probably don't need to ask why because you lot don't look like you now why these things are here. So when do we start?"

"You start as soon as possible." Governor McDavis says. Doctor Quinn then pipes up, "The message we viewed from the morphers spoke about becoming attuned to them. Although it was vague, from what we can tell you would need to be in physical contact with the morphers and then have them actually alter you on a molecular level. All this appears to require is holding the morphers and concentrating. Obviously, there will be some trial and error so we'll be doing that in a laboratory setting."

As Chloe takes her morpher, a military aide comes in and hands Colonel Vargo a tablet, saying "This was transmitted moments ago." The Colonel swears under his breath and asks the aide to put the footage on one of the wall holoscreens.

The footage is taken from the perspective of someone fighting in an Ares battlesuit. The Ares soldiers, who were en route to frontline combat but stranded on Angel Grove during a refueling stop when the hyperspace disturbances began, have been the colony's best assets against the thinners, as the bulky battlesuits can shrug off the thinners' energy blasts.

The footage begins with six Ares soldiers landing in a ruined city intersection, in the middle of a pack of fifty thinners and quickly vaporizing all of them with the artillery-grade plasma cannons mounted on the battlesuit's shoulders and below their hands. As the last of the thinners are destroyed, the commander (whose camera the footage is from) says "we've got an energy signature coming in fast from up top. Nothing like the thinners." The camera pans up to show a monster flying down from the sky towards the battlesuits at a quick pace, firing spikes out of its arms as it lands.

The creature looks like a broad-shouldered human man who has been carved out of a dull gray industrial diamond. A hair over eight feet tall, it holds a coiled whip in one hand and a sword in the other, both weapons are an inky black just like the thinners' energy blasts. The outsides of its arms are lined with embedded short spikes that it is firing rapidly, and a fist size stone protrudes from its throat. The stone is an ever-changing pattern of colors, mirroring the kaleidoscopic pattern in the sky.

The spikes ricochet harmlessly off the Ares battlesuits, and the soldiers open fire on the beast. Their plasma beams never it though, as it leaps into the air and lands directly behind of the soldiers, cleaving the entire battlesuit perfectly in half with a horizontal swing his his sword. As the soldiers open fire again, the monster jumps again and this time shoots a black energy beam out of his sword that makes a battlesuit burst into flames upon contact. Still in mid-air, the monster's whip coils around one battlesuit and then changes color from black to bright white as the battlesuit sparks and explodes. The commander shouts "retreat" and tries to fly into the air, but it is too late. Before they can even make it into the air, the commander's battlesuit is run through with the monster's sword and the footage ends.

When the footage is over, the military aide adds "The other two didn't make it either." Colonel Vargo clutches the table for support and looks like he is going to throw up. He begins writing frantically on the tablet, and everyone else looks at Elissa, the last to enter the room and the only one not to claim speak yet. The Governor says, "I think this goes without saying, but obviously if we win this, everything you've done in the past will be forgotten."

[The_Admiral]

I don't think any of us has a criminal record other than a DUI at worst, but okay. Clinton says as he reaches out for a morpher, instantly attracted to a specific one. Holding his morpher in front of him, he says, Oookay... What next?

[DCrane1]

I don't think any of us has a criminal record other than a DUI at worst, but okay. Clinton says as he reaches out for a morpher, instantly attracted to a specific one. Holding his morpher in front of him, he says, Oookay... What next?

Doctor Quinn answers "Like I said, we think all you'll need to do to activate your morphers is to concentrate on them. However, we would like to do that in a laboratory environment to minimize any risks involved. Since this involves changes on a molecular level, we would want to monitor a wide variety of medical indicators as you attempt to use your morphers."

[The_Admiral]

Clinton recoils from his morpher, wrapping it in a handkerchief and slipping it into his pocket. He then says, So where is the lab?

[BlackestOfMages]

Ellisa smiled wrly "Really, we're currently under attack, you believe these will help stop the invaders and you want us to - rather than, say, trying to stop said enemy you recruited us for - stand around in your lab for a few minutes? And for that part, are you sure we can do this, rather than say, hide?. I'm a problem solver, not a fighter." she finished, taking the morpher her hand was drawn too, her mind engrossed by their visual ability; miniature holographics. astounding
"Not that I'm complaining, of course, the chance to enter the lab of the famed Doctor Quinn - I've tried to get in once or twice before, but your security is impressive - is enough to bring me on board, doubly so if it lets me have a moment or two out of those pleasently decorated prison cells." finishing the last sentance, she smiles pleasently at Clinton.

"so, shall we begin?"

[DCrane1]

Ellisa smiled wrly "Really, we're currently under attack, you believe these will help stop the invaders and you want us to - rather than, say, trying to stop said enemy you recruited us for - stand around in your lab for a few minutes? And for that part, are you sure we can do this, rather than say, hide?. I'm a problem solver, not a fighter." she finished, taking the morpher her hand was drawn too, her mind engrossed by their visual ability; miniature holographics. astounding
"Not that I'm complaining, of course, the chance to enter the lab of the famed Doctor Quinn - I've tried to get in once or twice before, but your security is impressive - is enough to bring me on board, doubly so if it lets me have a moment or two out of those pleasently decorated prison cells." finishing the last sentance, she smiles pleasently at Clinton.

"so, shall we begin?"

Governor McDavis glares at Ellisa and says "We don't know what these will do to you, and we want to be in a safe environment." The panic in her voice is replaced by anger, and she adds "It's for your own safety."

Doctor Quinn holds her hands up defensively and says, "We just want to be able to monitor your condition while you are attempting to attune to your morphers. That way, if anything happens that could be dangerous, say your heart rate spikes to dangerous levels, we can be prepared to treat that." Quickly she adds, "Not that I think your heart rates will become anything to worry about. This ought to be safe and painless."

Quinn stands up and walks towards the doors on the opposite end of the conference room, saying "Please just follow me and we can get started."

[The Dark Fiddler]

Emmett

Following the doctor and clutching the morpher in his hand tightly, Emmett speaks once more. "She does have a point, though. We should get this over with quickly. Are you sure these will be enough, though? You saw the footage, and how it sliced through those suits." Emmett looks around at the other people gathered to fight, his teammates. They seem to be unusually fit (and never does it cross his mind that he is equally so), but none of them really scream "seasoned fighter". He finds it hard to believe that these morphers could possibly give them the power necessary to fight Angel Grove's enemies.

[DCrane1]

Emmett

Emmett speaks once more. "She does have a point, though. We should get this over with quickly. Are you sure these will be enough, though? You saw the footage, and how it sliced through those suits."

Quinn answers "We said that before we saw that." Realizing she spoke too quickly, she then adds "But whatever these do should be much different from typical battlesuits like the Ares Mark Five. Rather than being something you wear and consciously pilot, these should form a second skin around you that is just as natural as your current skin. We can't analyze the durability or anything really until we see the transformation, but the message we saw shows the suits as being quite strong. Of course, we don't really know how true that is yet."

As Quinn is busy misspeaking and making awkwardly pessimistic statements, Colonel Vargo hands his tablet to the military aide and tells the young man to "Make sure these are carried out immediately."

Governor McDavis stands up and starts following Quinn out of the room. Her aide and the Deputy Governor seem content to stay beyond until McDavis waves for them to join her.

[KnightDisciple]

"I'm ready. Doesn't matter if there's still danger. Not like we can really walk away from this."

He tried not to fiddle with the morpher as he followed the leaders down the hall. He gives wary glances at the 4 people who are now his teammates. They don't know each other, he's probably the only one who even knows what a military formation is, and they're about to be thrust into a fight with an overwhelming enemy with completed untested and unknown gear.

"Not exactly what I signed up for, but guess that'll show me for assuming," he mutters under his breath.

[DCrane1]

After a short walk and elevator ride, you walk into a featureless white room. Doctor Quinn says “wait right here and we’ll get started in a moment,” as she walks to the neighboring room alongside the other colonial administrators. She sits in front of a glass viewing window into your room, and looking through it you can see several holographic readouts that Doctor Quinn and other scientists are observing.

“We’re synching the monitoring systems up with your vitals,” she says as a series of red lights sweep across the room. “Alright, now we’d just like to create a baseline for all of your indicators, please take a series of deep breaths.”

After a few moments of deep breathing, Quinn asks “Now please take out your morphers and just hold them in your hands. I just want to monitor how physical contact with them impacts your vitals.” Once you all have your morphers in your hands, a quick flash of energy emerges from them. Emmett’s is blue, Michael’s is red, Clinton’s is green, Chloe’s is pink, and Ellisa’s is yellow. Although Doctor Quinn has turned off the intercom, you hear loud conversation from the other room and it is clear this was unexpected.

The morphers flash again, and this time an imagine flashes through your mind as the colors fill the room.

Emmett
You see your father performing surgery on a soldier in Fort Able’s medical bay. The soldier begins to flatline on the operating table and as your father shouts for the nurses, the soldier jerks up on the table before bursting into flames. Then the image changes to a huge building in the shape of a human skull made out of hardened lava. A deep but affectless voice booms “The Plague is coming.”

Michael
You see a conversation between Colonel Vargo and Governor McDavis. The Colonel says “You can’t put the colony’s future in the hands of five inexperienced people, one of which is a hardened criminal, based on some message from something we know nothing about. It’s insane!” The Governor glares at him and says “We have no other options. You’ve admitted our soldiers will be overrun eventually.” Then the image changes to a pitch-black cave. The only illumination in the cave comes from bright blue orbs floating just below the ceiling, and an obsidian pillar dominates the middle of the room. Then the pillar shatters and the image changes to a huge building in the shape of a human skull made out of hardened lava. A deep but affectless voice booms “The Plague is coming.”

Khloe
You see your father and several other soldiers taking cover behind a downed transport hovercraft as thinners swarm their position. As the soldiers are overrun, the image changes to a huge building in the shape of a human skull made out of hardened lava and a deep but affectless voice booms “The Plague is coming.”

Clinton
You see a giant spaceship which has been painted to resemble a bird of prey. Four metal shafts, stylized to look like wings, protrude from a large rectangular body. The shafts are brimming with laser turrets and missile launchers and a swarm of small fighters emerge from the ship and head towards the planet below. Then the image changes to a huge building in the shape of a human skull made out of hardened lava and a deep but affectless voice booms “The Plague is coming.”

Elissa
You see yourself on an autopsy table. Your skull has been opened up and an elderly doctor with a clipped, upper-crust accent is telling Governor McDavis, “The brain is completely rotted, it’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before.” Then the image changes to a huge building in the shape of a human skull made out of hardened lava and a deep but affectless voice booms “The Plague is coming.”

As the visions stop appearing in your mind’s eyes, you see that the energy flashes from your morphers are increasing in duration and brightness. Doctor Quinn hits the intercom button to say something, and then the world goes black.

The first thing you see when your vision returns, which feels like mere seconds have past, is the kaleidoscope sky. You look around and see that you have somehow been transported to the paved rooftop of an industrial building in Angel Grove. The city around you is burning, and you can hear laser fire. Then you realize you’ve changed. Your entire body is covered in a smooth solid substance that matches the color of your morpher energy flashes. A weapon is in your hands, and instinctively you realize that you know how to fight with it. You don’t feel like your body has changed, the substance around you feels like a second skin just as Doctor Quinn said it would.

Immediately after you notice your changes, an explosion rocks the building you are on top of. At the same time, the door leading inside the building bursts open and six thinners, the featureless brown monsters that have been plaguing Angel Grove, come swarming through. They charge towards you, their fists glowing with black energy.

OOC: Again, I’m sorry if this is forced and hurried but I’m trying to avoid the fate that befalls some PbP games where the intro drags on and on. I hope people don’t mind the fast pace, speak up on the OOC thread if you do and I’ll adjust later developments to compensate.

Initiative is below.

[DCrane1]

Initiative for the fight is:

Emmett (Ankylo Ranger)- [roll0]
Clinton (Velociranger)- [roll1]
Khloe (Pterodactyl Ranger)- [roll2]
Elissa (Triceraranger) [roll3]
Michael (Tyranno Ranger)- [roll4]
Thinners Group 1- [roll5]
Thinners Group 2- [roll6]

[The Dark Fiddler]

Emmett

Emmett looks around quickly and takes in his new location. Somehow, they've managed to be teleported out of the room they were just in, and now they were under attack. What had happened to them, and what had happened to the others that were with them?

He looked up at the thinners, and it suddenly dawned on him that they had more pressing concerns. He quickly began to swing his new weapon, a fairly long-chained flail, in a wide circle and shouted to his new teammates, "Finish this as quickly as you can; it looks like the city really needs us." His message delivered, he flung his flail at the nearest thinner; although he somehow knew how to use this weapon, it still nearly pulled him off balance, and he made a note to keep a stronger stance in the future.

Using the Akylo Mace's blast power on the nearest thinner. DC 21, and homing.

[roll0] Attack roll

[BlackestOfMages]

OOC: posting here now in anticipation of when my initative turn comes around. as a hit for keeping up pace, you may want to try using average group initiative to keep the pace up :smallsmile:

That was.... ok, that freaked her out. If that was her futur is she kept this thing then book her a lifelong stay back in jail, with her head nice and safe and in one piece. ugh
Well, if that was what was in store for her then these freaks where probably to blame. She wasn't going to let that happen, not if she had any choice in the matter.
"Hey, ugly. Duck" she says cockily, striking forward in the air with enough force to unleash a surge of pressure against the wierd brown... things.

Using shockwave power feat to create a 100ft cone towards the thinners, angling it to avoid my team mates. causes strength damage (capped at 8 thanks to campaign level). reflex dc 21 for half damage

[The_Admiral]

Clinton waves his oversize and colourful spear around, surprised by the sudden weight. Finally, he manages to lift it up. Suddenly, a laser blast fired from behind him, striking the nearest enemy.


[roll0] ATK
[roll1] Tough

[Buwh]

"Dad!" Khloe shouted, with a start no longer in the vision but instead on a roof. What did those words mean, and why did she have such a foreboding feeling in the pit of her stomach?

Looking down in amazement her eyes trailed down the magnificent pink armor hard and thick but somehow easily moveable, a real second skin that wouldn't hamper her movements. Her grip tightens on the halberd-like weapon she carries.

"Bardiche.." She muttered, watching it, knowing it fully. Maybe there was something to that video after all. Maybe this is what she should be doing.

Soon her vision is broken by the bodies of those awful creatures she escaped from. They were like a plague piling in like roaches, just aggressive with no sense of self from what she could tell. Monsters.

"Come on everyone! Who knows who could be hurt out there.." She yelled, losing her nerve at the end when thinking of her dear father facing these things without her.

Concerned about ending this quickly she rushed forward with a shout of energy to meet the first one- glowing hand to Bardiche.

Speeding forward to slash one in the face! Roll: [roll0]

[DCrane1]

Sprinting has never been easier for Khloe as it is right now. As the thinners pour out of the stairwell onto the roof, she charges them with Michael right alongside her. The thinners try and spread out as the two Rangers charge, their fists still glowing black. Khloe reaches them a moment before Michael, and she swings her bardiche to try and cleave one of them apart. The thinner drops prone with unbelievable speed however, and Khloe's swing connects with nothing but air. Michael is far more effective, as he feints towards one thinner before pivoting and impaling its' compatriot who tries to strike at Michael's seemingly unprotected side. Despite never practicing swordfighting, these tactics come unbidden to Michael's mind, as though they are second nature.

As the thinners spread out and try and flank Michael and Khloe, one of the ones moving to menace Khloe is hit in the stomach by the Anklomace and it immediately collapses to the ground upon impact.

Elissa tries to send a shockwave towards the two thinners cautiously backpedaling on Michael's left, using a technique she isn't sure how she knows she has, and the shockwave hits the thinners with a force that surprises her. The thinners' chests actually crumple slightly inward as they collapse to the rooftop's floor writhing in pain.

The thinner that dodged Khloe's bardiche has sprung back to its feet and is circling Khloe along with one other thinner. They lunge towards Khloe at the same time, the first sending a blast of black energy towards her and the second closing for melee. She leaps up the air and lands behind both of them, easily avoiding their attacks. The thinner that tried to blast Khloe is himself felled by a ray of energy, this one lancing out from Clinton's spear.

With only one thinner remaining, what do you do?

OOC: Dice rolls were made on the dice rolls thread. Michael's attack and the thinner's save against it were accidentally credited to Emmett. Since almost two days have passed I took Michael's action, hope that is alright. What do people think is a good combat post time limit? Two days? Given that only one thinner remains and it's a minion, I'm just going to take player actions in the order of posting.

Just for placing, Khloe is about fifteen feet away and to the right of the stairwell door, with one thinner in melee range. Michael is about ten feet in front and to the left of the door, and the rest of you are clustered in the middle of the roof. Let me know if you have any questions.

[The Dark Fiddler]

Emmett

Emmett manages a slight smile, despite the situation he's in; either these "thinners" aren't actually so tough, or these suits are incredibly powerful.

Then he remembers the scene around him, the burning city, and he frowns as he realizes that it's most definitely the second. It's quite possible that he, and the others, will be the planet's only hope from these strange invaders. What an incredible burden, and one that is better off fulfilled quickly. Emmett charges toward the remaining thinner and swings his mace in a wide arc toward it.

Emmett is either charging the last thinner or moving towards it and attacking, depending on what is possible.

[roll0] +2 if charging is possible.

[DCrane1]

Emmett

Emmett manages a slight smile, despite the situation he's in; either these "thinners" aren't actually so tough, or these suits are incredibly powerful.

Then he remembers the scene around him, the burning city, and he frowns as he realizes that it's most definitely the second. It's quite possible that he, and the others, will be the planet's only hope from these strange invaders. What an incredible burden, and one that is better off fulfilled quickly. Emmett charges toward the remaining thinner and swings his mace in a wide arc toward it.

The thinner doesn't even see you coming. It's too busy loosing energy blast after energy blast at Khloe, who leaps from side to side and easily dodges the shots. Your mace hits it in the side, and you hear a crunching sound as the mace goes right through the thinner, which flops to the ground with a mace-sized hole in its chest.

With the six thinners dispatched, you seem to have a brief respite. What do you do?

[KnightDisciple]

OOC: I'm not posting IC until my concerns in the OOC thread are addressed.

[BlackestOfMages]

Did... did any of you see something odd when we transformed?" Elissia asks, taking advantage of the lull in combat, hr voice shaky and unsure. "I...I can't breath in this helmet..." she finishes in a small voice

[The_Admiral]

wow, just wow, what the hell just happened?, Clinton says as his spear vanishes. He continues saying, So, do we take on the guy with the big ass sword next?

[Buwh]

"Wow.. how amazing!" She exclaims at her extreme speed, moving, feinting, it'd never be easier. "I wish I had this suit at my last gymnastics competition!" Khloe jokes, raising up her Bardiche to block the thinner she missed, but luckily Michael has her back.

"Thanks man." She says amazed, brushing off a wave of fear. "Okay, Khloe, you have a team, it's not that bad, you can do this." The ranger continues talking, more for herself. This enables her to move quickly in combat, and end up behind the last thinner to menace it, but Emmett smashes it first.

"I feel great.. exhilarated.. I mean.. this isn't a big joke right? They went down like punks which means we are the saviors of Angel Grove. Right?"

[KnightDisciple]

After combat was finished, Michael almost unconsciously dismisses the sword he had summmoned, glancing at the others and himself.

'It's...it's like a suit of powered armor, but so much smaller and more advanced than anything I've seen...' he thinks to himself.

He shakes his head a moment and addresses the team.

"Deep, slow breaths, Elissia. It's a bit stifling, but you'll get used to it. Close your eyes while you breath.

And yes, I received a rather odd flash of...I don't know if I would classify it as insight, a vision, a warning, or what. We can't focus on that right now.

We caught them by surprise, Khloe, and we went pretty much all-out. We shouldn't take this victory for granted. We haven't saved the city; there are hundreds of those things at least, and the big crystal monster besides.

Let me check some intel, see what our best next move is."

Mike tries to project confidence he wasn't sure he was feeling as he instinctively uses some sort of computer in his helmet to call up tactical databases, do a reply of the fight, and generally try to decide what might be going on at the moment, and what their best reaction would be.

Knowledge (Tactics) Check: 18 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3559453/).
Trying to figure out if this was a diversion, accidental encounter, or deliberate attack, as well as what our next best move is, tactically speaking.

[DCrane1]

Mike tries to project confidence he wasn't sure he was feeling as he instinctively uses some sort of computer in his helmet to call up tactical databases, do a reply of the fight, and generally try to decide what might be going on at the moment, and what their best reaction would be.

Knowledge (Tactics) Check: 18 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3559453/).
Trying to figure out if this was a diversion, accidental encounter, or deliberate attack, as well as what our next best move is, tactically speaking.

Michael

You call up a window showing a replay of the fight, but your suit superimposes red lines to show where information transmission was taking place. The thinners were broadcasting visuals of the fight back to somewhere else, and every time one of the Rangers defeats a thinner, the amount of red lines increases for a moment. A voice in your head, your own voice but deeper and without affectation tells you "Enemies analyzing your abilities. Information broadcast to unknown recipient."

While it isn't clear exactly why the thinners found you immediately upon your impromptu teleportation, it is obvious they were there to evaluate your abilities more than they were sent to pose a legitimate threat.

[Buwh]

"Sir, yes sir." Khloe responds, thinking that this ranger in red might actually have experience like he said before. She didn't think any of these knew anything about combat, except him, he seemed trained like her Dad. She slowly walked over to join him in silent support. "But, we'll definitely take out the next batch.. just show me where to go."

[The_Admiral]

Clinton waves his arms and say's Hello? Imminent threat? Big dude who ripped apart multi-weave, non-ferrous armour plates like cloth?

INCOMING TECHNOBABBLE!

[The Dark Fiddler]

"He certainly seems like he might be a boss of these thinners. Or at the very least, someone important to their forces." Emmett looks around at the others, considering. A few of the others mentioned visions, did they see anything similar to what he had? "In regards to those visions, does "The Plague" sound familiar to anybody else? I heard something about it, and it sounds rather important. Like the thinners aren't the only problem we're going to have to face."

[DCrane1]

As you are talking on the rooftop and reflecting on the short battle, you see a transport hovercraft emerge from behind the building across from the one you are on. As it rises above the cityscape however, you notice it has trouble flying, probably on account of the scorch marks covering its’ left side. The hovercraft quickly descends to street level, and makes a rough landing in the middle of the street between your building and the one it took off behind. A dozen soldiers pour out of the transport, splitting into three groups and taking up defensive positions on each side of the transport.

OOC: Picture of the troop transport, just envision rotating laser turrets rather than missile launchers. http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20060401233048/starwars/images/3/3c/Old_Stormtrooper_Transport.jpg

[The Dark Fiddler]

Emmett

Emmett watches as the transport descends and the troops exit, and his mind flashes with the possible causes of the damage. Could it be the thing they're looking for? "We need to go talk to those soldiers," he says as he tests his new suit. Could the suit keep him safe if he were to take the safest route and jump down to them? He walks up to the edge of the building and examines the drop, considering how to get down there.

About how high up are we?

[DCrane1]

Emmett

Emmett watches as the transport descends and the troops exit, and his mind flashes with the possible causes of the damage. Could it be the thing they're looking for? "We need to go talk to those soldiers," he says as he tests his new suit. Could the suit keep him safe if he were to take the safest route and jump down to them? He walks up to the edge of the building and examines the drop, considering how to get down there.

About how high up are we?

The building you are on is five stories tall and 60 feet above the ground. Additionally, the buildings around you are similarly sized office and industrial buildings like the one you are on.

The door the thinners came through remains open, and presumably leads to the inside of your building and stairs to the surface.

[BlackestOfMages]

Ellissia shakes her haid hastily when the plague was mentioned, her face turning pale under her helmet

"well, there's this little invention we call stairs" replies Elisisa snarkily "Or we could jump, but I don't really want to risk that until I need to. So, race you down?"

[KnightDisciple]

Michael

You call up a window showing a replay of the fight, but your suit superimposes red lines to show where information transmission was taking place. The thinners were broadcasting visuals of the fight back to somewhere else, and every time one of the Rangers defeats a thinner, the amount of red lines increases for a moment. A voice in your head, your own voice but deeper and without affectation tells you "Enemies analyzing your abilities. Information broadcast to unknown recipient."

While it isn't clear exactly why the thinners found you immediately upon your impromptu teleportation, it is obvious they were there to evaluate your abilities more than they were sent to pose a legitimate threat.

Michael

Mike curses under his breath before turning to the others.

"It's worse than I thought. They were testing us; my suit picked up transmissions going from them to...somewhere. I can't tell where. But they were figuring out how we fight, not really trying to fight us.

And for what it's worth, Emmett, I did see...something. A vision I guess. It mentioned a Plague coming. So, yeah, bad vibes there."

He watches the transport crash, walking over to the lip of the building. He seems almost ready to try jumping, but ultimately turns to the stairs. He turns back to the others, walking toward the stairs. He speaks up right after Ellissia, the smile audible in his voice.

"Loser buys everyone food after the fight's done for the day."

And he's off like a red blur through the door and down the stairs, making the best time possible to the street.

OOC: Speed 2, suckers! :smalltongue:

[The_Admiral]

Clinton runs after Michael, a green blur visible, attempting to catch up with the red one but failing. He shouts Where the hell are we going!?

[The Dark Fiddler]

Emmett

Emmett glances over at his allies, racing down the stairs. Speed certainly was of the essence, and it seemed to him that their suits granted them boosted speed that he lacked. Thinking to himself, he tests his legs. They seem reinforced, as if they're built for jumping.

"Well then, if these things can withstand extreme combat, testing how my suit handles a fall couldn't end that badly." His mind made up, he launches himself over the edge of the roof, and lands quite harshly.

Guess who just realized he traded off his defense, to +6, but didn't trade up his Toughness? Oh well, Toughness save against the fall?
[roll0]

[DCrane1]

Emmett

Jumping down to the street, you try to land on your feet, but as soon as you hit the ground a sharp jolt of pain runs through your legs and you fall over. The soldiers around the transport are about 60 feet away, and when you fall they point their laser rifles at you.

One of the soldiers, presumably the leader, yells "Don't move! Get to your feet and put your hands where we can see them!"

OOC: Everyone else is still running down the stairs, Emmett just got to the street first by means of his direct route. Also because of that direct route, he is stunned, bruised, and injured.

[The Dark Fiddler]

Emmett

Emmett throws his hands up as quickly as he is able, despite the additional pain it causes, muttering under his breath about how he overestimated the capabilities of his suit. Better to do so now than in combat, though. "Sorry, give me a second to stand up. That took a lot out of me." He struggles to his feet and shakes his head. "I'm no danger to you, though, as long as you're an ally of Angel Grove." As he stands up, however, he manages to catch his breath surprisingly well. "And in the interest of full disclosure, a few allies of mine will be appearing from the building I jumped from. The normal way."

[DCrane1]

Emmett

One of the soldiers touches his hand to his ear to activate his communicator, and starts speaking quietly. The presumed leader barks, "Keep your hands where we can see them," then adding, "What unit are you? I've never seen anything like that armor." You then see your friends run out of the building, and some of the soldiers pivot to aim their weapons at them.

Everyone Else

Going down the staircase is a predictably boring run down identical flights of stairs. You reach the building's ground floor and exit the stairs next to the door. As you move out of the building, the Corporation soldiers have Emmett in their laser rifle's sights, and some pivot to aim at you. One of them yells, "Stay where you are! We're checking you out with HQ."

In a few moments, the soldier who was talking on his communicator says, "They check out! HQ is sending another transport for us." The soldiers lower their rifles and the leader waves you over. As you approach the transport, the leader introduces himself as Lieutenant Landry, and explains that the transport was moving his men to the front when it was hit by a dark energy blast from thinners on a rooftop. "Thankfully we touched down safely, and these turrets still work. They should do a good job with suppression fire if any thinners come after us."

[BlackestOfMages]

"Good. you soldiers stay here then." said Elissia [/b]"we want somewere safer if everything goes south..."

"OK, so, did anyone see the leader of these things when you where, y'know, crashing? or any masses of thinners? anything that'd let us know what these things are after attacking us?"[/B]

[DCrane1]

"Good. you soldiers stay here then." said Elissia [/b]"we want somewere safer if everything goes south..."

"OK, so, did anyone see the leader of these things when you where, y'know, crashing? or any masses of thinners? anything that'd let us know what these things are after attacking us?"[/B]

"We took fire from a couple on a roof and they landed a solid hit," Lieutenant Landry says, "Most of the fighting now is up in the refining district next to the ocean, the Colonel deployed the reinforcements from Mariner Bay and we're trying to push these things back. They're in all the factories and its slow going but we're getting the upper hand. As for their goals, uh, we don't know. Maybe somebody at HQ does, but I don't know anything about that."

[The_Admiral]

Where did the Ares battle-suits get smashed?

[DCrane1]

Where did the Ares battle-suits get smashed?

"We lost them up in the business district, but thankfully we haven't seen that thing that killed them since. We've all heard about though, and I'll be damned if we have any plan to deal with that thing."

[BlackestOfMages]

"Well, if you think you can deal with these thinner...thing.. whatever they are, then I suggest you leave that thing to us professionals, then we can come back and help clean up the Thinners." replied Ellissia, clearing her head of that vision and her normal, cocky persona coming back "Sound ok, my compatriots in supidly-coloured costumes."

At that, she takes time to really study their costumes for the first time, rather than just the quick glance from before they'd been thrown into combat. "I mean, seriously, who designed these things, d'you think?"

[The Dark Fiddler]

"I don't think we have time wonder about that," Emmett says sternly. "There's a war going on; we need to get moving."

[KnightDisciple]

"Considering we seem to be capable of a lot of unusual things, maybe they need the colors, Ellissia. We have more important things to worry about.

We need to assume the creature we saw in the videos got all the combat data from those Thinners we fought. Thus we proceed as if it knows every move we showed in that fight, and is thus developing a counter for said moves.

Emmett's right; we need to keep moving. Let's go, team."

Mike gave a quick "round up and move out" hand gesture, saluted the commanding office of the soldiers, and started heading toward the refining district, on the assumption the enemy would send their strongest forces to the area with the most fighting.

[BlackestOfMages]

"Right, right. got to be serious whilst wearing the spandex..."

"so, where are we going, oh commander, or do we just wonder blindly until we find something?"

[DCrane1]

OOC: Is everyone alright with moving towards the refining district? I know there hasn't been any IC postings so I assume people want to advance, but I just want to make sure.

Also, try to move the ball on the Zord and Megazord designs, PL 11 for the individual zords and PL 15 for the Megazord. Summoning and combining will be done as fiat rather than modeled through the rules with Gestalt or some other power.

(Crossposted from the OOC thread.)

[BlackestOfMages]

OOC: Is everyone alright with moving towards the refining district? I know there hasn't been any IC postings so I assume people want to advance, but I just want to make sure.

Also, try to move the ball on the Zord and Megazord designs, PL 11 for the individual zords and PL 15 for the Megazord. Summoning and combining will be done as fiat rather than modeled through the rules with Gestalt or some other power.

(Crossposted from the OOC thread.)

sure to move on

[DCrane1]

The closer you get to the refining district, the more obvious it becomes that you are in a war zone. The smell of ash and sulfur from laser fire becomes more pungent, the evacuated silence of the business district gives way to pitched battle. As you approach the massive ore refineries, dull-gray buildings only three stories high but larger than a city block, you hear the sound of laser fire from within. There is a refinery on each side of the street, one seems unscathed, but the other has laser scoring all along the back wall that you’re looking at.

As you get within one hundred feet of the refineries, a shimmering circle of black energy, similar in appearance to the Thinner’s laser blasts, materializes fifty feet away, in between you and the factories. Two monsters step out of it. The first you recognize from the footage you saw at Fort Able. On the view screen it didn’t look so frightening, but in person the thing is terrifying. A hair over eight feet tall, and with impossibly broad shoulders, it seems to have been carved out of a dirty diamond. The fist sized stone in its throat is a constantly-changed pattern of colors that seems to mirror the bizarre sky. The sword it holds is as long as it is, and rather than metal it seems to be made of solidified darkness. The whip coiled around its arm and spikes that protrude out of its arms are similarly constructed.

The second monster is even stranger looking – nothing but a bright red cloak with a pulled-down hood wrapped around a seemingly two-dimensional black shadow in the shape of an average sized human being. A gnarled wooden staff levitates directly to the left of the creature.

As soon as they exit the portal, it disappears. The second monster
flies into the air, propelled by some unseen power, and is clearly headed for the roof of the damaged refinery. The first monster, the one who you remember easily destroying those Ares battlesuits, walks slowly towards you, in the middle of the street, yelling in a guttural language you’ve never heard before.

Despite this, you all know what he’s saying. The language seems like something you’ve been familiar with since birth. “You will be a true challenge. I’ve been waiting for this!”

Another flash of insight crosses your mind, all at the same time you realize this thing is called The Warrior. The other thing, the two-dimensional shadow with the red cloak, is called The Wizard. In the back of your mind is a sensation of déjà vu, that somehow you’ve seen these things before, but that quickly vanishes as you are faced with the large monster walking toward you with his sword ready and whip extended.

OOC: Initiative order- Emmett, Khloe, Clinton, The Wizard, The Warrior, Michael, Elissa (Dice Rolls for initative can be viewed on the dice roll thread. Please continue to make your rolls in this thread in an OOC section of your post.)

Let me know if you have any questions regarding placement, etc.