Armored Core: Ascension IC

[Amaril]

Armored Core: Ascension (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yHuuBZgif0)


Episode 1: The Right Stuff

01:24, September 4, 2088
Sonoran Desert
Aboard Line Ark Arms Fort Ascalon

One of the saving graces of traveling by Arms Fort is that the hour doesn't seem as obscenely early as it really is--no windows to let in the sun will have that effect. The interior of the Ascalon is always kept dim, but easily bright enough to navigate by, and the omnipresent drone of the engines is equally audible at all times, at least while in transit. Some complain that the lack of a visible diurnal cycle during long tours is disconcerting, but at least it makes waking up at one in the morning less of a pain.
Today is supposed to be the day of your final testing exercise before graduating from your trainee status and taking your place as full-fledged members of ORCA. Unfortunately, that's just about all you know about it: command has been frustratingly vague about what exactly will be expected of you. Yesterday saw the three of you bid farewell to your fellow trainees for the time being as you boarded the Ascalon. It was only to be expected that the group would be split up for the final exam, since running any kind of exercise for fifteen NEXTs at once in the same area would be a headache that nobody needs, and hardly a good approximation of real battle conditions, where even the three of you together would constitute a rarely forceful deployment. However, the revelation that Captain Levin would be overseeing your group's testing personally made this seem more ominous than routine.
The Captain himself has been just as vague as all the others, but it seems that's about to change. Yesterday, he ordered the three of you to the briefing room for 01:30 today. For the moment, however, he has yet to arrive himself, leaving you with little to do but wait.

[CoreBrute23]

Many would think the cramped rooms and constant whir of engines would make it difficult to gain any sleep, but Nikolai actually found it incredibly relaxing. Open spaces made him feel uncomfortable, and the engines drowned out the sounds of other people snoring, which he detested. In fact it was almost a pain from having to wake up.

Dutifully however, he sat in the meeting room, hands resting on his lap, back straight, while staring directly straight in front of him where the Captain would be sitting, if he was on time. It's not good to be late, it's very rude. Nikolai thought, completely ignoring the other two trainees in the room.

[DoctorFaust]

Anton glances around the briefing room unconcernedly, and after ensuring that the captain isn't likely to burst into the room in the next few seconds, pulls a protein bar out of the pocket of his flight suit and starts eating it. Three trainee, personal testing by the captain, and he's not as early as he usually is. Something's up. Anton muses to himself. Obviously something with our NEXTs, but what? I suppose live fire testing would be most obvious, but we've done things like that before, so that might not be the case. Could he just be trying to keep us on our toes, stress us out as much as possible until the last possible moment? Also likely, but still doesn't seem quite the Captain's style.

With a sigh, he drops his head against the briefing room's chair, and asks aloud, "So, what do you two think we're up for today?"

[Fri]

On contrast with her silent and suspicious compatriot, Eleanor is beaming. She cheerily greets her colleagues and instantly closes into them and attempts to shake their hands (attempts is the keyword).

"Hello!"She says with a smile and a sing-song voice. "A nice day to finally end our training, isn't it? My name is Eleanor Cassidy. I think we've meet a couple of times in training? I know, I never forget anyone's face once I've seen them. I can't wait to start killing with you guys."

She then responds to Anton's question cheerily. "What we're up for today? To end our training, of course!"

[CoreBrute23]

Nikolai doesn't deign to answer Anton's question, because it is a stupid question. Obviously they are here to be tested. That's what they have been doing since they arrived at the facility.

However, when Elenor comes towards Nikolai to shake his hand, he quickly moves away, actually causing him to stumble out of his chair.

"Ouch." He said, looking down at the floor. He glances up from the floor to see her still standing there, talking to him for some reason. He's silent for an uncomfortably long pause, staring at Elenor's chin.

"Nikolai Mustonen. I mean, my name. Yes, my name is Nikolai Mustonen." He stands up without assistance, and takes his chair, parking himself a bit further away from Elenor.

"You are the pilot of the Kalatari correct?" He asks, eyes facing the familiar blank wall, as he tries to change the subject.

[Fri]

"That's right. Nice to meet you, Nikolai!"

Still smiling, Eleanor cranes her head from Nikolai's side so her face is directly in-between him and the wall that's been interesting him so much this night.

"What are you looking at? Is there something interesting there?"

[CoreBrute23]

Nikolai turned his head slightly to the side so he is not looking Elenor's face directly.

"I am waiting for the meeting with Captain Arthur Levin." He remarks.

Suddenly without warning he asks,

"So when do you think the offensive against the Lariat will begin?" He questions matter of a fact. If questioned, he explains,

"We are short on Lynx pilots, and are vulnerable to attacks by the Hounds. If Head quarters wanted to protect Line Ark from assault, it would be useful to train pilots who specialized in defensive NEXTs, to outlast or beat back an assault. However," He raises a finger, still not looking at anyone. "the three NEXT being trained, ours, are all designed for either overwhelming or quick strikes. As a unit, the three of us would be better for a surprise attack, not receiving an assault where we would be overwhelmed.

"So there is almost certainly an offensive planned against the Lariat. I am just curious when."

[DoctorFaust]

"Well, obviously we're ending our training," Anton replies, exasperated. "There is no other conceivable reason for why we're here today. But I was hoping you two might have some thoughts about the specifics. Like, I don't know, maybe we are the offensive planned against Lariat."

"And I'm Anton Itano, by the way."

[Fri]

So do you think we're going to visit Lariat? I've never been there. I wonder what it looks like there. Eleanor puts her hand on her chin and tilts her head.

[DoctorFaust]

"I don't know. I've heard that some parts of it are quite beautiful, at least by the standards of this ****hole of a world. I hope we don't have to shoot up the nice parts of it."

[Amaril]

At that moment, your conversation is interrupted by the briefing room door sliding open again. Two familiar faces step through. Lieutenant Jarnefeldt enters first, her eye-catching blonde hair tied back from her face, an unfamiliar look that makes her seem unusually serious; captain Levin follows a step behind.
"Attention on deck!" the lieutenant calls.
"As you were," the captain follows up almost immediately. It's never been his habit to make you stand at attention for very long. He scans you silently as you sit back down, looking a little more solemn than usual himself. Though young for his position at just over thirty, at the moment, his bearing is much more reminiscent of some of the older officers. "Well, good to see everybody here bright and early," he announces, chuckling ruefully. "No point wasting time, so let's get down to business."
At his gesture, Jarnefeldt taps a key on the display screen console, the Line Ark flag flashing up on the wall before the actual briefing presentation begins rolling. A digitally rendered map of North America zooms in on a location in former Mexico, only a short distance from where you know the Ascalon to be currently positioned. "So, I'm guessing you're all curious what your final exam is going to entail," the Captain goes on. "You can probably guess by now that it's not gonna be just more normal war games. Well, at least in your personal case, you'd be right in that assumption." He gives you each a significant look. "You three aren't going to be participating in the same exercise as the other trainees. I've handpicked you for something special that command has in mind."
On the map, a series of rectangles resolve themselves into a pattern you recognize as a military outpost. "This," explains the lieutenant, "is an MT and Normal depot and launch facility formerly owned by GA America." Even without elaboration, you all recognize the name of the former League company. "Just over two months ago," Jarnefeldt continues, "it was occupied by a militia group calling themselves the Dead Peak Legion, who seized its remaining equipment and have kept a sizable portion of their forces stationed there since. Unfortunately, the base happens to be just a few clicks off one of the biggest convoy routes Line Ark uses to ship material back from mining facilities in Mexico, and since they moved in, they've been repeatedly attacking our transports. Your objective is simple: engage the Dead Peak forces and destroy them."
"Like I said," the captain picks up, "this won't be war games. You'll be going into real, live-fire combat against actual hostile forces." He looks at you steadily, expression carefully composed. "Now, I know it might seem ridiculous to be using this as an exercise for trainees, and yeah, it's definitely unorthodox. But the fact is, Line Ark needs this done, and right now, you're the most appropriate response we've got. I chose you guys for this because you're the best of our whole trainee group, and I believe you can pull it off. And it'll be a better test of your actual capabilities than any simulation we could set up."
"So," he gestures to the display as the map scrolls up to a position a short ways northwest of the base, "here's what we're gonna do. Ascalon is currently en route to this location, about twenty minutes out. Us four are going to be air-dropped in, myself right here, you three at this spot closer to the base." Markers appear on the map for both spots he points at. "I'll be hanging back just outside the combat zone while you three move up and attack the base defenses. If it gets too hot to handle, I'll be in range to head in and back you up, but the plan is for that not to happen; if everything goes how we expect, you three will be handling this on your own." The map vanishes from the screen, replaced by a series of diagrams and specs for various models of MTs, Normals, and stationary fortifications. "Our intel shows the enemy force as mostly MTs, with a few Normals on-station, supported by mounted gun placements--not even a match for one NEXT under normal circumstances, and the three of you together should do just as well. Command has no plans to occupy the facility after the militants are dealt with, so collateral damage isn't a concern." He quirks an eyebrow at Anton. "As usual, lieutenant Jarnefeldt will be Operating for this mission. Any questions?"

[Fri]

Eleanor smiles and turns her head toward Nikolai.

"Hey, you're half right! It's indeed a quick strike, but not against Lariat. Are you a half psychic?"

[DoctorFaust]

Anton leans forwards in his seat to get a better view of the charts, and raises his voice. "Yes, Sir, I actually have two questions. Firstly, what can we expect in term of their deployment patterns? And second, are there any secondary objectives that you were planning on springing on us in the middle of the deployment?"

[Amaril]

The captain chuckles again, this time cracking an easier smile. "Good question. None that I can think of. Lieutenant?"
"Don't think so, sir," replies Jarnefeldt. "If anything unexpected crops up, I'll let you know right away," she adds to the three of you.
"Anyway, for deployment patterns," Levin continues, "out intel on that is sort of limited, but what we have shows it should be pretty typical. MTs on guard at all hours, with a wide enough perimeter to give a full response force with Normals time to deploy. You'll want to take out the sentries before they can raise an alarm if possible." He glances over at Nicky and Eleanor. "Anything else?"

[Fri]

Eleanor listens to everything that's been said intently and nods and makes some notes.. Then she raises her hand. "One question, sir. Will there be a graduation party after this, and if so will you be attending it?"

[CoreBrute23]

Nikolai ignores Elenor's half-psychic remark, and raises a hand.

"Captain. Since we have 20 minutes before launch, do I have permission to retrieve the operational stabilization system, before we head out?" The others probably have no idea what he is talking about, as Arthur is the only one who knows what he is referring to, or seen it in person. Nikolai has been very careful about not letting anyone see this specific system.

It's a red hand made quilt that Nikolai places inside his cockpit. It was made by his mother, and is the last thing he has of hers before his father took her, and his younger brother away.
He usually conceals it in a gym bag when bringing it to the mech for important tests, as it relaxes him.

OOC: Personally, I would like it if even the operator had no idea what it was either, leading to some confusion.

[Amaril]

Eleanor's question draws another chuckle from the captain, and a strained-looking grin from Jarnefeldt. "No party," Levin says, shaking his head. "There'll be a ceremony, though, and I'll be there for that. As your instructor, though, I'm professionally obligated to advise that you stay focused on the operation for now. You'll have time to celebrate later."
He nods in response to Nikolai, understanding showing in his eyes. "Permission granted." The lieutenant gives him a confused look, but he doesn't appear to notice. His eyes turn to the clock on the wall. "Alright, we're out of time. If you've got any other questions, lieutenant Jarnefeldt can answer them over comms after we launch. Now suit up and get ready to ride!" He gestures sharply towards the door.
You all know the procedure from here. Your flight suits are secure in your lockers; once you're prepared, you'll need to head for the launch deck, where the tech team should already have your NEXTs waiting to deploy.

If you want to write anything about your characters getting prepared, feel free to do so. Otherwise, take the next post to describe your NEXT as you arrive on the launch deck.

[Fri]

Eleanor arrives at the launch deck soon, tightening the straps on her pilot suit. She walks straight to her NEXT, nodding politely to every deck personnel she passes by.

Kalaratri is already strapped on the launch pad, an all-black, medium-build, sleek humanoid-type NEXT. There's nothing too eyecatching on the NEXT itself, it's neither well-armored nor too-obviously unprotected, the limbs look neither too heavy nor too light. What's interesting is the twin gatling gun mounted on the swiveling pylon strapped on its back. Currently it's folded, but in deployment, those two gatling gun will be raised above its shoulder. Another interesting thing is the two black blade mounted on its waists. It's the other particular equipment of Kalaratri, the beam-coated vibrating blades. Physical blades are rarely used in this current era, most designers prefer to use beam blades. But apparently the designers have some reasons on deciding to equip the NEXT with some.

[DoctorFaust]

Anton stands and salutes sharply. "Yes sir. No further questions, sir."

Ten minutes later, freshly showered and in his flight suit, he arrives on the launch deck and climbs silently into his Gallows Dove. At the moment, it doesn't look terribly impressive, being lightly armored and having quite spindly limbs, with only several clusters of strange, blunt spikes arranged around its joints to distinguish it from some of the more common lightweight NEXTs deployed in previous wars. Even its paint job isn't very menacing, following a plain dark green and grey pattern with a small blue patch on its shoulder. Overall, if it weren't for the scale, it doesn't look terribly like something you would expect to see on a battlefield.

Except, of course, for the missile pods that are currently being attached to the NEXT and prepped for loading.

Once Anton climbs into the cockpit, he fires up the on-board computer, and starts running diagnostics.

Patch reads "08th Airborne", his old unit.

[CoreBrute23]

Nikolai walked into the hanger with his gym bag, steps moving like clockwork. He stopped as he came up to his NEXT, looking up at it without smiling, but his eyes widened in adoration.

The Ghost Dragoon. Originally a standard skirmisher model, he had made the order to have the interior weapon ammo reserves, and kinetic absorption systems completely removed. This had resulted in his machine being much thinner than others of the same models. Inside, he had installed revolutionary new engines and computational devices rivaling old super computers, that would allow him to achieve greater velocities while acting. In addition, he had rebuilt an old world technology (well more like abandoned theory than technology), the Diaphanous field generator, and attached it to the back of the NEXT, resulting in the strange cannon like device in the back.

They had warned him it would make the machine dangerously unstable, with a heavy ranged weapon only slowing him down and he would likely run out of ammo without internal stores. But Nikolai had already compensated for that, by doing away with ranged combat entirely.

In the NEXT's hand, held The Spirit Sovnya. A long, slim and white polearm, to a NEXT it weighed almost nothing. By itself it would likely break if it tried to penetrate an enemy's outer armor. However, the tip was composed of a rare compound, that, when it came in contact with Kojima particles, it caused them to explode violently. It was a difficult job, not just to wield it effectively, but to keep it away from your own kojima particles. Only the best were awarded them by the League.

Like Anton Mustonen. Nikolai thought as he entered the cockpit. Father, next time I see you, the cockpit closed. I shall be sure to return it to you. The lights in the cockpit lit up with red lights, as he unzipped his gym bag.

"Tip first." He whispered.

[Amaril]

As you arrive on the hangar deck, you're surprised to see chief Marshe personally overseeing the tech crews preparing your NEXTs. No one had told you he was coming along on this mission, but his presence is another thread of familiarity. Moving surprisingly fast on his cane, the gray-bearded, dark-skinned old man snaps harshly at his subordinates as they work, berating them for slowness and sloppiness, his trademark scowl in especially fine form. He turns it on you as you arrive. "Taking your sweet time, aren't ya? You know how much we'll have to rush the launch checks now? Don't come crying to me when your thrusters cut out mid-drop and you've gotta be scraped off the cacti with spatulas!"
"You've done the checks just fine in less time than this, chief," the captain counters gently as he passes by in his own flight suit. In the fourth drop bay beside yours, its sleek lines and stark white paint job unmistakable, stands his NEXT--White Wolf, an icon as recognizable by its own reputation as by the salvaged parts of old White Glint that were combined with his original Timber Wolf machine to form its design.
Chief Marshe grumbles resignedly as he turns back to you. "Just get to your damn seats. 'Less you want to delay my crew even more."
As you strap yourselves in, the cockpits of your NEXTs close around you, leaving you in the dimness of hazard lights as the hiss of pressurization fills your ears. Your comms buzz to life a second later, bringing you the voices of the chief and his crew as they run through your long list of pre-launch checks, familiar enough by now that you could respond appropriately in your sleep.
"...Cockpit seals confirmed..."
"...FCS diagnostics in progress..."
"...Calibrating exterior sensors...everything looks good..."
"...Inertial dampeners are active..."
"...Initializing primary Kojima reaction..."
With this announcement, the cockpits around you suddenly shudder as the generators at the hearts of your NEXTs are brought to life, power thrumming through the rest of the machines' bodies. The list of checks goes on, display screens and lights flickering on one by one around you.
"...Generator containment holding steady..."
"...Motor system diagnostics complete, no problems detected..."
"Initializing AMS connection," Marshe rumbles. "Lynx, prepare for connection in three...two...one..."
As the countdown finishes, shocks race along your nerves, overloading your senses as the electrode nets in your pilot helmets begin transmitting signals between your AMS computers and your brains. A second later, the world returns, bringing with it the eternally strange feeling of being in control of both your own bodies and those of the multi-ton machines around you.
"AMS connection established," the chief announces flatly. "Everything looks normal from here. How is it, kiddies?"
The tone of another connection follows. "Pilots, this is lieutenant Jarnefeldt. We're about five minutes from the drop zone. Everything okay down there?"

[Fri]

After the neural connection completes, Eleanor opens her previously closed eyes. As she confirms that all systems are green, she smiles again. But if you see her face in the communication feed, you might notice that eventhough still smiling, her expression are different then how it usually looks outside. Her eyes, they look... intense.

"All okay and ready for drop-off" She says.

[CoreBrute23]

Nikolai closed his eyes as his mind became one with the NEXT. He rested his back against the quilt which had laid behind him. The softness comforted him, and the smell brought back comforting memories...

"Pilots, this is lieutenant Jarnefeldt. We're about five minutes from the drop zone. Everything okay down there?"

Nikolai opened his eyes quickly, all business. "Ready for drop Leiutenant."

[DoctorFaust]

Once the neural connection completes, Anton takes a few moments to put various joints through their paces before responding. "All clear, and in the green. Ready for drop, sir."

[Amaril]

"Ready for drop, control," the captain confirms through his connection.
"Copy that, Lynx," Jarnefeldt acknowledges. "ETA now about four minutes to first drop. Sit tight, I'll get back to you."
Through the exterior viewscreens that dominate your cockpit displays, you soon spot the tech crews hastily backing off from your launch bays. "Approaching drop zone," the lieutenant announces. Alarms sound as warning lights begin to flash. The reason becomes apparent a moment later as Marshe responds.
"Copy that. Opening launch bay doors." A shudder runs through the clamps that support your NEXTs where they stand as the bay doors under your feet start to slide open, presenting a view of the desert sands far below. The rushing of wind fills your exterior audio. "Hang on tight, kids," the chief continues. "Lowering payloads."
Another shudder passes through the support clamps as the secondary ones disengage, while the primary ones begin to slowly lower you through the openings. The wind gets even louder as you pass through, dangling beneath the titanic shape of the Ascalon; the clamps hold you steady, but the position still feels precarious.
"Payloads lowered," says the chief. "Ready to drop on your order, control."
"Stand by," Jarnefeldt answers, her voice belying the tension. "First drop on my mark. Three...two...one...mark!"
There is a sudden clang of machinery as the bay clamps holding the captain's NEXT disengage; faster than your eyes can follow, he drops out of the air, hurtling towards the ground. "White Wolf is away," the chief confirms. Behind you, receding rapidly in comparison to Ascalon's speed, you see the captain quickly burning his thrusters in all directions, adjusting his direction, though hardly slowing his fall.
"Stand by," Jarnefeldt repeats. "Second drop on my mark. Three...two...one...mark!"
The same sound repeats itself three times in rapid succession, and for a second, the three of you are left hanging in the air, the underside of Ascalon's hull rapidly gaining relative speed and leaving you behind. Then gravity takes over, and the ground begins hurtling towards you.

Time for your first roll, folks! You'll need to time your thrusters right to hit the ground without suffering damage. Make an Athletics or Computers check, your choice.

[Fri]

[roll0] (I'll write some fluff after you tell me what's the meaning of this result)

[CoreBrute23]

As Nikolai felt himself freefall, for a moment he panicked. Suddenly it was all too real, and all his training felt like playing pretend. None of his consoles made sense to him. His fear was strangling him...

"Relax Nikolai. Take a breath. And look again. You can see the answer."

Nikolai relaxed, took a breath and then looked again. He quickly started flipping switches and typing in commands. He wouldn't fail Captain Arthur.

OOC: Invoking I will not let Arthur down to reroll my flub in OOC. Computers +4.
[roll0]

The NEXT responded to it's commands easily, and quickly unfolded it's legs, preparing the shock absorbers just as it came to the ground, effortlessly cushioning the fall.

Nikolai released his breath, before preparing for the next stage of the mission.

[DoctorFaust]

When his NEXT drops, Anton begins a slow count in his head, waiting for the best moment to engage thrusters.

Ten...

Five... wow the ground is coming up fast

Three...

One...

"Now!"
With a flick of a switch, the four big engines on the back of the legs roar to life, softening his fall and landing him neatly, if not gently, on his feet.

[Fri]

Eleanor just let herself fall down and let her instinct guide her way. When she notices that she's actually starting to stumble, she instinctively fires some thruster to straighten her NEXT and soften the landing.

"Well, that's fun enough, isn't it?"

[Amaril]

One by one, you crash to the ground, thrusters kicking up clouds of sand. When it settles, you find yourselves surrounded by the expanse of the Sonoran desert, stretching off into the distance. A few cacti and brown grasses stubbornly cling to life in the polluted landscape, the high vantage of your NEXTs' camera eyes making them seem minuscule. Above, Ascalon continues on its flight path, the massive shape of the Eclipse-class Arms Fort swiftly rising up into the clouds and disappearing.
"Kalaratri, Gallows Dove, and Ghost Dragoon are away," chief Marshe relays over comms.
"Copy that, launch deck," Jarnefeldt answers. "Commence mission. Pilots, your target is the Dead Peak force occupying the AC depot straight ahead. Neutralize all hostiles--if you can, take out the sentries before they can raise an alarm. Captain Levin will remain within range to provide backup if needed. Now get moving!"

[Fri]

Kalaratri unfolds the twin gatling guns from its back. Eleanor tests the movement of the swiveling pylon, moving the gatling gun like a second pair of arms fitting for her NEXT's namesake. As she does that, the NEXT's sensor scans the area.

"Flat desert as far as I can see, and yet I don't notice the depot yet. Should we proceed to move until we see them and see what they have up there with our own eyes?"

[CoreBrute23]

Without hesitation, Nikolai entered the sequence in his console, and the Diaphanous field sparked into life around him, glowing blue. Suddenly the NEXT was gone, and on the radar as well. There was just a hint of a transluecent figure where the NEXT used to be.

"I'll go ahead, and eliminate the sentries, then give the order to follow." Without waiting for a command to the contrary, he zoomed ahead on his adjusted Kojima thrusters, to the peak.

OOC: Not sure if this is a compel on his 'Don't touch me' representing his desire to keep away from people, resulting in him going into enemy territory all by himself. Even if it isn't a compel, I'm still doing it.

This is probably a stealth roll, to make the Diaphanous field, which I have at +3. If I'm wrong, feel free to correct me and I'll reroll.
[roll0]

Then I'll move towards the enemy, presumably going at least 2 zones to reach them, incurring the penalty of the Kojima thrusters.

[DoctorFaust]

"Damnit, Nikolai!" Anton moves to go after the other pilot, but stops short and settles for running a hand through his hair angrily. "If you get caught, I am going to shove that damn lance somewhere very unpleasant. Eleanor, head around to the left of the dunes. I'll take the right. I know it doesn't need to be said, but seriously, keep your heads down and try to kick up as little sand as possible 'till we are actively engaged."

[Fri]

"Oh, my. What a spirited fellow." Eleanor fires her thruster to do as Anton said.

[Amaril]

"You sure that's a good plan?" Jarnefeldt chimes in, sounding worried. "If Dove and Kalaratri are too far from the combat zone to--"
"Lieutenant," the captain cuts in. "Remember, we're supposed to be testing them. Let them use their own judgment for now." Despite his support, he also sounds a little uncertain.
"Understood, sir," Jarnefeldt acknowledges, though she hesitates a little. "Pilots, I'll update your displays with enemy positions as they're encountered. Marking the location of the enemy base now." As she says this, a marker appears on all your HUDs, pointing several kilometers straight ahead.
Overed boosting across the sand, it doesn't take Nikolai long to get within visual range of the base, a cluster of lights illuminating long, low bunkers and hangars. However, a second or two later, Jarnefeldt exclaims "contacts! Looks like a group of six MTs. Marking them now." Six red markers appear on your tracker off to your right, the enemy machines themselves growing more easily visible as they approach. However, the fact that they haven't changed their movement pattern at all seems to indicate that they haven't spotted you yet.
The same markers appear on Anton and Eleanor's displays as well. It only takes another moment for the enemy MTs to come within your visual range--and, perhaps more importantly, within reach of your ranged weapons.

Dragoon is currently one zone away from the base, Dove and Kalaratri are two. The enemy MTs are in the same zone as Dragoon and one away from the others.

Nikolai can act once before we proceed to standard turn order.

[CoreBrute23]

Did I get any invokes on my stealth create advantage?
Also I'm gonna assume this isn't a mob, so I have to attack them each individually. If that's not correct, I'll change it to attacking multiple MTs at once.

As Nikolai skirts just over the sand, he almost jumps when he hears the operator detect the six enemy machines.

How did I not see them? He thought. Quickly changing course, he could see the warning alerts on his system's starting to overheat. Need to eliminate enemies first, then I can reboot the systems.

He skirts around the back of the enemy MTs, getting to within spear range. Then, targeting the first one he could reach, he struck the back, near the head joint. Hopefully it would cause enough damage that the resulting Kojima Explosion would take his head off.

And maybe his friends too. As he zooms away out of reach.

Fight +2 (Does Turbo strike trigger here? I did just zoom two zones. If it does, add 2 to my result)
[roll0]
I am willing to invoke invokes on my Diaphanous Invisibility field if I have any on it, if need be.

After the attack, he moves a zone away (not towards the enemy base however)

[Amaril]

The diaphanous field does its job, keeping Ghost Dragoon hidden until it's right on top of the enemy. With one quick thrust, the spirit sovnya pierces straight through the MT's cockpit; it doesn't even have time to hit the ground before exploding.
The sudden noise gets the attention of the others right away, however. As soon as the first MT goes down, the others quickly begin turning to face the Dragoon, cockpits swiveling to point side-mounted cannon barrels at the new threat.

One of the six MTs is taken out. Five more to go. Core, your Stealth check didn't give you an Aspect to use, but it did give you a Boost, which I added as a +2 on your attack (that's what made it a kill).

And now we're in combat turn order, which will be Nikolai again, then Anton, then the enemies, then Eleanor.

[CoreBrute23]

Nikolai swore as he saw the diaphormus field start to flutter in the face of the explosion.

Damn it they can see me now! With a quick stab, he jabs the spear in the head of one of the MTs before zooming backwards, giving his allies room to fire their long range weapons.


Attack with Fight+2: [roll0]
Spend a fatepoint to invoke 'High Speed Skirmisher' to gain +2 to the roll, making a 4.

Then I move a zone away from them. Ideally, a zone that Elenor and Anton aren't in, so I don't lead the MTs to them, but not towards the enemy base. So like, to the side.

Note: Aspect Strained Systems
Current Fate points: 2

[DoctorFaust]

As the enemies turn to face Nikolai, Antons eyes are dancing across his view screen, leaving red circles on each of the enemies in their wake. Then, he slams home the launch controls, and shouts, "Firing for effect!"

The launchers on his NEXT rotate up, sighting in on their targets, and then burst open in a cloud of rocket exhaust, sending micro-missiles hurtling across the desert and at the five remaining MTs.

Shoot +4, -1 from Burst Weapons[roll0]

[Fri]

Eleanor's NEXT zooms from the other side. The black NEXT unsheathes its two daggers from its hips as it continue to skate toward the nearest MT.

"Kalaratri... Dance for me (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqGeT4PiJko)."

Kalaratri's twin gatling gun spins as it closes in toward the MT in spiralling course, circling around it while closing in at the same time, opening fire the whole time.

So if I read it right, eventhough my turn is after the enemy's I can post now and you'll put it in order later? Anyway, I'm firing from range then moving into melee range toward the nearest MT. Tell me if I move out of order, and I'll not do it again in the future.

[roll0] (Shoot+3, +1 from weapon)

[Amaril]

The tip of the spirit sovnya lashes out again, but in the process of dodging back, Nikolai has misjudged his reach slightly; the spear fails to pierce the second MT's armor, but the force of the strike sends it teetering backwards, scrambling to stay upright.
Anton's shots are more successful. Guided by his targeting computers, the nighttime darkness is no impairment to the accuracy of his missiles, which streak straight towards another of the remaining enemies. A series of explosions lights up the battlefield, with one big one at the end as the second MT's engine detonates.
"Two down," Jarnefeldt confirms, sounding tense.
His position revealed by the incoming missiles, two of the remaining MTs turn away from Nikolai and swivel to target Anton, the muzzles of their guns flashing as they launch explosive shells in his direction. Meanwhile, the others stay locked onto Ghost Dragoon, sending another barrage Nicky's way.
The next second, a third of the MTs explodes, Eleanor's hail of gatling gun fire shredding its plating.

Nikolai ties on his attack roll, granting him another Boost, The enemy is off-balance.

Nicky and Anton each need to roll to defend against two attacks.

[Fri]

"Yes. This is what they call living, isn't it? Enjoying yourself to the fullest."

Not missing any beat, Eleanor leaves the exploding MT behind her and moves quickly toward the next MT. In a swift motion Kalaratri swings both of its daggers toward the unsuspecting machine. Meanwhile, her gatling guns swivel by their own and unleashes a barrage of bullets toward another target.

[roll0] for melee (4 fight +1 weapon)
[roll1] for AI ranged attack (2 AI +1 weapon)

[DoctorFaust]

"I prefer my living to have a lot less dying in it," Anton mutters, and then goes back to his normal voice. "Reprioritizing targets to the ones closest to you two. Let me know if any start to get away."

As he resets the computer for new targeting solutions, the point defense clusters on his NEXT light up, sending focused beams of light stabbing out at the explosive shells, detonating them well clear of the Gallows Dove. By the time the last shell is destroyed, his solutions are fixed, and the micromissile launchers reply in kind to the enemies fire.

Targeting all MTs within the same sector as Nikolai
[roll0]

[CoreBrute23]

The Ghost Dragoon dove to the side, easily avoiding the majority of the blasts-the ones which did hit pinged off the exterior of his Kojima fields.

"Coming around for a second hit." He announces, turning around and thrusting his spear towards the closest MT. He twisted on the shaft of the spear, causing it to fire the tip like a rocket straight at the target, while what looked like a small ribbon trailed behind it. The ribbon was actually weaved nanowire, that would bring the tip back with another twist.

You made the zones really large narrative wise, so I needed a reason why my reach ability would work that far.

Move so I am only one zone away from the closest enemy to myself (or staying still if I'm already there) then attacking with Fight +2 and invoking my Enemy off balance boost for another +2:
[roll0]

Aspects in play: Strained Systems
Current Fate points: 2

[Amaril]

Though Nikolai does his best to capitalize on his target's momentary weakness, his opponent is still too fast for him, managing to bring their machine back under control and dodge out of the way just as the sovnya's head rockets by. The success proves for naught, however; a second later, Anton's hail of missiles rains down on the group of MTs, the slow, clunky machines unable to get out of the way in time. One explodes right away, while the other two are sent reeling. Before they have a chance to even try and recover, Kalaratri sweeps in and dispatches them both in quick succession. Eleanor's Primal Armor flares green as the explosions wash over it.
"Nice work, Lynx," the lieutenant pipes up--you faintly catch what sounds like a sigh of relief over the channel. "No other hostiles detected nearby."
"Yeah, not bad," the captain agrees. "Sounds like you made quick work of 'em."
"We're just finishing up hacking the enemy comms," Jarnefeldt continues. "Patching you in now. Let's see what they've got to say about this..."
The click of a new connection sounds through your receivers, and a series of new voices join the conversation. Happily, none of the enemy sound agitated--their chatter is infrequent and sounds alternately bored and exhausted.
"Sentry unit one, how's everything out there?" says one male voice, sounding equal parts of both. "Any vicious rocks rising up to destroy us?" There's a pause--no response appears to arrive. "Hey, Lupe," the voice pipes up again, sounding annoyed. "Wake the f*** up and report already." Another silence; the voice groans in exasperation. "Goddammit, one of these days she's gonna actually check in on time and the universe will explode from shock..."
"Perfect," Jarnefeldt says to you. "Sounds like that group didn't get the chance to raise an alarm."
The captain chuckles ruefully. "Seriously? Sentries turning off their comms on duty? How the hell did these guys even manage to take this place?"
"Well, it's worked out well for us," the lieutenant counters. "Pilots, you've got a clear shot at the base. Move up before they start getting suspicious."

[CoreBrute23]

As Nikolai regroups with the others, he begins performing a full diagnostic check on the NEXT, preparing to reboot those which are close to over heating. He can't stall in the middle of the enemy base.

And I need to check the Diaphormus field generator-it gave out far too quickly.

Trying to overcome Strained system with Computers +4
[roll0]

[Fri]

"Well, that's pleasant enough." With a twirling motion Kalaratri sheathes the daggers back to its hips. Eleanor doesn't seem to be concerned or even showing any sort of feeling toward how Nikolai just charged on by themselves. "Sigh... NEXTs are just wonderful, aren't they? The way your missiles just turn and swerves toward all those MTs... and the way your Primal Armor just deflect those shells... It was just... beautiful." Eleanor's face flushes with excitement. "Um, I think it's proper at these moment to say... Gnarly job everyone?" She says as she offers two giant thumbs up with her mech.

[DoctorFaust]

"Mmm. I guess." Anton likewise begins running diagnostics and reloads for his launchers. "No casualties, correct? Then once we're all ready, we hit the base. Call it once you're done with any fiddling you want to do."

[CoreBrute23]

The systems all read greenlit, and Nikolai turned his NEXT to the Gallows Dove

"How do we proceed?" Nikolai was uncertain how to perform a siege operation in his Ghost Dragoon. It was designed for quick strikes against enemy units after all, not to deal with fortifications. He was very anxious that he didn't know how to proceed.

Also I don't want him to get hit by missile salvos when he's inside. He's fragile dang it

[Fri]

Oh, Nikolai. Losing your previous joie de vivre already? Where is that pilot who just did a spirited charge alone only a few minutes ago? But anyway, let's just move until we see the base. Then Anton could saturate the area with missiles, and we mop up the survivor. Um... we don't need the base in one piece right? I don't remember the commander said anything about it at least.

[CoreBrute23]

"I am a skirmisher, scouting ahead and eliminating advance enemy units is my role!" He says quickly, thankful that the others can't see him pouting. "I'm not going into a constrained area without anyplace to maneuver, just when my allies intend to hit it with a missile salvo. I'm not stupid!" At her question he shook his NEXT's head.

"We were not told to maintain the structural integrity of the facility-only to eliminate the hostiles."

[Amaril]

"Nikolai's right," Jarnefeldt confirms. "Destroying the enemy takes priority--preserving the base isn't an issue."
The base itself is already within visual range, though not as much more than a collection of lights off on the horizon. A closer look, absent the distraction of combat, reveals that some of the lights seem to be moving. It looks like the Dead Peak forces have more guards on station within the base itself.

[DoctorFaust]

"My IFF mean that I shouldn't be able to hit either of you with my missiles," Anton replies. "I can't do anything about the splash, but as long as you aren't literally grappling with them when I launch, you should be more or less fine. Now, if they're already moving, we need to hit them now. Nikolai, do you believe me about the IFF?"

That's how I'm fluffing that the autofire not targeting teammates (I think).

[CoreBrute23]

"...should I not believe you about the IFF? I do not like rhetorical questions." He turned to face Elenor.

"Will you be firing from range as well, or will you be entering and assaulting the hostiles in close range with me?"

[Fri]

"Hmm... Well, let's say that since Kalaratri is an all-range assault armor, that depends on the situation. But I think the idea for the design is to close in with ranged attack, then continue in melee. Also I destroy things more efficiently in close range, so that's that. So, should we continue?"

After saying that, if there's no objection, Kalaratri lead the way toward the enemy base.

[CoreBrute23]

Nikolai nods, "I follow in behind you Eleanor, and when you start the ranged attack, I mop up the divided targets. Then we proceed from there." He then follows after Kalatari into the base.

[DoctorFaust]

"Well, whatever works is good with me. I'll be in the back, providing support and covering fire for the two of you." Anton likewise sets the Gallows Dove in motion, following the other two towards the enemy base.

[Amaril]

You only have to get a little closer for the comparatively well-lit facility to become fully distinguishable. The base appears to be concentrated around two long hangar buildings, with clusters of smaller bunkers around them, presumably for human personnel. An open paved yard stands between the hangar entrances. The whole facility is encircled by a high concrete wall with eight towers distributed around it, atop each of which sits a mounted machine gun turret; a heavy gate bars your entrance, but even if you don't want to just fly in, it looks like you could easily break it down. Behind the wall, you can see five more MTs of the same make as the others patrolling outside the buildings.

The base includes four zones: perimeter, outdoor, hangar one, and hangar two. When you engage, you'll start in the perimeter zone, which has the Aspect Poorly lit. Whether you want to try and take them by surprise again or not, go ahead and do your first actions, and I'll put them in turn order.

[Fri]

Hmm... The base is bigger than I thought. I guess we can't just simply saturate the whole base with missiles now. From what I can see, we have two choice now. Do we fight on the outside area and wait for their reinforcement to come out and defeat them there, or we punch through and clean up each hangar one by one? If you ask me, I'd prefer the former, but we're a team! Your opinion also matter!

[DoctorFaust]

"As long as you don't mind very close air support, either will work for me," Anton replies. "Waiting outside would probably be better for my missiles, since there would be less for them to kill themselves on, so I'd prefer that one, but I can do hangar by hangar if that's what you would prefer, Nikolai."

[CoreBrute23]

"Negative-waiting for them to come to us is foolish. They'll hunker down, and turn this into a siege. We are a strike force, we need to eliminate them before they have time to coordinate and overwhelm us." Nikolai looks up at the turrets in the tower. He gestures to them.

"Gallows Dove's pilot, do you think you could destroy those turrets from here? If you do, then Elenor and I do not need to worry about them, while we engage the enemy MTs." He looks at the Kalatari. "If I go over the fence first, camouflaged, can you give me 15 seconds before following me into the battle? And Gallows Dove's pilot, can you start firing down the turrets only when Elenor and I are already over the gate?"

His generator begins to whir, as the Diaphormus field flickers into effect.

Since they haven't noticed us, maybe now is a good time to create advantages for ourselves, to use in the fight. Whether it's ready aim, roaring bloodlust, theme song playing in the cockpit etc. Whatever you need to get ready.

Create advantage, Invisibility field, Stealth +3:
[roll0]

[Fri]

You know what, that's a good idea and I honestly wouldn't think about it myself.

[roll0]Stealth+3 to create advantage of Stealthy

Eleanor: "Roger!" Kalaratri unsheathes its daggers, and moves to follow Ghost Dragoon behind. Even if it doesn't have fancy schmancy stealth field generator, it can try to not whizz its throttle to full and kick a lot of dust and keep to the shadows. It's completely black after all.

[DoctorFaust]

"I have a name, Nikolai. You do know that, right?" Anton says, but nods in acknowledgement. "After you're both over the fence, I'll start shelling the turrets. Just give me a signal when you want me to start the attack."

[Amaril]

"Wait!" Jarnefeldt calls out as Eleanor and Nikolai launch themselves towards the walls. "You're heading right into the turrets' flak curtain! Take--" Her warning comes too late, however. As Dragoon and Kalaratri fire their thrusters and hurtle through the air, cries are raised from the towers and a spray of machine gun fire is hurled at the NEXTs. Their speed allows them to avoid the shots, but by the time they land within the base, the sentry MTs are already hurrying to intercept them, and the turrets are swiveling around on their bases for a second volley.
The enemy's comms are a mass of frantic messages and cursing. "What the f*** is going on?" says one authoritative-sounding voice.
"Hostiles coming over the wall!" comes a terrified reply. "They have NEXTs!"
"Itano," Jarnefeldt says anxiously, "if you're gonna take out those turrets, sooner would be better than later."

Turn order begins now. It's Nikolai, then Anton, then the MTs, then Eleanor, and the turret gunners last.

[DoctorFaust]

"Yes, sir," Anton drones, punching several commands into the computer. "Flushing magazine number one."

As his two squadmates drop over the fence, Anton spreads his legs wider apart for better grip, and then launches a veritable swarm of missiles at both the turrets and the approaching MTs.

Attacking Outdoor zone, going to invoke Aiming:
[roll0]

Using Keep The Circus Going for an additional attack
[roll1]

One Fate point remaining.

[CoreBrute23]

Nikolai blinked in alarm when he saw the enemies charge towards his position. He almost fell over when he heard the coms say they have NEXTs, and looked around for the enemy NEXTs, when realized it was the enemies' chatter.

We have access to their com lines? Before he could take advantage of this new piece of information, the enemies were upon him. He jumped into the sky, just as Anton's missiles came down, shielding him in the smoke of the explosions. Then before the surviving enemies could recover from the explosion, a longspear head stabbed one through the machine spine.

OOC: Just using some flavor text to describe myself both avoiding getting hit by the missiles, and attacking.
Fight +2:
[roll0]

[Amaril]

The hail of missiles that falls on the base lights up the night as it detonates. Deafening noise drowns out your comms, and smoke as thick as a solid wall blocks all vision. Nikolai and Eleanor aren't spared, their Primal Armor taxed to its limit shielding them from the missiles--fortunately, nothing gets through to do any lasting damage.
When the noise and smoke finally start to clear, all that remains of the enemy's defenses is one MT, its allies, the stationary turrets, and many of the buildings lying in smoldering ruins. The enemy's comms are silent for a long moment, then explode in an even greater flurry of orders, alerts, and frantic calls for backup. "All personnel to combat stations!" barks the commanding voice from earlier. "Get all remaining defenses in position right f***ing now! Dammit, where the hell are our Normals?"
"Well, looks like they know you're there now," the captain says wryly.
"Careful, you three," Jarnefeldt agrees. "Looks like they've got more to throw at you."
The sole surviving MT still in view appears to finally recover, the pilot swiveling their cockpit around to fire a volley of shells toward Nikolai as he pulls the head of the sovnya back out of one of the wrecked walkers. Smoke still hangs in the air, reducing the battlefield to murky shadows. Alarms begin to blare throughout the facility, soldiers and crew members emerging from surviving bunkers and dashing about in all directions. From within the hangars, Nikolai and Eleanor can hear more vehicle engines starting up, and the heavy thumping of MT footsteps.

Alright, all the previous enemies are taken out except for one of the MTs, which is undamaged, but Anton gets the Boost Impromptu smokescreen from tying its defense roll. That one is attacking Nikolai.

The base perimeter and base outdoor zones are otherwise clear of enemies, though it sounds like there are more in the two hangar zones.

Faust, I might have to ask you to rework your weapons after this--I hadn't realized how powerful an area attack would be.

[Fri]

[roll0]+4 fight +1 weapon
Physical [x][][]
Mental [][][]
Fate:2

I forgot if I'm in melee zone already, if not, just replace it with shoot and reduce the roll by one. I'll edit the description later.

Also, if it misses I'll use one of my remaining fate point to add +2 to the roll.


Kalaratri nimbly dodges the missiles left and right, and missed most of them, though one explodes close enough to physically rattle the NEXT. It then casually spins and stabs the surviving MT on the back with one of its dagger.

"That was pretty intense firework. You missed one though."