[IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

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Davies
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[IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by Davies »

January 3, 2021 (Not that any of you know that yet.)

The ship is falling apart.

Well, not literally, you're not in any immediate danger or anything, but, well, the ships that the Last Men Standing use are generally never in the best of condition, and this one was probably never intended to conduct a nine month long trip through hyperspace like the one you're almost ending. You're amazed that the hyperdrive hasn't conked out more often than it has, to say nothing of the cloaking field that got you past the surveillance post that the Technate has set up in this solar system's inner asteroid belt. Keeping them both functioning has consumed a lot of your effort in the past while, and you know that you're at the limits of your abilities to do that, given that you don't have the parts you need or the ability to manufacture them. And on top of that, the fuel gauge is closer to zero than any gauge that you've ever seen outside of unlikely popular entertainments.

But you've gotten to your destination, and you can see it on the viewscreen. Third planet out from the system's lone star, orbited by a single, very large natural moon and a bunch of smaller artificial constructs. Earth, also known as Terra, also known as Tellus, also known as a bunch of other names. Population eight billion, a number that still dazzles you whenever you think about it. (Few planets in the Technate are inhabited by more than a single billion sapients, and none have more than two billion.) Inhabited by an equally befuddling number of super-powered beings, from whom you have been sent to learn how to be a 'hero'.

Nine and a half months ago, you were all summoned to the office of the chief of the Last Men Standing, Hallandar the Golden. He explained that, as some of the youngest -- or newest, at least -- members of the resistance, you had been selected for this mission, in the belief that all of you would benefit most from this opportunity to educate yourselves in the techniques used by Earth's 'super-heroes', and also to learn as much about them as possible.

"In addition," he said, folding his hands as he sat behind his office desk, "I would also appreciate it if you could investigate the encounters that this world has had with the forces of Daath. The armies of the Dark Side have never invaded it, of course, but from what our allies there have told us, there have been contacts with them in the past, as well as recently. It's possible that the people there may know more than they realize about our enemy." He looked as though he wanted to say something else, but chose not to do so.

And so you left the fleet behind, and traveled all this way, and now you must make a decision about where exactly on this planet you want to come down. And you need to make that choice as soon as possible, because the ship is on its last legs. Once you are committed to your landing site, you will not have the fuel to change it and make a successful landing. And there is no starport on this planet; at least, not an overt one.

There are three major possibilities.

You could land in a place called Ecuador. Apparently, there is a representative of the criminal organization Vaskhane active in that area, who operates a covert landing site for interstellar traffic. The Last Men Standing, as an independent organization, is occasionally forced by circumstances to have dealings with Vaskhane, but the relationship is not warm or friendly, so this is not a particularly safe choice. On the one hand, this would probably be a good place to refill and maybe repair your ship; on the other, the cost of all that may be more than you can afford. And while you're still not completely sure about this, you don't think 'super-heroes' are supposed to have these sorts of dealings with criminals.

You could land in a place called Bhutan. Apparently, Thunder Dragon, a mercenary from the Technate, arrived here a few tens of years ago and conquered a small kingdom for himself, in rather blatant defiance of Technate law against doing that sort of thing. He has held onto it ever since, and his kingdom apparently welcomes alien visitors as long as they don't annoy the local ruler. This is not a safe choice either; again, while you might obtain what you need to keep the ship functional, it will cost you, and, again, this person is a criminal ... and possibly an even more dangerous criminal than the other.

You could land in a place called Toronto, where Paragon is supposed to reside. The Last Anacreonite is probably the most well-known of Earth's resident superheroes in the Technate. You've probably seen recorded footage of him assisting in battles that the Lasters fought with the Dark Side before you joined up, and he's a rather impressive fellow. You've also heard rumors that he's frequently challenged by would-be raiders of this planet, who usually leave the planet with their tails between their legs. This is a safer choice than either of the other two, but if you don't step carefully, Paragon might mistake you for a potential enemy. And you don't know how you'd repair or refuel your ship in this place.

Orrrr ... you could pick somewhere else. The ship's computer contains geographical coordinates for a lot of locations on Earth, but not a lot of information about them beyond that. You'd be choosing something more or less at random, with no way of knowing what to expect. The best you can say is that it wouldn't be boring.

But whatever you decide, the five of you need to make this decision yourselves.

Wait, five?

Oh, yeah. That's the other thing. About six minutes before your ship was about to leave the mothership's docking bay, you received a signal from Hallandar halting your departure for about an hour. Towards the end of that period, someone boarded the ship, offered a silent greeting to all of you, then promptly headed for one of the unoccupied rooms of the ship and locked herself inside of it. She has emerged only during times when everyone on the ship was summoned to the command deck, and hasn't said more than about five words to anyone during the whole trip to this point.

This is not a particularly sane or safe way to pass an extended space voyage, but she seems to have come out the other end of it all right. She's on the command deck with the rest of you at the moment, gazing silently at the image of Earth -- a grey-haired, grey-eyed, pale-skinned Chiraben* woman in unremarkable clothes. She still hasn't introduced herself, and none of you know anything about this person who's traveled with you all this time.

You may have a number of decisions to make, actually. What are you going to do?

* Humanoid, identical to Earthers.
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
MacynSnow
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by MacynSnow »

WISSEN (TAXAUD?) HP- 1 CND.-in a Chipper mood(fine), thank you for asking! :D
As he stared at the planet called Earth, his Computerized mind couldn't help but try to figure out how much resources was being used up by Eight BILLION people and the number almost staggered him. Why the Heroes never used their abilities to terraform their Moon for habitation he'll never know(Something he'll have to look into during his programed leisure time). Turning to the other's, he say's as he slick's back his Mullet-styled Blond hair
"Well, my vote is to set down in London,England as anyplace that can create Music along the lines of The Beatles can't be Criminal(or at least not all of it). But i suppose Toronto would be safer, if a little boring...Although, we COULD try for San Fransisco in America, as they may have some of the equipment we need to affect repairs(they sadly might not have the materials, however)..."
Last edited by MacynSnow on Thu Apr 01, 2021 6:45 am, edited 2 times in total.
Flynnarrel
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by Flynnarrel »

The Praxis
HP:1|CND: Fine
Scanners: Vision Gains Radius,
Radio Sense, gains Analytical, Rapid,
Advanced Warning Algorithms {Danger Sense}


**************************
A ship within a ship. The Irony was not lost on Captain Trent as he sat reviewing the status reports. Correction, 'ship' was too generous a term for this pile of trash that The Praxis has been constantly repairing for 9 months. He had damage control crews going on round-the-clock rotations using the Tractor beam to manipulate tools and parts to keep the coolant levels balanced, or the anti-proton energy containment system in check, or even hull repairs since every collision with a space stone bigger than a microt left cracks in this vessel's hull like an egg and whatever quirked autopilot that navigated this thing seemed to be on a red-level mission to find every one before they reach their destination.

If only the Praxis had been full-sized! This journey would have been a fraction of the time and had plenty of room for the full complement of this team with fields of room to spare. Or if they could share their replicator technology or near-limitless zero-point energy drives with these people, but, much like the very atmosphere who's molecules would be too big to sustain the bodies of his crew, the technology used by the Praxis depended on principles that this dimension had never heard of much less could connect to! 'Zero Point' was a quantum realm where the conversion of matter to pure energy could be tapped and the Zero Sum Coefficient could be quantified, harnessed, and employed. It infused every aspect of the ship from the Quantum-bonded hull to the Undefined Divisor engines that *usually* let them access hyperspace - the very tool that would have saved them over 9 months of headaches! The best way his Chief Science Advisor, Blurt the Learned, could express it was "Things get weird when The Universal Coefficient is multiplied by Sigma-sub-infinity", which Jonathan was sure had been a mistranslation from the bouyant, amorphous-bodied brain-creature's language to his own.

He finished with section progress reports and turned attention to the summation of media from their destination planet. Every radio and TV news broadcast they could detect with sensors at maximum sensitivity was summarized but there were still oodles of data. Teams of sociologists and psychologists tried to sum up the highlights for the Captain. Not just news either, but popular movies, TV shows, documentaries, and fictions were collated and combed for commonalities. It may just be mostly fantasy, an idealized version of themselves to entertain, but each contained a kernel of truth - especially where they intersected.

The choice where to set down was a grave one. The debate was a hot one among his senior staff and advisors.
**************************



Captain Trent opened a comm. After two years he still wanted to employ the standard U.C.P. hailing protocols but the sociologists advised that the group dynamics would be easier here if they presented as one unit even though he's made no secret of the ship's complements and situation. "Praxis, here," he says over the general hailing frequencies the Laster's employed, "While we agree Toronto seems to be the best landing site, we're checking to see if we can possibly take off again to one of the other locations if Toronto proves to have *nothing* we need. We're running analysis on both fuel reserves and structural integrity to see if this.... ship.... can even survive atmospheric entry."
Any sort of roll for this? If Technology they'll use Skill Mastery for 23
"Something pithy this way comes."
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Davies
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by Davies »

No need. You are certain that when this ship sets down, it's not going to lift off again without, at minimum, refueling and possibly some repairs. Also, it can survive re-entry.
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
RainOnTheSun
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by RainOnTheSun »

Yenova
HP: 1
CND: Fine

Yenova isn't looking at the viewscreen, right now. It's important to decide where to land, sure, but there's already a mystery right here. And mysteries are dangerous. So she's standing next to the other Chiraben woman on the command deck, giving her a curious and very blatant stare.

"Ummmmmmmmmmmm... who are you?" Yenova gives the mystery woman a big, friendly smile.
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by pathfinderq1 »

Pok'

It would come as little surprise to those who had shared the ship with her for months that Pok' was the last of the group to speak (excepting the outsider, of course). She had been helpful to have along on the trip, but she didn't talk much.

When she did speak, "her" voice was a deep rumble, felt as much as heard. "Perhaps Toronto? It seems like the least dangerous of the lot." She paused, pointing one thick finger at the display. "And if it doesn't work out, we can just walk down to Ecuador, even if the ship doesn't work."

'And maybe explore along the way...' she thought but did not speak aloud.
Last edited by pathfinderq1 on Thu Feb 04, 2021 10:45 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Davies
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by Davies »

RainOnTheSun wrote: Thu Feb 04, 2021 3:09 pm "Ummmmmmmmmmmm... who are you?" Yenova gives the mystery woman a big, friendly smile.
For a moment, the mystery woman doesn't seem to realize she's been spoken to. Then she blinks, and returns your gaze, but not your smile. Her face is one with a studied lack of expresssion. "Ah," she says, in a quiet, fairly deep tone. "My mother named me Edeth." The first thing that becomes apparent is that she speaks in a very archaic form of Technate Standard; that way of introduction sounds like something out of a historical drama. (If you were from Earth, you'd think she sounded like someone out of a Shakespearean play.)

Having given this concise explanation of her identity, 'Edeth' returns her focus to the screen. "Aye, this Toronto seems the wisest course, I ween," she adds with a nod. "Both thine assignment and mine own can be fulfilled most expeditiously through contact with the Anacreonite."
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
MacynSnow
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by MacynSnow »

Wissen(Taxaud?)
HP--1 CND-- Fine

Giving a Nod of his head(his blonde Mullet bouncing lightly as he does), the young Scientific Adventurer(and Beatlesafficianato) cracks both hands loudly as he says "Now that our location has been agreed upon, let's see about getting us there in one piece shall we?" heading over to his "Normal" Station(which is wherever the main computer on the Bridge is), the young Half-breed continues to speak
"Praxis, would you please access Navigation Control's for me? Your slightly faster than me at the course corrections...I find it Facinating that you come from a dimension that's smaller than ours. We must compare our Universal Coefficient numbers to see where they differ....Have you ever given any thought to joining a Band? I'm toying with the idea of starting one when we arrive..."
During this entire speil, Wissen's hands are flying across the boards as he begins preparing this Flying piece of scrap to(hopefully safely) land....
Last edited by MacynSnow on Thu Apr 01, 2021 6:47 am, edited 1 time in total.
RainOnTheSun
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by RainOnTheSun »

Yenova
HP: 1
CND: Fine
pathfinderq1 wrote: Thu Feb 04, 2021 4:13 pm When she did speak, "her" voice was a deep rumble, felt as much as heard. "Perhaps Toronto? It seems like the least dangerous of the lot." She paused, pointing one thick finger at the display. "And if it doesn't work out, we can just walk down to Ecuador, even if the ship doesn't work."
"Oh! Good idea, Pok'!" Yenova claps her hands. "We'll go to this Toronto, make a bunch of whatever they use for money here while we do our investigations, and then when we're done, we'll go to one of these other places and fix up our ship!"

Pok' doesn't talk much. A little bit of positive reinforcement probably helps.

With that settled, Yenova shifts on her heels next to Edeth. "Sooooo," she says. "What's your assignment?"
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by Davies »

RainOnTheSun wrote: Fri Feb 05, 2021 7:31 am "Sooooo," she says. "What's your assignment?"
She seems surprised by the question. "All that I mean is to deliver a message. Were you not told of this by thy master?" Apparently, the look on your face answers the question before you can say anything. "Ah. What end does this omission serve, I wonder?" she says, more to herself than you. "Howbeit, I shall not gainsay his choice in the matter. It suffices to say that Sire Hallandar seeks aid from many quarters to prosecute his great war, among them those who have mine allegiance. His assistance in permitting my journey to this world, in thy company, moves him closer to having their assistance."

You've started your descent towards the planet, zipping past its orbital platforms into the halo of its atmosphere. The heat of re-entry is as easily absorbed by your ship's force fields as the strain of your deceleration, leaving you perfectly comfortable. You are crossing over the great fields of ice that lie at the planet's highest latitudes, heading southwards as you descend. Smooth flight, no problems.

And then the lights in the control deck dim suddenly, and the computer, in a voice much more slurred than its normal pronouncements, announces that the cloaking field has shut off.
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
MacynSnow
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by MacynSnow »

Davies wrote: Fri Feb 05, 2021 8:00 am
RainOnTheSun wrote: Fri Feb 05, 2021 7:31 am "Sooooo," she says. "What's your assignment?"
She seems surprised by the question. "All that I mean is to deliver a message. Were you not told of this by thy master?" Apparently, the look on your face answers the question before you can say anything. "Ah. What end does this omission serve, I wonder?" she says, more to herself than you. "Howbeit, I shall not gainsay his choice in the matter. It suffices to say that Sire Hallandar seeks aid from many quarters to prosecute his great war, among them those who have mine allegiance. His assistance in permitting my journey to this world, in thy company, moves him closer to having their assistance."

You've started your descent towards the planet, zipping past its orbital platforms into the halo of its atmosphere. The heat of re-entry is as easily absorbed by your ship's force fields as the strain of your deceleration, leaving you perfectly comfortable. You are crossing over the great fields of ice that lie at the planet's highest latitudes, heading southwards as you descend. Smooth flight, no problems.

And then the lights in the control deck dim suddenly, and the computer, in a voice much more slurred than its normal pronouncements, announces that the cloaking field has shut off.
Wissen(Taxaud?)
HP-1 CND-fine

Wissen starts shouting curses in Binary as his hands fly across the pad as he say...
"11100010101-kissing little children! We just lost the cloaking field! We are in plain view of every Blinkin Bird with a telescope. Seeing what i can do about it...-0010101111000111001010...."
Anything i can roll to get our Cloak back up or are in "Too bad, too late" zone here?
Last edited by MacynSnow on Thu Apr 01, 2021 6:48 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Davies
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by Davies »

MacynSnow wrote: Fri Feb 05, 2021 8:15 am
Anything i can roll to get our Cloak back up or are in "Too bad, too late" zone here?
The latter.
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
MacynSnow
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by MacynSnow »

Davies wrote: Fri Feb 05, 2021 8:18 am
MacynSnow wrote: Fri Feb 05, 2021 8:15 am
Anything i can roll to get our Cloak back up or are in "Too bad, too late" zone here?
The latter.
Wellll, NUTZ!!!
Flynnarrel
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by Flynnarrel »

The Praxis
HP:1|CND: Fine
Scanners: Vision Gains Radius,
Radio Sense, gains Analytical, Rapid,
Advanced Warning Algorithms {Danger Sense}


The technician's handling the beam did as the blue man requested at a nod from the Captain. Jonathan knew the alien's panel would light up and needed no acknowledgement.

"I'll make sure you get with the right resources to compare notes." All he knew is that he *didn't* want to be in that room when Blurt and Wissen brainstormed. "And what ba..." the Captain's voice trailed off as someone (not audible to the comm) addressed him.


**************************
"External power readings are fluctuating in the containment cells, Captain." came the Engineering Ensign's panicked cries before the trash ship's lights started flickering.

"Steady on. Do what you can. Tactical, if needed, make plans to Hyperjump external to the ship and use wide-spread tractor beam to slow the rate of decent of the large ship." Trent knew it wouldn't be much but maybe he could offer them some hope. Otherwise he could lift the group of them if they clumped together and fly them out an airlock or something. "Just give me options." he says.

**************************


Comm's switched back on. "The cloaking field is of little matter now. We *wanted* to make contact with the Toronto heroes and a crashing space ship will do that. Please concentrate on reverse thrust and maneuverability. We'll support the autopilot as much as we can. Non-essential personnel might want to get to an escape pod and assume crash positions. We'll hold off on launching until absolutely necessary, but better safe than sorry." Trent advises mentally noting the idiom. He was surprised when Sociology reported that long-range broadcasts showed a large portion of the planet Earth spoke a language not too different from Captain Trent's home planet. Physiologies were similar too. 'Convergent Evolution' they called it. Trent had been using his dimension's 'Galactic Standard' for so long it would be nice to hear something like the language of his youth. A beep brought him out of his musings.

"Wissen, we're giving you what power we can and diverting the rest into hull integrity." he says surveying a readout report updating real time from Engineering on what they're doing.
"Something pithy this way comes."
MacynSnow
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Re: [IC] Screaming Metal Vagabonds: Chapter 1 -- The Cool Green Hills of Earth

Post by MacynSnow »

Flynnarrel wrote: Fri Feb 05, 2021 8:59 am The Praxis
HP:1|CND: Fine
Scanners: Vision Gains Radius,
Radio Sense, gains Analytical, Rapid,
Advanced Warning Algorithms {Danger Sense}


The technician's handling the beam did as the blue man requested at a nod from the Captain. Jonathan knew the alien's panel would light up and needed no acknowledgement.

"I'll make sure you get with the right resources to compare notes." All he knew is that he *didn't* want to be in that room when Blurt and Wissen brainstormed. "And what ba..." the Captain's voice trailed off as someone (not audible to the comm) addressed him.


**************************
"External power readings are fluctuating in the containment cells, Captain." came the Engineering Ensign's panicked cries before the trash ship's lights started flickering.

"Steady on. Do what you can. Tactical, if needed, make plans to Hyperjump external to the ship and use wide-spread tractor beam to slow the rate of decent of the large ship." Trent knew it wouldn't be much but maybe he could offer them some hope. Otherwise he could lift the group of them if they clumped together and fly them out an airlock or something. "Just give me options." he says.

**************************


Comm's switched back on. "The cloaking field is of little matter now. We *wanted* to make contact with the Toronto heroes and a crashing space ship will do that. Please concentrate on reverse thrust and maneuverability. We'll support the autopilot as much as we can. Non-essential personnel might want to get to an escape pod and assume crash positions. We'll hold off on launching until absolutely necessary, but better safe than sorry." Trent advises mentally noting the idiom. He was surprised when Sociology reported that long-range broadcasts showed a large portion of the planet Earth spoke a language not too different from Captain Trent's home planet. Physiologies were similar too. 'Convergent Evolution' they called it. Trent had been using his dimension's 'Galactic Standard' for so long it would be nice to hear something like the language of his youth. A beep brought him out of his musings.

"Wissen, we're giving you what power we can and diverting the rest into hull integrity." he says surveying a readout report updating real time from Engineering on what they're doing.
Wissen(Taxaud?)
HP-1 CND-fine

"Valid point Praxis, but i'd much rather have lost the Cloak on OUR terms...." acknowledging the Micro-ship(part of him thinks it might honestly be a tiny ship with tinier crew, but needed more data one way or the other), he start's trying to work the Maneuvering Thruster's to get them into a landing pattern that was (relatively) safe...
Last edited by MacynSnow on Thu Apr 01, 2021 6:49 am, edited 1 time in total.
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