Stay Frosty III - Welcome to the Jungle

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Séadna

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Another day dawns over the only landmass on the beautiful world of Joshi's Garden. The island that is home to the famous ultra-luxurious hunting resort: Devana's Lodge. Named for the Slavic goddess of the hunt. The resort is comprised of one of the finest hotels in the galaxy built into the local rock, a zoo housing creatures deemed too dangerous to hunt except for those willing to foot the heavy fee demanded by marine corps quarantine and finally the jungle hunting grounds themselves which take up the rest of the island. The beasts present in the resort were the apex hunters of various so called "Death Worlds" across inhabited space. In a more controversial move two extremely rare creatures had been captured from Jump Space and placed in the zoo.

Marine headquarters had recently been notified when the resort's "all okay" beacon had not transmitted its weekly update. The high priority of the guests and the danger posed by the park had the nearest Marine AI orbiting a nearby Neutron star dispatch a crack team with a proven record. To improve success odds it also assigned an experienced old Spec-ops expert and a young Psi-op officer who had manifested rare abilities.

The mission was fairly clear.
First: Save as many of the wealthy clientele as possible. Some being major funders of the marine corps' Medical and Intelligence divisions, as well as prominent business leaders in this sector.
Second: Determine if the resort now posed a risk to inhabited space and if so destroy it. A drop of anti-water was held in a secure facility somewhere on the island that could blow the planet if needs be. Unfortunately only the two park owners were privy to its location.

Back on the planet the local fish welcome the sunshine by leaping out of the waters of the island's central lake and catching the odd insect. Across the lake from the hotel a local variety of red reptile called the Clapper-Jaw munches the beach sand looking for worms. Their leader rears his head and bellows at the others to run as he hears a sharp whistle in the air.

They just about manage to scurry into the jungle as two multi-ton spherical pods slam into the beach sand carrying six of the marine corps' finest. One pod is almost completely nondescript, a perfect black sphere. The other however is a pulsing blue with the Greek letter Psi emblazoned on it.

A large circular iris then opens on the first pod. Within it releases the safety belts of Griff, Ling, Raúl and Shank who have been strapped to its padded walls for the long journey to Joshi's Garden.

The second pod then opens following a similar procedure and issues a warning to all marines present that it is now releasing the Schweber helmets that protect the average human from the potent psychic field of the two Psi Operatives. Potter and Sharpe are then let out as their helmets come loose and fold into their pod's walls.

All six marines stand on the beach and look across the lake to the hotel.

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Looking over the two new additions to the team, Griff grins. "Awrite, guid mornin'! Welcome to th' baddest group of marine killers oot there, ya ken? Ya mighta heard of us but dinnae fash yerselves about living up to our standards. You'll do grand, I feel it."

Cracking his neck and checking over his gear, Griff tries to make some casual conversation, "ah cannae believe that there's a wee chance I might get to get a hold of some anti-water, absolutely bonkers. Could well be the biggest man-made explosion since Forbulon-7, ya ken that one?"
 
Shank's age-old sergeant reflexes kick in and he yells in his best drill sergeant voice:

"RIGHT BOYS AND GIRLS! WE'VE GOT A PAIR OF SPOON BENDERS IN THEATRE. GET YER TINFOIL HATS AND FALL IN!"

"AT THE DOUBLE YOU IDLE LAPP SLUGS!"

He briskly walks across to the pod and takes a Psi shield, making a show of fitting it, then breaks out his gear and begins to check it.
 
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Pvt. Ling Zhao stretches her legs, thankful to be on solid land after the trip in the sphere. She had been shooting the shit with Griff and Raúl, and more cautiously getting a feel for Shank, trying to get a sense for how he might react when things inevitably went south.

"Potter!" she yells out at the former infantryman, completely ignoring the fact that he seems to be concentrating on something. "How are they hanging these days?" She's curious as to the other marine accompanying him, but figures the psyker will introduce himself in due time, or not.

She cocks an eyebrow at Shank's exclamation, wondering if there would be any conflict over leadership of the group between him and Lt. Raúl. Let the dick-waving begin, she thinks to herself, as she belatedly gets her Psi-helm.
 
Griff collects a psi-helm and dutifully dons it per regulation, and then collects together his gear and stands somewhat to attention close to Ling. He grins at her, knowingly.
 
Potter sits in the Lotus position on the beach and reaches out with his Cyber Telepathy to see if he can make contact with anything.
Feeling around the lake and the beach, Potter detects a presence on the other side of the lake just at the edge of his awareness. The AI responds suddenly.

"Hello? I don't detect an identification code from you...in fact I'm not even detecting a signal. Please identify yourself"
 
"¡Ay! What cabrón decided to land us across the water from the hotel?!" mutters Lt. Rodríguez.

Raúl then says to everyone, "Make sure your Schweber helmets are on tight and your heads are on straight before our psychedelic chochas melt your brains. We'll save as many of these rich maricónes as we can but not at the expense of our own lives, so keep your eyes peeled and shoot to kill. These tontos ricos liked to play with dangerous critters from all over the galaxy and I'll bet you something got loose and started eating the dumb fucks. You see anything other than a kitty cat, you kill it. You see any civilians acting weird, leave 'em to their own devices if they won't do as they're told. We'll save who we can but don't fall for any sob stories. These pendejos asked for what they got. This shit never goes down right and Potter, Ling, and Griff can tell you I have no qualms whatsoever about blowing this whole planet to Kingdom Come if need be. Now let's find a way to the hotel and see who gets to die today."

I check my gear and especially make sure Old Scratch, my trusty flamethrower, is ready. Emblazoned on the side is the slogan "BURN, BABY, BURN!"

Raúl looks even less likely to put up with any civilian bullshit this time than he did in Stay Frosty I and Stay Frosty II.*

  • Do we have names/descriptions for the park owners who know where the anti-water is located?
  • Is there any kind of transport we can use to ferry ourselves across the water to the hotel?
  • Do we have any surveillance gear we can use to get a look at the hotel from where we are now?
* Presumably because he's getting paid the pittance agreed to under his original three-game contract despite the massive profits made by Séadna Séadna when the first two installments in the franchise proved to be blockbusters.
 
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"Fuck, I don't even plan on trusting the kitty cats," Ling responds. "I mean, I've seen all three of the Kill Kittens movies."

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Do we have names/descriptions for the park owners who know where the anti-water is located?
The park owners are:
Emile Torvik and Zawadi Kamau.

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Is there any kind of transport we can use to ferry ourselves across the water to the hotel?
Looking about Raúl spots a decent looking dingy about a minutes walk up the beach. Doesn't look like it can fit many though, about two. Perhaps three at a push.

Do we have any surveillance gear we can use to get a look at the hotel from where we are now?
Potter and Shank both have scopes on their rifles.
 
Missed the bit with Potter...

To Potter: "Potter, you'll have plenty of time to do yoga when you're dead. What are you doing?"

To Shank: "Potter seems preoccupied. Can you take a look with your rifle scope to see if there's anything interesting going on at the hotel?"

To the others: "Let's make sure we watch the water and the jungle. There's always something that wants to kill us. Maybe we can use the dinghy to get across unless someone has a better idea."
 
Missed the bit with Potter...

To Potter: "Potter, you'll have plenty of time to do yoga when you're dead. What are you doing?"

To Shank: "Potter seems preoccupied. Can you take a look with your rifle scope to see if there's anything interesting going on at the hotel?"

To the others: "Let's make sure we watch the water and the jungle. There's always something that wants to kill us. Maybe we can use the dinghy to get across unless someone has a better idea."
Shank replies "SIR" and proceeds to scan the hotel and surrounding are area through his scope. What does he see?

How far does it look to walk around the edge of the lake?
 
Shank observes that the Ell-Tee hasn't given any specific orders and barks.

"LING, GRIFF. FORM A PERIMETER AND WATCH OUR BACKS. POSITIONS WITH MUTUAL COVERING FIRE. MOVE IT!"

He then continues to scan the hotel and area surrounding with his scope.
 
"Mebbe ah could jury rig our pods and use a wee thrust to propel us across th' lake? I ken it's a bit wild and I cannae promise it'll work."
Looking at the pod Griff sees there are two fuel tanks. The Impulse fuel tank and the Jump fuel tank.

The former is more than half full to allow lift off from the planet at high speeds in case of emergency.

The latter has enough fuel for three jumps.

The pod engine computers tend to default to enormous speeds when in Impulse mode, since they assume extraction to space for jump rather than cruising along the planet.
 
Shank replies "SIR" and proceeds to scan the hotel and surrounding are area through his scope. What does he see?

How far does it look to walk around the edge of the lake?
Shank points his scope at the hotel. It's not a pretty sight.

He can see into the main lobby with its white marble floor. Several bodies are sliced in half. The odd few are melted.

Scanning a few room windows some look fine, but others are caked with blood.

The small dock around the hotel has a similar array of exploded, cut up, melted and burned individuals.
 
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Shanks points his scope at the hotel. It's not a pretty sight.

He can see into the main lobby with its white marble floor. Several bodies are sliced in half. The odd few are melted.

Scanning a few room windows some look fine, but others are caked with blood.

The small dock around the hotel has a similar array of exploded, cut up, melted and burned individuals.
Shank turns to Raul and says

"SITREP Sir: Signs of a fight in the hotel, multiple bodies visible. Attackers may be animal or sentient; victims are cut up, with possible use of incendiary or explosive devices.. No visible survivors."

He then consults a map.

OOC: How far would it be to walk around the lake shore to the hotel?
 
Shank scans around the lake. At the edge it's mostly awkward rocks and small cliff faces, so retreating inland a bit the walk through the jungle should be about an hour.
Shank continues reporting to Raul: "Estimate approximately one hour to the hotel on foot, Sir."
 
Shank turns to Raul and says

"SITREP Sir: Signs of a fight in the hotel, multiple bodies visible. Attackers may be animal or sentient; victims are cut up, with possible use of incendiary or explosive devices.. No visible survivors."
"¡Hijo de la chingada!" replies Raúl. "I expected as much. Just to be clear, our own lives are our top priority. We'll do what we can, but let's not take any unnecessary risks trying to play hero for a bunch of ungrateful well-heeled cabrónes. Like my mama told me: 'Aunque un mono se viste de seda, sigue siendo un mono.' A monkey can dress in silk, but it's still a monkey."

"Griff, can you do anything with the pod or shall we use the dinghy?" asks Raúl. "And who wants to bet there's some big nasty fish in the water that try to eat us?"

What do I have in the way of grenades or something I can throw or shoot that will explode over an area?
 
Feeling around the lake and the beach, Potter detects a presence on the other side of the lake just at the edge of his awareness. The AI responds suddenly.

"Hello? I don't detect an identification code from you...in fact I'm not even detecting a signal. Please identify yourself"

Not aware of what the others have been doing Potter speaks without opening his eyes.

'Hey all, I've got an AI requested an ID code, anyone got something I can give it or should I chance I let it know who we are?'
 
Not aware of what the others have been doing Potter speaks without opening his eyes.

'Hey all, I've got an AI requested an ID code, anyone got something I can give it or should I chance I let it know who we are?'
Séadna Séadna - OOC: Was there anything like this in the briefing materials given to us?
 
OOC: So with the pods defaulting to high speeds am I able to interface with the pod and use 0.000001 thrust or something to create two speed boats?
Griff manages to interface with the drive's control computers and sees he can lower them from their default speed, but they have very little ability to turn or move accurately so it will be like aiming a cannon ball.
 
Not aware of what the others have been doing Potter speaks without opening his eyes.

'Hey all, I've got an AI requested an ID code, anyone got something I can give it or should I chance I let it know who we are?'
Do any of us have any codes of this nature?
 
No codes for local AIs were provided to you.
Shank looks at the meagre intel provided in the briefing file on his handcomp.

"I see Intel's work is up to their usual standard." he mutters, then turns to Potter:

"Nothing in the briefing Private."

Then to Raul ( Dumarest Dumarest ) "With the racket those pods make it's not going to be a great leap of reasoning to work out who we are. I suggest we identify as Marine Corps to the AI and then ask who it is. You'll have to make the call, Sir."
 
Not aware of what the others have been doing Potter speaks without opening his eyes.

'Hey all, I've got an AI requested an ID code, anyone got something I can give it or should I chance I let it know who we are?'
"We got mucho de nada," says Raúl. "See if you can bluff it or hack it, maybe."

To Griff: "Any possibility of using the pod to shoot us across the lake? I'd rather not enter the jungle if we can avoid it. We didn't bring enough bug repellent for everybody and I hear the mosquitos here can suck a grown man dry in two shakes of a lamb's tail."

Then to Raul ( Dumarest Dumarest ) "With the racket those pods make it's not going to be a great leap of reasoning to work out who we are. I suggest we identify as Marine Corps to the AI and then ask who it is. You'll have to make the call, Sir."
"Ixnay on the ID as marines," says Raúl. "It could a trick or a trap. We've dealt with some weird xenos before who can fuck with your cabeza. If they don't give us more information to work with, we'll assume they're hostile until they show us otherwise. In the meantime the less they know about us and what we're doing, the better."

Séadna Séadna: Are there any transponders or other gadgets someone could use to track or detect us on our persons or in our gear?
 
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"Ell tee it'd be like playin' hologolf on the range, only the wee digital ball is us, fired at high speeds. I'm aboot 60% confident in it working wi'out us bein' smeared like jam across toast." He grins, and shrugs.
 
"Little bit of the rsspberry jam then? Dont know if I fancy being spread across toast, but 60 sounds like fine large digit."
 
"Little bit of the rsspberry jam then? Dont know if I fancy being spread across toast, but 60 sounds like fine large digit."
"Sharpe, did I just hear you volunteer to test Griff's theory?"
 
"No sir, you know me, wouldnt volunteer for me own funeral."
 
"No sir, you know me, wouldnt volunteer for me own funeral."
"Never volunteer for nuthin', that's what my dad always said. Says so in the bible."
"He's quoting from the Rodríguez family Bible," says Raúl.

To everyone: "I think our options are at least two trips by dinghy or a walk on the wild side. Do we have any data on what may lurk in the jungle or under the water?"
 
@Séadna: Are there any transponders or other gadgets someone could use to track or detect us on our persons or in our gear?
Your interpersonal communicators give each of you a rough idea where the others are, but in terms of other parties using them to pinpoint you it would be difficult unless they actively spent time trying to triangulate you after getting a lock on your signal.
 
I communicate to the AI. 'Rescue personnel here, any live bodies in need of help?'
"Oh" the AI begins in what comes across to Potter as a chipper tone "Good to hear! There's a few guests here in the hotel still alive certainly according to the life support systems.

A few others ran out into the jungle to get to the various bunkers and what not. Some may even have survived"
 
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