ACTION, ADVENTURE, EXCITEMENT PART I - Ch. 4 Subject: Re: Action, Adventure, Excitement From: BetNoir Date: 1996/10/08 Roland X wrote: > Roland chuckles. "Oh, subtlety can work, just not...directly. >Pardon the phrase." He quickly sobers. "Striking at the Adversary >itself is far more dangerous than its worth, both to us and to >everyone else. It's already imprisoned in the dreamrealm of my home >ficton. But anything we can do to get Gruber out into the open where >we can deal with him will work. The Pirate Queen speaks up... 'Well, maybe it's time the Adversary/Gruber acquired a traitor? Someone willing to divulge to him all our nasty little secrets? Being a mercenary sort, I was promised an agreed-upon sum which y'all have failed to deliver. So I decided that I would be better off with the Adversary....and am willing to sell you out - for the right price of course.' -- BetN 'We close our eyes...and the world has turned around again...' D. Elfman 'It's just the night in my veins....' C. Hynde NEVER parry with your head =========================== Subject: Re: Action, Adventure, Excitement From: rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) Date: 1996/10/08 grammarfascist wrote: >Silence stands up calmly. She has made use of Shadow's excursion; a >new set of clothes (closer-fitting, since she's more interested in >being able to move fast than in hiding things, though of course her >sleeve pockets and wristknife are where they have always been) and a >hairbrush were very welcome. The last things to come out of the >leather bag are two brace of throwing daggers, which she adds to the >two brace already on her belt, and a pair of extremely serviceable- >looking boots. Sliding her feet into them, she takes an experimental >step--and is suddenly standing on the other side of the room; another >step takes her only her normal stride of less than a meter. >"I do love seven-leaguers," she murmurs. Roland smiles. "A pity we can't make a side trip to the 30th Century...I wonder what you'd make of a Legion Flight Ring." >Shadow, having had his fill of ice cream ("Thanks, Dion!"), gives his >fur a few quick licks and ruffles his feathers to settle them in >place. A smaller variation of Silence's collection of belt pouches is >strapped carefully around him; most of the mixtures in the hardened >leather pockets are viscous and fast-acting poisons, perfect for >anointing his claws with, and the rest are basic antidotes and >medicines. He tests a quick-release catch with a claw and practices a >few flight maneuvers; satisfied, he rejoins the group. Roland notes this calmly. "Poisons have an...unpleasant effect on my kind. Being immortal when one is poisoned is no fun at all... most Prides cannot assimilate poisons. The prospect of spending a few decades in agony is quite enough to dissuade most Immortals in combat." >After going over the medicines in her beaver medicine pouch with Lady >Cheron and adding a couple of rolls of bandages and some more modern >salves, Silence ties the drawstrings and shrugs the pack onto her >shoulders. "Well, I'm ready to go," she says. "Roland, while you and >Stranger take care of Gruber and Sinestro, what do the rest of us do? >Just keep the grunts off your backs? Or would it be at all worthwhile >to go looking for this battery you mentioned, considering that it may >not even be there? In other words, what's the plan for everyone else >in the party? You're _not_ leaving us behind, I can tell you that." Roland chuckles. "Wouldn't dream of it, Silence..." Then he sighs. "We're all going down. Whatever Gruber might be like, Sinestro wouldn't know honor if it hit him over the head. there _will_ be an ambush. My plan is to ambush the ambush." "You and Shadow, for obvious reasons, should be good at that. Likewise Xzerrion." Roland taps the viewport idly. "Hmm...someone might want to scan, or scry, or whatever, for the battery, just in case. IMO, we do the bait-and-strike plan first, and if they don't show...well, that battery would be the only prize left on Oa now." He straightens. "Everyone armed?" =========================== Subject: Re: Action, Adventure, Excitement From: glo@io.com (Gareth Owen) Date: 1996/10/08 rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) wrote: > Roland chuckles. "Wouldn't dream of it, Silence..." > Then he sighs. "We're all going down. Whatever Gruber might be >like, Sinestro wouldn't know honor if it hit him over the head. there >_will_ be an ambush. My plan is to ambush the ambush." "You and >Shadow, for obvious reasons, should be good at that. Likewise >Xzerrion." The stranger finishes off his ice cream "Thanks Dion, this was an excellent idea." "Gruber is not an honourable man, but he does know me. He knows I prefer to work alone, he'll expect me to try and sneak up on him, and he'll probably have ambushes for me in place. If you go in disguised as me, and walk into the ambush, then the rest of us can attack their ambush unexpectedly, hopefully. If Gruber turns up we can take him down, but the Adversary may try and keep him away from us. It doesn't bother me who takes him out, by the way, so long as someone does it. He has to be stopped." "Bette Noir, your offer is brave, but I can't let you go alone into the heart of the enemy demesne, it's just too risky, the Adversary would know you were lieing, I guess." > Roland taps the viewport idly. "Hmm...someone might want to scan, >or scry, or whatever, for the battery, just in case. IMO, we do the >bait-and-strike plan first, and if they don't show...well, that >battery would be the only prize left on Oa now." He straightens. >"Everyone armed?" The ships Science Officer offers the following: "Ah, sir, we located the battery some time ago, grid co-ordinates 345689-647839, you can't miss it, its emitting right across the spectrum, there's a tremendous energy source there." "Well" says the Stranger "There's our target." He opens his rifle case and produces a sleek metallic gauss rifle with an underslung pump action shotgun. He pumps the underslung unit, there is a satisfying ker-CHUNK as the ten gauge shell racks into the chamber. No sound like it. "I'm ready" =========================== Subject: Re: Action, Adventure, Excitement From: Sasquatch Date: 1996/10/08 Roland X wrote: > Roland taps the viewport idly. "Hmm...someone might want to scan, >or scry, or whatever, for the battery, just in case. IMO, we do the >bait-and-strike plan first, and if they don't show...well, that >battery would be the only prize left on Oa now." He straightens. >"Everyone armed?" The Sasquatch shuffles forward, " I think this could be a place where I might be useful. I don't normally bring up some of the odder facets of my already odd existence but...I do have a keen sensitivity to certain types of natural forces, ley-lines and the like. And since the central battery is basically the single largest Node ever conceived, there's a good chance I can track in on it. Also, as much as I hate to miss a good brawl, stealth and subtlety are not necessarily my strongest characteristics so I'll have to pass on the ambush party anyway. Any voulnteers to join me on the battery search? Be warned, I'm going to have to be on Oa's surface to sense this thing, so if we come down in hostile territory we could still see plenty of action. The Sasquatch p.s. Can you really see any of THIS crowd being unarmed a moment longer than necessary? =========================== Subject: Re: Action, Adventure, Excitement From: glo@io.com (Gareth Owen) Date: 1996/10/08 rolandx9@aol.com (Roland X9) wrote: > Arrgh. Netcom has chosen to put the thumbscrews to me, so I am >posting this from my AOHell account. (Yes, I have AOHell. I'm only >still with them because of my ladylove, but that's a long story...) Well, we all have our deep, dark secrets > With a nod, Xzerrion's magic flows around Roland...and Stranger's >image can be seen over Roland's own. > "Just how much does Gruber hate you, Stranger?" Roland asks with a >smile. "I suspect you're about to find out." > "Anyway, here's my plan. We draw out Gruber with this little ruse. >He'll surely bring Sinestro and a good number of grunts, as well as >his elite Manhunters. (Ghouls...looting Oa's remains...) We can >handle them. The trick will be either killing Gruber or separating >the Halo from him. If you want Gruber man-to-man, Stranger, I'll do >what I can about his position as avatar. But either way, we have to >nail him and Sinestro. Once that's done, Oa, and this area of the >ficton-verse, should be relatively safe again." > Roland remembers to breathe again with a slight grin. "Any >questions, team?" "Where on Oa do we find him? The Great Battery possibly?" =========================== Subject: Re: Action, Adventure, Excitement From: Paul Campbell Date: 1996/10/08 On Mon, 7 Oct 1996, grammarfascist wrote: >Shadow, having had his fill of ice cream ("Thanks, Dion!"), gives his >fur a few quick licks and ruffles his feathers to settle them in >place. A smaller variation of Silence's collection of belt pouches is >strapped carefully around him; most of the mixtures in the hardened >leather pockets are viscous and fast-acting poisons, perfect for >anointing his claws with, and the rest are basic antidotes and >medicines. He tests a quick-release catch with a claw and practices a >few flight maneuvers; satisfied, he rejoins the group. Poisons? Did somebody say poisons? *grin* Shadow, I don't suppose you have enough of those to go around, do you? =========================== Subject: Re: Action, Adventure, Excitement From: Paul Campbell Date: 1996/10/08 On 4 Oct 1996, Roland X9 wrote: > Roland smiles at Stranger. "No worries, friend. I've got this one >covered. When we return to Oa, Gruber will have the surprise of his >life. Xzerrion?" Xzerrion steps back, focusing his powers through his house symbol ... for a moment his eyes flicker evilly, but then his face returns to sanity. 'I don't like working this way, but I think my power may be needed later. > With a nod, Xzerrion's magic flows around Roland...and Stranger's >image can be seen over Roland's own. > "Anyway, here's my plan. We draw out Gruber with this little ruse. >He'll surely bring Sinestro and a good number of grunts, as well as >his elite Manhunters. (Ghouls...looting Oa's remains...) We can >handle them. The trick will be either killing Gruber or separating >the Halo from him. If you want Gruber man-to-man, Stranger, I'll do >what I can about his position as avatar. But either way, we have to >nail him and Sinestro. Once that's done, Oa, and this area of the >ficton-verse, should be relatively safe again." > Roland remembers to breathe again with a slight grin. "Any >questions, team?" Just one : I'm not familiar with these Manhunters, and the rest of us will be keeping them off. How do we hurt them, and where are they vulnerable? =========================== Subject: Re: Action, Adventure, Excitement From: Paul Campbell Date: 1996/10/08 On Sat, 5 Oct 1996, grammarfascist wrote: >Silence pauses before putting hers on. "These _can_ be removed, yes?" >she asks. "Because if not, that effort was sadly wasted, Xzerrion... >I don nothing that I cannot remove." Shadow nods his agreement, and >they wait for an answer. Yes, they can be removed. For decades, I did not wear mine after the destruction of my house, to avoid being tracked down by our enemies before I was ready. =========================== Subject: Re: Action, Adventure, Excitement From: grammarfascist Date: 1996/10/09 On Tue, 8 Oct 1996, Paul Campbell wrote: >Yes, they can be removed. For decades, I did not wear mine after the >destruction of my house, to avoid being tracked down by our enemies >before I was ready. Silence and Shadow glance into each other's eyes. they both think at once--in affirmation not of themselves but of each other. Silence carefully places one of the amulets around Shadow's neck and pulls it snug, but not tight. Then she does the same with her own. Shadow cautiously tests the power, and gasps; not only has he turned invisible, but so has a large section of the floor and part of the leg of a nearby table. He turns off the effect immediately, staring at Xzerrion with very wide eyes. "There are other reasons not to wear it too," he notes. "That's _strong_. I didn't know I _had_ that much of a dark side." Silence looks suddenly disturbed. "You don't," she says, "and now I'm scared to use mine...." She looks around and picks up a glass from a nearby table. "Captain Gray, is this dispensable?" He nods. "We have a recycler, of course." She absently acknowledges his words and sets the glass down on the table. Then she moves her face down so that the tabletop is just below her eye level, and whispers a very, very high note. The glass doesn't shatter; it simply disintegrates. For a moment, Silence's eyes are completely hooded, her face expressionless. Her tension can only be seen in the sudden convulsion of her hands as her fingers hook into claws and grip the tabletop almost hard enough to dent it. Then, somehow, she relaxes. When she turns to the rest of the group, her face is dead serious. "Everyone, when I go down there, I am going alone. Shadow and Xzerrion, you two work together; I'll offer what help I can without using this amulet. But I am _not_ going to put all of you in danger. My dark side is already nearly as strong as my light, and if I make use of this... amplification for more than a few minutes at a time, I'm not sure I'll be able to come back. When that happens, I will be more deadly and less scrupulous than I've ever been. --Yes, Shadow, even more than I was then. I will be bloodthirsty to the point of neglecting myself completely in my hunt for more beings to rip into shreds. "If you find me after I fall unconscious, do _not_, under any circumstances, wake me up or permit me to wake up until this amulet is where I cannot get to it. Ever again. Waking me up with a rush of energy would be an extremely bad idea. The best thing to do would be to lock me down prone--not ropes, but the strongest metal you can find--and cover my eyes. And wait. There's no guarantee that I'll wake up, either. If I'm out for more than a week, bury the body; I won't be coming back to it." =========================== Subject: Re: Action, Adventure, Excitement From: rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) Date: 1996/10/09 glo@io.com wrote: >"Gruber is not an honourable man, but he does know me. He knows I >prefer to work alone, he'll expect me to try and sneak up on him, and >he'll probably have ambushes for me in place. If you go in disguised >as me, and walk into the ambush, then the rest of us can attack their >ambush unexpectedly, hopefully. If Gruber turns up we can take him >down, but the Adversary may try and keep him away from us. It doesn't >bother me who takes him out, by the way, so long as someone does it. >He has to be stopped." "Hmm...that may be a problem," Roland says slowly. "If Gruber doesn't have a strong hate-on for you, then...well, at least we can use my plan to spring a trap or two..." >"Bette Noir, your offer is brave, but I can't let you go alone into >the heart of the enemy demesne, it's just too risky, the Adversary >would know you were lieing, I guess." Roland nods. "Agreed. The Adversary doesn't have telepathy, or at least without choosing a telepathic host, but it _has_ been a master of deception for millenia. It would expect proof...like, say, my head or such." >The ships Science Officer offers the following: > >"Ah, sir, we located the battery some time ago, grid co-ordinates >345689-647839, you can't miss it, its emitting right across the >spectrum, there's a tremendous energy source there." Roland stares at the Science Officer in pure shock. "What did you say?" >"Well" says the Stranger "There's our target." > >He opens his rifle case and produces a sleek metallic gauss rifle >with an underslung pump action shotgun. He pumps the underslung unit, >there is a satisfying ker-CHUNK as the ten gauge shell racks into the >chamber. No sound like it. > >"I'm ready" Roland regains his senses, and is at the officer's side in an eyeblink. "Let me see that." He looks over the screen quickly. "Grife. We've been played for fools! If he had that kind of power, he wouldn't need to use it as a decoy...and the way that thing's emanating, they couldn't possibly miss it!" Roland punches the bulkhead. "Bloody arrogant fool! _I_ was the decoy! Does this thing have teleporters? We need to get down there now!" Roland pulls his trenchcoat out of its own XD pocket, and begins to arm up... =========================== Subject: Re: Action, Adventure, Excitement From: dion.marshall@pobox.com (Dion P. Marshall) Date: 1996/10/09 AJ (andral1@ro.com) wrote: :AJ looks at the weapon which Dion has produced. "That looks like a :Stryker. I _can_ make it full auto but you'd better have superb fire :discipline. That thing only holds twelve shots and those will go :pretty quickly. If I've got the wrong model, let me know. In any :case, we can change it over to full auto only. "If you say it's a Stryker, I'll have to believe you. They didn't name it on the tour. You're right about the recoil not being a problem. As to the fire discipline, I don't intend to have any. " Dion sets up a hopper on the deck. It's very simple. A large plexiglas bin feeds into a short tube. The bottom of the tube is capped. Dion traces a finger around the bottom of the tube which begins to glow faintly, and then around the loading point of the shotgun which does likewise. "AJ, do you think I should use slugs or double-aught?" After getting an answer, Dion begins reaching through a portal and stacking cases of shotgun shells on the deck. He then dumps an entire case into the hopper. Shells line up in the tube. Dion removes the cap and the bottom shell disappears through a small portal and reappears in place in the shotgun. Dion then restores the cap, takes the shell out of the shotgun and reinserts the shell in the hopper. Handing the gun to AJ for modification Dion turns to the Ship's Leutenant who is standing near by and says, "Please detail someone to keep that hopper filled. Don't destroy the empty cases, I'll need an accounting so that I can pay for them." Turning back to the others he says, "Nellie and I are ready as soon as AJ is done gunsmithing." =========================== Date: 10 Oct 1996 03:58:58 GMT (44381) From: rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) grammarfascist wrote: >"If you find me after I fall unconscious, do _not_, under any >circumstances, wake me up or permit me to wake up until this amulet >is where I cannot get to it. Ever again. Waking me up with a rush of >energy would be an extremely bad idea. The best thing to do would be >to lock me down prone--not ropes, but the strongest metal you can >find--and cover my eyes. And wait. There's no guarantee that I'll >wake up, either. If I'm out for more than a week, bury the body; I >won't be coming back to it." /Damn.../ Roland watches this with apparent impassivity, as he reads the ship's Log (thanks, Gian-Paolo!) with quick glances. "No teleporters. That means we have to move fast. Excuse me a moment." Roland walks out. /Airlock...airlock...aha./ Roland concentrates, and the safety interlocks are disabled for thirty seconds. /This is all my fault. I have to make this right./ He shoulders the borrowed weapons, versions of the ones Stranger normally uses, and walks into the airlock. In seconds, he is making planetfall, shielded by a psychokinetic field. *I'm sorry about this, folx, but there's just no more time, and too many of you are in too much danger as it is. And if the battery is that apparent to scanners, they found it a while ago. Follow me down when you can; I'll buy us as much time as I can in the meanwhile. Roland out.* A flicker of thought, and his 'bubble' looks like an escape pod. /All that planning, all our preparation, and I'm going in alone again. I must be out of my sprocking mind. But there's no more time-/ Emerald fire erupts from the surface. "Bloody nass!" Roland veers away form the explosion, landing on the surface at a very odd angle. His PK field comes apart. /Well, at least there won't be any questions about the missing escape pod; that landing would have turned it into sand. Not that it matters. I'm too late./ Roland stands and stares sadly at the blazing emerald beacon. *You have not failed, silver child.* *WHAT-?!* *I called to you. They have not found me yet. I hid from them; now they will come. Forge the Light. Stop the traitor and the 'avatar' of evil. Save the Manhunters. Believe in the future.* *Grife! And what do you want me to do AFTER lunch? I'm not the one you want-I can't even get it together with Callahanians-* *You are a child of the Silver Age. You know in your heart what is right. That is a greater weapon than any your enemies wield. You know to believe in your friends; now, believe in yourself.* *And what about the sprocking army coming?* The psychic plane and the physical are both silent. "Light have mercy..." Roland sighs. /They're going to kill me. With good reason. Running off again-/ "Hello, boy," he hears behind him. "Sinestro," he says, remembering the disguise. "You're not the one I want-" "Aren't I?" Sinestro replies. "Excellent facade, my friend, but I know you too well. Always ready to stand against the darkness, to be the living shield. Hal was like that. I was like that...once." "Never," Roland snarls, and though the ensorcelment remains, he can hear his own voice. /Sinestro, it seems, has some honor left./ "Just us, is it? Why?" "Simple. I was denied the chance to challenge myself against Jordan equally, that one last battle. You will suffice in his place." Roland stares in shock. Then he laughs. "First of all, since when have you been interested in equal combat, but more importantly, what makes you think I'm an acceptable substitute for Green Lantern?" "The Lantern has chosen you," Sinestro replies. "It has power of its own; where did you think the Guardians went? To claim it, I _must_ defeat you. Besides," Sinestro says with a cruel smile, "I have wearied of schemes and clever games. I will have one last battle, a final duel as Lanterns reckon such things. To fall...or to win. At last. At long last, to claim the power that is mine!" "Sinestro...you need better writers." An inferno of energy erupted around them, light and darkness blazing, each wielded by both. In the end, though, only one of them can call on the light of the Lantern. ...a slow wind blows the dust away. Roland stands, staring sadly at Sinestro's fading energy form. "Why?" Sinestro chuckles, and static crackles around his voice. "I had to know...I was not always this way, you know. It is not as impossible as you think, you see, to fall from grace as your Green Lantern seemed to do. But it is a long way to fall...and to climb back, I thought, was beyond me. And it was, because I no longer believed. You believed, and reclaimed yourself. And the Lantern chose you and your companions. "But at least, I would have won...if the Lantern had not given you the power, I would have won..." Sinestro fades from existence, at last given the peace of the void. Roland bows his head silently...and sees his flight ring. The gold has become green. 'Forge the Light.' Roland smiles. *Stranger? Were _you_ the one who wanted to know if we could get our hands on some Power Rings? Have I got a tale to tell _you_ when you get down here...but first, the ambush to end all amushes has been handed to us.* Roland stands, and smiles, and waits... =========================== Date: Thu, 10 Oct 1996 09:31:32 -0700 (44401) From: Lady Cheron grammarfascist wrote: >"If you find me after I fall unconscious, do _not_, under any >circumstances, wake me up or permit me to wake up until this amulet >is where I cannot get to it. Ever again. Waking me up with a rush of >energy would be an extremely bad idea. The best thing to do would be >to lock me down prone--not ropes, but the strongest metal you can >find--and cover my eyes. And wait. There's no guarantee that I'll >wake up, either. If I'm out for more than a week, bury the body; I >won't be coming back to it." Lady Cheron absorbs the instructions gravely. "I understand and will comply, albeit reluctantly on the last. If you're going in alone, that means I _need_ to be with the rest of the party or they've no medic. So don't run too far ahead, guys." She looks around at the other solemn faces in the room. "Are we all ready? If so, let's get going. How do we get down there--teleport, dropship, or parachute?" -- Lady Cheron (Please don't say we parachute.) =========================== Date: Thu, 10 Oct 1996 10:15:10 -0500 (44407) From: grammarfascist On Tue, 8 Oct 1996, Paul Campbell wrote: >Poisons? Did somebody say poisons? *grin* Shadow, I don't suppose you >have enough of those to go around, do you? Silence grins. "The chemical warfare equipmnt is mine, Xzerrion," she says. "What were you thinking of using?" --Silence, who knows better than to try to poison a blade that absorbs everything =========================== Date: Thu, 10 Oct 1996 07:42:30 -0700 (44409) From: BetNoir Date: 1996/10/10 Roland X wrote: >>"Bette Noir, your offer is brave, but I can't let you go alone into >>the heart of the enemy demesne, it's just too risky, the Adversary >>would know you were lieing, I guess." > > Roland nods. "Agreed. The Adversary doesn't have telepathy, or at >least without choosing a telepathic host, but it _has_ been a master >of deception for millenia. It would expect proof...like, say, my head >or such." 'How about your entire body?' At this the Pirate Queen pulls out her boot knife.... 'Here, I just need a little bit of blood and skin cells for a sample.' This being done, she heads back towards the biolab, humming 'Send in the Clones' under her breath. She emerges a while later, and motions for the others to join her in the lab. She points at a large fluid-filled tank, which contains some pinkish matter in the vague shape of a human being. 'It will take another hour or so, but it should be a pretty good replicant, Roland. I wish I had more time to do some memory imprinting, but unfortunately the clock is against us. At least it should be able to fool the Advesary long enough to buy you some time. And after all, he did want PROOF of my treachery...and what better proof than your dead body with my knife sticking out of you? I just hope to Ghods he doesn't try to re-animate it. Replicants don't usually re-animate well....' =========================== From: gdm@kestrel.scs.uiuc.edu (Gian-Paolo D Musumeci) Date: 1996/10/10 (AAE Group - Sorry this is so late in coming. /gdm) [ Pallas System ] "A brick." Lieutentant Martin sighed and rested his head in his hands, his elbows sitting on the navigation board of a cargo shuttle. "This thing is a brick. All I did was take one girl for a joyride - one harmless, innocent little joyride - in an Ajax and here I am, stuck in this brick. I'm not even flying, just navigating. Oh, how the mighty have fallen." "Oh, stow it, Martin. That Ajax was Grey's baby and you knew it, for starters -- and when you appealed the Colonel's grounding you for a month up to Admiral Smith, were you really _surprised_ that you got shuttle duty?" The pilot of the ship grinned over at Martin. "It was one joyride!" the navigator protested noisily. "Yeah, with the Admiral's daughter." "Fuck you and the freighter you rode in on, Grisenko." Martin sighed deeply and let his head fall to the navigation board just as the pilot shifted the ship, bringing it into course to land on a parallel Earth. [ Parallel Earth ] Captain Grey rocked gently back on his heels as he waited for the doors of the shuttle to open. Aside from the occasional skirmish, the last four hours had gone uneventfully; the wounded were stabilized and awaiting evacuation along with the rest of the team. He wasn't fond of being planetside; the curvature of the planet made him feel a bit queasy and sick to his stomach. As he reflected on what a strange nature being bred to space caused, the heavy shuttle airlock slid open. "Ahhhhhhhh, Lieutenant Martin." The lieutenant tried not to gulp too obviously and saluted. "Lieutenants Martin and Grisenko reporting, sir!" Captain Grey gestured to the group behind him. "Escort these people aboard the shuttle. Make sure that they are comfortable. You will plot a course through the epsilon and tau intercepts of the Lagrange point over this planet's northern pole." He then walked up into the cockpit of the shuttle and began quietly briefing Grisenko on the best approach out of the planetary atmosphere. Martin nodded and began to help people up through the shuttle's airlock. As the last group were helped aboard, Captain Grey stood at the door between the cockpit and the crew compartment. "Ladies and gentlemen, in approximately one hour, we will be aboard the TAS Exeter. I have arranged for quarters for everyone here, and a medical team is standing by to treat those who need care. There are briefing folders beneath each seat for you to read during the flight." He turns to go and then stops just at the airlock; "This isn't an official Fleet operation and I'm not trying to recruit anyone. However, once you set foot aboard the Exeter, you are a guest on a ship of war. I'm sure that I don't have to remind you to act appropriately." He steps outside and seals the hatch. Lieutenant Martin coughs nervously. "Welcome aboard Exeter Shuttle Nine-Eight-Oh, departing some godforsaken planet in a godforsaken system --" "For Chrissake, Martin, stow it and plot the damn course." Grisenko shouted from the cockpit as he dimmed the interior lights so there was just enough light to read by. People looked about and after a few moments started to read the contents of the briefing folder. The paragraph on history roughly detailed the events from 2146 to 2679; the development of FTL travel through the application of the Uhl-Wehrmer Equation, the subsequent explosion into space, the three centuries of The Great War of mankind against itself, the discovery of ruins of alien intelligence and the formation of the Terran Alliance and the Fleet. The ability of the human race to act in the most immoral of fashions struck more than a few people as they read of "obliteration strikes" carried out by terrorist groups during The Great War -- the genocidal elimination of all population on a planet via genetically engineered toxins. And, so, the ability of of the human race to perservere struck those same people; the Defense of Terra, the darkest part of the War, when a fleet of hostile ships gathered in the Sol asteroid belt and were fought off by a miniscule fleet commanded by a little-known, twice-courtmarshalled, dishonorably-discharged pirate captain. The concept of the Terran Alliance seems like a utopia at first - peace for a hundred years, not one conflict - but the star-and-shield of the Fleet shines over it all. Individual liberties are preserved, but the men and women of the Fleet continue to be raised from young adulthood to kill in defense, bred to combat in land or sea or the vast, empty cantos of space. [ TAS Exeter, Pallas System ] [ 22:19 ] The escort that met the shuttle in Bay Four was a bit startling to the members of the team; twenty people dressed in armor jackets and the dark green fatigues of the Fleet Marines, along with two medical teams. The medics quickly examined all the wounded, applying white bandages to all injuries. One person asked what these are as one is wrapped around a gash on his shin. "These are injury bandages, sir. They're impregnated with kalomycin, a combination of agents that will kill 99% of all bacterial strains and 84% of viral agents. We're very careful, sir," and the medic moved on to the next person. The more seriously injured are stabilized by the medics and taken to the emergency wards. As everyone was led off the staging deck, one of the medics handed everyone a small paper cup of a clear liquid. The members seemed reluctant to drink it, at first, but another medic explained that it's sugar water with quarantining agents. "Quarantining agents?" someone asked. "Broad-spectrum antibiotics, matched to not kill your resident microflora, sir. This will ensure that any disease you may have will be eliminated. Not to say that you have any diseases, sir." "Oh." As people are hurried through examining stations and handed another briefing folder, some marvel at the construction of the ship; the interior walls are elegant but sparsely decorated, relying more on slight curvature than the slate color they are painted. The Exeter seems totally modern and cold, warmed only by the souls of the people aboard it. [08:34 ] The people assemble in a conference room after Captain Grey and the Marines escorted them to their quarters -- a long barracks-style room with bunked beds -- and let them sleep. On a side table in the conference room, the ship's cooks have set up a large quantity of breakfast foods. Captain Grey stands up at one end of the table. "Please excuse the formality." He clicks a small voice recorder on. "Ladies and gentlemen, I have been asked to assume command of your detachment while you are aboard this ship. The first order of buisness is, I think, for you to explain, for the record, the occurences that lead to your arrival here." After everyone has spoken and a reasonable chronology of events established, he clicks the recorder off and sits down. =========================== Date: Sat, 12 Oct 1996 01:32:38 GMT (44624) From: Gareth Owen rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) wrote: > In seconds, he is making planetfall, shielded by a psychokinetic >field. *I'm sorry about this, folx, but there's just no more time, >and too many of you are in too much danger as it is. And if the >battery is that apparent to scanners, they found it a while ago. >Follow me down when you can; I'll buy us as much time as I can in the >meanwhile. Roland out.* The Stranger sees Roland leaving through a nearby port. "Damn you Roland! Not on your own, he'll eat you alive!" He leaps to his feet and runs for the hangar bay. It takes too many precious minutes to reach it, he emerges into its cavernous interior at a run. A Damocles strike fighter sits in the ready to launch position. A technician is checking some readouts on its side. "You! Is this fighter ready to fly?" "Yes, but you can't..." He sees the look in the Strangers eyes. "Watch me." The Stranger vaults into the cockpit and pulss the canopy forward. He brings the power systems on line. then the comm systems. "Captain Gray, I'm truly sorry about this, but please engage the launch procedure for this fighter." The reply comes back, "No way son, you just get out of there and we'll sort this out, but I'm not letting you fly off in one of my fighters just like that." "If you don't I will blow my way out. Your call." "No way." "Tell me, can you monitor this fighters systems from where you are?" "Yes, why?" The Stranger armed the fighters lower missile launch rails. "I'll count to ten, shall I?" The fighter shifted forward, airlock doors opened ahead of it, and seconds later it emerged into the eternal night of interplanetary vacuum. The Stranger grinned broadly to him self and engaged the main drive, it slammed him back into his seat and he dove planetwards. He couldn't pick up nay sign of roland on his scanners, so he headed for the battery, thrusters opened up all the way. As the first bolts of energy rose to meet him, he started to evade, ejecting countermeasures as he hit the outer atmosphere. Still pushing his craft as far as it would go he lanced downwards. Three starfighters appeared over the horizon, just as he pulled up skimming low across the barren desert. He locked a missile onto one of them and released it, seconds later the starfighter turned into a fireball. The other too were closing too fast, he couldn't lock on. Their first firing pass, was at a furiously high speed, bolts of energy lancing between the craft. A second one erupted in incandescant flames. the Stranger banked to attack the third, but it was too maneuverable for him, it was able to get the advantage. They dodged and weaved in the sky for what seemed an age, the Stranger too skillful for his foe, but his foes craft too maneuverable for the Stranger to kill. Suddenly the Stranger broke from the dogfight, heading down int a canyon, his foe followed him. "Right, you bastard, lets see if you'll do what it takes." The Stranger relentlessly pushed his throttles forward, dodging and weaving down the canyon, the rock walls rushed past, ever faster. The fighter behind him lost ground a little, and The Stranger paid close attention, carefully considering his altitude speed and distance. Suddenly, his instincts told him conditions were right. His left hand lashed out and hit the bomb release switch. Four general purpose bombs fell from the belly of his strikefighter. When they hit the ground his foe was directly above them, the blast jarred and shook it, ripping of an aerofoil. It spun crazily, hopelessly out of control, and smashed itself against the side of the canyon. The Stranger eased off, and flew up out of the canyon, turning for the co-ordinates of the Great Battery. There would be a reckoning. So intent was he on his objective that he didn't notice the missile until it was far too late. But then how could he hope too, the missile was stealthed to the point of invisibility and when its TISA TorchDrive cut in to propel it to hypersonic speeds, almost nothing could be done. The strikefighter blssomed into a cloud of crimson fire. To be continued.... =========================== Date: 12 Oct 1996 01:58:49 GMT (44629) From: Roland X glo@io.com wrote: >The strikefighter blssomed into a cloud of crimson fire. An emerald field surrounds the exploding fighter. "Grife!" Roland curses. "Thank the Light it wasn't _yellow_ fire!" Carefully sweeping the debris with his newfound prize, Roland searches out Stranger with the Ring. The entire field goes into near-stasis. "Come on...come on...be alive...damnit, Stranger, you don't want to miss out on wielding the most powerful weapon in the universe, do you?" (OOC: Well, Stranger? You in there?) =========================== Date: Sat, 12 Oct 1996 18:11:49 -0700 (44715) From: Xzerrion On Thu, 10 Oct 1996, grammarfascist wrote: >Silence grins. "The chemical warfare equipmnt is mine, Xzerrion," she >says. "What were you thinking of using?" Oh, nothing too exotic ... just maybe some quick-acting deadly poison for my arrows. This disruptor is a nice toy, but I'm still not used to it, and poisoned arrows hurt more :) =========================== Date: Sat, 12 Oct 1996 20:26:57 -0500 (44716) From: grammarfascist On Sat, 12 Oct 1996, Paul Campbell wrote: >Oh, nothing too exotic ... just maybe some quick-acting deadly poison >for my arrows. This disruptor is a nice toy, but I'm still not used >to it, and poisoned arrows hurt more :) Silence nods. "Hmmm... you'll be wanting something that doesn't dry up or get absorbed." She begins to open pouches on her belt, considering the possibilities. "That one's got DMSO in it, bad idea... don't want any contact poisons on something you can't see when you're carrying it... here we are." She pulls a small glass jar out and breaks the lead seal on the stopper, handing it to Xzerrion. "Dip the points of the arrows in this. Don't use too much; you just want a thin coating. Otherwise it could drip down, and you don't want it touching your skin. It doesn't do nearly as much harm on contact as it does in the bloodstream, though. If you do get it on your hands, wash or wipe them off as thoroughly as possible, preferably with leather rather than cloth. When you're done, stopper it _tightly_ and reseal it if you can." =========================== Date: Sat, 12 Oct 1996 18:23:44 -0700 (44717) From: Xzerrion On Sat, 12 Oct 1996, Gareth Owen wrote: >The strikefighter blssomed into a cloud of crimson fire. Bloody hell, so much for a coordinated attack ... Lady Cheron, Shadow, Silence, I'll need some help here. Everyone else, we're going to try to counterambush the ambush set up down there before Roland gets himself killed. As soon as there's a secure ground, we'll need backup. Without waiting to see if anyone else is with him, Xzerrion focuses through his amulet, his eyes flickering a slightly insane red, forming a trans-dimensional portal to the world surface with a rope in the center of it for easy access to the ground. He slides down the rope, jumping through the portal with his ice-blue longsword Frostbite in one hand and the stolen Klingon disruptor in the other. Glancing around for a target, he regains control just in time to see the only person before him is Roland. 'All right, where are they?' =========================== Date: Sat, 12 Oct 1996 21:50:21 -0500 (44721) From: grammarfascist On Sat, 12 Oct 1996, Paul Campbell wrote: >Without waiting to see if anyone else is with him, Xzerrion focuses >through his amulet, his eyes flickering a slightly insane red, >forming a trans-dimensional portal to the world surface with a rope >in the center of it for easy access to the ground. He slides down >the rope, jumping through the portal with his ice-blue longsword >Frostbite in one hand and the stolen Klingon disruptor in the other. >Glancing around for a target, he regains control just in time to see >the only person before him is Roland. 'All right, where are they?' Silence follows, her own sword still sheathed (though her hand rests on its hilt) and Shadow on her shoulder. She begins to swear in a couple of bastardized elven languages; even Xzerrion can't make out all of what she's saying, but what he does catch turns his face first slightly pale, then a bit red. "The three of you!" she spits out, including the Stranger, whether he's alive or no. "How can you be so unutterably _stupid_? Do you _enjoy_ being targets? Do you want to die?" And now she does draw her sword, the blade absorbing cold sunlight until it begins to glow faintly. "That can be arranged if you're in such a fucking hurry." Shadow prudently withdraws about thirty yards to the left, watching the scene from behind a large boulder and noting that in three hundred years, he's never heard Silence curse. She ignores him and faces her companions, who had damn well better be ashamed of themselves by now. "Roland and Stranger, how in the name of all the gods do you explain your abuse of Captain Grey's hospitality? He stepped in just when we needed him--and don't bother denying that we needed him; I was closer to dead than I let anyone know--and gave us food and shelter. And you repay him by compromising the security of his ship and threatening to blast through the doors? If this is gratitude, remind me to never do you any favors. I won't even go into the total stupidity of that little display of pyrotechinics just now. "And you," she adds, turning to Xzerrion, "I thought you had _some_ sense in you. But apparently that amulet has drained it away.... You think the Adversary can't sense when you open up a portal to his world?" She nods upward to the conference room still visible on the other end of the rope. "You just did a far better job of putting the ship and its crew in danger than anyone else even came close to. Congratulations. Why don't you just leave it open so that anyone who wants to can just climb up the rope? What if you'd dropped right into the middle of four hundred soldiers and gotten killed before you had a chance to close it? "This is _no_ way to run a battle, much less a full-fledged invasion. 'As soon as there's secure ground,' indeed. We'll be lucky to get back home with our skins even remotely intact at this rate. I doubt you can expect any more help from Grey, either; you did an excellent job of taking a powerful ally and completely blowing him off. Well done. Really first-rate." The sword goes back in its sheath, but Silence's eyes are still blazing. "Well? Any excuses? Or are you just going to stand there and look at me? Once you're done with that, I suggest we start moving--fast." =========================== Date: 13 Oct 1996 04:39:56 GMT (44736) From: rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) grammarfascist wrote: >On Sat, 12 Oct 1996, Paul Campbell wrote: >>Without waiting to see if anyone else is with him, Xzerrion focuses >>through his amulet, his eyes flickering a slightly insane red, >>forming a trans-dimensional portal to the world surface with a rope >>in the center of it for easy access to the ground. He slides down >>the rope, jumping through the portal with his ice-blue longsword >>Frostbite in one hand and the stolen Klingon disruptor in the other. >>Glancing around for a target, he regains control just in time to see >>the only person before him is Roland. 'All right, where are they?' "Not here yet." Roland forms a green duplicate to communicate with the landing party while he searches for Stranger. "The Oans are living up to their reputation as master manipulators, even in death." Roland's fury is almost palpable. "I never thought I'd be glad for what happened to them, but-" >Silence follows, her own sword still sheathed (though her hand rests >on its hilt) and Shadow on her shoulder. She begins to swear in a >couple of bastardized elven languages; even Xzerrion can't make out >all of what she's saying, but what he does catch turns his face first >slightly pale, then a bit red. >"The three of you!" she spits out, including the Stranger, whether >he's alive or no. "How can you be so unutterably _stupid_? Do you >_enjoy_ being targets? Do you want to die?" And now she does draw her >sword, the blade absorbing cold sunlight until it begins to glow >faintly. "That can be arranged if you're in such a fucking hurry." Roland's emerald image watches her calmly. "You are obviously unfamiliar with the Guardians of the Universe. I, at least, have been manipulated with ridiculous ease-" he at least has the decency to look embarrassed when he says that- "-and am rather busy trying to find Stranger right now." >Shadow prudently withdraws about thirty yards to the left, watching >the scene from behind a large boulder and noting that in three >hundred years, he's never heard Silence curse. She ignores him and >faces her companions, who had damn well better be ashamed of >themselves by now. >"Roland and Stranger, how in the name of all the gods do you explain >your abuse of Captain Grey's hospitality? He stepped in just when we >needed him--and don't bother denying that we needed him; I was closer >to dead than I let anyone know--and gave us food and shelter. And you >repay him by compromising the security of his ship and threatening to >blast through the doors? If this is gratitude, remind me to never do >you any favors. I won't even go into the total stupidity of that >little display of pyrotechinics just now. Roland frowns. "I double-checked the damn airlock, and when you find the most powerful energy source in the universe, you _tell_ someone. The only reason I didn't-" Roland takes a deep breath and sighs. "If Sinestro or Gruber had gotten to the battery before us, WE WOULD BE DEAD. Or worse. There was no time. As for blasting through doors, I don't agree with it, but it is _literally_ a miracle that the Adversary's forces didn't find the battery before us, the way its signature stood out on sensors. Time was of absolute essence. "Fortunately, the Guardians were manipulating events. The Adversary's forces won't be here for a while yet, so we have a _little_ time to prepare for them." >The sword goes back in its sheath, but Silence's eyes are still >blazing. "Well? Any excuses? Or are you just going to stand there and >look at me? Once you're done with that, I suggest we start >moving--fast." Roland tosses her and Xzerrion Power Rings. "These will work for twenty-four hours. They don't work on anything yellow, but other than that they make you omnipotent. "And Silence...you have absolutely NO idea what we're dealing with here. I do. If I had given my life, even my soul, to keep the Adversary from gaining the Battery, it would have been a bargain. I'm sorry about what happened, but we have the upper hand-for once-so I suggest we start thinking and make use of it. To begin with, your combined magics should be able to camouflage our location. Xzerrion, I thank you for your illusion, but I doubt it will be necessary after the flare the damn Oans sent up. If I find Stranger, I'll send him down; the duplicate weapons are piled neatly near the Battery." (Quick OOC note: This is all IC, of course. We're not really at each other's throats here, okay?) (Gamer with too many bad memories NOT to check...) =========================== Date: 13 Oct 1996 19:13:37 GMT (44778) From: gdm@kestrel.scs.uiuc.edu (Gian-Paolo D Musumeci) >Oh, nothing too exotic ... just maybe some quick-acting deadly poison >for my arrows. This disruptor is a nice toy, but I'm still not used >to it, and poisoned arrows hurt more :) Captain Grey does not look too pleased with the idea of deploying chemical weapons, but doesn't say anything. =========================== Date: Sun, 13 Oct 1996 17:07:30 -0500 (44794) From: grammarfascist On 13 Oct 1996, Gian-Paolo D Musumeci wrote: >Captain Grey does not look too pleased with the idea of deploying >chemical weapons, but doesn't say anything. Silence glances the captain's way with a lopsided grin. "No worry, Captain," she says. "Nothing that will wipe out even a roomfull of people. These are all strictly one-on-one poisons; the only thing I had that was even close to a chemical bomb, I used on the Drashig. I just refer to it as 'chemical warfare' because it makes it sounds less exotic and more professional--and I am _very_ professional with my poisons." --Silence, backtracking in time slightly =========================== Date: Sun, 13 Oct 1996 23:44:33 GMT (44810) From: glo@io.com (Gareth Owen) rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) wrote: > "Come on...come on...be alive...damnit, Stranger, you don't want >to miss out on wielding the most powerful weapon in the universe, do >you?" > (OOC: Well, Stranger? You in there?) As the cloud dissipates, Roland sees a form at the edge of the blast, shooting upwards, strapped to an ejector seat. Roland catches him in his energy field and puts him down. He had ejected at the very last nanosecond, running just ahead of the blast. He is buffeted and bruised, but his personal force shield has saved him from the worst of the damage. Roland alights with him, near Xzerrion. Silence is shouting at him, when he turns up, she shouts at him too. The Stranger holds up his hand and flips open his visor. "My apologies, but there was no time. One second Roland was saying how we had to co-ordinate things, the next he was going off on his own. So I knew the protoplasm had hit the fan, big time. I took the fastest way planetside I could find. There was no time for teamwork or subtlety. Down to gehenna or up to the throne, he travels fastest who travels alone. Gruber and the Adversary have to be stopped, no matter what it takes." Suddenly the Stranger notices rolands hand. "Say, you got any more of them?" =========================== Date: 14 Oct 1996 01:23:01 GMT (44815) From: gdm@kestrel.scs.uiuc.edu (Gian-Paolo D Musumeci) >Silence glances the captain's way with a lopsided grin. "No worry, >Captain," she says. "Nothing that will wipe out even a roomfull of >people. These are all strictly one-on-one poisons; the only thing I >had that was even close to a chemical bomb, I used on the Drashig. I >just refer to it as 'chemical warfare' because it makes it sounds >less exotic and more professional--and I am _very_ professional with >my poisons." The Captain arches an eyebrow; when he speaks, after a lengthy pause, his words are very carefully measured. "Chemical weapons have a way of failing. Ask the shipboard library to assemble a precis on 'Agent CSX', subterm 'Coriliean System.' To summarize, a toxin classified as Agent CSX was being transported on a freighter to a research substation. Terrorists hijacked the system and impacted the ship into a highly populated planet. If you visit that planet now, your life expectancy will be measured in hours." =========================== Date: Sun, 13 Oct 1996 20:37:11 -0500 (44816) From: grammarfascist On 14 Oct 1996, Gian-Paolo D Musumeci wrote: >The Captain arches an eyebrow; when he speaks, after a lengthy pause, >his words are very carefully measured. "Chemical weapons have a way >of failing. Ask the shipboard library to assemble a precis on 'Agent >CSX', subterm 'Coriliean System.' To summarize, a toxin classified as >Agent CSX was being transported on a freighter to a research >substation. Terrorists hijacked the system and impacted the ship into >a highly populated planet. If you visit that planet now, your life >expectancy will be measured in hours." Silence looks calmly into the captain's eyes. "I don't believe you know what we're dealing with here," she says evenly. "My life expectancy is already measured in hours. Also, I'm not under your command to begin with, though I'm grateful for your hospitality. All my poisons are on my person; all kill only by direct contact, either through skin or in the bloodstream. I have only enough inhalable posion on me to kill one person, and it's a very heavy powder that can't be spread through a ventilation system or carried on most normal air currents; it has to be thrown, deliberately, straight into someone's face. Not one is explosive. All are packaged in such a way that I carry them without fear of unexpected contact. "That said, when Shadow and I leave this ship, all of my 'chemical weapons' will go with me. It will no longer be your concern, or indeed any of your business. And do you really think you could stop us?" Without wasting any more time, she turns, takes hold of Xzerrion's rope, slides down to the surface, and commences (as the Stranger put it) shouting at everyone. When she's done, the other have their say; she listens and accepts it (well, most of it). Then she looks around. "So where are we? And where are they? And where's this battery that we're all bent on killing ourselves for?" She glances down at the ring in her palm, and comes to a decision; carefully, she takes the amulet from around her neck and tucks it into an insulated pocket. Then she slips on the ring. "I imagine there would be a fair amount of conflict between these two... but if this ring is going to run out, I'll want the amulet to fall back on." Meanwhile, Shadow and Xzerrion have put together an improptu but effective camouflage; Xzerrion sets up a shield around the group, and then Shadow patterns it after the rather bleak surrounding landscape. "How long can you hold this?" he asks Xzerrion. "As long as I'm wearing this," he replies, gesturing towards his own ring. "After that... well, we probably won't need it for too long, anyway." Shadow tilts his head to the side. "I don't suppose they make cat-sized versions of those, do they?" he asks. "Just something I could slip around my paw and up onto a foreleg would be nice...." =========================== Date: 14 Oct 1996 02:57:09 GMT (44822) From: gdm@kestrel.scs.uiuc.edu (Gian-Paolo D Musumeci) grammarfascist writes: >Silence looks calmly into the captain's eyes. "I don't believe you >know what we're dealing with here," she says evenly. "My life >expectancy is already measured in hours. Also, I'm not under your >command to begin with, though I'm grateful for your hospitality. All >my poisons are on my person; all kill only by direct contact, either >through skin or in the bloodstream. I have only enough inhalable >posion on me to kill one "If they're skin contact poisons, and it goes aerosol, local targets will suffer very similar effects. Considering that I overheard you mentioning a contact poison mixed with dimethylsulfoxide, it _can_ aerosolize, and it _can_ affect targets via atmospheric vectors." He shrugs. "Just don't trip." >"That said, when Shadow and I leave this ship, all of my 'chemical >weapons' will go with me. It will no longer be your concern, or >indeed any of your business. And do you really think you could stop >us?" The Captain glares at her. "If you deploy a chemical device on this ship, you _will_ be stopped. Outside of that, it is your own matter. The people of this age and time have watched too many billions of people die to chemical and biological weapons as to not be a bit leery of them." =========================== Date: Mon, 14 Oct 1996 04:10:02 -0500 From: Michael Jon Knight I am e-mailing this to ensure everyone gets it. Do not forget, we need to coordinate our efforts as we reach a close..especially since there seems to be an U.N.C.L.E thread starting elsewhere. We don't want to get our adventures mixed up. :) For those who are not able to e-mail AND post, I can post if need be. I apologize about the format. I mistakenly saved this post as ASCII text in my word processor, when I had set the margins for two inches. Now I have an inch of spaces. I was using the Windows clipboard to move the text from the WP to the news reader. I saved it as ASCII, and now, when I need the same trick, I get the extra spaces. :) Just one of life's little lessons, I guess! :) THE POST: This was originally in three parts. The KnightShift strides onto the bridge of Captain Gray's ship. But there is something different about him. For starters, his usual attire has been replaced by a black uniform with a triangle of gray over the right side of his chest. His hair has been shaved off and instead of his chile-red backpack, he carries a small black one. He has a trapezoid-shaped piece of plastic on the back of his hand, and a small gun is holstered on his hip. But the biggest change is the grim look on his face. "Captain Gray, my companions have caused your ship damage and endangered her crew. I can not apologize enough for them, and will see that they make the attempt as well as aid in repairing your ship. "As you are going to need money to make the repairs, I offer these to pay the bills." The KnightShift pulls a large burgundy draw-string bag from his pack and opens it, handing it to Captain Gray. Inside are five softball- sized gem stones of various colors. "Those stones are the most valuable things this side of the Rim. I was saving them for a rainy day. We now appear to be in a downpour. I would have stopped them, but I was making arraignments of my own." "Captain, I am picking up a hyperspacial distortion off the starboard bow," a crewman announces, worriedly. "And here they are now," the KnightShift says, glancing up at the viewscreen. A jumppoint forms on the screen and an explorer-class Earthforce vessel emerges into realspace. "Incoming signal from the vessel. She identifies herself as the _Populous_," "On scree...Oh! Sorry Captain, old habits and all...She's *your* ship," the KnightShift grins sheepishly. Captain Gray nods to the communications officer and the main viewer flickers, resolving itself into the image of... To be Continued... "Humanity! Glad you could join us!" The KnightShift smiles at his old friend and former client from the TRIAL thread. "KnightShift, it has been a long time," sie says in return, "At least, by my time. Of course, since the TRIAL thread isn't over, I may be a temporal paradox." "Well, I certainly see a rosy future for you, if we win. And, since we have been twisting fictions throughout this thread, one temporal paradox can't hurt." OOC comment: The defense team in the TRIAL thread introduced Humanity as the TRUE defendant against the Prosecution's charges. I had such fun writing the character, that using hir in a cameo seemed like too good an idea to pass up. Besides, I envision Humanity traveling among the stars, someday, so why not Humanity personified? Now, back to the story... "Did you bring what I asked?" "One cloaked shuttle/command center. A Security detail of ten. Two dozen phased plasma rifles, and fifteen gross of spare clips. Oh, I had the boys throw in a few surprises, not on the list. Check the manifest." Humanity winks and smiles. "Excellent!" the KnightShift replies, "When, you return from the Rim, I want to take you to dinner. There is a great Vegetarian restaurant, just outside of Alpha Centauri." "It's a date. Now, get going! And watch your back!" The KnightShift says, grinning, "You watch your shadow. Don't let *it* get *you*!" "Thanks! Hey, you look good in that uniform...Baldy! Screen off." The KnightShift smiles, then looks grim again. "One last thing to attend to," he says, tapping the link on the back of his hand, "Attention all adventuring Callahanians..." To be concluded...this post, at least. :) The KnightShift, on the bridge of Captain Gray's ship, speaks authoritatively into his link. "You have all been given wrist links, as I am sure you are aware by now. Captain, your communications officer has all the frequency, scrambling, and descrambling information. Those who have stayed on ship have them in the proper place..the back of the hand. Our more rambunctious Adventurers will locate them on their shoulders, backs, etc. Silence, Shadow's is around his neck on a collar. He can activate it by tapping it with a paw to his chest. I managed to give him his, before you all ran off. I suggest the rest of you move them to your wrists. The Stranger has one, but has either not been answering, or is unable to answer, for one or more reasons. I hope to hear from him soon. "Captain Gray, as these people are not under my command, I could not give you permission to do this, but I would understand if you threw the mutinous lot in the brig for their various offenses! Theft of spacecraft, endangering the crew by opening a trans-dimensional gate to the surface, diving through that gate without notifying anyone, etc. "Xzerrion, speaking of that gate, please close it *immediately*. I have better transport on its way. Please *stay there*. We will meet you in ten minutes. "Roland, now that we have the power source, I would like a debriefing on *everything* relevant to this mission by the time we arrive. No detail is too insignificant." "Oh, by the way, all of you planetside please pay close attention to this. If you *ever* do anything as foolhardy as that again, this will be the last sound you hear..." Through the links, everyone can hear the buzz of a Phased-Plasma-Gun warming up. "All Adventurers still onboard, assuming there *are* any, meet me at the shuttlebay. Captain, permission to disembark." OOC note: No, I am not mad. This has been one of the most fun posts I have ever written. I *love* playing characters with an attitude! END OF POST. =========================== Date: Mon, 14 Oct 1996 14:59:05 -0500 From: Michael Jon Knight At 09:00 AM 10/14/96 -0500, Gian-Paolo corrected me by sending the following e-mail: >Comments; generally very good, but... > >1. Grey doesn't run the Exeter. He's a squadron commander, not the >CO/XO of the ship (that would be an Admiral, and people will meet him >very soon now). > >2. The Exeter is going to get blown all to hell shortly, so you may >not wish to use it as a staging point for anything. Thank you for that vital info. This thread has been so long, I can't remember it all. :) As for using the Exeter as a staging point, the shuttle and the _Populous_ can be used for that. I am sure Humanity will be very upset if I lose hir crew and supplies. :) (Since I wrote hir in, I guess I would know! :)) Along GDM's posts, the _Populous_ is in the middle of a five year mission, exploring the Rim, she will be preparing to leave, but should the Exeter blow, she will return. Humanity is a captain and has a vested interest in helping the Callahanians...for hir future to come true, sie has to ensure we survive. Consider hir, the cavalry, though. I, in this Babylon 5 fiction, am a captain. By the way, here is basically where I am looking to go with this post...Roland, if we can get more info on Oa, the ambush, etc., it'll help us all plan how we want to be involved. I wrote the shuttle in as a command base, to plan from. Here is a brief description: The shuttle is like the original Star Trek shuttle, painted black and dark gray, with landing struts on the sides, and main engines in the back. That may be a bit different than the original, but it is a general picture. The interior is different, the seating arrangement is: pilot and navigator up front, a partition with an opening in the middle. Then, there is the door, and a locker with medical supplies and rations. Seats are lined, facing each other, along the sides. I am piloting with a navigator/copilot. Ten of this seats are taken by the security force. Under the seats are lockers, with various military items in them. This is where to find Humanity's extra items. Above the seats are more lockers. The shuttle ceiling is only six feet above the floor, so if you are over six feet, prepare to bang your head or stoop alot. I am six-two, so I know what it feels like to be hit in the skull with a luggage rack! :) The cockpit can display maps, communications, exterior views on a heads-up display, so all the info we need should be able to be viewed there. This is a very utilitarian vessel. It ain't pretty, but it is tough. Oh, there is a small particle beam cannon on the nose, and one on the roof. That was a bit more complex than I expected, but that is the shuttle coming to Oa, so I figured everyone should know. I guess, ultimitely, what we need to know is what is everyone planning for in the future. Assuming my news program has all the posts, we have Stranger crashed somewhere on Oa, Roland searching for him, with a green double of Roland argueing (sorta) with Xzerrion and Silence, and Shadow hiding behind a rock to avoid getting blood on himself should Silence go ballistic. The one plan for the future I know of is detailed above. My plans are to land the shuttle, hear a plan of attack and execute it. The security can either guard the power source (Battery) or help us. I am willing to have them killed off, if it will enhance the drama of the story, say should the enemy get their hands on the power source. The only other thing I have in mind is a dramatic fight, or shoot out, between me and some bad guy. The rest I will leave to you. Gruber and the Adversary are Stranger's and Roland's creations, so I understand if they want to defeat them themselves. If you want one, or both, to escape to fight another day, just let us know, so we don't kill them in some way ourselves. (Say, by spacing Gruber, etc) By the way Roland, what if we destroy the battery? What are the consequences? Anyway, food for thought. I assume I have time to get to the Exeter's shuttlebay, so meet me there, or take the portal. (Xzerrion: I assume we need to close that if the Exeter is gonna eventually blow up.) I hope that brings everyone up to date with my plans. Don't let planning stifle your creativity. Think of it as an outline, with the real deatils added in your posts. Don't put in every parry and blow. Just X fights Y and eventuall wins..or loses. Sorry this got so long! The KnightShift. =========================== Date: 15 Oct 1996 02:14:07 GMT (44954) From: rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) grammarfascist wrote: >Then she looks around. "So where are we? And where are they? And >where's this battery that we're all bent on killing ourselves for?" >She glances down at the ring in her palm, and comes to a decision; >carefully, she takes the amulet from around her neck and tucks it >into an insulated pocket. Then she slips on the ring. "I imagine >there would be a fair amount of conflict between these two... but if >this ring is going to run out, I'll want the amulet to fall back on." Roland smiles. "The battery is there," he says, pointing at the faint green glow in the ground behind them, "and the bag guys are on their way. We detected it because it _wanted_ us to detect it; the Adversary's forces did not detect it because it _didn't_ want them to find it. We have time. Roland's smiles vanishes. "Oh, and if we're still fighting them after 24 hours, you can charge the ring in the battery. They just won't be more than valuable souvenirs once we leave; there are no individual batteries left." >"As long as I'm wearing this," he replies, gesturing towards his own >ring. "After that... well, we probably won't need it for too long, >anyway." >Shadow tilts his head to the side. "I don't suppose they make >cat-sized versions of those, do they?" he asks. "Just something I >could slip around my paw and up onto a foreleg would be nice...." Roland laughs. "Remind me to tell you about the 'living planet' Green Lantern some day." A ring appears for Shadow, and grows to size... =========================== Date: Mon, 14 Oct 1996 22:57:55 -0500 (44965) From: grammarfascist Silence calms down. Shadow puts on his ring (more of a bracelet, really). Then they look around. No bad guys yet. All good guys accounted for. "Well," they say in unison, "now what?" --Silence and Shadow, impatient as ever =========================== Date: 15 Oct 1996 02:07:41 GMT (44966) From: rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) glo@io.com wrote: >As the cloud dissipates, Roland sees a form at the edge of the blast, >shooting upwards, strapped to an ejector seat. Roland catches him in >his energy field and puts him down. He had ejected at the very last >nanosecond, running just ahead of the blast. He is buffeted and >bruised, but his personal force shield has saved him from the worst >of the damage. Roland alights with him, near Xzerrion. Silence is >shouting at him, when he turns up, she shouts at him too. Breathing deeply and evenly. Roland attempts to calm himself. "I wish I had the right to be mad at you, Stranger. But we were all played by the Guardians." >Suddenly the Stranger notices rolands hand. > >"Say, you got any more of them?" Roland smiles, and tosses a ring into the air. It flies straight into the Stranger's hand. "Well, I guess that settles _that._ Let's make preparations." TBC... =========================== Date: 15 Oct 1996 18:51:47 GMT (45020) From: gdm@kestrel.scs.uiuc.edu (Gian-Paolo D Musumeci) [ TAS Exeter, Pallas System ] The ship is in a state of uproar. Everywhere, the sound of boots on metal rings through the hull; pilots racing to their ships, Marines preparing in the event of surface combat, technicians loading launch racks onto sleek fighter-bombers. Captain Gray walks calmly through the midst of it all, nodding to a pilot here, to a flight support crew there, until he enters a hatched doorway leading into the heart of the ship. He comes to a plain door, painted slightly off-white. He knocks once. A booming voice echos forth; "Gray, get in here." Captain Gray swallows once, palms the door lock open, and steps into a room carpeted in soft grey, the walls covered with plaques, paintings of Old Earth, and memorabilia of the art and science of war. Behind a massive oak desk, kept pristinely clean, sits an older man with greying hair. His shoulders are broad, and he looks as if he keeps himself in superb physical condition. He wears a plain black dress uniform, the ubiquitious star-and-shield patch on his arm, and four small silver stars on his epaulets. "Captain William Gray. Have a seat." He gestures to a chair. The Captain sits at attention. "Captain Gray, it's been brought to my attention that airlock security aboard this ship was compromised, a Damocles strike fighter stolen, and three fighters destroyed in a subsequent dogfight -- all of this perpetrated by guests on this ship in your care. Is that right, Captain?" "Yes, sir, Admiral Moore." "Captain, I've known you for twenty years. You've been on this ship since it was commissioned two decades ago; you and I are the only plankholders left here. Now, I don't know what the hell possessed you, but I do want to know what's going on." Captain Gray quietly outlines the situation to the Admiral, who sighs and leans forward. "All right. In roughly three hours, the strike destroyers Blenheim and Victory will be joining us in the Pallas system. The Blenheim is carrying seventeen Angel-class bombers." He sighs. "Now, look. You know the protocol as well as I do." "Yes, sir. What are those Angels carrying, sir?" The Admiral ignores his question. "Captain Gray. I'm giving this little project of yours one more chance -- if you want it. You can fly a ship down to the surface of the planet and try and figure out just what is going on. If things don't go that way...we are going to orbitally bombard this planet until there's nothing left." The Captain swallows. "You heard me right. We will deploy the Ragnarok Protocol." "Sir?" "Get this straight, Gray. We have only deployed that protocol twice; Gienah and Beta Sirius. Planetary mass was reduced by approximately forty-seven percent: any survivors were incinerated by the fusion devices that completely removed any trace of the planet except for some hot gas. The Angel bombers are carrying weapons suitable for the task of planetary obliteration. If those people down there are worth it, we won't deploy. That decision is left entirely in your hands. There is one of that group who has remained on board this ship, as a squad of Marines prevented her from evacuating with the rest of her team. She's been treated well; I advise that you take her down to the surface with you." A heavy silence falls over the room until Admiral Moore speaks again. "There's one other thing I need to tell you." He pulls out a folder with a flourish. "Captain Gray, by order of the Terran Fleet High Command, I have been requested to inform you of your promotion to colonel. Further, you have been assigned the command position of a new squadron coming aboard the Exeter." He stands up and pins a pair of wings on Gray's uniform. "Congratulations, Colonel Gray. Dismissed." [ 2118 Hours, Security Bay Two, TAS Exeter, Pallas System ] Lady Charon looks up tiredly at the knock on the heavy door to the security bay. A second later, it swings open. "Captain Gray, what the hell are you doing here?" she mutters. He tosses her a flightsuit and a helmet. "We're going back down to the surface. Flight leaves in forty-five minutes." The door closes behind him. [ 2200 Hours, Aft Flight Deck, TAS Exeter, Pallas System ] Colonel Gray stands on the aft flight deck, watching the twenty-one ships of the Fourth Exeter Squadron gently touch down on the washed steel landing pads. One of the pilots walks up to him, unfastens his helmet, and salutes. "Captain Stephenson reporting for duty, sir." The Colonel salutes back. "Captain, I'll be occupied on a reconnaissance mission. As executive officer of this squadron, I expect you to conduct the operations here to perfection. I've left a sheaf of data in your network dropbox; it contains berthing assignments and the ship's policies on various situations. I don't expect to be gone for an extended period of time. Dismissed, Captain Stephenson." The captain salutes and Colonel Gray walks down the steel stairs to the twenty-first Arkroyal fighter, Lady Charon immediately behind him. [ 18 meters above sea level, Parallel Earth ] The fighter hangs low over the ground as it rushes between rock outcroppings, dodging up and over the occasional scrubforest. The ship passes over the charred remains of three fighters in the span of a heartbeat as the pilot flips infrared target acquisition on, scanning the local terrain for the warmth of life. "Ma'am?" he speaks into his headset. "Colonel?" "Look, I have the feeling this isn't your fault." "I'm not the one who stole the fighter." He nods and points out the canopy. "There. See them?" She looks where his finger points and picks out a few miniscule specks of black on the horizon as the ship sinks lower and begins to decelerate. [ Parallel Earth ] The charcoal-grey ship touches down silently, the mirrored glass canopy sliding back as two people in flightsuits slip from their seats. One of them has a pistol drawn as they approach the cluster of people. He picks out one person and pulls his flight helmet off. Lady Charon is a half-step behind him, her helmet tucked under her arm. He addresses the group. "All right. Perhaps you can explain to me why you so willing to put the lives of the thirty-five hundred people aboard the Exeter at risk, and further, why you are willing to do it apparently without a care as to the almost certain repercussions." He turns to Stranger. "Your stunt with the Damocles was something that would have gotten you killed. I'm not entirely sure how you defeated the biometric safeties, but that's neither here nor there. The fact that you destroyed three fighters that came to order you to turn back and took the lives of two pilots was a damn bad idea." He turns to Roland. "Do you have the faintest fucking clue what mass decompression of a habitat ward of a heavy cruiser would do? Do you know how many people it would kill? Do you even give a shit about death, or are you more concerned with saving your own ass?" "And you, Xzerrion, you ought to think some before you start opening dimensional gates. We've been doing shifting research for three hundred years and from what I know, what you did was a pretty damn stupid idea." "Now, I don't want to hear any of this 'we're immortals saving the galaxy' bullshit. I want answers, and they had better be good ones." He gestures skyward. "There are ships up there with gunnery crews with itchy trigger fingers that man orbital bombardment laser batteries. Am I making myself abundantly clear?" He waits. =========================== Date: 16 Oct 1996 01:42:21 GMT (45062) From: rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) >He turns to Roland. "Do you have the faintest fucking clue what mass >decompression of a habitat ward of a heavy cruiser would do? Do you >know how many people it would kill? Do you even give a shit about >death, or are you more concerned with saving your own ass?" Roland stares at Colonel Gray coldly, and waits for him to finish his tirade. >"Now, I don't want to hear any of this 'we're immortals saving the >galaxy' bullshit. I want answers, and they had better be good ones." >He gestures skyward. "There are ships up there with gunnery crews >with itchy trigger fingers that man orbital bombardment laser >batteries. Am I making myself abundantly clear?" "Perfectly," Roland snarls back. "Let's start with your science officer. Is he the stupidest man in the galaxy, or did he figure that _not_ reporting finding the most powerful source of energy in several dimensions worth reporting? I doubt either. The Oans, or what's left of them, were fucking with his mind. As for that airlock, I made DAMN sure that it was secure before I tried anything. I was sacrificing myself for your crew. I won't make that mistake again. "As for saving the galaxy, that isn't the half of it. If the Adversary gains control of that battery's power, it will be able to manifest physically, and wield its own full power. Frankly, if orbital bombardment becomes necessary, order it. Without hesitation. I doubt that that will do any good, considering the number of spacefaring races the Adversary has gathered, but anything is worth a try now. "In other words, countless _universal_ planes are in danger here, Colonel, and I still risked my neck for you. And them." Roland waves in the general direction of his compatriots. "And I'm tired of people jumping down my throat for it." He sighs. "Maybe Perseus was right..." /I'm so damn tired...maybe I should tell them to just leave. Or do what I was taught, and send them into battle.../ "...no. That's not who I am..." Roland straightens. "All right, people, I need to know a few things. In about an hour, we're in for the fight of our lives." An emerald view-screen appears, and Gruber and his army become visible. Gruber shouts orders soundlessly, and all manner of warriors race across their stronghold, preparing for an attack. The Manhunters move with calm, eerily mechanical precision. "You Callahanians, at least, have trusted me this far. Oan mentalism or no, I count my only true fault in not responding in kind when the science officer reported. "We need to work and act as one. The Oans have entrusted me with the safety of the Great Battery and the redemption of the Manhunters, but that doesn't place any of you under any obligations. We need a leader, and while I wouldn't blame you for rejecting me, I seem to be the Guardians' choice." He looks sadly at the spot of blackened ground where Sinestro dissipated. "They've chosen poorly in the past... "...regardless, someone has to lead. We have to prepare for the coming attack, and we have to do it now. Who's in charge of this ridiculous campaign? I'll follow whoever is chosen, so long as we choose now." Roland sighs, stares at the ring on his finger, and waits for an answer... =========================== Date: 16 Oct 1996 02:07:55 GMT (45064) From: gdm@kestrel.scs.uiuc.edu (Gian-Paolo D Musumeci) > "Perfectly," Roland snarls back. "Let's start with your science >officer. Is he the stupidest man in the galaxy, or did he figure that >_not_ reporting finding the most powerful source of energy in several >dimensions worth reporting? I doubt either. The Oans, or what's left >of them, were fucking with his mind. As for that airlock, I made DAMN >sure that it was secure before I tried anything. I was sacrificing >myself for your crew. I won't make that mistake again. "As a matter of fact, the reason the Exeter is anywhere near this godforsaken system is because the intelligence groups reported a set of 'unusual anomalies.' Instead of staying around for a few moments, perhaps asked if there was intelligence information regarding the planetary surface, you went off and broke an airlock. Are you the stupidest man in the galaxy, or did you figure that heavy cruisers get sent to a backwater system without detailed intelligence?" > "As for saving the galaxy, that isn't the half of it. If the >Adversary gains control of that battery's power, it will be able to >manifest physically, and wield its own full power. Frankly, if >orbital bombardment becomes necessary, order it. Without hesitation. >I doubt that that will do any good, considering the number of >spacefaring races the Adversary has gathered, but anything is worth >a try now. Colonel Gray stares coldly at Roland. "I don't need your permission to carry out my duties." =========================== Date: 16 Oct 1996 02:37:39 GMT (45067) From: rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) (Gian-Paolo D Musumeci) wrote: >Colonel Gray stares coldly at Roland. "I don't need your permission >to carry out my duties." Roland winces, and feels his headache growing. "LISTEN to me, damnit! None of that matters now. Your science officer didn't report the battery because he wasn't _supposed_ to until then. I didn't break your airlock, I don't know how you figure the center of a universe to be a 'back- water system,' I'm not telling you how to carry out your duties, and NONE OF THAT WILL MATTER IF THE ADVERSARY TAKES THE DAMN BATTERY!" Roland takes a deep breath. "Did you listen," he says, as calmly as he can manage, "to anything I just said? I'm sorry about your pilots," he says, glancing sidelong at Stranger, "if those were indeed _your_ fighters he shot down. The way things have been going, I'm beginning to wonder just what's real around here and what isn't. But my attitude _should_ be that we're all expendable. I can't do that. I guess I care. So shoot me. "But what it boils down to, is that we have to stop fighting each other, and prepare to fight Gruber, the Manhunters, and an army out of nightmare. Have you ever seen Manhunters fight, Colonel? The original androids are utterly without mercy. They wage war the way insects do-in utter silence, with inhuman grace, and without concern for their individual existence. And what the sentient members lack in cold precision, they make up with pure fanaticism. We can't keep _doing_ this, sir. I did what I did because I thought that if the battery was that obvious to us, it would be to them. As I have said repeatedly, and you have ignored, is that that was not the case. We've been pieces on a chessboard, Colonel. And if the Adversary wins, Light help us all. "I, for one, intend to change the rules. "Now you can rip me up one side and down the other, or you can help. What's it going to be?" =========================== Date: 16 Oct 1996 14:11:55 GMT (45114) From: gdm@kestrel.scs.uiuc.edu (Gian-Paolo D Musumeci) > "LISTEN to me, damnit! None of that matters now. Your science >officer didn't report the battery because he wasn't _supposed_ to >until then. I didn't break your airlock, I don't know how you figure >the center of a universe to be a 'back-water system,' I'm not telling >you how to carry out your duties, and NONE OF THAT WILL MATTER IF THE >ADVERSARY TAKES THE DAMN BATTERY!" "I don't know where you're getting off on ripping up the science team of the Exeter. They don't report what everyone's already been briefed on with all available information. The center of the galaxy, as defined by the Terran Standard Coordinate System, is Sol. This ain't Sol, unless the terraforming's gone all to hell." > "But what it boils down to, is that we have to stop fighting each >other, and prepare to fight Gruber, the Manhunters, and an army out >of nightmare. Have you ever seen Manhunters fight, Colonel? The >original androids are utterly without mercy. They wage war the way >insects do-in utter silence, with inhuman grace, and without concern >for their individual existence. And what the sentient members lack in >cold precision, they make up with pure fanaticism. We can't keep >_doing_ this, sir. I did what I did because I thought that if the >battery was that obvious to us, it would be to them. As I have said >repeatedly, and you have ignored, is that that was not the case. >We've been pieces on a chessboard, Colonel. Colonel Gray waits for Roland to finish. "Are you conducting a military operation, or are you running around like a chicken with your head cut off?" From the way he says it, it doesn't sound at all offensive; more of a statement than a question. =========================== Date: Wed, 16 Oct 1996 19:01:38 -0700 (45211) From: Paul Campbell On 16 Oct 1996, Gian-Paolo D Musumeci wrote: >Colonel Gray waits for Roland to finish. > >"Are you conducting a military operation, or are you running around >like a chicken with your head cut off?" From the way he says it, it >doesn't sound at all offensive; more of a statement than a question. BLOODY FRAGGIN GODDAM HELL!! Xzerrion takes a deep breath, then calms. 'I needed that. Anyway, we all have our share of blame in how things have progressed thus far, whether from witholding information, taking unjustified personal risks, or by endangering others, but that is no longer important. What is important now is retaking the batterry and defeating the Adversary and his forces. Afterwards -' Xzerrion swallows hard, forcing himself to actually accept, perhaps for the first time in his life, some other authority, 'I can't speak for the others, but I'm willing to stand trial in a court-martial, and further, I give my word not to use any of my powers in an attempt to escape your judgement. Is that sufficient for you?' =========================== Date: Wed, 16 Oct 1996 18:44:39 -0700 (45226) From: Paul Campbell On Sat, 12 Oct 1996, grammarfascist wrote: >The sword goes back in its sheath, but Silence's eyes are still >blazing. "Well? Any excuses? Or are you just going to stand there and >look at me? Once you're done with that, I suggest we start >moving--fast." Xzerrion ignores the beginning of this tirade, busily sealing the gate now that any using it are through, then he looks up, with a not entirely repentent expression. 'As for excuses, I had no intention of leaving either of these two to die alone. The gate was left open for a minimal amount of time to get through it.' 'If you're so interested in finding something to kill, let it be whatever the opposition here is. Personally, I think jumping directly to the surface like this put the ship in less danger than actually landing it and disembarking, but that's a subject for another time.' =========================== Date: 17 Oct 1996 03:30:53 GMT (45232) From: gdm@kestrel.scs.uiuc.edu (Gian-Paolo D Musumeci) >BLOODY FRAGGIN GODDAM HELL!! Xzerrion takes a deep breath, then >calms. 'I needed that. Anyway, we all have our share of blame in how >things have progressed thus far, whether from witholding information, >taking unjustified personal risks, or by endangering others, but that >is no longer important. What is important now is retaking the >batterry and defeating the Adversary and his forces. Afterwards -' >Xzerrion swallows hard, forcing himself to actually accept, perhaps >for the first time in his life, some other authority, 'I can't speak >for the others, but I'm willing to stand trial in a court-martial, >and further, I give my word not to use any of my powers in an attempt >to escape your judgement. Is that sufficient for you?' The Colonel stares at Xzerrion. "I wasn't intending to bring anyone to court-martial. I felt obligated to inform these people" - he gestures - "of the danger that they put people in. In 1996, the population of Terra was approximately 5.3 billion. The average population of an established planet in my era is 1.2 billion. This is not because there are plenty of places to expand; we tend to get very, very bitter when risks are applied to large groupings of people." He looks down. "You have my apologies if I've offended, and I'm not intending to bring anyone to trail here." He coughs. "However, this effort needs some sort of coordination. If no-one else is up to the task, I will do what I can to organize this." =========================== Date: 17 Oct 1996 03:34:06 GMT (45234) From: rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) Paul Campbell wrote: >On 16 Oct 1996, Gian-Paolo D Musumeci wrote: >>"I don't know where you're getting off on ripping up the science >>team of the Exeter. They don't report what everyone's already been >>briefed on with all available information. The center of the galaxy, >>as defined by the Terran Standard Coordinate System, is Sol. This >>ain't Sol, unless the terraforming's gone all to hell." "You didn't hear a damn word I said," Roland says, exasperated. "Your science team didn't do a _thing_ wrong, if you listened to me you would have noticed that I said that the _Guardians_ pulled that stunt, messing with their heads. This is Oa, the center of a different universe than the one you're used to." The ring on his finger glows brightly; it seems almost an effort on Roland's part to quell it. >>Colonel Gray waits for Roland to finish. >> >>"Are you conducting a military operation, or are you running around >>like a chicken with your head cut off?" From the way he says it, it >>doesn't sound at all offensive; more of a statement than a question. *sigh* "We are fighting on a battlefield completely different than any you've ever known, Colonel, unless you were hiding psi talents away on your ship somewhere. I admit, the personal power my kind wields makes us a bit...unorthodox. But with the information I had, what I did was right. My information was incomplete, but that was a deliberate misdirection. We have the advantage, Colonel. Please, let's not waste it. I would _advise_ that you start helping us lay traps for Gruber and his forces. They're your people of course...if it were up to me," he says more quietly, "you would all get away from here as fast as you could fly..." Roland straightens. "...but I know you won't do that. I am sorry for the chaos I caused, Colonel Gray. But can we please settle this later? We need a plan. I have one, but I won't lead if I won't be followed. That would just cause more damage." >BLOODY FRAGGIN GODDAM HELL!! Xzerrion takes a deep breath, then >calms. 'I needed that. Anyway, we all have our share of blame in how >things have progressed thus far, whether from witholding information, >taking unjustified personal risks, or by endangering others, but that >is no longer important. What is important now is retaking the >batterry and defeating the Adversary and his forces. Afterwards -' >Xzerrion swallows hard, forcing himself to actually accept, perhaps >for the first time in his life, some other authority, 'I can't speak >for the others, but I'm willing to stand trial in a court-martial, >and further, I give my word not to use any of my powers in an attempt >to escape your judgement. Is that sufficient for you?' Roland turns to him. "Like hell," he replies evenly. "If I _am_ to be in charge of this madness, then I am responsible for the actions of those who...follow me. And if not, you all followed me here to begin with. Either way, I am the one responsible..." he turns back to the Colonel, "...and I will settle any and all accounts with you, sir, after all is said and done. Can we agree on that much, at least? Please?" Roland extends his arm, offering the Colonel his hand. =========================== Date: Fri, 18 Oct 1996 00:17:41 GMT (45362) From: glo@io.com (Gareth Owen) The Stranger places the ring on his finger, his manner is almost reverent. He is engulfed in green energy, and when it fades he is clad in the uniform of a Green Lantern, although his swords are still on his back and a small electronic device rests on his belt. >He turns to Stranger. "Your stunt with the Damocles was something >that would have gotten you killed. I'm not entirely sure how you >defeated the biometric safeties, but that's neither here nor there. >The fact that you destroyed three fighters that came to order you to >turn back and took the lives of two pilots was a damn bad idea." The Stranger looks shocked, for the first time anyone here can remember. "What? But, but, they were sent by Gruber. I received no comms, nothing." He looks around, the colour draining from his face. "TIE's, I saw TIE Interceptors, nothing you would use." As the others start arguing he turns and slowly walks away. Head hanging down. "Innocent blood, oh god." =========================== Date: 18 Oct 1996 02:16:36 GMT (45372) From: rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) glo@io.com wrote: >As the others start arguing he turns and slowly walks away. Head >hanging down. > >"Innocent blood, oh god." Roland nods. "As I thought. Don't worry, Stranger, I have a powerful feeling that there's more to this than meets the eye. Especially considering that you were considered worthy of that uniform-" he looks down ruefully at his own gear; even the Cosmic Boy uniform is gone, and he is clad in his own clothing once more, "-and I was not." He scans the area with his ring. "What the hell...I'm not getting any readings from my ring. Ring? You have an explanation for this?" "Guardian-level energy is interfering with scanning efforts. No Guardians registering as present; according to database, only one Guardian remains extant, and that being is present on this plane's Earth." Roland's eyes close. "Oh Light. Not that." He shakes his head slowly. "If that were the case, we'd all be dead...wouldn't we?" TBC, natch...when I'm more awake. =========================== Date: Thu, 17 Oct 96 23:23:51 -0000 From: Roland X >Anyway, while reading dejanews, it came to my attention that we have >been looking to Roland for all our information. If he has no >objections, we might try splitting up our writing work into groups... >If we could get a general description of Oa and the battery, we could >more effectively work it into our posts. I am not saying Roland needs >to do this, perhaps our beloved Grammarfascist (Silence and Shadow) >and Xzerrion could do this. Right now, all I know is that the sand is >red and there are some canyons. And the Battery lights up sensors >like a flare. Then if Captain Gray (sorry, Colonel, gonna take some >getting used to) could get us some info on troop composition, >numbers, and weapons. Are they all manhunters? Is it rayguns or >pointy sticks? Then Roland and Stranger could give us some details >about the Advensary and Gruber. Like how to toast 'em. :) Sorry about DejaNews, KnightShift. As for the rest, here's the lowdown on Oa, the Adversary, and the Manhunters. (Though I _do_ have a few surprises left up my sleeve! ) Oa was once the home for the Green Lantern Corps, a heroic and dedicated group of intergalactic 'police officers' given cosmic powers by the rings given them by the Oans, also known as the Guardians. It was once a bright neon yellow, with a topography much like that of the American Southwest, flat with some odd outcroppings. No life, IIRC, other than the Guardians, any Corps members stationed there, and the 'superprison' for cosmic criminals uncontainable by any other force. In the 'main' DC Universe, Oa was blown up recently by the crab-faced yutz *cough* I mean the new Green Lantern. This version is like the old one, except that the sands have turned red instead of yellow for some reason. (Don't worry, I have an explanation for that. ) The Oans were once a proud, thriving race, long before the crust of noble Terra had even cooled. Then one of their scientists, an arrogant fool named Krona, sought to learn the one piece of forbidden lore-the origin of creation itself-and in so doing, unleashed evil into the universe. The Oans took their penance to be the eternal opposition to the evil Krona had unleashed. Hence the Manhunters and the Corps...but one thing at a time. The 'castle' structure was built by the invaders. Any other such structures, other than a magnificent series of green buildings and a large block-like structure, are also the construction of the Adversary's minions. Not all of the avatar's army is composed of Manhunters, thank the Light. Their armor is mostly red, with blue face-plates shaped to match their own blue, lifeless faces, and they wield yellow staves which fire energy blasts (yellow, of course-*sigh*) and strike with increased power. The original android members are, fortunate, not much more durable than humans outside of their armor. They are all, however, elite warriors and devious hunters. They were the Oans' original effort to build a universal police force. The Battery looks like a giant, high-tech lantern, colored an emerald green, and powered all of the smaller batteries that charged the Power Rings of the Corps. The origin of its power is uncertain, but it contains al _least_ a power equal to that of all the immortal Guardians combined, any of whom was more powerful than the mightiest of the nearly omnipotent Green Lanterns. Hope this clears a few things up! ===========================