RP: Lorath E-7 System Outpost - A Doctor's Housecall

[DocTomoe]

E-7 System - Lorath Self Defense Force Resupply & Repair Outpost

There was a funny thing about service on outposts on dismal under-developed rocks... the days never seemed to end. Despite the time being well past midnight according to Lorath clocks, the outpost continued to buzz with activity as ships came and went. With the departure of a group of Harvester-Class salvage ships though, the outpost staff had some time to slow their pace of work. Work crews broke away for meals and sleep cycles, guard shifts rotated, and engineering teams got around to maintenance which just could not be done while servicing a whole trader convoy.

Within the outpost, as shifts rotated, Lorath Self Defense Force guards paid their respects to one another as they passed in corridors as the fresh crew took their places at their assigned posts. With the night shift, guard duty largely fell to Lmanel which were bonded to various nocturnal creatures... it was just sensible to place the personnel which found the night hours comfortable on the late shift.

At one of the active docking bays, a Lmanel woman took her post, taking her seat at a workstation at an interior airlock. She was a simple and average Lmanel with short deep green hair which fell just past her ears to match her Trooper rank, and pale white skin which seemed to advertise her nocturnal habits. Once at her station, a small rodent peeked its head from one of her uniform pockets, and sniffed about as it became the equivalent of daytime for her animal companion which she carried with her. After signing into her console, she found that a ship was scheduled to dock for routine maintenance, so she sat ready to process people which were going to be coming and going from the outpost.

As docking procedures finished and the maintenance crew got ready to get to work, two figures disembarked and headed towards the Lmanel's station. One was a blond-haired Nepleslian who flashed the Lorath a winning smile as he pushed a data pad with all the relevant information and clearance notification on it. His companion, a slight Jiyuuian woman with long black hair stayed silent, watching their ship. They had been about the station before; salvagers who made the rounds on the edges of Lorath space stopping by various outposts every now and again to offload their findings. "We got a good haul this time around," the Nepleslian tried to make small talk. "Of course, with the repairs and refueling and everything, it's amazing we break even."

"You know the Matriarchy pays kindly for good finds... if you'd stop dumping at United Outer Colony stations I'm sure you'd make more of a profit." Came the reply from the Lmanel as she picked up the data pad and glanced over it casually. She found the records acceptable, and their identification was in order. "Now for the routine questions; are you unloading your cargo here, how long will you be staying here at the outpost, will you be purchasing any supplies, and will you be unloading merchandise for storage or sale?" She asked, following routine procedure... not even the Nepleslian's prize winning smile could get her to break from it.

The Nepleslian's brown eyes didn't leave the Lmanel's face, he watched her apt as he hung on to her every word. "We're unloading, yeah. We don't plan on buying anything, unless your guys find anything wrong." The Jiyuuian woman behind him seemed to be looking around, past the checkpoint. "As soon as we've dumped our load and gotten clearance, we'll be taking off. For now--" he paused to pick up and stow the data pad in his pant pocket "We were just gonna stretch our legs, do a little-- relaxing."

A small laugh came from the Lmanel as her rodent companion chattered in her uniform pocket. "As much relaxing as can be done at an outpost." She spoke as she instinctively hit the button to open the next airlock... then, the rodent companion chattered again, and reminded her of something. "Oh, one more moment..." She said as she slipped her hand into her pocket and placed a small green device over her eye, then she looked to the Nepleslian. "Just need to document who is coming through." She said, following another protocol... lying about what the device was that she was using. It often produced less anxiety in the travelers that came through. In truth, she was scanning the exterior and interior of the Nepleslian with the use of her sensor monocle. However, she did not look to the Jiyuuian, not yet at least.

Laying it on thick, the Nepleslian gave his best smile once again for the camera. "Just don't keep a copy for yourself," he joked, posing for the sensor, oblivious to it's true purpose. He was keeping a gun tucked behind his back, held there by his belt, and a second one in his boot. A knife in his pocket, along with the data pad and a small carton containing a couple of cigars. A small metal rod hung on a thin chain around his neck that contained some pills and the bandanna tied around his arm hid his emergency cash. Physically, he seemed fine, though it looked like he had some lung issues caused by corrosive toxic fumes, and his right arm was reinforced with a metallic brace. Behind him, the Jiyuuian continued her own inspection, paying little heed to the Lmanel or her tiny device.

As the Lmanel looked, she could see everything as clear as day. Items which were of significance were even highlighted by the monocle. She felt somewhat bad for the Nepleslian, considering she could see every bit of tissue damage the man had ever had. She smiled though, and documented everything, even the arm bracing implant. She then passively glanced over to the Jiyuuian Doubt she'd have anything, they're so dull. she thought to herself as she saw the usual hemosynthetic flows, and synthetic bones. She was about to look away... then the monocle highlighted something which defiantly did not belong. What the Lmanel saw made her heart skip a beat, and she had to resist the instinctive urge to make a knee-jerk panic reaction. Instead, she remained calm even as the monocle highlighted a creature which was dug deeply into the Jiyuuian's brain and spinal column.

What the Lmanel did do however, was begin to move her hand toward a panel which held the intruder alarm for the outpost. Despite her best efforts though, it was still apparent on the Lmanel's face that she had been spooked... now, it was just a matter of if the two noticed her alarm.

"What?" the Nepleslian asked, visibly confused by the woman's expression, he turned to see his companion standing there. "Ginny? She's just--" The Jiyuuian glanced back, first towards the man, but stopping on the alerted guard. Giving a pointed look at the blond man, it took him a second to realize what was being communicated. "What?" he asked again, interrupting himself almost immediately with "Shit." They had been made. He leaned over the counter, to cover the Lmanel's mouth, holding a finger to his lips to indicate silence. Hopefully the alarm hadn't been sounded, yet. The Jiyuuian clearly wasn't satisfied by this, palming the data pad from the Nepleslian's pants and sending a short range message into space.

There was another reason why Lmanel served as guards alongside their Fyunnen counterparts... they had capabilities which sometimes made them quite comparable to their Fyunnen counterparts. Namely, their capacity to take on traits of their bonded animal companion. This feature sometimes could seem useless, or even a hindrance at a glance... but sometimes, it saved Lorath lives. In this case, the Lmanel Trooper's trait would come to be very useful. As the Nepleslian's hand came over her mouth, the Lorath woman's mouth opened, and soon it snapped down with a sharp and swift crushing force as her front teeth grew into sharp and vicious spikes comparable to her rodent companion's. She hoped to impale the Nepleslian's hand, or at least take a finger or two. As she bit, her hand moved down to her sidearm holster and she attempted to draw her pistol. It was a difficult maneuver, but she knew full well that no matter how nice the Nepleslian seemed... she would either be dead, infested, or used as an incubator if she did not fight.

On the subject of the Lmanel's companion, it was gone from sight as it skittered out from the Trooper's uniform... but soon its presence would be announced as it scampered up the pant leg of the Jiyuuian, digging in with sharp little claws as it moved beneath her attire.

Even with the pain of the Lorath's teeth scraping his thumb and piercing into his palm, the Nepleslian still had the presence of mind to draw his own sidearm. The one he kept tucked behind his back. But in the time it took to pull the gun out and put it to the Lmanel's forehead, she had her own weapon pointed squarely at him. This gave the Nepleslian enough pause not to pull the trigger. Plus, he really didn't want to ruin her face-- well, before she uglied herself up. He took a breath and waited for her reaction.

Meanwhile the Jiyuuian was scrambling to get the rat out from under her clothes, pulling at her shirt and trying to get a grasp on the little bundle pinching little claw marks over her skin. A thin tentacle sneaked from the back of her neck, down her collar looking to assist in the termination of the tiny beast.

There was a momentary flash of thought in the Lmanel's brain, a thought of fearing death at that moment... yet the Nepleslian's hesitation took away that fear as she did the first thing that came to mind. She grabbed onto the Nepleslian's arm and shifted her head out of the line of fire of his firearm. She pulled upon his arm, holding it before her face like someone preparing to bite into a delicious turkey leg, or a corn on the cob... then, she bit down again, and began to rapidly gnaw upon the Nepleslian's forearm, snapping muscle and bone. Her gun-wielding hand shifted as she fired several shots at the Jiyuuian, not sure if she'd hit her mark, but just wanting to keep her off balance as she handled the Nepleslian. As she tore through flesh, she thought on how important it would be that she survived, she had to warn someone about the infiltration, she had to tell someone of what she knew was only the beginning of something.

"Let go of my hand," the Nepleslian growled through his clenched teeth, moving his gun to try and shoot the the firearm out of the Lmanel's hand. Her forearm or wrist would be acceptable. Wherever he could manage. Hopefully the close ranged discharge would be muffled by the close point of contact. He still didn't want to kill her, but she wasn't leaving him much room to achieve that goal. The flesh on his other arm was being shredded. Wouldn't be the first time that happened, but that didn't make the intense pain any easier to bear.

Getting fed up with chasing the rodent about her clothes, the Jiyuuian unzipped and started to strip off her outer layer. Being able to see the blasted creature would go a long way towards catching and killing the annoying pest.

There was a sharp sensation, it was like a bolt of lightning to the Lmanel's brain as she felt the pain surge through her arm as a round tore through it. It was a shock to her, but it anchored her mind to the moment. She latched her jaw upon the Nepleslian's arm to hold him, as she took her hand away and used it to grab the Nepleslian's firearm, and rake her thumb over the safety of the weapon to engage it as she held tightly upon the firearm. It was an odd moment, awkward to say the least, but she did what she could. As for what she could do, she did just that as she jerked her head, and intended to rip the Nepleslian's gnawed and torn forearm away from the rest of the ruined flesh. It would at least give her some sort of advantage.

With the layers of clothing being removed, the rodent knew that it was now vulnerable as it made a final move... it crawled rapidly over the Jiyuuian's bare skin before scampering onto her face. This was where things became messy... it lashed out with it's tiny and sharp fangs, biting at the Jiyuuian's eye, and clawing at the flesh as it attempted to burrow into the eye-socket for safety. Unlike a wild animal, this bonded rodent had far more sense available to it than to scramble about in its efforts... it focused upon the goal it had, it had only the urge to burrow present in its actions.

The force of the Lorath woman throwing the weight of her head to pull at the Nepleslian's arm pulled it from it's socket with a loud pop, but that's as far as it got as doing so also pulled the man off-balance towards her. His own weapon clattered to the floor as the shock and pain loosed his grip as he careened into her. The little rodent, now clear on it's glassy target, dug into the Jiyuuian's cheek with it's claws, drawing blood as it lunged for her eye. The furry beast was quick, but not quick enough as the thin tentacle swiftly slid into the side of its tiny head, skewering the rat and tearing it from her face. "Stop fucking around," she ordered, turning to reorient and deal with the situation with the guard.

Meanwhile, out in space the XSS Parrilla led the 28th Fleet towards the outpost, taking out the scattered Gallus Drones along the way. On the bridge, Doctor Tiberius Cotton was organizing with the captains under him the particulars of the assault. Parasites or infected only. Minimal damage to the station itself. Take as many prisoners as possible "And--" the Doctor added, "Infected hosts do not count as prisoners."

With the Nepleslian 'disarmed', the Lmanel had full capability at that moment to get her job done... a job which she now felt a greater need to do as she saw her companion fall. She brought her weapon up and over the fallen Nepleslian which was laid out over her, and she used him as a rest as she pulled the trigger, firing off a half-dozen rounds at the Jiyuuian, aiming for her head, intending to turn it into a fine paste, and with those shots done, the Lmanel craned her head down, and delivered the final blow to the Nepleslian... she sunk her sharp teeth into the back of his neck, cutting clear through his spine before tossing him aside. She then brought her hand over to her console and hit the alarm button... her job was done, and after dumping the Nepleslian upon the floor, she got out of her seat. Clenching her arm, the Lmanel walked out from behind her desk and looked down to the torn body of her companion. She knelt down, scooping it up and placing it in her uniform pocket before she moved back to her desk, and went about locking down the airlocks which she was in charge of.

Elsewhere in the outpost, alarms sounded as the limited garrison was stirred from their short slumbers into a ready state. In the primary control room of the outpost, sensors picked up upon the incoming fleet... they were caught in a swift attack, one they did not have the capacity to respond to in short order. A signal was sent out in distress, but it was on a slow carrier... it would take time before the Matriarchy could get ships out to support the position. Time enough, unfortunately, for the NMX forces to make their approach and assault the outpost.

A shadow rose behind the Lmanel. After the parasite had taken control of the Jiyuuian's body, the head was no longer strictly necessary to survive. A strong, meaty tentacle wound its way around the guard's neck, pulling her back as a dozen others sprang from the headless neck and went to work, injecting the Lorath with muscle relaxants and other assorted chemicals. Though she would much rather have killed the annoying bird woman, it looked like instead she would be needed in assisting the takeover of her workplace instead. Not that the 28th would have trouble taking the lightly fortified installation, but the parasite wanted to pass on its eggs at least once before she found out what sort of punishment would be awaiting for the sloppy job she had done in trying to subvert the place quietly. In any event, now they knew a little more about the technology the Lorath possessed. Future efforts would have to be planned more carefully.

On the Bridge of the Parrilla, Doctor Cotton could care less. The outpost would soon be his, as well as a bevy of new test subjects. The Lorath were really a fascinating species and, if the Mishhuvurthyar were to continue to adapt and survive, then it would behoove them to incorporate all the best features of as many of the universes creatures as possible. Not that most of the NMX cared for anything other than conquest. But then again, that's why he was taking this initiative in the first place.

 

[DocTomoe]

E-7 System - Lorath Matriarchy Outpost - +30 Minutes Since Combat Engagement With NMX 28th Fleet

From a detached third person standpoint, the situation seemed to go just as it should have. NMX ships easily cut through the system defenses set up by the Lorath Self Defense Force, NMX infantry easily breached the outpost exterior defenses, and Lorath Self Defense Force personnel continued to fight just as they should. At least, it seemed ordinary from a by-standard point of view... to the Lorath Self Defense Force though, it seemed to be an entirely different matter than expected.

Standing as the foremost question on the minds of the besieged personnel was quite simply Why are we not dead yet?. Standard doctrine which the LSDF had encountered in the past included orbital bombardment as the main dish serving in an engagement. Once the first group of Lorath and Helashio were rounded up though, the situation became quite clear... at least to the reasoning which the Lorath had; the NMX wanted prisoners, for whatever reason, they wanted the personnel alive. Surrender at that point surely was not an option, since it would grant the opponent a victory on their terms. What the remaining forces concluded was that they needed to escape, to retreat in preparation for a fight on their own terms. So, the withdraw from the outpost's interior began as the remaining platoon worth of personnel split into squads to enhance their chances of allowing some personnel to escape to report the situation to the Matriarchy.

The Mishhu ships certainly had taken steps in locking down the facility from the outside, ships were waiting in orbit to board or destroy any Lorath ships they found trying to escape. Like a net cast into the waters, the outpost was surrounded. Inside, the Advance Types took care of the heavier fortified positions while infected roamed for stragglers or those trying to hide. Parasites were loosed into the vents and hallways to smoke out any remaining personnel. Meanwhile, the XSS Parrilla had docked and the Fleet Commander, the unscrupulous Doctor Tiberius Cotton, made his way off his ship, flanked by some of his more successful experiments. His "nurses" he called them. Flawless looking neko on the outside, they were full of experimental concoctions and appendages that served as a testing ground for new advances in Mishhu bioscience. Though his superiors seemed to be satisfied with the current state of parasite biology, Doctor Cotton was already on the cutting edge of the next stages in Mishhu evolution. With an emphasis on cutting. Certainly the Lorath and Helashio samples gained here would only further his knowledge of alien biology and how best to utilize it to the Empire's, and his own, ends.

As Cotton claimed his prize, groups of Lorath made their withdraw from the outpost which had begun to crawl with his creations. One of the groups had quite a distance to go... from the armory nestled in the central portion of the outpost, to the exterior exits to seek escape. This squad-sized group were the unfortunate individuals which were assigned to quartermaster duty. Two Lmanel, a New Tur'lista, a Helashio, and a Fyunnen. This group did have one bit of luck in their favor, they had equipment to aid their escape at least... unfortunately, most of the group were mere engineers which had little tactical capability. At that moment though, it did not matter, it was a question of survival more than anything... and really, it was something which came natural to most humanoids.

A small irritating squeal came from the Helashio servant as she scampered to keep up with her group, the Fyunnen at point merely scowled at the sound as she spoke. "Stay together, keep away from the conduits and vents, and don't lose line of sight with each other." She ordered in a firm voice which barely matched her youth... she was merely a girl of thirty, a teenager really in Lorath terms, yet it fell upon her shoulders as a Fyunnen to watch out for her comrades.

"Yeah... got it." Came the reply from the New Tur'listian. He was a lanky man, but he moved nimbly behind the Fyunnen... yet he clenched his rifle in a death-grip, his pale hands trembled with tension and fear, even as he hid behind the Fyunnen woman which he knew was undoubtedly his superior in every aspect of the situation they were in.

Taking up the middle of the group were a pair of Lmanel. One of them seemed to be on their wits end of nerves, her teeth chattering with fear as she actually jumped at the sound of the Helashio catching up. On the other hand, the other Lmanel was passive, calm, and did not seem concerned in the slightest with the situation as he merely kept with the group, yet his tongue flickered from his lips for a moment as he took in the smell of the air, finding it disturbingly tainted with hemosynth and Lorath blood. It was an oddly matched group, but the best they had in the situation was each other. Of course, the thought of each other became a distant notion as they passed through the first corridor blast door, and into the unknown situation which they were forced to cut through for freedom.

Drawn by the squeal of the group's smallest, a small squad of nekovalkyrja rounded the corner and headed straight for the group. Tentacles swayed out from their mouths, stomachs, arms and necks, depending on where the host had implanted itself. They were here to capture, not kill, and the rifles they carried were not at the ready. Little bundles of flesh sat on their shoulders and heads, hitching a ride for when new hosts were found, and as they were spotted, they slithered down the neko bodies onto the floor, inching along the ground slowly. "Put down your weapons and surrender," the infected leader announced, bringing up her rifle threateningly. Her tentacles hung from her back, near her shoulder-blades and out of her uniform through a torn hole. "You will not be harmed," she announced.

"A generous offer." Shouted the Fyunnen group leader as she pulled the mask of her 'Wind' power-suit over her face. Once it was in place, she spoke again while taking her 'Hi'kid' plasma rifle from her shoulder. "Here is my offer, I'll free you from your suffering and grant you a merciful and glorious death." With those words from the Fyunnen, she pulled the trigger on her plasma rifle. A flash of orange and purple hues erupted from the barrel of the weapon, sending a fist-sized plume of plasma at the infested Neko's head. With the first shot, the rest of the squad went to work, picking off the incoming parasites as the Fyunnen worked on the infected Nekovalkryja. Of course, some parts of the squad were less than successful, such as the jittery Lmanel which simply was too overcome with fear to even hit her mark as she emptied an entire magazine from her rifle. At that point, she fumbled for her pistol, leaving herself vulnerable.

The leader's body fell over without it's head and landed on the ground with a heavy thump. At this signal, the other neko lept forth into the gunfire, their tentacles lashing out with needle tips, dripping with paralytic poisons and muscle relaxants. Their own rifles all but forgotten in their hands. The one in particular who dashed for the nervous Lmanel, undeterred and unhindered by any of the return fire, grabbed at the Lorath's shoulders with her hands. As her own forgotten rifle dropped to the ground, leathery appendages pierced the Lmanel's skin, injecting her with helpful chemicals to calm her nerves while parasite crawled up her legs from the ground. The neko looked into her captive's eyes with a wild stare and shoved their lips together. From between the Neko's teeth, a parasite crawled into the Lmanel's mouth and down her throat. Unnecessary insurance, but the neko was enjoying herself. As the shots rang down the hall, more of the NMX forces were alerted to the engagement. A deep rumbling sounded in the hall. Reinforcements, including something-- or somethings-- large was headed their way.

Glancing about rapidly, the Fyunnen knew she did not have time to screw around, and she spat a whispered curse as she saw the Lmanel being subverted by the infectious Nekovalkryja. "Close the line!" She called to her companions as they backed closer together. "Deal with our kin." Spoke the Fyunnen to the New Tur'lista as she went about picking off the other members of the Nekovalkryja squad with a streaming burst from her plasma rifle, intending to incinerate them, and any parasites they may hold.

As the Fyunnen dealt with the parasite carrying Nekovalkryja, the New Tur'listian followed instructions as he brought his rifle to bare. A soft whine came from the rail-rifle as the capacitor within the weapon charged up. He then brought his finger down, a solid slug of metal lashed out from the rifle, tearing through the air with a whip-crack of sound. His first shot impacted upon the Lmanel's head, turning it into a fine pink mist. With a click of a selector switch, the New Tur'listian put his weapon into a burst fire setting. He pulled the trigger once as he held the Nekovalkryja in his sights, and once more as he fired into the Lmanel again for good measure. As he did his duty, he could not help but to feel an ominous fear as the floor rumbled beneath his boots.

As the floor rumbled, the squad's remaining Lmanel spoke up finally with a heavy and seemingly hollow sounding voice. "Two large objects are approaching... the vibration feels like power armor... or like a large beast." He said before he picked off a scampering parasite.

The headless leader stood back up and made a lunging grab for the Fyunnen, her tentacles lashing about trying to take the Lorath by surprise. Meanwhile, from the rear of the Lorath defenders, a smaller group of parasites slid about in a slow shifting mass. The thundering noise gave way to a form, bursting around the corner from the front and taking out part of the wall as it did so with its massive head crest. A crab type Mishhu plowing through the halls like a rhino on speed. It stopped as it got the Lorath group in it's sights, with two Advanced types coming about just behind it. As the crab readied to charge on the group, the Advanced types' shells split slightly and lifted to reveal strange canon-like devices. The hum of charging energy announced that they were loaded and ready to fire.

With the approach from the rear, most of the group was caught off guard... except for the lowly Helashio which let out yet another squeal... this time though, she fumbled about with something she pulled from a holster she had slung over her shoulder. Only able to grab a few things from the quartermaster room before the group left, the Helashio grabbed the simplest looking thing that she could comprehend, and it rested in her hands.

What resided in the Helashio's hands was something that she had no idea about how threatening it was. However, a glance from the Lmanel produced a double take as he saw the Mishhu, then the Helashio. "No! Don't!" He exclaimed, losing his cool. Though, his words were too late as the Helashio pulled the trigger, stumbling and falling on her rear with a squeak as a cannister-like projectile flew from the gun with a 'Bloop!'. Seeing the shot go off, the Lmanel went down and covered up the Helashio. Hearing it, the New Tur'listian went down as well, covering his head with his arms. As the others went down, the Fyunnen lashed her hand out as she knelt, scooping the Nekovalkryja squad leader up by the crotch, and lifting her above the group.

A white wisp of smoke, a seemingly pointless thud... It was almost laughable, at least until the magnetic bottle of the round destabilized. Antimatter met matter as a flash of terrible light, and a rush of horrific energy came from the exploding grenade round. What the Helashio had was an M'cel, loaded with one hell of a grenade. Exposed skin of the Lorath became red and burnt as their stonethread uniforms took the brunt of the heat. The group's Fyunnen stood unharmed as she kept the Neko hoisted up to take the full blast as superheated air plowed through the hallway. Meanwhile, where the round landed, the corridor became molten as floor plates and ceiling plates dripped and oozed like runny ice-cream. It was an explosion which would have even made a tank think twice.

The parasite assault from behind was over. And any additional attempt from that direction would be sorely hindered. The mass of flesh melted from the super-hot flash and the smell of cooked Mishhu filled the hallway. The previously headless neko was turned in an instant to a barely remaining charred torso connected to unmoving legs. Smoke from the explosion obscured the Mishhu canons enough that their initial volley missed their targets by a mile, and the whole thing even gave the crab pause. It skittered back and forth in place, waiting a sign of enemy life, biding it's time. A wide band psychic message came from within it's massive shell. "IF YOU LIVE-- GIVE UP-- YOU HAVE HURT YOURSELF AND LOST--" Meanwhile, additional reinforcements were being called for by the gunners, requesting powered armor or additional crabs to destroy this heavily armed threat to the Doctor's plans.

 

[DocTomoe]

With the unspoken yet heard words from the NMX attacker, the lightly armored Fyunnen stirred and reached for her comrades. One of which, the calm and cool Lmanel, was now a calm and cool squishy mess beneath her touch. It was apparent that he caught a sizable portion of shrapnel. Her other roaming hand found the New Tur'lista, which stirred at the touch and rose up. Finally, the Helashio got up and seemed quite bewildered as to what had happened.

At this point, the Fyunnen knew the situation was only going to get worse the more they stayed put. "Go, run, we got to get to the exit." she said as she picked up her plasma rifle, thumbing the fire selector to an armored setting... and a whine came from the internal capacitors of the weapon as their charge climbed to higher peaks. "You." She spoke, pointing to the New Tur'lista "Take point, Helashio takes the middle, I'll take up the rear and keep our friends at bay." She instructed as she helped the Helashio to her feet, while single-handedly pointing her rifle at the shell-shocked NMX.

With the order, the New Tur'listian male merely gave a nod before he took his rifle in one hand, and the Helashio's hand in the other as they bolted off down the corridor which was now clear of parasite-ridden Nekovalkryja. As the New Tur'listian made his way ahead, the Fyunnen began to lay down suppressive fire as she hobbled backwards down the corridor. Single bursts of plasma rushed out from her weapon, dense packets of super-heated energy that would peel off the Zesuaium from an old-fashioned Mindy. She mainly shot to keep the NMX's heads... or shells... down as she kept up with her fellow escapees.

Crab-Type Mishhu have a large, bone-like crest that covers the front of their faces, like a protective mask of thick armor, but even grazing hits from the Fyuunen's plasma rifle were giving it pause, allowing the group of Lorath to put some distance between their attacker and them. The rest of the nearby Mishhu forces had been alerted, though, and additional heavy reinforcements were making their way towards the escapees. But while the NMX had the advantage of numbers, the Lorath had the advantage of terrain. They knew the outpost and the parasite process hadn't yet finished bringing over the first converts to the Doctor's team. There was precious little time before their knowledge, too, was owned by the invaders.

As they fled, the crab continued to taunt them telepathically. "USELESS. WHERE WILL YOU GO? YOU HAVE OUR STINK. NO ONE WILL TRUST YOU. OUR FLEET IS IN ORBIT. YOU ARE TRAPPED. GIVE UP OR DIE. HU HU HU."

Even with the resounding force in which the words were forced through the minds of the fleeing trio, they had no meaning. According to the reasoning of the Fyunnen, she had a job to do and there was no question of what she needed to do. On the mind of the New Tur'listian was the simple instinct; survive, as for the Helashio... she was too simple minded to care about the dynamics of fleets and stigmas, she simply knew that her allies were Lorath, and the NMX were destroying her place of service, that was enough motivation to make her flee and fight.

Led by the New Tur'listian, the group quickly moved through corridor after corridor, with an occasional burst of railgun rifle fire from the New Tur'listian's rifle as he cleared the path of the occasional stray parasite or Nekovalkryja. It was a quick and savage run, dotted by bursts of pink mist as railgun accelerated rounds tore through flesh and bone.

Knowing full well that she was wasting power for her rifle, the Fyunnen turned and broke into a run, increasing the distance between her and the NMX pursuers for just a moment as she reached into her satchel and produced a small rectangular device which she fixed onto a wall. She pulled a pin from it, flipped a switch, then broke into a run again as she caught up with her New Tur'listian and Helashio associates.

As the trio escaped, other groups echoed much of the same actions, and less fortunate individuals which had fallen victim to the parasites continued their fights, even as toxins and probing flesh did their work. In many cases, the Lorath which were found to be in a situation which had no potential for victory took measures to destroy their brain matter with a well-reserved shot to the head by their own hands.

In far more dire, and severe cases of parasites actually managing to infest, there was a large degree of damage which had to be done to actually begin to make headway. New Tur'lista held such mental focus, that it took large quantities of NMX toxins to influence them, enough to induce damage in the very tissues which they sought to probe. In the case of Lmanel, their bodies were the issue... rapid development of abscesses and grotesque quantities of pus were produced as parasites attempted to secure themselves, causing the Lmanel flesh to react violently in an attempt to reject the invaders.

Fyunnen on the other hand... were a far more brutal process. Naturally tough muscle and bone took extensive time to force through, even the skull which served to house the Fyunnen brain served as a fortress-like barrier against the initial probings of the parasites. Of course, all the efforts made by the Lorath flesh were moot as time wore on... but it bought precious time none the less... precious time such as that which the small device the Fyunnen escapee left in the hallway, a 'Directional Explosive Sentry Unit', packed with a plasma explosive, which was ready to ruin someone's day.

An explosion rocked the hall the behind the fleeing group. The crab on their tail had run headlong into it, if the sudden stop of it's telepathic assault was any indication. A few precious moments of silence, a chance to catch their breaths and give their thoughts a break. It wasn't far, now. The airlock they were heading towards was just a hall and a half away. They turned the corner, the Fyunnen pausing for a moment to take some parting shots at an approaching neko squad. Those few seconds may have saved her life.

Through the wall, accompanied by a horrible hissing groan invading their thoughts, the crab type mishhu burst through. Worse for the wear, it looked like half his entire head had been blasted off, bone and sinew showed under torn and seared flesh. Hemosynth leaked from everywhere and as it snipped the New Tur'lista in half, painting the wall opposite with his blood, three of the broken giant's remaining eyes focused on the Fyunnen. There were no coherent words, just a steady stream of raging thoughts, a storm of primal screams emanating from the beast. Even it's back shell was half melted and scorched from the blast. It took two steps towards the Lorath, it's last remaining prey. Some weak tentacles showing themselves shakily from it's back.

The airlock was right there, behind it. But the lumbering crab stood in the way, stepping past the Helashio without a second thought. Probably not even able to see the small creature that had been thrown to the ground by it's grand entrance.

A scowl crossed the power-suit obscured features of the Fyunnen as she looked upon the writhing beast of pain. "Keep going, I'll catch up." She called out to the Helashio, which did just as she was told, scurrying quickly to the airlock. This left the Fyunnen to do her job.

She knew full well that pelting the beast with the rifle would simply take too damned long, and would get her skewered by one of the thing's remaining tentacles... it really left her two options. One was practical, the other was plain suicidal... she was saving the suicidal one for last as she reached to her gunbelt, pulling a metallic rod from it which she soon twisted in the grasp of two hands. Suddenly, a rush of swirling blazing hot orange and purple plasma erupted from the rod. She held the plasma saber, and eyed the NMX for just a moment before charging the crab-like beast. She did not slow down, she did not faultier, she charged with determination to get to the other side of the hall... as she charged she held the plasma blade before her, cleaving into the Mishhu, and intending to cut clear through with the superheated jet of plasma as her guide. Her goal was simple, get to the airlock, and live.

The scream of plasma burning through oxygen as the sword swung through the air filled the hallway and as the body of the giant crab-like beast came crashing down to the ground, a silence of thoughts soon reigned once more. The thing was finally dead. Or at least, as dead as one of these things can be. Besides being an unstoppable juggernaut of hemosynth flesh and bone, a crab type NMX has two brains. A normal one, for everyday activity, and a dormant one, tucked away in it's center of mass, able to take over the body if need be, and when things get especially dire, reformat the hemosynthetic material into a new Advance-type Mishhu. The process, however, is not a short one, so for the Fyunnen's victory she was free. And the airlock the Helashio had just entered was just ahead. The air in front of the Lorath shimmered as tentacles appeared from nowhere and wrapped around the Fyunnen's arms, wresting the rifle from her grasp. As the Advanced types that arrived on the scene cloaked showed themselves, their infinite appendages tore at her battle-suit, making insertion points for thin needle-like injectors to help calm the escapee and make her more pliable and cooperative. These Mishhu didn't taunt, but their laughter skittered at the edge of her conscious thought. They had caught their prey and were looking forward to enjoying themselves.

As the toxins flowed into the Fyunnen, she raised her head to look upon her situation. It made her actually release a small chuckle as she smiled softly, the toxins caused her brain to swim and float into a distant frame of thought which was not her own. Her hand lost its grip upon her plasma saber, and it began to fall through the air... though, there was something odd about the situation. Once the toxins went to work, the saber had de-activated. As Mishhu tentacles tore at the 'Wind' power-suit, exposing bare pale flesh, and limp wings, a series of quiet events took place.

As a tentacle worked its way between the Fyunnen's legs, her satchel and gunbelt clattered to the floor, side by side with the fallen saber. As a long probing length of flesh pushed down her throat, a series of silent signals were sent out by obscure bits of technology embedded in her skull. At that point, as she moaned like a filthy whore, the power cores within her plasma saber began to exceed their operational capacity.

As her muscular body worked to accommodate her Mishhu captors as guided by the toxins, a series of precise magnetic seals kept matter and antimatter from meeting in the rockets which she had in her satchel. As her perky breasts were used as playthings, her Helashio friend fell over behind a hill outside of the compound, letting out a series of small squeaks as she rolled down the gentle incline.

All these events, within the span of a lone minute, within the span of a minute since the Fyunnen's brainwaves were altered beyond their norm, triggering the plasma saber to violently self destruct... as the Fyunnen released a muffled scream of utter pleasure against the tentacle in her throat, the plasma saber upon the floor ruptured, tearing apart the magnetic seals of the rockets in her satchel, causing antimatter and matter to meet, and producing an explosion which caused the entire landing and processing section of the outpost to be gutted by the sheer brutality of the blast.

As the Helashio finished rolling down the hill, releasing her last squeak, she looked up at the black sky only to see a rolling rush of yellow-white light and gas as the explosion was blocked by the hillside, keeping her safe from the heated blast and the burst of short-lived x-rays and gamma-rays. She had little idea as to what happened, but it made her release a saddened whine, even as another group of fleeing Lorath scooped her up and continued their escape into the local terrain.

"How am I supposed to get anything done with all this noise!" Cotton yelled as the outpost shook yet again. "There must be better, quieter ways-- gases-- filtration system--" He mumbled to himself as he programmed the nanolathe in his hand. "I don't even want the damage report," he told his subordinates as the Doctor's nurses were helping to load supplies and captives into a shuttle. "Just-- I want a secondary lab here. All the undamaged specimens are going to the Parrilla. The ones here-- those will be for fun." The Doctor looked down at the device in his hand, "They gave us such a nice housewarming gift, I think we should prepare a going away present for them."