RP: ISC Phoenix [Mission 3] - The Wrong side of the Deathbed

MISSION 3 - START!!

The hustle and bustle of the base was in full swing. With builders getting the Hangar completed and generally fixing up the house under the guidance of Nina, their overseer and Dad. The crew had been given their first 'deadly' mission and were told to scramble onto the shuttle.
So far, Luca, Mel and John had taken up their positions.
During which, Luca's 'Dragonsbreath' Flame thrower was passed to Cranebienn, the Chef.

"C'mon!" John used the loudspeaker on the Shuttle, "Everyone get your stuff together and get in the shuttle! We need as much manpower as we can on this!"

"Roger that, Luca!" Vincent sprinted to his locker and pulled out his full ordinance payload, stowed it all in his belt, pulled on his flak jacket and secured the trenchcoat over it, and moved towards the Junker.

"Luca, this is Vincent," He transferred over the radio. "I'm taking the Junker up whenever you need me too."

Jim rushed to get his stuff together and suddenly had an idea. They were going to be traversing the desert right? Airbikes worked in deserts, right?
He ran to get the bike started. Slinging his flechette launcher over his shoulder and checking that his pistols were in their holsters, Jim slowly drove his airbike onto the junker, as there would be room there. "Mind if I tag along with you, Vince?" Jim asked as he boarded the shuttle.


This was going to be fun. Jim thought.

Mitch eventually staggered onto the Phoenix and sat down with a backpack full of weaponry.
Hitori followed suit, jumping on the Junker as she was, as did Cranebeinn.

Luca went back into the base and fetched his motorcycle, putting it in the Phoenix's passenger area. Conditions were still good for one more person, sitting back down in the Co-Pilot's seat.

John adjusted his headset's frequency and contacted the control tower.
"Nepleslia control tower, this is ISC Phoenix and The Junker requesting permission and co-ordinates to Delsauria?"
"ISC Phoenix and The Junker, this is Nepleslia control tower. We've a minor complication. A Blockade."
"Blockade...?" John questioned, "Who?"
"YSE got shitty over something. No idea what though."
John frowned, "YSE?! Hoo-boy. Will they fire on us?"
"Probably not. You don't pose no threat to 'em and vice versa."

"Good good. Co-ordinates please."
"Transmitting..." The co-ordinates to the system came up on the main monitor, "You're cleared for takeoff. Be careful, okay?"
"Right right. Over and out." John adjusted the frequency on his headset to the Junker, "Mr. Vincent, we're gonna have to fly through a YSE blockade. Stay near me and keep on your toes."

With that, John put some numbers and letters into the console of the Phoenix, and the airlock shut. It began to hover a few metres into the air and retract the landing gears and blast off through the atmosphere towards Delsauria with the Junker following suit.

Luca shuffled around in his chair uneasily, looking at the screen and watching the massive fleets, "Either they're after me for surviving the YSS Goban, or Nepleslia is gonna have one hell of a bad hair day. Or both."
"Hear hear." John said, "Your parents have a way of getting out if the shit hits the CCD - right?"
"Ehh - I'm sure they have their ways." Luca replied, "If they can get their hands on an army of scantly clad builders, they can do anything."

"Why the hell would they be worried about you and the Goban? It's not like you blew it up or something." Vincent's voice crackled over the intercom and his face popped up on a vidscreen, showing a black-and-white, washed out version of his face.

Mich took a small book of poetry with the cover of a censored porn magazine out of one of his pockets and opening it on a particularly touching testament of undying love he said,

"Yamatai's been toning down on overkill for reasons quite that minor for a while now. I tell yah, there's something fishy with the Ysa, how their fleets used to number in the hundreds of thousands will trillions of Neko's and now the tiny ones their throwing around these days. I say it's an illusion - but they're not going to break it for you Luca-boy, Nepleslia's probably pissed them off bad. Or the new Empress if flexing her political muscle. If your base actually got any news from the outside world we might be able to make a little bit more of an informed decision."

"New empress?" Luca questioned, "So Yui's out of the job?" He shrugged, "Maybe this is like one of those prophecies where a new empress comes along and sends the world to hell an'--"
John gave him a slap over the head. "We get the picture. A new doomsday lady has stood to the podium. Perfect. More to be wary at."
Hitori sighed. Men.... she thought to herself.

Delsauria was only a minute away in spaceflight.
"Anyway - We're only a minute till we reach our destination." John broadcast to the passengers and the Junker, "So get ready - change into something comfortable for heat."
Luca took off his jacket and tied it around his waist, revealing a green singlet and a pair of arms and an Opal necklace.
John just looked at Luca and shrugged, "That could do." John took his hands off the controls and put it on autopilot for a moment, and took off his jumper, tying it around his waist in similar fashion to Luca. He was wearing a navy-blue longsleeve.

In the Passenger Compartment, Hitori carefully took off her cloak. She then rolled up her shirt to show off her stomach and uses both knifes to cut her pants into short shorts.
Crane decided to leave his chef's hat on, but took off his jacket and opened the collar of his shirt to let relatively warm air in. "Maybe the bread can bake itself if it's going to be hot."

"You're joking, right? You'll fry in that!" Luca commented upon seeing John in the longsleeve.
"I'll be fine - because I'm staying in here, numbnuts." With that, John adjusted his headset, "Delsauria Control tower, this is ISC Phoenix requesting permission to land at the following co-ordinates..."
"..."
"No answer. Proceeding anyway." He took off the headset, "I think this place is going to be a little remote."
"Hmm. Figures." Luca said as the shuttles began their decent into the atmosphere of Delsauria...

Vincent moved towards the rear of the shuttle and stripped off his duster and army uniform, leaving only his flak jacket and pants on. He adjusted the strap on the BAR and Flechette launcher so they fit tighter on his chest. Following that procedure, he moved back to the cabin.

"Confirmed, Phoenix. I'm beginning my descent now."

Jim realized just how hot it was becoming and decided it was time to redress. Stripping his Star Army of Yamatai jacket top and leaving only a white sweat tee underneath, Jim started thinking how he would make his pants into shorts. Next, he took off his pants, trusting to the modesty of the other crew not to try anything rash. Swiftly and deftly, Jim cut them down to size, and with a few stitches with his surgery needle and a bit of spare thread Jim created hems. Now they looked just like a pair of regular shorts, perfect for an adventure out in the hot and desolate desert. He quickly belted them on and strapped on his holsters on his belt.

The little hamlet underneath the descending shuttles was just as Anonymous described on screen. Two little metal buildings with water tanks on the back, and a fairly lofty watch tower.
There was also a small platform for shuttles. 4 could fit on it, 2 spaces were already taken. One by a shuttle of some sort of a build unknown to John, and another of Nepleslian design.
The sun here was just under halfway down the horizon, continuing steadily and making the shadows it cast metres long and the stars were beginning to show up in the sky.

The shuttles landed with ease, and a bit of noise and kicking up sand. Someone in the lookout tower saw this and to investigate just who had landed.
He was an average looking Nepleslian, tall, strong, brown eyes, short brown hair, had an overtly cybernetic arm. He had a shotgun in his hands, cautious of the occupants.

"Alright guys, we've landed safely on Delsauria. The temperature is currently a lovely 44 degrees 'Cee." John had taken up a headset and broadcast this to both shuttles, "It is nearing night time. I hope you have had a pleasant flight with Burning Buzzard Air."

The airlock opened, and Luca got out of his chair, pushed the Pilot's Compartment door open and strode out the airlock with his shotgun in hands, leaning against his shoulder. He was immediately met by hot weather, sand, dust, and a local with a shotgun pointed near him.

"State yer business, lad..." He asked in a gravelly tone as he was getting ready to shoot in case something rash happened.
"Isn't this the little village that's been having a raider problem?" Luca asked the man as he waved his gun around.
Crane and Mitch also moved out of the shuttle and into the heat of the desert.
"Yarp." He said as he observed the others who'd exited, "What's it to you and your mates?"
"Tell 'em that there's a new sheriff in town - and he's got an itchy trigger finger."
The man lowered his gun upon hearing this news, "They sent you guys to save us? Well!" He put his hands on his hips, "Ya don't look like much to me, and them Raiders will think so too!"

Luca grinned a little and looked at Crane and his new Flamthrower, "Hey Cranelegs - Point that thing in the air and squeeze the trigger..."
"Yessir!" He answered as he pointed it right above him.
FWOOOOOOSH!! A line of fire streaked through the evening sky. Crane had a mad grin across his face due to the pyrotechnical uses of this little tool.

The man immediately blinked at the pyrotechnics "I, ah, might be mistaken..." He put out a hand for a handshake, "The name's Harley."
"I'm Luca Pavone." Luca shook his hand firmly, "And we're here to kick ass and eat cake - and all that's left is Pie."
Harley chuckled to himself, "Funnyman, eh?"

Vincent clicked the chain of flechettes into place in his flechette gun and sighted in downrange.

"So, where's your bandit problem?" He said, stepping out of the shuttle and hauling Jim's airbike out behind him.

Harley noticed Vincent move out of the shuttle with the airbike in hand, "Well - we dunno. All we know is that they love ta bug us every couple of nights and we're sick of tha damn bastards. Good to have y'all here anyway."
He turned around and shouted into the buildings behind him: "IT'S OKAY TO COME OUT - THEY'RE FRIENDLIES!!"

Then the doors on the left building opened up and a few people walked out. Three Nepleslian men and a Geshrin woman with a child by her side, dressed in clothing suited for the warm temperatures. One of the men had a beer in his hands.
"Sweet -" The beer toting man said, kicking at the sand, "You're our cavalry and hope eh?"
"Mummy," The child asked, "Who are they?"
The mother looked down at her child: "Heroes."

Harley's yelling had woken up Mel, who had tried to get a few moments of rest on the shuttle. She immediately stood up and vacated the vehicle with her rifle in hand, lining up near Luca.
"Is this the place?" She asked him.
"Mmmhmm." He replied, "Better get ready - It's about to get dark."
Mel looked around for somewhere to set herself up for sniping, she found the lookout tower and stated: "I have dibs on the tower."

Harley then looked out at the sun going down, and it was past halfway, "I'll leave you all to it - you'll have about half an hour to get your asses ready for those bastards." He began walking to the left building and escorting the civilians who'd moved out to come back in: "Good luck guys!" He waved as the door shut, and sealed itself.

The door to the right building opened up and an individual about 6 to 6.5 feet tall, wearing leather and cloth clothing that looked hand made. He had short to somewhat shaggy white hair with green highlights. His eyes were a gold colour and his skin was pale white. He had a bit of a grin on his face, an overloaded belt and a large range pack, bulging with things.
"So - You're our defenders?" He asked as he walked towards Luca with a bit of a stagger, "I see you've weapons which are deadly - but." He put his index finger up in the air, "May I expand your armoury - for a price?"

Vincent cocked an eyebrow. A weapons salesman on a backwoods town in the middle of nowhere? I don't like this situation much... He thumbed the safety on his flechette launcher cautiously, zipping up the front of the ballistics mesh vest he was wearing to make sure he didn't expose much of his huge torso.

Jim squinted at the bright light that burst forth as he exited the shuttle. He put a hand up to shield himself from the bright rays of the sun, then acclimated to the brightness. Jim strode over to his airbike and revved it a couple times after starting it. "I'll take point guys, I'll keep in radio contact with all of you, mel especially to help her spot targets." With that, he revved the bike once more and zoomed away, finding a good spot to block any attackers. But first, he had to map out the area. Jim flew close to the ground and started to map the area, taking in all of the hilly areas and ditches that could be used against them. Near the town, there was one ditch that especially caught his eye, as it was too far to be used in it's defense, however, it seemed to be perfect for an attack. There were pock-marks all around it, showing that it had been used in one such attack. Over the radio, Jim exclaimed, "Hey, do we have anyone skilled with demolitions enough to set up some mines in this ditch, it looks as if attackers may come from here."

Crane stood gaping at the spot where the flames had erupted from the flamethrower. He really, really liked pyrotechnics... and he wasn't afraid to show it. Being a chef, Crane had never been in any battles (besides the occasional fights at a restaurant he used to work at). Nevertheless, he fingered the flamethrower and his knives whic he had grabbed on the way out exitedly. "So," he said, "I've never done this before. What should I do?"

"Stand aside and let a former demolitions expert handle it? If you'd like to help you're more than welcome." Vincent spat on the ground and watched the dry tarmac absorb it like a sponge.

Hitori simply waited. She was more of an observer at this moment. Not too many shadowy places to sulk in, so she was stuck squinting with the others. She didn't mind too much, but the Geshrin was a little fidgety while in the open. It seemed like someone was watching her...

"Oh, right" Cranebeinn said, turning startled towards Vincent. "I wasn't talking about the ditch, I meant the battle in general. But..." he continued as he began to juggle a few of his knives, "... if you'd like any help, I'd be glad to." As he finished saying this, he turned towards Luca. "Unless, of course, you had something else in mind for me to do" he said, looking half- expectantly at Luca.

Luca looked at Crane, "Eh - You can be our 'last resort' of sorts. I'll call you when I need you." He said, nodding, "Also - if one tries to get you, point the flamethrower at him and squeeze the trigger lightly."
He then turned to the rest of his crew, "Vincent, Jim, you two investigate and rig that ditch. Anyone else here needs to hide somehow - try and hide your presence and open fire on 'em when it's too late for them to turn back! Try behind the water tanks or on the roofs!" Luca was about to try and find a hiding spot on the roof, when...

The Merchant put his pack down on the ground with a loud, clunky thud and opened up the top. "I know what may interest you."
He then pulled out what looked like a very large, and very bulky pistol which took a single round.
"This is the M'Cel. A forty-millimetre grenade launcher. Usually I don't sell firearms of this magnitude - but you seem trustworthy, and you'll need it."
He then pulled out what appeared to be large bullets, which were about an inch and a half across. Some had yellow markings, two had red markings.
"Each of these are Conventional Slugs - for impact... except for the red ones. They explode on impact."

He passed the Grenade Launcher to Luca to weigh in his hands. It was a bit heavy, but Luca could hold it and aim it steadily with two hands.
"Impressive..."

Vincent looked at the weapons merchant with envy. Then his soldier sense got around.

"Sir, we seem to be lacking in explosives, and I think it would put you in a good position if you were to... Ahem... Lend us some anti-personnel mines to rig the ditch with?"