Kennewes, a hellish battlefield
Screaming across the sky and not holding up on taking the opportunity of attack was Moonsong, now back in action, flying back over the zone. Unable to get a sensor lock on the RF signal thanks to how many interfering signals there were and the radiant heat. White beams striking at the heat sinks and the starship grade boosters of OUREX on its legs as it was making its grand leap.
It was a good thing that Makari wasn't quite collected to fire as the OUREX leapt from the ruins of the facility and at the steaming rivers, desperately trying to quench its thirst in a blazing forest. The water was as hot as its railgun - it couldn't quench its thirst properly like this, not without burning everything else around it. The forest felt like a desert full of twisted trees. When OUREX landed, it was possible to get a clear shot as it sent plumes of dirt and dust into the air, clearing quickly.
Luca saw its legs opening up, armour panels sliding open, and damaged internally - it was doing something to cool of desperately. Luca grinned as he saw OUREX compromise its defences, but he saw something wasn't quite right. He saw Rebeka moving after it with something in her hands - looked like a power core - she was going to plant it on the thing. "Shit, no, no, no," he grimaced, leaping down from his perch and skating, weaving past an obelisk for cover as he tried to close the gap with Rebeka, moving into burning vegetation.
As he pushed through burning shrubs, they crumbled apart as he pushed them apart. "Rebeka! Get back! We're going to shoot it!" He yelled over the howling noise of the battlefield into his comms, voice drowned out by fire and the howling of the OUREX's microwave emitters at Rebeka. "Throw the core in its legs and run, I'll-!" Luca saw the vegetation around where he was standing start to shrivel before his eyes. Eyes, too, were upon him.
♫ Rocky Grey - Kill or be Killed ♫
Luca's first instinct was to bolt rather than fight. Every piece of metal on his body felt white hot for a split second and his comms distorted into static as he bladed through the burning forest, leaping across the river and giving himself some distance from its microwaves - distance was good, the further he was, the less it burnt. It didn't chase him though. It was thirsty. "Shoot! Shoot!" He cried out into a comm line full of static. The microwaves must've fried the electronics.
Seiren Isbala meanwhile saw his hero dart away into the fire, faster than ever as OUREX seemed to be tracking it, trying to kill him. He let loose his blast of aural assault, striking at the leg of OUREX where Rebeka was not trying to plant her explosive. Rebeka could see the unprotected internals of the thing she was limpeted to buckling and crushing before her, damaging the leg some. More was needed - more force to bring this monster down.
More came. Allison and Echelon had finally gotten their senses together and pointed the main gun of the Norris at OUREX's leg, after Seiren had fired at it, trying to get a clear shot. They fired, an enormous bolt of plasma striking the knee, splashing at the internals. So close to Rebeka, though, she could feel the heat of it - drop in the bucket compared to what the OUREX had dealt to her.
For the first time since resurrection, and alone amongst the embers and with static howling in his ear, Luca was scared. He had no idea what was going on, and he just heard another horrible noise. "EVERYBODY! SHOOT THE FUCKING THING'S LEGS! ITS OPEN!" He raised his rifle and started firing bursts at its legs, bullets bouncing off the hull, and striking the panels. "SHOOT IT! SHOOT IT!! FUCKING SHOOT IT!!!"
Some of his shots were connecting, but they were small bullets compared to what the rest of the Phoenix could bring to bare, but with his communications device fried, nobody knew where Luca was right now. He fired a grenade. It landed by OUREX's foot and exploded, sending a plume of dried mud upwards at Rebeka. He moved in to close the gap, trying to -
OUREX returned fire, the ground exploding in a line coming towards him as a gatling grenade launcher intended for starships was firing at him with antimatter explosions. It didn't need to be accurate with a devastating weapon. He ran, he sprinted, he bladed away, knowing he couldn't survive that. He bolted north towards the hill, diving behind it as the grenades failed to lead him. Without those phantom blades, he couldn't have made it, collapsing behind the hill and realising that his injuries sustained were starting to catch up with him.
Luca couldn't feel his left arm. He looked at it and found it held in place by the armour he was wearing, unable to flex his spasming fingers. A metal shard had pierced through the durandium visor of his helmet and across his forehead - stopped by the helmet from taking any more off. Inside his visor, blood stains splattered against the transparent metal. He couldn't see his chest or belly lying down, but his right side hurt and the armour felt like it was gone.
But Luca didn't pass out just yet. He couldn't. He begun crawling along the hill on one arm and one good leg, firing the Grapple Stunner at the curve of the hill and dragging himself along the crest of the hill for cover. Once at an acceptable place, he laid on his back and saw the horrid damage across his torso and abdomen, grabbing the rifle and popping the spent grenade out of it - it was so hard to do with just one hand - and pushing a flare in.
Bracing the stock of his rifle against the ground and pointing straight up, he fired the flare and let the rifle fall down. He had to let them know he had escaped first, while fumbling with the huge capacitor batteries to the Battery Railgun and jamming the fingers of the Grapple Stunner into them, powering something in the Stunner to keep him alive that he'd swapped out before the mission started. It was the best he could do for himself right now. He was out of the fight.
But OUREX was looking quite shaky too. It didn't have long to go and it couldn't pull all of its stops. If what Aiesu said was right, this thing could either buckle at the legs, or overheat.
![MyHeadExplodesMap8.webp MyHeadExplodesMap8.webp](https://stararmy.com/roleplay-forum/data/attachments/3/3559-cbb82bf622a19c76280654825c0939fd.jpg?hash=Rcr-uT_6Tt)
Screaming across the sky and not holding up on taking the opportunity of attack was Moonsong, now back in action, flying back over the zone. Unable to get a sensor lock on the RF signal thanks to how many interfering signals there were and the radiant heat. White beams striking at the heat sinks and the starship grade boosters of OUREX on its legs as it was making its grand leap.
It was a good thing that Makari wasn't quite collected to fire as the OUREX leapt from the ruins of the facility and at the steaming rivers, desperately trying to quench its thirst in a blazing forest. The water was as hot as its railgun - it couldn't quench its thirst properly like this, not without burning everything else around it. The forest felt like a desert full of twisted trees. When OUREX landed, it was possible to get a clear shot as it sent plumes of dirt and dust into the air, clearing quickly.
Luca saw its legs opening up, armour panels sliding open, and damaged internally - it was doing something to cool of desperately. Luca grinned as he saw OUREX compromise its defences, but he saw something wasn't quite right. He saw Rebeka moving after it with something in her hands - looked like a power core - she was going to plant it on the thing. "Shit, no, no, no," he grimaced, leaping down from his perch and skating, weaving past an obelisk for cover as he tried to close the gap with Rebeka, moving into burning vegetation.
As he pushed through burning shrubs, they crumbled apart as he pushed them apart. "Rebeka! Get back! We're going to shoot it!" He yelled over the howling noise of the battlefield into his comms, voice drowned out by fire and the howling of the OUREX's microwave emitters at Rebeka. "Throw the core in its legs and run, I'll-!" Luca saw the vegetation around where he was standing start to shrivel before his eyes. Eyes, too, were upon him.
♫ Rocky Grey - Kill or be Killed ♫
Luca's first instinct was to bolt rather than fight. Every piece of metal on his body felt white hot for a split second and his comms distorted into static as he bladed through the burning forest, leaping across the river and giving himself some distance from its microwaves - distance was good, the further he was, the less it burnt. It didn't chase him though. It was thirsty. "Shoot! Shoot!" He cried out into a comm line full of static. The microwaves must've fried the electronics.
Seiren Isbala meanwhile saw his hero dart away into the fire, faster than ever as OUREX seemed to be tracking it, trying to kill him. He let loose his blast of aural assault, striking at the leg of OUREX where Rebeka was not trying to plant her explosive. Rebeka could see the unprotected internals of the thing she was limpeted to buckling and crushing before her, damaging the leg some. More was needed - more force to bring this monster down.
More came. Allison and Echelon had finally gotten their senses together and pointed the main gun of the Norris at OUREX's leg, after Seiren had fired at it, trying to get a clear shot. They fired, an enormous bolt of plasma striking the knee, splashing at the internals. So close to Rebeka, though, she could feel the heat of it - drop in the bucket compared to what the OUREX had dealt to her.
For the first time since resurrection, and alone amongst the embers and with static howling in his ear, Luca was scared. He had no idea what was going on, and he just heard another horrible noise. "EVERYBODY! SHOOT THE FUCKING THING'S LEGS! ITS OPEN!" He raised his rifle and started firing bursts at its legs, bullets bouncing off the hull, and striking the panels. "SHOOT IT! SHOOT IT!! FUCKING SHOOT IT!!!"
Some of his shots were connecting, but they were small bullets compared to what the rest of the Phoenix could bring to bare, but with his communications device fried, nobody knew where Luca was right now. He fired a grenade. It landed by OUREX's foot and exploded, sending a plume of dried mud upwards at Rebeka. He moved in to close the gap, trying to -
OUREX returned fire, the ground exploding in a line coming towards him as a gatling grenade launcher intended for starships was firing at him with antimatter explosions. It didn't need to be accurate with a devastating weapon. He ran, he sprinted, he bladed away, knowing he couldn't survive that. He bolted north towards the hill, diving behind it as the grenades failed to lead him. Without those phantom blades, he couldn't have made it, collapsing behind the hill and realising that his injuries sustained were starting to catch up with him.
Luca couldn't feel his left arm. He looked at it and found it held in place by the armour he was wearing, unable to flex his spasming fingers. A metal shard had pierced through the durandium visor of his helmet and across his forehead - stopped by the helmet from taking any more off. Inside his visor, blood stains splattered against the transparent metal. He couldn't see his chest or belly lying down, but his right side hurt and the armour felt like it was gone.
But Luca didn't pass out just yet. He couldn't. He begun crawling along the hill on one arm and one good leg, firing the Grapple Stunner at the curve of the hill and dragging himself along the crest of the hill for cover. Once at an acceptable place, he laid on his back and saw the horrid damage across his torso and abdomen, grabbing the rifle and popping the spent grenade out of it - it was so hard to do with just one hand - and pushing a flare in.
Bracing the stock of his rifle against the ground and pointing straight up, he fired the flare and let the rifle fall down. He had to let them know he had escaped first, while fumbling with the huge capacitor batteries to the Battery Railgun and jamming the fingers of the Grapple Stunner into them, powering something in the Stunner to keep him alive that he'd swapped out before the mission started. It was the best he could do for himself right now. He was out of the fight.
But OUREX was looking quite shaky too. It didn't have long to go and it couldn't pull all of its stops. If what Aiesu said was right, this thing could either buckle at the legs, or overheat.
![MyHeadExplodesMap8.webp MyHeadExplodesMap8.webp](https://stararmy.com/roleplay-forum/data/attachments/3/3559-cbb82bf622a19c76280654825c0939fd.jpg?hash=Rcr-uT_6Tt)