LOCATION:  CARRIER ENTERPRISE BRIEFING ROOM
TIME:  1030
DATE:  2025 - 22 - MAR

COMMANDER PRESIDING:  ADMIRAL FIVE DAYS DARKNESS
TACTICAL OFFICER:  JOURNEYS

COMBAT PERSONNEL IN ATTENDANCE: DANIEL MATTHEWS, CALLSIGN 'LUCIFER' ; JESS MARAUD, CALLSIGN 'FORTE' ; IAPETUS HYPERION, CALLSIGN 'ENDINGS' ; LYLA RAINES, CALLSIGN 'BLUE FOX' ; THE RED QUEEN, CALLSIGN 'CRIMSON' ; GABRIEL HOCKENBERRY, CALLSIGN 'GRUNT' ; PACIFICA SPACEWOLF, CALLSIGN 'TOMATO' ; MANUEL GONZALEZ, CALLSIGN 'CHUPACABRA' ; TRUDY PENLAN, CALLSIGN 'CHARMER' ; ALAN BILLINGS, CALLSIGN 'AXEHEAD'

SECRETARY:  JUNO

THIS TRANSCRIPT SEALED, LEVEL 23E:  COMBAT PERSONNEL AND UPPER COMMAND ONLY

-----

"Hello everyone, thanks for coming at such short notice.  Journeys has a report."

Admiral Five Days Darkness stood at the front behind the lectern, all four hands gripping the lectern stiffly.  He gave a nod to Journeys, a spare blond-haired man who looked like he'd just run a few miles in the deepest desert- covered in sweat, bedraggled, exhausted.

"Thanks, Admiral," Journeys took a sip of water, "As you know, The Fleet's jump drives and the Last Refuge's meteor shield have taken a pounding the last few years, so we've been trying to take an easier route through this section of space.  That means the usual crap, avoiding thick stars, black holes, comet trails, the like.  We've of course been limited by the lack of available jump locations.  The space around here just isn't thin enough for the Last Refuge to easily trans-light without putting undue stress on the reactor and Michael.  We've found a single space that'd be ideal for our next trans-light jump, but it seems the enemy's already beaten us to it.  We can try to find another location but I'm willing to bet you any defunct currency that the enemy's already scouted the other nearby spots.  We can take some extra time and energy, but every moment we sit still, Fleet Howling Dark is catching up."

Journeys gestured to the projection screen, and a starmap floated into view.

"But here's the weird part.  We've got enough time- it's within Michael's parameters- to do a microjump to another system nearby and bypass this spot.  It'll take a bit more time and reactor energy, but we can pull it off."

"Why's that weird?"  Pacifica spoke up, "It sounds like the enemy's just trying to grind us down."

"Because they haven't fortified the jump spot properly.  I mean, they have, but it's not their usual MO.  There's only one ship there, the Buchenwald.  We've tangled with ships like it before, like at Stone Place; we ran them out of the system.  But a Flagship means an Abyssal, and that means a picket line of frigates and at least two Cruiser groups escorting it.  There's... nothing there.  It's just hanging in place, squatting on the jump point."

"Trap."

"Well, yes." Journeys blinked, "Of course it is, no matter which action we take.  We can take the bait and charge in, then get slaughtered by a lurking fleet; we can rabbit away and try the microjump, only to find the enemy waiting for us en masse; we can sit still and just let them get closer.  No matter what finding the Buchenwald here is suboptimal for us and a good trade for them."

"After consulting with Journeys and Michael Florentine we've made a decision.  The Enterprise is going to jump ahead of the Last Refuge and we're going to try to take it out solo." Five Days Darkness remarked, "If they want us to come on in and hammer away with the main fleet before they spring the trap, we'll take advantage of their patience.  It's a golden opportunity:  destroy an Abyssal flagship, possibly kill an Abyssal, learn more about their ship capabilities.  The downside, of course, is that the Enterprise can't stand up to the Buchenwald in a ship-to-ship fight.  So we're going to need to take it down swiftly."
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:32, Sat 10 Sept 2016.

Daniel, clothes dirty and hair unkempt due to being called from another sojourn to the Underdecks, is nonetheless focused and alert as he regards the starmap and possible actions being laid out.

As the plan is revealed, he pans a look across the room and the various Exalts gathered before nodding. "So we'll take the Buchenwald out, jump the Last Refuge in and be off before they can spring the trap proper. We're gonna need heavy hitters to do it fast enough. I assume that's what we're here for?"
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 18:27, Sat 10 Sept 2016.

Jess' eyes seem far away as she listens carefully to the briefing, trying to get a feel for how the battle would play out. Her fingers idly smooth out a wrinkle she'd missed on the way over here.

She waits for Daniel to speak first. He had a way of making everyone feel confident. So long as we manage to get close, we can do it. We could potentially lose any number of our stronger pilots with a sortie like this, especially the less mobile ones, but it's well worth the risk. Shouldn't be a bluff, either. They wouldn't sacrifice a Buchenwald-class on the off chance of drawing the Exalts off the capitol ship.

"Swiftly sounds just about right," Lyla remarks from her seat as she leans back while trying to fish out a cigarette from her jean pockets. She finally manages to do so, and lights the cigarette.

"It is a huge risk, but as said the benefits would be immense...besides almost everything we do is a huge risk these days, so why not finally get something in return? I'm myself curious to see how talented they are in comparison to us." Lyla gives a look, mostly between Daniel and Jess.

"I never put much value in the idea of springing a trap deliberately," Gabriel said, "But there's no counterpart to blowing the wall instead of using the door. What is the timetable?"

He was one of the newest Chosen, and still had the tattoos and hairstyle of the Ilmorijo Marine he'd been until very recently.

Iapetus leaned a bit forward. "I assume we are already behind schedule, judging from the look of my brother and the urgency of this meeting." His heavy, modulated voice easily carrying over table. "Do we have a backup plan, if things turn voidways?"

"Yes, that is."  Five Days Darkness responds to Daniel, "You're not all of our heavy hitters, of course; we've got plenty of capable Exalts and Gods covering the Last Refuge right now.  But it's a big enough proportion to encourage success while still maintaining fleet security.  If they're hoping to hit the Last Refuge while we're gone, we're at 60% of our usual fighting capacity... that's not counting our reserve forces."

"I'm going to answer two things at once,"  Journeys observes.  "Gabriel and Endings, our time table is actually looking quite good.  I'm only as sweaty and haggard as I am because I've spent eight straight days in my fighter.  But our window of opportunity for planning and execution needs as much time as we can provide, hence the urgency of the meeting.  Our timetable is thus:  in two hours we jump in to the system where the Buchenwald is sitting.  That'd be a binary star system, with the Buchenwald in between two suns.  As is usual, the suns are fading, no doubt as a result of the Neverborn's activity."

"Question,"  Alan Billings raises his hand- as serious as Axehead is, he wouldn't interrupt unless he had a very important reason.  "Is the Buchenwald siphoning off the stars?"

"No." Journeys answers, "They were already in the stages of stellar decay before Ragnarok; the Neverborn's ascendancy is just speeding things up.  I saw no evidence of the Buchenwald absorbing any energy."

"Understood, commander." Axehead sits back in his seat.

"Anyway, that's the best jump point.  Buchenwald sits there.  We jump in two hours, hit the Buchenwald.  We have some specific triggers that will cause us to call off the assault."

"The ones that will concern you the most:  Death of two Exalts; major damage to Enterprise's hull; distress signal from the Last Refuge; five hours have passed."  Five Days Darkness informs them.  "If we have to call off assault, all priority will be given to protecting the Enterprise and getting out of range of the Buchenwald's weapons.  Then we'll load up the fighters and jump."

"Five hours is a long time,"  Trudy Penlan muses, "Didn't it only take three hours to rout it at Stone Place?"

"We chased it away, that doesn't mean we damaged it.  We destroyed its escorts and frigates, but didn't scratch it.  And we killed an Abyssal.  Totally different ballgame, Charmer." Five Days Darkness responds to her.

"Right. What do we know of the Buchenwald? Could we get it on the screen?"

Daniel steps closer to the screen as he glances from one Exalt to the next, gears turning in his head as if going through a mental checklist on each.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but we've got Grunt, Blue Fox and myself as boarding specialists; Forte, Tomato, Crimson, Axehead, Chupacabra and Charmer as pilots. Five Days Darkness commands the Enterprise. Endings, Journeys, what'll you do?"

He glances to the screen to see if any intel is visible yet.

"I assume our attack strategy will be everyone doing what they do best. I'll go for the mothership and breach the hull, infiltrate, seek and destroy the Abyssal commander. Grunt will accompany me or go for a different target inside. Blue Fox will infiltrate the Buchenwald as well, taking advantage of the distraction we provide to sabotage something important from the inside. The Pilots will cover me on the way to the Buchenwald and engage the fighters as well as the Buchenwald. Correct?"
This message was last edited by the player at 21:35, Sun 11 Sept 2016.

"Sabotaging their internal comms would give us an upper hand, should they have technology, instead of telepathy, for that in the first place. Same as managing to get them to lower their possible shields."

Lyla notes with a small grin as her name is mentioned. She looks around for a moment, before pulling an ashtray closer.

"Also once inside we could try to find the blueprints or layout of the ship to spare time, and to reach the heart faster. Five hours is not long at all..." her voice fades as she draws a whiff.

"If the shields were down, I'm pretty sure Shofar can shred that hulk to pieces." Jess says the first part with some strong skepticism, but the second part with certainty.

"That would be great, but issue number one is getting close. We're going to need to split our interceptors between protecting the Enterprise and swatting the flies off the bombers. Not to mention clearing the path for your Warstrider's insertion." she says politely looking at Daniel.

"Are we aiming for a boarding? Inside a Buchenwald isn't exactly a hospitable place even by the standards of the black," Gabriel said at the mention of the warstrider, "Granted, probably easier to kill one Abyssal than take on the monster around him."

"Nothing's ever easy", , Daniel answers to Gabriel. "But Abyssal fleets tend to lean on their commander more heavily than ours, so taking them out should make for a speedy victory."

He pauses, thinking. "You're not wrong, of course. There's probably a shitton of angry ghosts, Voidtech and who knows what else to be dealt with inside."

He makes an effort to stay businesslike and stifle the shadow of a smirk tugging at his lips, but the zeal is palpable in the rugged man's voice as he continues.

"I assure you, though - I'm not gonna be stuck there with them. They'll be stuck there with me."

Jess smiles at the comment. She could trust Morningstar not to screw up. He honestly seemed perfect sometimes.

"I hate to add things to our plate, but there's the other matter we may need to consider. Namely whether or nor we can manage to kick any Abyssals that show back to their ship before we have it go nuclear. If we do get the opportunity, it may require some very precise timing. We may want to make an effort to establish communications with the insertion teams."

Jess considers the matter.

"Actually, we might want to make sure we can avoid total radio silence, even if an Abyssal doesn't show up. Once we do start tearing the ship up, we may not have a whole lot of time to wait."

Iapetus nods at Journeys and turns his head towards Daniel "Should we decide on boarding, I will join you in the elimination of the Abyssal commander and other key factors inside the ship. Otherwise, I will support the pilots with heavy artillery from the Enterprise."

"By boarding the Buchenwald we'd also create a distraction as their attention would be split between inside and outside of the ship. Also Lucifer has such a reputation that it'd really force the commander to pay attention to him."

Lyla adds while puffing out a nervous cloud of smoke.

"Should we not decide to board, I'm more than happy to jump past the frontlines and sabotage the officer ships on the backside."

Five Days Darkness listens with some exasperated amusement before he finally interrupts.  "Actually, the plan isn't that at all," he informs Daniel, "Because in case you haven't noticed, the Buchenwald is huge.  Do you think the Neverborn would hesitate to scuttle their own ship if there are multiple Exalts on board, especially Pre-Exodites?  We're not going to take that much risk."  He looks between Daniel, Lyla, and Endings.  "No, here's the plan."

The projector zooms out to display the Buchenwald, a vast black tumor of a ship without any visible bridge or opening.  Still, a section of the hull is highlighted in red.

"We know that the Buchenwald's a carrier, so we're going to be trying to enter via the hanger.  That means there's going to be a fighter screen.  We can assume, as usual, that an Abyssal will have several higher ghosts or even Imperators with them.  So, first off, the basics:

Charmer, your wing is on anti-fighter duty.  That means engaging the Abyssal and Imperators where you can.

In the meantime, Axehead and his bombers will be targeting the Buchenwald itself.  Our objective here is to damage it as much as possible, but I doubt your bombers will be doing much to it's shields.  Really, your goal is to LOOK like you're doing as hard as you can.  In reality your job is to act as a kill-team for any ship that jumps in to support.

Chupacabra, you're on anti-bomber duty, as usual.  If there aren't any bombers, support Charmer or Axehead wherever possible.  Think mobile reserve.

Now, for the rest of you.  Crimson and Blue Fox, I want you two specifically harassing the Abyssal and his entourage if they make a showing.  Here's the important part:  we know they can portal back to their ships, and we want to encourage this.  You are to destroy the Abyssal before the Buchenwald goes down.  This is extremely important.  Blue Fox, your job will be a bit harder because you're on reserve duty, which I'll talk more about in a second.

In the meantime, Forte is to act as a bulldozer.  You're to pave the way for Lucifer, who'll be pulling a small shuttle with Endings and Grunt inside.  Lucifer, you need to open up the hanger or a hole in the hull.  Endings and Grunt will enter.  Endings, your job is to protect Grunt, and the two of you are going to cut your way to the Buchenwald's bridge.  Once there, I need Grunt to use the laptop we'll provide to steal their data.  If you can, set a self-destruct, engage targets of opportunity, whatever.  In the meantime, Lucifer will be assisting wherever possible- destroying turrets, cutting open the hull, whatever he can do.  If there are other capital ships that need destroying, Lucifer, do what you do best.

If an Abyssal engages once inside, use your best discretion.  Making a fighting retreat is adviseable.  You don't need to go blow-for-blow with the Abyssal; if we manage to blow the ship up he's just as dead.  Once you make it to the exit point, Lucifer may not be in a position to haul you out.  Blue Fox, that's where you come in- swoop in, snag the tow cable with the hook we've installed on your ship, and get them back to the Enterprise as fast as possible.  You may also, at your discretion, act as personal backup for Grunt and Endings if they request.  I won't be happy about it but some risks need taking.

Once extracted, I want Lucifer to back away and Forte to shred up the Buchenwald in conjunction with Axehead.

Our objectives, in order of their priority:  Survive; destroy the Buchenwald; steal their data; kill the abyssal.  Any questions?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:33, Mon 12 Sept 2016.

Daniel gains a frown as the plan is laid out.

"We're only sending two Exodites inside?" He glances between Endings and Grunt, more concerned than anything. "Not to downplay their capabilities, but if they're going to infiltrate the bridge it's quite likely they'll run into the boss, and they're going to have to overcome it or at least hold their own for a good while in order to do any of the things mentioned. And that's supposing Grunt can still fight while doing the hacker business, otherwise it's up to Endings alone. Why not use me?"

"Because we may very well need you to take out enemy cruisers if they jump in,"  Five Days Darkness responds to Daniel, "Our bombers are good but you've proven yourself extremely adept at taking them out quickly.  If we can't, they'll gang up on the Enterprise and we'll have to jump out, leaving the Buchenwald and whoever's on it behind."

Daniel crosses his arms, frustrated but unable to contest the reasoning.

"I guess you're right."

He looks to Endings and Grunt with a gruff yet faintly paternal expression, then shoots a glance at Lyla and lets out a small sigh. He didn't like the plan, but he knew he wasn't the most brilliant of tacticians. "Just don't bite off more than you can chew. Call for help in time if you start getting overwhelmed."

"I'll be closer." Jess says, trying to sound more sure of herself than she really was. "If it comes down to it, and I don't think it will with Blue Fox in charge of the extraction, I can blast my way in and provide support. Make the hole big enough and I won't even have to widen it." It was a bad idea, but Endings and Grunt weren't what she considered acceptable losses. Not to mention that Daniel was a much more valuable chess piece than her. "It'll be risky, but what isn't about this whole thing?"
This message was last edited by the player at 21:13, Mon 12 Sept 2016.

Lyla gives an assuring nod to Daniels glance, before shrugging off some ash from her cigarette.

"Trust me, I'll be there faster than you can even say my name," she notes to Grunt and Endings with certainty that shines through.

Turning his expressionless helmet-clad head to Daniel and Lyla, Endings' voice is steady "Worry not, we will be able to take care of ourselves and our duties, and should the situation turn dire, I will not hesitate to call for you to help us."
His turns his attention to Gabriel.
"What do you anticipate, Mr.Hockenberry, can you fight while stealing the data? Protection is not exactly my speciality, but I will do my best to keep you unharmed."

Feeling a little awkward watching the group speak, Jess keeps her expression neutral and glances over to Red.

The Red Queen does not look happy.  She's tapping her foot to a beat nobody but Jess could probably parse, her bright-red lips pursed in annoyance, her arms folded over her chest.  She's well aware that her part of the job is just the setup for the finish, and it's not sitting well with her.

Plus, Jess knows full well that the Red Queen has her own squadron of Dragon-Blooded sycophants to back her up.  She's got a lot of power and it's not being recognized.  It must chafe.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:04, Thu 15 Sept 2016.

"So how soon should we be out and in our suits?" Lyla asks, more in order to break up the awkward glancing around rather than out of curiousity.

"I wasn't given the callsign ironically. Any small problems fit in my bailiwick," Grunt replied, "Of the two of us you're a more valuable target. I'm going in with a laptop when I'd rather have, say, a big honking bomb but that's the nature of the mission. Once I unleash the digital dogs of war we'll have to protect the hardware because it's more fragile than either of us."

"Absolutely not," Five Days Darkness says to Jess, "Your bomber isn't fast enough and Endings and Grunt will be sitting ducks.  If Blue Fox can't do it, then it falls to the other Interceptors."

"I'm not picking up guys.  Chicks only."

"Ha ha, Chupacabra.  No, really, that means Crimson's squadron will perform the pickup if Crimson can't.  Do we understand?  I don't want five people all gunning for the Buchenwald at once, and then the Neverborn decide to just pull the trigger and blow it all up.  Am I understood?"

"Yes Sir,"  Pacifica responds.

"Crystal,"  Chupacabra sounds bored.

"Grunt, the laptop you're being given is one of a kind.  Secrets, Michael Florentine, and Smoker all worked on it.  Whatever you do, do NOT touch the Abyssal computers without at the very least touching your laptop's casing, understood?  The combat wards on it should protect you from the worst of things.

Blue Fox, we jump in two hours.  You should be combat ready by then, so it's up to each pilot to determine how much time they need.  The fighters are otherwise ready to go."
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:04, Thu 15 Sept 2016.

"Objectively that should make me feel more confident about things," Grunt said with a nod, "I assume the thing is isolated in case they've got some nasty bit of chicanery waiting. Really don't want the Core trying to decide between keeping enough memory free for consciousness or life support."
This message was last edited by the player at 14:27, Thu 15 Sept 2016.

As a tiny bit of humour is introduced to the otherwise nerve breaking meeting, Lyla's smirk widens for a moment. Otherwise she just nods in agreement and understanding. Her part didn't seem complicated, only dangerous, but that's just the right way for her.

Daniel un-crosses his arms. His demeanour is focused as he eyes the people gathered once more, noticeably lingering a bit longer on the Exodites.

"Right. Let's do this."
This message was last edited by the player at 18:48, Thu 15 Sept 2016.

"Sir?"  Pacifica raises her hand, "Come to think of it, what about me?"

"Right,"  Five Days Darkness nods soberly, "My apologies, Tomato, I forgot.  Everyone, Tomato here is explicitly on reserve to hang around the Enterprise.  It'll be her job to stop anything from getting too close, say by crashing into our hangar."

"Got it."  She nods.

Jess nods respectfully to Five Days Darkness as he denies her offer. A weight lifts off, and she does her best to hide her relief. This wasn't the sort of thing Red Queen would volunteer for, but now that she'd been ordered, Jess knew she'd give it her all. Especially if she thought she was swiping the assignment from her rival.

"Yeah." she says after Lucifer finishes. It's far past time we gave them another broken nose.

Iapetus leaned back and stayed quiet for a while after Grunt's notion of differing values, but then looks at Jess after her comment on breaking a nose.
"And should we be successful, take their lunch money?"

"More like their diary", Daniel comments with a deadpan expression. "Which we'll use to find their secrets and destroy them."

He wasn't the best at lighthearted banter.

Jess allows herself a small smile upon seeing the others run with her metaphor. She does supress the giggle she nearly lets out hearing Lucifer talk about stealing diaries, though.

"Both the Plague Doctors and Machina Guild would give their sack for the data that we might aquire today. Now I feel like I'm just the setup for rhe real payoff." she says, flashing a grin. "Of course, we all know how the public like their flashy explosions."
This message was last edited by the player at 18:11, Fri 16 Sept 2016.

The hangar is packed... in a sense.

There's only about 55 or so ships in the hangar, lining up at the exit:  interceptors first, bombers last.  The wings of all the ships are folded up to make more space.  Under the hollows made by the ships the crews are sitting, talking to each other, performing maintenance checks, making out with pilots, or scurrying around loading the weapons systems.

Most pilots have their own rituals.  Axehead's group goes over battle strategy over and over, reviewing the specs of enemy ships and patterns.  Charmer's group mostly plays cards for the ubiquitous cameras.

Chupacabra's apparently involves fried chicken wings.  He can be found with 14 of his fellow pilots under the wing of his interceptor, Cuauhipiltin, decorated prominently with an eagle eating a snake while perched on a cactus.

"Hey, anyone who wants some come over here!" Chupacabra calls out over the din, sitting on the floor with his squadron leaders.  "Everyone, gather around.  Drumsticks and flats for everyone but leave one for the survivor with the biggest kill count!"

The Red Queen is already in her ship, playing a soft instrumental beat over her loudspeakers.  Her four dragon-blooded pilots are acting as her crew, lovingly tending to their goddess's ship's every need.

At the very back of the hangar is a small ship labeled the Odysseus.  This little shuttle is obviously where Grunt and Endings are supposed to go.  To their (probable) horror they may note that there's no guns and the damn thing looks like it's made of tissue paper.  It's a good thing that Endings' armor doubles as a spacesuit; Grunt will definitely want a thicker suit for himself, because the first time that thing gets shot it'll vent what little atmosphere it has.

Daniel has managed to get a shower during prep time, but that seems to be about it. He shows up in the hangar later than most, still dressed in regular clothing. There is no pit crew bustling over his ship - largely because there's no ship to be found.

He walks through the hangar without hurry, stopping here and there to bless someone's weaponry or personal memento for protection and offering rousing, if zealous, words of encouragement to those whose nerves seem to be getting the better of them.

As he's passing by Chupacabra's fried chicken station he halts, the greasy smell reminding him that he's once again forgone eating for quite some time. He stops to grab a handful of wings and starts consuming them after a quick thank you.

As he eats, he notices the Odysseus. There's a slight pause in his chewing before he resumes, shaking his head and sighing.
This message was last edited by the player at 11:30, Sat 17 Sept 2016.

"I don't need a full suit, I can generate enough air to keep myself going if I have to," Grunt said when he saw the shuttle, "But I'm not flying in that thing without something to isolate me from vacuum if a rivet pops."

Lyla follows her crew finishing the check up's on her Benisuzume, a name which was given by one of the crew members kids after an anime she watched. Apparently she is as fast as the said figure. The name always amuses Lyla.

Her nerves are so far not getting to her. She takes refuge in the sight of people still acting normal and talking with each other and being all buddy. It's something that one can remind herself when the panic starts to settle in. They're there for the people.

She does take part in Chupacabra's chicken wing ritual, while scribbling a note of her own. Or rather a few of them. She flops down on the floor near her interceptor, and folds the notes neatly, after which she pulls out her lighter and burns them. No good bye letters or testaments, she'd come back for sure.

There was no visual ritual for Jess Maraud. She walked around, delivering niceties, being friendly, eating a bit of the fried chicken, chatting a bit with Lyla, and spending some extra time with Axhead's group, going over the battle in a bit more detail. She listened to each and every one of them, getting a feel for where their hearts were in the battle, even lingering near enough to Red Queen to get a feel for the rhythm that suited her mindset on that particular day. Jess needed to understand the performance she was about to take part in, and most importantly, her place in it. There was a music to each battle that she felt for. Heck, she was going to release it as a track after everything was over.

Once she got the beat down, she did the next part, putting on her brightest, warmest smile as she mentally ran through her long list of failures, both large and small, burying them one by one in the deepest parts of her mind. Jess let Sol's power flow into that smile, reinforcing the Idea she'd worked so hard to manufacture. She couldn't win the battle, but she knew that Jess could. She ponders getting a wing of her own. Time for that later.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:01, Sat 17 Sept 2016.

In the hangar, Iapetus heads directly to the Odysseus and starts inspecting it. After a few moments of checking that the vessel is as good as it can be, he seeks a quiet spot near it, sits down and does a systems check to his own armor and weapons, laying his nano-weave cloak and sword to the ground. When finally content, he dons his cloak and sheaths his sword and remains sitting in the relatively quiet spot alone.

Grunt is duly brought an armored suit that'll protect him from the worst of vacuum.  He's still given air, just in case; by now they'd all learned to go ahead with triple redundancy.  The Odysseus is hooked up to a heavy tow cable, the better for Lucifer to grab once he's ready to catapult out of the hangar.

"HEAR NOW.  HEAR NOW.  FIFTEEN MINUTES TO JUMP.  PILOTS, IN YOUR CRAFT!  HEAR NOW, HEAR NOW!  FIFTEEN MINUTES TO JUMP!"

The Red Queen's music starts to rise over the hubbub of the hangar.

"All flights, all flights, radio check!  Radio check!"  Chupacabra calls out. "Alpha Wing, Interceptors, check in!  This is Chupacabra, checking in!"

"Peregrine 2, check."  "Peregrine 3, check big daddy!"  "Peregrine 4, we read."  "Peregrine 5, ready."  "Kestrel Leader, here."  "Kestrel 2, engines hot."  "Kestrel 3, love you mom."  "Kestrel 4, officially stoked to fly with Blue Fox."  "Kestrel 5, all set."  "Gyrfalcon Leader, comms open."  "Gyrfalcon 2, ready for that chicken."  "Gyrfalcon 3, let's smoke some Marlboros."  "Gyrfalcon 4, prep set lock."  "Gyrfalcon 5, roger dodger."

"This is Crimson.  Crimson Wing, report in." The Red Queen has turned down her music for the comm check.

"Queensguard 1, Fire reporting."  "Queensguard 2, Earth reporting."  "Queensguard 3, Air reporting." "Queensguard 4, Water reporting."  "Queensguard 5, Wood reporting."

"Radio check.  Alpha Wing, Fighters, check in!"  Charmer takes the comm, "This is Charmer, checking in!"

"Hearts 2, check."  "Hearts 3, check."  "Hearts 4, check."  "Hearts 5, let's do this!"  "Clubs Leader here.  Keep it professional, Clubs."  "Clubs 2, check."  "Clubs 3, check."  "Clubs 4, check." "Clubs 5, check."  "Diamond Leader reporting."  "Diamond 2, got your back."  "Diamond 3, you're in good hands."  "Diamond 4, Lucifer, be with us."  "Diamond 5, comm open."

"Radio check.  Alpha Wing, Bombers, check in."  Axehead's voice is cool and emotionless, "This is Axehead.  All bombers, report in."

"Glaive 2, reporting."  "Glaive 3, accounted for."  "Glaive 4, ready to light the fire."  "Glaive 5, weapons hot."  "Halberd Leader, I read."  "Halberd 2, ready to crack some skulls."  "Halberd 3, for my family."  "Halberd 4, happy to have your back Forte."  "Halberd 5, we won't let you down."  "Billhook Leader, locked and loaded."  "Billhook 2, dinner tonight at my place."  "Billhook 3, DEUS FUCKING VULT."  "Billhook 4, for Luna." "Billhook 5, let's take us down a flag ship."

"Tomato reporting.  Comms are coming in crystal clear.  Journeys reports 5 minutes to jump.  Repeat, 5 minutes to jump!"  Pacifica's voice can only barely be heard over all the Essence engines revving.

Grunt suited up and took his place in the shuttle, laptop resting across his knees as he buckled in. He ran the pre-jump checks with the care and thoroughness of someone who only recently was given the task.

Hearing the announcement, Daniel quickly finishes his meal and makes his way toward the Odysseus at a brisk pace while wiping his hands clean. Step by step his expression, while intense even at rest, deepens into a menacing focus.

Finally he stands ahead of the Odysseus and takes a deep breath, closing his eyes. Slowly he widens and lowers his stance, driving his foot to the ground with a resounding thud. The air around him starts rippling as that of the desert.

"Hear me, Gods of the Enterprise! Hear me, Elementals of Steel and thunder! Lucifer calls for his panoply!"

An invisible force hoists Daniel upwards as three magnificent pairs of platinum wings, their feathers stained with crimson, erupt from his back. A blazing golden crown manifests a foot above his brow, shining bright enough to blind those caught unaware and painting the hangar in the brilliant hues of the midday sun. His hands go through complicated mudras at a rapid pace, tracing shining symbols in the air. His voice gains an echo as it rises in volume, reverberating through the hangar as the metal and hardware near him starts trembling violently.

"Drape the belt of truth around my waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place. Fit my feet with readiness, bid me take up the shield of faith, with which to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the Evil Ones. Grant me the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is My Word. Bring me Longinus!"

A swirl of energy and debris surrounds the floating figure. With each word, more hunks of metal materialize and interlock with each other, gradually forming giant pieces of armor that take the shape of a Warstrider around him, containing the blaze of Lucifer's Anima Banner within.

Finally the maelstrom of steel and radiance settles and a bulky Warstrider stands where mere moments ago there was only a man. A deep voice crackles into being through the comms.

"The Morning Star rises. Lucifer is with you."

Jess dramatically races to Shofar, the cockpit opening automatically at her approach as she feels the war god's aura of power mingle with her own. It's comfortable here, every part of the seat and gear wrapping intimately around her, every digital display feeling like just another natural part of her eyes.

"Forte reporting. Radio is good. Let's put fear back in the dead." she says as Shofar's blue eye opens to peer back at her. The ship starts up track (https://youtu.be/-n6msbewXQg), the guns resonating with the beat as they warm up. She keeps it low during the call check as well, but lets it gradually build to a rumble.

She listens to Lucifer's speech, holding in her power, and whispers to the loyal god. "Once more, my love, to Jericho."

Patching her comms into the general channel for the Last Refuge, Jess addresses any portion of the populace that happens to be listening.

"Today we ride into the stars to carry your wishes to your foes, to strike a blow against them that they will never forget. Your voices are not unheard. Your will is not without purchase! They have driven us so far from our home, but today we strike back. Pray! Pray, and we will carry your wrath with us into this dark place, leaving together victorious against the wretched things that have hunted us!"

She takes a deep breath and borrows from Daniel's example.

"May those who die be remembered! May those who live be Exalted! Glory to the Living Fleet!"

There were others have a flare for drama, Lyla is quite the opposite. She thanks ger crew and calmly jumps into Benisuzume. The pitch black cockpit is lit up in shades of blue as she pours herself into the interceptor and the different buttons light up.

"Blue Fox here, hearing you loud and clear. Maybe too loud," she jests accompanied by a rare chuckle. "Kestrel 4, drinks are on me after this."

She listens to the epic monologues given by her comrades, and silently nods in agreement. Slowly while listening she lets her essence flow freely, shadows flickering around the ship like flames. Eventually it's her turn to crowd the comms with an epic speech that would bring hope and joy to all, and inflame their hearts with courage and certainty.

She smirks and lights a cigarette. The last one for this trip.
"Once this is all done, it'll be the party of the century. Start getting prepared," her tone is playful."Race you all there!"

The dramatics finished, Jess sends a message through the bomber squad's private channel. "Copy that, Halberd 4, trusting you to defend my rear."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:02, Sat 17 Sept 2016.

Iapetus settles in the Odysseus and follows the comms chatter trough the devices in his helmet.
"This is Odysseus, Endings and Grunt ready for departure, radio loud and clear."
After the speeches of Lucifer and Jess, Iapetus' voice rises in the comms, his modulated voice slightly less menacing than normally, and the frame of Odysseus took a slight purple hue.
"There once was a maiden,
safeguarding our world.
The world was from us taken,
the takers with laughter curled.
But today to those, a message needs sending:
Laugh as you will, there's always an ending."

Map here:  https://app.roll20.net/join/1481183/WuFMSg  Please use RPOL for rolls.  Also note that multiple ships can fit on the same zone.

"Man, Forte, check your prejudice before I wreck you with this!"  Chupacabra jokes over the public comm, "Don't be jinxing us!"

"HEAR THIS, HEAR THIS!  JUMP IN FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE---"

And then they jump.  The crews have long since evacuated and the hangar essence-fields are active, keeping in the air.  The moment they see stars the interceptors take off, then the fighters, then the bombers, with Lucifer and his cargo catapulted out last.

They see the Buchenwald ahead of them, and all of a sudden little black points that occlude the stars boil out of every point of the flagship.  At first they look like larger ships, but then they realize they're swarms of smaller fighters.

"Sensors are reading an Abyssal with three Imperators leading 11, repeat, 11 wings of Marlboro-class fighters-"  Journeys radios, which is an unnervingly large amount of the things, about 660 ships; "- separated into three major flight groups and one minor.  Major flight Groups are designated Adder, Viper, Cobra.  Minor is attached to the Abyssal and designated Group Mamba.  Buchenwald is charging up weapons."

"What's that saying about the valley of death, pilots!?"  Chupacabra calls out via his radio.

"We will fear no evil!"  His squadrons chant back.

"Why's that, pilots?!"

"WE ALREADY OUTRAN EVIL'S FAT ASS!"
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:23, Sun 18 Sept 2016.

((Initiative roll: 9, 8, 8, 7, 7, 7, 4 & 3
using Vengeful Titan w/ Longinus (Ranged/Massive)
1 Chi to reduce Piloting penalties by 5
1 Metal Chi on Grand Horse Tramples Rice (CG+15)
Float 7-7-7 to River
Cover Ground: 53 (28+10+15)
Initiative: 19 (19+10-10)
))

While the Longinus hurtles forward in the middle of the formation with the Odysseus in tow, Lucifer surveys the opposition as it blots the stars from view ahead of them.

A smirk can be heard in his voice. "Soon enough it'll be them running."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:13, Mon 19 Sept 2016.

((Initiative roll: 10, 10, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4 & 4
Using Murderous Shadows (pilot) w/ Benisuzume (unarmed+saber)
Cover Ground: 67(17+15+5+10+20)
Ghostly presence: 54 (24+20+10)
FoB: 40(15+15+10) /2 chi
Initiative: 53 (18+25+10)
Float 10-10 to river
))

While the enemy is keen on blotting out the stars, Benisuzume more or less blends in with them. The whole ship seems to teem with energy, ready to burst out into action when need be.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:52, Mon 19 Sept 2016.

((Initiative roll: 7, 4, 4, 3, 3, 2, 2 & 2
Using Lead Arrow Rain (pilot) w/ Shofar (Ranged/Massive)
Activating Lightfoot for 2 normal Chi
Cover Ground: 44 (24+15+10+10-15)
Mark Your Target [Navarino]: 43 (23+10+10)
Initiative: 17 (17+10-10)
Float 2-2-2 to River
Activating
))

Jess grins at the banter as she surveys the battlefield. The Dresden is a good target, but it's going to take a bit of work to wear down. No, the Navarino was the better ship to engage with. She didn't need to do too much damage yet, though. Just needed to mark it.

((Everyone, for NPC attacks and all that, check here:  https://docs.google.com/docume...2_CjNra3_29qP4Q/edit  this is to avoid WALL OF TEXT))


The action starts faster than they expect.

All the Neverborn start burning right for the Enterprise, some faster than others; they move in a giant horde, uncaring about trivialities like 'formations' or 'good order'.  But the Abyssal at the front?  First he's there, then he's GONE.

Then he's in their midst.  The interceptor shadowweaves into the space between Lucifer, the Odysseus, Axehead, and Glaive Squadron.  The weapons charge and it opens fire on Longinus, peppering it with shots of black necromantic energy.  Though the Longinus is well armored, the shots are extremely heavy, robbing Longinus of movement.  Lucifer's stuck!

Lucifer gets a defense, then Lyla's got the next action.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:37, Mon 19 Sept 2016.

((Defense roll: 10, 9, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5 & 5
1 Metal Chi on Swinging Bell Defense
Block: 69 vs 67 (29 Roll +20 External/Internal +10 Action bonus +10 Longinus) ))

Lucifer crosses his arms to block the incoming barrage. The armored shell of the Longinus glows golden amid the black bolts, and as the salvo ends the Longinus stands unscathed - although stuck from the attack's unnatural gravity.

"Ngh! You're a sneaky bastard, I'll give you that. But you'll have to do better to hurt me."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:13, Mon 19 Sept 2016.

((Attack roll: 10, 9, 6, 6, 5, 4, 3 & 2
Reincarnating nine brothers 3 chi + 1 solar chi
Lashing Flurry 3 chi

All are done against Abyssal Navarino

Strike: 79(19+25+25+10) better blocked
Secondary Strike: 65(Flowed 30+25+10) better blocked
Burn: 46(26+10+10)
Disrupt strike, using stealth: 45(15+20+10)
))

"Oh come on, what a bunch of cheaters.." Lyla mumbles with a tone of acceptance, as it all was kinda expected.

As the Odysseys mission is interupted rather too early, and Longinus stuck, she decides to take the harassing close and personal as well. Benisuzumes movement can be noticed by the shine of the stars suddenly settling right and distorting in another place. The cutters seem to appear from pitch black space, as the attacking interceptor is caught by surprise from behind.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:45, Mon 19 Sept 2016.

((Attack roll: 10, 9, 9, 8, 6, 5, 3 & 1
1 Metal Chi, 1 Solar Chi on Black Tigers Hunting
1 Metal Chi, 3 Chi on Iron Buddha's Disapproval
2 Chi on Pinning Shot
Flood 7 River to ignore Armor, reduce max Chi Aura by 1
Flood 7 to extend attack to Buchenwald

Strike: 89 (29 Roll +20 External +20 Internal +10 AB +10 Longinus). Better dodged (-10 from Massive). ))

Seeing the encroaching Abyssal getting torn to shreds by his comrades, Lucifer turns his attention away from the assailant and toward the titanic capitol ship in the distance. That was his mission, after all.

"Let's see what you're made of, then."

A scorching glow gathers in the palm of the Longinus, gaining intensity until for a moment it seems there's a new Sun in the middle of the battlefield. In the next instant the energy is released as a brilliant, massive projectile streaking toward the Buchenwald.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:06, Tue 20 Sept 2016.

The Abyssal jukes and weaves as Blue Fox comes in after it, expending a ludicrous amount of Essence to try to avoid her shots.  All of this is for naught- he takes a few well-placed shots to the engines, causing his interceptor to sputter.  Tomato opens up from afar with a superlative display of skill with her twin laser cannons, winging the abyssal's reactor.

Then Crimson swoops in with Throne.  The Infernal places two perfect shots- one up the tailpipe, another an explosive bolt of green fire to the cockpit.  The Abyssal fighter explodes, peppering the area with shrapnel, but not before shimmering pitch-black.  The Abyssal has been returned to the Buchenwald.

"Excellent shot, Crimson!  That's a confirmed kill for Crimson, with an assist to Blue Fox and Tomato,"  Five Days Darkness radios out.

Then, his forward motion stymied, Lucifer opens fire on the Buchenwald.  The Abyssal flagship's shields shimmer and it vents a ludicrous amount of Abyssal energy through its dorsal vents.  The combination of its shields and movement is enough for Lucifer's shot to merely blow a piece of exterior armor plating off.  The flagship is still in excellent condition.

"Targeting the Stalingrad,"  Five Days Darkness announces.  A flurry of long-distance shots later and the Imperator Stalingrad is floundering, trying just to stay functional.  The Enterprise even manages a solid hit or two.

Then the Buchenwald opens fire.  All that energy it spent avoiding Lucifer's attack does them quite a bit of good.  The Supermassive Void Cannon only clips the Enterprise's shields instead of overpowers them.  A shot of the Buchenwald's many cannons, aimed angrily at Crimson's ship in retaliation, is easily dodged.  But the cascade of the many micromissiles aren't so easily discounted.  Axehead and Crimson are quite capable, avoiding the missiles entirely, but Squadrons Gyrfalcon, Kestrel, and Glaive are all tagged by the micromissiles- and some come right for Blue Fox and Lucifer!

"AGGH!"  Glaive 4's death cry echoes through the comms.

"NO GOD N-" Kestrel 3's pleas are cut short.

"I'M HIT!  I'M HIT!" Are the last things they hear from Gyrfalcon 2.

Lucifer, Lyla, make a Defense roll vs difficulty 43.  Also go ahead, Forte.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:15, Tue 20 Sept 2016.

(( Defense roll: 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 3, 2 & 1
Block: 47 (Flowed 27 +10AB +10 Longinus) ))

Frustrated by scoring no more than a glancing blow at the Buchenwald, Lucifer angrily swats away the missiles headed for him like flies.

"I'm stalled! Can someone give me a boost?"
This message was last edited by the player at 23:35, Tue 20 Sept 2016.

Grunt kept his eyes on the display. The vessel he shared with the Sidereal didn't have anything to say in these ship to ship battles. So instead he tracked the less impressive fighters. They'd be the problem when it came time to get off the Buchenwald after all. Assuming things went well enough to get that far.

(Init, Blossom Harvest and Unarmed. Assume the Odysseus can't take combat actions
10, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6 & 2
Tactics: Assessment: Quality: Adders (not sure if you want them as a group or individual): 20 + 15 + 10 = 45, will take Interesting Times if offered)

((Defense roll: 9, 6, 6, 5, 5, 3, 3 & 3
Dodge 63(33+10+10+10)

Initiative roll: 10, 9, 9, 8, 7, 6, 6 & 1
Using Murderous Shadows (pilot) w/ Benisuzume (unarmed+saber)
Light Diffused by Clouds 2 chi
Cover Ground: 68(18+15+5+10+20)
Ride Wave to give Lucifer a boost: 49 (29+10+10)
Ghostly presence: 56 (26+20+10)
FoB: 42(17+15+10) /2 chi
Initiative: 53(18+25+10)
))

There is a small barely audible Hpmh to be heard in the radios after the declaration of who did the kill, before Lyla radios properly in response:"Lucifer, I can give you a ride if you just tag along."

Lyla doesn't even seem to give a second thought to the missiles, the dodging seems effortless.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:22, Wed 21 Sept 2016.

((Posting init for next round in advance 'cause I'm going to sleep.
Initiative roll: 10, 8, 6, 6, 5, 4, 3 & 3
using Blue Flame Dragon w/ Longinus (Unarmed)
1 Chi to reduce Piloting penalties by 5
Float 3-3 to River
Waning Metal Protection Spell: 51 (26+15+10)
FoB: 40 (15+15+10) / 2 Chi
Initiative: 38 (18+20+10-10) ))

After the massive attack, the Longinus spouts jets of scalding hot gas from its many heatsinks to mitigate the load on its systems as Lucifer centers himself and starts pooling his spent energy back together.

"Thank you, Blue Fox", he responds as he grasps for the tow cable. "Odysseus, grab on to something. We're gonna go fast."

((Attack roll: 10, 10, 10, 10, 9, 7, 7 & 1
4 Chi on Glowing Cloud of Heaven
1 Wood Chi on Act Without Resistance
Flood 2 from river to extend attack to Imperator Navarino

Strike: 75(40+20+5+10) better blocked
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from being Marked
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from GCoH
Damage: 40 (30 Base + 10 AWR)
Interesting Times requested.
Secondary Strike: 57(27+20+10) better blocked
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from being Marked
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from GCoH
Damage: 30

))

The Abyssal halting their advance worried Jess. They couldn't suffer any more delays in getting Lucifer to the Buchenwald. There was also the matter of the Odysseus being intercepted. The remaining Navarimo was also a danger to the mortals overall. Perhaps its existence could be remedied.

Maintaining her lock, Jess accelerates Shofar forward. The colorful, luminescent ship standing out as nearly absurd next to the other battle hardened combat vehicles. The dancing lights begin to intensify as she lets her power flow out of her. Harmless lasers begin to paint the enemy ship in the same curious glow.

The sound system plays its music directly into the Imperator's ship.

"When will the base drop? When will the base drop?"

Jess increases the beat of the music, taking her sweet time to make everything perfect. She watches the various exploits of her peers before her, feels amused at the site of Lucifer getting dragged along by Blue Fox,

"When will the base drop? When will the base drop?"

The rhythm of the battle felt good so far. There was danger, but it seemed manageable. Suddenly... a skip in the track as the great ship fired. Good people died. Sacrifices for some greater cause she was a part of. Build up. Tension. Anticipation.

Jess flips the right switches and hits the big red button. A beautiful rainbow of energy pours out of Shofar's cannons, filling every place of retreat.

"GET TURNED UP TO DEATH!"
This message was last edited by the player at 09:13, Wed 21 Sept 2016.

Interesting Times accepted.  Jess gets a point of Cultivation for the kill.

The Imperator Navarino pilot starts noticeably panicking once the music turns on, rocketing right for Forte in obvious fright.  This does it no good.  Forte positively obliterates the pilot, the engines exploding in psychedelic light.  The cockpit of the Navarino rockets forward before also exploding into a cloud of metal.

Chupacabra guns his interceptor forward, his weapons too short-ranged to use effectively.

The Stalingrad briefly engages Charmer, but after the Enterprise has spent time messing with it, the Stalingrad can't hope to hit the agile mortal.  "You're going to have to try harder than that, scumbag!"

The Dresden, on the other hand, is frighteningly competent.  It targets Peregine Squadron instead of the Enterprise, which is very unusual.  The bomber is equipped with Piranha Missiles, ones very similar to those used by the Buchenwald.  They find their mark, ripping through Chupacabra's lead squadron.

"SHIT-"  Peregrine 2 calls out before his destruction.

"HELP ME I CAN'T SHAKE THE LOCK-"  Peregrine 3 calls out before she's blown to pieces.

"My squadrons are taking a beating!"  Chupacabra shouts with rage.

"This is Axehead, opening fire on Buchenwald."  The bomber pilot calmly announces, "I have a targeting solution."

"Axehead, this is Billhook 1, we have no solid lock."

"Not a problem, just get closer.  Fire one."  The missile streaks towards the Buchenwald.  The vast flagship doesn't even bother raising the shield, but Axehead's missile still leaves a visible scar but hasn't done more than dent plate.  "Hit confirmed, no damage."

With that the other fighters close, the distance still too far for simple mortals or unwilling ghosts to manage easy hits, though they fire anyway in a pointless show of aggression.

Grunt, the enemy fighters just have a single mission:  get close, open fire.  They're not complicated at all.  At least, they shouldn't be.  They're moving awfully fast and chaotic even for Tripoli-class fighters.  None of them are breaking off towards targets, instead clustering as they push towards the Enterprise.

As they move closer, a piece of shrapnel ricochets off the Odysseus.  There's a bowel-clenching moment where Grunt and Endings expect to hear air rushing out of the helpless ship, but then... nothing.

That is, until they feel the air grow an unnatural deathly cold.

Grunt and Endings, roll Init.  Wu Wei to sense what's going on is very helpful here.  You have Forte to thank for this one...
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:18, Wed 21 Sept 2016.

((Initiative 9, 7, 6, 5&5, 4, 3.
White and Black stones, Shield and Saber
Initiative 24(19+5)
Wu Wei 35(25+10)
))

As the unnatural feeling creeps in, Iapetus rises from his seat, putting a hand to his sword while keeping his other hand on railing, preparing for the rough ride Lucifer mentioned. He looks at Grunt briefly before trying to locate the source of that armor penetrating cold.
"Make sure you have oxygen, Grunt."
"Lucifer, this is Endings, we might have an intruder onboard."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:00, Thu 22 Sept 2016.

"I made sure of that before I let them get me on this thing," Grunt said as he unstrapped himself from the seat and stood to examine the small shuttle's interior. The laptop stayed under one arm.

((Init: 8, 7, 7, 6, 4, 3 & 2
Unarmed in Blossom Harvest
Speed: 18 + 10 = 28
Wu Wei: 27 + 10 = 37))

((Posting initiative
Initiative roll: 10, 9, 9, 9, 5, 5, 2 & 2
using Lead Arrow Rain w/ Shofar (Ranged + Massive)
1 Chi (Left-Right Ren Stroke) to reduce Cover Ground penalties by 10
2 Wood Chi + 6 Chi (Five Elements Supreme Combination) for +15 to Strike, Damage, and Block
Marking [Buchenwald] 59 (39+10+10)
Focus on Breath 52 (22+20+10)
Cover Ground 50 (25+15+10)
Initiative: 20 (10+20+10-10) ))

The Navarino was out, and that warmed her heart, but the mortals were taking bad losses. It was time to get the attention of the other ships. Give them a target they couldn't ignore.

Thinking fondly of the panicked maneuvering her target had made before exploding, Jess works the Imperator's wild movements into the next part of the song, humming the tune to herself as she allows Shofar to pull more and more energy from her. Jess takes a moment to focus on her breathing as she grows a bit weaker, allowing her mask of confidence to steady her.

The air inside her ship begins to smell sweet, like succulent fruit, as the elemental power of Wood is infused into the reactor. The ship itself hummed with energy, the hypnotic lights beginning to increase in speed as she accelerates further.

"Locking onto target."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:47, Thu 22 Sept 2016.

Initiative is up:
https://docs.google.com/docume...eMAp7tkwWwkJsBc/edit

Lyla successfully scoops Lucifer up, the massive machine gripping the trailing hook.

"All pilots, the Buchenwald is opening the hull!"  Five Days Darkness calls out.  Indeed, the Buchenwald briefly opens its hull to extrude what looks like the unholy cross between an upside-down crucifix, a radar dish, and a skull.  It seems pointed at the fighters and glows with more of that horrific necromantic energy.

Meanwhile, inside the Odysseus, both Endings and Grunt are sufficiently in-tune with the spiritual nature of their Exaltation to notice the ghost that's invaded their ship.  They're perfectly oriented and ready to move once the ghost materalizes right by the airlock.  The Imperator is dressed like a fighter pilot that's been chewed to pieces by an enemy's bullets, the corpus falling ragged off of translucent bones.  They can see a glowing green pulsing where the heart should be, no doubt a tiny fragment of Malfeas.

It was obviously depending on stealth to try to crack open the airlock.  The Imperator's not lucky enough for that.

(Attack: 9, 8, 5, 3, 2, 1 & 1
Strike: 21 + 5 + 10 = 36)

"I really don't have the patience for this," Grunt said as he closed with the rotted pilot and cracked across the jaw with one fist, "Endings, don't suppose you have an exorcism handy?"

((Lyla delays until there'll be an enemy within 8 zones of Lucifer))

"Requesting for cover if possible, Blue Fox towing Lucifer and the Odysseys to the Buchenwald," Lyla radios.

She stays put waiting for the green light as well as a better opportunity.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:53, Thu 22 Sept 2016.

((Lucifer delays until Lyla completes her Cover Ground.))

Lucifer regards the unholy symbol jutting from the Buchenwald with a sneer, painfully aware his overloaded weapon systems can't reach it for the moment.

"I've got no shot from here," Tomato comms everyone.

"I'm on it."  Crimson responds with a note of exaltation in her voice.  She lines up her shot, braving the storm of fire from the incoming fighters... she focuses... and she blows off only a portion of the obscene artifact.  It radiates out towards the Neverborn fighters once, suffusing them in a glow the color of a livid bruise, but then explodes.  "Got it!"

"Good work, Crimson!  Opening fire on the Stalingrad!"  The Enterprise blasts with all of its guns, tagging the maneuverable fighter once more, keeping it on the ropes.

The Buchenwald's gun ports swivel.  The massive beam cannon blasts through the Enterprise's shields, but it's surrounded at the last minute by Five Days Darkness's personal essence shield surrounding the ship.  "Not today."

But the others aren't so lucky.  The micromissiles and supplementary cannons on the Buchenwald focus on the interceptors and Axehead.  Axehead grunts over the comm as he takes a hit, but Peregrine Squadron takes the brunt.

"BRACE FOR IMPACT-"  Peregrine 4 manages to say just before he's taken apart.

"RUN!  RUN FOR IT-"  Peregrine 5's nerves crack and then the comm shuts off.

"DON'T BUNCH UP!  DON'T BUNCH!"  Kestrel 4 tries to warn everyone just before the Buchenwald claims his life.

"PEELING OFF-"  Gyrfalcon 5 tries to avoid the missiles but he too falls prey.

"We've lost Peregrine Squadron," Five Days Darkness says soberly.

---

Meanwhile, inside the Odysseus, the Imperator stumbles out of the way as Grunt takes his swing.  It cracks against glassy bone but fails to really stagger the ghost.

((Attack roll: 9, 9, 9, 9, 9, 7, 7 & 6
4 Chi on Glowing Cloud of Heaven
Flood 2 from river to extend attack to Buchenwald
Flood 2 from river to ignore armor of Buchenwald
Strike: 109 (59 roll+ 20 base +15 Internal+ 5 Marked+ 10 Action Bonus) better Dodged
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from being Marked
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from GCoH
Damage: 45 (30 Base + 15 FESC)
Secondary Strike: 77 (27 roll+ 20 base +15 Internal+ 5 Marked+ 10 Action Bonus) better Dodged
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from being Marked
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from GcoH
Damage: 45 (30 Base + 15 FESC)

The screams shook Jess, so much so that she felt her own heart waver. This was a place of death, full of competent, terrifying warriors that weren't playing games or pretending. People's lives were on the line, and she- Forte shakes off the voices and accelerates forward, through the debris field, her stomach getting sicker as she hears the unmistakable sound of a hopefully dead body thud against Shofar's hull.

As she fires the thrusters, Forte opens up a channel, a focused broadcast to the Buchenwald over multiple frequencies. "The name is Jess Maraud. I know you've heard of me. I'm in the glowing eyesore!" she yells before softly apologizing to Shofar. "You keep killing my friends, and I'm feeling awful neglected."

A good sized section of the Buchenwald begins to be painted in soft, pink light, shrinking as she approaches. "I know you don't think I'm worth the ammo, so I'm going to go ahead and change your mind." She hadn't really meant to use this much energy so early, but people were dying too quickly. People she liked. People who believed she was more than she was.

As the glow of light condenses to a single point, Jess lets her power flow into her fingertips, the old equipment from her days as a much simpler DJ feeling comfortable to her hands. Forte touches the old vinyl records, and the light on the Buchenwald is joined by many more. The booming sound system grows in strength. She lets it feed through the communication lines to the enemy ship.

"It's only just begun | It's the beat of the sun"

Jess crashes her bomber into the enemy ranks as she continues charging the attack.

"Each brilliant little beam | Oh they'll get you on the run"

She grows faint as the energy begins to leave her, keeping her eyes on the target as best she can.

"You can try, You can fight, but you can't outrun the light"

"All that's left for you to do is die."

Shofar's voice audibly roars in the vacuum of space, and light surges forward towards the Buchenwald.
This message was last edited by the player at 08:47, Fri 23 Sept 2016.

"Copy that, Endings", Lucifer responds to the Sidereal over the comms. "Probably a ghost of some sort. Can you handle it?"

Forte lines up her shot.  The Buchenwald's Void Prana shield makes the ship glisten like an impenetrable black egg.  If it receives her transmission, it doesn't respond.  Her torpedoes streak out and impact the shield, cracking it wide open and buckling a portion of the hull.

Chupacabra lets out a string of profanities as he closes with the Stalingrad Imperator, streaking in close to fire his short-range chainguns on the ship.  It jinks and weaves and manages to avoid anything more than being clipped.  This gives Charmer a chance to swoop in and deliver more covering fire, busting some holes in the fighter's chassis.

The Stalingrad in turn ignores everyone firing on it.  Instead it focuses on Kestrel Squadron, already damaged from the attacks levied against it.  It lets loose a flurry of gatling gun fire that chews Kestrel Squadron apart, destroying the entirety of the squadron.

"Taking too much..."  Kestrel Leader whispers before comm failure.

"WHY GOD?!"  Kestrel 2 screams.

"FUCK-"  Kestrel 5 is cut short.

"We've lost Kestrel Squadron."  Five Days Darkness announces.

"This is Axehead.  Be advised, Dresden is dependent on calm and precise maneuvers.  Suggest adaptable tactics and striking from a distance."  Axehead flicks some s witches and fires another round of missiles at the Buchenwald.  These too strike through the Void Prana shield, aimed exactly at where Forte put her own; but they fail to do any significant damage, reduced by the Abyssal ship's last-ditch essence defenses.

As if on cue, the Dresden opens fire on Hearts.  The volley of micromissiles ravage the formation, ripping two fighters to shreds.

"Charmer, going down!"  The anguish in Hearts 2's voice cuts like knives.

"AAAGH!"  Hearts 3 screams in wordless terror of the unknown.

Then Mamba Wing moves.  The Marlboros swarm forward with frightening quickness, overrunning the front lines and gunning for the weakened fighters or the more dangerous bombers.  Some of them pick apart a member of Halberd Squadron, while others shoot at Glaive, Billhook, and Gyrfalcon.  Gyrfalcon, already weakened from the Buchenwald, is cut to pieces.

"They're getting through my armor!" Halberd 2 cries for help just before his death.

"No no no no-"  Gyrfalcon Leader whimpers as the Marlboros pick her apart.

"Oh God..."  Gyrfalcon 4 sighs in prayer before he's killed.

This only leaves Gyrfalcon 3.  He takes some potshots at Mamba 2, but there are too many of them and he's not able to focus his fire.  "I'm taking too much heat!"

Hearts, Clubs, and Diamonds swoop in to do their job.  Clubs and Diamonds each blast Mamba 1 and 2, taking out a few fighters each; Hearts has much less luck.  Glaive, Halberd, and Billhook all also fire at Mamba Wing as they burn towards the Buchenwald, but only with a little luck; Halberd manages to take out more of Mamba 1.

Mamba Wing was ultimately all about disruption.  With the mortals mostly concerned about them, the weaker Cobra Wing swoops in, chasing Gyrfalcon and engaging Hearts and Queensguard.  Gyrfalcon 3 manages to juke and weave past an impressive amount of fire, but Hearts isn't so lucky.

"There's too many of them!-"  Hearts 4 can't dodge all the fire, and goes up in flames.

Adder and Viper advance as well, but they're not as well positioned as Cobra.  They only manage haphazard potshots at Axehead and Crimson, both of which easily avoid the errant fire.

Then Tomato announces, "I've got a shot on the Stalingrad."  She lines everything up and fires- catching the Stalingrad right in the cockpit.  The Imperator shimmers and then explodes!

((At work, will add fluff later.
3 Chi on Flight of the Golden Crow to extend CG
Flying through cobra 3, adder 3, viper 1

All attacks against Cobra 3

Attack roll: 10, 9, 9, 5, 2, 1, 1 & 1
Lashing Flurry 1 chi + 1 Solar chi

Float 1-1-1
Strike: 50(15+20+10+5) better blocked
Secondary Strike: 64(29+20+10+5) better blocked
Disrupt Strike: 42(12+20+10)
Damage +15, counts as Area Attack))

The situation is much like in the traffic lights of a race. The engine is roaring and the suspense is killing the drivers nerves. Though in Lyla's case waiting only dulled her nerves and made her regret all the choices she did, and how she was now only waiting while others were killed. The frustration was palpable.

Her target screen gives out a faint beep to let her know that finally a fly had decided to jump into her net. Benisuzume surges forward, Lucifer and Odysseys at tow, darkness enveloping the ship. Frustration is released as she rips into the enemy ships while passing them by. Shrapnel is sent to float in the space.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:26, Sun 25 Sept 2016.

((Attacking Cobra 3 if it's still alive after Lyla's attack, otherwise Adder 3
Attack roll: 9, 9, 7, 7, 6, 5, 4 & 2

Float 7, River: 3-3-7
2 Chi, 1 Solar Chi on Black Tigers Hunting

Strike: 69 (29 Roll +20 Internal +10 AB +10 Longinus). Better dodged (-10 from Massive) ))

As his comms are swarmed with death cries, Lucifer seethes. Then the Benisuzume finally surges forward at blinding speed, dragging him and the Odysseus along and finally providing him an outlet for that rage.

His weapons systems were still cooling down. He had nothing to fire.

That would not deter him.

As he zooms right past Gyrfalcon 3 and the multitudinous swarms of enemy fighters, the Longinus's free hand glows golden and swipes left and right, tearing at the wings of the puny Marlboros, crushing their weapons and overloading their systems with angry Solar Essence.

Once they breach the cloud of enemies, he assesses the situation and addresses the sole survivor of the Gyrfalcon Squadron directly.

"Gyrfalcon 3, this is Lucifer. We've opened a path of retreat for you. Withdraw to the Enterprise and if any emergency capsules are giving off a signal nearby, tow them as you go. The Void will not claim you today."

((Posting initiative
Initiative roll: 9, 9, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 & 1
using Lead Arrow Rain w/ Shofar (Ranged + Massive)
2 Wood Chi + 2 Chi (Five Elements Supreme Combination) for +15 to Damage, Toughness
Float 9-9 to River
Initiative: 16 (16 +10 -10) ))

Shofar's sensors scan the impact sites, and Jess allows herself a small shred of self-satisfaction. It wasn't much... yet, but she was going to make it so much worse.

"This is Forte. Confirmed damage to the Slaved Massive Missile System."

Significantly weakened from that release of energy, Jess slows the flow of power into the reactor. She needed to take it easy, gather her strength. For now, there was the matter of that Dresden bomber tearing up their pilots. She'd been ignoring for far too long...
This message was last edited by the player at 18:24, Sat 24 Sept 2016.

"Gyrfalcon 3, follow Lucifer's directions!" Chupacabra yells over the comm, "You can't do any more good out here!"

"Roger that, Lucifer, beating feet to the Enterprise.  Kick them in the balls for me!" Gyrfalcon 3 repeats back and starts burning for the Enterprise.

"Stalingrad down, good shot Tomato.  Forte, we register minor damage to their missile system, but it's not down yet.  Please be advised your initial mission is to keep the flies off of Odysseus."  Five Days Darkness announces.

"Coming around.  All fighters, Charmer here- the Dresden's best against energetic and speedy types."

"Axehead here- confirmed Grey Dusk School of piloting."

"Queensguard, on me.  Converge and destroy the Dresden."

((Initiative roll: 9, 8, 7, 4, 4, 3, 2 & 2
using Vengeful Titan w/ Longinus (Ranged/Massive)
1 Chi to reduce Piloting penalties by 5
Inspire Wave (take control of Hearts squadron): 49 (24+15+10)
FoB: 47 (22+15+10) / 2 Chi
Initiative: 19 (19+10-10) ))

The gas spouts littered along the Longinus close off as suddenly as they'd opened as the Warstrider's reactor finishes recouping its lost energy. Flickers of platinum light spark around the energized warmachine, forming a protective shield. Surrounded by enemies, Lucifer nonetheless attempts reaching out to another survivor in a devastated squad.

"Hearts 5, withdraw - you've done your part. Take what's left of your squadron if you can. I will strike back for every life lost for you!"

He then looks ahead to the Buchenwald, eyes narrowing.

"Halfway there, Blue Fox. Think you can get us all the way fast enough?"

His voice is serious but a cunning mind might hear an undertone of challenge.

((Initiative roll: 10, 9, 8, 6, 5, 4, 2 & 2
Using Murderous Shadows (pilot) w/ Benisuzume (unarmed+saber)
Flight of the Golden Crow 1 chi & 1 solar chi
Lightfoot 1 chi (or 3 if necessary to reach the Buchenwald)
Cover Ground: 71(16+15+5+10+20+5)
Ride Wave to give Lucifer a boost: 42(22+10+10)
Ghostly presence: 49(19+20+10)
FoB: 40 (15+15+10) /2 chi
Initiative:49 (14+25+10)

All attacks against the Buchenwald
Attack roll: 8, 7, 7, 7, 3, 3, 2 & 1
Lashing Flurry 3 chi
Reincarnating Nine Brothers 5 chi

Strike: 78(18+20+10+5+25) better dodged
Secondary Strike: 58(23+20+10+5) better dodged
Burn: 61(flowed 41+10+10)
Disrupt Strike: 67(37+20+10)
))

The towing does not really seem to slow Benisuzume down, quite the opposite as it seems to boost Lyla's iron will to push through no matter the obstacle. The stars turn into streaks in her view grid as the ship's engine pushes itself to its limit...and beyond as her black and blue essence eerily glows on the ships surface.

"I'm sorry, you are breaking up. Fast enough? Where? We are already here."

Lyla informs officially, though there is a small jesty side to it, the tone of a person who beat a challenge. It is soon tuned out by the screams and continuous explosions that surround the battle field. She doesn't lose her patience really ever, but this time she just can't help herself, and as soon as Lucifer and Odysseys are turning to their own tasks, Benisuzume decides to give a bruise to the side of the massive Buchendwald that is blocking out the surrounding space. Maybe making them a new window would be nice?
This message was last edited by the player at 01:04, Sun 25 Sept 2016.

Blue Fox's attack run on the Buchenwald doesn't turn out as well as she hopes.  She manages to crack the Void Prana Shield, but the extra shielding on the ship just disperses the damage across the huge hull.  The Buchenwald shimmers with extra energy trying to do so, which no doubt will do its part to protect the Enterprise.  She even manages to slag a section of the Buchenwald's outer armor.

Unfortunately the Buchenwald isn't done yet.  The Supermassive Void Cannon opens fire on the Enterprise, blasting through the Enterprise's defenses for the first time.

"The Buchenwald's penetrated our defenses!  Some damage to the hangar deck!  It looks like it's trying to keep us from being able to recover you!"

The smaller guns open fire on the Odysseus, but despite the fighters within it's still controlled by... something.  Shields pop up and selectively deflect the shots as they come, leading to nothing but a troubling ring against the hull.  Another shot and it might get hairy in there.

The slaved massive missile system, while damaged, is still quite effective.  This time it lashes out at Hearts, Diamonds, and Billhook Squadrons, no doubt scenting blood in the metaphorical water.

"Fire chaff!  Fire chaff! AUGH!"  Diamonds 3 is too panicked to avoid his death.

"Withdrawing, sir, glad you have my ba-"  Hearts 5 registers relief at Lucifer's support, but she never finishes her sentence.

"Damage too much, you're up Billhook 2!" Billhook Leader tries to eject but the missile hits his cockpit.

The comm system from Crimson flickers.  She flies literal circles around the Dresden, sketching an odd diagram with her afterburners.  "I'm going in for the kill.  How dare you ignore me?  HOW DARE YOU IGNORE THE RED QUEEN?"  She blasts the Dresden with a burst of the worst dubstep music imaginable, loud enough that it's somehow impossibly propagated through space.  The Dresden loses control of its maneuvering jets and spins in place until a pair of explosions set off the internal magazine, reducing it to a red gas cloud.

"Dresden down.  Good job, Crimson."

"I'm covering you, Gyrfalcon.  Get up close and I'll escort,"  Tomato radios the lone survivor of Gyrfalcon Squadron, blasting away at Cobra 6.

"You heard the woman.  Follow her in, we've got your back."  The Enterprise opens fire on Cobra 6 as well, and between the two of them they manage to eliminate just over half of Cobra 6's fighters.

(( 9, 9, 8, 8, 6, 3, 3 & 1
1 Metal Chi, 1 Solar Chi on Black Tigers Hunting
5 Chi on Iron Buddha's Disapproval
2 Chi on Pinning Shot
8 Chi on Spirit of Might
Flood 7 to ignore Armor, reduce max Chi Aura by 1

Strike: 103 (Flowed 43 +20 External +20 Internal +10 AB +10 Longinus). Better dodged (-10 from Massive)
Disrupt Strike 88 (28 +20 Might +10 AB +30 Spirit of Might)
Disrupt Toughness 64 (29 +20 Might +10 AB +5 Black Tigers) ))

The Longinus makes contact with the Buchenwald with an ominous if otherwise unremarkable thud. "Nice work, Blue Fox! It's-"

The sound of firing missiles interrupts Lucifer's speech. He turns to look over his shoulder to see the Buchenwald firing at squadrons that are already defeated and not the most imminent threat by any stretch. He hears Hearts 5 cut off just before getting to safety.

He looks toward the emptiness where the missiles went off and claimed the retreating mortal.

"You..."

Something cracks inside him. The protective platinum aura shimmering around the Longinus starts flickering wildly.

"You dare spite me?"

The flickering turns into a bonfire as six platinum wings edged with blood sprout from the Longinus's back and start tearing into the massive ship's hull.

"YOU DARE SPITE LUCIFER? IGNORE ME AS YOU PREY ON THE WEAKENED?"

The golden crown above his head radiates holy fury, buckling the outermost layers of the Buchenwald's armor as massive explosions of light, like barely coherent expressions of destructive rage made manifest, roll in waves over the surface of the Buchenwald. He shoots, he rips and tears, he smashes and detonates like an act of divine retribution.

"I WILL END YOU. I WILL DESTROY YOU. I WILL REMIND YOU THAT THOSE WHO FEAR THE DARKNESS HAVEN'T SEEN WHAT THE LIGHT CAN DO!"
This message was last edited by the player at 23:03, Sun 25 Sept 2016.

((Attack roll: 10, 10, 10, 7, 7, 6, 4 & 1
using Lead Arrow Rain w/ Shofar (Ranged + Massive)
Strike: 50 (30 roll+ 20 base) better Dodged
Counts as an Area Attack for the purposes of damaging Minions
Knockback: 47 (27 roll+ 20 base)
)

At the Five Days Darkness' reprimand, Jess feels the fire go out. Her attack on the Buchenwald had been weak, premature, and hopelessly self-centered. She shouldn't have taken the shot, she should have focused on the Marlboros and let Red take on the Imperators.

Forte changes the flow into a more measured beat, something to try and earn back the audience's respect. She'd shown weakness with that pathetic display. She barely even registers the Dresden exploding, looking nearly bored as she watches Lucifer's impressive attack. That was just what people like them do.

Without emotion, she unloads a few torpedoes into Viper 2 squadron.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:00, Mon 26 Sept 2016.

((Attack roll: 9, 7&7, 5&5, 3&3
1 metal chi to activate Yellow Tiger Hide
1 sidereal chi to activate Ice Cracking The Willow
1 chi to All Weapon Understanding
Black and white stones, Saber and Shield (paired)
Strike 52 (27 roll +15 weapon +10 action), better dodged
Disrupt dodge 55 (25 roll +20 craft +10 action)
Disrupt Strike 53 (23 roll +20 craft +10 action)
))

"Not my area of expertise, we need to end this the brutal way."
"Lucifer, we are on it."

With a motion too fluid to be done in such heavy armor, Endings coats his nano-weave cloak with some essence and wraps it around the ghost to inhibit its movements. At the same time he draws his sword, blade coated with blue and purple essence, and thrust it precisely towards the pulsing heart, anticipating the Imperators movements to the distraction of his cloak.

The Buchenwald is almost defenseless now that Lucifer's this close.  His glowing Solar energy- does that have a faint green tinge to it?- ripples through the bulkheads of the Buchenwald.  He rips up a section of the hull with his sheer might, and a portion of the hull buckles and warps.  The Slaved Missile Barrage system suffers several detonations, revealing a hole in the side of the ship!

Jess in the meantime unloads a paltry attack on Viper 2.  The ships suffer egregious damage, made worse when Chupacabra loops around to unload on them, shouting obscenities in broken Spanish.  A good 70% of the fighters are shot down between the two, but they just push on past.

Charmer takes this opportunity to engage Mamba 1.  After a brief shootout she downs a few ships, but Mamba Wing is pretty talented.  She's not able to kill that many.

Axehead opens up on Buchenwald.  "All ships, Axehead in the clear. Supporting assault on the Buchenwald.  Focusing on the main guns."  His missiles look dead on the money but the Buchenwald's anti-missile defenses shoot them out of the air.

Mamba in the meantime makes straight for the Enterprise.  Only Mamba 2 engages the Living- chasing down Gyrfalcon.  "Taking hits!"  He shouts out of panic, but he loops around to blast a few of Mamba 2 out of space before making it towards the Enterprise. "Almost there!"

"We're ready to receive you, Gyrfalcon!"  Tomato reassures him.

The Queensguard chases after Mamba 2, blasting a few more ships out of space with elegant precision.

Diamonds engages Cobra 6, but with the dogfight ongoing all that they manage is to get blindsided by a different Cobra Squadron.

"HELP M-"  Diamonds 4 screams before his destruction.

Glaive and Halberd both manage to shoot through the screen of Viper Wing, blowing up a few ships as they pass.  "Glaive here, we and Halberd have made it through the fighter screen."

---

https://docs.google.com/docume...luE/edit?usp=sharing

Meanwhile, on the Odysseus...

The Imperator shudders as Endings tosses the cloak around it, binding it mostly in place and slashing off what must be half of its corpus.  But that's not enough to stop it from cycling the airlock.  The ghost finishes the last latch and rips out the controls, making the door snap open.  The Imperator seems unfazed by the rush of air, throwing a severely hampered counterpunch- that conceals a leg sweep and kick, aiming to destroy Grunt's footing and send him right out the airlock!

Both of you, make a Might Minor Action on your initiative to avoid getting sucked right out of the Odysseus.  Difficulty for this is 40.  Grunt, this is obviously not in the cards if you're thrown out of the airlock by this Knockback.  If you are, you're gonna need some help or to get creative.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:48, Mon 26 Sept 2016.

((Initiative roll: 10, 9, 5, 5, 5, 3, 3 & 2
using Vengeful Titan w/ Longinus (Ranged/Massive)
1 Chi to reduce Piloting penalties by 5
Float 5-5-5 to River
FoB: 48 (23+15+10) / 2 Chi
Initiative: 19 (19+10-10) ))

As the Buchenwald's previously impenetrable armor finally gives way to his rage and the missile system that so dared to spite him lies in shambles, the worst of Lucifer's fury is quelled. The Longinus spews superheated discharge all around as it processes the colossal expenditure of Lucifer's Essence, but this time it doesn't seem to do so at the expense of its weapons systems.

Lucifer's voice is steady over the comms, an undertone of satisfaction underneath - not smug, but giving hope for the mortals being massacred that the fight was not one-sided.

"Missile system shouldn't bother you as much anymore. Odysseus has reached the Buchenwald - Endings, Grunt, you're up!"

As he catches his breath and processes the situation, the enemy's strange tactics finally start hitting home for him.

"Admiral, the enemy's MO is different. They're ignoring the Exalts and going for maximum loss of life - coupled with trying to prevent getting them back in. I propose having all fighters who haven't breached the fighter screen make a tactical retreat toward the Enterprise, making a close perimeter inside the Parker Field to mitigate enemy numbers while the more damaged squadrons get in for repairs."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:19, Mon 26 Sept 2016.

((Initiative roll: 10, 9, 7, 6, 6, 6, 2 & 1
using Lead Arrow Rain w/ Shofar (Ranged/Massive)
Wash 9-9 from River
Flow 6-6-6 into River
2 Wood Chi + 2 Chi (Five Elements Supreme Combination) for +15 to Strike
2 Chi (Peerless Skill [Marking])
Marking [Cobra 5]: 39 (19+10+10)
Initiative: 17 (17+10-10) ))

This wasn't the time to lose hope. There were still plenty of survivors, both enemy and ally. Her options for gestures were somewhat limited, but she could at the very least start dropping the enemy formation.

"Imperators are down, and the Buchenwald is wounded. Until more company shows up, I'm making a promise that an undamaged squadron of enemy fighters will disappear each time Shofar speaks."

It takes less energy to efficiently fire upon the ants, but Jess' concentration is still strained, forcing her to burn a little energy just locking onto the right targets. She couldn't take any chances. Her audience deserved a proper show.

She sends the laser lights far across the battlefield, painting the exposed bodies of the riders in shifting colors. There was no communication equipment to transmit into, but Shofar's unique sound transmission made sure the Cobra 5 pilots heard her proclamation of their demise. And so the music started back up.

"Their brands were still on fire and their hooves were made of steel
Their horns were black and shiny and their hot breath he could feel"

(R1 Defense: 9, 8, 8, 3, 2, 2 & 1
Knockback: 50 - 28 - 10 (Awareness) - 5 (Sight) - 5 (Laughs at Complexity) = 2 - 10 (Action Bonus) = Miss
Strike: 20 - 22 = miss

Shadow Catching with Saber
9, 5, 3, 2, 2, 2 & 2
Might : 42
Init: 19 + 10 = 29)

Among the things that his training had emphasized was that the simple beat the complicated. Between the solidity of his stance and strong visual acuity, Grunt wasn't much bothered by the distraction. The follow through attack meant even less, although he did have to scramble for a handhold.

Grunt draws a single edged knife whose design would have been familiar to several older generations of Marines as he caught the edge of the shuttle wall with his other hand.

"This is Grunt, bastard opened the airlock."
This message was last edited by the player at 04:41, Thu 29 Sept 2016.

((Initiative 8, 7, 6, 5, 3, 2, 1 :/
Initiative 33 (18+5+10)
))

As the airlock opens, Iapetus is too close to it to be able to react, and flies straight out.
"I am out, Grunt seems to be okay inside."
This message was last edited by the player at 10:55, Fri 30 Sept 2016.

(( Initiative: 10, 10, 8, 7, 6, 6, 6 & 5
Using Murderous Shadows (pilot) w/ Benisuzume (unarmed+saber)
Float 6-6-6
Cover Ground:67(17+15+5+10+20)
Ride Wave to fling Grunt & Endings inside the Buchenwald: 40(20+10+10)
FoB: 40(15+15+10) /2 chi
Initiative:53(18+25+10)

All attacks against Buchenwald
Attack roll: 10, 7, 7, 6, 4, 3, 3 & 2
Lashing Flurry 1 chi+ 1 solar chi
Reincarnating Nine Brothers 5 chi

Strike: 76(16+20+10+5+25) better dodged
Secondary Strike: 58(23+20+10+5) better dodged
Burn: 47(27+10+10)
Disrupt Strike: 44(14+20+10)
Break Wave: 71 (flowed 36+25(Strike)+10)
))

The blinding light shining from Lucifer colours the empty space and almost everything around it, not Benisuzume though. Benisuzume seems to turn into even darker shade of black than everything else. Upon hearing of problems within the Odysseys, the ships veil of shadows drops a little, revealing the bluetinted shade of the ship when Lyla turns it around.

"Iapetus, Grunt, release if you are holding onto the Odysseys. I'll toss you indoors. Also Grunt, get a hold of the laptop."

Benisuzume does a seemingly unnecessary spin around, and the hook with a cable spins out towards Endings. The accuracy of the hook would seem normal if it was thrown by hand. The cable tugs at Iapetus and wraps around him, but it doesn't stop there, instead it flings itself within the Odysseys and grabs a hold of Grunt. Lyla slams down the reeling in button and spins her ship around to gain momentum. Soon the two are flinged into the Buchenwald from the hole that Lucifer managed to make.

"Lucifer, I'm heading back to help with the pests," she reports. "After giving this thing another bruise. Take care over here!"

With the momentum given by the spinning she rams her plasmacutters to the side of the Buchenwald. The shadows from Benisuzume appear more like flames bursting into the vast space. The cutters spin ruthlessly and lace the surface with cuts. The Buchenwald is preparing for something, but from her point of view it's really hard to tell what it is exactly...so any wire or opening gets showered with hits just incase. She pushes her thrusters to the limit and scrapes along the side of the enemy ship as speeding to join the others.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:18, Thu 29 Sept 2016.

Blue Fox manages to hook Grunt and Endings with her trailing cables- no mean feat, even for one of the Exalted.  They're snagged and duly thrown into the crevice where the Slaved Missile System once was.

"Great shot, Lyla! We've got confirmation the Odysseus's crew has entered the Buchenwald!"    Five Days Darkness all but lets out a whoop of exultation, only to go silent as Blue Fox strafes the huge ship before taking off.  Though it puts up the Void Prana Shield again, the hull's taken such a battering that every little blow is telling.

Crimson loops around, playing another deadly blast of dubstep punctuated with exploding green flame and shots from her ship's weapons.  An entire Cobra squadron is turned to space dust.

Tomato has stayed still this entire time, simply rotating her ship as if acting like a turret.  This time she abruptly swivels to spray some of the Mamba squadrons trying to break through the Parker Field, blasting the remains of Mamba 1 to pieces.

"HAH, got 'em!"

The Buchenwald is crippled.  Though the Supermassive Void Cannon is still working, Five Days Darkness is better able to apportion the Enterprise's shields.  The void cannon just splashes against hardened essence, though a few streamers of necromantic energy impact the hull and cause electrical failures.  Even though the missile launcher looks like it should be out of action, a missile emerges from the hole in the side and claims another life.

"That's not possible!" Halberd 5 sounds incredulous, unwilling to face his own death.

Though plagued with electrical failure, the Enterprise's gunners are right on the money.  Accurate fire claims some of Mamba 2 and forces it back against elements of Cobra.

"You heard him, pilots.  All squadrons, return back to the Enterprise and reenter the hangar.  While waiting your turn stay within the Parker field."
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:12, Thu 29 Sept 2016.

((Attack roll: 9, 7, 7, 4, 4, 2, 1 & 1.
1 Metal Chi, 1 Solar Chi on Black Tigers Hunting
2 Chi on Pinning Shot
Flood 5 to ignore Armor, reduce max Chi Aura by 1

Strike: 87 (27 Roll +20 External +20 Internal +10 AB +10 Longinus). Better dodged (-10 from Massive).
Disrupt Damage (Might): 59 (24+20+10+5)
Disrupt Dodge (Might): 51 (21+20+10) ))

"Copy that, Blue Fox - give 'em Hell. Same goes for you, Grunt and Endings."

Before the Buchenwald has a proper chance to recover from Lyla's attack, Lucifer presses the assault further. Since its weapons systems can't manage another assault quite like the previous one right away, the Longinus resorts to a more primitive approach instead - taking long, heavy strides along the massive black tumor's surface, ripping free whatever comes loose and riveting it with bursts of angry Solar judgment.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:51, Thu 29 Sept 2016.

((Attack roll: 10, 9, 9, 9, 8, 7, 4 & 2
4 Chi on Glowing Cloud of Heaven
Flood 6 from river to extend attack to Cobra 5
Strike: 89 (39 roll+ 20 base +15 Internal+ 5 Marked+ 10 Action Bonus) better Dodged (-10 if Blocked)
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from being Marked
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from GCoH
Counts as an Area Attack for the purposes of damaging Minions
Secondary Strike: 76 (26 roll+ 20 base +15 Internal+ 5 Marked+ 10 Action Bonus) better Dodged (-10 if Blocked)
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from being Marked
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from GcoH
Counts as an Area Attack for the purposes of damaging Minions ))

Having momentarily considered going after a Mamba squadron, Jes had decides to keep her lock on the sure thing. Better to build up anyways. She was going to show an effortless destruction.

"Enemy designation Cobra 5 has been destroyed."

She charges Shofar's reactor to capacity, tracing each and every escape from far across the field of battle. Their shields couldn't stop it, and if they tried to escape...

The lights dancing on the enemy craft begin to pulse brighter and brighter, expanding ever outward to fill the space with a strobe like lightshow that she was going to use a whole lot more over the course of the battle. It was best to get out of the way, but it was going to be very hard not to run into more, or each other for that matter.

The slow, folksy lines begin to pick up a psychedelic warbling as she turns the volume up.

"Yippie yi ooh
Yippie yi yay
Ghost riders in the sky"

Shofar's voice rings out once more, and trails of gaudy light surge through the battlefield.

Forte's weapons scream.  It's perhaps a blessing that she can't hear the ghosts' screams of horror as she lights them up.  Cobra 5 goes up in pink flame, as if agreeing with Forte's early prediction of their demise.

Chupacabra chases down Viper 2, vaporizing the remaining fighters in that squadron.  Charmer unfortunately has less luck, tangling with Mamba 2 and only removing a few of them from the equation.  Axehead fires more torpedoes at the Buchenwald, but these are shot right out by the anti-missile defense systems.

Queensguard and Mamba 3 tangle with each other as Queensguard tries to make it to the safety of the Enterprise's Parker Field.  One of their fighters has obviously taken too much.

"Queensguard 3, too much damage, ejecting!"  He pulls his beacon, confirming his survival after ejection.  It takes more than a few basic Neverborn fighters to kill a Dragon-Blooded!

Gyrfalcon 3 has almost escaped.  Queensguard Squadron's sudden appearance buys the pilot enough time to squeeze through the enemy fighters, but not before opening fire on Mamba 3 on the way.  Several of Mamba 3 go up in flames and then Gyrfalcon 3 has made it to the Enterprise's hangar!

Diamonds and Clubs scream through the melee as well, with Clubs managing to down a bit more of Mamba 3.  All of them make it to the Parker Field except for the Queensguard.  This leaves a large number of Neverborn ships buzzing around the periphery of the Parker Field, trying to get at the sweet juicy capital ship within.

Glaive, Halberd, and Billhook make towards the Buchenwald.

"Good news.  Gyrfalcon 3 has made it back safely!"

"Hangar here, Gyrfalcon 3 is suffering a seizure!"

"Quarantine immediately.  Keep me appraised."

"Uhh... sir.... this isn't a seizure.  You should come down and help-"

"No need.  Get me another ship. Requesting new callsign:  Kumiho."  Gyrfalcon 3's voice comes up on the comms, filled with a thrill of power and confidence the Exalts know oh so very well.

"Granted, Kumiho.  Make Luna proud."

"Forte, Kumiho here.  I've got an idea about how to handle these fighters-"

Her idea is cut short.  Their comms are interrupted by a harsh squeal of necrotic energy as rips in space and time open across the battlefield.  Two groups of five Nanking-class cruisers jump into the battlefield, with one... oddly familiar vessel leading the others.  Lucifer knows a Warstrider when he sees one, but he's never seen the Abyssals field any.

"NEW CONTACTS!"  They hear over the comms as the interference fades away, "We have two groups, one anti-capital and one anti-fighter!  Anti-Capital is labeled as Judas, Brutus, Cassius, Ephialtes, Quisling!  Anti-Fighter is labeled as Gein, Dahmer, Chikatillo, Bathory, Bundy!  Enemy warstrider is-"

Five Days Darkness's tactical summary is cut short like a hot knife through butter by a smooth, modulated voice.

"You can just call me by my name.  Project Thanatos here.  Hello, Lucifer.  It's been a long time."

https://docs.google.com/docume...kak/edit?usp=sharing
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:10, Sat 01 Oct 2016.

(Posting Initiative. Text to come later)

((Initiative roll: 10, 9, 9, 6, 3, 2, 2 & 2
using Lead Arrow Rain w/ Shofar (Ranged/Massive)
Flow 2-2-2 into River
Spending 1 Chivalrous Joss
2 Wood Chi + 4 Chi (Five Elements Supreme Combination) for +15 to Block and +15 to Toughness +15 Strike
Focus on Breath: 59 (29+20+10)
Initiative: 16 (16+10-10) ))

((Roll: 10, 7, 7, 7, 6, 5, 5 & 2
using Vengeful Titan w/ Longinus (Ranged/Massive)
1 Chi to reduce Piloting penalties by 5
Waning Metal Protection Spell: 62 (37+15+10)
FoB: 50 (25+15+10) / 2 Chi
Initiative: 16 (16+10-10) ))

A silent pride swells in Lucifer as he follows a new Exalt being born. "Welcome back, Kumiho. Teach the Dead their place."

The sudden appearance of ten Cruisers, while certainly alarming for the safety of the Enterprise and his comrades, doesn't get a strong reaction out of him - merely a narrowing of his eyes and a deepened sense of grim determination as he starts formulating their destruction. He knew it couldn't have been this easy.

The same can't be said for the interruption to Five Days Darkness's tactical summary, though. The comms are silent a few critical seconds more than normal. As he speaks, a tone of menacing determination permeates his words.

"...Thanatos. You're in worse company than I left you."

The necrotic burst of the Cruisers' appearance had snuffed out the protective platinum shimmer from the Longinus, but it quickly starts forming itself anew.

"No matter. I've wrested you from Yama's grasp once and i'll do it again."

(( Initiative: 10, 9, 5, 5, 4, 3, 3 & 1.
Using Murderous Shadows (pilot) w/ Benisuzume (unarmed+saber)
Floating 5-5
Cover Ground:64(14+15+5+10+20)
Ghostly presence:53(23+20+10)
FoB: 44(19+15+10) /2 chi
Initiative:46(11+25+10)
))

"You are just what we needed in this all, Kumiho," Lyla remarks with joy though her attention is quickly turned to the new state of events.

Once again the pitch black shadows envelop her ship, and haze out the view to the ship. Upon looked at, it is certain that the ship must be there, even if it doesn't seem like it. The shadows have a tinge of blue flame of fury in them when they get new unwanted company to the battlefield.

Lyla shares a swear word or two with herself.

"Listen-"  Kumiho's voice crackles through the comms, "Set them up!  Herd them close and let Axehead or Forte or Crimson just blow up all of them at once!"

"You heard her, pilots," Five Days Darkness instructs, "Axehead, Charmer, Chupacabra, Crimson; get the enemy fighters close and then let someone with area-effect weaponry blast them to pieces!  Lucifer and Forte, engage the anti-capital ships and defend the Enterprise!  Blue Fox, engage targets of opportunity!" 

"Negative, following original plan.  Engaging Abyssal."  Crimson rockets towards Project Thanatos, engines pushed to the limit as she tries to catch up.  Project Thanatos ignores her, instead focusing on Lucifer.

"Are you so certain?"  Project Thanatos's voice purrs over his comm and then there's a squeal of feedback inside of his cockpit.  His systems start to go haywire as they arc with purple and orange energy, interfering with his protective shield and his targeting sights!  Then she lines up two long, thin spines on her Voidstrider.  They shimmer and she's surrounded by a black disc that fires a wide, high-intensity orange beam at Longinus.

This is, of course, when Crimson rushes in.  But Project Thanatos is certainly not defenseless.  The voidstrider is far more agile than the Longinus and she's able to quickly juke out of the way of Crimson's explosive gatling cannons.  Small lasers spit out energy blasts at Crimson as she flies past, scarring the side of the Infernal's ship.

The mid-battle Exalation was an interesting development, and Jess cues up her ship's recordings of the events leading up to it. Many different display windows pop up, set to loop as she peers over the data. The Lunars had a fascinating-

Shofar's screens all short out for a moment, immediately after she was sure Kumiho was about to say something that would give her a window into the previously familiar pilot's mindset. Her momentary annoyance vanishes as she looks out to see ten cruisers pop into view.

When she hears the voice of Thanatos, Jess has to shut off her comms to keep from embarrassing herself.

"Oh... yes! Perfect! Absolutely perfect!"

Nearly ecstatic as she grins ear to ear, Jess can't believe the development. A celebrity guest star had showed up! No one even knew the name of the Abyssal they'd already blown up, but Thanatos of all "people" making an appearance? It was more than she'd ever hoped. Nevermind the Cruisers, all of which looked capable of at least putting a dent in her. Of course, if the damn things never bothered to fire at her...

She opens a channel to the new Lunar.

"Forte here. Good plan Kumiho. Picking off the flies one by one is pretty pointless. If you can tell me where planning to stack them all before you do it, that'd be even better." she says, trying to sound suitably concerned over the developments while adding in a soft note of respect.

She also sends out a general transmission, aimed mostly towards the Cruisers that had appropriately been named after cannibal serial killers, but wide enough that anyone listening could pick it up.

"Attention Anti-Fighter variant Cruisers Gein, Dahmer, Chikatillo, Bathory, and Bundy. This is Forte, aka Jess Maraud, and I'm about to shoot your boss as hard as I can. If you've got any intelligence on me, I imagine you know why that's bad."

Feeding a generous amount of her power into the reactor, the ship glows hot pink, flames like those that cooked the Cobra squadron beginning to dance on its hull as she shines like a beacon in the blackness of space. She chooses against taking aim, and instead spends the time building firmer her mask of divinity, draining away all her self-doubts and letting her body's reserves restore themselves.

"Well you're a real tough cookie with a long history
Of breaking little hearts like the one in me"

Shields up. Shofar groans at her, but she shushes him.

"That's okay, let's see how you do it
Put up you dukes, let's get down to it"

Armor reinforced. Firing turrets optimized for accuracy over penetration. Jess leans back in her cockpit and smiles.

"Hit me with your best shot
Why don't you hit me with your best shot
Hit me with your best shot
Fire away"
This message was last edited by the player at 21:31, Sat 01 Oct 2016.

((Attack roll: 10, 7, 6, 3, 3, 2, 1 & 1
all attacks against Thanatos
Lashing Flurry 1 chi+ 1 solar chi
Reincarnating Nine Brothers 5 chi

Strike: 86 (flowed 26+20+10+5+25) better blocked
Secondary Strike: 58(23+20+10+5) better blocked
Burn: 41(21+10+10)
Disrupt Strike: 47(17+20+10)
))

As the surprise fades away, and steel hard determination sets in, Lyla radios:"Copy that."

Benisuzume glides within the shadows, and soon is next to Thanatos the plasma cutters appearing from the darkness blazing. They are fast and precise, aimed to stop and paralyze. Though the other ships were roaring with anger, Benisuzume only hums, the sound of the engine dampened by the out pouring essence. The cutters are masked by the out lashing blueish figures, resembling the tails of a fox.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:33, Sat 01 Oct 2016.

((Defense roll: 9, 9, 9, 6, 5, 4, 3 & 1
1 Solar Chi on Swinging Bell Defense
Resist Disrupt (Wu Wei): 64 (39+15+10)
Block Strike: 56 (16+20+10+10+5-5) ))

Lucifer grunts as his systems suddenly arc with hostile energies, dissipating his protective barrier before it can recover. After the initial shock he quickly grasps the controls again, growling as he focuses his Anima to flush out the intruding force.

He regains control just in time to see Thanatos charging her beam attack. Thinking quickly, he grabs a huge piece of the Buchenwald's hull armor floating nearby due to his previous attack and interposes it between the beam and himself! The beam slices through the scrap but weakens it enough for the Longinus's outstretched hand, crackling with energy, to cleave the beam in half without considerable damage.

"I'll do it or die trying." The intensity of Lucifer's gaze can be felt through the metal of both Warstriders as he replies to Thanatos's taunt. "And you know how killing me tends to work out."

Blue Fox swoops in for a silent kill.  Thanatos cannot be more prepared.  A powerful essence shield erupts right in the way of Blue Fox's fire, deflecting all but a single grazing shot.  As Blue Fox passes by, Thanatos's Voidstrider lets loose another quick burst of dark energy, marking Benisuzume's hull.

"No.  They'll die as you try,"  Thanatos's voice comes over everyone's comm, "Ah, they're online now."

Tomato swoops in to take out the rest of Mamba 3.  Thus she's there for a front row seat when the Neverborn cruisers advance, their massive beam cannons lancing out at the Enterprise one by one.  Five Days Darkness puts up a stellar defense, rotating energy fields and maneuvering the Enterprise so they can't manage to do more than scar the hull.  The Buchenwald's Supermassive Void Cannon also comes into play, but a last-ditch reapportioning of resources saves the Enterprise from a hull breach.  The Enterprise is still taking a battering, the shots overloading the cruiser's systems.

"We need those cruisers out ASAP!"

The others aren't so lucky.  While the main guns of the five anti-capital cruisers rip across the Enterprise, their other guns join in against the fighters limping towards the Enterprise's hangar.  Though they're not equipped specifically to work against fighters, Diamonds and Clubs are overwhelmed by the crossfire.  Soon they're joined in with more inaccurate missiles from the Buchenwald.  Diamonds and Clubs are torn to pieces.

"ALMOST THERE-" Diamonds Leader never makes it back to the hangar.

"EJECTING!  THANK GOD I MADE IT-" Diamonds 2 is hit by a stray shot, annihilated just above his fighter.

"URGH!"  Diamonds 5 sounds like she's in the midst of throwing up when her comm is cut short.

"This is the end."  Clubs Leader is resigned to his fate.

"Too much crossfire!  Evade!" Clubs 2 can't maneuver out of the way in time.

"AVENGE ME!"  Clubs 3 calls out to anyone who'll listen.

"ABORT ABOT ABGWG-"  Clubs 4 gurgles away her life.

"Reactor critical.  Sorry..."  Silence and then an explosion and Club 5 ceases to be.

The anti-fighter cruisers all focus in on Forte.  One by one they open up with withering crossfire, all of it computer-assisted to focus on Forte's armor.  The slower bombers are vulnerable, and Forte is a well-known target; the Neverborn know how she fights by now.  Their weaponry hits hard, rattling Forte inside of the Shofar like a marble in a tin can.

The Enterprise is too hard-pressed to really mount much of a counterattack.  Mamba 2 manages to avoid its fire, but the Enterprise at least manages to herd some of Viper and Adder into the same area.

[To Prevent a wall of text, here is a Google Doc. 5 Serial Killer Cannibal Attacks a round is a lot: https://docs.google.com/docume...tVg/edit?usp=sharing]

Jess watches with hungry eyes as she sees the five enormous vessels ignore every other craft on the battlefield and devote all their attention to her. She knows she can't dodge. She doesn't even want to. She can take all five of them at once.

Each impact strikes against Shofar's shields dramatically, each carefully placed projectile making a powerful impact. Of course, anything that coordinated can't be random. There's a pattern to that sort of relentless, unstoppable assault. There's always a rhythm.

She surrenders to its flow, letting the thumping bass dictate where she focused her attentions, strengthening and weakening her defenses according to the pattern. It was incredibly fast, and it shook her, but it didn't shake her apart. She let it flow onto her, and then away from her, her instincts naturally guiding the rotation of the ship's sensitive components away from more directed attacks when Dahmner and Bathory tried to be cute.

The onslaught ended, Jess is tired, but utterly undamaged.

"THAT'S NOT ENOUGH!" she outright yells at the Cruisers, not caring if her transmission is actually being read by the ghostly pilots. "If you can't hit me, then don't get me excited! Once more, with feeling!" she commands them.

She sends a message out. "Kumiho, like your idea, but I've gotta focus on those Traitors.

Jess really didn't like burning this much energy so quickly, but the Enterprise could potentially be destroyed in a matter of moments if she didn't go all out. Maybe even if she did, come to think of it. Oh well.

((Attack roll: 9, 9, 8, 7, 6, 6, 4, 3, 1 & 1
4 Chi on Glowing Cloud of Heaven
Flood 2 from river to extend attack to Brutus [Targeting Beam Cannon]
Strike: 71 (26 roll+20 base +15 Internal+10 AB) better Dodged (-10 if Blocked)
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from GCoH
Counts as an Area Attack for the purposes of damaging Minions
Damage: +30
Secondary Strike: 66 (21 roll+ 20 base +15 Internal+10 Action Bonus) better Dodged (-10 if Blocked)
Target receives -5 Penalty to Dodge from GCoH
Counts as an Area Attack for the purposes of damaging Minions
Damage: +30
Disrupt Strike: 54 (29+15 Inspire+10 AB) ))

She thinks regretfully about not getting to blow up that pile of enemy fighters, as she knows how certain the results would be. But 5DD gave her a mission, and well, after all, it was good to be needed.

"You're gonna wish your friends could shoot for shit, Brutus." she transmits full power to the huge ship. "You just try aiming while I'm raining hell down upon you, knowing every moment that I'm tearing you apart, piece by piece."

Forte punctuates her point with the firing of her her secondary missile systems, waiting until just before the swarm of secondary flashbangs collides with the Brutus before she lets loose with the main gun. The rainbow shaft of light quickly catches up, filling the area with deadly rays of color only slightly easier to dodge than catch with your bare hands.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:02, Sun 02 Oct 2016.

((Attack roll: 10, 9, 8, 6, 6, 5, 1 & 1
Flood 5 to extend attack to Brutus
Flood 5 to ignore Armor, reduce max Chi Aura by 1
1 Metal Chi, 2 Chi on Black Tigers Hunting
1 Metal Chi, 3 Chi on Iron Buddha's Disapproval
2 Chi on Pinning Shot

Strike: 86 (26 Roll +20 External +20 Internal +10 AB +10 Longinus). Better dodged (-10 from Massive).
Disrupt Strike (or Toughness if Forte's Disrupt succeeded) (Inspire): 66 (21 Roll +15 Inspire +5 Fear Specialty +5 Internal +10 AB +10 MD) ))

Thanatos's taunt evokes a sneer out of Lucifer. The death cries of pilots fill his comms once more, causing his Anima Banner to erupt into being once more as mortal souls cry for vengeance.

He breaks free a long girder from the side of the Buchenwald and raises it to the ephemeral crown burning atop the Longinus's head, lighting it with Solar hatred before lobbing it toward Brutus.

As the improvised missile draws closer, it brings with it an ever-deepening sense of doom. At the moment of impact there is a brilliant flash and a hateful, unnatural whisper flooding the comms.

"FILTH."

The Killers' fire brackets Forte pretty well.  Though they don't deal her any damage- her Essence shields help there- the damage is going to pile up.

"A fine display of shield modulation,"  Thanatos's voice praises Forte, "Of course, I did hear something very interesting coming from your ship just a few moments ago.  Perhaps I should play it so everyone can hear."

"Switching channels." Axehead sounds bored.

"Oh no, no you don't,"  Thanatos laughs right back at the pilot, "I'm plugged into every band.  Do you like my Voidwalker, Lucifer?  I call it the Jaglavak.  Of course, it's only the prototype."

"Ignore the Abyssal,"  Axehead radios Charmer as Chupacabra takes apart the last survivors of Mamba Wing, "Engage the Brutus."

Forte and Lucifer open up on the Brutus, but the cruiser just keeps plowing for the Enterprise.  But it can't ignore their fire like the Buchenwald did- Lucifer manages to deal considerable minor damage with his flaming girder, while Forte and Charmer combined manage to dent up the Massive Beam Cannon.  Axehead also fires a missile at the reactor, damaging the ship's defensive shields a tad.

In the meantime, the ubiquitous Neverborn fighters crowd around the Enterprise's Parker Field.  Queensguard Squadron squirts through before they can be fired upon and enters the hangar, all too aware of what happened to Clubs and Diamonds as they tried to escape.

Billhook, Glaive, and Halberd reverse and try to make for the Brutus.  Only Billhook gets close, but the volleys of fire are too intense for Billhook to get any good shots in on the ship.

"Billhook 2 here.  Enterprise, this is looking too hairy for you.  And we're not going to make it through that fighter screen."

"I don't think we'll make it through another firing cycle,"  Five Days Darkness says grimly, "We can attempt to pull back now and bring back reinforcements or try to hold out a bit longer.  Either one's too long for you, Billhook."

"We'll smash ourselves against their fucking hull before they shoot us down," Billhook 3's voice comes through.

"All pilots, hear this!  We are making a hot retreat!  Any pilot that can return should do so!  Anyone who can't, retreat to the other side of the Buchenwald and get it in between you and the enemy cruisers!  Blue Fox- I need you, especially, to stay as undamaged and capable as possible to extract the crew of the Odysseus!" Five Days Darkness barks, "We will return with more of the fleet to pick you up soon!"

Round 6 Init:
https://docs.google.com/docume...evY/edit?usp=sharing

(( Initiative: 10, 8, 7, 4, 3, 3, 3 & 2.
Using Murderous Shadows (pilot) w/ Benisuzume (unarmed+saber)
Cover Ground:64(14+15+5+10+20)
Ghostly presence:63(33+20+10)
FoB: 42(17+15+10) /2 chi
Initiative: 53(18+25+10)
))

The situation looks rather bleak. Despite all of their efforts, the battle has now come to the point where the enterprise has to retreat. Then again in Lyla's mind, that is the best option, no matter what would happen to them after that. They already lost Sol and numerous lives before, that is not something they'd want to repeat.

The shadows around Benisuzume are shaken by the sudden reply, but quickly recover to hide the dent made by the hit. She squeezes the steering systems rod with her hand, as she radios to all friendly units:

"Alright, you heard the admiral. Those who won't retreat, group up and focus fire to hold up the fort. There is no reason to solo this through. There is no honor or glory in a battle that is lost, because you had to engage a famous target to show everybody how much of a diva you are. This is not a stage and this is not your show."

She never really loses her temper, she never really raises her voice, but that line was crossed as her emotions heaten up.

"It is OUR show, and TOGETHER we can do this, despite what that sneaky bitch whispers into our ears!" she rallies. "I'll be with YOU, who will be with ME?!"

Benisuzume's engine revs softly through her headphones, when the whole ship seems to tense up.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:16, Mon 03 Oct 2016.

((Major Wound on Brutus: Wrecked targeting systems; -15 Action Penalty when shooting further than 2 Zones away

Initiative: 10, 10, 10, 8, 4, 3, 2 & 2
using Vengeful Titan w/ Longinus (Ranged/Massive)
1 Chi to reduce Piloting penalties by 5
Float 0-0-0 to River
Waning Metal Protection Spell: 47 (22+15+10)
FoB: 43 (18+15+10) / 2 Chi
Initiative: 14 (19+10-10) ))

The girder's impact damage may be minor... But as the piece of metal lodges itself in the prow of the Brutus, the Solar energy embedded within flares up! With a violent flash the girder disintegrates, frying the Cruiser's targeting systems beyond repair and no doubt causing the unfortunate ghost pilot excruciating pain.

"Jaglavak? How modest", he replies to Thanatos. "I assume once I tear it apart you intend to progress from Prince to King and call the next version Beelzebub?"

He nods to himself as Five Days Darkness makes the decision to retreat; it meant less easy targets for the enemy. When Lyla rallies the troops, he's actually a bit surprised at the outburst but joins in with a firm shout as the Longinus once more starts harmonizing with his Anima.

"Hear, hear! The Living stand as one!"
This message was last edited by the player at 17:25, Mon 03 Oct 2016.

(Rolls now. Description later.)

((Initiative roll: 10, 8, 7, 7, 7, 5, 4, 4 & 1
using Lead Arrow Rain w/ Shofar (Ranged/Massive)
Spending 1 Chivalrous Joss
2 Wood Chi + 4 Chi (Five Elements Supreme Combination) for +15 to Block and +15 to Toughness +15 Strike
Focus on Breath: 54 (24+20+10)
Cover Ground: 52 (37+15+10-10)
Initiative: 18 (18+10-10) ))

"Every wound upon me is one not born by those I serve." she says, speaking more formally, concentrating on purifying her essence. "Surely one like you can understand the joy in fulfilling their creator's intent?"

Jess silently thanks Axehead for dismissing Thanatos' comments. When she hears that the Enterprise is leaving, she follows orders and accelerates towards the other side of the Buchenwald.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:01, Tue 04 Oct 2016.

"Very modest," Project Thanatos responds to Lucifer, "Save your flagship if you wish.  I won't interfere.  I have... other priorities."

The Jaglavak suit starts burning with green pyreflame, all the fire bursting out of the back of the suit.  She's preparing to move!

"I'm low," Crimson mutters over the comm, "But I'm going to try to buy the Enterprise more time.  Catch me if you can, bitch."

She rockets away from Thanatos, trying to bait the Abyssal after her.  As she goes it's obvious she's running out of Essence; she opens fire on the Brutus in an effort to bring it down further, but she only manages to slightly damage the reactor further.

Thanatos ignores her.  Instead the Abyssal burns towards Lucifer with mobility that Longinus would kill for, raising that long-barreled beam cannon.  Once again Lucifer feels his HUD scramble as Thanatos infests his network with her technosorcery and cancels his spell, recovering just in time to see her open up with her high-intensity beam cannon almost at point-blank range.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:02, Tue 04 Oct 2016.

((Defense roll: 10, 9, 9, 9, 8, 4, 4 & 3
1 Solar Chi on Swinging Bell Defense
Block: 39 + 20 +10 +5 -5 = 69 vs 86. 1 Ripple + RR; reduced to 0 -> REPLY ))

Lucifer grunts in frustration as Thanatos temporarily overwhelms his systems again, focusing his Essence to bring the Longinus back to heel only to face a close-range beam cannon to the face!

With no time to mount a proper defense, it is all he can do to cross his arms in front of him. With a  yell of exertion he surges his own energy to meet the Jaglavak's, resulting in an explosion that leaves the Longinus's arms singed but otherwise unharmed. The same seems true for the Jaglavak as well, however, as the explosion seems to have left it with superficial burns of its own.

"I suppose I'm honored to have drawn you to the field." He grins, slightly winded from the effort.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:18, Tue 04 Oct 2016.

This is an illusion.

The energy crackles around the Longinus, fritzing out his systems.  His warstrider has to go through a sorcerous version of a reboot.  When he comes back up again, he notes that the Jaglavak is unmarred by the explosion and is drifting a bit further away than he thought.  He gets the distinct impression that Longinus is now just a bit more vulnerable to Thanatos's unorthodox methods.

In the meantime, the Judas, Brutus, Cassius, and Ephialtes open fire on the Enterprise, scoring across the hangar and damaging the Parker Field.  But the damage could've been worse, and though they fire a bit on Tomato they still don't manage to penetrate with her skillful handling of her ship's shields.

"Tomato, doesn't look like you'll be able to dock, the hangar's on fire."

"Doesn't matter.  I'm staying out here, Admiral!"

"Got it.  Blue Fox, I'm counting on you.  Everyone, take as much attention from her as you can.  Good luck everyone.  Stay alive!"

And then Five Days Darkness and the Enterprise jumps, leaving them behind.

This leaves the Quisling to open fire at Tomato.  The young Lunar has already been battered by the cruiser attacks.  These get past her shield modulation, delivering her glancing blows.

"URGH!"

((Attack roll: 9, 7, 3, 3, 3, 2, 2 & 1.
all attacks against Dahmer
Lashing Flurry 1 chi+ 1 solar chi
Reincarnating Nine Brothers 5 chi

Strike: 77(17+20+10+5+25) better dodged
Secondary Strike: 57(22+20+10+5) better dodged
Burn: 53(33+10+10)
Disrupt Strike: 49(19+20+10)
))

After readying herself, Lyla zooms past Dahmer, her cutters prepared. From the shadows that shouldn't be there, strike out her cutters, that seem to multiply for a moment, there being many duplicated of Benisuzume just for this one strike. There is a burst of blue light, which marks the spot where she was...doesn't really matter because she isn't there anymore.

Lyla swoops in, directing precision cutting firepower to the Dahmer's hull.  As much damage as it takes, it's still a miracle of redundant technology.  She hits more scrap and armored bulkhead than anything else.

Two Trivials or 2/3 of a Minor, and a Trivial Burn of Lyla's choice.

In the meantime Forte finds herself surrounded by the enemy cruisers.  They're all within optimum range, and they just hammer the Shofar from every direction with all of their firepower, their guns going more for pinpoint precision than filling space with ammunition.

The Buchenwald goes silent...

(( Attack roll: 10, 8, 8, 8, 4, 3, 2 & 1
1 Metal Chi, 2 Chi on Black Tigers Hunting
1 Metal Chi, 3 Chi on Iron Buddha's Disapproval
2 Chi on Pinning Shot
Flood 0 to ignore Armor, reduce max Chi Aura by 1
Flood 0 to extend attack to Dahmer

Strike: 98 (38 Roll +20 External +20 Internal +10 AB +10 Longinus). Better dodged (-10 from Massive)
Disrupt Strike (Inspire): 65 (Flowed 20 +15 Inspire +5 Fear Specialty +10 AB +10 Manifest Destiny +5 Internal) - Interesting Times?
If RR: Damage +55, ignore Armor, Chi Threshold -3, -1 Chi Aura

Initiative roll: 6, 5, 4, 4, 4, 3, 2 & 1
using Vengeful Titan w/ Longinus (Ranged/Massive)
1 Chi to reduce Piloting penalties by 5
Float 4-4-4 to River
FoB: 40 (15+15+10) / 2 Chi
Initiative: 11 (16+10-10-5) ))

As Lucifer forces the Longinus back online, his first instinct is to lash out at Thanatos in frustration... But with the Enterprise safe, he retains enough presence of mind to know that's just the reaction she wants to provoke. No, fighting her would take time with no guarantee when he'd actually make a telling blow while all those Cruisers would have free rein to hammer down his allies.

Instead, he takes advantage of Lyla softening up the Dahmer. The blood-stained wings of his Anima flare into being once more, tapping into the very bottom of his Essence and channeling it through the burning crown atop his brow. A grossly incandescent beam roars through the Void to light up the Dahmer.

"Know your place, wretched ghost."
This message was last edited by the player at 00:03, Wed 05 Oct 2016.

((Initiative for turn 7: 9, 9, 9, 8, 8, 7, 6 & 1.
Using Murderous Shadows (pilot) w/ Benisuzume (unarmed+saber)
Float 9-9-9
Cover Ground: 61(11+15+5+10+20)
Ghostly presence: 58(28+20+10)
FoB: 41(16+15+10) /2 chi
Initiative: 52(17+25+10)
))

Benisuzume turns swiftly around near the Buchenwald, and once again faces the cruises, quietly picking the next target. Lyla had been left alone for now, but she didn't like what she saw on her screen. Too many red dots, and too few friendly ones. The empty space kept being lit up by the constant firing, her shadows finding it even easier to hide within the chaos.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:26, Wed 05 Oct 2016.

[Defense rolls once again here, under Round 6 https://docs.google.com/docume...tVg/edit?usp=sharing]

Already shaken, Jess looks onto the avalanche of slugs tumbling through space towards her. It was an interesting thing, having time to watch your possible demise sail towards you through space, the pleasure having been lost on her before, due to her close proximity. This was it. This was the moment she'd been waiting for.

It hit her like a car crash.

The familiar sensation of directionlessness, the sound of twisted metal, the wave of shock sending every part of her a different way... Jess regains control of herself in that frozen moment, grabbing her controls tightly as Shofar threatens to be torn apart by the incredibly dense shells. The fact that she's being shaken around like a pinball also doesn't help, but it's not altogether unpleasant, either.

Chikatilo's attack arrives first, and she swerves just enough to keep her thrusters from getting too damaged, but the volley also collides solidly with some of her external targeting systems. The bombardment rattles her hard. She tastes her own blood.

The streams cross as Bundy's onslaught adds its weight. Jess feels genuinely impressed with his accuracy this time around, given how badly he'd done before. This time she's not able to prevent damage to the thrusters. A bullet the size of a bowling ball grazes her behind, and she nearly leaps out of her seat as the displays read decreased output. That pattern of shells was starting to pick up a bit in complexity.

Worse still, Bundy was slowly yet surely wearing down her resistance. With the very real possibility of internal damage, Jess lets a stray shell send her into a seemingly wild spin. ”AAAAAAGH! DAMMIT! I’VE LOST CONTROL, MAYDAY!” she screams, feeding some essence into her desperate cry, while specifically targeting Bundy with the transmission. She sees the hail of shells change direction slightly as it prepares to finish her off. That slight change in calculations is all she needs. At the last second, Forte pulls out of the suicide spin, changing her momentum and giving her just enough time to recalibrate her systems before the enemy Cruiser corrects. Her sobs turn into ecstatic giggles, distorted further by the impacts on the ship. She makes sure Bundy hears that, too.

When Damer and the rest join the bullet stream, Jess unlocks her short range point defense system, the controls revealing themselves as a keyboard her fingers feverishly begin to play. Stopping the slugs completely wasn't possible, but short range bursts might allow her to redirect them slightly, taking the hits where she can handle them. The level of prediction needed for such an endeavor is daunting, but she’d weathered the last round of shells, which made it easier to handle these.

At the end of her mad symphony, Forte finds herself slowed, with her weapon systems meaningfully reduced, but her defensive capabilities unaffecte- Crack. Crap, diverting power from the shields had been a risky move, and it’d sustained minor damage afterall. Her own vitals were looking iffy as well.

Still.

”Excellent.” she says, panting. ”Do that one more time and just maybe you’ll get to brag to your friends. Assuming you survive.”

She glows bright, shining like a taunting beacon before she fires once again towards the Dahmer. It was a weak effort, considering, but it was the principle.

((Attack roll: 10, 10, 9, 8, 7, 5, 4, 3 & 3
Float 10-10 to River
Flood 10 from river to extend attack to Brutus
Flood 10 to ignore Armor
Strike: 63 (23 roll+15 base +15 Internal+10 AB) better Dodged (-10 if Blocked)
Damage: +25 ))
This message was last edited by the player at 09:53, Thu 06 Oct 2016.

((Initiative roll: 9, 9, 9, 8, 7, 7, 5 & 5
using Lead Arrow Rain w/ Shofar (Ranged/Massive)
Wash 10 from River
Flow 9-9-9 into River
2 Wood Chi + 2 Chi (Five Elements Supreme Combination) for +15 to Block and +15 to Toughness
Focus on Breath: 55 (25+20+10)
Initiative: 13 (18+10-15) ))

"This is Forte. Thanks for the assist, Blue Fox."

It all seemed unnecessary, but somehow it made her feel a bit happy. Of course, if she could get some heat off her, she could properly power up Shofar's cannons. The threat of that would hold to draw the Cannibal's fire so long as she managed to draw breath. Still, no point in remaining where she was.

Jess accelerates towards the Buchenwald.

The Dahmer takes a massive hit from Lucifer to the side, bursting through one end and coming out the other, knocking out several of the turrets at once.  The ship is mostly crippled, but even though it's not that accurate it still might be useful for the rest of them in organizing attacks.

This gives Forte ample time to line up a shot on Brutus and let fly.  There's a direct hit on the reactor, reducing the essence field and giving Charmer a chance to blast a few more holes in its hull.

In the meantime Chupacabra wipes out another portion of Viper, and Axehead manages to wing the Dahmer.  A few members of Adder, Cobra, and Viper chase Chupacabra and Tomato, but the two Living pilots are excellent at avoiding their attacks.  Tomato even shoots a few down as she angles her shield!

Glaive and Halberd start racing for the Buchenwald.  Billhook just strafes across Brutus and makes for the Ephialtes.

The Killers start charging their weapons again, but Tomato does something to her ship.  Her shields seem to short out and flames erupt from a cunningly concealed vent!  "Come on, you sons of bitches..." Tomato whispers; then both the Killers and the Traitors lock on to her position!

Crimson unloads a full burst of fiery essence on the Brutus, then screams away.  The Brutus takes little damage to the hull, but her fire essence ruptures the reactor.  The Brutus surely can't take much more damage!

"Ah, such single-mindedness,"  Thanatos remarks- she's in no hurry to correct the Killers, giving Forte breathing room.  She doesn't give it to Lucifer, as she's up in his face almost immediately.  She fires her beam cannons at Lucifer just to take his attention away from her fist.  The Jaglavak's fist hits Longinus's stomach, sparking and setting up a direct connection between their systems.  Her necrotic essence flows through the Longinus, interfacing with the gods there and threatening to subtly corrupt them.

Round 7 Init:
https://docs.google.com/docume...550/edit?usp=sharing
This message was last updated by the GM at 19:19, Fri 07 Oct 2016.

((Defense roll: 10, 6, 5, 4, 4, 3, 2 & 2
1 Solar Chi on Swinging Bell Defense
1 Metal Chi, 2 Chi on Eternal Temple's God-Armor if RR isn't canceled

Block: 67 (22 +20 Internal/External +10 Action Bonus +10 Longinus +5 Laughs) vs 81, 1 Ripple + RR
Resist Strike Disrupt: 79 (Flowed 54 + 15 Wu Wei +10 AB) vs 75, avoided
Takes Block Disrupt @ 64))

Depite using the field of debris floating around it to its advantage against the beam cannon, Lucifer is unable to match the Jaglavak's blinding speed. The Longinus raises its arms to absorb the beam cannon and, should the energy not prove too much to handle, reflect some of it back at the Voidstrider.

This leaves his stomach open, however, and the punch connects flawlessly - doing no structural damage, but that was never Thanatos's intention to begin with. Lucifer takes a split second too long to notice the necrotic invasion through his systems; while he manages to halt the assault with a singular show of willpower, some of the damage is already done as he feels some of the Longinus's systems grow weak and lethargic.

"I call it focus", he retorts.

((Attack roll: 10, 9, 6, 6, 6, 6, 5 & 1
all attacks against Thanatos
Lashing Flurry 1 chi+ 1 solar chi
Reincarnating Nine Brothers 5 chi

Strike: 106(46+20+10+5+25) better dodged
Secondary Strike: 84(Flowed 49+20+10+5) better dodged
Disrupt Strike: 45(15+20+10)
))

What really happens in the battleground is not about visual perception, it's more about feelings and sensing when something is a miss. Lyla has never really considered herself too lucky of a person, but she always had had a good hunch. That was the same hunch that made her turn her focus to Thanatos harassing Lucifer, instead of going after the Killers.

There is no flash of light, no glint. Benisuzume just suddenly is there next to the two warstriders whirling the plasma rods like two staves. She spares no punches as the rods are bashed towards Thanatos and between the two, aiming to push Thanatos at least few inches away from Lucifer to grant him some breathing room.

The blue flashes of plasma are soon hidden by the shadows, as the ship continues it's speeding to the other side of the Buchenwald. No matter how fast she was, her ship was not made for fist fighting.

"ARGH!"  Thanatos screams as Blue Fox comes out of nowhere, ripping across the Jaglavak.  She throws up an essence shield to compensate, but Blue Fox still manages to deal her suit some damage.

Tomato blows up the rest of Cobra 6 as she flies towards the Buchenwald.  The Traitors focus in on her, their Massive Beam Cannons glowing with baleful hate.  She's criss-crossed by multiple beams, each one blasting through her shields again and again.

"Ejecting," Tomato says in a choked voice, "Forte, get to safety, I don't know how long-"

Tomato's voice is cut off.  Nobody knows if she's ejected or not.  The chances are good, as it takes a lot to kill a Lunar, but the Killers all take their time to open fire on her last known location.  There's significant chance they've killed her.

"OUR FIGHT!  Every time someone interferes my men will switch targets to someone more vulnerable!"  Thanatos announces over the comm, "Remainder of Alpha Strike Group, target Charmer!"

The Cassius and the Quisling target Charmer.  Charmer jukes and weaves, firing shots meant to dissuade them, but they penetrate right through her shields.  Charmer doesn't even manage a coherent scream before they annihilate her fighter.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:42, Sat 08 Oct 2016.

(Init Roll: 10, 7, 6, 6, 5, 4, 3, 3, 3, 2 & 2
Float: 2-3-3-3-6-6
Init: 17 + 10 = 27)

The Buchenwald underwent a bit of...shuddering? A few seconds later it seemed to stabilize slightly and some of the weapons changed tracking patterns.

"NO!!.." Lyla's shout rings through the comms. It is a mix of despair, sadness and anger. There is also awkard ratling and buzzing to be heard due to her abruptly hitting her mic to mute.

She kicks the wall of her cockpit, and curses. The tingling sensation that runs through her leg from the kick manages to bring her some stability and focus.

((Attack roll: 10, 9, 8, 7, 4, 4, 3 & 1
Flood 9 from river to extend attack to Brutus
Flood 9 to ignore Armor
4 Chi on Golden Cloud of Heaven
Strike: 54 (29 roll+15 base +10 AB) better Dodged (-10 if Blocked)
-5 if Dodged
Damage: +25
Strike: (24 Roll+15 base +10 AB) better Dodged (-10 if Blocked)
-5 if Dodged
Damage: +25 ))

As she watched Tomato's life be most probably be snuffed out, Jess feels no particular anger. Instead, that odd sense of numbness in her stomach begins to spread out across her body. In a way, it felt sort of nice, a welcome relief from the aches she was feeling from being shaken around. Tomato had been a good teammate, and it was an honor that she'd been concerned for her in her last moment.

It was very simple. If Jess had been stronger, or smarter, the Lunar would still be alive. There would be time for guilt later, though, and she needed to act before she felt herself slip away. Tomato had bought her some much needed time, and a failure to use it to her best would be disrespecting her sacred memory.

Charmer's death sort of just washed over her, the Exalt's demise softening the second blow. One more of many sins.

"May the dead be remembered. May the living be exalted." the pilot speaks into the comms.

She begins to play a funeral dirge, focusing it on the Brutus. As damaged as she is, she can feel the Brutus' death singing in the void, ready to join the screams of her comrades. She must fulfill her purpose. She had to make herself useful.

Forte targets the enemy ship, hopefully for the last time, sending forward Shofar's winding pillars of rainbow light toward her enemy. It would not make it right, but it was as start.

((Initiative roll: 10, 9, 8, 7, 7, 5, 5 & 4
using Lead Arrow Rain w/ Shofar (Ranged/Massive)
2 Wood Chi + 4 Chi (Five Elements Supreme Combination) for +15 to Block and +15 to Toughness
Focus on Breath: 55 (25+20+10)
Cover Ground: 42 (27+15+10-10)
Initiative: 14 (19+10-15) ))

Jess' heart is troubled, but she takes refuge in the illusion of her self she'd cultivated well over the years. So long as she did everything she was able, she didn't need to focus on the ghosts she most feared.

((Attack roll: 10, 9, 8, 8, 7, 6, 3 & 1
1 Metal Chi, 2 Chi on Black Tigers Hunting

Strike: 93 (28 Roll +20 External +20 Internal +10 AB +10 Longinus +5 Laughs). Better dodged (-10 from Massive)
Damage +30

Init roll: 10, 10, 6, 5, 5, 4, 3 & 1
using Vengeful Titan w/ Longinus (Ranged/Massive)
1 Chi to reduce Piloting penalties by 5
Float 5-5 to River
Waning Metal Protection Spell: 45 (20+15+10)
FoB: 41 (16+15+10) / 2 Chi
Initiative: 9 (14+10-10-5) ))

Thanatos's reaction evokes equal measures of anger and disappointment in Lucifer. His voice is dripping with venom as he speaks, conveying not his usual fury but a sense of sadness and hurt.

"I knew they'd corrupted you. Yet I couldn't imagine you stooping so low."

The Longinus leaps forward through the floating debris, grasping for the Jaglavak in a tackle to smash it against the Buchenwald's hull before unleashing a point-blank blast of energy from its hands.

"You want a fight with me so bad? You've got it."
This message was last edited by the player at 14:57, Sun 09 Oct 2016.

Forte's shots find purchase.  The Brutus frantically raises the Essence shields to stop the attack but to no avail.  It's simply taken too much damage.  The cruiser suffers several catastrophic explosions and then lists to the side, all systems flickering and going dead.

In the meantime Lucifer's duel with Thanatos intensifies.  The Abyssal throws up a prodigious defense against the Longinus, but she's been weakened by Blue Fox's intervention.  She can't stop the tackle nor the blast from the hands, and the Jaglavak is covered with golden sparks.

"Ahhh.  Unfortunate!  But I am still working within acceptable parameters,"  Thanatos responds back to him, "Let's see how my prototype holds up, now that you're paying proper attention!"

(Attack: 7, 7, 7, 6, 6, 6, 6, 4, 4, 2 & 1
Flood 2 for Range Increase
Turret Attack on Bathory: 46 + 15 + 10 = 71 - 10 = 61
Slaved Missiles on Bathory: 24 + 15 + 10 = 49 - 20 = 29, -20 to Dodge
SMVC Attack on Dahmer: 37 + 15 + 10 = 62 - 15 = 47

River: 3-3-3-6-6)

The Buchenwald opened fire with most of the remaining weapons systems. Dahmer earned a broadside from the Void Cannon while Bathory was saturated with missiles and turret fire.

((Initiative for turn 7: 10, 6, 5, 5, 4, 4, 3 & 2
Using Murderous Shadows (pilot) w/ Benisuzume (unarmed+saber)
Float 5-5
Cover Ground: 62(12+15+5+10+20)
Ghostly presence: 54(24+20+10)
FoB: 41(16+15+10) /2 chi
Initiative: 48(13+25+10)
))

Benisuzume readies itself for another burst of speed, Lyla gripping the steering system and clenching her teeth. She was feeling pissed, but still somehow drained. Unusual, since it wasn't their first battle. Their whole life had been a battle for 10 years, but this one felt different.

(Init: 10, 8, 7, 7, 5, 5, 4, 2, 2, 2 & 2
Float: 5
Craft Repair : Remove Disrupt : 42 + 15 + 10 = 67 (Restore Damage)
Init: 27 + 10 = 37

River: 3-3-3-5-6-6)

The Buchenwald's systems all pause for a moment as energy spikes across the remaining weapons platforms after being rerouted from the disabled segments.

The Buchenwald opens fire- this time on the enemy.  The Dahmer and Bathory throw up their Essence shields, with the Bathory taking just a small dent or two from the Buchenwald's heavily damaged weaponry.  Axehead takes this moment to let loose a salvo that cracks against the back of the Bathory's turrets, damaging them.

"Buchenwald has been taken over,"  Axehead announces, "Billhook, Halberd, Glaive, shelter yourselves on the other side of the Buchenwald."

The moment this happens the enemy Marlboros turn around and start making a straight line towards the Buchenwald.  That... doesn't look good.

"The putas are ignoring me!" Chupacabra sounds affronted.

They can hear the sneer in Crimson's voice.  "How dare you harm my vassals,"  She announces as she dives towards the Bathory, "How dare you belittle my status!"  Her fire rips across the Bathory, dealing it a little damage but failing to truly penetrate the shields.

The Jaglavak charges up some kind of electromagnetic device, flinging Longinus off of it.  Then the polarity reverses, attracting all the junk to the Jaglavak.  She switches off the electromagnetics, letting all of the soulsteel clutter that's been protecting the Longinus fly off into space.

"Analysis almost complete,"  Her voice sounds hollow in Lucifer's ears.

The high-intensity beam cannon now has nothing in the way.  Nor can he hide behind the scattering effects of the junk around him.  Though her electronic warfare suite is wounded, she has dealt him enough damage to truly get his measure.  The surge of viruses sent along with the beam ripple through the Longinus, threatening to almost totally jam his offensive systems!

Init R8 up:
https://docs.google.com/docume...tCA/edit?usp=sharing

Please note that Thanatos has spent 3 Malicious Joss.  Any rolls contesting with her- defensive or offensive- suffer a -3 Lake roll.  You can counteract this with your own Joss, though this does mean you didn't get full usage (as it didn't benefit your init).
This message was last updated by the GM at 00:21, Mon 10 Oct 2016.

((Defense roll: 5, 4, 4, 4 & 1
1 Solar Chi on Jade Tiger Techniques
1 Metal Chi on Swinging Bell Defense
Resist Disrupt 1 (Might): 74 (34+20+5+10+5) vs 72, resisted
Resist Disrupt 2 (Might): 75 (Flowed 35+20+5+10+5) vs 74, resisted
Block: 51 (11 +20 Internal/External +10 Action Bonus +10 Longinus +5 Laughs -5 Disrupt) vs 58, 1 Ripple ))

While the removal of clutter put him at a worse tactical position, Lucifer had his opponent right where he wanted her. Shutting himself away from the battle raging around him, he could finally focus on where he was at his very best: facing the enemy commander one on one. This focus brought him clarity amid the chaos, fury and sorrow.

Lucifer wastes no time as he's flung away from Thanatos. As he skids along the Buchenwald's surface, he grasps the edge of an armor plate that wasn't quite loose enough to be pulled to the Jaglavak and rips it free, interposing the thick soulsteel plate between himself and the virus-infested beam. While the armor plate turns to slag and leaves the Longinus's hands a bit more scorched, the improvised defense weakens the virus signal enough for him to just barely fight off the intrusion with a surge of his inviolable Essence.

"Analyze all you want. Every estimate I will surpass."

((Delayed until someone is within range aka 7 zones))

Benisuzume hums quietly, as it sits tight, waiting for others to retreat.


((Attack roll: 8, 6, 6, 6, 3, 3, 2 & 1
all attacks against someone in her range after delaying, preferably Dahmer, excluding Thanatos
Lashing Flurry 1 chi+ 1 solar chi
Reincarnating Nine Brothers 5 chi

Strike: 62(12+20+10+5+25) better dodged
Secondary Strike: 58(23+20+10+5) better dodged
Disrupt Strike: 48(18+20+10)
Burn: 56 (36+10+10)
))

After waiting a while in hiding, Benisuzume strikes from the shadows like a spider waiting for a prey. The blueish plasma cutters shine momentarily upon hit, before being hidden by the veil of darkness again.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:36, Mon 10 Oct 2016.

((Attack roll: 7, 5, 3, 3 & 1
4 Chi on Black Tigers Hunting

Strike: 82 (17 Roll +20 External +20 Internal +10 AB +10 Longinus +5 Laughs). Better dodged (-10 from Massive)
Damage +30
Disrupt Strike (Inspire): 73 (23 Roll +15 Inspire +5 Fear Specialty +10 AB +10 Manifest Destiny +5 Internal +5 Laughs) ))

While the battle rages around them, Lucifer advances toward Thanatos once more. Casting the slagged armor plate aside he leaps forward, peppering Thanatos with explosions of light. While potent enough on their own right, the explosions turn out to be a smokescreen for a more old-fashioned attack.

The Longinus emerges from amid the explosions with its hands clasped over its head in a hammer strike, glowing with golden light right before connecting with either the Jaglavak or the Buchenwald accompanied by a brilliant flash.

His voice is menacing in an altogether different way from normal as he speaks; his fury has gained focus, lending a measured weight to his words. "We're not figures on paper, Thanatos. Not bytes of data in your schematics or Yama's. You will see."

The cruisers pull in, chasing down Forte.  Some are in the way, so the Ephialtes and Cassius open fire on Billhook Squadron; Judas goes after Chupacabra.

"Shields at 50%!"  Chupacabra shouts, no real panic in his voice, "Those fuckers are gonna have to try harder!"

"They're trying h-"  Billhook 2 flares out and explodes.

"Billhook under fire!  Billhook-"  Billhook 4 never finishes his sentence.

"Goodbye, friends."  Billhook 5 goes out with dignity.

"Fuck this shit,"  Billhook 3 calls in, "Glaive, Halberd, get to cover!  I'm gonna make those fucks work for it!"

The rest let out a solid stream of fire on Forte.  Quisling is the only one of the Traitors to do so, lancing at her with that horrific Massive Beam Cannon.  But all of them continue to hammer her with additional heavy slug fire, rattling her around inside of her cockpit to keep her from focusing too much on the battle.

"Are you attempting to intimidate me, Lucifer?  You're going to have to try harder.  I've no fear of you." The Jaglavak dances back from Lucifer's brutal assault, only taking a glancing blow from the hammer strike.  "Everything can be reduced to numbers.  Number of atoms in the body.  Number of working neurons.  Everything is numbers at the very end.  Ask your Core about this, if you manage to survive."

Forte, start drafting up your rolls- but the Bathory may be taking a hit, so didn't roll for it yet.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:31, Thu 13 Oct 2016.

(Attack: 9, 9, 9, 8, 8, 8, 7, 5, 5, 4 & 2
Flood 5 for Ranged
River: 3-3-3-6-6

Slave Missile System on Quisling, trying to catch Ephialtes and Adder 6 in AoE: 39 + 10 + 10 = 59
Again!: 38 + 10 + 10 = 58
This time on Adder 1: 25 + 10 + 10 = 45, still AoE
Regular Turret Fire on Quisling: 17 + 15 + 10 = 42)

The Buchenwald's surface ripples as hundred of missile hatches are revealed moments before a swarm of ballistic ill intent is launched at Quisling and Ephialtes, the smaller fighters a casualty of the sudden saturation of the area. Lesser weapons join the bombardment, trying to make up for a lack of accuracy with sheer volume.

[Ant-Wall of Text Google Doc for Defense Rolls: https://docs.google.com/docume...tVg/edit?usp=sharing]

Maybe Thanatos was correct. Maybe the whole world could be reduced to a series of expected events. Of course, in the realistic sense, being aware that all components of our universe are quantifiable doesn't ultimately change the fact that a person can't account for every possibility. Where there is chaos, there are new experiences to be found.

These are the thoughts that cross Forte's mind as she watches the the great river of destruction flow out from her enemies towards her damaged ship. A familiar light joins them.

Gein reaches out to her first, his touch across the battlefield resonating over her with a violence that threatens to crush the heart inside her chest. Jess coughs blood as she admires his work, not even bothering to raise more than a token defense as she finds herself unable to follow the projectiles. She weathers the display, her suddenly more bouncy brain choosing to remember at that moment that the original Ed Gein was an artist.

Unfortunately, her revelry is short lived as Chikatillo joins the attack, taking her off guard with an impact that opens up her guns to one of Gein's shells. It would have been an acceptable blow, had it not been for the dreaded sound of the shock absorbers cracking along with them.

Getting her bearings just in time, Forte sees Bundy unleash his fury, and it's all she can do to keep most of it off her, rattled as she is. All in all, it was like trying to bat away the snow, but she had to believe there was a rhythm to it all, or else she was going to lose control entirely. A powerful note followed by an off-balance one, then a simple play...

She throws up her shields to her left as the Quisling's beam cannon opens up. It rushes over her like a great liquid fire, but she yowls at the top of her lungs as she forces her will into the deflection, parting the great column and sending it to either side of her. Its followup attacks are unimpressive and Jess bats them away dismissively. Only in the breath between waves does she notice she's bitten her tongue.

Tasting copper and feeling more vulnerable, she redoubles her efforts as she watches the next volley meeting the others. It's slower this time, less precise. After taking that blow from Gein, Dahmer's efforts seem almost childish, and her point defense systems make short work of most of the heavy projectiles' trajectories. Of course, the ones that do hit home hurt. A lot.

Finally, she sees Bathory, adding its considerable power to bring the total number of her aggressors to six. At this stage, it all seems completely overwhelming. She knows she can't stop all of them. She can't even see all of them. Her fingers press harder than they should on the board as she concentrates, cracking some of the keys as the heavy metal continues to collide with Shofar. Playing through the pain on damaged controls, Jess thinks of her fans, and of people like Tomato who thought of her in their last moments. She didn't have the right to be afraid.

((Attack roll: 9, 9, 7, 5, 4, 4, 1 & 1
Strike: 44 (29 roll+5 base+10 AB) better Dodged (-10 if Blocked)
Damage: +25
Disrupt Toughness: 49(24+15+10)
Disrupt Damage: 46(21+15+10)
))

As she speeds away from the carnage, Jess reluctantly turns her gaze to Dahmer. She didn't want to personally attack the anti-fighter Cruisers, as they seemed to mostly just be focusing on her, but then, they were likely about to open up on the Buchenwald if they couldn't reach her. Also it was her only viable target, as otherwise occupied as she was with survival. She at least works to make her efforts meaningful, Shofar's voice becoming more song than roar as the short range blast begins to resonate through Dahmer. It isn't her strongest blow, but she lends it an insidious quality, the rainbow light flowing over the hull into its more delicate syatems.

When it's all said and done, Shofar and Forte are a mess of minor wounds, terribly weakened, but in one piece. Looking over to her left, she finds herself vaguely amused to see herself side by side with Crimson.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:40, Thu 13 Oct 2016.

The Dahmer takes another blow across the reactor.  This cracks the reactor open but fails to destroy the ship.  It buys Axehead enough time to smash across the armor but little else.

Chupacabra burns for the Buchenwald.  He passes some of Viper but Viper fails to even notice him.  "Hey guys?  They're not firing on me anymore- I think they're headed for home base!"

"You made it," Crimson says dryly to Jess, "Glad to see it.  Now stay close so I can pluck you from the Void."

The Traitors start up their beam cannon again.  With so many Exalts and living close to the Buchenwald, it's a tempting target- if it goes up, it might catch all of them!

"Hey guys," They hear a voice drawl on the comms, "Heard you can use some help."  A ship larger than most fighters but smaller than a frigate jumps into the system.  They know it as the Pilar, Smoker's personal vessel.

"What is that, a yacht?"  Thanatos actually sounds interested and pleased at this, "Very interesting, but irrelevant.  If you think that can-"

"Nah.  Like using a revolver against a zombie polar bear," Smoker answers her.  "Thing is, like last time I had to deal with a zombie polar bear, I've got some friends with me."

Space ripples as several capital ships jump into the system.  "This is the Flowing River commanding the Pandava Fleet.  General Sunipa commanding.  All ships, focus on the destroyer-pattern Nanking vessels!"

"Paladin Armada, Battles commanding.  We'll be dealing with the escort-pattern Nanking vessels.  Hang in there, Raiders."

"Hey guys, Kumiho here!  Leave the fighters to me, take out the bigger threats!  All non-Exalts, make for the Odysseus!"

"I was unaware these fleets detached from the Last Refuge."  The Abyssal sounds annoyed, "The Last Refuge now has reduced defenses.  Yama will fall upon it like a vulture on carrion."

Worry less about the generic baddies.  Take some revenge.  >:)
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:31, Thu 13 Oct 2016.

((Init roll: 10, 9, 7, 6, 5, 3, 2 & 2
using Vengeful Titan w/ Longinus (Ranged/Massive)
1 Chi to reduce Piloting penalties by 5
Inspire Wave to take control of Billhook: 47 (22+15+10)
FoB: 40 (15+15+10) / 2 Chi
Initiative: 19 (19+10-10) ))

Just as space starts rippling nearby to warp in, the Longinus shimmers with a platinum light as it finally brings its protective aura back online.

Lucifer hears the sudden influx of friendly voices, throwing a glance around the now vastly more populated space. Billhook squadron's battered state catches his eye in particular, though.

"Welcome to the fray, Smoker, Pandava, Paladin. Let's make it quick to avoid more casualties. Billhook, that goes for you too - prioritize getting to the Odysseus but feel free to make a mark as you go."

With that, he focuses back on the Jaglavak - or rather, Thanatos inside it. A gaze that can be felt through the Orichalcum and Soulsteel chassis of both pilots' cockpits.

"Your 'master' won't act quickly enough, Thanatos. While he's poring over his spreadsheets, I will be showing you the difference between empty threats and terrible truth."

((Initiative:10, 8, 7, 4, 3, 3, 1 & 1:
Using Murderous Shadows (pilot) w/ Benisuzume (unarmed+saber)
Ride Wave to tow the Odysseus: 48(23+15+10)
Cover Ground:64(14+15+5+10+20)
Ghostly presence: 51(21+20+10)
FoB:42(17+15+10) /2 chi
Initiative: 53(18+25+10)
))

"Good to hear friendly voices. Glad to have you with us," her tone is lighter from the relief, but still carries the mark of what they just went through while waiting.

Lyla lets her essence flow a bit more freely, resulting in something similar to a wave given by the shadows around her ship to the newcomers.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:45, Sat 15 Oct 2016.

((Initiative roll: 8, 7, 6, 4, 3, 1, 1 & 1
using Lead Arrow Rain w/ Shofar (Ranged/Massive)
2 Wood Chi (Covering Weakness with Strength) to reduce all current Wounds to Trivial Penalties
Focus on Breath: 51 (31+20)
Initiative: 3 (18-15) ))

"Surely my vast competence will be enough." she delivers back to Crimson in her best deadpan. Shofar nonetheless protests the statement with a sudden emission of sparks from its rather damaged shield emitters. Damn sassy War Gods.

"Thanks, though. I'd be embarrassed if my part in things ended so early."

Trapped as she was in her mangled craft and broken body, Forte takes a deep breath, places her hands on either side of her cockpit and exhales, sending out a sweet smelling flood of wood essence that spreads out from her lips, flows down her chest to her arms, and washes out onto the ship from her fingers. As it touches the metal, it transforms, becoming many small vines that worm their way through Shofar's internals, filling the weakened places with roots, covering the unseemly with blooming flowers. Stymied somewhat by the vacuum of space, the plants nonetheless make a valiant effort to mend some of the external damage, though mostly only managing to make her ship look even more gaudy than before.

When she sees her allies appear, she feels an odd sense of disappointment along with her relief. Time for that later, though. For now, a moment of rest.

"Three cheers for the cavalry! she says brightly into the commms. Dammit, Bathory might still be in range of her. She'd need to risk it. "Axehead, let's make sure the latecomers don't outshine us."
This message was last edited by the player at 15:37, Fri 14 Oct 2016.

"Roger that.  Making for the Odysseus," Axehead announces. "Forte, not worried about being outshined.  Just have a job to do.  Billhook, Glaive, Halberd, make for the Odysseus.  Chupacabra, watch my tail."

"Got it,"  Chupacabra calls back out.

"Engaging the Killers,"  Crimson calls out, "Forte, I'm getting their attention.  Follow me after they open up on me and then light them up."

"Those are Mercury-class transports,"  Thanatos scoffs as she sees Paladin group, "Truly bringing up the dregs here, aren't you, Lucifer?"

Blue Fox, Lucifer, and Forte all hear a faint hissing over the radio, like the soft exhalation of someone steadying themselves.

Init Round 9:
https://docs.google.com/docume...ZoM/edit?usp=sharing
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:52, Sat 15 Oct 2016.

((Attack roll: 10, 9, 7, 5, 4, 1, 1 & 1
Towing the Odysseus toward the surviving Mortals
All attacks vs Thanatos
Lashing Flurry 1 chi+ 1 solar chi
Reincarnating Nine Brothers 5 chi

Strike: 91(31+20+10+5+25) better dodged
Secondary Strike: 70(Flowed 35+20+10+5) better dodged
Disrupt Strike: 49(19+20+10) ))

Upon hearing news from the Odysseys, Lyla goes fishing. She hooks the ship with skill when swooping past it. Benizusume pushes forward only to slowdown upon passing Thanatos by. The cutters shine vengefully, as they cleave towards their opponent.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:21, Sat 15 Oct 2016.

Blue Fox swoops in on her attack and Thanatos powers up her thrusters, aiming to dodge out of Blue Fox's way.  But something goes wrong.  The Jaglavak thrusts to the side and then spins around abruptly like a top, one of the thrusters malfunctioning.  This allows Blue Fox ample room to realign her attack, cutting into the Jaglavak's reactor.

"System malfunction,"  Thanatos' voice sounds confused and awed, "No matter."  She raises her beam cannons to fire at Lucifer again, but this time her suit keeps getting rocked with small tremors.  Her beam cannon wavers ever so slightly.  "Significant deviation experienced in gyroscopes..."

Though Lucifer has to worry about the beam cannon, it seems she's learned from their last exchange.  His systems go haywire from a triggered trojan that was brought in from the earlier successful corruption.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:57, Sat 15 Oct 2016.

(( Defense roll: 10, 10, 9, 7, 7, 6, 1 & 1
Float 0-0-1
Dodge: xx 73 (27 +15 Dodge +10 Action Bonus +10 Longinus+5 Laughs +5 Fears) vs 77, 1 Ripple
Takes Strike Disrupt @ 74
Takes Strike Disrupt @ 63
Takes Damage Disrupt @ 62

Attack roll: 10, 10, 8, 8, 7, 4, 2 & 2
1 Metal Chi, 1 Solar Chi on Black Tigers Hunting
5 Chi on Iron Buddha's Disapproval
2 Chi on Pinning Shot
3 Chi on Leading Ox through River
1 Chi on Inspire +5
Flood 1 to ignore Armor, reduce max Chi Aura by 1

Strike: 110 (40 Roll +20 External +20 Internal +10 AB +10 Longinus +5 Laughs +5 Fears). Better dodged (-10 from Massive). Interesting Times?
Disorent Craft (Inspire): 77 (22 Roll +15 Inspire +5 Fear Specialty +5 Internal +10 AB +10 Manifest Destiny +5 Laughs +5 Fears).
Disrupt Toughness (Inspire): 83 (28 Roll +15 Inspire +5 Fear Specialty +5 Internal +10 AB +10 Manifest Destiny +5 Laughs +5 Fears)
Damage +55, Chi Aura -1, ignore Armor))

As Thanatos's beam nears the Longinus, Lucifer extends an arm towards it. The platinum shimmer around the Warstrider intensifies as he concentrates - causing the beam to warp and veer off course ever so slightly, grazing the Longinus on the side without significant damage.

The same cannot be said for the electronic onslaught she triggers, though. With his mind focused on the more obvious assault, Thanatos's insidious influence spreads throughout the Longinus's systems practically unopposed. HUDs flicker out around him, failing systems fill his ears with alarming beeps and trills until finally he's showered with sparks from all around as nearly every system screeches to a halt. Those watching see the Longinus go dark, seemingly paralyzed if not altogether dead.

Inside, Lucifer pulls on controls that are now dead. He knows it wasn't permanent, that a reboot would bring at least some systems back online... But taking that time right now would mean giving Thanatos a chance to regain her footing after Lyla's attack and Thanatos's own assault. No, this was no time for a breather.

He feels frustration well up within him once more, mixing with the death cries of his allies reverberating in his skull. The enemy was crafty, her ship a marvel of engineering entirely different from his clumsy bulwark and her understanding of their function far outstripping his. But these Striders, fearsome as they are, were mere tools.

"...Gotta hand it to you, Thanatos. Your creation may well be better than mine."

He releases his white-knuckled grip on the controls, bringing his palms together as he starts pulling together every little ounce of power within him, within the Longinus and within the faint murmur of mortal prayers at the periphery of his consciousness.

"Still, a tool's a tool. Ultimately what matters is not the tool but the one who wields it."

He slams his palms to the walls of his darkened cockpit and lets his Essence flow. A brilliant golden light emanating from the shut-down Warstrider's chest. The orichalcum titan takes a precarious step forward, then another, finally breaking into a dash toward the Jaglavak while still seemingly offline.

"You've been made into a glorified tool, Thanatos. You're a nesting doll, a Soulsteel slave encased in more of the same, and it grieves my heart."

Six platinum wings, dripping blood from the edges, sprout from the Longinus's back as it draws nearer to the Jaglavak. The crown atop its brow shines a blinding light at the Voidstrider - and then it finally connects. The air around them fills with rays of solar fury and explosions of destructive Essence... But the radius of the destruction dwindles rapidly. The Longinus, quaking violently as it struggles to keep itself together through Lucifer's colossal expenditure of power, reaches its platinum wings around the two Striders as it latches onto the Jaglavak, locking them face-to-face.

"But no matter. It is not the first time I'll tear you free of Yama's Soulsteel prison. I've done it once and I'll do it again."

The explosions intensify inside the cocoon enclosed by wings until finally among it, Lucifer himself bursts forth from the Longinus's chest, blasting massive metal spikes from his handheld weapon before grabbing hold of the Jaglavak's chassis and roaring furiously in an attempt to rip it in twain.

"BECAUSE
LUCIFER
FUCKING
VULT!"

This message was last edited by the player at 20:09, Sat 15 Oct 2016.

"Rodger that, Crimson. Be advised I'm going take a second to top off my essence."

The battle was still larger than life, and just defending wasn't going to get her anywhere. It irked her to wait even a moment to attack, but she would be able to bring more power to bear.

Also, the arrival of the fleet was probably a good distraction.

Lucifer gets a ChivJoss.

"Then drop your weapon and come at my Jaglavak with just your fists," Thanatos taunts as she jets backwards from Longinus.  His platinum wings find some purchase but not enough.  The Jaglavak is, as he's admitted, supremely designed.  As such he only gets a slight dig into it before he launches himself out of the cockpit in a foolhardy display.  He manages to grab a hold of a spike surrounding the Jaglavak's pilot capsule, but what he rips out is just a piece of ornamentation.

Huh.  Ornamentation?  But there's some wiring he can rip out, now cruelly exposed to his fists.

"Ablativeftt24-%e armeerreeeror,"  Thanatos says coolly, her voice distorted by the damage dealt to the wiring so near to her cockpit. "Is that all you hage0rg-t4tf-d- in t-you?"

That's when the weird stuff happens.

The next thing Lucifer knows, he hears a *SPANG* off of the Jaglavak's armor and he's taken a bullet to the chest.  He's taken enough bullets in his life to know exactly what it feels like and this is, indeed, a bullet.  If he were a normal mortal it would've pierced right through his heart.  Instead it just gives him a hell of a bruise and knocks him back off of the Jaglavak, right back into Longinus's cockpit.

The next bullet raises a shower of sparks on the Jaglavak's chassis, all but ripping out the electronic warfare module.

"What=-zkt- was tht06=-"

All around them the battle rages. Crimson attracts the attention of the Killers, but they've knot managed a lock on her like they did with Forte earlier.  She's able to shrug off most of their assaults, though the Throne is looking pretty battered.  This also buys time for the Paladins to open up on the Killers- the Paladins may be transports, but it looks like what they're transporting are fucking big guns.  They're almost more gun than ship and they start dealing telling blows to the cruisers.  Padava slugs it out with the Traitors, not dealing as much damaged- they're very outclassed- but the Flowing River fires beams in every direction, as befitting one of the best ships in the living fleet.  Pandava's there to soak up fire.  The Flowing River dishes it out.

Glaive, Halberd, Billhook, Chupacabra, and Axehead reach the Odysseus.  It powers up and then disappears, jumping them back to the main fleet.

((Switching to just posts.  As far as I'm concerned, we're in the endgame here.))

Thanatos Init:
9, 9, 6, 6, 5, 4, 2 & 1
*Float 9-9
*2 Chi:  Special
*Focus on Breath with 26 for 2 Chi
*Init 15 + Speed 20 + AB 10 = 45
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:50, Sat 15 Oct 2016.

((Initiative roll: 10, 10, 9, 9, 7, 4, 2 & 1
using Vengeful Titan w/ Longinus (Ranged/Massive)
1 Chi to reduce Piloting penalties by 5
Float 9-9 to River
Waning Metal Protection Spell: 45 (20+15+10)
FoB: 42 (17+15+10) / 2 Chi
Initiative: 14 (14+10-10) ))

Lucifer smacks against the interior of the Longinus's cockpit once more, the armor plates of the Warstrider automatically closing in front of him. A loud hiss sounds as the cockpit refills with air, and as he raises a hand to his chest in confusion the lights gradually start flickering back on around him. The Longinus's offensive systems were practically paralyzed by the trojan, but he had control of most of the rest.

He glances to his chest, to the bruise in the middle of it. The little tinge of pain was welcome, it grounded him amid the frustration.

"Someone shot a... bullet at me to... push me back in. Capitals, anything on your scanners?"

He grasps the controls once more, finding the Longinus responding to him again. He turns toward Thanatos, his voice stern but, most of all, disappointed.

"My meaning eludes you, as always. I only hope it turns out to be Yama's conditioning rather than your true nature, so you might yet be redeemed."

((Initiative:9, 8, 7, 5, 3, 3, 2 & 1.:
Using Murderous Shadows (pilot) w/ Benisuzume (unarmed+saber)
Light Diffused by clouds 1 solar chi
Float 3-3
Cover Ground: 68(18+15+5+10+20)
Ghostly presence: 49(19+20+10)
FoB:42(17+15+10) /2 chi
Initiative: 50(15+25+10)

((Attack roll: 10, 9, 7, 7, 6, 3, 3 & 2
All attacks vs Thanatos
Lashing Flurry 3 chi
Reincarnating Nine Brothers 5 chi

Strike: 87(27+20+10+5+25) better dodged
Secondary Strike: 78(Flowed 43+20+10+5) better dodged
))

"Thanks guys, have a safe jump," Lyla wishes the escort upon letting Odysseys go turning Benisuzumes attention back to the battle that is still raging.

She exhales, and inhales, focuses and calms down. The whole ship pulsates with her breathing, the anxious waving of the shadows settles down. Being released from her towing duty, Benisuzume behaves like a puppy that is let off of its leash. It bursts forward and swings the cutters in a large semicircle upon passing Thanatos, aiming at tearing the can open.

Benisuzume stops its racing past Thanatos and Longinus. Her essence once again making the ship look part of the space, more real than the original space itself.

"Bullets..?" She notes curiously.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:59, Sat 15 Oct 2016.

(Init: 10, 5, 5, 5, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 2 & 2
Float: 3
Cover Ground: 35 : Heads Towards the Bundy
Init: 43

River: 3-3-3-3-6-6)

((Initiative roll: 8, 7, 7, 5, 4, 4, 2 & 2
using Lead Arrow Rain w/ Shofar (Ranged/Massive)
Jess Spends two Mal Joss
Flow 2-2 into River
1 Chi (Extending Covering Weakness with Strength) to reduce all current Wounds to Trivial Penalties
2 Wood Chi 6 Chi, Strike + Damage + Toughness + Block +15
Mark Target (Thanatos): 44 (24+10+10)
Cover Ground:  42 (27+15+10-10)
Initiative: 3 (18-15) ))

Jess casts her sensors past the large ship, looking for her enemy's signatures. With the Carrier's occupied. She had the power to take a proper shot, and she might even survive doing so. The other side of the Buchenwald glows with a rainbow light accented subtley with shadow.

((Thanatos Attack vs Lucifer:
10, 10, 8, 5, 5, 4, 2 & 1
*5 Chi:  +25 Strike, Chi Aura -10
*Strike Lucifer 25 + Strike 20 + AB 10 - Disrupt 5 + L/F 10 + IKF 25 = 85, Chi Aura is -10, Block is -5
*Disorient Lucifer Might 20 + Pilot 10 + AB 10 + L/F 10 + EKF 5 = 65

Thanatos Defense vs Blue Fox:
10, 9, 9, 8, 7, 5, 3 & 2
*Reduces Better Blocked/Dodged penalties by 5
*3 Chi:  +15 Block/Dodge
*Defense vs Lyla 29 + Block 20 + AB 10 + Block 15 + EKF 5 = 79 vs 87, a Ripple
*Defense vs Lyla 18 + Block 20 + AB 10 + Block 15 + EKF 5 = 68 vs 78, a Ripple + Roll

RR 13 vs Thanatos:
*27 + Damage 15 - Toughness 10 + Disrupt 5 - Chi Aura 18 = 19, a new Trivial wound))

Thanatos surrounds herself with her might.  Now that her cockpit has been (partially) compromised, she can no longer suppress her aura:  a vast circuit diagram forming arcane symbols that hurt the mind with their sheer alien complexity.  She jinks and weaves, the Jaglavak moving with insectile flexibility, keeping Lucifer guessing as to her intentions.  Then she flings backwards, opening up with her HIBC onto Longinus' cockpit.

But that doesn't protect her from Blue Fox.  The ghostly ship slips past her, raking the Jaglavak with fiery talons.  "Skulki4369-2`f eat~@^0er of car-03y5=rion.  Your timeimeimeimemieimeimeeme willcb come su4oon enou-ghghufuffufuffuff,"  Thanatos comms to Blue Fox, "We are developing countermeasuresSSSSSKQWAKWTRTKKKKKKKKKKt after this bat5****653btle."3

"Negative, Lucifer.  Nothing on radar," Smoker responds, "Assume friendly if they're not really targeting you, though."
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:44, Mon 17 Oct 2016.

((Defense roll: 8, 7, 6, 6, 5, 3, 3 & 1
Float 3, River is 9-9-3
Block: 66 (26 +15 Dodge +10 Action Bonus +10 Longinus +5 Laughs) vs 85, 1 Ripple + RR
Takes Disorient

Attack roll: 9, 6, 6, 5, 5, 4, 4 & 3
1 Metal Chi, 1 Solar Chi on Black Tigers Hunting
3 Chi to ignore penalties
5 Chi on Iron Buddha's Disapproval
Flood 3 to ignore Armor, reduce max Chi Aura by 1

Strike: 104 (Flowed 39 +20 External +20 Internal +10 AB +10 Longinus +5 Laughs). Better dodged (-10 from Massive)
Disrupt Footwork (Inspire): 76 (26 Roll +15 Inspire +5 Fear Specialty +10 AB +10 Manifest Destiny +5 Internal +5 Laughs)
Disrupt Damage (Inspire): 70 (25 Roll +15 Inspire +5 Fear Specialty +10 AB +10 Manifest Destiny +5 Laughs )
Disrupt Block (Inspire): 69 (24 Roll +15 Inspire +5 Fear Specialty +10 AB +10 Manifest Destiny +5 Laughs)

Damage +55, ignore Armor, Chi Aura -1))

Once more, the Jaglavak is simply too fast for the Longinus to keep up. The best he can do is grit his teeth and bear it as warnings blare around him from the hit.

As the attack passes, Lucifer gathers every single ounce of his power once more. Despite the Longinus being covered in burns, dents and bruises it was yet unsullied by more than superficial physical damage.

"There's something my creation does better than yours, Thanatos - handling damage. If you're so convinced of your superiority... to use your flawed challenge from before, try and withstand this."

With every last bit of Lucifer's Essence surging through it, the Longinus lights up once more and releases a singular blast of scorching light at the Jaglavak.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:29, Mon 17 Oct 2016.

((Defense vs Thanatos:
10, 9, 6, 4, 4, 4, 3 & 3
*5 Chi:  Block +25
*Defense vs Strike with flowed 39 + Block 20 + AB 10 + IKF 25 + EKF 5 - Better Blocked 10 + Penalty Reduction 5 = 94 vs 104, Ripple + Roll
*Takes Disrupts

RR 14 vs Thanatos:
*41 + Damage 55 - Toughness 10 + Disrupt 5 - Chi Aura 16 = 75, Taken Out))


"It is bett=234er to avoid dbfthanh to-ds"  Thanatos starts to reply when the Jaglavak seizes up.  There's a blinding flash of light as Lucifer's shot hits the Jaglavak dead-on.  The lights on the suit die.

And, in the background, one of the ships- the Bathory- starts to roll over onto its side.  The other cruisers have begun firing wildly, targeting each other indiscriminately.  The enemy fighters mill in confusion, allowing the Pilar and Kumiho to reap vast quantities of them.

((Attack roll: 9, 7, 6, 6, 5, 5, 4 & 3
Flood 2 from river to extend attack to the Dahmer
Strike: 61 (26 roll+10 base+15 Internal+10 AB) better Dodged (-10 if Blocked)
Damage: +25
Disrupt Toughness: 49(24+15+10)
))

Vaguely annoyed that Thanatos' armor had already been taken out, Jess decides to unleash her attack on Dahmer.

"Yeah", Lucifer answers to Thanatos in a tired voice as the Jaglavak is snuffed out. "But I've been through enough to know that's not gonna happen. The best laid plans are always counterable, the enemy always finds a flaw in the most perfect of creations. Contrary to Sun Tzu's famous quote, the battle isn't decided before it begins. The battle begins, is decided, and ends on the field of battle, by those taking part in it. Everything else is secondary."

He groans, being able to do little more than breathe and center himself for a moment after scraping the very last of his Essence on his final attack. Finally, he widens his stance, gathers his strength and leaps off the Buchenwald toward the inert Jaglavak.

"The true key to victory is not better weapons, better stratagems, better soldiers. It is adaptability and perseverance. Being able to see your plans shattered, your weapons broken and your spirit laid low - then picking yourself up and persisting."

As he draws closer, he grasps the Voidstrider's battered cockpit and gathers his might, starting to pull it apart. His addresses the Living Fleet matter-of-factly.

"Thanatos down. Extracting her. Smoker, get me someplace to put her."

Forte's shots penetrate right through the shields, and the Dahmer twists like a wet rag.  At first it looks like her shots are simply being absorbed, but that's when she realizes that her shots are actually passing right through the Dahmer.  The ship is gutted like a fish and explodes in a spectacular (and aesthetically pleasing!) manner.

For all Lucifer knows, he's monologuing to nothing but space.  There's no reply from Thanatos, no way to know if she's heard his speech.  He grabs the Jaglavak and opens it like a tin can, revealing a dazed-looking Thanatos plugged into the cockpit.  She's changed much since the last time he saw her- heavy augmentations and -

-- where are the servos?  This looks like a far, far simpler chassis than when he first discovered her.  It's a step in the wrong direction.  Maybe it's...

"On my way."  The Pilar makes its way towards the group.  All around them the battle falls apart, the forces of the Dead attacking each other or milling about in mindless rage.

"No plan is so perfect it can't be improved upon." The Thanatos-body says through a speaker, then flops forward like a marionette. "It sounds like I have the true key to victory by your own admission..."

And then the Jaglavak explodes into a hundred pieces, taking the Thanatos-marionette with it.

((And no more rolls, we in endgame now, boys.  Feel free to rip things apart.

Lucifer takes an additional Ripple.))
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:10, Mon 17 Oct 2016.

It was as he'd feared; Thanatos wouldn't put herself at risk like this with a mere prototype. Lucifer doesn't do anything to shield himself from the blast, the shrapnel ricocheting off the Longinus with a cacophony of metallic noises.

He sighs and opens the comms. "Never mind. Looks like she's found a way to make remote-controlled copies of herself."

He grasps a piece of the Thanatos-facsimile's faceplate and crushes it in his hand.

"Let's finish up here. Shouldn't be long till Last Refuge can jump in."

Drifting in space, he starts unloading on the remaining Cruisers in turn, charging up one massive shot after another and lighting them up.

A frustrated "Oh BS!" rings through comms from Lyla after Thanatos is shattered into pieces.

Benisuzume glides silently past the wreckage, efficiently dodging the flying pieces. It bursts into speed and skips along the cruisers cutting them up like tin cans, sending blue sparks flying to the vast emptiness of space. There are traces of oddly floating shadows left behind her as she begins to calm down, her shielding essence lowering its guard when the enemy numbers diminish. The floating shadows appears darker than black, sucking the light greedily like glitches in space. Glimpses of Benisuzume can soon be seen, it now appearing more camouflaged than invisible.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:37, Mon 17 Oct 2016.

EOB RR:
Forte
*73 - 15 = 58, a Major Condition: Head Trauma.  Wound.  -10 Action Bonus, Recovery 58, Duration 1, Interval 1 Thread.  Forte suffers an Action Penalty to most actions that involve fast movement, loud noises, and the like- unless she plays up dizziness, fainting spells, slurred speech, etc.

Lucifer
*33 - 16 = 17 + Likely 5 = 22, a Minor Condition:  Towering Rage.  Wood Curse.  -1 Entanglement/session, Recovery 30, Duration 1, Interval 1 Thread.  Lucifer loses Entanglement every thread he doesn't react with a hair-trigger temper against everyone, including his closest allies.

Project Thanatos
*34 - 19 = 15 + Likely 5 = 20 , a Minor Condition:  Casting Off Chains. Wood Influence. +1 Entanglement/Session, Recovery 30, Duration 1, Interval 1 Thread.  Thanatos gains Entanglement whenever she strives toward independence and freedom of thought and action to embrace her true potential.

Other Bonuses:
Blue Fox
*3 Destiny:  Session Reward
*1 Destiny:  Daredevil
*1 Destiny:  GM MVP Award
*5 Entanglement:  Deed of Force from Five Days Darkness.  Spend towards Relationships with the Enterprise or the Pilots loresheet.

Endings
*3 Destiny:  Session Reward
*1 Destiny:  Exodite Reward
*1 Entanglement:  Exodite Reward
*1 Cultivation:  Exodite Reward

Forte
*3 Destiny:  Session Reward
*1 Destiny:  Odontosyllis
*4 Entanglement: 'Deed' from Tomato ; 2 Entanglement put towards Relationship with Tomato of Jess's choosing, 2 Entanglement towards Relationship with anything related to the Enterprise
*1 Cultivation:  Worship
*1 Cultivation: Awakened War God [Destruction of the Navarino]

Grunt
*3 Destiny:  Session Reward
*1 Destiny:  Exodite Reward
*1 Entanglement:  Exodite Reward
*1 Cultivation:  Exodite Reward

Lucifer
*3 Destiny:  Session Reward
*1 Destiny:  Known To The Dead
*1 Cultivation: Worship
*3 Cultivation: Manifest Destiny [3 Major Wounds]
*5 Way:  Longinus
*5 Way:  Manifest Destiny

+++AFTER ACTION REPORT+++

CASUALTIES:  JESS MARAUD, CALLSIGN 'FORTE' [WOUNDED - HEAD TRAUMA] ; PACIFICA SPACEWOLF, CALLSIGN 'TOMATO' [WOUNDED - MAJOR TRAUMA TO CHEST CAVITY] ; TRUDY PENLAN, CALLSIGN 'CHARMER' [KIA] ; 36 PILOTS [29 KIA, 7 MIA] ; 96 CREW [KIA]

ENEMY LOSSES:  600 TRIPOLI-CLASS FIGHTERS ; 1 STALINGRAD-CLASS FIGHTER ; 1 NAVARINO-CLASS FIGHTER ; 1 DRESDEN-CLASS BOMBER ; 10 NANKING-CLASS CRUISERS ; 1 BUCHENWALD-CLASS PRISON SHIP [CAPTURED] ; 1 ABYSSAL [H.H.H., SURRENDERED] ; 1 JAGLAVAK-CLASS VOIDSTRIDER

MINOR TACTICAL VICTORY ; MAJOR STRATEGIC VICTORY

SECRETARY:  JUNO

THIS TRANSCRIPT SEALED, LEVEL 30I:  PRE-EXODITES, COMMAND, CORE ONLY
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:57, Thu 20 Oct 2016.