[your story starts here!]
This message was last updated by the GM at 12:47, Tue 12 Sept 2023.

It was sweltering inside the large shop even with the large doors open but the man working amidst the well organized clutter didn't seem to notice. Bent over a roaring engine Jeffry or Kludge as most folk called him pressed a length of broom handle to the block and the other end against his ear. Reving the throttle a few times he nodded his satisfaction before moving the handle to another location. Satisfied with the results he let it run down to a low idle to cool down and pulled a greasy rag from his back pocket and wiped his face.

"Hey JYD, I think it's time for a cold something. Interested?" A large black and tan head popped up from behind a milling machine with a >>Groowwff!!<< An impressively sized and battle scared body followed moving on three legs and wagging a stump of a tail. "Are you hiding from the cats again? I keep tellin' ya ya just need to show them who's Boss."

Leading the way to the back of the shop the two entered a small room full of cabinets and lockers, a rumpled cot, a small white gas stove and an ice box. Reaching into the ice box Kludge pulled out two large bottles with flip top stoppers. They fizzed as he broke the seals. Technically they were ginger ale. Technically they were not alcoholic. In truth they were home brewed and naturally fermented. True it would take a dozen to even get you tipsy but you never knew what would set some people off. Pouring one into a bowl he set it on the floor as he took a swig from the other.

"I think Mr. Carter will be more than happy with that engine. I think I coulda got a bit more power out of it but it would've needed constant maintenance. If he's satisfied that could turn into a money maker for us."

Freddy was just considering a sandwich when the bell for the office rang. And rang. And rang. And rang. Muttering several colorful power words he stormed out of the shop as the bell continued to ring every few seconds. From across the yard he could see a nice Buick Roadmaster parked outside the old log building. Old habit and training had him scanning around the yard for anyone who might be concealed. "GUARD" he muttered to Junk Yard before pushing the door open and stepping into the small space. "Push that button again and I'll break your fingers starting at your elbows. He calmly informed the large man in the cheap poorly fitting suit. The bulge under his jacket couldn't have been more obvious without putting up a sign.

With a challenging smirk that revealed crooked and stained teeth the man reached for the button only to have a 2 pound hammer slam into the counter within a fraction of an inch of his fingers. Snatching his hand back the man started to reach into his jacket.

"That would be an impressivly stupid thing to do, trust me. I give one warning and I don't  joke. So, first, what's your name and why are you here?

The man froze with his hand half in his jacket, glanced at the hammer and slowly let it drop. "Ya don't need ta know mah name. Mah Boss told me ta have ya make somethin'."

"Stop right there. Names are Important. I don't work for anyone I don't know. If your Boss wants me to build something then he can come down here and discuss it with me, business man to business man. If we reach an agreement then I will do the work."

"Ya don't say no ta da Boss! An' anyway he's to important ta talk ta people like you!"

"Then I think your boss is obout to be very disappointed and you're the lucky guy that gets to explain that to him. I know it will be hard for you, but think hard. Now get out of my yard."

"You'll regret this!"

"Probably, I'll add it to the list. But your boss probably will too if he makes an issue of it. Now go before I scrap your car."
This message was last edited by the player at 17:28, Mon 11 Sept 2023.

"I can deliver that engine tomorrow at 9 Mr. Carter, it won't be a problem." Kludge listened to the staticy voice over the poor connection and nodded although the other caller couldn't see it "I have a few other pickups and delivers to make so I'll be out with the truck anyway. All the dimensions and diagrams are included as agreed." He listened again. "Cash on delivery would be perfect. If you need any more work done let me know. I have some transmissions that with a bit of jiggering I think could make the most of the power from that engine. I'll see you tomorrow at 9."

Hanging up the phone on its little hook he gave it a gimlet eyeball. "I hate those things, people should talk face to face, not over a bunch of wires." Looking out the dirty window at the darkening sky he sat in silent thought as he considered several options. "Hey JYD," The dog didn't raise his head but his ragged ears perked up. "I'm going to close up the Yard and take The Beast and Stomper out. I've been hearing rumors that some bright boy is trying to run the insurance con over on the East  End. If they are they need to learn why it's a bad idea. Can you hold down the fort?"

The flip of a switch shut off the lights over the gate and another caused the heavy barricade to close. The concrete wall that surrounded the 15 acre salvage yard may have been more appropriate for a prison but the last thing Jeffry wanted was any young explorers wandering the yard. It was dangerous in its own right and then there were his own secrets to keep.

Running on just one of its massive engines and with the mufflers engaged The Beast wasn't exceptionally loud, by some standards it could almost be considered stealthy. Inconspicuous? That was another matter. It looked like what it was, something to get from Point 'A' to Point 'B' by crushing anything in its way, causing carnage, then being able to go home for a fresh gallon of motor oil. It was lacking on creature comforts but had alot of attitude, most of it bad. Painted a police blue with gold trim and a stylized star an the front and sides Jeffry hoped it would inspire people to trust him even if they didn't trust the police, something that was getting harder to do every day it seemed.

Even with hydrolics it was a challenge steering The Beast through the narrow streets, many of them still hold overs from horse and carriage or trolly lines but it was doable, at least until he came across three nice cars blocking the road. Three nice cars in an area where most people didn't own and couldn't afford one. "I think I just got lucky." Parking a block back from the cars Jeff pulled a lever sending the engine power to the onboard generator. Another lever locked all the doors and electrified the shell. After that it was only the work of a few well practiced moments to strap into Stomper. Painted in the same color scheme as The Beast it had a full helmet to cover his face and a good part of his torso was concealed behind the chest and back armor. Disconnecting the power leads he stepped onto the lift and let it raise him to the roof. "Ok, just like you practiced..." Taking two steps he jumped, triggered the compressed springs in  the feet as he landed, and launched off the roof of The Beast.

The dramatic, sidewalk cracking, three point hero landing was pure chance, he was just trying not to fall down. Standing up he heard the whine and ratchet as the motors rearmed the jump springs. Stomping down the streets he looked in each business he passed untill he found what appeared to be a group of junior entrepreneurs trying to do business. Going down on one knee he carefully opened the door.

"GENTLEMEN, ARE THESE YOUR FINE LOOKING AUTOMOBILES?" The resonators built into his helmet distorted his voice nicely. "THIS IS A DANGEROUS AREA FOR NICE AUTOMOBILES. NOW YOU SEEM LIKE GOOD PEOPLE  SO FOR A SMALL FEE I'LL MAKE SURE NO ONE ELSE DAMAGES THEM."

Walter Charles peers down from the roof of a nearby building, Eager to see what this mechanical savant is capable of.

""Wut da Hell?" Pinhead One, clearly the intellectual of the group dropped the bottle of olives he was holding to shatter on the floor, the rest of his choir group only stared.

"OH GOOD, YOU DO SPEAK ENGLISH, I THINK. YOU AND YOUR LITTLE BOY SCOUT TROUPE SHOULD ALL STEP OUT OF THE STORE AND LET MISTER KARMICK CLOSE UP FOR THE DAY."

"Who you think you are comin' into our City an' tellin' us what to do!"

"I'M THE ONE BEING POLITE. YOU WANT ME TO BE POLITE. IF I STOP BEING POLITE THEN YOU, YOUR LITTLE FRIENDS AND THOSE NICE CARS ARE ALL GOING TO GET WRECKED. I AM GOING TO GIVE YOU ONE CHANCE TO LEAVE PEACEFULLY AND TO TELL WHOEVER YOU WORK FOR TO STAY OUT OF THIS AREA. IF HE IGNORES THIS WARNING I WILL MAKE IT TO EXPENSIVE FOR HIM TO DO BUSINESS." Standing back up to his full size he stomped over to one of the cars. Grabbing the back of it there was a brief whine as the hydraulics loaded then the fingers crushed into the metal with ease. raising it into the air he reached underneath and with a savage yank and twist ripped the rear axle and drive line out of the vehicle before letting it fall. "THAT WAS YOUR ONLY FREE DEMONSTRATION AND WARNING.  NOW GET OUT." Turning his back as if he wasn't concerned he stomped back to The Beast. A little more careful jump (can't look stupid with a potential audience) and he landed back on the roof and rode the lift back inside. Leaving the hull electrified he brought the second engine on line in a thick cloud of black smoke then kicked the baffles out on the exhausts. With full boost available to them the engines came alive and roared like angry Gods looking for revenge. Releasing the parking brake he began to creep forward making it clear that if the cars were not moved they would be crushed.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:04, Thu 14 Sept 2023.

"That guy's a lunatic. Let's get outta here."

"The boss ain't gonna be happy."

The thugs adjust their ties, then pile into the two functioning cars and drive off quickly in the opposite direction.

With careful nudges and bumps and a level of finesse you would not expect in such a massive vehicle The Beast maneuvered the mangled auto over against the curb so it was not blocking the street. There were a few accidental scorch marks where he almost welded it to the hull before remembering to deenergize the shell but nothing some rub and buff couldn't fix. Shutting down the second engine he reengaged the mufflers and had his ears ringing in the comparative quiet. Backing Stomper into the maintenance rack he unbuckled and ducked out of the large frame and pulled the leather helmet off of his head. Sweat soaked his hair and ran down his face and saturated the padded undersuit he wore. "Gotta figger out a cooling system for that or I'll cook in no time. Gonna have to work on calibrating the jumper springs. Hydraulics worked good and I seemed to have full motion following on the arms and hands..." Jeffry kept up a running critique as he returned to the driver's seat and began to navigate his way out neighborhood.  Nightly patrols, maybe even a few random ones during the day at odd times seemed to be in order. If he hwas going to take a stand and been seen as a credible threat then he would have to be visible and people would have to know they could count on him being there.

THE FOLLOWING DAY:

Freddy looked over the piles of scrap and frowned. He was several miles outside the city in the surrounding farmlands to possibly purchase some salvage and in a rare occurance, he didn't know what he was looking at. "You said it crashed in your field?"

"Yeah it did. spread itself out over about 5 acres and killed 3 of my cows, put the others off their milk for days. Must be some kind of air plane but it's awful big if you ask me and me and the boys never found anything like an engine or any wings."

"This happened when?"

"Goin' on about two months ago. Contacted the sheriff about it but he ignored me so we drug it all back here and piled it up out of the way. Saw your advertisement in one of the papers, sooo."

Bending down Kludge picked up one of the smaller pieces of scrap and looked it over closesly. It had a dull shine with a slight blue coloring as if it had been heated but showed no sign of blistering or cracking. it was thin, about a 1/16th of an inch with a slight curve to it and one edge was raggedly torn and ripped. trying to bend it between his hands Kludge couldn't even get it to flex. "To be honest Mr. Morris, I have no idea what it is. I'm willing to buy it all from you and haul it away just because it has me curious. If you're interested I can offer you cash for it right here or you can wait until I haul it in to my yard and can get a weight on it all. It is most likely going to take several loads to shift it all, so maybe 5, 6 days for all of it."

"I just want it off my land. Something about it spooks the cows. What are we talking cash?"

Walking around the piles Jeffry eyed them critically, in the back of his head where all of his best ideas seemed to come from he could feel images forming. "$300." Mr. Morris's eyes widened in surprise at the amount. "You might make more selling by the ton, but probably less as its an unknown mixed metal batch. I'll pay you the $300 because I like to play around with stuff like this."

"$300 sounds more than fair. It'll cover the three cows."

"Let's go up to my truck then I'll write you a receipt and we can shake on it and I'll get you your money. I won't be able to do a full load but I'll take what I can today and bring the big truck out tomorrow. Oh, if you could hold off on doing any irrigating along the route I'll take in it would help. No sense getting stuck in the mud if we can help it."

"I think we can do that. Glad your sensible about things. Farm boy?"

"Among other things, and a Marine. I've had enough playing in the mud."

"Tell you what. I'll throw in two dozon eggs just on the strength of it and spread your name around."

"Appreciate that, good word of mouth is the best advertising there is."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:08, Tue 19 Sept 2023.

As you start driving the first haul away an old pickup truck (or what ever the 30s equivalent is) drives up and stops. Unfortunately the dirt road isn’t wide enough for both trucks to pass. A common inconvenience out in the sticks, for sure. As the haggardly dressed residents pile out you realize that there’s an electrical hum coming from under the engine hood instead of the rattle of an old diesel engine like you’d expect. No cloud of black exhaust, either.

The first three that come out…they seem almost…too pink? And the driver, who stays in his seat, has some sort of gas mask on with a tube extending into the dashboard.

The three tip their hats to you.

”I beg your pardon Sir…” one of them says in an Appalachian accent.

”We’re the McKree family. And we got an interest in what you’re haulin. You a business kinda man and we respect that. We’re ready to do some barter.”

One of the other McKrees opens an old wooden box, displaying handfuls of gold coins. Or are they gold bullion?

"Afternoon Neighbor," Jeff eased on the parking brake, checked the air pressure, then shut down the rumbling diesel. "I'm always willing to discuss business if you have something I'm interested in or if I have something you want. I must say, your opening was interesting, not compelling mind you, but interesting. What is your interest gentlemen?" As he spoke Kludge swung down from the cab and offered his rather dirty hand.

The spokesman accepted the handshake as the sun began to lower past the tree line.

”Long story short, our family came from quite a long way away…an’ crashed here in these mountains…we still have some scraps much like this…we just wanna get home, y’see. See Reg-El in the cab over there? He almost never come down this far. Air’s too thick for him. Turns his skin blue! Now if gold ain’t your thing we got this special technique for meltin’ down aluminum…”

At this point, the McKree’s suddenly looked up as two wobbly shapes hovered in the sky shining spotlights down at them.

”It’s th’ SKRULLS!”

They dove for cover and Reg-El leaped from the truck as a a red pulse struck their vehicle, causing an explosion.

the McKrees drew weapons. The masked one carried a longarm that resembled a musket with some shiny jury-rigging. it fired a thundering red orb that struck one of the craft, sending it careening end over end. The others drew similarly modified rusty revolvers that were shooting silver trails of what surely isn’t any kind of bullet you’ve ever seen.

"Son of a Fuckin' Bitch!" Jeff scrambled his way back into the cab of the truck and punched the button for the starters. With a pneumatic scream the two air motors spun up to speed bringing the already warmed engine up to full rpm in seconds. "GET ON THE TRUCK!" Roaring like an angry beast and snorting black smoke it lurched as he engaged the transmission and began to creep forward.

The four climb on Freddy’s vehicle as terrified mooing is hears over the engines. One of the McKrees points to additional saucers over the farmer’s property.

”They’s stealin’ the CATTLE! Greedy BASTARDS!”

"That does it, I can't abide thieves!" Jerking the large steering wheel caused the truck to swerve hard left, down off the side of the road and through the fence. It rocked wildly as the heavily loaded suspension fought with the uneven terrain but proved to be a match for it. Pulling down on the manual throttle controls Kludge brought the engine to full speed as he sent the truck racing toward the saucers. "Shmoe! Get over here and take the wheel! just keep her going straight!" Opening the door he stepped out onto the step and pulled a large shotgun out from behind the seat. Opening the breach he inserted a 4 inch cartridge that was solid brass. "Keep her steady!" He said not even checking to see if anyone was actually driving, then bracing against the door frame and using the cab to support his arm he sighted down the barrel. A childhood spent hunting and 8 years of Marine training combined as he gently squeezed the trigger and sent just under 2 ounces of copper jacketed lead down the barrel at over mach 1. His should felt like someone smashed it with a hammer but that didn't stop him from ejecting the spent case and loading a second one.

One saucer tilted violently, catapulting the levitating cow off to who-knows where. A bewildered farmer ran out of his house with a shotgun ready, but soon he was flailing helplessly as a saucer’s light pulled him into the craft.

Kludge took careful aim on the same craft he had shot the first time and fired again, cursing as in his haste he didn't seat the butt firmly against his shoulder and it kicked him hard. Eyeing the rapidly approaching cow herd he dropped one butt cheek back onto the seat and mashed his foot down on the brake praying he wouldn't be testing the cow catcher on the front of the rig.

"You have guns, use them!"

”Hang onto yer britches! These take time to recharge!”

"I don't know what those things are, but I'm betting you do! Do they have a weak point? Where should I shoot to bring it down?" Popping the truck out of gear Kludge reloaded the shotgun, dreading how his shoulder was going to feel in a few hours. In a combination of good and bad news, he only had four of the heavy loads left and he had the feeling standard buckshot just wasn't going to handle it.

”See where the light’s sucking’ up them cows? Hit that and an you get th’ engine!”

"I want one of those engines!" Using the top of the door to stabilize the shotgun Jeff took careful aim, exhaled slowly, and stroked the trigger. The explosion of the slugs leaving the barrel pretty much masked his groan as his shoulder soaked up the recoil.