After some hours of rest, the humans are ready to continue exploring the supply depot.

There's only one exit from the Visitors Center, so they start off from the large hallway again...

Across the hall, to the left, are three unmarked doors.

To their right, on the wall, is a big (about five inches across) red button, also unlabeled.

The Duke also notes the hidden panel in the wall that he noticed earlier. It's almost seamless, but not quite. (Whether he tries to do anything with it, or points it out to the others, is up to The Duke.)

It looks like there might be at least two more doors down the hall to your right (as you leave the Visitors' Center), but you can't tell much about them.

If there are more doors down the hall to the left, past the ladder that brought you down here... it's hard to be sure from here. Possibly not. But possibly.

The Duke who hasn't slept at all but been clearing all the leftover soda and the candy dispensers was now twitchy and hyperactive in ways that might make intelligent people uncomfortable. Luckily his friends where not burdened with such a negative trait and followed the giant around. Passing the panel he points it out to Ajakstu.

"There is a...

His voice switches over.

"Sneaky thief, long fingers squiggly wiggly sleek don't go where things reek. Locks tight in light so bright. Move in a haze for this is a race and with a simple pop you'll open the lock."

And like nothing happened he finishes gesturing at the panel.

... panel over here."

He himself moves on to the button and seems ready to give it a solid smack.

17:34, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 7 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 2,4.  Insightful.
Actually I think I am carrying one last -1 from the trap above, so this is a....6!


Ajakstu peered at the panel, both for traps and also a mmeans to open it. Worst case he would knife it open.

"Please don't touch that," he cautioned The Duke.

23:49, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 5 using 2d6+1 ((2,2)).

Alyn also tried inspecting the panel with Jak, seeing if he could point out anything or sense anything or otherwise help Jak. But yeah...his mind was on other matters, apparently.

Well that's a fail lol! But on the plus side I'm always down for another xp! 2->3

The Duke pouts for a second as he turns around and then all of a sudden his massive hip accidentally bumps into the button. That hip sway is absolutely imagined.

"What?"

(I'm treating hitting the red button as the bad consequences for the failed rolls.)


Ajakstu studies the panel-- it's a typical pressure-point thing-- you push on it THERE, and THERE, and it should open easily.

But before he can actually try it, The Duke pushes the button, and an alarm starts going off. Four robots, with a sort of bayonet on their left arm and a slightly-spiky fist in the other, balancing on one wheel, come rolling up from down the hall. "INTRUDER ALERT-- INTRUDER ALERT-- PANIC BUTTON PUSHED-- PLEASE BECOME UNCONCIOUS IMMEDIATELY-- THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION--"

One robot shoots a hard beanbag sort of thing very fast at Alyn's head. Pow! Ow.

(Alyn takes 1 damage...)

OOC: The 1 damage is soaked by forcefield.

The sudden beanbag shot seems to hit Alyn for a moment, before bouncing off of something invisible and falling to the ground harmlessly. His armor was the Ziggurat's greatest gift to him when it prepared him for the outside world and much of the allocated gift-resources went into its creation, and Alyn was ever-grateful for it because it has saved him several times now.

Alyn looked at the robots as his eyes suddenly flickered with energy. Sparks of electricity suddenly arced in the air around the young man as the Duke's and the newcomer's hairs stood on end from static electricity.

"Wrong move, asshats. Maybe you ought to take a nap instead!" he said as electricity suddenly arced from Alyn toward the offending robots!

16:31, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 8 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 2,5.  Weird.

Alyn is using electrokinesis on them to short-circuit them and get them to shut down. If he fries them a little he doesn't mind, but he's trying not to completely obliterate them just incapacitate them.

The Duke displeased by the red button dispending battle bots instead of something nice just rips it out of the wall together with pieces off wall mostly anything several inches deep in the wall as his mutilator gloves aid his massive strength.

(Alyn, choose:

EITHER

--You knock all the robots out, but the electricity rebounds, and it slightly damages your force field armor

OR

--You knock out only one robot (but your force field armor is untouched)

Electricity arcs from Alyn across the hallways, striking into one of the robots!

OOC: Choosing to protect my armor. Duke and new-guy? sic em!

"Ooof, trouble!" Ajakstu shouts. "Rake! Attend me!" With that command, he scurries to put The Duke between himself and robots, reaching out for the insect.

Seeing his companions struggle and scatter the Duke pops his neck and moves in close to inflict upon the poor robots what not even their makers imagined would be possible upon the poor things.

ooc: Atrocity 8 So just a weak one but then these robots are weak going down from just a little jolt. Taking +1 forward if we do more violence.

20:56, Today: The Duke rolled 8 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 1,6.  Atrocity.

Reed knocks out just one robot.



Rake had been exploring sticky islands of dried soda on the floor and walls (and ceiling) of the hallway, but now he comes flying to Ajakstu's shoulder.



The Duke tears into the robots, and puts two of them down with his bare hands (and not taking a scratch).

The remaining robot hesitates, even backing away a bit, very slowly. "SITUATION MODIFIED-- RE-EVALUATING... RE-EVALUATING..."

"So robot gonna be our guide to this place or be scrap?"

He cracks his powered knuckles.

"Im getting really tired of every robot in this place trying to hurt us."

"I look forward to the labors of our robot butler," Ajakstu pipes up.

"Clearly they have access to power, and their security system stands, so perhaps a map and intelligence is to be had."

Alyn stepped forward, his eyes blazing suddenly.

"I think you want to be very helpful to me. And by extention, my companions. And I think you want to tell me all your secrets too, and be a nice guide for me while I'm here. Because as far as you're concerned, I'm the fleshbag that's the closest thing there is to royalty. Now attend me, and stop acting so...uncouth!." Alyn said.

The man man share Duke's sentiment about robots being annoying, and Alyn had had enough and was more than willing to mind-jack them at this point.

OOC: Alyn is trying to use telepathy - which yes due to whatever weird metaphysics make his powers work - actually works fairly well on machines lol. And he's basically trying to "charm" it in a "Charm spell" or "I'm a Vampire using a charming eye stare / presence disciple from world of darkness / etc.


16:46, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 13 using 2d6+3 with rolls of 6,4.  Charming.

"RE-EVALUATING... SITUATIONAL MODIFIERS BEING CALCULATED..." The robot comes to a decision. "ALERT CANCELLED. CLEAN-UP IN MAIN HALLWAY 1 NEEDED. FIRST, VISITORS NEED TO BE ESCORTED. WHERE CAN THIS UNIT GUIDE YOU, VISITOR...?"

Ajakstu FINALLY opens the panel, now that the excitement has somewhat dies down.

"Robot!" he commands, although he is fully ignoring the new mechanical servants. "Please present to us a list and description of any and all non-mechanical sentient beings in this facility, excluding those in this crack team before ypou."

Alyn nodded.

"And provide us a map of the facility as well as telling me where I can go pick up my Alynwalker....errr I mean Doomwalker hardware?" he said.

The duke crosses his arms and leans againt the wall waiting for the robot to do as asked but also already itching to stomp the things. He started to think all robots just needed to be destroyed. They where always hostile after all.

I can promise that, save in a sudden case of instant death like getting hit by lightning or some freak accident, I will never just ghost a game I'm in. Never.

"PROCESSING..." The robot begins to shiver and shudder. "...THERE HAS BEEN DAMAGE TO PROCESSING BOARDS... POSSIBLY DUE TO: VERMIN. IMPROPER CLEANING SCHEDULES. SEISMIC UPHEAVAL. SABOTAGE. CAN REPORT THAT THERE ARE... BOTH BIOLOGICAL, CYBORG, AND ROBOTIC UNITS CURRENTLY OPERATIONAL IN THIS FACILITY. CANNOT GIVE NUMBER NOR IDENTIFICATION." The robot shakes harder. "IF IT IS HELPFUL, CAN REPORT THAT THERE IS A HUMAN LIKE YOURSELVES CURRENTLY OPERATIONAL IN STORAGE BAY FIVE, NOT FAR FROM THIS LOCATION. SHALL I ESCORT YOU THERE NOW?"




"CERTAINLY, SIR. THE PANEL THERE CAN PROVIDE A PRINTOUT OF THAT RIGHT AWAY."

Ajakstu's panel makes many clicking noises for several seconds, and then a whirrring noise for about four seconds. Then: "This panel is out of paper. Replacement paper rolls are available in Storage Bay Six. Please be kind to your co-workers and replace promptly thank you"

---

Alyn Reed:

I can promise that, save in a sudden case of instant death like getting hit by lightning or some freak accident, I will never just ghost a game I'm in. Never.

(I think you meant to say this in the OOC thread)

OOC: Yes meant that for ooc lol.

Alyn sighed. Of course the damned printer was out of ink! He considered trying to just rip the data from it, but that had the risk - if his powers fluctuated as they often did - of damaging or destroying it and he worked so hard to get the thing charmed to their side. He couldn't waste a party resource like that.

"I suppose we ought to go meet this other human who's in here and determine if they are friend or Foe. If they are friend...I'll give them into the care of our Human Resources Ambassador, Dukie. If they are Foe...I'll give them over to our Human Resources Ambassador, Dukie...for some tough-love diplomacy." Alyn said with a grin.

"Plus...we need to head to bay 5 to get to bay 6. I want my damned map, which means we need to go grab a print cartridge or whatever. So robo-steward? Lead the way to area 5 and from there, after we meet the other human, we'll go to area 6!"

"THIS WAY SIRS AND/OR MADAMES AND/OR OTHERS"

The robot leads the way down the hall, in the direction you've been heading, past 2 cross-hallways that all look about the same...

Finally, after maybe 10 minutes of average-speed walking, the robot stops at a large door and a small door, neither of which have windows. The doors have signs, though: STORAGE BAY FIVE, CARGO DOOR on the big one and STORAGE BAY FIVE, PERSONNEL ACCESS on the normal-size door.

The Duke gives the big door a push. Its always nice they make doors that accomodate the giant resource ambassador. As he tries to open the door with less or more force if needed he calls out.

"To whoever is inside. Im sick of everything attacking us so if you even look at us funny i will eat you!!"

Welp. When The Duke opens the big door and makes his announcement to whomever or whatever may be inside, two things happen:

1. A human man crouching behind some crates near the door turns and looks at you. He is quite surprised to see you, and to hear your announcement...

2. Some things down at the far end of the large (football-field-size, Alyn thinks) warehouse-type area also all turn...

(The Duke, roll... Scary/Weird, please...)

The Duke is his regular self. Not scary at all.

ooc: 23:19, Today: The Duke rolled 12 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 5,6.  scary.

The things at the far end come nearer. They have huge bug-eyes, red bodies, eight limbs... The top limbs are arms, the bottom two are legs, and the middle four seem to be capable of either. When they walk, they bounce on six legs... They're like a cross between insects and, I dunno, bunnies in low-gravity? Their big eyes make them kinda goofy-looking, but the fact that each one is almost as big as The Duke makes them intimidating anyway, because there's a couple'a dozen of them.

( https://m.media-amazon.com/ima...jc3Nzc3MjU@._V1_.jpg

These guys, but each of them bigger than a Volkswagen (so, each a little smaller than The Duke), and capable of rearing up on their back four legs if need be, and also having hands as you go up (the top limbs have real hands, and the next set have hands but with stubbier fingers, and the next set barely have hands, and the backmost legs have no hands at all as such). )

When they get within 30 yards, they stop. "You are fearsome, great one! We respect your might and power! We would parley!"

What is Rake's reaction to the creatures?

The Duke smiles at the things as he cracks his neck and rolls his shoulders.

"I don't think i ever ate a parley. I'll have one yeah."

Alyn considers a moment, and at first was going to try telpathy but once they started talking decided he needed to back the Duke up a bit. So instead, he decided a show of force was needed to supplement the Duke's impressive display of standing his ground.

Alyn Decides not to attack right now, but instead to telekinetically pick up several of the large crates and boxes, along with many more lesser things like debris, a few loose pipes, free standing signs, and anything elsehe could "grab" with his mind all at once. His goal was to leave them hovering there in the air nearby him and behiond him to look impressive, like a snake recoiling and getting ready to Strike if it chose but choosing not to. And of course...if he did need to attack, it would be easier to follow up on with things already in the air.

His eyes flashed with power a moment as he attempted this, what what actually happened was...

21:39, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 8 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 1,6.  Weird/Scary.

...well, was up to the GM interpretation. But he rolled an 8.

"Dukie...they are saying they want to call a momentary truce and meet with us to discuss...whatever the fuck situation we're in. Think of it as a peaceful meeting before a battle, where people can discuss terms or possibly even come to an agreement before force is needed." he said.

The Duke stops rubbing his massive belly and turns to look at Alyn confused.

"Huh. Why waste time talking if they want to get smashed to pulp anyhow. That's stupid or are they bringing snacks?"

He looks back at the spider things expectantly.

Pesky, hunkered down behind a pile of wooden crates, looks back and forth between the new party and the giant ant things.  He wants to speak, but decides to wait and watch, to see how this shakes out.

Rake doesn't like these things. Rake hides behind Ajakstu's shoulder.




Alyn spreads his mind a bit too thin, and he ends up only levitating one crate threateningly.

The creatures take note of it, and understand it's something Alyn is doing, but they don't seem quite as impressed as he'd hoped.




"Indeed, indeed, there are foodstuffs in the rectangles back behind us. However, we prefer fresh meat. Mighty one, might you trade one of your servants in exchange for our peaceably letting you have the other contents of this chamber?" The creatures eye Ajakstu hungrily (since they're slightly worried about Alyn and since they haven't spotted Pesky yet).

"My only servant is a robot. You like robots not much meat on them? The rest are friends and if you eat them i got to kill you. I do have crab meat in my cooler though. You can have that in exchange."

He pulls out a slab of the giant crab meat to show them and also starts towards the rectangles.

Ajakstu slowly and obviously pulls out his throwing knives.

"They do not pass the Rake test, comrades. Might be time for aerial assistance, Pretty Boy."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:31, Fri 24 Mar 2023.

Alyn considered.

"Well Dukie...let's see if they take your deal. If they don't, I'm going to start killing them and stop holding back. But you're our diplomacy person right now, Duke. So I'll give them one chance to respond." Alyn said as he glanced at the large crate that was hovering in the air telekinetically.

His eyes flickered a bit as the crate suddenly began to crackle a bit with psychokinetic energy...


23:23, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 9 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 5,3.  Weird/Scary.

Alyn is trying to "charge" up the crate. My hope is that next post, if we need to attack, you'll grant some sort of bonus of some kind as he launches the crate into the mob of ant monsters. He's trying to charge it up with a bunch of psychokinetic energy, so that if he he decides to attack with it...it will not only be as damaging as hurling a large metal crate would be, but one that is charged with energy to be a sort of small force bomb if you will. Like a Crate-grenade!

Using AW C'MON!
09:28, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 9 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 6,2.  Charming to cheer up the agitated Alyn.

"Do not fear, comrade Alewife! I am hopeful and full of cheer that the soft words and big muscles of The Duke will render a diplomatic outcome most favorable to you," Ajakstu said to Alyn with a comforting smile. Which probably appeared more like a bloodthirsty leer.

The ant-creatures decide that this parley is headed downhill, and they're no newbies when it comes to hills.

They attack The Duke (although one of them does stop to grab the crab meat out of his hand and eat it first).

Foers confirms for The Duke yeah, feel free to waste these guys if you want (whereas the human who's been observing/listening from behind the boxes is highlighted as DO NOT HURT (in case you were wondering)).

(Alyn: roll Scary/Weird one more time, but add 1 extra point to the result.

The Duke: feel free to get violent.

Ajakstu, since your roll was only a 9, I'm not gonna give you a bonus YET. We'll see how this encounter plays out.

Pesky: Feel free to help/participate if you want!)

16:10, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 11 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 3,6.  Knife.

Ajakstu, with great style, and an air of casualness, flicks a knife at the closest creature as he stylishly saunters/tumbles towards the boxes to seek a second hiding place.

"Everyone knows that ants, can't, endure The Duke's deadly dance! But keep those high hopes!"

15:55, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 7 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 3,2.  Weird/Scary.

Whew! That preparation actually averted a failure! Don't get me wrong...I like the xp that failure brings, as well as the hilarity that ensues, but me thinks this is a REALLY bad time to fail such a roll right now. :)

Alyn launches the psychokinetically-charged metal crate at the oncoming attacking ant-things!

Pesky watches patiently as everything goes south.
Welp...no time like the present.

He slips his rifle from his shoulder, assessing the layout as he does.  He quickly runs from one crate to another in an attempt to flank the ant creatures.  He stops, kneels, and takes careful aim at one the one that appears to be the leader, the one out front.


17:07, Today: Pesky rolled 3 using 2d6 with rolls of 1,2.  +1 Forceful against ant people.  Total of 4


Do you narrate the epic first roll or do I?  :-(

ooc:

Pesky:

Do you narrate the epic first roll or do I?  :-(

Please indulge me!

The ants attacking was a thing the Duke was well aware off would be coming. After all it was a pastry! But then that vile horrid creature took HIS meat. If his companions imagined they had seen their big companion angry before they where now proven sorely wrong. The Duke roars as his food is stolen and it takes only a tenth of a second  for his power gauntlets spark alive with building demolishing power and the Duke slams the device into the offending creatures mouth so deep the thing was turned into a fancy sleeve just as Pesky takes aim. And the second he pulls the trigger the creature is dislodged by the back swing and hurled in his direction. The thing slams into the crates he is between with so much force the poor sniper finds himself sandwiched between the heavy crates as the Duke turns to deal with the lesser offenders though its clear that these things clearly have pushed the wrong buttons on the poor Dukie.

ooc: Oh man only one short to kill a group of strong enemies so i only killed one in case these guys where stong in my narrative and leave the rest to you GM.

10-12: Strong Atrocity: Charge any one strong opponent, or group of weak opponents, and destroy them. You don't even need to use any weapons (though you may). If your next move is an assault or atrocity, take +2 forward.

23:25, Today: The Duke rolled 12 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 5,6.  ATROCITY TIME!!!

ps. A +1 lets me kill a whole group of strong enemies if someone feels like helping ;-)

--Ajakstu gets a big mant (face like a man, body like an ant) right in its big eye. The other mants are alarmed and avoid this clearly-dangerous thrower-of-death... for the moment.

--Alyn crushes a mant, but the other mants decide that making a rectangle (as they think of crates) attack them is cowardly. One mant attacks Alyn:

(11:49, Today: The GM rolled 8 using 2d6 with rolls of 6,2.  Manttack against Alyn.)


Alyn's force field protects him-- but it does knock him down. Weak! The rectangle-master is weak! Alyn's attacker laughs at him. Another mant comes over, and there are only seconds before they start really chewing on him and trying to pull his legs off--

--Pesky misses, and the mant he'd targeted rushes over to bite him...

(11:51, Today: The GM rolled 7 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 1,5.  Mant attack against Pesky.)

A bite, but no limbs come off. Could've been worse... (Pesky loses 1 health level. ...but because of his That Does It ability, he takes +1 forward on his next roll...)


(--I'm waiting on The Duke to see if anyone can or will successfully Aid him...

I think Ajakstu is in the best position to try, but Alyn could try it, too, psychically, but at greater personal risk...)

After one of the Mants attacked him and unceremoniously knocked him to the ground (which was more like he bounced comically a moment on the ground due to his shield, which meant he took 1 point of damage to his dignity), the psion decided he had had enough.

His eyes FLARED with power this time, and they continued to flare rather than just their normal flickering. His voice changed as a wave of psychokinetic force pushed the Mants around him back a bit despite their greater strength and size. Even the Nearby Duke was pushed pack a bit (but only a couple feet...the power seemed to recognize Alyn's allies) as Alyn's true power was becoming unleashed! He began to float off the ground and hovered about 4 feet in the air, and his blazing eyes angrily scanned the room.

"Foolish insects! We gave you several chances, and yet in your arrogance you interpreted our kindness as weakness! Now, you will see who really is the master here. Now suffer!" he said as suddenly his body began to emit arcs of electricity. But unlike how it was in the hallway before, this was like a growing storm that continued to grow with a Fury comparable only to the Duke himself unleashing his atrocity.

Like a Tesla coil, multiple arcs of electrcity began to arc into the ground, ceiling, and even into some of the nearest Mants. But then the bolts got THICKER and couldn't be called electricty anymore. Maybe something with more plasma in them, like small lightning! Although no Ally nor Pesky was harmed or targeted. But after several really awkward and tense moments...that bottled up brewing storm became unleased as psychokinetically charged bolts of lightning ripped across the room and tore into the hordes of Mants!

It wasn't normal looking electricity. It was red, charged plasma-like energy rippling with psychokinetic power.

NOTE: The bolts do not target allies, including Pesky and our robot guide.


15:55, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 12 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 6,5.  Weird/Scary.

There was enough residual power in the room that Ajakstu's most awesome hat rose up upon his straightened by charge hair. Rake crawled into Ajakstu's garments for cover.

"I see my life coaching has inspired you to new feats of power, A-Lynn!" Ajakstu shouted as he sprinted to the far end of the room.

Time to see if there are more of the creatures, or a nest, or young, or treasure, or better looking prisoners than the guy with the rifle.

(Item of business 1: Alyn, your roll is good enough that I'll let you decide-- pick one:
--All the mants that were in the room are dead now
--All the mants are badly hurt and unconscious now
--Many mants are dead, and the rest are now fleeing as fast as they can-- they never want to set their big eyes on Alyn again
--All the mants are dead except one who's hurt and you can interrogate)

(Item of business 2: Ajakstu has this perk:

--DID SOMEONE SAY TREASURE:
----When you get a result of 10 or higher on a roll while you are near some treasure or some valuable or useful things, then some of that treasure is leaving with you. (Note: There has to be more than one. You can't use this in a room with one huge ruby in order to trick the universe into giving you the ruby just because you succeed on a roll. There has to be a group of coins, jewels, ray guns, fancy hats, whatever.)
----When you put Treasure in your pockets or backpack or whatever, it never fills your storage capacity. Other things might, but not your Treasure. Yes, this is impossible.
----If you ever lose any of your Treasure, you're very upset-- take -1 forward. (SPENDING or TRADING your Treasure is fine, it's just dropping or losing or being conned out of your Treasure (if you realize it) that upsets you.

SO because of the earlier knife-throw, Ajakstu is gettin' somethin' from this room. Choose ONE of these options, Ajakstu:

--A handful of yummy fruit-flavored diet pills-- just one makes a person full, 2 makes even The Duke feel full
--1 Magnetic knife-- throw it and it does damage then comes back to yuo
--2 Smoke Bombs (Class 1 Grenade, Thrown (Close), Chemical [Smoke])
--2 Flashbangs (Class 1 Grenade, Thrown (Close), Concussive)
--1 Research Kit: Tools to study and experiment out in the field. Specimen jars, hammer
and chisel, scalpels, chemical analyser, data recorder, etc. (Can add +1 to a related roll)
--1 Wilderness Kit: Tools to traverse hostile landscapes. Ropes, climbing tools, light
sources, breather mask, tent, sleeping bag, heat lamp, thermal blanket, water filter,
etc. (Can add +1 to a related roll))

(Item of business 3: Of course, The Duke messed up multiple Mants, hard. I'll be sure to mention that when I post In-Character (as it were) again.)
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:32, Sun 26 Mar 2023.

Choice chosen: Many mants are dead, and the rest are now fleeing as fast as they can-- they never want to set their big eyes on Alyn again.

While I was considering killing all and leaving one alive to interrogate, I much like the narrative impact that him killing a bunch and injuring but sparing the rest (who weren't also pulverized by Duke that is) and letting them flee is interesting. It means Alyn (and perhaps Duke too) will have a "rep" as crazy, unhinged, and powerful threats to these bugs which could lead to both opportunities and plot hooks/changes later on.

My narrative justification is that any Mant who knelt and submitted during the attack rather than tried to stand their ground against the party got singed for sure but otherwise spared from death, while the rest were blasted apart. Then they run the heck away and leave the facility.

The Duke messes up many Mants, but while he has the sheer destructive power, he can't be everywhere at once. Alyn's attack kills some Mants, but injures (to some degree) all those it doesn't kill.

All the Mants (who are still living, which is maybe slightly less than half of them) retreat (including the one threatening Pesky), scurrying to the back of the room... where they disappear. Must be another exit back there behind the many shelves of crates.

The Duke angry over the stolen food by these treacherous beasts gets into pursuit. Running away was not going to save these fuckers after that atrocity!!!

Alyn gently landed on the ground then, as he let the surviving Mants flee the facility. That ought to teach them a lesson they won't ever forget! He also enjoyed showing the Duke what he was capable of too, since the top 3 things the Duke respected, in order, was Good Food, Cuddly things (and people who made him feel cuddly), and sheer unbridled power and rage unleashed.

He exhaled a sigh of relief as he came off the high of his own surging power.

"Ugh. Doing it like that makes me feel like a snorted a line of coke before then holding my breath underwater a bit too long. Buuuut...at least I didn't blow us up instead! That's always a nice thing, yes? And those pesky insects learned their place. Hmph." he said as his demeanor began to shift back to its normal, more charming and gregarious self rather than his unhinged power-flooded side.

"Hey Dukie? You're also our Food Storage Manager, yes? Could you please do the honors and assess if any of the food in those crates is safe for us? We can fill up our stores in the truck if there's anything useful. Plus...you might find something good to taste-test and sample for us first." he said, a playful twinkly in his despite the serious tone in his voice as he channeled the first thing the Duke respected: the prospect of good food!

"I'll deal with guy over there while Ajak looks for whatever it is Ajak looks for at times like this." he added, before turning over and walking to the cowering Pesky.

"Um...we mean you no harm, as long as you actually want to treat us with human decency and not try to eat us or something. As you've just witnessed...we're not very palatable." Alyn said to Pesky with a gregarious chuckle.

"My name is Alyn, and this gentleman here is The Duke and the other is Ajakstu. We're shall we say...travelers, explorers, and survivors mixed in with a dash of elegance and class." he added with a smirk. "And we're totally not a band of goofy misfits." he added.

Note: They totally were a band of goofy misfits.

"By the way are you okay? Any injuries? What is your name, and what if I may ask are you doing here? And where do you come from? We're looking for other human settlements which is why we ask." he asked, truthfully.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:27, Mon 27 Mar 2023.

Pesky pulled himself to his feet with a groan.

"Name's Peter.  Peter Eskind, but everyone calls me Pesky," he said, slowly sticking his hand out for a shake.  "And no...no injuries, thanks."

"You guys seem to know how to handle things," he said, looking around at all of the corpses.  "I guess I'm here doing the same thing you are.  Resupplying, looking for stuff."

"A pleasure Peter." Alyn replied.

"Oh...1 sec. Our relationship ambassador is utilizing some intense care-bear love. Let's see if I can call him back." Alyn said as his eyes flickered briefly and silently but just a brief moment.

Dukie? Are you going to leave us here in this big, scary old base all by our lonesome? Foor Ajak almost shit himself from those bugs (and certainly not because you and I wiped the floor with em). And this new Pesky guy needs some attention. And the Food Dukie! You're our Food supply manager...if you run away now, who's going to carry on that sacred mission?!

20:46, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 9 using 2d6+3 with rolls of 1,5.  Charming.

I roll a 9 Alyn is using the already-established psychic connection he has with Duke up to this point to Telepathically do something in between a strong insistence and a very mild suggestion for him to calm down and come back
This message was last edited by the player at 01:50, Tue 28 Mar 2023.

The Duke is gone about 45 seconds-- just long enough that Alyn barely starts to worry-- and then he returns, looking a little smug.

Several Mants got away, but those who did-- but who also glanced back for a moment-- saw horrors that will be told and re-told in infamy in their culture, and all cultures involved with the Mants. Folk tales will be told of the giant who seemed frightening and the scrawny man who seemed weak, and of how it was seemingly the scrawny enchanter of rectangles who was the truly powerful one after all-- until the giant caught up with those who were fleeing, and who enacted nightmares upon their bodies with only his hands.

The legend of The Duke and his allies among the cultures of the Sunless Earth truly begins here, today.

"Welcome back, Dukie." Alyn said with a pleasant smile and tone of voice.

He could "feel" mentally the smug satisfaction radiating off of the Duke, thanks to his powers, while he sensed the fear and surprise of the fleeing Mants. Good - let them know fear of their group. Perhaps they'd give them a wide and comfortable berth later on as a result, so Alyn could focus on more important htings like getting his Alynwalker up and running, or subtly instigating Duke to mess with Ajak and enjoying the show as he lauds the other man with sloppy kisses and hugs, and so on. You know...the important stuff!

Alyn subtly sent a psychic message outside of the compound.

Yo Murder Moth Pet things? I'm sending some juicy morsels with lots pf psychic anguish and resonance out of the complex here if you want dinner. Their agitated state should be producing an excess of energy to feed off of. Just try not to kill any more of them, and instead skim the surface when and if you feed. I want them alive to spread word to their kin so people leave us alone. The others don't suspect I purposefully left some alive for this purpose, but I thought you'd appreciate the heads up on a good feeding opportunity.

Alyn turned to Pesky.

"Well Pesky. There you have it. And yes resupplying is basically it for us too. The Duke here is our Human Resources and Food-Management Ambassador, Ajak here is something of our fixer, and I'm here to be the pretty one. We have a man-cat and a um...shapeshifting mater entity thing as allies up on the surface, and I have some pet moths flying around up there somewhere doing lord knows what, but they are cute and make me happier than having a dog or something." Alyn said.

"Oh...a serious question, Pesky. Do you happen to know anything about a place called with the Ziggurat (ooc: this is the starting area for the rest of us), or of a human habitat called the Cloister? We're broadly, for various but surprisingly well-intentioned, reasons looking for the Cloistur so we can try and establish friendly channels between it and the Ziggurat, among other things. You're quite frankly, along with some dude in robes who vanished somewhere, the first human we've seen outside the Ziggurat so far."

Ajakstu listened intently while appearing to be disinterested. He let Rake out to derive whatever sustenance was available from the deceased mants.

He pulled his throwing knofe from the dead mant and looked at Pesky.

"History is clear. When there is a team, maybe called something like 'The Apex team' or some such, their are four clear roles."

He pointed to The Duke, "The Bad Ass, sometimes abbreviated as BA."

"The overly talkative and full of himself Face," as he pointed at Alyn.

"The unorthodox, yet effective planner," he said as he indicated himself.

With a pointed glance at Pesky, "Are you howling mad? Are you even howling or mad?"

He then walked away, humming a tune that was perhaps familiar.

We shall watch for them, say the mind-moths. If they exit to the east, though, we shall let whatever is there deal with them.

The Duke simply produces a wide grin as he ruffles his new leg cape and leaves people to wonder just how its even possible to weave legs into a cape as they are not flexible and all and yet here the Duke is in a nice and flexible cape that will most likely start to reek in a few days.

Seeing FOERS designate the new one as a friend the Duke simply ignores him and starts to check the supplies calling one of the robots over to open the rectangles of delight. He was probalby going to need an extra cooler by the end of this.

The crates that The Duke happens to start with mostly contain ingredients-- flour, sugar (this was probably especially what the Mants were here for), powdered egg substitute, honey, margarine, spices, cooking oil, and so on. But at least they're all well-preserved and fresh? So... that's nice?

"We need a bigger vehicle and a cook!!"

The Duke declares as he makes stacks of usable stuff and stuff that needs preparation first.

Pesky listened to Alyn and was quick to respond.

"Yes, the Ziggurat.  Well, I was born there, but left as a baby.  I've only been back twice, both a long time ago."  He paused and thought for a moment, eyes cast to the floor.  "As for the Cloister, no...never heard of it.  What is it?"

The one Alyn had called Ajak spoke.

"Am I mad?  Well, I suppose that depends on who you ask, dunnit?"
This message was last edited by the player at 16:07, Mon 03 Apr 2023.

Alyn nodded at Pesky.

"We're learning about the Cloister more ourselves too. It's our main objective, between our little side-objective flights of fancy of course." he replied.

"All we really know is that it's supposed to be some fairly old and established fortress of humans, similar to the Ziggurat in a sense, except the Ziggurat folks have lost all contact with the Cloister for some time and it's either real or anecdotal depending on who you ask. But we believe it's real. And our main reason for looking for the Cloister is to help re-establish the ties and friendly contact it used to have with the Ziggurat community." he continued.

"Plus? Most humans aren't as um...special as we are. And the world out there is fairly dangerous, with monsters and robots and all other kinds of crazy stuff and humanity in general can't blast or rampage their way through those things like myself and the Duke can, or do whatever it is Jak does that's kept him alive till now, so it makes total sense why they have these ziggurat style havens. I'm sure each of us also has personal reasons for looking for the Cloister, like I want to learn more about the world and the human history within it for instance. But the main goal is we each agreed to help the Ziggurat re-connect with its ancient allies...assuming they're still around to reconnect with of course."

Ajakstu turns to the new robot valet. "You there! Is there another robot hereabouts skilled in the culinary arts, or some sort of automated food preparation device to feed these ingredients into?"

That robot left to go clean up the mess that was left after fighting the other robots, but as luck would have it, Ajakstu happens to look out in the hall just as another robot (of very similar model) is happening by. (Whether or not Ajakstu realizes it is a different robot is very questionable.) (Whether or not Ajakstu cares that it is a different robot is even more questionable.)

"Yes sir, there are both of those things in this facility. The automated kitchen is closer. I can also attempt to send a call for the chef-trained robot, if you wish...?"

Pesky barely heard anything Alyn said past established fortress of humans.  A tiny electric shock went through him as his mind immediately went to his daughter.

He tried to tune in to the rest, with mixed success.

"So, you don't know where this is?  Do you have ideas or leads?"

Alyn nodded.

"We do have a very vague lead we're following, but don't know where exactly it is yet. But we're on our way to a town that has someone who might be able to give us another lead." Alyn replied.

OOC: It's been a while, but I think that's our "main story quest" current objective is to get to that town with the surgeon who can help Kalsk get the parasite out of him, since someone there also supposedly knows more about the Cloisture. Correct me If I'm wrong.

But right now we're on a "side quest" exploring this military complex. Duke is here for food opportunities, Ajak here for lewt opportunities, and Alyn is here to get the hardware he needs to do an ownership reset of a Gigantic Doomwalker Soon-to-Be Alynwalker.

"But since we don't have a super clear path, just a round-about one, we like to make pitstops along the way for fun and profit. Mostly for kicks more than anything. And Food. Duke is our Food Resource Manager as well as our Human Resources Ambassador." the psion added with a grin.

Meanwhile the duke oblivious to the majestic revelation of an automated kitchen keeps sorting through the raw resources.

He wasn't too keen on the 'round-about' path they were taking, but felt an urgent need to find another settlement full of humans.

"I know we've, uh, just met, but could I travel with you?  At least as far as the town?"

"Ahem!" Ajakstu said in a half-hearted attempt to get anyone's attention.

"So this butler-class unit here," as he pointed to the robot. "Says there is both a kitchen and a chef-trained robot. And still some lurking malevolent presence, by the way."

"KITCHEN WITH A CHEF!! LEAD THE WAY!!"

The Duke drops the crate he is holding and barrels straight at the robot and Ajakstu and then stopd dead in his tracks still as a statue for a second or two and then he leans down his face close to that of Pesky his breath is bad as putrefied food remains rot in cavities between teeth that have never seen a brush. Its a little worse then you think you can imagine but there is also a sweet soda smell that wafts of his body mixed with old sweat now wet as he whispers in a tone that is clearly not his regular voice.

"To travel alone is to find despair and misery. In the many there is strength and in skulking alone there is death. If you are ever alone in the dark know there is light among the stars which are manifold."

And with a massive belch that splatters some of whatever the duke has been eating from the magical rectangles ans saliva on his face he turns and barrels on to hug the butler class unit and demand directions from it NOW!!

ooc: Pesky has been prophetised. If he ever finds himself alone and lost ask the Dukes player if this is what he was talking about. If the answer is yes you may roll an extra d6 and substitute it with any of the previolus rolled dice.

10:36, Today: The Duke rolled 9 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 2,6.  Prophecy.

Alyn knew it was only a matter of time before the Duke found his way to the kitchens here. With a chuckle, he let the man go. Turning to Pesky, he nodded.

"You are certainly welcome to travel with us for as long as you'd like. Certainly till the next town at least and of course you're free to leave whenever, but as a fellow human we welcome you to our group." Alyn said.

"You'll get used to our dynamic soon, but basically what you saw here today is just day-to-day normal for us. And I think there's some other intelligence deeper inside the facility, and I NEED that hardward for my Alynwalker and thus we can;t leave till we get it. So there is a chance we will encounter this presence, and we don't know if it is friendly or not. And you just saw what happens when we run into unfriendly presences but we've actually befriended monsters and stuff out here too. Really, you never know what you're gonna get in this freacky world. But I wanted to disclose the risk of traveling with us, along with the benefits, so you can make an informed decision." Alyn said, thoughtfully.

"The downside is we tend to encounter strange, weird, and sometimes dangerous situations fairly regularly. But the advantage is that we're also kind of innocent-looking apex predators too. So our party is both the safest and most dangerous place to be that I can think of right now, but we promise you won't be bored at least."

Pesky stood stock still, just staring as Duke thundered away.  After a moment, his trance broke and he reflexively grabbed the hem of his filthy shirt and wiped his face.

"Ugghh!", he exclaimed.  Slowly turning his head to Alyn, he asked, "What the hell was all that about?!"

Alyn chuckled. He tried to stifle it a bit, but failed.

"Um yeaaaaah...that's The Duke for ya! Thankfully, my forcefield tends to treat his hijinx as an environmental hazard, so protects me from the indignity of most of it. Thank gawd. You know, like his drool and slobber and stuff. But you guys are at his mercy. Mind you...getting a bit on your face from him is basically like a love-pat. It could be a lot worse..." he said, as he pointed to a pile of eviscerated giant bug things near where the Duke has previously come back to them from. Ones that were distinctly torn apart by the duke, and not Alyn's psionic storm.

"You'll get used to it. Just be thankful he didn't give you sloppy kisses a and huggles. Yes not hugs. Huggles. You can ask Ajak all about what it's like being on the receiving end of THAT one. Although again...it's better than being a pile of gore on the floor like those bugs."

Alyn then considered and added.

"The Duke is VERY enthusiastic about food. And now that we learned there's a kitchen here, it's like he hit won the lottery. Honestly...even I'm mildly intrigued. We got a bunch of crab meat and other stuff maybe we can get turned into better food by these robots or something. Perhaps I can have a crab bisque or something."
This message was last edited by the player at 05:06, Tue 25 Apr 2023.

"Fermenting," Ajakstu mutters as he saunters after The Duke.

(Agree on all points. For Pesky's sake I'll also explain that the point of repairing the Doomwalker giant mecha is that a robot named Vomol ("the Seventh Seeker") wants the Doomwalker for his own agenda, and Alyn and the gang don't like Vomol's vibe, so they want to keep it away from Vomol.)




(Hmmmmm. The Duke, give me a new Insightful roll, please.)

In reply to The GM (msg # 76):

ooc: 22:46, Today: The Duke rolled 11 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 5,5.  Insight.

The service robot says "Follow me sir" and off everyone goes, taking about four turns through all-look-the-same corridors.

When you all arrive, though, the kitchen is definitely a kitchen, with many countertops and oven doors, all very fancy-looking.

"WELCOME TO THE MODEL KITCHEN, VISITORS. EVERYTHING IS FULLY-AUTOMATED. WHAT CAN WE MAKE YOU TODAY"

The Duke claps his hands all excited and jumps up and down from sheer excitement when the automated voice is ready to take orders and he bellows extremely excited.

"EVERYTHING!!"

"YES SIR EVERYTHING ON THE MENU IS AVAILABLE. WOULD YOU LIKE TO HEAR THE MENU?"

"Certainly," Ajakstu answers while glancing about to catalog any and all sharp objects.

The menu is rather short, due to supply chain issues involving malfunctions here and there within the facility. There are only four things on it.

(Each of you may name one food or beverage item available.

However, if you schlep the ingredients from the Mant room that you found, you may each name TWO food or beverage items each.

If you bring down the food supplies from your vehicles, you may name THREE food or beverage items each (probably involving Giant Crab).)

"You! Pesty!" Ajakstu looks at the newcomer. "Let us both gather supplies and check on the treacherous cat up above!"

With that he strides back towards the supply room.

Ajakstu grabs honey from the supply room and some crab from up above. He says nothing to Kalsk and Gas Bag. If questioned he says it is for some fierce three headed dog they have encountered.
1. Mead
2. Crab Benedict
3. Pate (insert proper accent marks). He cares not what manner of liver it is, and actually prefers NOT to know

When the machine asks the Duke if he wants to hear the menu with everything he shakes his head annoyed.

"No you make everything and make it snappy!!"

Of coarse at that moment the sneak thief and his hat was already in front of the menu and the Duke was about to swat him and his magnificient hat aside with a snarl. As he raises his hand to give the man a potentially deadly swat FOERS gives an angry squeak only in his head of coarse and an electric jotl sparks from the Dukes head implants making him flinch and pull back his arm. Instead he stomps of grumbling to haul the supplies from the storage room over.

ooc:
First the Duke will order the fabled Festival di Majano Pealla bolw as a starter.
Next the Duke will order some of the legendary Mallies Sports and Grill Bar mega burgers as the main course.
And as Dessert he will order the Doughnotts xxl Donut


Inspiration:
Paella
https://www.facebook.com/lecib...mgFE2JIFWSM&_rdr

Burger
https://www.mlive.com/news/201...rant_breaks_rec.html

Donut:
https://youtu.be/D1wFP3ydvfg?t=113

Pesky grabs as much as he can carry.  Flour, onions, cans of tomato sauce, and some questionably-aged pepperoni.

He hopes they already have everything else.  Pepperoni pizza was at the top of his mind.
And mmmm... cheesecake.

"Let's see what these robots can do," he mumbles quietly.

While everyone started getting ready to cook and bake and mix and feast, the mind-moths contacted Alyn:

Something's going to happen. Something is stirring. We can't tell if it's the intelligence far below, or if it's that presence to the east. Maybe both. We think they're communicating. Talking about you being in there. You should start being careful. We think you might have a few hours before anything changes, but we could be wrong.

Alyn also places in his orders, and works with Duke to retrieve the Crab food stores from the vehicles.

OOC:

1.) Crab Rangoon
2.) Crab a la King
3.) Crab Egg Fu Young

He also shoots a psychic response back to the Moths.

Thanks for the heads up. I'll let the others know. I have been trying to avoid probing for those intelligences since other stuff is going on, and I'm unsure if they are friend or foe. But we can't leave yet until I get my hardware!

Oh and BTW there's some large insectoid things that should be fleeing the facility soon. They ought to be pretty psychically satisfying so feel free to nibble on some of their fear and such. Just try not to kill them cus I want them to tell others of their kind not to mess with us. I may have kind of sort of gotten a little upset at them and blew up a whole bunch of them when they started being uncivilized.

Alyn turned to the others.

"Guys? Whatever intelligence is down in the depths of this place is starting to stir and take note of our being here. And it might possibly be communicating with whatever the hell is lurking way out East too. I suspect in a few hours things might start changing around here, but I have no idea if they are friend or foe so just be on guard a bit."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:19, Mon 01 May 2023.

They are fleeing to the southeast-- too close to the strange mind or minds to the east. We don't want to go there. We don't like... whatever that is.

"Well, I hate to eat and run, but this won't be the first time," Ajakstu said.

Turning to the first robot supplicant he asked, "You! Mechanical lackey! Provide all information on whatever beast lurks below. After that, provide the data on when and how this place came to be abandoned."

(Hmmm... Charming roll, please, Ajakstu.)

"If they disturb my dinner they go onto the menu."

The Duke dryly remarks without taking his eyes of the machine preparing his first course. Then again at least one portion of everything made will come by the Duke for a taste.

Don't worry about it if its too close to be dangerous. Just forage in the area for now and top yourselves off if you can. he thought in response.

He looked at the robot guide.

"Yes...please go ahead and answer Ajak's query."

In reply to The GM (msg # 90):

20:43, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 7 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 4,2.  Keep from slapping an uppity droid.
Ain't nothing worse than a middling roll.

"I have no information about any life forms who may or may not be in residence below this facility. As for the current situation... This depot was always meant to be fully-automated, of course, but the war" STATIC NOISES "millennia ago led to this depot no longer getting continued visits from maintenance operatives. However, pride should be taken in this facility being built to last. Our self-repair subroutines kept things fully-operational for" STATIC NOISES "more millennia. Indeed, we continue to operate at roughly..." The robot looks down a little, as if lost in thought. "...Roughly... well, certainly above 40% of optimal parameters."

Alyn figured that since it was currently charmed by him, that maybe he could get more out of it.

"I can sense a powerful intelligence in the depths of this complex. What is it? Is it a machine, or a biological lifeform? Tell me what you know, robot."

As the others keep themselves entertained with trivial matters the Duke is looking at the first meal being prepared a long line of drool forming on his lips.

"...All data suggests that the lifeforms to which sir refers are biological."

Alyn picks up on the hint that there's apparently more than one lifeform down there...

Ajakstu cocked his head,

"Well, well, well. It would seem that if you really want that hardware you should go and grab it while The Duke and I sup and tend to packing up future sustenance. Maybe send new guy below to scout."

The auto-chef starts finishing preparing orders-- The Duke's is ready first.

The auto-chef dings a little bell as the preparation of each dish is completed, and he (he has a little plastic mustache) places each on the counter facing his guests...

`The Duke starts his feast of eternal food eating so much that even he is so full he cant swallow a bite anymore unless something risks its life by preventing him from stuffing all the prepared food into his face.

Alyn nodded at Ajak.

"Yes, if you guys want to work on looking through supplies up on this level as well as replenishing our food stores, and maybe improving its quality, that would be a great use of our time. Just don't focus entirely on food though you guys. Look for medical supplies, blankets, and anything else that we are needing to replenish." Alyn said.

He turned to face Pesky.

"Well Mister Pesky? Here's a chance for you to show us some of your skills and to see me in the day of the life of Alyn. Care to escort me down to the next level to retrieve my hardware kit? It's been ordered, we just have to go pick it up as the conveyance system that normally would bring it here is broken down. I'm hoping you can help me scout and if we encounter anything dangerous, to show me some of your gun skills."

"Of course," Pesky said with a nod.  "Just need a minute to grab something to eat."

He walked toward the prepared food, taking it all in.  He grabbed his pizza, walked to a nearby table, and began shoveling it into his mouth.  After sucking down the whole pizza, he ran back to grab his cheesecake.  He could eat it as they walked.

Alyn absolutely grabbed a couple slices of pizza too, so that he could nom on them as they walked through the facility to the other side.

Alyn flagged over the robot guide though.

"Robot guide? You come with me. I'd like you to guide me to where I can retrieve my ownership hardware for my Alynwalker. Or Doomwalker. Whatever." he commanded before taking a bite of his pizza.

Ajakstu sets Rake free to nosh as the insect likes.

For such a skinny man, he makes an impressive display of tasting every dish, all the while pouring copious amounts of mead down his throat.

He is careful to pack some of each menu item that was ordered into the coolers that were once full of giant crab. In addition, basic foodstuffs such as butter and flour find their homes in the containers.

He makes a cursory effort at locating the other items Alyn rudely ordered him to collect as if he were a manservant or valet.

(Ajakstu, roll Insightful, but subtract 1 point from your roll result.)

Once they've eaten, the robot leads Alyn and Pesky through the corridors...

(Pesky, roll Insightful, but then add 1 point to your roll result...)

When all are fully stuffed it was clear the Duke was not leaving. He was stuffing food into his face at a rate that any cardiovascular expert was already scheduling an Angioplasty. It was more then evident that the Duke was not leaving this room in a long while and by the time he was fully stuffed he was most likely absolutely unable to move. He was in heaven unrationed food and nobody telling him he couldn't eat so much as it would make other people starve.

18:08, Today: Pesky rolled 10 using 2d6+1 ((3,6)).
Plus the +1 you gave me for a total of 11.

"Nothing here. Brain guy is clearly delusional," Ajakstu muttered, with a slight note of glee.

19:17, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 6 using 2d6 with rolls of 4,2.  Lackadaisacal Insight.

And XP!

(Ajakstu, you are about to have an unfortunate encounter. Describe the area you're currently looking around in.

Pesky, you and Alyn are about to have a (different) unfortunate encounter-- but you will have a tactical advantage. Describe the area you're in when the unfortunate encounter starts, and explain why where you're standing will be advantageous.)

Ajakstu is busy appearing busy, in the large supply room, opposite of where Pesky was hiding. That one clearly had the look and manner of a smuggler of illicit and immoral goods and services.

Sort of wandering through whatever aisles the crates create, with his eyes open for mants and their leavings.

Pesky walked with Alyn and the oddly shaped robot, slowly pushing down the hall.

There were several different colored lines running down the polished cement floor, presumably leading to different sections of the facility.  The yellow line veered off onto its own path, aimed at a stairwell going up.  The robot continued straight ahead, so they did as well.

The robot slowed and turned right, following the blue path.  He came to a halt facing a set of stairs heading down.

"This way humans," the robot said.  "Down the stairs."

Pesky heads down, so Alyn does as well.

They descend for three floors' worth of stairs... but right near the bottom, Pesky hears something. He motions for Alyn to pause, and Pesky carefully squats down and takes a peek.

The stairwell door is open, and Pesky sees a sight with which he's sadly very familiar:

Green skin, roughly six feet tall, loud and smelly.

RAIDERS.

Alyn smells and hears them, and peeks too.

Two of the three he sees wear a mishmash of armor from different eras and design sensibilities.

Sometimes they speak their own language (lots of grunting and snarling), but they also seem to slip in a word or two in rudimentary English now and then-- "map" and "robot" and "loot."

Two have nasty spiked clubs. One has some sort of simple rifle.

The robot with Pesky and Alyn senses that something important is happening, and just waits to see what his guests will do or say next.

---

Ajakstu is just finishing looking in a crate he's opened when two green fellows walk in-- about five feet tall, green skin, muscular, spiky clubs.

They spot Ajakstu and grin and happily snarl something to themselves. They walk forward, clubs raised and ready...

"God damnit," Pesky whispered sharply.  His face was already reddening, his guts starting to ache.

"Get ready and we can take two of them at once," he said under his breath.

He pulled down the rifle he had slung over his shoulder, aimed at the one with the rifle, and waited.

"Tell me when you're ready," he said, pulling the scope up to his right eye.
"Fuckers," he added, ready to kill them all.

Ajakstu restrained himself from sneering at the two louts, and instead pasted on his most sincere smile. Had Alyn been there, he would certainly have called it fake or perhaps predatory.

"Ah, my friends! There you are!" He followed with a drinking motion. "I have endless mead, the likes of which you have never tasted! Too much for me, and definitely to potent for one of my frail build. Why don't you follow me and enjoy yourselves?"

With that he casually skipped towards the doorway.


20:36, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 12 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 6,5.  Charming  .

The two brutes look at one another. "...What say?" one asks his fellow.

"Says give drink."

"Ah. Drink," nods the first brute. "Follow to drink. Then kill."

"Unless far..." suggests the second brute. Then they drop into discussing things in their own language (lots of grunting and snarling).

For now, though, they prepare to follow Ajakstu.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:59, Wed 17 May 2023.

Humming a merry tune Ajakstu leads the pair to the kitchen facility. Making sure he is out of weapon reach, he occasionaly does a twirl to keep a wary eye on the miscreants. The bottled thicket has been made easily accessible, should it come to that.

"Did I forget to mention that there is also food? You do not appear to be gourmands, but we can see if your unrefined palates can be educated."

By the way, how was the food?

(The food was quite good, actually! Much better than what you've been eating lately.)

<quote Ajakstu Gul>
Humming a merry tune Ajakstu leads the pair to the kitchen facility. Making sure he is out of weapon reach, he occasionaly does a twirl to keep a wary eye on the miscreants. The bottled thicket has been made easily accessible, should it come to that.

"Did I forget to mention that there is also food? You do not appear to be gourmands, but we can see if your unrefined palates can be educated."

Ajakstu walks in on The Duke... who's still eating with, shall we say, much gusto.

Ajakstu's two guests are alarmed by the sight of The Duke. "Big," observes one.

"Too big. Kill fast," says the other, and they rush toward The Duke, spiked clubs raised...

As the thugs start rushing at the Duke who was just munching on a triple artery clogger he gives the incoming duo a glare over the top of the bun that made it clear the Duke would be really really displeased if these brain farts where going to stop him from enjoying this fine piece of lard infused meat.

ooc: 17:03, Today: The Duke rolled 12 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 6,5.  Scary deathglare.

The Duke's deathglare does in fact somewhat intimidate the brutes the other brutes in the room who aren't him.

Their initial attacks against him only do a bit of damage...

(Even combined, their attacks injure The Duke only so that he loses just 1 health level.)
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:50, Mon 22 May 2023.

Pesky suddenly feels, or perhaps senses, intuits? Well...it's hard to dcescribe. But the best approximation is he feels a gentle, almost silky-feeling caressing the outskirts of his mind itself. It is a sensation like a cat that is more amused and purring than predatory. But that could become predatory at any time, except is arbitrarily choosing not to and instead is purring and cozying itself up on your lap.

Pesky... the gun-scout hears briefly, except there was no noise. It was in his mind, and it was a gentle friendly voice that seemed awfully close to his new companion Alyn's somehow. If he turnes to face Alyn, the psion silently puts a finger up to his lips motioning him to stay quiet but gives a knowing nod and a wink.

Pesky...you feel a gentle psychic pressure that can only be best described as a purring cat mixed with velvet knocking on the mental door to your mind. The presence belongs to Alyn, and the man is making no attempt to be deceitful and instead is being extremely gentle about it actually. He is asking if he can establish mental contact with you of your own free will. Mechanically, this will allow him to use telepathy on you without having to initially roll to try and force his way inside.

FYI...he already has established psychic contact with the rest of the party and so far everyone is normal. Well, their normal crazy selves, anyway lol. But practically, we're not a pvp group and anything he's done funky with them has player consent (heck, Duke's player sometimes proactively asks me to do stuff to his character even lol). Mainly, this allows allows him to freely use telepathy (which for PCs I only ever use for communication only) across any distance, and ensures he can communicate back and forth silently with you while you're travelling with us. In a case like this, we can communicate silently if we need to make plans against enemies.

Do you consent to his attempt at making psychic contact with you? Cus if so no roll needed it just happens and then we can communicate mentally. As a player, I'll never mind-fuck you without your consent first. Like when Duke's player asked me to use it to help draw duke back from his rampage earlier.

Pesky was staring through his scope when the voice came.

He felt it more than he heard it.  Once he realized it was Alyn, he spun his head to stare at him.  Pesky finished listening to Alyn's request, and despite some very clear reservations, nodded his assent.

"This is most certainly unexpected," Ajakstu said, clearly aghast. "And a serious breach of etiquette!"

With that he throws a knife at the smaller of the pair attacking The Duke.


16:53, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 10 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 2,6.  Knife.

Potential disturbing content warning

The Duke eyes the buffoon slamming the plate out of his hand making him drop the burger he was eating on the floor. He grunts and tries to save the precious food when the other feels the need to bonk him on the back with that spiked club making him stumble and actually drop the burger on the floor. And all of a sudden the perceived temperature drops to 0 Kelvin as the Duke slowly grabs the hand with the club that made him drop the burger on the floor and starts to squeeze there being an audible crack of juicy fingers being crushed but the Duke seems to care less as he grabs the raiders neck and slams him face first onto the baking plate his voice eerily clam as he leans in to whisper in the raiders ear.

"So for the first time in my life i can eat all i want and you want to come and stop me from having a good time?"

He lifts the poor raider up and  spits him in his face fully ignoring the fact that half his face still stuck to the baking plate and drags him to the deep fryer fully ignoring the raiders companion as he stops at the deep fryer and in one fluid motion lifts the guy up and slams him head first into the deep fryer with so much force only his kicking legs remain sticking out of the bubbling hot oil. Only when the legs stop kicking he turns to the other offender cracking his neck and rolling his shoulders like only just now he was ready to get physical as he looks from the raider to the meat grinder with a dark grin on his face.

"You really should have just enjoyed the food instead of joining it."

ooc: 11:17, Today: The Duke rolled 8 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 1,6.  ATROCITY TIME!!!

That lets me utterly destroy one weak enemy. I sort of assumed that one sole raider would be considered weak so i did not include number two (yet)

Alyn nodded at Pesky Silently as he fully established psychic contact with the other man. Pesky would note that it felt like a purring cat had slunk into his mind, and lazily mozied on up to a fireplace before laying down and curling up in front of the comfortable warmth. The sensation quickly subsided.

This is Alyn. Good, the contact worked. We can communicate telepathically now. I can do this with the others too, and I can even network us together if we need to have a mental group huddle ort something although I haven't had to do that much. And you have my word that while you are my travelling companion and maintaining general attempts at decency, I promise not to do anything invasive or harmful to your mind nor to freely read your thoughts unless it's due to trying to detect something that may be trying to harm you. Cus I'm totally not the only psychic entity in these parts. Oh and if you need some sort of psychic surgery or some such, let me know. Party members generally get this sort of thing free from me. Think of it as our version of a free dental plan. Pesky could suddenly hear in his mind. The thought "sounded" and "felt" like Alyn, somehow.

The young man's eyes turned toward the bandits in the room they were peering into.

Since you're the newest member of the Alyn Company, how about you choose how we resolve this issue. running away is NOT an option, by the way. I want my freaking hardware and i'm not letting these asshats stop me. However...I'm curious how you'd choose to otherwise resolve a situation like this and I want to see you in action. the telepathy continued, followed by a feeling of amusement and curiosity.

So what will it be? Shoot them up? You have me try and mess with their heads? Or just opt for psychokinesis instead? Or you wanna try diplomacy? I'm really open to ideas...and since this is sort of a newbie test for you feel free to 'deploy' me as you need for your plan. As long as you're not making me strip naked and run around clucking like a chicken and such I'm game to see what you choose.

The remaining brute remaining green brute just stands there with his mouth open for a second...

Then runs out of the room.

( https://giphy.com/gifs/nope-re...BccoVk6wU/fullscreen )

And with the enemy gone and the robochef still making the next dish de Duke drops to his knees next to the burger on the floor and starts scraping it together sobbing as he proceeds to remove the ceramic plate pieces from his dish realizing its wasted beyond eating.

"Why do people always pick on the Duke?"

Pesky winced, the sensation in his head weird, foreign...yet not uncomfortable, and certainly not painful.  Once the connection had been finalized, he felt a slight release of tension all over.

He again turned to Alyn and made eye contact.

"If this is for real, then you take the one on the left and I'll get the one on the right.  We do this at the same time and we'll down the third one before he realizes the other two are gone."
He waited a second, then started turning back to the raiders and thought, "Can you hear me?  You can hear me, right?"

Alyn nodded to the man silently.

I don't hear you, but I sense and mentally perceive you loud and clear. Alyn responded to Pesky telepathically, followed by a quick sensation of a playful eye wink.

I'll do something to the one on the left then. Maybe try and spare it for questioning. Alyn added mentally, before his eyes began to flicker with energy a bit.

Yeah...I'm gonna keep my target for later. he said, as the left-most raider thing was suddenly subject to Alyn's Psychokinesis!

16:36, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 10 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 4,5.  Weird/Scary.

So GM...Alyn's intent is to subject the target to his psychokinesis/telekinesis and telekinetically "grip" it and absolutely dominate it (not mentally just figuratively). He wants to "grab" the raider and scoop it telekinetically and fling it back his way into the hall and pin it, in the air several feet off the ground, onto the wall. Maybe doing some slight damage but not enough to really harm it but maybe enough to man handle and bruise it a bit to make his point. With a 10, my intention is for the telekinesis to be so strong the thing can't even open its mouth properly to let out a gasp or cry for help. Although at this point, Alyn will still allow it to breath.

Essentially, it's a hold person + telekinesis effect in D&D terms as he quickly shunts the thing into the air into the back wall in the hallway and non-lethally paralyzes it.

(Hey man, you're the one who rolled a 10, I'm not tellin' you what to do.

You will have to keep concentrating to hold it there, though. If you attack in any other way, or get attacked, or try to do any other psi stuff, or get otherwise distracted, the effect will stop.

For now, though, sure, it happens just as you say, because 10 is a magic number. As is everything above 10.)

"F N A! That's my knife!" Ajakstu growls as he takes off after the runner. He draws, he throws.

21:39, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 7 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 2,3.  Knife.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:41, Fri 26 May 2023.

Ajakstu hits and harms the fleeing brute... but it keeps running. Now it (technically) has two of his knives! Knife thief! Knife theft! Knife knave!

By that time a replacement dish is served for the Duke and miraculously also the deep fried goon has left the fryer. Wiping his runny nose on the back of his hand he quickly forets about his burger and resumes his sup.

Pesky had no idea what that meant.  Keep the target for later?  But he nodded without turning, raider lined up in his scope.

"Alright.  Here we go," he thought to Alyn.

"3...2...1..."

05:41, Today: Pesky rolled 7 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 4,2.  Stupid, evil raiders.

Alyn's target is slammed up against the wall and held there, struggling (very ineffectively), completely unable to move (for now).

Pesky's target moves at JUST the wrong time, and Pesky shoots the brute in its right shoulder.

It bellows in pain, and looks around for where the shot came from... it decides it came from the stairwell, and starts to raise a weapon-- but it can't, its right shoulder is too messed-up, and therefore the whole right arm. It wastes a couple of precious seconds clumsily transferring its weapon to its left hand...

Feeling near the end of his patience, but surely not near the end of his knives, Ajakstu took careful aim and let fly again.

19:45, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 11 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 5,4.  Knife.

Seeing an even more effective throw than his first, and definitely more so than his second, Ajakstu patted himself on the back and gave Rake a passable high five.

"It's not being cocky if you can back it up," he said to the all seeing universe.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:02, Mon 05 June 2023.

Pesky curses under his breath as he watches his shot miss the mark.  He takes careful aim once again and fires, aiming for the bastard's head.

09:45, Today: Pesky rolled 6 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 3,1.

OOC: forgot that I got an extra +1 for anything raider-related.  Still didn't help...

Alyn nods at Pesky.

I'm going to let you try and take them before I get involved. Show me some of what you can do. I'll keep my hostage toy Moth food captive immobilized for now and stand back. Alyn thought mentally to Pesky, who once again heard the psion's words mentally in his mind.

The struggling, silenced captive continued to float some 10 feet up in the air back against the wall while Alyn rolled his eyes at its struggling. He stepped back a bit, less out of fear and more to simply give Pesky some room to do his thing.

The raider ducks momentarily at JUST the wrong moment, and reaches Pesky, punching him.

(11:22, Today: The GM rolled 1 using 1d2 with rolls of 1.  punch.

Pesky loses 1 health level...)

Pesky, surprised by the raider's speed, tries to dodge the incoming punch to no avail.  The hit lands squarely on his jaw and he's knocked back, almost losing his footing.

As he tries to recover, he turns the rifle back toward the raider and fires from the hip.

OOC: 09:10, Today: Pesky rolled 12 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 5,5.

BOOM, the raider goes down.

It's not dead-- they're hard to kill-- but this fight is over.

(Whether or not its current wound is mortal is hard to say as yet. It's not getting up again at all soon, though.)

With the element of surprise long gone, Pesky hops over the dying raider and kicks open the door to the lower room.
He recklessly walks toward the last raider, firing the whole time.

OOC: 10:34, Today: Pesky rolled 8 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 5,1.  Attack last raider.

Alyn grinned as Pesky took a slug to the face, only to turn around and blow a hole in his attacker with his gun. It looked like Pesky had things under control.

So he turned to the one he had bound. He let loose (a bit) his telekinetic grip. The thing could talk or move slightly now, but it was still floating in the air pinned to the wall.

"Hmmm...I wonder? Can you understand me, bandit vermin, or do I need to probe a hole through that small brain of yours?" Alyn asked it aloud.

"If you can understand me...tell me? How many more of you are there in this complex? What are you doing here? And do you know what's located way in the depths of this place? If you try anything funny, or try to give me lip, you'll get to experience first-hand what it feels like to have your limbs slowly crushed with telekinetic force. Enough to rip a tank in half, by the way. So imagine what it'd do your little arms and legs?" he added, with a sinister grin as his eyes flashed menacingly with psionic power.

21:29, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 9 using 2d6+3 with rolls of 2,4.  Charming.

I rolled just in case you needed to see how convincing he was socially. As if his telekinesis isn't frightening enough.

The third and final raider has had time to both overcome his lack of understanding regarding what's happened to his immobile companion up against the wall, and to prepare. When Pesky kicks the door wide open and fires, so does the raider.

However, the raider only hits Pesky in the side-- his single bullet glances off a rib, not even breaking it.

Pesky, on the other hand, manages to put a few holes in the chest of the raider. He's not gonna get back up even more than the last one.

(Pesky loses one more health level.)




"Raiding here. Many slaves below. Conquered them already. Weak." Well, they're answers, all right... they're just not super informative.

Alyn rolls his eyes, and suddenly the telekinetically ensnared bandit starts rotating 360 degrees in the air, spinning quite quickly. It looked like he was doing somersaults in the air a bunch before Alyn waved a hand casually and the man stopped.

OOC: Note Alyn stops before the bandit gets sick, but definitely does it enough to hopefully make the man's stomach upset.

"Let's try this again. And please, do volunteer more information this time. What kind of slaves are down below? How many of you bandits are here? Well?" he asked firmly.

"...Uh... weak... little burrowing things. Many... many of us here."

Alyn gets a little flash of telepathy-- on one hand, these guys can't count very high. On the other, he's also saying "many" to try to make it sound like there's more than there really are.

In this case, the truth of "many" is... uh, somewhere between 20 and 100. Hard to be sure.

(I thought those follow-up questions were pretty reasonable, but now you'll need to roll something again to get more info out of this guy.)

21:53, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 9 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 4,4.  Insightful.

"Why don't you be a little more specific. Here...I'll make it a bit easier for you." he said as his eyes flickered a bit.

"There. Now try answering again. More carefully this time."

OOC: I'm using insight to represent him trying to notice or get more information more efficiently. Narratively, Alyn did a very temporary "latching onto" the little mini-telepathic impression he got now, and sent in a burst of mentally-stimulating energy that will, for a very limited time (like basically this interaction or something) will boost its intelligence and eloquence by "a bit" to help it better answer the questions...and realize Alyn is onto it and lying is futile.

"Damn," Pesky says sharply.  He moves his left hand down to his side and brings it back.  Bloody.  He kicks the raider on the floor in front of him and turns toward Alyn just in time to see the remaining raider spinning in a circle.

He watches, a little awe-struck, until the raider stops spinning and Alyn resumes his questioning.

quote:

"There. Now try answering again. More carefully this time."

Pesky slings his rifle back over his shoulder and watches Alyn's exchange, curious where this was going.

"Uh... uh..." The big, brutish face thinks, concentrating. His fingers twitch, counting in his head. "Like... 5 of us... 5 times. ...Then double that."

Alyn translates in his head: 5 x 5 = 25, and 25 x 2 = about 50 Raiders.

"Many little burrowers. Maybe... double us. Then again. Then again. Then again. At least."

50 x 2 = 100, then x 2 = 200, then 400, then 800... At least 800-ish.

"But they weak."

Alyn nodded.

You okay, man? Alyn thought telepathically to Pesky. Good shooting, anyway. Your tactics need a bit of work, but then again the rest of the group has the deftness and grace of a bull in a china shop where at least you at least a certain grace to your movements. So that means you're ahead of the game and will fit in great with this group.

He turned to the bandit.

"Oh that's it? Stuff has been trying to swarm me since day one here but I've handled them well enough...um, never mind." he said.

"Let me tell you this then. Go find your buddies, and tell them to scram on out of here. Otherwise, I'm going to turn them inside out, rip them to bits, and feed them to our Human Resources manager. Here...let's try something. Hopefully I don't end up killing you permanently..." Alyn said as suddenly his eyes flashed with power!

20:08, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 9 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 5,3.  Weird/Scary.

Alyn is going to suddenly use his telekinesis to make the bandit basically get shredded into bits, with its head last so it knows at least somewhat of what's happening to it, before suddenly a very minor and weak temporal flux flickers and causes it to go back in time - memories intact by the way - to before it was shredded. It's mean, but Alyn wants to put the fear of god into the thing and means business because he secretly doesn't want other bandits to get around him and Pesky and up harass the other party members who are up on higher levels so he's trying to make himself out to be a bigger villain than they are to scare them straight.

Presuming this works the way he intended:

Alyn releases his telekinetic grip, and causes it to fall harmlessly to the floor.

"Pick yourself up, worm, and go on ahead and tell your other bandit buddies that I'm coming down there and that you all need to go take a hike, or else I'll do to them what I just did to you but without the time warp to bring you back. Leave your slaves and go. And if you encounter any other humans, cat people, or shifting earth element things...leave them alone and keep on going. But leave this base before I really lose my temper."

The effects work about the way Alyn wanted... but the chronal flux of energies left him a little dizzy-- almost nauseous (for a few minutes, anyway). Definitely don't ever want to try anything like that again-- but especially not so soon after a meal.

The Raider stumbles hurriedly away. Alyn has no idea what the Raider response will be... but he can rest assured that his message will be delivered as intended, at least.

(I decided to alter my decision a little--

1. As stated above, Alyn doesn't know how the other Raiders will react to his message-- but it's guaranteed that it'll be delivered as he intended.

2. Alyn must take a -1 on his next Scary/Weird roll-- not any other kind of roll.)

Alyn sighed as he leaned against a nearby wall suddenly for extra support.

"Ugh...I never tried anything that scary or fancy before. I mean that was more complex than even that psionic storm from before. Ugh...I'll need practice. As well as to not eat anything for a while." Alyn said as he shook his head, trying to clear up the dizziness and near-nausea a bit.

"Well whatever...as they say, you can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs first. But hopefully the process of being killed and then un-killed put the figurative fear of god into him enough that we won't have as much an issue with them as we head deeper in. And I'll admit it was found sounding like an Evil Overlord there for a bit. Heh." he said with a grin.

He then looked Pesky up and down.

"Are you okay? Because it's time to continue deeper into the complex. I'm not leaving here without my hardware, even if I have to get cray-cray again on monsters and bandits and stuff some more."

Pesky nods, still looking at the last raider downed.

"Yeah, I'm fine.  Let's go."

As they begin walking, once again following the robot, he asks, "Now, what are we looking for?"

Alyn nodded.

"I need to go down to a lower level of the facility to pick up the hardware that I ordered to make me the official new owner of well...let's just say its for a vehicle that's as large as life as my personality and sense of dark humor are." he replied, with words this time rather than telepathy, as a grin cross his lips. He could only imagine what Pesky was thinking right now, but Alyn promised not to peek without permission and he figured if he would go easy on anyone it would be his traveling companions.

"Except something happened and whatever system was supposed to be in place that ships it from downstairs lower in the facility where its made up to where we were in the waiting area is broken or something so I've got to go retrieve it myself. I'm probably going to make sure it has a few upgrades onto it as well in exchange for my trouble." he added. He knew the doomwalker had self-repair systems, security defenses, and other things but maybe he could go to where the hardware was manufactured and have them add in some enhancements or something, so that it truly became an Alynwalker.

The robot gives directions-- a left, and then another left, then the fourth door on the right. "Your item will be marked with its name, and the inventory code: HDS1-5-5-8966. The box it is in should have a blue lid with yellow sides."

(One of you make an Insightful roll, please...)

---

Ajakstu throws his third knife-- a very nice hit.

The raider keeps running-- for three steps. Then it slows slightly, stumbles, and falls.

It tries to get up... It does in fact get up on its hands and knees, but it's having trouble. It's started bleeding a lot, dark greenish stuff, especially from that last wound. These things have very powerful hearts (or some other strong-pumping circulatory systems), and the last throw, especially, seems to have either hit in a vital spot, or else some sort of nerve center...

(Ajakstu can try to attack some more? Try to pull some of his green-bloody knives back out? Something else?)

OOC: 10:10, Today: Pesky rolled 11 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 6,4.  Insightful roll.


I insightfulled the hell outta that.

Pesky leads the way, following the instructions...

Sure enough, here it is.

You look in the box... It's a plastic cartridge that looks like it should plug into a slot, with little metal things sticking out of an inner ridge. Seems simple enough... there must be a slot that fits this somewhere in the Doomwalker...

OOC: Great job, Pesky!

"O-M-G we finally found my hardware!" Alyn exclaimed aloud as he went to the box that the very-insightful Pesky pointed out had his name inscribed on it. He took the box and kisses it once after inspecting the hardware, before stowing it away.

Alyn then pulled out his datapad - the one he had from the Doomwalker that was connected to it. He sent it a quick mental command for a query. How the hell his telepathy worked so well with machines was beyond him, but he was not complaining.

Computer. I've acquired my hardware. Is there anything you need to do with it right now, or that I need to do while I'm still at the military facility, or is is it all taken care of back at the Doomwalker?

Meanwhile the Duke is in an eathalla stuffing such quantities of food into his body those watching might start to believe he is actually growing even more massive with every dish.

Ajakstu looked at the downed raider, a litany of options pouring through his mind.

Taking out his creature heart in a jar, he put it down in the sight line of the raider.

"This is from my last enemy. Yours does not have to join it. I am going to take my knives and and my leave. Meanwhile, tell me how many of you there are and where in this place you are located."


08:38, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 10 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 3,6.  Scary intimidation.

With that, Ajakstu cautiously but by no means carefully began pulling out his knives. Whether or not twisting was involved is left up to the reader.

Thanks for reaching out! says the datapad's screen. We've wirelessly detected the HARDWARE CARTRIDGE you're asking about, and happily, the answer is no, it's formatted and ready to go! Just bring it to your DOOMWALKER, and we'll give you more instructions from there! (But it'll be simple, honest!)

---

"Many... many of us," says the raider. "Down below. ...I mean... Only... three. Three more of us down below. Not many," it belatedly attempts to lie.

How accurate "many" is remains to be seen (by Ajakstu), but "three" is clearly a lie.

"Meh, I really don't have the time to properly arrange you as an artistic deterrent to your brethren," Ajakstu says in a voice more irritated than disappointed.

As he takes his leave and his jar, he opens a vein/artery in whatever limb of the raider is closest to his stage left exit.

"Feel free to shout for help, and warn whoever finds you about us, but also be sure to mention the fate of your companion."

Alyn turned to Pesky.

"Well good news, bud? It looks like they actually properly formatted my ownership hardware because this do-hickey here scanned it and registers it as being associated with me. So at least my epic journey to get the weirdest set of figurative car keys ever is complete." he said.

"However, I'm still wavering on something. I kind of wanna go and rush back to my new ride. But equally, there's a part of me that' snagging at me to continue on down to the bottom level of this place. Not so much because I'm curious about what intelligence I'm sensing down there, although I won't lie I really am, but...well...the main thing that's bugging me was that the bandit said he had slaves down there. Lots of them. I'm not sure it's a slave, race, or they have came and conquered an existing colony of more peaceful creatures." he continued.

"But it's bugging me. I'm hardly some defender of justice and yada yada yada. But I do generally respect when other beings try to be good neighbors, and if they really do got slaves down there I'd like to set them free. Call it good karma to offset those moments where Dukie and I tend to get a bit carried away. Whatever you wanna call it, it's offending my sensibilities some and I'm a guy who follows his heart way more than his head. Which is kind of ironic now that I think about it." he said with a chuckle.

Pesky nodded along as Alyn spoke of his vehicle, even though he still understood little of what was going on.
Doomwalker?  Alynwalker?  He was sure he'd find out more details soon enough.

He nodded vigorously when Alyn spoke again, bristling at the thought of more slaves under the raiders' rule.

An image of his daughter ran through his head.
What would she be now?  40?  He'd been looking so long he'd forgotten.
He silently cursed himself for not remembering.

"We should go down there and see what's going on, but shouldn't we get the other two?  You know, for backup?"

Alyn nodded.

"Yea...will it's agreed then. The slave bit is offending both of our delicate sensibilities, so we should check it out." Alyn responded.

"As for the others...I'll send them a quick message and see if they wanna come with." he said, as his eyes flickered for a moment.

To The Duke and Ajakstu:

You both suddenly hear Alyn's voince in your heads as be does his familiar benevolent telepathy to contact you.

Dukie? Ajak? I got my hardware, and gave Pesky an opportunity to show off his skills a bit when we ran into some more bandits down here. But they said they had a bunch or slaves or something down on the lower level, and even though we thoroughly terrorized them so they hopefully won't give us any more trouble, that doesn't mean their slaves are in a position where they can escape.

The message paused a moment, before continuing.

You guys wanna come with? Cus Pesky and I wanna go check it out down there and set them free. I don't JUST cause psionic storms and commune with murder mothers, you know. I have a nice side too. *grins*  Dukie? P.S. The Slaves might know some incredible and exotic recipes for cooking food that we'd not normally have access to. It seems like a good opportunity to make some new friends, and maybe get them to cook you a thank-you dinner or something? And Jak there might be lots of cool lewt down there that someone like you can discern. Just a thought...

Then suddenly, psychic instructions for how to get from the waiting area on the upper levels where Duke and Ajak were, down to the middle area where Alyn and Pesky were, were transmitted suddenly as a matrix-style "data upload" into their brains.

The Duke sends a mental belch down the line and the image of dishes piled high along with it and is the chef robot smoking there?

"I'd love some dessert."

And with that the Duke starts to move over to where Alyn wants him rubbing his greasy belly all the way over.

Ajakstu yawns and stretches. Making his way back to the Duke with plans of refilling his cup with mead, he scowls and thinks very hard, "The accident prone raider who somehow died near me said that there were many more of his kin below, so tidy up in preparation for my arrival please."

OOC: I'll wait for the GM to declare the party is back together, before we proceed.

Under Alyn's telepathic guidance, the party of adventurers meets back up together again (that is, Ajakstu and The Duke come down to where Alyn and Pesky are)...

Once the party arrived and re-convened, Alyn turned to his robot-guide.

"Guide us down to the lower level. And by the way...can you tell me of other known intelligences down there that you know about? Besides the bandits of course." Alyn asked the guide.

The Duke walking with an extremely slow gait rubbing his clearly overstuffed belly with greasy hands seems to glow with an inner joy. He even seems to be humming a nursery song as he wobbles after the robot.

The robot seems to think this over.

In fact, to be specific, it seems... troubled by the requests.

"...This unit will lead you as far as possible... but this unit is programmed not to leave the boundaries of this facility. However... there is an... exit... from this facility in this direction. I can take you to that... exit."

"As for... your second question... We are aware of other... non-customers... below this facility. This unit regrets that we do not have any further information for you about them at this time."

The robot takes the adventurers down two more flights of stairs... (each limited stairwell about 50 yards from the other...) And then down a longish hallway (well, maybe 150, 200 yards)...

And then, there's a section of wall that just... has a big hole in it. Looks like it was gnawed around the edges. It's big enough for even The Duke to walk through without trouble.

On the other side of the hole is a tunnel.

It's dark, but you can also (just barely) see a light down at the far end, ahead...

The robot stops near the hole in the wall. "It seems like you're going to be using this exit from this facility, correct? If there's nothing else this unit can do for you at this time... this unit should get back to its regular duties...?"

"Not yet," Ajakstu interjects. "First show us current surveillance of the areas below. If you can't do that, then show us surveillance right before that capability was lost. And provide appropriate backing music."

"We have no surveillance of the areas below. We only surveil this facility and its above-ground environs... and that footage is not saved indefinitely due to digital storage issues."

Alyn nodded.

"Well...then thank you for taking us this far, anyway. And you got my hardware done properly. So I'll not force you outside of the facility since you've done a job job. Just make sure to fix those vending machines and stuff properly so they don't attack guests anymore. You're lucky we were more hungry than angry. Especially the Duke." Alyn said with a nod.

He turned to the others.

"Well this just got even more interesting. Could be anything down there. Small, cute mole-people or something for all I know. Probably more bandits since I haven't seen any come past us this way yet mind you there may be another way out since this is a cavern we're going into. And that strong intelligence is down here somewhere too. For all I know, the intelligence is also related to or is the thing enslaved by the bandits. We'll just have to find out." he said.

Thankfully, the group had enough light to get by it seemed although some of their gear might have light, or he could try using photo-kinesis and to make light if he had to. Although that was undesirable given his powers were "wobbly" still.

"Let's go, folks." he said as he headed into the cavern.

The Duke groans as he makes his way into the tunnel and starts wobbling down the tunnel rubbing his belly with every other step. The Duke was a happy Duke.

"I am on fire, " Ajakstu said as he took a mighty swig of mead from his cup. "Let's get this over with."

09:53, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 13 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 6,6.  Weirdness magnet.

The adventurers travel on down the tunnel, toward the light.

"Who--?"

Everyone stops, halfway between the light of the hallway and the light at the far end of the tunnel.

Alyn lights up his datapad, and uses its light to--

There's an owl there.

In a smaller, side-tunnel, too small for a human to fit in easily, is an owl.

https://www.pbs.org/wnet/natur...2902-gallery-092.jpg

The owl is about two feet tall.

It (again) speaks (elaborating): "...Who do you serve?"

OOC: LOL You're right...definitely weirder than usual. :P

"I serve my heart and my whims, in the order. Right now, I'm on a mission from my heart despite the fact my whims think I should just leave." Alyn said aloud, with a shrug.

He pointed at the Duke. "And he just serves his endless pit of a stomach." he added with a grin.

Ajakstu sidles slightly behind the Duke while stage whispering, "Probably meant for one of you mission-oriented Cloister serving pawns to answer,"

"Serve order. Serve mission. Serve heart. Serve foood."



"Serve mission? What mission? Whoose mission?"

With a mighty eye roll Ajakstu adjusts his awesome chapeau. Then he ensures Rake is well braced.

"Allow me to soliloquize. I was imprisoned and imperiled by bellicose cat people in their underground lair. Misunderstanding? Bah! It is the nature of felines to prey and play, and play with their prey."

He paused to make a self congratulatory smile at his wordplay.

"To the story! I was liberated by this stalwart, this mountain of musculature, this powerful prognosticator, and his most excellent female companion. They told me of their quest from the Ziggurat to find a place called the Cloister."

Ajakstu assumed his most humble yet not quite comprehending face.

"As a successful independent contractor, I could foresee a mutually beneficial arrangement for us going forward. We quickly restored water and peace to the warring factions underground and set out. The Lady left us, and we managed that loss with the adequate reinforcement of Pretty Boy, Gas Bag, Traitor Cat, and now, Pesty. Oh, and most importantly, Rake, who I am most certain has eerie powers."

Ajakstu paused for a giant swig of mead.

"Anyway, in an effort to prevent an egomaniacal robot from taking over an even larger robot, we came here past giant crabs and swarms of moths, past man-ants and pussilianimous raiders, seeking hardware and mead."

Another swig.

"Detecting a most malevolent presence below, it was deemed the heroic duty of myself and The Duke, and these red shirt wannabees, to go lay a smackdown before we loot whilst we enjoy their lamenting."

Ajakstu bowed.

"Cloister..." repeats the owl.



"Peace. Water. Warring factions. Powers," muses the owl.



"Hardware. Drink."



"Heroic. Duuty. Looot. Lamenting." The owl considers all this.

"...Many things. Whoose is most important?" It cocks its head at a 90-degree angle. "Order? Mission? Heart? Foood? Cloister? Peace? Drink? Power? Lamenting?"
This message was last edited by the player at 15:54, Sat 01 July 2023.

The Duke looks at the owl and its word waterfal and grumbles something when the Hat joins the play of words. Many words that say so little the Duke grows bored and after a massive belch he starts to wobble on towards the light. The Owl was something Ajakstu could deal with.

"Ah, I have forgotten the pleasantries," Ajakstu said as he doffed his ever so sweet hat. "Ajakstu Gul is my name, and whose acquaintanceship do we have the pleasure of making?"

Alyn raised an eyebrow. He wasn't about to tell the owl that the rest of the group were really his unwitting minions whose sole purpose was to ensure Alyn had a good time. So he'd wave it off.

"I'll let Ajak answer your question." Alyn responded dismissively, perhaps subconsciously sensing that this was Ajak's spotlight due to Ajak causing weirdness. And sometimes, he had to let the others have their spotlight.

"But what is a talking owl of all things doing down here, under an old half-functional military complex in a cave path leading into a cavern?" he asked.

"Whoo is N'tk," says the owl. Apparently its name is pronounced "N'tk."



"Asking questions. Seeing whoo. Listening. Whoose is most important?"

And with each word the Duke wobbles away seemingly content to rub his exposed belly and see what the light at the end was.

N'tk glances The Duke's way without comment, waiting to see if Ajakstu or Pesky will answer...

Ajakstu steps forward with a charming smile.

“Well met, N’tk. I apologise for any lack of graces displayed by my companions. If you choose to join us, I am sure you will quickly achieve a higher position than several of them,” Ajakstu said with a side eye to one or two of the others.

“Our premise is that we are a random group of what some might call misfits. Clearly, we have decided to help those in need by working as guns for hire. Now that I have set the stage, let’s take a look at the actors.”

Ajakstu will lazily point at the others in turn.

"The Leader-Clearly myself. While I have no vision for where we are headed, I make the tough decisions and celebrate the group’s success by taking my share of any loot and keeping The Duke well fed. I am calm under pressure and instill confidence in those around me. Not to mention oodles of savoir-faire"

"The Glue-Alyn. What always amazed me about his character was how egotistical he is. We could be in a jungle and need a basic amenities. Within 10 minutes, Pretty Boy would find and secure said gear by dominating some local innocents. He is the team member who is occasionally able to find creative ways to address our challenges. If you don’t have enough patience or the right drone like attitude to make a decision, you need someone like him who will find a way to get it done. He may try to get in your head, deal with him appropriately."

"The Muscle-The Duke. Some might say he has a bad attitude. He is the muscle, the strong athlete. He is good at a lot of things. Whether it be killing, maiming, dismembering, eating, farting, drooling, or destroying we can always count on The Duke. Sometimes your best hire is the person with the raw horsepower to get the job done especially if they have the requisite experience. The Duke is that guy. Having muscle on your team also ensures everybody pulls their own weight."

"The Specialist– Ummmmm, Pesky. The specialist of the group. He is good at one thing– staying out of our way. Depending on the scope of the project, every team needs someone who can excel in a specific area or who possess a certain skill set—diving on a grenade, testing food for poison, licking toads, that sort of thing."

Ajakstu bowed. All had been made clear.

"Help thoose in need. Woork as guns for hire." N'tk sort of bobs his (sounds more male than female, anyway. It's hard to be sure) head a few times. "Mission. Heart. Peace. ...Clooister?" N'tk scratches at the ground a little. "Whoo is important is not questioon. Whoo yoou are important tooo might be questioon. The Ancient Weariness: heart, peace. Varg the Undying: missioon. Lun, The Glistening: Clooister."

N'tk hoots softly. "I serve Lun, The Glistening. I approoove of yoouur woork. What doo yoou need?"

Alyn considered. Maybe they had just acquired an unlikely ally.

"Well...supposedly there's a bunch of slaves or beings being enslaved by bandits down here somewhere. If you happen to know anything about that, or could lead us to where they are being imprisoned, that would be helpful." Alyn said.

Pesky stares in amusement as the little owl spoke.
Until Ajakstu starts talking.  Jesus.  He likes the sound of his own voice, doesn't he?

Pesky bristles, then gets fairly pissed as Ajakstu starts describing his "role in the party."  What a prick.  Pesky'll show him a specialist alright.  Right in the mouth.

"We are not enslaved by them. We have just alloowed them to think that that is the case. It seems tooo make them happy... tooo a point. We want tooo make them moore happy, but it is difficult foor uus. They want vioolence and strife. They want conquest and lamentatioons. We cannoot give them thoose things in a way that woould satisfy them. Perhaps yooou can free them froom their dissatisfactioon. Come, this way."

N'tk hurries after The Duke, catching up to him just as The Duke reaches the end of the tunnel.

The end of the tunnel is at the top of a huge set of stairs leading down... down the side of a huge cavern.

Dozens of holes fill the ceiling and walls of this cavern, and the owls flying around show that the holes are the entrances to their homes.

Far below-- perhaps 150 yards down-- is the floor of the cavern. There, dozens of Raiders mill about, talking amongst themselves... maybe arguing.

"The green oones are an uunhappy people," says N'tk. "They woouuld be happier if they could engage in vioolence. Perhaps we coouuld help yoouu give them vioolence? We are noot vioolent. We coouuld moove yoouu doown there tooo where they are, if yoouu want. Oor we couuld moove yoouu somewhere else, nearby them, where yoouu couuld prepare foor vioolence, if it wouuld take yoouu time tooo get ready, tooo prepare...?"

Alyn noticed Pesky's reaction right away as Ajak spoke, and he even "felt" some of the irritation coming across the passive psychic link he had with him. Alyn grinned in amusement.

Don't let it get to you. He's actually fairly helpful and fairly submissive to Duke and I normally, but something about this owl seems special to him. So I figure...let him have his moment to parrot a bit for the owl. No pun intended. Alyn thought mentally to Pesky as the psion's reassuring voice came into the gunner's mind suddenly (but gently).

If you really wanna know the party's roles, I'm more or less the leader and the glue, although this isn't the type of group where it's regimented and we act like that. It's more...people unofficially fill group roles as needed, without us actually voting on it or there being much organization behind it. This group is far too chaotic for such things, but we have a great dynamic that works. My leadership is mainly subtly pointing out carrots with a bit of Catholic guilt as needed to get them to generally do what needs doing, but all of us have a shared goal of searching for the Cloisture and we sort of have a secondary goal of "following our hearts and whims" as needed. But there is a bit of a method to our madness, though. Alyn added, followed by a mental grin.

Yeah...Duke is our muscle and food-manager, Ajak is actually something like our fixer and when we need help scoping out a scene, finding loot, or thinking outside the box he's actually real good at it. And you're not a "stay out of the way specialist." Don't worry...I actually acknowledge your real talent and value. The real role I have in mind for you while you travel with us is to be something of a scout combined with a skirmisher. I can sense minds and such, and do other weird crap, but it really would be a huge help to me to have someone who is physically actually good at scouting and stuff. Just again don't mind Ajak...he comes through when we need him.

The Duke looks at the little owl as it asks if they can help them give violence. The Duke steps forward but then his voice chimes in.

"They got many stabby things. You got a suit of armor that fits me? I heard T-60 is a type that really does the trick for the military at the Ziggurat. Even cooler if it lets me jump down from up here on top of them. You got one of those for me?"

The Duke expresses a subconsious desire not to get hurt.

Well thats a fail and 1 xp and the GM will do his best to make some part of the weird mad babbling come true, as soon as narratively possible, but it won't be nice, and will probably be twisted and freaky

09:49, Today: The Duke rolled 6 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 3,2.  So its written.

Ajakstu peered down at the raiders.

"Drop the flash bangs down to disorient them, put the thicket at a choke point to keep them off of us, and kill them at a distance while the owls shit on them."

He shrugged.

"Totally open to Plan B when it is proposed."

"To be honest, N'kt, The Duke's armor idea is borderline brilliant. Although I am more of a force field man myself. Interdimensional phasing is also agreeable if you the means."

N'tk hoots softly (hard for anyone more than 10 feet away to notice-- there's a lot of very soft hooting going on).

"Jumping doown froom here oon them is noot hard. Foorce field armoor is harder. We will try tooo help."

The Duke feels a push-- Like the ground lifts him up and throws him out into the middle of the cavern airspace.

That's exactly what his allies see-- the rock beneath The Duke just thrusts diagonally like a piston, tossing The Duke into the air.

But not for long.

The Duke gets a closer look at the Raiders below-- and then it becomes a MUCH closer look, very fas--

               --WHHAMMMMMM...

The Duke is hurt.

But not as much as he should be. Apparently the little owl-- maybe working in concert with his people? --worked to protect The Duke from the fall.

...Partially.

(12:55, Today: The GM rolled 2 using 1d2 with rolls of 2.

The Duke loses 2 new health levels...)

The effect on the Raiders, who had no protection, is terrific, though. Some are killed instantly by The Duke's massive... mass. Those who just got an arm or a leg or a foot in the head are just badly injured. All the raiders gathered who were gathered near the center of the cavern are dismayed and caught very off-guard... for this moment, anyway...

(The Duke had a partially-effective forcefield, but it has now failed and is no longer operational.)

"That was effective," observes N'tk. "And brave. Yoouu shoouuld help, tooo..." He closes his eyes...

The ground beneath the feet of The Duke's companions slides and buckles, and suddenly the rest of you are on a one-way toboggan of stone rushing down the side of the cavern wall, bypassing all the stairs, about to crash--

--FLUMMMPHH. The stone floor beneath your toboggan, and the toboggan itself, turn into about a billion little soft feathers, breaking your fall painlessly and perfectly. Feathers fly everywhere, making it hard to see... but at least all The Duke's allies are down on his level to help support him now? When the feathers stop flying?

(Note: Alyn mentally notes that what N'tk and/or his people are doing doesn't seem to be psychokinesis or any other psychic power exactly as far as he can tell. Maybe it's Lun, The Glistening? Or something?)

"Well, shit," Ajakstu exclaims. "Rake, away!"

Hoping that his companion heeds his command, Ajakstu closes his eyes tightly and tosses a flash bang left and right.

"Cover and close!" he yells as he curls into a ball with his hands over his ears.

OOC: No particular target, do I need to roll? Just tossing one on either direction in an attempt to continue the surprise/chaos/wonderful life we live.

Alyn wasn't expecting this. These owls were somehow manipulating the environment, but it wasn't psionics like what Alyn used, or "normal psychic powers" otherwise. Maybe he'd have to ask them more about what the Glistening was, although now was not the time.

Alyn closed his eyes and tried to gather his power - thankfully at the right time so as to not get blinded by Ajakstu's flash grenades, and decided to try something. This was risky, since he was still feeling a bit of the tail-end of that temporal feedback from earlier. But screw it. Because if this worked...it would be epic! If it failed...who knows.

22:18, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 6 using 2d6 with rolls of 5,1.  Weird/Scary.

So Alyn was trying to open a small portal near where his Mind Moths were, and he was going to psychically guide them in and warp them onto the battlefield to have a bandit buffet. But as you see he had the -1 penalty applied from before to his weird roll so what could have been a partial success actually failed.

But on the plus side...I get xp and the enjoyment of seeing what the GM cools up.

The Duke groans as he was now quite hurt from this landing. He starts to gather himself and crawling back onto his feet ignoring the fact he might crush one or tow of the raiders. There was a more pressing matter after all. Did the cooler survive the fall? And so the Duke starts to check the most important item of the group as his companions starts to lob flashbangs.

"Well, shit," Pesky says, echoing Ajak.  This is certainly not how this is supposed to go down.

He marvels for just a second at the feathers that appear, lowering them to the floor of the cavern, then snaps back.  "Well, shit," he repeats, jumping off of the feathered carrier as it nears the bottom.

Pesky dashes behind a huge rock, readying his rifle in one practiced motion.  Having seen Ajak toss multiple grenades, he hugs his back tightly to the stone, closes his eyes, and waits for the explosions.

Once the grenades go off, he dares a look around the corner, taking a quick assessment of the battlefield.

A portal opens up, and something comes out.

FWUMPH. The rush of air blows the feathers higher for a moment.

A large robot (about the size of The Duke) stands before you.

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/image...624x351/p08wt3p7.jpg

Apparently Alyn has accidentally teleported in something from the storage facility upstairs. "SECURITY DETAIL 430404 ACTIVATED." Its head turns left and right briefly. "SECURITY COMPROMISED."

It attacks the nearest targets... Which is Alyn's group of adventurers.

The robot's razor-claw pops forward to snap at Alyn... or rather, Alyn's forcefield, which it bounces off.

The forcefield short-circuits, though. Oops. So long for now, protective field. Maybe you can be repaired later, with tools...

Meanwhile, The Duke finds the cooler. It's okay! Yay!

Meanwhile, the raiders look around and see... targets! A big robot and some humans! Yay! They rush forward, as the feathers slowly start to fall back down, barely beginning to obscure vision... Right now it's like being on a battlefield in a light-to-medium snowstorm, but visibility will become downright poor again soon...

Meanwhile, Ajakstu's flash-bangs go off.

The raiders curse and grunt and growl as they stagger around, trying to regain their senses...

The Duke sighs in relief as he safely puts the cooler back where it belongs and then there are all those feathers a robot and raiders trying to attack his friends. He bellows in anger and then the world goes white and his ears start to ring. The Duke gets angry and FOERS helps his friend to mark out all enemies even though the Duke is blinded the enemies are outlined in a nice red halo on his retina. The nearest raider finds himself launched at the robot and a second later the next follows and then the Duke is a whirlwind of death.

ooc Atrocity 11!!

10-12: Strong Atrocity: Charge any one strong opponent, or group of weak opponents, and destroy them. You don't even need to use any weapons (though you may). If your next move is an assault or atrocity, take +2 forward.

The Duke will attack anything that is not marked as friendly by FOERS so all  neutral parties are in danger.

Ajakstu moved to the nearest downed/dead raider and rifled him for whatever implement of destruction could be

18:40, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 9 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 5,3.  Find a weapon. Either insightful or Luck, bonus is the same

"Um...crap! That wasn't what I was hoping would happen!" Alyn exlaimed, followed by a surprised "yip" as his forcefield from his armor made an unnerving sizzling sound before the blue glow of the lines in his armor faded. The fucking robot shorted out his damned shield! Well, it had been sometime since it got maintained but...dang it!

He'd have to worry about that later. He had more pressing things to deal with. Especially since that little mishap with the robot seemed to help get the backlashed power "out of his system" suddenly. Almost like a nice fart or a long burp clearing the figurative pipes. But Alyn could suddenly FEEL the flow of power and energy in the world all at once for a moment in the area, and this time...he would unleash the hord!

"Well um...sorry guys! Try and stall the big robot thing for now. I'm summoning reinforcements. For real, this time!" he said as he suddenly sent a mental signal to his Mind Moths.

Oh Mothy-poos! It's dinner time! Courtesy of me. Leave my people and the owls alone, and stay away from the Duke and his rampage and the giant robot. But the bandits are yours to dine on as you please. Now come to daddy! his thoughts radiated to them as suddenly a small, but much more stable portal opened up between where the moths were and their current location so the moths could fly through and feast!

"Yo owls? And the rest of you...ignore the moths, please. Dukie? I think that giant robot might have parts we can use to modify our fridge but I'm sure...you may wanna check it out. In any way possible. As hands-on as possible."

23:34, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 10 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 4,5.  Weird.

Well if this failed again it would have been aweful! But I rolled a 10 this time. So let the feasting begin!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6VLUeRBfig

Taking a look around the corner, Pesky is more confused than anything else.
Raiders flailing, blinded by the flashbangs, feathers everywhere and... Where did a fucking robot come from?

A portal opens, moths flying out of by the hundreds, maybe thousands, slowly obscuring his field of view even more.
He aims down sight, marking one of the blinded raiders as his target.  Without pause, he fires.

OOC: 11:46, Today: Pesky rolled 12 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 6,4.  Shooting raider through feathers and moths.

He looks for another quickly, eyeing the one nearest Alyn.  Using his mental link, he simply says "Duck. Now.".
He gives Alyn a second to react and fires again.

OOC: 11:49, Today: Pesky rolled 13 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 6,5.  Shoot raider nearest Alyn.

OOC: GM - Took two shots because my first roll rocked.  If that's not OK, please let me know and I can edit the post.

Suddenly, everything goes great.

The Duke launches himself at the big robot, using nearby blinded/deafened Raiders as weapons-- clubs, thrown missiles, etc. Whenever he tears off a jagged piece of armor or a piece of robot limb throwing sparks, he throws it at a Raider (or otherwise makes sure it falls on one of them).

Soon half the Raiders are down. There's still two stumbling (and blinking) near Alyn, though-- but not for long, as Pesky puts them down.

Then the mind-moths rush in and cover the heads of the remaining Raiders, who shout and whimper and fall to the ground.

This is bad food, complain the moths, but we will help you. You must repay us by keeping us safe from these birds. They are frightening. Well, they are moths, after all.

By the time the feathers have completely settled to the ground again, the violence is over.

The only thing that's unsatisfactory is when Ajakstu rushes to grab the weapon of the nearest raider and it's... a big board with nails driven through it all around on one end. Oh well, at least nothing bad happened. And it is weighted for Ajakstu so that it's easy to swing... A trophy of battle!

N'tk flutters down. "Thank yoouu foor helping toooo give the green ones what they wanted. They wanted vioolence and fear and terrible things. At least they died getting what they sooo craved. Doooo these... delicioous-loooooking moths serve yoooouu...?"

Alyn sent a mental message to the moths.

Ugh you guys are sooo bougie! You said you wanted to feed off of intelligent life, so I gave you a buffet. Sorry if it's Mcdonald's though and not Red Lobster. And yes, I'll protect you from the owls.

He turned and looked at the Owls, and spoke aloud.

"Yes owls, these moths are my mine so please know they are NOT on the menu for you today. If any of you eat them, then I'll eat you. Or feed you to Duke." Alyn said firmly as he looked at his moths a sec before turning back to the owls.

"Which would be really dumb, since I came down here to save you from slavery after all. And you guys are growing on me just like the moths are. I guess I have a thing for cute, winged predators. By the way...ta-da! You're free! Even if this is absolutely the weirdest, most surreal slave operation I've ever seen. But hey I'm going with it. Welcome to freedom, baby!"

"If the moths serve yoouu, we will not consuume them. What dooo yoouu need nooow toooo continuuue yoouur quest?"

"Thank you, owls. Both you and the moths are cute and I appreciate you not making me have to choose between you." he said cordially.

Alyn considered.

"Actually...I was wondering if you could tell me if there was any other intelligences down here besides you owls, my party, and my moths, and whatever remains of the bandits." Alyn said.

"I sensed a much more potent intelligence down here earlier. Something possibly even on my level or at least strong enough to pose a threat to even me and the Duke if we let our guard down. I also sensed it communicating with some other strong intelligence to the East of us, toward the mountains. And I highly suspect this communication at least has something tangentially to do with us and I need to know if these intelligences are friends, foes, or neutral. I've hesitated to reach out to them myself without first exploring this facility, since right now I'm blocking myself off so they cannot track me fully. But I'm fully aware that THEY are at least somewhat aware of us." he asked.

"I also could use repairs for my forcefield suit. If that's not something you can handle I will go ask the robots back in the base on our way back out."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:38, Fri 14 July 2023.

Once all the violence and slaughter is done and FOERS seems to negate the moths and owls as enemies the Duke slumps down on a pile of bodies and exclaims.

"I am hurt."

"Heal The Duke and point me towards the nearest pile of gems or objets d'art or such and I will be satisfied," Ajakstu says as he takes a few swings with his new weapon.

(Oooh. Roll Charming, Ajakstu.)

15:49, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 6 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 4,1.  Charming  . Unless the +1 carry over from Weirdness Magnet applies, in which case it is a 7. Whichever. The world is full of opportunities.

(I say this is Partial Success (so no new xp), but after this that +1 forward is gone.)

"Lun the Glistening dooes noot heal, as suuch, but we can help." N'tk hoots, and the other owls hooooot, and... something is teleported in front of The Duke. It's a medkit, probably from upstairs. Just press to bare flesh, and let a limited one-shot of healing begin.

(The Duke regains 1 health level.)

"As foor gemstoones, we..." N'tk glances at Alyn. "...Are yoouu suuure that that is what woouuld moost help yoouu noow...?"

"As a certain duck once said, consequences, shmonsequences, who cares as long as I'm rich," Ajakstu said with a strong, definitive, affirmative nod.

Alyn shook his head.

"I don't need gemstones. That's just Ajak being his usual opportunistic self. But I'm curious...do you believe something more than learning about the intelligences and maybe fixing my forcefield can help me now?" Alyn asked, a curious brow raised on one side of his face.

"I'm open to suggestions if you have something in mind."

The Duke nursing the remaining bruises after the medkit application mutters.

"I want a power armor! These things keep hurting me all the time!!"

A little frustrated with the selfish, petty requests, Pesky speaks.  More to the group than to N'tk.

"What about the Cloister?  Isn't that on the priority list somewhere?"

"We can give yoouu some infoormation aboouut the Clooister, if that is what is impoortant tooo yoouu... but it seems... yoouu may need toooo confer amongst yoouurselves foor a shoort time? Tooo come tooo agreement aboouut yoouur prioorities...?"

Alyn sighed and considered.

"Alright N'Tk, I'll say this then. If you're giving each of us a boon or something, then that's one thing. But if you're offering only 1 thing, then yes we'll take the information about the Cloisture instead." Alyn said.

"We may have misunderstood what was happening so I want to say that as clarification."

"And do that slip and slide thing again to put us at the gate of the Cloister," Ajakstu added in a stage whisper.

The Duke leaving talking about the cloister to the others starts to go off looking for an armor. It was not fair that Alyn got a new robot toy and he would get nothing. As he muses over just how unlucky he was he takes some snacks out of his overstuffed cooler.

"The path froom here tooo the place called The Clooister is... difficult. I dooo noot mean that it is dangeroouus, thoouugh it is certainly that. I mean that there is a long strip of suurface land between here and there that is... disrupted. Warped. Unbalanced. Wrong. Damaged. Yes, damaged by ancient wars and ancient weapoons and ancient poowers. We cannoot ask Lun the Glistening tooo simply transpoort yoouu there. But there is a soluuuution, thoouugh it is sloower than traveling ooover undamaged oooverland terrain might be. Oone may travel uunder the damaged area-- it is moostly oon the suurface of the planet. We can start yoouu oon yoouur way there..."

"Duke! Attend!" Ajakstu calls out. Turning back to the owl, "My ferocious comrade over there possesses a walking vehicle that he is quite fond of, and he would not wish to abandon it. So it is imperative that it be able to take us on the path you mention."

Alyn nodded.

"I think we can find Duke a power armor and myself a repair kit back upstairs somewhere, or something. Or go raid some illicit hidden secret laboratory or something. Finding the Cloisture is the most important thing." Alyn said.

"And we also got companions upstairs we need to drop off at a town too, since one needs to get a parasite removed. And I won't abandon my Alynwalker now that I finally got my damned hardware!" Alyn said.

"How about this, Mister Owl. How about you instead tell us more about the warping, spatial damage you're talking about. Maybe I can use my powers to help us through (but that's super risky), or better yet...we can make it an add-on to the Doom...err, Alynwalker once we get it back up and running. I agree with Ajak though - going underground is silly." he said.

"Can we not get some sort of special forcefield or some such on the Alynwalker to let us resist the damaged space instead?"

N'tk is concerned. "We can get yoouu a neww vehicle for mooving undergroouund... But I dooo noot think that the oone yoouu describe woouuld be able to mooove throouugh the tunnels necessary tooo traverse..."



N'tk thinks, then hoots to his fellow owls. A few other owls fly down to him, and hoot back and forth with him in rapid conversation. Then N'tl turns back to Alyn. "...Dooo yoouu mean the toown of Gnost? Some oof us have visited that place. It might be the best place tooo find the kind of... machine... tooo alloow a vehicle tooo possibly pass throouugh the damaged field..."

Pesky nodded, echoing that the Cloister was the priority, but was a little lost beyond that.

He listened, not fully understanding the discussion between moving overland or underground, what they would be traveling through, and which vehicle would be needed by whom.
And there was another person with a parasite on the surface?  The name Gnost didn't ring any bells either.

It sunk in a bit that he had no idea who these people were, yet he was ready and willing to travel with them.
As long as they ended up at the Cloister.

Alyn nodded.

"Yeah, that's it...gnost. That's where we're heading after I get my Alynwalker up and running. We'll figure out more about the space stablization issue when we get there, after getting our friend's parasite removed." he replied.

"Plus I don't want that jerk seeker getting my Doom...err, Alynwalker. So hard pass on the tunnel thing. We'll feel things out in Gnost since we gotta go there anyway. So could you maybe instead change your boon into guiding us toward an armory here, be it upstairs or nearby, where I can fix my forcefield suit and Dukie can maybe get some armor or a weapon, and Ajak something shiny, and Pesky a gun scope or something?" he asked.

"And could you by chance do that hoot-heal thing you did to Duke to Pesky, because I think the bandits roughed him up a bit before too."

While Alyn and Pesky delay deeds of derring-do with what would probably turn out to be ill conceived travel plans, Ajakstu made himself useful by picking his way amongst the dead and possibly still dying.

Humming an atonal and possibly irritating tune, he wondered what might find itself in his pockets when he returned to driving The Duke's walker.

The Duke who did not attend to Ajakstu kept looking for his armor in the underground area. The Duke did not feel like attending to a show right now he had been badly hurt and wanted something that would make it hard for the bad things to hurt him.

Pesky was grateful to Alyn for requesting the healing for him.  With the slide, the feathers, and the battle, he'd almost forgotten he was injured.  But now he remembered.  As the adrenaline ran its course, his whole body began to ache.

He clutched his shoulder, and winced at the pain in his side.  He once again nodded his thanks to Alyn, then looked to the owl, hopeful.

"Yes yes. These are goood ideas. Yoouu shoouuld gooo tooo Gnost next. But first, the hallways upstairs, yes. Many uuuseful things tooo be foouund. We cannoot ask Lun the Glistening foor tooo many favoors at once, but we can help with these things. Here--" N'tk and the other owls hoot a lot... and a glowing little thing appears in front of Alyn. He takes it and looks at it-- it looks and feels like a little plastic owl, colored day-glow lime green (glow-in-the-dark), like N'tk's people, about an inch and a half high.

And then it flaps its wings repeatedly, and flies over to the stairs leading up to the tunnel that the group came in by. "This guuide will lead yoouu tooo where yoouu need tooo goo. Weapons, toools."

"Hey, um, so, before we go, is it possible to gaze upon Lun the Glistening?" Ajakstu asked.

When the Duke hears the little glowing thing leads them to equipment and ARMOR! the Duke gets ready to follow.

All the owls stop hooting and making noise. "Lun the Glistening is noot doown here with uus," says N'tk, very solemnly. "Lun the Glistening has ears everywhere, oor almoost everywhere. Buut we cannoot... shoow yoouu Lun the Glistening, here. We can oonly shoow the evidence of the generoosity of Lun the Glistening. Soomeday, yoouu may well learn moore oof Lun the Glistening... but noot at this time. Foolloow yoouur guide, now, and may Lun the Glistening watch oover yoouu..."

Alyn nods as he holds then releases the glow-in-the-dark owl guide.

"This will work! and I bet there's a med kit for Pesky too." he replied.

"I also was curious about Lun. Seems like it's more of a friend than anything, but my main concern was to make sure you owls got freed. I was kinda surprised you were in what is basically willing-slavery. Almost like you did it for fun. But I'm the last person to be judging for that sort of thing, heh. And I got to feed my moths too. But you guys are all okay now in the end, so all is well that ends well." Alyn said.

Alyn turned to the swarm of moths that were fluttering around, and his eyes flickered a bit.

Go ahead and keep eating your fill, but we're moving upward toward the surface again so you're gonna want to move out soon too. The owls are probably only going to restrain themselves while I'm in the general area, so once I leave you'll be playing with fire staying too much longer so I wouldn't risk it.

He turned to the owls.

"Well then I have one final question before we go. If you guys are the only main intelligence down here besides us, and I sensed communication with something big and strong out East...can you tell me what it was you guys were speaking with? And is it something I should consider an enemy, a friend, or neutral? I'm sure you can tell by now I kind of like making connections with all sorts of different monsters and mutants and stuff, but I do like to know about the hostile ones who aren't so friendly."

"We are a peaceful people. We need little, thanks tooo the generoosity of Lun the Glistening. When we encoouunter thoose with desires and longings different from oouur oown, we try to flap carefully, sooo that all may be satisfied and get what they want froom interaction."




We feel certain we can find our own way out, say the moths. Although it sounds like the easiest path will likely be to just follow you to the surface again. But yes, we will definitely leave this area as soon as you do.



"We speak with Lun the Glistening. Please wait." The owls near N'tk have a little owl conference again. This one gets more excited, and they call twice as many owls over to hoot... energetically. "Yoouu have raised an impoortant issuue. We feel that the commuunication yoouu noted was between beings tooo the east and these green folk. The green folk were guided here... poossibly withoouut even realizing they were being manipuulated. I was noot personally aware oof thoose tooo the east tooo whooom yoouu refer, but one oof my brethren spotted them a day oor twoo agoo. They are powerful and mysterioouus. They dooo noot serve Lun the Glistening. I doo noot knoow if their desires mean harm or noot... but I woouuld noot guess them tooo be friendly. They are very strange."

The glow-in-the-dark plastic owl leads the adventurers (and the mind-moths) back upstairs, and down many halls... to a room.

It seems to be a sort of repair shop-- especially for weapons and armament.

(Each of you roll Insightful.

If your roll is 6 or lower: you don't find anything bad, but you don't find anything useful.

If your roll is 7 to 9: you can find: 1 Class 1 Stuff Point:
--one Class 1 Melee Weapon, Heavy Weapon, Explosive, Attire, or an Engineering Kit OR
--a Class 1 UPGRADE for an item of that nature you already own.

If your roll is 10 to 12: you can find: 2 Class 1 Stuff Points (stackable if you want):
--one Class 2 Melee Weapon, Heavy Weapon, Explosive, or Attire, OR
--one Class 1 Melee Weapon, Heavy Weapon, Explosive, or Attire AND one Engineering Kit... OR
--a Class 2 UPGRADE for an item you already own, OR
--TWO Class 1 upgrades for items you already own.

If your roll is higher than 12:
--3 Class 1 Stuff Points.

Finding another Medkit like the one The Duke used a few minutes ago will require a roll of 10 or higher.

Clear what you find (if anything) with me first (perhaps in the OOC thread?) )

(Yes, The Duke finds 1 xp. But at least nothing else bad happens.)


There is no food in this new area.

The Duke sits down and sobs quietly to Foers (his teddy bear, for those of you who just got here).

Pesky rummaged through some of the filthy boxes in the corner closest to him, hoping to find something useful.  A scope would be fine, but he could really use some medical supplies.  He grew more tense as box after box revealed nothing he could use.

No scope, no armor, no meds.  Nothing.  Frustrated and in pain, he turned to see if the others had found anything.

OOC: 15:43, Today: Pesky rolled 5 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 2,2.  Find something useful.

Ajakstu finds a large box of clothing. He rummages after he sets Rake free to do whatever Rake does. With great glee he pulls out what might have once been called a banana hammock. Stretching it, he shoots it at Alyn. "More your style, but perhaps oversized!"

He throws several loud shirts in tent-like sizes towards The Duke with a shrug that somehow conveys generosity.

"Ohhh, well this looks to be the proper size!" he remarks with surprise.

20:57, Today: Ajakstu Gul rolled 9 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 2,6.  Insightful. Bulletproof outfit for this humble, giving, honest, modest, and supportive one.

One of the dead Raiders has a little gold (and slightly bejeweled) statuette of a strange creature, about about three and a half inches high.

21:28, Today: Alyn Reed rolled 12 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 6,5.  Insightful.

While the others bumbled around, Alyn silently snickered to himself at the clumsiness of his allies. It would seem he had to show them an example of dignity and grace once again.

His eyes flickered a moment, as he silently sent a telepathic command to his pet mind moths to conduct a hivemind-based thorough search of the repair shop. His power momentarily overwhelmed the moths in its sudden, firm, ice-like efficiency as Alyn psychically rippled through their hivemind like a piece of silk floating along a breeze. It was elusive, yet appealing, and the moths were helpless to only follow what - for a moment - to them was something like a much-bigger Mind Moth. An Alyn-Moth, figuratively speaking.

The other party members suddenly noticed the moth swarm began to spiral around the room, then break down into multiple organized mini-swarms that each spread out in multiple directions. The mothers flew and wriggled everywhere, searching every nook and cranny in the place. After several minutes of this strange behavior, the small mini-swarms suddenly coalesced back into a single larger swarm that itself began to orbit a bit unnaturally around Alyn.

The young man, in turn, silently nodded at the swarm and had a pleased look on his face, before turning to the party.

"Well...I found some really useful things. They just were tucked away and packaged really securely and sort of hard to find under the more general junk in here. Let's see..." Alyn said aloud.

OOC: See OOC for picks.

The Duke looks up at the brightly colored hawaii shirt that Ajakstu tosses him and tries it on making him look like a brightly colored sad giant as he forgot he came looking for armor and began looking for food that was not stored in the armory.

Taking the med kit from Alyn, Pesky once again nods a silent thank you.

He opens the kit, removing the supplies that seem most likely to help at the moment.  He cleans and wraps his shoulder as best he can, using only one hand and his teeth.  He's done this alone enough times that he has no trouble getting the bandage tight.

He allows himself to relax a tiny bit, just for a moment.
Whew.  Not great, but definitely better.

Alyn nods in satisfaction after he gives Pesky a repair kit, and uses his engineering kit to repair his armor and Duke's gloves. Now nobody can say Alyn didn't look after the party too. Even if they were secretly really his henchmen. He chuckled inwardly at himself at the thought. This was a good, if dangerously eccentric, group.

"Alright folks. We're rested a bit, geared up, and also re-stocked with food and candies and stuff that the Duke will help us manage as always. It's time to go back west a bit and return to the nearby Doomwalker so I can do my thing there. Once I get the hardware loaded and initiated, the plan from there is to continue proceeding to the town of Gnost." he said, reigning the figurative cats that were his party members back in some and giving them direction and focus.

"Once we get to Gnost, we have two goals team: get our furry kitten-friend to a surgeon there who has the expertise to remove his parasite, and also look for more clues about the Cloisture. Do your final preparations everyone, use the bathroom, whatever...because we leave in 10 minutes." he added.