The Streets Of Old Olney

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

The door that opens from Milliways leads to a gray and dusty landscape across which the fingers of the dawn are just starting to spread. Actually, no. Too poetic. The sun's coming up over one of those landscapes which would probably look a lot better in the dark. This is a land where the trees are sparse, shriveled, and black; where rock and concrete jut up through the ground like the bones of a compound fracture; and where jagged, ragged walls and chunks of rebar huddle together in vaguely squarish piles among heaps of rubble. There's a distinct smell of animal on the air. Many predators live here, or somewhere nearby, anyway. Those accustomed to nights among the densely populated regions of twenty-first century Earth may be taken aback by the fact that there's no skyglow to be seen even where it's still dark. This is a quiet place.

Except for the odd snuffling and hooting noises from deeper within the ruins of the city, anyway. Those carry real good.

"Welcome to Olney," Ellen says quietly. "You're hearing the deathclaws now. I did some scouting earlier. There's a gap in the outer rubble that we can all get through about twenty yards that way, so long as we keep an eye out for anything trying to kill us."

Comments

[gammagammahey.livejournal.com]

"I can take point if you want, Ellen. I've got less of a chance of being hurt and more of a chance of hurting," says Shulkie. She's in her fighting clothes, that being her costume. She's chosen to wear shoes mostly so she doesn't ruin her pedicture.

[respectthegun]

With his mask down, it's pretty much impossible to see his face or read any particular emotion. But his voice already sounds bored.

"We're asking permission to tke point now?"

[basic_powers]

"I'd rather the mostly-anything proof lady take the front, there'll be plenty trying to take us from behind." Rasps Moon Shadow from behind his helmet, already checking behind them, mouth and nose covered.

"No offense meant, Miss Jennifer."

[unbreakableben]

"I'll take the back in case anything tries to ambush us," Ben says looking around a little nervously as this is his first war zone. "I can always leap to the front if anything big comes."

[venusadept_2]

"Better that than everyone assuming they'll go first," Felix points out to Lawton. "And this is Ellen's place and mission."

Almost absently, he rechecks his sword and notes the 'feel' of the local earth. It's not like home, but it'll do.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"Please do, Jen," Ellen says. She looks a bit out of place amongst the others, as even in her full armor she's barely five and a half feet tall. "Fawkes, if you could take sweep..."

"Of course," rumbles the mu- the metahuman (Ellen's never going to get used to that). He hefts his Gatling laser and stumps over to take up position guarding their rear as they move forward behind Jen.

Probably none too soon, either. Anyone with even marginally good eyes will notice something pinkish stirring among the rubble up ahead. Possibly two somethings, as a matter of fact.

[gammagammahey.livejournal.com]

"No offense taken, Moon Shadow."

Jen spots pink flesh up ahead, and if it has any brain at all it would turn tail and run, but it clearly doesn't.

"Ellen, I'm going assume these are baddies."

She sprints from her position - leaping would be too loud on impact and warn anything else in the area - and whens she gets closer and sees what she's dealing with, sniffs.

"You smell awful. You smell like trouble. Ever heard of Old Spice?"

She grabs it around the neck, lifts it off the ground, and punches it hard enough so that it soars into the air and flies off into the visible event horizon.

And with that, Team One 1, Team Deathclaw 0.

[respectthegun]

Oh well, if she's going to rush in like that.

Lawton sees no reason to waste his bullets quite yet.

"Damn, why do all the chicks I know like to rush in fists first?"

[basic_powers]

If Floyd is expecting Moon Shadow to comment on that, he's not going to be happy.

Less happy at Moon Shadow bringing his own gun up to bear on the second pinkish thing on the horizon.

[boston_bruiser]

Voodoo's already trained his M60 on the second pinkish thing, but his finger's off the trigger; he doesn't want to open up until he can get a better shot at it. Fire discipline and all that.

"'nother foot-mobile in the rubble," he whispers. "Could be another Deathclaw. Not sure. Watch yourself."

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

Ellen nods and takes careful aim with her plasma rifle. There's really only so many creatures in the Wasteland that color of pink, and frankly, it's too big to be a mole rat and too close to the previous deathclaw's position to be a brahmin with a skin condition.

The creature suddenly lifts its head, sniffing at the air.

PZANG! PZANG! goes the plasma rifle, and the deathclaw howls with rage and pain... right before leaping to its feet and charging at the party, claws out and fangs flashing.

[venusadept_2]

If there's one thing Felix knows about charges, it's that they are more difficult the more uneven the ground is.

And if there's one thing he knows how to do, it's mess with the ground.

His eyes glow yellow for a moment, and the ground rumbles and cracks. There are now plenty of sharp points and rough parts between the Deathclaw and the group from Milliways. They're easy enough to step over or around if you're being careful, but anyone rushing in with more speed than care will find the experience unpleasant.

He's also got his sword out, in case it gets within range.

[gammagammahey.livejournal.com]

Meanwhile, trusting that the other deathclaw can be dealt with by the six people behind her, Shulkie's scouting the surroundings, noting landmarks. The place is heartbreakingly ugly, destroyed and twisted in the way that post-war landscapes can only be.

She's carefully looking down sidestreets - yes, that there is a deathclaw making its way purposefully towards them. There's a wreck of what looks like a big car, too - and if it looks like a car, it's probably heavy enough to crush one of them.

She starts down the sidestreet, reaches the car, hefts it up in the air by the rear and holds it, waiting. Let them come to her, she thinks.

Sure enough, a deathclaw comes loping at her, and jaded although the Jade Giantess is, she feels a sense of revulsion.

She neatly throws the car at the deathclaw

but

was

not

expecting

the BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!

"Ellen," she calls. "Guys, I think I just ruined our stealth advantage."

Whoops?

[basic_powers]

"..........Oh god she threw one of the cars." Moon Shadow mutters, lowering his weapon since there is no way in the nine hells that Mr. Deathclaw survived that. He's going to blindly dig out a bottle of pills and gulp some down before offering the bottle to the others. That was a brighter boom than he wanted to see, even with the helmet giving him some protection.

Rad-X is his very special friend right now.

[boston_bruiser]

"Well that's just fucking peachy," Voodoo mutters, lowering his M60. The barrel is still hot - he was peppering the Deathclaw with three-round bursts when the car touched down.

"Way to blow our fucking cover, Green Machine. Bet a month's pay every goddamn gooner in a five-mile radius heard that."

He's more than a little perturbed at the sudden turn of events. But now's no time to get lazy - he's scanning the charred landscape for movement or silhouettes.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"No time to argue now," says Ellen. "Voodoo, I have Rad-X for you. We'll check for residual rads later."

She produces a jar from a pouch on her belt and holds it out in Voodoo's direction-

"We should take cover," rumbles Fawkes' voice suddenly. "I hear an engine."

And he's looking to the southern skies.

[boston_bruiser]

Voodoo's just about to take the Rad-X when he hears the engines. He pauses, then takes cover behind a wrecked concrete wall. He props the M60 up in the direction of the sound and listens.

"Two," says Voodoo. "It's a multirotor bird. The Brotherhood giving you any air support for this, Ellen?"

He doubts it, but the last thing he wants is a blue-on-blue incident.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

Ellen darts for cover as quickly as her armor will allow; Fawkes has already found his place, and is readying his Gatling just in case. "No," Ellen says. "No air support. We don't have any Vertibirds that I know of. That's Enclave."

It heaves into sight not long after that, rotors tilting and canting as its pilot begins to search for a place to put down.

[boston_bruiser]

That's all the prompting Voodoo needs to sight his machine gun in on the Vertibird's cockpit and squeeze the trigger.

There's a series of three round bursts - a BUPBUPBUP BUPBUPBUP BUPBUPBUP - then a series of five-round bursts as the rounds start punching holes in the cockpit glass. If it's not doing any damage or straight-up killing the pilot, at least it's giving him some serious second thoughts.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

The Vertibird shakes violently for a moment, wobbling in midair. Then, abruptly, the rotors turn straight up and it starts climbing as fast as the engines will go. Maybe a little faster, given that Fawkes just opened fire on the thing with his Gatling.

It swiftly turns and heads northeast, vanishing quickly into the thick of the ruins. Ellen scowls- not that anyone can see it behind her helmet. "That's where the power plant is," she says. "We're going to see them again, I just know it."

[boston_bruiser]

Voodoo grunts. "No surprise there." He sets about wordlessly reloading his M60, tossing the empty ammo box on the ground after he's finished and racking back the bolt with a loud cha-CHICK.

"Ready when you guys are."

[unbreakableben]

Meanwhile Ben has been picking off what Deathclaws have been trying to flank them with rocks. He may not have a big fancy gun but when you can throw a rock at nearly the speed of sound, you don't really need them.

He's just bending to pick up another when the flash of the car Jen threw hits him and he nearly jumps several stories into the air. He's pretty quick to realize it's "friendly fire" and he goes back to searching for flanking Deathclaws which would be a lot easier if he wasn't have so much trouble breathing and if the black spots floating in his peripheral vision weren't crowding. Caught in his panic attack he barely registers the Vertibird nor the gunfire.

He can fight this, he's not in Nevada. Breath....

[calmhrtprevails]

"Excuse me."

Fawkes' voice is low-pitched and strained-sounding, as if the speaker's throat wasn't quite intended for speech. The words are accompanied by a heavy, but gentle, hand on Ben's shoulder.

"I couldn't help but notice your distress. Are you all right, friend?"

[basic_powers]

"I'm ready...let's press on. Barring anymore very interesting quick lessons."

[venusadept_2]

Felix nods. His scowl is more for this world in general than for anyone - or anything - in particular. Although neither the explosion nor the Vertibird helped.