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IC - Chapter 2.

Posted by TecGMFor group 0
TecGM
GM, 8 posts
Sat 15 Jul 2017
at 23:11
  • msg #1

IC - Chapter 2

Minutes away from re-entering Sioux airspace, your clearance is revoked.

While you were busy blowing up a radar installation, the UCAS was busy arresting Senator Hollensfeld on suspicion of having CFD.

The Sioux Office of Military Intelligence (OMI) has concluded that the nanoforges you just blew up were also infected with CFD. Your team has been quarantined and are not allowed to return home for the moment.

Your new orders are to get to St. Louis, where there is a safehouse with further instructions.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:03, Wed 19 July 2017.
Swoopy
player, 2 posts
Tue 18 Jul 2017
at 23:50
  • msg #2

IC - Chapter 2

UCAS Western Military District Crisis Ops Center

COL Broglie was having a proverbially interesting night. As the chief of operations for the WEMDCOC (an unfortunate acronym) he had been one of the first people dragged in when the watch officer was alerted to the incident. He was not, however, the ultimate authority over all the assets being marshaled. He technically was the man on the scene and acted with the full weight of his superiors, but there was a fine line between taking decisive action and overstepping your bounds. Plus, there were about three ranks between him and the point where all the people actually in command of the assets would go along with his say so just because of who he was. So he was left balancing the need to handle this with the need to keep his superiors and peers - though, being in actual command, his peers tended to think of him as as seconnd or possibly fifth among equals - and keep in mind an ever increasing demand for more infortmation pouring in as well as the general who would be arriving in 45 minutes but still had the occasional good idea. And while his watch was full and ready, most UCAS units didn't have the A team on duty at 3 AM, slowing down everything that wasn't kept in specific crisis response status. Back to work then...

"SITREP".

A major leaned over from his desk to answer.. Everything was presented in AR and the center's common made the motion irrelevant, but human habit is hard to break.

"Sir, BANDSAW is tracking the bogey by RADAR and has confirmed the course reversal. BREAKERS 1 and 2 reverified FM intercept, are running decryption now. We're still assuming they got turned away because of this CFD thing. ANGELs 03 and 07 have the unmanned platforms closing for intercept in five and will be there in ten themselves. It'd be quicker, but we're trying not to boom the cities. Only problem is the ANGELs are loaded for air to air and missile busting. They can knock them down, but only have guns for the ground attack. Nothing to burn up the CFD. ANGELs 45 and 42 are being quick loaded with napalm...but time up is still unknown. 30 minutes was last guess"

The Major looked away. It didn't need to be said that he was glad he wouldn't be the one deciding on whether or not to saturatie Kansas farmland with fire if it looked like the CGD might run amok.

"CRF reports it's ready for wheels up as soon as you commit them, and the CYBER RF reports they got connection with the bird, ready to try to break in on your go. Duty mage got watchers on it still, with that unknown fire spirit trailing on the astral. Still think it's theirs, so mace is holding off. We've got Tomas and Clarke ready to add their spirits as well, but after that we're on the mercy of other units or WEMD releasing stuff. Tier 1 has a ready team coming in as well, but they haven't been released to us yet..."

The Colonel cut him off.

"Brevity major. You don't need to say it all every time..."

The Colonel sighed inwardly. Sometimes you don't get the A team at 3 AM eve in the COC.

He turned to give his orders. Time to tread that line.
TecGM
GM, 9 posts
Tue 25 Jul 2017
at 05:46
  • msg #3

IC - Chapter 2

01:01 Sunday, January 31st, 2075 - The White House

INTERLUDE

"Angie, are you INSANE??" the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff asked as he slammed his hands onto his desk. The dramatic effect was somewhat lessened by the fact that he was in his pajamas and that the conversation was a video call rather than in person. The President, for her part, was wearing a nightgown and a robe in the Lincoln Bedroom.

"That's the same thing you asked me last time," the President responded calmly.

"I have two gunships inbound that will be there any minute. I have a fire elemental on the scene, not that it knows what the frag it's looking at. WEMDCOC says that we can have napalm onsite in 30 minutes. We can effectively drop a north-south curtain that keeps them contained and you want me to let them go?!"

"I said 'loosen the leash'," President Colloton corrected.

"Explain the difference to me!" the General demanded, exasperated.

Angie looked equally exasperated. How could such a fine military mind - not as fine as hers, certainly, but so much the better - be such a political novice?

"George, don't you see how this plays into our hands? We have foreign operatives on UCAS soil conducting a clandestine raid that could, quite frankly, be labeled as an unprovoked act of war. What's our KIA count?"

"ZERO! Some spiders with dumpshock and a few boys that have been tazed. They stabbed a guy but then paused to stop the bleeding!"


The President tutted appreciatively. "Counting coup. The Sioux always did know how to singe our beard. Well, no matter. The scene of destruction is impressive enough, and I'm sure we can drum up some casualties, one way or another."

"So what's the play?" the General asked, hands in the air, still not getting it.

"George, you really are a black hole sometimes. The play is that we can shelve all the tangential horror stories from Boston that we were going to run as cover. Now we have dangerous terrorists on the loose instead. We have a legitimate excuse to shut the borders and declare a state of emergency."

"I can turn them all into a smear in the next five minutes you want me to string them out?"
George asked, starting to grasp the concept if not the full logic.

"Just for a news cycle or two, until Hollensfeld is in the rear-view mirror. Send the local authorities to intercept them. Explain that the platoon at the radar installation is now under quarantine - which they are now if you haven't done it already, by the way - until we have specialists onsite to 'decontaminate' the area. Until we can bring up additional resources from McConnell - which will be slow in this storm - we'll have to rely on local assets.

"In fact, how do we know that the Sioux operatives weren't the original source of the CFD, hmm? Perhaps they intentionally infected the nanoforges during a prior op; OMI would know full well that Hollensfeld was planning a visit. In reality, this was all a Sioux effort to infect a sitting Senator to disrupt the UCAS government and undermine our democracy. Once we pinched Hollensfeld, they figured they would blow things up to cover the evidence and spread the CFD strain via the storm coming out of the northwest."


The general shook his head, his uncombed coiffure untamed and flopping about. "Angie, we pinched Hollensfeld at the same time as the op. OMI is good but not so good that they can drop six Wildcats on our doorstep with only ten minutes of notice, which is what we gave the press."

Angie gave George a pitying look that said 'like the truth matters'. "We'll let's put it out there and see how it plays anyway. Let the talking heads chew on it before the press hammers out the exact sequence, which will take weeks anyway."

"So what are your orders?" George asked, not wanting to get this one wrong.

"Track and observe with the watchers and fire spirit. Keep them in sight. Call off the Gryphons." Angie smiled. "Send in the sheriff, and the Kansas National Guard too. Their orders are to capture, not kill. We need prisoners to interrogate, after all." She paused and tapped her lips for a moment before another thin wisp of a smile appeared. "And don't give them too much armor. That should up the body count nicely."

END INTERLUDE
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:57, Wed 26 July 2017.
Chante
player, 2 posts
Wed 26 Jul 2017
at 15:46
  • msg #4

IC - Chapter 2

Chante cursed.  This was just the sort of bullshit that happened in the trids and here it was in real life.  They'd have to sort it quickly.

"Dan, whats the status on Ite.  Can we move him?  How much time do we have to get him to medical?"

While she waited for and then processed his answer, she looked back.  The Fire Spirit was there, somewhere.  She sent a mental command to her own.  Task change.  Engage the Fire Spirit trailing us.  Intent is to distract it so that we can lose it.  Service complete if you destroy it or if grievously wounded.  So not succumb to obliteration.

Always better to give her spirits an out.  She thought no less of them than she did the men under her Command.

"Shiriki, count to 5, then begin whatever ditching operations you've worked out.
Shiriki
player, 3 posts
Thu 27 Jul 2017
at 14:09
  • msg #5

IC - Chapter 2

"Shiriki, count to 5, then begin whatever ditching operations you've worked out."

<<It'll be a quick count.>> Shiriki comms, with the fuel gauge dipping into dangerously low territory.

To his astonishment he sees a pair of incoming UCAS Gryphons peel away from the north east, and incessant beeping from the air-to-air missile lock subsides, leaving him with only the howl of the wind.  Hell, I haven't even done anything yet.

He takes a south-easterly course, their avenue of escape slim with the powers that be deciding that while home is on three sides of them, practically close enough to hop down and into, the only direction left to turn is right back into the UCAS' maul, right back in the general direction of the base that's currently a cloud of CFD.  He drops in altitude, zipping across the plains and just over the tips of the occasional copse of trees.

<<Captain, UCAS Air Force is pulling back.  Repeat, UCAS air support has withdrawn.  I need a general bearing.  North, south, and west are out.  Current distance to St. Louis is approximately 1080 KM.  CAS border is closer at 350 KM.  I can pull us out about 80 before she drops like a stone.>>

<<I recommend a 75 KM jump toward the CAS border, and hoofing it out at ground level from there.  Fire spirit is still trailing us.  Can I get an update on additional astral surveillance?>>


Shiriki pulls an interior feed from the Dragon's cameras, and zooms in on Ité.  This is going to stay complicated.
Swoopy
player, 4 posts
Thu 27 Jul 2017
at 16:12
  • msg #6

IC - Chapter 2

Swoopy sat strapped in to the troop compartment, feeling it as Shiriki tipped the bird over and hauled back around. The gees weren't particular bad, but being tipped 35 degrees on your side and 20 vertical was more than enough to leave you pushing against the straps.The doors were closed at this speed,  and of course that was for the best, but part of him wished they were open. Couldn't tell you why, but maneveuring always seemed less drastic when you could see the outside world. Some guys preferred it the other way, and wanted nothing to do with seeing vistas at unnatural angles. Whatever worked for you in the end, and if nothing did...well you were in the wrong profession.

Regardless, it was more than enough to fling anything not secured across the troop compartment. Which gave Swoopy a purpose, holding on to whatever Doc needed next, restrapping instruments and getting others out of the kit when needed, ideally without causing any to smash against the far wall - serving as a human holster for Doc as he worked on the ratchet strapped (probably not medically optimal, but when needs must) Ite.

This was a nine tenths activity. The other tenth was watching the others and listening. Well, watching Chante. Partially because her words meant future life or death, partially because she was still exorbitantly female and you're never quite as horny as you are after a life and death  fight. He saw her space out which probably meant she was doing some magic thing. She probably valued those spirits as much as her men.

Swoopy paused on that thought: It was sobering. What if she ACTUALLY DID value them as much as her men? They, after all, couldn't really die...but men can.
Chante
player, 4 posts
Mon 31 Jul 2017
at 16:43
  • msg #7

IC - Chapter 2

The Spirit of Earth didn't last long.  Chante hadn't expected it to, but she thought it would at least buy them a little more time.

<<I recommend a 75 KM jump toward the CAS border, and hoofing it out at ground level from there.  Fire spirit is still trailing us.  Can I get an update on additional astral surveillance?>>

She sighed.  "Do it, I'll try once more to lose that spirit."

She closed her eyes and steadied her will.  The jostling of the vehicle didn't help, but she had trained herself to work her mojo in tougher conditions.  She thought of Ite dying in the hold, the betrayal of her squad, the difficulties that lay ahead and she funneled her frustration into her call.

Another fire spirit appeared, ready to perform the requisite service.  Chante wobbled unsteadily and then offered her command.  Behind us a Fire Spirit is trailing.  I need it destroyed or at least to lose our trail.  Preferably destroyed.
Dan-Dan
player, 3 posts
Wed 2 Aug 2017
at 06:39
  • msg #8

IC - Chapter 2

Dan looked up from where he was monitoring Ite.

Ideally an hour. Metrics drop after that to about six hours, then 12, 48 and 72. This is all approximate. Ideally I want a full trauma team with cerebralvascular specialists on site. They're standard at any military facility and with most field units.

Next best, I can perform the operation myself. I'm happy to give it the old college try and slice into him a bit. I've had the training but not the experience, so his odds drop. Should be interesting. But I need a few quiet hours and better diagnostics. Any hospital, clinic or street doc will do. Heck, a vetinary or pharmacy will do. A vets could be best, looking at him.

If there's no prospect of recovery in an hour I'll induce a coma. It will cut the hour as an option and complicate the six hours treatment time frame but should buy time with the rest.

For the rest, let's cross a border. Complicate things for them. If there is CFD, and I haven't detected it - not that I have the equipment to do so, then a massive EMP burst will help. It's not a cure or immunisation but it will briefly slow the vectors buyong time. Of course it'll fry all unshielded electronics within the blast radius, there's and ours but it will slow infection vectors. Something for the experts to do though. Let's go dark.

This message was last edited by the player at 06:48, Wed 02 Aug 2017.
Shiriki
player, 7 posts
Fri 4 Aug 2017
at 15:12
  • msg #9

IC - Chapter 2

Shiriki finds a good tail wind, and temporarily leaves Hot-sim, rubs his temples.

"Experts?  Drek, chummer, I got cyberware older'n'you, some of which has survived two matrix crashes.  I'll be fragged if some little microbots are gonna do me in.  If we wanna go the EMP route, I've got a jammer, and we still have some explosives.  With a little doing,
 I bet we could rig something up good.  Just have to make sure my babies are all powered down before it blows.

"Speaking of which, there's some cargo in the back.  Can I get someone to check to see if there's anything useful there?"


Swoopy works his way out of his harness, and starts digging around the back of the dragon.  He pulls the tarp off a box, and pops it open, whistles low.  "Looks like we got a doberman, loaded out with twin Alphas.  No launchers, though."

"That'll do just fine.  Probably take me about five minutes to relieve it of being official UCAS property, and we've got ourselves another gunner on the team."

Swoopy
player, 5 posts
Sat 5 Aug 2017
at 02:06
  • msg #10

IC - Chapter 2

One crate of Doberman...nice bit there. UCAS musta landed this bird in a hurry, didn't even bother to offload the drone. Made you wonder where else it was supposed to go that night. Not that it mattered now. Nice advantage to have, at least during the initial E&E. After that, well, smaller land based drones never were quite as mobile in real conditions as they were on the manufacturers rugged seeming demo courses that artfully played up strengths and concealed weaknesses. Kansas was pretty flat though, with hard soil his time of year. The drone would make it a good ways before it broke down or got inextricably stuck. How far the team would want to carry a UCAS platform with a UCAS root OS, known parts and ports, and the all those other advantages to a counter-attacking decker. Well, that was now Shirik's business.

E&E was Swoopy's. A bit of duct tape later, a couple of the internal cameras were blind enough to give him working space. Shiriki might be a solid pilot and rigger, but it was hard to ignore Ite's mute testimony to just how good UCAS decker's were. Then he memorized the projected landing point, turned off his link and started scrawling on a laminated map while studying his SERE packet. Several alcohol pen marks later, he brought Chante the map with a big blue circle on it and a hand written note:

25 KM FROM LANDING - TRUCK STOP - DAILY DELIVERY X CAS-UCAS BORDER - ORANGE BISON MOVERS - COYOTE - 1000 A HEAD.
Dan-Dan
player, 6 posts
Sun 6 Aug 2017
at 19:02
  • msg #11

IC - Chapter 2

Dan looked up from where he was monitoring Ite again. He stretched his back and groaned. It was done.

To the eye he looked, well pretty much the same as before. Which was a shame, since he was. The procedure (basically a few choice drugs, mostly opioids) and a good hard shove at his chakras, simply hadn't worked. Ite was not dead to the world.

His vitals ticked along at his normal rate as his metabolic processes failed to shut down or slow to a crawl. He was not in a controlled coma.

There were downsides of course, but it would have bought them some time to get him somewhere they could treat his injuries.

"Well, Ite's not dead to the world. Now, don't give me that look. He's as good as he's getting without better facilities. If he were comatose, he'd be very hard to see on the astral. But he's not.

Now, talking of the astral have we got anything to shake off those watchers yet? If not, I've an idea.

Chante, could you pollute or aspect the astral a little bit? I'm sure I can help. They're only it itty bitty spirits. If we raise the background count I doubt they'll cope with it.

Even better if we could aspect it. For stealth, which we surely need, let's dedicate it to Cat. It's a bit more work, but even if it doesn't last it raises the count some and might help us across the border anyway.

Well, what do you think?"

This message was last edited by the player at 06:41, Mon 07 Aug 2017.
Shiriki
player, 10 posts
Mon 7 Aug 2017
at 17:25
  • msg #12

IC - Chapter 2

"Well, what do you think?" Dan Dan says.

"Whatever you're going to do, do it," Shiriki answer before popping back into Hot-sim.

<<@Team [Shiriki] We're running on fumes here.  If I don't set us down soon, it won't be me setting us down.>>

Shiriki scans the plains looking for a suitable landing spot.  Flat, and flat.  Looks like one hunk of snow-covered plains is as good as another.
Chante
player, 6 posts
Wed 9 Aug 2017
at 15:15
  • msg #13

IC - Chapter 2

Chante puts two fingers to each of her temples and closes her eyes.  The effort of summoning the Fire Spirit had given her a headache.  Or made it worse.  The whole situation was bad.

<<@Team [Shiriki] We're running on fumes here.  If I don't set us down soon, it won't be me setting us down.>>

"Dammit, Shiriki, just put it down!  Find the spot and land it... south... or east... or southeast, drek!  Just don't cross the border.  Besides our... 'orders'... they're ready for us to try and I don't think we want to test that."

She chided herself internally for cursing at the rigger.  They were all confused and looking for something solid.  She wished she had something to give them.  Still, he was the one best suited to find a place to put the bird.

As for Dan-Dan's suggestion, she had no way to do anything like that.  A large enough explosion could do it but they didn't have anywhere near what they needed...

Then she made a sudden realization.

"Scratch that, Shiriki.  Northeast.  Heading..."

She pulled up a map, "Forty Five degrees.  Coordinates... 40.206443°N 100.964598°W.  Something like fifty miles.  Can we make it?"
This message was lightly edited by the player at 15:15, Wed 09 Aug 2017.
Shiriki
player, 15 posts
Thu 10 Aug 2017
at 18:33
  • msg #14

IC - Chapter 2

the captain screams at Shiriki, and the elder elf shurgs internally.  Flat, and flat, alright then.  A moment later, before he's had a chance to slow by more than 50 kph, she screams again, this time throwing coordinates at him.

<<@Chante, [Shiriki] This would go a lot easier if you'd just comm the damned pin>>

Followed by:

<<@Chante [Shiriki] nvm got it>>

Shiriki takes the turn sharp, but cools the rotors, not wanting to waste any of the precious fuel sloshing in the Dragon's reservoir.  Finding a good tail wind, Shiriki adjusts his altitude slightly and increases speed.  He double-checks the fuel gauge, but with the buffeting and irregular wind, getting a direct read is impossible.

<<@Team [Shiriki] Estimated ETA bearing 40.206443°N 100.964598°W. in 8.5 minutes.  Quicker if the tailwind holds.  Estimating 8.75 min of fuel.  A breeze this way or that will be the deciding factor.>>

A hush falls over the interior of the helicopter, if you can the Wildcats' silence a hush over the blizzard and screaming engine.  Even inhabiting a 15,000 kg Dragon Shiriki feels small, impotent, rudderless. Ité is barely clinging to life.  They're alone, unsupported, and now the team is all counting on him to make it -- the what? -- 65 remaining km to their landing point. And Shiriki's piloted enough rigs to know that will has nothing to do with. The rotors will take them there, or it won't. And if it doesn't. . .

And then it looks like it won't.  Their tailwind dissipates like so many prayers whispered through smoke, and the interior of the Dragon begins blaring emergency sirens and red flashing lights.

48 km to go.

<<@Team [Shiriki] That doesn't mean we're going down, only that the sensors can't detect fuel.  A subtle but important difference.  Attn: all personnel, the pilot has turned on the seatbelt lights.  Strap in.  Things are about to get a lot less comfortable>>

<<ISSUE COMMAND: Power Down Secondary Sensors // Completed>>
<<ISSUE COMMAND: Power Down Weapons Systems // Completed>>
<<ISSUE COMMAND: Power Down Alert Systems // . . .>>
<<WARNING: Alert Systems are necessary for -- // Command Override>>
<<COMMAND OVERRIDE: Accepted>>
<<ISSUE COMMAND: Power Down Interior Systems // Completed>>


The interior of the Dragon becomes pitch black as first the alarm lights and then the interior lights blink off in quick succession. The whine of the engines gives the only sense to the rest of the team that they're not yet falling, or already dead.  The helicopter rocks violently as a crosswind hits, and then lifts considerably as it becomes a tailwind, urging them toward the canyon.

37km to go.

The engines don't stutter necessarily, but their pitch rolls like a wave as the fuel-starved rotors buck against the limitations of the internal combustion engine.

<<@Team [Shiriki] Shutting down comms.  You won't be able to reach me, so I hope to be speaking with y'all chummers in the meat shortly.  ETA 3.75 min>>

<<ISSUE COMMAND: Power Down Communications Systems (All) // Completed>>


With secondary sensors down, and comms disabled, Shiriki is in the void, only the radar and map softs left to aid him.  The silence is like being in a dream, no wind, no rotors, no horizon. Without the pressure sensors to aid him, the ride becomes much rougher than before,
 as he doesn't know when to keel or otherwise brace the craft. All he can do is fly straight. Where in the drek are we going anyway?

22km to go.

Just east of Trenton, by the Republican river, at least it's still pretty flat. Wait, that fragger's taking us to Massacre Canyon. Not now, Shiriki, let's get this bird down. Shiriki scans out their heading, drift, distance, and elevation, stores it in the working memory of his cerebral boosters, and takes another gamble.

<<ISSUE COMMAND: Power Down Radar // Completed>>
<<ISSUE COMMAND: Power Down Primary Sensor, Exception BowV1,BowV2, BowV3 // Completed>>


14km to go.

When Shiriki first learned to fly, this is how it was done.  With the border disputes, the thought that war could break out again at any moment, and before the wireless matrix, they'd often have to shut down their radar for intrusions as well as patrols. Only way to keep out of sight, and even then only if he could keep his altitude down. Of course, that wasn't often done in blizzards. Even a minor squall could push you a few km here or there, and that would make all the difference between coming home or being scattered across the countryside if you were spotted. He's grown lazy, relied on the tech too much. He notes that his heart rate is approaching 180, and he's not even moving, just sitting there throwing the Dragon, and hoping it'll stick. Well, hoping it won't depending on what one might mean by "sticking." He adjusts his approach by 4 degrees, noting the rocking of the craft, hopes he's reading the wind correctly.

8km to go.

Just under a minute to go, and they're still airborne. So far, so good. Shiriki powers on comms, sensors, and radar with a quick mental command. The sudden power drain takes its toll on the engines, which whomp with less regularity, but he can see it, a break in the clouds and to his east Trenton. The radar places them almost on top of the destination. The tailwind held.

<<@Team [Shiriki] Brace yourselves.  Touch down in 20 sec>>

He eases up on the rotors, and the craft drops at an alarming speed. A little power, and it slows, riding the wind, and the process is repeated. Only 35 meters up now, and the Dragon slows, slows, holds steady as he eases it down. In the end, there's barely a pop when they touch down on the frozen grass. Shiriki exits hotsim immediately, pops his harness, and stands to face the team. Flight time: 8 minutes, 52 seconds. His head swims as the sensations of hotsim recedes, made worse by the vertigo of his feedback coming in from so few sensors. He takes a knee and vomits, his empty stomach giving up little more than a string of bile behind the pilot's chair.

"Sorry about that, cap. I don't know what, I don't know. I. . ."
Swoopy
player, 7 posts
Sat 12 Aug 2017
at 18:34
  • msg #15

IC - Chapter 2

The good news was that the blizzard was 20 klicks ago, and that they were on the ground in mostly one piece. Besides Shiriki vomiting and Ite being in a coma, and Chante and Dan having some enroute discussion on the principles of magical ethics or some such shit which had just made their route a bit longer. Still, no one was going to be sending Swoopy's parents a pine box of sand and instructions for a closed casket funeral, so things were generally looking better than one had any right to expect after a VTOL transport runs out of gas while you're riding it.

The bad news was that the blizzard was 20 klicks ago, and while landing in one piece is certainly preferable to the other options, a nice cover of howling wind and snow to help conceal the team's movement would have been pretty helpful right about now. Wouldn't have that long before the eyes in the sky picked them up here.

Speaking of which, where was here anyhow? Besides another set of random coordinates with a lot of flat land, few trees, and, actually, a few free standing buildings that looked kind of commercial?

Link on then. Ah. "Massacre Canyon". A few seconds of AR scanning showed that apparently this place was worth well, massacring over. Sure, it was flat and barren and miserable, but since when did you need anything but people in a place to start killing?

More importantly, at least two local businesses would let you tour the... historically important battlefield? War crime scene? Seems like the tours were possibly slightly biased...on either ATVs (glorious victory version) or SUVs with probably more rugged appearance than actual ruggedness (despicable crime narrative).  Swoopy figured that bent might matter to the "real" Sioux, but he was more concerned with the option of slower, cross country, hard-to-handle-Ite transport versus faster, easy-Ite, SUvs that would mostly be confined to the roads.

He tossed the option to Chante over the link, then set to work checking if Ite had any demo on him to blow the dragon with. Swoopy hadn't saved any after all.

He passed a puking Shiriki and tapped him on the shoulder as he went by.

"Good work"
Chante
player, 10 posts
Sat 12 Aug 2017
at 19:59
  • msg #16

IC - Chapter 2

Chante nodded as Swoopy passed Shiriki.

"Yes, excellent work, really.  No one could have done better.  Take your time, Swoopy and I will figure out what's next..."

She let Dan handle Ite for the moment and walked with Swoopy.  "Hijack the tour guide vehicles, at least in the short term?  Probably doable.  We can't haul Ite all over the Ancestors' lands, so we can go ATV, if need be, we just gotta figure out how to take care of him... do right by him."

She looked back at the comatose troll and frowned.

"Dan-Dan, what's going on?  And any ideas?"
Shiriki
player, 19 posts
Mon 14 Aug 2017
at 14:51
  • msg #17

IC - Chapter 2

"Thanks, Chante," Shiriki says after a few deep breaths as he stands. "Why the Ghost'd you send us out here anyway? I thought we were heading south? We gonna make use of Trenton?"

The captain nods.

"Alright, considering we're out on here on our lonesome, I may know someone who can point us in the direction of a doc to help with Ité. She's not exactly on the up-and-up I don't think."

"Your smuggler girlfriend?"
Swoopy asks.

"I don't know that for sure," Shiriki answers, maybe too defensively, before adding, "She's not my girlfriend."

Shiriki declines to do the mathematics in his head, but in all likelihood Ms. White Owl could very well be his granddaughter. He fires up the jammer, the satellite uplink, hooks his comm in and dials. On the third ring she picks up, the sounds of revelry of Mineewah Kon loud in the background.

"Taŋyáŋ yaúŋ he?," she answers, her words slurring heavily.

"Wašté," he answers, before continuing in Lakota, "Can you get somewhere we can talk?"

"We can talk here, crazy kitty,"
she answers and laughs, a brief pause as she must be downing the remainder of her beer, and then her laugh turns to a chuckle, accented by a loud pounding on her table. "What's up?"

"Ok, I'm going to talk, and you're not going to ask any questions, scan? Ok, good. My recent travels have brought me to Trenton, Nebraska. Got a chummer with me who found himself on the drek end of some dumpshock, and is in some need of medical assistance, the hold you overnight or more kind. I'm under the impression that you may have been out this way a time or two. Can you recommend any docs who are both good and discrete?"

"What?"
Margueritte asks as the sounds of the bar become subdued somewhat, as if she's just moved to the women's room.

"Can you point me to a doc near Trenton that won't go asking any questions?"

"What in the hell did you -- or right. Yeah, there's a clinic in Trenton, but it'll be closed, and not really what you're looking for. Umm, I know a doc named Hernandez who isn't too far off. He can keep his hoop closed when he needs to, and he needs to a lot. Shiriki?"

"Yeah?"

"Guy's a bit of an egghead."

"Good. I want somebody good, somebody smart. This chummer's important to me."

"No, not smart, egghead, like Ceraprax."

"Oh. . ."

"Yeah."

"Anybody else?"
There was a brief silence, and Shiriki could only guess that Margueritte was shaking her head, forgetting this wasn't a vid call. "Alright. Where's he at?"

"I'll forward the details. Shit, Shiriki, I had no idea. Thought you were a boy scout for chip and all that. Be safe, chump. Fly low."


Shiriki severed the call, and waited for the contact to come through before he unhooked the uplink, and powered down the jammer.

<<@Team [Shirki] Got a line on some med care for Ité. McCook hospital, 40km east of our location. Guy will keep it off the books.>>
Dan-Dan
player, 15 posts
Mon 14 Aug 2017
at 15:30
  • msg #18

IC - Chapter 2

Dan looked up.

"Well. Better facilities is what I need for the hunk of meat here. Particularly diagnostics. Failing that a full body brace to minimise movement.
What we have is an improvised neck brace... that's for moving him of course.

Shiriki, your friend's acquaintance should be OK, even as an egghead (I hope). Self medication is am occupational hazard after all. I much prefer to experiment on my subjects myself. I need his facilities more than his skills. Like I said a pharmacy or veterinary practice would suffice, though a clinic should do nicely.

As for tramping through an Indian graveyard, forgive the pun, that should answer nicely.

Any ranger stations they have should be well stocked with supplies to loot, ahem appropriate of course. It tends to be older equip but very well supplied and cared for. I used to go out with my father with the city slickers and you never knew what you'd need so the rangers were fanatical about supply. Plenty of surplus stock donated as it's superceded too. Nothing too fancy, but expect it to be serviceable. They look after their kit."
 

This message was last edited by the player at 15:35, Mon 14 Aug 2017.
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