epidemiology | EVENT ★ THE BATTLE FOR OSKA

THE BATTLE FOR OSKA

A message is sent to teams Audentes, Unicorn, and Ambrosia via magitek early in the morning, alerting all users to expect to be rifted back to Oska in three hours. Shortly after that comes a message from the Queen of Terra Felis, requesting that recruits stop by the palace briefly to receive her blessing. Any recruits who oblige her will find that her blessing is actually a very physical gift: a feeling of peace that washes over each person as soon as they step into the palace. This feeling will persist for the next 12 hours, and comes with a boost to either strength or speed for the duration of it. It's the Queen's way of wishing her departing guests good luck.

Then comes the rift, and finally, Oska.

ARRIVAL

Oska isn't doing well. The devastation is immediately apparent in the blistered and blackened stone of the castle, completely blasted apart in some areas. Plantlife about the castle has been completely shredded, entire trees reduced to splintered stumps. The area recruits are rifted into is temporarily safe, guarded by team Mariposa, all of them of a large, fiercely warlike species, each heavily armed. There are only five of them, but that's enough to defend the little corner of Oska set up to receive the incoming teams.

The largest, most battle-scarred member of Mariposa issues no orders, but fills arrivals in on the situation: there are several models of robots focusing on the destruction of the castle. Hear that distant, repetitive thud? The largest robots, the 15-foot (457cm) models, area busy hammering at an interior wall, trying to break into the Mechanical Room. They're the main priority -- but don't lose track of the flanking and defensive models, they're there to cause whatever carnage they can while the largest ones tear down the castle itself. Basically, take out every robot you see, as fast as you can.

Those who can't fight have another, even more important job. There are defense nodes scattered throughout Oska, some inside the castle, some outside, even some in the village. These are small panels that blend in with the scenery. They each need to be opened up and rebooted with an access code put in via number pad. When every single node has been rebooted, the cloaking device will fully activate throughout this entire dimension, getting it permanently off of Zymandis's radar once more. Any recruit who volunteers for this job will have a map of each node location sent to their magitek. The robots don't seem to realize the importance of these nodes and usually ignore them, but will attack anyone they see working at one.

OPPONENTS

The biggest models are the PW15s; with sledgehammers at the end of their arms, they're programmed just to break down and tear apart foundation. They're currently working on busting their way into the Mechanical Room, where the TIMELINE.exe is kept. They must be stopped. Without the TIMELINE.exe, ALASTAIR is left aimless and adrift. These machines work ceaselessly at their task, and can only be distracted by focusing temporarily on a target right in front of them. Otherwise, they will ignore any attacks on them and keep working on the wall in front of them until they are torn apart themselves.

PW15s are guarded by the Shielders. These are the basic eight-foot (245cm) models, but each comes with a large light shield it will use to defend itself and the PW15s. They stay behind these impenetrable shields and fire lasers from safety, but don't have very advanced programming. They will swivel around to face their target, leaving themselves open to attacks from behind. Tag teaming these robots is very effective.

Airbombers can be tricky to navigate, as these robots fly. They're light and fast, but shots from their canons don't do much more than issue small but severe burns. The real danger is in letting one get directly overhead, as once it has done so it will release two to six bombs, which do great damage to people and property upon impact.

The last model to look out for is the T15, which is small but tenacious. These are no bigger than a large dog, and will scuttle quickly forward until they've spotted a target. At that point they plant themselves and begin to fire a concentrated beam of laser at whatever they've spotted until it has stopped moving. These models have very simple programming and few defenses, but are impossible to dissuade from firing while their target is still in sight. They have no sense of object permanence, though, and even ducking behind scenery will confuse one into thinking it's eliminated its target.

THE FIGHT

The arrival of the three teams from Terra Felis do a lot to tip the scales in Oska's favor, but the fight still rages for a full day after their arrival. Team Kittypaw can be seen engaging throughout the grounds -- Uruz and Dagny fiercely defend the stables and the squidge garden, and are tired but nowhere near ready to give up. Cassie leads attacks into robot-heavy areas with gun-blazing gusto and seems to be having the time of her life, but even her energy isn't unlimited. Cherenkov and Crowley are on defense node duty, and can be spotted as a black or white streak on their way to activate the next node, avoiding the bulk of the fighting.

Anyone who needs a break will be instructed to visit the library. Not even the robots are a match for the librarians, who have made it their utmost priority to ensure that nothing unauthorized sets foot among the books. Food and pillows have been brought in, and the area can be used as a base for resting and refueling between fights. Between fending off robots, the librarians will still warily scrutinize anyone eating or drinking too close to a book. They've allowed it, but don't push your luck and get messy.

The fight drags on for almost a full, exhausting 24 hours, but just as dawn begins to come to the little scrap of Oska's dimension, a shimmering races briefly through the sky as the last defense node is rebooted and the shield is reactivated. Any remaining robots jolt and then go still, permanently offline. (Friendly robots might also feel a jolt, but are spared any damage thanks to careful programming.) The collective teams of ALASTAIR finally have a moment to breathe and relax. The fight is over.

AFTERMATH

There is a lot to rebuild and, unfortunately, some mourning to do. Services for those fallen in the fight will be held the following day. They are quick but heartfelt affairs, with friends of the downed recruits speaking a few words about what will be most remembered and missed about their comrades.

Overall, though, the mood is grimly triumphant -- they've just managed to fend off Zymandis, after all. Or at least, a fraction of Zymandis. There are quite a few murmurs of gratitude for the shields being restored in time to stop anything bigger from finding them.

The castle begins to slowly rebuild itself, rocks teetering their way back into place and tapestries slowly restitching themselves. Left to its own devices, it would probably take several years of this for the castle to fully restore itself. It very obviously appreciates recruits lending a hand to rebuilding, though. Suits of armor will bring workers little trinkets of gratitude, or food from the kitchen, which produces it in generous heaps. The castle's rebuilding efforts will even focus a little more strongly on the rooms of anyone helping out, down to any personal effects that were damaged in the fight or otherwise.

Welcome home, Audentes. Rebuilding will last for the full three weeks given until their next mission, and still won't be complete by the time they ship out. But still, try to relax before your next trip out.

OOC NOTES

This log will last ICly and OOCly for three weeks (with the initial battle lasting one day), with the next mission beginning on 21 May. Please use this post to plot amongst yourselves!

The other ALASTAIR teams in Oska at the moment are Unicorn and Ambrosia, who were with Audentes in Terra Felis, Kittypaw, Mariposa, who greeted the new arrivals, and Kraken, a 10-recruit team made of various aquatic and amphibious species who use the lake as their home base during the fight. More teams will be rifting in to help with reconstruction, after the battle is over.

Questions about this log can be directed here. Questions about the game in general should be directed to the FAQ. You may also submit mission ideas or player plots at any time.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Odinson remembers the angry conversation he'd had with the young man on his first day in Woodhurst. His impatience and frustration had nothing to do with Keith, and he's ashamed to think back to it.]

You have been here longer than I, have experience more with them. We are team-mates, or could be if you will forgive my poor manners at our first meeting. [He offers the apology directly, without any emotion or hand-wringing. There is no shame in admitting a wrong.]

You're apologizing? [Most of Keith's interactions with people on Audentes don't go this path, to say the least. First, he's usually the one offending other people. And second, he's usually the one who's more willing to prove he's putting stuff behind him by actions, almost to make it up to other people.

He's been apologized to before, outside of his time on this team. It's been known to happen.

But—well. Usually it takes more than this to bring it about. (And usually, he proves himself along the way as deserving of the apology.)]

Uh—then, okay. I accept. [He'll answer the question in a moment, he's still a little dumbfounded.]

Edited 2017-05-12 19:04 (UTC)

[He nods, accepting that without comment.

He had been so concerned at his first arrival about Loki and the evil he might have been spreading that he had been rude to many. Regardless of Keith's behaviour, that required an apology.

And with that cleared up, he'll wait for Keith to respond. He's in no hurry to rush the conversation. It's a peaceful night, for all that some part of him wishes there were still giant robots here for him to attack.]

To answer your question—I would have. I've only ever wanted to leave a team like this once, and it's when I thought that I might be the problem. It's better to be doing work like this than to be doing nothing at all.

[Having a purpose is important to Keith. Both Team Voltron and Team Audentes came along almost by luck for Keith, but he'd never turn his back on either path.]

On that we agree. [The weeks in the cat land, and the quietness now grate on Odinson. He is restless in his unworthiness, knowing that there is little he can do here to rectify it.]

It sounds as though the Audentes are not the first team you have fought alongside?

I'm on a similar team back home. Team Voltron. Ever heard of them?

[Loki is so far the only guy who has, as far as Keith is aware. Sometimes he wishes more people had so that they could understand what it means, and maybe appreciate Audentes more.]

[A pause as he searches his memory.]

I do not believe I have. What does this Team Voltron do?

[A day will come in which Keith finds someone aside from Loki who knows what Voltron is, but that day hasn't arrived yet.]

We defend the universe. [Which is a big thing to put on a resume, but he's quick to follow it up.] Each of us are paladins. We pilot lion robots. Voltron is what happens when all the robots combine.

[lion. robots.

no one mention this to Tony Stark ever, because otherwise the Iron Man suits will be getting remakes.

Odinson manages to stay mostly stoic as he considers this.] I've never heard of such a thing, but it sounds a worthy team to fight alongside. Have you your robot here?

No. That may be for the best. Zymandis might've gotten a hold of Red while we were gone. [The last thing the multiverse needs is for an organization like Zymandis to somehow get their hands on Voltron.]

I used to be really mad about it. But it makes sense now.

[He just wishes he were ... stronger, somehow.]

[Other people stealing your stuff sucks, Odinson feels that pain.

He shifts in the water, stretching his arms ahead of him.]

It is no easy thing to be in a battle without your weapon.

Yeah, but she's gonna be waiting for me when I get back. [Keith is confident that he'll return. He's completely ignorant about Odinson's pain—and lacking the empathy that others might have here, he doesn't assume that the other, much larger man has experienced anything like that.]

And I have other weapons to use until then. Ones I've earned.

[And here is a topic Odinson could talk about all day, pain or no pain.]

Oh? With what do you fight?

One is a sword. A bayard. It can work with or without my lion nearby. [That he carries two swords will be redundant, but Keith has decided that both are valuable, and that he'll figure out a means to use both.

Even if his shoulders are currently sore from it. Keith isn't one to give up easily.]

The other ... I had my entire life. I didn't know I could activate it. But I did. Because I was willing to see that there was more about protecting the universe than just getting what I wanted.

EVENT ★ THE BATTLE FOR OSKA

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