EVENT ★ COWBOYS VS. ALIENS

[futurologists]

STATE OF THE PLANET Efforts in convincing the Qorral to stop drilling have been tentatively successful. Longterm solutions have been brought to them and, perhaps most importantly for the immediate, the fracking fields have been destroyed. The entire field has collapsed in on itself, taking mining equipment with it and creating a barren wasteland. In effect, the Qorral can no longer drill for argecite here, which means they will be leaving earlier than expected now that there is no use for the mining colony. It also means that the planet has been saved from being hollowed out completely. On the other hand, attempts at dealing with the Deemers have been a little shaky. By now, it's known that Miz Poppy is host to the Mother, the queen of this Taraxa hive. She remains elusive, slipping through the fingers of any who manage to find or capture her. Meanwhile, the infested Qorral have been dealt with in many ways: some opting for wholesale slaughter, some hoping to extract the Taraxa in the field, and some sending both extracted Taraxa and infested hosts back to Oska to be examined. As varied as the Deemer solutions have been, they have all resulted in the Deemer population being decimated. The numbers have dwindled as their camps are hunted down by ALASTAIR recruits, and attacks on the town of Perdition's Rest halt. But the Mother is still out there and free, and that's a problem . . . THE INVASION (DAY 1) In the morning, the ships come. Visible from the ground are massive spaceships in the upper atmosphere, gently drifting clouds sometimes blocking them from view. The Qorral don't recognize the ships; they're neither from their homeworld nor from any species they know, friendly or otherwise. For a few hours, the ships just hang in space like looming, silent buzzards, waiting. And then -- sparkling, metal objects start falling to the planet. It's difficult to tell what they are, as their scale is minuscule compared to the gigantic warships above, and their descent is strangely beautiful. But as the objects come closer to the surface, the details become clear: individual spacecraft. They're gleaming in gold and white metal, a triangle sigil painted on the sides, and cannons mounted on the bottom. These are Zymandis fighter craft. And they are not here to make nice. The fighter craft swoop down close and send a barrage of lasers down on Perdition's Rest, causing the local Qorral to scatter. But their fear doesn't last long: many immediately take up arms to fire back at the ships when they're low enough, including Sheriff Holladay, who shouts commands to anyone who will listen, Qorral and ALASTAIR alike: take cover, give 'em hell, and for sun's sake, don't be a hero. (Those who have been officially deputized may access the sheriff's armory, which includes all sorts of fun toys of the shooty variety.) But some Qorral have something else in mind. A small pack of locals rides out to the farm of Amos Zephyr -- and if you're suspicious enough to follow, it'll pay off. Beneath Zephyr's farm is a hidden defense platform: earth slowly moves aside as a metal platform raises up, home to mounted anti-aircraft cannons and fighter craft of their own. The Qorral fighter craft are intuitively designed, and the Qorral will also quickly give any curious ALASTAIR recruit a run-down on how to operate them. They're short-handed since so many of their number joined the Deemers, so they're very eager to allow anyone to try their hand at flying the two-man ships, which have their own mounted cannons and, of course, escape parachutes. The fighter craft are not meant for high altitudes, though, so your dreams of space travel will have to wait for another time. Those who do not wish to take flight and aren't comfortable with projectile weapons may find luck searching the desert for prey: namely, Taraxa agents attempting to flee in Zymandis escape pods. It seems as though the fighter craft are a distraction from the real goal of Zymandis helping its agents flee the planet. The Zymandis agents who are not Taraxa are variously humanoid, all equipped with laser weapons (spears, rifles, whips) that they will not hesitate to use against any who interrupt their attempts at escape. For those who aren't battle inclined, there are civilians who need to be ushered to safety, and quick repairs to weapons, equipment, horses, or even the Qorral fighter craft will be needed. This fight is going to be a long one. THE AFTERMATH (DAY 2) It's peaceful now. The Zymandis warships have fled into space with the surviving Taraxa agents in tow, the Mother presumably among them. The combined efforts of team Audentes and the Perdition's Rest colonists have successfully staved off the attack. The destruction wrought by Zymandis (and, perhaps, by overeager recruits themselves) is visible across the planet: deep fissures and scars from the laser cannons, fighter craft wreckage from both sides, burned buildings and trees, perhaps a fire still raging in the scrub grass somewhere. The Qorral aren't quite sure what that was all about, but they're more concerned with ALASTAIR's efforts in helping than in pointing fingers. Q-65 is no longer a suitable home, so the locals begin to pack up in preparation for the arrival of their homeworld's ships in the next few days. An old man puts his chess pieces away; a little girl clutches her robot pony doll, unwilling to put it in her suitcase; the stable owner and the blacksmith stand close together and talk in hushed, affectionate tones. Sheriff Holladay lets her deputies know they've served the colony well. It's bittersweet, but the Qorral always knew this settlement was never permanent. The mission complete, Audentes should expect to arrive back at Oska shortly. Use the time to say goodbye and finish up your business. Or, if you'd like, drink some of the booze that someone just found in the cellar beneath the burned-out saloon. It doesn't keep during interstellar travel, and no one will begrudge you a little celebration. OOC NOTES This log wraps up the Perdition's Rest mission! The log will last two IC days, after which characters will immediately return to Oska via dimensional rift (on 21 December in OOC time). Mission epilogue details will go up at a later date, but for now, Audentes can rest easy knowing that the mission has been a success. We will be posting an OOC post-mission assessment on 14 December so we can discuss how the mission went and talk about the state of the game in general. There is a new bounty on the Oska Bounty Board! Perdition's Rest bounties remain open until 21 December, at which point you will no longer be able to turn them in. You can also request bounty missions at any time. Please direct all questions pertaining to the mission to the dossier page to keep questions and responses in one place for easy player reference. General game questions should be directed to the FAQ. To submit a player plot or future mission idea, please go to the Suggestions post.

Comments

[endeudado]

You got it.

[ Jesper nods from where he's sitting, pressing a few more buttons and trying to align their enemies in their sights. I mean this is exactly how he does it normally, why wouldn't it work?

Because it's not. Like, these are lasers and he's aiming all wrong but it usually works? ]

Saints, these things move fast.

[ That's... totally it... ]

[assent]

[ She gives him a few minutes while lined up, trying to keep a clear shot while avoiding stray lasers but he just... keeps missing??? ]

What are you doing?! [ There's a very clear tone of frustration and disapproval in there before she has to change direction, skipping out of the way of another laser by rolling the plane through the air again. ]

[endeudado]

I'm doing my best here! It's not like I can't shoot!

[ Uh, he can't. He can't actually. Shoot. But boy, is he trying. He starts even pressing buttons at random-- maybe one of these is heat-seeking?? ]

[assent]

I am not certain I agree at this moment. [ She sounds tense because they're equally under fire here, and while she can dodge the hits, she's distracted by the fact that they aren't returning fire anywhere nearly as well. ]

Perhaps it would be better if you keep your finger on the button and I shall move the plane to line it up if you are that incapable with a laser.

[ Maybe if she pisses him off he'll suddenly work out how to do this properly?!?! Alas... that won't happen either but it's a good try. ]

[endeudado]

Hey, this is my first time firing something this big, it's different!

[ Someone has to make a lucky shot eventually, even Jesper. With Sonia lining up the shots like this, he does manage to land a few hits on one of their targets. Really lucky shot, there. ]

[assent]

[ Sonia is ready to yell again when he manages to hit a few things, and it seems to quell her frustration a bit. ]

Of course it is, this has a higher output, uses new technology and is more destructive, but... you did a good job. Try again, now.

[ She twists the plane around, lining it up again. ]

Take another shot.

[endeudado]

Well I've never had to shoot anything like these.

[ Even Jesper gets lucky sometimes!! But that's not a gamble that's likely to repeat itself, because Jesper's still firing and still missing. Badly. ]

Don't the lasers curve or anything?

[ Bullets curve all the time, right? ]

[assent]

There is always a time to start, I suppose.

[ Though she frowns when he keeps missing. ]

Of course not? Nothing like that normally happens! San-D, Cham-P! Please jump back and give him a hand. [ She looks frustrated. ] I cannot do anything else right now, after all.

[ He might be surprised to see those two hamsters jump back from her shoulder and dive down to where the controls are. They bounce off a button, one pressing while the other moves to help him aim. What smart hammies... ]

[endeudado]

You sure?

[ Cause Jesper's pretty sure they do, though. His shots maybe? Or maybe he just sucks at aiming lasers for some reason. Gee, I wonder! One thing's for sure, when those hamsters crawl up to the controls he jumps back in surprise. They're somehow better at this than he is? How? ]

Woah, I didn't realize you had pets. [ Beat. ] Really... talented pets?

[assent]

I am 1000% certain!

[ They really don't, Jesper. Not normally anyway, you weirdo. She's never been able to shoot in a trajectory that isn't a straight line anyway. Though she does seem very proud of the hamsters when they help him out. ]

They technically are not mine, but a friend of mine's from home. They arrived with me, probably because-- No, that does not matter right now. He is very talented at training animals, however. You may rely on their aid.

[endeudado]

[ Jesper shrugs. Okay, sure, he's weird but this is good knowledge to have. ]

A friend from home, huh? [ Jesper knows that feel. He misses his friends from home (especially Wylan and his dumb face, let's be honest,) so he won't pry. Too much. Right now he has hamsters helping him shoot bad guys so he's kinda busy. But they're actually hitting stuff now, so that's an improvement. ]

Should I just let them handle this? How did your friend teach them how to shoot lasers?

[assent]

[ Ah yes, we all must know when we're a weirdo. ]

Mmm. He is the best at raising animals, though they were not taught to do this exactly... [ Shooting lasers would be impressive though wouldn't it? ] They are just able to press buttons and work together as a team. They seem to have hi-- [ Only her breath hitches as they almost get shot and she has to swivel them around. ] --high intelligence as well.

San-D and Cham-P are very precious to him, so please be careful with them.