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

[cachemoney]

[Your enabling support is noted, Vaughn.

She smiles broadly when he seems to be agreeing with her, though she can't tell if he's saying so just to humor her, or if he really wants to go commit B&E with her. She's confident in the force of personality enough where the latter probably won't be difficult to make happen, but she'd rather he come along for the fun. Because it can be fun. Really, for reals.]

That's exactly what I was thinking. Save them the trouble of shipping costs or whatever. [She tips her hat forward.] Sooo, anything you have your eye on?

[moneyman]

[ it's true, he can be prodded into a lot of stuff—aaand he has definitely done some awful things in the name of being a loyal friend. things way worse than petty theft. he likes to think he's changed since then, though, so why the hell is he encouraging shit like this?

whoops. ]

Uhh, well, actually... [ he glances around. nobody's listening in on them, right? he'll lower his voice anyway. ] I mean, yeah, there's a ton of awesome stuff here, but can you imagine if ALASTAIR found out? What if they kicked us off the team and moved us onto the one that gets sent on all the shitty missions or something?

[ it could happen, okay. ]

[cachemoney]

[Vauuughhhhhhnnn.

Fiona makes a terrible face at him, throwing her hands up in the air, but then she leans in and lowers her voice anyway. Mostly just because he is.] Come onnn, we could... uh, give some of it to ALASTAIR.

Besides. We get the shitty missions anyway.

[moneyman]

[ he's always going back and forth between "you shouldn't do that, something really bad could happen" and "what if you did it anyway, it'd be exciting"—it's rough sometimes, honestly. as for Fiona's current proposal, it's... well, it does kinda seem like a happy medium, doesn't it? and she's right, what if ALASTAIR actually appreciates their gift?

eh, fuck it. ]

I—okay, fine, but not a lot of stuff, right? What kind of things do you think they'd want, anyway? You've been in with them longer than me, so...

[ plus she's way better at, uh, "borrowing" things. when he stole ten million dollars from Hyperion, it wasn't exactly a heist. ]

[cachemoney]

[Yesss, Vaughn is always more fun when he goes along with her shit instead of trying to be the voice of reason. Nobody needs a conscience in intergalactic cowboy worlds, pal.]

Awesome. [She grins, then folds her arms over her chest and looks up at the sky, like that'll help her think about it.]

Weeell. ALASTAIR kind of outfits its recruits with the bare minimum. So anything we could use in the field. [She starts ticking off on her fingers.] Silverware, linens... the more expensive-looking, the better. Because that means they're better quality. [And not because she can sell them to people at an upcharge.]

[moneyman]

[ well, if it makes him fun to be around, he... might consider doing something mildly sketchy. call it a minor character flaw. he seems to consider those options for a moment, subtly glancing around the saloon to see what kind of stuff is on the table (so to speak). ]

That... sounds easy enough, I guess. Something that's not a big deal to hide. Or whatever. I don't know, you're the expert on this stuff, not me.

[ he's definitely not afraid of getting caught smuggling spoons off-world. that would be silly. ]

[cachemoney]

[She starts to casually walk around the gathering, palming cookware that looks like it's at least somewhat expensive, avoiding anything that looks too simple or anything that is... currently being used. That'll get messy.]

This is beginner's stuff, like level one. Easier than picking pockets. [Slowly introducing Vaughn to a life of crime, it's fine. She nods toward what appears to be a hand-painted ceramic bowl.] See if you can snag that.

[moneyman]

[ level one, huh? psh, he can handle level one. he shuffles just as casually (he thinks) over to the indicated bowl, and stares at it for a few seconds. that sure is a nice bowl. it'd be a shame if someone took it...

he turns around and leans back against the table, looking left and right completely inconspicuously (he thinks), and then slooowly slides a hand over towards the bowl. once he grabs it, he's home free—or at least he would be if, in his haste to shove it somewhere out of sight as quickly and seamlessly as Fiona does, he didn't knock it right off the table.

his hand flies to his mouth before the bowl even has a chance to shatter. he looks down at its sad, fractured remains, and then he looks at Fiona.

shit. ]