"I think we should find out more about this enemy, I get the impression KE don't expect us to get out... After all the quarantine predates us getting here, and our superiors obviously knew about the bugs. That changes everything for us."

Toothpick pulls out his PocSec and looks at still pics of his GF and his brother, wondering if he will ever see them again.

___________

sorry about this, changed my mind about posting. anyone know how to delete a post?

"Whether they planned for us to get out or not isn't an idea we are going to entertain at this time, and I don't want to hear anymore of that kind of speculation," Tony said, eyes falling on O'Malley as the other soldier pulled a PSec out of his gear.

He continued, addressing the rest of the squad as well, "Our communications with base have been cut off, so the first priority is finding a way to reestablish that. If we find that plan unfeasible or too great a risk we will look for a way to extract ourselves as we were ordered to. There will be no diversion from this unless the situation developes in an unforseen manner, at which time the plan will be modified."

Tony saw that Kan'gi was done with Leslie, and the medical equipment was being packed up. "We're getting out of this manawarp now." Hefting his backpack he proceeded towards the door, waiting for the rest of the team to get on the ready line.

Tony leading the way, you trek your way out of the Industrial Zone you were in. Heading towards the main lights, you find yourself within city limits within 20 minutes of walking, except it doesn't look much like a city. Over turned cars block the streets and fires are everywhere. Without much warning, the sound of gravel being hit at high impact warns you that you're under fire. Within a split second, all of you are in a prone position, guns ready, but at the moment, there's nothing to see. It's night time with no stars nor moon in sight to aide your vision, and the fires negate both the ability to see in lowlight levels due to the glare, and the usage of Thermographics due to the heat. Again shots are fired, this time they come a little closer....

Terry instinctively dives behind cover, placing a beat-up chevy between him and the sound of gunfire. "Nuts to this," he says as he whips out a pocket flare and sends it soaring skywards. I see you he hums to himself as he leans out of cover to bring his rifle into play, pausing just before to ask, "What's the good word Sarge? Frag and bag 'em?"


___________________
Actions: getting full cover, popping up flare. If shooting breaks out, burst fires till everyone's dead.

Also making perception test: 9 dice, have all the vision and hearing jazz so hopefully have a pretty good clue where they are. For the gunshots, 6 dice firearms knowledge to know what they're shooting at us.

Initiative: 15 + 4D6
Attack dice: 14 (6 assault rifles + 6 adept power + 1 enhanced articulation + 1 reflex recorder)
TN -2 because of smartlink 2, 7 points recoil comp. Also rangefinder and Vmag to negate range penalties
Damage: 13S Base (8M, Plus Burst, Plus EX)
Armor: 7/8
Body: 8
Combat Pool (Attack/Defense): 0/13
Wounds: None

Melee: 6 dice, 7M lethal damage (killing hands + hardliner gloves)
Perception: 9
knowledge firearms: 6 dice

"Thanks. I should be able to manage now." Leslie said as Kan'gi finished up. She was still sore, but should be able to keep up on her own. Hopefully once they were out of this mana warp, either Frost or herself would be able to manage a heal spell to put the rest of her system back in order. Hopefully if they ran into the spirits again, she'd be more prepared.

As they were about to return to the city proper, someone opened fire. "Would be just our luck that they're friendlies who think we're bugs..." she commented to the others as she dropped to the ground. Raising up a bit, she took a look around in astral, just incase they were more of the fleshform spirits.

Tony hit the ground and rolled behind a burnt out Ford Americar. "Anyone see where that is coming from?" He asked over the comm. Terry's voice came over the frequency soon after, asking whether to engage. "Not yet," Tony replied, not yet sure if a firefight was going to be necessary.

"Hold your fire!" He yelled over the barricade he leaned against, trying to gain the attention of their assailants, "we don't want a fight, but we'll be forced to fire if you keep attacking!" Prepping his rifle he waited for any response from the now illuminated surroundings.

"Take full cover and hold your fire, let's see what happens," Tony added over his tranceiver.


_________________________
Taking full cover, getting the rifle ready in case I need it. If a fight breaks out, here are my stats. I will target anyone with longarms if I can spot them now that there is light from the flare. My character is very interested in avoiding a conflict and killing if they look like scared civies. He will not fire unless there is no other option. He is also looking for a path that the team could take out of the field of fire to simply bypass this problem without gunplay (Perception 6, -1 from Perceptive).

Initiative: 13 + 4D6
In case of fight: two single shots at one target, but switch to another target if first drops.
Attack dice: 14 for Rifle, -3 modifier for both shots from Enhance Aim, up to -3 range catagories from scope
Damage: 11S Base (Base + EX)
Armor: 12/13
Body: 6
Combat Pool (Attack/Defense): 0/10
Wounds: None

"Want us to just stun the buggers?"

________________________
If Tony says yes, Terry's swapping out the EX for gel rounds. Till something happens though, man do I love full cover.....

Trusting in her armor to keep her safe from the incoming fire, Frost shifts her view to the Astral and draws her pistol, taking cover by the car next to Tony. Once she is out of the line of fire to the best of her ability, she crouches down and begins to murmur rapidly in her musical native tongue, focusing on summoning a city spirit to use as back up if they need it, and if not, it could hang around anyway.

___________________________________________________________
Summoning a force 4 City Spirit, 6 Conjuring Dice, 8 dice to resist 4L drain. If she gets a third initiative pass and the attackers have continued to attack, she will cast a force 6(M) Stunball using her astral perception to help her target.

Using 6 Sorcery Dice, and 6 Spell Pool Dice for a total of 12 to cast the spell
resist drain (2 [S]) with Willpower 9 and 2 spell pool dice

Body: 5
Combat Pool: All on defense, 4 per attack
Armor: 7B/11I
Init: 11+3D6
Shielding Focus as always is active, protecting her and, Tony and Terry with Shielding 3

Rupert was keeping his eyes open, but the sudden turn into the flickering, fire lit street threw his focus for a second, and as bullets began falling around them, he hit the ground with everyone else, rolling behind the same car as Terry. No seemed to be able to tell where the the fire was coming from, the heat sources cluttering all modes of vision.

He closed his eyes and said a Hail Mary to clear his mind, putting him the mental state that allowed him to simply melt into the background. He stayed low to the ground and close to cover, irregular movement and camoflauged jump suit making him seem like just another shape created by flickering firelight. He reached an ally just as the Sargent sent up his flare, using it's illumanation to find the deepest shadows to take cover in. In the psuedo-daylight he scanned the street and surronding buildings for the ambush points, flickering in and out of astral perception to make anything living stand out in clearer contrast. If the Sargent gave the word he was going to light up somebody's life and how. He also started looking for his next position. It wasn't wise to stay in the same spot once you started raining grenades on unfriendlies.
______________________________________________________
Rupert is taking cover in an ally, attempting to get there without drawing attention to himself. Then looking for the attackers, and if the order comes down, he's going to either shoot at, or drop white phosphorus grenades on the hostiles. Given the range of the white phosphorus blast (15 meters) and the damage it does, he will use the grenades only if the hotiles need to be exterminated with extreme prejurice. If he fires on his first intiative pass, he will attempt to sneak to new cover on the second.

Intiative: 6 + 2d6
Armour B/I: 7/4
Stealth: 7 (Urban Camo adds +4 to perception tests against him)
Centering: 3 (applied to his stealth roll)
Perception: 6 (Perceptive edge also grants a -1 bonus to TNs)
Assualt Rifle (grenade Canon Companion 41) 8
(if needed, he'll use image magnification to make the shot at minimum range)
Dodge pool: 4
Wounds: None
Combat Pool Allocation 2/4

Toothpick hears the sound of gunfire and looks around, priefly looking for probable ambush locations, he then dives behind Ferrocrete Dataterm booth and takes cover, hands near his shuriken.

It's never easy.

----------------------

Watching for enemy to be revealed then nailing.
Perception 5 dice
Throwing weapons skill 12 (including IA)
centering 6 (applies to thrown weapon tests as TN reduction)
All 10 combat pool on defense (2 dice per single shot hit, 4 per burst hit until gone)
body 9
armor 6/8
initiave = 11+3D6

Kan'gi grabs Leslie and pulls her down to take cover behinda nearby abandoned car. He already had an arrow ready to fly as he shifts his vision to the Astral and scans for life forms. At the same time he lets his enhanced hearing track down where the sound is coming from so he'll know what direction to look.

-------------------------------------------------------

I've got 6 Dice for Perception
+ Improved Sense (Sound Filter 5)
+ Improved Sense (Spatial Recognizer)
+ Aura Reading 6

A small drone is noticed hovering silently a few feet away. Although obviously not the source of the gunfire, it comes closer as you each dive for your respective cover.

"Strangers are not welcome here, " it says, sounding like a bad recording, "go back the way you came, this turf is taken."

As if to make its point, a few more well placed shots strike the ground under the cars you hide behind.

===============================================

Anyone with Spatial Recognition and at least 6 perception, can pinpoint the shots as being fired from behind very small windows, from various buildings in the area. Still, no targets are visible, except perhaps the harmless drone hovering next to you. The flare, though lighting up the area, proves to do little more than create alot of moving shadows on the various buildings in the area, no enemy are seen (though quite a few of the shadows do appear to be someone moving around)

"We're leaving now, hold your fire!" Tony yelled out over the car he was hiding behind.

Switching on his transducer, he addressed the team, "Halsted St. is one klick East; it runs parallel to Racine. We'll double back far enough to get out of sight, then use maximum stealth this time to head north. Communicate only with transducers or subvocs. Now, let's move out of here, nice and slow, let's not be good targets."

Tony slung the strap of his rifle further up onto his shoulder and began to move from barrier to barrier, giving cover to his squadmates and watching for any sign the brief cease-fire was off.

_______________________________________________________

Moving away from the area, then heading East to Halsted. Once we are clear of line of sight, ruthenium, thermal dampening, and traceless walk (which is always on anyway) are going on (12 Dice for Stealth, +12 vs Visual, +8 vs Thermal, and if it comes into play somehow +4 vs Hearing). Again, looking for any vehicles that we can use and taking it slow, so with the 7 mile trip ahead of us (minus any distance we have already covered) it could take anywhere from 2.5-6 hours depending on the breaks. Using the GPS I will try and keep the group moving at least 2 mph (very slow but takes stealth and stops into account), which is within the tolerance of the color change on the ruthenium due to speed.

Kan'gi surpresses the urge to put an arrow into the drone and looks around to get a feel for the background count before casting a spell. He sticks close to Leslie still, watching her back.

________________________________________________________

What is the current background count? I'm going to be casting Ghost, but want to make sure I'm not gunna get too fragged from it.

Terry grumbles something unpleasant and begins to follow the sargeant. Taking care to stick to the shadows and keeping whatever cover he can between him and the windows, he slinks off irritably.

As he does so he carefully removes an IR smoke grenade from his fatigues, in case the chummers don't believe in truces.


____________________________

Stealthing after the sarge, tossing IR smoke grenade behind us if anything looks like it's about to shoot
Also, what was my result for knowing what they're shooting? Hearing amp and 6 dice knowledge firearms.


Stealth: 11 dice, +4 urban camo.
Grenades: 6 dice
perception 9

Rupert slides back out of the alley as the team withdraws, reading to dive back for cover and provide supressive fire should the entrenched force prove less than gracious about letting them leave. As they pull back, Rupert activates his sub mic. "I think that the recon elements should be a little farther ahead of the rest of the team so we don't all walk right into a setup like that again. They might not be as forgiving the next time."

He slings his rifle and takes up point position ahead of the team, as he leads them towards Halsted cycling between low light and astral perception as he watches for threats.

______________________________________________________

Stealth: 7 (Urban Camo adds +4 to perception tests against him)
Centering: 3 (applied to his stealth roll)
Perception: 6 (Perceptive edge also grants a -1 bonus to TNs)

Pulling back proves to be a bigger problem than anticipated, as the team prepares to draw back, Kan'gi goes into stealth mode by casting a spell. Anyone astrally perceiving, again sees the mana lash out, striking various objects as Kan'Gi disappears from view. Moving quickly, while trying to maintain your stealth, you attempt to evade the all too well known problem of casting in the zone. But it's to no avail, they see you, and they have an obvious hunger within them for you. Within seconds you are completely surrounded yet again, by insects which manifest on all sides. The word "Frag!" is heard from the robotic voice of the drone hovering next to you, and all hell breaks loose.

==============================================

Sorry, I do allow Stealth to get past astral viewings, but the bugs rolled an unbelievable 32 on their perception test.

Kan'Gi, Drain: 5S with 3 successes on 12 dice for a drain of Light +1 (Trauma Dampener reduced it by 1 box)

"Frag, I thought we were outta that mess!" Kan'gi quickdraws his Tomahawks and gets ready to defend himself.

_______________________________________________________

Dice data
Initiative: 7 + 3D6
Attack dice: 18 base + 2 Combat Pool
Armour B/I: 13/9 + Fire Resistant 5 + Chemical Seal 8
Damage: Tomahawk (Dikoted) 9S (Str+1)S
Body: 9
Combat Pool: 12 (Start using 2 on each roll)
Reach: 1 use to lower own target number
Wounds: ? (light, but waiting on reroll)

"Kan, I thought we had talked about this." Toothpick subvocalizes as he draws his sword. Switching his sight to astral he has a good look around for the bugs.

---------------
astral perception then observe in detail

combat pool 10 (2 per roll on sword defense, until depleted)
sword dice pool 12
body 9
armor 6/8
reach 1 (use on own TN)
damage 13M base
init 11+3D6

"There was no way to know that the effect would still be present this far out Tootpick," Frost says, maintaining her view on the astral and letting her own spell slip and sputter. She surges towards the closest of the Spirits, and strikes at it with her enchanted blade.

_________________________________________________________________
Already was astral perceiving. Drawing and activating my focus. On my next initiative pass, attacking one of the spirits, if I get a 3rd pass, attacking it again or another spirit.

init 11+3d6
Armor: 7B/11I
Body: 5
Weapon: 11m (Using Charisma + Weapon Focus)
Weapon Dice: 8
Reach 1: Raise opponents target number
Combat Pool: 11 (3,3,3,2) 3 on first attack, if she gets a second, 2 on that, otherwise, 3,3,2 to be put on each of her defenses.

"Looks like my usefulness will be for information only..." Leslie commented as she drew her focus. Activating it, she took up a defensive stance, ready to attack any bugs that attacked her. Physical combat wasn't her forte...better to leave the offensive to the professionals.

___________

Pretty much as it says...drawing and activating the focus, and taking a defensive stance, ready for incoming attacks. Still don't know how to do the info requested...had to ask Ecc for help last time. All these numbers are still mind boggling.

"Bugger shite!" Rupert's quickly reverses his withdrawl. "We've got bugs on all sides!" He quickdraws his staff, falling back with the rest of the team, so that they can keep their backs to each other and covered. He steps in beside Leslie to keep her covered spinning his staff and waiting for the first bug to come within reach.
_________________________________________________________
Rupert uses his quickdraw power to ready his staff, and I hope the rest of the team is backing into a defensive circle too, otherwise this could get really messy. He's going to hold his action until something gets within reach, and then he's going to smack the bejeezus out of it.

Initiative: 6 + 2d6
Attack dice: 14 (Staff 7, + Imp Abi 4 + Focus 2 + 1 Combat pool)
[If anything engages him in melee combat, he has 10 dice for counterattack]
Armour B/I: 7/4
Damage: 10M stun (Strength + 8 )
Body: 10
Combat Pool (Attack/Defense): 14/6
Reach: 3 (using to raise attackers target numbers)
Wounds: None
Spell Pool: 6 (if it becomes an issue, the whole pool is going towards defense)

Tony kept his back to hard cover, worried that the death from above may begin to rain down upon them again. With blinding celerity gained through the practiced manipulation of mana throughout his body, his pistols seem to materialize in his hands, vanishing from their resting place in the holsters at his side. Perhaps the astral was the insects home turf, but by materializing they had made the last, gravest mistake of their poisoned existance. The lead erupted from his Rugers, lancing out through the air, guided with masterful precision. The EX rounds sundered through the bugs hard carapace, and literally splashed into the soft flesh beneath, spraying gore about in a fine mist.

________________________________________________

Initiative: 13 + 4D6
Quickdraw, Two Bursts with Dual Rugers (Simple), Second Burst with One Ruger (Simple). I am hitting something until it dies, then moving on to next target.
Attack dice: 14 for both pistols, -4 modifier for both shots from Enhance Aim and laser sight, +4 Difficulty on third burst
Damage: 14S Base (9M, Plus Burst, Plus EX)
Armor: 12/13
Body: 6
Combat Pool (Attack/Defense): 0/10
Wounds: None

"Thanks Kan'gi!" Terry yelled as he dropped back behind the cover of his car; so much for stealth. Taking a split second appraisal of his sorroundings, with the bugs closing in and his teammates tumbling into formation, the awe-inspiring grace of Tony's movement nearly stole his breath away. Nearly though, for if there was one thing faster and more beautiful than the blur of fiery death that was the Sargent, it was Terry himself. With an explosion of physics-defying alacrity that bolstered the faithful and sent the atheists diving for their disbelieving holes, Terry's movements carried his rifle about in a deadly dance; the fluid motion punctuated by the stacatto report of his Ares.


__________________________________

Full auto; 3 rounds into the first bug (all recoil compensated) 3 rounds into the next (all compensated) 3 rounds into the next (2 points uncompensated) and 1 into the last (3 total uncompensated)

For the rest of my rounds just burst fires.

Initiative: 15 + 4D6
Attack dice: 14 (6 assault rifles + 6 adept power + 1 enhanced articulation + 1 reflex recorder)
TN -2 because of smartlink 2, 7 points recoil comp. Also rangefinder and Vmag to negate range penalties
Damage: 13S Base (8M, Plus Burst, Plus EX) 10M base for the last shot
Armor: 7/8
Body: 8
Combat Pool (Attack/Defense): 0/13
Wounds: None

Melee: 6 dice, 7M lethal damage (killing hands + hardliner gloves)
Perception: 9
knowledge firearms: 6 dice

Tony and Terry react with startling quickness, both drawing and firing their weapons into the closest of the creatures. To their shock, none of the shots seem to have any effect. These creatures are either alot more powerful, or are uneffected by gunshots. Toothpick and Frost act together in a perfect unison. Their swords each drop 1, then a 2nd bug before the bugs can even react (lower TN and free-attack for the bugs 'charging'). Kan'Gi leaps into action, diving at a rather large one with his tomahawks, and slicing a leg out from under it before doubling his attack and driving the axes together through its head. Rupert turns around, taking up the rear alone. With practiced percision, he begins twirling his staff with such speed and force that the bugs are split open as if the staff were bladed. Within the first few seconds of the combat, 4 bugs lay at Ruperts feet, 4 bugs lay at the feet of Frost and Toothpick, and 1 lays at the feet of Kan'Gi. Terry and Tony quickly realize, after 2 burst fires each, that the guns are not having the effect they believed they would. Leslie remains in a defensive posture, surrounded on all sides by the team as the bugs begin their own attack, despite their losses. Despite some clever pistol whipping by Terry and Tony, they are quickly overwhelmed by the bugs on their side of the battle. Both seem to be neck deep in trouble, heavily wounded by the stronger bugs. Kan'gi also appears in trouble, his loner tactic, though probably not intentional, has gotten him surrounded on all sides. Though he fights intensely, the gash in his side causes a huge bloodstain to appear on his clothing. Frost and Toothpick, in continued unison, provide a barrier of death the bugs can not seem to penetrate, the same holds for Rupert, whose long staff and extended reach counters even the most pressing gang-up the bugs can muster. Even Leslie has a bit of excitement, as 2 bugs break through on the side of Tony and Terry, and attack her with great vigor. One impales itself upon the blade of Leslie, as the other drops a viscious claw into her side before she can withdraw the blade. Reacting quickly though, she does withdraw the blade and cuts the head off of the attacking bug before she falls too the ground, the claw of bug still residing in her side.

==============================================

End of Round 1, there are 6 bugs still attacking. 3 on Terry and 3 on Tony. Leslie is moderately wounded. Kan'Gi receives 2 Light wounds, Terry has received a moderate and light wound, and Tony has received a light and moderate wound.

==============================================

As you piece together the puzzle of the events, it becomes startling obvious. There must be literally millions of these bugs in the city, and these are alot tougher than the ones you first encountered. As you recall, they were dropping from the sky a distance from the cermak site, and only a very few bugs had made it to the distance you were at. You're right at the heart of where the majority of the bugs were dropping, and it's easy to guess, the most powerful of them. Back to the mana warp, or as far out from the warp are the most likely spots to hole-up if you wish to use magic. This one minor spell awakened over 20 powerful insects, and you notice (those of you Astrally Perceiving) that many more had tried to break free with the mana expenditure, but were unable to siphon enough of the energy. Even casting here again will most likely awaken even more of these creatures. You're in the hottest of the hot spots in the entire city.

Toothpick looks at the scene in front of him then signals to Frost, Suggesting that they each assist one of Tony and Terry. He moves toward Tony and prepares to engage the bugs from behind.

----------------
Moving on and killing tony's bugs

combat pool 10 (4 on first sword roll, 3 each for next two sword rolls)
sword dice pool 12 (6 skill and 6 focus)
body 9
armor 6/8
reach 1 (use on own TN)
damage 13M base
init 11+3D6

Rupert's face breaks into a gleaming grin, his tusks bared in exhileration at his actions. This isn't a delaying action, theses are not targets that need to be taken alive. Nothing needs to hold him back now. His enemies are insects, and they exist only to be crushed. As the bugs rush in, his staff cleaves through them, his strength seeming to turn the cylinder into a cutting edge, tearing one bug's head off its shoulders, before slicing straight through another's thorax.

He doesn't surrender himself completly to the carnage, keeping his moves tight and close, forcing them to come to him, to step into the humming sphere of air his staff occupies.

A calm corner of his mind notes the gunfire coming from Tony and Terry, and the quick realization they have that it is doing nothing to the insects. Even as two more bugs rush in to attack him he is planning the rotation he will have to make to come to their aid without breaking their defences.

Those plans are brought to naught when the bugs take advantage of Tony and Terry's weakend position, breaking their defensive ring, and he hear's Leslie cry out even as he hears the sound of a blade sliding through flesh and carapace. The last bug pressing him falls, his staff crashing down on the top of it's head, splitting it all the way to the abdomen.

He pivots and sees that Leslie is down, Kan'gi winded, and both Terry and Tony sorely pressed as Toothpick and Frost move up to assist them. He comes up in the middle, ready to lay into the bugs menacing both of his teammates.

_________________________________________________________
This is what happens when a troll with a focus on melee combat puts a reach weapon to good use. Imagine what he could do with a dikoted no-dachi. Since Tony and Terry were both on the same flank, I'm guessing that if he goes up the middle, he should be able to reach either group. On his intiative passes, he'll smack the closest one in each (hopefully brining them down), or cleanup, if Frost and Toothpick go ahead of him. If there are no bugs left standing, he'll whip out his medkit and perform first aid on Leslie (removing that nasty claw first).

Initiative: 6 + 2d6
Attack dice: 14 (Staff 7, + Imp Abi 4 + Focus 2 + 1 Combat pool)
[If anything engages him in melee combat, he has 10 dice for counterattack]
Armour B/I: 7/4
Damage: 10M stun (Strength + 8 )
Body: 10
Combat Pool (Attack/Defense): 14/6
Reach: 3 (using to raise attackers target numbers)
Wounds: None
Biotech / First Aid: 5 + 12 complimentary dice (Medicine / Trauma 3, and a a rating 9 medkit)
Spell Pool: 6 (if it becomes an issue, the whole pool is going towards defense)

You sware you hear a snarl come from Kan'gi as he turns on the bugs that broke through to Leslie. He tears into them with a vicious strike.

_______________________________________________________

Attack dice: 18 base + 2 Combat Pool
Armour B/I: 13/9 + Fire Resistant 5 + Chemical Seal 8
Damage: Tomahawk (Dikoted) 9S (Str+1)S
Body: 9
Combat Pool: 12 (Start using 2 on each roll)
Reach: 1 use to lower own target number
Wounds: Light

Nodding cooly, Frost moves in unison with Toothpick, coming to Tony's aid, Winter's Kiss gleaming brightly with a life of its own.
____________________________________________________

init 11+3d6
Armor: 7B/11I
Body: 5
Weapon: 11m (Using Charisma + Weapon Focus)
Weapon Dice: 8
Reach 1: Raise opponents target number
Combat Pool: 11 (3,3,3,2) 3 on first attack, 2 on each subsequent attack, 2 on each defense

There was no idle amazement at the lack of the bullets' effect on the craven creatures, just the perfect assessment and action-reaction of a true fighting paragon. The three bugs had Tony hemmed in, waving their vicious, ichor covered claws in his general direction. Their clumsy movements, hardly skilled enough to be called attacks, appeared as the frustrated thrashings of an infant in comparison to Tony's concord of flesh and spirit put to deadly use.

Looking to his side, he saw Leslie fending off a similar group of insects, her face the quintessential messianic mask of determination. Seeing her not only hold her own with scant melee skills, but actually manage to decapitate one of her opponents despite her grave injuries was a magnificent spectacle. It was as though she had channeled a muse from heaven and become a crusading angel wielding a fiery sword to hold back the throngs of heathens who would dare to enter the garden of humanity's fall, and emboldened by such a miraculous display, Tony fought on.

Unfortunately, entranced by the majesty of Leslie's success, Tony punctured himself on one of the cruel hooks of his aggressors. The pain was manageable, and, noting that no one had fired upon his squad, pushed off of the ground and onto the hood of the car he was near, improving his position on the battlefield while still defending himself from attack.

________________________________


Initiative: 13 + 4D6
Just Staying Alive, Unarmed 6 Dice
Damage: None
Armor: 12/13
Body: 6
Combat Pool (Attack/Defense): 0/10
Wounds: Moderate +1

There once was a man named Terry,
whose movements in combat were scary.
He thought it'd be fun,
to fight them sans gun
and so with his fists, made merry.


________________________________

Hopping on car top for height advantage, then dropping gun, whipping out his fists and going full defensive.

Initiative: 15 + 4D6
Attack dice: 7 dice unarmed
Damage: 7M base, killing hands
Armor B/I : 7/8
Body: 8
Combat Pool (Attack/Defense): 0/13 for dodging and defensive
Wounds: moderate + 1 (only light in terms of modifiers though, because of high pain tolerance lvl 3)

The last of the insects are quickly disposed of as the team works together, overwhelming their weakened numbers. Kan'Gi displays a ferocious attitude, eyes seemingly acting as weapons as he ignores everything other than protecting Leslie, and quickly massacres their remains repeatedly. Terry and Tony, fighting back to back receive immediate reprise as the rest of the team backstabs the bugs, killing them with minimal efforts.

Taking a breather, the team sits down and begins trying to figure out just where they are. A quick overview of their GPS shows this Map Apparently the bridges for N Lake Shore drive and St Columbus drive were torn down, because the first road north, over the river, was N Michigan ave. Next road is E Deleware Pl, and then you'd find yourself walking on the Lake Shore Drive, where you can see various autos in workable condition sitting on the road. To the far north you can see a huge building of some sort, appears to be a government building, or some other public place. Kan'Gi identifies it as the Field Museum of Natural History, a Chicago Landmark.

Terry grunts as he shifts his weight, trying to find a way to sit without putting pressure on his slashed leg.

"So uh... what now Sarge?"

"We need to get further away from here before I can heal any of you, otherwise we'll just make it worse by waking up more of these bug spirits. Lets borrow one of these cars and get uptown away from the spirits so we can hole up for awhile and figure out what to do." Frost suggest, not even bothering to put away and deactivate her focus.

"Agreed, double time, assist the injured," Tony says, moving off towards a vehicle, refusing any aid.

Toothpick does not deactivate his focus, but does sheath it. He picks up lLeslie and gently carries her to the car the seargent is approaching. "I'll patch up that scratch when we get back to base. Then I'll sneak up on and backstab every bug in enough radius for spells to finish the job." His Gaelic accent, ever so slight though it may be, started to slip out.

Rupert unslung his pack and reached into it for his toolkit. "If they didn't leave the keys in the ignition, I know a thing or two about getting a car running, even if it doesn't want to be." He said, looking around the street for a suitable target.

He still keept a careful eye out behind them too, looking for that drone they'd seen earlier. Whoever'd set themselves up back there had at least been nice enough to not open fire on the bugs while they were fighting them, but who knew what they were thinking now?
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We've been talking about cars, but Rupert is looking for something more along the lines of a full sized van, or something similarly sized. Plenty of room for the wounded and very large. Not to mention weapon deployment should it be needed.

He has car B/R 2, plus the toolkit. Perhaps his scournging 4 can be of some use if the vehicle needs to be hotwired (otherwise I have no complimentary skills for this). Of course, if someone else is better equipped to deal with this, he'll be glad to step aside. Question on medical treatment for the wounded: no healing magic, but can any of the mundane medical skills he has get rid of wound boxes?

"I'll help you out with that," Tony said once they found a suitably sized vehicle.

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I have B/R Electronics of 3 to give you a hand/do it.

Rupert scooted to the side to give Tony enough room to get at the maglock too. "I know a couple of tricks for popping maglocks, but I'm not exactly good at it. I'd rather not have to rip the door off to get inside though. He knew a thing or two about handling a vehicle without gridguide and auto assist, but he wasn't exactly looking forward to it, especially if they ended up with hostiles coming at them. Also, although the van was large, the driver's seat wasn't quite his size, so he hoped that someone else knew a thing or two about automobiles.

He regretted that there wasn't a rigger with the team. There hadn't seemed to be a need for one, since with the hit and run nature of the operation. It was all on foot, and highly mobile, so having someone who'd need to be guarded while they were piloting drones would've been a large liability.

As Tony made his assessment of the maglock on the van, Rupert looked around to try and find something equally suitable for the rest of the squad. "If we don't have any luck here, we can try checking to see if anyone abandoned a car with their house. Might've left the keys inside."

"We should be careful about anti-theft systems," he mentioned idly as he cast his gaze around.

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Rupert is going to help Tony with popping the lock, and keep an eye out for another nice (something with a high body) vehicle.

Elec B/R 3 (+ Elec B/R tool kit)
Driving / Car: 1/3

Rupert and Tony work devotedly on the locking mechanism of the Van, but it just doesn't seem to be going well. First there's that loud siren noise as the alarm goes off, followed shortly by the clicking sounds of Wheel Covers shackling down the vehicle tires.

Meanwhile, others notice some activity going on up at that large government like building, the sound of a motor starting up near the building is barely heard over the sound of the alarm.

Kan'gi growls, but it can't be heard over the sound of that damned alarm system. "Let get the frag outta here and head someplace a bit safer!"

"Way ahead of ya mate!" Terry shouts back from behind some nearby cover, "but first we need some transportation, cause it sounds like they already have some." Craning his head out to look towards the building, he finishes, "Anyone get a good look at what's happening?"

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perception check 9 dice if it's an issue.

The sound of the alarm doesn't bother Rupert much, his hearing automatically dampening to keep the noise at bearable levels. However, the sight of the wheel shackles dropping down makes him throw up his hands in defeat. As a last resort, he checks the underbody, and then the roof rack to see if a spare key had been stashed there.

"Roight, well, I think that this one is a lost cause. I'm not sure we're going to have much luck busting into any car on the street worth stealing. If we really need a vehicle, breaking into a showroom will probably be our best bet. I doubt there'll be any cops showing up in response to the burglar alarm, and the keys will be in a safe in the office, which, since we won't be any time constraints, should be a cinch to crack open."

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Oops, forgot the OOC part of the post. Rupert hasn't the noticed the other engine, what with starting out near the car alarm and dampening his hearing and all. As for any perception tests (for looking for the key and anything else that needs it)
Perception 6 (4 int + 2 Imp Per) + Perceptive edge (-1 to TNs).

Is everyone able to make it under their own power, or will we need a stretcher for some people?

"Good call, let's keep heading north under stealth, we'll grab any other vehicles we see on the way that don't seem as protected," Tony said.

Toothpick looks down at Leslie "Look like we got a ways to go to reach your chariot lass, hope you can hold on."

----
Following the group carrying the wounded Leslie.
Pereception 5 dice if it matters
Stealth 5 dice
centering (for stealth) 6 dice 'there is me there are the hiding places, there is nothing in between'

Trying to stealthily step away from the blaring vehicle, you see approaching you a pickup truck with a couple of large guns on the back, manned by some rough looking humans. There is no visible driver, and it seems to be heading directly towards you. It has an old Gasoline engine sound, the deep gutteral chugging of a heavy truck, and it appears to be surrounded by some sort of barbed wires, and spikes that seem welded to the bumpers, and hub-caps. It seems apparent that they see you, as they are heading directly towards your direction.

===============================================

Toothpick: Are you tossing knives? (Centering around Throwing Knives is what your sheet says....)

Rupert: No car lots visible in the area. No keys either.

Looking at the approaching truck Toothpick places Leslie down next to a building, "I just need to take care of a little problem first." He winks at her.

His hands disappear into his coat, then reemerge secretly holdig knives.

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Sphynx I have centering twice on the sheet, once is for basic adept centering (= athletics and stealth) the second time was for thrown weapons (technically ranged combat but...)

"Let's check our maps, see where the closest Ford Dea-" he started to say, then finally noticed the approaching truck. He slowly stepped back towards one of the cars clustered at the curb, keeping his hands free and in the open. "We're all friends until someone starts shooting," he says over the radio link, although if the guys in the truck do indeed decide that they aren't friends, he's going to drop behind the car and then show them the error of their ways via his Alpha's bloop tube.
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He's going to wait for the other guys to make the first move. However, should that first move involve bullets, bombs, or other lethal measures, he's going to take hard cover, and then hit the exposed guys with a neurostun X grenade, the follow it up with a flare grenade (he'll warn his teamates over the radio first). Even if it doesn't hurt the truck or the guy inside it's going to keep them distracted awhile, and if they can take the truck in tact, all the better. Unless of course his teammates happen to be within the blast radius. In that case he'll do something a little less splashy(shoot the exposed guys).

Intiative: 6 + 2d6
Armour B/I: 7/4
Perception: 6 (Perceptive edge also grants a -1 bonus to TNs)
Assualt Rifle (grenade Canon Companion 41) 8
(if needed, he'll use image magnification to make the shot at minimum range)
Dodge pool: 4
Wounds: None
Combat Pool Allocation 2/4

"Don't fire unless you're sure they plan on it first, and NO CASTING," Tony said over the transducer. He stepped behind some nearby hard cover and tried to assess the situation or initiate contact with the potential hostiles.

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Getting behind cover, firing if he's sure it will come to that. If he has time, and only if, he will put Gel into his rifle.

Initiative: 13 + 4D6
In case of fight: two single shots at one target, but switch to another target if first drops.
Attack dice: 14 for Rifle, -3 modifier for both shots from Enhance Aim, up to -3 range catagories from scope
Damage: 11S Base (Base + EX) or 7S w/Gel
Armor: 12/13
Body: 6
Combat Pool (Attack/Defense): 0/10
Wounds: Moderate +1