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Post by Janxi on Mar 28, 2011 21:37:53 GMT -5
"Bah tha prickin' of mah thumbs, somethin' wicked this way comes," Janxi muttered as she clicked her rifle from single to burst fire. Like Tori, her feline fear response was to bristle up and look larger to frighten away rivals. None could see that in her armor, so she went low to be a smaller target, and fire from a stable kneeling position. She examined the deck for foot-prints on or off the boat. Her ears pressed flat to her skull, ready and willing to fight to get Shep back. She readied a flare if Sam gave the order.
("...the swamp was incredibly quiet." Meaning no bugs, frogs and other critters? Or that's all there is?)
"Maybe Soc hurt his feelings and he's changin' his socks," Janxi mumbled gruffly. "Jin, you ever seen this before?"
Sense psychic and magic energy [dice=100]/ 40 Sense supernatural beings [dice=100]/58 Locate sound [dice=100] / 84 Recognize sound [dice=100] / 76
Tracking [dice=100]/60 (attention to wet area of deck where Tori retrieved her helmet) Perception [dice=20][rand=14983923316945646452974667069785474365719912824014458229070466363]
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Post by Mierin on Mar 28, 2011 23:41:42 GMT -5
Sam frowns in concern as it's revealed that Shep has gone missing. 'Where in the hell did he go?' she wonders to herself, starting to get worried as she immediately gets on the radio, speaking quietly, "Shep, check in NOW."
If she gets no response, Sam replies to Tori, "Disembark. Let's find him ASAP. Anyone who can scan for thoughts or emotions, try to scan for his to determine his location. Stay frosty everyone." Sam looks around, rifle in hand, looking for any signs of where he could have gone.
Perception: [dice=20] detect ambush [dice=100], pass detect concealment [dice=100], pass tracking [dice=100], fail[rand=41074897561019851551323230160206549881503565038947405045869938912]
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Tori
Player
Posts: 1,110
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Post by Tori on Mar 29, 2011 0:05:35 GMT -5
"Aye aye, Six, but we're dealing with an unknown. I'd rather close the mind til we got more intel. If soc has presence sense, that might work. Permission to take point?"
Without waiting for an answer, Tori was the first off the boat, and waited for Janxi to handle the tracking. She held her rifle to make quick shots from the shoulder.
"Goddamn, how can we lose a man off a boat in the middle of a swamp, when he's an operator, when we have three more operators, a dogboy and a local guide on board. Hey, I heard somethin' bout wizzers that can freeze time. Ever deal with that Soc?" Her voice remained just audible to the team, and calm, but Socrates could likely begin to smell scared-cat pheromones.
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Post by dakota on Mar 29, 2011 0:38:14 GMT -5
Tori's thermal scans picked up nothing in trees bigger than nesting birds. The water wasn't much more productive, though she caught something big moving away from the shore.
[OOC: yes, I meant even the bugs were quiet]
As Janxi looked at the wet area, a closer look showed it wasn't water, but more like some sort of slime.
Jin nodded, then held one hand in front of his mouth and then snapped it out as if trying to grab something, then readyed his bow again.
There was no answer from Shep on the comm to Sam's call.
The three mutants still sensed nothing magical, and nothing psychic except each other.
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Tori
Player
Posts: 1,110
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Post by Tori on Mar 29, 2011 0:51:38 GMT -5
Tori didn't understand Jin's symbol. "If you're cool, thank of it, and show it to me inyer head. Thumb up yes, thumb down no... I hope you don't mean he done been eaten... One of them petal turkles?
"And Six, it's way too quiet. Somtin's real bad round here. Sometin's sick magic, but I sure can't tell..."
If Jin permits, Tori will read his mind. But she's going to wait for an invitation and not be rude. With the mouth snap, and the slime, Tori thought of that old movie with marines and reptilo-insectoid aliens. She and Janx had a bad habit of seeing films.
And the thought of an Alien snatching Shep was almost too much to consider. "Show us how they kin move in the dark wifout bein' seen, Jin. We'll cook 'em good."
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Post by Renekin Skywalker on Mar 29, 2011 6:37:15 GMT -5
"It's an alligator." Socrates sighed, at Jin's signal.
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Tori
Player
Posts: 1,110
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Post by Tori on Mar 29, 2011 8:15:13 GMT -5
"Hey Six?I got one target movin' 'way from the shore. It could be Shep. Let's give chase..." Tori was back in the boat's seat again, ready to fire up the motor and get after the thing, alligator or not.
"Alligators ain't slimy, genius, and ain't invisible or without scent. They sure as hell can't snag a full-grown man out of a boat without a ruckus! Hell, an 800 pound reptile ain't gonna clumb up on a lil boat like this without rockin' you seasick." She mocked Socrates sigh of frustration and hit the ignition.
"Cast off, Janxi!"
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Post by Renekin Skywalker on Mar 29, 2011 8:25:16 GMT -5
"I sense no magic (OOC: read Dak's post about sensing nothing magic). And Allegators can kill humans. A Navy cat should know more about water predators." Socrates said no more.
He decided to wait for Sam to say they were going to run the boat over Shep, or wait to see how well his armour protected him.
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Post by dakota on Mar 29, 2011 9:35:13 GMT -5
Jin shook his head, then got down on all fours and hopped like a frog, then held his arms as wide as he could. Then paused and gave a thumbs up, then held up a finger as if to wait for something and then held his throat as if choking.
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Post by Renekin Skywalker on Mar 29, 2011 9:36:32 GMT -5
"Ah." Socrates said, at Jin's explanation. Reaching for Shep's helmet, he sealed his own. "In event, Shep's under water. Try not to shoot us."
And he dove in, looking for the frog and Shep.
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Post by Janxi on Mar 29, 2011 9:46:39 GMT -5
"Socrates? We've done tried extreme prejudice toward you, and reactin' as normal marines and sailors would and it ain't worked, so I'mma try this approach. Would ya please stop lecturing us, and assumin' yer smarter, better and outrank us? At best, we're going to see you as a peer and respect you as such. At worst, we're gonna see ya as a smart-ass know-it-all who is always tryin to one-up everyone — cat or human — that's his own rank." Her voice was calm, almost soothing. For once, her tail didn't swish from side to side in a rage. It was an appeal for sanity.
"Lemmie show you why gator is unlikely, cuz we'da felt him on the boat." She untied the bowline again and climbed on the boat, assuming a prone position to snipe from in the bow. The shift of her mass from standing to prone caused the boat to shift wildly, creating ample waves. Her mass was about half an adult alligator's.
"'Sides, no splash goin in the water. A gator would have to lunge over the gunwale onto the boat, grab Shep and leap back out and not make a sound to alert three operators, a native guide and you. A normal gator couldn't bite through Shep's armor, neither. We never heard him sing out no alarm. Where were we when this happened? Alligators are reptile, so dry scales, and no slime. Amphib-eeans, fish and inverts have slimy skin. Now you may not be all wrong. It coulda been one of them gator men usin' a snare an' liftin him out when we was lookin the other way, but I think weda smellt him like we did back at the Marlins. They was pretty magical."
She linked with Tori's mind to find her target, and held up her rifle peering through her scope. She wanted to identify it as a normal animal or a dino or a monster before they went in guns blazing. "Sides Soc, listen," she paused.
"We're in da middle of a swamp, and no normal gator could eat every bullfrog, treefrog, cricket, owl or nothing in a mile radius. No hundred gators could. Plus, they ain't climbin' no tree to eat what's in the branches. As much as I've come to respect your grasp of the tactical situation, I'm trusting the birds. (Gen Kill Quite!) Somethin' ain't right here.
"Sam, Tori? Whatever we do, we better do it now... Soc? With Tori drivin, I'mma needin' a spotter. Ya wanna try for some cat/dog detente here and save our XO?"
With her telepathy on, she tried reaching Shep. "Sing out if ya kin hear us!"
Actions:Use Hunting/sniping skills to identify target (no proficiencies) Demon and monster lore [dice=100]/30
Sense psychic and magic energy [dice=100]/ 40 Sense supernatural beings [dice=100]/58 Locate sound [dice=100] / 84 Recognize sound [dice=100] / 76
Tracking [dice=100]/60 Perception [dice=20] [rand=42945479211484394556510130565721325992705330662971823440403034764]
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Post by Renekin Skywalker on Mar 29, 2011 9:49:19 GMT -5
Do note that Socrates was under water during Janxi's lecture. Seeing as how Shep was drowning, and all.
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Post by Janxi on Mar 29, 2011 9:59:02 GMT -5
(started the post before Dakota put up a new gm post, will save it for later.)
"Where's the dog going now? Tori, I've got your target. Fire up the boat and let's go! Jin, we gotta swimmer moving away from the channel bank at a good clip. I'm callin' that our target 'less you say otherwise. Since my second choice spotter just dove overboard, would ya do the honors fer me, Jin? Will fire if I get a clean shot."
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Tori
Player
Posts: 1,110
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Post by Tori on Mar 29, 2011 12:55:52 GMT -5
"What the fox did he just do?! He thinks he's gonna outswim an amphibian? Janxi, grab Mr. Wise will ya? Six, I'm movin' to intercept!"
Tori kept the hotspot in her thermal. She thought of Janxi talking about a snare and realized the thing probably yanked Shep with its tongue. Some long tongue to not have much of a sound. She gunned the throttle to intercept, but not overshoot the frog.
"Cpl. Janxi, can you give me a range to target, if you please. Sam, we're gonna get in close, to try to knock Dig-em Frog out real quick, and get Shep outta harm's way, 'nless you got a better plan. Careful wif yer fire cuz' toad face prolly carrying Shep in his mouf... Jan can go one on one with the toadie, but I suspect you'll be wantin me to coxswain, 'less Jin'll handle piloting, and I'll get in the mud with Janx and double-team him... Froglegs for breakfast!"
Tori's heart raced. Shep had grown on her. He could be a little rigid at times, but deep down, he was looking out for everyone. She wouldn't let him die on her watch. With ample noise from the fan motor, she had no means to stalk. "HOOOOYAAAAAAAA!" She screamed like a banshee and bore down on the frog with her XO. She was no longer scared, she was pissed. Not just at Socrates, but at her own stupidity for not realizing the danger sooner.
Skills: Detect Ambush [dice=100]needs 55 Detect Concealment [dice=100]needs 45 Trap and mine detection [dice=100]needs 45 Pilot motor boat (if needed) [dice=100] needs 80
Sense psychic and magic energy [dice=100]needs 40 Sense supernatural beings [dice=100]needs 58 Locate sound [dice=100] needs 84 Recognize sound [dice=100] needs 76 Perception: [dice=20][rand=6290367108185579574297482002882165639699469535704692182415997048]
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Post by Janxi on Mar 29, 2011 15:54:50 GMT -5
Laying prone at the bow, Janxi reached out with a massive paw to grab at Socrates. Assuming he is swimming above the surface or is still in shallow water near the bank. If not, she'd give a friendly wave as the boat passed.
[dice=20] (To strike. I don't know what kind of strike, so no bonus... I guess grab...)
With a paw on Socrates, she pulled him into the boat and behind her.
"Man in boat! Man in boat!" She called, unless Socrates tried dodging her.
She returned her attention to Tori's target through her scope. Tempted though to fire, she worried a stray shot could strike Shep. She called out the range to Tori and took a blast of spray to the face.
"OOHRAH! Yahooo!" she cheered at Tori's warcry. If Shep could hear them, he'd know help was on the way.
Actions:Use Hunting/sniping skills to identify target (no proficiencies) Demon and monster lore [dice=100]/30
Sense psychic and magic energy [dice=100]/ 40 Sense supernatural beings [dice=100]/58 Locate sound [dice=100] / 84 Recognize sound [dice=100] / 76
Tracking [dice=100]/60 Perception [dice=20] [rand=295306406109369243208820509511366410448013676368951715093518416]
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