Not with a Bang Start and Ongoing

[voidtreckermods]

"Good Morning passengers. Today is day seven of the month of Imagination." The voice echoes through the train as passengers wake up in their beds. Not long afterwards their SCA’s glow with the colour of the void and a holographic image will appear.

Preperation

They have about an hour to prepare, a little less than usual but perhaps expected, given the urgency of the task.

The cupboards in the dressing room are open to reveal rows of tents, in all four team colours as well as some basic camp cooking equipment. They are in bags that should be easy enough to carry.

"Shortly arriving on System #6416. All passengers get ready to disembark. Next stop world 6416. Exit from void in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one." The train rocks and lurches, bright colours of the void filling the space and then fading as they fly downwards towards a very green landscape.

Arrival and Initial Task

The train lands in a clearing, curving round in an attempt to fit. Once everyone who wishes to disembark has done it flies back into the air, vanishing from sight.

The air is heavy and humid, though it is not currently raining. The clearing is open to the sky and looking up will reveal a worrying sight. The sky is an angry red colour, colours shifting as if the clouds themselves were on fire. It's an unnerving sight.

Their SCA's show three points, one Orange, One purple and one that is half blue and half red. The three control centres. Each are a few hours treck through the jungle and it certainly feels like there is no time to waste.

Those that don't want to treck through the forest can start setting up camp, though the darkening sky might be a little distracting. As time goes on flecks of fire drift down, though they extinguish before hitting the forest floor.

Orange are to travel to the north, Purple to the south and Blue and Red must travel together to the west. Each route takes them through thick and unrelenting jungle. Flying is difficult here unless you can get up past the canopy layer, which means vision of the ground is severely hampered.

The control stations themselves are half buried in vines and require cutting into. If voidtreckers are unlucky they will meet their first security robots here, firing on the intruders. They might even meet their first giant Armadillos, the creatures are curious and may wish to investigate. They are not helpful or constructive to trying to power up the stations and prevent the destruction of the planet.

The control stations are simple enough to operate, but there's quite a lot that needs to be done in way of repairs and clearing. It will take a team effort to get it in working enough order to activate the shield.

The shield itself, when it is activated, is mostly invisible but there is a loud humming sound. The meteor, which has gotten more visible throughout the five hours, hits the shield and splinters, fire enveloping the whole sky. It is visibly terrifying, but no fire falls to earth, no rocks get through, the planet is safe.

Ongoing

Once the planet is safe the voidtreckers deserve a rest. But once the next morning dawns it is time to start with their next tasks, to make sure that this planet stays safe from future threats.

Red

The robots at the control stations are not the only malfunctioning security robots around. They roam the jungle, or are more often stranded in the jungle, powering up only when faced with a new threat.

Some are benign, terraforming machines whose only crime is using up precious power. These need to be dismantled so that power can be saved for the shield system. Others are security robots that will attack the intruders to the planet.

Though the machines are scattered they are often obvious, emitting warning alarms or flashing lights. Their SCA's will show some areas where there are larger clusters but machines can be found anywhere.

Purple

Their SCA's are filled with hundreds of purple dots, each a solar stations that needs cleared and brought back online. It's not the most glamourous job, the stations are deep in the jungle, the treck is difficult and most of the work needed is weed clearing.

But once the weeds have been cut away they will need to patch up the station, doing basic maintenance to get it back online. In some cases wires need to be patched back together but it shouldn't take any great feats of engineering to get the stations up and running.

They may run into some of the security automatons, needing to fight their way into the stations before they can begin the clean up operations.

Orange

Like the red team their SCA will show areas where there are clusters of the small insectoid automatons that need to be rescued and restored. However they can be found anywhere throughout the jungle, they are not too suited for the terrain outside of the stations and so they have gotten tangled in vines. They can be found powered down, stranded and in dire need of maintenance.

Tools and spare parts can be found in many of the solar stations that purple team have been locating. Actually repairing the robots takes some engineering knowledge but once they are restored they will go about their tasks in the stations. They will need help getting to the further flung stations as well as the main control centres.

They are very basic in design and follow pre programmed instructions rather than being able to hear and listen to orders. But once in the correct place they are very effective at their job.

Blue

Once the shield is up there is a faint humming that can be heard throughout the jungle if they listen closely and find it among the sound of rain and insects. But once they hear it, it is obvious where it is louder and more prominent.

Their SCA will pin point some of the larger control boxes but there are truthfully too many to show on a map. Not all of them have attracted Violet Pandas, but many of them have.

They are curious creatures, both of the power boxes and the voidtreckers. They are protective of each other but not so much of territory and therefore it is not difficult to move them on. Keeping them away is another matter, the power humming is interesting and they will unearth wires and chew through them. It doesn't seem to do them much harm, there is clearly safety stops in the system for such eventualities. It does however cut power off to entire solar stations and require a lot of patch work.

Good luck voidtreckers!

Comments

Xue Yang | The Untamed | Red/OTA

[xue_yang]

Departure
To say he is excited would be putting it mildly. Not that it is mission time necessarily, but because of what he has with him this time to assist with it. He has been loading up that convenient little pouch that he bought from the train, letting the large tent disappear inside of it to be housed along with food and his two wonderful new swords that will hopefully be able to assist him. Tucking it away in his robes, he folds his arms in front of his chest with a smirk on his face that can only be described as dark exuberance.

The trek
So far they haven't encountered anything that might be dangerous and Xue Yang has started to get annoyed. The sword in his hand is not for cutting away brush but at times that is what it is being used for. He follows the others on his team as they head towards their combined blue/red camping spot, keeping a watchful eye on his surroundings in the hopes that something dangerous might pop out at him. He really wants an excuse to try out what his swords can do now and he can't do that if nothing attacks him.

He already considered the strange armadillo creatures but apparently they are helpful and not dangerous and he would rather not kill one just out of sport. Perhaps later he can see about catching one for dinner....

Robots
The excitement Xue Yang had at the beginning of the mission has tapered off completely and he is now completely annoyed. His arms are folded as he looks at one of the robots and he is practically growling at it in his frustration. He knows nothing about this kind of technology so he has no idea how to dismantle it and it definitely isn't the kind of thing his sword will be useful for. If this is another mission that makes him feel useless he is going to be very very upset this entire time.

Departure

[so_dark_a_road]

Curufin is dressed for the mission and carrying his tool satchel and bags full of equipment. He also has with him his own sword from his own world, and he's likewise excited to be carrying it again after all this time.

He looks over at Xue Yang, sees the dark exuberance and grins. "I see you have some new weapons. Congrats!"

[xue_yang]

He looks over at Curufin arrives and his smirk grows, "I worked hard during the last mission to get them. Time to see if I still have the skills to use them." It won't be quite the same. He's used to having the blade between long like a staff. Wielding the two of them is going to be a touch different but he looks forward to seeing if his training is going to pay off.

[so_dark_a_road]

"Did you buy them on that mission planet? I'm sure you do still have the skills," replies Curufin, still with a grin. "When I first met you, I felt that as a warrior, you were a natural. And for such a person, once those skills are learned, they are never forgotten." And it is relatively easy to learn to handle a somewhat different weapon or learn the dual-wield style.

[xue_yang]

"I did. Repairing roofs, scavenging rocks, herding sheep..I'm not opposed to doing tasks if it gets me what I desire." And there was nothing Xue Yang desired more then to have a sword in his hand again. He couldn't trust that there would be ways to get one while on the train. He figures there might be some restrictions given what he has done in the past. But they can't argue with him if he got them because of his own hard work while off the train.

"And with a little added bonus to them added while on the train." They now also have the capable to be so much more then just a blade.

Wildcard ; camping

[feixuehua]

Not wanting to be a burden, Xingchen decided to stay behind with team blue to help with the animals stay away from the power systems, herding them off and he did so by tapping his pole of a cut up bamboo stick to scare them off, and also setting up camp and tents.

By the time Xue Yang returns from the mission with the others, he is sitting by the campfire, with food and water already laid out. With his sense of hearing, he turns to the sound of his voice.

"Xue Yang? You returned with the others? How did the mission go?"

[xue_yang]

Xue Yang plops down at the fire and sets his sword aside. He only had one out of the pouch since he didn't want to wield them both unless he had to. But instead he hadn't needed it at all.

"It was no fun, Daozhang!" He's clearly pouting as he sits there. "I can't fight these metal things with a sword. I wanted a real monster."

There is still time. The mission is still young but he doesn't hold onto much hope. It got crushed the minute he saw the robots.

[feixuehua]

"No fun?" Somehow, he isn't surprised considering. The fire glows on his face, feeling the warmth. At night, the temperatures cool down from the humidity of the day in the jungle.

"Metal things? At least, you got out for a stretch of your legs. You're always restless on the train."

[xue_yang]

"That's because it gets boring walking back and forth on the train!" And he doesn't enjoy normal types of entertainment which means life on the train is terribly dull.

At least on these missions he does get a chance to do something different for awhile.

Robots

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"Jeez, what's your problem?"

The talking book regarded the growling man in confusion, turning slightly to look between him and the robot he was facing. Lest anyone think he was doing nothing to contribute, in the background his minions were violently rendering a security robot into its component parts. Two of them were using swords to do so, too.

[xue_yang]

He points at the robot, trying to ignore the fact that the thing talking to him is just as weird as whatever it is he is supposed to be taking apart.

"How am I supposed to know what part of this is useful? Why do I need to take it back at all?"

He's pouting a little now. This thing isn't going to bleed. Isn't going to beg for mercy. It is simply going to dissolve into a bunch of parts and where is the fun in that?

[badassfreakingoverlord]

The book can't shrug, but it sure gave off the impression nonetheless. "Just break 'em. The real problem's them sucking down power."

That was definitely what his minions were doing.

"Unless you really NEED to bring them back."

[xue_yang]

He really doesn't want to dull his blade on these stupid things but if that is really what has to happen perhaps he can use this as a training opportunity.

"These things..what would they be weak against? Fire, water, lightning?"

Perhaps all of the above. Knowing more will do him better going forward.

Robots

[reluctantjinrou]

He didn't know much about robots either, they were mostly fiction when he was from and he'd never been terribly good with his hands.

One of the security robots came by then and he stared a moment. If he had to stop it couldn't he just attack it?

Natsuno did his best to do what Koumyou told him and punched the robot in the midsection with his inhuman strength, denting it thoroughly.

"Huh." He glanced at Xue Yang. "I think we just have to break these ones." Fixing them would be someone else's problem.

[xue_yang]

He reaches into his robes and a sword seems to appear out of no where. He hardly wants to dull the blade by trying to cut steal but it would be worth trying out some of the other components of his new weapons. Lightning starts to crackle around the blade as he takes a couple steps away from the robot.

"I'm used to things that have a little more emotion when I attack them."

[reluctantjinrou]

"If you believe fiction, they apparenty often do have emotions, but there hasn't been any indication of that with these ones." Natsuno commented.

The lighting was a nice touch, it gave Xue Yang range that Natsuno didn't have. He was pretty sure anything he could do at a range only worked on humans. Or did it?

The Trek

[zechs_isonfire]

Zechs was watchful as well, slicing through vines with the borrowed sword in wide slices. This surely wasn't all they'd be involved in today. The lack of present attack made him a little antsy.

He glanced to his side, where the stranger beside him seemed similarly restless. "They're about to set up camp. We might want to scout a perimeter to make certain the area is secure."

Telling himself, of course, it's not that he's looking for a fight.

[xue_yang]

Xue Yang knows that with any mission the first day is always the calmest and then things get a little more chaotic after that. He wants to make sure that he is ready for whatever might come their way on the next days but he also is feeling ready to fight right that instant.

He looks over at the other man and nods. "So far I haven't seen anything that wants to attack, but that is likely to change."

[zechs_isonfire]

"They could be simply waiting for when our guard is down, when we're distracted an vulnerable." Zechs frowned and shook his head. "It depends on how these security robots were programmed, if they aren't simply firing at whatever comes across their sensors."

He started to walk away from the camp, though, keeping a sharp eye out. "It's best not to take any chances."

Re: Xue Yang | The Untamed | Red/OTA

[only_one_wei]

Wei Wuxian was technically on the blue mission, but that didn't mean he stuck solely with them. Especially since he wasn't very techie and couldn't do repairs.

He looked at one of the robots that was menacing them. "Basically they're like rock spirits. Just have to destroy the body, right?" He looked a little wistful for a moment. "Wish Wen Ning was here."

He pulled out a talisman paper and wrote on it quickly in blood before tossing it to stick on the robot, which froze in place. "Okay, how are you going to destroy it?" he asked his junior.

[xue_yang]

Swords in hands he lets lightning start to crackle around them both. He smirks slightly as he stares at the robot. "I think I'd like to use it for practice."

He does a combination of attacks, never letting the blade touch the robot but instead letting the lightning shoot from the two blades. Might as well show his senior what he has been working on since the last mission.

[only_one_wei]

"Nice."

Wei Wuxian drew a talisman in the air, then flicked it at another robot, pulling it toward them with a gossamer fine thread. "What else you got?"

[radishlobbyist]

Wen Qing has mostly been sticking with Blue Team this mission but on the more dangerous days, it is a matter of course to accompany Lightning on Red for the healer backup.

Now, they have gotten split up from the rest of the group somehow, just her and Xue Yang and one of these robot things that looks extremely hostile.

"You do know how to fight these, don't you?" she whispers, careful not to make any movements which might trigger it into hostility early.

[xue_yang]

Both swords in hand in an instant, Xue Yang smirks at the robot that seems to be getting closer to him. It's an odd turn of fate that the two of them might be left alone but at least their relationship at this point is one of mutual understanding...or an odd type of friendship that neither of them is particularly willing to confirm.

Lightning starts to spark along both blades, "I've had a little bit of experience with them at this point. They aren't particularly strong even if they pretend that they are."

[radishlobbyist]

She eyes the blades crackling with lightning, something she hadn't expected from weapons Xue Yang would be wielding. Quickly, Wen Qing tears her eyes away from that distraction, focusing on the robot and grasping her own sword firmly.

"Needles aren't going to help against that," she murmurs, more to herself than to him. Still, she is sizing up the robot for weak points which can be exploited, even if not in the same way as with humans. Fighting with the sword isn't her favorite thing but she's not going to stay back and let herself be protected. Nothing wrong though with... "I'll let you take the lead then."