Invaders Must Die (Ch. 3b: Day 1, pt. VI)

NPC · Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2011 12:43 am

Meanwhile, back at the ARK.

The melting pot of people who had now found themselves stranded on the company were beginning to become more comfortable with their surroundings. The wounded were being treated, the panicked having been calmed, and most activity was quiet and idle in the colony as groups were made and spread out within a designated area. For the most part, the chaos of everything before had passed.

Yet fate decided that this wasn't to last long.

An alarm sounded throughout the multitude of rooms the people now resided in, echoing through the halls. There were no lights accompanying the noise this time, the lights remaining in their lit state without flickering, yet the high pitched noise continued on. For whoever may be monitoring the colony, they would quickly learn the source of such a disruption was a breach in a cargo hold. Fortunately, it was not the room a majority of the new crew of the colony had entered from, but it was still questionable to what had caused it.

The noise easily caught the attention of many, and soon, many heads were poking out of rooms down one of the main corridors, some even exiting out into the hall completely. Some gave curious glances, others terrified expressions. The missiles already had marked a hostile presence, and this, in the minds of some, must be related somehow.

Then came a steady noise down the far end of the corridor, towards the outer perimeter of the ARK.

...clank clank clank clank clank clank

Whatever the source of the racket, it was approaching fast.

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psikeout · Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2011 3:47 am

Upstairs, just a moment prior to the total chaos, Rock and Jam were sitting comfortably in their self-appointed living space.

They had a little bit of an adventure. After the train broke down, they were left to wander for quite a while. They ended up traipsing through mysterious, twisting tunnels, the huge, natural-looking indoor forest biosphere that made up the hydroponics wing, and a corridor of gigantic windows, gaping into the abyss of space. Alas, there was nothing terribly shiny en route, so they lost the interest of their third wheel party member before reaching their final destination: the digital manufacturing center, where Rock had the joy of learning to operate a 50 year old CAD program on the weirdest, most antiquated hardware he'd ever encountered.

Strangely, he seemed to enjoy this. It must have been the engineer in him; engineers are always weird.

After sufficient time had been wasted, and the components of his desired product (a new helmet) had been produced by the immense machinery of the facility, they returned without event to their room. While it should have been a moment to relax, the white primate was instead learning that he in fact did not enjoy some aspects of tinkering—like the part where he had to try to put together a fiddly mess of parts with only one working hand, using a cramped kitchenette counter as a workspace. The consternating process etched lines into his face that were not normally there, and left him glowering tiredly and glumly at his work.

As it turned out, he never got to finish that stupid helmet. An alarm started.

Rock groaned, grabbed his radio, and started to make a call—"Tau," he began to say—but soon realized that the device was gushing static and strange noises. Every channel he tried was completely jammed as if by some tremendous source of interference. He looked to Jam with a face that said only: "Welp."

"Ready to go out again?"

Mie · Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2011 4:24 am

As a testament to her uncanny powers of premonition, Jam had indeed been bored to tears by the digital manufacturing center. Though she was quick to adamantly distinguish her own, quite normal and reasonable attention span from the two-second one they'd just split off from, it likely didn't make much of a difference to Rock's efficiency when it still meant incessant, bored sighs, rambly, irrelevant conversation, and several rounds of "What Do You Think This Does?" .

Needless to say they were both probably a little more than grateful when the time came to gather their spoils, and head back to the barracks for a little well-deserved R&R. Jam had the time to change into something more comfortable (see; not like a full-body sphygmomanometer) consisting of her tried-and-true dukes and midriffs combo, before sprawling across her claimed bunk with an unscrupulous game of solitaire.

As par the course, the battered, bandaged monkey got far less than his fair share, even before the sirens heralding the latest meeting of fecal matter and fan could sound; when it did, Jam was already standing by the door. She shifted a rather generously packed, bright red bundle dangling off her back, disturbing the sling of the shotgun hanging off her left shoulder, before stooping to tuck a sheathed combat knife into the shaft of her boot.

"Assuming it's pointless to remind you you're still missin' chunks from your head, and probably oughta sit this one out," she prefaced pointedly, fixing Rock with a wry stare through tops of her eyes, as she adjusted the straps on her gloves. "M'more ready'n you are."

psikeout · Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2011 12:11 pm

As one might suspect of Rock, he had no comment except to grab his rifle.

***

*Pangpangpangpang, clomp clomp...*

The stairs rattled loudly as they rushed down to the main floor. The door slid open with a swish, and, with just a quick pause to check, Rock rushed down the hall to where it intersected with the main corridor, stopped with a scuffing skid into a crouch with his back to the wall, and chanced a cautious look around the corner toward the cargo bay, from which the noises of unfriendlies seemed to be approaching.

NPC · Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2011 12:57 pm

clank clank clank clank clank

The noise could now be made out to be a single set of rapid footsteps, and greeting Rock down the corridor was a running figure. It was moving fast.

Whether it had sensed Rock or was just given a new sense of urgency, the intruder began to accelerate, the clanks becoming more frequent. Soon, it was quite visible, showing the figure to be mostly a black color, except for a pair of glowing red, slanted eyes. Its limbs were thin, and it was quite obviously bipedal. One curving plate of metal slanted up from its forehead to a triangular point, and three more lights could be seen on its chest, although small.

At the speed it was sprinting now, it would be upon him and whomever else was in the hall within a matter of seconds.

psikeout · Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2011 6:39 pm

It should have been fairly expected that Rock was going to shoot first, investigate remains later—especially with unfamiliar robots running the halls.

He poked just enough further around the corner to raise his weapon, and from there immediately sighted in the robot's center mass and opened fire a split second later. It was a testament to his inhuman grip that he was able to wield the full-size assault rifle with one working hand and fire it like a pistol; even moreso that he was pretty spot-on doing it, largely unaffected by recoil even through a hearty five-round full-auto blurt.

Rock launched out of cover without delay. If his target was down, all the better; if it wasn't, he'd be in its face that instant, dealing with it as necessary (see: with one big boot).

NPC · Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2011 6:54 pm

There was the resonating sound of bullet meeting metal, but the robot seemed mostly unaffected. There were visible dents where the firing had a made contact, albeit small ones, but that didn't deter from the fact the thing was mostly bullet proof.

Its red eyes brightened as the white primate leaped towards him, a minuscule buzz sounding from it. Just as Rock's foot was to make contact, it ducked with efficiency towards the side, initiating a smooth roll as it moved out of the way. The reaction and speed of the maneuver was perfect, seeing how it completely avoided the attack. The robot was turning out to be quite proficient.

But, strangely enough, instead of turning back to swipe, shoot, or throw whatever defensive actions that could be imagined at Rock, it simply was up and running once more, still sprinting in the same direction down the hall.

psikeout · Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2011 7:07 pm

Rock landed with a few stutter steps for deceleration, and quickly swerved to put his back to a side wall, next to a garbage can. He looked back as the thing continued on its way, but did not pursue it; he didn't want to get tangled up facing the wrong way if more had any chance of coming from ahead, so he left it to Jam to deal with for the moment, while holding position just long enough to dispose of his (apparently useless) rifle.

The gunbarrel was still smoking from the burning of freshly-applied gun oil as he shoved it in the trash can. (This, he figured, was the safest place to put it until later; what dope would go looking for guns in the garbage?)

Mie · Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2011 10:06 pm

It may have spoken volumes about Rock and Jam's working relationship, the way things fell into place without so much as a breath's communication. Despite being the swifter of the two, she fell to his flank, and tucked into the wall seamlessly behind him as he opened up on their quarry (or possibly predator, depending on how the next few seconds went). There she waited patiently, while his initial assault segued from fire to physical, until flowing unpunctuatedly out in his wake to transition to the next movement of the fight.

The pinker primate rolled neatly and succinctly into the path of their mechanical foe, unfurling mere fractions of a second before impact, literally popping up in clean, effortless vertical ascent. She cleared the thing's head by centimeters with a shower of sparks, and a disorienting, flash of hot white, as her shield erupted to life, and boomed outward in a brief, but powerful electromagnetic pulse.

Without missing a beat, she landed crisply on its other side, swinging abruptly about face in the same motion with which she drew her shotgun to hip-level, pumped it, and dropped her shield just long enough to unload the chamber into their adversary's backside point blank.

NPC · Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2011 1:02 am

The robot did not do much as Jam skimmed past above it, and as the pulse of electricity hit its frame, it jerked slightly. Despite its smooth actions from before, it stumbled now as it systems were jolted. Things were not in its favor either as the blast from the shotgun slammed into its back, heavy, metal feet rapidly skimming forward in order to keep its balance. The pellets of the gun did some more significant damage than the rifle, being from such close range, more dents appearing on its back.

Yet it refused to fall or stop.

One foot slammed forward, and with a buzz and another shudder as it recovered from the electricity, it pivoted quickly. Even though it was now facing the pink monkey, it started to jog backward, raising an arm in the process. The limb itself began to change right before Jam's eyes, and what was once a hand was now morphing into a thin barrel. One with similarity to a previous rifle just used.

Now sprinting backwards with general ease, the arm "gun" open fired down the hall. The shots seemed random and almost inexperienced at first, some being thrown to either primate's feet, others just dinging off walls. It was unclear if it was truly trying to wipe them out, or only to scare them off.

It kept running in reverse, starting to get some distance down the hall, maintaining a speed that was equal to that of it going forward.

psikeout · Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2011 4:03 am

That robot was... strange. No avoiding that conclusion. Its desperation to pass was apparent; one in Rock's position would be forced to think it was either stupid or after something, and it didn't act like it was stupid.

He was moving to pursue the incredibly-suspicious robot when more noise—more of that clackety clattering and clanging—echoed and rose from the distant recesses of the hall. It would be too hopeful to assume that it was, say, some helpful platoon of Capsule Troopers on its way to help. (Not in a million years.)

"Forget that one, we got inbound!" he shouted, and crouched for cover next to the garbage can again. It wasn't good cover, but it was at least some obstacle to use while he sorted out his next move.

NPC · Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2011 1:04 pm

clang clank clank clank clang clang clank clank clang clank

A rumble was occurring in the floor as the new sounds approached, sounding like the robot from before but multiplied immensely. The eruption of noise was even tuning out the still-sounding alarm, and the overhead lights and some gratings to the vents could be heard shaking in their holders now.

Before long, dozens of glowing eyes of a variety of colors were seen down the corridor, belonging to that of a robot horde.

They came in many shapes, but more or less were the same sizes. Some showed multiple limbs, holding weapons that seemed to be charged with energy, while others were more humanoid in appearance. A majority of the intruders ran across the floor, but there were a limited few who scuttled across the ceiling and walls, three or more legs clawing into the metal of the colony for grip as they moved along like mechanical spiders.

Unlike the leading, black robot, these ones seemed to have no intention of just simply passing by. The leaders of the group seemed to already be charging towards doors that showed the peeking faces of the other survivors, most of the said people fleeing back into their rooms. The rest marched forward, buzzes and other computer-like noises occurring between them as they began to near the monkeys.

Mie · Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2011 1:50 pm

With less than a moment to indulge the self-satisfied smirk and accompanying fist pump that surfaced at her prematurely celebrated victory, Jam soon found herself diving to the side, pressing her back flat against the wall, while her shield busily turned bullets away. Her jaw slightly agape, the punch-hued monkey watched in disbelief as her target continued its flight as though only mildly inconvenienced by her efforts, and made the initial, indignant lunge after it when Rock's warning jarred her to a halt. As she whipped her head back towards the incoming wave, a muddled expression of incredulity and disgust colored her face, before she, in a slightly higher register than her normal voice, expectorated a brusque, "You gotta be s***tin' me!"

Peeling herself all too eagerly away from the wall (but mostly just the things skittering along it), the reddish girl danced backward several jogging steps; the luminescence of her sphere dimmed and burned in concert with her fist, clenching and unfurling, as though testing something. As the robo-mob flooded into the hall, rapidly approaching the primate pair, Jam planted her feet, ground her teeth in concentration, and heaved her shield outward, in a rapid, strobing explosion of intense, pulsing light. It was hard to tell where one EMP ended and another began, but their numbers were sufficient to fill what was sure to be the longest three or four seconds of Layla's life.

She could only hope it'd actually do something.

psikeout · Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2011 2:19 pm

Rock didn't get a chance to launch his own offensive. Why? As every lighting fixture in the vicinity just flat out died from the small-scale electrical storm, the garbage can, of all things, had its own reaction: it started making sounds like popcorn on steroids, and bullets started flying out.

Jam had just succeeded in producing an electromagnetic blast powerful enough to cook off his rifle's ammo. Worse yet, being Rock, he had duct-taped three magazines side by side for easier reloading. The white primate scrambled away from that box of death as fast as he could, stumbling a couple steps just past Jam.

As he slid and stopped, he drew his backup gun. The CT pistol, while not immediately lethal to organic targets (it usually took a few direct hits to cave a head in real nice [don't ask when he discovered this]), was a kinetic weapon that produced small, concussive bursts on impact that generally played havoc on small, hard targets. A viable option in this case? Not so much. There were too many targets. It wasn't to say he couldn't thin or weaken the crowd some before it reached them, though, so, standing and shooting around Jam's shield (he had learned to be confident in her both as a form of mobile cover and light, funny enough), he let the handgun rip at nearly full-auto speed until one of three things happened: it overheated, everything died, or the machines entered melee range and the real fight could begin.

NPC · Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2011 3:13 pm

As the horde rushed forward right into the incoming pulses of electricity, it was obvious when it hit. Robots jerked and buzzed as the wave of energy burst through their systems, and with a shudder, some just simply stopped functioning. Figures dropped with heavy clangs onto the corridor's floor, even a few of the spider monstrosities falling from their higher elevation than the others. Mechanical bodies slid across the floor and came to a rest, leaving a neat layer of robot corpses all along the hall.

Yet this did not decommission every hostility charging their way. Where the others had fallen, more ran up to take its place, only have paused briefly as the EMPs washed over them. It was now obvious some were capable of surviving the onslaught of electricity, although nearly half of their brethren now lay silent on the floor.

Meanwhile, Rock's gun work was doing well in holding some of the others back. A few were flung backwards as they were blasted in their faces, others stumbling forward, now missing one, two, or (if their design was capable of such a thing) three eyes. More robots fell now, showing how downgraded they were compared to the very first enemy encountered. Yet this didn't hide the fact that more were still approaching, and the continuing, steady rumble signaled even more in tow behind the first group.

---

In the meantime, sitting in the control room, illuminated by the glow of a multitude of monitors, Astrid poured over as much information as she could in an attempt to discern where in the universe they had landed. As always, when she was deeply absorbed in her research, it took a while for anything that wasn’t immediately relevant to it to break into her awareness… which would be why a persistent, rhythmic alert had escaped her notice. With a start, she looked away from her readout and turned to a tracking screen that showed a mob of hostile-looking dots converging on the ARK.

What did each of those dots mean? Oh. Right. Something robotic in origin. Oh dear.

With a soft ‘eep’ of dismay, the science squirrel scrambled for her radio to send an alert to anyone who might receive it on the ARK (re: Rock, Jam, Tau) that hostiles were approaching… yet, curiously, her radio signal appeared to already be in use. When she attempted to send a warning to them, instead of sending her warning, a slightly garbled message came through. Disturbingly to the squirrel, the message used her voice, although it was a more focused, assertive version:

“-need to… get out- - ship is self-destructing- -come back- -ARK-”

Aloud, the confused scientist murmured, “Is this… to the ship graveyard team?”

Invaders Must Die (Ch. 3b: Day 1, pt. VI)

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