Star Brigade: A 53rd Century Adventure RP

[JoJo]

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Ruth wanted to discuss the fate of the infected colonists with the Diplomatic corps but since the other corps Lime and Tom had told her about earlier hadn't arrived yet, she thought it best to hold her tongue for now. She felt a tap on her shoulder and turned round to see Najeed.

"Everything alright?" she asked the teenage boy.

"Eh... not really," he admitted "It's my sister miss Ruth, she isn't waking up and she hasn't drunk or eaten anything since yesterday."

"Let's take a look," Ruth sighed and followed Najeed, slipping on a white mask she had in her pocket. The small girl was lying spread out on a rug, a little saliva dripping from her open mouth. Beside her, their father was kneeling holding his one hand to his stump, muttering something about Allah. Ruth didn't believe in a deity herself but she could see why many people did in situations like this. She checked the little girl's pulse, it was faint but still present.

"Well, you guys know I'm no doctor of course," Ruth said "and I'm afraid this has gone beyond where I can help. We'll have to ask the Diplomatic Corps if any of them have more advanced medical training whilst we're waiting to be picked up."

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Captain Vance's face remained unreadable but it was clear to the staff around him that he was considering his options.

"I appreciate your kind offer to extract my Diplomatic Corps..." he started "but you must realise this situation is more complicated than that. I don't know if you are aware of this but I must inform you that our records indicate that about fifty S.U. citizens were living in the colony up to a few weeks ago and according to our men on the ground, there's at-least a couple of dozen still alive. Many of them may well be infected by this... disease. Would they be transported by you too?"

The Captain leaned back, he had a couple of other questions he was burning to ask but they could wait until Tallek's had replied.

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"Might as well go left..." Mae said wearily, just relieved to be out of the tunnel. The map seemed to be indicating that way but it wasn't particularly clear, it looked liked the whole layout had been obtained from recycled satellite images and parts of the surroundings were covered from above by vegetation.

 

[Bravo 21]

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"Well left it is then." Muo moved in the recommended direction, thankful to have left behind the confines of the tunnel. With the Durras spreading out to either side, he advanced, weapon ready, looking for any sign of the sentiments that had attacked the other team. However, as he advanced, he sighted nothing, and slowly relaxed, confident that any threat was now either dead or gone, and he soon found himself emerging on what seemed to be a clearing of some sort.

 

[Evrant-Knight]

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"Each to their own I suppose." Gabriel remarked with a wry little smile. He then set the sniper rifle aside, and started some adjustments to his SMG, that was sat in front of it. Whilst doing this work, he continued to talk with Lime; an air of confidence surrounding him.

"Although, I don't just do sniper support, I'm trained to deal with long, medium, and short range targets. Hence, why I have these other guns, and this knife with me. It's so I can adapt to a situation. There is also the fact, that I am an accomplished hacker. You could say, my role is more of a stealth and infiltration route, but I'm still good in a regular fire fight."

"As for my service record Commander, I was uh, a commando in a special forces unit known as Spectre Team. We were a group, that essentially didn't exist, hence the name. Our missions were not conventional by any stretch of the imagination; you couldn't do them with a standard military group, you had to have highly trained, and very well equipped professionals, to undertake such assignments." He said with a look of determination, somewhat proud of his 'career'.

"You won't find much information about our activities, especially what happened after Elysium..." Gabriel remarked, trailing off afterwards, before returning to the conversation at hand.

"Let us just say, its classified, and besides, I'm the only one left. Rest of the squad got killed." He later added, showing a look of sincerity and sadness on his face.

"Anyway, I'm sure you have more questions to ask, besides my background." He later remarked, returning to a more calm, and happy demeanour.

 

[TheBlueShotgun0]

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James saw Lime's flash through the transparent dome to the east. "Come on guys" he said. "They're over there." James, sure that the others would follow him, started jogging towards the dome. He had to jump over plenty of bushes and fallen logs, but he still reached the dome promptly. He opened the entrance hatch to let everyone through before entering himself. Once the depressurization cycle was complete, James and company picked through the rubble towards Lime and a human he was talking to. They reached them just as the human finished talking. "Commander." James said happily. "Good to see you in one piece. Where are the others?" James thought it was odd that he didn't see Brian or Tom around. The other, unknown human then caught James' eye. There was something off about him. Muo, Lime, and the other non-humans probably wouldn't notice it, but he was different, though James couldn't pin-point exactly how. That, combined with the variety of weapons layed out before him, made James hesitant to trust this stranger. "Who's this?" he said with a nod towards the uncanny human.

 

[Evrant-Knight]

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Gabriel had finished tinkering with the SMG, when more people arrived in the dome. One of them, obviously another member of the Diplomatic Core, judging by the way he greeted Lime, soon came over. From the looks of it, he was hesitant around Gabriel, probably somewhat scared by the assortment of weapons. He decided to offer a friendly welcome to the new arrival.

"Hello there, the name is Gabriel Wolfe." He announced, offering a hand out to the man, but he seemed hesitant to respond, so Gabriel returned to his guns. He continued to talk as he worked, remaining focused throughout.

"Former special operations commando; specializing in stealth, infiltration, assassination, and hacking. Was discharged after my squad got killed. Acted as a mercenary for a few years, earned myself the nickname of "The White Wolf", then decided to live out in the colonies. I am nice guy you know, and you don't have to worry, these have only killed cultists so far. Your Commander Lime there can vouch for that." Gabriel's attention, then returned to the newcomer as he turned in his chair.

"Judging by your attire, you work in engineering I presume?"

"If your looking for your crewman Brian, I am afraid he is dead, Cultists killed him. Your medic Tom tried to save him, but he was too far gone. I am sorry for your loss. If you want to say some final words, he is over there. A brief last rites have been given, but I presume you'll want something more professional done, once your back on board ship-" Gabriel mentioned, bringing the newcomer up to speed on the events surrounding the security officer's death, pointing out where he was laid to rest in the process with a nonchalant gesture, before talking to himself briefly. "-that is, if we got off this planet alive."

After re-attaching the SMG's silencer, and making a few brief scans of the weapon with his wrist device, Gabriel returned to the newcomer. He noticed the engineer's eyes, darting across back and forth, scanning Gabriel with what could be assumed, as interest.

"Take it you have questions for me. Go ahead, ask them." Gabriel remarked in a calm, and polite manner.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

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Tom
Tom's comm bead started beeping, echoing through his ear. It was Lime. Flicking the bead on, he shook off the headache and spoke.

"Yeah, Lime? It's Tom, what's happened? I've been following your signals for a while now, but I haven't found a way inside yet. Any suggestion? From the looks of things, the command center has a number of self sealing bulkheads that are keeping me out. Do you think you could override them from your end?"

Tom leaned against the outer wall, smoothed by the grit and water that covered it every day. He was worried. Brian hadn't been looking good last he'd seen before flying out a window, and to his knowledge, none of the other team members had medical skills. If they could get him up to Nate on the ship, no that would take too long. He was probably dead. Tom lowered his head sadly at the thought.

His moment of melancholy was short lived, however. He heard voices around the corner, but they weren't human. He flipped his unicom 1 back on, and the filtration identified the speakers as Durras. Their chant didn't sound friendly. Something about worshiping the Gyrale, and sacrificing the nonbelievers. He crept around corner to get a better look. The Durras looked severely ill, their fur falling out, and a sickly drool coming from their mouths. Their second and third set of arms were limp, but they still carried weaponry that could blow Tom's head off.

He slid back into his hiding spot, and commed Lime again. "And, if it isn't too much trouble, could you help me with a little cultist problem when you get here?

 

[TheBlueShotgun0]

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"Shit!" James exclaimed as Lime tore the bulkhead off it's hinges. He drew his pistol and ran towards the commotion. He reached Lime just as he rose the door as a shield. He took cover behind the door frame and clicked the safety off. The LED's of the gun lit up, indicating that it was ready to fire. James took a breath, then poked out of cover, bring the gun up to it's aiming position. One of the Durras stood in the open, firing its own weapon at Lime's shield. James turned the pistol towards the alien and puller the trigger three times. For each pull, and bolt of plasma flew out of the gun's barrel and slammed into the Durras' chest. It fell, it's lungs disintegrated, and died. James ducked back behind cover. "Yo Wolfe!" he shouted. "We could use a hand!"

 

[Evrant-Knight]

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After hearing his name called, Gabriel grabbed his rifle from off the workbench he had been stationed at, and headed towards the commotion that was happening outside. He could see that Lime had torn the bulkhead door off, and began using it as a makeshift club, smashing the cultists down one by one. The engineer had also joined the fray, taking shots with his plasma pistol.

Gabriel started firing at the cultists as well, and with each shot, another one went down. He could see a figure crouched down behind some cover, and called out to him.

"Hey you!" Gabriel shouted, managing to catch the person's attention. "Get inside now. We've got you covered." He then turned his head back to the main area of the dome, and directed his attention to some of the security guards, who were busy playing cards.

"Bailey. Calhoun. Vega. Grab your rifle, and lend us a hand." They soon scrambled to attention, picking up their weapons, and rushed into cover, adding some extra fire power to the defence.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

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The sudden blast of Lime tearing off the bulkhead frame drew the Durras attention long enough for a number of them to have undergone facial reconstruction via gun. Tom broke from cover amid the confusion, making a mad dash for the opening. Aside from Lime, Jams and a strangely tanned man were leading a number of security guards out to mop up the cultists. Tom pushed past them and threw himself in the doorway. He was no good with a gun, so he kept his head down while the military end of the Corps mopped up.

 

[Bravo 21]

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Muo followed the others to the door, and once Lime had ripped the door open, he moved up further to assault any Durras who dared try to enter the door. The first wave of cultists were rapidly cut down by the other DC members, and Muo brushed past the guards to stand next to Lime, firing into the opening from where the cultists had come. There was a brief pause, and then additional cultists were upon them. That pause gave him just enough time to consider that he had no real idea what the cultists were fighting for, their reason for being here, but then they were upon him, and he knew his purpose. His purpose was to fight.
He did so with brutality, firing his rifle, as he charged the first two Durras to attempt an approach towards the door. He slammed into them, battering the smaller sentients until they stopped resisting, and then he roared a challenge to the forest before him, daring anyone to approach him.

 

[JoJo]

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The remaining wave of cultists fell back as the Diplomatic Corps and the Durras security guards which Gabriel had called over cut through their ranks. It was clear that while the infected Durras were almost suicidally devoted to their cause, they were also virtually undisciplined which gave the corps a strong advantage on a level-playing field. The last of the cultists disappeared as quickly as they had arrived and the corps and their allies were left alone in sudden eerie silence.

Further back in the facility, Ruth and the civilians looked up from behind the assorted desks and boxes they had been sheltering behind, their eyes wide with fear. A small dark-haired child tried to climb over to see better but was quickly pulled back down by his parents. Ruth called over to the corps and guards.

"Is it safe to come out now?" she asked in a slightly shrill voice.

 

[Evrant-Knight]

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Whatever remained of the horde of Durras Cultists, quickly fell from the combined might of the Diplomatic Corps, and the colonies own security forces. The noise of the battlefield, slowly died down, eventually leaving the area with an odd silence. Gabriel lowered his rifle when he overheard Ruth call out from underneath a desk.

"Is it safe to come out now?" She asked, a rather nervous tone in her voice.

"You can come out from under the table now. The cultists are all-" Gabriel remarked, but was interrupted by the sound of growling coming from outside. It seems as though a couple of Cultists had staved off death for a few brief moments, and began to crawl their way towards the base, still intent on completing their mission. He un-holstered his pistol, and fired a round into each of the cultists without looking, their growls went silent instantly.

"-Well, they are certainly all dead now. For their complete lack of military discipline, they certainly showed determination." Gabriel remarked, almost complementing the enemy in some small manner of speaking. He then put his guns back, and headed inside. Without turning his head, he talked back to those still stationed outside.

"Good work everyone! We certainly showed them." He then gave a nonchalant gesture of congratulations. Gabriel then pulled Ruth up from under the table.

"You okay? Not injured are you." He asked, showing concern, placing a hand on Ruth's shoulder.

 

[Evrant-Knight]

After checking up on Ruth, Gabriel started giving orders to various groups.

"Natko, Forge, Crowler; get that door back into position, and repair it, don't want the Norg having an advantage when it comes to a fire fight."

"Selena, Monroe, O'Leary, Gabeson; help the colonists with packing up, you heard the Commander, we have to get out of here soon."

"Booker, Graves, Jones, put any essential equipment into storage, and then get some basic security up in case the Norg decide to drop on by."

"Finally, McKennah, hand me a copy of those Heli-Drone schematics of yours, then help the engineering team with the door."

As the groups carried out their assigned tasks, Gabriel went over to a security console, plugging in his hacking tool. He began quietly talking to himself, as he made a connection to the Norg vessel. "Now then, lets see what your up to, you insects." Gabriel then cycled through the communication logs, focusing primarily on the Norg messages.

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*DECRYPTING NORG COMMUNICATION FREQUENCIES*

"We are here to remove the disease, and all who carry it. We are cleansing this colony for Tallek."

"Tallek would be pleased if we could communicate, and organize a cooperative strike against this taint."

"Strike is against gryale and those infected. Those that don't resist will be allowed free passage on evacuation ships. Gryale are the enemy Durras and other species are incidental. We'll be sending out messengers soon."

"The Durras are a threat to Tallek's. They worship the plague spreaders, and their religion renders them blind to the Norg's reasoning."

*DEACTIVATING DECRYPTION PROGRAM. RETURNING TO SPECTRE PROTOCOL*
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"Right. Now then, let us see what the Star Brigade is up to." Gabriel then moved a few programs around, and set up a secure line to the ships data banks. He noticed that the ships A.I., was under orders to disable the Norg vessel's shipborne weaponry, but was having trouble with the redundant system generators. A satisfied smile appeared on Gabriel's face.

"Ah, let me see if I can help speed up the process there, Lisa. After all, the only thing that is good as an A.I., is another A.I." Gabriel quietly said to himself. He then switched to an active hacking program, and started work on removing the redundancy generators. Throughout the process, he moved various programs around the grid in a seemingly random pattern, but for a hacker, they allowed them to weave their way into a system.

Gabriel first activated a mask program, which should hide his hacking signature. He then deployed decoy attack programs, which should allow the Star Brigade to infiltrate the weapons systems easier. He also enhanced the ship A.I.'s own programs, allowing them to work with greater efficiency. Finally, he started work on removing the redundant system generators themselves.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

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Aboard the Star Brigade, Demexin's console lit up. Lisa's hologram filled the screen, smiling.

"Decryption complete. The Norg firewalls are down. Uploading targeting virus to ship born weaponry now. They will be unable to perform an orbital purge while the virus is active. I suggest informing Captain Vance of this update."

"Really? I thought you said it would take time?"

"Their firewalls were taken offline. Upon entry, I concluded that it was not a self inflicted disabling to draw us into a trap. They merely dropped. Strange... perhaps I underestimated my own abilities. Let the Captain know of that as well."

Demexin nodded, swiftly walking back to where Vance confronted Tallek's drone on the screen. He nodded silently to the captain that it was time to play their trump card. Tallek's continued to speak.

"We see that your ship is poorly armed to perform an orbital purge. If you do not have the means, we shall carry out our task without you. Tallek's transports are away to retrieve survivors, and to eliminate ground opponents. The Durras will not be spared. Infected or not, they are in contact with a plague inflicted colony. Their connection to the taint renders them suspect. Union members will be extracted. All else shall be purged."

 

[JoJo]

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Tom, Lime, Muo and James gathered round a make-shift table whilst the Durras soldiers began preparing their defences under the instructions of Mae and Til. Ruth came to sit down with the four and soon Gabriel joined them too.

"Well, I've already told Lime a bit about this but I guess I have to break this to the rest of you..." Ruth started. "You guys are going to have to make a tough decision. As I'm sure you've noticed, about half of the thirty civilians are infected by the gryale-originated disease. The catch is that the disease is highly infectious, we've lost about twenty people in the last week alone. While I assume the mortality rate would be much lower on-board your ship with access to the latest medical equipment, the chances are it still wouldn't be zero. With a couple of hundred staff aboard your ship, well if this gets out there could be heavy losses, perhaps even more than are saved from this colony. However leaving those infected behind would split up families and be a death sentence for any of those left behind..."

Ruth wiped away what looked like a tear as she said this, she was obviously find her new-found responsibility heavy going.

"I know these people... I can't decide. Since it's your ship, you must get the final say. Gabriel, help them reach a decision, I'll answer questions but that's it."

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The Captain saw Demexin's nod and know now was the time to go on the offensive.

"There's logic behind what you say Tallek's, I'll give you that but you're not looking at the wider picture. Infection or not, the Durras will see the destruction of their colony and it's inhabitants as an act of war. You know what that means right? Your species and the Durras may have it's disagreements but an interplanetary war will help neither of you."

He leaned in closer, meeting the alien's eyes as best he could.

"Any conflict might end up spreading beyond your shared system, there are a number of hard-line senators in the SU government that would favour us backing the Durras in a potential war and who knows whether races like the Schrier or Astrid might decide to take a side. As a precaution we have disabled your ship-borne weaponry, now I'm giving you this one chance to back off and leave this system. Go."

 

[Evrant-Knight]

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As Gabriel was called over to the meeting, he grabbed himself a cup of coffee, taking a sip of it as he sat down. He listened to the situation update that was given by Ruth, afterwards he simply sat back in his chair, unsure of what to do. The entire table sat in silence for a few minutes, contemplating the decisions they had. Gabriel then sat forward, and made his contribution.

"I have two questions, both of which are directed to the Diplomatic Corps members attending this meeting. First, does the Star Brigade, have some form of quarantine zone? Some sort of clean environment, where the infected can exist until a cure can be synthesized. That leads me onto my second question. Could it be possible, to utilize Grayle DNA, to create a vaccine? After all, since they are the progenitors of this outbreak, surely something locked within their genetics, could be used as a template for an antidote."

As Gabriel nervously awaited a response, he took another gulp of coffee, it tasting more bitter than before; perhaps it was just the tense situation making him think it was like that.