Event Escape From Mataou - Dead Money

[Kamelle Skyler]

Spoiler: Music OOC

With the sound of blasterfire and the whooshing all around her it was a shame that Kamelle could not hear the snapping and cracking of all the bones and bodies breaking against one another and against the walls. She might have been one to shed the cliché of cackling while painting her face red but there was something about broken bones that just clicked and popped.

“Agreed,” Kamelle agreed with the Jedi’s praise of their outstanding teamwork, whistling her breath into the foul air that rank with fallen flesh. She smiled at the boy who had just proven himself as something more than. “And you didn’t even scream this time.”

Once again the Jedi and Sith found themselves complementing one another. Jedi’s lightsaber searched for survivors with the pointy end, Sith simply angled her blade so that it sliced through necks while trailing behind her.

With Jedi on the comlink, it seemed prudent to let her take the lead alongside Hunter’s translation skills. At that, Screamer turned Kamelle’s way and said something about Hunter not being responsible for the alarm trip, and thus he hitherto was not a moron. The Sith just blinked at the boy. “...Okay?”

In the Grand Hall, the boy had read the Sith’s mind. She had come for the treasure. Was there any time to take it? Is there any kriffing treasure? She thought back to the voice recording. “Hutt treasure vault . . . I am stuck in . . . Can topple their grip on the galactic underworld . . . Finance a war . . . Help me escape . . . ”

Ten minutes was no longer ten minutes. It was not likely that they were going to stop that bombardment from down here. But maybe the treasure vault itself is also an exit? Hidden passage? Some might find that senseless. It actually made sense. If you needed to escape your own palace from within then you did so through the most secure room and took as much treasure with you on your way out. Especially if you’re a slimy fat slug.

“Whatever.” Kamelle shrugged after Screamer’s speech, glimpsing the decor of the Grand Hall as they moved, not really admiring it so much as imagining it all coming down in a crumble. “I plan on leaving this morgue alive. If that means leaving empty-handed then at least I’ll still have my hands.” A nod Jedi’s way. “Sanitized hands.”


@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx
@Tom @Phoenix @Reyn

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

As the growling and groaning stopped Klied stepped out from the defensive position he had taken in the doorway, somewhat stunned by the scene. The Jedi and the Sith, and the kid as well. They were all Force sensitive. And they had just decimated a crowd of undead in a matter of seconds. No wonder these guys were at the center of all the galaxy's problems. "You're all wizards?" He asked incredulously as he stepped out and holstered his Westar. "I thought you guys were supposed to be one in a million. Do you just appear out of the ether when things go sideways?" Felt like awful bad luck to be around them if that were the case. Still, he offered the kid a nod of appreciation in return when he stuck up for him, even if he didn't really care what the Sith had to say about him.

He stuck close to the group as they made their way to the main hall, but remained silent as the kid excitedly went off. He'd seen Hutt palaces before, and this definitely fit the description. No doubt there was quite the fortune lying around somewhere. If they had the time he would have combed the whole place top to bottom for it. But they didn't.

"Red's right." The hunter spoke up once more as he looked around at the decorum. He still didn't know any of their names, so he just addressed her after the color of her laser sword. "Even if we knew where this supposed treasure was, we wouldn't have the time to do much more than fill our pockets. I say we just try and grab the com guy if we can. He's probably worth something to someone." He would then turn his head upwards, looking for any sign of cameras or an intercom. Something just wasn't sitting right with him about all of this. He wanted answers, and apparently there was only one man who had them. Where was he?

@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx @Tom @Phoenix @Die Shize

 

[Drow Venn]

Drow had been talk during his mercenary days to use every obstacle as a potential opportunity. So he put that thinking into good practice by slamming his back into the wall so that the new turret suddenly had a clean line of fire to the Infected behind him. Next, all he had to do was remain still to not be picked up by the turret's motion detectors and wait for the thing to blast the second half of the Infected following him. Once that was done, it had to recharge for another salvo which was when Drow leaped into action and threw his saber in an arc that neatly severed every barrel of the turret before returning to the Ishi Tib's hand. Drow grinned at the smoothness of the maneuver - almost as if the gods above had guided his hands to perform this perfect 10/10 move. Or, perhaps, 20 out of 20...

Drow kept his weapons drawn and headed into the security room.

@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx

Roll: Nat 20+2

 

[Aska Ryun]

It didn’t matter the term used, Aska just wanted to get the hell moving once Sevrin relayed the dire news. It was clear upon arrival that it was only a matter of time before the Hutt’s moved to glass the city but either by naivety or wishful thinking, she thought they’d have more of an opportunity to find this sleemo in the facility and get him, and his rumored treasure that she was beginning to doubt even existed, out of here. The fear had returned, spurring the clone down the hall.

Passing a door that was about half way down the corridor, the sounds of grinding steel and the occasional round of blaster fire echoing from within. Looking upwards, the image of a pistol partnered with a word of huttese could be seen.

”It’s an armory! Best not bother! C’mon, this way!” Aska bellowed, her heart racing against the clock. Besides, only an idiot opens a door to a gun fight.

Of course, she had forgotten just who her partner was. Fearless? Certainly. Logical? More often than not, he could be. This was not one of those moments.

She had ignored Poffo’s conspiracy rambling in part to just not being interested. Regardless of whether or not the Hutt’s had orchestrated this ruse, she didn’t want to be here to find out. But as she arrived at the door that led into the main hall, evident from the sign above, she noticed that the Coruscanti was not behind her but instead was reaching out to the armory door.

”Poffo, you dipshit! No!” But it looked to be too late.

Flipped for stopping Poffo
@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx @Sreeya @Isen @Fantasy Liver​

 

[Sevrin Valtiere]

Sevrin heard Zathria and began to walk with the others. At some point the woman walked a different path and he was stuck with the large man and all his ramblings. He commed Zathria back quietly, “I appear to be following a bumbling idiot, I will comm you when I have more productive updates.”

He didn’t know when he got stuck with babysitting duties, but most of the journey was filled with theories and grumblings that suggested the man had a few screws loose. The Sephi wanted to go with the woman but he feared what the moron would do when left to his own devices.

As if on cue, the woman’s voice called out from the other end of the path, picked up by his sensitive ears. The Sephi whirled around to look at Puff, “Wait don’t-” At the very least Sevrin stood a few feet back so if anything came through, he wouldn’t be in any immediate danger.

The door opened and he could make out quite a bit of weaponry inside. He didn’t spot any infected and proceeded with caution to quickly scan over everything. While this would likely benefit those that used blasters, there was nothing for him here. Still, it would be foolish to leave behind such a loot.

Sevrin grabbed one weapon for the woman screaming from the end of the hall that had been instrumental in getting them through this place. He grabbed the second for a woman that was nothing more than a pain for him but had a tendency to get into similarly idiotic situations. (@Killa Ree )

He didn’t give a sideways glance towards Puff and what he was doing before he spun on his heel and made his way back down the hall. It took him only a moment to reach the merc woman and he casually tossed one of the blasters over to her, “I never saw you take this,” He stated curtly.

With that, he would follow her to the main hall.

@Tulos @Isen @Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx @Phoenix

 

[The Gatekeeper]

Drow was able to destroy the turret in short order, having used it to his advantage to clear his pursuers before dispatching it easily. He would be unopposed as he stepped into the main security room, with its attached armory. On the opposite wall as he entered, Drow would find a repeater resting as though awaiting his arrival. It was not attached to the wall via any locks or other mechanisms, simply placed on the wall to await a chance to be used.

Poffo and Sevrin would barge into the same room through the side door and find Drow just kind of waiting for them as he grabbed the gun he had selected. How they decided to react to the sudden reappearance of the Jedi from the front entrance was up for debate of course.

With much shepherding by Aska, the team would begin to head toward the Main Hall though they would be slightly behind the team that had cleared the other side of the complex first.

--

As the team of Zathria, Kamelle, Kliedeen and Laeonas moved into the Main Hall, they were greeted by a completely different sight to the corridors before.

Gone was the overwhelming feeling of being cramped or compressed - replaced by an abundance of space all of a sudden. The room they had emerged into having a wonderfully high ceiling of metal and stone, the walls covered in paintings and other forms of artwork. To the keen lover of art, the assembled pieces could be seen for what they were; expensive but ultimately crap.

The work of talented artists who had turned their talents to making credits, leaving art with little in the way of actual worth. Indeed, there were barely any furnishings at all aside from the art, a trio of sofas and little else. Worse still for the intrepid adventurers; there was no other door.

From where the party were standing, there was only the door they had arrived through and the door that connected to the corridor their fellow adventurers were to be entering from. Of those already in the hall, it was Kamelle who noticed something off about the ‘Main Hall’ first.

No throne.

Marks along the corners of the far wall.

Scrape-like marks.

Kamelle would be able to warn her allies a moment before it happened; a moment before the entire far wall began to slowly rise up, slotting into a recess hidden in the ceiling. As the wall began to climb, the Voice spoke up.

“I didn’t think you would make it this far but I hoped you would - we needed you to make it so that we had a chance to do the same. I’m sorry but there is one more challenge ahead of you and its what has kept me and my friends trapped here for so long… the pets of the last Hutt to own the Vault.”

The wall crossed the halfway point, halfway to the ceiling, when the assembled adventurers would be able to see more of the full picture. The Main Hall was actually twice again as large as they had first expected. Deeper into the room there were two large blast doors, one leading right and the other left, along with a much smaller single blast door in the far wall itself. About halfway up the far wall was a large viewing window, showing a few dozen people huddling away from the armored glass.

Huddled away from it because of what had, up until the wall retracted, been attempting to gain access to the room beyond the glass.

An almighty roar erupted, shaking the very bones of the assembled adventurers as the creatures, the ‘pets’, of the Hutt turned to face the new source of food. There was a small pack of Acklays, four of them in fact, that were very obviously Infected with the virus. The effects on the Acklays were seen in the form of a secondary layer of congealed blood and pus that coated their underbelly - they screeched in concert with each other was enough to shatter non-toughened glass.

What had roared, however, was the largest of the obstacles the adventurers would have to face - a Bull Rancor, fully grown and fully Infected with the virus. The mammoth beast, with its head horns glistening with freshly drawn blood, was a horrific sight. In the case of the Bull Rancor, the Infection seemed to have focused on strength even more than it did in the typical Infected. With a seemingly errant shake of its head, the Rancor’s horns launched the stone throne of the Hutt at the group as it roared once more.

@Phoenix @Die Shize @Tom @Reyn
@Isen @Tulos @Sreeya @Fantasy Liver

 

[Aska Ryun]

Theme​

As Sevrin approached the doorway, tossing a weapon to Aska, she looked down to the disruptor before looking back at him with a questioning smirk. A Jedi handing off an illegal disintrigation blaster to a mercenary?

”Now I’ve seen everything,” she chuckled as the door slid open to reveal the Throne Room. Upon entering, she could see the other group had already arrived, nodding to Klied from across the room. Happy to see he was still alive, she took note that his cycler rifle was no longer on his person. It seemed that they too had run into all sorts of trouble but she was glad to see that they had all survived up to now.

“I didn’t think you would make it this far but I hoped you would - we needed you to make it so that we had a chance to do the same. I’m sorry but there is one more challenge ahead of you and its what has kept me and my friends trapped here for so long… the pets of the last Hutt to own the Vault.”

The massive wall at the far end of the room began to lift, revealing their final obstacle. And what an obstacle it was.

”I take it back. Now I’ve seen everything,”Aska proclaimed as the hideous mutated beasts came into view. Never before had she tackled such a threat but she was far from surprised. After how everything had transpired, this was damn near expected. Besides, why else would a distress beacon be sent out if there wasn't impossible odds? Hutts will always be Hutts and owning exotic and dangerous beasts was practically a requirement.

Knowing her SE-45 would likely be ineffective against any of these beasts, Aska raised her newly acquired DX-2, leveling the sights on the Acklay furthest to the left. There was still a good amount of distance between both teams and the creatures but that would soon change. Firing three rounds at the chest of the ravenous jungle beast, she prepared to move if the beast should inevitably charge.

@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx @Sreeya @Isen @Reyn @Tom @Fantasy Liver @Phoenix @Die Shize​

 

[Zathria]

Sanitized hands indeed as the Sith had pointed out! It was all jokes and games until someone caught AMS and started eating their partner.

Zathria actually snickered slightly at Sevrin's comment about his companions. She may have been saddled with a Sith, but at least she wouldn't classify any of her partners as "bumbling idiots."

As they broke into the main hall, Zathria was glad to be in a more open space. The cramped halls and hordes of enemies waiting to ambush them seemed like it put them at a constant disadvantage. Or did it? Funneling enemies into tight spaces eliminated numerical disadvantage, so perhaps it was a good thing.

The Voice started speaking up again, and Zathria tried to suppress the anger that was welling up inside of her as she listened. "I didn't expect you to make it this far" really gave bad vibes, and the lack of forewarning about what they would face didn't help her mood.

And then she saw and heard what they were going to face. Her jaw actually dropped open in shock and her eyes went wide. The rancor alone would have gotten this reaction, but a quartet of acklay as well only made it worse.

Bad, bad, bad, the unhelpful voice in her mind told her as she began to back up, eyes darting around looking for any advantage to be had.

As the rancor all but hurled the throne at the group, Zathria leapt to the side and started scrambling to dig through her pack for the bottle of sanitizer.

Sanitizer was here to save the day! Of course, turning a plastic bottle into a flaming cocktail was tricky. Without glass to shatter on contact, she had to improvise, and she had to do it fast.

But she had the Force, and that was useful for a lot of things. She gripped the bottle with the Force and ran her saber quickly across the very top. The bottle was sheered open and the superheated plasma of the blade immediately lit the alcohol aflame. She let the Force wrap around the bottle like a capsule, moving quickly so that it wouldn't burn out its own oxygen supply and hurled it at the rancor. Without the help of the Force, she never would have tried such a throw, but with its aid it was perfectly possible.

She aimed for the rancor's head, though where exactly it would land was uncertain. If she could land it in the creature's roaring mouth then perhaps it could scald all the way down the throat and into the lungs. If not, then hopefully it would impact and splash across the face, spraying burning liquid into the creature's eyes to blind it.

She was also glad for the appearance of the other group as one of them opened fire. Their odds were... at least better with more than four of them.

@Nefieslab @Sreeya @Tom @Die Shize @Reyn

 

[Poffo Sauvage]

The fact of the matter was, Poffo didn't know a damn thing about guns. He was a prizefighter or pit fighter depending on how reputable the establishment was that was hosting the fights. He was sort of taken aback at first when he entered. Much like Klied's armory back on Onderon, Poffo really didn't know what he was looking at. He spotted Drow out of the corner of his eye, but he didn't look like a Hutt and he didn't look infected. He seemed familiar...Maybe he piloted one of the two ships that decided not to stay. Poffo would let him be unless he gave him reason not to.

He took his sweet time looking for something. He saw some nice-looking weapons. Unfortunately, he couldn't tell if the blasters were light, medium, or heavy. Did they have a stun? He had no idea. There was a rocket launcher, but it looked like the dang rocket could come out of either end. That wasn't a risk worth taking.

But then, it was as if a glorious light sifted through the concrete and the rock of the compound and made its way to a weapon in particular, spotlighting it like in a divine aura. "Oooooohhhh, yeaaaaaaah," Sauvage whispered to himself. Poffo walked slowly up to it and touched it gingerly. One of his thick, stubby fingers caressed it with a stroke along its barrel. It was an ugly weapon, but it was so....Poffo. He picked up the BM-3KF flamethrower and put it around his neck and over one shoulder via the sling. He loaded it up with a fuel canister and stuffed one more fuel canister into one of the pockets of his amazing jacket. Poffo held his knew prize out in front of him in awe.

Poffo needed a weapon with his flamboyance, that matched his loud, obnoxious temperament. By golly, he found it.

The roar of a very pissed-off animal broke Poffo out of the love affair with his new sweetheart. "Alright, sweety-pie...you and Mr. Macho are about to get fired up, yeah..." Normally Poffo wouldn't let loose such a poor pun, but it was just him and his new love. He came walking out and met up with the rest of the gang. Aska was already shooting at something. Of course Aska was already shooting. And it appeared that another person in the group was in the process of throwing some sort of a petrol bomb made out of hand sanitizer.

Poffo kept walking with the flamethrower leading the way. He didn't know how long this thing would shoot fire, but, he was about to unleash the beast. Within about 15 meters of the bull rancor, he unleashed five bolts of raging flame at the rancor, starting at the knees and firing up the beast until the last of the five bolts would be aimed at the head. Poffo yelled as he fired off the shots, "Give me your drink orders! It's barbecue time and rancor is on the menu, yeah! We're about to snap into it! Ooooooh, yeeeeee-ahh!"

@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx

 

[Drow Venn]

Poffo may not have recognized him but Drow recognized the pit fighter from before and gave the man and polite nod. When he saw Sevrin follow suit, he was even more relieved to see a friendly face; his previous interactions having only been with a giant turret and a couple dozen of Infected. The repeater struck out to Drow instantly. During his mercenary days, this model been used to great effect from the backs of speeders and Drow was familiar with how to use one. Best of all, when they got out of this hellhole, this would be a fine weapon to integrate into Yavin's Temple defenses. He hoisted it off the wall, put his other weapon on his belt, and followed Poffo, eager to find the rest of the group.

"Good to see you in one piece, Sev!" Drow said to his fellow Jedi as he ran out of the room. Following Poffo, Drow almost dropped the repeater, seriously reevaluating his desire to join the others as he saw the five monstrous animals that awaited them in the hall. He wished Isen was here - the young Kiffar had managed to convince a rancor to join their side on Teth and Drow found himself regretting never having learned that technique from the boy. Drow moved quickly.

"Stay clear!" Drow shouted to all assembled, wanting everyone to stay out of the line of fire. Then he'd proceed to open up with the repeater, sending about fifteen rounds each to two of the acklays that were closest to him, moving in a sweeping pattern.

@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

"Aska." Klied would acknowledge his partner's arrival with a nod, as well as the other Jedi and someone new. An Ishi Tib. Had he seen the alien before? Well he seemed to be with them so it didn't particularly matter for the moment. Who he didn't see was their loudmouthed heavy hitter. "Where's Poffo?" He asked the clone. "He owes me a new gun." He explained, remembering it had been the brawler's idea to answer this distress signal in the first place.

There conversation was cut off however by the intercom guy cutting in again, congratulating them on surviving before throwing them into yet another deathtrap. I knew I didn't like that guy... The hunter thought to himself as he scowled and drew his Westar. They had numbers on their side but that wasn't much. Four acklays and a bloody bull rancor. That would be problematic enough on its own, but the AMS infection made matters worse. He wasn't as familiar with the infection and what it did as he was with regular beasts. He still had a few tricks he could try though.

Raising his weapon Klied took careful aim, not firing immediately. Like so many other beasts he had hunted acklay before. Regular acklay anyway, but he hoped the general anatomy would still operate the same. He knew that rather than eyesight, what acklay relied on most to find their prey was the organ that dangled from their chin. It was used for sensing body electricity. Destroying it wouldn't kill them, but it should disorient them. It was worth a try at least. Once he had his mark Klied would fire a single bolt, aimed for the fleshy and unprotected organ dangling from the far right acklay's chin. If it managed to hit, he would pause to see if the blow had the intended effect. If it did, he would alert his blaster wielding allies to do the same with the others.

@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx @Tom @Phoenix @Die Shize @Tulos @Isen @Sreeya @Fantasy Liver

 

[Kamelle Skyler]

Spoiler: Music OOC

“I possess a negative emotion regarding this.”

Kamelle conveyed after discovering the scratch marks on the wall that just slid up in front of her face. She stepped forward while regrouping with what was now a bigger group. The survivor's voice reunited with everyone though his words were not really promising. Pets. A Hutt had three kinds of pets: half-naked slaves, ugly monkeys and . . . “Ohhh druk.”

Four acklays and one rancor, all infected, angry, hungry and bound to shower everyone in even more blood and gore. It was that or be killed, Kamelle wagered, and there was no way she was going to die in some Hutt’s throne room. She had seen her death and it wasn’t here. It wasn’t now. No flying throne was going to change her fate.

She dashed aside as it came while keeping her saber deignited. She needed just her hands for what she was about to do. The Echani had inspired her as much as impressed her. Converting hand sanitizer into a flaming projectile was quite crafty. That the hand sanitizer was soaring for Infected flesh was also kind of like poetic justice. The Jedi, though, had not been the only one to fan some flames.

Glimpsing around at her ‘team’, Kamelle spotted the idiot from before. He furnished a flamethrower and bellowed something about drinks and barbecues. Kamelle rolled her eyes while rolling her hands. As a tentacle of fire danced from Idiot’s weapon, Kamelle cradled the flame and then she spread her hands apart as though stretching a rope.

While Idiot aimed his shots low to high, the fire would suddenly surge upon the Rancor all at once, stretching over the length of its body with an explosive wrath as amplified by the Force. That was just a quick dance of Kamelle’s hands, however, and she would not wait to see the result. The Rancor was already being challenged by at least one Force-user. Those acklays needed the Sith’s attention; in a pack of four they could quickly overwhelm their opposition with or without the Rancor.

Reserving her power for now, Kamelle pressed her thumb and fired the crimson blade. The acklays were most likely going to charge toward those individuals who were shooting at them. The Sith intended on introducing herself from behind one, doing a spin to dodge a limb if necessary, then tearing her saber through said limb. That would let her close in for a killing blow at the same time as likely causing the acklay to rear up and expose its stomach to some more blaster bolts.



@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx

 

[Sevrin Valtiere]

Sevrin was stunned at spotting Drow again, but he was thoroughly encouraged by seeing the Jedi alive and well after he was silent on comms for a moment. There was no time for pleasantries as the group rushed into the main hall. Any relief Sevrin felt from seeing the others washed away when the rancor and its friends showed up.

The Sephi was not at all surprised by the very suspicious commentary from the voice displaying mild surprise at seeing everyone alive. Sevrin glanced over to see Zathria launch an attack at the rancor. Puff also focused on the rancor, the fire hopefully igniting even more from Zathria’s efforts. The woman Sevrin had spotted by the body at the beginning was also….apparently a Force user. And aiding with the rancor as well.

Sevrin decided to focus on the two acklays to the left, one being shot at by Aska and the other by Drow. He didn’t fire off any offensive attacks, but instead called upon the Force rapidly to channel cryokinesis. Within seconds, the feet of the two acklay would be coated in frost that would fuse them to the ground. If successful, this would make them abruptly stop their advance and hold them in place for a moment. The ice wouldn’t last too long with everyone getting trigger happy with fire, but it would hopefully allow enough of a pause to pepper them with attacks.

The Jedi called the Force to himself in preparation for more offensive attacks regardless of whether or not his attempts succeeded.

@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx

 

[Laeonas Tannaras]

Optimism was… fickle, to say the least. It was difficult for the boy to maintain the hype he had reached when arriving at the throne room, when all he found inside were… paintings? Furniture? He’d jumped into plenty of illicit trades in his life, dealing drugs, extortion, hauling drugs from place to place, or just stealing from people. Laeo was skilled in all of these fields, but he certainly wasn’t a home decor artist!

Glancing around further, he searched with his senses to find anything of value. He couldn’t catch a whiff of spice or find containers full of death sticks. He didn’t notice any sacks full of credit chips, or gem stones, or whatever wealth could possibly be promising enough to fund the invasion of a dozen worlds, as promised.

The other group that had last been seen in what felt like a lifetime ago had made their way inside-- even one of the Jedi, who he’d scarcely glanced before the hordes had descended upon them, found their way into the disappointing throne room.

“This is all a gawdamned hutt ‘ad in ‘is throne room? Chairs? Paintin’s?” He wondered aloud, glancing around the room with a scowl. “What kind of room is thi--”

He’d scarcely had enough time to speak before the perceived final challenge appeared.

Psychologically speaking, it was probably for the best that disappointment and a bit of surprise at the survival of the other team in full had gripped Laeonas. His psyche wasn’t at all in a healthy position, jumping from the basest instincts and overwhelming negatives to the highs of excitement and anticipation. It was a wonder to what would happen if the boy had entered the room, full of excitement, only to find the threatening visage of a third-dozen insectoid beasts, and the horrifying form of the rancor.

Because his immediate reaction was paralysis.

Standing still for a brief few moments, he… contemplated all the decisions that brought him to this point. He’d wish he had told someone on the team what to do with his share if he wound up dying-- that they were to take it to Brentaal, go to it’s capitol of Cormond, find an armor by the name of Basil. They were to ask for his daughter-- a raven haired woman, middle aged, who went by the name of Anna; and they were to deliver his body, and the shares to which he was entitled.

In truth, he never expected most of the people on his team to abide by that task. Spend weeks, finding a random mother on a planet of 70 billion and to hand over his corpse and billions of credits? What for?

In truth, Laeonas would die here. He’d either be eaten by the rancor, chopped to bits by the acklays, or infected, and subsequently die to his own blaster bolts, or that of those who he had come with. His mother would never know what had happened-- and years down the line, she’d probably die to. His father and their family, noble and proud, still probably didn’t even know he existed.

That was why he had only briefly considered the possibility-- for only a few seconds.

Because he wasn’t going to let that happen.

In the next few moments, everything fell away around him, besides the living. Reaching out with the force, he’d draw his blaster-- and on command, he’d flip the switch on the side. Steam shot out, coolant pumping through, and the cartridge-- the one and only cartridge, which he had functionally believed was out, hummed back to life. Cooling the weapon had given it a bit more life-- enough to where he could make a difference.

The rancor was something he wouldn’t be able to fight against-- cortosis might cut through its hide, but the blaster was useless, as all the stories about these legendary beasts told him.

So instead, he directed his attention to the four acklays across the room; and he started firing. He'd noticed that one of the people on the generator team-- a human with red hair-- was already firing at one; so that was the one he focused on.

As quick as ever, the blaster shots weren’t the most accurate, but the volleys that would hit the beasts-- if they hit the beasts-- weren’t something to scoff at. They’d bore holes into the insect’s warped and pus covered bodies; though in that instant, Laeo couldn’t take much stock of it.

The rage he’d felt before was replaced with one single minded emotion, driven by intent.

It was the will to live.

​

@MatureContentWarningx @Phoenix @Die Shize @Nefieslab @Sreeya @Fantasy Liver @Isen @Reyn @Tulos

 

[The Gatekeeper]

The main opponent, it was clear to almost everyone within the chamber, was the Bull Rancor - even a non-Infected Rancor was a huge problem for a group of adventurers and a Bull Rancor even more so. With the Infection, the Bull Rancor was much less ‘alive’ but that did not mean that it was any less of a threat to any and all those who thought to attack it. The first of the attacks was the smallest by nature and, yet, somehow the most damaging.

Zathria’s flaming bottle of hand sanitizer flew true - had it landed against its snout or the base of its head, the attack would have been largely ineffective. As it was though, the blast of the Force detonated the flames right in the Rancor’s left eye. The resulting roar of rage was surprisingly devoid of all pain though that was only because of the Infection having already, essentially, killed the Rancor. Despite the lack of pain, however, the Rancor was definitely damaged, it’s left eye ruptured by the flames. The flames greedily licked at the eye, leaving the socket of bare bone and scorched eye-flesh even as the Rancor advanced.

The blaster fire from the Mandalorian woman that the generator team had picked up bounced harmlessly off of the Rancor’s left knee as it began to charge. Bursts of flame from the flamethrower were controlled by Kamelle to wrap around the mighty beast and the flames blackened the scales wherever they touched. Until the Rancor’s charge brought it within striking distance of Poffo where it used all of its considerable strength to swing its head and, most importantly, large tusks in a sweeping motion meant to sweep Poffo off of his feet and aside, the sheer weight and speed behind the moment disrupting the flames.

One of the Acklay (Acklay 1) seemed to have gathered the most attention - the left most Acklay within the chamber, became the center of attention for four of the members of the group. With the ice setting it around its front two legs, Acklay 1 was held in place just long enough to be in real trouble. The first two of Aska's shots tore at the natural, and unnatural, armoring of the creature's chest - the third shot was unimpeded and ate through the skin, exposing ribs and organs. Laeonas' own blaster was not as immediately effective as Aska's disruptor but it didn't need to be as some areas were already opened up, allowing a duo of his shots to shred the creature's lungs even as Drow's strafing of both Acklay 1 and Acklay 2 punched half a dozen fist-sized holes into the side of the creature. If the creature had been alive it would have been killed by the time of Laeonas' shots - instead the Infection stopped its need for many of the organs hit and its hunger was not sated yet.

Tearing itself free from the ice by literally tearing the flesh from its own legs, it pushed itself with its Infected-might. Launching itself through the air like a giant, demented, spider, it would aim to land right atop of Aska, trying to impale her with its legs. Regardless, upon landing it would slash at Aska and Drow with it's bloody, bone-tipped, front legs as it tried to scream but was unable to produce a sound with its pulped lungs.

The second Acklay from the left (Acklay 2) did not receive the same level of attention as Acklay 1 did so it managed to get a little bit closer before being ensnared by the ice. As it bucked against the ice, Drow's strafing shots would puncture it in some places and batter it in others, tearing a trio of fist-sized holes into its flesh. Shattering the ice took time and effort but the Acklay was strong, made stronger by the Infection, and soon broke free to begin a skittering charge at Drow, aiming to pin him through the chest with its two front legs as it approached.

Startled by the flames and sound of weapon fire, as well as the cries of the others beasts, the two remaining Acklay (3 and 4) reared up, pounding the pointed tips of their front feet into the duracrete as though it were nothing more than packed dirt, shaking the ground. Their heads turned, searching the room, the first (Acklay 3) locking onto Kamelle at the far end of the room. There was little pause before it charged, stabbing at her four times with the tips of its pointed feet, attempting to impale her into the dirt.

Distrubed by the violent and sudden motions, congealed blood and pus would drip from its underbelly, creating hazardous puddles beneath it.

From behind, the second (Acklay 4) approached Kamelle as well, lowering its head just enough to screech at her, only a few meters from the back of head. Its warm breath smelled of death and it snapped both of its pincers, attempting to grab her from underneath Acklay 3, fighting to steal the potential meal from its fellow. However, Kliedden's shot fired through the air, blazing with the singular intent to maim the creature so as to better avoid its retaliation. The Acklay reared up from the blast, screeching in pain and it fixed its gaze squarely on Kliedden.

Acklay are not capable of glaring but Kliedden can, from this day on, confidently say otherwise. However, when it started toward Kliedden, it was to the surprise of everyone but Kliedden that Acklay 4 was less certain of its footing as it charged, seemingly to lose track of him for a moment even as it grew closer. It would sweep at his upper body with its front legs, trying to attack a large area to try and hit a figure that was blurry to it in ways it did not understand.

Spoiler: Enemy Positioning Notes

From Left to Right as the characters face them, the enemies are in a row;
Acklay 1; Acklay 2; Bull Rancor; Acklay 3; Acklay 4

@Phoenix @Isen @Reyn @Tulos @Tom @Sreeya @Fantasy Liver @Die Shize

 

[Zathria]

The entire chamber had turned to a bit of chaos. Cascades of ice and fire tore at the beasts in the chamber, blaster fire was sent out, and the creatures began an assault of their own. The initial advantage the group had would quickly dissipate if they weren't careful.

The sight of what the creatures could endure was grotesque - literally ripping their own flesh to escape binds and their eyeballs rupturing - but it was nothing that one couldn't find on your average battlefield or in your slightly above average medical facility.

Zathria picked her next target quickly. While the rancor was still up and kicking, she knew that bringing it down would be far "easier" if they could clean up the smaller threats first. So rather than launch another attack at the rancor, she turned on the acklay. They'd apparently elected to double up on the Sith, but Zathria still intended to step in.

She reached out to the injuries she could see under acklay 3 and gripped the folds of torn skin with the Force. She pulled hard so that the flesh would peel completely away but didn't intend to stop there. She reached inside to the now-exposed organs and gripped the heart, aiming to rip it totally free from the creature's torso. Even being "dead" and their brains partially deteriorated, the muscles simply couldn't function without blood and you really needed a heart for that. She normally spent her time putting bodies back together, but today it was unfortunately about taking them apart. The knowledge tended to work in reverse.

@Nefieslab @Die Shize

 

[Aska Ryun]

Despite the disintrigating effects of the DX-2 partnered with the additional blaster fire and even the freezing magic of Sevrin, the Acklay (1) wasn’t slowed for long. Grimacing at the beast as it pulled itself free from the collection of frost that held it’s spear-like feet in place only to shed it’s leather-like skin and reveal the muscle below, convulsing as blood was pushed through it’s veins partnered with the manic insanity of the virus. It was a scene that was all too reminiscent of the horrific series of events that Aska and her allies had faced mere weeks ago and she was officially over all of it. Then the Acklay leapt into the air.

The woman watched as the creature soared towards her, attempting to shriek it’s shrill song of death but to no avail, and took a couple steps back. It had zoned in on her and was intent on shredding her into tiny pieces but she had no intention on staying here in some form of Aska-confetti. With her left hand, she finally pulled her own lightsaber from her belt. She hadn’t wanted to use it in the presence of Jedi but upon seeing the other woman brandishing a red blade, she would take her chances.

Just as the Acklay(1) was about to come down on top of her her, the clone rolled to her left to avoid it’s razor sharp claws and brought the saber up as she returned to her knees, hoping to separate the creatures foremost right arm. Regardless of whether this would succeed, she wasted no time in bringing up her right arm again but instead of firing with the DX-2, she locked her arm in position and released a wave of kinetic energy from the wrist-mounted repulsor built in to her armor to try and throw it a safe distance away and possibly into the Acklay(2) advancing on the Jedi newcomer.

@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx @Reyn @Isen @Sreeya @Phoenix @Fantasy Liver @Tom @Die Shize

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

Klied grinned as he watched the acklay(4) stumble and struggle to get a beat on him with it's sensory organ burned clean off. So it did still work. As the beast lumbered uncertainly towards him he would use the opportunity to call out to his allies, hoping the information would prove of some use to them. "The acklay, shoot the... The ball sack lookin' thing on their chin!" He shouted, waving his free hand under his own chin to convey his meaning. Not knowing the scientific term for the organ he wasn't sure what else to call it. "They can hardly see without it!"

The hunter stood his ground as the beast bared down on him, focusing several shots aimed at the joint of it's forwardmost right leg, hoping the heavy blaster would be able to sever the limb if he hit it enough times. If he could immobilize the creature it would be much easier to kill.

When the acklay(4) got close enough to take a swing at him it was easy enough for the hunter to duck and roll out of the way. With the beast half-blind, so long as he stayed light on his feet he was confident he could dodge it's poorly aimed attacks. After evading the assault he would continue to backpedal, firing shots at the same target over and over, hoping for his intended result.

@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx @Tom @Phoenix @Die Shize @Tulos @Isen @Sreeya @Fantasy Liver

 

[Kamelle Skyler]

Spoiler: Music OOC [Recurring]

All at once the Great Hall erupted in a cacophony of blazing fire and cracking ice, shouts and screams, blaster bolts and lightsaber hums and all manner of madness. It was...thrilling. Exciting. Electrifying. It wasn’t every day that Kamelle had an opportunity to square up against one rancor and three acklays, all infected by the AMS, never mind doing so with a bunch of fools and freaks and two Jedi to boot.

Maybe the others were frowning. Maybe they were baring teeth if not gnashing them. Kamelle bared hers—in an unyielding grin. It did not waver even as Acklay 3 came charging toward her. Acklay 3… She had just enough time to blink herself into realizing she had just number-named these creatures.

The Sith held position, timing her response. She knew enough about her opponent to know that its charge would likely result in putting its two foreleg-scimitars to use. There was something else she was timing for though. From the corner of her eye Kamelle caught the advance of the Echani, the Jedi, and she had seen where that woman kept her lightsaber hilt when not in use.

While Echani closed in for the assist and Acklay 4 from behind, Kamelle reached her free hand out toward her Jedi rival and pulled back with the Force. The Echani would be unmoved, but her lightsaber hilt would suddenly soar through the air to land in the Sith’s left hand before igniting the blue blade. Just then, as both acklays reached her, Kamelle was up and away. The red and blue blades in either hand twirled rapidly as she carried herself up in a flip.

The maneuver would free her form from Acklay 4’s pincers, leaping above the grip, while the lightsabers would tear through the approaching pincers of Acklay 3 even as Kamelle soared overhead. Between the Echani’s flesh-wrenching movements, their predator would quickly find itself to become the prey, and not even the AMS could save the acklay from its doom. Either way, Kamelle would land a modest distance away from that beast and all the beasts combined, ready to continue the dance in a heartbeat.




@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx
@Phoenix

 

[Poffo Sauvage]

While the bull rancor may be the star of the show, the acklays were quickly trying to steal best supporting actor. Poffo didn't have the luxury of eating popcorn and spectating, however. He had gotten with 15 meters of the rancor, and the damned thing was charging him now. Of course, the undead rancor probably wasn't at all pleased about the expanse of fire being wrapped around him. Poffo had no idea his fire was getting aided by a Force user and just assumed the flamethrower was a one-in-a-million find. Still, he had to move and move quickly to avoid the tusks of the roid-rage-rancor.

Poffo jumped to his right as the rancor swung his massive head and tusk at him, barely managing to avoid getting a tusk up the rumpus. Poffo rolled as smoothly as a muscled-up 240 pound man could and popped up to one knee and fired three of his remaining spurts of flame right at the rancor's wickedly bad eye socket. Poffo didn't know much about anatomy, and even less about rancor anatomy, but he was hopeful that the bursts of fire could penetrate whatever flesh was still hanging in the eye socket and weasel its way to the brain. Surely if he fried the brain, the biggest threat in the room would be the biggest corpse in the room.

As the three huge streams of flame came ripping out of the flamethrower, Poffo yelled out, "The madness is running wild, yeah!"

@Nefieslab @MatureContentWarningx