As the drop-ship continues on in the dead night deeper into the reaches of Romania the intercom sparks with the voice of the nervous TE agent that requested the scout team.
"U-um this is Vance. Te tech in charge of area ROm4514. You are the team sent on my scouting ticket right?
Well I put the ticket up because there's been an almost constant sludge radiation detected by the new observation station near Sighi?oara.
There hasn't been any TA sightings in town by old teams since it was declared clear so I'm just glad they sent someone...
You guys just need to investigate if there has been any major changes since the last scout team report.
A-and check if their comments on the darkness of the night being heavier there. I'll be on comms if needed. I got a real commander for the operation though."
At that point another voice comes over comms. This one gruff, feminine, and a lot more sure of itself then the nervous male from earlier. "This is Captain Seymour the AC officer for this operation.
The needs of this operation are simple. One. Find the source of the sludge with A.S.S. or given Geiger counters. Two. Find if the source can be collected or safely buried.
And three. Clear the area and return to the waiting drop-ship. When the ship enters comms area of the area there will be a radio silence from our end. We will otherwise collect and respond to your chatter though."
At that point the commander takes a pause as the drop-ship becomes quiet.
"Any questions or last minute smart-ass comments?"
>Mission will begin in 30 minutes.
Why do you even bother with threads and not just an irc room when your game is dead anyways?
>>46857278
Because hope is eternal.
>>46857245
"...Is this fucking Transylvania?"
>http://pastebin.com/qv2e0Uup
>>46857245
The avatar drone stepped away from the suit it was working on, turning to face the comms speaker.
<"And you usually leave it until the end to ask pointless questions?"
>http://pastebin.com/rek0Gj9Z
>Still a drone, not sure why
http://pastebin.com/EJHa0MrP
A medium suit sits near the cargo doors, the only thing marking it as a live being the occasional movement as the pilot twitches in his sleep.
The sensation of the craft coming to a sudden halt rouses him from his stupor and he grumbles to himself whilst getting to his feet.
![full-moon-3_00443515[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/Haq326m.jpg "full-moon-3_00443515[1].jpg")
>>46857520
Seymour takes in a deep breath. "Noooo? This is Sighișoara, Romania. That's what the file says."
Then Vance chimes in. "U-umm yes Redneck. this area is in the general area of Transylvania."
>>46857638
Seymour sighs after Vance finishes. "Why can't you all be like this guy?"
>>46857701
"Good then that's all settled" The commander sighs. "Ship is about to enter the radio bubble of the area. This is Seymour out."
Vance then comments after Seymour. "G-good luck pilots!"
The dropship then is only filled with the pilots own idle chatter as the ship flies for another minute.
As the ship starts to land in the open field and the door opens the town itself seems almost hidden even with a moon filled night as the darkness is almost visible in itself in the town.
The night is calm and silent as the city is still. The hill in the distance hidden by the dark night barring direct sight.
>>46857863
"Great...night time mission. Anyone pack flashlights, cause I sure as shit didn't." The Red Suit, which had been occupying its on corner of the dropship comes to life, scarlet optics scanning the field ahead.
"So spooky." The suit moves out of the cavernous hold of the ship, pulling out a one of his shotguns and waiting idly for the others.
>>46857863
"Well now, this doesn't seem quite right." Edin mutters as he walks out of the ship, "I have a bad feeling about this........."
>>46857941
"Am I the only person that ever uses nightvision?"
>>46857983
"Probably. I mean...I try and make it a thing to do only daylight missions, and I thought this one was gonna be one. Probably should have read that briefing a bit more carefully." The Medium Shrugged.
>>46857863
The heavy's eyes flicker, turning the floodlights on.
>>46857941
>>46857983
The AI watches it's teammates carefully, taking care to look directly into Edinbrother's eyes.
<"Ooh, what was that? Can't hear you there. Over the inevitable Flashbangs and big torches."
>>46857941
>>46857983
The outside night is odd. The only sounds you here are those of the local wildlife as the seconds tick away.
>>46858116
When Salt's floodlights turn on the light spills out far in front of your group. The beam reaches even to the city as the thought comes that it's just a dark night even with the moon.
Rolled 54, 2 = 56 (2d100)
>>46858243
"Well, time to scan. Kinda wish we had a Engi here with us...handling nuclear anything is giving me Taiwan flashbacks."
>Tech Roll: Hawkeye, Radar
>Taking 10
Rolled 6 (1d20)
>>46858353
>mfw when rolls
>Also turning on dat ASS and BIS
>>46858116
>>46858243
"WHAT THE FUCK!" Edin turns away from his squadmate's flashlight, hands moving to cover his suit's visor.
"ARE YOU A FUCKING IDIOT OR SOMETHING, WHO THE HELL SHINES A LIGHT IN A FRIENDLY'S EYES?"
The medium stumbles around the field trying to work out what the hell is going on.
"Fuck, Alright, I'm going to need a minute to get my bearings again, so let's all remember not to fucking blind our teamates in future?"
Rolled 14 (1d20)
>>46858472
<"Huh? Wh-what? They're like 50% of my eyes. I can't stop myself from looking around can I?"
>>46858353
<"Only one of us has repair gear? Niiiiiice."
>Hawkeye, might work
>take 10
>>46858353
As Hawkeye zooms in to the areas the spotlight shows the city nearest to you three looks calm. The spotlight can reach the hill, but needs to be a bit closer to see the odd black shape that is on the prominent height.
You're radar crinkles as the settings seem to fizz out and mess with your outbound speakers. The radar system now feeding into your radio making bat like pings with it. It shouldn't take more then a turn to fix it but the pings scare local bats into the air. The cloud of animals flying off from the hill into the night.
>>46858378
You're A.S.S. doesn't find anything abnormal around it so far.
>>46858472
And your HUD clears quickly. The robotic eyes of the suit "healing" quicker then any human.
>>46858630
Seeing as much as Red Dragonfly sees the town is still. Trash and some debris litter the streets with the sights you can gain from the streets. The town seems as dead as the night.
Rolled 15 (1d20)
>>46858675
"Alright, let's take this slow and steady. Abandoned streets like this are always prime ambush zones."
The GI slowly makes his way down the street, hawkeye and ASS being used liberally.
>Hawkeye and ASS
>Taking twenty
Rolled 8 (1d20)
>>46858794
>Second roll
Rolled 9 (1d20)
>>46858675
"...Well...Hawkeye is getting nothing...and my radar decided to get festive early for some reason. Woo."
Sighing, he gets to work trying to fix his damn radar...
>TECH ROLL
>Taking 10
>>46858675
<"It's not halloween yet, can you cut this out until we're finished here?"
>>46858794
>>46858816
Walking with the group Edin's senses are twitchy as he almost jumps at trashcans being toppled by wild cats or a dog running from an alleyway while making sure to keep his hawk-eye assisted Night-vision turned away from Dragonfly's spotlights.
>>46858958
>>46859003
It's as simple as Red using his A.I. to fix the software issue. Soon the radar reads as ready and normal as the group is in the town proper. Salt's spotlight able to clearly see the hill and the now visible difference from what they saw from their briefings about it.
>>46859105
Edin curses as the dog ran out, his solar rifle tracking it as it moved away.
"Bloody strays, makes you wonder how many wild dogs there are out there actually....gotta be a few ownerless pets that managed to survive on their own."
>>46859415
"Probably..." Inside the suit the Redneck shrugged. The Suit kept shifting left and right, looking into abandoned buildings, looking for signs of any recent activity...
>>46859105
<"Y-you are all sure we can hurry up? I can't wait here much longer."
>Connection has gone Tasmanian, will hardly post shit now senpai
>>46859415
>>46859633
>>46859945
(noted salt. I worry for us all. Game can be postponed for you if need be.)
Keeping an eye or camera out for trouble the two don't find anything too odd as they move though the town. As they are between the drop point and the hill proper they find the area calm enough to go where they wish.
Rolled 19, 15 = 34 (2d20)
>>46860032
"Alright, lets head for the castle. And if this one has a fucking mad queen in charge like the last one I was in then I'm fucking tearing it down."
With that Edin starts up the hill, his Haawkeye and ASS still scanning the area.
>Hawkeye and ASS
>Taking twenty
Rolled 1, 4, 20, 3 = 28 (4d20)
>>46860032
"Agreed. And if there are Vampires...and they sparkle, I'm calling in a Blanco." Following behind the GI Medium, He activates his scanner again..
>ASS, Hawkeye, Radar, BIS
>Taking 20
>>46860032
Dragonfly...
...Doesn't actually have any useful tech right now.
>>46860187
>>46860257
The heavy looks at the others quizzically for a moment.
<"...Kay."
>>46860187
(nice 19.)
As the three walk along the road to the top of the hill the scenery grows odder. The path still is a road, but you don't remember a road having statues on the sidewalks. Even weirder are how they look to be suit stuck in odd poses made of stone. the road leading to a gate around the castle blocking the path to the main double doors themselves. The gate is a simple metal grid, but the pillars connecting the gate to the fence have two gargoyles on them.
Edin himself with his night-vision notices something. On the path up the hill the decor gets more Gothic, the animals different, and the atmosphere colder. You stop when this chain of differences leads you to notice slight differences with the twin gargoyles perched on the gate barring easy access to the castle grounds. With your A.S.S noticing one being slightly radioactive and the other not.
>>46860257
You're radar stops you as you barely round the middle of the distance from the bottom of the hill to the castle. Nothing odd about what you thought where animals until you notice that a cloud (That's what a group of bats are called.) is following you three.
>>46860314
And you notice whoever designed these statues flanking the path either is a guro fan or just leaves their work half finished.
![61jT6UEAv+L._SY355_[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/UsBkBUI.jpg "61jT6UEAv+L._SY355_[1].jpg")
>>46860471
>Pic missed
>>46860471
Turns and looks....well 'Looks' at the swarm of bats still following them.
"...I don't mind bats. Brown bats are pretty cute. But I don't like being tailed in a place that literally vampire country by non-brown bats." The suit's head turns to Edin.
"Permission to light up the swarm? Or do I just watch for now?"
>>46860471
<"Are humans supposed to look like that? This one is way cooler than either of you.Still, you aren't half as chuuni as this decor is at least."
>>46860471
Aiming his solar rifle at the radioactive gargoyle Edin fires a single shot at it.
"OK, That one's radioactive guys, I'm not taking any chances with it."
>>46860597
"Only light em up if they get too close."
>Solar rifle, +31 COM
Rolled 27 (1d100)
>>46860734
>Dice
>>46860597
>>46860621
>>46860734
Edin draws his solar rifle and aims at the stationary target, waiting for the microsecond between charge and fire. That moment is contested by the statue 'breaking' it's stone shell and rising to the air. It proceeds to float for a moment before your radio sparks. "Well you're a smart pray, but not the kind we're used to..." You're A.S.S notices the suit has ranged weapons, but they're not aimed at your group. "What are you?" It finishes by wiping it's mouth with it's hand. You're A.S.S then not reading radiation from that suit anymore.
>>46860946
"We're part of the Armour Corps, Green Initiative in my case, we're here about the large radiation source that's been detected." Edin draws one of his plasma machetes and points it at the other pilot, "Who might you be?"
>>46860946
<"Based on my previous pilot's experience; I think we should ask you the same question first. There's more humans than Grotesques here afterall."
>>46860946
Prey.
Red didn't like that. Reaching behind and pulling out his second shotgun, he points it in the general direction of the...gargoyle suit.
...His Skyrim Senses were tingling...
"...Our fellow at the dropship said they had someone clear this place earlier...think they missed these guy or that mister freaky just moved in?" He used the private comms...switching back from the floating suit to the swarm of bats...
>>46861179
>>46861249
>>46861263
The 'gargoyle' lands on it's perch again, however it and the wall behind it a lot more crispy. The suit talks in it's gravely voice to the three of you after having the decency to wait till you both finished. "Well "Armor Crops. I don't see any humans here, so that means it's only us predators... But who of us are the prey? You've caught me after I've fed, so you find me in an interested mood. I am Jareth. And I watch for prey and my kind. And I wonder how much we have in common.."
>>46861263
The cloud seems now to stay in place now that you noticed it. As you watch it though you notice the bats seem to be concentrated in a 'floating ball' in the actual cloud they make.
>>46861518
"...Friend of yours?" He points a gun at the swarm, looking at the 'Jareth' character.
>>46861518
"What the hell are you on about, you think pilots are a different species or something?"
This 'Jareth' was sending out all sort of wierd vibes and the GI operative wasn't liking any of them.
"What are you doing here anyhow? Do you live here?"
>>46861518
<"That one of us is trying too hard? I mean, both of those two are humans anyway. And they're not jumping around squawking. And err.... What did you just 'feed' on exactly?"
![a19058472237795d3bba0137d94deff7[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/HEpcfUh.jpg "a19058472237795d3bba0137d94deff7[1].jpg")
>>46861675
Jareth smiles as the cloud loses form from the bats leaving to show a floating mesh sided bio suit flying on it's own. That figure smiling as well.
>>46861702
Jareth looks back to Edin with a bit of the smirk twisted. "Well I know I'm as human as you are... And to answer you yes I live here. This is where I hunt, drink, and live. Or live as much as anyone can in these times."
>>46861893
Jareth's smile took a devilish look to it as his fangs showed. "Why our lifeblood of course, but you are different then all of us combined, but not enough not to share the one thing that links us all... Humm. If you's like I would love to take you all for a tour around the area. Something tells me you're all worth more then a hunt."
>>46861702
"...I say let them take us on tour...find out whatever the fuck they are doing, and then leave. If they let us, we talk to command about maybe sending a Hanse in...if they don't...we beat the crap out of them and...well I would say drop a bomb but...GI...ya."
The suit itself lowered its guns a tad...mindful of the two potential targets above...
>>46862007
"Isn't 'different from all of us combined' kind of obvious? I'd gather more data, but I'm not sure I care enough, I'll follow you, not human enough to do that anyway. We can practice your 'hunting' if you wish to try it."
>>46862007
"Alright, I'll bite let's go on a tour then."
Edin lowered his sword and returned the hilt to his waist.
"I'll be looking out for any suspicious moves though."
>>46862105
"I don't think they'll let us leave just like that though, so let's play along for the meantime."
>>46862185
>>46862243
The red suit shrugs...content to following the others at this juncture...
>>46862105
>>46862185
>>46862243
Jareth got up from his perch, jumped down, and bowed for the three of you. "Well then. You already know me as Jareth the guard.. "He then points a claw at the floating batman. "That is Orpheus, keeper of the bats. And if you follow me I'll lead you inside..."
Getting up from his bow and turns to the gate. Forcing them open with a flick of the wrist. Zipping with wings he does the same for the fortress sized double doors. Before you follow him in his rapid movement you see something that put a chill down even the A.I.s spine. The inner walls of the castle are Gothic like the last only in style. You all can tell the walls and form where from a suit from the giant crablike base form it has. The structure they live in is a super fort! Jareth smiles as he starts to fly across the gardened courtyard backward. "Welcome!" He beckons. "To Hostel Transylvania!" His yell causing bats to leave the windows of the castle.
>>46862425
<"I'm not really sure anyone here knows where to start on this one."
>>46862425
"...well..." It took everything not to scream CRAB BATTLE.
It would have to wait.
"Nice...Superfort....." ...It was also gonna be a chore not to try and steal it.
>>46862425
"Huh, this........is not what I was expecting in the slightest...."
The medium stared dumbfounded at the sight, his previous aprehension gone in the face of something so bizzare.
>>46863280
>>46863729
>>46863907
The resulting actions from the yelling is that suits start bursting out after the bat. All of then laughing maniacally as they fly about in the distance or land in front of you. Your suits count twenty, but sometimes you see the flicker of camp with a spot light or nv.
One lands in front of you three with a creator making smash and starts to scan you with his eyes. "So something interesting besides prey and humans have come to our land. I, Donn Jareth, lord over the land you step on. Speak your piece before me so that you may join in the hunt."
Some land or fly into the night, but the atmosphere becomes more formal in seconds as the silence grows thickly.
>>46864700
"...they certainly know how to put on a show..." the mumble comes across the radio...
"Not sure we can take the Superfort with this many suits playing back-up...so lets just go with the flow."
>And due to outside issues there will now be a part two. Goodnight everyone!
