DragonRage

Tim quickly figures out that there isn't any currency in use in this town. Favors, services, and goods seem to be the only medium of exchange, and haggling is fierce and intense. A few times, someone's asked a wizard to verify an item for them, once for a necklace and once for a spearhead. It seems like the only particularly valuable items are magic ones; aside from that, value is only what the two parties haggling agree it is. The tanner has no idea how he'd tan something with scales like that, but he does suggest he could do create an armored cloak from the rawhide. The elf smith introduces himself as Shamus Ironwood, and explains that he's the former apprentice of the dwarven smith who used to be the main weaponsmith, but has now moved toward retirement. He's confident that he'll get just as good with practice, but while he's got hundreds of years to polish his skills, the village might not. He gives Law a chance to prove his skills, and once they are he lets the ottsel work his figurative magic. Law is not only able to fix up the elf's wares, but also seems to teach him a thing or two about metalworking. However, as Law starts finishing up, the elf starts looking uncomfortable, and asked admits he feels bad about having nothing to pay Law with that the ottsel couldn't forge a better one of himself. "I think it could be possible, though I have no idea what the effects would be," Solara muses to Freya, "Light and darkness are not so opposed as many might think, and good and evil are not always so conveniently labelled. I would be willing to make the attempt, and if you were evil enough that doing so would destroy us both you would not wish to try. However, I do not believe you are a suitable vessel as you are. Though I like you, we are very different. To safely attempt a sharing of your body, you would first need to greatly improve your physical conditioning. You would also need to learn to wield white magic. Mastery shouldn't be necessary, but if you had no idea how it could react badly to the black magic you currently have. I admit to being no expert myself, but I could start you on the basics. Until you can do these things, any attempt would likely destroy us both." The inside of the flower god's temple has some banners with the god's symbol hanging from the ceiling, but otherwise doesn't have much to denote it as a temple. There is no altar, pews, or idols. There are however cases of grenades and what looks like a few chunky, angular guns emblazoned with the flower symbol under both lock and key behind a barred gate of shining metal, and armed guard. The priest from earlier is in the process of locking the gate, presumably after locking away the grenades that the guards turned in earlier. Both the grenades and especially the guns look far too modern to exist in this place, but the priest and guards act like they're nothing out of the ordinary. (intelligence 23 v 16) Stellio can tell they're putting up a front about that for whatever reason, and aren't nearly as comfortable around the weapons as they seem. His approach puts a contemplative look on the priest's face, and the cleric pulls a set of knucklebones out of his pockets and drops them onto the floor. He studies the bones for a few seconds, though Stellio can't tell what he's seeing in them as the bones are unmarked. Then he turns to Stellio with a nervous smile, motioning for an acolyte to sweep the bones up, as he listens to the knight's questions. "Hextor is the god of war and slaughter, the brother of the god of strength Kord. We don't actually know why they attacked us; they usually attack Kord's congregations and we don't have a temple to him. We didn't have anything particularly valuable to them at the time, and we aren't an easy target or they'd have overrun us already. But they've certainly been tenacious. Nasty, but not very bright. If I had to guess, it's because their leaders are big on leading from the front and showing off how they aren't afraid of their enemies. But Hextor doesn't care who dies in battle, as long as somebody does. Still, warmongers and murderers can gain power from his blessings. "They made a big attack six months ago, and when we threw them back from our walls laid siege to us. They had more warriors, and enough clerics and sorcerers to match our own. We were desperate, but then we found the Flower God, Typhan-Knee. The relics the god provided turned the tide, but… I am worried. I think the Flower God is a demigod, in the transition between mortal and divine, rather than a true god, and I fear that to empower us to overcome the servants of a major god has taken pieces of itself that could not be spared. When we first met, the Flower God spoke in a voice like a chorus of a thousand throats, shaking the air itself. Now, the god scarcely speaks at all, but fills the air with strange noises that do not sound healthy. We honor the Flower God as best we can, but our faith has not restored its strength as the Goddess Selene assured me it should to a weakened deity when I asked her for guidance. I… know not what to do.” Stellio has the sneaking suspicion that the priest might have an ulterior motive in sharing what has to be valuable, sensitive information, and as far as he can tell the priest is telling the truth.

"Hhk. Emperor, preserve me," Sister Rachel gasps, ignoring that little voice in the back of her head about how self-medicating is a terrible idea as she selects a new set of syringes and uses Feel No Pain on herself to apply two stacks of Guts. "God-Emperor, give us the strength to strike this abomination down!"

The kitten is very confused by Ena, ignoring her attempts to pet in in favor of sniffing at her hand with an adorably confused expression on his tiny face. He is indifferent towards Tim and Vitor. He doesn't seem to know what to think of Lilly either, seeming suspicious of Ador. He likes Freya and Law a lot though, leaning into their scratches with a rusty-sounding purr. This spoiler is for Blaze only - Everyone Else Keep Out: But he does not like Stellio, and takes a swipe at the knight's uncovered hand when it gets close. Stellio not responding by trying to kill the kitten seems to satisfy the guards enough that they relax a bit. "Yeah, Hextor's cultists are pretty crazy. You'd have to be desperate to worship a god like that. But there are a lotta desperate people," The dwarf tugs at his beard, and spits to the side. "They'd get a better result praying to a god that cares about the little people, like Moradin, or Selene, or the Flower God. Bah. A little bout of hardship and they think the gods have abandoned them. But in a way, we're lucky it was Hextor's followers that came after us. Hextor's followers are worse than animals, but not all the dark gods are like that. If cultists of a god like Vecna or Nerull came after us, we might not have caught them in time for the Flower God's blessings to make a difference. "That said, Hextor's people aren't that crazy. But they do find the idea that we think they are funny enough to play along while our priests dispel any divination spoilers they've got and we cast Detect Evil on 'em," The dwarf's irises glow a faint blue under his craggy brows as he stares you down. "You lot look damned bizarre under that, but murder for fun, ritual sacrifice, and black magic have a way of staining the soul. It's blindingly obvious that you're a former Blackguard, knight, and I don't know what the hells is up with the ladies, but Moradin seems to think y'all aren't in need of a good killing. If the good gods don't have a quarrel with ya, I don't either." "On your head be it then if they're having you on," The woman grumbles, "They're clean! Flash doesn't see anyone else nearby, so open the gate!" She holds up her left hand, encased in a thick glove, and a bald eagle dives down to land on it. She passes him a few bits of meat, strokes his crest with rough affection, and throws the bird of prey back into the air, where he soars quickly skyward again. Meanwhile, a few noises sound behind the gate, something heavy hits the ground, and then they creak open, allowing you passage into the village. The village is roughly constructed, but clearly done so with care. Foundations are made of stone, with cut timbers stacked above them and well-caulked with plaster. The gate is barred behind you with a heavy, iron-shod log, but that's almost certainly to keep people out rather than to keep you in. There's a lively trade going on along the streets, with vendors bartering all manner of goods, from food to metalwork to cloth, for other items. Elves seem to be most common, recognizable by their lean frames and pointed ears, but there are also quite a few humans and dwarves, and a few halflings scattered about. There's even a man who looks like he could be part ogre hawking well-cut, flat stones alongside a dwarf carrying a pickaxe. The village seems to have three blacksmiths, an unusually large amount for a settlement of this size. A dwarf is selling nails, horseshoes, and other sundries, along with a few farming tools. An elf is offering swords and spears, rough but serviceable. And a halfling is sitting next to a stack of shining mail shirts in front of his smithy, sprinkling something sparkly on one while he chants under his breath over the armor. Bread, cheese, and dried fish seem to be the staple foods, with fresh vegetables taking a distant second place, and two bakers are loudly squabbling over the relative merits of flatbread and leavened bread in the center of town, waving samples of their respective products in rage. At the central square, a small herd of goats are grazing contentedly on a grassy square that is probably common land, watched by a few children. On the square itself lie a tavern, four temples, the halfling blacksmith's shop, and what looks like a meeting-house. Presumably-religious symbols are everywhere in the village, each matching the one hung on the door of one of the places of worship: a stylized, stone hammer, a shiny, silver shield with a darkened strip resembling a crescent moon, a bag of coins and wheat carved of dark wood, and a hot pink flower insignia matching the ones on the gate guards' shields. The pink flower temple seems to have been erected relatively recently, and workers are still securing thatches on the roof. As you watch, two guards carrying those same flower shields pass by the temple, chatting about how glad they are to be off-duty, and each turn in what looks alarmingly like a pair of hand grenades to a priest wearing a flower badge, who gingerly places the explosives in a case padded with straw before taking them inside the temple.

The kitten seems very confused by Ena’s scent, ignoring the petting to follow her hand with his nose until it is withdrawn out of his reach.

"Hold, travellers," One of the guards, who with a closer look is pretty obviously a dwarf going off his beard and finely-crafted armor, calls out to you as you approach the town, "By the order of the Jarl, none can enter the village of Iris without submitting to a security ritual. We've had some trouble with a cult of Hextor, the God of Slaughter, recently, and when we drove 'em off with the blessings of the Flower God they started getting sneaky. Damn maniacs." His companion, a lanky human woman carrying a pair of warhammers on her belt, waits to see if you'll attack for that statement. When you don't, she turns to the guardhouse next to the gate, and is passed a huge, fluffy kitten by the scruff of its neck. "No slaughter-freak can resist a kitten," She states brusquely, "They got a religious prohibition or something. If you want in the village, you gotta prove you can pet the adorable, innocent kitten without trying to kill it. No exceptions."

You pass though the glowing disc, now revealed to be a portal, and it closes behind you with a faint 'vworp'. You find yourself in a starkly beautiful, alpine forest. The sun is rising, painting the tree-dotted landscape in orange and gold. It's pretty chilly out, but the sun is enough to keep you warm. It must be summer. To the east, assuming the sun rises there in this place, you can see a small village. Smoke rises from open-air, clay ovens and log houses, and the entire settlement is surrounded by a stockade made of sharpened logs. A river runs through the town, and they have created a log barricade to keep undesirables from sailing in or out easily. People dressed in furs and occasionally mail armor go about their business, with a far wider range of body types and far less gender discrimination than one might expect from what appears to be a medieval Scandinavian town. Women actually seem a bit more likely than men to be going armed and armored. Dane axes and spears appear to be the weapon of choice, though swords, crossbows, and warhammers are also popular. The only other thing worth noting from this distance is that the sentries shields seem to have been re-painted recently, a crude, hot pink flower symbol covering whatever was on them before. "Santa Maria it's cold!" Vitor exclaims, despite the fact that the rest of you are feeling fine. His tropical heritage is not serving him well here. "Unless anyone has a serious objection, I vote we get out of the cold, or at least go barter for something warmer."

Sister Rachel draws her dual inferno pistols and charges the Sectopod. As she passes Nader, she uses Feel No Pain through her Triage passive, deftly avoiding his reflexive attempt to shoot her for drugging him with the reflexes of an experienced Guard field medic, and continues her dash forward. "These men shall not fall this day, Xenos scum!" She screams at the walking tank, "You defile Holy Terra with your mere presence! Die, and go to whatever alien hell awaits you!" Then she jams the barrels of both melta pistols against the Sectopod's side and pulls the triggers, targeting it with both shots from her Inferno Pistols.

War Report: Quarter 1 This quarter, We Make Everything’s research and development team re-invented the pickaxe as an improvement to their standard entrenching tool. Their updated design does unfortunately use a wooden handle, making it more expensive than it otherwise would be due to a lack of wood near their base of operations. However, it is a substantial improvement on the standard entrenching tool, and has pleased the board of directors enough to award a point of Company Favor. They are impressed by your initiative in improving a tool used by the entire company. And in the future, as more mineral resources are developed, this tool will make extracting them easier. They also added a feature to their Hammerhead rocket launchers that prevents rockets from exploding while near their launcher. Sunbow and Svenson focused instead on their guns, creating an enchantment that replaces fired lead projectiles with steel projectiles travelling at the same speed, greatly increasing muzzle velocity and armor penetration since the only things about the lead projectile that matter are how fast it’s going and where it’s aimed. These new enchanted guns are more effective, but also more tiring to use for those lacking in deep mana pools. In the mountains, fighting has gone slightly in the favor of Sunbow and Svenson. Their mages give them superior mobility over We Make Everything’s infantry, allowing them to make commando raids with relative impunity. Their modified guns have proven somewhat useful, but the reduction in troop endurance they enforce has kept them from consolidating any gains. Casualties are heavy on both sides, though S&S has yet to lose any of their crucial high mages. The improvement in anti-vehicle weaponry is largely balanced by the other side not fielding any vehicles. On the mineral lode, Sunbow and Svenson have made significantly more progress. Their improved guns, together with their mages, have allowed them to begin pushing forward. We Make Everything’s forces have dug in stubbornly, but only stalled the advance due to their greater numbers and ability to fight longer without rest. Unless something changes, they will soon begin losing ground. Casualties are heavy on both sides, though S&S has yet to lose any of their crucial high mages. In the desert, a group of scouts from each company searching ancient ruins for treasures ran into each other and engaged in a brief firefight. After several deaths, someone accidentally activated an ancient faerie kill-bot shaped like a giant scarab, which dismembered the remainder of both parties with razor-edged mandibles. Random Encounter: The first company to slay the faerie kill-bot will claim the secrets of its workings! The kill-bot resides in the desert. Your spies are now in place. Both sides gain an espionage credit. Remember that espionage credits once spent will take a few quarters to recover barring random events or espionage-improving actions.

"They're this crazy cult who recruits people like me that can bring trading cards to life," Tor explains, "They call themselves the Kings of Cards or something, and they're incredibly stupid. They're trying to take over the world by collecting rare cards and exploiting their powers. This would be pretty doable considering how many of them there are, except practically all of them are terrible at actually playing the game their powers depend on. I'm actually good because I'm not so worried about taking over the world or having the right cards in my deck to also fight the police or hold ordinary people hostage to ward off a military counterterrorism squad. People who have to worry about that aren't exactly the sanest, or the most focused on tuning their sideboard. Obnoxious idiots, the lot of them. I've fought them three times now, and I could almost say they've gotten worse. Maybe it's because their skilled people keep getting arrested?"

"Hm. How interesting. Perhaps a closer examination will reveal a purpose if one exists? Or if nothing else, it could be repurposed as scrap or spare parts." Alexandria attempts to grab the cannon and pull it off the wall.

Kyra considers continuing to fire on the swordsman, but between Mask and Jill she judges there's little chance of him winning. So she quickly reloads her rifle and runs after Zoffy instead, sticking to the rooftops and trying to stay hidden.

Arms Race 6013: The Corporate Wars RP Discord: https://discord.gg/X27Cs92 The year is 6013. A great galactic war has recently concluded in armistice and peace talks between the Federation of United Planets and the Coalition of Sovereign Systems, arbitrated by the Disciples of the Five. The perfect time to do a little off-the-books mineral prospecting and research in the isolated Psi Centauri system, a lawless solar system rich in natural resources outside the reach of any of the three great powers. However, it seems that your company is not the only one to have this most excellent idea. Those hacks cannot be allowed to claim these valuable resources! You’ll never get promoted if you fail here! In the name of a cushy middle management position, you must achieve victory! The Psi Centauri solar system is a remote location outside the official control of any of the three great powers, the technology-focused Federation of United Planets, the magic-focused Coalition of Sovereign Systems, and the enigmatic AI conclave known as the Disciples of the Five. Two mighty corporations have set their sights upon extracting Psi Centauri’s resources, the Federation-based manufacturing and department store juggernaut We Make Everything, and the Coalition-based compact of artisans known as Sunbow and Svenson, Inc. In this isolated place, the only rule is to not make enough of a mess of your competitor and the surrounding area that a bigger fish feels the need to stop pretending you don’t exist. And, of course, to turn a profit and impress your superiors. Now if only that dastardly other company would stop trying to mine your mineral nodes! It’s time for some frontier justice. For reference, these are the current state-of-the-art technologies used by each of the three Great Galactic Powers’ armed forces: The Megacorps: We Make Everything is a Federation company founded by dwarves (yes, they call themselves that), though they’ll employ anybody who’s willing to work for just over minimum wage. The company prides itself on manufacturing anything they can get away with selling, giving them a wide industrial base but no real specializations or downfalls aside from a lack of direct experience with magic. They are excellent at mass-production, and can create or requisition large quantities of inexpensive goods with ease. The company’s base is on the west side of the mineral nodes, in a vast prairie full of grass and rich soil. The expedition’s commanders express utmost confidence that their precision dwarven engineering, Terran ingenuity, and high industrial capacity will bury those prissy, featherweight elves in bullets, securing the system in short order. Starting Technology: Sunbow and Svenson, Inc Sunbow and Svenson is a Coalition company founded by a partnership between human and elven investors (they don’t call themselves that, but no human can pronounce their name for themselves). They hire mostly humans and elves, and quietly discriminate against dwarves despite such practices being illegal. The company prides itself on high quality goods, and on charging a premium for fine, hand-crafted items. Their enchanted crossbows are especially good, but their armor technology is somewhat lacking in comparison. Sunbow and Svenson employ a good amount of mages, but even after the war made doing so look less like a sign of treason have been slow to explore advanced computers and other magic-free technologies. The company’s base is on the east side of the mineral nodes, carved out of a thick, steamy jungle that makes the elves feel at home. The expedition’s leaders express utmost confidence that the superior quality of their troops’ training and equipment, and contingent of powerful mages, will make short work of the opposition’s cannon fodder and flea-market weapons technology. Starting Technologies: The Rules of Engagement: Turns consist of several stages in which you, the R&D directors of this expedition, vote on the course your company will take during this quarter. Stage 1: Design In this phase, you may suggest a new product to be manufactured for your troops or company. I will roll secretly to see how plausible it is for you to manufacture this based on your assets, resources, and current technologies, and depending on how viable it is for you I will assign an Expense in assets and resources, which must be paid to produce and deploy the product. You cannot spend more resources per quarter in all phases than you have. Company Favor may be substituted for any resource, but using it too often may result in your parent company cutting you off until you repay your loans. Equipment may have bugs, which may or may not show up until it is issued to the front lines. Please do not act as a director for both companies; nobody likes a traitor. Equipment is Expensive if you’re short one or two of the resource levels needed to make it, and Very Expensive if you’re short three or more. If you’re lacking 6 or more resource levels needed to make it, it could require a Full Company Effort to produce. More expensive products are difficult or impossible to produce in large quantities. Reliable or Lightweight items consume more Industrial Capacity than normal, but have better performance in the field and raise the morale of your troops. Cheap or Heavy products lower morale and aren’t as effective, but cost less than their more consistent counterparts. Some products are so expensive they require a Full Company Effort, occupying all of your phases and resources. These products are usually one-of-a-kind, at least for your tech level. You’re very much going all-or-nothing on these, so make sure they’re worth it. You can manufacture 1 product for every point of Industrial Capacity you have. Each megacorp will have a separate channel in the Discord server in which to perform their phases, with results of the quarter being posted in this thread. Do not metagame by looking at the other corporation's thread. Stage 2: Revision In this stage, you can revise an old design with tweaks and bug fixes, or try to reduce how expensive it is to make. In general, small changes will be more effective and likely to work as intended than large changes in this phase. This doesn’t have to be the product you created in the first phase, but it can be. Again, players propose possible revisions and then vote on the one they want to move forward on. Stage 3: Exploration In this stage, players vote on an area of the Psi Centauri system to explore for more resources. The more you explore, the more places become available to explore, and the more kinds of Random Events become possible. Minerals, Arcana, and Liquid Assets may be expanded in this way. However, Company Favor is only gained by being victorious in battle, Population is only gained by recruiting through random events or corporate poaching, and Energy Generation and Industrial Capacity can only be increased through research. The following areas are available on Psi Centauri 2, the planet you begin on. Psi Centauri 1-6, and 8-10 are not surveyed. Who knows what resources they hold? Note that if you can’t transport a resource back to your factories, it isn’t especially useful to you. Southern Deserts: Ancient ruins and tombs of a long-dead civilization can be explored for Arcana or Liquid Assets. This region is contested territory, especially close to the main mineral nodes, and explorers might be ambushed by enemy troops. Mountains: The Mountains to the north are not as desirable as the ones between the two companies’ bases, but could still be developed for mineral resources. This region is contested territory, especially close to the main mineral nodes, and explorers might be ambushed by enemy troops. Jungle: Sunbow and Svenson could explore the jungle for possible mineral deposits or liquid assets. We Make Everything doesn’t currently have access to this terrain, but could get it later. Plains: These are available to both factions, and might contain minerals, or new technologies. Pre-War of the Seasons faerie structures from before the Summer and Winter Courts nuked each other back to the stone age thousands of years ago dot the landscape. Space: We Make Everything could venture into space with one or both of their starships, getting a chance at special random encounters or to survey other planets. Currently, they do not have the capacity to extract resources from other planets, though. Sunbow and Svenson don’t currently have starships, but could look into acquiring or building one. Stage 4: Random Encounter! Exactly what it says on the can. Something happens. The more you’ve explored and the more and better vehicles you have, the wider the range of random encounters become available, with the best and worst occurring once significant steps have been made into space. Players vote on how to respond, and may gain or lose resources and technologies depending on their response. Stage 5: Industrial Espionage Each company has a corporate spy in the other’s company, who can act once a quarter to do spy things. Spies have a default 50% chance to succeed, and may be caught in the act and killed if they bungle especially spectacularly. Spies that take no action will never be caught, and spies that die will be replaced in 2 quarters, so if your spy screws up and dies you’ll be without one for a while. Manufacturing equipment useful to spies could improve their chances of success. Spies will take the first action PMed to me, or whichever action has the most votes if multiple people suggest the same thing. Stage 6: War Report In this stage, the players receive reports from their company’s military command how well their company performed in the struggle for the mineral motherlode this quarter, as well as any requests the troops have for new equipment or improvements to existing kit. It is strongly advised that players consider their war reports when choosing which products to manufacture. Ignoring what your troops want too often could make them think you consider them expendable, lowering morale. Battle happens on three fronts: In the open no-man’s-land over the mineral deposit where both sides are reluctant to deploy any weapons that could damage the valuable minerals below ground, in the mountainous region to the north of the minerals, and in southern deserts, where combat is centered around oases and the ancient ruins that frequently surround them, creating a mix of skirmishes and urban warfare.

Kyra draws a bead on the suspiciously clean and well-armed guy but does not fire. She continues splitting her attention between her crewmates in the square, and the surrounding area, adding the suspicious guy to her list. If she shot him and the strange events stopped, that would be pretty conclusive proof of what was going on, but if it didn't stop anything then she could have killed an innocent bystander for no gain.

"Isaac, I believe whoever rules this island is controlling their people through use of a secret police. It could be a more exotic way of gathering information, but this kind of fear usually comes from it being beaten into the people. The tall building is likely worth investigating, but I'd prefer a less direct approach. The opposition values secrecy and fear. A conflict would be best at a time and place of our-" Kyra pauses as she views the disturbance, and the kid, head cocked. "Elegy, see if you can help the kid. Isaac, go with her. Try to look like a badass, the kind that's good enough to not need to seem scary. If whoever is lured out is too much for you two to handle, I'll step in." And he'd already rushed off. Well, hopefully he'd heard at least some of that, and would let Elegy fill him in on the rest. "If you win or they don't strike, meet me back at the ship within the hour. If I'm not back by then, I may require a rescue. Follow the smoke cloud." Kyra steps back into the shadows of a nearby alley, and seems to vanish. In reality, she's pulled her headscarf up to cover her face and rapidly climbed to a nearby roof where she conceals herself, rifle at the ready, carefully scanning the surrounding area for any sign of the secret police or other weirdness.

"If I ever meet the one in charge of recruitment for this operation I am going to punch them in the face," The Doomfist gleams ominously in the faint light as Lexiel raises it in front of her, humming with power, "Many of us are well-qualified for these battles. However, many of us are young, inexperienced, or civilians. I started young too, but at least I had some idea of what I'd signed up for. And I know too well what it's like to be black bagged in the name of the greater good. Not that I dismiss your contributions, faerie. You've done far better than I did in my misspent youth."

Kyra seems to be ignoring the events, but a plate of food has mysteriously vanished at some point. Her eyes have stayed fixed on the distant island. Then she turns toward the assembled crew, having seemed to have come to a decision. ”Once we make landfall, we’ll split up to cover more ground. Carl, you’ll need to tend to our provisions. Take Ricewine and Zoffy with you for backup and heavy lifting, and make sure you get enough liqueur to treat our water supplies. If you can, get some decent wine. That rum we had was vile. Sigmund, you’re in charge of restocking our other stores. You know what we’re running low on. Jill and Cora can watch your back. Mask, you and Jenkins will watch the ship. Feel free to take shore leave once someone else comes back to secure it, and while you’re on duty see what kinds of fish live in these waters. Meat is expensive if we have to buy it. I’ll be taking Elegy and Isaac to trawl the local bars and hangouts for information. Most islands don’t advertise themselves as ‘rubbish’ even if they are coated in it. Something doesn’t sit well with me about this place.”

"We had more than two groups, and I had the most leadership experience of mine. It made sense to take command," Lexiel explains, visibly reigning herself in, "Our battle did go exceptionally well. A little pre-planning, some focused fire, and a well-placed shield work wonders on friendly casualty rates. Ugh, I suppose you're right. Best not to poke the strange magic as long as it's working correctly. We wouldn't want to compromise an ally's abilities. And I object to that comment, Marisa! I do in fact take safety precautions! I'm trying to help people, not explode them. And speaking pragmatically, if your test subjects die a lot you stop getting volunteers."

"Statistically speaking, backing away slowly and refusing to sign any wavers of consent has a far higher chance of success- Oh. Uh, terribly sorry about that. The enchantments on that are just so interesting. It's always a blast learning about new kinds of magic," Lexiel apologizes, "I may have gotten a little carried away. After all, if I experimented on that, I couldn't have a control group. What was I thinking?"

"Connection to a mech you say? I thought I saw an extradimensional storage space attached to that enchantment. It is elegant, but looks old. Why I would wager it's been weeks since this thing was improved! Weeks! That is criminal! And they left a side-effect like muteness in the final build? How unprofessional," A slightly unsettling gleam has appeared in Lexiel's eyes as red, white and blue glowing runes dance before her fingertips. Nobody else recognizes them, but it's clear they mean something to her. "No self-respecting mage would leave such sloppy work to fester. It is time to do SCIENCE unto this unworthy piece of spellwork!" When she says the word 'science', red and white lightning bolts strike the ground behind her, despite there being hardly a cloud in the sky. "My old master Pazzeri would be furious if I let you live like this. But fear not! By the time I'm finished it will be a masterwork worthy of the Izzet seal of quality!" Anyone even vaguely familiar with the Izzet guild would not be reassured by that statement at all.

Lexiel returns the salute with her gauntleted hand. "Strike Captain Lexiel of Overwatch. I'm one of our team's military advisors and field commanders. It's a pleasure to have another professional working with us. You've currently been drafted by a force that has yet to reveal its nature to us to fight beings called Trespassers. These beings are capable of traveling between worlds, and seek to consume or destroy everything in their path. I was skeptical of whatever gathered us' intentions at first, but I've seen the destruction the Trespassers cause first-hand. Our foes are definitely working with them, and they must be stopped. No worlds should share Zendikar's fate. So we fight for our homes, and all those who cannot defeat these threats themselves. "Currently, we are helping defend this fortress. They have been invaded by foes from another world, who incarnated spirits of ancient heroes to bolster their forces before corrupting those spirits with what I strongly suspect is Trespasser sorcery to bind them to their fell cause. We have eliminated many of these Servants, but the most powerful of them remains at large. We're in the process of healing wounds, resting, and re-arming before we hunt him down."

A rush of air, bringing with it a hint of ozone and motor oil, accompanies the Archangel Lexiel as she descends to land in the courtyard. Straightening a few errant feathers, she looks down at her battered coat with a sigh before pulling gently at the dark garment. It falls apart in her hands with a rattle of leather and mail, revealing sleek, blue body-armor underneath, and a grey, fingerless gauntlet on her right hand. The gauntlet has a symbol of a red dragon on a blue field on the back of her hand, the emblem of the Izzet. Her shoulders bear the clenched, red-on-white fist of the Boros and the gold-and-grey circle of Overwatch, which catch the light as she balls up the remains of her coat and tucks it under one arm before striding over. "I thought I saw someone who looked lost. Welcome to the front lines, kid. Whoever sent you here has a terrible sense of humor. Going off of past examples, I'd hazard you're pretty solid in a fight, and have no idea why you're here, am I right? I can give a briefing if you'd like to know what you've been thrown into."

"What's a sectopod?" Rachel sends to the group over her vox-caster, the hardy Imperium technology cutting through the jamming easily at close range. "Do you need backup? I've secured the perimeter with tripwires and an explosive, so it should be safe for me to come support you. I have an anti-armor weapon." Usually, screaming in that tone of voice was reserved for genestealers or traitor Astartes in close quarters. Hopefully, these 'sectopods' wouldn't be quite so formidable.

Sister Rachel takes her scrap metal, wire, and half-buried engine, and gets to work. She sets up tripwires with sharp bits of metal attached all around, so that if enemies approach from any direction they'll make a lot of noise and possibly cut their ankles up. Then, she rearranges some of the larger scrap to funnel approaching enemies toward the engine's exhaust port if they're in that general area, before doing her best to hot-wire the buried engine to explode if she transmits the correct frequency on her vox-caster. This foul xeno-tech would serve humanity in its death throes.

Sister Rachel decides to try to scavenge materials with which to secure the perimeter with some Guard-style booby traps.