Super Hero RPG: Chronicles of Los Diamantes

[dinoman666]

Galaak barely got behind the Pinger before the walker's head spun 180 degrees and fired with the chaingun weapon, piercing the water cocoon and cracking against Galaak's shields, sending him flying backwards and towards the hangar floor. The frozen water didn't do much to stop the Pinger. Indeed, the walker barely needed to move thanks to its pivoting head. And if necessary, Zakai had a contingency plan...

[C S]

Before impact, the water swelled up and shot upwards, catching the Ascatian. The kinetic force sent him drifting well back into the bubble, but it managed to support him nonetheless. With a grunt of effort, Galaak gathered the nearby water into a spout before firing himself out of the swirl, flying through the air and landing onto the Pinger itself. He raised his arms, pulling the water towards the walker. The water rushed onwards and bulging upwards into plumes that slammed into the front of the walker, encasing the machine in ice even further when the flow froze over...

[dinoman666]

"Oh no you don't..." Suddenly, a glowing red cylinder emerged from the Pinger's head, then slammed back down, releasing a massive, hemispherical wall of blueish-white energy that not only sent Galaak flying and melted the ice as it attempted to encase the walker, but was also a very effective EMP, temporarily draining Galaak's suit energy, as well as knocking out the Trooper drones and rendering the Scout ship temporarily powerless...

[C S]

Galaak was sent airborne once again, catching himself in another plume shortly after. His suit's shields took the damage of the pulse, though was completely depleted in the process and was now gradually recharging. As if to pour salt in the wound, just as the warship's defenses were wrangled under E-doch's control, they fell offline due to the blast. The Ascatian let out a low grumble of annoyance, swinging his arms up and then bringing them down, another torrent of water rising into the air and crashing down onto the Pinger, spreading over it. The water was directed into the seam where the turret rotated, starting to coat the cannon's mount...

[dinoman666]

OOC: Just FYI, the Pinger's entire head rotates, not the turret. The weapon is fixed to the Pinger's "chin."

The Pinger, like all Cephian tech, was well-adapted for aquatic environments, and was hardly even slowed by the torrent of water. "You're going to have to do better than that, explorer!" The Pinger fired a pulse blast at Galaak to throw off his concentration, now entirely focused on wiping the Ascatian from existence...

[C S]

Galaak let himself sink into the liquid twister several feet, the pulse tearing through overhead and slamming into the hanger ceiling. "He's going to do more damage to his own ship than I have at this rate..." he muttered to himself before refocusing. The water continued to flow into the machine, coating the mechanisms that allowed its top half to rotate. Galaak unclenched his fists as he flicked his wrist, the water inside suddenly expanding and freezing at below zero temperature, forming thick spikes that stabbed into brittle metal, effectively crippling the walker...

[dinoman666]

Before Galaak could finish his work on crippling the Pinger, it released another EMP blast that had about the same effect as last time: melting and breaking the ice, and sending Galaak flying backwards yet again. "It's about time I ended your pathetic existence..." Zakai snarled, even as Kala's static-filled voice crackling over Galaak's damaged com: "Please stop making him use the d*mn EMP! You want help or not?"

[C S]

A wall of water shot into the air, catching the Ascatian before whirling around him, forming another spout that suspended him off the ground. With his communicator downed by the EMP, he did not hear what Kala said. Galaak, tiring but determined, switched his tactics. Instead of freezing the machine from the inside, Galaak released its three legs from their icy bindings. Seconds later, the Pinger was hit by another wave, the water rushing under it and forcing upwards, creating a forced buoyancy that toppled the machine...

[dinoman666]

Zakai snarled in irritation as the Pinger fell backwards under the torrent of water, legs flailing as it attempted to right itself. Even as it fell, the head of the walker opened fire on Galaak with a massive pulse of sonic energy emitted from its nose, sending him flying backwards, this time outside of the ship completely thanks to the open hangar doors...

By this point, Galaak's com had returned to working condition, allowing Kala's voice to be heard: "--say again, do you hear me Galaak?! Don't make him use the EMP again! I repeat, don't let him use the EMP, or I am stuck!"

[C S]

The sonic pulse was stifled by the water that had enveloped the walker as it fell, the Pinger now suspended in a large writhing bubble. "I hear you Kala" Galaak said seconds before sending the bubble hurtling across the hanger, taking deactivated troopers in its way along for the ride. The bubble devolved into a wave by time it hit the opposite wall, slamming the Pinger into it with an echoing thump

[dinoman666]

The Pinger slammed into the wall headfirst, sinking to the floor, momentarily disabled thanks to the stunned Zakai piloting it. "Galaak, stand down," Kala snarled. "This can is MINE to tear open..." With that, the Scout ship detached from the magnetic clamps holding it in place, floating down to hover at Galaak's current height...

[C S]

The twisting column disbanded gradually into a large pool, Galaak descending until it had completely melded into the spread of marsh water inside of the hanger. "If you absolutely must kill him, do it quickly and honorably. Victory would be in vain if you stoop to his level" The Ascatian said as he waited for Kala's attack

[dinoman666]

"We'll see..." Kala growled back, the Scout ship's tentacles rearing up threateningly as the Pinger's articulated legs managed to gain purchase on the hangar floor and right the walker, its armored head throwing off the occasional red spark. "Ah, so that's what you were up to, Kala..." Zakai's voice growled out as the Pinger's head spun to face him. A blast of sonic energy was barely dodged by the nimble Scout ship, which dove to the side to avoid the attack. "I'm going to make you pay for what you've done, Zakai!" The Scout ship fired its MOAR, which was significantly more powerful than the one used by the Troopers. The frozen shards pinged off the walker's armored head, doing little damage, if any. Zakai laughed. "What, and now you suddenly care for these human filth?" "If only that was the only atrocity you committed in the name of our kind, Zakai. What else have you done without orders from the Primacy, I wonder? The Scout ship and Pinger circled each other, each preparing for the other to shoot first. "I was with you once, remember? I followed you as you burned whole cities because they refused to reveal a target! I followed you when you murdered countless innocents because they annoyed you! I--" Kala's furious rant was cut off when the Pinger fired another sonic pulse, this one actually hitting the Scout ship and sending it tumbling backwards through the air, only to slam into the hangar wall. "All bark and no bite, Kala, as usual," Zakai said as he moved the Pinger forward, preparing a pulse blast. "You were always too soft to make the hard decisions. Fortunately, I do not share such weakness. It's been fun, criminal, but I'm afraid I have a bounty to collect..."

Zakai, however, was too busy gloating to realize that he hadn't been the only one charging a weapon. A bright blue flash appeared at the Scout ship's nose as it suddenly rose up again, firing the MOAC at close range. The freezing blast encased the Pinger's two front legs, momentarily stopping it mid-stride. Even as Zakai prepared another EMP, the Scout darted forward, wrapping its tentacles around the walker's head and keeping the cylinder that powered the EMP pinned down under the ship's cockpit. Kala's voice crackled over Galaak's com: "Galaak, get outside, now! I'm going to trigger the self-destruct! I'll meet you out there!"

[C S]

"Must we always solve our problems by blowing something up?!" Galaak replied, drawing the liquid around him into another plume that arced through the air, out the port side entrance and into the marsh outside. The Ascatian was propelled through it, his body straight as he shot through the spiraling pathway and disappearing into the wetland...

[dinoman666]

Kala didn't answer, his attention focused on keeping the Scout clamped firmly to the struggling Pinger, the walker now free of the ice, moving back and forth to try and shake its assailant. "Say goodbye to your career, Zakai..." The hatch in the cockpit of the Scout slid open, and Kala leaped out after activating the self-destruct sequence. Swiftly leaping to the ground and rolling forward, Kala sprang to his feet just as a pulse blast slammed into the ground where he been standing only a moment before. The Pinger slammed against the hangar wall, trying to scrape the Scout off its head, Zakai shouting, "Get back here, criminal! If I'm going to die, you and your friend are coming with me!"

[C S]

Galaak surfaced from the murky swamp lake, gazing into the hanger where the Pinger stomped noisily about. "Inconsiderate as always...some of the life forms are trying to sleep" Galaak grumbled to himself, raising an arm, droplets dripping off of his black armor. The water around the tripod's feet suddenly shot up and coated its legs, freezing over soon after...

[dinoman666]

Though temporarily stuck, the Pinger nevertheless continued to thrash, the bleeping Scout finally sliding off the walker's head. As it pulled itself free of its icy prison and turned to pursue Kala as he dove off the side of the hangar bay and into the waters below, the Scout finally detonated.

The resulting explosion rocked the entire ship to and fro for a few moments, a blue wave of energy erupting out the sides of the hangar and causing the Pinger to simply disappear from sight...

[C S]

Galaak simply sighed as the blue overcast erupted from the sides of the ship. He did not feel the heat or the rush of air after the explosion, but saw its effects on the surface, the water rippling and reflecting the brilliant light. "At least one of them found reason instead of their doom. I suppose that's a success" the explorer mused as he gazed...

[dinoman666]

Kala was safely under the water when the explosion occurred, and immediately popped back up, looking over at the smoke-clogged hangar bay. He couldn't see a thing, but he doubted the Pinger had survived unscathed. "Hey, Galaak, meet me by the hangar bay," he growled, standing up in the waist-high water, letting it drip off his suit and snorting in disgust. Even if he couldn't feel or smell it, the fact that he was in this muck just made him uncomfortable, which was saying something coming from a semi-aquatic alien species...

[C S]

Galaak chuckled and held a hand out at Kala, the water surrounding him suddenly flowing towards the armored Cephian. The wave swept Kala up and off his feet before dumping him back into the hanger. Galaak then rode his own wave, though sparing himself the harsh landing. The Ascatian let out a deep, rumbling laugh at his prone companion...