don't fear the reaper

[thespaceopera]

[The First Battle]

[They come shooting out of the great dark. Guns blazing, no warning. The enemy ships are ragtag, mismatched, and cobbled together from spare parts. But that doesn’t make them weak. No-- years and years of scavenging have turned them into raiders, and they carry their scars with pride.

The battle is more aggressive than previous attacks against the Fleet. Nothing deters the raiders because they’re tough, and if they see a wounded ship floundering, they have no problems swooping in and boarding. Those crews will soon learn the meaning of teamwork if they want to bring the attackers down. They infiltrate the Iskaulit as well, just in case people try to hide there. At this point they are very, very used to tracking down women and children for their slave trade.

If asked why they’re doing this, the answer is simple.

Spare parts have to come from somewhere.

Don’t worry. Nothing on your ship, and no one, will go to waste.]


[A Few Hours Later]

[The raiders are too strong and the Fleet is failing. After what seems like an eternity of warfare, static comes in, broadcasted to the fleet at large. Something or someone is hailing them…

The signal is untraceable and the video is complete static, but they tell the Fleet they are here to help. Ships come swooping out of the black and they open fire on the raiders. They number a dozen, maybe more, and the ships look eerily similar to the ones currently used by the Fleet, if not a bit older and battle-hardened. Their shielding and weaponry is much, much better, however-- and most of them have custom paint or other touches on their hulls.

They’re not invincible, however. A few may end up between a rock and a hard place when the raiders surround them.

Some older residents may remember this particular group of ships. They’re obviously helping out now, but there’s nothing stopping Fleeters from firing on their would-be saviors save a complete lack of weaponry. You do have a Security officer on board, don’t you? They’ll defend themselves by seriously injuring your ship, but they won’t destroy it for some reason. Small mercies.

The raiders soon realize they’re outgunned and jump ship, taking their dead with them. The intercepting fleet pulls back, too, and both parties vanish back into the dark as silently and swiftly as they came. There’s a lot of cleanup to do whether your ship is disabled or you’re preparing to tow someone else.

Hopefully, the people who saved you don’t change their minds.]

[Plot info is here! Feel free to make your own toplevels with fighting, barricading, being boarded, saving others, the aftermath, etc. There's lots to do!]

Comments

Sokka | OTA

[alwayscomeback]

[Space Battle/Ship network]

[Sokka has survived one of these attacks before. But this is different, they've never been this aggressive before. He can't fly or do much of anything to protect the ship itself. He keeps the shields up, but he knows they can only hold so much before they break. They can't even move. He speaks over the ship's network, voice hurried yet calm. ]

I need everyone at their stations, and do what they can to keep her in the sky. If this is like last time, they'll just push us into the nearest nebula and leave us alone. Be ready in med bey all the same!

[Boarding Party]

[Of course, it's NOT like last time, and they have raiders board the ship. Sokka needs to try and keep the ship's engine working, lest she just lose power completely. Still, he can be seen breaking from the engine room when he can, when they come near to it, his sword slashing out in the small space. For the most part, he's keeping any eye out for his crew, trying to spot anyone in danger, between darting back to fix the engine again. ]

[Aftermath]

How're you holding up?

[Sokka's making the rounds, checking on each and every crew member. Once he knows the State of the Fish, he'll be retiring back to the engine room to try and mend the damage done to their beloved ship. Please remind him to sleep because he will absolutely forget to. ]

Aftermath

[goodandtrue]

[Jeyne glanced up from the counter that she had claimed for all of her herbal remedies. With the number of injured, she had set up a place for herself in the med bay, putting her new salves and mixtures to use.

Her mind had been focused on the task that she had forgotten about everything but the work at hand. Blood crusted her forehead where she had landed against the table, unnoticed in the chaos and frenzy.

It was a relief to see Sokka uninjured and okay.]

Well enough. Are you all right?

Aftermath

[alwayscomeback]

[He smiles and gives her a thumbs up. It's never too later to learn awesome other-world gestures. ]

I'm good. No injuries here. The ship's really took a hit, though. Might be a while before I can get her good as she was again.

[goodandtrue]

What was that? Who were those men?

[With everything seemingly under control (or as well as it was going to be), she could move on to the more important questions.]

boarding party

[deviances]

[ Eithan just so happens to be very quickly backing away from two raiders, right in front of the engine room! He's already muttering a spell under his breath, crackling flames appearing in the palms of his hands, but he might not have been able to finish had that sword not swung out from the door, striking one of them hard enough to stun and confuse the both of them. Awesome!

With a triumphant grin, Eithan pushes his flames forward, detonating a small, controlled explosion around the raiders. It... might leave a little bit of a charred mess but hey he'll fix that when this is all over, he swears.

He turns to Sokka, nods once. ]

Thanks, Captain. There's a few more comin' this way -- I'll watch the door for you?

[alwayscomeback]

[Sokka would rather have a charred mess than dead crew, in all honesty. That, he can live with , the other? Not so much. He offers Eithan a grin and gives him a slapstick salute. ]

No problemo. And yeah, thanks! I got no problem dealing with them, but trying to deal with them and keep our life support systems online? Thaaaaaaaaaaaat's a little trickier. And I'm pretty sure all of us still want the oxygen to be working.

[deviances]

[ And Eithan salutes right back~! ]

Yeah, no, breathin' is definitely a priority, man. So you do that - I got this.

[ There's already a fireball in his palm as he moves to properly stand guard. ]

I'll let you know if someone's gettin' too close.

Aftermath

[lightbends]

[Once all the fighting was done, Korra made her way immediately for the Blue Fish. Naga was left safely behind on the Wonderduck while Korra made a beeline for the engine room, knowing Sokka would be there]

Sokka!

[The Blue Fish was a mess and Korra had no way of knowing if Sokka was injured so - for now - the hugs would wait.]

[alwayscomeback]

[Sokka is surrounded by bits of machine, his thinking face well and truly set to max. He glances up at the sound of Korra's voice, releif sweeping over it when he sees she's okay. Good. Good. One more worry to cross off the list. ]

Hey, you. How'd the Wonderduck fare?

[lightbends]

I think it came out alright? Kind of banged up but I was piloting us out of there.

[Some fun times, let her tell you. If there was anything to give her practice piloting it was that.]

Aftermath

[geonomy]

[Clay had already checked in with Allen, so that's one major relief. But Blue Fish is still a mess, and it can't move, and that just won't do. So as Clay gets the Vanquish in a better position, he hails Sokka first, just to make sure.]

Hey! This is SS Vanquish; looks like you guys could use some help!

Aftermath

[alwayscomeback]

[That sure is an audible sigh of relief. Sokka has been focusing on his own people, but Clay means a lot to Allen, and by extension, his being okay means a lot to Sokka. ]

There's a welcome voice, Vanquish. We really could use some help. I can keep our life support systems online, but we won't be moving anywhere unless I get some spare parts.

Aftermath

[geonomy]

[That's a relief, at least, that the most important part of their ship is working. Clay would've hauled ass over there to try fixing it if it wasn't. For now, this is the best he can do here.]

Vanquish took a little damage, but all of our systems are online. I can hook you guys up to us and tow you to the next area.

Allen told me there's some injuries, too. My lab support's made some potions that work really well; I can bring those over, too.

Aftermath

[save_the_souls]

[He's already found several of the crew, but now it was time to look for Sokka in the engine area of the ship. He's got some bruises and cuts on him- but nothing too severe. Compared to several others in the crew, he got off lucky.]

Sokka?

[He keeps looking around, both worried about his captain and friend, and saddened by the damage of the ship in this area. It looks so different than how it looked this morning when he came down here...it's almost hard to believe it's the same place]

[alwayscomeback]

[Sokka's fine, uninjured, thankfully. Covered in grease and oil, but uninjured. He peers out of the engine room door at the sound of Allen's voice, eyes instantly drifting over his friend, checking him for injuries. ]

Hey. How is everyone? They holding up okay?

[save_the_souls]

[He doesn't hide his relief when he sees Sokka, seemingly unharmed. At the question, he rubs the back of his neck.]

...Robb and Riona are badly hurt, Beverly and Leliana have broken bones, Sansa's got a sprained arm and is really distressed, Jeyne and Kanda are alright, but I haven't heard from Eithan yet. But he's a vampire and vampires tend to be very tough, so....

[Yeah, it's clear he's trying to be positive. In the end, his shoulders slump a little.]

Crew's as battered as the ship, I'm afraid.

aftermath »

[steeledskin]

[ sokka's already been and gone, once. visited her; checked in; done his duty. sansa told him she was tired -- suggested, perhaps, that she wanted to rest. but when she walks back into her room and sees it in such disarray...?

old insecurities bubble to the surface. she sits on her bed, feels like her heart is beating too quickly, and realizes there will be no sleep for her tonight. sansa thinks about finding her brother -- but she knows his wife will be tending to him, and she isn't prepared to intrude upon them. everyone else is too hurt; too unfamiliar; too preoccupied.

hours after stewing in her own post-raid panic, she finds her way to the engine room. sansa is surprised to see sokka still at work. she clears her throat. ]

-- Have you yet rested?

[alwayscomeback]

[Sokka turns, offering her a sheepish smile. He's been worried about her, about all of them. This was supposed to be a safe place for them, and in failing to keep it safe, he feels he's failed them. Failed her. So, he's been focusing on the ship, fixing it where he could- so at least they could start to move on from this one day. ]

Rest is overrated. I'll get in some sleep soon.

[No he won't, not unless he's forced. ]

How're you holding up? How's the arm?

[steeledskin]

[ the arm in question is in a sling -- fastened securely against her chest. as treatments go, she finds this one easy to endure. ]

I'm as well as can be expected. [ she answers about as dishonestly as he did. this time, she doesn't even feel a twinge of guilt. sansa knows he's lying to her. ] If a little sleepless. Also.

[ she knows there will be nightmares. she'd rather avoid them altogether. ] -- What did they do to the...engine?

[ the word doesn't come naturally to her. ]

[Ship network]

[kingofbadlifechoices]

[But captain, Robb has no idea how to keep the ship afloat.]

Must I make sure that everyone has access to a weapon and get ready for what might come? Or do you want me to prepare evacuations? [A pause.] Captain?

[Ship network]

[alwayscomeback]

[It's okay, Robb, it's totally easy! ]

Weapons, definitely weapons. If we try to evacuate, it could end badly. A shuttle would be an easy target. Least we have shields here.

I'll let you know if that changes, though. We'll need the non-combatants safe. The clinic's the best bet there.

[Ship network]

[kingofbadlifechoices]

[For a moment there is an odd image inside his head of the ship holding actual shields. But he knows it is something different, something modern that can be activated by pressing a bunch of buttons.]

Of course, of course.

[But was it safe? Everything seemed to be flickering and another hit sends him into the wall.]

Are they holding up? Have you instructed the others?

[While talking he hurries into the other rooms, checking for any sign of life.]

Aftermath; meant to tag this sooner

[bryces_pup]

Would you believe me if I said I've suffered worse?

[Being gutted kind of sucks, she won't lie. But she'd still take this over a dragon almost ripping her in half any day.

Still, she makes for a bit of a sorry sight on her bed in the med bay. Her color still hasn't fully returned, and she's weaker than normal.]

tis ok!

[alwayscomeback]

Given it's you, I'm gonna go yeah. Don;t you fight dragons or something?

[He sure has heard about dragons!]

Can I do anything for you?

[bryces_pup]

A... few. Four? Maybe five. Anyway, yes. One of which nearly killed me and familiarized me with the sensation of almost bleeding to death.

[So this really paled in comparison to that incident. Not that bleeding out was ever fun or easy...]

What you can do is be honest with me and tell me how bad the ship is, and how the crew is holding up.