Chapter 1: Sortie, Runners!

Some XPs:
2 XP for Osiris for accepting my GM intrusion when he was blown backwards by the slug, I should have said it was a GM intrusion so you could accept or refuse it. I made you accept, so take 2 XPs, but remember to give one XP to someone else.
1 XP to Spax for his ingenious siege engine and his vivid descriptions.

Hei flips forward and the crawlers fly off, splatting on the ground.

Osiris creates another Ace illusion in front of him as the tentacles shoot at him, and sidesteps out from behind illusion Ace at the last moment. The tentacles celestially fly shoot through illusion Ace as Osiris dodges. The flesh slug seems to realize that it hit an illusion, and retracts it's tentacles. (You can still use illusion Ace, but you'll have to figure out how to get the slug confused again.)

A cable flies through the air and attaches to the Zast's unit, and following it Spax flies out of Gion and lands with a thud on the Defenser. The two crawlers, distracted by your appearance, drop Zast onto the metal, and hungrily crawl towards you, muscular veiny arms outstretched. One pulls two arms back, and swings to fists towards you. Another dozen climb up the Defenser and will reach you and Zast in seconds.

Speed Defense roll to avoid punch

The Runners: The mud like pool that Herdin is submerging in suddenly bubbles uncontrollably, and with a burble Herdin is pulled under. Miu is safe with her sister in Soniku. Darani pounds towards Ace and slug S3, and as she runs she throws a dagger that bounces off what's left of it's shell. Rozlt drops and manages to duck a flight of tentacles, and then swings two daggers toward the flesh slug S2's head. It burps out a large chunk of fleshy matter which catches onto Rozlt's Defenser's head, blocking his monitors off inside the cortex, causing him to miss drastically and land in front of the slug.

The Flesh Beasts: S3, recoils it's tentacles and carefully tracks both Aces, for now knowing which one is real. Osiris, give me an intellect roll to trick the flesh slug again if you'd like, and describe what you do to confuse it. S2 spits out fleshy matter onto Rozlt's cameras, disabling his sight. The crawlers rip the hatch off of a Defenser belonging to a runner you did not know, and reaching inside, she is ripped out with a scream. With several cracks they quickly break her bones, and then one of them extends it's neck and chomps off her head.
The crawlers on Zast's defenser, distracted by Spax's arrival, drop Zast, and swarm towards the lone man.

Ara stomps toward flesh slug S2 with a gleaming sword , hoping to reach Rozlt in time. Miu says something, but her voice is lost within the squealing of the damaged Soniku as it runs at full speed. Seeing that Rozlt is not a threat, the slug launches tentacles at you, and burps out more fleshy matter onto Rozlt's defenser below it.

Speed defense for Ara.

Spax's feet hit Zast's defender with a jarring sensation that weakens his knees. He recovers as best he can and moves forward using his momentum to roll (hopefully) past the demons and next to Zast.

Along with defense, you can also attack.

Is that my Major Effect? I think I'd like to knock those two nasty red creatures in front of me off Zast's Defenser. Then grab Zast and whistle it back to Gion.

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Spax rolls expertly and carries forward past the flailing appendages of the red demons. Their attacks slam the defensers hull with frightening power and obvious intent.

Pulling up into a crouched position now behind the spider creatures, Spax flexes his arm and a foot-long, synth-steel blade jabs into the air from his gauntlet.

Spax punches hard at the first creatures exposed shoulder blades with his weapon, hopefully pushing the creature into its brethren and knocking them away from the runners. Anything to gain a few precious seconds to grab Zast and retreat to Gion.

"Get the hell away from us you bastards!"

No, I meant that in any turn you can attack and defend, not that its a major affect. I let you defend and then attack in a post just to keep things moving. Also, you have to roll to attack anything, unless somehow you reduce the difficulty to zero. However, for your major effect for your speed roll, this timeI let you dodge the crawlers and get past them without having to attack, as you dodged so well. Just remember that to attack anything you need to roll.

You duck the bulbous arms while running forward, and without thinking drop to the ground. Your momentum carries you under the beast's legs, and you reach Zast without having to attack the creatures. Wracked with pain, he tries to lift himself. As he is about to fall you catch him with an arm.

"Hang on Zast, let me get you out of here." Spax slides under Zast's good arm and hefts the fellow runner to a standing position. "When we get outta here buddy, you can rest, but I need your help right now Zast. You have to hold on to me as tightly as you can until we reach my Defenser okay?"

Over the cacophonous sound of the battle around them, Spax isn't sure if the injured man replied, but he feels his good arm tighten aroubd his neck. "Alright. Good man. Now let's get going!"

Wrapping his arm around Zast's waist, Spax lifts his palm up and points toward Gion's enormous chest. "Here I come."

Seing the red flesh bits dropping on Rozlt, I grimace in disgust. "As if the sluggies weren't disgusting enough already." Seeing the tentacles flying towards me, I'll try to leap to the side, and if I dodge attack.

(Yes)

the whistler jars Spax's hand as it fires toward Gion. Behind and in front of him he can hear the skittering terrors barreling towards Zast's cockpit. "Hold on Zast, this is going to be rough."

Sofor observes the battle, waiting for an opening. (you should act)

Osiris and Ace start to glow as they meld with illusion Ace for a second. The bright light seems to confuse the slug momentarily as the two Aces meld and then become two again. You scan the thing for weaknesses. On the sluggies, the weak points were it's red bulb-like protrusions on it's head and the soft flesh on it's 'chest'. However, this isn't a sluggie anymore. You get the feeling that to learn more you need to play it's game.

Spax's whistler sticks onto Gion's surface. As you start to fly towards it you feel the circulation in your leg suddenly cut off. Looking down, you see the crawler you ducked seconds earlier maniacally grabbing onto your leg with immense force. You were too slow. You slam into one of Gion's legs and with a shrill of pain see Zast fall from your arm, landing precariously ten feet below you on a protruding bit of Gion's knee armor.
The crawler is still hanging to your leg. Your right arm is pulled above you, suspending you to Gion's cockpit higher above you.

Take 2 Might damage, Spax. You can try to dislodge the thing however you can think of. Also remember that your whistler has one more charge if you want to use it somehow. Oh, remember this. Although it's too late now, you can spend an XP (which you have) to reroll one roll.

The Runners: Seeing Osiris waving her off, Darani hesitates and then runs toward the others. ***"I'm trusting you, Osiris."*** Miu yells at Ara to stop, but Soniku pounds on to the slug. Rozlt claws at his 'face' on the ground in front of the slug, dragging his fingers like knives across his eyes desperately. Zast is unconscious, hanging halfway off of Gion's knee armor. The other runners are either dead, or still fight a desperate battle with the crawlers.

The Flesh Beasts: Former slug S3 'blinks' at the Aces' display, and one of it's eyes pops out, revealing more fleshy matter underneath. Guess it didn't need it. As Darani's dagger bounces off it's 'shell', the thing picks it up off the ground and examines it, and then tosses it away. It gazes at the two Aces calmly.
S2 fires tentacles at Soniku...

Ara:

You leap to the side, and you see the tentacles shoot past you on your right monitor. You begin a sigh of relief when suddenly multiple impacts from behind jar the defenser and throw you forward. You see Miu fall onto the ground by your feet nearly unconscious.

Head pounding...ow...on your monitors the ground seems to be moving farther away...Huh? You realize with horror that Soniku is being lifted up and pulled towards the giant slug via it's tentacles.

(Oh crap)

Compacting on itself, Soniku explodes outwards, writhing and twisting. Inside it, Ara desperately pulls levers and kicks pedals, screaming to Soniku in her mind.

Crap, crap, crap! Whats the deal with this creepy thing?

(I declare shenanigans)

Spax's face contorts into a grimace fueled by the pain in his leg. He attempts to twist while pulling away, "Get off of me you demon!"

Hei's hand pushes out from it's socket at a downward angle while the fingers snap together to form a blade. Advancing slowly, Hei raises it's arm and then sinks it into the thing's chest...

Ace and it's brother charge forward, and distracted by the illusion, the slug dodges the illusion only to have the real blade scissor across it's throat...

Spax kicks his leg viciously, dashing the crawler against Gion's hull. Out of the corner of your eye you see crawlers swarming up Gion's legs, trying to reach you and unconscious Zast.

The Runners: Darani runs at the slug with her spear, but trips over Rozlt as he kicks and claws frantically. Miu is unconscious in Soniku's cockpit. The other runners fight the crawlers with variable success, some are free of them and some are dead. Zast's leg slides off the armor and he starts to slip...

The Fleshies: The former slugs are both hit with attacks from Hei and Ace. S2 pulls Soniku to itself.

Ara:

The unseeing eyes of the slug come closer and closer, until they are level with your monitors, Soniku's eyes. Suddenly covered by red matter, they go black and then disappear entirely as above you you hear metal compacting and then a brutal crunch.

You can almost imagine Soniku screaming in your mind as her body is torn apart. You can almost feel the machine's pain...the armor rending...the joints cracking......
In front of you, holes start cracking open in the cockpit, and crusty liquid starts bubbling in until something slams directly into the nearly dissolved hatch. Through the holes in the hatch you see, that like lusty tongues, a mass of tentacles leading from down into the depths of the creature are licking and caressing the outside of the hatch, and then almost tenderly wriggle their way into the cockpit, reaching hungrily towards you and Miu to pull you down into the thing.

For Sofor:

As you drive your hand into the neck, blood spurts out like a geyser, coating Hei further in gore. However, the beast hardly seems to notice, continuing to pound at Soniku's hull, and then it lowers it's mouth to Soniku's cockpit. With a jerk, Hei's hand is pulled from it's socket and is absorbed into the beast, nearly pulling you in with it.

For Osiris:

The verred makes a clean sweep of the thing, nearly decapitating it. However, it hardly seems to notice, and with an almost malicious look ejects the weapon viciously from it's neck. The verred flies from Ace's hands and lands in a puddle.

For Everyone

As Osiris and Sofor land hits on the beasts, almost as if it was some sort of response to their attacks you feel Darani slip into your minds, you can taste her confusion.

***Dammit, no, no, what's happening...who are you-"*** Her mind seems to morph into another's.
-No, listen to me now. It's all that's important. I don't have much time.

Images flash through your consciousness almost too fast to be comprehended.

Blobs of shape and color, confused and pained...
Old men in glowing white robes...
A hand growing to twice it's proportions and then bursting to become a starfish...
A white citadel, wrested from the ancients...
A humanoid machine, writhing and pulsating on a metal floor...
A flight of spinning tentacles...
A being of pure energy, sitting alone against a glowing panel...

With particular clarity an image separates itself from the rest.

Weapons of darkness and light, miles below the amber pavilion-

***"You're all weak now, you must return here before-I'm found-"***
A sharp mental spike severs the connection, although you realize that it was merely an echo of the immense suffering of the other.

Your move.

The spider-demon dismissed, Spax looks around wearily for his comrade. He spies Zast below on Gion's knee and thank the sky above for little miracles... Or was it more than that? Did you move to catch him Gion? He tries to recall how he'd left the Defenser when he exited to retrieve Zast. But too much had occurred in such a short time for him to remember. The unholy screams below snap him back to reality as Spax spots more red, multi-legged, things heading up Gion's armor from the Amorphous Fields below.

"This isn't good." Spax says aloud to Gion. Quickly calculating the distance between himself and the injured Zast, Spax breathes a sigh to calm his nerves, "It can't be that hard right? Just let gravity do its thing." Spax smiles warily then releases the whistlers cable allowing himself to fall to Zast.

Spax hits Gion's armor hard and instantly grabs onto Zast's... (Alive! Dead? No. Unconscious!) body, quickly trying to wrap the man into a firm embrace. All the while Zast moans in pain as his accumulated wounds beg to be handled with care. Spax ignores as best he can and lifts with all his might, looking longingly back toward Gion's chest above. "Here we go!"

Edit: Nope. Nope. No. I'm spending an xp dammit! I'm making it to Gion's cockpit. >:-(