Chapter Three: All In

[Purr]

Spoiler: Instrumental mood music

"I'm the Dude" by Keith Forsey for The Breakfast Club Original Motion Picture Soundtrack.

"Mack, I'm all set for action here. Y'know, I need to come up with a good name for my baby here. Something cool like your Red Baroness. I have a few ideas."

Shirley gripped her Valkyrie's controls with familiarity and fondness. "Let those ideas fly, Muppet. I'm telling you now though - I'm shooting down anything too silly. I mean, you go around calling your bird 'Cookie Monster' or something and I'll..." Shirley paused and grinned. "Then again, strike that. I guess I would back a name like that."

* * *​

Cera silently stepped into Elinor's Valkyrie and belted herself in as if she had done it a hundred times. She kept her hands in her lap and touched nothing, also as if she had done that a hundred times too. Her fingers folded, the Ura-Meltrandi just kept her eyes on the huge veritech's sensors and the turning corridor before you. She allowed herself a small smile. She had done well! Her praise was deserved!

* * *​

Meanwhile, the Creche-born hunter-killer stalked alone. Spider-like and with tremendous patience, Iris the Scrath seemed to make very little sound as she seemed to glide across the floor, so light were her steps. She moved toward the corner of the corridor that provided the best view and cover of the room. There, she paused, listened, then peered slowly around the corner.

Then Iris's voice was clear in your minds.

"Success! Leader Mack? This One is ready to report findings."

"Share them with everybody, Iris."

"Compliance," she answered.

Visions, like bright, vivid dreams appeared inside your mind's eye. It was as if you were seeing through someone, something, else's eyes...

Spoiler: The room beyond

Imagine this but with much less available light and the walls are in dark, dull gray colors.

A pair of flickering computer consoles plus a wall-console animate this otherwise dull room. One door on the far side leads away. Above, a round electronic device on the roof gives off a deep, droning hum. A warm, blue glow emanates eerily from the left side of the room. You cannot see what this is from where you are.

(Image credit: Pinterest )


(Image credit: Robotech Visions Wiki - Fandom )


(Image credit: fallout.wikia.com)

In the center of the room are two Zeki-Zentraedi warriors protected in red and black heavy armor and armed with large rifles. They appear to be covered in the same white, frothy gunk you saw the fire-suppression robots dousing flames with in the Gnerl aerospace hangar. Shouting under their helmets, they angrily swing their rifle buttstocks at four van-sized hovering robots which are attacking the pair with sprays of water, goop, and animated vigor.

As the strange melee continues, you notice the Zeki-Zentraedi are being forced toward the the doorway at the far end of the room. If things continue as they are, the warriors will be forced to the door in moments. As distracted as they are by the chaotic robots and the melee, both the Zeki-Zentraedi and the robots fail to notice Iris for the moment. While the robots are not models you recognize, there is a certain something in the room all of you recognize...

Spoiler: Something familiar

Surprise!

For those that remember, one of the two Veritech Hover Tanks you were to capture was lightly damaged (on the arm shields). With Captain Hesperus currently out of play, I took one away. I leave you the undamaged Veritech Hover Tank. =)

(Image credit: Robotech Wiki - Fandom )

It stands quietly at the far side of the room behind the chairs, forgotten in the sudden violence. It is dirty with numerous greasy giant-sized handprints all over it as if something very large, aggressive, and not very gentle tried to get the thing to transform by using force. It appears undamaged and, rifle in hand, ready for action.

What do you do?

 

[Psychie]

Toph nods to herself, amazed at the clarity of the images in her mind. "Two soldiers, and several fire control drones. Shouldn't be a problem for us. I'm ready to hit them hard. I'm thinking that we focus fire on one at a time with our direct fire weapons. No need to use any missiles on these targets. Iris, thank you for the intel."

Spoiler: Status

Toph's/Muppet's Ajax munitions:
2/15 Mini Fragmentation 5d6 MDC
8/15 Plasma/Heat 1d6x10 MDC
and 30/30 HEAP 1d4x10 MDC


Muppet's Ajax (240/400 M.D.C.)

 

[Sherwood]

When Mario sees the image of the Spartas in his minds eye courtesy of Iris, he lets out a exultant fist pump. Yes! That's what I'm talking about! A chance to get back in the cockpit of my own tank and get some payback for Booty. Teach these assholes what it means to mess with the ATAC! "Those fire control bots shouldn't be a issue for us. We don't meet the criteria programmed in by Taniya of what a fire is, so we should just be ignored by them. Lieutanants, I anxiously await a chance to get in the cockpit once more so I can carry my own weight in this fight!"

Mario grins, then has a troubling thought. Lets hope that this tank won't have engine trouble like my first mecha did. That would just be my luck today.

 

[Kaerri]

Elinor looked into her Valkyrie's monitor and grinned back at Cera, nodding approval at the other girl's clear competence in the passenger seat. "Nice job," she thought to Cera alone. "You ain't broke, you just aren't finished, and we'll help you with that soon as we can."

Elinor then turned her attention outward (or inward in an outward way, she supposed) and focused on the imagery Iris was sending. "I don't know as we need to hit them at all, really. Another minute and those Zeks'll be out the door with no bother from us. I say we conserve a bit of energy and let the bots do the work, then get Mario into that tank quick as we can."

 

[Psychie]

"Sounds reasonable. One way or the other, though, we need that mecha. Mario, I presume that you know how to open that tank up? At least it seems to be undamaged, so we have that going for us." Toph continues to stand ready, able to move in a moment's notice.

 

[Purr]

Inside the Red Baroness, 1st Lieutenant Mackenzie cracked her knuckles and stared outside the canopy to where Iris spied. With a sigh, she meditated on what she knew for many things had changed since they entered the "base," some of them in the Wild Cards' favor.

The base had turned out not to be a base, but a starship concealed under the Florida vegetation, found by a mob of tech-savvy but otherwise-deranged Scavengers. The Zentraedi they faced were not starving remnants of Lord Dolza's might fleet but instead some entirely new faction of Zentraedi altogether. There was a new faction of Ura-Meltrandi, unallied with any other factions including the Robotech Defense Force and the recently-shaped Army of the Southern Cross. There was even an entirely new alien species on Earth in the form of Iris and her fellow Scrath from their planet, the Creche.

Then there was "Spaceman Sam" from God-knew-where whom her tankers caught running around in this mess. "He," if it was a he given that he had yet to say a single word, seemed to know and have a good relationship with Professor Stein's (cybernetic?) technopathic cat. Stack on top of this everything they had learned about Traversing and technopathy and it had been one hell of a day - a day she had deeply wished Sgt. Booty could have survived to share all this.

Cera, Shirley considered, was a "wild card" of sorts too. A technopathic second-generation Ura-Meltrandi Auxiliary Specialist? Just what did all that mean and what was it, besides her emotional breakdowns, that needed fixing? What was all this about her being "incomplete"? Shirley felt it was bad enough Cera was the first and last of her kind.

Shirley then realized she had a lot more options available to her than when the Wild Cards first went into this... and she decided to keep making use of them. Besides, was not one among their team designed to destroy the very menace threatening themselves and everyone on Eglin ASC base?

The surfer-girl was careful not to speak as the flight recorders captured all. "Cera?"

"Leader Mack?"

"Hey, chick. You know all about these Zeki-Zentraedi, right?"

"I suppose."

"Well, I was thinking. Given the intel supplied to us by Iris here, what would you do if you were one of those Zeki soldiers and three veritechs came around your corner and began shooting at you? Would you do something besides fire back?"

"Most certainly," came the Ura-Meltrandi's reply. "A Zeki-Zentraedi soldier should sound the intrusion alarm. There should be three such devices there on the computer consoles."

"Alarm? But doesn't the whole ship already know we're here? Aren't the Zeki preoccupied?"

"To some extent, yes," Cera fidgeted. "But starships have different types of alarms for different types of emergencies. The intrusion alarm I would sound would summon any and all nearby units unimpeded by the fire-suppression robots."

"Er, so, probably no foot soldiers?"

"Correct. Probably Zeki-Zentraedi Power Armor. Something like an Abolisher would have no trouble with any of the ship robots here and could easily summon more of its kind."

Shirley frowned something mean. "Compounding their numbers... So by attacking these guys, you think we run the risk of losing our chance at getting the tank?"

Cera nodded. "Yes, significantly. And anything else of interest that may lie inside this room..."

Shirley paused in thought. She had asked for some tidbits and Cera had thrown her the whole darned bone. Finally, she decided. "All right, Wild Cards," she said over the squadron channel. "We wait."

By this time, however, most of the waiting was over with. The vengeful shouts from the soldiers receded and receded. There was the sound of a hatch swishing open along with the robots shooting their gooshing material and grabbing at the soldiers with their mechanical arms in an attempt to break the fire apart and thereby spread it out into smaller fires.

With Spaceman Sam and MechaKitten looking on in quiet enthusiasm, Shirley commanded. "Wait until the door shuts. Bruce Leanne? Get you and Cera over to that blast door they went through and lock it down tight. I'll cover you. Muppet and Mario? You know what to do." The thrusters on her shimmering red Valkyrie roared loudly and flared to life, lifting the veritech high into the air.

"Let's do this, Wild Cards!"

 

[Sherwood]

Mario can feel his excitement building. Oh, yeah! Finally able to rock and roll with the ladies in my own mecha! Lets teach these Zentraedi a lesson on what happens when you mess with us! Once the room is clear, the tanker climbs down to snag his heavy SAW and the jump pack. Who knows if they will be needed, but like a condom, better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it, right? Damn right.

Jump-running across the room to the captured Spartas, he keys the controls to open the cockpit with a big grin on his face. I am starting to understand just how my dad must have felt when he first climbed into the saddle of his very first Tomahawk. This is a true rush to know that I'm going to be at the controls, and ready to dish out some hurt to these damn Zentraedi.

Assuming that there is no problem getting the hatch open, Mario powers up the hover tank and runs a quick check on the power capacitor of the Eu-11, then checks the payload of the 105. Got to keep track of the ammo.

 

[Psychie]

Toph grips her controls tight, listening to Cera's input on what might have happened if they had made a quick strike on the guards. Shit. I hadn't even considered the chance that they might be able to sound an intrusion alarm. Some combat pilot I'm turning out to be.

Once Iris gives the all clear, and Mack makes the call to move out, she moves quickly across the room to put Mario as close to the hover tank as she can, all the while keeping watch, scanning the room for other threats or potential intel to bring back to the Colonel.

All the while that this is going on, a part of her mind is mulling over what Mack said earlier: Cookie Monster for a name of my Ajax? Not a bad name. I kinda like it!

Spoiler: Status

Toph's/Muppet's Ajax munitions:
2/15 Mini Fragmentation 5d6 MDC
8/15 Plasma/Heat 1d6x10 MDC
and 30/30 HEAP 1d4x10 MDC

Muppet's Ajax (240/400 M.D.C.)

 

[Kaerri]

Bruce Leanne? Get you and Cera over to that blast door they went through and lock it down tight.

"Yes'm," Elinor replied laconically. She kept her ears open and waited for the swoosh of the closing door. Upon hearing the magic sound, she sent her Valkryie into speedy, graceful motion and headed for the blast door. "Cera, this thing got a lock we can hit or are you and me going for another mental walk here?"

 

[Purr]

(Game Master note for all: Congratulations! You have finished Chapter Three: All In.

Friends, hold on to your hats for Chapter Four: High Stakes!