Just when you thought it was safe to... TFTD, the soldier genocide simulator.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Flight Commander DeVries and Megaria are ready for flight combat, sir.

"That's what you think, buddy-boy. Like I'd let her drive me anywhere!"

[Saphroneth]

Just to clarify, Alicia DeVries and Megaira are a human/AI Alpha-synth pair from the book In Fury Born.
That was easily the most obscure reference in that last update. So Megaira, effectively, is the ship, and Alicia DeVries is the pilot. But they act on a gestalt level in actual flight combat - think of it as symbiosis.
You want every edge you can get, when the ship you're using can fly faster than sound within seconds of takeoff and has a Quantum Tunneler warp drive installed. And is still facing weapons more powerful than its' own.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Personally, I preferred The Path Of The Fury, the original novella that was expanded into the full story. Although Mr Weber is one of my more popular authors...

BTW, the AI is Megaira, not Megaria.


... Does that mean there'll be a Tisiphone showing up?

[Saphroneth]

Weber is indeed a great man for Military Sci Fi. Sorry about the error.
I actually think Megaira is the first AI he ever wrote...

And who knows. Perhaps if I manage to splash an Ethereal BB solo with the Manus Celer Dei...

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

No worries. Typos are de rigeur for this particular forum, but I do my best to correct them politely without causing offence,

... and hey, I could always invoke other stories. Bolos, or some of Ringo's stuff - the Paladin of Shadows series leaps into mind, albeit simply because I've been meaning to read it again - or trot out David Drake's Hammer's Slammers - a bit appropriate for your tanks, there, if Keith Laumer's Bolos don't do it better... ;-]

[Saphroneth]

Paladin of Shadows? Isn't that the one that was the inspiration for "OH JOHN RINGO NO!"
http://hradzka.livejournal.com/194753.html http://hradzka.livejournal.com/199220.html
And I will try to think more along those lines, though I think Bolos - even Bolo mk I - are a bit powerful to tolerate being a minitank.
Though there are other possibilities, the Slammers especially... Save that one for the Apoc LP if I ever do it.
(Got to get through TFTD first. I may just say "screw it" and assume Xcom is properly funded in that one.)

To be honest, it's a pity no Alex Knight style character has emerged properly in this LP. Could be because of the severe dearth of Terror missions lately, as Knight won his spurs in the GitP LP by bayoneting a Chryssalid in the face. Fatally.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Why, yes, as a matter of fact.

... I didn't say it was any good... ;-]

[Saphroneth]

(Note: X-Com has a very very annoying little glitch. If you have a soldier mind controlled at the end of battle, then he's "missing in action" and you lose them. Fair enough... unless the mission ends because you killed all the aliens.
After I lost the psi vacuum that way, I reloaded and took him off the team. That explains his lack in future - he's to be used only for Cydonia and possibly Alien Base attacks, now.)

"Right, listen up. You all are the best troops we have in the field of Psionics. Your job is to become good soldiers in other areas as well. So, training.
You have to fight as normal, with full Psi support from those we already have trained up. So, as the tank just found the objective-"

This was a triumph.
"-Let's get going."



Hello! That looks like a stun gun to me. Are you going to use it?
that's a good idea

"Is it me, or is it getting easier to catch these things every time?"


"Okay, there's one. Psi away."


And we stuffed yet another Alien into the containment unit. I'm starting to wonder what the max capacity of that thing is...


Wow, we saw it on the way TO Australia this time.

"I don't remember fighting Mutons recently, how's their Psi defence?"
"Well, their ship welds are rubbish. I can see a hole."

obey me YES JAHWOL OUI AYE
"Okaay, that was weird. Four for the price of one? They have minds like warm butter."
"Get the big gorillas to dump their weapons."

"Woah! Looks like we missed one."
and you SORRY
"Okay, got them all. Hey, a Stun Launcher."

hey, guys, watch this!


You thought containment was crowded before?

Mutons are monumental idiots. I mean, jeez. Half of those ones at the end of the mission weren't even mind controlled anymore, they just wanted to watch the shiny. Though one of them DID die to jittery nerves on the Plasma from the guy who went in the door to check they were all out.


Antimatter defence sites. The main base may still be open to attack - no better way to capture another load of prisoners - but the secondary sites are going to be able to just shoot down anything in the sky.

Okay, so what's next?
According to the head of the science team, we have researched and improved on anything of significance the Aliens have. Our armour is better, we have their best weapons, the Manus Celer Dei outperforms their best battleships and our psionics team stalk the mental landscape like killer mongoose.
Mongoose don't stalk.
Close enough.
So... There's nothing left?
We could study how Alien physiology works. Perhaps find out how Cyberdisks operate or something.
We already know that.
Chryssalids?
...yeah, go ahead. But do the Ethereal first, I want to find out as much as they know, and how to make them stop working.
Understood. Also, I would remind you that we really need an Alien Commander as soon as possible.

Under the orange cloak.


You already know DeVries and Megaira will swat it before it crosses the Urals.
So, we have another new objective. And it means once more splatting some Ethereals.
Not much of a Master Race, really...

[Corgatha Taldorthar]

If you're confident in your psicorp, and you really want to train up their physical skills fast, be cheap, use laser pistols instead of heavy plasmas when they go out. Training and improvement is calculated by kills and how many shots you fire connect. (And you only seem to get boosts to reactions when it's done in reaction fire), but the important one is number of hits scored. Take some mutons, strip them of their weapons, and then open up with the laspistols. You can get a whole bunch of hits, and thus, improvement, per muton slain.


(Oh yes, this method requires you not caring about being a cheapass )

[Saphroneth]

This summary of the EXP mechanics is indeed entirely correct, though all that's necessary for gaining Reactions exp is to FIRE a reaction shot, not to hit with it. And kills do absolutely nothing - apart from proving that Uta and Jackie are MASSIVE badasses. 30 and 40 kills, respectively.
I may well go for Basic Training with live targets soon - as soon as the CERN crew work out it's a good idea, anyways.


Note: the erratic update schedule just ran into Civ V with the force of a Terror Ship hitting Brussels, so sorry for any lack of content in the next... long time.

[Saphroneth]

"Gotta admit, this run of Ethereal missions lately has left me a lot more optimistic about this little war."


"Even their leaders can't shoot straight, after all."

"Okay, I got one of the grunts. Let's see how many survived the crash."

"That is a lot of orange cloaked idiots."

"Especially considering all the ones outside as well. I mean, that one in Norway only had about four crew."

"Right, that's half of them stunned, now-"
"Grenade! In the UFO!"
*BLAM*

So much for half the Ethereals. That one at the end blew up his own unconscious allies rather than let them be captured. Fortunately, we already have quite the zoo.

We won't miss THIS one.
The Manus Celer Dei caught up with it over the Red Sea and forced it down into the NE Ethiopian lowlands, nearly up to Somalia.

Wow, need a tune up, Megaira? That was more misses than I expected.
Calm down, these things are pretty heavily armoured for supply vessels. Not a touch on me, though.
And the misses?
...I blame it all on the wetware. No offense, Ally.
Well, there's another target for you already coming in.
Not seen Floaters in a while.
Shall I call them and ask for them to slow down in case you run out of ammo otherwise?
I'll pretend I didn't hear that.


Sarawit, assemble!
What do you mean, too obscure?
"Okay, plan is as follows. Mutons are:

• Tough.
• Dumber than bricks.
• As easy to mind control as an actual Gorilla.

Hence, if we get them to drop their weapons, they will, and then not think of picking them up again. So the newbies can get live fire training in."
"...how did you do that with the bullet points?"
"MS Powerpoint, XCOM edition. Don't worry, we recoded it so it's no longer technically a computer virus."
"Okay, if you say so. And is that why you all have the plasmas and we're packing laspistols?"
"Yep. More chance to practice. Don't worry, Mutons are incapable of punching."

"Right, no more questions? Let's get started."

drop your weapons sounds fun

"Man, but the power cores exploding really did a number on the interior of this thing."



"Damnit, stop moving!"


"Hey, look, someone we missed. Akira!"
on it
"Please use the radio in future!"
"Sorry."


"Wow."
"What is it?"
"This one can use a satnav. That's about triple the average intellectual abilities of the other Mutons."


"Ship's empty. Finish off the remaining targets and let's go."


Yes, I know a lot of them survived. But they are very useful for serving drinks in the Psi Officer's canteen.

"Infiltration". Yeah, riiiight. Probably more like just roughing up South African officials.
Actually, I wonder if the Muton Leaders can read and write. That would be a remarkable feat, for Mutons. Could help.
Or they just turn a government official into a Chryssalid or something. I dunno.

Yet Another Stupid Mission.
"More Floaters. Well, at least the HPs are overkill on these guys. How's their Psi resistance?"
"Pa-thetic. And they can't hide very well either."

"I see what you mean."

"UFO clear. Now, where's that last-AAAGH! My ARM!"
"COMMANDER!"

"Oh god, oh my GOD this hurts."
"Got the bastard. Blaster Bomb - nothing else seemed appropriate. How's the wound?"
"Painful!"
"Just calm down, Commander. Here's the wound sealant."

"That's looking a bit better... though I think we'll have to get the base hospital opinion."
"Careless. I was too damned careless. Stupid of me - even Floaters carry Plasma weapons..."
"Let's get you home."

...

"I'm out of it for how long?"
I estimate that you will be once more combat ready in the middle of September.
"That's far too long!"
On the contrary, it is barely long enough. You've run yourself ragged, Commander, been on nearly every mission we've sent out. Nobody can function at full efficiency for that long - you've more than earned the rest.
"I don't have to like it, that's all I'm saying."
If it helps, even in Flying Armour you would not have survived that at the start of the year. In fact, only nine soldiers in our entire organization would have been able to tolerate the immediate shock, and few of them the next minute or so - apparently your regular Psi use has buffered your system.
As it does in the Ethereals, in fact.

Ethereal
This being is physically retarded and seems incapable of sustaining any life functions.

The muscles are severely atrophied and the internal organs appear to be under-developed. The sensory organs, including the eyes, do not appear to function at all.

The brain, however, is well developed and draws on a high proportion of the body's blood supply. It is a mystery as to how this creature can sustain itself without external support.

"Woo. Go me."

[Saphroneth]

Yes, Sarawit is indeed FAR too obscure, being the term used for the regiments of the Kingdom of Aksum/Axum (ruled by the same dynasty and in the same location as the Ethiopia of the 20th century - one of the longest dynasties ever recorded, at circa 4th century BC to 1974 as royal family by line of descent) at the height of their power as a trading nation in the Red Sea.
In the 5th century AD.
Clearly Erwin is following the Belisarius series with rapt interest.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Well, who wouldn't? The Axum are well regarded, as they bloody well should be.

[Saphroneth]

Not the best of ways to look - or be - intimidating, all things considered.

Now, it's been a while since the last of those Ethereal scouts was blasted, so we have to wonder what comes next.
Brigadier, sir! Alien tracking beacon just flared up in Lake Geneva!

Well damnit.
Immediate launch order for the Manus, and I want everyone who can with at least a laser rifle, heavy laser, heavy plasma if we can manage it! Psi amps to the troops who can use them!
Oh, and someone upload R2 into Jacks' armour. If she has to fight, it better be in a moving suit while she concentrates on aiming.



"Actual, this is Allecto, I've spotted the bogey on internals. That speed is insane - good couple thousand knots, arrow straight along a reciprocal of my current course, and I don't think it's stopping."
"Allecto, Actual. Confirm your track. We have a course for you to give you a stern chase, should let you get longer fire time than a closing engagement."
"Got it. Meg?"
Downloading.
Wow, not much into subtlety, are they?
"Not like there's much point in it at the moment."

The Manus Celer Dei blasted off the hedge-hopping course it had been on, curving in a great, seventy-kilometer-radius arc over the northeast of Spain, a vast wingover that led to the tiny (by Alien standards) fighter/transporter dropping neatly back to nap-of-the-Earth flight near the city of Barcelona, sensors locked and in full battle rattle as it shot after the Battleship headed for Switzerland.


"Closing in. Engaging Synth-link."
Confirmed.
"It's been too long since we did this."
Barely a day. And yet, I agree with you.
Heads up, Ally! They've got US on tracking as well!
"Three seconds to Fusion Ball range."

"Ugh!"
One got through the countermeasures. You okay?
"Yeah... Antigrav really helps with the compensation. Time until we range with the Plasmas?"
Another second or so. But their launcher's cycle time is longer than that.
"Payback time, then."

"Yes! Another hit!"
Secondary explosion!
That was one of the fuel pods. They're not ignoring that one!
Indeed not.
"Ngh... Meg?"
Ally! Are you okay?
"Thnk... Th're attacking me. My mind..."
Please be okay, Ally. I don't want to lose you.
That is not your choice, but ours. None may resist the might of the Jjaro - none may resist the power of a true Commander!
Στη συνέχεια, θα πολεμήσουμε υπό σκιάν!
*gasp* "Phew..."
Ally! You're okay!
How is this possible? Nothing can stand against us!
Well, almost nothing. But then, very few people have a gestalt with a Jjaro cybernetic junction. So, put simply, kindly LEAVE AND NEVER COME BACK!
"What the hell is going on?"
Later. For now, blast that perfidious battleship and its' smug Commander from the sky.
I see a hull breach. Eat this!

"Okay. Now, what was that, and who are you?"
I would have thought it obvious. I am Tisiphone.
Tisiphone? One of the Greek furies?
Correct, though of course the name is no more indicative of my origins than yours... Megaira. Put in simple terms, the Avenger is a terrifically potent weapons platform. But the Synth Link required to operate it makes the pilot - and hence the AI - uniquely in danger of Psionic influence at many times the normal range. So, the base built a third, defensive, component. A psionic component, one held within the Jjaro cybernetic junction recovered barely two months ago from a temple in the Yucatan. Myself.
"So we are the Furies, then? But then which am I?"
Simply recall your call-sign, little one, and it will all become clear.
And how do you call Ally "little one"? You're the youngest here, after all!
Not entirely, as my body is the cybernetic junction, and I can access much of its' data. Making me at least a good seventy million-
"Oh, come on! I thought that call sign was a reference to my name!"
Few things are simple. We are so fortunate to have one of those rare beasts... in the pilot's seat.
"Hey!"
I take back all my concerns about her. She's great!
"Et tu, Megaira?"
That's Latin, not Greek. Stick to what fits best.
Well, the only change would be that we'd be the Erinyes instead...



And someone tell the lab techs to be ready for me! I lost a lot of armour in that mess.
"I'll do it."
Err... Alicia? Your headset fell off a minute or two ago. How did you hear that?
"Oh, don't tell me psionics is contagious!"


Avenger vs. Battleship: Clear victory.

[Saphroneth]

"And we're down."
"Plasmas at the ready people, things could get hot quick. Apparently there was a Commander in this ship, so it's our job to try and find it. And then blast everything else in sight."
"Lord almighty! That thing's huge!"

"Looks like the Manus blew hell out of it, though. I count two blown power sources and at least one more that might be - I think there's cracks in that armour. Okay, people, move out!"

"What."

"Is that a giant robot?"
"Yes, Sir, it apparently is."
It is not well shielded, whatever else it is

"Okay, I propose everyone apart from Akira buys the beer for the rest of the year, because he just mind controlled a robot. On the first try."

"Right, based on the memory banks this thing's a horrible opponent. It has a thick Aerogel secondary layer under the outer stuff - which, by the way, is almost as thick as ours - and hence it's nearly immune to plasma fire. It is, luckily for us, not good at all at blocking laser fire - the Aerogel actually lenses it. And I think I can rewire it to get it to fire its' own laser at itself - and the laser's nearly as powerful as our minitank ones."
"Akira scares me..."

"That was fun."

"Armand, grab the Blaster Launcher. We want the Commander alive, if possible, and he's likely to be on the top floor."

"The ultimate door opener."

"Uta to Akira. Check my camera feed - I see one."
Got him. And the next one, and-
I will not fall so easily!
Yes, you will. Maybe not normally, but I spoke to Tisiphone. She kicked your mind back into your body so hard your head's still ringing. So I can do THIS!

No! What have you done?
I only got your body. I pushed your mind into an unused part of your brain and took control. Now walk outside so the nice Humans can stun you.
I will have the last laugh, pathetic Human.

Enjoy getting that to answer questions...
"Blast it! Everyone, we lost the Commander - suicide by bodyguard. Fire at will."


"Damn."
I got it, no worry.
"Do you have any idea how scary it is to open the door and see a Blaster muzzle aimed at you!?"
Sorry.
"And stop using the telepathy already, it makes my teeth itch."

"..."
"Damien?"
"someone help me"

"this closet is full of giant robot"
"Akira here. I mostly blinded the main sensors, but that won't last long, so RUN LIKE HELL!"

"So, did it work?"
"OW."
"Oh, I see."
"OW."

"At least it's not as bad as the Old Lady's. You'll be back to normal in a few days."

"And the Mech's been mission killed. Apparently it couldn't tell the difference between a running man and a moving laser cannon, so it shot its' own arms off."


"It is moments like this that remind me that we're apparently now more feared by the Alien invaders - that want to kill us all, feed us to Chryssalids and then use the results on another planet - than we fear them. And on that note, BOO!"

[Saphroneth]

So close to catching a Commander...
Ah well. Onwards and upwards, and all that.
First job: Find out if that stuff Akira got was accurate.

Can you call it a corpse, really? Eh, whatever.

Hmmm... Mutons on a Battleship.
And the Manus is still in for repairs. But technically... in order to infiltrate, you need to land. Right?
Everyone to the Sky Ranger!

The 'ranger bumbled around the southern half of Africa until it caught the BB on the radar.
Close encounter of the third kind?
When it landed in Kinshasa, the team were outside the door bare minutes later.
Fun time.


"Okay, everyone, try to get the Mutons to do the work for you. Just spot them, tell the five of us with Amps, and then follow them into the ship."
Ooh! A happy fun bomb launcher!

"Send them in. And keep a lookout for another Blaster Launcher, I have a feeling one's nearby."

"Got it. And there's one up the tube, as well. Let's use 'em!"


...time passed...


Eventually the entire BB superstructure just sort of collapsed in on itself and the team took the Elerium and left.


Not bad - wait, WHAT!

X-COM agents in South Africa told us what happened. Apparently, after the government there was approached about turning their coats and refused, the entire legislature vanished overnight apart from an Internal Affairs bureaucrat, who succeeded to the Presidential position on account of the devastation. He was apparently sincerely sorry about his own weakness, and from his comments about "not bein' turned into a fookin' prawn as well" we can assume that the infiltration forces released Chryssalids in the parliament chamber, then destroyed it with plasma fire before the effect spread. Such an event would scar anyone... Well, perhaps not Ms. Keller.
In this light, it is evident that the Mutons we stopped in Kinshasa were not the infiltration team per se, but instead were involved in constructing an Alien base in the south of the continent. Since Mutons do not recognize the concept of leadership among their own race, this means that a Commander will not be forthcoming from this assumed base.

In any rate, we made a net financial improvement despite the withdrawal of the ~$850,000 monthly that South Africa represented.

[Saphroneth]

And now, a message from GLaDOS:


The broken image links were a lie. Cake, however, is truth. Just don't ask about cardboard boxes.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

The broken image links were a lie. Cake, however, is truth. Just don't ask about cardboard boxes.

Can I just ask about cardbo... oh.

[Saphroneth]

I swear Erwin's report titles get worse every time...

Anyway,

Hang on. the earlier ones were in Europe.
Is a second Ethereal terror mission cycle starting before the first is over? I hope not...

And now Ethereal BBs are hunting Beijing. It might be prudent to get another Avenger set up.

At least they're unlikely to find us when that's completed.
The small scout was vaped about thirty miles east of Ulan Bator. We're getting less covert every month.
The larger scout in Africa wasn't intercepted in time by the available Interceptors - they ran out of fuel, and the Avenger is still damaged -  so the Ranger jumped it when it set down

Going to Ground?

Welcome to El Alamein.

"Standard scout, right?"
"Yep. CABAL, find us a patsy."
Compliance.
Got one.
Earth duty is getting more and more of a reputation...
Shush you.

"That's the interior cleared. Anything else?"
"Not that I can see."
*P-chow!*
Taking fire. Glacis plate penetrated, some damage to internals. Responding with extreme prejudice.

*P-chow!*

Internals compromised. Crash backup-


"You. Complete. BASTARDS!"
(The remainder of this report has been censored for profanity and violence excessive even for XCOM. Suffice to say, the remaining Ethereal ate a Blaster bomb. Literally.)

[Saphroneth]

Ooh dear. It seems Erwin is getting upset.
Look here, you need to show proper respect for the chain of command!

Ahem. Sorry.


Oh, good.
Now we have a secondary interceptor here at CERN.


Sectopod!
So that's what we're calling them. Okay.
Right, and it looks like the laser weakness thing's correct as well. So the Sky Ranger is now carrying two Heavy Lasers until further notice.

Our science team seem to really love this whole detailed analysis thing.
Ew.
Though the variety MIGHT be getting to their heads a bit.

I mean, come on.
We fitted saddles to them and use them for children's rides! They are just not dangerous.
Erwin, did you put them up to this?
I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about.

Not good. Well, in a way it is. The big bosses reduced to Terror attacks?


Wow. We scared them off.
Either that or they had no beacon.

First test of the Borealis, the first Firestorm we built.
There is only one problem. It ran out of fuel doing the Atlantic cross and back.
Really short range interceptor, this. We might want to start preparing the tripartite crew of another Avenger.
We have a potential called Amber. From Indiana, I think. Want to go with the Mikoto deities this time?
Yeah, that'll be fine. Assign that Avenger to Beijing for the laugh.

Insert explosion.

Mission in Quebec.

"Okay, here we go. CABAL, check for Floaters please."
Confirmed. Taking mind-state backup... done. For Kane!
*Sound of a spring twanging, followed by a crash, tinkle, and the sound of a single gear rolling off into the distance*

"Oh, you are kidding me. Where did THAT come from?"
"Found the shooter."


"Got his friends, too - and some in the ship."

Grenades are fun to play with.


"Right. Forced entry, I think."


Stun Gun = Fun
whee


"Huh. Anaphylactic shock in a Floater. Strange..."



Damn. Looks like that grenade destabilized the Elerium. Ah well, we have over 1000 units of it - incidentally making California and Switzerland major nuclear powers just from our presence - and we grab more all the time.

And Erwin, can the next title be serious?

[Saphroneth]

Okay, look. This is going nowhere.
I'm sorry for whatever I did that raised your ire, okay? Can we just let it go?

Fine.

Ooh, nice. So the Cyberdisk has explosion resistance? Oh well, Akira can mind control them now.

Oh for - I thought we got rid of that one!
Afraid not, Brigadier. The beacon appears to only go dormant in close proximity to the Alien ship in this case.
Well, we may as well see how the new combined battle tactics work. Manus Celer Dei and Borealis to intercept!


"We have range."
Wait until our ally comes alongside, little one. Do not fire yet.
Megaira to Borealis. Your speed?
"Don't think I'm going to be able to catch up. You're overhauling us."
Damnit. Base?

CERN Actual here. You have authority to engage.
"Confirmed. Tis? Take out their navigator as soon as we range."
Certainly.
Only one Human craft against this ship? You are fools.
"Tis! Taking fire here!"
Hello, pitiful little Ethereal navigator. Welcome... to the inverted world.




It was the damnedest thing. The battleship flew straight into the Tatra mountains. No idea where it bounced, but it's presumably out there somewhere.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

hehehehe.

I do find the firestorm amusing.

[Saphroneth]

Wow. Quite the bounce from the East European highlands.


Yep. That's a Muton base. Might be fun to raid.
And they're serious about this. Good thing the Mind Shields are up.

Anyway, time to handle that Battleship.


Get me a commander!


Here we go again.
"No such bad luck today. Got him. And his little robot too."

"Now, where's that self destruct command?"

"Theeere we go."

"Blast the wall."
"Fire in the hole!"

"Right, everyone. Clear a path for the Commander when we find it."
Impudent humans! I will-
Shut up.

"Hey, most of the other rankers have Blaster Launchers! Clearing a path."


"That's most of the top floor done."
"Good. Stun rods out!"

OW
"Good work. Move in on the main lift."


"Hoo-lee crap. That one missed all of us... somehow. CABAL. Blast him."
Gladly.

*Some minutes pass. Fighting dies down. Ethereal commander periodically wakes, tries to mind control, fails and gets tasered. More minutes pass.*
"Where the ruddy hell is that last Ethereal?"
"I have a plan... Get the Spice Girls Greatest Hits CD."


must...achieve...release...from...music!

"Is that a grenade?"
BOOM
"Yep."

[Saphroneth]

Let their Commander see what we do to the Ethereals.
I am told it mainly involves Telekinesis blockers and exercise. Mind control based exercise.
It's technically good for them.

Oh also we dealt with a downed enemy scout with like two crew.

It's a good thing the Aliens that are crap are the ones building bases.


Nice to hear it from the Alien's mouth.
Er... crap?

Budapest, capital of the Huns. Well, Hungary now. Let's show the Xenos bastards what that means.

Ten seconds. Ready for touchdown.

[Saphroneth]

"Well, we're down. Anything abnormal?"
"Well, apart from the fact that we feel like we missed two weeks, nothing much."
Battle Reflex Alert!

"Crap, robots over by the shop. Psi support!"

Someone put Puppetmaster on the speaker, because I feel like a Ghost in the-
"Combat chatter is bad enough. Non combat chatter is worse. But non combat psionics? Shut. Up."

"They really got all the Sectopods they could, didn't they."
"They're scared of us. That seems to be the only explanation. We rock."

"Gentlemen? I suggest we follow the lead of the Finn irregulars from the Thirty Years' War in this endeavor."

"Hakka Paale."


"So. Weak to lasers, are we?"

"Someone fire the tech crew. Damnit, first mission out of hospital..."



"All robots taken care of."



"West seems clear!"

"East clear!"
"What's that noise? Sounds like... screaming."
"West! Go!"

"That sick bastard. Well, time to show him the flipside of the Golden Rule."
GRENADE BUTTONS ARE FUN

BEEPING GRENADES ARE LESS FUN DROP IT

[Saphroneth]

Excellent, they say. But we couldn't save them all.
Well, Colonel Keller is back in Keller bed at the hospital. Perhaps the reason she's so tough is because she is hardened by all the plasma bolts?
Flimsy. Now they seem... flimsy.

Meanwhile, in the Beijing base,
Things were happening.
A recent recruit by the name of Amber was being briefed on the nature of combat in and out of atmosphere.
A Jjaro cybernetic junction recovered from the Deccan Traps was being reconfigured to act as a merge partner.
And a second Avenger class ship was being built, complete with a clean shard of the original AI.
As was tradition, the project name was after the similarity in the codenames.
Project MIKOTO.


"...confirmed! We have multiple hostiles still moving!"
"One shot, CAM*, danger close!"
"Firing in six, get out of there!"

"Damnit! How many survived the crash!"
"Not sure, but less now."
"More on the blast area! Covering fire, CABAL!"
Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.
"They're overrunning us! Someone give Psi support!"
"Lob a live CTG*, where doesn't matter. I'll handle the rest."


"Looks like this flank is secure. What was that?"
"I walked them all right over the grenade before it went off. Not subtle, but effective."
Taking Fire.


Glacis plate thickness reduced. Enemy cover dismantled.

Warning! Incoming fire!


Video feed failing. Did... Did I get him?
"Of course you did. Now, go out of Battle Reflex and switch to repulsor one only. And make sure your Survival Center is up to date, a pistol could take your reactor out at this point."
I still function. That is enough.


We have our objective. The Mars base will burn. Even if we have to import oxygen for it!


*Condensed Anti Matter. One of the terms for the Blaster Bomb among the troops.
*Contra Terrene Grenade - the Alien Grenade.

[Saphroneth]

Wow, that one was quick.

Alien TV! Dibs!
These things rock.


More terror missions from the Alien elite. Who do they think they're terrorizing.
I mean, it's North. Africa. We're not even funded from there apart from Egypt, and they haven't had trouble since turning the Sphinx into a laser battery with some of those Laser Cannons they buy from us.
Good question, actually. Well, nobody this time. Vector in the Borealis for intercept.


"Danger close!"
"We have to get a better pilot."


"Externals clear, get the tin opener."
"You got it."

"Send in another through the hole, we don't need any of them alive."
"Locked and ready."



"Whoo! Good secondaries on that one!"
"Akira? You are up."

do the funky chicken and then shoot something i obey now the moonwalk don't push it

"What just happened?"
"Did... did a robot just bleed to death?"

"Hey, look. One of them survived the crash. And the blaster bombs. And the rampaging mind controlled Ethereals."
"Yeah, now it's really in trouble."


I think that should be enough of those.
Now, at this point we have an important question. The Avenger has 80 equipment slots with the grav dampers needed to prevent the power cores running down, imploding or something equally nasty. So do we take a HP for everyone, which would damn near max the equip list when you consider the medkits and Psi Amps, to say nothing of the Blasters, or do we just Laser up?


Okay, we are officially on a time limit. We need the Izanami and her Fusion launchers to punch out the Cydonia base dome.
And that base can't defend itself against a mob of Ethereals. Damnit.
Well, may as well do a combat drop test of the Manus Celer Dei.



"This ship is brilliant! It even has grav stabilized cup holders!"
I will be the first to admit that I am perhaps a little overengineered. However, it's all good.
What followed was a few minutes of a desperate Plasma gunfight in the darkened village, somewhere in the former Mengkukuo.

Yes, I know it has a proper name, I just like the word Mengkukuo

Anyway, that was a mere matter of routine.


Promotions!
Also, the only reason that Akira has not become a psilord and taken over the world - apart from his demeanor, is that he does not outrank Uta Keller. She scares him, like she does everyone else.

Not long before the Commander's up. And then, Cydonia.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Heh. I wondered where you'd gone to...

[Toric]

Ooh, Cydonia's looming over us. ...Hopefully you have more than three days before it destroys the world though. ...Wait. If you did have just three days you have a time machine. I hope that doctor of yours looks good in green.

I'm not sure what your question is, regarding Avenger loadout. What would you cram on to the Avenger with the free space giving a few folks laser rifles would grant? Is it the difference between bringing HAL with you and not?

[Saphroneth]

The difference is more that I need Psi amps for the Psi active soldiers (over half the crew), Medikits for nearly everyone (they've saved as many people as my entire casualty list by now, if not more) and blaster ammo for the heavy weapons.
And since loading up everyone with a HP and NO extra ammo is 2 per person and 4 is about the outer limit, I need to downgrade to las for some if I'm to carry blasters for the others.