MISSION: BAD COMPANY, PART 2

[ximilian]

● ● ● M I S S I O N   4 . 2

INTRO • THE DREAM DEFERRED • YOUR WAKE UP CALL • FYI

// INTRO. WELFORD BRANSON  

It is barely past twilight in Scorpion’s Bend, the twin suns having just set, taking their light with them — but the moons delay, and so darkness lingers over the town as Lan Xichen’s conversation with one Welford Branson comes to an abrupt end. At the same time, all around the town, the team will notice the town natives around them stilling — some freezing in the middle of a sentence, a man with a fork in the air, a woman mid-step on the street, some youngsters with their mouths open in laughter. All of them become statues in less than a heartbeat; still, eyes vacant, like everything that made them seem alive has been taken away.

And then — a reverberating sigh, echoing heavily in the ears of all the Orbers. What follows are words, spoken by a chorusing voice now familiar to most of the team —

“Well now you’ve done it.”

The orb’s echoing sound is filled with disappointment, even annoyance.

Some may see that amidst all the frozen townspeople, an old man runs, clawing at his thinning hair. Some of you may hear his words, muttered, desperate:

“I don't understand, I thought 'twas just a bad dream, everyone was fine, don't understand, what in the name of the Eight could've done somethin' like this —”

The disbelieving mumbles trail at his wake, making it clear he does not know what is going on at all — in fact, you may have a better idea as to what has happened than he does. But as you turn to follow him, open your mouth to yell at him to stop... everything around you shatters.

The lights in the buildings grow dim and break; the smell of food disappears; the horses in the stables simply fade away. You notice that if you were wearing or carrying something you bought while here, it too disappears, your clothes turning to those you had on upon arrival, all equipment shimmering away slowly.

But perhaps most importantly… the frozen statues of people crumble into ash right in front of you. It may fill the floors of the now-silent, dusty and worn-down houses, or it may blow away with the harsh desert wind — whichever it is, sans the team, the town of Scorpion’s Bend is now devoid of people.

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// PART I.THE DREAM DEFERRED  

The town that now surrounds the team is very different from the one it used to be — the houses are quiet, filled with sand and dust; doors broken, tables turned over, drawers open and mostly empty, aside from anything not valuable. The beds in Thornbush Inn are ragged, insects of various sizes skittering along the floors. The Saloon is dusty, furniture broken, and a lone piano stands in the corner, half its keys having crumbled away. The door to the Mayor’s office is ajar, a banging sound repeating as it hits the wall in time with the wind.

1.0   In the corners of the Sheriff’s office, the school and the church, the embera slither along, searching for food; owl-shrews hide from the Orbers on the streets, while feathered coyotes howl at the five moons now lending their light to see the town’s destruction better. The team may be the only living humanoids, but they are not the only living beings in the town anymore; in the absence of people, animals have made the town their home. And coexist they must, now, to survive the rapidly dropping temperature of the night that has fallen upon them.

2.0   The next morning, as the moons disappear underneath the horizon and let the two suns bring out their scorching rays once more, the team wakes up to the reality of having to survive Scorpion’s Bend… with very little supplies. So search the empty houses, for they still stand; the fire that has burned away the people has not touched the buildings… but they have not been immune to the passing of time, or the harsh weather in the desert. You may find clothing, basic equipment, pots and pans left on a now-cold stove; but no valuables, no money, no gems, no jewelry, no weapons.

But amidst your search through the town, remember that what you need, first and foremost, is to find water and something to eat — it will not be long until the suns are high in the sky, and some of you are already in desperate need of proper nourishment, without being left to endure the scorching temperatures the days on the planet of Badrock bring.

3.0   But should you want to brave the heat, you’ll find it is now possible to leave the town and venture out into the desert. Out there, the rock dragons search for prey, while bald vultures circle above your head in groups of three or four, their shrieks growing in volume the farther you walk. If you show weakness, any weakness, they strike — and the dragons, sensing their chance, are not far behind.

And when you least expect it, the ground underneath you trembles, like a small earthquake is approaching you… and then you see it: from the sand, a whale surges up, then another, and another, arcing through the air like suspended there, before the sand swallows them once more. Should you get too close, you too may be swallowed underneath the sand; unless you’re very, very careful, or have in your arsenal something else that may help you to deal with these near-immortal giants that have swam across the deserts for hundreds of thousands of years.

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// PART II.YOUR WAKE UP CALL  

Time passes at a snail’s pace without the comforts of the town you were used to. Scorpion’s Bend is now a wasteland you must survive, and it clearly isn’t easy. Some of you might question whether retrieving the orb is still an endeavour worth pursuing after all of this, but the rest of you know that it is. That you’ve come this far and you’re nearly there; you just need to band together and form a gameplan.

As the suns begin to set over the horizon on yet another grueling day of scorching heat and rough, dry sand in the ghost town of Scorpion’s Bend, you might begin to hear a distant thunder that has nothing to do with an oncoming desert storm or otherwise. It rattles at the already weakened structures of the old Saloon and the General Store, bits of broken glass and debris vibrating with the raucous sound of clattering hooves, feet, and paws. And as the sound of the invasion grows louder – you’ll hear the unmistakable manic howling and bellowing in accompaniment: these are the Bouldersnakes that some of you have already heard much of.

4.0   The Bouldersnakes are not a group to be taken lightly, and have garnered the fearsome reputation that they now hold for a reason. Kicking up dust, they arrive like a cloud of chaos in different sizes, shapes, and forms. Some have the ability to shrink and grow in size to match their opponents in physical size and weight. Other Bouldersnakes are agile and quick; and others yet are superhumanly strong and robust – either way, they make for formidable opponents when you, yourself, have been weakened from weeks of a lack of proper nutrition and sleep. The individual members of the Bouldersnakes are like a band of bloodthirsty brothers: from all walks of life and all colours and creeds, with a severe and mean streak to them, who will stop at nothing to achieve their goals.

What goals, you ask? Should you listen carefully, their leader, riding a winged lizard-like creature, shouts to their underlings:

“Find it! This is where it told us to come to. We missed it last time, but no more! I don't care what we have to do, we're getting our hands on that thing!”

As it so happens, you are not the only crew in search of that elusive orb; the Bouldersnakes have been tracking down the whereabouts of this mysterious and all-powerful object themselves, burning through towns – quite literally – to get it. News that Scorpion’s Bend has seen a resurgence of life and might still be the resting place of the orb has the bandits seeking out the town again. Their first round through Scorpion's Bend about a year ago had them coming up empty-handed (save for a few bits and baubles), but this time they are determined to find what they've come here to find. Though if there’s anything left here to salvage... they’ll ransack as they please.

Whether you confront them head-on or they catch you in hiding, they won’t easily back down from a fight. It will be best to keep your distance if you can manage it, and hope that they’ll pass you by. But the Bouldersnakes have their weaknesses too: once maimed, they still bleed, and none of them are immortal, though they are notoriously difficult to kill based on their talents alone... and when they carry weapons, too, well — those not accustomed to battles may find it best to hide. And even for those with fighting experience under your belt, teaming up with your fellow Orbers and combining your shared skills will be your best chance at survival.

5.0   By the time the suns have disappeared and the moons have risen, the Bouldersnakes invasion will make the bandit attack from the other night seem like a childish tussle. The Bouldersnakes don’t play nice and have adapted to the harsh lands as ruthless survivors. They arrive like a wave, many equipped with weapons: guns, sabers, pistols and small knives. A few others have engineered their own specially crafted weapons made of metal and magic (in the shape of guns, blow-torches, and blades) that wield a special element harnessed from mined ore called ‘pulsefire’. It is this pulsefire, glowing a deep blue (like the hottest colour of flame), that has the capability to destroy all living beings and allows the bandits to systematically ravage unsuspecting towns down to ash, reap its benefits (either for the town’s riches and wealth, or and especially: for any supply of ore), and then leave without a trace.

The best way to fight against pulsefire is to acquire weapons of pulsefire of your own and best a Bouldersnake before they best you. (Think high stakes, noon-time duels of the pistol.) Of course, this is a very risky and very dangerous affair as one shot by pulsefire could mean your untimely demise and the element itself isn't easy to put out either, so it might be best to work in teams to strategically disarm and swipe a pulsefire weapon to use before they manage to overwhelm you.

NOTE:   If your character is alive, your character will be vulnerable to the effects of pulsefire. Unliving things such as buildings and infrastructure will not be affected. Pulsefire has a slow spread-rate over unliving things, but its effects on the living are instant. Once in contact with the element, pulsefire quickly consumes the living body and spirit until it is turned to ash. Putting pulsefire out over unliving things is relatively easy, but once pulsefire has touched the living, there's little to no chance of making it out in one piece.

All through this, you must still remember your goal — it is not to stay in Scorpion's Bend, or even fight the Bouldersnakes, but to find the orb... and that means finding Welford Branson. How will you convince him to give you the orb, when all signs point to him not even knowing what it is, or what it has done? That is what you must decide... if you survive the Bouldersnakes in one piece, of course.

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F Y I

• The events in this log take place ICly right after the end of the NPC thread.

• The voting for how to get the orb is now open! Please head HERE to submit your idea for how the team should proceed to get the orb, or +1 others’ ideas.

• The conclusion of the mission and the return to the station will be posted on February 13.

• If you have questions about anything in this log, please direct them HERE.

• And finally, your soundtrack for this log: ♪ ♪ ♪

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Comments

Zari Tarazi | Legends of Tomorrow

[catchatting]

1.0
It's dark and cold and everything is gross. Zari is not having a good time at all right now and while it's not exactly shocking to realize that the people aren't real, seeing that she's been sleeping, eating and bathing with bugs and vermin is pushing her a little past her limit.

Her skirts are thankfully voluminous enough that she manages to rip open the side seam and make the world's most okay-est blanket and leaving her in just a single layer of her underskirt. Now it's just a matter of finding someplace clean to sleep and maybe some willing body heat to be shared for the night, so she walks carefully through the dark streets of the town, looking for a familiar or even just friendly face.

"Okay, I am not sleeping on the dirt."

2.0
As much as Zari is not a fan of walking into danger, she knows that with her powers she does have a better chance of keeping herself alive than some of the others, so she walks carefully out of town in only her chemise and a pair of lazy bloomers because it's hot as hell during the day and she doesn't need all of her clothes soaked in sweat when the temperature changes again. She doesn't go far and there are others around her within sight, so she figures the least they can all do is look for food or water or some sort of clue.

What she doesn't expect is a giant whale.

The ground shakes, sand sifting below her feet and she realizes too late that she's not the only one who's too close to this massive displacement of sand that's now moving more like water.

"Because we needed to get dirtier?!" She does the only thing she can think to do and starts to swim against the current of sand.

4.0
Being a fighter isn't really Zari's main skill. She knows she's a valued member of the Legends back home, but fighting isn't really what she brings to the table unless the fighting comes to her. Well, today, the fighting is coming to her in a big way and she knows what to do.

Some of the orbers are great fighters and she knows it, but plenty of them aren't and given how her powers work, Zari's aim is to stick closer to people who need extra cover from a powerful gust of wind. Any shots she sees fired at her teammates will be deflected, debris that may fall from the rickety buildings will be caught and if there's a chance she can knock one of the Bouldersnakes over or knock their weapons away and into the hands of an orber, she will take it.

Zari isn't throwing punches or spilling blood in this battle, but she's coming alive in a way few have seen her, blasting gusts of wind and staring down the enemy without fear. She puts herself between her teammates and the dangers coming for them and as the fighting goes on, she finds herself closer to the action until she's watching the backs of those fighting, too.

"Get away from my friends, you ugly creeps!"

wildcard
[ lmk if you want something else! ]

1

[homeostatic]

"You shouldn't have to," McCoy interrupts from the awning of the long-abandoned General Store, a stack of kindling under his arm, the beam of his flashlight trained on the pitted wooden steps leading down to the street.

"Sorry if I startled you," he adds, coming down the steps toward her at an easy, if tired clip. "Sounds like you need a place to stay."

[catchatting]

She does jump when she hears him speak, turning on him and pointing dramatically.

"Everyone just turned to dust and this whole town is the grossest place ever. You startling me is the least of my problems!"

But then of course she stomps right up to him and throws her arms around his neck, because seeing a comforting familiar face right now is at least a little step towards what passes for normalcy here.

[homeostatic]

He relaxes when she points at him– she's clearly not hurt, just pissed, that'll have to do –and bends slightly to wrap his free arm around her waist, offering up the comfort of his warm, solid frame.

"Hey, hey. It'll be all right; we've got shelter up and a fire going. Got some folks going after Ford, too– you hear Xichen's message? Hopefully we shouldn't have to be here for too much longer. C'mon."

[catchatting]

After a moment, she pulls back and adjusts her skirt-turned blanket to wrap around her shoulders more securely.

"Oh, of course it'll be alright as long as none of us disintegrated like that. I don't know what I hate more right now, camping or magic."

She can't help the prickly feeling when she thinks about how she'd just been telling Jim the other day exactly how she feels about camping. It's like she'd cursed them all and now she'll be crying for a shower by the end of this.

"Would you say something all science-y and medical? I won't understand it, but at least it won't be about Hell spawn or people dusting into nothing or abra-kadabra-whatever."

4.0

[hatejakku]

Finn's a pretty good fighter. His main skill, in fact. But they've been at this for a few hours now, not to mention that he hasn't been sleeping or eating and the worry about his friends is really distracting. So he's actually not all that surprised when he ends up on his back and a bandit has a gun in his face. What's worse, he's not even sure if he would have gotten out of it without the help.

Said help comes in a gust of wind, knocking the weapon from the bandit's hand, giving Finn enough time to retrieve his own weapon and kill him. No sooner than the body hits the ground, he's already up and running to the source of that original blow.

He expected to see Daisy. That... isn't Daisy. But she's an Orber so he's not complaining.

"Thank you! Are you all right?"

There's still chaos around them so it's not a great time to talk, but he has his priorities.

[catchatting]

Zari's not exactly used to this level of chaos, but multi-tasking is a skill that can be applied to a variety of situations and this mess just happens to be one of them. She blasts another bandit in the back, causing him to fall face-first into the sand and then she pivots back to answer Finn.

"No, but I can save it for my therapist."

She winks and then spins back around just as the bandit is getting up to knock his weapon several yards away with another gust of wind from her outstretched hand.

"Oh, no you don't, mister."

[hatejakku]

For a second, Finn almost thinks she's serious, that there's really a therapist on the station, and he almost gets excited about it. Didn't realize how much he would like to sit on a couch and talk about feelings with a stranger until just this moment. Weird.

But, uh, it's not an option currently, and he should really get back into the fight.

He shoots and kills one of the bandits that was getting too close to them for his liking.

"We're exposed here. We should try to find some cover."

[catchatting]

"You don't have to tell me twice."

She keeps her eyes outward as she backs closer to him. Two sets of eyes are better than one, even if she isn't blasting to kill herself. Disarming does plenty, at least, to keep people alive.

"Back towards the center of whatever's left of town?"

2.0

[cruelyethuman]

Walking through the ruined town quickly looses its novelty and the Darkling wanders the desert, watching for food and water.

Especially water.

This isn't his first time being lost in the heat of a desert, and it also isn't the first time he's close to death from dehydration, his lips chapped and cracking as he walks through the dunes. Whatever water he might have found, had to be shared and he was more well-versed in suffering than...

Lost in thoughts, he almost smacks in to a near-naked woman, her voice scratching through the fog in his mind and his gaze lifts to watch the sand in front of them.

Something huge breaks through the new waves of sand, it cascades down around them like hard rain and he wipes his eyes, the sand sticking to his sweaty brow as he turns- "Is that really a concern at the moment."

[catchatting]

The sand is shifting and moving under her feet, threatening the break in a way that could just pull her under and no, dirt isn't really the concern, but she's pretty sure she doesn't have the ability to breath sand and if she gets sucked under, the danger is going to get real very quickly.

"Oh, shut up! We need to move."

[cruelyethuman]

Taking a deep breath, the Darkling brings his hands together and as he steps backwards, a wall of shadows form between them and the- animal. It's huge mouth opening and the darkness seems to come from every corner of the desert. Slithering like snakes across the scorching sand, to join the wall as dark as a starless night in the middle of the sunlit sand.

"Well- you should probably start running-" and he moves back even further, throwing her a short look. "Now."

Before the fall fails, before the creature figures out the it can go underneath it or jump over it. The ground shakes beneath his feet, as sweat tickles down the side of his pale face.

[catchatting]

Okay, not what she expected, but she trusts the people on this whole big team of theirs to know what they can and can't do and frankly, she has no clue what he's doing, but it looks impressive. She nods quickly and starts scrambling away through the loose sand, feet slipping into it but not enough to trip her.

Running through sand: A Fucking Workout.

But then she glances back as she's moving, because she's not just going to leave him to it by himself if he doesn't follow.

"You, too!"

2.0

[hannyas]

It had felt like the thing to do, going out there to find some food — in their wolf form, Yamato could easily run across the sand, and they had the means to keep the predators away, too... but a giant whale in the sand?

"What a majestic sight!"

It's... likely not the answer Zari wants to hear as Yamato joins her in fighting against the current of sand, eyes sparkling as they watch the giant whale leap up, arcing through the air as if suspended there for a moment.

[catchatting]

"It would be more majestic if we were further away!"

And of course while she is yelling, sand goes in her mouth and she has to spit it out while she's run-swimming and flailing and maybe this isn't the worst day ever, but it's definitely the sandiest and she's ready for it to be over.

"Ugh gross!"

[hannyas]

"Alright, hold on —"

Yamato, swimming with swift strokes to where Zari is, grabs her easily and maneuvers her around them.

And then grabs their kanabo club and swings it with all of their power — cutting clean through the wave of sand coming their way so that it parts around them.

[catchatting]

Zari is just going to cling to her newest bff like the stickiest octopus, because she's pretty sure her life might depend on it right now.

"I hate this I hate this I hate this."

Are her eyes clenched shut? Yeah, they might be, but at least she doesn't feel herself drowning in sand, so maybe they're safe-ish?

1.0;

[kovach]

On the outside, Kovacs remains as steady and solid as he ever appears, making it fairly evident that shitty circumstances are what he's used to and there's no real sense in bothering to make a fuss about it. Inside is where it all shakes a bit more, where the sight of the ash scattered through town takes him back to a memory he'd rather not fall into again, of dear friends buried beneath it, coating over a place that was once a lively and happy home for the people living in it, something not too different from what he had seen in this very town.

But there's no use in panicking about it, even if it grips him in his chest as he walks about the town, trying to get a sense of how much it's shifted from the small world they've come to know these past two months, while also trying to narrow down where they might need to find their next source of food.

Everywhere he goes are other Orbers figuring out their own situation, and it isn't much difference when he comes across Zari, though with her, there's a bit more of a vocal disgust to the whole thing. Plucking his cigarette from his mouth, he leans his back to the wall of the nearest building, watching her fuss with her bundle of blanket-turned skirts.

"Plenty of room indoors. Probably not sanitary, though. Guess there's just as likely a chance for bugs crawling on you in there as out." Comforting.

[catchatting]

"God, don't remind me." She shudders just thinking about what she must have been sleeping in the whole time she's been here.

But then she turns to him and sees the cigarette and frowns. It's not really her business if people want to smoke, but she's got such a strong reaction to it after watching John just light up right after he'd nearly died and she can't help the way her eyes narrow as she stomps towards him with her hands on her hips.

"Takeshi, that is terrible for you."

Her hand itches to steal it from him and stomp it out.

[kovach]

If she's going to draw attention to anything else, based on her reactions to the environment, he'd expected it'd be continuously related to the discomfort of the ash-covered barren town, so when she instead starts stomping his way towards him with a critical look, he raises his brow in surprise.

With a brief look at her, he turns to his raised hand to look at the cigarette he's holding, turning to her narrowed eyes again before he brings it between his lips.

"This? Really?" Of all the criticisms. "Plenty of shit out here that could kill me. Think the smoke is the last thing that's gonna make me bite it."

He's not too easy to take out anyway. Cigarette'll have a hard time with it.

"Besides — I hate this stuff too. Not my fault this body's an addict."

[catchatting]

"What the hell does that mean? Whose else's fault would it be?!"

With her emotions running high and nowhere else to focus them, she just winds up gesturing wildly as she raises her voice. Unbelievable. At least her brother takes responsibility for his stupid smoke-related choices and John's--She's going to stop thinking about John.

"You know they make patches and gum for that, dummy."

4.0

[oiorpata]

Andy is very much in on the action, largely from the start when the Bouldersnakes roll in to begin with. She's not itching for a fight, but she's good at it, and she's not about to let them run amok in the town and among the other orbers. She strikes her own battles hard and fast and even though she can heal, thus far she's avoided most injuries. Any of the blood on her clothes is from her opponents.

In the midst of one takedown via hand-to-hand, another charges at her from behind. She hears them, but she isn't particularly concerned thanks to her speedy recovery time. What Andy is not expecting is a massive gust of wind and the sound of the bouldersnake soaring away with a yelp, followed by Zari Tarazi yelling about it too.

She slams the bandit to the ground, then turns to look at Zari, flicking her bangs from her eyes. "That's a neat trick. Thanks."

[catchatting]

Zari is just staring at her like she's grown a second head. How can she be so calm about almost getting cornered from behind?

"Well... someone has to watch your back!"

She's clearly flustered and it's not from the exertion of fighting, because she's really stayed out of close combat for the most part, but the idea of losing one of her friends down here? Totally not acceptable!

The guy she'd blasted starts to get up and grip his weapon again, so Zari slams her palm towards him, wind knocking him back down and wrenching his weapon several yards away where it slams into the sand hard enough to go half-under.

"Will you stay down, you over-sized rodent?!"

[oiorpata]

That face should not make Andy laugh, but it nearly does, making her bite down the grin that threatens. Very few things about combat break her calm about it anymore. She is more interested and impressed by Zari's apparent magic.

"You just got to him before I could." She is still very unconcerned. "Impressively, I might add."

But Zari's second strike gives her a moment to catch her breath and assess. She does a quick check of the ammo left, then scans the scene. She saved Andy a bullet with that blow.

[catchatting]

Zari goes from upset to flustered in about two seconds, mouth opening and closing a few times before she finally settles on anything to say.

"Well, thanks..."

The wind seems to be out of her sails with the compliment and she can feel warmth in her cheeks, but then her brow furrows and she gets that second wind and her voice raises in pitch and volume: "But I'm pretty sure he was going to cut your head in half and I kind of like you with your head intact, so maybe don't let that happen!"