A Rebirth

*The rest of the squad secures the area.*

Reaper: Spread out but stay in each others line of sight. Fuck. Kotrev, try and wake them up.

she turns to do so but several more drop down. one, larger than the others with a third arm and a hood, goes to stab aequitas, but in a split second anna jumps in the way. his transonic blade impails her through the stomach area, going in one side and out the other. she coughs up a little blood. also aequitas and riggs start waking up

*Reaper empties his assault rifle's magazine into larger one while the rest of the squad opens fire on the other Skitarii. Aequitas rolls to the side upon hearing the gun fire and forces his eyes to focus....Seeing Anna on the Skitarii's sword. He empties his rifle into it as well. Riggs just moans as he wakes up.*

there is a flash from the larger one like a flashbang. when it fades, its gone without a trace
anna drops to her knees, coughing more blood

*Aequitas grabs her and administers her pain killers and a coagulant. He then bandages the wound to stop the bleeding as best he can.*

Reaper: Shit. ++Command, I need a medivac. Skitarii jumped my squad, one of my troopers took some sort of sword to the gut. We're doing out best to stop the bleeding but she needs a medivac now!

Officer: Roger. Medivac transport has been dispatched. ETA: Five minutes.

Reaper: Roger that.++

Reaper *getting down on a knee next to Anna*: Stay calm, private. There's a medivac on the way.

*He and Aequitas pick her up by lifiting her onto their shoulders.*

Reaper: Let's get her inside the building I was camped in. The rest of you, watch our backs.

"*cough* *weakly* s-sorry sir...."

Reaper: Don't apologize. You did nothing wrong. *They get her inside as the drugs start to take effect.* Just stay awake, okay? The medivac craft should be here any minute now.

she tries to salute him

OOC ok let's do this
IC it's been several days since the planets stopped having a fit but now the night doesn't feel safe on some planet, the forests feeling occupied by some malevolent force and figures reportedly in the dark. people disappearing and animals being slaughtered, some have even spoken of bug like creatures with noticeable fear in their demeanor and voice

Reaper: Save your strength.
________________________________________________

*The local garrisons are bolstered, mostly by concerned Tender forces and a few scant Templum mercenaries who were being kept in reserve, alongside a few extra Retrovoso security troops, but with so many resources currently focused on the front and fortifying other Consortium worlds, a proper investigation is slow.*

"y-yes sir. *to aequitas* told you...I'd keep that promise"

*meanwhile, watching them from a distance unseen....*
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most of the reports are all the same: beasts slaughtered in the night, strange humanoids in the dark that disappear when approached, loved ones disappearing when they go out. but there is one new report, vegetation is mutating rapidly, entire crops are being rendered inedible

OOC would you like a binary to text site?
http://www.roubaixinteractive.com/PlayGround/Binary_Conversion/Binary_To_Text.asp

OOC also nice one Gor, it's legit messages

Aequitas: Yeah, well, you can't keep it if you're dead so don't you dare think of dying on me.

Riggs: That and I still owe you money from poker night.
_________________________________________
*The mutated plants are burned a replaced or healed by Tender druids and concentrated investigation is launched. The druids begin to commune with the planet to try and determine what is happening.*

OOC: Question, Fae? How far out is the hive fleet? And yeah, I already translated it.

"R-rodger that"

*The medivac craft, a strike craft that's had most of it's weapons and other non-essential systems removed to allow for the transport of casualties arrives and lands. Medics leave the craft to collect Anna to take her back to the infirmary at the safe zone.*

not sure what should happen now....

OOC considering a typical Tyranid consumption of the planet happens in approximately 80 days... and the fleet arrives at day 50 after day 0 where spores are dropped... it's been several days

*Meanwhile, augmented and powered armored Consortium troops are advancing on an AdMech strong point.*

OOC: Right...Um...Hm...

they are under heavy fire from rangers in concealed positions

*Armored vehicles and strike craft move up.*

and with a thud a trio of onager dunecrawler units, six of them armed with neutron lasers three with icarus arrays, take up position and open fire on the consortium forces, their punishing barrage of surprising firepower deals heavy damage to the advancing forces

*They pull back...A bit to easily.*

the onagers hold position

(day 7 of intial distubances)
entire settlements are starting to pack up and leave for strongpoints, but entire groups of settlements stop responding by the hour and countless caravans never arrive. there are however several disturbing calls, cries for help mainly. they all share the trait of being drowned in local gunfire and screeing and beastial bellows in the background alongside screaming, none except one were on video, and this one was recent

+unknown #+
*flickering on pointed at the ground during what's apparent running*
camera operator (civilian): *panting from running* I got it! I got a signal!
camera pans to the man running next to him pointing a gun behind him, a civilian
gunman: what are you waiting for then?! tell them! we-
flesh hooks sink into and through him from behind before he's violently yanked backwards. the camera operator stops in his tracks and focuses the camera on the sight behind him. a lictor just as his talons sink into the gunman, quieting him as an entire caravan's being overrun by hormagaunts and warriors, people desperately trying to escape or return fire amidst the carnage . as it looks up hormagaunts run past it towards the camera operator with beastial vigor. the camera turns around and goes a few steps before flying out of the hand that held it and lands sideways on the ground with the camera operator on the ground at the bottom of the screen, the hormagaunt perched on him and slashing him through his cries until a strike decapitates him, another one comes into view and bites his arm, ripping it off and tearing flesh from bone as the other rips his back apart. then both perk up from another distant cry and run towards it, one trampling the camera
+call end+

arken's gone to bed....

OOC well it'll be here for when he returns
and you honestly think he tells me this?

no
which is why i told you

*The attack was clearly a probing attack....which is proven only more true when the artillery shells and rockets start to annihilate the area.*

The onagers are mostly unharmed due to their overlapping shields

*The surrounding area is devastated however, including their infantry support. Then the artillery fire is refocused on the Onagers....*

The shields are holding

*Eventually the barrages ceases, replaced by a lone missile. It detonates, the EMP weapon disabling the AdMech technology in the area.*

The onagers are fine....their shields are down though

*The barrage resumes.*

They fall back to cover, takin damage

*A combined armor and infantry assault group starts to move towards the position, the artillery fire still focusing on the Onagers for the most part.*

They continue firing....and then several cannonblasts blow holes in the consortium lines

*They fall back slightly and begin to search for where the blasts had come from.*

At which poont a trio of knight crusaders in admech colours stride forth, cannons blazing, ion shields absorbing incoming fire

*The Consortium forces pull back entirely as their lieutenant calls for reinforcements in the form of Consortium mechs. While this happening, the artillery barrages focus on the knights as the forces nearby dig in.*

They charge forward with surprising speed, headed for the artillery

OOC I'm here too

*The artillery and other defenses batter them, the artillery using rounds designed to kill walkers.*

the ion shields continue to hold as they mow down those before them, crushing the rest underfoot....
and then, with this distraction in place, teams of infiltrators pounce on the artillery crews from hiding

*The Consortium troops fall back. However, as they do so, Krakens and Arachnids arrive on the scene and begin to tear into the knights and skitarii with the assistance of colossi and strike craft.*

the knights have twin icarus autocannons on their carapace that open up on the strike craft. meanwhile the infiltrators are well into butchering the crew of the artillery, single minded in their task

*Powered armor troops move in and show the skitarii an equal lack of mercy....With some Tenders practically crucifying still living and very much dead skitarii while the guns of the Consortium mechs tear into the knights, ripping them to shreds.*

OOC yeah my Tyranid thing is still further up the page

if you're curious I was checking that it was on the same page as the current one, which it is

one of the knights charges one of the kraken, firing its thermal cannon into its cockpit point blank, melting it into a pile of slag
the infiltrators continue their work, single minded as ever