((An interesting notion that just hit me.
Does our success depend on the items we bring with us, or on the people who are in the mission? We've a random chance of being in the mission, and it seems pre-made...
Go survivors! I believe in you all!))
Well, they're premade and they're designed a lot more around the world then any sort of consideration for the items and characters, so it's more about how you use the items and characters then any sort of built in requirement in the mission.
((I needed a moment to prepare myself for reading this turn, btw. ))
"A new host!" Faith shouted, "If we could find a new body, that fire-stuff would probably... maybe that's even what it's doing now? I don't see how we'd get a shade or whatever over to it, though..."
Keep filming, try to figure out what it's doing!
[int:4] Uh...uh...well it's host is damaged and it's not able to move very well so...maybe it's trying to fix that? A new body? Fake limbs for Thomas?
. . .
Over the external speakers:
Dammit, Thomas, or whatever is in control of his body, that's our only way out of here!
Back on the radio:
I don't even want to begin to fabricate a thought about what's going to happen if we don't get out of here, NOW.
Get to Maurice and help him get along faster. Carry (Fireman's carry)/drag if it seems we're not getting away fast enough.
Come on, Doc, let's go!
"Aw....hell."
You run over to Maurice, who is struggling weakly to walk away, bracing himself against the tower, and get your arm around him.
"Sorry doctor, but I believe it's time to leave"
You hoist him up the best you can, taking some of the weight off his legs, and then you both jog toward the opposite end of the tower and the path beyond it.
Charro put aside his dismay at losing his hatblade and instead ran after Simus, the crown of his hat still perched atop his helmet like some bizarre fez. He paused long enough to make sure everyone was getting out of the tower, and spoke over the comms:
"Everyone! Lights are going out down there, that's bad, so we really need to stick together! Getting lost and seperated in this place will kill us just as surely as any scary shadowy-Thomas! Stick within arm's reach of each other, and er, hold onto the person next to you."
>Flee from the tower with the others, suggest remaining in physical contact with each other incase of darkness.
>Totally not trying to cop a feel off female teammates with that plan. Cough.
>Also check and make sure everyone makes it out of the tower alright.
Your one weapon now nothing but a fine metal mist you decide it's best to run like a coward. You proceed to do exactly that. Along the way you meet up with Maurice and Simus, also bidding a hasty retreat, and stop beside them, running in place.
"IT IS A GOOD IDEA TO KEEP IN PHYSICAL CONTACT!" you scream before promptly groping Simus and then turning and continuing to run. Mentally, you tick off the list of people who are getting away. Simus and Maurice, check. Travis left a while ago. You, check. Milno and Chin are way to close to scary thing so fuck em. Faith is too busy filming to care about impending doom and May legged it a while ago. Yeah, good enough.
After a moment of consideration, Maurice sighed and replied somewhat stiffly.
Okay.
Move (preferring 'surely' over 'quickly') out of the Tower. Think about other ways of fixing Thomas - perhaps less reliable ones, though less drastic as well.
As Simus half drags you away from the tower you focus on thinking of some way to help Thomas. [int:5+1] Man, fuck that guy. If he wants to be a flaming sand wizard then good for him.
((EditEdit: And no one tried to destroy the staff...))
((I said it before, but I honestly suspect we can't afford to destroy it - we "have" two sounds to deactivate.
And I'm still conscious, the way I read it? Between the amp overuse and disintegrating my arm, that's quite the surprise. Even if not, I'm in a much better shape than I expected, thanks to Milno. ))
Yeah,you got a end:5 which I forgot to post because I'm dumb So you're awake. Bleeding like a stuck pig, but awake. Thats gonna be fatal pretty soon by the way.
"A new host doesn't sound like a very good idea, but if it looks like the only way..." Milno shouted back to the comms as he fetched Chin and started to run in Thomas' opposite direction. Even then, he supposed it would be their only option, if they at least found a way of doing it.
"Keep thinking, I'll try to get Chin to relative safety then I'll come back to Thomas to try something."
Fetch Chin again, run away from Thomas.
You roll off your back and to your feet, scooping up Chin as you do, and make a run for it, your exoskeleton hissing mechanically as it drives the weight of you, your armor and Chin across the sand. You pass Maurice and Simus, who is alternating between holding her chest and shaking her fist towards a fleeing Charro for some reason, on the way.
Travis walks oblivious to his team's combat, enjoying the peace and quiet. He observes his surroundings and behind him.
You whistle a jaunty tune, blissfully ignorant of the situation behind you, and keep walking down the path. It's nice and quiet, but it's not the most scenic of paths; Gee, whats that? Is it sand?! Golly! It is! And look over there! More sand! God it's like you're completely surrounded by nothing but fucking sand. Come on guys, is a lawn ornament to much to ask for?
"Oh, hey, doc, I think you can keep my fingers..."
Try to recover a bit.
You're barely conscious as you go bouncing along on Milno's shoulder, looking back at the scene behind you through unfocused eyes. Your head feels like someone put a icepick through your temple and is pumping current directly into your brain. But hey, It worked didn't it? Heh.
"I HAVE A PLAN GUYS."
Destroy Tuning Fork with MFM.
You turn around and make ready to melt the light eater's stick with manipulator, but you've run too far and don't have line of sight on the staff and you're not sure exactly where it is so guessing is gonna be a crap shoot. Damn it.
Faith, the lone camera woman, is the only one to see what happens as the sand finishes it's transformation and hardens into stone. Dozens of rods and spheres, oblong and odd sections and a large and familiar looking sphere like stone now litter the sand near Thomas. For a second he seems frozen, completely unmoving as he looks down at the strange collection of parts. But then the fire dulls and vanishes, the black coating on his body flowing off and leaking out of every wound and orifice like tarry blood. It flows out and onto the newly created pile of stone pieces, pulling them together and building upward, like a statue collapsing in reverse. The final piece, an almost exact replica of the textured stone which crushed so many fingers and hands, slides into place atop a roughly bipedal, 6 armed, 3 meter tall body of flowing black fire and stoney bone. The lighteater retrieves the tuning staff and steps over Thomas' body on it's way toward the the wall of approaching darkness and sound.