Breathe in, breathe out. That's a good girl. Now let's see to these video feeds.
Rimma switches the voice channel to private with Skylar.
"This is Rimma. Can you link me to video feeds we are getting with our shuttle? I need to get a visual on the nuclear impact area, epicentre, to be precise."
Hmm? No, sorry, let me focus on flying. You're welcome to watch the screens over my shoulder or get intel from the ground team, but don't touch. There have been... problems. In the past. I don't want to talk about it. He glares briefly in Jack's direction before quickly going back to work.
Hey Snapdragon, Steve says that worm is probably a mobile nerve cluster. Want to try and fetch it or let it rot?
Time to come in for landing! Avoid actually landing on mushroom. If the nuke has cleared some ground near the team, land on it. Otherwise, try to hover just over the surface. Get ready to move the shuttle away from danger.
Consider if the shuttle can carry 2 battlesuits... ask Steve if not sure
It can carry them, just not very well.
Lars frowned at the communications coming in. Hm.
"Commander Hasala, I do not think I will be able to make it to the extraction point. I will do what I can."
Start crawling/whatever toward the extract. Keep Raduga at the ready to laser anything besides the groundflesh that assaults me.
You start moving as best you can, but you're not going to get there anytime soon. This damage is too great for anything but a crawl, and even then the legs are mostly dead.
"I'll be in cabin in a moment"
She rushes to the cabin and watches on the screens there, looking for Yaroslav.
Hate to burst your bubble but Kri seems to have forgotten that Shuttle cockpits are literally enclosed capsules that you can only get into from outside. Too much time on the Blackship.
"Thank you for your help, Lyra."
Via radio: "Chief here. How much badder are things on the ground? Should land soon."
"Roger. Lars nuked the worm, and the shockwave bowled over our jeep. Zoltan Solberg just committed suicide... My legs were trapped under the jeep, but were freed. They might be broken, I'll try to stand in a moment. The nuke set the Haebi groundflesh on fire, but it isn't burning hot enough to do any damage through our suits. The planet-organism doesn't appear to be reacting at the moment, but that could change. No landing zone cleared, but if our jeep is still somehow working, you could land in the crater from the nuke and await us there. If not, you'll have to land here, since there are too many bodies and not enough people left to carry them, at this point."
Hey Snapdragon, Steve says that worm is probably a mobile nerve cluster. Want to try and fetch it or let it rot?
"It's currently raining bits of that worm. Even if the nerve cluster portion of it is still intact, I'm not sure we have the time to grab it before we leave. The extraction plan is quite time-sensitive, is it not? If we do have the time for it, we should at least check, though."
Try to move my legs a little. If they aren't broken, stand up and put Konrad in the driver's seat of the jeep. If he reports that it still somehow works, start piling the bodies back in it, then get in the front passenger seat and direct him to drive northeast. The nuclear crater is our extraction point.
If my legs are broken:
"Lyra, can you burn a patch of the ground down to rock with your microwave amplifier, so it's safe for the shuttle to land?"
Stay seated on the ground. If the Haebi groundflesh hasn't been burnt enough to make this area safe as a landing site for the shuttles and Lyra doesn't want to burn the ground with her amplifier, aim my namite-loaded chem-thrower at a spot without bodies and burn a clear patch for the shuttle to land on. Pop my painkiller pill if the pain from my legs is bad enough to interfere with my chem-thrower action.
Either way, tell the rescue team and Lars and Flint where exactly our extraction point is.
One of your legs is definitely broken, but the suit is doing a fairly good job of keeping it together with the pressure it provides. You get someone to help you up and order Konrad into the jeep, which is still smoldering.
"Thank you for your help, Lyra."
Via radio: "Chief here. How much badder are things on the ground? Should land soon."
"Roger. Lars nuked the worm, and the shockwave bowled over our jeep. Zoltan Solberg just committed suicide... My legs were trapped under the jeep, but were freed. They might be broken, I'll try to stand in a moment. The nuke set the Haebi groundflesh on fire, but it isn't burning hot enough to do any damage through our suits. The planet-organism doesn't appear to be reacting at the moment, but that could change. No landing zone cleared, but if our jeep is still somehow working, you could land in the crater from the nuke and await us there. If not, you'll have to land here, since there are too many bodies and not enough people left to carry them, at this point."
Hey Snapdragon, Steve says that worm is probably a mobile nerve cluster. Want to try and fetch it or let it rot?
"It's currently raining bits of that worm. Even if the nerve cluster portion of it is still intact, I'm not sure we have the time to grab it before we leave. The extraction plan is quite time-sensitive, is it not? If we do have the time for it, we should at least check, though."
Try to move my legs a little. If they aren't broken, stand up and put Konrad in the driver's seat of the jeep. If he reports that it still somehow works, start piling the bodies back in it, then get in the front passenger seat and direct him to drive northeast. The nuclear crater is our extraction point.
If my legs are broken:
"Lyra, can you burn a patch of the ground down to rock with your microwave amplifier, so it's safe for the shuttle to land?"
Stay seated on the ground. If the Haebi groundflesh hasn't been burnt enough to make this area safe as a landing site for the shuttles and Lyra doesn't want to burn the ground with her amplifier, aim my namite-loaded chem-thrower at a spot without bodies and burn a clear patch for the shuttle to land on. Pop my painkiller pill if the pain from my legs is bad enough to interfere with my chem-thrower action.
Either way, tell the rescue team and Lars and Flint where exactly our extraction point is.
"Thankyou sir"
help hasala with plan "get konrad in driver seat", then check if the jeep will still turn on if it does check other functions necessary for driving (steering, braking, accelerating & gear changes), once those are checked if the jeep is drivable then carfully drive anywhere we are directed to. Otherwise sit around waiting for a space tow truck
You get into the driver seat and try the key. The key melted. Hmm. You dig in under the wheel and hotwire the ignition. The Motor chugs piteously for several seconds before belching smoke and coughing back to life one more time. You give them a thumbs up and everyone starts piling in.
I collect our set of severed heads and make sure they're all clear of the shuttle landing area / in the jeep. then after making sure everyone is there, I go back to Lars the Legless Battlesuit.
he's going to need help, and will be the last one picked up. I'll wait there with him and make sure he gets back okay.
Keep watch, be ready to dodge/fight/etc. as needed.
The jeep, on partially melted and burning wheels, rumbles across the flesh, which is being oddly well behaved. It makes it over to the edge of the crater in the time it takes for the ship to come down.
I did NOT want to go to the surface. I wanted to do this:
so I could stand on the worm and cut it.
Anyway, cut the section of the worm with the brain in it free from the rest of the worm so I can get the brain. Do not cut the brain itself yet.
Continue being careful and being ready to attack proactively or failing that react to protect myself.
EDIT: If the worm/brain is thoroughly and conclusively 110% dead and unrecoverable, then take a small sample of some worm armour/flesh if I can and then go help people to the shuttle, starting with Lars, since I'm probably the only one that can carry his suit.
Well, that brain holding part was one of the first sections you saw remember. It was long gone out of the cave by now. And unfortunately directly in lar's line of fire when he shot.
Oh well. You head out to meet the rest of the team.
Somewhere near the horizon, just visible, a line of new suns appears for a few moments and then begin to fade.
The Shuttle comes down without issue and lands safely in the burnt up area around the crater.
"Everybody get your butts in here, I don't want to eat any more radiation then I have to, thanks." Skylar yells over the radio.