Log:Explorer's Guild: Hothy Winter Fete
Explorer's Guild: Hothy Winter Fete
OOC Date: October 30, 2019
Location: Hoth
Participants: Explorer's Guild: Netep Muri, Yoska Lash, Maireni, Sajin, and Corr Waldin; with Special Guest Stars Veck, Kryll, Aryn Cole, Domino, Lofty, and Chebi
HOTH
The frozen tundra world stretches out in a blanket of ice and misery as far as the eye can see as the various ships of the Explorer's Guild and their hangers-on settle into the crust of snow at the rendezvous point. Corr tromps down into the dusty white, bundled up in his typical expedition attire plus half a dozen extra layers.
"Alright, folks, this'll be a fun one," he promises with a big smile before he pulls the mask over his mouth, already beginning to frost up on his facial hair. "Gonna get some Hoth hogs for a patron, and see the sights in the process. From what I read, they're real docile fellas, kinda makes you wonder why nobody's domesticated 'em," he remarks, ambling out into the snow a little further from the ship, in about to his knees. It's snowy, y'all. "Must be on account of how rare they are."
Veck comes down out of the Glorious dressed in his power armor, as his hand is holds his blaster tightly in the right one, his left wraped around a young woman of Nagai decent, as he speaks slowly."Okay then, this is going to be fun, let's stay safe and break a bunch of shit folks." The voice is coming out of the helmet now, using his coms of course with that damn wind, his mask is covered with the red words. <Call your Mother.>
What, her soul be judged, could have possessed Netep to venture voluntarily into this frozen wasteland of ear-nipping winds and finger-flaking, subzero temperatures? Without turning a profit for cargo, to boot!?!?!? Promise of a party, of course.
The Doaba Hermi, functioning presently as party bus, glides just a bit roughly into view. New snow drifts are born from its landing, thrusters casting off heaps off the white stuff as the landing struts hover indecisively over the flatland. FWOOF. In they go, the Hermi's weight settling creakily atop the frozen field. Sounds of raucous merriment pour out of the ship when the ramp creaks and shudders its way open, arthritic as ever. The music is live, not stereo-born, and composed of a number of folk instruments - mainly rowdy fiddles and palm-splitting drumbeats. A horde of voices all blend together into a mostly out of key bastardization of lyrics, brogue rich with the accent of alcohol and laughter. Among them is the youngest Muri?s, attempting to coax one of her kin out for a bit of an exploring good time.
"Sooner'd plant a wet one on the four crones' wrinkles!" Exclaims some man incredulously as his shape shrinks back from the open hatch. "But you have fun now, sweet sister. I promise we shan't stray far!!" Hahaha, will she have a ship to come back to? Netep doesn't have time to reconsider the situation, because a sturdy push against her overstuffed parka sends the little traveler toppling out over the edge and into the snow. *fwoof* As an act of mercy, her bag gets thrown out after and the party rages on.
Theres a quiet struggle to follow, muffled by the very snow she'd disappeared into. Eventually, a head pops up, followed by two hands and a string of unhappy sounds. Muri trundles over, catching bits and pieces that the searing winds feed her. "HOGS!?" She waddles through a patch that's almost hip deep. "Y'better be puttin some o'that back fat on /our/ plates, Waldin, what for freezin our tits!"
"I'll call YO MAMA," someone is shouting at Veck and his mask over the sound of the wind, followed by, "Maybe she calls me first though HEEEEYYYY!" The someone in question is a skinny alien kid wrapped up in several jackets and a hat he definitely stole out of the trash somewhere and a scarf in tones of brown, green, and orange. It is a very ugly scarf, and the speaker is Yoska Lash, terrible alien trash child. He's on a roll here and talks over Corr as he tries to introduce the reason for being here. "HOTH HOGS LIKE HIS MOMM--- oh, I'm gonna get shot, huh. Aiyaah, it's cold. CORR! WHY ARE WE HERE?" Can you say all of it again, cause, he wasn't paying attention.
This being his first time on the big ball of popsicle, Kryll is wearing his bounty hunter armor, as well as a mostly full set of thermal outerwear over top of it. With his rifle slung around his chest, hanging low, and a blaster still at his hip, the bounty hunter is as prepared as he can be in the weather. <"Well"> Kryll says as he looks about the landscape, honestly enjoying the view. <"This place is beautiful!"> he says with a smile under his helmet, even if nobody can see it. He looks about at everyone else complaining, and wonders if he's the only one enjoying the world.
Sajin is fiddling around with the control buttons on his flight suit, likely adjusting the internal tempreture. His R2 unit whistles at him from inside the socket of his E-Wing. "Stay there, Buckets... you're not good for navigating this type of terrain." There is still a protest but the Handsome Hapan ignores it for the time being. "Hoth Hogs? I don't get how this place is supposed to have Hoth Hogs, it's really cold." He must be mishearing things... He glances to Yoska, "He just said... to get some Hot Hogs."
Lofty the Talz is deposited by a large crescent-shaped space yacht on the cold tundra. Hailing from the moonless and freezing world of Alzoc III, the white woolly alien has no need for extra clothing, but he does wear a bandolier filled with odds and ends and FizzyGlug cans, as well as a bowcaster on his back and a long blowgun for darting wild animals. The pilot of his ship comes over Lofty's communicator and gibbers in Sullustese, "Tuguthii na mbaathi!" The general translation is 'the bus is leaving.' Then the space yacht lifts off, heading for the Ceyan Range so its wealthy cruise passengers can hover-ski and ice-board.
Lofty responds on his communicator, "Haozipliirs, come back when I ping, Lofty have pig then." He's here to bag a ice-hog for his own Winter Fete roast aboard the yacht, as his cruise passengers enjoy the mix of frontier adventure and creature comfort. He checks the number of poisoned darts in his blowgun while waddling over to Corr.
Domino Emerges wearing layers of white and gray and UV protected goggles, pretty much none of her skin exposed just gray furr lined hood closed around her goggles where her face should be. There is a bright pink X on her feet and on the bottom of her snoeshoes for some reason. She carries a duffle with her rather than her usual haversack. She stops and turns in what must be a stare at Kryll, "Wow. Uh. Well. I'm glad you like it."
Maireni Lash is here, and anyone who has been near her has evidence of her presence in the form of little glittery flecks that have fallen off of her, and clung to everyone else. You're welcome. She's got armor on, and a coat on over that, and earmuffs over her ears, gloves, it's all mismatched and brightly colored and decorated where it can be with glittery stones, all clearly hand glued on. Her makeup is garish, and perfume essence strong. "Yoyoooooo, you're gonna get shot and I' not gonna carry you back to the ship," she informs the other Lash. "You better make someone else like ya so they'll do it instead." Like she isn't also going to end up getting shot by someone. She pauses in the middle of sort of chiding Yoska as she spots Kryll. "Ayyyyyyaa who are you," she says, slinking over in his direction.
Marshmellow with goggles, a backpack, and heavy boots. That's what Chebi looks like. Short and now round. Somewhere in the layers, there's armor. "I'm just here to stitch and bitch, Veck. Maybe stab something. I'm happy staying in the back of the pack." she says, adjusting the lay of her goggles and bag, snugging the outermost lay tighter to her head via drawstrings. The coloring of her exterior layer is shades of white and grey, meant to break up an outline in this harsh environment.
"Look, when have I ever let you down?" Corr questions Muri, and it's not clear if he's kidding or truly indignant, the tone is certainly edgy though. The answer is probably 'dozens of times', but he's not letting that bother him. "I am here on the Planet Hoth, enjoying a crisp" dangerously cold "Winter Fete day, and I am not gonna let anything harsh my vibe," the explorer declares, heading towards the horizon.
Don't they have speeders? A skiff? Taun-tauns? No, no, and no. "On account of we gotta keep quiet," Corr explains some time later as he crunches along through the snow, his feet leaving big impact craters in the crust. "No vehicles or nothing. Or the hogs'll hear us and run." By now, the ships have receded into small dots behind them and the cold has set in. No skin is visible, that's asking to lose a body part.
Up ahead, the 'path' narrows as two outcroppings of ice form a choke point they'll need to pass through. "From what I understand, these hogs are a delicacy," he continues to narrate despite his own reservations about making too much noise, stepping between the outcroppings and tightening his pack as he enters the bottleneck. "Should be a nest on up past here."
Veck sighs softly, his hand is on his blaster at his side, as he watches the others for a moment and then he speaks slowly into his coms.<Okay then, hogs are yummie yes. But how we take them down, blasters okay, or it ruin the meat. Never hunted these things before, anyone done this before.> The voice is cold, as he nods back at Chebi behind him, with a little shake of his head, as he motions her close to him.
A small, unassuming Doctor accompanies those at the tail end of this calvalcade of free entertainment, and like them, she wears gear specifically designed to combat the adverse effects of this weather. Custom designed and paired with a body suit, Aryn Cole is comfortably encased beneath the protective plating of an explorer's scouting armor. Her face is wrapped with a half mask feeding her warm, warm oxygen, while goggles made of a green tint shield her eyes from the constant stabbing assault of the blistering cold winds. Only streaks of bright blonde hair mark her for who she is, and her cape of course. Aryn went no where without some sort of cape; and with the wind the way it was, there was no hiding the gentle flaps it made in her wake as she trudged after the others wearing boots intended for snow.
"Enough," Netep answers Corr's rhetorical question, but follows along like an obedient duck nevertheless. Her stride isn't quite long enough to take advantage of the packed snow dents left by Waldin's big feet, but she tries as much with exaggerated stretches and hops as needed. A hard feat, in cumbersome parka and wool-stuffed, leather snow pants that most certainly were handmade. Grace is not her middle name. "I'll leave the hunting to you hunters, though, yeah? Consider my role t'be ehm..." Netep squints her eyes behind the protective shield of goggles, what little of her brow is visible wrinkling beneath the windswept fur. "Thermal control. Fortification of belly." Get close enough and you'll likely catch a whiff of what Muri's referring to, from her own breath. But in case she hasn't been clear enough, she rifles around in her knapsack and pulls out a bottle of spiced pulkay. The cap twists off and she takes a quick hit straight from bottle before offering it to the nearest body in show of brotherly love. Here's lookin at you, you scruffy fleabag of a Lash. Or Mai.
Happily ignoring his sister, the bundled blob of misbegotten winterwear that is Yoska starts hopping from outcropping to outcropping, swinging his prehensile tail to keep balance as he goes, cheerfully agreeing with Sajin, "Hot hogs!" because that makes more sense to him than whatever Corr said. He wasn't paying attention to whatever Corr said. He does pause on a perch of ice and rock where the path narrows, and eyes Veck and Chebi curiously. "Are you guys goin out? Kind of a weird date, hot-hog hunting, amirite? It's okay, me and Dr. Girlfriend are goin out too, yah, she used to go round with my brother but it didn't work out." Dr Girlfriend seems to be Muri, based on the gesture her way. And in doing so, he spots she's drinking something! "Hey! SHARE!"
Kryll looks to Domino and nods, the furs on him rocking with him. <"How could you not, I do not wish to experience this like the rain mind you, but, it is still a beautiful world in its own way."> Kryll replies, his helmet transmitting his voice out to those nearby him through the modulator. Kryll takes out a line with a hook on it, offering the other end to Domino, <"It is just slightly windy here, latch this onto a belt or something so you don't get lost."> He tilts his head slightly as he recognizes someone, or at least, parts of someone and he moves up to walk alongside Aryn. <"It is nice to see another friendly."> he pauses, <"Bundle of warm clothing. I trust you are well."> he adds with a nod of his head to her.
"A Delicacy, hot damn I can't wait to get me some Hot Hogs, then. Honestly, I ran out of food on the flight here." Says Sajin just before he takes the offered bottle of swill from Netep and downs a good gulp before handing it back. If anyone looked in his cockpit, they'd see snack wrappers and bags littered all over the place along with several plastic drink containers. So messy for someone who used to be a janitor! He follows along quietly, humming a song to himself.
Lofty tromps through the snow, his white fur giving convenient camoflage. At least until the cold makes the FizzyGlug cans in his bandolier explode. There is a medium "POP" then a few more "POP-POP-POPs" and the Talz's chest is covered with fizzy soda. Disgusting. He rips the cans out of his bandolier, tossing them aside as colorful neon refuse during their trek. "They say sealed for cold planet, but they lie." FizzyGlug, BubbleZap, Fizzy-Bip, Jedi Juice - they are all there left in the snow, bleeding their precious sugary contents. Perhaps on the trip back, snowcones. But for now the Talz hunter raises his blowgun and moves through the easily-ambushed ice outcroppings.
Domino peers around Kryll and peers at Corr "How this entire planet doesn't harsh everything is beyond me." She swats Kryll's arm to get his attention, "PRomise me you will not let anything eat me or leave me here on this stars forsaken icecube." she may be surrounded by adventurers but her vibe is very much one as if she should be on a wine tasting tour rather than anything with the word 'adventure' included. She does not argue with Kryll's suggestion or feign indignation. She accepts nylon strap and hooklatch and latches right onto her utility belt.
Maireni is ignored, IGNORED. She is bereft, adrift on a sea of despa-- HEY! She starts as she spies Yoska moving for Muri, and hustles that way, not seeming at all worried that her hustling might make enough noise to scare away the prey. Not that she really knows that there's hot hot hunting happening here, she's just here to get PAID. "You're not seein' her!" she tries to muscle between her brother and Muri, with only a 50/50 shot of being able to do so. "What you drinkin?" She asks of Netep, regardless of whether or not her brother has been muscled aside. "You wanna share, yah? On account of we're such good friends an' all." They're not. "Ay Yoyo," she suddenly distracts herself from her plan to drink-block her sibling. "You think this place is cursed?"
This is what she gets for being -cheap-. Chebi waddles more than she walks, bumbling along in her layers a bit like a washed out looking penguin. But she's warm! And fluffy. Keeping up alright enough with the group. "I'm an old friend." Comes the fabric muffled reply from the doc. "We go back a few years."
"Take 'em down any way you want," Corr responds with a shrug, continuing along through the narrow icy passage. "Far as I know there's no like, hormonal response to it that'll harsh the meat, though. We used t'do that with the nerfs but it was just to be humane. They never did much livin', didn't feel right they should have to do much dyin' neither." His pace slows as the outcroppings ahead merge into one, turning the passageway into an icy cave, its dark recesses an ominous shade of blue.
"Old friends, right. Huh. Thought there was another snowfield on the other side of this." There's a moment's consultation of the map, and a worrying inversion of the paper that he digs out of his utility belt before it's just as quickly tucked away. "Hot ho- HOTH hogs love caves, too." ONWARD.
The ice cave he enters has a tall ceiling that allows him to stand upright easily, towering a good ten feet overhead. "Yeah, this seems right. They gotta come in from the cold, you figure." One might be questioning how much of an expert on the subject Corr really is.
Veck moves slowly, his hand on that blaster clenched in his right hand, it is go time, fun time it seems is coming oh so soon, so damn soon."<Okay, then .> His eyes moving back and forth trying to move towards a good spotting zone, in all this damn snow with a cackle of his voice.<Yeah, make sense getting in the warm, so we can be warm too.>
Aryn was focused on making one step after another, so imagine her surprise when someone spoke to her! Recognized her?! She stops, turns, and looks up at them, recognizing the mark of a guild bounty hunter. <"Ah, Mr. Kryll. Seems we've a habit of running into each other.-- Oh I'm about as well as one can be on a planet not intended for life."> She resumes her pace, pausing again when they're left to trust this leader's judgement and sense of direction. <"I'm not one for concealing the truth from people, but this cave gives me a bad feeling."> She follows anyway, slamming her heavy spear into the ice and snow to keep her steady.
"I bet it's good," Netep concurs airily with Sajin's slight misunderstanding. Hog, hot or cold, is tasty. She snaps a quick look aside a beat too late to fend off or dodge the sudden nearness of not one, but TWO Lashes. The bottle swivels on almost hyper-extended arm toward them. If there is a flea party hopping around YoYo today, best put a distance of some two frozen feet between their furs! Just in case. "It's cursed by cold, s'what it's cursed by and for. Nothin but nature in its harshest glory, Mai." Muri pauses for a moment or three to catch her breath then, leaning against some gnarly ice formation at the cave's entrance to crane a look around at those comin up from behind.
"Makes sense," the desert girl says in favor of Corr's reasoning. "I'm game for a wind block." She knows a lot of things bout lots of places and flora and fauna, but ICE worlds are NOT her forte. So she's bumbling blind. "Hey, Kryll," she flags a gloved hand out at the man when he goes by. There were words to follow, but Aryn's ominous words put a stop to her own. Bad like marauding dead people bad? Toothy wildlife bad? There are varying degrees of bad, but Muri's next look into the blue maw of beauty is a little less awestruck and a little more...untrusting.
Muri creeps along after, skitt-skippering on a slick patch before long. It's from the unyielding cold, hardness of floor that she hears a sound pattern NOT in sync with bidpedal clompy boots. The pitter patter of hoofed feet. "Hey!" She hisses. "SH-SH!!" One hand goes up while the rest of her just continues to lie there. Maybe it's part of some survivalist listening technique, maybe she just can't get up. "I hear it!!" An over-exaggerated miming to her ears while her mouth widely enunciates the whisper. And a point. Down. That way.
Yoska continues to scamper from outcropping to outcropping toward the caves, vaguely following Corr and the group and making a little song of introduction, tapping percussion against rocks as he goes.
"Here we are on Hoth and it's gonna be tight
We got the hot hot hogs lookin for a fight!
Hot hot hogs! Hot hot hogs!
Why we want 'em we don't know
But we're all up in that ice and snow
We got Yo Mama and 'Mellow lookin real sappy
And Pink Snowshoes who don't look happy
But she's got that bro who's givin' it a go
Hittin up the blonde with his smoothest flow
We got this fuzzy-arse bruh which what is he
Four weird eyes but he still can't see
What you shouldn't bring up on this trip,
Shoulda been like Nets with booze equipped!
We got Corr with plans adjusted,
We got my sister always lookin flat busted
We got Sajin always lookin just right
Ready for the hot hot hogs on a winter fete night!"
He pauses to scoop up some snow colored with dropped FizzyGlug while continuing to add "Hot hot hogs!" and then agrees with Maireni, "No yeah we're definitely all gonna die." He is absolutely not listening to whatever Muri has heard and is trying to point out, which is probably why he'll be the FIRST TO DIE.
Turning around for a moment as he thought he heard another nearby voice, but it seems to be only Aryn and Domino. Kryll turns back forward and smacks at the hood over his helmet, knocking off a bunch of snow. <"Was sure I heard another voice nearby."> he offers a shrug and gives a thumbs up to Domino as she straps on. <"Promise, no eating, or leaving you here as an ice statue, to be worshipped by primitive tribes that stumble across your form in the snow."> he turns back to Aryn who replied to him as well, <"I think this world was meant for life, just not warm blooded life. It is very pretty though."> he replies and pauses, looking forward to the cave, <"Any enclosed space when hunting something you do not have eyes on the entire time should give you a bad feeling. You have a proper hunter's gut."> his right hand rests across the grip of his blaster rifle, but the weapon stays slung for now, barrel towards the ground as the group is so clustered through the snowy hills and then packing into the cave. <"I recognize at least a few of us that are solid fighters, the others I do not know about. If something does go sideways, fight together and secure a zone of influence, and work from there."> he suggests to Aryn, but loud enough for Domino to hear as well. Then he enters the cave entrance with the others, offering a raised hand and then a thumbs up to Netep. <"Hello Netep! What a lovely planet right?">
Crunch, crunch, crunch through the snow leaving prints of his flight suit's boots. That is until the wind would eventually cover them over with snow drift. "This isn't so bad," Sajin says fro inside his pressurized and climate controled TX-3... Cheater. The Handsome Hapan sighs as Aryn, "Yeah... everytime we go into a cave with Corr it's a bad deal." He shrugs, "Money helps though." He glances around, hands on his hips. He looks to Yoska as he sings, bopping his head to the beat but then his attention turns towards Netep. "Where, what?" He slinks along behind her.
Lofty pauses at the cave entrance to kneel. He traces the outline of a large hoofprint, perhaps the size of a human hand, with a claw. "Piggy come here," he warbles through his boopsnoot. When he spots Aryn Cole chatting with Kryll the Talz chastises Aryn. "No speak to him. Bounty hunters no good," the alien says, trying to protect Aryn from dastardly people on the edge of space.
Domino pauses and peers over at Aryn, "Oh, is that Doc Cole? Hadn't expected to see you here! Please don't get eaten, eh?" She hesitates a bit only to be yanked along when Kryll trudges along after Corr "Uh, yo, Numbnuts with the map!" She calls "You ever actually HUNTED A Hoth Hog before?" She clutches her tether to Kryll and frowns at Muri "Woah, woah woah, What did you hear? Something or...specifically something hog like? No offense, Muri, but your judgement's questionable in the best of times."
She blinkity-blinks at Yoska "IS the critter drunk?" she demands incredulously to no one in particular. And then KRyll speaks to her and she is still just long enough to suggest more staring, "Wait, tribes?! People LIVE here? ON *purpose*?!" Yup. Someone stepped onto the wrong tourbus for sure. She then whips around and her voice becomes surprisingly steely "**HEY**! Do not talk trash about my tether buddy in earshot of me or some day very soon you will learn just how fragile a reputation can be. One and only warning-Be nice to this one." she pats KRyll's shoulder indicating which one she means.
There is colorful snow that isn't yellow, and she's pretty certain she knows the source of (what with the drinks being dropped right there) so she too stops to scoop up some of the snow. "Oh yah, it's cursed with cold for sure," she agrees with Muri, daring to pull down the collar of her coat to try and taste the snow. The dire words from Yoska are met with a solemn nod from lady Ryn, a morose whistle passing through her nose-instrument. "We super are." Muri hold out the bottle, and she's quick to take it, using whatever is inside to wash down the colorful snow. "What?" she asks Muri as she makes a shushing sound. "Where?" It's only after asking that, that she actually turns so her gaze can follow the direction of the point. After a few moments she informs Yoska in a sullen tone, "I ain't busted. You look busted."
Bringing up the rear, Chebi wobbles to a stop and leans to peer around Veck's big butt and into the cave. "'Warmer' is relative." she mutters, falling quiet as the declarations of a potential sighting go up. Patting herself down, she hunts through half a dozen pockets to find her favorite vibro-shiv, getting it ready just in case.
"Hunting hogs of any sort is about the same as any other, prob'ly," Corr reckons, loosening his pistol from its holster on his thigh. "How hard can it be?"
squeeeeeeEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
It starts distant, echoing down the frozen corridor and bouncing off the icy walls, growing louder as the first of the creature approaches. It is not a small friendly-looking pig. It is a large, tusked hog, a full two feet tall at the shoulder, with a dark, furry hide, baleful eyes, and spines lining its snout. "SQUEEEEE!"
"Oh," Corr responds to his own question as the hammering hoofed feet of two more come around the bend up ahead.
Veck takes aim with his blaster, due to the nature of the flurring and the worry about the girl next to him, as his body moves in front of her, he is misse the angry one, with a sigh of annoyance. His eyes narrow but at least he is in front of Chebi, doing that he does best beside murder, but maybe he likes pigs deep down in that violent brian of his.
"Judgement, yes, but acuity.....no. Quite sharp." Netep blinks up at Domino with a sober, almost earnest expression before she cracks into a snicker and peels herself off the floor, seeking to use a body - any body - as a stabilizer till she's got her bearings. And then takes another pull from the Pulkay. "While y'all go fe---ah, hell." No need to fetch, because 'dinner' is coming to them!
"Bork it," Muri mutters and fumbles hastily to stuff the booze bottle back into her bag and trade it for a..a...a blaster! Heeeey, she did remember to bring one. It's not easy to wield, fat gloves and all, so she just flattens up best she can against one of the ice walls to get the heck out the way of what's coming!
<"I'm no soldier. So I'll probably just hide behind the brave warriors who have come along."> Aryn says to Kryll. In steps Lofty, warding her away from the Bounty Hunter. He would not be the first large Champion Kryll has encountered who seemingly looks out for the young Lady's welfare. Aryn waves silently to Kryll as she complies with Lofty's wish, and she moves to stay abreast of the massive Talz.
When Sajin addressed her about caves and Corr always going sideways, it's accompanied by the loud SQUEEEE resonating from the front. <"Oh. Good."> That's when Domino expresses concern for Aryn. <"I'll try to stay off the menu!"> Aryn is pitifully short, and her spear emphasizes this fact. Rather than putting on a brazen display of hunting prowess, Aryn steps behind the more capable Talz, Lofty. "Tell me where I need to go, Mr. Lofty."
Kryll nods to Aryn as she is spirited away by a new guardian, <"I appear to have been prejudged from my attire. I will have to look into that."> As the squeeling begins, Kryll raises his rifle in his right hand, aiming down the cave while moving out of center of the cave itself and positioning himself along the wall, <"Domino, hug the wall."> he says calmly even though the beasts appear to be charging towards the exit. Kryll steadies himself and fires two shots at the loud one, the first hitting it square in the torso, and the second just missing wide. He makes sure to stand at an angle, allowing Domino space to stand right in behind him if she decides to. His movements much more focused and certain now, less ooo pretty worldish.
When the squeels come and the Hogs show themselves, Sajin withdraws the vibro-dagger sheathed on his Flight Suit's Untility Belt. He crouches a bit and readies himself but desn't attack. "I wouldn't use a blaster... you could cause a cave in or an Avalanch." He likely just doomed them to both those experiances by the simple act of mentioning it. Such was the life of a useful idiot like him. He's ready to take one if it charges, if not he will wait a moment longer. "Which one, hermmm?" And then, there's the one that looks like it wants to kill everything in the cave... "You... it's in your eyes..." The very fast Hapan lashes out with the blade as he careens towards the HOTH HOG, plunching the dagger into it's misection. He twists it before it's pulled free. Sajin slashes towards the Hog but it backs away in natural retreat from his initial attack. The Martial Artist presses the attack and lunnges forward for yet another jab into the beast's midsection.
Lofty steps in front of Aryn Cole. "Stand against wall, back against wall, try to get high. Piggy dangerous." He raises his feather-adorned blowgun and loads a poisoned dart gently into one end. Then he uses his snoot to blow it at the most vehement of the hogs. THOONK. The dart flies through the frigid air but is altered by a sudden gust into the entrance of the cave and plinks harmlesly into the ice. DINK.
Domino gawps and in her stunned stupor can only wonder "What the kriff is there to EAT on this planet that they get so BIG?!" And then she is given directions and promptly complies, pressing against the wall and holting her breath. She is one with the wall. Lalalala.
It takes some time but Maireni finally sees the large squealing beasts that come charging toward them, and now she has a choice to make. Drop her colorful snow, or the bottle Muri gave her. The snow splatters on the ground in a pink spray, leaving her gloves stained, which is then smeared on the blaster that she's trying to tug free from the holster. It takes a few tries, she's not a hunter, or really a fighter, she's more of a sneaker, and there isn't much sneaking happening here. "Ay I knew it was cursed!" she calls out to Muri while struggling to turn the safety off on her weapon. Gloves make this all a lot harder.
Chebi keeps one hand on Veck's back, hoping the powerarmor has sensors to tell him where the non-violent contact is. If not, she might get trampled into the snow if he retreats faster than she can womble. Content to have an armored meatshield, she fans out to the side enough to see what's happening, her hand keeping tight grip on the vibrodagger. Ready, but not jumping into the melee if she can help it.
As soon as the hogs come barreling out of the deeper recesses of the cave, all hell breaks loose. Blasters are fired into hogs, the walls, and the ceiling. Sajin gets up close and personal, but before long, everyone is going to get up close and personal with those enormous tusks and spiked snouts, snuffling and chomping teeth that can grind through ice like buttercream frosting.
One leaps at Kryll, latching onto him with those chompers and refusing to let go, and a tusk narrowly misses impaling Veck's shin, glancing off the man's armor as it goes trundling past at ramming speed. Corr takes a shot that goes wide, knocking ice from the roof of the cave.
While this is going on, more and more hogs come boiling up out of the earth, it seems, scurrying around the same corner.
Veck takes aim now still blocking Chebi, as he watches it all as all the chaos erupts around them, with a solid tusk bouncing off his power armor.<Damn little bastards!> His voice is coming over the coms filled with rage, and then he is grabing her moving her behind him more, Chebi has to be proteced.
Aryn complies with Lofty's command, and steps up to a higher block of ice. His attempt to hit one of these rampaging feasts misses, but Aryn takes a moment to center and lift the spear she's been holding. One of the hogs draws close and Aryn pokes it with the spear hard. When it runs away, she hauls her spear back and plunges it into the animal to find purchase. <"I think I got---ITTTTT"> Aryn says as the spear, still lodged in the animal, tethers Aryn to it who goes for a ride. The Hog runs by, and Aryn is being dragged behind it hanging onto her weapon. <"I didn't siiignnnn uppppp for thiiiiiis!"> This is fine.
Now that the first wave has blasted by, Muri gets a satisfactory grip on her gun and just takes aim at the next round of squeals to come stampeding up from the bowels of ice hell. Trigger pulls, a searing red streak goes zipping by and leaves a deep, melty scar somewhere deep into the eerie dark. Whoops.
The squealing and angry hogg jumps up and takes a serious bite out of Kyrll, he growls within his helmet and then Aryn is stabbing it. Thankfully, not through as he may become a Kryll-Hogg-Kabob. The large hog runs off with Aryn attached and he pivots, firing a round into the right hind leg of the beast, which squeals its last and slams forward into the snow, sliding to a stop. He turns back towards the pack and more targets coming out, seeing Netep fire and miss at one of the smaller hogs, he exhales slowly and fires a second shot at the one she is engaging, trying to give her some support but the shot goes wide, and the beast is still in play. He glances down at his chest a moment, and any blood coming through quickly freezes outside of his armor. <"Well, that is a plus. I think.">
Sajin turns around as the Squealing Hog charges towards him. He jumps out of the way just as Aryn's speak flies out and slams into it. He staggers a but, but gets back onto Solid ground, steading his feet. He vocuses back on the Angry Hog and charges it, slashing twice, which the beasts backs away from before pushing forwards with more momentum and diving his vibroblade through it once again.
Lofty is loading another paralytic-tipped dart into his blowgun. He admires Aryn's martial skill with the spear. "Yes, use real weapon, not blaster! Hog meat ruined by blaster!" He fires another dart from his blowgun and it plunks into the vehement hoth hog's thick hide. DOINK. The stunning poison begins to move through the hog's bloodstream, making it sluggish, but preserving that delicious loin. So tender!
Domino sucks in a sharp, horrified breath as Kryll's attacked before Dorm Mom Domino instincts kick in. She tugs the outer glove off her dominant hand leaving it with the thermal undergloves as the yanks her pistol out her pistol and tries to get a line of fire at the creature shaking her chaperone "Get off him hairy bacon!!!" she shrieks in a high-pitched voice suggesting panic. And then it's down but he's bleeding, "Aw, stars, didn't even reckon how I'd treat someone in armor in this stupid cold. She shoves her blaster back in it's holster "How bad you hurt, champ?" anxiety making her tone curt even as she presses back against the wall least she become pigbait.
Maireni struggles a bit with the safety, which means that the blaster points dangerously at people in their group. Thankfully it never goes off while it's pointed at any of them, but that isn't due to skill, it's just luck. Once the trigger is finally free, she takes very little time to aim and then fires, the blaster bolt flying right on past the small hot hoth hog that she was... probably aiming at?
Chebi gives Veck a push. "Stop fethin' worrying about me and /Do Your Job/." Men! She's got enough padding to be a piggy beachball. Meanwhile, she flicks her attention toward Kryll, and the others, trying to assess who's hurt and who's alright.
Where's Yoska been, this whole time? Lost in some magical world of snow, poor rhymes, and trying to eat ALL of the delicious leftovers from Lofty's exploded drinks on the way in? Scratching his fleas? Tripping over his scarf? Yes, probably all of this. But the little rat-bird kid does eventually mosey back on to the scene with a pistol out, staring wide-eyed at the havoc before running right into his sister. "Oh, what!" he gasps as she misses her shot, then chides, "Nah, Mari, this is how you shoot a hot hog doe." Once! Twice! Three times! The pig goes down, and Yoyo scratches his chin. "Aiyah, think I ruined the tender loin."
Where are all these Hoth hogs coming from, and why are they running out towards the hunters? It seems like the opposite of what survival would dictate. At least until a roar shakes the roof of the cave, knocking a few stalactites loose that fall amongst the invaders.
The wampa lumbers forth with remarkable speed like a furry harbinger of the apocalypse, red eyes glittering with bloody intent as it reaches for Lofty's slowed Hoth hog, ripping it from the icy floor with a massive hand, lifting it overhead, and tugging its body in half, dropping gore in a red splash like pinata candy.
Corr stops in his tracks, staring. His face is hidden from view, but one can hear him remark, "You gotta be-" before a falling chunk of ice cuts him off.
Veck nods towards Chebi and then there is a large bastard, as he is leaps forward towards the Wampa. As his fingers are pulling the trigger missing it with a wicked whoop of pleasure.<GET THIS BASTARD GANG!>
Saved by the very bounty hunter she was ushered away from, Aryn was left to the mercy of this big Pig's trek until his life came to an abrupt end into a pile of snow. Oooof! Aryn went into the pile right after it, then rose up a second later to station her boot atop the fallen prey to leverage her spear free with a pitiful grunt.
Then, Big Daddy Wampa lumbered in and WAMPA SMASHED a perfectly juicy Hoth Hog within close proximity of Aryn. Blood, guts, and more blood paint the blank canvas that is the Doctor, who reacts first by looking up at the massive creature before steadying her nerves. A blaster shot flashes by her, but Aryn is either unfazed or simply too frightened to notice.
Whirling the spear back to orient the spearhead forward, the Alderaanian noble stands her ground and plants the arrow shaped spearhead into the Wampa's leg. <"YAAAH!"> She yells. Pitiful. She retracts the weapon and retreats. Then retreats more. <"L-L-LOFTYYYY! HEEEEELP!">
"Hey!" Muri exclaims, startled to see this surprising show of competence coming from Yoska. "Nice shot!" But the appreciation is short lived. The resonation of that roar puts a lil rubber in her knees and curdling in her gut. "I-I uh..." a look goes to the pistol in palm and suddenly it feels much less useful. "I don't think that's a hog noise."
And she's right! "Maybe we just let big boy fill up on that hog there while we take this party back to the ships? Fa--Doc, no!" Muri, ever the 'pacifist' had already crept a few sneakily slid steps back toward the entrance, but Aryn's direct engagement/provocation of the beastie makes her likewise freeze in terror for what repercussions are to come.
Knowing this time that the hoggs were not the source of the problem, but not wanting to ignore them in case he doesn't get paid, Kryll had attacked them as they ran from the now apparant source of dismay. He has no idea what the large beast is, but it is what he declared Oran once, a priority target. <"The hogs are running from the big one! And its hungry!"> Kryll calls out to the group, raising his blaster rifle to squeeze off two shots at the large beast, scoring solid hits on the torso and right leg. The first hoping to kill it, the second hoping to slow it down at least.
Sajin is far too occupied gutting his prey which slowly wimpers and dies as it bleeds out from his constant stabby stabs. He turns as he hears shouts and blaster fire from behind him only to be confronted with a wampa. "Oh No! Run!" He shouts and then thinks a moment. "Wait, No! Everyone kill it! More meat!" He waits for an opening to attack the large beast.
Lofty is struck by tragedy as his precious hog is ripped in half. No doubt the crass dismembering of the hoth hog by the Wampa will release the sealed entrails and ruin the tenderloin. He tosses off the awkward blowgun and brings his bowcaster up from his back, shouting to Aryn Cole, "No make Wampa angry with stick!" The magnetic orbs on either end of his weapon's conducting rods whine loudly as a magnetic field is established. He fires two elongated plasma-enveloped quarrels at the Wampa, but both bolts miss and smack into the icy walls of the cavern. A spume of snow and moisture is kicked up.
Domino's fumbles for her pistol again and in a panicked gasp demands "What the kriff's gray dingleberries is /THAT/?!" but fortunately people much less likely to accidentally shoot friendlies leap into action and Domino is just left there pressed against the icy wall and visably shaking and she begins to hiccup in terror. She's trying to hyperventilate but the panicked hiccups derail that first panic response rather nicely. It might be a good idea if someone in this jittery state WASN'T holding a charged blaster just now.
This just isn't working. Hogs are scattered, people are scattered. Veck can't focus enough to hit targets. Chebi stiff-legged wobble run gallumphs -towards- the raging Wampa and gives one it's legs a hug - like a kid in a snow bunny suit hugging a growed up. Until she starts shanking the hell out of it, trying to hit tendon or bone or slow the thing down. Stabstabstab.
To say that Yoyo screams at the appearance of the wamps like a little girl would be an insult to little girls. He shrieks, and Ryn have a special way about it, owing to their birdlike, whistling native speech. It's very high pitched, like someone blowing a useless safety whistle. His synapses are misaligned, drug-mangled and semi-functional at the best of times, but once they resume firing at least a little bit again, Yoska howls in distress, "No, Sajin, you're too pretty to die! The rest of us have no such protection, ya feel me? Think of the children!" To clarify he gestures at himself and his sister, "Us! We're the children!" He does have the presence of mind to fire off several shots, two of which connect and one of which hits an icicle which detaches and sails down to spear the carcass of the hog, further ruining the tender loin. Yoska then dashes round to hide behind Maireni and wails, "We should turn around!"
"We should turn around," Corr agrees with Yoska, stumbling back away from the emergence of the wampa, the blaster in his hand largely forgotten. That's a big critter, and the way it handled the hog did not inspire confidence. "Get some hogs and go! Come on!" he decides, shoving the weapon back into its holster and instead watching in horror as his people instead decide to attack the thing.
The wampa ROARS, (#7 http://www.realmofdarkness.net/sb/sw-wampa/) batting at Aryn's spear before Chebi's knife stabs into its posterior chain of movement and prompts the beast to kick out behind itself in an exaggerated heavy donkey-kick.
Meanwhile, when Maireni continues attacking the little hogs, they turn on her and Yoska with intense fury. One had been almost cuddly, and with huggable rage it flings itself airborne at the Ryn, adorable little teeth spread wide to take a little bite out of her in retribution.
<YOU BASTARD, THAT'S MY GIRL!> There is a scream of rage from inside of the helmet's speakers, Veck is running towards the Wampa, his blaster is fired over and over at the creature. He is going to run till he finds his girl, trying to find Chebi, his eyes are filled with rage inside of his helmet, and then he is leaping over things, he will protect her and even if she is dumb.
The shimmering blue shield that had formed around Aryn proves its value when the Wompa demonstrates the raw power it has at its disposal. Fight or flight, there was no sense of training that might prepare a Doctor to handle this situation, yet Aryn continues to step back bit by bit. A duck segues to the WHOOOSH of a missing strike on her, then Aryn leaps back as a second hit cracks the ice she just stood SECONDS before.
<"LOFTY.. SHOOT THE DANG THING!" Aryn stabs her spear into the left arm, causing further injury and earning an ear-ringing roar as a result. The small Lady grunts pitifully as she retreats step by step. Aw, HECK.
"Yeah, let's give them some room!!" Dr Girlfriend is totally on board with what one of the toodling twins is wailing on about. "All aboard!" Especially now that Corr's on board. Muri turns to run away - waddle shuffle briskly away, without breaking stride to pick up any hog meat. "Dom!" A sharp bark to try and snap the other woman out of her petrified state. "C'mon!"
While some people are backing off, Kryll holds his ground, providing a constant stream of blaster fire at the wampa. Aiming high to avoid any friendlies up there stabbing at it, his shots bracket the thing's head but don't connect. He speaks to Domino while staying focused on the Wampa, <"If you need to run, unhook before you go. I'll give you time to get clear.">
Sajin looks to Corr. "You're probably right..." Though as Maereni is attacked by a hog and the others keep attacking the Wampa, he is emboldened! "Nooo! not my stinky Ryn Children!" Uht oh, here comes the raging Hapan, King of Drik ready to get wrecked by the Wampa of DOOM. HE charges forth into the frey, stabbing the Wampa rappidly three time in quick succession. "Get... Away... From... my... TENDER LOIN!" He then back away to take stock of his enemy.
Lofty uses one of his claws to adjust the bowstring tension of his bowcaster. The massive unwieldy weapon is raised again, and two shots are fired in quick succession, with the quarrel bolts surging forward and sped up to supersonic speeds by the weapon's magnetic field, then enveloped in plasma by the secondary barrel. TCHU TCHU. The two bolts smack into the wampa in completely different locations due to the kickback, first hitting the chest, then the right arm, with the latter blown off. Now Lofty is left to pick up the pieces of his shattered tender loin Fete hog.
Domino blinks when Veck launches at the thing "What are you, insane?!" She shakes her head and shoves her blaster back in it's holster and beckons at Veck, "Bring her here, I'll plug the pleading until the doc gets a minute or til you get her back to the ship." to Kryll, "Champ, How bad's your bleeding?"
Maireni is likewise slow on the uptake, due to a whole lot of drug use and very little education, so she continued to fire when escape was probably smarter. Then Yoyo is screaming and she's staggering back from him, from the variety of beasts, from the crashing ice. "THIS PLACE IS CURSED!" she declares loudly, head whipping around as her brother cowers behind her. "If we turn around they're gonna get yo--AAAAAAAAAAA!" The warning turns into a wail as that weirdly cute hoth hog latches onto her arm with teeth that sink into her coat and armor, piercing holes into the flesh beneath. "AAAA! HELP!" she shrieks at Sajin as he comes trampling over to protect the idiot Ryn children. She tries to shake off the wierdly cute hog which seems far less cute with her blood on its maw. "Let's RUN!" Whether or not she escapes the hog or has to drag it with her, she turns and starts to run, dropping the bottle of booze in favor of grabbing Yoska in an attempt to pull him with her.
Boink! But no. Chebi keeps hold of her knife, but she doesn't bounce. Being fluffy helps! Even so, the impact against the foot and the cave wall make a few things go *crunch* that shouldn't make that sound. Now being a snowball is a proper disadvantage as she tries to roll to her feet and just kind of.. keeps rolling, too fluffed up to easily get to her feet with broken things grinding in her meatsack. Giving up after a trio of attempts, she plays deadsnowball.
"Maireni!" Yoska gasps, hogs and fallen wampa forgotten as his beloved sister is attacked by a very cute specimen of wildlife. He stashes his sidearm and rushes to reach out for her even as she's flailing toward him! He gathers her into his arms, the solidarity of family! And then notices she's bleeding. "Oh, what, gross, you're leaking," Yoska announces, drops her, and then runs back a few paces. "Don't just sit there! We gotta go!"
Lofty finally puts the Wampa down, and with a low, rumbling death rattle (#11 http://www.realmofdarkness.net/sb/sw-wampa/) it collapses backwards in a giant bloody smoldering heap. The juvenile Hoth hogs remaining make a break for daylight, sprinting off into the sparkling snow with repeated "SQUEEEEEEE SQUEEE SQUEEEEEEE" sounds as they go on their churning little legs.
"Everyone in one piece? Or at least like, one main piece?" Corr questions, finally holstering his weapon and stepping out into the midst of the carnage. "Plug up any holes and grab a Hoth hog, we got a long ways to haul back to the ships. The blood'll draw more of those big fellas. They can smell it." Can they? Corr doesn't know. "We don't wanna be here when another one shows up."
Another job well done, another happy client in the making...
OR SO THEY THINK.
