>>40349489
>>Try and make for the bridge, if the assailants push over its just Liama defending the workmen.

>>40349489
>Try and make for the bridge, if the assailants push over its just Liama defending the workmen.
Crap, sorry I'm late Chemlab.

File: ReallyWishingYouCouldDoTh(...).png (4.1 MB, 2482x1500)

4.1 MB PNG

Predicting, and then ignoring, McCain's protests you slip into your 'speed' stance and make a break for the road. Silently thanking Veles, you manage to slip up and over the embankment before the assailants can register you as a target. Keeping low, you crawl down the ridge and come up on the left of Liama. Rifle out, you begin looking for targets.

"Who are these people?" You shout, mostly to the air.

"No idea. Buggers came up out of the woods then started firing when they saw me armed. Don't expect they want to play nice." Liama says loading another cartridge into her rifle. The roar of it firing causing you to wince. You'll have to check that out sometime.

"Any ideas on what to do?" You ask, looking back as the workmen begin their slow, but relatively safe, trip across the scaffolding beneath the bridge, awaiting them on the other side is the greater safety of the work camp, and the highlands complete with the rock cover you used when the faux McCain attacked.

>Try to suppress the targets, you'd be better at it with your repeater.
>You're a marksman, shoot them.
In any case, roll me a 1d20 for this.

>>40350505
My fault for rescheduling so often, don't expect folks to be on the top of things when I can't even run when I say I am gonna.

Rolled 9 (1d20)

>>40350894
>Try to suppress the targets, you'd be better at it with your repeater.

Rolled 2 (1d20)

>>40350894
>Try to suppress the targets, you'd be better at it with your repeater.
The more able everyone else is to re-position, the better to beat these freaks away without friendly casualties.

Rolled 11 (1d20)

>>40350894
And one more for good luck!

File: LeakedFootageOfTheNewXCom(...).jpg (294 KB, 645x900)

294 KB JPG

>11

Despite your marksmanship, you're far better suited to the task of keeping peoples heads down than anyone on your side at the moment. Only maybe McCain could keep up, and even then he's got a pistol. Moving up into line of sight, you begin peppering the area with volleys of three, forcing the hooded attackers into cover. One is apparently slower on the uptake, and you see him get ejected backwards into the forest. Liama doesn't seem to register her kill, diving back into cover and slipping another cartridge into the single shot.

You reposition again and loose more rounds into their cover a bit further from Liama, partly to drive them into the others line of fire, and partly to distance yourself from the roar of that rifle.

Liama's troop seemed to have the same idea, firing in sync as they provide less effective suppression with their single shot carbines. Whereas McCain is keeping a somewhat low profile, peaking from cover and trying to make his shots count. He's joined on his end by Marie and Tai loaded for bear.

As the last round exits your rifle, you duck back into cover. While reloading, you note that the bridge crew foreman, James you think his name was, has quickly and expediently got the majority of his workers across the scaffolding, with just a few left either on this side or on the latticework of frame beneath the bridge itself.

Reloaded, you pop back up, and from the bushes you see at least one of the figures in the woods pop out of cover, something in hand making to throw it, whatever it may be.

>Shoot him
>Shoot what he's holding
>Keep the group suppressed.
1d20 roll again, regardless of what you pick.

Rolled 4 (1d20)

>>40351944
>>Shoot what he's holding

Rolled 2 (1d20)

>>40351944
>Shoot what he's holding
Sharpeye Sasha

Rolled 17 (1d20)

>>40351944
Aaand again.

File: DesignatedMarksnek.png (180 KB, 700x900)

180 KB PNG

>17

You opt to solve the problem directly, focusing on shooting whatever it is out of his hand. Unfortunately, he manages to get it aloft before you do manage to shoot it. Picking the thing out of the air, you fire hoping to at least curtail whatever it was he was trying to do. You hit the powder charge well before it reaches the top of its arc, and the thing detonates, destroying a good portion of the undergrowth the assailants were assaulting from, including the bomb lobber who is forcefully crumpled down and back. Recovering from the shockwave, you note at the very least it gives you a better look on the assailants, and you can count at least 9 still moving bodies retreating deeper into the woods as the volley fire from the bunkhouse drives them back.

Emptying your rifle again at them, you hit at least one, who keeps moving despite it, and note two more fall in such a way that suggest that at least one of your hands hit the mark. Diving back down to reload your rifle, you check the progress of the workmen. Concern grips you when you note that either the shockwave, or the weight of the workers has caused part of the scaffolding to collapse into the water, taking with it at least one man who is being hauled out now. The remaining workers on this side trying desperately to pull the man to safety.

>Keep engaging.
>Go help the workmen.
>Other.
1d20 roll again as well if you would.

Rolled 3 (1d20)

>>40352940
>Keep engaging.
>Tell Liama to help the workmen
We have the better weapon, we're more valuable shooting right now.

Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>40352940
>Go help the workmen
Get someone to track their wounded.

Rolled 18 (1d20)

>>40352940
One more.

>>40352940
>>Keep engaging.

Trust in the men, make sure the baddies don't rally and push back.

>>40353049
>>40353005
>>40353000
Ok, engage seems to be the consensus, do you still want to send Liama to help them?

>>40353266
Someone needs to help them. Either Liama or someone else.

>>40353266
You already have my vote for it.

>>40353266
Send someone if not Liama.

File: PythonPylonPassagePlan.jpg (88 KB, 959x960)

88 KB JPG

>18

Shouting at Liama, you manage to get her attention before gesturing over at the predicament at the bridge. She nods and flipping the rifle into a sackcloth case before slithersprinting off towards the trouble. Leaving her to her work, you get ready to do yours. Rising up over the embankment, you start pouring lead onto the attackers, keeping them occupied, cutting one of them down as your round penetrates the tree they were using for cover.

Liama's gang seem to follow suit, keeping the enemy suppressed from the second angle, and you can see the effects readily as the group shift to try and avoid both yours and their fire once again. This leaves an opening for McCain's group, and you see another enemy fall in a spray of blood as Tai's bullet hits home. Unfortunately, Marie and McCain's pistols are less effective with the enemy so far away, and you see Marie dart off around the bunkhouse, probably to join her former comrades at a better angle.

Hitting another one of the assailants with your last round, you duck down to reload and look over to where Liama has already made it to the collapsed scaffolding, and just as well too, as the rest of it lists to one side as the floorboards of the fallen part catch the current of the river. The river never was much in way of speed, but it definitely has a lot of water behind it, and blocking that is not a good idea. Nonetheless, you watch as the other lamia begins hurling the workmen bodily across the gap, into the waiting arms of their colleagues. The last one is across when the platforms give way, their rescuer avoiding a cold dip in the water by coiling around one of the half completed pylons. Her job done, you see her tentatively uncoiling from the pylon, making for the next pylon on this side of the river.

>Press the advantage, you've got them on the ropes now.
>Let them retreat, you've cut them down by half if not more.

Rolled 19 (1d20)

>>40354307
>>Press the advantage, you've got them on the ropes now.

Rolled 1 (1d20)

>>40354307
>Press the advantage, you've got them on the ropes now.
Making this attack as costly as possible will hopefully deter them from returning anytime soon.

File: 1393375653346.jpg (102 KB, 300x269)

102 KB JPG

>>40354381
Thank god Chemlab didn't ask for a roll.

>>40354359
>>40354381
I bet you buggers are glad I didn't ask for a roll this time.

>>40354428
yes.

>>40354428
>no zergface
You're slipping, bub.

>>40354307
>>>Press the advantage, you've got them on the ropes now.

Well, at least we rolled out the 1...

File: Hussars.jpg (346 KB, 1280x911)

346 KB JPG

By your count, there's probably four of them left, time to put them down for the count. Breaking cover, you crest the ridge ducking down behind hillocks between the road and the treeline. Seeing your move, McCain and Tai follow suit, followed shortly by the shadows or whatever they were called. In any case, another one of them is cut down as you advance. One of the three remaining sets off in a dead sprint as the other two attempt something akin to an organized retreat.

Closing to their original line, you work your way through the destroyed scrub, ignoring the bodies for now as you see them duck and weave through cover. Its then a loud noise gets your attention. Looking back to the bunkhouse, you can see the standing form of Artyom, partially swathed in bandages still. The centaur bellows as he charges out into the fray, closing in on your position rapidly as he barrels past the Liama's men. Reaching the start of the treeline you see him tear a long dead limb off a tree and charge the group, the branch couched like a lance.

This serves to completely break them, the two taking off like their compatriot as the centaur charges, getting closer at each gallop.

>Let him be.
>Try and stop him.

>>40355273
>>Let him be.

>>40355273
>Try and stop him.

Whoa there! They're gone, they're gone! No need to get too vengeful here...

>>40355273
>Try and stop him.
If he opens a wound or hurts himself I'll be pretty annoyed. We want this guy in top shape for the next expedition.

File: 1234965557831.jpg (53 KB, 600x383)

53 KB JPG

>>40354570
Hey man, its not my fault google captcha thinks that ravioli shells isn't a type of pasta.

File: HeLookedMorePissedThanUsual.jpg (136 KB, 823x971)

136 KB JPG

[Whoah there! Hang on a second.] You call out, pretty much putting yourself, once again, between a horse and where it wants to go. The reaction is immediate, and the burned hussar veers off to your left. You hear a cry of frustration and then a collision as he passes. Turning to look, you see him actively circling around as he finally arrested his momentum and notice he is empty handed. The birch branch, or rather log, is firmly embedded in the trunk of one of the pines. He approaches you expectantly.

[No sense chasing after them, especially wounded. Don't want your wounds reopening.] You say. His frown remains impassive, but the statement seems to pass muster, as he huffs of and trots back towards the bunkhouse. Near the doorway you see Tatiana, bandaging her hand. Meanwhile Liama and McCain are checking the fallen, seeing if any survived. Tai and Marie make for the bridge, presumably to check with the workers there, and the shadows appear to be taking up positions in case anyone comes back. In any case, it would appear you've driven off the attack for now.

>Check on Tatiana and Artyom
>Check on McCain and Liama
>Check on Marie and Tai
>Other?

>>40356477
>Check on McCain and Liama

>>40356477
>Check on McCain and Liama

>>40356477
>Check on Tatiana and Artyom

Going to bed Chemlab, thanks for running!

File: ThisEpisodeBroughtToYouBy(...).jpg (440 KB, 1200x1145)

440 KB JPG

>Check on McCain and Liama

Focusing on the most pressing matter, you head to where McCain and Liama are sorting through the bodies. McCain doing most of the sorting as Liama hauls them out. All told, you're looking at 8 total. Weapons they are using look to be Nitor standard service rifles, though given their state they are either old surplus, or were looted during the start of this war. Pulling back the hoods, you're honestly not surprised to see the features of members of the phoenix empire. Of them, two had rather wicked looking blades, looking more ceremonial than anything else. That said, the dark stain on one of them suggest that despite appearances, the blades at least do have some function.

Two more powder charges are found among the dead as well, making you thankful that you had taken that one out when you did. If the heft is anything to go by, even a miss would have gouged out a goodly chunk of road. You're surprised at the clothes though, you half expected phoenix soldiers to have the fancier clothes you remember reading about, but you suppose that would stand out more than the hard wearing, faded, clothing they had.

Off of one of the dead 'leaders' Liama fishes up a sealed tube, enclosed with some sort of wax seal. You make to open it, but are stopped when she suggests that it is possible that it was booby trapped. Examining its exterior you note that the seal itself bears a mark of some sort of bird diving in front of, if your basic understanding of the language is correct, their equivalent to the letter K.

File: StopYawning.jpg (78 KB, 514x700)

78 KB JPG

>>40357778
And that's it for tonight, as always, thanks for reading. I should be about for a bit to answer setting questions if you have any, I'm hitting that second, or maybe third wind that comes from not sleeping so I don't imagine I'll be passing out any time soon.

In any case, thanks again.