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SCF_Pinstripes Vice Captain
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 Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 11:05 am
Thyra gave a yelp as on of the Jaxxyx landed with a loud thud on the floor. It screeched and writhed about on the dusty ground before falling still and quiet. Thyra attempted to move the Drequine back further into the makeshift shelter as she knew what was coming next.
"Come on, little Drequine~ Time to hiiide~"
A Franargle landed heavily next to the dead Jaxxyx. Thyra covered her mouth and kept hold of Admin's reigns. Hopefully the Drequine knew when to keep quiet.
The Franargle gave a low throaty growl before picking up the dead Jaxxyx in it's mouth. It beat it's large powerful wings, sending dust and whatever else flying. It was at this moment Thyra wished she had actually changed her mind this morning and brought her goggles with her.
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Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 11:35 am
 ((Right, hopefully this'll be ok with everyone =o this is gunna be the first of the 'time skip posts' whereby everyone writes what they do just before the time skip like *lalalalaa, doing some stuff* then... TIME SKIP! So yeah ^^; hopefully that's ok? Not sure how long the time skip is for... ummm.... CAPTAIN POWAHS! derp.))
Having covered her eyes to protect them from the bright flash of light, Koko squeaked when she was picked up by Finn, not really knowing what was going on at first. She could hear the frantic shrieks of the creatures all around them as they fell from the sky & attempted to right themselves once on the ground. The roar of the motorcycle as it started could just barely be heard over the almighty racket all of the creatures were making as their battle continued. Clinging to Finn as he sped off with the motorbike, the girl hoped that they might finally go somewhere safer... somewhere she wasn't constantly worrying about whether she was going to die or not. As the sounds of the Franargle & Jaxxyx became more distant, the little girl turned her thoughts to the other two women that had been with them - were they ok?
Koko huddled into Finn's jacket, quivering ever so slightly as the adrenaline drained from her system. Wherever Finn was going, she hoped it wouldn't take too long. She was cold, tired, hungry and, it was unfortunate actually... since now she felt the almost unbelievable need to pee.
~~~~Time Skip~~~~
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Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2011 3:34 pm
oO*Casey*Oo "You'll be alright...."
Casey unclipped a long rope of leather from her waistband, and looped it around Hooper's neck, making a slip leash. She walked her way to the back door, where she came in, and checked above. Nothing that wasn't negotiable....
Having no idea where the others were, Casey and Hooper made a break for it, sprinting through the streets. They sought cover where they could, and eventually neared the edge of the cloud of flying beasts.
Casey stopped suddenly as a Franargle dropped in front of her and Hooper. Then another behind them...
~~~~Time Skip~~~~
{OOC:.}
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Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2011 5:01 pm
Three years and eight months had passed since then, It was now early morning in the middle of the scorching Ares summer.
Amongst the rolling dunes something was stirring. The heavy steel hatch flew open, throwing off some sand.
Finn, rifle in hand, peered out of the open hatch on top of the APC that'd become almost completely buried during a recent sandstorm.
"You were right, the sandstorm's over... But the damn APC has been buried!"
He spun around, looked in all directions before he ducked back into the APC and looked at Koko, who now looked like a 13 year-old, had grown at twice the usual rate.
"Start it up, I've got a plan"
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Posted: Sun Jun 12, 2011 3:31 pm
 Sat with her feet propped up on the APCs dashboard, Koko looked decidedly bored. She'd told Finn that there was a sandstorm brewing & they shouldn't have gone out into the desert, but would he listen? Noooo. So when they'd had to hunker down in the APC during the storm, she'd stuck her tongue out at him in a 'I told you so' kind of way. During the time she'd been with Finn, the girl had gotten much more bold; while she was still a little shy around people she'd never met before, with her adopted father she felt perfectly at ease - & thus was a little cheeky with him. She rolled her eyes a little when he told her to start up the vehicle, calling to him as she got the engine going.
"If your plan gets us stuck out in the middle of nowhere again, I won't cook you any dinner tonight, ya hear?"
Koko's previously polite & crisply punctuated words had started to be replaced by the brash language often encountered on Ares, she sounded a lot different from the small girl that had appeared here only a few years previously.
After a couple of seconds, the rather old APC roared into life, the sand covering it vibrating as it did so. A small grinned passed across the girl's face & she patted the dashboard a little, glad the vehicle had actually started.
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Posted: Sun Jun 12, 2011 4:34 pm
Finn slammed the hatch shut and made his way into the driver's seat, budging Koko over to the passenger side. "What?"He grinned at the girl while he grabbed the throttle controls and hovered his feet over the heavy steel break pedals. The mercenary flicked several switches on the dash, activating the two huge coils that propelled the large vehicle across the sand and dust. The vast deserts of Ares posed many challenges to the modern APC, some of which were solved with tank treads and hover technology, this vehicle however, fitted with two large Archimedes screw wheels, was considered a definite step in the wrong direction by most. Despite this, it was now considered a classic and impressive feat of engineering, despite it's obvious faults, such as the rigidity of the huge coils. The vehicle heaved it's way out from under the sand on it's large screws, the ride softened somewhat by the elaborate suspension systems that had been fitted. (Something like this) 
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Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2011 3:07 pm
oO*Casey*Oo "No more screwing around..." 
"Alright, alright! I'll get up...just...get off me!"
A soft whine reverberated in a fluffy chest as the heap of sandy fur was shoved aside. Casey slowly pushed back the white duvet from her slender, yet more muscled frame as her eyes adjusted to the light. A nice night sleep was a rarity, though becoming more common. "Thyra? Thyra? You up yet?" she called out, hoping that maybe Thyra had cooked something yummy? She couldn't smell anything.
Casey rolled onto her side, her hand hanging from the bed, only for it to be licked feverishly by her pesky Duneloper Hooper. Hooper whined excitedly, trying to wake the mercenary further, and actually get her out of bed before 10am. Casey finally gave in and swung her feet down onto the cold floor. It was wooden - some kind of wood anyways. Casey ran a hand through her now long tresses, still the same mid brown, but the length had brought out more curls now. A pair of teal orbs then proceeded to look out the window - a sandstorm had blow up recently, and the window was dusty as hell.
With a sigh, Casey looked back to her Duneloper, who still ran around as though that attack just over 3 years ago had never happened. He didn't even seem to realise that he was missing a back leg. His tail was severely shortened too, now half it's original length. Even though she was looking at the happy, smiling face that was her companion, she couldn't help think back to that night...
Casey stopped suddenly as a Franargle dropped in front of her and Hooper. Then another behind them...
"No..no no no! Why are they stopping for us?" she asked herself, instantly throwing her hands to the guns at her sides. Hooper lowered himself, a snarl erupting from his throat, he usually cowered, but this situation gave him no choice. The Franargle in front lunged forwards, but Casey threw her right hand at it's jaw, landing a square punch, then used the momentum to swing a leg around and kick the same spot. The creature reeled back, only for it's cohort to strike.
Hooper span around and snapped his teeth at the wing of the flying beast, and managed to significantly tear the flesh before he was shaken off and scampered back to Casey, who had fired off a single bullet into the Franargle's leg. The first one had regained his composure and taken to the air, a mere metre from the ground. It swooped down at Casey, raking it's claws through the left side of her face and down her neck to her shoulder, before landing beside it's team-mate.
Casey cried out and dropped the gun that was in the hand of the shoulder that had been gouged. But with her other she managed to send a bullet tearing into the wing joint of one of the Franargles, who, in response, lunged and grabbed Hooper. Hooper yelped loudly, but managed to lock his jaws around the throat of the Franargle. Meanwhile, Casey had dropped her second gun and ran at the winged monster, taking to punching it several times around the face. This being the smaller, weaker Franargle, quickly deterred it and so it took off in search of easier prey.
Hooper was still hanging by his hind leg from the other one, but was shaking his head from side to side, his jaws around the animal's throat still. The Franargle dropped Hooper for a fraction of a second to cry out, before it snapped and grabbed the duneloper's tail. Another pained yelp sent Casey into a frenzy. Grabbing her gun, she began to fire at the feet of the Franargle, driving it backwards with small cries of pain. It dropped Hooper, and when it had been cornered and Casey was closing in, the injured beast took off the best he could, leaving a bloodied hound and owner in the sand...
Casey winced as she now stood in front of a mirror with her head to the side, her hair hanging down her back, and trailed her fingers along the row of scars. They started at her cheekbone, not far from her eye, and dragged down her cheek, to her jawline, then continued down her neck and veered off along her shoulder when it reached her collar bone, coming to stop at the very top of her bicep muscle. Well...if you look at it the direction it was created it started at the top of the muscle and ended at the cheekbone, since the creature that caused it had flown at her from the front, dragging it's claws underneath it's body.
Casey dressed after a quick shower, into a short black crop top and jeans made from the softest stretchy denim. Some may say it was inappropriate for fighting in, but time and time again she would prove them wrong. The 23 year old woman ruffled the duneloper's fluffy head before heading upstairs to her kitchen. The house was deceptive - from the outside it looked like a bungalow, but, for protection the floors ran downwards. The underground section was protected by sonic repellents that kept the maw worms away.
Casey reached her kitchen with Hooper, and wondered where Thyra was. She could hear Admin saying hello outside, he was in the stall around the back of the house.
{OOC:.This assuming Thyra stayed =o}
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2011 2:05 pm
 Thyra had returned back to the small house she and Casey were sharing, carrying a shopping bag with her. She and Casey had decided to stay together while trying to track down Finn and young Koko. In the three or so years since they had last seen the pair, she had grown to become very good friends with Casey and her pets. Thyra, herself, had adopted a young Segaio she had rescued from a trap. She had named it Rusty, due to it's colouring and it was currently sat on her shoulder, it's long tail reaching over and resting on her other shoulder.
Thyra pulled a set of keys from her pocket and opened up the front door. Just as she had stepped in the fluffy duneloper sped towards her and nearly knocked her over.
"Yes, yes hello Hooper"
She giggled, ruffling the duneloper's fur before heading towards the kitchen.
"Oh, hey. Up finally huh?"
Thyra grinned and placed the bag on the table looking over at her friend.
"Just went to get some things we ran low on. Didn't think you'd be up until later. Maybe I should have left a note...?"
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SCF_Pinstripes Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2011 2:47 pm
Koko sighed & leant back where she was now sat in the passenger seat, feeling the machine fight its way out from under the sand. Finn always managed to break their vehicles, windows, walls, weapons, pretty much everything, then she had to try & fix them; she was good at it, hence why he let her do it, but that didn't mean she didn't find it annoying sometimes. Suddenly the girl sat bolt upright, swiveling in her seat so she was looking directly at Finn, her brilliant blue eyes shining up at him.
"Heeey Fiiinn, you know what would make up for gettin' us stuck out here in the desert for so long?"
She leant towards him, practically bouncing with excitement at her thought.
"Can I use your gun please? Just once? I promise I won't break it or do anythin' silly, I've watched you so many times that I know what to do'! Honest!"
Koko had always wanted to try firing a gun, but her adopted father had always refused, constantly saying 'Maybe when you're older'. Still, she never gave up, hoping one day she'd wear him down enough that he'd actually say yes.
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2011 3:40 pm
The mercenary tapped a monitor that was attached to the dash, causing it to fizzle slightly.
"I didn't get us stuck... it was the sandstorm messing with our navigation..."
He hit the navigation screen in frustration, sparking it back into life.
"AH HAH!"
Finn grinned at the monitor as the satellite image flashed up, showing that they were near a small settlement.
"Maybe when you're... Hmm, I guess you are older now... somehow... Fine, I'll let you have a play with the rifle when we stop at the next town... okay?"
He smiled at the teenage koko, then pushed both throttle levers forward further than they had been.
The screw-drive vehicle sped across the sand with ease, at full throttle the vehicle also used small jet engines located on it's back to assist in propulsion.
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Posted: Mon Jun 20, 2011 12:33 pm
Koko's eyes widened, her mouth opening slightly in disbelief. She began to bounce up & down in her seat, her excitement causing her voice to become louder, more high-pitched.
"Y-You're actually lettin' me use it? AHHHH!!! Thank you so much!"
She jumped at Finn from her seat, wrapping her arms round his neck & hugging him tightly. All previous irritation at the man was forgotten now that he had actually said she could use the rifle, all she had to do was wait till they got to the next settlement. She wasn't sure exactly what was at this place, but it was probably just another place where a bunch of people thought they could set up a town in this wasteland. She had heard of some braver people had set off from the main city & attempted to find the end of the desert the sleeper ship had landed in - they hadn't come back... whether they'd been killed, or found a better place & decided to stay there, she didn't know. The few other people she'd met on Ares didn't tend to be concerned with much other than their own lives - or kidnapping her, that was another favourite. She also didn't tend to ask Finn about the history of the planet, he often seemed too busy with other things.
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Posted: Mon Jun 20, 2011 3:49 pm
The APC glided across the huge rolling dunes on it's screws with ease, shooting over the crest of one of the vast orange waves of sand to reveal a small settlement.
The town was only remarkable in that it was completely unremarkable, aside from looking deserted, as most Ares towns did at first glance. But on second glance, the subsided structures and broken windows revealed it's true nature, a ghost town.
Finn drove the vehicle to the edge of the settlement and stopped; it was a small group of houses and shacks centred around a long road that stretched off over the horizon in both directions.
While switching the engine off, the mercenary looked out of the small front windows for any signs of recent activity as the on-board computer's life-sign scan came up empty.
"Well, looks like this place is deserted, though it could be a trap..."
Finn rubbed the stubble on his chin then climbed over his seat, grabbed his rifle, opened the hatch on the roof of the APC, looked around and climbed out of it.
Stood on the roof of the vehicle, looking around once again before looking back down through the open hatch at his young accomplice.
"Keep your eyes open for booby-traps, recording devices or wildlife... Oh, and if you hear gunfire, you jump back in this APC and drive full speed away, understand?"
Before Koko could answer, he interrupted.
"Good, now lets go find out why these guys left in such a hurry."
He walked off of the front of the vehicle and dropped to the sandy floor, holding his rifle loosely in one hand as he approached the first house, pausing and looking back in order to wait for Koko.
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Posted: Thu Jun 23, 2011 11:44 am
oO*Casey*Oo "No more screwing around..."
"Oh hey there," Casey greeted, lifting a hand to Thyra. "No no, it's fine, I just wanted to get up to exercise the terrible twosome this morning" she mused, ildly grabbing at something Thyra brought in, smiling gently as she noticed the common sense of her house mate. Thyra was always a great help, and Casey liked to think that she was also a good friend. Casey rose to her feet, and whistled sharply."Aright, i'll be back in...around 30 minutes, stay safe," she called back as she and Hooper stepped out the door.
Casey slid the bolt to the stall open, patting the large drequine's withers as she locked it behind her. Casey saddled and bridled the beast before feeding a previously obtained slab of meat to it. Admin nickered gently, his large nostrils fluttering with warm air. Casey slid one foot into a stirrup, then hoisted herself high onto the saddle to settle the other.
Casey steered the drequine onto the vast sandy Arean outdoors before kicking her heels into his muscled flanks and clucking her tongue. They charged off at a speedy canter with Hooper following closely. Hooper's speed was never impeded by his loss, sometimes Casey swore he was even faster. Casey headed to the nearby residential area to see if she could earn a bit of money doing an odd job later in the week.
{OOC:.}
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Posted: Sat Jun 25, 2011 9:52 am
Koko looked out of the APC windows at the apparently deserted settlement, losing the smile she'd had previously. Though a teenager & prone to bouts of immaturity, she knew when the time called to be serious. As Finn began to exit the vehicle she turned & watched him, her hand instinctively touching the knife she always kept strapped to her belt. Finn & herself had spent a few hours crafting it from the shard of metal she'd found in the sleeper ship when she'd first awoken. She couldn't help smiling fondly at how surprised the man had been at how strong the metal was, barely anything could even put a scratch in it - they'd had to melt it before they could shape it into a blade. She knew that, even if the hilt broke, the blade never would & so she never let it out of her sight. Plus, it held some sentimental value.
She frowned up at her father when he spoke about her driving away if something bad happened,
Does he really think I'll just leave him? Screw that!
Still, she figured that she better make him think she was going to, else he might not let her tag along, so she nodded up at him. As Finn jumped off the roof of the vehicle, Koko clambered out after him. As the girl stood atop the APC she looked around herself, noting the empty buildings & the ghost-like feeling of the town. Something about this place made her feel uneasy & should could feel the fearful side of her personality beginning to re-emerge; with a long, deep breath she pushed those feelings aside & leaped off the vehicle, running after Finn & quickly drawing up alongside him. She wanted to be braver, stronger & she wasn't about to let a stupid ghost-town set her back!
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Posted: Sat Jun 25, 2011 1:40 pm
The mercenary approached the first house, which was half made of sandstone and half made of pieces of scrap metal welded together, as many small settlements were during the current war, it was easy to find debris from the huge number of aircraft shot down over the desert.
He stepped over to the broken window and peered inside, only to spot (and smell) something slumped in the corner of the room half covered with sand.
Finn passed the teenager the rifle and headed into the shack, pulling a breathing mask over his mouth and nose before approaching the rotten corpse.
He stood beside it to get a better look at the body, which was somewhat unpleasant to look at.
Well, that's just... I don't even know, or want to know what happened to that guy, or at least the other half of him... Certainly isn't fresh... I'd put it at about a month or two rotting here... That truly is some grim s**t right there... I am not searching that...
The mercenary looked around the room for more clues, sweeping away some sand with his feet to reveal a trail of blood and dried entrails leading from the door to the body, indicating it'd been dragged inside.
The danger was outside, but had probably been and gone long ago, but he wouldn't relax just yet.
Finn walked out of the house and removed the breathing mask, spitting to his side before speaking to his young accomplice.
"Right, lets not go back in there"
He walked around to the back of the house, where several more poorly built shacks stood around a central metallic pillar-like structure, which upon closer inspection, was actually a sonic deterrent device, used to discourage creatures from coming close to settlements.
This one however, was not emitting the usual dull humming noise and had it's control panel pulled away, exposing it's inner circuitry.
"Uh, Koko, could you take a look at that hummer unit? I think it might be busted."
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