Word must have spread quickly. The subsequent tunnels were all cleared of life, beyond Cormal’s standard defensive organisms. Even in his rage, Halthhag would not be so foolish as to take his frustrations out on them.
For 5,000 years, Center and Phase World had stood as a shining beacon of power, freedom, and civilization. Undaunted, unconquered among the Three Galaxies and the Megaverse as a whole. Halthhag had spent months preparing his strategy, moving his troops into position, carefully cultivating allies and distractions, and marshalling his own personal power. He had personally overrun more than half of the city, not counting the derelict parts beneath the surface. His forces had overrun Gateland, and walked the hallways of the very heart of Center’s defenses!
And they had failed.
Some bizarre piece of alien crap had sealed off part of Level 1 in the early hours of the invasion. Instead of his forces overrunning the manors, they were stalled- giving those accursed rich aristocrats time to mobilize their private armies and push him back. How can you predict something like that happening? He had accounted for so many variables, but hadn’t thought to inventory every damn vault in the place. Even that might not have been the end of it- but what followed was a cascade of failures and missed opportunities. Somehow, the defenders were able to sabotage Gateland, cutting off Halthhag’s reinforcements. Command and Control somehow resisted the efforts of that fool Ving to take control of their systems, and then the thrice-damned Splugorth showed up and helped break the siege! Fucking technology. As if that wasn’t disastrous enough, the Prometheans recovered enough to start killing off the invasion’s senior leadership- all but one of his body doubles was killed, and Halthhag had had to retreat from his own invasion.
A leaderless demonic horde, cut off and surrounded, and trapped in an urban environment that favored the mortals and their cowardly tactics was far from the well-oiled machine Halthhag had envisioned conquering the greatest prize in the Megaverse. Center was lost. But the Three Galaxies had a great many consolation prizes to offer.
Halthhag strode through the final aperture-sphincter and into the eldritch glow of his sanctum. Finally sheathing his sword, he approached the Book of Cormal. Bathed in the light of Cormal’s very heart (soul?), the sensation was warm and not unpleasant. At least, not for him.
A savage smile stole over Halthhag’s face for the first time in days. It was time for the Three Galaxies to learn the true power of the demon planets.
After a few minutes milling about in the organized (albeit jubilant) chaos that is Center Command and Control in the wake of the lifted siege, and aide finally recognizes both teams. The aide informs Baron, ”I am afraid, sir, that we must ask you to park your robot vehicle in our designated holding area, as the area in which the briefing will be conducted. Do not worry, the area is now completely secure.” After summoning a second aide, who leads Baron to what amounts to a futuristic parking lot beneath ground level, you are all collected and brought to a conference room a few levels up.
There, a familiar face awaits you- none other than Chef Icky. As Corbulo is absent for several minutes still, you have time to sit and converse. There are even food and drink available- little beyond hard rations and bottled water, but a small fruit platter was also apparently scrounged up and placed in the corner. Chef Icky is able to reveal that his mission primarily involved providing intelligence on the various species of deevil assisting in the counter-offensive, and keeping Center’s defenders apprised of any surprises that they might have in store. Apparently, Center has been running low on mages and others with scholarly expertise, and settled for a ground-pounder with more ‘hands-on’ experience. Icky’s assignment was surprisingly (perhaps even disappointingly), light on action, and he has little to offer that can compete with your action-packed goings-on.
Eventually Corbulo enters, nods, and instructs everyone ”Please, take a seat.” The commander follows suit, punches a few buttons on a keypad in his armrest, and summons a holographic display in the middle of the conference table. For the moment, it remains quiet.
”I have good news and bad news. The good news is, thanks in no small part to your efforts, the demonic invasion of Center is falling to pieces. With its leaders gone, its reinforcements cut off, and a more-or-less unified defense that even seems to include the Splugorth” Corbulo’s face screws up in distaste, ”they’ve lost their ability to inflict serious, organized harm on the city. Of course, I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that the fight has far from left them, and even disorganized they can still do a lot of damage within the city and to its inhabitants. The situation is contained, but it will likely be months if not years before we scrub the city completely clean of this filth, and that’s assuming none of them go to ground on the lower levels. We just got a fresh batch of supplies off of Naruni’s assembly line, and we’re throwing them all at the front. But that brute force operation is not ideally suited to a group with your diverse talents.”
”Which brings me to the bad news. Halthhag and one of his body doubles managed to teleport away. He could very well have gone home to Hades, but intel suggests otherwise.” He punches a couple buttons on his armrest, and the holographic display unit flares to life.
The image before you could initially be mistaken as a brownish planetoid- until you see the massive, fanged mouth on one side. Ringed with a mass of tentacles, each one about as long as the mouth itself, the mess looks like something out of a deranged bio-wizard’s nightmare. The rest of the planet’s surface is dotted with pink craters and a variety of bony spines- all with a distinctly organic feel. ”This is the demon planet Cormal.” Corbulo begins.
OOC wrote:Skill check time
Post a galactic lore skill roll. If you succeed by at least 5%, you have heard about demon planets and know all of the rumors about them- see the first paragraph under their description on P. 99, DB6. If you succeed by at least 20%, you know the rest of the general demon planet write-up (P. 99-100, obviously no stats or anything). If you succeed by at least 40%, you also know some general information about the defensive organisms typically found on demon planets (P. 101-104, again no stats). Keep this roll in mind- I won't call for additional skill checks latter on on this subject.
Corbulo continues. ”Cormal emerged from the rift at Kotus Point at the exact same time the demonic invasion began here on Center. Anyone want to bet that that’s a coincidence?” Corbulo makes a rhetorical show of looking for hands. ”I didn’t think so. The fact is, something has been brewing at Kotus Point for a long time. Even the Prometheans were concerned, so they sent a ship to keep an eye on it.”
The commander pauses for effect. ”I cannot emphasize strongly enough how much of a threat Cormal is to the Three Galaxies. A single demon planet can decimate entire space fleets- not only is Cormal supposedly the biggest one in existence, but it can make more. Potentially, we’re talking about the end of civilization as we know it.”
”Our Promethean psychics have been analyzing the debris left behind after your battle with Halthhag’s body doubles. The ones that didn’t go insane had visions of Halthhag in a place that looked an awful lot like the interior of a Demon Planet. It makes sense to assume that it’s Cormal. Why the damn thing is helping the demons of Hades, I have no idea, but Halthhag must have some way of communicating with or controlling it. That’s where you come in.”
”Command is putting together a strike force. Every troop that we can spare from the cleanup efforts here on Center is being loaded onto ships and sent to Kotus Point. Fortunately, the Prometheans dispatched one of their heavy cruisers to take a look months ago. They’ve been reporting on events there, and are currently in the process of rallying all survivors and trying to launch a counter-offensive. There’s no chance of destroying Cormal- not with what we have on-site. That means a ground infiltration. We’re sending your team in as support, with two overarching objectives. First, find Halthhag and kill him. Second, find whatever he used to get Cormal to ally with him, and either destroy it or retrieve it. Whatever it is, it’s liable to magical, powerful, and filthy-evil. So be careful.”
”Cormal currently has massive orbital defenses in place. Demon fleets, many of them ships we’ve never seen before. Allied forces on-site will engage them, but at this point it’s anyone’s guess how that will go. We’re sending you and as many troops as we can spare in stealth drop ships. The Promethean cruiser set up a small phase gate at Kotus Point, and your ships will both have phase transceivers. So teleport in, avoid the defenses, do your thing on the surface, and get the hell out. Field commanders at Kotus Point will have marching orders for you- when you arrive you’ll be assigned a sector to assist where you can support the main assault.”
Corbulo taps another button, and the display changes.
- Ship.jpg (39.25 KiB) Viewed 5241 times
”These are the schematics for a modified, Star Ghost-Class Promethean Fighter. You may not recognize them, because ever since the Intruders arrived on the scene and caused a run on phase tech one of these fighters tends to cost more than a small planet. Life support and cargo space have been roughly doubled from the commercial version that used to be for sale. It won’t be a comfortable voyage by any stretch, but the phase tech should be able to get you past the demon fleet and onto the surface.” Corbulo pauses and adds, ”I know you mercenary types tend to get twitchy whenever you go too long without getting paid. After the mission, these ships are yours to keep- part of your compensation once the dust settles. Try not to get them blown up.”
AGMs
Corbulo punches another button and the hologram turns off. ”The reaper robot you’ve been carrying around won’t fit, so we’re requisitioning it for the clean-up crew here on Center. However, your employer has arranged for a replacement, in the form of a new, experimental Naruni PA. I believe it’s called the Sun Chariot. Once we’re done here, one of my aides will take you to where it’s parked. For now I’ll answer any questions to the best of my ability. If you need last-minute repairs or other minor supplies my adjutant will see what she can do, but bear in mind that we need the heavy armaments here to clear out the last of the invasion.”
What are you doing?
! This munchie shortage is bullshit.