The Swarm: Stay

[atlasmods]

Who: These Interlopers
When: IC Day 5.5-6
Where: The Boneyard
What: The Swarm Event

THE SWARM: STAY PRELUDE. Five days have passed since you, The First, woke on the strange and barren planet of Kharas. Four days since the pods housing you exploded when tampered with, and Three since the strange Trilobite-like sand crabs began hesitantly crawling their way into and around the boneyard. At first there was only a few brave specimens to be found, keeping mostly to the shadows and scuttling this way and that. Now, however, at least a hundred of them can be found in and around the boneyard in various placed, commonly grouped together in batches of two or three, sometimes even four. Notably they do not interact much with one another despite their groups and are much more interested in scouting out their surroundings for fibrous materials. On the odd chance that they manage to obtain any scraps they will begin to wander back towards the tracks your counterparts began following earlier. Odd, isn't it? As the softer morning sun overhead slowly begins to heat up with the encroaching afternoon more of the Trilobites begin to fill the area. Only unlike their predecessors these ones do not wander around aimlessly, and instead beeline their way to any Coral stalks that remain in the area. They bury into the sand beneath them to avoid their harsh shells and attack the roots until they topple and collapse under their own weight. Once this happens they practically swarm, working to segment it into pieces with their mandibles. When the Coral's shell cracks the Trilobites pry all vegetable matter from within and begin dragging it into the desert. And that's not all: these new Trilobites seem much braver and more interested in you than their predecessors. They will openly wander up to characters and gnaw uselessly at their ankles or feet, chittering and chattering. If enough of them happen to get together around an individual they will form a tiny ankle-gnawing mob intent on clambering all over you. As the daily eclipse nears their numbers will begin to grow even further. Odd tremors can be felt beneath the ground, even in spite of all the sand, but characters won't get much of a chance to look into the matter before their wrist communicators begin to emit that same strange static from the mist. ...Only there's none to be seen in any direction whatsoever.
OOC	IC Days 5.5 - 6 (Oct 26th - 28th)
This log starts during the afternoon of IC day 5.5 and continues on until the morning of day 6 (with the rest of that day being the aftermath/conclusion). There will be a time-sensitive event which will run for 24 hours starting on the 27th at 8:00AM EST. It will conclude on the 28th at 8:00AM EST. This time-sensitive event cannot be "failed" by running out of time and will affect the lore of the game. Please direct any and all questions about this event here.

Comments

[anewhope]

[ A switch had been turned on.

Clark didn't even think, couldn't afford to linger on the doubt. The minute the swarm started pouring in from all sides, he pulled aside anyone who was close to him and immediately stepped in front, his eyes blazing a furious deadly red. A wave of power shot around, circling the shelter of bones and warding off some of the trilobites. It won't last but it's a deterrent.

Immediately afterwards, he shouts out, broadcasting his voice. ]

Head for the top of the bones! We need to reduce the area they can reach us! Go!

[ Using his heat vision will cost him power, but it's power that'll save the others.

There are no more hesitations. ]

[ceruleo]

[ He's trying to keep his wits about him, but even that feels like too much effort. His heart is hammering in his chest like a rabbit's—when Clark lands, Lance is almost too disoriented to notice him, at first.

Until Clark fires off his heat vision, lighting up the darkness. Lance ducks his head, eyes watering, Clark's voice ringing in his ears. The top of the bones, the top of the bones— ]

What about you?! Clark!

[anewhope]

[ It's like he's a different person. Gone is the quiet giant-like man, replaced by someone who moves with unearthly grace and power. His response is curt and sharp. Clark wouldn't go until he was sure everyone was away from the swarm. Another blast sends a few more trilobites scurrying, but more are heading their way . . . ]

I said go!

[dateme]

[ Inui doesn't need to be told twice. Not after Lance broke him out of his shock and dragged him away from the initial burst of Trilobites. So I guess it's his turn to repay the favour? Because when Lance hesitates this time it's Inui who tugs roughly at his arm, harder than he means to--but desperate to keep moving. ]

Lance--!

[ceruleo]

[ Two instincts are at war in him: the first to run, and the second to protect. But Clark, visibly, doesn't need him, and Inui's hand is heavy in his.

Lance grits his teeth and goes. How they're going to climb the ribcage he doesn't know, exactly, but he has no intention of dying here. ]

[anewhope]

[ Clark watches them go dispassionately, his eyes still flickering with furious red, veins cracking at the corners. Finally, he turns his gaze back at the swarm, taking steps further away from the shelter.

He knew what he needed to do. The numbers blink at him as they drop lower and lower. ]

[dateme]

[ You'd better not kick the bucket, Clark. Even Inui will be mad at you if you go and do something dumb like that and he usually doesn't give much of a damn about other people.

But this? This is honest-to-goodness heroicism and he isn't going to let Lance ruin it by tripping them up. So it's good when he (reluctantly) moves on with him, and Inui grips his hand tighter; in equal parts from fear and desperation to keep from losing him.

Because another burst of those damn things is suddenly coming out of a mound of sand to their-- ]

--Left!! [ Inui pivots, eyes wide. ]

[anewhope]

[ A flash of power hits the sudden encroachment of the trilobites from the left, as if Clark had heard them before Inui's warning. His head snaps up, noticing that Inui was still there.

Clark gives him a curt nod, but his voice is firm. ]

Go up there and you'll be fine.

[ He knew Inui was scared. Found it hard to look out for anyone but himself. That was fine. Clark never judged him for it. ]

[ceruleo]

[ Lance veers right sharply in time with Inui's warning, blood pounding in his ears. Clark clears out the fresh wave of bugs, and Lance pulls Inui along, towards the mound of bones that curve up to frame the moons. It would be beautiful, but right now it's overshadowed by the buzzing swarm, sparks flying over the sand.

The texture of the bones is like sandpaper, and at least that helps him grip as he begins to climb. He jabs stray trilobites out of his way with his elbows, trying to clear a path for Inui to follow behind. ]

keywords

[dateme]

[ He stick close, determined (and desperate) not to get left behind on the ground once Lance starts climbing his way up. Inui's doing marginally better than he was during the initial onset of panic, but his limbs still feel weak and don't want to move in the exact manner he wants them to. He has to will himself not to slip and crumble down to his knees, biting the inside of his cheek. ]

If we don't die, the next time we get attacked by bugs I'm climbing first--! Hurry up!

[ceruleo]

It was either push you up or pull you up, so I decided you'd get the nicer view!

[ It's easier to quell the rising fear if he can act normal. What's more normal than jokes? Distantly, he sees and hears Clark doing his thing—are those laser beams? from his face??—and puts his head back in the game.

If he doesn't hear Inui respond though, he's going to reach back for him. ]

[ex_bossily211]

Clark!

[Clara's not close to him. She's been separated from the others by the waves of bugs that were arriving, and as she's being chomped at she's finding herself having to keep backing away so that she's further separated from everyone. That's not really her focus here, since she's in a good spot to try and run from camp if she wants to.

She doesn't, not with the others there. She needs to stay with them, so they can figure out a plan to control this mess. So she moved through the swarm as best as possible, proving herself to be agile enough to make it halfway to him. As she felt the sting of cloth being torn from the suit on her body, she gave a surprised gasp, and panic was in her eyes as she realized that these creatures would very much so eat them all alive if they didn't do something.]

[anewhope]

[ He's there when he hears her gasp, batting away the trilobites with ease. His expression is tight and grim. Clara, he knew, had been hurt earlier. She would struggle to make it to the top of the bones. Clark aims another precise beam at a few trilobites who were inching closer before he speaks. ]

Ready for trip two?

[ His voice is terse. He'll do it anyway but he gives her a few seconds to respond so he can take her up to the top. ]

[ex_bossily211]

[She's concerned about his power levels, and gives him a worried look. She knows that it's not practical to argue about it in the middle of what's going on, so she gives a curt nod of her head and reaches out to grab hold of his hand.]

Let's go.

[anewhope]

[ No time for a gentle flight to the top. He firmly loops his arm around her waist like iron and bends his knees . . . to take a leap. it's disorienting and easily not going to be anyone's top ten experiences, but Clara would find herself at the top of the bones with Clark quickly removing his hold and making his way back down, his eyes already heating up. ]

[ex_bossily211]

[Thankfully, Clara's gone faster than time itself and has been thrown for enough loops via quick travel that she's only mildly disoriented when they rush upward. She's just about to tell him to be careful when he hurries off, and Clara's left watching him. He's going to run out of energy at this rate.]

MESSAGE

[atlasmods]

Clara won't be completely alone though: as Clark departs her wrist communicator starts up, flashing and blinking as a distinctly alien language begins to fade in and out:

--r jlemoc. Cgugac: myumogi kolsomg EHHRYMO. Lo--

[falsesmile]

[ It was certainly a very noble thing to do. Noble, kind, brave, helplessly stupid -- not her style, personally, but something she could appreciate. And it was a fascinating ability
.
In the short run, the safest thing to do would probably have been to listen to him -- to scramble up the bones and wait for the danger to pass. But in the long run -- he would be a useful person to have around later, and an even more useful person to get thinking well of her.

Some risks were just worth running.

She moved toward him through the swarm with gymnastic grace, a thin shard of pod wreckage in each hand like clubs or swords. She ducked away from some trilobites, batted others away with her bludgeons, and -- subtly, without needing to gesture -- used the Force to nudge others just slightly past her. She couldn't avoid them all before they got to her suit, but she was still in surprisingly good condition by the time she made it to his side. ]

I have your back, [ she said, pitching her voice loud enough to be heard over the swarm but otherwise calm under fire, and smacking an incoming trilobite away for emphasis. ]

[anewhope]

[ Cue the music.

Clark stares at her for a few seconds, dumb founded. He's not used to people having his back (or needing to have his back) but to his credit, the surprise doesn't last and he's all business once more. He nods curtly. ]

I can hold them off for a while, but the power of the suit can't handle it for long. Can you help people up the bones?

[falsesmile]

[ There's an almost imperceptible moment of hesitation before she responds, which she covers by lashing out at a low-approaching trilobyte with a kick. She can help people -- she can hoist them up with the Force almost effortlessly -- but she's still not certain that overt uses of the Force are wise with not-quite-Luke Skywalker around. ]

"The suit can't handle it?" [ she echoes, buying another seconds to mull it over. ]

[anewhope]

[ Clark nods, batting away a couple of trilobites nearby with a flick of his wrist. The other trilobites seem to backing away from him at least, wary of the beams of heat.]

Using our powers drains the suit. I don't want to know what happens when we run out.

[ Though Clark won't fight against the possibility - he'll do whatever it takes. ]

[falsesmile]

[ She's been keeping her Force use to a minimum, so that takes her genuinely aback. And when she checks -- yes, there it is, even her minute nudges against the trilobites has put a small dent in the counter. She grits her teeth. That kind of limit on Force use throws a serious wrench in her survival calculations. ]

I -- [ there's two cracks in short succession as she bludgeons one trilobite like a ball, hitting it back into one of its fellow ] -- can help a few.

What will you do when you hit zero?

[anewhope]

[ Another burst of furious light and heat sends another swarm skittering to the sides. He makes sure it cuts a swathe around the bones, marking the territory.

Her question gives him pause. His expression makes it clear he hasn't thought about it and wasn't going to. ]

Hope it doesn't.

[falsesmile]

We need tactical thinking, not wishful thinking, [ she said, letting some exasperation creep into her voice as she whacked another couple of trilobites. ]

Make a dash for the high ground and then keep -- [ a pause, here, while she thought about how to describe what he had done and also to kick a trilobite away ] -- keep blasting. You do the same amount of good, [ she threw this in deliberately. He seemed like the sort of person for whom it would matter, ] and you're relatively safe when you... can't blast anymore.

[anewhope]

I can do more than blast things.

[ His formidable strength and speed were still great assets, though not as much as his heat vision was right now. ]

And I can hold out long enough for people to get to safety.

[ He assumes. Factoring in the suit's power and his own. A fine line, but Clark was used to balancing acts of great power and usage. ]