Table Island - Evil lurks!

[Feng]

Twelve Miles off the coast of Muffinville

Up until recently the area known as Table Island was a place devoid of activity. A relatively medium sized island devoid of most vegetation, the obscure landmass saw relatively few visitors aside from the occasional tourists come to picnic in the shadow of the massive Mesa that dominated the island's center.

It wasn't until the last two months that reports of strange activity began to reach the ears of the various law enforcement agencies of the city, reports detailing mysterious ships docking along the island's northern cost, of shifty and heavily armed personnel patrolling the shorelines, and of tourists being spirited away in the dead of night.

Further complicating matters is the recent crime wave that seems to have gripped Muffinville and the nearby territories. In particular the criminals have targeted various research facilities focusing on the study of color energy although there has also been a spike in kidnappings as well. Eyewitness testimony at these sites, or at those still capable of human speech and rational thought, described the perpetrators as heavily armed NPCs speaking with a foreign accent. Some also mention sightings of "dwarf ninja" lurking near the crime scenes prior to the attacks.


Those brave (i.e. foolish) enough the investigate the island will find that the island is protected by a patrol of small armed vessels that circulate the island in a clockwise manner. Should they manage to pass by undetected they will soon reach the sandy shores of Table Island~! o__o

Good luck brave adventurers. You'll need it!

[Knight Errant]

Evil lurks, you say? Mysterious disappearances, you say? THIS LOOKS LIKE A JOB FOR Dactylos! Private Eye!

In the dead of night, he rows a small boat towards the island... aiming to slip past the sentries and investigate!

[Feng]

Around the island the boats circle, searchlights combing the waters for signs of interlopers and other uninvited guests. As Dact's rowboat rocks through the waves he might notice a brief opening in the patrol. The timing will be tricky but if he's quick enough, the private eye should be able to slip on through without attracting the notice of the guards....

[Knight Errant]

Dact sees the opportunity and goes to take it! Rowing quickly and silently!

[Feng]

Quickly and silently Dact makes it through the opening just narrowly evading the sweep of the searchlight. For a moment or two he can catch a glimpse at the crew of the craft: Chibi!

[Knight Errant]

Dact... blinks at this development! Getting out a notepad and writing. "Circling craft manned by Chibi. Chance of Bones being behind shenanigans: High." As he continues towards the island!

[Harri-chan]

A small, dark craft broke through the waves just off the island. It was sort of egg-shaped, with a small, tinted window at the front of the narrower end, and was producing a low hum as it rose above the water, and then floated in across the land. Setting down on the sandy shore, the humming sound came to a stop, replaced by a hiss as a panel lowered on the craft's side, creating an opening and acting as a short staircase down onto the beach.

Two figures emerged, both seemingly teenage girls! The first seemed slightly older, but by a year at most, looking about fifteen. She wore black and grey camo patterned pants with a black vest top and chunky black boots. Her hair was black with pink highlights and had been braided into a ponytail down her back. The second, slightly younger girl had bright pink hair in pigtails, and wore a tiny, pink and white camo print, cheerleader style dress that just barely covered her underwear, with a padded pink vest over the top of it and pink sneakers on her feet.

A small metallic sphere floated out behind them, a tiny red blinking light on the top of it. Glancing back at the device, the younger girl started speaking to it in a hushed voice while making a thumbs up gesture.

"We have now reached the island. I don't think the patrols noticed us".

[Jello Shot Mischa]

A couple of miles away from Table island, the CTC battlecruiser the CWS Illustrious waits at anchor, its running lights just barely visible on the horizon from the island. On her flight deck, a woman with long silver hair and wearing combat armor consults with another woman in an officer's uniform, although they have to use their comms to be heard over the roar of the ship's Combat Air Patrol taking off.

This is the most recent intel from Skywatch?

Yes, these images were taken 47 minutes ago. So far, processing hasn't turned up any significant details, but I'm betting the AIs just don't know what to look for.

Which would be why we're going in. Well, nothing like a little adventure, hmm, captain?

The captain chuckles. I'm just glad I'm staying here. We'll have overwatch if anything should go wrong.

Well, let's just hope it doesn't come to that. The woman with the silver hair highlights one of the patrol boats on the image. Is it just me, or are those...?

The craft appear to be manned by Chibi, from what we can tell.

The silver-haired woman frowns. Well, well... no wonder we were asked to look into this.

The ship's captain nods in response. Mission is go in five minutes. Do you need anything else?

No, I believe we've got everything we'll need. Which means we'll be missing something once things hit the fan, but what can you do? She gives the captain a wry grin, before saluting. Special Adjutant Sammi, now departing, captain.

The captain nods, and returns the salute. Good luck, adjutant.

Sammi simply nods, and walks over to the tilt-rotor transport waiting nearby. Climbing aboard, she glances over the soldiers gathered in its transport bay. "Ready for some action, boys?" she asks, checking their equipment over as she makes her way to the front of the craft. A small chorus of agreement accompanies her, although the two EDU robots remain silent, simply nodding in the affirmative as she passes by.

"Very well, then." Entering the cockpit, she sits down in the co-pilot's seat, strapping herself in. "Let's get this show on the road."

The aircrafts rotors slowly spin up to speed, and the aircraft takes off from the ship, banking as it heads towards Table Island!

[Feng]

Dact... blinks at this development! Getting out a notepad and writing. "Circling craft manned by Chibi. Chance of Bones being behind shenanigans: High." As he continues towards the island!

After a few minutes the knight manages to reach the shoreline, the crashing waves guiding his craft towards an area just south of what appears to be a Heliport. Fortunately there does not to be any armed patrols at this time....

A small, dark craft broke through the waves just off the island. It was sort of egg-shaped, with a small, tinted window at the front of the narrower end, and was producing a low hum as it rose above the water, and then floated in across the land. Setting down on the sandy shore, the humming sound came to a stop, replaced by a hiss as a panel lowered on the craft's side, creating an opening and acting as a short staircase down onto the beach.



Two figures emerged, both seemingly teenage girls! The first seemed slightly older, but by a year at most, looking about fifteen. She wore black and grey camo patterned pants with a black vest top and chunky black boots. Her hair was black with pink highlights and had been braided into a ponytail down her back. The second, slightly younger girl had bright pink hair in pigtails, and wore a tiny, pink and white camo print, cheerleader style dress that just barely covered her underwear, with a padded pink vest over the top of it and pink sneakers on her feet.

A small metallic sphere floated out behind them, a tiny red blinking light on the top of it. Glancing back at the device, the younger girl started speaking to it in a hushed voice while making a thumbs up gesture.

"We have now reached the island. I don't think the patrols noticed us".

For the time being no alarm has been raised so it would appear that the two have successfully navigated past the first lines of defense.

Currently they are on the south side of Table Island, a region distinguished by the scattered adobe villas that dot the top of the nearby cliffs. Further off in the distance lies the mesa from which the island gets its name.

A couple of miles away from Table island, the CTC battlecruiser the CWS Illustrious waits at anchor, its running lights just barely visible on the horizon from the island. On her flight deck, a woman with long silver hair and wearing combat armor consults with another woman in an officer's uniform, although they have to use their comms to be heard over the roar of the ship's Combat Air Patrol taking off.

This is the most recent intel from Skywatch?

Yes, these images were taken 47 minutes ago. So far, processing hasn't turned up any significant details, but I'm betting the AIs just don't know what to look for.

Which would be why we're going in. Well, nothing like a little adventure, hmm, captain?

The captain chuckles. I'm just glad I'm staying here. We'll have overwatch if anything should go wrong.

Well, let's just hope it doesn't come to that. The woman with the silver hair highlights one of the patrol boats on the image. Is it just me, or are those...?

The craft appear to be manned by Chibi, from what we can tell.

The silver-haired woman frowns. Well, well... no wonder we were asked to look into this.

The ship's captain nods in response. Mission is go in five minutes. Do you need anything else?

No, I believe we've got everything we'll need. Which means we'll be missing something once things hit the fan, but what can you do? She gives the captain a wry grin, before saluting. Special Adjutant Sammi, now departing, captain.

The captain nods, and returns the salute. Good luck, adjutant.

Sammi simply nods, and walks over to the tilt-rotor transport waiting nearby. Climbing aboard, she glances over the soldiers gathered in its transport bay. "Ready for some action, boys?" she asks, checking their equipment over as she makes her way to the front of the craft. A small chorus of agreement accompanies her, although the two EDU robots remain silent, simply nodding in the affirmative as she passes by.

"Very well, then." Entering the cockpit, she sits down in the co-pilot's seat, strapping herself in. "Let's get this show on the road."

The aircrafts rotors slowly spin up to speed, and the aircraft takes off from the ship, banking as it heads towards Table Island!

Control Room

"Sir, our radar has picked up sign of CTC battlecruiser being deployed in the region," reports a Chibi minion at his terminal. "So far it would appear they've dispatched a single aircraft bound towards the island."

His commanding officer, a senior ranking member of the Chibiwanbanshu, glances at the giant terminal ahead, scrutinizing the single blip heading towards the base.

"Hmmm.... While troublesome their intervention has been expected. For the time being do not engage the craft. Our orders from the commandant are to carry out the preparations for the upcoming operation with as little heat as possible. Increase the security of all doors in Sector III and raise the alert to Yellow. Order all defense personnel not to engage the CTC until given further instructions."

Meanwhile....

The single aircraft manages to approach the island without incident. The patrol craft, at the very least, do not raise the alarm as the plane passes overhead.

[Blaze]

Suddenly, a strange wind seems to assail the island! It blows form the mainland, starting up high and coming down to batter the island and it's inhabitants! As it blows down, it seems to accelerate the fall of a humanoid figure wearing a black figure-hugging suit along with a helmet with a small oxygen tank. It streaks down towards the island, hopefully slipping past any aerial defenses it has!

As it gets closer and closer, it reaches back and pulls down a zipper down it's back, opening a hole in the suit... which opens room for a pair of fairy-esque wings to emerge! The figure uses them to gently steer and slow it's descent, the air seemingly shifting around it to slow it's fall further as it touches down on the island hard, but not enough to be damaging, the figure landing on it's left leg, dropping to it's right knee to further absorb impact and slamming it's right palm on the ground to steady itself.

Slowly standing up, the figure slips behind a nearby rock and pulls off it's helmet, revealing it to be... Blaze! From her headset, two spindly metal arms emerge and wrap around her face, her eyes sandwiched between them. Between them, they project a green holographic screen and Blaze begins to talk into it.

"This is Blaze... I landed safely. Good job with that wind Lucy... All right, let's go over the plan. I infiltrate the island and locate the source of all the spiritual power this island seems to be emitting. Once I have a grasp on the situation, I call it in. Then, whomever is best suited to dealing with it joins me, carried by Lucy if needs be. Together, we put a stop to it... ah, we have a map do we? Great, thanks. If there's nothing else, I'll begin with Operation Ofrenda Mesa... all right, I'll stay in contact."

Blaze begins to move inland, the holographic screen giving her night vision as she sneaks about, taking care to spot any patrols before they spot her.

[Jello Shot Mischa]

Control Room

"Sir, our radar has picked up sign of CTC battlecruiser being deployed in the region," reports a Chibi minion at his terminal. "So far it would appear they've dispatched a single aircraft bound towards the island."

His commanding officer, a senior ranking member of the Chibiwanbanshu, glances at the giant terminal ahead, scrutinizing the single blip heading towards the base.

"Hmmm.... While troublesome their intervention has been expected. For the time being do not engage the craft. Our orders from the commandant are to carry out the preparations for the upcoming operation with as little heat as possible. Increase the security of all doors in Sector III and raise the alert to Yellow. Order all defense personnel not to engage the CTC until given further instructions."

Meanwhile....

The single aircraft manages to approach the island without incident. The patrol craft, at the very least, do not raise the alarm as the plane passes overhead.

As the aircraft approaches the island, the pilot glances at his companion. "So where did you want us to set down, Adjutant?" he asks.

Sammi studies the Skywatch data for a moment. "There appears to be a heliport along the shoreline." She smiles slightly. "We may as well ask our potential hosts for permission to land."

The pilot nods, and switches to his comm. "Table Island Control, this is CTC aircraft TR-56138, requesting permission to land at your heliport."

The aircraft lurches suddenly, however, as a strong wind comes rushing in from the mainland. Red alarms begin to flash on the cockpit's displays as the aircraft is battered by the intense winds, its engines straining to keep the aircraft stable. "Table Island Control, this is TR-56138! We are experiencing decreased VFC due to a sudden wind burst! Requesting ILS assistance for landing!"

As the pilot tries to negotiate the aircraft into a landing, Sammi toggles her own comm. "Illustrious, this is Special Adjutant Sammi. We have encountered unnatural winds around the island, and are proceeding with an emergency landing."

[Harri-chan]

The older girl turned to the younger one with a look of annoyance. "You're not doing a very good job of convincing me it was a smart idea to come here with you. There's nothing we can do now about that ridiculous outfit, but the least you could do is turn that thing off! If the flashing light doesn't give us away to patrols, it's probably sending out all kinds of signals", she muttered.

The girl in pink frowned. "I need to impress Ms. Jones at the TV station, Jenah, it's the only way to get out of this mess. If we uncover something big here, she might promote me from being the station mascot...", she explained as the two began to venture towards the cliff top villas.

[Knight Errant]

Dact brings his boat in! Dragging it up onto the shore before stamping a concealment charm on it... as the whole thing turns transparent. Hopefully that will keep any patrols that might come this way from getting suspicious. That done... he heads further into the island! Humming the theme from mission impossible.

[Feng]

The older girl turned to the younger one with a look of annoyance. "You're not doing a very good job of convincing me it was a smart idea to come here with you. There's nothing we can do now about that ridiculous outfit, but the least you could do is turn that thing off! If the flashing light doesn't give us away to patrols, it's probably sending out all kinds of signals", she muttered.

The girl in pink frowned. "I need to impress Ms. Jones at the TV station, Jenah, it's the only way to get out of this mess. If we uncover something big here, she might promote me from being the station mascot...", she explained as the two began to venture towards the cliff top villas.

From the shore is a thin makeshift pathway that hugs the cliffs tightly. At parts the trail is thin enough for only one person at a time meaning the two intrepid reporters had best move single file....

Suddenly a cone of light sweeps over the top of the cliffs as a black helicopter flies overhead!

Suddenly, a strange wind seems to assail the island! It blows form the mainland, starting up high and coming down to batter the island and it's inhabitants! As it blows down, it seems to accelerate the fall of a humanoid figure wearing a black figure-hugging suit along with a helmet with a small oxygen tank. It streaks down towards the island, hopefully slipping past any aerial defenses it has!

As it gets closer and closer, it reaches back and pulls down a zipper down it's back, opening a hole in the suit... which opens room for a pair of fairy-esque wings to emerge! The figure uses them to gently steer and slow it's descent, the air seemingly shifting around it to slow it's fall further as it touches down on the island hard, but not enough to be damaging, the figure landing on it's left leg, dropping to it's right knee to further absorb impact and slamming it's right palm on the ground to steady itself.

Slowly standing up, the figure slips behind a nearby rock and pulls off it's helmet, revealing it to be... Blaze! From her headset, two spindly metal arms emerge and wrap around her face, her eyes sandwiched between them. Between them, they project a green holographic screen and Blaze begins to talk into it.

"This is Blaze... I landed safely. Good job with that wind Lucy... All right, let's go over the plan. I infiltrate the island and locate the source of all the spiritual power this island seems to be emitting. Once I have a grasp on the situation, I call it in. Then, whomever is best suited to dealing with it joins me, carried by Lucy if needs be. Together, we put a stop to it... ah, we have a map do we? Great, thanks. If there's nothing else, I'll begin with Operation Ofrenda Mesa... all right, I'll stay in contact."

Blaze begins to move inland, the holographic screen giving her night vision as she sneaks about, taking care to spot any patrols before they spot her.

While there is definately some degree of air traffic in the region, the fairy's arrival is unhindered by any defense mechanisms. Currently she has managed to land just outside the North shore by the docks.

While she is currently out of range of the sentry towers she might have spotted on her descent her little entrance has caused the dock workers, accompanied by a small detachment of guards from the Mesa, to start combing through the brush. Furthermore the lack of trees means that the poor Exorcist is without cover!

As the aircraft approaches the island, the pilot glances at his companion. "So where did you want us to set down, Adjutant?" he asks.

Sammi studies the Skywatch data for a moment. "There appears to be a heliport along the shoreline." She smiles slightly. "We may as well ask our potential hosts for permission to land."

The pilot nods, and switches to his comm. "Table Island Control, this is CTC aircraft TR-56138, requesting permission to land at your heliport."

The aircraft lurches suddenly, however, as a strong wind comes rushing in from the mainland. Red alarms begin to flash on the cockpit's displays as the aircraft is battered by the intense winds, its engines straining to keep the aircraft stable. "Table Island Control, this is TR-56138! We are experiencing decreased VFC due to a sudden wind burst! Requesting ILS assistance for landing!"

As the pilot tries to negotiate the aircraft into a landing, Sammi toggles her own comm. "Illustrious, this is Special Adjutant Sammi. We have encountered unnatural winds around the island, and are proceeding with an emergency landing."

::This is Mesa Control Tower:: replies the radio. ::This area is a restricted. Please state your business.::

From the water a pair of patrol ships begin to slink towards the direction of the Heliport and the CTC craft, training their searchlights on the intruding airship. From the helipad, the CTC cam see Chibi and NPCs filing out towards the Mesa, some carrying heavy crates, the rest carrying heavy firepower.

Dact brings his boat in! Dragging it up onto the shore before stamping a concealment charm on it... as the whole thing turns transparent. Hopefully that will keep any patrols that might come this way from getting suspicious. That done... he heads further into the island! Humming the theme from mission impossible.

Dact finds himself approaching the imposing Mesa that stretches up towards the sky! As he slinks closer he can make out a caravan of Chibi patrolling the edge. While a few are armed with Uzi the majority of them appear to be equipped with tool boxes and building equipment: technicians. They're heading northwards.

[Kether]

*Surfaces out of the water onto a beach, he dramatically rips off his wetsuit in one motion revealing a perfectly dry tuxedo underneath. Which probably looks somewhat insane with the mechanical nature of the wearer..*