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NOW LIVE! Into the Woods--new character species, eerie monsters, and haunting villains to populate the woodlands of your D&D games.
[Spaceship Zero] Q-Ship (actually updated 19 May 2007)
- Thread starter Capellan
- Start date
robberbaron
First Post
Oh man, a cliffhanger EVERY episode!
Capellan
Explorer
"Space Tomb" - Part 14
At the last moment, Fury's eyes snap open.
S'Ondra rears back with a growl of surprise.
The Captain smiles,
"Sorry, old girl. Dashed unsporting of me to play dead, but this is not really the time for Marquis of Queensbury rules."
For the second time in a day, the Princess gets stabbed in the back with a syringe.
Fury grunts as he depresses the plunger, pumping the chemical into S'Ondra's bloodstream. It's a standard Space Force emergency ampoule, designed to anaesthetise the recipient completely, and render then unconscious for medical evacuation. It's highly effective.
Of course, no-one's ever used it on a Venusian, before. Least of all one with a strange alien concoction already pulsing through her veins.
S'Ondra screams, back arching, hands clutching her hair. And then we see the world through her eyes.
The room swims in and out of focus, a red haze overlaying it all. White flashes sometimes blot everything out, then fade as suddenly as they came. The shouts of those around her seem slowed, like a tape played at half speed (exactly like a tape played at half speed, in fact).
"You will pay for that, old man." Xinthon's words come with the finality of thunder. Lightning arcs from his raised hands to strike Gustav's chest. The helpless Doctor writhes as the electricity plays over him, then slumps down in the chair, unconscious or dead.
"No." the word is dragged, guttural and filled with hate, from S'Ondra's throat. Her gaze rests on the face of the laughing Xinthon, and the screen turns red as whatever other words she might say are lost in her feral scream of rage.
Xinthon snaps around just in time to avoid the lunging thrust of S'Ondra's heat lance, and the gleaming Venusian weapon smashes into the computer console, causing a shower of sparks. He can't twist aside of S'Ondra's whole body, however, and the Princess slams into him.
The pair tumble to the ground as Archie moves forward, gigantic metal fists raised to strike. Xinthon may be able to shrug off plasma and atomic energy beams, but heavy lumps of metal seem to hurt him just fine. Archie has those in spades.
With S'Ondra and Archie at his throat, and Fury staggering to his feet in the background, Xinthon finds the odds much less to his liking,
"You'll pay for this, primitives!" he warns, then turns and races out of the room.
"Princess, wait!" Fury cautions, but S'Ondra is in no mood to listen. With a howl of rage at her enemy's flight, she hurls herself after him. The Captain makes to follow, but Archie calls him back.
"The Doctor is gravely injured." The robot's lights blink in concern, "I fear his injuries are beyond my ability to repair."
"Damn that alien monster!" Fury pounds his hand on the wrecked computer console, "I'm not sure what I can do to help though, old man ... I'm no Doctor, and that's what the Doc needs."
In response, Archie extends his arm, and the builder-bot scuttles out from his back, down the limb and onto his hand,
"They can rebuild anything, Captain." The robot reminds Fury, "Provided they have the necessary plans. Thus, to repair a damaged human -"
"- they need an undamaged one." Fury nods, and strips off the last few shreds of his shirt, "And I'm the closest we've got to one of those. Tell the bug to get to work."
At the last moment, Fury's eyes snap open.
S'Ondra rears back with a growl of surprise.
The Captain smiles,
"Sorry, old girl. Dashed unsporting of me to play dead, but this is not really the time for Marquis of Queensbury rules."
For the second time in a day, the Princess gets stabbed in the back with a syringe.
Fury grunts as he depresses the plunger, pumping the chemical into S'Ondra's bloodstream. It's a standard Space Force emergency ampoule, designed to anaesthetise the recipient completely, and render then unconscious for medical evacuation. It's highly effective.
Of course, no-one's ever used it on a Venusian, before. Least of all one with a strange alien concoction already pulsing through her veins.
S'Ondra screams, back arching, hands clutching her hair. And then we see the world through her eyes.
The room swims in and out of focus, a red haze overlaying it all. White flashes sometimes blot everything out, then fade as suddenly as they came. The shouts of those around her seem slowed, like a tape played at half speed (exactly like a tape played at half speed, in fact).
"You will pay for that, old man." Xinthon's words come with the finality of thunder. Lightning arcs from his raised hands to strike Gustav's chest. The helpless Doctor writhes as the electricity plays over him, then slumps down in the chair, unconscious or dead.
"No." the word is dragged, guttural and filled with hate, from S'Ondra's throat. Her gaze rests on the face of the laughing Xinthon, and the screen turns red as whatever other words she might say are lost in her feral scream of rage.
Xinthon snaps around just in time to avoid the lunging thrust of S'Ondra's heat lance, and the gleaming Venusian weapon smashes into the computer console, causing a shower of sparks. He can't twist aside of S'Ondra's whole body, however, and the Princess slams into him.
The pair tumble to the ground as Archie moves forward, gigantic metal fists raised to strike. Xinthon may be able to shrug off plasma and atomic energy beams, but heavy lumps of metal seem to hurt him just fine. Archie has those in spades.
With S'Ondra and Archie at his throat, and Fury staggering to his feet in the background, Xinthon finds the odds much less to his liking,
"You'll pay for this, primitives!" he warns, then turns and races out of the room.
"Princess, wait!" Fury cautions, but S'Ondra is in no mood to listen. With a howl of rage at her enemy's flight, she hurls herself after him. The Captain makes to follow, but Archie calls him back.
"The Doctor is gravely injured." The robot's lights blink in concern, "I fear his injuries are beyond my ability to repair."
"Damn that alien monster!" Fury pounds his hand on the wrecked computer console, "I'm not sure what I can do to help though, old man ... I'm no Doctor, and that's what the Doc needs."
In response, Archie extends his arm, and the builder-bot scuttles out from his back, down the limb and onto his hand,
"They can rebuild anything, Captain." The robot reminds Fury, "Provided they have the necessary plans. Thus, to repair a damaged human -"
"- they need an undamaged one." Fury nods, and strips off the last few shreds of his shirt, "And I'm the closest we've got to one of those. Tell the bug to get to work."
Capellan
Explorer
"Space Tomb" - Part 15
Xinthon races into the waiting elevator, with S'Ondra only a few paces behind. He slaps the console, and barks out the single word:
"Close!"
The doors slide shut in S'Ondra's face.
Growling under her breath, the Princess pulls her heat lance back and slams it into the join of the doors. With a grunt of effort she forces the doors far enough apart that she can get her fingers in between. This done, she wrenches them open: the doors give way with a sound of tortured metal.
The elevator shaft is dark and empty, the lift car itself carrying Xinthon up and away.
S'Ondra throws herself at the dangling drive cables and begins to swarm up hand over hand, pursuing the retreating D'Bari. Minutes later, she bursts through a hatch in the floor of the elevator car. Scrambling to her feet, she catches sight of Xinthon as he reaches the pyramid's airlock.
Without pausing, the alien thumbs open the inner door, steps through, and allows it to slide shut behind him. Again, S'Ondra is a few seconds too late - she literally bounces from the airlock door as she tries to hurl herself through the closing gap.
Far too enraged to think about the consequences, the Princess levels her heat lance and fires repeatedly at the door. After a few blasts, the metal barrier explodes inwards. Beyond, the outer door is also open, with Xinthon nowhere in sight.
Snarling in frustration, S'Ondra stalks forward. A light wind ruffles her hair as she emerges from the pyramid, and she sniffs at the air, as if trying to find her quarry by scent alone.
Maybe she actually smells something, or maybe some other sense alerts her at the last minute, for the Princess ducks just in time as Xinthon lunges out of the shadows, hands reaching for her throat. She fends him off with her heat lance, but the momentum of the D'Bari's charge sends her stumbling backwards.
"You stupid primitive!" Xinthon snarls, as the two warriors strain against each other, each with two hands on the heat lance, "I have brought an atmosphere to this entire asteroid! I have evolved myself to a new level! I offered you a chance to rise to that level with me, and you refused it!"
S'Ondra's only response is a guttural howl as she hurls the D'Bari back. Xinthon drops into a crouch, and the two fighters begin to circle each other.
And then the camera pulls back, and we zoom out into space. Below us, the combatants shrink to the size of dots ... and then become dots, circling each other on the black display of a radar screen.
Fury's hands fly across the control panel of Xinthon's ship as he flicks switches, presses buttons, and watches readings climb on all the gauges.
"Are you sure about this, Captain?" Archie asks. The massive robot holds Gustav's limp body in his arms.
"Positive, Archie. There's nothing in space I can't fly." Fury doesn't spare the time to turn around, so absorbed is he in his flight preparations, "Get the Doc out of here. Take your new friend with you." He pauses, "Have you taken a copy of all Xinthon's notes? We'll need them to help S'Ondra, when all this is over."
"I have it all, Captain," Archie nods. He turns to leave, then pauses: "Good luck, Captain."
At the robot's words, Fury does spare a moment to look back,
"Keep the luck for the Doc, Archie. I've got this covered."
The robot leaves, still cradling the Doctor, as Fury finishes the last of the flight checks. As he listens to the whine of the ship's planetary drive building power, the Captain closes his eyes and takes a deep breath,
"Hang in there, baby."
It's not clear if he's talking to the ship, or to the dots on the screen.
Xinthon races into the waiting elevator, with S'Ondra only a few paces behind. He slaps the console, and barks out the single word:
"Close!"
The doors slide shut in S'Ondra's face.
Growling under her breath, the Princess pulls her heat lance back and slams it into the join of the doors. With a grunt of effort she forces the doors far enough apart that she can get her fingers in between. This done, she wrenches them open: the doors give way with a sound of tortured metal.
The elevator shaft is dark and empty, the lift car itself carrying Xinthon up and away.
S'Ondra throws herself at the dangling drive cables and begins to swarm up hand over hand, pursuing the retreating D'Bari. Minutes later, she bursts through a hatch in the floor of the elevator car. Scrambling to her feet, she catches sight of Xinthon as he reaches the pyramid's airlock.
Without pausing, the alien thumbs open the inner door, steps through, and allows it to slide shut behind him. Again, S'Ondra is a few seconds too late - she literally bounces from the airlock door as she tries to hurl herself through the closing gap.
Far too enraged to think about the consequences, the Princess levels her heat lance and fires repeatedly at the door. After a few blasts, the metal barrier explodes inwards. Beyond, the outer door is also open, with Xinthon nowhere in sight.
Snarling in frustration, S'Ondra stalks forward. A light wind ruffles her hair as she emerges from the pyramid, and she sniffs at the air, as if trying to find her quarry by scent alone.
Maybe she actually smells something, or maybe some other sense alerts her at the last minute, for the Princess ducks just in time as Xinthon lunges out of the shadows, hands reaching for her throat. She fends him off with her heat lance, but the momentum of the D'Bari's charge sends her stumbling backwards.
"You stupid primitive!" Xinthon snarls, as the two warriors strain against each other, each with two hands on the heat lance, "I have brought an atmosphere to this entire asteroid! I have evolved myself to a new level! I offered you a chance to rise to that level with me, and you refused it!"
S'Ondra's only response is a guttural howl as she hurls the D'Bari back. Xinthon drops into a crouch, and the two fighters begin to circle each other.
And then the camera pulls back, and we zoom out into space. Below us, the combatants shrink to the size of dots ... and then become dots, circling each other on the black display of a radar screen.
Fury's hands fly across the control panel of Xinthon's ship as he flicks switches, presses buttons, and watches readings climb on all the gauges.
"Are you sure about this, Captain?" Archie asks. The massive robot holds Gustav's limp body in his arms.
"Positive, Archie. There's nothing in space I can't fly." Fury doesn't spare the time to turn around, so absorbed is he in his flight preparations, "Get the Doc out of here. Take your new friend with you." He pauses, "Have you taken a copy of all Xinthon's notes? We'll need them to help S'Ondra, when all this is over."
"I have it all, Captain," Archie nods. He turns to leave, then pauses: "Good luck, Captain."
At the robot's words, Fury does spare a moment to look back,
"Keep the luck for the Doc, Archie. I've got this covered."
The robot leaves, still cradling the Doctor, as Fury finishes the last of the flight checks. As he listens to the whine of the ship's planetary drive building power, the Captain closes his eyes and takes a deep breath,
"Hang in there, baby."
It's not clear if he's talking to the ship, or to the dots on the screen.
Plane Sailing
Astral Admin - Mwahahaha!
Capellan, as an author you rock on a stick. I've bought short stories that don't have a fraction of the character and tension you put in here.
Cheers mate!
Cheers mate!
So, I thought I'd found all the story hours I'd ever need... how naive can you be. Just started and loving it. Keep up the great work.Capellan said:Just thought I would drop in to thank everyone for their feedback. It's always nice to hear that people are enjoying the story hour.
The real 'thank you' will come tomorrow night, with another update
Capellan
Explorer
"Space Tomb" - Part 16
S'Ondra lunges toward Xinthon, but the D'Bari is too fast. He dodges aside from her heat lance and swings an elbow toward her face. The Princess jerks back from the blow, but it's a feint: Xinthon wraps his hands around the heat lance and tries to wrench it from her grasp.
For a moment, they stand locked against each other. Sweat shines on S'Ondra's neck and bosom. The D'Bari, on the other hand, seems cool and collected.
"You're too weak, girl." Xinthon hisses, "Only one injection, and no chance yet to feed. Your muscles are trembling. You have no chance."
S'Ondra growls, and yanks once more at the lance.
As she does so, there is a deep, deafening rumble, and the ground lurches beneath them. Xinthon, braced in position, maintains his balance. S'Ondra, her weight thrown backward, stumbles and falls, the heat lance tearing loose from her hands.
Xinthon spins the weapon around and thrusts the point under S'Ondra's chin, as she lies sprawled before him.
"Foolish woman." He gloats, "You could have had it all. Instead, you will die, as will all your friends. What chance do a monkey and a robot have to beat me?"
S'Ondra smiles.
A shadow looms over Xinthon.
The alien spins, heat lance forgotten.
Behind him, S'Ondra throws herself to the side, rolling behind a rock.
The shot snaps around, and we see the silver D'Bari spaceship plunging through the air. The entire vessel is rattling and groaning as it plummets toward the ground. Fury sits in the command chair, thick black straps holding him steady as the ship thunders downward.
Xinthon's eyes widen in shock. He opens his mouth to scream -
- and the spaceship ploughs into the asteroid's dusty, rock-strewn surface, right where the D'Bari is standing.
The vessel careens across the landscape, bouncing and shuddering with every impact. Pieces of the wings and tail section are shorn away, and then the ship's nose digs into the ground and it flips end over end: straight into the Pyramid. The impact shakes the entire structure, and ruptures what little remains of the ship. The vessel is now at a final stop: nose pointing toward the ground, tail resting near the pyramid's peak.
Hanging upside down in the command chair, Fury comes groggily to consciousness for the second time in the hour.
"Drive breach." The ship's computer announces, "Systems will go nova in 57 seconds. Drive breach. Systems will go nova in 56 seconds."
Shaking his head to clear it, and then wincing and deciding that was a bad idea, Fury unclips his harness. He half-climbs, half-falls onto the ship's viewing canopy, which is now patterned with dozens of spidery cracks. The glass creaks under his weight.
"Drive breach. Systems will go nova in 51 seconds."
Drawing his atomic pistol and stepping to the side, Fury aims upward. He fires, and the beam cuts neatly through the command chair's pedestal. Loosed, the chair plummets downward, smashing into the window canopy and shattering the glass. Chair and canopy alike cascade down the side of the pyramid.
"Drive breach. Systems will go nova in 45 seconds."
Holstering his pistol, Fury takes a deep breath and lowers himself through the hole made by the chair. He stretches with his feet, questing for a stable surface to stand upon. For a few moments there is nothing, and then his boots scrape across stone.
"Drive breach. Systems will go nova in 32 seconds."
Fury lets go.
He drops lightly onto the side of the pyramid, landing in a crouch, and then quickly begins to race down the building's side, arms held out to maintain his balance.
Dimly, the sound fading as Fury runs:
"Drive breach. Systems will go nova in 24 seconds."
Fury sprints across the dusty ground of the asteroid, to where a black clad figure lies sprawled before some rocks. Scooping up the unconscious S'Ondra, Fury leaps the rocks and ducks out of sight.
The ship explodes.
There is a blinding flash of white and a tremendous roar of sound. Dust dances around Fury's feet as the whole asteroid shakes. Fragments of the D'Bari vessel fly in all directions, as do huge chunks of stone from the pyramid. When the smoke clears, the massive structure has an enormous blackened hole gouged out of its side.
And then there are the roars of secondary explosions, deep within the pyramid itself, and the entire thing begins to crash in on itself, until only a few ruined blocks of smoking debris remain.
"Well, Princess, we're safe." Fury makes the unconscious S'Ondra as comfortable as he can, and then leans back against the rocks, "At least, for as long as this artificial atmosphere holds out."
He closes his eyes, and the screen goes dark.
S'Ondra lunges toward Xinthon, but the D'Bari is too fast. He dodges aside from her heat lance and swings an elbow toward her face. The Princess jerks back from the blow, but it's a feint: Xinthon wraps his hands around the heat lance and tries to wrench it from her grasp.
For a moment, they stand locked against each other. Sweat shines on S'Ondra's neck and bosom. The D'Bari, on the other hand, seems cool and collected.
"You're too weak, girl." Xinthon hisses, "Only one injection, and no chance yet to feed. Your muscles are trembling. You have no chance."
S'Ondra growls, and yanks once more at the lance.
As she does so, there is a deep, deafening rumble, and the ground lurches beneath them. Xinthon, braced in position, maintains his balance. S'Ondra, her weight thrown backward, stumbles and falls, the heat lance tearing loose from her hands.
Xinthon spins the weapon around and thrusts the point under S'Ondra's chin, as she lies sprawled before him.
"Foolish woman." He gloats, "You could have had it all. Instead, you will die, as will all your friends. What chance do a monkey and a robot have to beat me?"
S'Ondra smiles.
A shadow looms over Xinthon.
The alien spins, heat lance forgotten.
Behind him, S'Ondra throws herself to the side, rolling behind a rock.
The shot snaps around, and we see the silver D'Bari spaceship plunging through the air. The entire vessel is rattling and groaning as it plummets toward the ground. Fury sits in the command chair, thick black straps holding him steady as the ship thunders downward.
Xinthon's eyes widen in shock. He opens his mouth to scream -
- and the spaceship ploughs into the asteroid's dusty, rock-strewn surface, right where the D'Bari is standing.
The vessel careens across the landscape, bouncing and shuddering with every impact. Pieces of the wings and tail section are shorn away, and then the ship's nose digs into the ground and it flips end over end: straight into the Pyramid. The impact shakes the entire structure, and ruptures what little remains of the ship. The vessel is now at a final stop: nose pointing toward the ground, tail resting near the pyramid's peak.
Hanging upside down in the command chair, Fury comes groggily to consciousness for the second time in the hour.
"Drive breach." The ship's computer announces, "Systems will go nova in 57 seconds. Drive breach. Systems will go nova in 56 seconds."
Shaking his head to clear it, and then wincing and deciding that was a bad idea, Fury unclips his harness. He half-climbs, half-falls onto the ship's viewing canopy, which is now patterned with dozens of spidery cracks. The glass creaks under his weight.
"Drive breach. Systems will go nova in 51 seconds."
Drawing his atomic pistol and stepping to the side, Fury aims upward. He fires, and the beam cuts neatly through the command chair's pedestal. Loosed, the chair plummets downward, smashing into the window canopy and shattering the glass. Chair and canopy alike cascade down the side of the pyramid.
"Drive breach. Systems will go nova in 45 seconds."
Holstering his pistol, Fury takes a deep breath and lowers himself through the hole made by the chair. He stretches with his feet, questing for a stable surface to stand upon. For a few moments there is nothing, and then his boots scrape across stone.
"Drive breach. Systems will go nova in 32 seconds."
Fury lets go.
He drops lightly onto the side of the pyramid, landing in a crouch, and then quickly begins to race down the building's side, arms held out to maintain his balance.
Dimly, the sound fading as Fury runs:
"Drive breach. Systems will go nova in 24 seconds."
Fury sprints across the dusty ground of the asteroid, to where a black clad figure lies sprawled before some rocks. Scooping up the unconscious S'Ondra, Fury leaps the rocks and ducks out of sight.
The ship explodes.
There is a blinding flash of white and a tremendous roar of sound. Dust dances around Fury's feet as the whole asteroid shakes. Fragments of the D'Bari vessel fly in all directions, as do huge chunks of stone from the pyramid. When the smoke clears, the massive structure has an enormous blackened hole gouged out of its side.
And then there are the roars of secondary explosions, deep within the pyramid itself, and the entire thing begins to crash in on itself, until only a few ruined blocks of smoking debris remain.
"Well, Princess, we're safe." Fury makes the unconscious S'Ondra as comfortable as he can, and then leans back against the rocks, "At least, for as long as this artificial atmosphere holds out."
He closes his eyes, and the screen goes dark.
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