Fallout Mars Doom

[Maharg67]

02-05(0023)

FALLOUT MARS DOOM: BETHESDATOWN BLUES

GRAHARG THIRTEEN

JONNI THIRTEEN

SARAH THIRTEEN

 

The scouts returned at speed and warned of a coming feral ghoul swarming as was common for zhouls, and even rhouls, to move in such a barely organized, barely directed panicky rush. In this case they were fleeing from packs of zentaurs and other zentmutant threats; such other threats were crude weapon, humanoid zentoids and clumsy low flying or gliding attack zentvyrs. The best way to deal with a feral ghoul swarming was to get out of its way. Yet the feral ghouls were also fleeing from something far more dangerous that the supersoldiers had only 'sensed' the presence and deep threat of.

 

The zhouls, and rhouls, began racing past the monorail vehicle and flatbed carts in smaller numbers at first but it soon became a flood. The more peaceful rhouls were in smaller numbers, being clumped together, for though zhouls did not normally attack rhouls, it did happen. Small zhouls, and rhouls, were carried by bigger ones as even zhouls often cared for others of their kind.

 

Some zhouls were more berserker savage than others and it was only these that would attack rhouls or even more passive zhouls. These were called zizhouls as the more peaceful, but still dangerous, ones were called zozhouls. Zozhouls and rhouls tended to work together at times but only rhouls would not automatically attack humans. Zizhouls would attack more human like ghouls, ghoulimans, but zozhouls would not do so. Zizhouls and zozhouls also stuck with their own kind.

 

They halted the monorail-car and began to move through a series of other tunnels. Plans now changed for the way ahead was too threatening to go through. They needed to try to avoid the zentmutants, along with the greater threat that was out there. Graharg remained outwardly calm but he kept urging people to move fast.

 

The sound echoed through the area, a blast of hatred, of agony, of aggression. It was not human but distorted human. It was something like a supermutant behemoth, one of the huge hulking supermutants, but it sounded far larger. Yet how could such a creature fit into the underground spaces of the area? Behemoths had trouble doing so in many such areas.

 

They moved on quickly until Graharg and Jonni's platoon turned back and went to check out the nature of the great threat. It seemed almost to be following them. They went through an area that was a laser carved rock tunnel, a left over from the very first years of the colonization of the Red Planet by Terrans (Earthmen). Many of such areas had been replaced before Doomsday but many others had not though they had often been upgraded or augmented. In the early, desperate colony period conditions had been very rough. Only the intervention of the LifeProclamation aliens had saved the Mars Colony from certain failure.

 

In a great laser carved chamber, complete with carved out pillars and storage alcoves in the walls, they prepared to confront the monster. The platoon moved into a flexible defensive position. This time two supersoldiers had heavier 3B1rifles and one had a heavy laserpulsegun or HLPG. The zazens thought they were prepared for anything but what came did so as a great surprise to them though not to Graharg.

 

The entity looked like a tall, skinny angular supermutant wearing a great, black coat of strange metallic leathery substance. He strode in on big black boots but made amazingly little noise while doing so. Large, very dark eyes stared hard at Graharg. He carried a walking-stick of strange metallic wood in his right hand and his left was thrust into a large pocket of his coat.

[Maharg67]

02-06(0024)

FALLOUT MARS DOOM: BETHESDATOWN BLUES

GRAHARG THIRTEEN

JONNI THIRTEEN

SARAH THIRTEEN

 

Graharg stood there with a huge weapon ready to use with multiple barrels and lens-barrels. He grimaced. “Palina Thirteen, or that is what you were before you became Devastator DarkThirteen.”

 

The other figure grinned. “DevastatorLord Sanzkrid to you. I came here to find out what OmniMultiple, serving CentroRadius, is up to encapping mutagenic mutants. Not surprised to see you here, meddling as always in not your business. Go away! My mutamutants are being stolen from my homebase of TekVault0087 hidden deep inside the Lamplight Primary Mountain.”

 

There were two Lamplight Mountains, the larger Primary and the smaller Secondary. The larger was roughly flattened at the top. The smaller was a true tabletop mountain with Lamplight City on top of it beneath its still surviving dome.

 

Graharg snorted. “No less my business than your business. So you were involved in the mutagenic experimentation project in TekVault0087? Of course that does not surprise me. I heard that the project failed for the mutagenic mutants turned out either too malformed or too rebellious, or just uncontrollable, to make a proper army.”

 

Sanzkrid lost his grin and replaced it with a scowl showing many sharp teeth including some big canine style fangs. “Truth is not all of TekVault0087 was controllable but I took command of many supermutants, zentmutants, beastmutants and metamutants with the power of my mind, with the carrot and the stick approach. SubVault Alpha is controlled by survivor human fools of the TekCorps and some other scum. SubVault Beta is largely abandoned except for some mutagenic malforms who struggle to survive. SubVault Gamma is mine; I rule it in the name of the Devastator Thirteen, greatest of all of the DarkThirteens.”

 

“So you have not lost either your delusions or your total lack of humility.” Graharg grinned. “Please stop trying to gain mind control over the zezan supersoldiers. They are totally immune from your crude psychic power.”

 

“Too bad for now I must kill them even as I kill you, Graharg, once and for all. Yes, you will return from death but these zezans will not.” Then the tall angular figure looked startled and turned to look at Jonni. “Cursed! Well, I must be going. Taking on you is bad enough but two Thirteens, and one being an unknown quantity, now that is stupidity.”

 

Sanzkrid vanished with a dramatic sparkling shimmer effect. The 'sense' of great threat did not vanish with him.

 

The monster came stomping into the chamber, a mutagenic thing like a great, very broad shouldered low hulking supermutant. It was a mass of ugly muscular super power. Large, hard hot eyes glared at Graharg and the zezans. On its head was what looked like a heavy duty version of a webcap. The creature spoke in a heavy, rumbling, guttural voice. “Me mutahulk hunting for DevastatorLord Sanzkrid. CentroRadius and OmniMultiple want him to be destroyed. You get in way, I destroy you like I destroy many zhouls that come screaming at me all crazy stupid. Make ghouls all run away in big swarming. Very funny to see them all run away like that.”

 

Graharg spoke. “Why does CentroRadius and OmniMultiple want you to destroy DevastatorLord Sanzkrid?”

 

“Them not tell me things like that. Anyway we do not understand things like that.” The mutahulk shrugged his huge muscular shoulders. He sniffed the air and then spoke again. “DevastatorLord Sanzkrid does tricky trick and disappear to escape me and other mutahulks but we triangulate, we read him and we trap him. You stay out of way or we stomp you.”

 

Then the mutahulk turned and stomped rapidly away until it was gone from sight.

[Maharg67]

FALLOUT MARS DOOM

ON GOING NOTES: HUMAN OR NOT?

 

When there had been so many changes, so many powerful but subtle influences, and copies made of humans, the question became, what can be classed as a human? There were no more 'pristine humans' left or so was the theory. Even the peoples in the deepest of the underground complexes were genned and bred to become different from original humans.

 

Then there were Wastelanders such as patchskins, roughskins and hairskins who were obviously altered, mutated to some extent. There were ghoulimans, ghoulified humans that were also known as 'tame ghouls' though ghoulimans hated this term for good reasons.

 

Though a majority of Wastelander 'pureskins' considered themselves to be original humans, to be 'normal humans', this was not true. They were just as mutated as were their more obvious cousins.

 

Ghoulimans were noticeably more human than were the feral ghouls but they had still gone through the ghoulification process. Yet some argued, especially the ghoulimans themselves, that they were also 'human'.

 

To complicate matters, why not, there were demighouls who were like clearskins in appearance but were still ghoulified. Semighouls had some marks of ghoulification. Subghouls looked like clearskins but behaved like feral ghouls and these were fairly rare.

 

Then there were clones of varied kinds. Were cloned humans really human?

 

Then what of androids, especially the very sophisticated, very human like androids especially the whispered about kinds that could supposedly reproduce their own kind.

 

Then there were transformed humans of many kinds be they zetan created zezan superfolk or mutagenic process created supermutants or cyborged humans of many kinds including cybermen and brainbots.

 

When Unity began to rise amongst 'humanity' then rose the question about whether unityfolk were really 'human' or not.

 

Of course there were also others like the living vampires of Vance's BloodFamily, the wild ape-humans of Caesar's Legions and even the.... but I will not speak of those just yet.

 

http://i592.photobucket.com/albums/tt9/Dragonpen61/Forum%20Additives/ForumAddit0028.jpg

Edited January 3, 2012 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

02-07(0025)

FALLOUT MARS DOOM: BETHESDATOWN BLUES

GRAHARG THIRTEEN

JONNI THIRTEEN

SARAH THIRTEEN

 

Graharg frowned. “These mutahulks are very dangerous, very heavy mass intensive and with special powers. I suspect the only real reason it did not attack us, did not call upon other mutahulks to join in the attack, was that is 'sensed' other power here. It 'sensed you, Jonni, as a Thirteen.”

 

Jonni frowned. “There is only one of me.”

 

Graharg sighed. “You are one but you are thirteen. You are one who is thirteen who is one. You are young and are still adapting. Let us go to the outpost as soon as we can for I fear they will be in danger.”

 

Jonni frowned. “Isn't DevastatorLord Sanzkrid in danger from those mutahulks that CentroRadius OmniMultiple control?”

 

“Hardly!” Graharg frowned. “It would solve a few problems if the mutahulks could or would destroy him. It would take him a long time to return to existence and during that time matters would be easier to deal with. The reason that the mutahulk came to the chamber where we were was that DevastatorLord Sanzkrid led it there in hope that the mutahulks would attack and destroy us, that I would be destroyed and there would be a delay before I could return to existence. He was well aware of the mutahulk moving towards the chamber but wanted to delay us until it got there. He will be most angry that his trap failed so miserably. Yes, he will know by now that it has done so.”

 

So they set out from the chamber and made their way through more of the crazy constructed, often reconstructed, often Doomsday distorted, labyrinth that was the subsurface layers of the DC. They moved again as one expeditionary group with a few supersoldiers scouting ahead and some following at a distance, behind.

 

They came upon an abandoned giant-ant nest, radants, with their saliva-cement formations still glistening. Why abandoned? Some dead soldier radants showed why because they had been shot to pieces with guns of the sort favoured by metamutants and supermutants. Radants were dangerous with great strength, speed and multiple layers of armour over exoskeletal and skeletal structures, they had specials that could shoot spinedarts or toxic-acid or flaming-oil. Yet they were not bullet proof, especially against high powered military weapons. Radants were not really giant-ants but just looked like normal ants made bigger.

 

They discovered the UDCR Outpost abandoned. The retreat had been a hasty one and there were signs that the outpost had been heavily attacked by encapped mutamutants at least once. Dead, rotting bodies of some zentmutants remained in an isolated pocket, where they may have been overlooked, but the mutamutants had taken away other dead mutamutants for recycling. There were three hidden messages indicating what had happened, being left by the commander of the outpost.

 

Graharg also found a very cleverly coded and hidden message left by the Sister of Compassion that he had wanted to talk to. She had left him a good deal of very useful, quite reliable, information taken from rhouls. When the outpost people had fled, they had taken many rhouls with them.

 

The information gained from the Sister of Compassion only confirmed what DevastatorLord Sanzkrid had said, that the CentroRadius OmniMultiple had taken control over both many metamutants but also a large section of the great big TekVault0087. DevastatorLord Sanzkrid had told truth but Graharg doubted very much that the aspect of the Devastator Thirteen had spoken the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

 

They found a hidden cache of extra equipment and supplies but only took what they needed and even added some stuff they could no longer afford to carry. They needed to become faster and more flexible as they moved through the areas ahead. Soon that meant going up to the surface.

Edited December 25, 2011 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

02-08(0026)

FALLOUT MARS DOOM: BETHESDATOWN BLUES

GRAHARG THIRTEEN

JONNI THIRTEEN

SARAH THIRTEEN

 

They threaded carefully across the sometimes warped or destroyed but often surprisingly intact Bethesda Ruins. They were forced to take a less direct route to Bethesdatown because of broken areas, infestations of mutated monster predators and encapped mutamutant activities. Twice they avoided small, fast moving, swarms of zentaurs and once a swarm of zentvyrs flying low through the air in a slightly clumsy manner.

 

Dark cloud formations swirled overhead bringing with them the promise of a Wastelands storm of some force. If it came there would be high winds, hard striking rain from very hot to freezing, large hail stones and lots of lightening strikes.

 

They observed an amazingly savage battle between zentmutants and radants. On one side were the zentaurs, low hulking zentoids, zentmutant humanoids of squat powerful nature that used basic weapons like fire-axes, hammers and even swords. The giant-ants swarmed out of the ground, soldiers attacking with relentless berserker tactics, being backed up by weaker guard radants and more powerful, larger hulking warrior radants. In radant terms the guards were like human security guards and the warriors were like human special forces soldiers. Taken by surprise, the zentmutants fought hard but they were slaughtered, falling beneath far larger numbers and by radants exploding up from the ground all over the place.

 

They found themselves in the fifty-fifth level of a great hulking pyramid structure that had once held luxury security apartments at the top and more moderate, but still expensive, apartments below that. They observed the domed settlement of Bethesdatown in the distance, saw the flashes of gunfire in the dimness of a heavy cloudy day and the noises of the attack on the large settlement. A great force of encapped mutamutants (mutagenic mutants) were attacking the settlement

 

Trogs, a kind of subghoul that looked like distorted clearskin humans, were moving away from the fighting. Almost mindless, they ran in clumps towards a subway entrance.

 

Sarah Lyons examined the distant battle through powerful digital binoculars. “Somebody is attacking the rear of the enemy forces. Yes, Ironside Mercenaries in power armour and in some battle-mecha and hoverguns.”

 

The battle-mecha were oversized power armour like figures, low hulking and with a mixture of special heavy weapons and smaller self defense weapons. They crunched along over the broken area of urban landscape along with big, but not so big, war power armoured figures. The hoverguns were moderately armoured by heavily armed hovercraft firing off 40mm autocannons, 20mm autocannons, multiple rocket launchers, special pulselaserguns and 10mm miniguns.

 

Ironsides Mercenaries were heavy combat specialists dealing mostly in conventional warfare. Clearly somebody was contracting them big time including strategic and logistics support. Most of the Ironside Mercs wore either lighter assault power armour or moderate battle power armour. There were MrGutsy combat robots hovering through the air with their fanjets pushing them upwards and forwards.

 

Sarah went on speaking. “I have fought alongside Ironsides three times. They are elite soldiers and specialists. Nobody knows who they serve for their contract is always to just one, a secretive institution called the Stronglife Foundation.”

 

“The Stronglife Foundation can be trusted.” Graharg did not seem to need to use binoculars to see clearly what was going on at the battle scene. Indeed he seemed to 'see' things that no mere binoculars could pick up. “Jonni, please take your platoon and intercept the enemy group trying to come up behind the Ironsides to force them to fight on two fronts. Sarah, I suggest that you go with them.”

 

Soon both platoons were heading towards a confrontation with some very sneaky enemies.

[Maharg67]

02-09(0027)

FALLOUT MARS DOOM: BETHESDATOWN BLUES

GRAHARG THIRTEEN

JONNI THIRTEEN

SARAH THIRTEEN

 

The zezans came up fast and quiet with phase-knives shimmering with energies and attacked the metamutant soldiers. They moved with amazing speed, agility and ruthless ability, cutting down the mutagenic processed killers. Jonni killed one and then another metamutant, noting the human and other bones decorating the armour of the creatures. Then they the supersoldiers were quietly, quickly, efficiently looting their enemies of anything useful.

 

Sarah and the Lyons Pride appeared with their silenced guns and moved up to stand in loose formation close at hand. As tough, as experienced and as skilled as they were, the Troopers of Steel had to admit that the supersoldiers were better fighters. Yet the zezan supersoldiers did not behave arrogantly or in any way that suggested that they assumed they were superior to the OSDC soldiers.

 

Lyon's Pride had wiped out another group of metamutants and, with them, three standard sized supermutants being massemoths. They brought some useful loot with them and, in their assault power armour, were moving as quickly and as quietly as they could. They did this well, were amongst the best of standard human fighters, but compared to the supersoldiers the were slow and clumsy in their movements.

 

They came upon the captured Ironsides, naked and bruised in crude metal cages and the supersoldiers killed the brutal guards, doing so quickly and painlessly. There were three men and two women soldiers that stared in wonder at the flickering motion of the supersoldiers, at the way they darted up and down the steep sides of the big gulley they were in as if they were horizontal.

 

Sarah, and her people, cared for the sicken and lightly wounded ex-prisoners. The five had been kept alive so that they could be forced to go through the mutagenic process back in TekVault0087. They knew this because the mentamutant type mutamutants had discussed such matters openly in front of the prisoners. They spoke of orders coming from an entity that they called OmniLord AltraDelta.

 

Graharg and the other expeditionaries appeared, including the many superfolk and unityfolk. The former prisoners were amazed to learn that both the zazens, and unityfolk, had come down from low orbit, beneath the World Bubble, from the Unified Orbital Republic. The Ironsides had heard whispers of such a republic but nothing more than that.

 

Graharg spoke quietly with the former prisoners and then did some healing on them. As it was they were carried on fold-up stretchers as the group moved on. They made good time and soon reached the main group of the Ironsides Mercenaries that were two brigades and other elements from the Ironsides Regiment.

 

The Ironsides Mercenaries were pleased to see the safe return of their comrades and made both the Troopers of Steel and Graharg welcome. But they were more wary of the zezan superfolk and the unityfolk from the Unified Orbital Republic. They were escorted to a secure area and the former prisoners were taken off to a medical station of the mercs.

 

The battle was paused for the moment, the encapped mutamutant forces having ceased to attack Bethesdatown and the Ironsides Mercenaries having ceased to attack the CentroRadius OmniMultiple forces. A big heavily armoured vertibird, partly lifted by antigrav-pods, came into drop off equipment and supplies, along with some replacements. It took off with some wounded and some mercs who simply needed to be elsewhere. Yet others also came from the vertibird.

 

A Sister of Compassion, in a hooded jumpsuit like outfit normal to the Orderhood of the Way of the Light, came with an assistant and two Brother Protectors in body-armour and hooded jumpsuits as bodyguards. The assistant was a Brother of Compassion in temporary service to the Sisterhood of Compassion.

[Maharg67]

FALLOUT MARS DOOM

ON GOING NOTES: COMMON FEATURES OF THE INNER MARSLANDS

 

AUTOTELLERS

Autorobotic banking machines, many of which are still functioning and are refilled with cash and special cards on a regular to fairly regular basis. Old coins, cards and notes are valued because they can be used to gain goods and services from still functioning network-Systems.

 

AUTOVENDORS

Autorobotic vending machines selling a wide range of goods and services,many of which are still functioning and are refilled with items on a regular to fairly regular basis. Some of the more common being as follows:

1001Things selling a wide semirandom range of small items.

LuckyDippers selling a 'lucky dip' of small items always with a small chocolate bar of semirandom flavour.

NukaCola NukaCola and related products.

PhotoMad 3Dphoto booth with varied backdrops and special effects.

PorterPies selling a wide range of savory and sweet hand-pies along with some drinks, salads, fruit salads, party-pies and family-pies etc.

VirtuReal selling short virtual reality breaks from the world. Controversial sexual and other services.

SunsetSodas Variety of 'Sunset' drinks and related items.

SurvivoMan A wide range of small, surprisingly well made, budget priced survival items from tools, to folding-guns to food rations and stimpaks.

Others, some to be added in future.

 

SEXBOOTHS

Controversial service used by registered prostitutes, couples, single customers that were provided with a wide variety of devices and services from virtual reality to synthetic scents, special beds and, in some cases, android companions. Often had 'euphemisms' as their names such as 'Convenient Pleasure Place'.

 

SLOTOSHELTERS

These coin-card-note operated bomb shelters were a mixed collection from dome shaped ones relying on fortified strength to special status field cylinders to such controversial ones as teleport escape booths. A common type was just a metallic cylinder to hopefully survive in. Another, fairly common kind was an access to a slide-tube that took one down to a larger shelter chamber. A large minority of these shelters were fraudulent, as many people found to their dismay on Doomsday, but most were in fact well designed and well made. Most survive.

 

SUICIDE-BOOTHS

Controversial slot-booths offering death in various 'quick and merciful' forms as compared to horrible alternate death. Were supposed to have been deactivated by Doomsday because of government intervention.

 

TOILET-BOOTHS

Coin-card-note paid special booths that provided toiletry and related services including small autovendors selling toiletries.

 

VIRTUBOOTHS

Super virtual reality booths either general or specialized for the following:

Games

3D City Navigation

Escape Relaxation

Fitness

Adult (not to be confused with sex-booths despite that they may offer some of the same sort of services.)

Gambling

Anger Release (Beat Your Boss Up Etc.)

Other

 

http://i592.photobucket.com/albums/tt9/Dragonpen61/Forum%20Terminal%20Pix%201/TERMINAL-IT-Workit-00043.jpg

Edited January 3, 2012 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

02-10(0028)

FALLOUT MARS DOOM: BETHESDATOWN BLUES

GRAHARG THIRTEEN

JONNI THIRTEEN

SARAH THIRTEEN

 

Sister Elena Compassionate was a mature, attractive but youthful woman, thanks to rejuvenation. She sat with her assistant next to her and her two bodyguards behind and one side of her. She spoke as she faced Graharg, Sarah and Jonni.

 

“A very interesting account you have spoke and it flows with much that the Orderhood of the Way of the Light has learned. This 'commanding presence', as you have called it, has infiltrated the UnityWay of the UDCR, has tried to infiltrate our own ranks of psychic linked networks, has also caused trouble with other psychics, including 'wild psychics'. We do not think that the commanding presence is either CentroRadius or the OmniMultiple but is a power that controls both. It also controls the OmniNexus that is in low orbit along with the Unified Orbital Republic, the DomniCommonwealth, the SkyGypsies, the SkyPirates, the Skylands Peoples Republic and the League of High Mars.”

 

And others, there were also others that were not normally spoken of and they were not spoken of then and there.

 

She went on speaking. “We suspect some sort of link between the OmniNexus and the SkyPirates who are causing increasing problems for the Orbital Union of Peoples.”

 

The OUP included the Unified Orbital Republic, the SkyGypsies, the Skylands Peoples Republic and the League of High Mars. The Skylands Peoples Republic, the SPR, was left overs of the great NuSoviet Invasion Force sent to attack Mars from the Lost Earth but also with others living amongst them. The SkyGypsies were so called zero-humans, humans gen-engineered to function better in low to zero gravity but others also dwelt with them. The League of High Mars was made up largely of LifeProclamation aliens but also had many others living amongst them. The Unified Orbital Republic was unityfolk centred but also with many other peoples.

 

After a brief pause, as if considering what she should say next, Sister Elena Compassionate went on talking. “The Orderhood of the Way of the Light are based in the League of High Mars for that is where we first came from and where a large minority of us still have come from. With the assistance of LifeProclamation saucercraft trapped inside the World Bubble, along with many LifeProclamation aliens of silvertori, yetans, yetamans and others, we move people to and from low orbit. The Skynet can not really harm us but almost none of the saucercraft are military vessels so we can do little to strike at Skynet using them.”

 

Silvertori were the people that greytori once were. Yetans were to silvertori as zetans were to greytori. Yetamans were to yetans as zetamans were to zetans. Yetans had no equivalent to the abominamans that zetans used but they did use yetan like androids known as yetadroids. While the greytori were antinatural and their creation puppets were unnatural, the yetans and their willing followers were quite natural.

 

The silvertori were a finer, more sophisticated people than were the greytori but less militaristic and aggressive. They lost a war with the greytori, though the greytori were badly damaged by more sophisticated silvertori technologies, and the silvertori then formed the LifeProclamation to work to assist various peoples in the Multiverse, the universality of universes. Often they were assisting people who were suffering from the dark works of the greytori.

 

The woman went on speaking. “The OmniNexus controls most of the Skynet that remains structurally sound and fully active. Yet the Skynet was so badly damaged on Doomsday that it has so far been of little practical use to the dark entity that is behind all of this. It calls itself RotideCitirca and yet we do not know its true nature except that it is truly ancient and is linked with the mysterious AncientOnes.”

 

Edited December 27, 2011 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

02-11(0029)

FALLOUT MARS DOOM: BETHESDATOWN BLUES

GRAHARG THIRTEEN

JONNI THIRTEEN

SARAH THIRTEEN

 

The AncientOnes had created the deep underground Lunar Labyrinth inside the single big natural moon of the Lost Earth. That is not the three far smaller artificial moons that had been created later with LifeProclamation assistance. The AncientOnes had created the Stargates that allowed almost instant travel between distant worlds, even between worlds in different universes. They had created many other things. They were linked with the wondrous Martian Underworld and the terrible fate of the silvertori who had become the greytori. They were linked with many current events and entities though they had supposedly vanished a very very long time ago.

 

Some water dripped from the smart-concrete ceiling. The storm had begun. The enemy had withdrawn, vanishing into quickly created fortifications amongst the ruins. Except the same storm, and other factors, stopped them, or the Ironsides, from reaching Bethesdatown. Such weather even stopped powerful vertibirds or vertijets from getting to the site. A convoy of heavily armoured storm-crawlers, on thick caterpillar tracks, was on its way to the position with reinforcements, equipment and supplies but such moved fairly slowly.

 

The woman went on speaking. “We tracked the RotideCitirca to the Samson Enclave only to find that you, Graharg, had already gone there with an expedition.”

 

“Gratarg is still in Samson Enclave investigating a secret buried at its lower levels.” Graharg responded. “Do you know of this?”

 

The woman frowned softly. “It is most likely to do with illegal experiments done by the Enclaven on refugees. Yet we have never had any indication before that such took place in SSE0A01113A1.”

 

A soft shiver ran through the chamber and there was the muffled sound of the explosion of thunder. Sheet lightening would be ripping through the sky overhead. In other areas of the Inner Marslands, with the storms would often come horrors that came with them but so far the DC had not suffered from this extra threat.

 

Graharg spoke then. “Do you have any idea why these dark forces would want to attack Bethesdatown?”

 

“Yes!” Elena frowned. “Unfortunately, yes. A child has gained the ability to summon forth things as in 'summoning materialization'. Also unfortunately, some of the adults tried to exploit this ability. The results were a enclosed cabin tractor pulling a trailer full of farm produce, a four wheeled four wheel drive truck with a canvas back pulling a box-back trailer, and a small truck filled with cubeboxes pulling a trailer stacked with more big cubeboxes. Apart from the farm produce pulled by the tractor, the others carry a wide assortment of items. There are also the shapeformed human and animal cloneforms that also appeared. By the time anybody could try to put a stop to what was happening, the second event took place.”

 

Graharg frowned. “The second event took place with out the direct influence of the unfortunate child?”

 

The Sister Compassionate nodded. “We now await the third event, to see if it will go from one to two to three or from one to two to four.”

 

Jonni frowned. “Is it important?”

 

Elena turned and smiled warmly at Jonni, patted her cheek softly. “So young and yet so lethal. So naive and yet so jaded. Yes, my sweet, it is of vital importance for the progression could either be 1 to 2 to 3 to 4 to 5 to 6 to 7 to 8 to 10 to 11 to 12 or, in the same period, 1 to 2 to 4 to 8 to 16 to 32 to 64 to 128 to 256 to 512 to 1024 to 2048. One progression leads to the twelfth event materializing twelve of each type of item while the other progression leads to the twelfth event materializing two thousand and twenty-four copies of each materialized item. You can see where the second progression could easily get out of hand.”

[Maharg67]

02-12(0030)

FALLOUT MARS DOOM: BETHESDATOWN BLUES

GRAHARG THIRTEEN

JONNI THIRTEEN

SARAH THIRTEEN

 

Jonni blushed a little and nodded. “If this third event is the decider, the important indicator, when is it to occur?”

 

Sister Elena smiled. “Tomorrow. We suspect that RotideCitirca has been attracted to Bethesdatown because of the materialization events and that is why it has sent its forces to attack the settlement through CentroRadius and OmniMultiple. What it is trying to achieve, we do not know. Perhaps it wishes to abduct the child that was able to summon materialize the items.”

 

“There are ancient wonder-mechanisms, of the AncientOnes, hidden beneath the Bethesda Ruins, beneath Bethesdatown, that have long been cloaked and otherwise hidden from being discovered.” Graharg was clearly concerned. “If the wonder-mechanisms have been exposed, have been fully activated, then it could explain the young person's sudden ability to summon materialize items.”

 

There was summoning materializing, in which substances and energies were summoned to be shapeformed into various items. There was summoning transportation in which items or entities were teleported from other areas or even other dimensions. There were other variations of the theme.

 

Graharg went on speaking. “Mars has an ancient and eventful history. Long ago it was a colony of the AncientOnes of the WonderraTiaka Faction, of which little is known even for the AncientOne Factions, all of which are mysterious. It was a focus of the Cosmic Cataclysm that apparently destroyed the AncientOnes who failed Ascension to a higher level of existence. Those who Ascended became the Lords and Ladies of the Light but also other entities. Others suffered the Descension, the fall, to become the Lords and Ladies of the Shadow and other troubling, troubled entities.”

 

Graharg knew of these matters but they were new to the others.

 

Elena went on speaking. “The silvertori were companion-followers of the AncientOnes and many of them existed here as a colony before the Cosmic Cataclysm. Somehow the colony survived in the Martian Underworld though it suffered heavily as much did through out this whole universal sector of the Multiverse. Then one came to them called the RotideCitirca, an ancient distorted one of chaotic evil as the RothuaRetirwa is an ancient one of chaotic good.”

 

Jonni nodded. “Yes, real chaotic and mixed up but nice. I met him-her-it once and he-she-it helped us superfolk start to free ourselves, as it helped the brainbugs start the same process.”

 

Graharg and the Sister Compassionate stared in shock at Jonni.

 

Graharg spoke. “Do you know what the RothuaRetirwa is?”

 

Jonni shrugged. “Just this mixed up, friendly entity we supersoldiers found in some caves a big chunkastroid of quasiliving cheesurock in low orbit. We gave RothuaRetirwa some foodbars, played chess, hugged it, sang some songs, did some dancing and it started freeing us. We were sent there by the Unified Orbital Republic to discover what was interfering with roboremote mining operations there. Turned out that some cheesurock worms were guarding their eggs and larvae because the mining roboremotes were threatening the nest. Also turned out some corrupt mining officials knew about it and tried to hide the fact because they feared losing performance and productivity bonuses. RothuaRetirwa had taken control over some of the roboremotes, had deactivated others. When we reported back to Central Headquarters, the mining operation was halted, the chunkastroid was declared off limits and the mining officials were officially fired and unofficially assassinated.”

 

Graharg sighed. “RothuaRetirwa is a vastly complicated and powerful living god. Amazing, it played chess with you, danced with you but then again, given its real core nature, perhaps that makes every sense. If RothuaRetirwa began a freeing process of the zezan superfolk, then soon enough the zetans will know great trouble.”

 

Jonni gave a mild grin. “She-he-it gets sulky when she-he-it loses at chess but is a very good dancer.”

 

Graharg shook his head in wonder and Elena laughed softly. Jonni gave them a puzzled look and Sarah kissed her on the cheek, puzzling Jonni even more but pleasing her.