>Last time on Freelance Ghost Quest: You came clean with Lisa, telling her everything about the ghost program and your past, and you went to bed. While sleeping, you accidentally wandered into the mind of the person looking for you, Omega Primus, who kept calling you Secundus. You had a chat and then he tried to get info out of your mind. He got something, but you managed to get away. This morning, you joined professor Haverdam and the expedition set off.
>Time for some high adventure, tally ho!

The camel train makes its way into the jungle, and as the professor told you, you guard the rear. The camels themselves are packed with tons of materials, tools, and all the tents for everyone who joined. Most people stay away from you a bit, whispering amongst themselves while shooting you glances, but you quickly get used to it. They don’t seem to get many visitors in the village.

The first day is fairly uneventful. You make good progress through the jungle, the team at the front doing an excellent job of cutting a path through the vegetation. The camels don’t seem to like you though, so you stay a short bit away from them. One of them even tried to bite you once.
There are some short stops every few hours, mostly for the professor to make sure they were still heading the right direction, but the men make use of them to eat and rest for a few minutes.

Once, it seemed like the caravan was under attack, but it ended up being just one guy getting a beetle in his face. As the night falls, you set up camp. It seems the tents are centred around a campfire in a small space slightly more open than most, with the camels at the outside keeping the vegetation away. Haverdam gathers everyone and starts talking about watch duty.

>1. Volunteer for watch duty.
>2. Say nothing.
>3. Write in.

1

>>30502910
>>1. Volunteer for watch duty.

>>30503082
>>30503093
Writing.

You’re teamed up into pairs and divided throughout the nightly hours, and you and your… partner have the first watch. As everyone goes to bed, you and the other man, named Holmes, sit at the campfire. You carefully look around for threats, but Holmes seems to be a bit less pro-active than you.

“So, I’ve been hearing some stuff about you, Artemis was it? Some big fancy hunter man swooping in to save the expedition? So my brother’s also kinda into the whole hunting business, so forgive my curiosity, but what kind of game do you generally shoot? What’s been your best kill so far?”

>1. Oh, mostly political dissidents and journalists getting too close to some inconvenient truths, you know.
>2. Mostly people that ask too many questions.
>3. Been hunting Zerg specifically, but then I got this offer and thought “What the hell, pays well enough”.
>4. Stay silent.
>5. Write in.

>>30503205

> Whatever fetches a decent price.

> Last one was a Mutalisk.

>>30503257
Writing.

“Oh, whatever fetches a decent price. Last one was a mutalisk.”

“Wait, you mean one of them Zerg critters? Whoa man. That’s huge! My brother’s mostly just stuck in sewers exterminatin’ oversized rodents. Mutalisk’s that flying bugger right? Long ass snake thing with wings?”

“Yup, that’s the one. Most trouble was getting one separated from its swarm though Those things never come alone.”

“Whoa man…” He seems to like that phrase. He went back to staring into the fire, considering what you just told him. You quickly check his surface thoughts. It seems he just thought you were a fraud or something. What you just told him made him reconsider. And technically, you didn’t lie. Last critter you killed WAS a mutalisk.

Suddenly there’s something in the woods drawing your attention. You feel it more than you see it, but there’s something there. The camels seem to have noticed too, as they’re looking around cautiously, and mostly their ears seem to be scanning around a lot too.

“There’s something out there” You tell Holmes while you slowly get up and grab your hunting rifle. Your revolver is just a quick grab away, and if things get messy you can reach into your outfit a bit more and take your hand cannon and combat knife.

>1. Psychically check what’s there.
>2. Wake up the camp quietly.
>3. Try to get a lock at it and shoot with your hunting rifle. It’s very hard to make out what it is or where it is though.
>4. Write in.

>Note: Using psychic attacks or cloak while people are around will make them highly suspicious of you. Mind scans and Psychic scans to find lifeforms etc. aren’t visible to them though.

>>30503527
Use mind scans

>>30503527

>1. Use the Force, Luke Skywalker

>>30503634
>>30503670
>Writing.

You best know what it is out there before you do anything. You open your mind and reach out, cautiously, to what’s out there. You feel the presence of Holmes next to you, then several people sleeping. Then the camels, who seem to eye you equally suspicious as whatever’s out there now. Then you reach the tree line, some small critters…

Suddenly you feel a violent lash of psychic energy coming at you. You manage to deflect most of it, but had it not been so unexpected it wouldn’t have been strong enough to do much to you. It feels familiar though. The psychic contact you established for a moment there is exactly like what you felt in the village subduing a Stalker. There’s a nagging feeling you have about the lash though, but you can’t entirely seem to place it. It felt not entirely like an attack. More like… A warning of some kind?

It doesn’t seem that intent on attacking though. If it had been, it would have been able to pounce at you while you were disoriented for a moment. You can still feel its presence. It’s lurking out there, but at a small distance.

>1. Attack it. There’s lots of foliage so guns might not be too useful, and in close combat it has the distinct advantage.
>2. Keep track of it while it stays around, but don’t make a move yourself.
>3. Go back to the camp fire, leave it be.
>4. Write in.

>>30503847

>Try to figure out what it means
>Try to communicate
>use imagination (or your non-lobotomized remnants of it)
>If the other watchman gets jumpy, calm him with a gesture, make it seem we go investigate

>>30503966
Writing.

What the hell was that? You gesture to Holmes to lay low, and you slowly creep forward. Carefully extending your mind back to the creature, you try to put curiosity in it, somehow. As it reaches the Stalker, you get another psionic lash, but you were expecting it and it doesn’t do anything. The warning seems stronger now. The creature feels more threatening itself too. You’re not entirely sure what to make of it, but it seems it doesn’t want you to continue forward with the expedition. You can’t really make out more as it feels… Primal. It doesn’t seem to be entirely sentient, but still fairly intelligent.

You try again, but get exactly the same back at you, slightly more impatient. You’re not getting anything more out of it. You move back to the campfire, but closely keep an eye on where the Stalker is. When the time has come to change watch and go to sleep, you warn the people taking over that there’s something out there, and go to bed.

Haverdam wasn’t lying when it came to the tent not being in best state. It barely has any form anymore, and the fabric is patched up in several places. The sleeping bag has some holes in it too. Luckily it’s fairly warm so it’s less of an inconvenience than it could have been.

You wake up next morning as Haverdam is shouting to get packing. Exiting your tent you see that it must have rained somewhere in the night, as everything is soaked. You pack up your tent and prepare to join your place in the rear of the camel train.

>1. Just go there. You’ll reach the temple tomorrow somewhere at noon, Haverdam said.
>2. Go talk to haverdam for a moment (about the stalker, otherwise specify)
>3. Write in.

>>30504296

The poor thing probably had cubs in there.

Keep alert of the surroundings and spend lest of the trip in silence unless addressed.

>>30504409
>Writing.

Huh, today's slow again.

You head to the rear again, and for the rest of the day, you keep a careful watch. You mostly know what to look for now, psychically. During the day, you feel a few stalkers lurk around the expedition, but none of them seem to get too aggressive. The rest of the day goes by uneventful, but by now you think there’s at least two stalkers actively tailing you.

You take the first watch again, together with Holmes. You clearly feel the psychic presence of two Stalkers circling the camp.

“So, you’re sure something was out there yesterday? I mean, I couldn’t see a thing, and I’ve been talking to some of the other guys, and they didn’t spot a thing.”

>1. I’ve had a lot of experience of hunting and even being hunted. Trust me, something was out there. There’s something out there right now too, I think it followed us.
>2. I think I must have imagined it. This jungle gets to you after a while.
>3. Stay silent.
>4. Write in.

>>30504647
>1. I’ve had a lot of experience of hunting and even being hunted. Trust me, something was out there. There’s something out there right now too, I think it followed us, and it brought a friend.

>>30504647

> I *know* there was a stalker. The jungle is full of them, too. Keep alert.

>>30504683
>>30504695
Writing.

>>30504647
>1
"I know there was a stalker somewhere out there and they fallowed us and... there's more of them tonight, probably circling the camp."

“I’ve had a lot of experience of hunting and even being hunted. Trust me, something was out there. There’s something out there right now too, I think it followed us, and it brought a friend.”

“Two stalkers? That’s ridiculous. Doc said it herself, they’re solitary animals!”

He seems dismissive, but doesn’t press on. The rest of the watch goes smoothly and silently. Again, when the next two take their post, you warn them that there’s two stalkers out there, but you’re met with a “sure buddy” and some laughing.

You go to bed, but you’re restless and can’t really sleep. It takes a while before you actually fall asleep, and it’s a restless sleep.
[1/2]

>>30505090

- “Get on with it. I know he’s around here somewhere. I got it from his mind. His own brain doesn’t lie, does it? It’s one of these systems.” It’s the by now familiar voice of Omega Primus. Sounding much like your own but with an always present sadistic undertone. It takes you a while to orient yourself, but it seems you hear it physically, not mentally. Wherever you are, you’re not inside Primus’ mind again.-

-After a short while, you start seeing too. You see a room of some kind, and some recognition dawns. It’s the bridge of a ship. It reminds you much of a battlecruiser, but it’s larger than a normal Behemoth class. In the middle, a ghost is standing, shouting at several people at consoles. The outfit is black though, with red visors instead of your own green, and a crimson 1 adorns his chest.-

-“Quartus!” He turns around to you. “Keep watch over these morons. I’m going to the psi amp chamber.” With that he turns around and walks through one of the open doors on the other side of the room. -

-“Right, I suppose it’s you secundus?” A voice whispers in your head. “I’ll make it quick. He’ll be in the amp room any minute now and he’ll be able to detect you. Even worse, he’ll be able to follow you back to where you are.” Your vision and hearing outside of the mental plane dissolves, and instead you now face a ghost much like Primus, but with a crimson 4 on his chest.-

-“He’s going to find you, no matter what you do. You have to be ready for him though. Surprise him. Take him down as fast as you can before he can react. I can’t do anything, he’d know if I was planning something the moment I think of it.”-

-You can feel him beginning to push you away.-

>1. Let him. You don’t want to risk getting detected.
>2. Wait, what’s going on? You’re against him too?
>3. What can I do against him?
>4. Write in.

>>30505103
>>1. Let him. You don’t want to risk getting detected.
lets see if the creepy voice in our head is actually helpfull

>>30505090
>Let him push you away, but ask questions as its happening so he can answer them next time. like "Wait, who are you? you're against him too? how do i defeat him?"

>>30505103
>>1. Let him. You don’t want to risk getting detected.

>>30505103

>let him

it's nice to feel we might have a friend. We wouldve been paranoid anyway.

-You let him push you away. Primus already got some information out of you, best not let him get more. It leaves you with a lot of questions though. It seems Quartus isn’t that fond of Primus either, but he’s in a position he can’t do much and has to obey him. Other than that you couldn’t really make out that much. He did actually let you use his eyes and ears though. You could see and hear as if it were your own… -

You wake up from a muffled scream, and immediately you’re on high alert. You carefully sense out, making sure not to touch the stalkers and give yourself away, and you feel the presence of the two men on watch slowly bleeding out. Every second puts them slightly closer to their deaths, and both of the Stalkers are in the camp. Last time, you remember, your cloak didn’t seem to phase the beast at all.

>1. Take out a gun (specify which) and shoot from inside the tent, you can fairly accurately say where the stalkers are and they’re only a few metres away. It won’t be hard to hit them. The follow up might be harder but you’ve got the drop on them.
>2. Crawl out of your tent and shoot them (specify gun).
>3. Use Mind shock. They’re psychic creatures though so it’ll be harder to get them with it.
>4. Write in.

>Note: Kinetic wave in this situation is ill advisable due to collateral damage and being inside a tent.

>>30505433
>Gun choice: Revolver, Hunting Rifle, Hand Cannon.

Also, taking a really quick shower, I'll write when I get back. If you guys already got consensus amongst yourselves, feel free to roll already.

>>30505433


>Unload revolver into the beasts
>reload while getting out
>Continue firing

Uncool, little pets, very uncool.

>>30505433
>>1. Take out a gun (specify which) and shoot from inside the tent, you can fairly accurately say where the stalkers are and they’re only a few metres away. It won’t be hard to hit them. The follow up might be harder but you’ve got the drop on them.

>>30505525
>>30505433

er, rifle

>>30505433
>1
>fire rifle from inside tent (revolver wont do much need more powerful round)
>exit tent fast they'll try to jump you in the tent
>reload/fire hand cannon if there too close
>psychic is last resort

How big is out tent?

>>30505592
Ok, back, faster than I thought.
It's a small one man tent, roughly one by two metres, but the fabric is hanging down quite a bit so you can't do much more than sit up.

>>30505499
>>30505525
>>30505548
>>30505592

So, shoot with the rifle and quickly jump out the tent.

Roll me a d20. Best of first three.

Rolled 15

>>30505728

[hunter instict intensifies]

Rolled 15

>>30505728

>>30505745
>>30505767
One more roll?

Rolled 17

>>30505728

>>30505873
Success! Writing.

You quickly put on your mask and grab your rifle. You switch to thermal vision and take aim while getting ready to jump out of your tent.

You fire off two shots, hitting the first stalker clean in the neck and shoulder, but the instant you do, the second one focusses on your tent and pounces. You roll out just in time to prevent being crushed under a few ton of deadly feline. She shots woke up everyone in the camp, but the Stalker you hit seems to be recovering.

You’re sitting prone, half crouched, and ready to dodge at any move of the stalker facing you, but you might not want to wait for it to make a move. Your rifle might become a bit of a hindrance in quick and close range combat like this though. You might want to switch over to your revolver or hand cannon.

>1. Wait for it to make a move, counter.
>2. Take aim with the rifle. It’s about three meters away from you but it’s facing you, making the target a lot smaller.
>3. Drop the hunting rifle, take out your revolver and unload in its face.
>4. Drop the hunting rifle, take out your hand cannon and unload in its face.
>5. Write in.

Rolled 19

>>30506018
Use mind powers to stun it long enough to unload the revolver in its head.

Rolled 17

>>30506018
>>4. Drop the hunting rifle, take out your hand cannon and unload in its face.
WE could say its some expensive tech we got if people start questioning

File: 1393453150646.jpg-(444 KB, 1094x580, Nexu.jpg)

444 KB JPG

>>30506018

Revolver time.

>>30506115
Mind Shock is a full action. Right now it's either shoot or mind shock or something else.

>>30506115
>>30506133
>>30506177
Votes kinda all over the place. If there's no tie breaker in 3 minutes I'll roll.

>>30506294
>>30506115
Unless you can count this as a revolver vote.

>>30506318
Count it!

>>30506350
Ok, writing.

Rolled 14

>>30506318
Can the revolver kill it?

>>30506359
Oh wait, derp, I'll be needing some rolls first.
D20, best of first three.

>>30506018
>3. Drop the hunting rifle, take out your revolver and unload in its face.

Rolled 19

>>30506378

Rolled 3

>>30506366
Looks like we're about to find out!

>>30506378

Rolled 3

>>30506378

Let's see...

>>30506404
>>30506419

>dat narrowly escaped mauling

>>30506402
Success! Writing.

You drop your hunting rifle, and before it even touches the ground, you’re holding your revolver. The stalker looks like it’s about to pounce, and you follow it’s movement while dodging.

One. Two. Three. Four.

You don’t manage to get the last two rounds into its face anymore, but as you roll aside, dodging its claws, you spin and plant them into its side. You back up quickly though, because despite the damage you just inflicted, it’s not down yet. It seems the rest of the expedition is having its hands full with the other one, but you can’t keep your eyes off your prey for too long.

It turns towards you, and its face is a bleeding mess. It got lucky its eyes weren’t hit, but it’s clearly having trouble with its jaw, and you can see bone in several places. Another attack like that and it’ll be down for the count. You have to reload though so you won’t be able to do as much next time with the revolver.

>Psi points: 4/4

>1. Reload and try to counter its inevitable attack.
>2. It’s clear of the tents. You can do a Kinetic wave now without hitting anything else, and the others are probably too preoccupied to notice.
>3. Mind shock will give you the time to reload, but they’re psychic creatures and have a quite powerful mental defence.
>4. Put away the revolver and attack with your hand cannon, it’s time for the big guns.
>5. Write in.

>>30506572

Reload, dodge and finish it off.

Rolled 8

>>30506572
>4. Put away the revolver and attack with your hand cannon, it’s time for the big guns.

If we reload now we'll get hit by one of them. use hand cannon, kill it then dual wield revolver/hand cannon and kill the other

>>30506643
The other stalker is preoccupied with the rest of the expedition members. You didn't have much time to check but it doesn't seem to be paying you any attention.

>>30506572
>4. Put away the revolver and attack with your hand cannon, it’s time for the big guns.

Rolled 10

>>30506572
>4. Put away the revolver and attack with your hand cannon, it’s time for the big guns.

No time to reload. Mind Shock isn't reliable enough right now for it, and Kinetic Wave would blow our cover if even one person saw it.

>>30506643
>>30506661
>>30506665
Ok, you know the drill.
d20, best of 3.

Rolled 20

>>30506766

Rolled 2

>>30506766

Don't critfail

>>30506782
well i can't get much closer than that
>>30506781
well this is good

>>30506781
>>30506782

Well, one more roll. It'd be hilarious if it was a one now.

Rolled 4

>>30506837
>>30506766

>>30506781
Alright, critical success, writing!

>>30506864
can i suggest we get another revolver, if one clip hurts it so bad, we might want a back up to use without having to reload

>>30506893
Dual welding cowboy Indiana Jones Space Wizard?

>>30506991
maybe i was more thinking of when one is empty we pull out the other, but Dual welding cowboy Indiana Jones Space Wizard works to.

You put the revolver into its holster, and your hand goes between the fabric of your suit to draw your hand cannon. In a swift move it’s trained on the beast before it can even finish its turn.

You draw the trigger, and as you feel the recoil hammer your hand, enough to crush the wrist of any normal human that would try to wield it, you see how the bullet enters the Stalker’s eye, and keeps flying. The mighty feline falls over, and you see a small bulge at the other end of its head where your bullet almost managed to exit its skull.

Enough of that though. There’s still another stalker there. Just as you turn around, you hear a loud bang. Louder than your revolver or hand cannon, and you see Professor Haverdam standing at the entrance to his tent, wielding a rifle that would make a C-10 get an inferiority complex. The barrel is smoking, and the stalker in front of him just had its side ripped to shreds. It panics and pushes itself away from the people, back towards the jungle. During its retreat, a nearby camel heaves its back and kicks at the Stalker, hitting it square in the jaw.

It’s not enough to take down the three metres long behemoth though, and it flees into the jungle, leaving a trail of blood and gore. You quickly put the hand cannon back in its place and draw the revolver again. The camp is calming down again as the wounded are being treated, and you go pick up your hunting rifle from where you dropped it.

>1. Go talk to Haverdam about the attack.
>2. Check on the wounded. Those two standing guard probably didn’t make it.
>3. Try to salvage your tent into something you can actually sleep in, and help with the clean up of the camp after that.
>3. Write in.

>>30507093

Check on the wounded.

>Mental note: next time, impress on the stalker that human is NOT for food.

Good thing they didn't get organized too, or we would've been catnip.

>>30506893
well, you have a quick loader so it wouldn't have taken that much time, but Stalkers have a thick skull. Lisa also mentioned they have bone plating in some places.
Against human targets a single bullet would probably suffice.

That said, it's not a bad idea. I'll keep it in mind to put as an option when you get back.

>>30507093
>2
Can't have the mission falter due to lack of man power after all if we have time do 1 and mention our messed up tent.

>>30507137
Lisa actually mentioned they're herbivores, so nobody really has a clue why they're so aggressive. The attacks only started after/during the first expedition.

>>30507093
>2. Check on the wounded. Those two standing guard probably didn’t make it.
>>30507141
I was talking about so we can do a quick switch without having to reload. can we get fullmetal jackets by chance? to my knowledge we should be able to pierce there skulls. I believe that they are copper coated in tungstain.

>>30507160
we probably keep entering there breeding grounds

>>30507214
>Whoa man, don't go /k/ on me, I know shit about guns.
Erm, sure? Might not be too readily available on a frontier world like this.

>>30507214
>>30507145
>>30507137
Writing.

>>30507258
>Whoa man, don't go /k/ on me, I know shit about guns.

what is /k/ ?

true they may not be readily accessible but im manly talking about using them in our rifle for long range and making them ourselves if we can.

>>30507093
>2. Check on the wounded. Those two standing guard probably didn't make it.
Try to organize a tracking party
Also convince the party to bring the dead stalker corpse with you for the doctor

>>30507283
the weapons board on 4chan

>>30507311
cool, do i just go up and hit /k/ to find it? thanks for telling me

You head towards the rest of the people. They’re already putting the wounded on sleeping bags they dragged outside. Luckily it’s not raining.

One of the two that took over your watch is dead already. The other one is heavily wounded, having claw marks over his entire body, and his throat seems to be crushed. The rest of the people are off fairly well. It seems like your initial shots disoriented it well enough to prevent it from doing much damage.

It seems there’s a medic already working on the throat, but it doesn’t look like he can do much. He’s already shaking his head and you catch him saying that they’d better just put him out of his misery.

>1. Try to use your psionics to keep the throat open so he can breathe. It’ll be intense, people will see your hands glow, you haven’t got much experience with doing something like that and you might just as well kill him by doing it, but you’ve got to do something.
>2. Talk to the medic about anything you could do to help, him specifically, or in general.
>3. Go to Haverdam, talk to him about the attack.
>4. Repair your tent and help clean up.
>5. Write in.

>>30507415
>1. Try to use your psionics to keep the throat open so he can breathe. It’ll be intense, people will see your hands glow, you haven’t got much experience with doing something like that and you might just as well kill him by doing it, but you’ve got to do something.

no one shall die on our watch, plus we might want to earn some brownie points with the locals now

>>30507390
Yup, just /k/ at the top there. Some elegan/tg/entlemen also frequent it, and sometimes they pop down here to have some (post-) medieval arms and armour banter etc. I haven't got a clue what the board itself is like.

>>30507415
>2. Talk to the medic about anything you could do to help, him specifically, or in general.
say we can do something to help the man but its a 50-50 shot, it'll work or it'll kill him.

>>30507415
>2. Talk to the medic about anything you could do to help, him specifically, or in general.

If there is nothing that can be done to help, then >3.

>30507472
k thanks, im still somewhat knew to 4chan, my brother introduced me to it.

>>30507415

Huh. That's quite a poser.

I'm torn between doing the right thing
>1.
and the sensible thing, i.e. not getting medic in the way
>3. "Has this happened on other expeditions?" (presumably not) then
>4

But leaning towards the latter.

>>30507390

>>>/k/

>>30507415
>1
Cannot lose more man power as we are going to need everyone's help in achieving mission objective.

>>30507469
No flashy psionics, we're trying to keep a low profile here. Sure he will likely die, but he'd probably die even if we try. Plus he knew the risks when signing on, and was even warned about the stalkers before going on watch.

We have no obligation to expose our self for a dead man.

>>30507415
3

>>30507568
>>30507507
>>30507478
>>30507474

Ok, writing.

You walk over to the medic, quietly asking if there’s anything you can do.

“Not really, unless you can magically undo the past two minutes. I’m surprised he held on this long really, he’s been choking since that stalker jumped him.”

Not wanting to bother the medic as he goes on to treat the other wounded, you head to professor Haverdam.

“So, has this happened on the previous expedition?”

Haverdam slowly shakes his head, a sad look on his face. “No, not anything like this. Last time when we arrived at the temple, we got attacked by one after a few hours of working there. We rushed back to Frontier the moment we drove it off to get the wounded help we couldn’t give in the field. Only after we got back did the attacks on the village start. I actually came prepared this time. I made clear to everyone what the risks were, and I got Shirley here,” he nods down to the giant gun. “But it seems it wasn’t enough. I’ve also never heard of stalkers attacking in pairs. They’re supposed to be solitary animals. I’ve actually had quite a long talk with Miss Fringers about them a few days ago, so I could be as prepared as possible.”

>1. I did warn them there were two stalkers around, but they didn’t listen.
>2. Ask about ’Shirley’.
>3. Ask about something else (specify).
>4. Go clean up your tent. Most of the camp is being cleaned up already by other people, and it’s still 6 hours before dawn.
>5. Write in.

>>30507744
You seem to enjoy large dakka
I too, enjoy large dakka.

>1. I did warn them there were two stalkers around, but they didn’t listen

File: 1393458784337.jpg-(44 KB, 500x500, SirRoderick.jpg)

44 KB JPG

>>30507744

>Ask about 'Shirley'

That's quite a gun, and he apparently knows how to handle it.

>>30507815
>>30507845
Writing.

>>30507744
can we help this guy. stabilize him with our power

>>30507744

"Were you aware that they seem to have developed minor Psionic abilities? Also, them seem to be rather protective of these ruins we are heading to..."

If I didn't know better, I'd think that these stalkers may have been introduced to some form of Zerg mutagen... especially if these ruins are of a Zel-naga origin...

“Shirley? You gave your gun a girl’s name?”

“Oh, well. It’s my arms maker’s idea of a joke. I commissioned it specifically to use against stalkers, and he likes giving it silly names. It actually stands for something, I believe, but knowing Monty it’ll be something ridiculous not having to do anything with shooting at all.”

“It was made specifically against stalkers? Then why did it take so long before you took a shot?”

“Well, it’s a shotgun of sorts, and it has a large spread. Due to the stalkers only being able to attack with their claws or fangs, they have to be close. Shirley is made to deal as much damage as possible to a fairly large surface, and its ammo is designed to rip through flesh and deal as much damage as possible. Bloody expensive though. Anyway, Stalkers’ sides are the least armoured parts of their body, so I needed a clear shot at its side, and without anyone standing too close or I’d have shot them to a bloody pulp.”

“I see…”

>1. Ask something else (specify)
>2. quickly repair your tent and go to sleep. Most people seem to have calmed down again and you see several people going back to bed too. There seems to be enough of a guard already.
>3. Write in.

>>30508089

inform him of the 'terratorial habit' and 'psionic potential' of the stalkers. Possibly suggest that the ruins 'created' them as a kind of 'self defence mechanism'...

>>30508089

>2. repair the tent and go to sleep. Hope more cats don't come in.

>>30508138
>>30508203
writing, last post for the night.

You glance around quickly, making sure no one can overhear.

“Look professor, these things aren’t just any kind of beast. They’ve got psychic powers. They can see through my cloak and can resist my own powers fairly well. They haven’t actually tried attacking me with it yet but who’s to say they can’t?”

“That’s… Disturbing news.”

“And think about it. They started attacking after you got to that temple. They seem to be highly protective of it, and more than if it’d be their breeding ground. They went to attack the village after you went there. Doctor Fringers told me they were engineered in some way, so I’m thinking they were made to guard that place.”

“Had anyone told me before today I’d probably have laughed at them, but them teaming up is odd enough already. Finding out that they’re psychic is even worse. I’m inclined to believe you Mr Artemis. I think it’s time my expedition changed its goal into stopping these beasts. Find whatever it is they’re guarding and find a way to stop the attacks.”

You quietly nod, and share a short moment of silence with the professor before he excuses himself. You head back to what’s left of your tent. You can’t really manage to piece it all back together, but the sky is clear, it shouldn’t rain before you leave again tomorrow. You convert it into a sort of extended sleeping bag, and go to sleep.

>End of Freelance Ghost Quest #7!
>Feel free to ask me stuff, criticise, etc. I’ll be sticking around for a bit longer.

>>30508404
was fun. so when do we start again?

>>30508404
And archived! Feel free to upvote if you enjoyed it.
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Freelance%20Ghost%20Quest

>>30508430
Thanks.
I'm probably going for tomorrow 8pm CET again. Currently suffering from pfeiffer's disease so if I'm feeling too bad I might cancel. I keep people informed through the twitter in the OP.

kk. hope u feel well

>>30508404
>404 ending the post
Nice, I feel we are still establishing ourselves so far in regards of what we are doing in the story as in we are currently in the arc wheer we fiddle aout xenobiology typethnigs.

>>30508496
Yeah, currently going on is Archaeology/xenobiology shenannigans.

I've got a few plot lines when that's finished, depending on what you guys do and how you behave during psychic phonecalls with the family.

You know he just wants a family reunion. What's so wrong with that?

>>30508558
i'm still curious what would have happened if we took that Ghost rifle back at the armory? Can we still get it?

>>30508558
there are always fights at family reunions and superpowered assassins are no diffrent

>>30508558

we are going to learn from the mistakes of the old Ghost quest and not instantly gib everyone before learning things... hopefully...

>>30508595
Technically speaking you can always just go back and get it. It might depend on the circumstances at the time whether or not it's doable or a good choice at that point.

>>30508655
I still want it though it'll be a big step up from our regular rifle. Can we have our suit cloak just one part of us so we can keep it hidden and be able to use it?

>>30508721

Might be a better idea to get the 'Weisserdammer' chap to 'give' it to us...

>>30508653
I'm really wondering how things are going to turn out when you get to the family reunion arc. There's several ways it can turn out, and I'm just really wondering which one you're going to take.

And I think the mistakes in Ghost Quest were more of a player stupidity despite Adjutant's warning than shooting first questions later. Why the viking, anons? Why?

>>30508745
And with that, I'm off to bed. Goodnight anons, hopefully see you tomorrow.

>>30508721

No, it's not. At this point it's a liability. Getting an unknown force pissed at us is not worth a gun we're not even proficient in using.

>>30508804
Were not stealing it were getting a "reward" for keeping his his "hunting loge" safe from stalkers. so he won't mind. and if superpowered ghost family is coming we will need the best stuff we can get.

The thing that ruined the last quest for me was when we killed NotSteve Irwin.