The Bottom Line
Heroes: Jenissa, Zeke
Enemies: Wild creatures, Stone Cold Steve Austin and the Dragon
of Sphere
Res Publica's third adventure began in the ominous interior of a dimly lit interrogation tent. The tent was currently occupied by a quintet of people. Two of these were none other than our noble heroes, Lt. Jenissa and Lt. Zeke. The ranking superiors of their respective divisions, Major Khaurus Vanbaal and Captain Mace, were also in attendance. The room's fifth occupant was none other than that most despicably enthusiastic cooking show host, Carlo Rota. The four Republic officers were standing in a semi-circle, with Rota, who had just recently awoken from his vanilla coke-induced coma, tied in a chair between them. Although Zeke and Jenissa had single-handedly captured the traitorous 'celebrity,' Major Vanbaal was excrutiatingly sparing with his praise. Capain Mace was slightly less so, but Jenissa's hackles still bristled visibly at being informally addressed as a 'kid' by the Captain. Although all were eager to get on with the interrogation, protocol dictated that it could not begin until the ranking officers of all three Electran military divisions were present.
Fortunately, nobody had to wait much longer, for striding into the tent at that moment was a man wearing gigantic sunglasses and carrying a plush leather suitcase. It was Major-General Byrne-White, and he was quite upset at being bothered at this hour of the night. Apparently, he was slated to depart for a press conference in the capital in just a couple of hours, and thus the presence of his suitcase. And so, with the modern Major-General's impatience, the interrogation got underway.
Rota responded to the first couple of questions with merely his smug but rather unexpressive shouting. Following this, he denied knowing anything about the 'poisoning' whatsoever. When confronted with video evidence, he admitted to being in the kitchen, but only to properly season the otherwise unspectacular food. If any soldiers had gotten sick, it must have been due simply to a weak constitution. It was somewhat surprising that nobody seemed to concerned at Rota's pushing of Frankie into the fires of the grill. However, when threatened by Zeke of being cut off from his supply of precious cheesecake, Carlo finally confessed that he had been sent by the Spherans to slow down the reinforcement flow.
This admission settled the matter, for Vanbaal at least, and he idly pulled one of his handguns from its holster. He knew just how to deal with spies. However, before he could get any further, Byrne-White objected. Proper international protocol demanded that Rota be sent back to the capital to receive full legal treatment. If they dealt with him here and now, it could be construed as a blatant act of war, instigated by their side. Even Jenissa's point that the Spherans had not only already attacked them but landed on Electran soil without provocation failed to sway the Major-General. He insisted that the proper procedure needed to be upheld. Vanbaal seemed to grow increasingly irritated at the bureaucracy involved, and without warning, leveled his gun and fired a pair of shots in Byrne-White's direction.
However, the shots weren't aimed for the Conventional officer. Spinning around, our heroes saw the sinuous body of a very large - but very dead - snake, right next to Byrne-White's now-tattered suitcase. Khaurus only grinned and slipped his gun away. The sneaky little devils didn't always play by the rules. They were supposed to rattle. This informational tidbit, however, failed to save the Fenixan from being labeled a bloody barbarian by the Major-General, who swiftly picked up his damaged luggage and stormed from the room. Bemused grin fixed on his face, Vanbaal reminded our heroes that the uncivilized hills of the Crytal Mountains were crawling with more than their fare share of wild beasts, and then dismissed them for the evening.
Lately, your biggest dilemna has been figuring out which outrage to tell your Daddy about first. If it's not that horribly rude Fenixan commander, it's sub-standard food storage techniques or grimy Auxiliaries nearly spilling beer all over your troops. On the other hand, you're sure that Daddy would be so very proud of your award and all the good press you've been getting. Who knows what state this camp would be in if it weren't for your presence!
Troop Status
- Supplies: PK-33 Handguns, Combat Helms, 1 set of field
Medkits, spotless set
of Deluxe Uniforms, full supplies of ammunition and
field rations. You've
been very careful to eliminate any trace of fish
from these rations.
- Morale: Your men were most pleased with the award from
yesterday's
inspection.
As such, they seem for the most part to be in excellent
spirits.
- Health: A few of your troops are still suffering from
the lingering effects
of the poisoned fish. However, more
importantly, many of them claim they
were unable to sleep last night because of the noise
coming from the adjacent
Auxiliaries tent. Vidal Sassoon in particular was
most upset about this, as
it disturbed his 'beauty sleep' - an essential
component to any good soldier's
schedule!
Military Communiques
- Just this morning, you were given orders to head out
and escort an incoming
supply
caravan on the final leg of its journey to Field Camp.
As soon as you finish
doing your
hair, you'll have to get the men moving.
- Because of yesterday's food poisoning, the march to
Front Base has been
delayed for
a day. You'll thus be moving out tomorrow instead.
Personal Notes
- Once again, your role in saving the camp from an
infected water supply has
made the
front page news.
- Doubtless in no small part due to your exploits, the
press have been all
over Field Camp lately. In fact, you just saw a new
press crew arriving this
morning from the WWE, though you're not sure what
that stands for. They must
be here to interview you, and if they're not, they
should be.
- You have no idea how an ill-mannered foreigner like
that Khaurus Vanbaal got
put in charge of this camp. On the other hand, Major
Lanver seems like a very
nice fellow. He should definitely be the one in
command as far as you're
concerned.
- The habits of those grimy Auxiliaries have gotten
simply unacceptable! They
have absolutely no business keeping you and your men
up at all hours of the
night. Something has got to be done about this
situation.
Mini-Objectives
- Steal any and all media attention for yourself.
- Ensure that the Auxiliairies do not disturb your
troops' sleep in the
future.
Frankly, you're neither particularly upset or surprised at Carlo Rota's food poisoning attempts. You're much more upset by the rather disapointing flavor of new Vanilla Coke. It certainly wasn't worth all those painful headlocks you went through to get it! And on top of that, it may well have caused some other problems that you weren't expecting...
Troop Status
- Supplies: Hacksaw Shotguns, Combat Daggers, full
supplies of ammunition and
rations. These 'rations,' of course, include copious quantities
of beer.
- Morale: Your victory in that training fight did a lot
to restore your men's
confidence. Fortunately, they're not the kind of
guys to be too worried about
their inspection results.
- Health: A lot of your boys are pretty tired, mainly
because they stayed up
all last night for another beer party. Other than that,
though, they seem to
be in good shape.
Military Communiques
- Just this morning, you were given orders to head out
and escort an incoming
supply
caravan on the final leg of its journey to Field Camp.
You'd better get moving
soon,
it might take a while to get the men up and out of bed.
- Because of yesterday's food poisoning, the march to
Front Base has been
delayed for
a day. You'll thus be moving out tomorrow instead.
Personal Notes
- Once again, the spoiled little brat managed to get
herself in the paper -
this time, for saving the entire camp from a potentially
'infected' water
supply.
- However, that isn't nearly so worrisome as Desrae's
recent attitude. She
apparently
wasn't too impressed with how easily you were taken down
by the Vanilla Coke
Guy. In fact, you've heard that she's been
talking about "putting a slug of
lead in the back of the little wussy's head and
takin' over." Of course,
you're sure she doesn't mean it, but...
- After that parade, your men seem to be quite taken
with having beer parties.
In fact, most of them were up all last night.
You're not really too concerned
about it, though you can't help but wonder how they
managed to bring so much
beer.
Mini-Objective
- Find a way to prove to Desrae that you really are one
helluvah tough guy.
The action resumed the next morning as Jenissa, prim and polished despite her lack of sleep, emerged from her private tent into the crisp morning air. She did so just in time to see a bedraggled Zeke stumblign out of his own tent. Not that being bedraggled was anything new for the Auxiliaries officer. Stalking closer, though not too much closer, Jenissa reprimanded her colleague for the noisy and disgraceful behavior of his men during the night. Zeke, however, maintained that his men had not simply been partying, but rather training hard for the next inspection parade. This assurance, however, did little to pacify neither Jenissa, nor Vidal Sassoon, who was irate at being deprived of his 'beauty sleep.' Which, as both he and Jenissa pointed out simultaneously, was something Zeke could use quite a lot of. At least a full year straight was Sassoon's expert analysis.
Finished with berating the Auxiliaries, the two Special Forces officers returned to their side of the camp. Jenissa told her sergeant that they had been assigned an early-morning mission and would have to get the men up and moving. Unfortunately, Vidal told her that that would be impossible. Due to the Auxiliaries' rowdiness, he had already ordered the men to sleep for another hour in order for them to be looking their best. However, Jenissa promptly rescinded these orders, stating that both mission assignments and morning aerobics could not be put off, and the Special Forces grudgingly made their ways from their bedrolls.
Meanwhile, it seemed that Zeke had been given the same assignment, and he too was having some trouble getting his men moving. Desrae smirked from the sidelines that it seemed like he was having trouble handling them. However, Zeke quickly overcame his men's reluctance by informing that the caravan they were to escort to the camp might well have beer onboard. This got the Wheel rolling in record time, although a few of them were concerned about the presence of the Special Forces on the mission. They might make hijacking -- or rather, 'escorting' the caravan slightly more difficult.
Nevertheless, with their respective forces assembled, the two officers started marching their troops out into the hills. Zeke decided to keep up morale with a rather bizarre marching chant that seemed to involve rolled gold pretzels and the significant thirst brought about by such pretzels. Not to be outdone, Jenissa ordered her men to start up a traditional Electran marching chant in order to drown out Zeke's men. However, the stylish Outfit was simply no match for the thirst-induced enthusiasm of the Wheel, and it was Jenissa's men who ended up being drowned out themselves.
After several hours of marching through the foot-hills, our heroes came within sight of a caravan of eight military trucks making their way over the rough and bumpy terrain at a snail's pace. Descending into the valley below, our heroes soon found themselves face to face with the caravan's less-than-pleasant leader.
Glenn Beck
Race: Electran
Rank: Captain
Affiliation: Electran Acquisitions Corps
On a first impression, it's hard to believe that Glenn Beck is a
member not of the Electran Bitterness Division, but of
Acquisitions. And the impression only goes downhill from there.
A bitter-looking, grey-haired man in a dark blue suit and with
dark, rectangular mirrored sunglasses, Beck seems to hate the
world as a whole, and has absolutely no respect for any Electran
military division other than his own. In fact, he seemed to have
a particularly low opinion of 'soldiers,' and the fact that they
were only interested in beer and marijuana. After all, surely
these were the only items that could maximize the lazy soldiers'
utility. And complaining about it seemed to be the only
activity that would maximize the utility of Beck himself.
Before so much as introducing himself, Beck was all over the two lieutenants for their tardy arrival. It would be just like soldiers like them to spend all their time smoking up and knocking back booze. Although Jenissa took great exception to this, Zeke really couldn't deny the booze part. Beck was also skeptical of how much protection the two platoons would be able to provide to his caravan, since the Acquisitions Corps was the only part of the army that could do anything right. More likely, they would simply maximize their utility with their beer and marijuana while allowing the wild beasts of the foothills to run rampant over the supply train.
While Beck was engaged in his bitter rant, Jenissa took the opportunity to order her men to perform a search of the trucks. She had something in particular in mind, and she found it: several kegs of beer in one of the back trucks. Glenn Beck had naturally predicted this, and even more naturally pointed out how right he'd been. However, even he was surprised when Jenissa ordered her soldiers to pull out their guns and blow several holes in the kegs, spilling their contents out onto the rocky soil. She had no intention of allowing any more beer to reach the camp to fuel the beer parties of Zeke's rowdy troops. The Auxiliaries were mortified and a few suggested 'returning the favor' against the Special Forces, but the beer was beyond rescue. Satisfied, for her part, at a job well done, Jenissa hopped into one of the trucks and told the bewildered driver to get a move on.
However, as predicted, the journey through the mountainous valley did not go peacefully, and our heroes soon found themselves fending off a plethroa of fearsome wild beasts. From acid-spitting Spitfires to savagely furry Gibberlings to heavily armored Crystalbacks, the Wheel and the Outfit defeated them all to get the caravan to the other side of the valley. By the time they arrived back at Field Camp, neither squadron had lost a man. The caravan, however, had not fared quite so well, and only four of the original eight trucks came rolling into camp.
Captain Wincester was waiting for the two platoons, and looked somewhat crestfallen at Glenn Beck's report at how the soldiers' slovenliness had nearly caused the destruction of his entire caravan. However, since at least some of the supplies had arrived intact, both Zeke and Jenissa were granted one additional Military Credit to improve the equipment of their troops. Or in the opinion of Glenn Beck, to spend on booze and marijuana, since that was the only purchase which would really maximize their utility.
No sooner had wincester and Beck departed when several of Zeke's men started pointing frantically to the sky. Our heroes looked up to see a glowing green fighter jet streaking over the base. It was flying low, and seemed to be preparing for a landing. The sound of gunfire filled the air as several of Zeke's men declared that they were under attack by aliens, panicked and started firing their shotguns wildly at the low-flying jet. Zeke quickly managed to calm his men, but was still curious about what was going on. Thus, he and Jenissa headed for the camp's small airfield to investigate. They arrived just in time to see the glowing green fighter pulling to a stop, with another much more normally fighter already waiting on the ground. As the two officers approached, the fighters' cockpits opened and the pair of aircrafts' pilots came into view.
Kal Meecham
Race: Electran
Rank: Captain
Affiliation: Republic Air Force (RAF)
A tall man with a remarkably deep voice, Kal Meecham sports a
head of buzzed brown hair and a dark blue pilot's jump-suit. As
a member of the RAF, he'd come to Field Camp in order to
establish an airbase for the Electran frontline operations, as
well as escorting an important visitor. If first experience is
any teacher, his main hobbies seem to include flying strangely
glowing airplanes and hiding from his peers and subordinates. It
was also discovered that he had been a prominent scientist prior
to being called into service, as well as the only man alive who
could fly a jet plane and still be late for work.
Roger Murdoch
Race: Loracian
Rank: Sergeant
Affiliation: Republic Air Force (RAF)
Roger Murdoch serves as flight-sergeant to Captain Kal Meecham in
the Republic Air Force. Murdoch is a tall, black man with short
hair and beard, and he wears a white air force hat, a
professional white air force shirt with the usual RAF wings and
badges, and a pair of shiny yellow basketball shorts. Murdoch's
major characteristic is his steadfast denial of the insinuations
that he is in fact the famous basketball player Kareem Abdul
Jibbar. Of course, what would a famous basketball player be
doing in the RAF anyway?
Meecham's plane had stopped glowing by the time our heroes reached him, and the RAF captain was as confused as anyone as to what had caused the effect. However, until they found out, he made it very clear to everyone that they had all been blind. This was in spite of Murdoch, who was pestering Kal with questions about what it had been like to be green. Meecham went on to explain the duo's purpose at Field Camp, and as well as being there to establish an airbase, they had also brought a very important political visitor. But before Meecham had the chance to say anymore, that very visitor leapt out of the second seat of the plane. This visitor was very big and very angry.
Jesse 'the Body' Ventura
Race: Electran
Rank: Senator
Affiliation: Electran Republic Senate
Jesse 'the Body' Ventura is an ex-wrestler turned politician,
whose ascention into the Senate made big news several years back.
He is known for his rather 'innovative' policies, which seem to
mostly involve crushing and destroying his opponents, and he is
his said to be backed by a top-notch team of political experts.
The Body is an absolutely gigantic man, with a shiny bald head,
dark mustache and a professional tweed suit. His purpose for
coming all the way up to Field Camp was to ensure that tax-payer
dollars were being put to good use in the defense of the nation,
and to teach the soldiers there a thing or two about 'real'
fighting.
Face red with rage, Ventura confronted Zeke and demanded to know why his men had been unable to shoot down a single wimpy fighter plane. The Body simply could not tolerate such weak incompetence from the members of the Electran Military. He was going to destroy Zeke! He would kill him! He would tear him apart! With a rather smug-looking Desrae watching on, however, Zeke was not about to back down from this challenge, and declared in a loud voice that he would accept any challenge, anywhere, any time. This only seemed to make Jesse angrier, and he demanded to know why Zeke let his men use a bunch of sissy shotguns instead of the only true method of combat, which was of course wrestling. Zeke replied with the fact that his own fists were more than enough to take down any man in hand-to-hand combat.
No sooner had this statement been uttered than an entire camera crew started rushing to the scene. The press was attracted to such controversial statements like flies to honey. And at the very head of the media crowd was a man who was very much all about controversy.
Vince McMahon
Race: ??
Rank: Civilian
Affiliation: WWE News Network
Vince McMahon is a cunning and aggressive journalist for the WWE
(World Wide Editorials) News Network. Vince is a big man, and he
makes his presence known with his bright white suit jacket, black
polo shirt and ubiquitous microphone with the letters 'WWE' on it
in big red font. McMahon had apparently come to field camp in
anticipation of Senator Jesse Ventura's visit, as well as to
report on the war situation to the public at large. This
'reporting' seemed, however, to mainly involve stirring up
dissent and controversy among the military ranks. Above all,
Vince McMahon is the kind of man who will bring home the scoop,
and the ratings, no matter what it takes.
Mean Jean
Race: ??
Rank: Civilian
Affiliation: WWE News Network
Mean Jean is Vince McMahon's reporting partner for the WWE News
Network. Considerably shorter than McMahon, Mean Jean sports a
balding head, blond walrus mustaches and a referee's shirt. His
main purpose seems to be to stand around and let Vince ask him
rhetorical questions and then be cut off before he can answer.
As such, he has yet to really say anything beyond the phrases
That's right and I can't believe it.
McMahon was quickly all over Senator Ventura about the latter's ill opinion of the state of the military, and about how he planned to 'crush' Zeke. McMahon thought this was a phenomenal idea, and suggested the creation of a wrestling tournament to see if there were any soldiers at the base who were really up to Jesse's tough standards. The Senator easily agreed to this brilliant idea, as did Zeke, who, with a sidelong glance at Desrae, loudly declared his ability to tear any opponent to shreds.
However, Jenissa was getting fed up with being out of the spotlight. Pushing her way in front of Zeke, she told McMahon that the wrestling match would attract far better ratings if Ventura were to take on a cute and beautiful female officer like herself. Vince was all for the idea, although Jesse Ventura was doubtful that he wouldn't end up crippling such an opponent by pure accident. Jenissa only smiled and told the Senator he was in for a surprise.
It was at that moment that Captain Mace arrived on the scene. Although he had been aware of the Senator's impending arrival, he was less than pleased to find Vince McMahon and the press. However, Vince was quick to remind the gruff captain that there was no way to silence the freedom of the press, and the people had a right to know the real story. Jesse Ventura was more than happy to defend Vince's position, and to bring the subject back to more pressing issues, like the upcoming wrestling match. Seizing this cue, Zeke was once again declared his offer to take on any man, anywhere. He was not to be disapointed; for approaching the airstrip at just that moment was a man who was more than ready to meet that challenge, and perhaps even more than Zeke had bargained for.
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Race: ??
Rank: ??
Affiliation: Republic...military?
There ain't much to be said about Stone Cold Steve Austin. Why?
'Cuz Stone Cold said so. Austin's looks alone are more
than enough to terrify any foe: a bald head, a dark goatee, an
obnoxious sneer, black wrestling tights and knee-pads, and a
black leather leather vest with a burning white skull on one side
and the numbers 3:16 on the other. Stone Cold is a crucial
member of the military and has personally come to the frontlines
to send the Spherans packing like the jackasses they are. Of
course, all of this by Stone Cold's own words, but when you ARE
the bottom line, is there anything else that really matters?
Austin told Zeke that if he thought he had a chance at this impromptu wrestling tournament, he had another coming: because the Austin 3:16 express was going to steamroll right over him and make him eat his words. Desrae raised an eyebrow and asked Zeke if he was just gonna stand there and take that. No, Zeke shot back, he wouldn't be eating anything. But he was thirsty. Thirsty for Stone Cold's blood. And if Zeke could be believed, there were even pretzels that were responsible for this insatiable thirst. Stone Cold's face grew red hot with fury, and in a flurry of incoherent insults that seemed to involve the word 'jackass' a great deal, he cracked open a beer and started pouring it down the front of his shirt. Not to be outdone, Zeke called for his own men to arm him up, and he was promptly tossed a bottle of beer, which he even more promptly downed in one giant shot.
Captain Mace, meanwhile, could only shake his head and demand to know Stone Cold's rank and affiliation. Stone Cold didn't need no rank, jackass. He was a one-man army, and he was gonna do what all the geryatrics like Mace were unable to and take out the Spherans in no time flat. Muttering under his breath, Mace told the Senator a tent had been prepared for him, and the two of them departed from the airfield. After making just a couple more outrageous comments and interrupting Mean Jean, Vince McMahon left as well to drum up publicity and support for the upcoming event. Stone Cold reminded Zeke that he would be seeing in the ring, and Zeke informed Stone Cold that the latter wouldn't be seeing anything for very long after he was through with him. And so, with these dire words, our two heroes were free to go about business of their own.
Jenissa did indeed have business of her own, though it was hardly military in nature. Following her dismissal, she headed straight for the guest-tent occupied by Senator Jesse 'the Body' Ventura. The Senator was surprised (and as usual, enraged) to see her again so soon, but the determined young woman hushed him up quickly enough. Her proposal for the Senator was blunt: he was going to take a dive in their upcoming wrestling match. After Ventura's ensuing rant of fury had subsided, she went on to inform him that if he did so, her father, the extremely influential Senator Bremingham, would lend his political support to Ventura's platform. If not, political life would be very difficult for Ventura, if he wasn't kicked out of the Senate entirely. Although Jesse loathed the idea of losing a match in the ring, he grudgingly admitted that his team would likely approve of such a political move, and thus agreed to Jenissa's plan. Smiling smugly, Jenissa then made good her departure before the volatile Senator changed his mind.
Zeke, meanwhile, had nothing nearly so purposeful in mind. However, as he was strolling across the camp, he spotted Varin being interviewed by none other than Vince McMahon and Mean Jean. Varin was loudly complaining about how the Special Forces never pulled their weight, and that his Conventionals were the ones that were having to hold up the army. At Zeke's arrival, Varin admitted that the Auxiliaries had some uses, but seemed a little lax on discipline. Vince then asked Varin to comment on the upcoming wrestling match, and how Zeke was promising to 'destroy' any and all rivals. Varin declared that the Conventionals were clearly the only ones tough enough to win such a match. He couldn't enter the ring himself, because with his lightning fists of fury, he might well end up killing his opponent, but he had a man who would. Sergeant Slaughter could take on any man in the ring, and would certainly take on the winner of Zeke and Stone Cold's match. Zeke was more than prepared to match this blustering, and declared that he was easily thirsty enough to take out two opponents in a row.
It was at this moment that Jenissa, returning from the Senator's tent, happened by the conversation, and Vince was quick to pull her in to the mess of controversy. He wanted to get her response to Varin's earlier allogations against the Special Forces. Bristling with indignance, Jenissa accused Varin of trying to sow dissent among the Electran Military ranks. Jenissa couldn't help but notice how arrogant Varin and the Conventionals seemed to be, and maintained that the Special Forces, on the other hand, were all about team-work. She also wondered what Varin and his so-called 'hard-working' troops had been doing while she and her men had been escorting a vital supply caravan to the base. At this, Varin merely mumbled something about water duty again, and retorted that he wasn't even sure whose 'team' the Special Forces were on. Vince then asked the officers what they thought of Jenissa's upcoming match against Jesse 'the Body' Ventura. Varin scoffed openly at the news of this match, while Zeke had only one prediction: PAIN. With a self-satisfied smile, though, Jenissa said that they might be in for a surprise.
Before the controversy could grow even hotter, Captain Wincester arrived on the scene. Apparently, some of the supplies that had come in with the caravan this morning were bound for the new airbase, and he asked Zeke and Jenissa and their respective squadrons to take them over there. Unfortunately, this task meant once again dealing with Glenn Beck. Beck bitterly asked the two officers how they had been enjoying their booze and marijuana while he and his men had been busily unloading from the trucks. It was surprising, though, how much was left in the trucks given how 'busy' Beck and his men had been. Beck indicated to our heroes several crates that had to be taken to the RAF hangar. The ranking RAF officer, one Captain Kal Meecham, would have to sign for receipt of the supplies.
The first part of this task proved trivial, and in practically no time at all, our heroes were standing at the entrance to the RAF hangar. The interior was dimly lit, with more than two dozen wooden crates placed haphazardly thoughout it. There was so sign of Captain Meecham. Proceeding cautiously inside, calling out for the RAF officer, and suddenly they heard his voice. Kal was, by his own words, hiding in one of the boxes, and they'd have to come and find him. Zeke and Jenissa stood shocked in disbelief for a long moment, but then quickly set to work. Using Kal's friendly 'taunts' to guide them, they managed to discover his location in record time. Kal sprang up from the box where he'd been hiding and said how he'd just been checking out some of the parts from his latest shipment. The box in question seemed to contain components for what looked to be an interociter. Kal cheerfully signed the necessary paper-work and then our heroes were on their way.
The two had discovered Meecham's location so quickly that they even had time to spend some time on the training field with their troops, honing their skills in firearms expertise, discipline, and gruelling physical conditioning. Of course, the ultimate physical challenge was just about to come...
Vince McMahon had proved himself quite the marketing genius, and practically the entire camp had turned out for the special wrestling event. A wrestling ring complete with the rubber ropes and the letters 'WWE' printed in the middle of it was already laid out and ready to go. Apparently, Vince had brought just such a ring along with his news team. That man was ready for anything.
And so was Zeke, as he made his way into the ring to the sound of his cheering troops and made yet another obnoxious speech about how he was about to dominate his opponents and the ring at large. They were ALL going down. These fighting words were quickly matched by Stone Cold Steve Austin, who came clambering in with beer in hand. According to him, Zeke was about to be smacked down to the bottom line, and Austin 3:16 read that he had better start with his prayers now. The furious match began, with Zeke opening up with several smacks and a noogie against his enraged bald opponent. Stone Cold, for his part, unleashed the devastating power of his Finger, as well as his dreaded and patented move, the Stone Cold Stunner. Zeke was unshaken by this onslaught, however, and retaliated with his own Thirst-Buster, repeatedly receiving bottles of beer from his men and smashing them over Stone Cold's head. The battle seemed to drag on interminably, with Zeke launching remarkably inaccurate attacks and Stone Cold unable to do much but bluster against his grimy opponent. Eventually, Zeke knocked Stone Cold to the ground with yet another Thirst-Buster, and in an inescapable Painful Headlock - learned from Zeke's many experiences with Vanilla Coke - brought the match to a close.
Next up was a major feature match: Jenissa versus Senator Jesse 'the Body' Ventura. Obnoxious cat-calls came in abundance from Zeke's troops as Jenissa stepped daintily into the ring, wearing her skimpy red wrestling outfit. The Body, meanwhile, hadn't bothered to change clothing at all, and was still fully dressed in his professional tweed suit. Perhaps this was a poor choice, as there was certainly something keeping the Body's fake-looking punches from doing any significant damage to Jenissa. She, for her part, managed to floor Ventura with just a couple of smacks to the face. Jesse went down, clutching at his head for several moments, and when he came back up, his face was cut and gushing blood. Jenissa then repeatedly tried, and failed, to climb onto the ropes, with the Body stumbling about and making half-hearted smacks at her. Finally, a smack to the back of the head took Jessie to the floor, and a dainty half-nelson put him down for the count. The commentators couldn't believe it, and neither could the rest of the crowd. It was a total upset, although Jenissa, spotlessly clean the moment she stepped out of the ring, didn't seem surprised at all.
However, there wasn't time for anyone to mull over this incredible outcome for long, as it was time for the final match. Once again, Zeke made his way into the ring, cracking his knuckles and rolling his neck. His opponent was loud, proud and ready to go at it. With the Lightning Fist cheering him on, Sergeant Slaughter declared that he would soon be pounding Zeke into the ground. Both wrestlers attacked each other heavily with trash-talk before they finally got down to the real action. Despite suffering a powerful clothesline courtesy of Slaughter, Zeke softened his opponent up with a Thirst-Buster, and then knocked him flat to the ground with an unstoppable Steamroller. Before Slaughter could move again, Zeke pounced on him with a lighting-fast Painful Headlock. Slaughter struggled for all he was worth, but he was no match for this painful maneuver, and Zeke was victorious. Varin couldn't believe it. His champion had gone down in less time that Stone Cold Steve Austin, and Zeke was looking nearly untouched. There was no doubt in anyone's mind that when it came down to wrestling, Zeke's word was indeed the bottom line.
Even Desrae was impressed by Zeke's astonishing victory, and mused that she might not need to plug him after all. Zeke and his men thus returned to their tent for a proper victory celebration. This was of course much to the annoyance of Jenissa and Vidal Sassoon. The celebration wouldn't be lasting too long, however, because tomorrow, the men would be moving out
Our heroes were thus awakened the next morning by the 'pleasant' shouting of Major Khaurus Vanbaal. Apparently, Major Lanver and the Duke of York had departed the previous day with their own contingents of troops, and Vanbaal would be bringing the 'rookies' up today. Captain Mace would be staying at Field Camp to supervise the construction of the airbase. Not seeing any of the Wheel or the Outfit out and about, Khaurus remarked that he assumed they were all waiting around the back of the tent where he couldn't see them. Or at least they had better be. Because they were marching out in ten minutes.
After assuring the irritable Major that this was indeed the case, Zeke and Jenissa scrambled to get their men ready to go. This task was made somewhat more difficult by Vidal Sassoon's insistence that the tents be properly swept out and folded so as to avoid crease-lines. Nevertheless, our heroes were soon on their way to the northern edge of the camp. Waiting for them there was a decidedly unfriendly-looking bunch of hard-faced men in red jackets and camouflage army pants. They were carrying handguns and sniper rifles and could only be assumed to be Vanbaal's own crack Special Forces squadron. Cetina and Varin were also waiting with their respective units. Vanbaal himself stormed up moments later, and gave the order to move out.
The march to Front Base was expected to take two and a half days, and the initial march through Crystal Canyon, the most direct route to the base, went without incident. Our heroes made some attempt to make small talk with the members of Vanbaal's unit, but the hardened soldiers seemed to have little use or respect for the rookies. On the morning of the second day, the troops had just crested a ridge and reached the half-way point of their journey. To their east was Frostmorrow Trail, a narrow pass through the mountains that led to several small mountain settlements that were still under Electran control. Vanbaal was pleased with the time they were making and pulled out his binoculars to assess the terrain ahead. And it was then that he saw somthing that made him stop dead in his tracks. For cresting the opposite rise was a lone, ominous figure - a figure that, with several choice oaths, Vanbaal swiftly identified.
Vygrymm, Dragon of Sphere
Race: Spheran
Rank: Warlord
Affiliation: The Spheran Coalition, Dragon Division
The mere appearance of the man known as the Dragon of Sphere is
often enough to send opposing troops fleeing in panic. His
fearsome armor is constructed from bleached Drakkhaan bones, and
an elongated helmet casts his face in shadows. A tassle of black
Drakkhaan hair falls from the crest of his helmet, and a black
cape hangs ominously from his shoulders. His weapon of choice is
a slightly serrated Spheran long-blade that is sure to cut any
man who dares stand against him cleanly in two. The Dragon is
said to be the driving force behind the formation of the Spheran
Coalition, and leads the Spheran army through sheer force of his
prowess. Facing him on the battlefield is surely nothing but
doom for any man.
Without another word, Vanbaal whipped out his sniper rifle and fired several shots at the opposite hillside, but the Dragon hardly noticed the barrage. Instead, he lowered his sword in the direction of the Republic divisions, and more than a hundred heavily armored Spheran knights came charging into view. At that same moment, to the east of our heroes, two small divisions of Spheran Mountain Rangers broke cover and started firing with their rifles.
The situation was grim; there was no way the rookie squadrons could stand up to a full-fledged force of veteran Spheran knights, let alone the Dragon of Sphere himself. The only choice was to break past the Mountain Rangers for Frostmorrow Trail and blow the pass behind them. Vanbaal announced that he and his Bloody Ravens would try and hold off the heavy knights as they charged through the exposed canyon while the four rookie squadrons would make for the ridge. With the plan thus formed, the Lightning Fist, the Rose Legion, the Outfit and the Wheel leapt into action. The Wheel and the Fist laid down cover fire while the Legion and the Outfit made a charge for the ridge. Despite taking minor casualties, the maneuver was successful as Jenissa managed to lead her men up the ridge and engage the first squad of Rangers head on. Cetina's men, meanwhile, seemed a bit too out-of-shape to make the necessary climb, and so Varin and Zeke charged their men up instead.
Meanwhile, Vanbaal and his Ravens succeeded in breaking and thus slowing the advance of the knight squadrons advancing upon them. However, this was of course a temporary solution at best, and the Ravens were forced to pull back as Vygrymm and his men stormed their position on the plateau. One squadron of Mountain Rangers had fallen, but the other was still fighting hard. Furthermore, the Wheel had panicked, doubtless at the imminent advance of the Dragon's troops, and Zeke was having trouble getting his men back on their feet. Finally, after a fierce bout of close combat, Varin's men and their combat daggers delivered the killing blow to the last of the Rangers, and the path was free. The Special Forces both made their exit, with the Lighting Fist not far beyond. Vanbaal and his men climbed up to the ridge, and told Zeke, the last commander remaining, that they were going to blow the canyon that led back to Field Camp. The Camp was too lightly defended to withstand a Spheran onslaught, and they couldn't afford to let the airbase fall. As such, the four rookie squadrons would be on their own.
But don't worry, Vanbaal had said in that not-so-reassuring voice of his. They'd all be getting their orders soon enough. The fortunes of war were whimsical, and like it or not, that, more than anything else, was really the bottom line.