Bats In The Belfry - Tower Team

Posted on Mon Dec 11th, 2023 @ 6:27pm by Patin & Commander Dean House & Senior Chief Petty Officer Ronson Mitchell

Mission: Halloween
Location: Castle
Timeline: Current

Ronson stood mesmerized by the creatures who began swirling around him, wailing and screeching as though he were both everything they desired and the bane of their existence all at once. It was a peculiar feeling yet in his mind he was lured to trust them, to do anything they wished. Before him lay a large tank similar to the one in the lab and he felt compelled to climb inside it.

Dean stopped and gave a look a moment, settling his eyes on Ronson. "Well isn't that quaint. More tubes, do you want to get him while I see if I can read anything else around here? or.. I could just stun him."

Ronson heard none of it as he began to strip off and climb into the tank, oblivious that he was going to his doom.

"Not really, but I will." Patin said as she crossed the room without interference. As she rounded his now naked body she glanced down, "Oh, must be cold in here." She rolled her eyes and took Ronson by the shoulders and shook him. "Snap out of it Ronnie."

Or that could happen after. Evidently since the distance was a problem. Switching tactics for a moment, Dean changed the setting and shot the tank first.

The cylinder cracked then erupted, spilling briny fluid all over the floor and making it super slippery. Naked as the day he was born Ronson stood dumbly, as though waiting for further instruction from his captors.

Reaching up, Dean tapped his comm badge, "Anyone getting this? Ship more importantly. Beam Chief Mitchell to the ship, immediately." Motioning to Patin to at least check Ronson.

She replied with a shrug of her shoulders. "He's dead inside. Want me to shock him?" She asked Dean.

As the ship wasn't in orbit there was no answer to the hail, only static was the answer.

"You will not deny us our feast" the creatures swirled towards Dean and Ronson.

"Can you believe these guys, Patin?" Thumbing at them. "They seriously think that they can stop us. You'd think centuries of trying the same thing over and over again would get boring. I mean, come on. Turn it into a business, make profit. Hire some Ferengi, you morons."

They descended on Ronson, beginning to suck the life out of his willing naked body. A few more minutes and he would be dead.

"Hey! Bastards! You want him, you gotta go through me first!" Patin yelled at the green entities. She then looked over at the tanks and the machine that was pulsing with energy. "You got something to take that out?" She looked at Dean for an answer. "Because If you don't, I will." She said, leaving the statement open.

"Considering that I just shot that tank with the phaser I remembered to bring?" Dean shot two more tanks.

The creatures reveled in the influx of energy they were deriving from poor Ronson, then halted for an instant, their tone changing again. "They have captured us, holding us!" They screeched, the shrill tones bouncing off the thick stone walls.

This was enough to cause Patin to smile. Now, not only could they be killed but they could be trapped and that was enough to scare them. "Is that right you lot? I don't care who you are or where you come from, but you have no idea who you're dealing with. The woman on the bridge of that ship has balls bold as brass and as solid as Triburnium alloy. I wouldn't be surprised if she had a dozen torpedoes ready to level this place. Hold you? We are the reapers. Now let my friend go."

"Didn't I just go on about them not being able to stop us?" Looking to Patin a moment, destroying another tank, empty one.

They released Ronson, who now looked as though he had aged a good twenty years in the process and turned their attention inward. It seemed their world was falling apart, they had been contained on the starship, and now those on the planet had worked out a way to kill them.

"They're just... really hungry. Starving" Ronson struggled as he shared what he had seen of their minds. "They want to survive"

"Well, I sure as Firecaves don't intend to feed them. Not unless they can feed off of a neutronium displacement charge. I mean, if I had one, which I might, but I'm not feeding it to them." Patin said while weighing her options as she held out Ronson pants to him. "What says you pretty boy? Kill'em or feed'em?"

Ronson looked at the pants, then realized he was naked, blushed, attempted to cover himself and reach for the pants at the same time only to realize he didn't have enough hands to accomplish such a feat.

"She's not exactly wrong." Dean held his hand up to Patin to wait, stepping closer to where 'they' were. "It's basically my choice what happens to you down here. It also can influence what happens up there. We're going to see about coming to a compromise, or I promise you. I'll not only let her loose on you, but I'll be right there with her starting it. That is something you Do Not Want."

The creatures swirled about as though consulting with each other. "we only want to survive" was their answer. The small problem with that was they needed organic life to do that.

Dean motioned into the air with his hands for a split second. "You want to survive, I want to survive, we all want to survive. Doesn't mean you're going to unless you cooperate. First, let go of the hold keeping us from contacting our ship. Second, stop sucking people. I mean, at least offer a reach around."

Tapping the phaser tip on his chin a moment, "Then we'll have a talk with the rest of our people. That includes the other team here that left the castle. See if maybe... we can do something about coming up with plans on how you can absorb artificial plasma, or whatever it is you keep sucking up instead of killing people." Now Dean felt like mic dropping, but the only thing he had was the phaser and he wasn't letting go of that.

The creatures huddled together again, their green energy co-mingling as they discussed amongst themselves. "We will work with you to come up with a solution. Your ship however is holding our kind hostage. Tell them to release us and we will leave there."

Patin questioned the situation with her eyes as a Vulcan would, one raised eyebrow. "You want us to give up the only leverage we have? The leverage that has even made this opportunity to talk possible? Nah, I don't think so, not yet anyway." She spoke beyond her bounds, but she understood balance and counter balance and without leverage there would be nothing to stop these beings from trying again.

This made the creatures angry again and they swirled, lightning crackling between them. "Pestilence! You shall be our first meal!"

"I'm right here." Patin pounded her chest. "And I'm not afraid of you. Not, one, damn, bit." She smiled her crooked smile. "Just know I am not above taking every last one of you bastards down with me. Hope you like the tasted of cold-hearted bitch!" She pulled an explosive charge from her chest pocket and pressed the button to activate it. If they wanted sensible, they'd have to find a better way to negotiate.

"And.. nice. Just lovely. See what you did? Now she's gone into suicide mode. Her finger moves from that without it being deactivated and we all go boom. You get it? No more living. If we die, those up there on the ship will make sure the rest die just like you and we will have." Motions with his hands back and forth, "This is how it works. I gave you options, you didn't care to listen and see if we could help you. Now, you have no options and we do it our way only."

"We listened to your options, but this one still seems to destroy us. " The creatures swirled around Patin. "Release those of us on your ship and we will allow you to leave"

Now even Dean was starting to outwardly look annoyed, "Did I not just tell you, you have to let us contact them. And if you think having control over communications is a bargaining chip, it's not. Considering, Miss Suicide Squad over there still has a bomb."

The creatures mused amongst themselves again before the energy in the room decreased a few notches. "We have lowered our defensive field, you may contact your ship, and your comrades - who are unharmed"

Dean gave Patin just enough of a nudge to hopefully make the Djinn clench their sphincters. "Hey look, they can learn." Reaching to tap his comm badge. "House to Sunfire. House to Team B."

TBC