TALL TALES

[Grier]

Three of Peter's Marine controlled drones attack at great speed doing a staffing attack run againt the Martian Bug warrior platoons, so fast taking them by surprise peppering them with hypersonic piercing skewers at a very fast fire rate killing 5 Bug warriors in a flash followed by Peter's 2 other Marine controlled drones swooping in from the opposite direction killing another 3 Bugs.
Heat seeking Martian mini missiles and Rainbow lasers were fired at the 5 Drones attackers destroying only one. Four remained.

 

[Richie]

Terry we are forgetting about Tex Dunning and his men as pilots so was wondering why a scientist such as Peter Spring is involved in combat when he and fellow scientists Richie Wellham, Lukas Webke, Frida Pederson, Kenjo Takita and Valentina Sanchez are on Mars for research and development. Wellham, Takita and Pederson are needed to solve a further problem as the Martians have developed a new craft with a new protective dome/shield that our EMP can not penetrate. Spring and his team need to be concentrating on finding new minerals that could benefit the expedition and Earth.
Meanwhile two Crimson Stalkers with a further 10,000 troops, plus 20 DARTS and 50 drones are enroute from Earth. The battle for Mars is about to begin...

 

[Grier]

Terry we are forgetting about Tex Dunning and his men as pilots so was wondering why a scientist such as Peter Spring is involved in combat when he and fellow scientists Richie Wellham, Lukas Webke, Frida Pederson, Kenjo Takita and Valentina Sanchez are on Mars for research and development. Wellham, Takita and Pederson are needed to solve a further problem as the Martians have developed a new craft with a new protective dome/shield that our EMP can not penetrate. Spring and his team need to be concentrating on finding new minerals that could benefit the expedition and Earth.
Meanwhile two Crimson Stalkers with a further 10,000 troops, plus 20 DARTS and 50 drones are enroute from Earth. The battle for Mars is about to begin...

Hi Craig,

I'd said several times Peter Spring was looking intently at the Planitias from space and drones for signs of the Martian bases. As a Doctor of Geochemistry Spring is the most qualified of all the Scientists able to seek out the entrances to the Martians underground layers. By looking for patterns in the soil, taking samples and analysing them Peter is like a detective looking for Clues.
This is why I choose Peter to be a GeoChemist!! See below.

I took a Dart as I wasn't even asked to join your Convoy with my main highly skilled character to be part of the action, doing what he does best with sampling by controlled drones through savvy Marines.
Vehicles were too exposed imo.

Also, I really enjoy being in and describing battles.

Peter is a pilot himself.
Peter and Sgt Turnbull were the first to jointly fly a Martian flying saucer.

A geochemist is a scientist who applies chemical principles and analytical techniques to understand a planet's systems, processes, and composition. They study the distribution of elements in rocks, minerals, soil, and water to locate natural resources, manage environmental issues, and model geological processes.
Key Roles and Responsibilities

• Mineral Exploration: Identifying chemical signatures in soil and rock to locate economic concentrations of minerals.
• Environmental Protection: Analyzing contaminant behavior, monitoring water quality, and assisting with site remediation.
• Petroleum Geochemistry: Locating and analyzing oil and gas deposits.
• Analytical Research: Utilizing laboratory instruments (e.g., ICP-MS, XRD, laser Raman microprobes) for analyzing samples.
• Data Modeling: Conducting 2D and 3D modeling of geochemical data.

Meanwhile two Crimson Stalkers with a further 10,000 troops, plus 20 DARTS and 50 drones are enroute from Earth. The battle for Mars is about to begin...
The Crimson Stalkers are NOT troop carriers Craig.
100 crew/passengers at most! Did you mean the Troop Carrier Craft I thought we'd agreed on?

 

[Grier]

To protect Gustafson's Convoy of 50 men in 10 Rovers Peter fired his Dart's anti shield EMP beams at the Martian fighter craft as they fired on the Rovers with rapid fire laser cannon bursts destroying two of the leading Rovers completely in a pink blast of metal and flesh.

Peter had been helping to guide the Convoy through the sinking sands of Gyre planitia and on a narrow track that now the hulks of the burnt out Rovers blocked.

Captain Gustafson saw Peter's Dart had destroyed the shields of one of the Martian fighter craft and ordered his heavy weapons to concentrate on the Martian craft with its shields down whilst his other men concentrated on the flying Martian warriors that were getting uncomfortably closer.
Five more Marines were killed or incapacitated with a dozen more flying Martian Bug Warriors taken out.

Catching up with the Martian craft with Peter's Dart doing 10g's Gunner Cpr Doyle again fired an anti shield EMP pulse at a turning Martian fighter craft and with Peter turning harder giving Doyle an easier shot which he did nicely followed by two heat seeking missiles that
'Swatted the Bug Ship good and proper Sir', yelled gunner Doyle.

Meanwhile it was getting brutal below. With all the Convoy's heavy guns firing at the unshielded Martian Fighter craft and it still firing away until it became an Orange ball of fire, with the Marines taking out another Martian craft.

Around the Convoy close fighting occurred with still the Marines outnumbered and deaths and inuries on both sides, the Bugs doing worse attacking trained and tough soldiers taking cover behind and in their protective Rover Vehicles...
Yet they came on and worse some screeching flew in very fast with sharp blades held in 2 of their 5 limbs.
Thinking that in light gravity just a high compressed gas cylinder can enable lift and flying for light and skinny beings, two big Bugs came at Captain Gustafson, just as he was reloading so instead smashed his machine rifle into his two attackers. To his amazement he just about killed both of them, with one blow!? Smashing his gun's butt into the head of the one still alive, his blow smashed it like a ripe watermelon with goo of all sorts spewing out. "Yuk!" said Gustafson, "Smash them men, they've weak bones!" Weak physically several were just smashed by fist, boot, rifle butt, head and some just grabbed, held and trussed with steel ties.
"Skinny buggers too" said a soldier.
The third Martian fighter was now in combat with just Peter's Dart and his now 4 Drones still helping attack the Martian warriors. Circling hard and fast around Cpt Gustafson's convoy Peter's Dart seemed able to handle the speed and turning gees better than the Martian's and so caught up with it, and Cpr Doyle again took out its shield followed by massive fire form the remaing seven Rovers unleashing hell with heavy weapons on the last smoking Martian craft just as the landed Bug warriors were losing badly in hand to hand fighting.
Kiwi Marine Cpr Freeman was a giant of a man and with a shovel in each hand dispatched a dozen of the Bugs.
"He's the man, The Human Man ... ", later chanted the standing and bloodied Earth Soldiers, bone weary.

Peter was soon on the phone to Col Tex Dunning in the Crimson Stalker who told him more Darts were headed his way to help secure the area...
"You've found them alright" said Col Dunning to Peter,
"well sort of, but as you know it's most likely a Warren of Ant like tunnels as some suggest. Very plausible. tho.

"Do your best Surveying the area as safely as you can Peter, take more Darts and Marines as you need them and let's smoke out these Bugs. I read your report.
Your Scientific system of sampling with close fast drones is much wiser and safer than sending out wheeled convoys
which has cost us unnecessary dozens of Marine's lives already."

"I'll do my best Sir and thank you for your confidence in me."