Jump 047: Gears of War

Jump 047: Gears of War

Location: Free Choice (Azura Island)
Age: 32
Identity: Human, Technician
Drawbacks: [0] E-Day, Swarm War

[Free]      Action Reload
[100/1000]  Strong Looks
[200/1000]  Chosen Exercises
[Free]      Scraping By
[Free]      Percussive Maintenance
[300/1000]  Advanced Assaults
[500/1000]  Trauma Team
[550/1000]  Carrying Capacity
[650/1000]  Personal Digital Assistant
[Free]      Starter Pistol: Gorgon Submachine Gun
[Free]      Primary Weapon: Gnasher Shotgun
[700/1000]  Hi-JACK Robot Unit
[Free]      Silverback
[800/1000]  Azura Island

You know, when it comes down to it, it feels an awful lot like the problems of this world come down primarily to just not having enough bodies to throw at the problem. The locals are plenty competent, there just aren't enough of them to take care of the problem on a more permanent basis. Well, that and a competent enough government that doesn't just screw everyone over for fun when they feel like it. I mean, eventually they get things dealt with, usually, but it's still such a nightmare.

You know what really throws a wrench in everyone getting screwed constantly, though? Taking over Azura Island. Or rather, merging it with Shang Tsung's island so that it shares traits with it. By which I mean one day Azura Island is perfectly fine, and then the next, it's basically a portal to Outworld. And considering this is happening at the same time that the Locust Horde is breaking out of the ground and trying to kill everything that moves, one could excuse the locals for running around in a panic.

Rumors abound that mysterious soldiers in power armor came from the skies to fight those who came from below. They blunted the primar yoffense made by the Horde - they didn't destroy them completely before they disappeared, but certainly put them in check well enough to ensure that the local forces could at least fight to a draw instead of being slaughtered. And so the war went, though at least civilization didn't collapse completely.

Well, that, and a whole lot of civilians fled the war zones and resettled in Outworld simply because it was safer there. And isn't that saying something.

After thirty-odd years had passed, the Locust Horde was eradicated as far as anyone could tell (or at least until the next sequel), the Swarm had followed suit, a good three quarters of Sera's expatriates had returned and resettled their home, and... amusingly, I'd done nothing locally for my entire stay other than taking over the island and having the Second Legion stop the Swarm from succeeding in mass murder.

Well. That, and Tsung's Island is now Azura Island, and is rather a bit bigger, but still serves as a connection to the other realm. Like hell am I going to challenge any of the locals to Mortal Kombat, though. Outworld's enough of a mess as it is, even if I'm in the process of rehabbing it. I don't need these bugs to pop up every five years to cause a ruckus - it was enough of a pain seeing to the extermination of the Kytinn.