Near-Tuscon

Hammond leads the Grave Hunters up to the town of Near-Tuscon. A secondary barrier wall has been constructed. The orientation of people has swapped. Civilians and refugees are inside and the trained guards are on the outer portion.

The new wall shows signs of combat. The guards are very wary of the large group pulling up. Hammond smooths things over and the Grave hunters enter the town. They find out that some of the Cult’s scouting parties have attacked; small bands of Trogs and Vengeance, but no significant force. The town guards and militia suspect there is someone out there watching, but they haven’t found them yet.

The towns people show a bit of fear about the Grave Hunters, leaving them on their own within the town.

A few hours later 2 cars pull up out of the wastes. The guard follows them with their mounted weapons. Hammond calls out to the town members to get up on the walls and brace for an attack.

The first vehicle is familiar, but the second is not. The vehicles stop and an odd looking man gets out. “We are expected, we are friends” The voice sounds familiar. Hammond calls to him “Nigel is that you?”

Nigel –“ Mr. Hammond.” Hammy- “What the hell happened to your face?” Nigel- “Expedient disguise”.

Ben offers them bad news and good news. The bad is that they found Charlie Silverfox. The good news is that she is alive… Car-el interrupts and announces that his presence is the real good news. Hammond is a bit confused about the voice coming from the car at first, but soon realizes what it is.

Hammond fills them in on the increased Cult scout appearances and the new recruits he’s brought with him. Ben and Nigel provide the intelligence regarding the status of Kingman, as well as their own rebellious allies. They also pull out the copy of the Kingman map from the resistance and begin plotting their plan of attack.

Several plans are kicked around, including one where they lure the Cult out into the mountain pass. While this would certainly be a good strategic move against a normal force, the Cultists have shown there is little to no regard for others, which could mean that they would nuke the whole area and destroy everyone.

Eventually they all decide on a coordinated interior/exterior attack. Ben and Nigel will head back in with the rest of the mutant team and some minor weapons. Tulip volunteers to go, revealing that she is in fact a mutant (blue vein-like stripes line the sides of her abdomen). However, they request that she stay with the main force from town, since she is viewed as a leader.

The interior group will need to create a major distraction in the center of town, while also keeping the rear end of the gate busy until the rest of the force can punch through. It takes the rest of the day and into the evening to make preparations for the battle.

A search party is sent out to find the Cult scouts. In the middle of the night they come across the Cultists and get a good jump on them. The search party is victorious, and both forces will have a clear path back to Kingman without fear of alerting the town.

Kingman

Nigel and Ben head back to Kingman with the rest of the mutant crew. They make it through the gates much easier this time around. They are directed to hang around the section near the scavenging groups until they can find an appropriate shelter for everyone.

Nigel and a small group of resistance head toward the back end of the gate to get themselves in position. Nigel climbs on top of one of the higher buildings to maintain radio contact with the main force.. Ben and the others meet up with the main rebel group in the sewer and explain the intended actions of the assault.

Mountain pass

Hammond rides in the van with the main leaders of the battle. The forces from Near-Tuscon pull up to the last leg of the journey and wait for the signal from Nigel. Hammond has not yet seen Michael yet, but has faith that he will appear.

Tulip uses the time to harden the spirit of the militia with a rallying speech. Roland preps his weapons. Dixon makes sure all of the heavy equipment and groups are ready. He commends Hammond on his heroism and leadership. They receive a signal over the CB: it’s time to move.

Kingman – main gate

Nigel and his group ready themselves to attack the inner gate. They chuck some Molotov cocktails at the guard towers and fire up at the Cult guards. A flurry of activity surrounds the gates. Nigel blasts up at the tower with is plasma. Haldeman charges up and provides some covering fire.

Kingman – marketplace

Ben and his troupe move into position underneath the marketplace. They are positioned beneath scattered manhole covers to spread the chaos quickly. They swarm out of the holes, send the traders and civilians into a frenzy. Ben lights up one of the buildings with a large fire. Charlie starts tending to the rebels with her constructed medpacks.

The Kingman guards responds by diverting toward the center of town.

Kingman – main gate

The convoy arrives and begins launching the assault. Militia hops off the vehicles and moves in to cover. Hammond shouts some commands out the window and fires up the Black Widow

The sky seems to light up even brighter, despite it being around noon. A massive flash of lightning precedes a massive thunder crack. One of the major kill-box towers explodes. Michael soars down from the skies, revealing that his black “tabard” was actually a large set of black wings.

Hammond directs some of the troops to fire the dual-purpose grenades, punching some decent sized holes in the gate. Then they use the missile launcher to turn it into dust. The blast knocks down many of those on the walls, including some of Nigel’s men. The militia starts forcing their way in through the opening.

The Kingman guards rush from the nearby sectors to support those at the gate. Nigel’s group launches their last attacks and heads back towards the center of town.

Kingman – marketplace

Nigel and his group join in on the fight at the marketplace. Charlie continues to bob and weave through the fighters, providing medical assistance to the injured resistance. Ben is firing off at various enemies while simultaneously blasting foes with his brain.