With incomming fire pouring in all around them, both Griefer and LT dive for the (relative) safety of the ground before returning fire in turn. Griefer with a full auto spray of his own from his smartgun, and LT with a pair of hasty shots with his revolver in an attempt to keep the other side's heads down as well in a desperate bid to not let the the incoming enemy team a chance to gain the upper ground.

(OOC: Rolls to come later. IC doesn't seem to be working for me at the moment)

LT:
Free: Drop to ground
Simple: Fire weapon
Simple: Fire weapon

Reaction Roll to dodge incoming fire


Griefer:
Free: Drop to ground
Complex: Full Auto Burst (Supression fire)

Reaction Roll to dodge incoming fire

Combat Pass 2 Complete; Pass 3 begins
Combat Round 1.3
Initiative Order:
Kesslan 19 (3/4)
Ashe 17 (2/4)
- Spirit (2/3)
Bad Guys
LT & Greifer (2/3)
Viking 11 (2/3)
- Spirit (2/3)
Specter 7 (1/1)
- Spirit (1/3)

Ok, you all know the Monopoly card: "Bank Error in your favor"? Well, it just happened... Darkon: Specter, with her 1 IP, doesn't get to act last turn. But since I'm too late in telling you, there's been a Bank Error in your favor! You spirit has 3 IPs, and gets to act, even though you don't. And since the error is mine, then somehow Divine Intervention allowed you a second action... We're not sure how it happened.

The drek was really hitting the fan now! And smoke seemed to be streaming out the other end!! The boat was nearly at the shore at this point, maintaining it's speed, but neither accelerating nor slowing. If it did not slow soon, it would likely ride several meters up the sand before coming to rest. And chances are: it would stop quite suddenly. Only the spirits would be immune to the affects of that!
"Notice! Protect The Boat AT ALL COSTS!!" Eleanor's voice suddenly blared, at an elevated volume, over the Open Comm-Line. She clearly knew something that the rest of the group did not know, though it was impossible to imagine what it was, since the group was CLEARLY being attacked by that same boat.
The bullets continued to stream shoreward. Though the fire was now coming from two guns, rather than the original one, as the vehicle neared the shore, the boat's manpower has had to split up their efforts to maintain such a wide stream of suppression fire.

Back on Shore
The bright white glow surrounding Ashe does not dissipate when Viking approaches. In fact, it seems to grow stronger. Whether because of the bullets that were now peppering the shore, or because of Viking's presence is impossible to know. Either way, Ashe was unresponsive.

Valkyrie
The Valkyrie was concerned with the Magical "goings-on" of the scene in front of her. Figuring that it would be most effective to "take out the leader" in a Ritual Sorcery situation, the Valkyrie decided to analyze the group in more detail, in an attempt to identify the leader, and perhaps (if it also happened) to recognize what they were doing. Of course, identifying the leader was her primary concern.
As she was paying attention, the Valkyrie realized that her initial assessment was completely false. What, in fact, was going was this: There were two hostile spirits, engaging Ashe's Fire Spirit. They appeared to be winning, though it was difficult to tell, since the three of them were so tightly intertwined. The two opposing spirits were undamaged, while Ashe's Fire Spirit was showing a slight level of damage in it's aura.
As the Valkyrie was studying the scene, another new spirit arrived, preparing to join in the festivities. It was a Beast Spirit, and was prepared to join Ashe's Fire Spirit, and the Valkyrie, in combat against the two opposing spirits.
@Kouryuu: Since you've only used 1 simple action, you could (if you liked) use your second Simple Action to do yet another Assensing in an attempt to garner a better result. I'm not sure what else, of use, a spirit can do with a Simple Action...
@Darkon: Your spirit has arrived. At the start of your next turn, you may utilize it's Free Action to perceive the scene - It doesn't get that for free.

@Kesslan: It's your turn.

Free: Talk
Simple: Held
Simple: Held

"Why?" was Kesslan's instant response over the comlink to Eleanor's sudden and unexpected request. He bristled slightly at the sudden intrusion on the battle. He didn't like these sorts of things, and instinct told him to kill the enemy at all cost when they were invading HIS territory while so heavily armed and obviously expecting a fight. "You'd best explain real fast." the shifter didn't care much for many of metahumanity's rules and regulations. Most didn't really make any sense to him, but he'd at least learned that sometimes, especially when dealing with said metahumans and other such things, it was best to sometimes listen. As a result he held back, momentarily at least though every bit of him wanted nothing more than to keep pulling the trigger until everything aboard that boat was dead and then worry about the rest later.

"Kill the attackers! Protect the boat!" Eleanor responded, again with a high degree of urgency. Clearly she was involved in something else, and unable to give her full attention to a response. But she also clearly thought there was a reason for the boat to be unharmed. And a good one, at that.

"There is a neutral, maybe Friendly on board, so be careful with the big guns!" Viking did not knew how to put it in shorter words as it was a combat situation and no one had time to listen to long explanations and descriptions.

Simple/complex action: Give orders

Frag, this just made things complicated. Kesslan hated complicated, but then things were rarely simple where metahumans were concerned he'd come to realize ages ago. "Everyone: Cease fire, find cover and then pick your targets. Everyone fire back only at any guaranteed hostiles. If you see them with a gun in hand, waste em. Sureal? They gotta have links, probably hidden. Find em and knock on their door for me, or get me a way in. See if we can get a way to talk to them without giving away where the signal is coming from, or at least get it to jump through one of the drones or something so it takes any counter fire." he paused to let all that sink in as he continued to observe the boat. "Eleanor, I'm gonna need more than that, sooner the better." his tone in regards to everyone was terse and commanding, though the response to Eleanor was softer, indicating he was willing to cut her some slack. He'd realized she wouldn't respond the way she was if there wasn't something important up. Oddly, he'd come to trust the AI, and he'd be the first to admit he had no clue what her world was really like. He'd never dared to delve into the Trix hot, but he'd heard from others that the world was just.. different running hot instead of cold interface the way he did. Besides, he wasn't even sure he could run with a hot mod sim and not come away without getting seriously messed up. The matrix just wasn't designed for his kind.

Combat Round 1.3
Initiative Order:
Kesslan 19 (3/4)
Ashe 17 (3/4)
- Spirit (3/3)
Bad Guys
LT & Greifer (3/3)
Viking 11 (2/3)
- Spirit (2/3)
Specter 7 (1/1)
- Spirit (1/3)

"On it" Sureal responded immediately. Whatever she had been doing, clearly she'd either been working on this already, or expecting this call.

"Can't... Right... Now..." Was Eleanor's only response. She was obviously in deep with something. Though the meat-bodies could hardly guess what - She operated, literally, in a different world.

The suppression fire continued, spewing forth the deadly hail of lead from the two guns, and two gunners. There was little else happening on the boat, other than the loud rattling of the Light Machine Guns spitting out their deadly load, and the continuous clatter of the spent bullet casings falling to the deck. Whoever was in the boat was keeping their heads low, peaking out just enough to continue to operate the guns.

LT and Greifer
LT, knowing that he wasn't getting a good shot at anything, figured he might have a chance at either taking out the gun itself by hitting the mount, or taking off the arm that was operating it. He took careful aim at the mount, figuring a near-miss would still have a good chance at hitting the arm, and squeezed the trigger, firing off a short 3-bullet burst. LT muttered a prayer under his breath as he shot.

Actions:
Simple: Take Aim
Simple: Fire Short-Burst

Greifer was unsure how to handle Kesslan's orders given their complete lack of targets, and chose to withhold his shot until someone poked their heads up again.

Ashe and the Spirits:
Viking was rewarded, finally, with a deep and uncomfortable sounding groan. Ashe thrashed about a bit, almost convulsively, and started to sit up. The glowing orb, however, seemed to have other ideas, and intensified it's light. Ashe ceased her attempts to sit up immediately, though it is unclear what the Orb was doing, or how.

Meanwhile, at the boat, the Fire Spirit continued it's crusade against the offending invaders. It danced and writhed in it's attempts to win; to defeat it's opponents, slay them, and burn them. Or, at least, that's likely what a human's version of it's current thoughts would be like. The spirit's thoughts were both infinitely more simple, and complicated, than that. And it would be nearly impossible for us to fully understand...

It looks like 2 of the Bad Guys have acted, in continuing their Suppression Fire, and the remainder of the group is withholding their actions. Or, perhaps, out of actions.
Ashe is still down, though her Spirit is fighting valiantly in her stead.

Viking: It's your turn.

Specter guided her spirit, sending Look around, take in the situation first. Then act. There must be some non combattant. Protect that one, fight the agressors. She hoped the spirit knew how to make a distinction between combattant and innocent.

Seeing as there is no Quickening spell on Spectre Viking decided to change it
Force 4 Increased reflexes spell(4)
Feeling a bit tired Viking felt a wave of mana flowing in Spectres direction with the intention to make him faster. Viking was not yet sure it had worked but he had a good feeling about it. soon they would see the answer.

{Health: 0 / 10P and 1 / 10S damage, NO Wound penalty, No Stun penalty} | {Edge left: 4/ 5} {Defense: 3(6); Initiative: 6(; IP's: 1(3)} | {Ballistic Armor: 6; Impact Armor: 6 |

Suddenly, the world resembled an old analogue recording which batteries died. Everything slowed down, Specter would have sworn the sounds did drop in pitch a bit too. But she also felt the familiar tingle of mana on her skin. Must be a spell or something. Careful, the albino elf girl rose her head to peek at the boat. She switched to astral perception and tried to make out the auras of the attackers.

Assensing roll, can Specter aim at the attackers? Int3+assensing4+actively looking2=9d (9d6. hits(5)=2)

If she succeeded, she would send them a spell of her own.

Combat Round 1.4
Initiative Order:
Kesslan 19 (4/4)
Ashe 17 (3/4)
- Spirit (3/3)
Bad Guys
LT & Greifer (3/3)
Viking 11 (3/3)
- Spirit (3/3)
Specter 10 (3/4)
- Spirit (2/3)

The battle raged on, and there seemed to be some semblance of a victor rising from the smoke of the battlefield, but the fight was young yet, and much could happen to change the tides of the fight. The Boat's motor sputtered violently, but hung on to it's tenuous grasp on life, continuing to propel the boat further forward. There was no longer any chance to stop the attackers from reaching the shore. If the engine were to die now, the boat would easilly coast the remainder of the way, losing little speed in it's final moments before colliding with the land. As things were now, the boat would likely glide quite a ways up the beach before coming to rest, and it would not be comfortable for the attackers.
The gunmen had stopped their Suppression Fire, tucking their heads down and bracing for impact. There was little that they could do from the guns anyway, as they didn't know precisely where their opposition was located. Their shooting thus far had been a "desperate measure" intended to stave off their demise long enough to reach high ground; or at least even footing, with the defending team.

"Got her! She's tied! Laying down!" Eleanor's multitonal voice blared over the common line, sharing her news with the entire team; she had not managed to hide any of the strain she was facing. Effectively, Eleanor had just effectively given the team permission to shoot at any head that stuck itself up over the lip of the boat.

Kesslan: Your turn.

Perception Test: 3 Hits
Using magnified vision, distracted, using vision enhancement

Actions:
Free: Respond to Elanore
Simple/Complex: Held

"Who is she? I need details Elanor" Kesslan responded calmly over the comlink, while mentally thinking 'and why should I care?'. It was hard to simply fight off instinct and just hold off attacking once the battle was joined, but by the same token some of those same instincts knew the value of waiting to pounce as it were. Years of training under the Azies had helped him know when to try and ignore instinct as well, which helped balance things off, but it was still hard sometimes and he didn't like all these vague details in the middle of a fight and he started to wish he'd had the foresight to pick up a few of those micro recon drones. It also struck him that he should really make sure everyone had a tacsoft up and running for times like this, as it would make co-ordinating everything far more efficient.

All things to deal with later however. For now he just kept his scope sweeping about along the boat's profile looking for a target.

Combat Round 1.4
Initiative Order:
Kesslan 19 (4/4) - Action Held
Ashe 17 (4/4)
- Spirit (3/3)
Bad Guys
LT & Greifer (3/3)
Viking 11 (3/3)
- Spirit (3/3)
Specter 10 (3/4)
- Spirit (2/3)

Ashe groaned louder this time, sitting up and rubbing her head. Anyone nearby would be able to see and hear her movement clearly, as there was virtual silence. Since the gunfire had stopped, the only sound in the air was the unending sound of waves crashing on the shore. At the moment, not even the everpresent birds were chirping in the air - startled and silent due to the loud ratchetting pops of the Automatic Guns peppering the woods with their lead.
"Can't... Talk... Don't... Shoot.. The... Red..." Eleanor responded, the strain of whatever she was up to was permeating her multitonal voice. Despite that she was clearly otherwise occupied, a bright red "body" shape was suddenly overlayed on everyone's Image Link, showing a body and orientation of that body; presumably, it was the person Eleanor was trying to keep alive. At least she was giving you a clear objective! Not much is clearer than an AR overlay.
Game Stuff - A Perception Test (1) will reveal that the person is most likely below the surface of the water at the moment, lying in what is likely the bottom of the boat.
Kesslan: Your action is held; you may act again at any time.
Specter: You're up.

The glowing colours in the astral gave Specter some help in keeping an aim on the attackers. She focused on one of them. How dare you to attack us?[color=blue]Her mind reached out into the mana, and through the guys aura into his mind, forming the construct of a thought, a reaction, an action. My colleagues betrayed me. Quick shoot them before they shoot me!

Spell: Influence Force 5. One of the Attackers: "My colleagues betrayed me. Shoot them before they shoot me." Magic5+ Sorcery4+Totem advantage (manipulation)2=11d (11d6. hits(5)=3)

She tried to insert that thought, that sudden inspiration into the attackers mind.

Resist drain from Influence spell force 5. Threshold 5/2+1=4. Cha6 +Will 5 =11d (11d6. hits(5)=2) (Specter gets 2boxes stun, to a total of five boxes. Specter now has a modificator of –2 on her rolls.)

The mana flowing through her took it’s toll. Specter felt dizzy.

Combat Round 2.1
Initiative Order:
Kesslan 19 (4/4)
Kesslan 19 (1/4)
Ashe 17 (1/4)
- Spirit (1/3)
Bad Guys
LT & Greifer (1/3)
Viking 11 (1/3)
- Spirit (1/3)
Specter 10 (1/4)
- Spirit (1/3)

It finally happened. The boat, which had been speeding toward the shore, finally managed to make landfall. And, likely, "landfall" would turn out to be an apporpriate description. The boat came in at such a high speed that the rear end of the boat lifted up off the water while the entire boat skidded, hard and loud, losing speed at an alarming rate. There was no possible way for anyone in the boat to have been prepared for this, and the only way to have survived it would have been to be lashed down. Completely.
Lucky for the defenders, they had managed to sufficiently "distract" the crew piloting the boat to make a smooth landing impossible. Further, as far from a "Smooth" landing as this may be, the attackers may choose to forgo further attack... It would be impossible to know.

Specter, seeing an opportunity to finally directly target one of the opponents, unleashed a powerful and ultimately deadly spell of his own. Hitting one of the attackers in the center of the boat with an Influence spell, Specter essentially managed to convince the attacker to let go of the boat; flying through the air uncontrollably, and unlikely to survive. These bruises would likely prove fatal.

The spirit battle continues, being carried forward by the speeding boat, the spirit battle also finally made landfall. They were more visible now: occasionally flickering as a Living Flame, or the bright white Lightning of a sword, slashing through the air. But the battle was joined, in earnest, in the Astral.
For those of you who can see in the Astral (and are looking), the Flame which Ashe summoned was taking center stage in the fight at the moment, and looking significantly worse for the wear. Both of the enemy spirits seemed to have turned their attentions on the Flame, attacking it with reckless abandon, but, exposing their defenses to the incoming attacks of the Valkyrie and the "Banzai" Beast. While, to the Flame, the "one sided" fight seemed to be a losing one, an outsider would likely think otherwise: it appeared, at the moment at least, as though the fight would end in the Defender's favor on the Astral Plane. It would be a close one, a "nail biter" so to speak; but the results were starting to solidify even now. Only outside intervention would change the outcome of this fight.

Kesslan: You had a held action from last round. You may roll a Perception test to see inside the boat as it up-ends: Threshhold 2 gives you Alexia (it's easier, since she's red on your AR overlay); threshhold 4, to see a target. You may now use that action. If you choose to shoot: apply the penalty "Attacker is running" (-2) penalty to represent the erratic movement of the boat as it tries to tip over (that said: none of them have cover...).
- Once you've finished posting your last action; you may post immediately what your next action will be, as we'll have arrived at the top of the order.