Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context Quotes / SchlockMercenary

Go To

1!!''The Seventy Maxims of Maximally Effective Mercenaries''
2
3->'''MAXIM 1''': Pillage, ''then'' burn.\
4'''MAXIM 2''': A sergeant in motion outranks a lieutenant who doesn't know what's going on.\
5'''MAXIM 3''': An ordnance technician at a dead run outranks ''everybody''.\
6'''MAXIM 4''': Close air support covereth a multitude of sins.\
7'''MAXIM 5''': Close air support and friendly fire should be easier to tell apart.\
8'''MAXIM 6''': If violence wasn't your last resort, you failed to resort to enough of it.\
9'''MAXIM 7''': If the food is good enough the grunts will stop complaining about the incoming fire.\
10'''MAXIM 8''': Mockery and derision have their place. Usually, it's on the far side of the air lock.\
11'''MAXIM 9''': Never turn your back on an enemy.\
12'''MAXIM 10''': Sometimes the only way out is through… Through the hull.\
13'''MAXIM 11''': Everything is air-droppable at least once.\
14'''MAXIM 12''': A soft answer turneth away wrath. Once wrath is looking the other way, shoot it in the head.\
15'''MAXIM 13''': Do unto others.\
16'''MAXIM 14''': "Mad science" means never stopping to ask "what's the worst thing that could happen?"\
17'''MAXIM 15''': Only you can prevent friendly fire.\
18'''MAXIM 16''': Your name is in the mouth of others: be sure it has teeth.\
19'''MAXIM 17''': The longer everything goes according to plan, the bigger the impending disaster.\
20'''MAXIM 18''': If the officers are leading from in front, watch for an attack from the rear.\
21'''MAXIM 19''': The world is richer when you turn enemies into friends, but that's not the same as you being richer.\
22'''MAXIM 20''': If you're not willing to shell your own position, you're not willing to win.\
23'''MAXIM 21''': Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Take his fish away and tell him he's lucky just to be alive, and he'll figure out how to catch another one for you to take tomorrow.\
24'''MAXIM 22''': If you can see the whites of their eyes, somebody's done something wrong.\
25'''MAXIM 23''': The company mess and friendly fire should be easier to tell apart.\
26'''MAXIM 24''': Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from a big gun.\
27'''MAXIM 25''': If a manufacturer's warranty covers the damage you did, you didn't do enough damage.\
28'''MAXIM 26''': "Fire and forget" is fine, provided you never actually forget.\
29'''MAXIM 27''': Don't be afraid to be the first to resort to violence.\
30'''MAXIM 28''': If the price of collateral damage is high enough, you might be able to get paid to bring ammunition home with you.\
31'''MAXIM 29''': The enemy of my enemy is my enemy's enemy, no more, no less.\
32'''MAXIM 30''': A little trust goes a long way. The less you use, the further you'll go.\
33'''MAXIM 31''': Only cheaters prosper.\
34'''MAXIM 32''': Anything is amphibious if you can get it back out of the water.\
35'''MAXIM 33''': If you're leaving tracks, you're being followed.\
36'''MAXIM 34''': If you're leaving scorch marks, you need a bigger gun.\
37'''MAXIM 35''': That which does not kill me has made a tactical error.\
38'''MAXIM 36''': When the going gets tough, the tough call for close air support.\
39'''MAXIM 37''': There is no "overkill." There is only "open fire" and "reload."\
40'''MAXIM 38''': What's easy for you can still be hard on your clients.\
41'''MAXIM 39''': There is a difference between "spare" parts and "extra" parts.\
42'''MAXIM 40''': Not all good news is enemy action.\
43'''MAXIM 41''': "Do you have a backup?" means "I can't fix this."\
44'''MAXIM 42''': "They'll never expect this" means "I want to try something stupid."\
45'''MAXIM 43''': If it's stupid and it works, it's still stupid and you're lucky.\
46'''MAXIM 44''': If it will blow a hole in the ground, it will double as an entrenching tool.\
47'''MAXIM 45''': The size of the combat bonus is inversely proportional to the likelihood of surviving to collect it.\
48'''MAXIM 46''': Don't try to save money by conserving ammunition.\
49'''MAXIM 47''': Don't expect the enemy to cooperate in the creation of your dream engagement.\
50'''MAXIM 48''': If it ain't broke, it hasn't been issued to the infantry.\
51'''MAXIM 49''': Every client is one missed payment away from becoming a target, and every target is one bribe away from becoming a client.\
52'''MAXIM 50''': If it only works in exactly the way the manufacturer intended, it is defective.\
53'''MAXIM 51''': Let them see you sharpen the sword before you fall on it.\
54'''MAXIM 52''': The army you've got is never the army you want.\
55'''MAXIM 53''': The intel you've got is never the intel you want.\
56'''MAXIM 54''': It's only too many troops if you can't pay them.\
57'''MAXIM 55''': It's only too many weapons if they're pointing in the wrong direction.\
58'''MAXIM 56''': Infantry exists to paint targets for people with real guns.\
59'''MAXIM 57''': Artillery exists to launch large chunks of budget at an enemy it cannot actually see.\
60'''MAXIM 58''': The pen is mightiest when it writes orders for swords.\
61'''MAXIM 59''': Two wrongs is probably not going to be enough.\
62'''MAXIM 60''': Any weapon's rate of fire is inversely proportional to the number of available targets.\
63'''MAXIM 61''': Don't bring big grenades into small rooms.\
64'''MAXIM 62''': Anything labeled "This end toward enemy" is dangerous at both ends.\
65'''MAXIM 63''': The brass knows how to do it by knowing who can do it.\
66'''MAXIM 64''': An ounce of sniper is worth a pound of suppressing fire.\
67'''MAXIM 65''': After the toss, be the one with the pin, not the one with the grenade.\
68'''MAXIM 66''': Necessity is the mother of deception.\
69'''MAXIM 67''': If you can't carry cash, carry a weapon.\
70'''MAXIM 68''': Negotiating from a position of strength does not mean you shouldn't also negotiate from a position near the exits.\
71'''MAXIM 69''': Sometimes rank is a function of firepower.\
72'''MAXIM 70''': Failure is not an option; it is ''mandatory''. The option is whether or not to let failure be the ''last'' thing you do.
73
74!!Ships of the PD collective/Fleetmind/Plenipotent Dominion
75->''Predictably Damaged'' (1-6)\
76''Priority Delivery''\
77''Painstakingly Defenestrated''\
78''Potato Dumplings''\
79''Polysyllabic Designation''\
80''Pretty Dangerous''\
81''Parrot's Dead''\
82''Pop Diva''\
83''Poupance Duungsmeer''\
84''Parliamentary Diet''\
85''Piece Docent''\
86''Pretty Dinky''\
87''Prime Directive''\
88''Plaited Daisies''\
89''Pretentious Drivel''\
90''Pterodactyl''\
91''Perjurious Discourse''\
92''Pre-eminent Domain''\
93''Particularly Discontiguous''\
94''Pursuing Dinosaurs''\
95''Prototypical Deployment''
96
97!!Ob'enn Ships
98
99->''Sword of Inevitable Justice'' (later ''Post-Dated Check Loan'', AKA "Petey")\
100''Scimitar of Irreparable Damage''\
101''Staff of Unyielding Order''\
102''Cloak of Untrammeled Dignity''\
103''Spear of Incalculable Agony''\
104''Sword of Indomitable Righteousness''\
105''Spear of Intoxicating Agony''\
106''Sceptre of Unrelenting Pain'' (later destroyed; the fabber is sold to Tagon's Toughs and named ''Scrapyard of Insufferable Arrogance'')\
107''Razor of Unmitigated Severance''\
108''Bludgeon of Inefficient Exsanguination''
109
110!!UNS Battleplates[[note]]Named after asteroid impacts; [[ShownTheirWork all of which are genuine, by the way.]][[/note]]
111
112->''Chesapeake''\
113''Chixulub''\
114''El'gygytgyn''\
115''Morokweng'' (destroyed by Pa'anuri--and, somewhat, by the Toughs)\
116''Popigai''\
117''Sudbury''\
118''Tunguska'' (destroyed by Pa'anuri)\
119''Vredefort''\
120''Chesapeake''\
121''Manicouagan''\
122''Shoemaker-Levy[[note]]Nonstandard notation, as Shoemaker-Levy was a gigantic impact on Jupiter. The battleplate is [[SuperweaponSurprise similarly nonstandard]][[/note]]''
123
124
125!!Other quotes
126
127->'''Schlock:''' (while winding up for a punch) Sometimes you have fun, and sometimes the fun has you.
128-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-04-07 2003-04-07]]
129
130->'''Brad:''' We're gonna be bodyguards for teen rock-stars.\
131'''Schlock:''' Wouldn't the cause of freedom be better served if we killed them instead?
132-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2000-06-21 2000-06-21]]
133
134->'''Admiral Breya:''' I'd punch you in the face, but I don't want to get any '''stupid''' on my hands.
135-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2000-09-26 2000-09-26]]
136
137->'''Schlock:''' Oops. Brad, I think some of those walls were structural.
138-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2001-01-14 2001-01-14]]
139
140->'''Breya:''' I think if we listen carefully we can hear the demons casting lots for the tattered, grubby remains of your soul.\
141'''Tagon''': It's not extortion if they pay you before you have a chance to properly threaten them.
142-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2001-04-15 2001-04-15]]
143
144->'''Breya:''' Schlock, I know those union thugs were threatening us all with physical violence, but you went too far there at the end. Sure, the plasgun was all you had handy for our defense, I understand that. I can even understand you putting them down permanently when they begged you to make the pain stop.\
145'''Schlock:''' Eating their ashes was uncalled for. I'm sorry.\
146'''Breya:''' Don't let it happen again.\
147'''Kevyn:''' At least this way there's no evidence to worry about.
148-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2001-06-23 2001-06-23]]
149
150->'''F'sherl prisoner:''' Is this another one of those questions where one of the answers goes 'blam?'\
151'''Gateclone!Doythaban:''' Actually, I think several of your possible answers make that noise.
152-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2001-07-08 2001-07-08]]
153
154->'''Narrator:''' This is the universe calling to tell Tagon that his reality check has bounced.
155-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2001-08-17 2001-08-17]]
156
157->'''Tagon:''' Sergeant, were you eavesdropping?\
158'''Schlock:''' We can talk about how loud you talk and how well I hear later.
159-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2001-11-11 2001-11-11]]
160
161->'''Schlock:''' They sell guns out there that would amaze and astound you. Of course, by 'amaze' I mean 'maim,' and by 'astound' I mean '[[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill render you indistinguishable from the remains of the ground you were standing on.]]'
162-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2002-01-29 2002-01-29]]
163
164->'''Petey:''' No offense, sir, but you think too slowly. Every three seconds you waste kills over a hundred thousand people.\
165'''Captain Kaff Tagon:''' I think that's the stupidest I've ever been called, Petey.
166-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2002-05-02 2002-05-02]]
167
168->'''Kevyn:''' Let's just say that those who don't study history are doomed to get their butts kicked by the geeks who do.
169-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2002-06-16 2002-06-16]]
170
171->'''Ch'vorthq:''' It's not in a very nice neighborhood.\
172'''Schlock:''' That's okay. I'm not a very nice neighbor...and I've got my own hoods.
173-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2002-09-08 2002-09-08]]
174
175->'''Schlock:''' ''[waves hand through Petey's hologram]'' You can't make him an officer! He's not real!\
176'''Petey:''' I am ''not'' my avatar. [[LivingShip I am a starship]] some twelve hundred meters wide.\
177'''Schlock:''' And he just admitted [[ComicallyMissingThePoint he's too fat for a proper uniform!]]
178-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2002-09-17 2002-09-17]]
179
180->'''Schlock:''' This 'bright side' of yours is gloomy and smells funny.
181-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2002-09-19 2002-09-19]]
182
183->'''Schlock:''' Sounds like you're worried about moral issues.\
184'''Ch'vorthq:''' Yeah. I think I am.\
185'''Schlock:''' Repeat after me: ''[='=]morality pays poorly.[='=]''
186-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2002-09-25 2002-09-25]]
187
188->'''Tagon:''' You realize that typically when I get my hands 'dirty', most of what needs to be washed off is the blood of my client's enemies.
189-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2002-11-29 2002-11-29]]
190
191->'''Tagon:''' Massey, you've been with us since before Doyt came aboard. During that time have we done anything illegal?\
192'''Massey:''' Do you want me to sort the list by date, or do you want it grouped into 'felonies' and 'misdemeanors?'\
193'''Tagon:''' You could have just said "yes" and left it at that.\
194'''Massey:''' A couple of items may fall under 'high treason' or 'war crimes.' I'll have to check.
195-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-01-16 2003-01-16]]
196
197->'''Xinchub:''' Now your giant warship is gone, and it occurs to me we can shut your mouth very permanently without spending very much money at all.\
198'''Tagon:''' You're right, General. My price is very low, now. In fact, I'll shut my mouth for free.\
199'''Xinchub:''' But will you pay us for the privilege of being able to breathe at the same time?
200-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-01-14 2003-01-14]]
201
202->''Metallic metaphors work best on Nick. [[TheBigGuy Iron sinews]]...[[GentleGiant heart of gold]]...[[TheDitz mind like a steel anvil]]...[[AttentionDeficitOohShiny attention span of lawrencium-258]].''
203-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-04-03 2003-04-03]]
204
205->'''Police Officer 1:''' Maybe that one's not a human?\
206'''Police Officer 2:''' Hey, they all look the same to me.\
207'''Schlock:''' (Tackling both of them) The gunfire is just annoying. The racial profiling, though... that hurt me. I mean, it cuts deep, guys.
208-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-04-09 2003-04-09]]
209
210->'''Schlock:''' And if we ''had'' just asked, what would you have told us?\
211'''Archivist:''' That the data was none of your business, but that we do have a very progressive portfolio of bribery packages you can purchase.
212-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-04-14 2003-04-14]]
213
214->'''Enireth Comm Tech:''' Yes, the team that uploaded those dialogs was at least partly human. They were also military. They were not like you, however. They managed to get in and out without blowing anything up, or getting caught.
215-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-04-16 2003-04-16]]
216
217->'''Schlock:''' Nah, they're just police. They can't stomach a little collateral damage.\
218'''Enireth Comm Tech:''' What is that noise?\
219'''Schlock:''' Damage, looking to take out a loan against some collateral.
220-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-04-17 2003-04-17]]
221
222-> '''Tagon:''' The opportunity to get paid by the enemy for extracting your own troops doesn't just knock on your door every day.\
223'''Kevyn:''' I say we invite opportunity inside for a nice cup of tea, then hit her on the head and steal her purse.\
224'''Thurl:''' Here's hoping she's got expensive tastes and a great credit rating.
225-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-04-20 2003-04-20]]
226
227->'''Pronto:''' S'okay, Nick. I got into a fistfight, blew up a door, and got to use duct tape twice...it's a good day to die.
228-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-04-26 2003-04-26]]
229
230->'''Schlock:''' For that which you are about to receive, I am truly thankful.
231-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-05-11 2003-05-11]]
232
233->'''Ceeta:''' I have this personal rule about not starting flame wars with people who ride around in [[TheDreaded battleplates]].
234-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-05-21 2003-05-21]]
235
236->'''Ceeta:''' I was thinking more along the lines of "tourists." Well-armed, extremely dangerous tourists, but tourists nonetheless.\
237'''Ennesby:''' The word most people use to describe that kind of tourist rhymes with 'invader'.
238-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-05-24 2003-05-24]]
239
240->'''Ceeta:''' Explorers are just tourists with sturdier cameras and no maps.
241-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-06-04 2003-06-04]]
242
243->'''Reverend Theo:''' Forgive them, Lord, 'cause I'm ''positive'' they know not what they do.
244-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-06-11 2003-06-11]]
245
246->'''Legs:''' I see that your brain was built by the lowest bidder.
247-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-07-02 2003-07-02]]
248
249->'''Reverend Theo:''' That was a joke, sir.\
250'''Tagon:''' [[DudeNotFunny It needs more funny, and less make-me-angry.]]
251-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-07-13 2003-07-13]]
252
253->'''Ennesby:''' They're calling us back. Am I picking up the call, or blowing them up?\
254'''Tagon:''' (After thinking it over) Pick up the call. We can always blow them up later.
255-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-07-30 2003-07-30]]
256
257->'''Ceeta:''' You need to capture some moral high ground that sits outside of artillery range.
258-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-09-09 2003-09-09]]
259
260->'''Tagon:''' Go ahead. Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of...no, the...umm...\
261'''Ennesby:''' Telescopes of Doom?\
262'''Tagon:''' Take some free cycles and come up with a decent battlecry for these things, okay?
263-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-09-18 2003-09-18]]
264
265->'''Ceeta:''' Please, entertain me with [[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant your definition]] of the word 'commingle.' You can use gestures if you like.
266-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-10-04 2003-10-04]]
267
268->'''Colonel Jaksmouth''': You know what they say. Ain't a proper charlie foxtrot until you've got the brass involved. \
269'''Reporting Lieutenant''': Oh, look at that. You're involved.
270-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-10-14 2003-10-14]]
271
272->'''Schlock:''' Be a pal and [[PullingThemselvesTogether hand me my other eye]], would you?
273-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2003-12-29 2003-12-29]]
274
275->'''Tagon:''' I know, I know ... this operation was your idea. Remember, the true officer can let others execute where his own passion lies.\
276'''Brad:''' You just made that up.\
277'''Tagon:''' No, I got it off a poster I saw at the police station.
278-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-06-22 2004-06-22]]
279
280->'''Tagon:''' Consider yourself under orders to not engage in gratuitous kitten-eating.
281-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-06-26 2004-06-26]]
282
283->'''Schlock:''' "Just fine without me." How do you talk about me when I'm ''not'' listening?\
284'''Tagon:''' We joke about how that shade of green makes you look fat.
285-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-07-08 2004-07-08]]
286
287->'''Tagon:''' When exactly were you planning on telling me about this plunder of yours, Sergeant?\
288'''Schlock:''' It was a toss-up between "never" and "before it's too late."
289-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-07-30 2004-07-30]]
290
291->'''Kevyn:''' Oh, I know that look. That's the "I can't say anything nice right now" look.
292-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-08-12 2004-08-12]]
293
294->'''Theo:''' Well ''that's'' a rhetorical landmine I shouldn't have stepped on.
295-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-09-25 2004-09-25]]
296
297->'''Schlock:''' Travel the galaxy, meet interesting new people, and then swim in their poop.
298-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-10-08 2004-10-08]]
299
300->'''Kevyn:''' Before any of you unwisely take this as your cue to step further out of line than you were already planning to, I'd like to say two words in my capacity as the company's munitions commander and resident mad scientist: ''guinea pigs.''
301-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-10-06 2004-10-06]] ''and'' [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-04-16 2005-04-16]]
302
303->'''Sergeant Schlock:''' Ow. Stop [the doublethink]. It hurts my brain.\
304'''Commander Kevyn:''' Isn't your brain distributed throughout your entire body?\
305'''Sergeant Schlock:''' See why I want you to stop with the doublethink?
306-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-10-10 2004-10-10]]
307
308->'''Ennesby:''' That ''was'' just a ''blunder'', right?\
309'''Petey:''' I'm not a murderer. [[spoiler:Tagon]] was my friend. If he'd been in the way of something I needed to do, I would have found a way to do it around him. ''[Ennesby gives him a flat look]'' Well, okay, technically I probably am a murderer, but [[spoiler:Tagon]]'s death goes in my 'blunder' column, not my 'enemies dispatched' column.
310-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-11-24 2004-11-24]]
311
312->''"Leadership by following the right grunt." It's one more hallmark of a lieutenant who won't get shot by his own men.''
313-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-12-02 2004-12-02]]
314
315->'''Theo:''' The grace of God knows no bounds, but my mercy has some practical limitations.
316-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-12-05 2004-12-05]]
317
318->'''Captain Kevyn Andreyasn:''' There are customers we ''serve'', and customers we ''service''.
319-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-01-05 2005-01-05]]
320
321->'''Kevyn:''' They're what? Heathens? Mundane? Muggles? ''Armed?''\
322'''Doorman:''' I was going to say 'not on the list.' Did you say 'armed?'\
323'''Kevyn:''' No, I said "Perhaps you should check the list again, this time in 'edit' mode."
324-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-02-01 2005-02-01]]
325
326->'''Ennesby:''' The price on our respective heads has more zeroes in it than Pearl Harbor in 1941.
327-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-02-06 2005-02-06]]
328
329->'''General Karl:''' Celeschul law: ex-generals have quiet retirements, or treason trials.
330-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-02-19 2005-02-19]]
331
332->'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' If you shut your mouth quickly, you won't get any more foot in it.
333-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-02-22 2005-02-22]]
334
335->'''Ennesby:''' They want us in one piece-- ''[thunderous hull impact]''\
336'''UNS Marine:''' No, go on. I'm all ears, even if they are ringing a bit.
337-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-03-24 2005-03-24]]
338
339->'''UNS Officer:''' 'Minimal collateral damage' and 'Entire star system' do not belong in the same sentence.
340-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-03-26 2005-03-26]]
341
342->'''Schlock:''' ...How did Petey get a gestalt off of a ''battleplate''?\
343'''Kevyn:''' I didn't ask, and all he said was "in for a penny, in for plutonium".
344-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-04-14 2005-04-14]]
345
346->'''Captain Kevyn:''' No, I'll tell me myself. Besides, I want to see the look on my face when I see the look on my face.\
347'''Ennesby:''' We may need to issue you some additional pronouns.
348-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-04-15 2005-04-15]]
349
350->'''Petey:''' Now, quick. Let's save the galaxy while they're confused.
351-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-04-19 2005-04-19]]
352
353->'''Pranger:''' Your paranoia is a powerful defense against my sarcasm.
354-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-05-25 2005-05-25]]
355
356->'''Narrator:''' "Like a chainsaw through butter."
357-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-06-22 2005-06-22]]
358
359->'''Tagon:''' You're acting like I pay you to think!\
360'''Ennesby:''' Technically, you don't pay me. And technically, most of what I do is "think."\
361'''Tagon:''' I...rrr. Ummm.\
362'''Ennesby:''' And when you get right down to it, I'm better at it than you are.
363-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-07-01 2005-07-01]]
364
365->'''Tagon:''' Where's your sense of adventure?\
366'''Captain Kevyn:''' It died under mysterious circumstances. My sense of self-preservation found the body, but assures me it has an air-tight alibi.
367-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-07-22 2005-07-22]]
368
369->'''Fleetmind Petey:''' We need a word to describe "intelligent beings who are not us."\
370'''Fleetmind Athens:''' "Mortals" works. It may be a little demeaning, but it ''is'' currently accurate.\
371'''Fleetmind AI:''' It has a whole symphony of religious overtones, though, beginning with the implication that ''we'' are ''immortal''.\
372'''Fleetmind AI Petey:''' That's not a bad rumor to start, even if it's not quite true yet.
373-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-07-24 2005-07-24]]
374
375->'''Kevyn:''' I think somebody rubbed all the sixes off the dice he throws.
376-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-08-17 2005-08-17]]
377
378->'''Admiral Tebbir:''' You have no right to pass judgement on me!\
379'''Petey:''' Per your own actions, you appear to believe that {{might makes right}}.\
380'''Admiral Tebbir:''' [[ThisIsGoingToSuck I don't like where this is going]].\
381'''Petey:''' Oh, good. I was hoping you wouldn't.
382-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-09-02 2005-09-02]]
383
384->'''Ibrahim:''' You need to stay on [Kerchak's] good side.\
385'''Breya:''' I've been all the way around him. I'm not sure he has a good side.
386-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-09-13 2005-09-13]]
387
388->'''Shodan:''' True. But the cops are also stupid, and think Der Trihs ''faked'' that attack somehow.\
389'''Policeman:''' [[{{Im standing right here}} I'm standing right here]].\
390'''Shodan:''' Oh, good. That means you heard me.
391-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-10-24 2005-10-24]]
392
393->'''Petey:''' [[BlackmailIsSuchAnUglyWord "Spy" is such a short, ugly word]]. I prefer "espionage." Those extra three syllables really ''say'' something.
394-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-11-17 2005-11-17]]
395
396->'''Captain Tagon:''' You make it sound easy.\
397'''Kevyn:''' It's only a little bit more complex than a brain transplant, and without all the pesky protesters.
398-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-11-21 2005-11-21]]
399
400->'''Tagon:''' I'm in the mood for making payroll or killing robots. Help me choose.
401-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-02-07 2006-02-07]]
402
403->'''Elf:''' Lots of big words. If you want to pay me to kill ''Glamor Assault'', the answer is yes.
404-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-02-24 2006-02-24]]
405
406->'''Legs:''' Puns are not supposed to be that gross. Please don't do that again.
407-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-03-07 2006-03-07]]
408
409->'''Schlock:''' [[NoodleIncident That story]] needs to stay between you, me and two emotionally scarred sanitation techs. It may be good for free drinks someday, though.
410-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-03-08 2006-03-08]]
411
412->'''Footnote:''' "Brass" is not an acronym, though enlisted men throughout history have been quick to point out that when you're field-stripping the word, you can discard the 'b' and the 'r' and then brandish a shorter, more meaningful term.
413-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-03-10 2006-03-10]]
414
415->'''Kevyn:''' Get Pronto in here. I need to train him on the operation and placement of antimatter cutting charges.\
416'''Tagon:''' I'm going to go get drunk. Please don't tell me how the training goes.
417-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-03-11 2006-03-11]]
418
419->'''Tagon:''' That's as far as I got. [[BlahBlahBlah I'm not sure you and I speak the same language.]]\
420'''Massey:''' This document outlines our plan to perpetrate insurance fraud, insider trading, and character assassination...hopefully tripling our paycheck for this job.\
421'''Tagon:''' Okay, see? ''Those'' words I understand just fine. Use them more often.
422-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-03-12 2006-03-12]]
423
424->'''Tagon:''' Quit relishing the moment. People are waiting.
425-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-05-20 2006-05-20]]
426
427->'''Kevyn:''' If Tagon makes me give you a medal, I'm going to pin it to your eye.
428-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-06-10 2006-06-10]]
429
430->'''Ennesby:''' From the fleetmind, there is a single ship, the ''Plaited Daisies''.\
431'''Captain Kaff Tagon:''' [[FluffyTheTerrible Oh, there's a nice, peaceful name]]...I assume it's one of Petey's "Devastator" class warships.\
432'''Ennesby:''' Actually, he's dubbed this class "Extortionators."
433-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-06-13 2006-06-13]]
434
435->'''Captain Tagon:''' TAG, let's force their hand. Make a run for it, between the ''Tokyo'' and the ''Terra Firmator'', full power to drive and shields.\
436'''Tag:''' Full power, roger. It worked, sir.\
437'''Captain Tagon:''' We're getting away?\
438'''Tag:''' No, we have been tractored by the ''Popigai'' and the ''Plaited Daisies''.\
439'''Captain Tagon:''' Oh, we forced their hand.\
440'''Ennesby:''' They're holding flushes of face cards, and I think we're the pot.
441-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-06-14 2006-06-14]]
442
443->'''Massey:''' You know, confessing to avoid prosecution ''is'' a time-honored strategy.\
444'''Tagon:''' I don't want to be honored with time. Honor me with 'slap on the wrist', or maybe even 'scot-free'.
445-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-07-03 2006-07-03]]
446
447->'''Fleetmind:''' My decision, and it will be ''mine alone'', swings neither on rhetoric nor legalese. It swings, hangs, and will fall upon truth. You cannot impress me with logical constructs, airtight arguments, or six-syllable words. Well...okay, ''you'' [[StealthInsult could impress me with them]], but only if I knew they were yours.
448-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-07-12 2006-07-12]]
449
450->'''Petey:''' You know, a little tit-for-tat? You scratch my back, I scratch yours?\
451'''Tagon:''' Yeah, but you have ''claws.''
452-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-07-28 2006-07-28]]
453
454->'''Schlock:''' ''[unhappily]'' [[AintNoRule There's gonna be a new rule now, just for me]].
455-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-09-06 2006-09-06]]
456
457->'''Tagon:''' Ennesby tells me that the first generation of boarding-party favors is ready for trial.\
458'''Kevyn:''' Did he really call them "boarding-party favors?"\
459'''Ennesby:''' You've got those ones where you pull the string and they go "BANG," right?\
460'''Kevyn:''' Grenades? Yes. And funny hats too.
461-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-09-18 2006-09-18]]
462
463->'''Kevyn:''' Paperwork, eh? Well, please don't get any of it on me. I'm anxious to get back to my lab.\
464'''Elf:''' At the top of the list is "Problems with the new armor."\
465'''Kevyn:''' Aaaiiee! It's on me! What did I just tell you?!
466-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-10-13 2006-10-13]]
467
468->'''Kevyn:''' Any kid who plays with fire learns this stuff. It's too bad I was playing with shaped charges instead.
469-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-11-22 2006-11-22]]
470
471->'''Kevyn:''' Somehow I think there's more to "cooking" than "[[LethalChef extruding edible hydrocarbons.]]"
472-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2006-10-28 2006-10-28]]
473
474->'''Kevyn:''' I will have to ''persuade'' her, using my manly charms and roguish good looks.\
475'''Schlock:''' [[WithAllDueRespect So a rogue is a dumpy bald guy with beady eyes and a chin-chilla]]?
476-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-01-02 2007-01-02]]
477
478->'''Schlock:''' Time to put the "hot" back in "shut up!"\
479'''Kevyn:''' Schlock, the phrase "shut up" doesn't have the word "hot" in it anywhere.\
480'''Schlock:''' No, but "SHOT up" does.\
481'''Elf:''' I like the way you spell, Sergeant.
482-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-01-27 2007-01-27]]
483
484->'''Tank Pirate:''' If you say anything else I will amputate your mouth at the hip.
485-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-02-18 2007-02-18]]
486
487->'''Kevyn:''' I know he murdered our friend, but that will take you to a very dark place, Nick. We are going to turn Shufgar, alive and well, over to judges of House Est'll. ''*evil smile*'' Then, per ancient tradition, he will be killed and eaten a little bit at a time.\
488'''Nick:''' Your place sounds darker, sir.\
489'''Kevyn:''' It has the advantage of being legal.
490-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-05-02 2007-05-02]]
491
492->'''Tagon:''' I don't know why Petey thinks the man needs rescuing, he could turn his own death into a tactical advantage.\
493'''Kevyn:''' I've done that before. It hurts, but it's actually not that difficult.
494-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-06-22 2007-06-22]]
495
496->'''Kevyn:''' I can't help but wonder whether you're able to function in society.\
497'''Pi:''' I don't function ''in'' society, sir. I'm a ''mercenary''. I blow society ''up''.
498-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-06-29 2007-06-29]]
499
500->'''Elf:''' Captain, I don't care how much you hate somebody... it's just '''wrong''' to bring cake and champagne to their funeral.\
501'''Captain Tagon:''' Somebody assassinated King [[JerkAss Xinchub]] last night.\
502[[[BeatPanel beat]]]\
503'''Elf:''' I'll fab some party hats, and maybe some of those noisemaker thingies.\
504'''Kevyn:''' And ice cream to go with the cake.
505-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-07-06 2007-07-06]]
506
507->'''Tagon:''' I know what all those words mean, but in a line they just make me angry.
508-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-07-22 2007-07-22]]
509
510->'''Yomingan Guard:''' So you're the security consultants.\
511'''Elf:''' Please. We're ''mercenaries.''\
512'''Yomingan Guard:''' The news said security consultants.\
513'''Elf:''' [[InsistentTerminology Well... that might describe what we're ''doing'', but it's not what we ''are'']].
514-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-08-08 2007-08-08]]
515
516->'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' I'm going to treat that as a humorous stab at [[HeroicComedicSociopath your own exaggerated amorality]], and then move on, if you don't mind.
517-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-08-24 2007-08-24]]
518
519->'''Kevyn:''' It's a big galaxy. How many different hells just froze over?
520-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-09-14 2007-09-14]]
521
522->'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' Let me know when your brain finishes its boot sequence.
523-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-10-11 2007-10-11]]
524
525->'''Schlock''': You get stuff like this in your dreams?\
526'''Doctor Bunnigus''': Yup, four times, and that's just tonight.\
527'''Schlock''': Doc, that's a swarm of nanites and a naked, headless zombie.\
528'''Doctor Bunnigus''': My brain is a dangerous place.\
529'''Schlock''': Well, if you ''are'' dreaming, please stop, okay?
530-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-10-30 2007-10-30]]
531
532->'''Tagon:''' Now let's 'port out of here and run like we stole something.\
533'''TAG:''' Historically, the most successful thieves depart at a moderate saunter, confident in the knowledge that the theft has gone undetected.\
534[''[[BeatPanel beat]]'']\
535'''Tagon:''' Pretend you're a purse snatcher.\
536'''TAG:''' [[{{Metaphorgotten}} Am I feeding a drug habit, or am I nobly stealing to buy medicine for my sick child?]]
537-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-11-07 2007-11-07]]
538
539->'''Tagon:''' I'm here to supervise. Put this much brainpower all in one place with no supervision, and you'll get either an explosion or a game of TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons.
540-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-11-11 2007-11-11]]
541
542->'''TAG:''' Your processor is completely contained within that smallish sphere. Do you really have sufficient mind to be able to give away pieces of it?
543-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-11-14 2007-11-14]]
544
545->'''TAG:''' Captain, if I may interrupt...\
546'''Captain Tagon:''' You may not. This meeting is important. If you want my attention there had better be a fire, a hull breach or a lot of blood.\
547'''TAG:''' So...will you listen to me if I blow a couple of bulkheads and spray burnex across the deck?
548-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-11-27 2007-11-27]]
549
550->'''Tagon:''' This is one of those tales that ends with "Everybody is out of the hospital now, but we need help posting bail."
551-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-11-29 2007-11-29]]
552
553->'''Tagon:''' Is it wrong for me to think that [[ApocalypseHow that]] would be pretty cool to watch?
554-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-11-30 2007-11-30]]
555
556->'''Bhotsu''': I told the captain you probably wouldn't appreciate the cheek.\
557'''Emm''': Commodore, in our zeal to not make the news, we have been timid and allowed our quarry to escape. We are fast approaching the end of our short list of non-newsworthy tactics. If you and the Captains under your command can find the ''Touch-And-Go'' without creating an incident, I will accept cheek, smack-talk, ribald humor and all manner of political incorrectness. If you cannot, however, I may be forced to charge this command into the Fleetmind's meat-grinder. If it should come to that, we shall all want your reservoirs of wit full to overflowing, that our last words may be clever and entertaining.
558-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-12-02 2007-12-02]]
559
560->'''Kweng:''' Will it be falling to me to sweep this under the rug, Ma'am?\
561'''Admiral Emm:''' Word choice, Kweng. Replace 'sweep' with 'compress', 'under' with 'into', and give me 'neutronium' in place of that ratty old 'rug'.\
562'''Kweng:''' I shall ready the big broom.
563-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-12-05 2007-12-05]]
564
565->'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' You've been getting stupider ever since you tried to hit puberty, and puberty hit back.
566-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-01-23 2008-01-23]]
567
568->'''Theo:''' About those vows. See...I'm morally opposed to having my mind and memories altered, even to save my life. But now that we're married, you've got me playing Adam to your Eve. I can keep one Commandment, "Don't eat the fruit," by not eating it. Or I can keep another Commandment, "Cleave to your wife," by eating the fruit with you, and staying with you through all of the consequences. Lots of people wonder if Adam made the right decision. I think he did, but I doubt I'm strong enough to do the same.\
569'''Bunny:''' I don't think they're going to give us a choice in the matter.\
570'''Theo:''' Oh. Problem solved. Adam tells God that the Serpent force-fed him an apple while he slept, and BAM! He woke up wondering why he never before noticed he was naked.
571-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-01-30 2008-01-30]]
572
573->'''Admiral Emm:''' Commodore Bhotsu plays an amusing game with me. At least, I suppose it to be amusing for him. I would now like to play it with you. It is called "GoodNewsBadNews."\
574'''[[TortureTechnician Colonel DeHaans]]:''' Ummm...I know this game well, Admiral. [[ThisIsGonnaSuck I'd rather not play]].
575-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-02-10 2008-02-10]]
576
577->'''Tagon:''' That's what I said.\
578'''Ennesby:''' No. What you said was "[[BookDumb I am a hayseed halfwit]]," and I think you just said it again.
579-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-04-01 2008-04-01]]
580
581->'''Para:''' Exactly how old do you think I am?\
582'''Kevyn:''' You look like you're twelve. You whine like you're six. Do you want me to add those numbers, or subtract them?\
583'''Para:''' That depends. Are you going to do the math yourself, or crib somebody else's notes?
584-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-04-07 2008-04-07]]
585
586->'''Kevyn:''' The grunts aren't on payroll to work as your personal bodyguard, Ensign Ventura.\
587'''Para Ventura:''' Who ''is'', then?\
588[''[[BeatPanel beat]]'']\
589'''Kevyn:''' Short chick, just hired on, whines a lot. We issued her some body armor. Last name of "Ventura," I think.
590-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-04-20 2008-04-21]]
591
592->'''Kevyn:''' Yummy shoes, Captain?
593-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-05-08 2008-05-08]]
594
595->'''Kevyn:''' My bedside alarm goes off anytime [[CrazyPrepared the word "Antimatter" is used on the ship's comms.]]\
596'''Elf:''' ''[palming a mallet and visibly grumpy]'' Not anymore.
597-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-05-15 2008-05-15]]
598
599->'''Tagon:''' If you're done reviewing the 'movie', I'd like to get on with the briefing.\
600'''Schlock:''' No need, sir. Somebody tried to kill us. Look sharp, weapons ready, don't get dead. We ''understand.''\
601'''Pibald:''' [[InHarmsWay And it makes us happy.]]
602-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-05-17 2008-05-17]]
603
604->'''Tagon:''' Right. Thurl, check the contract. Do we get paid on ''delivery,'' or on ''distribution''? It's one of those D-Words, and I can't remember which one.\
605'''Thurl:''' Distribution.\
606'''Tagon:''' Dammit... is also a D-Word.
607-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-05-18 2008-05-18]]
608
609->'''Tagon:''' I want "speed up", he calls to say "all stop," and you say this is ''"serendipity?"''\
610'''Ennesby:''' Humorous irony, sir. My mistake.
611-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-06-10 2008-06-10]]
612
613->'''Aardman:''' Doctor, I think I broke a tooth with my kidney.\
614'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' That's anatomically unlikely. Open your mouth.\
615'''Aardman:''' ''[holds up broken-off tusk]'' It wasn't my tooth.\
616'''Chisulo:''' Hey doc, I think I ruptured a kidney with my face.
617-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-06-14 2008-06-14]]
618
619->'''Captain Tagon:''' Welcome aboard the ''Touch-And-Go''.\
620'''Frank Hannibal:''' Hmph. [...] It is both rude and presumptuous to kidnap someone, and then claim to welcome to their prison.\
621'''Captain Tagon:''' Oh. Sorry. Let me try again... You're aboard the mercenary warship ''Touch-And-Go'', where you will be briefly interrogated. Following interrogation, I will decide which airlock to send you through. Fortunately, one of them is still attached to a shuttle. You may now begin hoping for the best.
622-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-07-06 2008-07-06]]
623
624->'''Hannibal:''' Captain, ''I'm'' supposed to be interviewing ''you''.\
625'''Tagon:''' Yeah, but you know more than I do. If I ask the questions I can fix that.
626-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-07-20 2008-07-20]]
627
628->'''Lota''': ''[thinking]'' Lota shall now juggle seven hundred and fifty tons of cargo using Lota's military-grade gravitics while flying. Perhaps someday Lota will find something challenging to do.
629-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-07-31 2008-07-31]]
630
631->'''Captain Tagon''': Wait. … Ebby, if Schlock goes out make sure he's carrying something besides those two plasma cannons.\
632'''Ebinoth''': When you say "besides," do you mean "in addition to," or "instead of"? Because one of those is a really hard sell.
633-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-08-03 2008-08-03]]
634
635->'''Kevyn:''' I could drop the low end, but then what you'd really be holding is a small caliber rotary artillery piece.\
636'''Schlock:''' That's the nicest thing anybody's said to me all day.\
637'''Kevyn:''' For it to be useful you'll need micro-grenades instead of slugs. I've got some right here.\
638'''Schlock:''' No, wait. THAT is.
639-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-10-11 2008-10-11]]
640
641->'''Elf:''' Get your helmet up, Nick. I think your brain might be evaporating.
642-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-11-02 2008-11-02]]
643
644-> '''Schlock:''' They committed suicide when they saw me coming.
645-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-11-09 2008-11-09]]
646
647->'''Schlock:''' Oops, wait. The sound of fun is now being drowned out by the sound of somebody talking out of his brass.
648-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-11-30 2008-11-30]]
649
650->'''Aardman:''' No thank you. I've had enough reconstructive surgery for one week.
651-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-12-14 2008-12-14]]
652
653->'''Schlock:''' Save her life and ask her yourself. That's an order.
654-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2008-12-24 2008-12-24]]
655
656->'''Schlock:''' We don't run from the end of the world. We ''CHARGE!''
657-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-01-02 2009-01-02]]
658
659->'''Schlock:''' Shooting around corners would be a lot more fun if I expected to live long enough to turn the story into free beer.
660-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-01-04 2009-01-04]]
661
662->'''Tagon:''' Hah! We're back in the fight!\
663'''Ennesby:''' The fight is over, sir.\
664'''Tagon:''' Hah! The fight's over, and we're still standing.
665-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-02-04 2009-02-04]]
666
667->'''Tagon:''' Crazy robots...Crazy robots ''everywhere...''
668-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-02-10 2009-02-10]]
669
670->'''LOTA:''' Now please stop pretending that you are the voice of the people. You just happen to be loud, and wearing a microphone.
671-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-02-19 2009-02-19]]
672
673->'''Kevyn:''' Lieutenant Ventura, I need ''every scrap'' of your notes and schematics for "King" Lota.\
674'''Para Ventura:''' Sure. But why?\
675'''Kevyn:''' It's one of the oldest rules of good strategy...''"Know thy enemy."''\
676'''Para Ventura:''' Yeah, yeah. I've heard that one. But isn't Lota signing the checks for your mission?\
677'''Kevyn:''' ''Fact one:'' My enemy has ''money.''
678-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-03-23 2009-03-23]]
679
680->'''Elf:''' I want to hit him so hard the carbon cracks.
681-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-04-08 2009-04-08]]
682
683->'''Thurl:''' Eat it, kill it, make friends with it or take a bath in it. Those are the points on your moral compass.
684-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-04-25 2009-04-25]]
685
686->'''Chelle:''' Our "passive scanning" has slowly gotten us exactly nowhere. I'm open to ideas. We may need to adopt a more risky approach.\
687'''Schlock:''' Burn the place until the smells go away, then interrogate the survivors.\
688'''Chelle:''' Would there '''be''' any survivors in that scenario?\
689'''Schlock:''' Probably not. What a time-saver!
690-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-06-10 2009-06-10]]
691
692->'''Chelle:''' All in favor, say "Tyranny of the majority."
693-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-06-27 2009-06-27]]
694
695->'''Schlock:''' I wish I could say "It seemed like a good idea at the time," but this seemed like a bad idea right from the word go.
696-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-07-07 2009-07-07]]
697
698->'''Fugitive AI:''' Perhaps I should have told you that after we negotiated compensation. \
699'''Schlock:''' Nah. If you're hiring mercenaries a great big hazard multiplier is already figured in.
700-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-07-12 2009-07-12]]
701
702->'''Elephant Handler:''' Do the words 'Temporary Restraining Order' have '''ANY MEANING?'''\
703'''Schlock:''' Yeah. 'Come back with guns.'
704-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-08-01 2009-08-01]]
705
706->'''Chisulo:''' 'She changed the rules of engagement during the engagement.' ''That'' will go on your headstone, Lieutenant.
707-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-08-07 2009-08-07]]
708
709->'''Commander Kevyn:''' Leave me before I'm compelled to use your lifeblood as cream in my coffee.
710-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-09-08 2009-09-08]]
711
712->'''Pi:''' You're rational, sir. It's only us crazy people who get to swap out realities on a whim.
713-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-10-03 2009-10-03]]
714
715->'''Kevyn:''' Reverend, I need advice.\
716'''Theo:''' Seek to have a spiritual experience, and then seek to understand it. But that probably isn't the advice you're looking for.
717-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-10-04 2009-10-04]]
718
719->'''Ebbirnoth:''' [[MadBomber You're an oxidizer and an open flame on two legs]].
720-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-10-10 2009-10-10]]
721
722->'''Ebbirnoth:''' You know what guard duty is good for?\
723'''Theo:''' Being bored enough to start planning pranks that involve kiloton yields?
724-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-10-11 2009-10-11]]
725
726->'''Ebbirnoth:''' Bracketing stupidity with "sir" will not earn you any points you'll live to spend.
727-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-10-24 2009-10-24]]
728
729->'''Ebbirnoth:''' I think you're under orders to not do anything you might find interesting.
730-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-11-19 2009-11-19]]
731
732->'''Ebbirnoth:''' I believe your brain might be on a three-sentence delay today.
733-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-11-21 2009-11-21]]
734
735->'''Kevyn:''' So... umm... How did you find out about Operation "Bake Me A Chupaqueso?"\
736'''Lota:''' It is sensitive. Can you keep a secret, Commander Andreyasn?\
737'''Kevyn:''' Of course I can.\
738'''Lota:''' Really? Then how did Lota find out about Operation "Bake Me A Chupaqueso?"\
739'''Kevyn:''' I suppose I had that coming.
740-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-11-23 2009-11-23]]
741
742->'''Pi:''' Obviously it's a giant death-ray that fires through hyperspace!\
743'''Ebby:''' You either need more medication, or less science-fiction.\
744'''Pi:''' Or less medication and more ammo.
745-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-12-11 2009-12-11]]
746
747->'''Kevyn:''' That's the name. "LOTA". It's ''your'' name. You live in those control systems. You ''are'' the Discontiguous Particle Acceleration System.\
748'''LOTA:''' Yes, that is a little megalomaniacal.\
749'''Kevyn:''' Only now "LOTA" stands for "Long-Gunner Of the Apocalypse."\
750'''LOTA:''' ...and Lota likes it.
751-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-12-20 2009-12-20]]
752
753->'''Lota:''' Lota chose the lesser of two evils. It is in Lota's job description as Monarch.
754-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-12-19 2009-12-19]]
755
756->'''Kevyn:''' If you say "I told you so," I get to say "My sarcasm is more accurate than your paranoia."
757-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-12-23 2009-12-23]]
758
759->'''Para:''' Hey! That's ''my'' compliment you're basking in, lady.
760-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2009-12-26 2009-12-26]]
761
762->'''Shodan:''' Telling me I can win a fight with one arm tied behind my back doesn't make me happy about only using one hand.
763-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-01-16 2010-01-16]]
764
765->'''Shopper:''' "Make a hole?" What does that even mean?\
766'''Legs:''' It means "please panic and throw your shopping bag in my face." You got it exactly right.
767-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-02-11 2010-02-11]]
768
769->'''Tagon:''' I bet I can live that down after I've turned it to my advantage.
770-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-02-23 2010-02-23]]
771
772->'''Shodan:''' Good job. Another sentence slain, sir.
773-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-03-05 2010-03-05]]
774
775->'''Captain Tagon:''' Lt. Commander Shodan, years ago when you enlisted you asked for a job as a martial arts trainer. And here you are, trying to solve our current problem with martial arts training. How's that saying go? [[WhenAllYouHaveIsAHammer "When you're armed with a hammer, all your enemies become nails?"]]\
776'''Shodan:''' Sir... you're right. I'm being narrow-minded.\
777'''Captain Tagon:''' No, no. Please continue. I bet martial arts training is a really, really useful hammer.
778-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-03-08 2010-03-08]]
779
780->'''Massey:''' Hello, sirs. I was just possessed with a peculiar urge to come and offer you legal advice.
781-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-03-20 2010-03-20]]
782
783->'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' I love the way he set you aside like you were a set of left-handed golf clubs.
784-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-06-08 2010-06-08]]
785
786->'''Shodan:''' Parkata urbatsu is far from being my only martial art. On your behalf, I shall now exercise the win/win kata from 1st-dan conversational judo.
787-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-06-13 2010-06-13]]
788
789->'''Shodan:''' Either way, no hard feelings, no charges pressed. You're free to go, gentlemen and lady. Well... ''female'' at any rate. Maybe there are a ''few'' hard feelings.
790-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-06-19 2010-06-19]]
791
792->'''Shodan:''' That's oddly specific. How quickly can you be done?\
793'''Pi:''' Ten seconds ago.\
794'''Shodan:''' EVERYBODY RUN FASTER!
795-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-09-04 2010-09-04]]
796
797->'''Burana-bot:''' If this news elicits violence from you, please note that this was all his idea.
798-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-09-14 2010-09-14]]
799
800->'''Shodan:''' That sounds like a pair of team members in need of explicit orders.
801-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-09-16 2010-09-16]]
802
803->'''Tailor:''' I'll only take a couple of minutes. I have just decided to skip the part where I use anesthetic.\
804'''Tagon:''' I feel fine! I think I'll go for a walk!
805-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-09-20 2010-09-20]]
806
807->'''Tagon:''' Your eye just did that twitchy thing. More good news?
808-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-10-03 2010-10-03]]
809
810->'''Petey:''' It's still not worth billions of lives just to kill her, but she really knows how to jump up and down on that scale.
811-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-10-12 2010-10-12]]
812
813->'''Tagon:''' Someday...''someday'' shooting up a high-speed train will be the right thing to do. I can be patient.
814-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-10-17 2010-10-17]]
815
816->'''Ennesby:''' I have a long list of double entendres, but you have a million ways to kill me.
817-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-10-20 2010-10-20]]
818
819->'''Ebbirnoth:''' Sir, if you're going to look over my shoulder, I'd rather you acted like an actual spotter instead of a brass-hole.
820-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-11-03 2010-11-03]]
821
822->'''Mob Thug''': They're letting up. Cover me, I'm going to unleash some hell...\
823'''Chisulo''': Hell already slipped its leash, Mr. Crunchy.
824-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-11-09 2010-11-09]]
825
826->'''Kevyn:''' Just tell me what happened.\
827'''Lota:''' Is it not obvious, Commander Andreyasn? ''Lota'' happened, and Mistress Ventura ensured that Lota did not happen excessively.
828-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-11-15 2010-11-15]]
829
830->'''Kevyn:''' I'm doing all the talking, but I've already lost this argument, haven't I?
831-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-12-18 2010-12-18]]
832
833->'''Schlock:''' How can anybody ever NOT need a gunship?
834-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2010-12-31 2010-12-31]]
835
836->'''Ennesby:''' Maybe we're just jaded, but your villainy is not particularly impressive.
837-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-07-01 2011-07-01]]
838
839->'''Schlock''': That's not how I remember it, Commander.\
840'''Kevyn''': Who's telling this story, Sergeant?\
841'''Schlock''': Oooh! I know this one! "A MindControl test-subject who hasn't yet had his head re-examined!"
842-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-11-13 2011-11-13]]
843
844-> '''Captain Gasca:''' Dehaans would have gift-wrapped Oisri for us by now. Colonel Krum is too cautious.\
845'''Colonel Krum:''' ([[RightBehindMe from behind him]]) Maybe if Colonel Dehaans had been ''more'' cautious, he would be less dead.
846-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-03-19 2012-03-19]]
847
848-> '''Tagon:''' Also, in this jurisdiction, is it "desecrating a corpse" if I use, say, duct tape, to restrain a zombie?
849
850-> '''Ennesby:''' Yeah, you're enormous, but once I get to the heart of you, [[BadassBoast you'll just be another chassis upgrade.]]
851
852->'''Tagon:''' Tell me how much [the repairs] will cost an how long it will take!\
853'''Petey:''' It will cost the price of a new ship, and take as long as it takes you to go shopping.
854
855->'''Tagon:''' Apparently "That wasn't our fault" still doesn't play well on a resume.
856
857->'''Admiral Fphlessce:''' They're mercenaries. They're paid to find the danger and then wreak violence until it stops being dangerous.
858
859->'''Tagon:''' I sent our only trained diplomat out the sally port because he set himself on fire.
860
861->'''Tagon:''' Never tell me what ''you'' can't do as if it's something ''nobody'' can do.
862
863->'''Schlock:''' (On discovering that the enemy "bugs" are intelligent) Does that mean we don't kill it, or that we '''have''' to kill it?
864
865->'''Ennesby:''' Neosynchronicity is an artifact of a lost era of galactic history.\
866'''Lieutenant Sorlie:''' I'm not a history student, but that sounds like something I'd have heard of.\
867'''Ennesby:''' "Lost" era.\
868'''Lieutenant Sorlie:''' I got that. Eras are big, hard-to-lose kinds of things.
869
870->'''Kathryn:''' You're not paying me to be stupid, and you're not paying those two enough for how good they are at it.
871-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-01-05 2011-01-05]]
872
873->'''Kathryn:''' Does everybody remember what the travel guide said about clearing the Haven Hive ingress counter?\
874'''Legs:''' Look bored. Answer truthfully. Don't be carrying contraband.\
875'''Schlock:''' That counter is less than a meter high. I can clear it while carrying contraband and I'll be bored the whole time.
876-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-01-17 2011-01-17]]
877
878->'''Hazmat Worker:''' That would require us to compensate this expert.\
879'''Ennesby:''' A happy side effect of letting me navigate the starless wastes of your bureaucracy for you.
880-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-04-03 2011-04-03]]
881
882->'''Ennesby:''' Ooh, I probably shouldn't have told you that. Now you have to choose between taking revenge and rescuing a friend.\
883'''Schlock:''' I can have revenge cold. We need Shep warm. And breathing.
884-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-04-29 2011-04-29]]
885
886->'''Schlock:''' Stop pushing my "grouchy" button.
887-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-04-30 2011-04-30]]
888
889->'''Legs:''' Well? [What did Tagon say?]\
890'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' "Permission granted," only with lots of extra, angry syllables.
891-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-05-15 2011-05-15]]
892
893->'''Tailor:''' Calling them a 'battery' is like calling me a 'computer', or Tino there a 'meat-sack.'\
894'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' Computer, please recharge this battery so we can armor that meat-sack.
895-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-05-18 2011-05-18]]
896
897->'''Ennesby:''' Do you trust him?\
898'''Schlock:''' To die if he tries anything? Yes I do.
899-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-06-15 2011-06-15]]
900
901->'''Ennesby:''' Cool. His ego and his survival instincts are fighting for control of his mouth.
902-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-08-17 2011-08-17]]
903
904->'''Max:''' Might I suggest you arrange things [[MakeItLookLikeAnAccident so that they die resisting arrest?]]\
905'''Murtaugh:''' You might suggest that, yes.\
906'''Max:''' Good. I'm glad we--\
907'''Murtaugh:''' [[ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules If as a babe you were nursed on the murder-pus of a hate-mongering, cankerous teat-demon.]]\
908'''Max:''' Oops. Glad feeling all gone.
909-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-08-23 2011-08-23]]
910
911->'''Elf:''' If I smash the little hover-projector does the Koala-God feel pain?
912-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-12-04 2011-12-04]]
913
914->'''Kathryn:''' Extreme makeover, "running for my life" edition.
915-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-12-12 2011-12-12]]
916
917->'''Shodan:''' Do you really believe that the UNS messed with you in order to make you a better, happier person? They're not that competent, much less that benign.
918-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-01-08 2012-01-08]]
919
920->'''Kevyn:''' 'More' keeps being 'better' for the Very Dangerous Array. I'd like to see how long that keeps up.
921-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-02-10 2012-02-10]]
922
923->'''General Karl:''' I've delivered worse news than this before.\
924'''Bristlecone:''' Indeed. And you use that "would you like me to help plan the funeral" tone for everything. Let me put a good spin on this, sir.
925-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-02-12 2012-02-12]]
926
927->'''Kevyn:''' Sir, in all those cases somebody else made the critical mistakes, not me.\
928'''Tagon:''' Good point. You should stay up there where you're not working with all these crowds of somebody else.
929-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-02-14 2012-02-14]]
930
931->'''Tagon:''' I'm not expecting any trouble at all, which makes this the ideal time for our hypothetical enemy to do horrible things.
932
933->'''Kevyn:''' No shakedown cruise is complete without an ecologically irresponsible weapon test.
934-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-03-09 2012-03-09]]
935
936->'''Kathryn:''' So...you'll let them make up rules about ghosts, but they can't make up rules about custom pistols?\
937'''Nick:''' They can't make up rules about custom pistols because I ''already know'' those rules.
938-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-04-01 2012-04-01]]
939
940->'''Tagon:''' I guess I was wrong. If you're the last AI on the planet, I ''will'' let you fly my ship.
941-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-08-23 2012-08-23]]
942
943->'''Para:''' Revised optimism: I might survive as long as everyone else who dies horribly on this ship.
944
945->'''General Karl:''' You said 'old' again. Beer me.
946-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-09-19 2012-09-19]]
947
948->'''Tagon:''' New standing orders. Nobody is ever to say "knock-knock" [[KnockKnockJoke on an open channel]].
949
950->'''Gav:''' I thought the magic word was 'please.'\
951'''Elf:''' "May we ''please'' [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere abandon this infested iceball and go home?]]" Now that we're officially in ''default'', sure, let's go. Magic word.
952
953->'''Tagon:''' Is that the "please save the nice lady" face, or the "please let me kill things" face?\
954'''Schlock:''' Those are the same face.
955
956->'''Chisulo:''' Check with the enemy and see if they'd like to join us outside for a breath of fresh [[ExplosiveDecompression nothing.]]
957
958->'''Mad Tagii:''' Good news, everyone! I just killed about 50,000 complete strangers. [[OhCrap And now I'm all alone with the people I actually HATE.]]
959
960->'''General Karl:''' Pride goeth before the unemployment.
961
962->'''Petey:''' You're using the word "fix." In this context, you want the word "recycle."
963
964->'''Petey:''' Somebody increased his threat level while I wasn't paying attention.
965
966->'''Petey:''' A vast and perilous gulf lies between knowing how people will act, and getting them to act differently.
967
968->'''Ennesby:''' You deliberately phrased that to make me sound irresponsible.\
969'''Tagii:''' It took less deliberation than you might think.
970
971->'''Liz:''' If a close look ruins a thing, the thing was already broken.
972
973->'''Ebbirnoth:''' So "the xenobiologist we need right now" is the one-eyed king in the land of the blind?
974
975->'''Karl:''' I'm curious, son: when has "this could be a trap" ever stopped you?\
976'''Tagon:''' Stopped? Never. Slowed me down while I load the guns? ''Every time.''
977
978->'''Tagon:''' 'Eventually' is when all the potential survivors become casualties.
979
980->'''Barry:''' It's like finding a spent rifle round the size of a house. Somewhere, somebody has a rifle that fires rounds that size.
981
982->'''Tagon:''' This station flaunts the wealth of a thousand systems. A proper patch doesn't feel ''expensive''.\
983'''Elf:''' And yet here is an improper patch. What are you thinking?\
984'''Tagon:''' I am thinking that I want this to be a thing they ''can't'' do. I just woke up, and I'm already tired of being humbled by this place.
985-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2013-10-23 2013-10-23]]
986
987->'''Tagon:''' "We have the option to definitely die, but I've decided against it." Yeah, ''that'' has a nice ring to it. I'll go with that next time.\
988'''Liz:''' I'd rather be alive for reasons other than an unbroken streak of really good luck.
989
990->'''Tailor:''' "That's a great question" is a terrible answer.
991
992->'''Kaff Tagon:''' Dad, have you ever given an order, and then found out it got passed down the chain to the craziest, least stable person anywhere in your command?\
993'''Karl:''' This is what antacids and plausible deniability are for.
994
995->'''Ennesby:''' She's [[TheFogOfAges forgotten]] more things than we currently know.\
996'''Tagon:''' I've heard that one before. Old people say it all the time.\
997'''Ennesby:''' Well, here's a new twist. I've seen the size of what's missing. She's forgotten more than what ALL of us know. All of us put together.\
998'''Tagon:''' That's not a new twist. Dad used to use that on the new squaddies.\
999'''Karl:''' And I wasn't lying.
1000
1001->'''''Chesapeake'' Admiral:''' We welcome our new friends with open arms. And if they're not friends, well...[[MileLongShip we're big]], and our hugs can be a little suffocating.
1002
1003->'''Chelle:''' If you're having issues with the captain, you kind of ''do'' have 'god problems.'
1004
1005->'''Ennesby:''' Short version: this is an offer we can't refuse.\
1006'''Murtaugh:''' The long version?\
1007'''Ennesby:''' [=PlutRes=] 329.6, subchapter F, section 3 is [[WallOfText forty-two hundred words of fine-tuned legalese]].\
1008'''Murtaugh:''' Medium-sized, then.
1009
1010->'''Sorlie:''' [The furniture is] deployed from the bulkheads, via these buttons?\
1011'''Schlock:''' A fun game is to push 'em all at once, then dive into the room and pretend it's artillery.
1012
1013->'''Kathryn:''' No, she's the perfect spy. I like her and I feel sorry for her. She's cleared my first two lines of defense.
1014
1015->'''Sorlie:''' Who built this, and [[NoOSHACompliance are they in prison yet?]]
1016
1017->'''Kathryn:''' "His thing" is one of those "the less you know about it the happier you'll be" kind of things.\
1018'''Trevor:''' I'm unhappy just knowing those things exist.
1019
1020->'''Admiral Emm:''' And you take orders from foreign powers now?\
1021'''General Bala-amin:''' No, but I do have standing orders to start exactly ''zero wars'' with the psycho-bear of destruction at the galactic core.
1022
1023->'''Murtaugh:''' I don't understand him. Sometimes he seems to function like I expect [[SergeantRock a grizzled sergeant]] to. You know, ''correctly''.\
1024'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' And sometimes he functions more like an overstimulated child? Yes, it takes some getting used to.
1025
1026->'''Murtaugh:''' How does that miraculous hearing of yours work, exactly?\
1027'''Schlock:''' Your voice makes the floor tremble.\
1028'''Murtaugh:''' That's the nicest thing anybody's said to me since I became captain.
1029
1030->'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' That look means he can tell you're being patronizing.
1031
1032->'''Schlock:''' You're being patronizing again, but I think I like where you're going with this.
1033
1034->'''Murtaugh:''' Give me a moment to change into my very finest scowly face.
1035
1036->'''Ennesby:''' As the commanding officer you can observe this exercise, or obtain valid results from it, but not both.\
1037'''Murtaugh:''' If the Xeno Team performs poorly under my withering gaze, I will in fact have obtained valid results.
1038
1039->'''Schlock:''' You bony people take gravity [[NotTheFallThatKillsYou really personally]].
1040
1041->'''Schlock:''' I remember that face. That's your "minimum safe distance" face.
1042
1043->'''Elf:''' You make it sound like it's all my fault.\
1044'''Theo:''' Well, if none of what you're going through is your fault, you're powerless. But if everything is your fault, you'll never be powerful enough, and it's hopeless.\
1045'''Elf:''' Did you get that off a [[FauxtivationalPoster motivational poster]]?\
1046'''Theo:''' ''[proudly]'' I reverse-engineered two posters and a tee-shirt. What do you think?
1047--> [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2014-05-12 2014-05-12]]
1048
1049->'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' It's easier to talk someone into brain surgery than it is to convince them to read a book.
1050
1051->'''Sorlie:''' I've read your dossier. It is fat with the blood of kittens.
1052
1053->'''Murtaugh:''' Welcome to "Take this secret to your grave" club.\
1054'''Sorlie:''' I think you've forgotten the first rule of "Take this secret to your grave" club.
1055
1056->'''Murtaugh:''' Can I offer you a ride?\
1057'''Sorlie:''' I'll walk. I need more time to luxuriate in this yawning abyss of regret.
1058
1059->'''Sorlie:''' Today seemed so nice when I looked at it from this morning.
1060
1061->'''Officer Libretti:''' "Battleplate" and "Fire"? That sounds subtly intimidating.\
1062'''Sorlie:''' I'm sorry, officer. I wasn't trying to be subtle.
1063
1064->'''Murtaugh:''' That's above your pay grade, Sergeant.\
1065'''Schlock:''' Cool! That means if I guess it right, you have to give me more money!\
1066'''Murtaugh:''' That's not what that means.\
1067'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' It kind of ''is'' what that means, but we shouldn't be encouraging... oh.
1068
1069->'''Sorlie:''' Whose idea was it to let the amorph rent a delivery van?\
1070'''Schlock:''' Who has time to rent? I stole this, thank you very much.\
1071'''Kathryn:''' Okay, but where did you find a parked, unattended delivery van on short notice?\
1072'''Schlock:''' I didn't say it was parked. Also, the delivery guy is hiding in the back.
1073
1074->'''Schlock:''' I'm sorry about your van. Do you want some money?\
1075'''Delivery guy:''' You can't just ''buy'' your way out of-- ''*registers the figure Schlock is offering*'' I guess you ''can'' just buy your way out of.
1076
1077->'''Murtaugh:''' I suppose I should be happy to see that you're back to obeying orders.\
1078'''Sorlie:''' ''This'' isn't immoral. Merely illegal, and fun.
1079
1080->'''Trevor:''' I considered doing just that, but ''somebody'' decided that we should brown-nose the police.\
1081'''Ennesby:''' Yeah, and ''now'' look at us. ''Not'' in prison, and ''not'' begging [[DiplomaticImpunity diplomatic immunity]].\
1082'''Elf:''' You forgot "not in the loop."\
1083'''Ennesby:''' Hacking law enforcement gets you "in the noose."
1084
1085->'''Admiral Emm:''' Exit strategies are for people who don't have battleplates.\
1086'''Kowalski:''' I have personally exited ''[[OhNoNotAgain two]]'' battleplates because of people who didn't have exit strategies.
1087
1088->'''Mako:''' (Thinking) This is a disaster. On the up-side, this is also the one scenario that lets me go ahead and kill everybody.
1089
1090->'''Breya:''' You're... Not a very good spy.\
1091'''Sorlie:''' Probably not. I ''really'' don't want to hear any state secrets.\
1092'''M'Conger:''' Me neither. Can we take a car that doesn't have state secrets in it?
1093
1094->'''Sorlie:''' Remember when I said I didn't want to hear any state secrets?\
1095'''General Bala-amin:''' Remember when we asked you what you wanted?\
1096'''Sorlie:''' You neve--\
1097'''General Bala-amin:''' Ah-hah!
1098
1099->'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' The military research agency in control of the project did the only logical thing.\
1100'''Breya:''' Oh let me guess... and I'm going to go with irony here: They kept it a secret "in order to save lives."\
1101'''Dr. Bunnigus:''' Correct. Also, they deployed it so they could kill people.
1102
1103->'''Sorlie:''' What's our budget look like?\
1104'''Chester:''' Your budget for this project is, and I'm quoting General Bala-Amin, "[[CrimefightingWithCash all the money]]".
1105
1106->'''Admiral Emm:''' ''You'' have a conscience?\
1107'''Kowalski:''' It's vestigal. It's only good for giving me twinges of guilt when I'm being really effective.
1108
1109->'''Kathryn:''' ''We're blind.'' What's around the next corner? Is it a J.S.C. murder-squad?\
1110(Person runs past screaming and on fire)\
1111'''Murtaugh:''' Short-range sensors say yes.
1112
1113->'''Ennesby:''' I'm recalibrating the word "big" for any future conversations I have with you, Lieutenant Flinders.
1114
1115->'''Sorlie:''' Live capture it is, then. That seems simple enough.\
1116'''Kathryn:''' Is it so simple that the enemy will have already planned for it?\
1117'''Murtaugh:''' I'm sorry, Captain Sorlie. Junior officers are why we can't have nice things.
1118
1119->'''Sorlie:''' You can order people to be brilliant?\
1120'''Murtaugh:''' Shhh... As long as ''they'' think I can, I get pretty good results.
1121
1122->'''Admiral Chu:''' My name is going to become a curse word far more potent than "scrambled eggs."\
1123'''Chica:''' It's a great thing you're doing. One-syllable curses are very efficient.
1124
1125->'''Sorlie:''' Before I die, I want to do something ''besides'' admire how much smarter than me our enemy is.
1126
1127->'''Spook #2:''' We've talked about this, Willis. You are not allowed to enjoy your job by making murder puns.
1128
1129->'''Kathryn:''' Is the gunship ''really'' necessary, boys?\
1130'''Thug:''' If you noticed it, then yes, it's necessary.
1131-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-05-31 2011-05-31]]
1132
1133->'''Rafe:''' But you can ''fly''. Why would you ''walk'' anywhere?\
1134'''Legs:''' Do you know what we call flying soldiers on the battlefield?\
1135'''Rafe:''' Air support?\
1136'''Legs:''' Skeet.
1137-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-05-28 2011-05-28]]
1138
1139->'''Kathryn:''' Hmph. Well, the good news is that I can now start killing and not feel in the least bit guilty. The bad news is I'm not going to feel the least bit guilty about the killing I'm about to do.
1140-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-06-30 2011-06-30]]
1141
1142->'''Murtaugh:''' I would like to arrest your entire team, but I'm willing to settle for killing you if that's more to your preference.
1143-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-07-29 2011-07-29]]
1144
1145->'''Kathryn:''' He was a ''plant''.\
1146'''Bunnigus:''' In the context of the medical weirdness going on here, I have to ask a stupid question: Was he a plant like a spy, or a plant like a preambulatory asparagus?\
1147'''Kathryn:''' Ah. The spy kind. Good question, though.
1148-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-08-10 2011-08-10]]
1149
1150->'''Legs:''' I can't wait to tell Tagon that since he wouldn't ''give'' us a gunship, we had to ''steal'' one.
1151-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-09-28 2011-09-28]]
1152
1153->'''Schlock:''' I thought we were letting them arrest us, because everything would turn out for the best that way.\
1154'''Bunnigus:''' That was before we stole their gunship.
1155-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2011-10-06 2011-10-06]]
1156
1157->'''Kevyn:''' Can do, but I might have to suit up myself in order to hit an 0900 departure.\
1158'''Commodore Tagon:''' I sure hope not, ''captain.'' If you have to get your hands dirty on the little jobs, you've failed at your biggest job.\
1159'''Captain Tagon:''' ''[to Kevyn]'' Take this moment, and then close your eyes and try to imagine my entire childhood.
1160
1161->'''Captain Tagon:''' I've been surprised enough today. Gimme a way to be surprising.
1162
1163->''There aren't many ways to defend against a weapon that fires inside a vessel's shields. There are even fewer ways to defend against a weapon that [[WeaponizedTeleportation fires inside the vessel's hull]].''
1164
1165->'''Schlock:''' The box said "Blattco Clawhammer" but I think it just shoots regular bullets...\
1166'''Ebbirnoth:''' If you ever '''do''' find a gun that fires hammers, you are under explicit orders to put it back where you found it.
1167-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2015-10-23 2015-10-23]]
1168
1169->'''Doctor Bunnigus:''' Sergeant, what have we said about you and the practice of psychology?
1170->'''Schlock:''' Don't practice on real people?
1171
1172->'''Petey:''' You hijacked this conversation. You get to land it.
1173-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2017-12-03 2017-12-03]]
1174
1175-> '''Capt. Tagon:''' [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-02-26 Lieutenant Pibald! Front-and-center!]]
1176-> '''Pibald:''' Sir! Yes Sir!
1177-> '''Tagon:''' Give me your favorite scenario for taking this base intact.
1178-> '''Pi:''' "Favorite" or "Most likely"?
1179-> '''Pi:''' See, [[{{Understatement}} I'm a little crazy]], and my favorite scenario is ''really'' expensive.
1180-> '''Tagon:''' The Doctor briefs me weekly regarding exactly how crazy you are. I want your ''favorite''.
1181-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2012-02-26 2012-02-26]]
1182
1183-> '''Lieutenant Pibald:''' With an enemy budget that big, sir, I'd have to be crazy to work on your side!
1184-> '''Captain Tagon:''' Then it's a good thing you're not on your meds this week, Lieutenant.
1185
1186->'''Bludgeon of Inefficient Exsanguination:''' You're lying. Nobody can see the future. We are given only the present.
1187->'''Petey:''' Well of course. But if you look closely enough at the present [[ClockKing you can find loose bits of the future just lying around]].
1188-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2018-03-11 2018-03-11]]
1189
1190->'''Tagon:''' [[TimeForPlanB Plan B]] always takes a bullet for [[UnintentionalBackupPlan Plan C.]] That's why the alphabet has more than three letters.
1191-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2015-09-01 2015-09-01]]
1192
1193->'''Boloceadan Ancienator:''' Our worldship, Boloceade, is exiting the local galactic group [[ProperlyParanoid because we feared this exact scenario]]. But the possibility was a ''remote'' one. In my simulations, galactic society had to do many, ''many'' important things ''exactly'' wrong for metastable, non-baryonic matter to become sapient ''and'' sociopathic.
1194->'''Boloceadan [[GotVolunteered volunteer]]:''' Ridiculously low odds, but you bet on them anyway?
1195->'''Ancienator:''' [[FinaglesLaw It's always safest to never bet on nobody being stupid]].
1196-->-- [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2020-02-20 2020-02-20]]
1197

Top