The Enigma Complex Pt 1 - Discovery - RPLOG
From Flexible Survival
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3.1, Part 3.2, Part 3.3, Part 3.4, Part 3.5
Participants
Date
25/2/2023
Log
(Syntax) The call for assistance to the remote forests beyond Eureka was a bit of an odd one. Especially as it went through channels not directly tied to any of the big three. It came from a familiar person at least: Syntax. It apologized for not making the request in person, but she thought she found something. Something incredible. Something...she wanted to keep private from the big three for now. It came with directions and something of an odd suggestion: bring a gas mask. In the nanite fueled future, there aren't many scenarios where a gas mask would be needed. But she must know something you don't.
(Syntax) At the location in question, Syntax is waiting for the others alongside the ruins of an old ranger station which was blown apart by a stray shell some time ago. You know the spider girl means business as all of her drones and robots are at the ready. In fact, she's sitting atop her large scorpion robot Captcha as she waits for everyone to arrive. Her eyes occasionally dart to the shell of the station's basement...something down there must be the reason she called you out here to begin with.
(Nyazuli) Nyazuli scouts around for the indicated location, flying high above the canopy. As she feel like she's approaching, she finds a proper landing area. Activating her shrinking spell as she approaches the ground and finishing up the activation while traveling the remaining distance on foot, a functional but still huge 3m or close to 10ft. As she approaches the crater, she notices the spider girls waiting aside it. She smiles warmly and waves in her direction as she closes the distance separating them. "Well, I'd be damned if I ignore a call to a mysterious adventure, but a gas mask? really?" She declares in a teasing tone
(Conrad) Conrad's not going to admit just how he intercepted the 'invitation' to this exploration party. The panther seems quite at home in the woods as he saunters in to the clearing, glancing up with mild curiosity at the arachnid-morph astride a robot, of all things. "Seems a reasonable precaution," the cat replies, holding up a small, simple facemask with filters. "I should think th' drones would be better suited for exploration, though, if we were worried about needing to /breathe/..." White coat, Zephyr ID hidden for now, the 'taur doesn't seem too keen on introducing himself but would claim some sort of technical or medical expertise, if asked.
(Ysadora) Ysadora glides into the area, her long black hair sticking out at all angles from the propeller wash on the helicopter ride over here. She's patting it down with two hands in a vain attempt to get it to behave. As she spots Syntax and the giant robotic scorpion, she doesn't so much stumble as accidentally whack herself in the face with the gas mask dangling from another hand. "Ow! Uh, good afternoon. I don't think we've met formally but I got your message. I'm Ysadora, andism Her introduction is cut short by a radio buzzing to life somewhere inside her clinging white shroud. "Agent Ysadora! You were assigned to feral suppression at the Curvy Gym. What is yourism She fumbles around, sending her disconnected torso bouncing around before she manages to turn the thing off. "Eheheh," she blushes, deep red against the pale white of her skin, "So... What's all the secrecy for?"
(Junes) Junes was sliding a bit down a small slope before reaching, sweater and tights visible before the mask was visible as well before the chimeric hissah waved to the arachne and other mutants around and gave a smiling pat to ysadora before going to the arachne once more "a mask huh?" clanking their head "im pretty excited!" as they find a spot to sit and wait for anybody else to come while waving over those they haven't met before
(Umeko) Umeko carefully drove up the road in her RV before parking it outside the station and hopping out. She opened up one of the cargo slides to pull out some gear, including a rebreather and a helmet just in case. She was rather covered up today as well, between a black bodysuit, boots, gloves, and camo outerwear. She made her way over to the group, giving a wave to the familiar faces. "Hey there! Curious what we have planned here, a gas mask for a ranger station..."
(Booker) Booker had received the call, and made his way up to the designated area. He landed at the small cluster of people. "I take it this is the spot?" He gave a small chuckle. He spotted junes and Ysadora, and Umeko. As well as Nyaz. "Oh hey guys!" He approached them, then spotting Syntax. "Howdy! We exploring a station?" He gestured to the ranger station. "So how have y'all been since uhh we last met." Booker's face grew a bit hot as he said that, his eyes flicking to Junes. He did however walk up to Ysadora and whisper. "Hey uhh.. sorry for the groping thing.." He seemed nervous and a tad ashamed.
(Syntax) Syntax smiles at those assembled and hops off the scorpion robot. "Ah, great!" After a moment to collect herself, she crosses her upper arms and shoves her lower arms into her pockets. "I appreciate ye all coming here. I know some of you don't know me all too well, but if you're here, it's because I know you well enough to know this isn't something you'd go running back to your handlers with for brownie points. Not immediately, at least. Which is the important part."
(Syntax) The spider girl looks out to the forest, seemingly to one particular point. "A ah...friend of mine is the one that alerted me about this. They're a tad uncomfortable introducing themselves to so many people, so you'll have to excuse them for not bein' keen on coming in person."
(Syntax) Syntax chitters "But that's aside the point! The reason we're here. The ranger station's basement. My friend mentioned that part of it doesn't quite look like it's the same age as the rest. Like it was built well before the station itself. I took a look for myself and noticed that whatever blew up the building also damaged one of the walls. And when I looked...well. It wasn't a big hole, mind, but it looked like there was something behind it. A large something."
(Syntax) Syntax Clasps her upper arms together, a nervous smile on her lips. "So...I'm going to be sending Captcha to the hole and making it much...much bigger. And as I don't know what's behind it and have a feeling it could be something really cool and/or dangerous, I thought I should invite other people with me!"
(Syntax) Sure enough, Ysadora does see some movement in the woods, albeit briefly. Booker, and Nyazuli even see what looks like an arachnid leg shuffling away. Junes, Umeko, and Conrad, however, spot, ever so briefly, a drider-esk spider woman gazing out at them, flushing as she realizes she was spotted and moving to a more concealed position. Junes in particular remembers them as the feral that transformed Syntax into a widow convert in the first place.
(Nyazuli) Nyazuli greeted everyone as they arrived, doing some quick catchup with the people she knew from before. And then something about super bananas before returning her attention to Syntax's explanation. She declared, "I see, interesting, well, you know you can always count me in, better make that hidey hole extra large though, hope it's not a bother". She smiles before offering to help with the wall blowing, "I got some spare bombs and good arms to clean up". She follows the bot toward the location they are supposed to enter soon
(Conrad) Conrad rolls his eyes briefly. "I'll just be over here. Something about combining a gawking crowd and demolition... Would prefer if I don't have to attempt to reattach any limbs today, thanks." Settling on his hindlegs, the 'taur keeps his hands to himself for now.
(Ysadora) Ysadora rolls her eyes at Booker's comment, though she has an indulgent smile on her lips. "You don't need to apologize, Booker. I'd have told you to stop if I wasn't enjoying myself too." She detaches her head briefly to give him a quick peck on the cheek. "Oh, and hey Junes, Umeko. Good to see you two as well." Ysdadora turns finally to look at the ranger station with a gleam in her eyes. "Now this place... This looks haunted as all get-out! Creepy woods, ruined buildings, grim backstory, half-glimpsed horrors... This is the kind of thing I was born for! Does anyone have a video camera? We can make it like, one of those ghost-hunting shows."
(Junes) Junes glanced at the forest a brief bit longer but then turned to the group and looking to ysadora said "yeah its good to see you and everyone here too" another glance to the forest before facing everybody once more "a ghost show huh? we dont get enough videos these days but lets hope its not dangerous" their gaze lingered on booker before realizing "oh and i haven't met some of you, but everyone calls me junes"
(Umeko) Umeko looked over at the drider curiously, giving them a nod before looking back to Syntax, "It does sounds very interesting, wonder what would be down there... I can help haul out the debris and such too if you need it." She then grinned over to Ysadora, "I can record stuff with nanomagic, perhaps, but I might need to turn it off depending on what we run into down there. Might have to take a back seat if it gets dangerous or I need to do something else..."
(Booker) Booker pursed his lips a bit, softly nodding to her. He looked over the station. "I can help with excavation aswell!" He gave a soft chuckle. He draped an arm over Ysadora. "Well at-least we have a ghost on our side." He looked over the station. "So theres a sub-basement? weird... especially for a ranger station..." He looked at the surroundings, wondering what kind of bomb had gone off. "Also syntax I didn't have a mask.. I hope thats alright." He gave a goofy smile to them. "Remind me when we're done to find one." He perked up a bit. "So its like an abandoned station with a weird basement?" He shook Ysadora slightly. then following June's lead. "Oh yeah to any new-faces, I'm Booker! The local huge lizard!" He chuckled stepping toward the station. "Well hopefully it's not infested with man-made horrors beyond our comprehension huh?"
(Syntax) Syntax laughs lightly at Booker and remarks, "Well, it's mostly a precaution. Don't know what kind of bugger all weird is in there. Should be able to get ye in though, Nyazuli! I reckon a full sized truck could fit past the opening we'll be making. Do hand me those explosives, though, that'll help a lot!"
(Syntax) After the explosives are placed and everyone is at a safe distance, the wall is given a solid introduction to the basics of exothermic reactions and rapid decompression. After that, all that's needed is for Captcha, the giant robot scorpion that he is, to bulldoze forward and properly open it up.
(Syntax) Perhaps to everyone's surprise, what lies ahead are two large, partially rusted garage doors and multiple signs that make warnings of authorized personnel only and this being "government property." With the simplistic concrete of the ranger station out of the way, there's something more sturdy looking about what was behind the door.
(Syntax) Syntax chitters "Huh...so it looks like this half of the basement used to be part of some kind of...checkpoint?" She steps forward and examines the garage doors. "Umeko, Nyazuli, can you work together to open these? Carefully, though. I'd rather not just throw them open. Might be handy to have them usable later."
(Nyazuli) "Leave it to me!" the dragoness declares before approaching the garage door and finding an appropriate grip on the left one, before pulling with all her might, which happens to be quite a lot of might indeed as it slowly but surely gives in to the force applied. Soon enough, the door is wide open, promising thrilling adventures! She inspects it for damage, and outside of a slight bend around where her each of her fingers were, nothing much to report. "She looks toward Umeko giving her a wink and a thumbs up before turning toward the group and proudly declaring, "the way is open, and adventure awaits!". She finally turns toward booker and gives him a few headpats as a thanks for the help, which, even if unneeded, did cheer her up in an endearing way.
(Umeko) Umeko prepared herself by getting ready and gearing up, grabbing a crowbar and putting the helmet on and mask ready as she went over to one of the doors. Just for fun, she decided to go with Ysadora's idea earlier as well as she activated her recording software to document the adventure. She gave Nyazuli a grin as well before she got to work, working carefully to pry it open enough to where she could use her immense strength to just lift it up the rest of the way without demolishing the thing. "There we go, not too hard~"
(Booker) Booker stepped up to aid in lifting the door. He used the tip of his tail to wedge the bottom, so they could all get a handhold on the bottom of the rolling door. "I hope its not broken.. otherwise this is gunna be louuud..." He slid his fingers under the door, He exhaled and started to heft, only to find it moving easily. He made eye contact with Nyaz as she hoisted the door basically by herself. He stepped back placing his hands on his hips as he sheepishly said. "Was lighter than I was expecting!" He glanced down at the floor for a moment in a moment of realization. Muttering to himself "Oh.." As Nyaz headpatted him.
(Syntax) The sound of metal being forced up and grinding against its tracks echoes inwards and onwards. It's not a small echo either. It bounces from the dark walls immediately before you and on...and on...and on. This is not a small hidden chamber...this is something else entirely.
(Syntax) Syntax gawks and steps forward to look in, several of her surveillance drones floating forward to flick on LED lights to illuminate what's before them. "Bloody hell."
(Syntax) The room before the party is a large vehicle staging area that, at one time, might have been able to stage multiple lanes of large vehicles. The air is stale, humid, and dusty which is only a more immediate spoiler to how long this place compared to the signs plastered on various walls. On top of the general decay one might expect from age and nanites, they are also of a style of a forgone age. There are even several propaganda signs that make reference to the Communists. "Loose lips sink ships. They also destroy bunkers. Don't give the reds an inch!"
(Syntax) Far along the staging area, there are two vehicles that, for whatever reason, were never moved out of the facility. An old green bus and a military truck with a heavily decayed canvas covering over its storage section in the back. Both of the vehicles could have been ripped straight out of the opening to an old movie portraying the Vietnam War.
(Syntax) There are multiple lights in here, but none are active. It's only with the help of the drones floating within to light the way that you see there are two exits at the far end. One is an old metal door with a sign reading AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY and the other a more wide path.
(Syntax) At the back, a large welcome message has been painted onto the top of the wall. "WELCOME TO THE STALLINGS EMERGENCY BUNKER."
(Nyazuli) Nyazuli immediately dives inside of the newly opened room, looking around her with awe, and declaring excitedly, "Look! we're probably the first persons to set foot in here in 70 years! Who knows what old world wonders this place holds!" She swiftly starts scanning the room to see if anything in there reminds her of anything or could potentially have value, before turning toward the spider girl and inquiring, "What did you have in mind with this place by the way? it looks completely and irremediably abandoned. Trying to keep the loot out of Zephyr's hands uh? Naughty girl!"
(Conrad) Conrad's green eyes squint into the gloom. "I wouldn't be so certain--" He hesitates. "They certainly built it to last, after all." The cat takes a few tentative steps forward. "Would've been a clever place to try and wait out th' end of the world. /If/ there was another exit." Scanning the walls, he takes a few cautious sniffs of the air, too, keeping the gas mask in hand but not rushing to put it on just yet. "How.... exactly did your friend get tipped off about this place?"
(Ysadora) Ysadora watches the others' display of strength with wide eyes, pulling her curtain of hair apart to make sure she's seeing right. "Y'know, Booker, I was going to ask if you're gonna let them show you up like that but...uh...that's on another level." She pats the big anole's knee consolingly, then floats into the newly-opened hallway. "This place is...huge! Syntax, I thought this was just going to be like, a hidden basement or something. Like Nyazuli said, there's gotta be all kinds of mysteries down here, and *we* get to dig 'em up before Zephyr or RSX or anybody else!" Ysadora's eyes are shining and she rubs two of her hands together. "Is it time to gas mask up?"
(Junes) Junes looked at the vehicles with curiosity before the light shines away and soon enough they realize and go into their backpack and started to feel around for it before its found, a flashlight! popping it on to look on their own at things "yeah i kept mine on just in case but hmm, what should we do if there is anything risky in the air?" checking the ground for anything interesting and shining the light up occasionally to follow the group and getting closer to umeko to ask "recording software huh? i wonder, if we find some controls maybe you could light the place up?"
(Umeko) Umeko put her gas mask on before heading in, not wanting to breathe in a bunch of asbestos or whatever other potential hazards might be in there until after some further inspection and possibly cleaning. Her eyes were more than capable of seeing in the dark as she scanned the area slowly, making sure to get a good sweep as she recorded everything she saw. Her gaze lingered on the vehicles as she continued to inspect them more, quite impressed by such an amazing find. "Wow... This sure is something else, old military vehicles in great condition all things considered..." She then peeked back to Junes, "Recording this might actually be pretty useful for proving that we were the ones to crack it open too... Powering the place might be an issue though, I can fix things up but don't count on lights right away, especially without a proper power source. Who knows what the state of the wiring is like in here too, might be a lot of work..."
(Booker) Booker immediately followed after Nyaz, He turned to Ysadora. "Thats just rude." He pursed his lips at the spectre before turning to look where he was going. He gasped in awe at the faint relics of the past, wandering around like a tourist as he looked over the signs, trucks, and basically anything but the floor and walls. "Whooaaaaa..... This is what im TALKING about!" He was giddy with excitement. "This place would be so cool if it was restored!" He daydreamed about the possibilities of the bunker. He glanced at Conrad. "Who cares why they tipped! They tipped gold into our laps!" He pressed his hands together underneath one of the "Report all communist activity" signs. "This place is a literal freeze frame of the past!" He turned to syntax. "I think we all need to agree right now to keep this place out of the big three's eyesight... Im sure there'd be a huggge fight to take possession of it... This place seems super secure."
(Syntax) Syntax blushes deeply at Booker's accusation. "I uh...look, I had no fuckin' idea it was going to be this huge! I thought it was just going to be a hidden cache or somethin'! I didn't tell them because I just kind of had a hunch..." Still, she is certainly not whipping out her comm to report this in. "Hannah just noticed the hole in the wall and thought it was weird there was space behind it. I don't think she was expecting this either." As she trails off, she advances with her robotic posse in tow, eyes looking over everything. "Not sure about 70 years. The cold war went on for some time. Certainly more than a few decades at the very least...I'll keep Captcha posted at the door for safety. Can you all check the passage to the left? I have enough protection in the form of uh...weapons and robots to check out that smaller door to the right. I'll leave some of my surveillance drones with you, though. They can detect if the air goes bad." Not unlike Umeko, however, she's playing it safe and sliding a gas mask on her own head. "Just take it slow, alright? If the drones start emitting a ton of beeps, anyone without a mask should fall back."
(Nyazuli) Nyazuli declared, slightly annoyed "yes ma'am" and started rummaging through her backpack before pulling out an extra large gas mask and attaching it to her neck. "I still really don't like breathing through that, makes everything smell like wet socks, I'll just keep it close for now She continued "Anyway, left passage is ours? sounds fun, can you stay closely behind Junes? I don't see in the dark all that well, but keep a safe distance in case something attacks us or something" She waits a moment for junes to catch up before readying a protection spell and heading for the large corridor
(Conrad) With a sigh, Conrad awkwardly fits his mask on the end of his muzzle. The big cat isn't in a hurry to take the lead, letting the larger mutants forge ahead. "Not about to find buried treasure in n' abandoned army bunker, for godsakes," he mutters. "Just hoping we're still alone in here. Space s' so large, it's hard to be certain."
(Ysadora) Ysadora spends a bit of time fitting the gas mask over her head. It was designed for someone a bit bigger, and perhaps without such unruly hair. "Mph mhphp..." Eventually, she gets it properly in place and stares out at Booker with magnified eyes. "I didn't mean it like that, jeeze," her voice is now tinny and slightly distant. As they move into the corridor, she indulges her habit of patting down the area around her with her many disembodied hands, feeling for weaknesses, switches, or anything else of interest. Although she can see perfectly well in the dark, the thick lenses of the gas mask make this a more difficult proposition, so she relies as much on touch as sight as they proceed inward.
(Junes) Junes responded to the dragon by keeping a few paces behind but shining the flashlight past them to view ahead as they occasionally shine the light closer to the ground to look for anything of note "we really did stumble into something interesting huh?" their voice still a bit muffled from their own mask as well before speaking to the dragon in front "i appreciate it that by the way, oh what was your name again?" they asked listening to the faint echoes around as they think about all of the possibilities for such a place "wow" they said to themselves
(Umeko) Umeko mentally took note of the condition of the vehicles, already knowing that they would be a massive project to revive just like her RV, but still appreciated their condition at a glance. In the meantime she drew her sawed off shotgun from her bag as she scanned the area and proceeded deeper carefully, looking for any signs of potential danger. "I kind of doubt there's anything living in here, but honestly who knows... Take it real slow and easy, make sure there's no traps or other security measures too..."
(Booker) Booker muttered. "With those doors anything in here is surely dead." He laughed as he followed the few proceeding to the passageway, pulling a mask from his bag. He hadnt had time to adjust it to something with a snout, so his nose was pressed up against the plastic. He looked at the group. "Y'all want me to go first?" He smirked, pulling his blade out from his bag, the hefty scrap of sharpened steel reflecting a bit of drone-light. "Better safe than sorry." His tail swaying behind him excitedly. "I've always hoped to find something like this! Its better with friends though." He gave those he was referring to a wink. He undoubtedly looked a bit silly, like a dog trying to smell something through glass as he adjusted it, fixing his face behind the plastic screen.
(Syntax) Syntax nods and heads over to the side door, her mantis shaped robot Fork working to force it open. "Just be safe. I'll tell you if I find anything over here.
(Syntax) As the rest of the party moves to the larger passage to the left, it's hard to miss that there are multiple stacked boxes beside the truck and a crumpled note atop them. Further along is the actual passage itself. It appears to have been some kind of checkpoint in the far past. It even has those little pylons used to hold up queue lines and metal detectors. and two X-Ray machines large enough to fit personal belongings through.
(Syntax) Syntax nods and heads over to the side door, her mantis shaped robot Fork working to force it open. "Just be safe. I'll tell you if I find anything over here.
(Syntax) As the rest of the party moves to the larger passage to the left, it's hard to miss that there are multiple stacked boxes beside the truck and a crumpled note atop them. Further along is the actual passage itself. It appears to have been some kind of checkpoint in the far past. It even has those little pylons used to hold up queue lines and metal detectors. and two X-Ray machines large enough to fit personal belongings through.
(Syntax) It appears there might be a path to the left of you looking into the checkpoint, but it is blocked off with a chainlink fence. Not that is a huge issue for you, but you'll need to rip that door open if you're going to go that way. Those with dark vision can see that there's not much back there beyond broken metal catwalk stairs leading upwards. You'd need to fly if you were going to get up there which would be an issue due to a lack of clearance for the winged members of the party.
(Syntax) There is another large room just past the checkpoint.
(Syntax) As the party examines the passageway, it occurs to Ysadora that the equipment looks pretty new for a cold war bunker. Junes and Umeko agree that this equipment was definitely not from the 50's or 60's. More than likely, these were from the late 80's. Booker offhandedly remarks that this kind of equipment isn't exactly common these days and could likely be valuable. Umeko and Nyazuli (especially Nya as she is a damn dragon) recognize that the equipment found in these is hardly made anymore. The factories that produced them are long gone and the amount of exotic materials required to make a damn X-Ray machine work make them impractical to build purely with nanites. Any of the big three would pay out of the nose to get their hands on these for their more secure zones.
(Nyazuli) "Jackpot!" Nyazuli exclaims, "This looks like an X-Ray machine, but is in fact pure gold, people don't make those anymore with the nanites nowadays. Some people might pay on the nose for those things if we bring them back although, this might also lead to question, and I'm not sure Syntax would enjoy that..." She takes a mental note to come back for it once they are done exploring the rest of the complex. "Is there anything beyond that door of interest? Can you guys see something?" She continues with, "If I remember correctly from that one time with the otaku sloth, you have a lockpicking kit Junes right? think this door can resist you or would it have to resist my kick instead?"
(Conrad) "Of course there's security," grumbles Conrad, voice further muffled by his mask as he gives an approving nod in the oni's direction. "Two heavy doors aren't nearly enough-- should be /highly suspicious/ if you can just open th' door and waltz in--" Hands stay politely folded in front as he carefully brings up the rear, fur bristling on alert. "Important enough that they had a bloody checkpoint, inside th' facility..." Just a guess, really, as he recognizes what the X-ray machine might have been used for. Meanwhile, the cat's attention drifts over towards the pile of crates, and the crumpled paper on top. If it's within reach, he might pick it up, trying to unfold and read aloud any message there...
(Syntax) The note reads: "Williams, if you can't get the bus and truck working, we're going to leave them behind! Along with literally ALL of that equipment in storage! The project has been a money sink already, I don't want to explain to the brass that we ended up leaving shit behind because it was too expensive to fix the vehicles intended to carry them out! -Sarge"
(Ysadora) Ysadora glides over to the stacked crates. "Hmm... Looks pretty new for a Cold War bunker. Sounds like they left a lot of equipment behind too!" She attempts to pull open one of the boxes with three hands,. leaving room for Conrad beside her, while another hand points at the X-ray machine. "Hey, what do you think would happen if I got X-rayed? What would it see inside a ghost? Or a lot of us, for that matter."
(Syntax) The moment the words leave Ysadora's lips, both she, Conrad, and Booker realize that direct exposure to that strength of X-Rays would definitely be hazardous. Moreover, Booker, Umeko, and Nyazuli recall that microwaves can actively wreck nanites...an X-Ray might not be great either.
(Junes) Junes heard the dragon and took a rather cliche dramatic pose, one that the dragon could definitely recognize if they looked "yep! although uhh, looks kind of rusty but i might be able to manage it, but if somebody could hold the pins as i get some others that could be a great help" as they made their way to the padlock and crouched down to open their bag to reveal the lockpicking kit but took the time to examine it first before starting to pick the lock slowly and carefully, thinking about some music from years ago and after a bit their tails were waving back and forth
(Umeko) Umeko looked back to the Conrad, Ysadora, and the X-Ray machine. "Glad to know they left plenty of goodies behind for us... Also if there's so much security up here, it means we're definitely not into things properly yet, whatever this project was supposed to be... I can try and fix the machine up more later if we want to sell it, but I'd recommend against using it, pretty dangerous with the nanites inside of everyone." She then turned and peered through the fence as Junes worked, "Looks like stairs upwards, maybe another way in... Curious what's down this hall though, but guess we can peek inside of here first."
(Booker) Booker headed toward the chainlink fencing. He pushed and pulled on it to no avail. His hands now stained with rust from the wires. He felt around the links, hoping to spot a hole or broken wire, though only finding a padlock. "Junes I trust you'll make quick work of this padlock with your thief-esk whiles." He chuckled, peering through the links to spot whats on the other side. He pulled his shirt free, "I think theres a gap on the other side... I can fly people across." The end of his words punctuated with a flap of his wings, sending little bits of dust and debris scittering across the floor.
(Syntax) As Junes gets to work, Umeko carries on past the checkpoint to see what's beyond. What she finds is a treasure trove. Boxes upon boxes upon stacks of building material. While the wood is likely rotten by now, there's screws, concrete mix, brackets, and more. It's just as well Syntax was careful to prevent an excess of nanites rushing in as these would have been fast targets. It seems like some joker in Ye Olden Times set up a stand out of scrap wood to sell "Uncle Sam's Lemonaid". At the far end of the room are two things of note. The first is that there is an old office that likely served as administration for the construction crew. The second, which stands out especially considering how you first entered, is a wall of bricks that most definitely stands out compared to the solid reinforced concrete walls around her.
(Syntax) Just as she makes that observation, Syntax speaks up over comms with an excited, absolutely delighted voice. "Bloody hell, what the hell is this place?? This entire place is set on a series of seismic dampeners!! I've heard of these being used for buildings, but not bunkers. It's no wonder a large underground structure like this has survived in California. Oh! Uh...I've also found some other machinery. Mostly back-ups for what might be found elsewhere. Any luck on your end?"
(Syntax) Junes is certainly having luck. Despite facing down a high security lock secured with age and rust, he manages to open it up like it was made of tissue paper. It opens with a satisfying CLICK which leaves the passage unlocked and ready to be explored.
(Nyazuli) Nyazuli cheers as the padlock falls on ground after Junes' expert ministrations. "Who's a good mutant?" she declares while giving it? her? him? a few affectionate pets. "Although, It might be late to say that, but I can't actually shrink more than that, and it seems I clearly won't fit comfortably in there if troubles befell us, let alone fight, so I suggest we finish exploring the other side for now and come back once we restore the power maybe?" She accompany this observation with a quick glance toward the other group and an extra, "It seems they made some progress actually, let's see what it about.
Hearing from the spider girl on the comm, she answers quickly, "On my side, two X-Ray machines, not great condition, but probably worth a lot if we bring them out. The others might have more to say about the place as well"
(Syntax) While the others are focused in the checkpoint area, Conrade is going about opening the boxes stacked about the truck. The first crate is filled with MRE's which, while they might not be overly appetizing on their own, would be invaluable to a certain somebody on the party who uses nutrients to make food with the power of NANITE TECHNOLOGY.
(Ysadora) Ysadora sidles away from the crates to rejoin the others at the formerly-padlocked gate. "Nice, Junes! I didn't know you were so good at crime." She smiles to show she's joking, then peers up the stairs. "It's going to be hard to get up there. Just to clear this up, I do *not* fly. I float. If I walked off these stairs I'd plummet down just like the rest of you. So..." She looks over at Booker. "I know you're already thinking it, Booker. You're going to have to toss us."
(Junes) Junes tails were pattering in a beat and was glad when each click is heard before it released! pocketing the padlock and was surprised at the rigorous petting as their tails started to pat up and down in a more random and happy way as their tone matches the tails "oh! it wasn't that bad but thanks!" their eyes closed a bit while listening and hearing about some of the other stuff they lightly chuckled before opening their eyes once more "tossing huh? im not that heavy so i wouldn't be opposed to it"
(Umeko) Umeko looked around in awe at the sheer amount of supplies, scanning around and getting some good shots as she recorded things on her NICE, before replying on the comms. "I don't know how much further this thing goes, but I already found a Home Depot's worth of construction material here down the hall... Could probably sell this to Eureka for a quick small fortune, bet they would love it. You guys should come check it out." She eyed the bricks curiously, but her attention went to the office for now. Finding some sort of clue as to what this place really was, or better yet maybe some sort of building plan to map the place out could be invaluable before proceeding further. "I'm going to peek in this office real quick..."
(Booker) Booker readies himself as he waves anyone over that wants up." Free uppsies..." He laughes as he pets junes head. "Nice work on the lock.. no wonder you snuck into my room." He laughed before a red hue crossed his face. He glanced up at the crumpled stairs. "Well either they suck at making stairs or something important is up there." He stretched his arms. "It'll probably be easier to toss people up there..." He pondered the next move for a few moments."Or..." he trailed off, talking to himself.
(Syntax) As most of the party discusses tossing one another up to the upper floor, Nya and Umeko are exploring the area further in. On Umeko's part, she discovers that while most documents were clearly removed, some were missed. Of note, there are several cassette tapes and a cassette tape player.
(Syntax) Before she can fully explore that, however, Nyazuli finds herself faced with an out of place brick wall. Inspired by the last wall they destroyed, and considering this was made of relatively weaker bricks, Nya decides the obvious course of action is to make another big hole. With a heft of her musclebound form, she shoves herself into the wall which, in addition to the massive hole, makes a huge hole which reveals that this facility doesn't just go further but goes MUCH further.
(Syntax) Before the dragoness is a large industrial flat elevator set on a ramp that goes down far enough that the light of the drone which followed her can barely make out the bottom. The other thing she notices is that the drone is making a loud, aggressive beeping sound! The drones that followed the party will also begin to beep in a wave as the seconds go by and whatever is being emitted from below reaches them. All of your communicators light up with an automated message from the drones:
(Syntax) "WARNING: AIRBORN CONTAMINANT DETECTED. PLEASE SECURE BREATHING APPARATUS IMMEDIATELY. BEGINNING ANALYSIS..."
(Nyazuli) Hearing the warning, Nyazuli spits a few well chosen curse words in a foreign language before holding what remains of her breath to adjust and fit her gas mask onto her face, emptying her lungs inside of it to test the seal before taking an inspiration through. She mutters, "still smells like wet socks...". She goes over her own vital with a quick divination to make sure she didn't breathe in too much of the stuff. Turns out she did. Crap. At least dose is low enough to be manageable. The effect don't wait as she feels them tug at her mind. She's not foreign to mind assault though and manage to dissociated what thoughts are hers and what thoughts are the fungus' As far as she's aware. She quickly declares. She blurbs as fast as possible while she still can, "fungal spore with more below, it's dangerous whatever I say after that, don't expose yourself. I need urgent fungicide treatment, so will anyone exposed and is it me or did the temperature rise 10 degrees?" Her cheeks flushing more and more red as she speaks
(Ysadora) Ysadora blinks a few times and hustles her butt back to the hall to see what's happening. "Wait, wait, let's hold off on that toss, Booker. What's going on? A *fungus* infection? That sounds bad. Do we have the supplies for a fungicide treatment on hand? Or uh, some sort of nanomagic treatment? Umeko, you're good with that, right?" She's started to ramble, as she does when under stress. Most of her hands are tucked in close, save for two which are confirming the seal around her mask.
(Junes) Junes was crouching on the ground ready to be tossed but hearing the crash they jumped a bit and stood there until the blaring started... getting up to rush to the room to check what happened by following the spectre before seeing the office then large dragon, only catching the part about rising temperature as they came near to poke at the skin of the dragon before waiting with an arm out to say stop without words before finally saying "dont use anything! alright so this stuff isn't lethal but definitely dangerous but we gotta get her out, clean up and then treat it seems, i know its some...rot..rot...fungal oh! fungal cumrot but try not to get cut anywhere because that also risks danger, it grows with alot of moisture so theres alot somewhere so...we may need to block off some areas ahead of us, anyways try not to listen to her in the meantime alright? so for now we need her out"
(Umeko) Umeko flipped through various papers in the office, letting her vision linger on any documents that seemed important but not urgent so that she could pause and read them later after she had rendered the video of exploring this place. As she heard the wall breaking and gas alerts going off, she swore under her breath and double checked her mask to make sure it was sealed properly before scooping the cassette and cassette player into her bag. She gripped her emotional support shotgun and stayed lower, taking cover behind one of the stacks of construction material before peeking out to check on the situation. After hearing Nyazuli she sent a signal over the comms to activate the medbot in her RV, causing a small robot that looked like a metal plated boston dynamics dog to wake up, crawl out of the vehicle, and start making its way over towards the bunker. "I sure hope whatever broke the wall was her and not something else... Nyazuli, are you able to walk and get out of here, or do you need help? I have medbot on the way and I can make medicines, but I agree, we need to get out of here first. All of us probably should until we get a plan to deal with this stuff."
(Nyazuli) with her earlier defiance not helping with other side effects, Nyazuli's crotch plate was slowly raising up, pushed by her rapidly hardening and drooling members. She declares, "so, those are all fine ideas, but really, don't you guys think we should, like, take some time to pat ourselves on the back for a job well done, and maybe pat ourselves other places as well?" Her hand unambiguously gesturing toward her nether and her tail seemingly fighting not to immediately get to work as she speaks. "Please?" making her best puppy eyes, not particularly resisting but also not eager to go with any solution not involving immediate sex
(Booker) Booker followed after the duo, quietly exhaling quickly to check his mask. It didn't budge. He entered the room. He hurridly looked around before spotting the dragon on the otherside of the busted ass wall. He narrowed his eyes a bit as he glanced around before looking at Nyaz. He immediately noticed her playing with herself. "Hey uhh Nyaz.. You come on out here i'll treat you real well~" He swayed his hips a bit, his tongue poking out as his hand slid down his pants by where his cock would be. "Come on~ You know you want to~" His tail swaying behind him as he beckoned her.
(Nyazuli) Nyazuli fought against herself for 10 long seconds, looking at Booker like you look at a piece of meat, considering pinning him down here and now and imagining all of the ways she could use this fine ass before shaking her head, "Fine, but you're taking all four the moment I catch you" before starting to run after the lizard, leaving a trail of fluids behind her
(Syntax) The contaminated air holds frozen as Booker stares into the maw of an aggressively horny dragon. He has only one choice. Run. As he turns and flees, he can imagine a freezeframe with "TO BE CONTINUED" plastered in the corner of the image. The much smaller creature flees past the checkpoint and down the long tunnel that is the vehicle staging area as the much larger dragon runs right behind him with dicks flailing around.
(Syntax) Right on time, Syntax calls out over comms. "Oh hell...I got the warning and just reviewed the footage. I really suggest y--oh, bloody hell, look at Nya go. Uh...anyway! It looks like the...fungal spores, I think? They aren't getting to the section I'm in. Going to hold tight here while Captcha and Fork work to seal the area off. Don't wait up for me, alright? Head on back to town, I'll be in touch. I'll also make a few calls. I know a few people who can help secure this place. I'll pull what strings I can to get this place secure and *independent*. Ugh...I am so losing my job...
(Ysadora) Ysadora tucks all her hands in and clumsily rolls out of the way as the anole and dragon tear past her. She pops up a few moments later behind the stack of boxes in a puff of wild black hair. "Whoa! Go Booker, go! Wow, look at how fast they are!" Once the bullet-train equivalent event has passed, she sneaks back out, then swivels her head around to look at the hole in the wall. "So uh, we should probably get outta here for now. I think my mask is working, but I'd rather not risk it until that thing is sealed up." Ysadora begins to leave, but hesitates near the way out. "Junes! Umeko! You two good over there?"
(Junes) Junes saw bookers idea and was surprised at the effectiveness! moving as well to avoid impact before quickly saying to umeko "oral and antibacterial treatment!" starting to run as they shouted "also the fungus wants you to spread so careful!" getting quieter chasing the dragon "ill try and treat her, just keep your ass safe!" and only in an echo can you hear "later guys!" and soon enough you could only hear tidbits as the chimera chased the duo into the distance
(Umeko) Umeko couldn't help but to stare as she Nyazuli getting worked up and seeing those lengths stiffen. Considering that she was recording, anybody watching this later would definitely notice the oni's vision staying focused there for quite awhile as she got rather worked up, her own member tenting in her pants as she blushed quite heavily under her gas mask. Luckily Booker seemed to have things handled and the gas mask helped her avoid the scents from all the fluid leaking as the two ran off. She quickly followed along, both trying to film the chase and to get out of that room and away from the spores. "I think the biggest obstacle is going to be getting her to calm down enough to be treated... Still, everyone pull out and we can treat anyone affected once we're outside in the fresh air." she said over the comms. The medi-dogbot had made it down the road was at the entrance by now, and likely wouldn't be long before meeting up with the two.
