Farmstead Salvage Hunting - Pt 2 - RPLOG

Participants

• Ebreus
• Edel
• Fenris
• Otto
• Phosphorus

Date

18/3/2018

Log

Thanks to Edel's technical aptitude, one of the tires is quickly patched, and though slightly deflated, still usable at least enough to last them the trip back, and then some if they're lucky! The other tire is thankfully replaced with their spare, and the group's long-eared driver of the day could be found in his seat, rummaging through his pack.

He soon pulls out a pair of club sandwiches, and offers one to the hard working woman that'd ensured they would not be walking home with their haul. "Gotta keep our strengths up, right?" Otto winks as he takes a bite out of his own sandwich, noting that they were... kind of dry, actually. Ham on mayo was a winning combination, though this one needed something. Somebody pass the ketchup?

As for Phosphorus and Ebreus, they'd headed off to search for Fenris, that tumbling wildman of a tanuki. Whether or not they'd ran into him by now was a mystery, though given that the path was clear while the party had made their way through still in the jeep, the odds were in their favor. Alas, the harshness of winter was such that dusk came early, and with the sun soon to set entirely, time was of the essence. Spending the night out in the open was not a good idea... was it?

Fenris tumbleweeds his way along the road, humming the "rawhide" to himself as he goes. How far ahead had they gotten?

Edel dusts her hands off and stands. "Well, not the worst I have had to take care of. Couldn't let a good car go to disrepair though. Wouldn't be very mechanic...ly of me." She perks her ears and turns, looking towards Otto and the food. "You will never find me turning down a free lunch," she grins, accepting with a smile. "Thank you."

While she eats, she turns her attention towards the drone giving it a once-over, trying to figure out what she'd need to do with it once she finished her sandwich.

Ebreus strides down the road, off to one side, in the shade provided by the trees against the diminishing sunlight. Hardly seeming bothered by the impending darkness he makes his way forward toward the humming Tanuki and their prisoner, with shade and relevively light footsteps his attempt at being stealthy as they go.

Phosphorus stalks along the side of the road at a rapid pace, stance slightly dropped, rifle at the ready, ears flicking and twisting as she listens for signs of the tanuki. Her footsteps are rapid, metered, but light, stepping over branches and dry patches of leaves, thankful for the setting sun and the cover it'd provide. The quicker they get Fenris and to the farm, the better.

T'would not take long for the trio to reconvene, the tumbling tanuki eventually running into Ebreus and Phosphorus as he rolls downhill towards the jeep. The only sounds in the area were those of the rustling leaves, a soft wind carrying with it the scents of the woodlands. Otto meanwhile had finished his sandwich way over yonder where the jeep resided, the fennec sitting upon the roof and peering out into the distance, his eyes struggling to adjust and make out something. "Hey Edel? I think we might be nearby..." he murmurs softly such that only she could hear. Reaching into his pack once more, Otto pulls out a pair of binoculars and flicks a switch upon them, removes the lens caps and peers out into the distance. Now all they needed is to get the group back together...

Upon catching sight of the others, though it is a mystery how he could keep track of anything, boucing along like that, Fenris rolls to his feet and gives a cheery wave. "Do you have any snacks?,? he asks pleasantly, still jogging as he makes his way forward.

"Close" Edel asks with a raised brow as she finishes her own sandwich, looking over her shoulder for a moment before turning her attention back towards the drone. "To the farm you mean? That's a blessing. Hopefully we won't be greeted with more guns." She sets her duffle back down, rifling through her tools as she sets to work seeing if she can do anything with the drone.

Ebreus smiles as he spots the Tanuki aproaching them... though it's hardly a feat even in the darkness as Fenris makes an effort to be seen, waving at them. Ebreus remains in the shadow of the trees, "Nice to see you're okay, Fen." he says, "Where's the one you... tackle-rolled?" He then feels through his pockets before adding, "No snacks, sorry."

"I have some emergency rations in my rucksack. A protein bar or two." Phosphorus says, looking at Fenris with a bit of a wary eye, lowering her rifle when they run up against Fenris. Point not at friendlies, and all. She peers over Fenris' shoulder, peering into the falling night, wishing she had NVGs. As it stands, she peers anyways. "Come on. We have to get back. Did you hear any noises on your way down here?"

The fennec shrugs lightly and hops back into the driver's seat, pulling out his laptop as he leans back against the backrest and starts to browse through his music folder. Soon, daft Punk starts to play, something about circumnavigating the globe? The beat was catchy and easy to bob to, the massive ears of the fox swaying with the motions of his head. He jams out and simply awaits, certain that the rest of the team had things well handled.

"No snacks?" Fenris asks incredulously, "Even Baldy McBeardface had snacks! Not good ones," the tanuki gives a rumbling belch, and thumps himself twice on the chest, "But any port, or vodka, in a storm." The burly coon-dog's ears twitch. "The bandit is fine, I left him back on the road," he says, suddenly lowering his voice and breaking into a surprisingly graceful, silent jog, waving to the others to join him, "But it sounds like his friends have decided to join us." The big guy is not sticking around.

Edel did not bring a great collection of salvage with her to work with, but she was no stranger to drones, and she had her tools. While Otto got the music playing, she let herself get lost in her work. It was when she felt most at home. Her tail wags behind her, absently to the beat as she tinkers.

Ebreus shrugs when Fen repeats the no snacks line and his attention is soon caught by the glimmer of flashlights nearby. "Hmm... a prisoner might've been useful but it'd slow us down." he says in response to being told the Tanuki just left the prisoner by the road, alive. He turns and moves through the shadows, thankful his armor isn't that rediculus pattern of grey and vibrant red he once saw labled as 'uban camo' following suit with the Tanuki, "Yeah... we'll want cover when we deal with them." he comments as they retreat.

"I'm not confident in our ability to hold a prisoner while trying to set up a defensive position. We need to keep moving." Generally speaking, Phosphorus was dressed in neutral tones of grey and black, fashion having taken a backseat to the practicality of most ballistic gear. She drops lower, spotting the flashlights, raising a finger to her lips, and making a few hand gestures back up the road. No time to lay traps, mines. No matter, anyways.

Be it thanks to skill or just a touch of dumb luck, the party manages to creep their way back to the jeep, the sun shining its final rays by that point, the frigid night fast approaching, cold winds sweeping in to make their venture just a touch less enjoyable. Thank the stars though that they'd managed to avoid getting spotted, and with the group back together, Otto manages to fire up the engine once more. He awaits for everyone to say their hellos, then hop back in so that they might make it to the farm at least. "You weren't followed, I trust? I don't like this. We'll end up having to drive back in the pitch black of night... or bunk in the car, or... the farm?"

"Oh," Fenris says, heaving himself into the passenger seat and making shooing motions, "We were almost definitely followed." The big tanuki grins, seemingly unperterbed by the cold night air. "I'm all for a campout!" he says, "I could probably make us a decent dinner with Edel's help!"

Edel offers a nod of greeting to the others. "Glad you could make it back, and in one piece at that." She gives the drone a pat. "I have done what I could with it. Try not to get it shot up again though. Without parts, I can only do so much, you know? It should work though, I think." She flashes a smile and climbs back into the jeep. "I spend enough time camping outside of the bubble I do not mind."

Ebreus returns alongside Fenris. He smiles wide when Edel tells him his drone has been repaired and via his NICE-com give it the turn-on and fly command to see the drone rise. "Yeah, I'll do my best to keep it from taking any more shots, thanks Edel." he says then to the damaged mechanical drone he says, "And I'm going to have to improve your armor before the next mission." He looks back to the road behind them and nods in agreement with the Tanuki, "I saw light, probably from flashlights. If they don't know where we are they're looking for us... camping at the farm might be the best course of action." he says.

"We've already engaged them. There's no backing down, now. I'll try to set a few explosive traps along the road, in case they have vehicles. We'll need a lookout, too..." Phos says, once in the vehicle, trailing slightly behind Ebreus and Fenris. She starts getting her armor back on in the jeep, putting plates back where they should be, and strapping weapons back in. "Unless someone else has a better idea, that is."

"Yeeah, well... let's hope Edel's right and we don't run into more gun nuts out to pop a bullet into our skulls. It's getting pretty dark, folks." Otto turns on the headlights and revs the engine, before setting off towards the farm in the distance. Before long, they would find themselves pulling up alongside the ruined fence that once separated the farmstead from what was once a road to be used by vehicles like theirs. Oddly enough... there was something off about the building in the distance. One thing was easy to discern, but... "Keep your eyes and ears open, I don't like this." Otto warns, his fur practically standing on ends as he peers out at the structure not fifty feet away.

Fenris stand up in his seat, leaning up and over the top of the jeep to look toward their destination. ?You were sure that no one lives here?? he asks, ears perked and eyes bright, "Those bandits on the road don't come here?" Having said it out loud, it seems odd the question did not come up before.

"I do not like anything I do not have familiarity with. I cannot say I have come here in my trips." Edel takes a moment to readjust her camo via nanomagic, before looking out of the window. "Shall I go and scout it out? Or did you have something else in mind?"

"I have my sniper rifle, yes. But we need to hurry: We can't both watch behind us and the building at the same time. I suggest we straight up knock on the door, as is relatively polite. Nobody answers? It's ours." Phosphorus says, extricating the rifle from its resting place, pushing the door open as they stop at the farmstead. She takes a few glances about for anything overtly fishy, then shakes her head. "No time to waste."

"That's what the scouts reported. Keep in mind that's not a guarantee. If there are people in there, just... be careful, alright? Try to reason with them if you can." Otto warns, before turning off all the lights and killing the engine. He then turns on a small flashlight and tucks it into his ear such that it was pointing straight ahead. While it wasn't immediately needed, he did appreciate the extra light hitting the pages of his tome once he cracks it open. Leaing back, Otto reaches into his pack and passes Ebreus his binoculars. "Here ya go. Remember to give em back once yer' done." the fennec yips, then settles in to enjoy his reading. Whatever they were planning to do, was up to them, it seemed.

Fenris perks up his ears and alights from the jeep. "I am good at knocking on doors!" the tanuki says, "Polite is my middle name!" He pauses before hopping the fence. "It isn't really," he says, "It's a metaphor." He moves to hop the fence, then stops. "Not a metaphor," he asserts, "A turn of phrase. Whatever." He then turns and lightly hops the fence and starts to make his way across the field, fat tail bobbing behind him. He starts to hum a little tune as he walks.

"Knocking. Well then, I will let someone else do that. I will try to approach out of sight, in case someone is watching, it might be best if they do not have an accurate count of our numbers," Edel says, making her way across the field in a less direct fashion, far to the side of Fenris' direct gait. And checking for landmines, after last time...

Ebreus takes the binoculars and examines the house, "See that Phos, someone on the second floor." he says to the sniper-panda. He looks up from the binoculars at Fenris as he exits the jeep and goes to hop the fence. It takes him a moment to register just what the Tanuki is doing then he looks to Phosphorus as Edel steps out, "Mind if I borrow that that smoke 'nade? Fen might need some cover if he's just going to stroll right up." he says and readies himself for whatever happens as the Tanuki aproaches the house.

"Thrown that close, it will cause serious damage to the house and to Fenris. It's a WP smoke grenade." The panda clarifies, letting the rifle hang from its straps and pulling out her revolver. Much better for this sort of range. "I doubt these are hostiles. Even if they are with the group... well, I don't think we should be taking hostages."