San Leandro
Participants
Director
Log
The RSX briefing room is cleaned, sanitized and smells faintly of citrus. A skinny human woman sits at the head in a white labcoat and a stern look on her face. The volunteers are shuffled into the room and asked to take a seat. "Welcome to Rsx Solutions, and thank you for responding to our call.", she says, greeting those present.
Solixis sits at the table, flyer in hand as she leans towards the woman, anxious and excited to be on a mission. She hasn't been getting many interesting ones since she lost her rank at Zephyr for non-compliance during a year-long sabbatical. time
Caeli sits as instructed, her ponytail hanging over the back of the chair and her wings folded tightly against her back to avoid too much discomfort. Despite the potential for danger she is apparently unarmed, with only a handheld radio clipped to the waist of her jumpsuit for equipment. ooc RP guidelines: Don't wait for me to pose, but wait a respectable time (about 5 mins) for other participants to make their poses before proceeding with another one of yours.
Redd grumbles as he sits, seeming somewhat upset that briefing had to begin right at the start of his customary lunch break. "Afternoon, couldn't have scheduled this to be an hour earlier or later?"
Loki shuffles in place, the giant armoured dragon seated beside Caeli, apparantly deep in some sort of tangential thought, his tail coiled around the legs of his chair. He looks up when the lady speaks and offers a nod. "Not a problem. Was in the area and decided to help. Though I probably would have volunteered if it was of the way too."
Solixis stretches, her twin tails finding difficulty being comfortable as she looks at her comrades gathered. "Only person I don't know here is the winged girl in the jumpsuit." She smiles at Redd and Loki.
As soon as everyone is seated, the woman stands up. "Thank you again for coming. My name is Dr. Jess, and I will be briefing you." She shoots a small frown at Redd before replying. "You weren't required to attend this meeting, and this mission is important and time-sensitive, so honestly, one or two people skipping lunch wasn't really our concern." She walks over to the door and shuts it, before dimming the lights. The projector clicks on and brings a white glare before it shifts to show a photo depicting the ruins of a city. "This is San Leandro.. or at least what's left of it. I'm going to keep this nice and direct. We need you to go there and recover the Point Zero."
Solixis raises a hand, confused. "Recover? Isn't a point zero just the location of a first outbreak? Correct me if I'm wrong on the first. What exactly are we looking for?"
Loki casts a wave to Solixis, offering a smile in turn. "Hey Sol! Been some time since I have seen you around!" he says, then turning his attention as the woman in front speaks. "Recover point zero?" he inquires, tongue flitting out of his mouth. "What happens when we remove it?... and as Sol said. What does it look like?"
"'Recover' the Point Zero? How does one recover a point in space? Isn't point zero the term for where the center of an explosion is?" Redd's face shows a mix of concern and confusion. "At least, that's what oint zero is considered in the case of atomic attack..."
( Jess clicks a button on a remote in her hand and the projection switches to show the front of a building. It looks to be a Pre-P-Day as it looks in pristine condition. A four-pointed logo running across the top reads, 'Tetra Laboratories'. "This is a research and development firm located in the heart of the city. This is believed to be the location of Point Zero.. but what we're after is something more specific. We want the hardware located within that was the sole cause for that city's destruction." )
Loki looks to Redd for a moment. "Point Zero is typically the point of origin for something, and such a point in space could be an object, and thus, can be moved." he says, then looking to Jess, the dragon much more interested than he was a while ago. "Destruction? How was the city cast into ruin? Mutations like other bubbles?" he inquires, leaning forward in his seat. "And hardware you say?"
Solixis nods. "Hardware. Well, at least it is a tangible object that we should be able to find. I hope. Can you give us more details of what caused the destruction? I'm curious to know what dangers we face."
Redd's jaw drops, quite understandably, "Does this mean there was a 3rd party involved in the development of the nanites? And is this hardware you want us to find still active? Is it what sustains the nanite cloud? If it is, I can't imagine a very safe way to suddenly shut it down..."
Loki leans back in his seat, looking to redd for a moment. "Mutations can still function outside the cloud. Typically. Usually. Some have difficulty, and the clouds also help prevent death." he states.
( Jess clicks her remote again, and the projector displays a something entirely different. It appears to be a reconnaissance photo of some creature.. from what you can make out in the fuzzy photo, it looks like a horribly mutated being with barbs sticking out all over its body and its (face?) is covered in greenish slime and blood. It walks on two scythe-tipped arms and crawls on a snake-like body. Jess taps the wall and frowns. "There are many of these and other things running around the city. I hope that answers your question as to what caused the destruction. And yes, Hardware. A supercomputer, specifically, along with a module for housing nanites." )
Caeli remains mostly quiet, staring intently at the projection as she listens to the other volunteers' questions. Her silence is finally broken by one of her own: "The outbreak ocurred some time ago. Has something changed to make recovery of this hardware time-sensitive?"
Loki looks to the screen, the dragon quite curious, a small grin on his face as he views the mutation. He then seems to snap out as Caeli speaks, then looking to the girl. "Ah.. I would have never thought of that. Still, much to study." he murrs, tail flicking behind him as he rises out of his seat and stretches himself out. "What is the data on these mutations?"
Solixis snerks a bit as she sees the creature. "Reminds me of my favorite card game and the creatures within." She puts the flyer away, increasing her level of interest. "Winged girl has a point."
"What do we know about these things? Hah! Well, we know they're aggressive, and don't like YOU.", Jess says, a bit smart-assed. "They'll eat you if you give them the opportunity, so don't. Engage from a range if possible or not at all. They're fast despite how they look. Now, WHY this mission is time-sensitive is mostly none of your concern. RSX doesn't want to dabble much longer on it because of the dangerout nature of that region, so we want this done soon."
Loki shifts his stance a little more and offers a nod. "Indeed. Though I would hazard a guess it would be to make sure there are less of these things if they are as dangerous as you say they are." he murrs, thinking some more. "What if I was to bring one back here for testing? Or at least aquire a fluid sample?" he asks.
Redd shifts uncomfortably in his seat, "And how are we going to get the device out of there, if we have to deal with these creatures meanwhile... And only reason I can think RSX would be asking for outside help is if the first team they sent in... didn't return with all it's members." He glances around, wondering if the image was taken by one of the survivors of a previous retrieval team.
Solixis nods. "Don't get killed, grab the computer, get back here. Straightforward. seems like a good mission. I'm ready unless you have anything else to add."
( Jess frowns. "No. Absolutely not. Do not attempt to aquire a sample of those things. We don't want any chance of spreading.. whatever they are.. to here. In fact, each one of you will undergo deep-sanitation upon your return to ensure no chance of cross-contamination. When we're good and ready, we'll do further research on them. Which brings us back to the point of this mission in the first place, to aquire the Point Zero which itself will reveal a lot about the creatures in that hellhole."
Caeli nods once. "Understood. Will we be given transport to the area? Will it be possible to enter the building from the roof? An aerial insertion may avoid unecessary conflict with the local inhabitants." She seems fully engaged now, as though this type of assignment comes naturally to her.
Redd takes another glance at the creature, "Anything you'd suggest that is effective is removing them? Fire? Ice? Blunt physical trauma?"
Loki frowns a little at the mentions of cross contamination, spreading, and the like. He huffs a little and shakes his head. "If I gathered a sample it would be quite contained." he counters, then seems to relent. "All right. Well, if you say so, I will not press the matter." he says, then looking to Caeli and nods. "Though it might also alert them of our presence. Though it would also likely made for the safest and quickest mission."
"Transport will be provided via a helicoptor. It will drop you off-NOT LAND- on a nearby building rooftop, but the closest we can get you is several city blocks away. You'll have to get to the location from there on your own." Jess says as she walks back over to the switch and turns on the lights. "You'll have to find your own way into the building as well, if the front door isn't to your liking. As far as those.. things.. we don't know of anything that's particularily useful against them.. try whatever you normally would? I'm no combat expert."
Redd grins a bit, "Getting us out wouldn't be too hard, any equipment is another matter entirely, How big is the machine you want us to bring back anyhow?"
"We aren't entirely sure on the size.", Jess says, turning to Redd. "Though we believe it shouldn't be anything too much for you four to carry, if carefully dismantled."
Caeli tilts her head slightly to one side, inqusitively asking, "Tetra Laboratories does not appear in any of my records. Do you have further information on their projects? Are we likely to encounter hazards from such projects within their facility?"
"No and Yes.", Jess curtly replies to Caeli, frowning slightly.
Loki nods to Caeli, the dragon then looking expectantly at Jess, tongue once again flitting from his mouth. "The more information you give us, the more we can guarantee a successful operation and the safe return of the equipment we need to procure."
Solixis nods. "Loki's got the right idea. I, however, am itching to go. I'd rather not make this a night mission. If they are as blind as they seem, they will function far better in the dark than we can." spoof Jess says, "We have no more information about the firm. It wasn't all that well known before P-Day, and we've only recently discovered it and tracked the source of the infection there. None of our agents are willing to venture anywhere close to the city to dig up records."
( Jess says, "We have no more information about the firm. It wasn't all that well known before P-Day, and we've only recently discovered it and tracked the source of the infection there. None of our agents are willing to venture anywhere close to the city to dig up records." )
"If you have no more questions..", Jess says, starting to sound impatient, "That concludes the briefing. Jonathan in the hallway can lead you to our helipad for immiediate departure.",
Loki shifts a little more in place and then nods. "Well, what if we could recover some more records about the company? Would that be appreciated?" he inquires. "And if so, where do you think we could find them?"
Solixis gets up and head out of the room, looking for this "Jonathan." spoof Jess sighs. "If you feel you must, then look in their storage room, assuming they have one. If not, then the information that this mission requires is located on the hardware you'll bring back." She makes a shooing gesture with one of her hands then waits for everyone to file out.
( Jess sighs. "If you feel you must, then look in their storage room, assuming they have one. If not, then the information that this mission requires is located on the hardware you'll bring back." She makes a shooing gesture with one of her hands then waits for everyone to file out. )
Caeli rises to her feet. "Understood," she says again, seemingly eager to begin. However, she doesn't move away from Loki, apparently waiting for him before continuing.
Redd slowly stands, and follows Solixis out towards the Helicopter landing pad.
Loki nods to Jess, the dragon a little surprised that Caeli waits for him, though he then does begin moving out of the room and towards the helicopter pad, the dragon making sure she is following along before he really starts walking.
You are led to the rooftop of RSX where a large chopper is already prepped and waiting for departure. There's room enough for all of you, despite size variations. There is room for a human-sized person in the front with the pilot, and everyone else will need to file into the cabin.
Caeli stares between the cabin and cockpit as though weighing the options, then nods to Solixis. "Very well," she says, choosing a place in the cabin close to the exit.
Loki hopes into the Cabin, the dragon taking a seat beside Caeli as he plunks down, awaiting transport to the zone.
Redd hesitates a moment before climbing in. After all, if it were dangerous for him to be onboard, they'd stop him, Right?
Solixis climbs into the co-pilot's seat, keeping her tails away from the door and trying to keep the from getting smooshed.
"Hello hello!", the pilot says into the radio over the hum of the blades. You can't see most of his face, as it's obscured by his helmet and shaded visor, but he does have a beard, and is wearing a blue jumpsuit. "My names's Chuck and I'll be your pilot today. We're expecting a smooth transit, so make yourselves comfortable, and we'll be there in about two hours!" Redd finds himself pointed to a spot specifically for him, away from everyone else, where a fine mist of water is constantly being jetted from a little spout at him.
Solixis giggles. "Redd, you knew they'd consider you a fire hazard..."
Loki offers a small nod to the pilot, the dragon yawning a little as he then looks to Caeli. "So, how have you been recently? I hope you are enjoying yourself. Find anything interesting at the tower?" he asks.
Redd frowns at the comment, before curling up around his bag of gear, in an attempt to keep it all dry. He doesn't complain though.
Caeli fixes Loki with her crystal-green stare as she answers, "I am still unable to connect to external devices, but I am otherwise well. The tower itself is very interesting, but I have been instructed to avoid it while on assignment to prevent distraction."
Loki offers a smile to Caeli, tongue flitting out of his mouth again. "Really? Well, I suppose I should take that as a compliment." he grins, then shifting a little more in place. "What is your favorite thing at the tower? And what is your favorite section?" he asks.
Redd raises his head upon hearing a comment about connecting, "Another inorganic? Or am I mistaken in that? I heard something about connecting to devices, and I know not of one organic agent who can do that."
The chopper takes off and starts heading northeast towards the destination. After a boring flight, where Chuck incessantly talks about current events and how annoying his wife is, you finally come into view of San Leandros. The silhouette of the city is monolithic and somehow ominous. No vehcles are moving about, no real signs of life are visible. Many of the buildings are damaged, windows shattered, or even large chunks blown out of the walls. As you get even closer, you can even see numerous year-old human remains--picked clean and gnawed skeletons hanging out of car windows or littering the streets. Chuck hovers the Chopper over a wide rooftop about 5 feet up and signals for everyone to get out. "Tha's as close as I'll get.", he said. "Radio when you're ready for pickup and I'll swing by to pick you up."
Loki raises his hand to Redd. "I can connect as well. Though it is largely because of the armour I wear and recent advancements in other things. I wonder if I may be able to replicate some sort of connection organically. It should prove interesting." he murrs, the dragon peering out the window as he views the age old carnage, a small frown on his face. He quickly hops out when instructed, the quick snap of his wings making his landing much lighter than it would have been. He shifts in place and surveys the city, casting a small wave in response to Chuck's mention of radio for pickup.
Caeli answers Loki first, hesitating for a moment before deciding, "The laboratory is the most interesting section, and the one I was unable to explore thoroughly before leaving." To Redd she simply nods. As the closest to the door she's also the first out of the helicopter, dropping to land in a crouch before rising up to scan her immediate surroundings for threats.
Solixis hops out as well, her own three-point landing allowing her to spring into action if need be. "First order of business, how far are we from the lab, and what's the status of the nanite bubble?"
Redd stands from his seat on the floor of the cabin, the floor underneath heavily covered in scorchmarks, but still mostly intact, he proceeds to follow Loki and Caeli out the door, carrying his bag over a shoulder,
A quick surveying shows that you're on top of a four-story office building, and there's a convenience hatch leading down into the top floor of building in you want to head down that way.
Solixis takes the map, scanning the marked landing zone and the destination.
Loki looks to the one with the map, the dragon stretching his wings. "I say we fly to the building.
Redd snickers at the mention of flight, "I call not being transit!" At this he leaps off the side of the building, and lets his wings catch a thermal, bringing him above the level of the building.
Solixis begins to lead towards the building at a steady run, sticking to rooftops where possible.
Caeli stares down over the side of the building, focused on the streets below. "I agree. Be prepared for flying threats." Her wings expand greatly, her wingspan quickly growing long enough to look functional for one of her size. She also murmurs a series of rpaid, unintelligible words, her lips moving impossibly fast. Moments later the air around her begins to crackle with electricity. Fully prepared, she launches herself from the buildingtop and takes flight.
Loki watches Solixis run towards the building. He would have offered to carry her in flight. He watches Caeli with interest as she takes off, the dragon seemingly amused by this development, the dragon shrugging as he spreads his wings and takes to the air after the others, the dragon keeping an eye for both groundbound and airbound threats, monitoring both Caeli and Solixis.
The city is a grim sight, indeed. Most don't notice any signs of life, but Caeli spots a humanoid figure standing in the middle of one of the side-streets as she passes.
Caeli says, "Possible survivor detected," and deviates from her flight path, displaying impressive maneuverobility as she swoops lower to get a better look at the strange figure.
The man is facing away from you, and slowly shambling down the street. He's wearing what appears to be a roughed-up RSX uniform, at leats that's what you think from the logo on the back.
Loki spirals in the air as Caeli deviates, the dragon circling around above, trying to spot what she has, the dragon flying ahead of the girl, trying to get a better look at the man from the front.
Solixis hears Caeli over the comunitcation device. "Loki or Redd, stay with her. Whoever doesn't go, wait here. We can't be splitting off."
Redd goes into a dive towards Solixis, and lands a few feet away, "Waiting,"
The man has short, although disheveled brown hair. His eyes are closed, and his head is tilted down at the street. He walks as though he has no purpose or destination. The man has short, although disheveled brown hair. His eyes are closed, and his head is tilted down at the street. He walks as though he has no purpose or destination.
Caeli shows little concern for her own safety, flying ahead of the figure and spinning about as she lands, killing her momentum with uncanny ease to land before him. "Survivor exhibits strange behavior. Attempting contact." A bit louder she says, "Greetings. Are you in need of aid?"
Redd asks over the communicators, "Can you see any mutations or oddities about him?"
Loki lands upon the nearest roof to the group, the dragon's tongue flitting out of his mouth as he tastes the air, a sniff following shortly after. He peers at the two, the dragon watching like a hawk for any signs of something amiss. His vision seems to scan a wide area, and he does have a few other modes than just plain sight, the dragon switching between them on occasion- Mainly thermal.
The figure stops when Caeli speaks. He stands completely still for several awkward moments before he raises his head. And then he opens his eyes. And reveals dead, empty sockets. His neck cracks and then he opens his mouth wide.. too wide. Wider than a human should be able. His jaw unhinges, and .. something wriggles out. A brown tentacle of some sort, oozing with greenish slime. Suddenly his chest bursts apart and writhing scythe-tipped tentacles energe from his innards. The man emits an ear-pierinc screech and lunges at his would-be savior.
Caeli's protective shield of nanites simultaneously electrocutes and attempts to tear apart the attacker as it comes into range, even as she throws herself backward, a powerful sweep of her wings attemping to push her into the air and out of range of the beast.
Redd hears the screech from his position and pushes back up into the air, torn between staying still and trying to help.
Loki watches Caeli take to the air, the dragon swooping down from the building as he delivers a powerful dual legged kick to the beast in an attempt to knock it away from Caeli, the dragon literally springing off the beast upon impact as he uses the force once again to regain altitude, his wings adding momentum as he climbs higher in the air. His tongue flits once again through the air as he seems to still, listening for anything that may respond to the screech. Sighs. Smells. Sounds. Movements.
Solixis makes a mental note of the location. "Snafu, got a rogue xeno attacking one of the team, disguised as a human survivor, going in for backup." She nods to Redd, giving him the okay to assist and joining the other two herself, the glow on her tails becoming actual fire.
The dessicated man seems to shrugs off the electricity, but the field manages to rip apart several of the tentacles. The tentacle writing in its mouth manages to lob a blog of what you would assume is acid in Caeli's direction before it's knocked to the pavement by Loki's crushing kick. It's shoulder and arm are crushed, but it uses it's still-good arm to start righting itself.
Caeli spins in the air, avoiding part of the acidic assault. What manages to hit her burns through the shoulder of her jumpsuit, but has a tougher time with her flesh, which seems to not only resist the effects but repair itself as well. In retaliation she utters another stream of indechipherable words, and several pinkish feathers falling from her wings are rapidly nanite-converted into tiny missiles which lance out to impact all around the creature in a series of small explosions.
The pinpoint explosions tear away at the former man's flesh and then at muscle. The tentacles quickly regenerate themselves, but all that's left of the host is a gorey torso with blood anf flesh piled around. The tentacles thrash at any movement, but are otherwise immobile. The pinpoint explosions tear away at the former man's flesh and then at muscle. The tentacles quickly regenerate themselves, but all that's left of the host is a gorey torso with blood anf flesh piled around. The tentacles thrash at any movement, but are otherwise immobile.
Loki lunges forward at the assault of Caeli's, the dragon waiting until the beast has weathered the storm, and upon seeing the state of the tentacles, the dragon slicing a hand sized piece off of one, then backing away with the tiny bit of flesh, the dragon turning it over in his hands- a strange glow escaping the slice as it seems to be broken down.
The bit of flesh that Loki attempts to recover, upon being separated from the rest of it's being, immiediately decomposes into green slime. Loki's analysis comes back as 'Organic, no nanite pattern detected'
Finally having spotted the fight, Redd enters a steep dive, claws and teeth bared, on impact, he bites down hard, and begins to shred at the body's remains with his claws. As soon as he tastes the tentacles, he spits the chunk of flesh in his mouth back out. No point trying to make a meal from these things, they taste worse than zombies.
Loki growls at the analysis. "The nanties self destruct and the creature breaks down when seperated. This is quite an odd predicament. Makes analysis and extratction of nanite strains impossible."
Solixis catches up to the others, leaping off the building, following Redd's lead. She turns a little lees than one full flip, her tails striking the creature as the nanite simultaneously increase the density of those limbs temporarily greater than osmium, while also cushioning the impact on her bones and joints.
The tentacles thrash and writhe at Redd as he bites into the remains of their host, using his close proximity to try and slice him up something good. They are quickly silenced, however, when Solixis more or less obliterates the remains of the torso with her tails, splattering the body and the tentacles all over the pavement and her fur.
Caeli remains hovering nearby, scanning bother her comrades below and the surrounding area for additional threats that might be on the move. "We should leave quickly. We may have attracted additional threats."
Redd pulls a water canteen from his bag, and proceeds to try to wash the bad taste from his mouth. "Bleh, biting these is not a good idea."
Solixis grabs a branch from a nearby bush or tree to scrape the slime off her tail. "I did not expect that to explode like that." Her skin loses it's hardened appearance as she collects herself. "We need to keep moving." ooc back, and posing.
Ominous skitterings from indistinguisable directions alert everyone to the necessecity to move on.
The buildings rising on either side of the party seem to echo these noises back and forth. You can't make heads or tails of whether they're coming from an adjacent street, from inside a door or from the dark, broken windows.
Satisfied the taste in his mouth is now gone, Redd puts the canteen away, and takes off again, this time staying closer to the middle of the group.
Loki as the howling starts, the dragon immediately takes to the air, the dragon rapidly gaining altitude, then hoising Solixis from the tree despite what she may protest. "Which way? Time is of the essence. The faster we are in and out the better. I do not wish to fight a whole cities worth of things."
Caeli appears to be waiting for the others to move on before she leaves the scene, but upon hearing the sounds of approach she swiftly launches another barrage of micro missiles, the little weapons arcing off in all directions to create a cacophany of explosions, many within the buildings themselves via the open windows. She then takes off at full speed, following Loki. Solixis speaks into the comm unit, keeping a mission record. "Xeno destroyed, got ourselves several boogies. Heading direct-ACK!" She squirms in Loki's grasp. "Loki! I can fly myself..." She dutifully points in the direction of the compound, though.
You fly the rest of the several blocks to where the map mark indicates your destination to be. What you find is the remains of a two-to-three story building. A shattered neon sign detatched from the roof and laying crooked against the wall. It reads, "T TRA La atories.", and is accompanied by a diamond-shaped symbol.
The first floor seems to be intact enough to enter, but the upper floors are completely caved in.
Loki immediately sets Solixis on the rooftop despite her protest. "If you could fly you should have done so over running." he murmurs, then hastily looking for a way in from above, eyes scanning the rooftop before he gets another idea and then clings to the walls over the edge, peering inside any windows he can to get a better look inside. If there are any windows.
Redd swiftly lands infront of the building, and tests the doors, with a small package of high explosive ready just in case.
Solixis walks along the edge of the rooftop, heading inward at every standing wall. She looks for a safe passage into the building and down.
Caeli makes a graceful landing at street level just before what appears to be the main entrance, still peering about her surroundings alertly as Redd checks the doors.
Loki the dragon seems to quickly take note of something on the first floor, and with a careful act, the dragon slowly carves a hole in the window using one of his claws. "We enter this way. Quietly as we can." he says to the others, the dragon dissapearing inside. Should he have trouble entering, or his frame be too large, the dragon shifts his size to something more managable.
Solixis clears the entrance to the stairwell above. "Loki, I'm going in from above. Stairwell is intact, but there's no light. Lucky I can make my own, but I'm painting a huge target on myself."
The interior is completely dark save for a small amount of light filtering in from the dirtied windows and the large hole Loki just made. You've broken into a hallway. To your right, you see some more light and what might be the front lobby, to your left the hallway fades into darkness. Three doors line this hallway, two of which are likely to be restroom facilities.
Caeli sweeps her gaze across the street one last time before hastily following Loki and beginning to investigate her new surroundings. Her eyes glow faintly green in the low light.
Loki quickly crawls along, as quiet as he can be. Which is surprisingly so for a giant metallic dragon skittering rapidly down the halls on all fours, quickly moving towards the light, the dragon also taking note of the walls, seeming to be looking for something. "There is still power here. The wires are hot. They lead to something." he murmurs.
You enter the lobby and reception area of the building.. or what's left of it. A curved security desk is at the back of the room, and is decked with a menagerie of smashed electronics and screens. The front door is collapsed, and the surrounding windows are caked with years of dirt and dust.
Solixis heads into the stairwell, her tails lighting the passage and possible drawing attention to herself. She pads slowly, keeping an eye out for danger and the computer.
Circling the building several times, after giving up on entering via the window, Redd looks for a back entrance, or someway used to get large equipment in and out of the building.
( Solixis walks into pure black as soon as she rounds a few corners, but with help from her glowing tails, she's able to navigate the murky passage. The exits to the second and third floors are obviously inaccessible, nothing remaining of them but a pile of rubble, but she's able to clamber over those and make her way down to the first floor exit where she hears voices coming from the other side of the door. Redd finds a single truck loading dock and a normal-sized metal door accompanying it, likely used for deliveries of research materials. )
Loki peers at the wall opposite of them, the dragon skittering across the lobby- over rubble, dirt, grit, and smashed refuse until he meets the opposite side, the dragon then peering at the walls. He presses his hand to the place, running his claw along the surface as if searching for something. "More power is here. A higher concentration of power is here." he murrs, trying to search for where it leads.
Solixis gently opens the door, hoping to not make a sound. She tenses, readying a defensive position.
Caeli follows closely behind Loki, alternating between staring around at their surroundings and mimicking his actions, touching the wall as he does, though the act doesn't seem to be of any particular significance.
( Solixis opens the door and see the trailing tail of Loki as he passes past on his way to the other side of the lobby. Loki's thermal vision leads him to the thick metal doors of an elevator. Through the walls, he can see the power conduits run up where they end abrutly. Strangely, they also go down. )
Solixis whispers into her comm unit. "Loki, I'm right behind you." She takes up position, hoping her light doesn't throw him off.
Redd starts to claw at the shipping port's door, intent on either destroying the lock or making a hole large enough to enter. There is a fair amount of noise created by this action, although, opening the door would have been fairly loud as well.
Loki grins as he finds the location, the dragon prying open the elevator doors. "Well, now we go down." he says, the dragon staring down into the elevator shaft, tongue flicking out, and shortly after he sniffs the air as he tests for smells, also tilting his head as he listens intently, seeing what else he may pick up.
The screeching and rending of metal caused by Redd continues for a good two minutes before he's able to create a hole wide enough in the door for himself to fit though.
Loki nods as Solixis speaks. "All right. Glad to hear it." he replies, though he does frown as Redd tears his way in. "Well, now we are going to hope that nothing heard that." spoof When loki peers down the elevator shaft, he sees a distance far greater than what he would expect for a basement. No, it's deep enough that you can't even see the bottom as the shaft disappears into blackness far before the bottom is visible.
When loki peers down the elevator shaft, he sees a distance far greater than what he would expect for a basement. No, it's deep enough that you can't even see the bottom as the shaft disappears into blackness far before the bottom is visible.
Caeli waits passively as the others gather, nodding her agreement to Loki's suggestion. "I will go first," she offers, her wings expanding once more as she slips past Loki's larger frame and follows his gaze down the shaft. Without further ado she steps over the edge, wings spread as wide as the shaft allows and personal nanites working overtime to help slow her fall. Small jolts of electricity arc off her shield as she drops, providing a bit of light on the way down.
Loki looks adown the shaft, a small whistle escaping him. "Well, it seems to be a long way down." he murrs, blinking as Caeli passes him and drops down. The dragon then hops inside the shaft and braces himself against the walls with his limbs and begins to slide down as best he can, using claws to slow his fall when needed.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Caeli hears something very disturbing coming from below her as she descends. Then it grows faster.. and closer. Taptaptaptaptaptap! Something is climbing up the wall towards her! Two red eyes peer up from far below, growing closer. Then it opens two more eyes. And two more. A hideous face of six eyes accompanied by its growing heat pattern surges up the wall using two bladed arms to grasp at the coils and wires.
The dragon sighs a little, growling at the creature. "Hostile?" he asks, then frowns again, remembering intel and what was said. "Ceali! To the side!" He calls out, still far above the girl, poised and ready, the dragon braced inside the elevator shaft, waiting for her response.
Solixis puts on a pair of heavy leather goves and begins descending the elevator cables. "I really wish I knew where the elevator was..."
Caeli decides against using her missiles within the confined space, instead angling herself directly toward the incoming creature and folding her wings, straightening out her body with her feet pointed toward the eyes. A sudden burst of acceleration launches her downward even quicker just before she reaches it, surrounded as always by her swarms of electrified and disassembler nanites.
Loki blinks, quite surprised at Caeli's maneuver, the dragon perhaps a little stunned. he looks up to solixis. "No top floor anymore. Likey at the bottom Sol!" he calls out above him, the dragon then following Caeli down in a similar manner, though he keeps to the side of the shaft- either to smash the creature in a different area, or simply pass it and pull the creature down from below.
( Redd has burst into a storage room with plenty of piles of knocked over boxes and shelves. Navigating through here will be a little difficult, but he can see a door on the opposite end of the room labeled with 'ENTRANCE' in paint. )
The creature, in a startling act of dexterity, uses it's tail to push itself off from the wall and leap to the opposite side to avoid Caeli's lunge. It effortlessly clings to the beams before whipping its barbed tail at her.
Redd sees the door at the far end of the room, and scrambles over all of the debris, once at the door, he pauses, and tries to punch a view hole in the door with a claw, in hopes of seeing what was beyond it.
Having already committed fully to the attack Caeli doesn't have much room to dodge, though she does manage to see the attack coming a split-second before impact. She braces herself and takes the hit, slamming hard into the side of the shaft.
( Caeli's nanites attack the thing in an attempt to tear it apart, but are somehow unable to cohesively form their attack routines, as their programming is being scrambled by something. The creature is likewise resistant to electrical influence, its hide seems to resist the currents like rubber. It leaps off the wall again, attempting to grasp her and tear into her neck with its mouth full of vicious teeth. )
The dragon, who much like Caeli before him continues to rocket down into the darkness finally manages to catch up with the creature as it begins to grasp Caeli, the dragon landing upon the beast, the full force of his weight hitting the creature as he jams his claws within its hide, attempting to pry it away from the winged girl.
Solixis winces as she jumps the remaining distance. "Loki, give me an opening! I'm falling fast!"
Certain that the door wasn't a dead end, Redd smashes the door with his full body weight, rather than using the handle.
The thing is knocked away, though not without giving her some deep cuts from its bladed claws as it's torn away from her.. It starts falling, but wraps its tail around Loki's ankle and pulls him down with it. IT lets out deathly hisses of frustration as it claws at the walls, seeking a grabhold, pulling Loki with it. The three in the elevator shaft can hear a sudden and loud crash from above them.
As Caeli tumbles down the shaft a half-dozen free feathers from her wings harden and shift, becoming another missile barrage that lances toward the creature's open mouth. Interestingly, she seems to have left out the explosives this time around, making them more akin to steel bolts than missiles. Blood - or something that looks very much like it - pours from her wounds, but her resilient body begins repairing itself almost as soon as the gashes appear.
Loki begins to grapple the creature, even as it thrashes with him. Tail around his ankle? He is also clinging to the beast, and they seem to have a mutual goal of dragging eachother down. Though the beast seems more worried than the dragon at this point, and he continues to keep the creature occupied as best he can- trying to keep it struggling to cling to the walls. He never relents the clawing or smashing- then he gets an idea. He attempts to jam his claw beneath the creatures hide and lets loose a torrent of electricity. Zap it from the inside! Solixis continues her impromptu base-jumping, hurtling past the other two as she falls. She crashes to the bottom, landing forcefully in a perfect three-point landing, her body absorbing the impact.
When Loki grasps it with his claws, he feels a peculiar fluid thicker than blood leaking through the punctures. This creature feels unnatural.. like it was fused together with a hideous amalgamation of flesh, bodyparts and vile purpose. Parts of its body are covered with chitinic plates, while other parts are rippled muscle and dense bone. The ridges alond its tail are razor sharp and tear into Loki's ankle as it squeezes. The attempted electrical surge finds no conductive materials within the beast.
( Solixis lands on the remains of the elevator cabin.. or rather IN it. The carrier is badly smashed, likely from the impact with the bottom of the elevator's shaft. She can see a metal door firmly closed on the wall about five feet above her. ) ooc The cabin is basically a twisted pile of metal, and you managed to not land on any sharp bits somehow.
Solixis shakes off the impact, and jumps towards the closed door, hoping to break through. "Loki, I've got a door down here, I'm going to try to see if I can get through. Hopefully I'll find the computer on this floor."
Loki continues to grapple the beast, and when the electricity proves inneffective he seems to growl. Irritating, and though the beast is unnatural, he quickly takes a sample of the fluids for further analysis- a collection device built into the forarm of his power armour, the nanites in the air around him also doing some minor scans. After having a sample, he then quickly does something- The dragon forcing in a stream of nanties and chemical components. The small devices then attempt to deconstruct the beast from within- or at least begin reconfiguring the materials into chains of harmful chemicals and toxins.
Caeli twists her body around in mid-air, righting herself and flaring her wings to slow her descent. Seeing Loki's plight she directs the majority of her healing efforts toward him, ignoring her own slowly closing injuries.
The creature hisses as it whips one of his scythe-arms at Loki, stabbing and jabbing with surprising force for anywhere to impale him. Its other arm finally latches onto something, but is subsequently torn off as Loki's nanites cause it to destabilize. The thing screams in fury as it tries to drag Loki down with it into the twisted pile of debris.
( Solixis bounces off the reinforced steel elevator doors, not accomplishing much more than bruising her shoulder. )
Solixis winces as the nanites begins cleaning up the wound. "direct force won't work. How about pulling them apart? The pneumatics SHOULD be shot." She wedges her fingers into the seam and attempts to pull the door open.
Loki growls as the creature flaying him, the dragon taking some damage as some of the scythe jabs make it through is armour as others glance off. As they twist about in the air, only then does Loki realize just how far they have fallen, the ground hurtling towards him. He roars, not noticing the pain, nor the healing, and he reaches out to slow the descent, a claw grabbing for the wall if he can reach it, the dragon trying to keep the creature below him should he fail to grasp the edge and slow the descent.
Redd staggers a moment after passing through the door, and sees the room is now empty, although the elevator doors are open. He rushes towards them and falls in before he can come to a stop, not accounting for the tiled(?) floor of the lobby being smooth.
( Solixis gets her claws in between the cracks and tries to tug with all her might, but isn't able to budge the doors with her strength alone. Loki's claws grind against cement and metal, dulling the tips of his nails and cracking some off. The beast writhes under him, still trying its best to destroy the dragon it's attached to until the moment of-- CRUNCH! Loki and the creature slam into the twisted debris with a sickening splatter. The monster twitches a few times, impaled by several long metal shapes, then grows still. )
Loki seems a little dazed, the dragon in the midst of rubble, dust, grit, and splattered mutant abomination. He rises to his feet, and gives his head a shake, the dragon wobbling in place as he looks around. He seems to be doing a kind of check to see how much damage he has endured. Some of his wounds are already healing, and he seems to mentally wince when he looks at his damaged claws even as they reknit. Would hurt like hell if he could feel it. He seems satisfied, and goes to take a step, but only manages such with one leg, his other impaled clean through with a jadded metal pole. He growls as he looks back at the leg, the dragon grabbing ahold of the metal and then springs in place, tearing it free so he can better tend to his wound.
( Solixis' efforts yield dents in the door, but it's firmly built and isn't even the slightest bit phased by those attacks. Redd can likely see the others below him by now, gathering themselves from their arrival on the ground, or in Caeli's case, still falling. )
Caeli touches down on the clearest patch of solid surface she can spot, absorbing the impact of her greatly slowed fall with a crouch as her wings retract again. Even with the damage she's sustained she doesn't stay down for more than a second, pushing herself up and approaching the stubborn door with an unshakable calm. "Redd is coming," she states matter-of-factly, wedging her own fingers between the doors and pulling with all her might.
Solixis sighs. "Damn it. I was hoping I could do something here..." She backs off, giving the winged woman room to manuever.
The shrill screech of grinding metal and gears echoes up the shaft as Caeli pulls and pulls, and eventually the badly damaged give and the doors slide open.
Loki nods to Caeli, the dragon then looking to Solixis and frowns. "Well, I am sure your time will come. You do provide some light after all." he smiles. "Better directiontional sense and a map." he offers, then hobbling through the door as best he can, the dragon wrenching the piece of metal bar free, then focusing intently as he works about reknitting his wounds.
Solixis scrambles into the door, getting the hall lit as bright as she can.
Redd slams into the pile of metal, his body relatively unscathed, but the rifle he had out has been crushed and punctured by several pieces of metal.
Beyond the elevator is a hallway, but this sub basement appears remarkably preserved. This area is dimly lit by flickering emergency lighting. The walls are painted white with a blue stripe, and in several places the familiar diamond-shaped logo is visible. To either side, you can see several doors, but the room on the right has windows looking into it, and you can see that it's a testing lab of some sort.
Caeli shrugs off the left sleeve of her jumpsuit, which between the acid and claw attacks is no longer actually attached to the rest of the outfit anymore. As it falls to the floor she begins moving down the hall, saying, "Switching to low-light vision." She turns to stare into the windows as she draws close.
Loki looks around the room, the dragon listening intently. He walks through the halls, looking from place to place. Many doors. Many things. "Electronics. Everywhere." he says. "I think we found it." he says, wandering the halls. He slowly begins opening doors, ignoring the ones that would lead to the one with the window within, perhaps saving that for last or not at all.
Redd frowns as he examines his ruined weapon, he'll have to make another, but not now, although he's left without a weapon for a while. He sees the open door and climbs up, pulling himself inside.
Solixis continues looking for the computer, ready to disable any locks.
( Loki finds first a meeting room with torn-up and toppled-over chairs, as well as a large circular table with a deep gash in it. The second door he opens is a storage room with metal shelves holding all manner of utilities, chemicals and miscellaneous supplies, many of which have been broken or spilled. The laboratory to the right looks to be in a state of disarray, with lots of things cluttering the floor as well as what is probably a pool of dried blood. The testing benches are filled with bits of shattered test tubes and tools. )
Caeli switches between thermal and nightvision as she scans the lab and hall one last time before trying the door leading into the windowed room, concluding that anything with indoor windows must be important.
Solixis grumbles. "How are we going to know when we've found it?"
Redd trails down the hallways, watching for anything with a monitor or a powerbutton at all.
The lab feels eerie.. like something horrible happened here. An unsettling silence fills this room, as does a thick layer of dust. Upon closer inspection, there are some cabinets, but most of them are missing their doors, which are laying on the floor. Inside are replacement bits for some of the equipment; cables, tubes.
Loki quickly moves inside the lab, the dragon sifting through the various assorted tubes and cables, searching for whatever it is they connect to.
Caeli stands passively near the doorway, watching the dragon closely as he investigates.
As the rest of the party draws nearer to the end of the hallway, the elecric presence grows stronger, a faint humming becoming a whirring, more wires seen through the walls leading into here. A single door is at the end of the hall, half knocked off it's hinges. A sign on the front reads, "CONTAMINATION HAZARD".
The cables are just that. Wires and cables likely used in the case where the ones for computers and equipment were damaged or lost.
Redd stops when he sees the sign, and turns towards the others, "I'll go in first, I'm least likely to be mutated by whatever may be beyond there..." He sighs and begins to approach the door.
Solixis nods. "I'll stick close behind. Suppressive fire is one of my specialties."
Caeli leaves the lab behind, curious to investigate whatever Redd was talking about. "I am immune to nanite contamination," she offers from further down the hall, in no particular hurry but moving to enter with Redd.
The door creaks open and reveals a decontamination room, complete with power sprays and hazmat suits (most of which are destroyed) and a shattered glass wall beyond that. It appears to be another testing lab, this one much smaller than the other, but this one has a single table in the middle with a dome-shaped device, attatched to it all manner of cables leading to various sides of the room and plugged into tall servers or running through to the walls. The skeletal remains of one person lay on the floor next to the table, and the hum of machinery and electronics pervades.
Loki growls a little in the room he is in and shifts uncomfortably, the dragon rising to his feet and quickly leaving as he closes the door behind him. He looks to the others and quickly follows after them, stepping into the room and looking around, seeing what he can discern.
Upon seeing the clean room beyond the door, Redd freezes in places, and turns to look for some sort of label out next to the door. "I hope we didn't just stumble into a virology or epidemiology lab's clean room. otherwise this could get ugly real fast..."
Solixis winces. "Not good." She takes a hankerchief out of her pack a wraps it over her mouth, trying to protect herself from airborne infection.
Caeli seems unconcerned by the potential hazards of the room, moving past Loki to the table and dome-shaped device to get a closer look. She breathes deeply as she does, green lights flickering over the black bands on her metal 'ears' as she attempts to detect any conventional airborne hazards.
The dome object looks, upon close inspection, like a high-tech petri dish. It doesn't look particularily heavy, but it's surely quite delicate, in fact the glass dome has a hairline crack in it.
Loki approaches the dome, the dragon circling the device as he examines it, trying to commit much of it to memory, and also trying to see how the wires connect and if there may be any ports. He also looks to the various machines hooked up to the device and seems to think again.
The device seems inactive, but a pretty good guess would be that this was the 'module' that Jess was referring to, one of the objects that RSX requested be brought back. The wires look like they can be removed with not too much difficulty. As for the other hardware.. there are several computers around the room, and at least two large servers.
Finding no indication of what was supposed to stay isolated in the room, Redd cautiously reenters, stepping over the shattered glass and doors. He spots the device on the table, and goes to search the far side of the room, those servers couldn't have been brought in through the clean room's regular entrance...
Blinking LEDs and the barely-functioning emergency lighting is all that brings light to this room. With some ingenuity, Redd can ascertain that the large server blocks aren't necessary, but perhaps the harddrives contained within.
Blinking LEDs and the barely-functioning emergency lighting is all that brings light to this room. With some ingenuity, anyone with good computer skills can ascertain that the large server blocks aren't necessary, but perhaps the hard drives contained within.
Solixis looks around in the room. "If you can find anything small that I can fit in my bag, I'll carry it, Redd." Loki immediately turns his attention to the server drives, the dragon quickly plodding over to the monolithic data storage units and quickly takes a wire from his armour, the dragon quickly plugging it in and attempting to access its systems.
Redd nods, and hunts for the power cable to the servers, "I'm going to unplug them, no way I'm disassembling them while their connected. Hopefully the bubble won't fade quite for at least a little while."
( Loki is rewarded with the humming of drives uploading data into his storage. )
Loki seems satisfied once the download finishes, the dragon len looking to Redd. "It is probably for the best." he murmurs, then peering around the room some more, the dragon then striding over to the dish, examining it. "Wonder if we should dissassemble it before leaving. Or we could simply carry it out."
The servers have an inch-thick wire running from each of them directly into the wall.
"I don't know about you," Redd speaks inbetween cables being sheared, "But I'm taking the processors and drives. If RSX doesn't need it all, I'm planning to keep as much as possible..." Satified the servers were powered down, he pulls a tool kit from his bag, and starts to open the machines.
Loki looks over to Redd as he prowls about the room, the dragon striding over to the other server. "If they don't need it, I claim half the components if you do not mind." he murmurs as he begins to assist the flaming crystal dragon.
The server comes apart pretty easily. The components aren't particularily unique or anything, but they're at least top-of-the-line server components circa 3 years ago.
Loki systematically dismantles the computer along with redd, the dragon dividing the loot evenly among those who wish claim, offering some to Solixis as well, the dragon gathering his share and starting towards the dish. He thinks for a moment and takes out a silvery gob of nanites and stretches it across the crack, sealing the dome once again. He then sets about freeing the wires and other things keeping it in place so that it may be transported out, the dragon also radioing RSX telling them that they have completed the mission and are on their way out.
Caeli helps Loki to rapidly unplug each of the cables connected to the device at the heart of the room, and once it's unattached from everything she picks it up, handling it with care.
Solixis ends up with most of the hard drives and several heat sinks, the boards ending up in other
Redd pulls out ram chips, processors and drives and carefully places each in a static-proof baggy, generously borrowed from the neighboring rooms. "Think there's anything else worth taking?"
Caeli begins moving toward the exit with purpose. "We should leave before any other creatures arrive. Our entrance will have drawn attention." When she reaches the shaft she elects to use the ladder, climbing up one-handed with impressive agility and speed.
Solixis follows Caeli, moving quickly. "Long way to go..."
Redd follows out, and starts climbing directly on the wall, his claws punching holes in the sides of the shaft for grip
Loki shakes his head, helping the others haul the goods out. "No. Do not think so. Let's hope this all goes without further incident." he murmurs, assisting Caeli with the devices.
The party makes their way up the broken shaft, carefully climbing for a good ten minutes before they reach ground level. From there, they beat tracke from the building before their presence can attract more mutated horrors.
Redd climbs one of the buildings in an attempt to improve reception for his communicator, and to try to spot the helicopter as soon as it appears over the horizon.
Sure enough about five minutes after the signal is given, Chuck's coptor comes into view and hovers over the same building as last time. The party helps each other back into the trasport just as a flock of flying, multi-eyed bat creatures emerges from an adjacent building's windows. Chuck lurches the coptor frward and flies the opposite direction as fast as he can. Several hours later, after turning in the proper equipment and data. The party is personally commended by Doctor Jess and rewarded for their accomplished mission.
