IC: Where Do We Go from Here?, (closed game) Options

[Chance359]

Greven approacehes the edge of the pipe seeing the confusion below. "Big Brother guide my aim," he whispers. Coldly and mythodically he begins firing burst from his Ingram at the creatures attached to the walls.

[ Spoiler ]

Initiative roll: 20
Perception test to see which creature is nearest: 1,3,3,5,11

On phases 20 and 10, I'm putting two bursts into the two nearest creatures.

Burst 1: 1,2,2,3,3,4,5,7,8 (two combat pool used)
Burst 2: 1,2,2,3,4,4,7,11 (one combat pool used)

Burst 1: 1,2,3,3,5,8,8,10 (one combat pool used)
Burst 2: 1,3,3,3,5,5,7,8, (one combat pool used)

[Jrayjoker]

Not knowing who or what to trust except his brothers in this situation, Gromitz waits for something to happen to him or his family before attacking. The tension of waiting for battle once it appeared to be at hand is clearly visible to anyone who cares to look. His head is moving quickly from target to target, his weapon is tracking as many opponents as it can without magically multiplying itself, and he appears ready to jump out of his skin as he nervously shifts positions and waits.

When Greven's first burst of bullets is fired it is as if the dam has burst. The release of tension is palpable as Gromitz settles into his battle rythm and begins firing at targets of opportunity.

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Gromitz mentally verifies his axe is ready if needed and fires two EX explosive rounds at 1 non-wasp target attached to the wall.

[ Spoiler ]

2 shots with Pistols (6) + 2 CP each:
Shot 1
1: 5
2: 6 + 1 = 7.
3: 3
4: 5
5: 2
6: 1
7: 2
8: 4

Shot 2
1: 4
2: 5
3: 5
4: 4
5: 6 + 1 = 7.
6: 3
7: 2
8: 6 + 1 = 7.

[Sandoval Smith]

There's a slaughter going on down below you. Despite their wariness the insects seemed to have been taken by complete surprise. Their enemies fight with no regards to themselves, intent only on killing whatever they can get their claws into.

Ares perches on the balls of his feet, seeming more than ready to leap into the abyss if it meant taking one of those white faced monstrosities with him.

Ace reacted with a slightly cooler head, trying to calm Ares down before he did anything rash.

Greven braced himself on top of the pipe and aimed his gun down into the boiling swarm. He saw one enemy clambering up the wall towards them, probably the same one that had seen them as it fell, and with a prayer to big brother, fired four quick bursts.

Gromitz braced himself at the mouth of the pipe, the targeting icon behind his eye almost overloading as it tried to sort through all the shifting targets in the dimness below, squeezing off a round whenever the icon confirmed target.

The sound of the gunfire is almost lost within the expanse of the artificial chasm. The enemy crawling up the wall is briefly slowed by the bullets striking its face and shoulders, but it begins to move again, apprently uninjured.

The water bearing wasps start trying to fly up, away from their attackers, heading back into darkness.
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[ Spoiler ]

The tactical situation is the same. Some of the wasps are trying to escape. The range, and dim light, make shooting diffulcult (good thing Greven's got that gas vent), FYI.

I'm hoping that Panzergeist will check back in. Right now he's on the tertiary of the action, so it's not too much of a problem that he hasn't done anything yet.

[Sphynx]

"If we're not gonna kill'em, I suggest we move folks. You guys head up, I'll catch the rear.", Ares suggests as he starts pushing people up to the top of the pipe, offering his hands as a step for anyone, and keeping himself near the edge to make sure they don't fall while climbing up.

[Panzergeist]

Fade works faster, attempting to open the hatch at an inhuman speed as adrenaline courses through his veins. "Hold on guys, I'm still getting it open. I'll tell you when I have the line anchored."

[Sandoval Smith]

Whatever was moving around in there seems to have gone, but the farther open Fade gets the hatch, the worse the smell is.

Fully open, the hatch is wide enough to walk through, if you crouch while doing it, and in the room behind it he can see electrical boxes, control panels, consoles, wires, pipes, and conduits, nearly everything coated with a layer of filth, or slime that seems to be the source of the stench.

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[ Spoiler ]

Panzergeist: There are plenty of places to secure the line too. It just means that you're going to have to touch stuff in here.

Everyone else: The enemy coming towards you is a little less than a quarter of the way up to you. Considering it's climbing a water slicked, sheer metal wall, it's moving incredibly fast.

[Jrayjoker]

Since bullets don't seem to affect it, Gromitz decides to holster his gun and draw the combat axe. He waits beside Ares until everyone else is safe, then gives ares a boost saying, "I've got the climbing harness, you go first and I'll clip in and back you up."

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Gromitz will use the combat axe 10S (if necessary), otherwise he will chip in the harness as soon as Ares is headed up and climb while keeping an eye on the enemy.

[ Spoiler ]

Axe (6) + 3 Combat pool, called shot to the neck (standing at the edge of the pipe if possible):
You asked for 9 rolls and your target is unknown ... here are the results:

1: 2
2: 6 + 2 = 8.
3: 2
4: 4
5: 6 + 6 + 2 = 14.
6: 2
7: 2
8: 6 + 2 = 8.
9: 1


Climb Athletics (4) Harness and rope:
You asked for 4 rolls and your target is unknown ... here are the results:

1: 6 + 6 + 6 + 3 = 21.
2: 6 + 3 = 9.
3: 3
4: 2


Perception while climbing (6):
You asked for 6 rolls and your target is unknown ... here are the results:

1: 4
2: 2
3: 2
4: 4
5: 1
6: 6 + 5 = 11.

[Sphynx]

"I got the rear folks, get your asses up there and I'll be right behind.", Ares says, still unsure he wants to run from such a grand battle. True to his namesake, Ares holds his blades ready, but nonetheless, remains at the edge of the pipe until Everyone has climbed up, keeping himself anchored in a manner to aide anyone that needs help climbing. Lastly he also jumps up and climbs onto the pipe extension.

[Whizbang]

Though still concerned about his brothers, Ace wasn't keen on a fight. His training had been more about infiltration and people skills than combat. Taking the boost up from Ares, he proceeded to climb on up. Once he was up with Fade, he pulled out a dikoted throwing knife, and stood reading incase he needed to pick off any of the creatures following the others.

[ Spoiler ]

climbing: default to str: 5, 5, 4, 2

[Panzergeist]

Breathing shallowly through his mouth, Fade finds a sturdy pipe to attach the line to. Tugging on the line to make sure it is solidly emplaced, he then radios to his team. "The line is secured guys, come on up. Be warned though, this place smells really nasty." He then proceeds to examine the control panels, trying to figure out what they are for. Those things were being careful not to get wet. If these panels control the water flow, maybe I can use them to drench those bug things.

[Sandoval Smith]

Once he's inside, Fade realizes that something had been using the maintenance room as a lair, probably whatever it was he'd heard scrabbling around before, although there was nothing else in there with him now. The smell was caused by the waste and offal piled in the corners. Chunks of organic matter were strewn about the room, most of it unrecognizable, others all too clearly gnawed bones and chunks of meat of metahuman origin.

As he secured the rope, he realized why he had such trouble getting the hatch open. There was another manual release on the inside of the door, and from the bright streaks of metal shining through the imprints of fingers in the filth, it's looks like someone was attempting to keep the hatch from being opened. Above the hatch, stenciled in faded letters were the words K/S-2 Block 346 LV 2341-Water/Waste Pipe Access.

No one had any trouble recognizing what a poor tactical position they were in. If you were chased back into a pipe, it'd be a straight run with no other way to retreat, and not even Ares wanted to think about what would happen if more of those _things_ caught up while you were all clambering around on the walls. Ace was the first up the rope behind Fade, then Greven. Ares stood at the bottom, watching the white faced abomination rapidly scale up the wall, now more than halfway, until Gromitz gave him a boost up the rope. If you moved fast, you'd be through the maintenance hatch before it reached the pipe.
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[ Spoiler ]

-----|
--F..Ace
-----|
-----|Gre
-----|
-----|Ares
-----| Gro
--------------

--------------
-----|
-----| ||
-----| \/ Bugs about sixty meters down. Enemy about thirty meters
-----|

[Sphynx]

Ares finishes boosting Greven up, then quickly scales up through the pipe himself. Once up, he reaches down while laying on his belly in the slimy filth, offering a hand to Gromitz. "We need this hatch closed and fast. The bugs don't seem to be doing all that well, and we're the next obvious target", Ares adds as he waits for Gromitz.

[Jrayjoker]

Gromitz climbs quickly and begins to pull the hatch closed after he is boosted in. "Shit guys!, we need something to seal this door. Those predator things have pulled this hatch open before!"

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Gromitz yanks on the hatch with all his strength while looking around for a rigged up lock or way to bar the door.

[ Spoiler ]

Strength (10):

You asked for 10 rolls and your target is unknown ... here are the results:

1: 3
2: 3
3: 2
4: 6 + 3 = 9.
5: 5
6: 4
7: 2
8: 2
9: 5
10: 5

Structural Engineering fix/brace the door, fix the locking mechanism (6):
You asked for 6 rolls and your target is unknown ... here are the results:

1: 4
2: 5
3: 4
4: 2
5: 1
6: 5


Scrounging for stuff to help brace/lock/fix the door (6):
You asked for 6 rolls and your target is unknown ... here are the results:

1: 5
2: 6 + 5 = 11.
3: 1
4: 3
5: 1
6: 2

[Sandoval Smith]

Gromitz wrenches the wheel with all his strength, stripping the gears with a shriek of stretching metal. There's a serious feeling of deju vu as you find yourselves once again locked in a room without a working door.

There is a gentle tap-tap-tap from the other side of the door. Sounds like someone would like to be let in.

[Sphynx]

Ares smiles as he faces the door, his hand waving the rest of the team forward as he prepares to hold the enemy at bay if needed. He doesn't consider it risking his life, just his way of life. He'd make sure that nobody got past, giving the team as much time as they needed to run, then run behind them once there was an all-clear.

[Jrayjoker]

Gromitz wipes the sweat from his forehead and massages his now bruised hands a little to restore the circulation.

Seeing that Ares has taken up a defensive position and everyone else is safe he unslings his axe while holstering his gun. He goes to inspect the second door and investigate the rest of the room for possible weak points and exits. He also appears to be searching for anything that may be useful later on.

"Hold tight guys, I want to check this place out, It looks like a control room for a water treatment plant I once saw the plans for. I wonder if it could still run if it had power."
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[ Spoiler ]

Structural Engineering for other door and room inspection (6):

You asked for 6 rolls and your target is unknown ... here are the results:

1: 6 + 3 = 9.
2: 4
3: 1
4: 2
5: 3
6: 3


Perception for searching room (6):

You asked for 6 rolls and your target is unknown ... here are the results:

1: 4
2: 4
3: 1
4: 6 + 2 = 8.
5: 1
6: 5

Scrounging for anything informative or useful (6):

You asked for 6 rolls and your target is unknown ... here are the results:

1: 6 + 3 = 9.
2: 5
3: 6 + 1 = 7.
4: 5
5: 4
6: 4

[Chance359]

"I'll come with you Ares."

[ Spoiler ]

Perception roll: 2,2,4,4,10
Stealth (Awareness): 1,2,4,5,5,9
Stealth (for sneaking around): 1,1,1,4,4,5
Scrounging roll: 2,5,7,7,9

[Sandoval Smith]

The tapping from the other side multiplies after a minute or so, more of your Enemy apparently having come to investigate. You all hear metal banging against itself as one of them tries to turn the manual wheel on the other side, stripped gears spinning uselessly, then the scream of tearing metal as it is ripped right off. They start banging against the hatch so hard that those standing across the room can feel vibrations shivering through the floor, but the metal hatch is more than strong enough to bear up to the abuse. The sound of the pounding grows to be almost unbearable, the noise amplified by the confines of the small room, and then suddenly it stops.

Not a single noise can be heard coming from the other side. Ares is almost disappointed as the silence stretches on. The thought of tearing one of those blank faced bastards apart had been very appealing.

Gromitz examines the controls, then the other door out. Wiping away a bit more of the slime, it becomes apparent that enigmatic labels aside, the controls are all simply "on/off" switches for various pipes. Since the wasps seemed to be collecting water, it seems likely that they were trying to find a pipe spilling clean water, and avoiding any mixed with sewage or other contaminants.

As he moves on to the door, he sees that someone did a very good job of wrecking it, quite permanently. The control panel set into the wall next to it is quite dead. Even if it had electricity flowing into it, the insides had been completely torn out. The plate in the wall covering the hydraulics had been pried off, and some sort of small explosive device left inside.

As Gromitz works his way around the room, Ace hears a whimper from the ceiling above him. Looking up, he sees a face with bulbous eyes, and a wet, slobbery mouth partially concealed in the pipes above. It squeals when it realizes it's been spotted, and then scrambles through a hole torn into an overhead ventilation duct.

[Sphynx]

Today was not a good day to die anyhows. Ares wanted to be on the surface when his day came, but as long as he died in combat, he was happy. He sheathed his blades at his thighs, as he turned to join the rest of the team. Although he was saddened by the loss of combat oppurtunity, he was glad he'd be around to fight on better days.

[Whizbang]

"I hear you knocking, but you can't come in." Ace taunted as the enemy banged on the other side of the hatch. When it was proven that they couldn't get through, and had apparently given up, the others scattered to look around. He was wondering what they were going to do with water processing plant controls, when he heard something up above. Looking up, he saw a pitiful wretch of a thing that quickly retreated back into the hole it had come out of. "What the..." he said as he attempted to climb up after it.

[ Spoiler ]

assuming the hole is big enough, that is. And this doesn't by any chance look like a relative of Gollum, does it? :)

[Whizbang]

Ace continued to follow the creature, hoping that even if he couldn't catch it, perhaps it would lead him to something useful...like a way out of this place. He was getting tired of pipes and vents and such.

[Sandoval Smith]

As Greven and Fade catch their breath from the quick scramble up the side of the chasm, Gromitz finished his inspection of the doors. "They've been torn up pretty good-"

"What the!" Ace interupted, spotting movement as something darted back into a large hole torn into a ventilation duct, that had been concealed behind some hanging pipes. He climbed up a control console and dissapered, leaving a set of prints in the muck covering it almost identical to the set already there.

The duct makes a sharp turn to the right, then the left. The thing seems to be drawing ahead of Ace, although it hasn't paused in gibbering to itself since the chase began. There is a loud clang, like a grate being dropped to the floor, then the thud of a body following it. He had to switch his shades to thermographic to see in the darkness of the duct so it took him a few seconds to realize that there was light coming into the duct. It looked like artificial light, but it was still the first light he had seen in days that had not been carried by either himself or his brothers.

[Whizbang]

As he followed the creature, Ace wondered if coming up here alone had been such a good idea. No telling what he might be running into. At least there weren't too many turns, so it shouldn't be hard to find his way back to the others if this turned out to be a wild goose chase.

It was interesting thus far, especially when he spotted the artificial light. From what he had heard, apparently that was where the creature had exited. He proceeded a bit more cautiously, unsure what he would find when he exited the vent.

[Sphynx]

Ares waits til everyone else went up the hole before following, sticking to his guns as the rear-protection for the brothers. Until then, he maintaines a defensive positioning, and offers help to anyone trying to get up the hole, following as the last make it up.

[ Spoiler ]

Liable to be editted if others chose to not follow

[Jrayjoker]

Gromitz looks around at the commotion and follows into the ventilation pipes thinking, "I'll never get the chance to do this again...yeah right!"