Nova and Sharkboy immediately noticed that something was wrong. A barely audible humming noise indicated an ultrasound source further on, likely part of a trap trigger. Anna and Wraith both were able to perceive the same.
What they didn't catch was the even fainter, yet persistent scratching down below as if from small claws raking against solid stone...

"What's that... buzzing? Sounds like some kind of sensor. Seems like they rigged the place!"
He tilted his head towards bnc. "Can you spot any devices running online?"

Wraith @ all:
<< No names til we figured out if they planted any cameras or recorders.>>

Sharkboy wanted to just go down into the bunker, traps be damned, to get out of the cold.

@Team> That's not all. There's something down there. Does our doppelganger decker see anything running down there she can turn off before Nova and I knock on the door?>

>>Shark, what kind of electrical devices are active down there... do you know these things? Team - how about we toss a rock or something?

bnc halts. "Buzzing?", she mumbles alarmed. She quickly loads Jack's sensoric array and scans through it, then searches the matrix for any entities down there.

"That seems like a good opportunity to use one of those little spy-drones of yours," Nova said.

She was standing a few meters away from the now open grave with her rifle ready.

There were no signals in the matrix within 100m that didn't origin from the team. James and his sensor suite were able to pick up the ultrasound signal and pinpoint the source at 20m down the passage. The signal is consistent with a cheap sensor tag having been placed just around the corner of the corridor.

@Anna> Sorry, I can't tell you what type of gear is down there. Best I could do is confirm that the electronic devices are electronic devices.>

"Yep. Lemme just scout out a sec.""
bnc finds some dry spot where she could sit down and leave het meat body. She then Jumps Into one of her Noizquitos and carefully flies down the shaft.

With careful movements designed not to get caught in the ultrasound pulses, the Noizquito moves downward and follows the corridor to it's first sharp 90° corner to the right. The whole structure is 5 m below ground making it unlikely that any sound from above ground will travel here easily.

Once around the corner, bnc sees the source of the ultrasound noise: A single gas grenade has been strapped to the ceiling and wired directly to an ultrasound sensor. Even for her drone it is no problem to pry the optical wire loose.

The gnawing and scratching sound is now louder. and seems to come from beyond a closed steel bunker door.

Once bnc reports her findings, Nova said:

"Time to take a closer look, shall we? I can take point."

She shouldered her rifle and slowly descended into the bunker's entrance.

The door was closed, but not locked. The bar moved smooth and on oiled hinges, the door could be opened silently just a bit to let the drone in.
Behind lay a large room with a low ceiling. Articles of clothing and of daily live were strewn about, indicating a very hasty evacuation. The gnawing sounds grew louder and seemed to come from the room beyond, also closed off behind a similar door.

Nova could smell through the slit the sweet smell of decay.

<< Seems safe enough for the moment. There is something locked away further in. Someone, better two, should probably stay outside, watch the surroundings. I will wait at the entrance down here for the moment. Then we can proceed further in. >>

Wraith @ all:
<< Then I'll stay behind and watch the surroundings. I'm not too good at sneaking anyways.>>

Anna texted >>I want to go in...

OOC: She can buy 3 success in sneaking to avoid the sensor.

bnc not only tells her teammates about her findings, she also gives them access to the diverse sensor feeds she's using.



"I'll send James with you, Wraith. He can be witty when he's at his best. Even if not, he's still a good observer and equipped with a high-quality sensor system. I myself will go in. To be honest, I'd love to enter using James, but I don't quite know where to put this bag of meat." bnc sighs. "Man, sometimes I hate the restrictions of a physical body. Next time, I'll leave this wet sack in the car. Nothing to be done, though."

bnc draws and checks Tommy, then follows Nova inside.

Opening the door was as effortless as the first one. The room behind was dark, but the thermal image showed three patterns - sized about 1,20m in height, 31°C warm and definitely looking directly at the camera.
The ultrasound image showed a cluttered living room with cots, a small kitchen and two more doors leading further into the old bunker.
On the ground in the middle of the room a pile of oblong objects registered - as well as an irregularly shaped hole on the far side of the room. A slight flow of air indicated that it was a tunnel of some sort.

Anna texts to Nova (and bnc?) ">>I can open the door with my magic fingers, while we carefully prepare to blast anything that charges us from the outside. What do you say?"

bnc nods towards Nova. "Go for it!"



"Damn, I can't see drek.", bnc exclaims and retreats to Wraith and James, gun pointing towards the dark and there creatures lurking within.

<< Okay, open the door. I'm ready. >> Nova replied to Anna.

To bnc, she added: "I have a flashlight on my sidearm, if that helps..."

Aiming her gun at the door, Anna made sure that they already by counting down... >>3... 2... 1... Open She opened the door with her mind, while her real hands tightly grip the gun.

The door opens and Nova's flashlight cuts through the darkness, revealing two emaciated creatures about the size of dwarves, but downright skelletal and hairless. The third one has more flesh on it's frame but is grayish white and shows a very prominent jaw. This last one seems to stand in a kind of black liquid until Nova realizes that this is in fact a large colony of tiny roaches climbing over each other. The pile in the middle of the room turns out to be made from human bones. A sickly, sweet scent fills the room and makes anyone with functioning sinuses gag.



With incredible swiftness, one of the skeletal freaks charged at Nova, ready to swipe it's dirty claws across her exposed face.

Anna acted quickly and without flinching fired a single shot at the beast charging Nova.
OOC:
Initiative 21: Simple action take aim, simple action fire single shot at the beast charging Nova (critter 2) free action spell defense. (all our team).
Fire Predator + Take aim: 17d6t5 4 Damage is 8P -1 AP.

Nova managed to get out of the way of the charging things' claws.

Anna's shot hit home, slowing the critter down but didn't drop it. Nova and bnc had an opening to act before the other critters could react...

With a yell, bnc fired a well-aimed salvo at the already wounded creature, sending it to hell and beyond.

Seeing that Anna's shot was effective, Nova drew her right arm closer to her body, in order to shoot at the thing right in front of her without it being too easy to just push her gun away. She aimed and fired a single shot, while the guncam on her Savalette was trained right on her target sending the feed to the rest of the team.

She positioned herself in a way, that she would block the entrance, so the other critters would not easily get through.

The second skeletal creature charged Nova, but was equally unsuccessful. Finally, the critter with the prominent jaw opened its mouth and vomited a stinking spray at Nova and Anna, while at the same time a swarm of cockroaches flowed past Nova's feet and began to find it's way into Anna's cloths.

Anna jumped toward the roaches momentarily surprising them. It allowed her to avoid the vast majority of the swarm. Nevertheless, the little buggers were impossible to completely avoid. She ignored the discomfort from the roaches, and carefully aimed and her gun, at the critter that inflicted this misery upon her.




Anna acts again at 2nd passage but at initiative 1 due to full defense: She'll use: Simple action take aim, Simple action to fire. Fire Predator + Take aim: 17d6t5 9 Note that the accuracy of her pistol is only 8.

Nova manages to resist the temptation to throw up in the face of the hideous stench produced by that nasty critter.

bnc yells: "Take out the stinker! Roaches are his!" and swirls Tom at that little bugger.

Nova didn't even need bnc's encouragement, as that thing that just spilled its noxious breath at them went right to the top of her I-want-you-dead-list, anyways.

So, she aimed at the thing and fired another shot in its direction.

Gritting her teeth, bnc unleashed another salvo to take out the infected monster. Dazzled by the confusing situation, the untrained decker aimed too high, forever. A serious of bright blinks flare up where her rounds hit the stone wall.

The goblin was obviously irriated by the flying lead and began to attack Nova in a frenzy



The gnawer meanwhile had fallen over by the shots and screeched with a painfully loud tone into the darkness, while his roaches continued to swarm all over Anna.

While she was shooting the gnawer, the critter in front of Nova found an opening to attack her with its claws. Her armor took most of the force out of the attack, though some bruises remained.

Anna proved to be, as nimble as a cat in avoiding the swarm of roaches, she targeted the gnawer and fired a single shot with a lot of finesse.



Anna acts again at 2nd passage but at initiative 1 due to full defense: She'll use: Simple action take aim, Simple action to fire. Fire Predator + Take aim: 17d6t5 9 Note that the accuracy of her pistol is only 8.

The Gnawer perished with a very precise hole in his head. At once the roaches lost their cohesion and began to flee from the glare of the flashlight. The remaining goblin realized his hopeless fight and began his retreat

Initiative 25: Anna fires a well-aimed shot at the remaining goblin.
(simple action take aim, simple action fire single shot
Fire Predator + Take aim: 17d6t5 9 limit is 8.
Damage is: 8P -1 AP + net hits.
OOC: She is quite the gun bunny!

The last goblin fell to the floor, unmoving but still breathing.

Wraith's voice suddenly echoed through the team's comlink channel:
"don't kill it. I might be able to read its mind. Perhaps it witnessed Bean Si's escape, or it was brought here by the Harvesters. It's memory might be useful anyhow."
Also... Everyone okay? "

After a quick glance over her shoulder, Nova replied: << Yeah, everyone's fine. Hurry up then, not sure how much time that thing has... >>

While the team looks on the creature begins to stir...