Ask Sometimes Things Aren't What They Seem, Huh?

[Aska Ryun]

Aska had had her fair share of 'undead' during the AMS outbreak that had plagued the galaxy in years past. It was a chapter that she was only too delighted to consider shut, memories of those she had lost too painful to bear. Yet word had reached her of a seemingly similar blight sweeping across the world of Agamar and such a thing could not go unanswered. If what little governance remained in the galaxy seemed content to turn a blind eye and allow the AMS variant to resurface and resume its conquest, then that left the cleansing in the hands of those who were willing to see it through.

Not for free, of course. Her services were no charity, after all.

She had landed The Night Terror beyond the outskirts of a small village, the ship dreadfully exposed on the barren terrain of the world, wind whipping against its hull as flakes of snow peppered the view screen, causing the clone to groan in disdain as she slunked down in her seat with a cigarra hanging from her lip.

”Can't say I'm looking forward to going out there, Kayto,” she grumbled while staring at the scenery before her, pulling the cigarra away to ash on the floor. The droid at her side stared at the mess she had made for a solid three seconds before looking back to her.

”Our contact could well be here already, Mistress. Now get out there and stop dirtying our home,”

The door to the tavern swung open more viciously than she had hoped, pushed by the wind more than by her own hand, but the clone quickly stepped through and forced it shut before breathing a sigh of relief. Her armour fit tightly around the thick cloth body suit she had worn underneath, but the roaring fire in the center of the main room was a welcome sight. Kind eyes and warm smiles greeted her as she turned to face them only to be met by an expressionless scowl as she looked over each citizen in search of her contact.

@Alhon

Recycled Concept of this thread​

 

[Nathan Braxon]

Nathan swilled the flagon of local ale gently, having no intention of drinking the stuff. But patrons who sat without buying a drink looked odd, so he and Stamper had ordered two flagons and perched in a corner booth.

The Senator was wearing his plain armor, hood pulled up and fabric bandana across his lower face for now. Though he intended to bring Agamar into the fold through good works, it was a relatively new approach for Nathan. It may be that he could openly trumpet his connection to today's work later on, but for now he was too cautious to announce his presence openly. Let the dice fall first.

The biggest die of all was the woman who had just stepped through the door. Stamper stiffened immediately, his own cloth hood not concealing his look of readiness. Nathan knew the security chief feared his charge was overreaching this time. Aska Ryun was not a minor noble or fledgling gun for hire, but a seasoned mercenary, perhaps the most dangerous he had dared to mix with. But it was a calculated risk.

A look from Nathan told Stamper to motion her over, which the burly man did with a jut of his chin.

"If the dead are walking around outside, I feel better already with you in here" Nathan said in greeting, quietly offering her a seat opposite. "A drink Miss Ryun?". Sending Stamper to the bar for one would be another calculated risk, but at least it would give the impression Nathan was unafraid. Impressions were everything in politics.

@Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

The pair were hard to miss. A giant lumbering oaf and a string bean covered head to toe. Aska smirked at the sight. It always seemed the way of things, opposites attract and all that. She didn't even need to speak to them to know who was the one in charge. Page straight out of an old holo-movie. Making her way over to the pair, she moved to sit down after the burly brute left to get her a drink.

”Make it something that would curl a banthas toes, would ya?” she called after Stamper before turning back to the skinnier man. Quietly and quickly she analyzed him. It wasn't rare for clients to try and remain anonymous when hiring someone like herself. Her line of work was dirty business, after all. More often than not she had found herself doing the deeds that would tarnish the client's squeaky clean image. It wasn't hard to assume this was the case now, though given the circumstances of the job, it was slightly peculiar.

”The dead,” the clone scoffed as she leaned back in the booth, plucking a cigarra from the pack behind her chest plate. ”Probably just another outbreak of that damn virus, you know. You hear about them every now and again. Rarer these days but it was bound to happen sooner or later,” she continued before lighting the smoke.

”My question is why does it interest you so much? You from here or something?” She had no interest in who this man was. It was good business to keep the conversation to the crucial details. ”That wouldn't explain the get up though,” she finished before blowing smoke up into the air.

@Alhon​

 

[Nathan Braxon]

Aska Ryun was punchy, but Nathan had half expected that.

"Probably" he repeated, eyebrow raised "Sounds like you're guessing". Whether the sightings here were a virus or dark sorcery, Nathan took them incredibly seriously. She, by contrast, did not seem terribly concerned.

"Whatever it is" he continued "I want it gone because I want the favour of these people" he added "this world". He had the sense she was direct and would appreciate the same in return. "Word is you can help me with my want" he said, leaning closer "though do tell me how. If you can help deliver Agamar to me, I will be very happy to help with your wants in return".

Stamper returned, setting something fizzing down on the table for their new acquaintance. Nathan knew he would have done his best to meet their guests brief, though whether her toes actually curled would remain a mystery.

@Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

Aska chuckled as she ashed her cigarra on the table top, rolling the burning end in the charred remains.

”I suppose I am,” she admitted, her eyes averting upwards from the table with a small smirk. ”Maybe even hopeful,” In all her years, she'd seen a wide array of things she had once considered impossible. People who had lived well beyond what was within the scope of reality. Beasts altered by magic she couldn't even begin to comprehend. Even her own creation was something that was once considered a matter of science fiction. Dead rising from their graves? Maybe she just hoped for a root cause more grounded in reason. ”Though I suspect we'll come to the truth of things sooner than later,”

As Nathan, of whom she still had no clue to his true identity nor did she care in this moment to discover, elaborated on his desire to earn the affection of these people, Aska scanned the crowd around them. Laughter echoed across the room, melodies drifted from the far corner as a pair of musician's strummed unique instruments and drinks found their way into hands of everyone. She supposed there were worse motives but she couldn't deny that something about these people seemed... strange.

”Alright, let's say these rumors are based off of fact,” the clone continued, straightening in her seat. ”Finding the cause would be priority. Find what's causing them to rise from the dead and then determine the best way to stop it. Easy enough, in concept,”

Stamper returned with her drink, placing it in front of her before sliding back into the booth. The fizzing and popping from the liquid within was curious but she'd never turned away a free drink before. ”Thanks, Sparkles,” she offered the lumbering Vet before taking a long draw and returning the cup to the table. ”Damn, thats good,” she chuckled, before returning to the business at hand. ”Of course, if I'm right, the only real option is extermination. The vaccine clearly didn't affect the variant we'd be dealing with here,”

”Credits. Crowns. Peggats. These are my wants,” she finished, taking another swig from her cup while watching a smiling buffoon walk by their table. Staring him down as she drank, the man's demeanour didn't falter for even a moment. ”Do these people seem weird to either of you?” she asked the pair, watching the man walk away with sharp eyes.

@Alhon

 

[Nathan Braxon]

If Aska had less of a reputation, Nathan might have thought her so relaxed it bordered on the reckless. But he was well acquainted with the idea of presenting an outward face to the galaxy, one that could hide a multitude of sins or virtues. Aska Ryun knew exactly what she was doing.

"If you see to the extermination, I will see to the credits" he offered. "Sparkles here will give you a hand" Nathan continued, giving Stamper a helpless look "and I will play my part if it comes to it". The Senator had a basic loadout, but was far from defenceless. Formative years at military academy left with certain skills that never left. "Starting with the source seems smart, and I do so enjoy smart people Miss Ryun".

Nathan stiffened at her question about the tavern's patrons. He was never entirely comfortable in such places and had put his sense of unease down to that. But now she mentioned it, there was something a little off. It was remarkably calm, every face in sight almost frozen in a smiling daze.

"I've had a change of heart" he said quietly, eyes scanning the room "on reflection I think I'd feel a lot better outside...".

@Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

Aska looked Stamper over one more time. He seemed capable. Experienced. People who distributed death for a living had a certain emptiness in their eyes and he certainly had that. ”He'll do,” Aska grinned, leaning back in her seat. ”Not much of a talker, are ya?” she asked coyly before draining what little remained of her fizzing beverage.

She then turned her attention back to Nathan, still smirking. ”Then you've come to the wrong girl,” she joked. Mostly.

Getting out of the tavern was bittersweet Aska decided as she returned to the howling winds of Agamar. The people were creepy but at least it was warm. Tugging the hood of her jacket out from below her armour and pulling it over her head, the clone nodded upwards in the direction of the Night Terror.

”My ship and droid are out that way. While I was enroute, I did a bit of digging into these rumors and sightings. From what I could gather, the closer people got to Mokol Mountain Ridge the more prominent these 'sightings' were,”

As she finished speaking, a trio of smiling faces appeared in the doorway, unphased by the wind and snow.

“Where are you going, friends?”

“Come back! We're about to begin playing charades!”

“Join us!”

“Yes! Join us!”

Aska quickly wrapped an arm around both Nathan and Stamper and began to usher them away from the tavern in a rush. ”Go! Go!” she hissed between clenched teeth. It was weird. Even with how unnerving these people were, it was almost as though a voice in the back of her mind was urging her to join them...

@Alhon​

 

[Nathan Braxon]

Aksa feigned modesty, but there was nothing understated about the way she guided them out of the tavern. The people almost seemed to become stranger in those final moments, calling like sirens from the doorway with no apparent thought for the elements. Nathan did not like it one bit. Every rational person could be dealt with, one way or another. The mad were the truly dangerous ones.

"Then we go to the moutain ridge" he said, half deduction half question. The Senator was still acclimatising to being on the ground, rather than waiting elsewhere for others to bring the report. But the wind whipped at his hood and he was reminded he was more than up to the task. His unease would not show, unless he let it.

He hurried down the street, pretty sure he could already see the outline of Aska's ship silhouetted beyond the outskirts. Other figures appeared in the doorways of the houses they passed, the same sense of friendly haze having descended on them too. Nathan and Stamper hurried past without stopping and fortunately none came towards them, until the very last house.

A scraggy haired man seem to pull himself off his front porch with a great effort, staggering into their path. "My friends, come, join us. We have food and drink and games. Join us, join!".

Something was off and the hairs on the back of Nathan's neck stood on end. The fellow suddenly lurched for him, with more grace than he had shown a moment ago. Fortunately, the Senator had already decided to push on and started forward just in time to shove the man to the ground.

They broke for the ship, running now. "Sound advice!" he shouted back to Aska "get that thing open and fired up. There's something wrong with these people and I'd prefer to fathom it out in the air!".

@Tulos

14/20 for run to ship success

 

[Aska Ryun]

As the trio made their way through the village streets, their pace increasing with every step, the amount of smiling faces that appeared around them increased. Their pleas for them to remain in the community echoed in the clone's ears, stoking concern that had not been there only moments ago.

”Maybe there is something more to this than I thought!” Aska grunted as her feet hammered against the cold ground. ”Would make a lot more sense if you two were in a band or something! You're not, are you?!” she continued with forced laughter. Behind them, the villagers had now left their homes entirely and followed the visitors, unphased by the inclement weather while still in their lounging attire. Some had even begun to grab at them as they passed, leaving Nathan no choice but to force one man in question away. As another tried something similar with her own arm, only to be fed her armored elbow to keep them away, the clone made a decision.

Activating a button on her bracer, the thrusters in her boots flared to life and propelled the clone into the air. Turning to face the converging crowd of villagers as they chased after Nathan and Stamper, Aska pulled one of the PL-50 stun grenades from her belt, activating it and whipping it out into the crowd. Gas began to spill out, enveloping those who walked into it before bringing them to a coughing and wheezing halt. The villagers would live but it finally put distance between them and their pursuers.

Aska touched back down in a sprint a few meters ahead of Nathan and his guard as they approached the Night Terror and proceeded up the ramp. ”Get us in the air now!” she called out Kayto, bringing the ramp up after the other two boarded before the ship lifted off, tearing through the falling snow towards the mountain range in question.

@Alhon​

 

[Nathan Braxon]

Nathan did not look back as he vaguely heard Aska take to the sky. He could be remarkably selfish when pressed and right now his only priority was escaping the villagers and taking stock. There was some threat here that he couldn’t put his finger on.

He heard the explosion, quickening his pace as he made the ramp and sprinted up, surprised to find the mercenary by his side again in moments, yelling for the ship to take off.

”Not a band” Nathan answered, if belatedly. “I’m in politics. The pitfalls can be quite similar”. He brushed at his arm, hoping nothing of the crackpot vagrant had rubbed off on him.

He held onto the handholds and ran the events back in his mind. The intel had hinted at a dark power here, perhaps some nefarious use of the Force. But the grins on those faces had been something else. Friendliness supercharged to the point of danger. Nathan would have used his gift to quickly compute the variables with his data pad, but he could not risk that in front of Aska. He had only his own mind to work with.

Join. That was what they had kept saying. Join us. That word had a particular resonance, especially given the fate of a notable Supreme Chancellor, an office Nathan watched with great interest.

”Killiks?” he said suddenly, looking to the mercenary for confirmation. She was a sharp one and had no doubt entertained a similar theory. “Did we just brush with Joiners down there?“. He had no direct experience of the Killiks or their vassals, but the very thought of having his will subsumed chilled him to the core.

@Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

”Politics, huh?” Aska replied, sliding into the copilot's chair while Kayto managed the controls. She'd known more than her share of politicians throughout her career, not a single one deserving of her trust beyond the moment she was paid for her services. Perhaps this fellow would prove different, though she highly doubted it. Nevertheless, having a politician in her pocket was never a bad thing. ”Too bad. Do politicians party as hard as rock stars? Once this is all over, I think I could use another drink. What do you think, Sparkles?” she added jokingly. She knew a prime example of one who could, though that particular set of piercing silvers never lost their edge no matter how much whiskey was poured. Unnerving, really.

Nathan presented a new possibility, though it offered nothing in the way of comfort. Whether it be a Killik hivemind or a resurgence of AMS, neither boded well for the people of Agamar or the interested party aboard her ship who sought to rectify it.

”I'm not about to rule it out,” the clone replied, turning her chair to face both Nathan and Stamper. ”Maybe these rumors of 'undead' are just misrepresented?”

”Unlikely,” Kayto interjected blandly whilst guiding the Night Terror through the snowy skies. ”Searching local databases has provided no evidence that any of the Agamarian populace have gone missing since the sightings have begun. One would expect Joiners to have been brought to the hive by now, given how long the sightings have been occurring,”

Aska leaned back in her seat, mulling over possibilities. As she plucked another cigarra from behind her chest plate, a new theory formed.

”Okay, but maybe it's not that far off from the truth? Something is going on with those people. What if it's like... a distraction?” Recalling the urge to comply with the villager's desires to remain there, Aska shuddered as she lit the tabacc. ”Keep prying eyes preoccupied with the citizens while something nefarious goes on in the mountains?”

Below the ship, marching through the snow, a small group of five remained unnoticed. They showed no concern for the weather, no recognition of those they marched with, and no signal of life sent to the Night Terror's scanners. Together they continued absently towards the mountains, lifeless eyes focused on a cavern entrance forming beyond the falling snow.

@Alhon​

 

[Nathan Braxon]

"Oh we party Miss Ryun" Nathan said, though the we of course meant he partied while Stamper kept an eye out for threats. "If we succeed here then we will have a party exactly to your taste". Success depended more than he would like on Aska's skill and determination and Nathan did not let their currently challenging surroundings stop him deploying the charm.

He listened intently to her theorising and the droid co-pilot's interjection. They could at least be certain something was amiss. Agamarians had a reputation as dumb hicks but, even if true, what they had seen went beyond an above average prevalence of stupidity.

"Whether or not it was a distraction" Nathan said "the more important question is surely what caused it. Whether Killiks, or disease, or some workings of the Force?" All three were almost seemingly less likely by the minute. "If we had an idea we could better anticipate what threat your good droid here is eagerly piloting us towards".

Things were moving fast and while the Senator agreed the mountain ridge was their only lead, he was not accustomed to hurtling into situations with scant information and barely the beginnings of a plan.

@Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

”Eagerly may be something of an understatement, sir. I've been trying to rid myself of the Mistress for years but have come up short,” Kayto's reply came as he continued to stare directly out the viewport. With an annoyed huff, the clone quickly booted the droid's knee from her seat.

”I'd almost prefer the earlier options before the last,” Aska groaned while taking a drag from her cigarra. ”Disease; predictable. Killiks; relatively predictable. You start messing with Force cults, anything is on the table,”

She turned back to the monitors, watching the scanners with careful eyes. Nathan was, of course, correct. They were moving in blind. Perhaps spending more time in the village could have proven beneficial. Perhaps it could have culminated in more information. Or perhaps they would have been enveloped in whatever it was that softened the mind. Fortunately, she was accustomed to flying by the seat of her pants.

”I'm finding nothing on the scanners,” she stated after a few moments of silence. ”No life signs. No energy sources. Nothing,”

”The storm has been picking up. Perhaps it is interfering with our readings,” Kayto replied blandly. As remained silent for a minute, tapping her finger on the console before turning to Nathan and Stamper.

”Then we set her down at the base of the mountains and search for a lead on foot. We can't see shit from up here anyway,” she declared, standing from her seat. ”Unless you've got an ace up one of your sleeves you haven't decided to play?”

(Rolled 5/20 on scanner readings)

@Alhon​

 

[Nathan Braxon]

Nathan studied the droid pilot impassively. Strange that Aska seemed to vibe with its insolence. He would have had it made into cutlery without a thought, and what droid said perhaps?! Their main benefit was supposed to be that they did not prevaricate.

"Do I take it you have a ready solution should it be AMS, or Killiks then?" he asked, scrutinising Aska. He of course expected the solution to both was the same; extermination. How straightforward.

Nathan briefly considered trying to manipulate the scanners, but again he could hardly do under watching eyes and in any case his gift only ever helped him interpret data faster. He could not make the scanners pick up data that was not there.

"We are in your hands, I fear" he said in answer "I usually carry a full pack of aces Miss Ryun, but I confess I've left my pack of cards behind this time". Nathan considered himself a smart man, but all the levers he would usually pull were no use out in the Agarmarian wastes. They would have to land and feel this out with their eyes and ears.

He nodded to Stamper, reassured to have the man with him. The Senator had a feeling Aska's martial skills were going to be tested properly soon and he at least knew his own man's were up to the task.

@Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

”No more than you, pal,” Aska replied, pushing herself up from her seat. ”Not until we know definitively what it is we're looking at. At this point, it's all conjecture,” Then, and only then, could a plan be formulated. It was the always the same with politicians, she found. They expected structure, well thought out plans that would strive to see their dreams come to fruition. The reality of it? Plans fell apart about as quickly as they were formed.

The Night Terror touched down at the base of the mountain ridge, winds howling against it's hull whilst being battered by the snow. The longer they waited, the less chance of finding any indication of what was happening here could be found before it was buried. They needed to get a move on so Aska took the initiative and moved out, finding a rocky outcropping some distance from her ship that gave her an elevated platform to search from.

Aska surveyed the area through her binocs. ”Rocks. Snow. More rocks. Why would anyone choose to live here?” she groaned, continuing her sweep before her eyes settled on what looked like the opening to a cavern system. ”Hang on a minute,”

As she observed the cavern entrance, looking for any signs of recent activity around it in the snow, a low guttural sound from behind her and her compatriots was barely heard of the winds. Lowering the binocs in one hand, Aska turned and saw the source. Five silhouettes walking towards them with uneven steps, closing in at a slow but steady pace.

”This isn't good,” she muttered, her free hand hovering above her blaster on her hip. There was no possibility they hadn't been spotted, mulling around outside of the ship, but the figures were still a distance away and had not increased their speed. ”Get behind me,” she whispered to Nathan, drawing her weapon. The wind picked up again, whipping snow from the surface into a obscuring veil but as they settled momentarily, the silhouettes had vanished.

Aska turned slowly, dropping the binocs and holding the pistol at the ready with both hands, attentively watching through the swirling snow. The winds howled in her ears but on occasion, the crunch of snow and the guttural clicking she had heard earlier cut through. Whatever she had seen was still out there, watching. Waiting.

@Alhon

 

[Nathan Braxon]

So now she wanted definitive intel. Nathan stifled a smile. Aska was adept at deflecting his attempt to probe her or pin her down, refusing to get caught out on semantics. He would have enjoyed the game, if not for the shadow of danger and dread.

Nathan moved quickly to follow the mercenary as the ship landed, jumping down onto the snow and drawing his blaster pistol. Visibility was poor and he was not going to be caught unawares. Being savaged by a snow wolf would be an ignoble end, to say nothing of whatever lay behind these sightings.

The Senator hunched his shoulders against the cold, padding through the snow with Stamper in his wake, following the direction of Aska’s gaze. He briefly made out the five figures in the distance, though not in any discernible detail. “No rocks or snow I’m familiar with“ he growled. This had been a bad idea.

Aska beckoned him behind her and Nathan swallowed his pride to put the woman between him and the threat. The figures had vanished from sight as quickly as they had appeared and he half wondered if he had seen them at all. “Shouldn’t we get inside the cavern?“ he asked, looking to the opening a way off.

A shadow moved in the snowdrift and Nathan fired off a few shots on instinct, gritting his teeth as he stared anxiously for a reaction.

@Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

Too often had Aska allowed herself to be fooled in the past by simply believing what her eyes had seen. It was a hard trait to diminish, one she struggled with even to this day, but a nagging feeling in the back of her mind insisted that while the figures had vanished, it was foolish to believe it. Intently she watched in all directions, waiting for them to resurface. She had almost missed Nathan's question.

”It's as good a place as any to start,” she continued only loudly enough to be heard above the howling wind, her attention remaining on the emptiness before them. Yet just as she was about to give up, to allow herself to believe her eyes, energy blasted from her employer's weapon.

”Wait! No!” she hissed, quickly grabbing the Senator's wrist and pushing it down towards the ground but the damage was done.

From the void came the five figures, limbs creaking and cracking as they sprinted forth. Drooling teeth snapped, rotting flesh came into view. It soon became clear; this was neither AMS or Killiks. This was Death reincarnate. She had been wrong.

Aska fired her own weapon into the chest of the first walking corpse three times, each hit barely slowing the abomination. It was as though it didn't even acknowledge the pain, the damage. It was fuelled by something not of this realm and this was a frightening thought.

@Alhon​

 

[Nathan Braxon]

Nathan had barely fired his shots before Aska was grabbing his wrist and pulling his arm down. He fought her instinctively, resenting being grabbed hold off.

"If I want to fire then I will-"

A guttural cry cut him off as the five figures came rampaging towards them, not ill or addled people, but corpses. Walking, gnashing corpses!

Nathan jumped back cursing, nearly falling and scrabbling sideways along the snowdrift. His pistol was still in his hand and he fired mercilessly at the closest creature, but the bolts simply seared its dead flesh. He froze, realising he had no means to fight these things, even as the rotting maw closed in.

Then Stamper shouldered in front of him, wielding his heavy blaster rifle like a club and slamming the butt into the figure's skull. The vile beast went down like a puppet, but the other four will still coming, screeching and rasping all the way.

The young Senator turned and sprinted for the cavern, nothing mattering beyond survival. "The cavern!" he shouted back, half pausing if only because he realised they stood a better chance together. "Better chance there than in the open!".

@Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

Had it been her own arm thrust downward, Aska would have responded similarly. Yet it wasn't and now they had come face to face with the truth of the matter. Agamar truly was infested by the dead.

As Stamper shattered the skull of the nearest shambler with the butt of his rifle, signifying that only the most brutal violence would be enough to put these abominations down, Aska holstered her pistol and braced her feet in the snow and rock. The four remaining undead had begun to sprint towards them and would undoubtedly close in on them if they had simply ran. They needed more of a window if they were to flee.

Arm raised, her wrist held tightly in her opposite hand, the clone squeezed the concealed activation plate and felt herself slide backward as the repulsor tossed the approaching ghouls into the snowy veil.

Finally they could escape, Aska following suit with Nathan and Stamper as they hurried towards the cavern. As they crossed the threshold, finally out of the wind and sleet, Aska urged them onward upon seeing tracks that peeked from beneath drifts of snow. ”Keep moving! Deeper into the tunnels!”

The undead had clearly been here before they landed and were likely making their way towards the same shelter. For better or worse, they were no doubt on course to finding the cause of the risen dead within their shelter but she didn't want to be here when those outside caught up.

Spoiler

Rolled an 8/20 for perception on cavern entrance

@Alhon​

 

[Nathan Braxon]

“We’re getting further from the ship here” Nathan shouted as they hurried into the cavern. While he was glad to put some distance between them and the walking dead, his calculating mind was already racing ahead. Diving underground was unlikely to lead to a quick escape, in fact it was counterproductive. The ship was their only true escape.

The Senator put his back to the cavern wall, reluctant to rush deeper below until they had a clear exit strategy. Stamper rushed past him, scoping out the dark tunnel without a second thought. Nathan felt no shame; the security man took pride in his work and they had an understanding few could grasp.

”Any way you can get us back to it?” he cried through gritted teeth. Heading below ground felt like a defeat, to say nothing of what worse things might be skulking below. If she had some remote control or heavy ordnance hidden up a sleeve, maybe they could get out of here now before things got worse.

@Tulos