RP: Neshaten [Division 5] - Case 01 - Nothing Lost is Nothing Gained

Graveyard - Captains Team

As the other two Daurs decided to butt heads for a bit Kyet rose up to stand, checking over her weapon once more and knowing full well it was meant to offend~ of course it did, two golden/green eyes looked back at Hana and narrowed before dropping to the ground with a sigh alongside a noticeable bit of hurt in them - Kyet was a person who took criticism to heart and thought it would be best to discuss whether the team would stay together or not before deciding formations... but apparently not.

A sharp yet still quiet inhale sounded from her direction before the young officer peeked around a nearby corner as she had originally intended to do, pushing that aside for the moment and speaking softly, "I'll take point~ we should just sweep the rooms as we pass them..." Kyet suggested with some dejection in her voice, making sure Hana was ready to go before pushing further into the building~ she still had to get used to working in a squad when the quiet fox's previous posting had her act alone so often, as was the life of an agent.

Kyet just hoped the nod from Leo wasn't a sympathetic one, she didn't need people giving her mistakes positive reinforcement or buttered words as nice as they were for her fuzzy ears to hear.

"Oh, right. Sorry Captain, forgot this was a walk in the park, I'll tell nana we got the milk and vegetables from the store," Hana retorted with a snort. Though his voice wasn't agressive, if anything, the sarcasm dripped from it. Finalizing his argument with the clicking of his safety. Lowering his SMG before glancing at Kyet. His gaze was off; too calm and collected for this situation. Jaded, experienced and somewhat-... Tired?

Hana had glanced at Kyet to see her reaction, before shaking his head. If this was already hurtful, the poor operator was in for a bad time. Then again, they were here to gather valuable intel to hopefully dismantle a terrorist cell. Not to make friends. Although it didn't help when someone in the team felt like their tail was stepped on. Even Hana realized that.

As Leo disappeared, Hana glanced at Kyet. Nodding at her suggestion. A neutral nod of acknowledgement before he pushed himself up. "I'll cover your six. Keep your eyes peeled for any IEDs or traps. It's possible we're walking in an ambush. If it's suspicious, treat it like something that'll kill us."

High Rise - Commander's Team

Arynn Sher'Meso was pretty quiet - in speech, in sociability, and in step. Each door the team cleared and passed, she closed quietly and systematically - an easy marker in the short term to remember which rooms have been checked and cleared. It was... Slow, but thorough.

High Rise - Commander's Team

While the trio entered and closed off the door to the outside, the shadows outside whispered to each other in the still air of the morning, each passing along a message of the lone figure stirring the dust of the outside. Slowly it moved up to the outside of the high rise and peeked in through a smashed window, watching Cirrilo move past the doorway before the door was closed while the team advanced.

Inside, the team made it to the stairwell with no problems, the hall behind them now sealed on both sides as a result of the door closing practice of Operator Sher'Meso. Adrea held up a hand as he reached the stairwell door, unlike the rest this one was still closed though for fire doors this was normal. Turning his masked face back to the other two he pointed upwards and signaled "2" with a gloved right hand, indicating they'd go up to the second floor before regrouping, skipping past the first floor in the process. The commander hoped the other two would be able to understand his logic, they were short on time and manpower in this situation and skipping every other floor would help speed without sacrificing too much caution.

Graveyard - Captain's Team

Leo cautiously advanced down the jagged pathway between the softly groaning carcasses of various ships and abandoned vehicles, a solemn expression glued to his face as he scanned every nook and cranny on his path. The snow haired Daur dearly hoped that putting Kyet and Hana together wouldn't end in disaster, for the sake of their whole team he needed the pair of them to work together. For this reason he chose to keep close to where he'd seen them head towards, in the collective distance of both himself and the pair stood their target building, no more than 5 minutes walking distance yet even during the day it was drenched in shadows.

For Kyet, she'd do well to heed the advice given to her by the snarky Hana, suspended barely a centimeter above the ground was a very thin and almost invisible thread running diagonally across their path. Each end ran through a tiny drilled hole in the wall at both ends, with no visible signs of what it might be attached to but out of place all the same. At the end of the hall another figure, not unlike the one pursuing the commander and his team watched from the end door, when it noticed the approaching pair the figure scrambled away slamming the door in its wake.

Seeing all the doors closed around them helped keep Cirillo relaxed as he took up the rear and watched behind them. The rooms felt smaller, with less places the enemy could use for cover against them. Relaxing too much was dangerous for the group though, so he focused on keeping his senses diligent.

Cirillo nodded in response to the "2" signal despite some apprehension. It seemed a little arbitrary to search every other floor, and it left catching an ambush to 50/50 chance. But, searching all floors wasn't terribly realistic.

Maybe we could block those doors, like by tying the handle to something? Cirillo wondered. He'd have to get a closer look at the 1st floor door as they got there. He couldn't exactly tell the others his plan without making noise, so instead he flashed a "1" signal, followed by two inward-turned fists tugging an imaginary rope tight. He finished with a shrug to try and convey it was a suggestion.

Arynn kept fairly close to the captain, her tiny (even for a Daur) body moving so silently one could mistake her for an opaque ghost. She seemed a bit confused when Adrea held up two fingers, but figured that context might help her find out what he meant without wasting time. Her tail swished silently, slowly. She did nod at Cirillo, though - he was talking about securing the door one floor up. Which meant... Ah, we're searching the second floor.

Flashlight always at the ready, the operative climbed the stairway one silent step at a time, eyes peeled under her helmet for anything - and periodically glancing to the link between her group and Leo's; losing contact would be quite problematic for everyone on the expedition.

Upon spying the figure in the doorway Kyet quickly sidestepped into cover beside the door frame, making it known to both Hana and anybody listening with a standard call of, "Contact! went through the next door," she hadn't gotten a good enough look to tell whether they were armed or simply a squatter but if they got within standoff range then she'd do what she was trained to do~ the way Kyet spoke just now was rather different to her usual shy demeanour.

She glanced across to Hana with those golden/green eyes behind the visor, oculars widening visibly just before she spoke up again, "Hana! wait... this door looks rigged, if you clear it~ then I'll watch the other door," the young operator spoke, slipping back to her usual ways as the usage of military lingo lessened, she gestured to the wire and then to the door the scout had disappeared through.

Hana's SMG was already raised and trimmed at the figure in the doorway. Though when the door slammed shut, a soft curse rose from the black-haired Daur. Glancing solemnly at the ground, he took note of the wire, before glancing at Kyet, his shoulders slumping. If he wasn't wearing a mask, his colleague would notice the shit-eating grin he wore. "Clear it? No time," he retorted. Clipping a mag from his belt, Hana put it down next to the wire. Before tiptoeing over it. Eyes peeled for more traps.

"If the Captain decides to pass around here, he'll notice the mag. We'll mark traps like that," he explained in hushed voice as he drew up to the slammed door. Provided there weren't any traps that needed marking. His back inching up against the wall next to the door. One hand circling a finger around to form up, before it moved to a flashbang. "On your mark, open up. Flash, identify - clear. Snappy target acquisition and bullets are counted," he said, circling the concussion grenade in his hand.

High Rise - Commander's Team

Commander Mago'Sani watched their rear guard with interest,
A smart idea, if it's what I think it is.
To try and confirm, Adrea pulled out a ziptie and made a locking motion with it and his hands, gesturing at the door to the stairwell followed by pointing up to the next landing. They'd have to speak briefly if they couldn't reach a conclusion using hand signals, risk or not an uncoordinated team was a dead team in this job.

The Daur started up the stairs after silently and slowly breaching the stairwell entrance, testing each step as he went in the unlikely case one was a false step and collapsed under their weight. Much to his surprise the first floor landing seemed to be twice as high up, where he estimated the ceiling to end for the ground floor was just more steps, not a sign of a door anywhere nor a sign saying 1.
Interesting architecture

Behind them the figure slipped through a broken window, into one of the rooms which Cirillo had checked and sealed as they entered the building, their feet crunched on a pane of broken glass sending a cracking sound echoing through the room and the hall in the deadly silence. Catching the barest hint of the sound Adrea whipped his head around, eyes locked on the door they'd just moved through.

Grave Yard - Captain's Team

Leo heard the call of contact and instinctively dropped into a crouch while bringing his SMG up, wedging himself between an old sublight thruster and a burnt out ground transport he listened intently. There didn't seem to be any other sounds after the initial call, but that didn't mean that the world around him was still, after all they were all trained to operate without disturbing the world around them.

The figure had long since slipped away from the area outside the door, but its curious nature had already got the better of the U'rense who had crept back around behind the two operators, once a much loved member of a long disbanded security force for the derelict buildings it had become weary of the Shukaren species. The timid and dirty creature sniffed the magazine left by the wire, Nudging the light object which subsequently fell onto the tripwire, an audible click coming as the high tension and extremely sensitive wire snapped at one end. The animal bolted away from the sudden noise, and the rapidly growing smell of gas, hidden somewhere in the walls the clicking of a lighter started on a regular interval.

Cirillo flashed a thumbs-up to confirm Adrea interpreted his gesture correctly. Though skipping doors might not be as necessary if each floor was larger than anticipated. Maybe there are maintenance floors between actual floors? It was something to take note of, but if those areas didn't open to the stairwell, it wasn't terribly relevant at the current moment.

He was about to continue up the stairs when the glass cracking cut through the air. Cirillo froze and spun, his gun leveled at the entryway. Seeing no immediate targets, he stepped back down the few stairs he climbed and closed the door as quietly as possible. He looked back to the commander and made the same locking gesture as before, pointing to the door he just closed. I'm not sure if we should stop their pursuit or just let them come. If we seal the door, then they can just amass an ambush there for our return trip. But if we don't close it, they can sneak up behind us. Maybe we could seal it, then climb out a 2nd floor window instead.

Hana was ready to toss the concussion grenade in at Kyet's signal. One finger inched in the pin. It was at that moment that he heard the soft chime of his magazine tapping against the floor and the zipping of a high tension wire.

He fucked up.

His first instinct wasn't self-preservation though. It took Hana less than a split second to grasp at Kyet's collar and rip her away from the door, while it wasn't a proper toss, he aimed to give his fellow Daur a headstart on the trap by trying to toss her back to the exit, diving behind her in a mayhaps futile attempt to escape the inferno to come.

Arynn tensed up when Adrea spun on the spot, her ears flattening with concern. She considered asking a question, before realizing that doing so could easily blow everyone's cover. So she didn't ask with words, but instead actions - the tiny officer tapped the tip of one of her ears after getting the other focks's attention, before pointing to the door questioningly. Hopefully she'd get the point across...

The scent of gas hit Kyet's nose and made it twitch a little as one of her glorious ears flicked towards the sound of a cable snapping free, it made all the hair on the Daur's body stand on end and next thing she knew... she was falling? no, not quite falling - being forced backwards? It made more sense once she moved past Hana enough to see his outstretched hand that had presumably thrown her away and then throw himself towards her, Kyet's suit-clad back hit the ground and she rolled into a crouched position, grabbing hold of his rig and likewise trying to drag him back to safety before this rodent-triggered trap managed to detonate.

She was thankful terrorists seemed to be so inept at making explosives and hoped that fact never changed~

High Rise - Commander's Team

Adrea kept his gun leveled at the door as he looked between his two squad mates, it seemed like Deniska was considering locking the door behind them presumably with more to the plan he'd explain later while Arynn must have missed the sound they heard. The young commander weighed up their options, the sounds hadn't been loud or long meaning it was most likely a single creature trying to stalk them but there was greater risk while behind enemy lines. The Daur motioned to the other two Shukaren to group up with him on the first landing before he put a hand over his mouth and spoke barely above a whisper into their comms channel. "Arynn, a pane of glass just cracked beyond that doorway." The commander didn't say another word for fear of increasing their chances of being heard, instead he planned to wait and see what happened, if the door was opened then it was safe to assume they were definitely being followed.

Beyond the door the figure paused after the cracking of glass and carefully removed her feet before continuing her movements in a low crouch, being careful to avoid any more scattered debris. The small Daur clad in tight black covering all but her eyes very quietly opened the door of the room she had entered, a small blade hidden up her sleeve as she cautiously scanned the hallway. It seemed the tip had paid off and there was in fact some people snooping around where they shouldn't be.

Grave Yard - Captain's Team

The two operators rolled and tumbled back down the small corridor as the gas continued to pour out, the sound of the lighter flicking somewhere nearby. It could be considered luck or poor design but it gave the pair a few vital seconds to scramble back and out of the corridor before the spark ignited the deadly fumes. The resulting explosion was less powerful than the shock-wave of standard explosives, but the resulting fireball was far larger than any other explosive device, the sounds still managing to reach the High Rise as well.

The flames engulfed the hall and shot out of the doorway behind the two of them, flying over their forms and giving the two Daur a good roasting for a few moments. While they may have thanked their luck for apparently shoddy construction the worst was yet to come, the building went up like a tinderbox and the old walls began collapsing around them.

Nearby among the corpses of ships never to be used again Leo froze as the bomb went off, instantly his mind went to the tower with his eyes close behind expecting a set of stairs had been wired and he'd turn to see the whole building coming down but the High Rise was untouched. Leaving only his own team then, without stopping to gawk any longer the snowy haired Daur moved quickly back along his own route to try and find his crew, he didn't think about the consequences if they'd been at the center of the blast and instead assumed they would have been clear before it went off.

High Rise - Commander's Team

We're being followed, Cirillo thought after the Commander confirmed the glass cracking wasn't just his paranoia. If it was an animal or innocent person, they wouldn't have made only one sound. In that case, locking the door would just alert the enemy that they're expected. How about an ambush instead?

Cirillo made a motion to the door at the top of the stairs, indicating with a push that he meant they should go through it. Then he followed with a stop signal and pointing his gun back at the door below. We open the door, set up an ambush just out of sight inside, then wait.

He had a worrying thought that his suggestions might have been misinterpreted as trying to be orders and taking over leadership. He couldn't clarify this, so he'd just have to hope the Commander didn't get too annoyed with it.

Graveyard

Hana felt how Kyet gave the decisive tug on his tactical rigging that brought him to relative safety. The operative went for a dive and hoped his colleague would've done the same as the fire billowed above them. The heat charring armour and causing a fair bit burns for him inside of it, not to mention the concussive force. It ripped the air from his lungs as his facemask was pushed into the ground.

Though as soon as it was over, the veteran pushed himself up and let out a loud curse, pulling out the pistol from his holster and training it on the door, grunting as burns protested against the movement. "Kyet-..." He asked, before scraping his throat. "Still in one piece?" He asked, holding the pistol up still, his other hand moving to tap on her shoulder.

Graveyard

Kyet's helmet clunked against the wall in the ensuing scramble to safety, shielding her sensitive eyes from the fireball as it billowed out but luckily enough the youngest operative was fine for now at least, gloved hand lowering with a sigh of relief as she too began rising up, "Sore but okay~" she breathed out, looking Hana over for a moment to confirm he looked more or less fine before pinging the rest of the team over comms.

"Improvised incendiary device was triggered... we're okay but a suspect fled to the next room, will keep you updated on the situation," she finished with a wince, noticing one boot was beginning to catch before she kicked some dirt onto it to and quenched the flames, green/gold eyes looking over to Hana from behind the slightly singed visor with a squint that might have been a scowl before the chesty Daur relaxed and spoke again.

"~we should keep moving, I'll take front," she suggested in a hushed tone, shouldering the smg once more and ready to move.

Graveyard

Leo made it back to where they had split up, what a stupid mistake that had been, why did he think that would work out when they had no idea what they were walking in to. The Daur could already hear the sharp tone of Adrea scolding him for his recklessness, not to mention his sister. The captain quickly appeared behind Kyet and Hana, his own gun sweeping the area behind him as he approached. "Operators, glad to hear you're ok. I will take full responsibility for this situation once its all over, you don't have to worry about any punishment for recklessness." The words stung his throat as he spoke, trying to maintain his professional tone at least.

"What happened to the suspect?" Leo said, glancing at the two of them briefly before sweeping the area again, they couldn't stay here much longer with the building on fire and who knows who had heard the explosion out there.

Beyond the now charred doorway, lay an old warehouse with various piles of old parts and crates under sheets and tarps, a broken out window to the left had been the escape route for the small creature which had unintentionally set off the trap behind them, although the initial suspect seen by Kyet and Hana may have been a small animal, another black-clad Daur lay in wait for them in the rafters, keeping absolutely still and hidden from sight. His own blades at the ready to ambush whoever had yelled 'contact' earlier if they were still alive. Similarly invisible tripwires were scattered about the floor of the building, some being plainly obvious while many others were strategically placed on estimated movement paths and expertly hidden. Each eire ran into a wall or box with no signs of what they would trigger.

High Rise

With their non verbal contact taking up way too much concentration Adrea was faced with a choice. Continue playing charades while a potential enemy crept up on them, or risk opening his mouth again. Glancing at Cirrilo he could tell he wanted to go up to the next door at least, with his right arm the commander leveled his SMG at the door with the barrel crossed over his left arm, which was now occupied with trying to mask any sound he made from speaking. “Deniska, continue with your plan to move up the landing, we’re out of time here, I’m taking position on the stairs, be ready to incapacitate but try not to kill.”

The shadow reached the end of the hall and slid up against the wall beside the door, now the only thing separating the two groups. With a few, forced, shallow breaths she pulled a small canister from her hip and removed the pin, placing it on the floor with the bottom facing the door as the can made a small pop as the white phosphate smoke began filling the stairwell. The Daur girl pulled out her long knife and waited, body pressed to the wall, for anyone to rush out and become her first victim.

In the stairwell the cloud immediately reduced visibility for the team, engulfing Adrea and Arynn who happened to be the closest to the door before rushing up several stairs to meet Cirrilo. Above them lay 50 flights of stairs with the first floor landing appearing to contain no door thanks to their previous check. There was a space behind the stairs on the ground floor taken up by a cleaning cupboard which was easily spotted upon initial entry and the smoke was quickly thickening, reducing the line of sight as it did.

HIGH Rise

The tiny Daur squinted in annoyance as her vision was nearly completely nullified by the phosphorous smoke. She nudged Adrea with an elbow, pushing him up the stairwell with enough force to make her intention clear - rise up. Smoke's too thick for a fire, there's not enough heat... They're trying to flush us out, she thought to herself. Operative Sher'Meso stepped back down to the ground level, positioning her tiny self in the vision shadow of the cupboard and stairwell, relative to the bottom doorway, as best she could - and readied herself to level her pistol at the still-closed door.

Graveyard

Kyet frowned a little before clearing her throat to respond, wanting to say that it was in no way shape or form Leo's fault but deciding they had more pressing issues at hand, like the person they suspected to have set the trap the team had just been baited into, "Suspect fled into the next room... I think I saw a pistol, but might not have - so they might be armed and dangerous but I cannot confirm," she informed Leo, weapons held close to the Daur's body and the muscles in her legs very clearly ready to spring into action.