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RP: YSS Kaiyō Mission 24: Chilled to the Bone

Ametheliana

Ametheliana

Head in the Stars
Staff Member
🌸 FM of Yamatai
🎖️ Game Master
The Kaiyo crew's ride today was a Fukuro shuttle, a recently released shuttle craft. Their own ship was being fixed up in Ueseryan Fields by Sakura, Kikios, and other Star Army technicians after the Battle of Glimmergold had knocked the Fuji-class around.

"This one still has that new shuttle smell," Hoshi noticed, looking around the cramped shuttle before her eyes fell on Kiyo in her shibui to speak again, "These suits aren't supposed to be repurposed like this. How does it feel?" Everyone that had worn a shibui at the Temple of the Stars was wearing one now. Chlorate, Aiko, Gravity -- even Nerai and Abart (which would have been the hardest to re-tailor these suits for, so them having theirs from before was fortunate!) had on their old shibui. For those that didn't, they got hand-me-downs from past Kaiyo crew. In William's 8-foot tall case, a Frankstein creation of two suits sewed together by a technician. For some of them they were loose in the shoulders or forearms, but for the most part the sessions of trying them on had made sure none were too snug in a way that limited their range of movement.

Hoshi had waited for Kiyo's response, and after it the pilot had spoken up.

From the cockpit came the words, "Setting down shortly!"

The crew had been briefed on enough to know that if a shuttlepod brought them in too close it could be shot down. Either by reactivated by Lamia or other untold horrors, it was better to start off on foot after being dropped off.

"Helmets on! If you get a breach here, your backups from this morning will take the wheel tonight!" Hoshi spoke up, donning her own shibui's helmet. "Stealth upon leaving."

-

The shuttle hadn't touched the ground when setting them down, making the small jump down onto the courtyard's splotchy grey concrete all the more somber. The grey skies above roiled with deep slate blue colors, pushing overhead and against the horizon. Hoshi waited for her crew to exit with Rei taking up the rear, thinking about how weathermen really were just guesstimating. They were promised clear skies!

"Check your personal gear," Hoshi said to her group after the shuttle had lifted. Her photonics array covered the SiZi at her side and the Type 41 Rifle on her back whose strap was slung across her chest. Only her voice in her team's comms indicated her existence at all. Her back was to a sprawling garden which had been left to its own devices for more than a decade. The brambles behind her edged into walkways and bushes soared over twenty feet, making knowing what was deeper in them hard to tell from the ground. Hoshi was her crew without seeing them except with the help of her HUD working with their AIES and marking them. Behind them was a fifty foot tall chainlink fence, fortified by ground props below and metal barbs on top that spiraled for as far as the eye could see. The whole area they had been dropped into was fenced off by this containment or something more defensive. Hoshi went on, "That shuttle doesn't look like it wants to come back without good reason so if you left something on it, well..."

"Welcome to Pagoda no Ueserya!" Hoshi said with an emphatic sigh, "At least, the Pnugen Facility part of the city. The last time Star Army personnel were here, Hanako-hime was airlifted out of the hole we're going to be descending today. Just have to get there in one piece, alright? Mission specifics are pretty loose. We don't know what we're looking for exactly. Information on Avanet, Avatars, or something to save a whole bunch of people. It's unclear now but hopefully not by mission's end. We're going to head to the labs. Stealth up, eyes on sensors, and trigger discipline. I don't want to cause a fight we can't win so if you see something- make sure it sees you first before shooting. Any questions that you think I can answer?" Hoshi ended with the question, upset herself about the vague quest they had been given.
 
Kiyo glanced over towards her leader when she heard her comment about the shuttle, and she nodded in agreement, the shuttle had felt new to her too. But she did feel a little distracted because of the suit she wore. “Feels odd and different than standard uniforms, but I think I prefer my Mindy. I’ll tough it out and keep going in this though. It does feel loose in the shoulders, other than that, not bad’ She replied as her mind went to her daughter who was back on the ship.

Because of her and Wulf’s desire for Luna to be in support rather than offensive, Luna had mostly spent her time now as a mature fully grown Neko helping out. Right at that moment, she was acting as a technician doing what she’d learned and hanging with her aunt Sakura who Kiyo knew would be spoiling her. Sakura had done so after Luna was born and because of it, Sakura was one of her favorite people.

Kiyo held Silverlight her Aether Katana close as she readied herself for battle on their capital world. She left after Hoshi had done so being the second to disembark. Yes, I definitely prefer my Mindy She couldn’t help but think.
 
Wulf Soban
Melanchol Prefecture, Yamatai

Wulf was standing in the shuttle and felt uneased as the shuttle moved towards the target location. Before joining the Kaiyo and even being a ranger he was a infantrymen in the Rikugun, his main station being here at the capital planet. During his time he went under many patrols and would hear the ghost stories from older soldiers about the forgotten facilities and unknown horrors that could await. Though at first he thought it was just stories around the campfire but as he kept his station the prep they did before each patrol spoke of the truth of what might be out there. Add in the mystery and horror the company brought upon the galaxy added fuel, I mean they did create the Nekovalkyrja who know what else they made.

As such Wulf was going to be as prepared as possible. Some of the crew may of joked he was overequipped but he knew it was better safe then sorry. Added with the suit that didn't fit right Wulf opted for the type 41 rifle that was becoming more common place. For the rifle though he mixed the rounds in each mag, with standard and Armor piercing incase they came up against anything wearing protective gear. At his hip was a type 33 dark service pistol a personal favorite and might come in handy. To round off his selection he was wearing a back pack, in it was a few flashbangs, colored smoke, and lastly some premade shaped charges for any doors that couldn't be opened via polite means.

His attention though snapped back to reality as Hoshi asked the crew. Using the little info he had from his time patroling the planet he spoke "Ma'am other then in 29 when it was raided and patrols further away from here has any one been here before us?". Wulf wondered if the captain had more info then the little bit of information he had. Anything could help the team for what ever horror that might await them.

Sakura Sjet
YSS Kaiyo

Sakura was in engineering and for once in her life she almost wanted to be on a mission. Now it wasn't due to having to use a broom to get the ships bird out of one of the vents, or even the random blue water anchor she found behind a console it was training her niece. Now Luna was smart, and talented but her parents came from a very martial background. As such Luna was predisposed to those pursuits compared to the technical field she was now in. Though she was a quick learner it was going to be a while before she was up to spec. Now if only she wouldn't ask a question every 30 seconds.

Letting out a sign to her self she looked down at the blue neko that was currently in the vent with her. There with her two colored eyes Sakura knew that she couldn't stay frustrated at her it wasn't her fault she was cursed by her parents. Looking back to the relay she spoke to the young Neko "okay Luna look at this mess we got here". As she talked the young neko crawled up to take a look. Though it was abit snug in the vent it gave her apprentice a good view. Talking as she worked "Okay so right here on this cable here we can see that this was a patch fix you can tell about the soldering here and here" pointing at the work. Before she went further "Boss can you turn power line A4-Junction 5b" as she spoke she pointed to the marking on the panel that told her what to tell Boss. Grabing her electrical tester she put it up to the wire "Even when boss says its off you still double check". Placing it up to the wire she saw it was dead "So with no light indicator we are good to go and that means no dead kittens today".

Sakura smiled at her own joke before looking down and seeing Luna just staring up at what she was doing. If it was any other person she would think they where staring into space but from knowing her she was literally etching in every bit of information into her brain. Turning back to the to the wire "Okay now it safe to work we are going to have to trace this section find both ends before replacing this whole thing you ready for that ?". Hearing Luna happily reply "You got it Auntie!". It seemed the little neko was ready to work though she really was going to have to fix her referencing her as auntie on duty but that would come later. She was still enjoying that glow of having a little neko niece.
 
William tugged on the suit that was provided for him. The Frankenstein creation he wore was tight around his limbs and torso. What he wouldn't give for a PA...

He checked over his submachine gun once more, pulling back the slide and checking he had a round in the chamber. He knew there was one, but it was a force of habit at this point. Screwing a suppresor onto the end of the barrel, William holstered the weapon and patted the Kaiyo sword on his back.

As the order came through, William pulled the helmet over his head and locked it in place. The second the shuttle door opened, William was out the door and stretching his limbs. "Can I get my own personal shuttle next time...?" He grumbled good naturedly. His joints creaked and popped releasing some of the tension stored in them.

Looking up at the tall fence and the overgrown garden, the ID-SOL felt himself starting to get tense once more. Something about this place just felt off. Drawing his SMG in one hand and the Katana in the other, he scanned the area and waited for the order to move out.
 
It... was more than obvious that the suit was not originally designed for Wyatt, seeing the now Junior Warrant Officer with his painted-on SAINT suit was not an uncommon sight but at least that was built specifically to fit him and fit him well. But no, it was clear that his intense figure was stretching the suit thinner in a few areas, not enough to raise concerns that the man's shibui was going to rip open on him but he might need his wife's help later to peel the thing off.

In-fact on the ride down Saya would see her hulking husband quickly pick the suit's composite fabric out of the valley between the two melon-like glutes attached to the back of his pelvis, the Operative sporting his collapsed anti-material rifle packed in his backpack just in case there was some ancient evil left behind from when Pnugen still openly ran the place and a xiphos on the small of his back, though the weapon he planned on getting the most use out of was a model-a type 33 rifle loaded up with primarily I-SLAP rounds in its magazines, with a suppressed 10mm pistol on his thigh just in case.

He knew better than most that even a suppressed pistol in these conditions was still as loud as a balloon popping 9 times out of 10, which is why he had a .50 caliber lmg, hopefully those same long stretches of hallway that would echo any gunshots would also serve to mitigate any rounds ricocheting back at them~

The coppery half-elf would have brought his custom pistol but he'd lent it to Tsubame for her to have some practice stripping non-standard weapons in her free time like a good little red-panel, he approved of her taking on the role of an armourer, even if the gradient-haired Neko had given up some resistance to the idea initially.

Shaking these thoughts from his head Wyatt found that it was time to deploy, and so quickly launched himself out the shuttle like the others as his Shibui's camo activated, steering down to their designated landing sight and doing most of the braking at the end of the descent like any good little ex-Rikugun marksman would. Quickly taking a knee and taking in their surrounding before speaking up, "Nothing from me, Chusa, I just want to get out of the open as soon as possible," was all he had to say.
 
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Gravity's short break after Glimmergold had been good. She and Sacre had met up again, had wonderful "happy to be alive" sex, and then taken their relationship a tad further and found an apartment together.

She actually had... a home. No longer would their relationship consist of SYNC and hotel rooms. Whenever her travels brought her back to Yamatai, she would know just where to go, and just who would be waiting for her. Every time. At her home. It was a new sensation for the tank-grown woman, who until now had had her accomodations provided by the Army.

Ever since then, she'd been having visions of another life. Of many late mornings spent sleeping in, small, blue children running around (maybe an adopted separa'shan child as well). She envisioned Sacre, wearing traditional Separa'shan wedding clothes. Maybe they'd get married on Hanako's World. If it wasn't too destroyed.

Yes, Gravity never thought she'd be the married type either, but she'd spent the whole shuttle ride privately researching separa'shan wedding traditions. She still needed to talk it over more with Sacre, though.

But enough of that sappy shit. This is Gravity we're talking about.

'I could do it. I have the opportunity. Couldn't get away with it, but it would be so worth it.' Gravity thought as she knelt behind Wyatt. She bit her lip a little and imagined just going up and giving it a nice smack, but ultimately decided against it.

Once again she was on the ground, and sad that her baby couldn't fly. She was even more sad that she couldn't fly the shuttle here. She'd thought he fellow pilot would have helped a homegirl out, but apparently there was no loyalty these days.

On her back was her spear, folded down to half size. NSP on her hip.

Gravity silently checked the chamber of the Type 41 aether shotgun she'd picked out and resumed scanning from behind Wyatt and his... assets. She opted to watch his rear- wait no, cover his rear. That's what the cool SOFT people said, right? Whatever, same difference.

"Uh, yeah, I have a question." She hissed to Hoshi from behind her helmet. "Any idea just what caused the great Hanako to need to be airlifted? I've been doing pretty good saving the Empire money on revives so far."
 
"From what I understand, it was that her suit was compromised badly, and she was injured during a raid on the labs... I was a crew member with one of the people in the mission back on the Asamoya during the second Mishhu War." Saya said into their channels as she hung near the back of the group. Her shuttle ride had been... silent, and thankfully she had been able to keep her shaking to a minimum. She still had issues being part of away teams during missions after the last Kaiyo based mission had gone so poorly. She felt terrible, leaving her daughter behind on the ship, but she had to make due and come along. She was at least a little relieved that Tsu would be safe on the ship. Like Kiyo's daughter, Tsubame had elected to take on a more support based role on the ship as an armorer, overseeing the equipment for away missions for the crew to make sure everything was ok.

Saya for her part had brought along fairly simple load out. A NSP pistol and a submachine gun that William carried as well, she had little thought to actually use either as she hung toward the back of the group behind even Wyatt and Gravity. On her lower back she had a Type 31-C medical kit as the ship's medic, she figured it was important to bring one along just in case there was something she could fix in the field. Or at least keep them safe until the end of the mission when they would have to leave them behind, as Hoshi had alluded to earlier. She prayed it never came to that, but if needed, she understood why.

"Are we using the Aether engines to descend or finding another way down ma'am? We should be able to find stairs down if we look... as long as they weren't destroyed."
 
Despite having her shibui tailored to her previously, it was still an interesting fit on Chlorate to say the least. As the suit was skintight, it looked very odd on her with her lack of skin. It went around the creases of her plastic plating, having noticeable edges where her plates ended and began. Her heavy duty feet also looked very strange in the suit, it looked like someone had tried to stretch the legs over a pair of sneakers except her metal soles still easily clanked through the fabric. Loudly. Not stealthily. Also, due to her inorganic nature, the clothblades couldn't really interface with her. She had her helmet on, though didn't actually need it to survive a breach. It wouldn't have been the first time, she had survived before when she was on Deck 5 of the Kaiyo II when Boss vented it because the ship had been boarded, but fortunately that event wasn't repeated. She was armed with a Ke-M2-W2913 Aether/Scalar Submachine Gun and its sword-like bayonet, just like the one she had come quite close to using on that same mission where the Kuvexians boarded the ship. On her gynoid hip, she had an NSP just in case, but she wasn't certain she saw the purpose of using it when she already had this machine gun. Her reasoning for equipping the aether saber bayonet? Well, clearly, this would allow it to double as a gun and a meelee weapon. It was probably a very overkill choice of weapon... but on the other hand she had also considered taking a SLAM launcher, which she did actually use when the Kuvexians boarded the Kaiyo, before realizing it just might be a little difficult to use that stealthily.
As was probably expected, the somber mood of the jump was interrupted by a very loud CLANG as the Chlobot touched down on the concrete, the noise ruining any grace in her jump. It sounded like somebody airdropped a battle tank without a parachute. Even she noticed her loud feet for once, looking down at her feet and then looking around to check how many people were staring at her. She "quietly" tried to move on, following Hoshi, but her robo feet's continued clanking made it quite obvious who made the loud sound. She approached the captain after she asked for any questions. Clank clank clank. "Chusa Hoshi..." she asked, self-consciously glancing down at her "shoes" again. "Will my feet cause an auditory disruption to stealth on this mission?"
 
With her shibui's photonics array activated and shrouding her presence, Aiko stood prepared to follow Hoshi into the PNUgen facility and toward the vaguely-outlined mission that awaited them. The suit still fit her well, and what new layers of war-hardened muscle she'd put on over the course of the Kuvexian War didn't cause any discomfort or restrict her combat capability even as the shibui's tailored form pulled tighter around her lusty hips, waist, and arms. Aiko planned to primarily use the shibui's phased pulse projectors and clothblades if a fight came upon them, but she still brought a SiZi Model 38 and an NSP — both carried in a shoulder holster that was secured close to her torso with a tight elastic strap that wrapped under her breasts — and a short-bladed Tamahagane ninjato worn across the small of her back. While she was confident in relying on the shibui's built-in armaments, it never hurt to bring along a few backups just in case the aether generator failed or if the telepathically-activated Iromakuanhe weapons were somehow disrupted.

Hoshi's mention of AvaNet and Avatars made the Neko princess wary of what was to come. Her experience interacting with such technologies had never necessarily been negative. However, the manner in which an Avatar interfaced would prove to be extremely dangerous if one decided to show up in the middle of a crisis. Aiko hoped that, if another visited her, William, or any member of the crew during this foray into Yamatai's ruins, it would have the decency to refrain from getting any of them killed.

"No questions for now, Chusa," Aiko said. Of course, she did have many questions about this entire mission. But none of them would be prudent to ask right now, so she kept her mouth shut about it. "Ready on your command."
 
Melanchol Prefecture, Yamatai

Two audible thwumps were heard, as two large organic masses hit the cold, pale conrete flooring. Hidden under their nifty stealth suits from many months past, the pair of military sneks touched down, gear checked and ready for the mission.

Nerai'tha personally preferred the Shibui's flexibility over the Mindy's tight, plated frame, even if it wasn't as durable. With the Shibui's built-in phase projectors, she was carrying little more than a ABSR and NSP with high capacity magazine on her shoulder hardpoints, with additional batteries within a utility belt. Abart on the other hand wouldn't go into any fight without his trusty LASR-SLAG, hooked to his shoulder alongside his Kaiyo katana, being one of the few people here in posession of one.

He was never much of a sword person, being raised by his mother with primarily spears and other polearm-type weapons, but even he knew that for a bission like this a more compact, versatile and (almost) silent weapon was a vital asset. With the munition-hungry rifle and 'nade launcher, he carried additional mags in the Type29 buttpack, alongside a handful of flashbangs and smoke grenades. These weren't so much for any breaching purpose, but moreso in case a hasty retreat was necessarry. He spoke up, adressing hoshi with a question.

"Hoshi-Chusa, any intel on what kind of hostiles to expect? Knowing what we're up against would help in avoiding detection." The big serpentine tail slithered aroun the pavement almost silently, as the finesse of the clothblade surface matched the fine movements of those belly scales almost perfectly.

Meanwhile Nerai was slithered up next to the clanky robot, patting her on the hard mechanical shoulder with a cheerful joke. "If you're concerned about it, you can get a piggyback ride~!" She would smile at her adoptive synthetic daughter, but as they were little more than HUD outlines to eachother right now, the gesture didn't quite connect.
 
Delmira had been eager to go on the mission but after she saw the suit she was going to wear her eagerness dropped. She didn't mind being naked in front of everyone but wearing a skin tight stealth power suit thing that seemed to be a size to small was a different and somewhat more embarrassing affair to be had. But now here the catgirl was out in the field wearing one and it felt like it was trying to go into her butt. She didn't complain but she would try to get one a size bigger next time. "Sorry Santo Hei Lulie its the only one in your size we have." she remembered the quartermaster saying. It was thing to show off your ass but it was another to show off your ass in a skin tight suit that seemed to want to be absorbed by it.

She couched and held her assault rifle at the ready scanning the area and cycling through vision modes. The catgirls ears twitched in her helmet wishing to be free so they can swivel around and help her in her state of alertness.
 
PNUgen Gardens

Hoshi answered Wulf first while grabbing something out of her cargo pack resting on her tailbone.

"Not unless you count the sentry guards and whatever other things call this their home," she said, answering the question if anybody else had been here since 29. Turning to Gravity slightly, she said, "Ketsurui-hime's team activated a laser trap and she sustained cranial damage from projectiles," Hoshi said, looking to their own Ketsurui princess and then Saya, "As Fujiwara said, she didn't have a helmet on. Keep your suit in one piece. Not only will it protect you but sensors should show any traps, if they're still active." Now, answering Saya's question, Hoshi said, "The stairway requires walking into the facility, as it were. We're going to scout the entrances when we're close enough and see what kind of guard they're under in order to know if we'll enter that way." She looked to Wulf then Wyatt, giving a simple nod to each to let them know that scouting the entrances was reserved for them. She handed what she had grabbed out of her butt pack to Chlorate, "These should dampen your feet's noises." They were a pair of booties like one might wear over shoes while mopping. They were made out of a special material perfect for sound dampening.

Hearing Aiko and Wyatt speak out about being ready, she nodded to them. "Take point you two."

The PNUgen facility wasn't fully destroyed and from their vantage point, they could make out the top of the linear structure through the tall hedges. The misty gloom that veiled Melanchol prefecture today made it more obscured than the clearly defined hedges nearest them. The path from the courtyard they had been in led them left, then straight, then right, then straight again into a smaller courtyard. It was clear from the layout of what they had walked thus far that these paths had been made long ago for meandering strolls. The beautiful blooms and sculpted hedges that once were had been overtaken by the most invasive plants, making the sight of amorphous brambles unsettling.

As the team moved through the courtyard, edging a non-running and brackish fountain in its middle, those on point saw a feminine figure with matted black hair appear from the courtyard's right hedge, trudging through the walkway they were about to take. She was quickly obscured by the hedge to the left of the courtyard as she kept walking. She had white plastic skin, its shine long ago dulled as it now had a greyish, weathered look not unlike the ground. Inhumanely, her hands had dragged low and her long fingertips had curled upwards as if to avoid grinding against the ground as she sauntered. The joint from her elbow down looked to have been extended, making her forearm and even hand garishly huge. What's more, the suits' AIES couldn't pinpoint just what she was.

((OOC: quick drawing of the area we can see/have been to with lady marked. Hope my written description is better!))
img360.webp
 
Aiko was glad the shibui suit was so light, and felt almost as if she was wearing nothing at all — except for its helmet and the extra straps that held her weapons against her body, of course — because it meant she could hover above the ground using only her gifts of Nekovalkyrja gravity-manipulation. Having been ordered to take point, she took full advantage of her ability to avoid trudging around or flying with the shibui's pop-out turbo aether plasma wings. Even though not everyone among their party could float on command, Aiko was determined to be as stealthy as possible herself. Especially because she was one of two soldiers leading the pack for now.

"Unknown contact ahead," Aiko reported upon seeing what could only be some grotesque selection from PNUgen's abandoned menagerie of genetically engineered horrors. That was quick. "It has moved across our path to the left and past the hedge there. I do not believe it detected us. Shall we proceed or engage, Chusa?"
 
Relieved both that her orders to avoid a fight were being heeded and that the contact didn't seem to notice them, Hoshi looked to the right of their position. There was another break in the hedges there, which she pointed out on AIES. Behind the opening was a dried cluster of brambles, which could barely be seen through.

"Take a right and then a left to proceed to our destination," Hoshi instructed.
 
Kiyo nodded to her captain’s orders and proceeded forward as her focus went to the mission. She knew that Luna was safe back on the ship, and she was pleased that she wasn’t in battle. The memory of Tsubame fighting still was raw and bad with the blue-skinned Neko. “Hai” she replied as she immediately took a right and then the left as she heard the instruction.
 
Wyatt briefly and gently dragged a reassuring hand against Saya's shoulder before the coppery man floated forwards much like Aiko, though some might consider it odd witnessing him do as much seeing how the Minkan's feet usually remained firmly planted to the ground beneath him with the gait of someone who couldn't defy gravity at will, setting false expectations and all that. His frowning gaze lingered on where the unsettling figure disappeared to before he too breached through the hedge and turned left, weapon's muzzle pointed low as Wyatt's cloaked helmet continued scanning their surroundings on a constant pivot.

"Chusa Hoshi, Ma'am. I advise directed scanner sweep from a nearby friendly vessel on the unknown entity's last known position, maybe they can keep tabs on it or at least check any clues it might have left behind?" his deep voice offered via a snappy little transmission between the team's helmets.
 
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Hoshi nodded, "Nerai-shoi, per Fujwara-heisho's recommendation, can you comm in to any nearby vessels about that unit?"

To the ground team she murmured, "Let's keep going. We have about half a mile and we've made it fifty feet." They kept up their brisk pace, hastened by the womanly entity behind them. Within only ten minutes of trekking, the distant sound of wet plops came to their ears. They were too loud to be footsteps of someone like they had seen and too quiet to be heard throughout the entire area. The next three plops of sound grew more distinct.

"Fall back," Hoshi advised. They were in a snaking corridor of hedges and there was a large courtyard just behind them. Once there, Hoshi spoke again, "Hold- defensive position." There were a few defensive points, such as short ornamental hedges, benches, two complete Nekovalkyrja statue, and two intact bases of crumpled statues. Hoshi herself tucked near where they had come from behind a sturdy bench.

With a few more plops that came towards them, it was apparent that the the beast was making its ways towards them not just by the sounds becoming louder, but because the top of its mass was exposed above the tall hedges. It was hard to make out in form, rivulets of mass intersected one another confusingly, but it was a bloody brick red color. To have crested the 20 foot high brambles, it had to have been taller than them only by a foot or so. That wasn't necessarily true as once it was in the courtyard it became apparent that it was walking on all fours. Whatever it was, it was all muscle and tendons- no flesh showed on its form though globules of red mass fell from its chest and chin. Its hands and feet were covered in what looked like caked grey clay that cracked at the folds.

As it looked around from the entrance it had just come through, it turned its head about, sniffing the air. After doing so, a gurgling from its throat boiled upwards and on its muscley, bloody body the cakey clay substance formed, at first loose and crumbling towards the ground and then hardened to become protective plates of concrete-like armor. It turned at the neck, zero-ing in on Hoshi and the crew nearest her before swiping at the bench, unhinging it from the ground so that it tilted over.

"Fire!" Hoshi called to her team, unloading her own Type 41 armor piercing rounds while she flew towards the base of a collapsed statue.
 
Wulf fell back in quick order. Already in this mission from the insertion point they had encountered threats, and to the ranger it felt like they stepped right into a nightmare. Rifle raised as he ran per direction into the courtyard, scanning visually for additional threats. Not finding anything immediately he took cover behind one of the full statues, hoping it would give him full cover for what ever was hunting them. Taking a kneel and assuming a firing position at the area they had just entered he wondered what had hunted them. It wouldn't be long before he was given his answer and in a way he wish he never knew.

The skinless creature was there slowly moving towards them sniffing away. This horror meat statue was clearly on their scent and a glimpse of what other monsters awaited them. Though the ranger wasn''t allowed to dwell too much further of the other threats as Hoshi ordered the team to open fire. As he saw its armor click into place he knew this wasn't going to be a easy engagement. Though as instructors would say, observe, adapt, overcome, fall back, repeat. Aiming at one of the joint at it's right hind leg he opened fire. Already the selector was set to three round burst as he heard the quick thud, thud of the rounds fire. Speaking on the comms as the roar of gunfire could be heard "Chusa I suggest we disable it and move on, I fear our weapon fire will attract more threats then we can handle". Firing another burst, he hoped they had enough ammunition for the obstacles to come.
 
Kiyo holstered her Silverlight and lifted her rifle, and she fired on the creature before she heard Wulf’s words. Disabling seems like the wisest idea, so she lowered her aim so that it went to what she hoped was its weakness which was its elbow joints. Though considering how her Katana was meant to cut through power armor, she considered the idea of running and using that, but she thought it was a bad idea.

Instead, she fell back as ordered. Her unoccupied hand went to her Silverlight. She was ready to take it out, to be used in an attack. “Once you see its eyes shot that, it will distract it,” She said to the team.
 
William thought a silent curse as the gangly creature strode by. Close on Aiko's hip, the combat specialist held his SMG at the ready, steadied on his sword arm. Allowing it to pass he followed, watching every corner as they moved.

"This place gives me the creeps..." he telepathically sent to Aiko over their own private link.

It was at that moment the new creature made its own appearance. He unleashed a salvo of flechet rounds down range. It looked like a mad minute at the range, with everyone dumping rounds into the target. "Just die already..."
 
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