PHD 274: Insurgency - Rebellion
Insurgency - Rebellion
Summary: Squad 2's recon of the basestar.
Date: PH274 (17 Jan 2010)
Related Logs: Insurgency & Cylons in the Mist logs
Players:
Cinder..Salazar..Epi..Daliah..

Basestar, Forward Corridor Network
IC Time: Post Holocaust Day #274
OOC Time: Sun Jan 17 18:08:50 2010


Once past the Landing Terminal, the ship's interior design lends itself back to streamlined and efficient. It's a maze of long corridors, broken up by support beams like silver slivered ribs. Lighting is recessed, circular ambient fixtures line the walls in a grid work patter, their illumination slowly and subtly pulsing with the thrum of the ship. Larger square shaped boxes shed light from above, casting uniformed pools of light on the deck.


An eerie, ghostly silence pervades this section of the alien ship. The walls thrum like the gentle swell of a heartbeat, flashing along the gridwork panels in a bloom of white bleeding to red bleeding to white. The sound is a low, menacing beat, vaguely symphonic, almost pleasant on the ears.

The floor is slippery in places. It isn't immediately apparent why, but when one of the marines skids in it and takes a shoulder to the wall, it becomes apparent that it's blood. Streams of it, running in thick, congealing rivers along the floor.

Salazar places her boots carefully. She makes her way down the corridor, on point with Jarot, with the other team following up behind. When her boots slip slightly, she reaches out to grab the wall, and clicks on a flashlight to turn it down onto the decking below. "That's encouraging." Her mutter is followed up with a, "Eyes sharp. Watch for wounded. Something in here's unhappy, and I'd like to shoot it before it shoots us. Be ready to take cover, sound off if you find anything creepifying beyond the obvious."

It's a good thing that Daliah is trained in medicine otherwise she'd probably lose her lunch at the sight of blood, it being something noted and shrugged off otherwise. "Organic ship…" she muses while shifting her hold on her weapon, right hand held at the grip while the fingers of her left is curled at the fore. "Or maybe…" Voice traling off, she continues to haphazardly plod on, Salazar's orders absorbed, dedicated to memory.

"Is that a challenge, Sir?" Cinder says, looking down to the floor with a look of mild disgust on her face. "I…didn't know anything inside a toaster ship was capable of bleeding, but…clearly that was a blonde moment, or something…" she mentions, quite obviously, given the rivers of blood down the halls. She follows behind Sal, carefully, to avoid slipping; balance and grace was never an issue with her in her previous occupation, after all.

Jarot is one of those who slips. She doesn't hit anything, but one leg goes out from under her. Balance is a tricky thing. "Oh gods…" she grumbles, then nods to Salazar. "Roger, boss."

Epi adds, quietly, "Lieutenant? Do we want samples to take back?"

"Not yet. I'd rather everyone keep their hands on their weapons until we have a better idea what we're dealing with." Salazar's response to Epi is made without looking to the smaller marine. Her eyes are on the corridor as they advance, boots smearing the blood left behind.

Squelch. Squelch. Squelch.

Come to think of it, it's a little.. warm in here. Not blisteringly hot, but more like waking up from a bad dream in a cold sweat, and realising you'd packed too many layers. Like a curtain somewhere needs to be pulled open. Fresh air would be a gods-send.

Not noticing her surroundings outside of the visual, the temperature's not even registering to Daliah, her mind on something else entirely. Every once in a while she drops her gaze down, trying to keep track of what she's stepping in so she won't slip (hopefully), but other than that she's keeping her eyes forward and trying to make sure nothing comes up from the front.

Already, the heat is sinking in. That, combined with the heavy gear, makes Cinder start to sweat a little, and before you know it, she's wiping her brow some. "Frak…it's hot in this joint," she comments, taking a moment to collect herself, and pant a bit, leaning against one of those rib-like bits in the hall. "Hey…wait. What the frak is this?" Cinder says with some concern, her proximity to the wall revealing some blood spatters. "This uh…I think there's some splatter over here, Sir. Might wanna take a look."

Epi crinkles her nose again slightly and looks over to what Cinder's pointed out, then she takes a closer look at the walls. "Looks like it's been chewed up by heavy weapon's fire, Lieutenant," she calls, taking two steps closer. "Machine gun rounds." The wheels are turning, but is the hamster alive?

Salazar is probably too concerned with the amount of blood on the deck to note the heat just yet. She glances over to Cinder, nods slightly to Epi. "Centurions don't bleed. That's a mystery." One that probably won't remain so for very much longer. "Let's move." Blood spatter patterns don't kill people. LMGs kill people.

The corridor does not take sharp twists and turns, but rather seems to arc gently toward the interior of the alien ship. The lighting becomes sporadic in places, flickering out completely like a heart missing a beat. The sound is incessant, the thrum that was initially delicate on the ears becoming a grating swell like steel drums.

The blood is flowing from the centre, out. From a heap of bodies that were clearly shot down without a fight, and probably never saw it coming. The pale, ghostly glow of the baseship's illuminated panels casts wan light over the features of a tall, slender blonde woman. Unfamiliar. She looks to have been shot in the back by high-powered gunfire. An older man is sprawled atop her; there isn't enough left of his head to identify him one way or another, and a third body is twisted beneath the first two, his blood soaked hand still pressed feebly to the adjoining wall. Bits of brain matter, innards, a loose shoe, litter the hall. It is impossible to step around the bodies— they must be clambered over.

[TAC1] Tombs says, "Lieutenant, sound off. I need a status report."

The bodies are carefully approached by Daliah, her eyes darting here and there at first before she crouches, the damage appraised in a cool, professional manner. "We got casualties here, sir," the medic sighs as she looks at the sheer size of the…well, hill of corpses, her face growing slightly pale. "Oh Lords."

The sound of the marine's boots on the decking are softer than usual, as the Lieutenant makes her way toward the bodies. Her dark eyes sweep over them, taking in the gore, viscera, death. There's a long moment before Salazar says, "Giddyup, marines. We're going over the pile. You can pray for forgiveness later." She shows little sympathy for the dead. "We've got tissue roadblocks, medic. Just try not to breathe too deep when you go over." And so she does, stepping toward them to move, though, at the last moment, she pauses to examine the pile briefly. Old demolitions training keeping her from thundering forward juuuust yet. "One moment."

"What…the…frak…" Cinder can't help let fly, as she rounds that gentle bend and spots the heap of bodies in the hall. "Are they…human?" she just has to contribute to the conversation. She still, to this day, isn't sure if what Sunshine was ranting about was true but…how the heck else did civilians get gunned down in a basestar?

[TAC1] Salazar says, "We've got a few bodies in the corridor, and a lot of blood. No metal resistance yet."

Epi is rather quiet, taking up a cover stance, weapon raised as Salazar starts her examination. If anything comes after Sal, it'll get shot. Likely at the kneecaps, given Epi's height, but it'll get shot.

[TAC1] Tombs says, "Roger that, we've got a patrol coming in. Keep me apprised, Over."

"Yes, sir. I saw that," Dali calls out to Sal while starting to make her way over the bodies; if anyone looks they might notice how she starts to 'speak' silently, her lips moving with every step she takes, the medic offering a prayer to Asclepius while she moves forward at what's best described as a near-snail's pace.

The floor trembles, slightly, beneath the marines' feet. Just a soft shudder, difficult to tell if it's the ship maneuvering or perhaps something approaching. Though probably not the former, since there is no sense of motion.

Apparently finding the corpses nothing but corpsy, Salazar rises from a slight crouch, then climbs right over the bodies. There's a squish when her boot lands in something damaged and soft, probably viscera. "… Frak." She finishes going over and takes a knee, shoulder against the bulkhead.

Epi goes over next, once Salazar's clear on the other side. The little Marine eyes the pile for a moment, likely considering a tumbling run over the damn thing. In the end, though, she uses a shoulder or two as foot holds and drops to the other side, gun coming back up again as she scrambles to the side. "Cover," she announces, softly. Clearly it's an explanation of what she's doing.

The motion gets Daliah to stop, left foot held up as she takes in the rumble. It, along with the way Epi and the ell-tee react, gets her moving again, this time a bit less careful as she just wants to get to the otherside. Once past the pile of dead Daliah finds herself looking for something to duck against, her eyes wide, chest heaving as she works on catching her breath. "Frack it all…"

Cinder does her best to follow Epi over and stay clean when she does. The pile of bodies shifts a bit under her as she goes over, and she slips a little, practically rolling down the other side. "Ugh…frak!" she hisses out, stumbling back up to her knees on the other side and pulling her gun up to point over Epi's shoulders as she takes as much cover behind those rib-like things as she can, standing behind Epi.

The lights continue to pulse. Red, then white, then red again. It may just be a figment of the imagination, or it may have sped up slightly. Anticipation, adrenaline, the bodies heaped on the floor are bathed in it on every off-second.

That sound? Is definitely coming closer, from behind the group. It sounds like the scrape and whiir and clang of machinery moving in a desultory fashion, ever nearer, ever nearer.

Salazar turns when the origin of the sound become clearer — from the direction they already came, probably from one of the accesses they passed earlier. "Keep your weapons up and be prepared to move and fire if the corridor gets too tight with fire."

[TAC1] Salazar says, "We've got incoming up our six, cutting us off from the Bay. Unknown number."

Epi's voice is quiet, low. "Roger, Lieutenant. Remember that we can use the bodies for cover, if we have to." Yes, she suggested using the literal meatshields as meatshields. What's this world coming to?

[TAC1] "Surgeon" Logan says, "Tombs, Surgeon. Be advised we have at least one hostile in the landing bay. Will advise when we know more. Out.""

Well…that doesn't sound good. That whir clank whir clank is ominous, at best, and horrifying at worst. At least the marines have guns equipped to deal with these baddies…a little better off than the bus drivers stuck down in that…womb? landing bay? Whatever the frak it is, this is totally messed up.

[TAC1] Tombs says, "Surgeon, Deal with it right now, we're cut off from you at the current, we'll hoof it back as soon as we're able. Over"

[TAC1] "Surgeon" Logan says, "Copy that. Already on it."

There is another soft shudder beneath the marines' feet. Not as of something else approaching, but possibly an explosion having gone off somewhere.

Well…that doesn't sound good. That whir clank whir clank is ominous, at best, and horrifying at worst. At least the marines have guns equipped to deal with these baddies…a little better off than the bus drivers stuck down in that…womb? landing bay? Whatever the frak it is, this is totally messed up. Cinder had alread planned on using those bodies as shields, but isn't super fast to duck down behind them. She wants to see what's coming down the hall first, before she decides for sure.

Well, this is kind of predictable. Never can be easy, can it? "Yes, sir," Daliah says while pivoting just as the second shudder hits. "What the frak…" she starts to ask rhetorically but her query's cut short, her attention wrenched towards the opposite direction they were moving in. Sal's given a quick look before her rifle's lifted and leveled, Erasmus peering down the sight as she prepares for the worse case scenerio.

[TAC1] Salazar says, "Tombs, are you getting whimsical with explosives?"

[TAC1] Tombs says, "Marek, Tombs. Give me…" and sounds of gunfire.."A few frakkin' seconds here.."

The walls are slippery with blood and pockmarked with bullet holes, should anyone touch them. The ship's 'heartbeat' begins to pulse faster and faster, sweeping the corridor with red light. The sound of approaching metal originating from behind the group grows louder. A red laser sight cuts through the dank, swamp-warm air, refracting off the walls a few times before focusing on Epi. It trails her cheek and slides down her shoulder, and the whiiir clanking stops abruptly. On the next pulse of light, two centurions are clearly visible in the hallway behind them, lit up in all their seven foot, armoured glory.

One of them begins to step forward, its gun arm lifting, fingers tearing away, reforming into heavy weaponry. Its companion fans out to the left and does the same. And then the shots begin ringing out.

Trust Salazar to keep up the witty comms banter while approaching metallic death comes down on the team. She shakes her head slightly as Tombs requests a moment over the wirelo, and responds tersly.

Epi pulls her weapon up to take aim and then she, like the toasters, fires.

When the two toasters come up around the corner, Cinder dives behind the mound of bodies, and takes aim over the top at the toasters.

Daliah starts to shoot as well, attempting to use controllled bursts. She misses but at least it might draw some of the fire off of Cinder, hopefully enough to keep the blonde Marine from being shot by the Cylon.

Ok, so Epi's head shot didn't exactly go where planned. Oh, the shot hit, but just a little lower than she'd intended. She simply continues to fire, though, even as the other cent goes down.

Looks like Cinder's aim was right on target, for once! The armor piercing rounds punch through the centurion's chest traveling up until they rip through the head of the machine. The thing sparks and erupts in a little explosion, before falling down, 'dead.' There's only one more left, so Cinder sets her sights and fires.

One of the centurions goes down in a hail of bullets, mostly Cinder's. The other continues to advance steadily on the group, metal feet squelching through sticky blood and gore, red eye filtering through the hazy light in between pulses of the alien ship's 'heart'. Its gun hand continues to spit bullets, spraying the corridor and ripping through the walls with a sickening sound like flesh being maimed.

Salazar's silent as she squeezes the trigger, a single round leaving her rifle. She switches to burst with a flick of her thumb, and retargets as her own target goes down, sprayed by one of her fellow squaddies. "Nice shooting." The comment is just barely loud enough to be heard in a brief pause in gunfire before the hail resumes.

[TAC1] "Surgeon" Logan says, "Tombs, Surgeon. Sitrep. Three toaster total in sight. One down. Engaging two and three. Will advise.""

Epi remains quiet, focused on the Cent in her sights. She looks as though she has utterly no plans to stop shooting until the second magpie target is down. After the second round of firing, she says quietly, "We should be ready for more. Can anyone see if the lights are reacting when we shoot these things?"

Unfortunately, the burst misses the next target, though the shots seem to throw its aim off just enough that its shots go wide, missing Cinder as the machine retalliates. Once more, she pulls the trigger on her rifle after the remaining Centurion.

Daliah grunts as yet another shot fails, it having hit but not doing any good. "I'm a bit busy now," she calls out to Epi. Switching tactics again, she goes for a burst of weapons fire instead of a single aimed shot.

"I love my job," Salazar mutters to herself, and probably Epi who is nearby enough to catch it, should she be listening in really well. "I hate machines, and I love my job." She's talking to herself. Maybe it helps her target better! Her gloved hand tightens on the grip, and her finger closes on the trigger once more. If only they had more open ground to make use of explosives!

The lone remaining centurion is pelted with rifle rounds, still moving as it hones in on Cinder, and fires. Shots ping off its heavy armour, and other shots slide in and shred metal. The air begins to stink of gunpowder, the sound of machinegun fire nearly earsplitting. The machine is relentless.

[TAC1] Tombs says, "Surgeon, Tombs. Sending two Marines back to help out. Keep me posted, Over."

A few more rounds from Cinder's rifle ping off the machine, fro the head, but not doing any noticable amount of damage. "Godsdamnit, another of these ones that just…won't…die!" she yells out, firing again as the machien picks up into a sort of charges at the marines, firing away.

Salazar digs a shoulder in against the wall, her weapon steady as she takes aim on the target with intent to bring it down before it has a chance to go full auto on the group of marines, and do serious damage. The bodies provide little cover, their bullet deformed tissue providing little resistance to aerodynamically shaped ammunition.

Epi slides out of cover, moving to get a better bead on the centurion. "When it dies," she tells the group. "Someone look at the lights."

The centurion.. breaks into a run now. Still firing with both guns, it pivots to focus on Salazar now. Clang, clang, clang, like a suicide bomber.

The pingping of bullets against armor is nice but frustrating at the same time, the ricochet of rounds off of the enemy's armor causing Dali's teeth to be ground together. "Frakker…" she grumbles. She looks around a moment before trying again, giving the lights a minute look while depressing the trigger.

Ashes, it would appear, to ashes. Dust to dust. The centurion is torn apart by gunfire mid-jog, though it does manage to clip Salazar in the chest before it goes down. One leg slides out from beneath it as its armoured body is battered with bullets, and it stumbles onto the right. Then the left. It careens into a wall with a sickening smash, takes yet more gunfire, and finally topples to the floor about ten feet from where the group have made their stand.

The thrum of the cylon ship's lights beats a maddening rhythm. Flash on, flash off. Flash on, flash off.

[TAC1] Tombs says, "Eltee, Tombs. Give me a sitrep?"

There's whuff of air from the S2 as her vest eats a round. She falls a little back against the bulkhead, but catches herself. "Frakkin' always going for the tits. You sons of bitches." She's catches a glimpse of the ceiling before she hauls herself upright, and moves to stand. "Sound off. Anyone hurt?" She glances in the direction they were going. "We have a mission, let's move out and see what we can see before our timeline gets any tighter."

[TAC1] Salazar says, "Our new friends are down. Moving out to continue the mission. Not major injuries our side."

[Into the Wireless] Salazar says, "Our new friends are down. Moving out to continue the mission. Not major injuries our side."

There is another sound up ahead, softer, like a groan.

"I…think we made them mad…" Cinder comments with a pensive look on her face. The lights along the corridor cast their their maddening light over everything, marines included, as she stands up from behind the cover and nods to Sal. "I'm untouched, thank the gods."

[TAC1] "Surgeon" Logan says, "Tombs, Surgeon. We are taking heavy fire from two toasters. Four injured, one critical. Over."

"Tape 'em down next time, Lou," Epi comments, pointing her weapon toward the front. "The ship's alive, I think. Or thinks it is. The lights flashed hard when it went down."

With the Cylon dead, Daliah's able to look around again, the pulsing light causing her to freeze. "Okay…" she grunts but then she hears something, it moving her to motion. Her weapon's aimed at the direction the moan came in although she removes her left hand to gesture, pointing towards the direction it came in to signal to the others.

The hall, also, appears to reach a terminus up ahead. Perhaps a hundred paces. It isn't clear what lies in the room beyond, and the flash of the lights illuminates more bodies littering the corridor. Blood runs freely, sharp-scented and congealing, with fresher 'wounds' gouged in the walls themselves from the recent gunfight.

[TAC1] Tombs says, "Copy that. Eltee, if you have any Aux not wounded, send em back to the Bay, they're taking heavy fire. Over."

There is another body slumped against the wall up ahead, mostly upright, with its legs sprawled into the corridor itself. The party could easily walk around it, if they wished. The face is currently turned the other way, though the slight figure and shoulder-length blonde hair might be a little familiar.

"Stagger a little more. Jarot, ten paces behind me on the opposite side of the corridor. Brand, behind Jarot. Erasmus, behind Brand, with your eyes on our ass." Salazar's orders are brief before she heads forward, taking point. Marine officers don't hide behind their enlisted. "I'll keep that in mind, Jarot." The sight that greets the marines as they round into the room beyond gives the Lieutenant just a moment of pause. She continues in, weapon sweeping the inside. She approaches the blonde, but keeps an eye on the others to be sure they're dead, an eye on the room for movement.

"She's alive, Lieutenant," Epi calls quietly. "It's Sun…It's Ozymandias." Nothing shakes Epi, usually. Now? She sounds like she's going to throw up. But the young woman falls into the proper formation. "Sir, I'd suggest taking her back to the birds. Do you want one or two of us to go back and assist the Raptors?"

[TAC1] "Tycho" Reverie says, "This is Tycho, we need reinforcements! We're getting creamed out here!"

Cinder falls back into that staggered formation as ordered by Sal, on the same side as her, opposite side from Epi and Daliah. When Epi points out just who the blonde is, Cinder's mouth falls slightly agape. "W-what? How…can that be?"

Sal approaches the slumped figure, then reaches down to take a handful of hair in one hand, swapping out her rifle for her sidearm with the other. Hand in hair, firearm in face. "Keep moving, Jarot. Clear the room." She glances down into the face of the blonde woman. "Check the bodies."

Daliah has no idea who it is the others are speaking of so she simply keeps back, falling into step with Brand as she looks around. She doesn't call an all-clear yet, still making sure the room's in fact clear before doing so.

"Aye, Sir," Epi calls to Salazar. There's something about Marines - they don't hesitate when given an order by a senior Marine. She points to Daliah, then to the bodies. "See if we have any more alive. Brand, let's get this bitch cleared. Look for anything with intel."

Not much can be discerned about the room, from here. It is bathed in the same flickering light, and doors that were once glass inlaid with smooth panels have been shattered by gunfire. Two more bodies are slumped in the entryway, and will probably need to be stepped over in order to get past.

The young woman sitting all on her lonesome in the hall, turns her head slightly when she hears the group's approach. One side of her face is shredded with gunfire, blood soaking her clothing and squelching softly as she tries to sit up a little straighter. "Heya, Epi-eps," she murmurs when she spots the demolitions expert. And then the dark-haired, tattooed one has a hand in her hair and a gun in her face. Her smile only falters a little. "You don't have much time. Well, at least, I don't figure you do. She kinda jumps when she feels like it. And I think I feel a feeling coming on.." She coughs up some blood. "..about now.."

"Yeah…and uh, can we hurry some? This shit's getting weirder by the frakkin' second," Cinder mumbles out. Stepping into the room, rifle at the ready, Cinder begins to move from body to body with the rifle. For a moment, she poses in the doorway, sweeping through the room with her weapon, before stepping inside. She begins to pull her sidearm free as she steps over the bodies and in, kneeling by each of the other bodies, searching them with one hand while keeping her sidearm at the ready in the other.

Erasmus is already on it, looking for bodies and checking for vitals if she does. It's not a pleasant job but it's what medics do, the conversation listened to with an ear-and-a-half. "I don't think we're going to find anyone alive but her," she eventually announces while gesturing to the one who's alive with the barrel of her rifle, her expression incredulous. "If what she's saying is true we got to get the frak out of here because…." Eyes blinking closed a moment, she eventually just shrugs, not sure how to conclude that.

Salazar is silent for a long space of beats after she's looked into the face of the blonde. Her hand tightens in the woman's hair, if you can even call her a woman now. "Keep your shit together, Brand, Erasmus. If you find this too disturbing, hoof it back to the Bay and assist the twinkletoes with the clankers." Her tone is level, calm. "How do you feel about intel?" She releases the woman's hair, and crouches next to the blonde, weapon still aimed right for her throat. "You give me something I can use, I put you out of your misery. You give us nothing, I send you back to the ship to be poked and prodded by medical, and turned inside out while you're still alive. If you can call this alive. Great facilities, lots of drugs, and bored surgeons." The Lieutenant's tone is cool and even, without a hint of fear at the suggestion of an impending jump.

Epi's working on clearing the room, checking bodies, checking pockets - and studying faces. Where there are faces to be studied. "Brand, Erasmus, memorize these faces," she calls quietly. "All of them. There's got to be an artist on Hestia." Her mind has probably taken a left turn.

There are a few more bodies inside the room itself. Duplicates. Triplicates. Faces they've seen before, littering the floors, and others that are shot up too badly to make any kind of identification. None of them are armed, or carrying anything of note on their person. The room itself is filled with strange panels and shallow containers of pinkish goo. It could almost be a nerve centre, the equivalent of a Colonial capital ship's CIC, except that nothing in there seems.. workable.

"Damnit all to hell…one time when combat photogs would come in really frakkin' handy…" Cinder replies, taking a good look at each body she inspects. She's none too gentle as she snatches them by the hair, dragging their heads up to get a good look at their faces. Moving from body to body, she pats them down, feels in each of their pockets for…nothing, it seems. No intel to be found, save the faces themselves, which are pretty easy to memorize when there's multiples of them in the room! "What…the frak is this stuff?" Cinder says, looking at the goo in the troughs. "Goo…I don't want to touch this without knowing what it is. You got anything in that med kit to test this shit for acid or whatever?"

Sunshine smiles softly as Salazar releases her bloodied hair, though doesn't move from the wall that's holding her up. It's hard to gauge just how bad her injuries are. "You trust me. You know I didn't want to kill anyone, least of all your Commander. It was a war, and I played my part. I did my duty. Just like you do yours." She seems to ignore the bits about her getting turned inside out, completely, and licks some blood off her lips. "Here's something kinda funny. You ready?"

Daliah shoots the officer a look that's kind of cool, the fact that it was implied that she might not be able to do her job not exactly going over well. "I'm fine, sir." The faces are looked at as she wanders the room, the duplications noticed.

There's a pause and then Dali turns to look at Cinder, her head shaking some. "Nope. That's a forensic thing…" Pursing her lips, she shifts her heavy pack around and starts to rumage through a few of the front pockets eventually pulling out a small tube that throat lozenges are kept in. "Collect some in this. Try not to get any on our hands and wipe off whatever gets on the outside of the vial."

Salazar considers the blonde while the other marines take stock of the horrors in the room. She trusts them to do their jobs, and her back remains to the rest of the room as she talks with 'Jules'. "Sure." Sal nods. "Let's hear it." There's the undertone that it better be funny, because the marine is in a special kind of mood. "Tell me."

"All clear," Epi announces, taking up a guard position not too far from the door, behind cover. It's one of those nice spots where she can just as easily shoot something incoming as put a bullet in anything threatening Salazar.

[TAC1] Tombs says, "Eltee. This is the Captain speaking.." a pause probably so Tombs can do something. "We found something. Sitrep?"

There is no sign of any metal presence in the room. Not currently, at any rate. At some point in the recent past, yes.

"They turned on us," Jules explains, softly, to Salazar. "They decided they were tired of being oppressed, and they rebelled. They shot us down where we stood, and the raiders swarmed like a pack of mad dogs. Shooting at anything that moved. Shooting at each other. It was pretty crazy." Her eyes close for a moment, and there's a wistful sigh. "If you help me up, I can probably take you into that room," she tells Epi. "There's stuff in there that the hybrid won't let you guys use, but I know how they work."

"You got a tongue depresser or something, Dali?" Cinder calls out to the squad medic. "I think maybe we can scoop some up and drip it into this vial with minimal spillage action. Seems safer that way anyway…since if it's acid, it's gonna eat that depresser up!" Cinder's staring down into the trough, content to let Sal deal with Sunshine 2.0.

Daliah nods. "Good idea." That takes a bit longer to find in her pack as there's no way she's going to set it down on the ground unless it's absolutely necessary but soon the wooden item is extracted from somewhere within it along with a biohazard bag. "Put it in here when you're done." Both items are held out.

Salazar stares at the Jules copy for a moment. She rises. "Brand, Jarot. Drag this thing." She backs off, clearly unwilling to touch the blonde herself. Her grip on her sidearm is pretty tight. "If she twitches, I'll kneecap her. Let's move. We don't have all day." Sal's tone is fairly flat through all of her orders. It's a little unlike her, but… probably fitting.

[TAC1] Salazar says, "We're working an intel angle. Our time's ticking down. Will report again in a moment."

[Into the Wireless] Salazar says, "We're working an intel angle. Our time's ticking down. Will report again in a moment."

Epi drops her gun so that it hangs in a way someone she's helping can't get it then moves over to Jules, or the Jules clone. Down she crouches. "Put your arm over my shoulder," she tells the woman, voice low and quiet. She can't pull off flat. "Who turned on you?"

Welll…no chance to collect this stuff herself, it would seem! So Cinder passes the selection of equipment to Dali, and goes to follow Sal's order. "Gods…this is so frakkin' weird…" Cinder mumbles, as she crouches down on the other side of Sunshine, and helps her to her feet with Epi. Or maybe not help, maybe more like, yanks her up to her feet.

[TAC1] Tombs says, "Tick quicker, we found this thing's frakkin heart, or brain..whatever the frak it is. We're going to pull the plug here soon and work our way back…You won't believe this shit…"

[TAC1] Salazar says, "Oh. I think I might."

"The centurions," Jules whispers to Epi, her eyes flitting up to the small woman as she bends down to help her up. Inching away from the wall a little, she slides one of her arms around Jarot, and grasps on tight to one of the straps of her combat gear. With Cinder's help, the humanoid cylon is fairly easily brought to her feet.

Shrugging, Daliah takes the stuff back and gathers the sample, scooping some of the gel-like nasty stuff into the vial once it's emptied of the cough drops, being very careful to not get any on her hands. Once done, the wooden depresser's dropped ot the ground and the vial's sealed and put ino the bio bag which is then closed as well. Now free from having anything to do, Daliah simply rejoins the others, now waiting for more orders from the Lieutenant.

[TAC1] "Surgeon" Logan says, "Tombs, Surgeon. We're secure here for the moment, thanks to your boys. Nukes are set, we're ready when you are.""

There's a smirk from the Lieutenant before she stows the expression and nods to the portal in question. "Double time." It's her last reminder to hurry. "Our stay is limited." In other words, they're about to get whimsical with the explosives and/or systems.

Epi keeps an arm around Jules' waist, providing quite a bit of support. Some things just don't die, even if they're already dead. She squeezes the other woman for a moment before falling in behind Salazar, jaw tight, rifle bouncing.

The gel doesn't burn any of their equipment. It appears harmless, if obscure in its use or meaning.

Basestar, Control Center

IC Time: Post Holocaust Day #274
OOC Time: Sun Jan 17 21:21:02 2010


The large room has high vaulted ceilings, with giant arcs of light crisscrossing the room to add their blue glow to the illumination. Shimmering screens of whisper thin fibers stretch from the top to the bottom of the room, like some sort of screen or display were they to be functioning. While terminals line the perimeter of the room, they seem to be lacking traditional sets of buttons or dials. At the center of the room is raised table without chairs, the surface a six inch trough filled with a strange slightly pink tinted gel.


Supported by the two marines, Jules is fairly easily to transport the remaining twenty feet down the hall, and into what appeared to be the baseship's command centre. Panels of light flash and fade with each beat of the ship's 'heart', generating spidery, threaded 'veins' along the walls and floor that appear to power terminals with no obvious controls. "This way," the cylon whispers, nodding toward the shallow trough that Cinder had been studying earlier. A trail of bloody, erratic footprints is left behind the blonde.

[TAC1] Tombs says, "Eltee, Tombs. Get ready to hump it back to the Hangar for take off, when I tell you."

There's really very little that shows on Salazar's face, even if the Lieutenant finds this place at all disturbing. You wouldn't know it. She's probably pretty good at Triad, or the room doesn't affect her. She speaks briefly into the wireless, and approaches the trough of goo as well. She takes up a position diagonally across from 'Jules', and raises her firearm. If things get strange, someone's eating a bullet. That's a heavy suggestion by the motion.

"What is this place," Epi asks Jules quietly, keeping her voice low. "What is that pink stuff?" Yep, Epi's the one with the questions. She glances around briefly, then focuses back on the current danger target.

[TAC1] Salazar says, "You got it, Captain."

[TAC1] Tombs says, "Eltee, Bug out now. We're about to leave a load in our date's face."

Cinder just stands there, helping support Jules, while Epi askes the questions and Sal holds the gun on Jules.

Daliah keeps guard, standing close to the door while keeping her rifle at the ready.

[TAC1] Tombs says, "Surgeon, Tombs. Get your kids and shit together, we're all humping our asses back. Get ready to fly once we're all loaded up. Over."

[TAC1] "Surgeon" Logan says, "Tombs, Surgeon. On it. The birds are hot and we'll be ready the minute you close the hatches. Haul ass."

"This place?" Jules repeats. She pauses a moment, her eyes flickering away from Epi and scanning the room briefly, as if she'd just heard something. Or felt something. "I don't have time to explain. She's scared, and I guess kinda excited. I can feel it." A choking breath is taken, and then she shuffles a bit closer to the trough, and slides her hand in. The skin glows with a sudden and fierce light, pulsing twice and then fading again. "She wants to return us home, to die, but she doesn't know the way. She only knows the way to the nearest resurrection hub. It's.." The light continues to pulse along Jules' fingers. "..it's far away from here, but not so far that your ships can't reach. One five five carom zero one. One six two carom four. The Olympos system. We have two basestars protecting the resurrection hub. If you destroy the hub, we die for real. Some of us are worried that our souls won't make it back to God."

"This place?" Jules repeats. She pauses a moment, her eyes flickering away from Epi and scanning the room briefly, as if she'd just heard something. Or felt something. "I don't have time to explain. She's scared, and I guess kinda excited. I can feel it." A choking breath is taken, and then she shuffles a bit closer to the trough, and slides her hand in. The skin glows with a sudden and fierce light, pulsing twice and then fading again. "She wants to return us home, to die, but she doesn't know the way. She only knows the way to the nearest resurrection hub. It's.." The light continues to pulse along Jules' fingers. "..it's far away from here, but not so far that your ships can't reach. One five five carom zero one. One six two carom four. The Olympos system. We have two basestars protecting the resurrection hub, and a fueling outpost for this whole sector. If you destroy the hub, we die for real. Some of us are worried that our souls won't make it back to God."

"Frak…so otherwise you all just keep coming back…" Cinder mumbles. Makes sense, given that there's A Jules standing right next to her, and she definitely died before. She's not the sharpest bulb in the drawer, but even she gets that. "That's frakkin' heavy, Sunshine…gods." Maybe there's something else about someone she should say, but she doesn't even think of it at the moment.

Epi doesn't have long to wait. Salazar's arm remains steady, her Picon Five-seveN leveled at the Jules copy's head, a bead taken right between those trusting eyes. She breathes in, breathes out, expression calm, jaw set. Dark strands of hair fall across her cheek, some veil her eyes, but she doesn't reach up to brush it away. Her dark eyes remain focused. She listens, to Jules, to the comms chatter in her ear, and then she responds, "Typical. En route, Captain." A pause. "Thank you." She squeezes the trigger. BANG.

[TAC1] (from Salazar) Salazar's voice comes over the comms again. The tone is flat. "Typical. En route, Captain." There's a pause, a quieter, "Thank you," And then, before the channel closes, there's the sharp report of a gunshot.

The ship feels, for a moment, like it had begun to list to one side. The lights begin to flicker precipitously, and then moments before Salazar's gun goes off, there's a shudder that shakes the floor beneath their feet.

Jules doesn't answer Epi's question. It would seem the facts speak for themselves, as she doesn't have time to. Her mouth begins to open as the bead is found between her eyes, and then the gun goes off, and all that comes out? Is a soft breath. Her body suddenly goes slack in Epi and Cinder's arms, her hand dragging through the goo and her knees crumpling beneath her. There's nothing more from the humanoid cylon.

Epi's there to catch Jules with both arms. She doesn't just drop the body but takes the time to lower her to the ground, clearly not looking at the bullet hole. When she straightens, she's back into Marine mode, rifle coming to the front, steps taking her to the door.

Somethings act like spurs put to the flanks of a horse as far as Daliah goes and now is one of those times where she's pretty much spurred into action, her body tensing as the ship rocks. "I think that's our cue, sir," she shouts out to Salazar, her body braced against the doorway. She's not running yet, but she will be once Sal gives the go-ahead.

Along with Epi, Cinder helps lower the body down to the deck, but doesn't take the extra time coming back up to attention. Her sidearm is holstered, and she brings her rifle back to bear, reading to book it for the hangar bay. "That didn't feel right…" she says, about the shifting underfoot of the basestar.

"Watch the blood, take it at a run. We miss the ride, there won't be another one coming until we hit Elysium." Salazar turns, and nods to the others. "Haul ass. I'll take the rear." Marine officers, first ones in, last ones out.

Epi nods to Salazar and takes point, running through the blood, clambering over bodies in the way. Quiet save for the breathing behind her helmet.


All points evac. to Hangar Bay.


"Get in the Frakkin' boat Lance Coolie." That's the last time that Tombs is repeating himself. As for the other fireteam, he'll be sure they get in, and get on before he does. You can bet your sweet asses on that. And with that one hand is pressing to touch at the band at his nec. A few words exchanged, as he waits for the other kids to high tail it in.

Daliah runs in as fast as she can, her arrival impeded slightly by the weight of her medpack. She doesn't wait, instead hopping into one of the first Raptor's she approaches which happens to be the same one she arrived in. Tending to injured will have to wait till they're the frak off this piece of shit.

Salazar is the last marine out of the corridor leading deeper into the ship, the last of the second fire team to board a raptor. She's about thirty seconds behind the others, and then she's hopping into strap into a seat. "Shittiest service ever, Captain. I say I pick the place next time."


Foxbat-4


Matto keeps an eye out over his shoulder, now that the systems are all greened for launch. He does a headcount of the Marines as they climb on board and clip in, looking for his full complement or some explanation that person x or y is staying behind for some reason. 'One little duckling, two little ducklings, three little ducklings, four little ducklings…' he counts to himself.

"Good." comes Tombs response as he slides right into his place in the Raptor, moving, and slightly bleeding on Salazar. A wince as he tries to get comfortable, but with a round in you-that is hard to do. Least he got a bit of that shrapnel out of his leg before trying to run with this thing. "Because I shot the waiter in the head." A look back towards Matto. "Get out, now."

Kellin settles in his seat waiting for take off. He glances at his chrono, mentally calculating the time left till the G4 blows.

Matto tips his head to the side, "Yes, sir," he calls back. The Captain ought to know where all his little ducklings are, after all. The hatch is shut and the launch codes entered.

Salazar straps into her seat, glancing over as Tombs responds. "Hey, me too. I don't think they'll be asking us back." She stows her pack, her rifle, then clicks in, and sits back to enjoy the ride. Enjoy is a relative term.

[Into the Wireless] Matto says, "Surgeon, Madman, closing hatch and queueing up launch in formation with you."

Marines begin filing into the Raptor. "Finally," he rasps. His flightsuit is slicked with blood, undoubtedly from the four bandaged wounds on his chest; he's pale, thanks to the blood loss, no doubt. "Strap in, you lot, sounds like we've overstayed our bloody welcome." He winces slightly as the Raptor heaves itself off the deck, but is able to keep his eye and his mind on his console.

Kellin looks at his Co then glances at his chrono "It should be blowing about now Skipper" He looks back to where the ship should be.

"I have a feeling, it already knew what was coming.." Tombs rasps, before he's leaning back to press a hand up under his vest to his stomach. A faint gritting of teeth, before he's looking back towards Salazar. "Good news. Not too deep." A mutter there "badnews, I knows someone who will be pissed with me.." A shake of his head and the Captain chuckles. "Find anything good?"

[Raptor-2201: Kairos] From the Cylon baseship, Raptor-2201 screams clear of the hangar bay, presumably the last one out. Same order as they came in, strangely enough. There's something hasty and frantic about Backfire's flying, like that place is somewhere he really really wanted to get out of.

[Foxbat-4: Matto] Foxbat-4 hasn't left formation from Raptoe-2203 since launch, passing the clear proximity only seconds after the leader, keeping an easy heading.

[Into the Wireless] Matto says, "Surgeon, Madman, wilco."

"For frak's sake, you took a round?" Salazar shakes her head slightly as she looks over to Tombs. "If you die, I'm gonna get someone to bring you back to life so I can kill you myself." Most of the marines have had it up to their pretty little helmets with COs biting the big one. "How's everyone else looking? We lose anyone?"

Matto waits for the mark, then mashes go on that sucker. Err. Enters the detonation codes and uploads them to the bomb.

"A little one. Calm the frak down." Tombs states with a look back over towards Sal. "It's barely frakkin in there. I'll be good in a week." Or something. Still he's chuckling, before shaking his head. "No, but Volker's got a concussion or some shit. And we all have shrapnel or did, from Atjai and Volker lobbing grenades down a corridor." Don't ask, he was shooting when he saw them go flying.

[Raptor-2201: Nike] The raptors liftoff and make swift egress from the enemy capital ship, which banks away behind them at a sharp angle. From here, the thing seems almost peaceful, if faintly menacing. The source of the shuddering that was felt before they launched becomes clearer now, as the massive 'arms' of the craft live up to their name, and begin to change configuration from a star— into the vee shaped pattern of FTL navigation and atmospheric entry.

As manual overrides for the nuclear salvos are detonated in tandem, the baseship is preternaturally still for a moment. A silver, ghostly shape occupying the dead of space some kilometres out from Hestia in the distance. And then, soundlessly, the enemy ship begins to come apart. Its arms begin breaking away, crumpling, its innards lit up as fire rages through the corridors. Metal shreds and peels away from fleshy innards, like an animal to the slaughter. And then, there's a rumble of kinetic energy as the thing simply comes apart at the seams and.. explodes. The shockwave rips through the fleeing raptors, jarring them heavily.

"Nobody likes vague dlsclaimers, Tombs." Salazar's expression shifts into an amused smirk. "Grenades. In a corridor." And Volker's concussed. "They must really be getting along on the Hestia. Their housebreaking is wearing off — fff." She falls silent and holds on, white knuckling her restraints, and the marine next to her. She's not a big fan of raptor flight. Nope.

"I'm not dying. I hoofed it around a basestar with a bullet in me, didn't I?" The Captain jokes, before he's shaking his head. Sal goes all white knuckled and Tombs pales a little, as he shifts. "Remind me not to do this shit again. This is frakkin' uncomfortable…Once I get my bandaids on, we'll debrief.." Away from prying ears, personally. He doesn't know about you, but..Well there was some frakked up shit.

[Foxbat-4: Matto] Kisseus can of course foresee a shockwave enough to tip the aft of the boat south-carom a few degrees and code in a little bit of backdrift so that, though the Foxbat feels the force of it, it's as a straight, strong push rather than a jostling rocking before the Foxbat evens out its course again.

Thorn winces, bracing himself against the console as best he can and hoping the impact doesn't exacerbate his hastily bandaged wounds. "Hell of a boom," he mumbles as the CYLON BASESHIP insignia disappears from his DRADIS screen and the resulting shockwave buffets the small craft. Beads of sweat are beginning to form on his pallid face, and his breathing is becoming more ragged by the minute.

[Raptor-2201: Kairos] Kairos hits the full throttle and rides the wave much like a surfer would, the ship being jarred slightly and all of the passengers within just shaken a little. There is no damage incurred to the Raptor, and as the shockwave passes and dissipates, there's nothing left to do but celebrate. That was a pretty sweet 'splosion.

It's a bit before the Lieutenant responds, and then only once the craft evens out from the turbulence caused by the basestar going boom boom. "… The sentiment applies to future missions. Unless, of course, you're a total cock, then you can go ahead and bite it." Sal's chatter isn't particularly reverent, but marines don't have giant sticks up their asses like pilots. Most days.



Battlestar Hestia, Deck 16, Hangar Bay A

IC Time: Post Holocaust Day #274
OOC Time: Sun Jan 17 22:40:11 2010


The hangar deck is where the Hestia's Viper and Raptor squadrons are stored, repaired and maintained between missions. Ships land on the flight deck, one level above, and are brought down via massive elevators. Tow vehicles move the ships around the deck, their shrill alert beeps causing an almost constant cacophony of noise. The floor itself is a light gray in color, but a lifetime of wear and tear has left marks and scratches everywhere. Numbered sections are marked off with paint to house the various spacecraft. The place is rather a mess, with tool chests, machine parts, diagnostic equipment, and even the occasional spare engine or chassis scattered all over the place. But despite the apparent disorder, everything has a place and the deck crew's foremost concern is safety.


Neha emerges from Legacy's Raptor, dv cam in hand. Someone's been busy filming.

Stepping down from his bird, Cass grimaces; "Medics, got a man with a shattered arm in here." He's ignoring the minor holes in his own hide for the moment. He sees Tombs and Salazar and asks; "How're your people?"

Barney's helmet is off by the time he's out of the raptor. He's also a little more lucid than he was while in it. Considering the blood-soaked look of the rest of him, the buzz-cut clean sight of his head is a good little juxtaposition. Expecially with the streaks of blood down his face. From behind his ear comes a cigarette, and it's shoved between his lips while the marine eyes the jagged piece of metal jutting from his eyebrow. Despite the wound, he's moving out of the way so med-teams can reach those in actual trouble.

Alyssa steps forward as people start getting out of the Raptors. "Ok, wounded, step up. We'll do Triage over here. I don't care if you think it's just a scratch, that's for us to decide, got it?" She glances at Jacobs. "Make sure no one tires to scamper to their beds to sleep it off." Then she glances to Adriana. Showtime.

Daliah comes off of the Raptor, looking remarkably unscathed, lo and behold. Her medpack is tugged through the hatch and set on the wingstub where it is left to sit while she works on helping with the assessing and stabilizing of wounds in preperation for transport to Medical.

The moment the ships land Dane looks over at Corwin, "Alright, Crewman, now we go to work like ninjas. So don't be seen and make sure none of the ships are gonna blow up from damage. After that we assist where asked and when things clear out we go back to work on fixing what is broken." He says as he begins to work on moving in all quiet knuckledraggery to scan the ships to looks for signs of immediate damage.

Epi slides out of the Raptor covered in blood. None of it seems to be hers. She doesn't hesitate, doesn't stop to talk, just slips out.

Raptor-2201 comes in for a landing along with the rest of the strike squad. The hatch cracks open, and people undoubtedly begin to file out. Dak Kairos is one of those people. It would appear that his flightsuit has two breaches in it; one being a bullet in the leg, another bit of torn flesh in his neck. However, he's not injured enough to have lost his balance, but he's helping Reverie stumble out, a much worse case than himself. Multiple rounds to the front and back of her body, and her helmet is cracked too; blood coating the inside of the glass. "I need another doc over here! She's hurt bad."

There's not much deck crew can do to facilitate here, aside from fixing the damned vipers and raptors to make sure they can get back out into the sky as fast as possible. Currently, the Specialist finds himself atop a viper, next to the cockpit, fixing damage to the control board. Important bit of technology, that. He looks up as the newest Raptor arrives, gaze scanning those exiting it for a few moments.

Right behind Epi, Cinder leaves the Raptor. She's fortuitously unhurt, but knows well enough to get the frak out of the way for the medics to do their job. She stands aside, looking things over, a bit shellshocked and the things she saw inside that frakkin' ship.

Salazar hits the wing, boots heavy on it. The visible traces of blood are no longer showing. She walked through a lot earlier. "Tombs, I'll see you in an hour for a debrief." She sets off to clear the deck, headed for the stairwell while medical deals with the wounded, and everyone is tasked.

Panda gets out of the shuttle under his own power, but he's in no shape to be carrying someone else's weight. Dazed and pale, the Marine limps on his leg. He is drenched in blood, like Barnabas. Which is really odd, because he's in visibly better condition than the crew of Backfire who have a paucity, by comparison, staining their suits. "… and Stars…" he can be heard mumbling as he looks over at their shuttle's fliers.

Matto lets the ducklings take their turn down the ramp of his raptor, putting systems on standby rather than taking the time to shut them down in favor of scrabling back to his backseater and unstrapping him from his console. "You still awake, Toes?" he wonders, then, grunting, detaches his helmet and tosses it onto the co-pilot's seat, "Here," he begins again, red-faced and sweaty, "Let's get you out to the medics," he murmurs, getting an arm under Thorn's and lifting him with a shoulder, bracing with his legs and back.

The adrenaline rush is finally dissipating now that they've made it home. Reverie's slumped against Dak's arm as she looks tired, sleepy really. Her helmet is bloody from the inside and she coughs up more blood, her breathing heavy from the bullets still in her torso and perhaps one even in her head. She's quiet for once, just letting herself get led to medical ASAP.

Corwin heads off in the opposite direction, to start checking ships down the line, looking for any immediate threates to the crew. He's being as out of sight, and out of the way as possible. Weaving in and out, around, and through people. Making a rapid accessment of the birds.

After making sure his people are being tended to, Surgeon makes for the stairwell, knowing he has to report in.

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