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Post by Defunct FPX profile on Mar 5, 2010 16:37:26 GMT -5
What an interesting little group...We've got a maniacal engineer, a freaky-looking mercenary with a nasty nailboard, an elite Freedom squad, an egghead, a few ex-soldiers in crippled and not-crippled varieties. And, we've got me. A half-burned freak. Great.
The Alpha squad was in front. Seth was talking to his companions...It was obvious that they didn't trust these soldiers. Vasily was walking behind them, messing with his PDA, followed by Burner who was trying to support Borisov. Karc, Torch and Danilov were in the back, finger-on-the-trigger. Dimitri was silent, walking next to the group.
Burner tripped over a log. He got up, trying to get the mud off his coat."Sigh...Trudging over this swampy shit is no cakewalk". It was difficult having to support a nearly legless soldier with one hand and hold a weapon in the other, considering every single noise might be a hidden snork, a zombie or "God knows what..."
The factory entrance was in front. As Burner turned, he saw Dimitri pulling out his PSS and pointing it at Karc...Time seemed to have slowed down. He heard the suppressed PSS fire off twice. He managed to pull out his HPDA, but , to his surprise, Karc was still standing. He saw a dog crawl out of a bush, collapsing on a log with both rounds in its head. Putting the gun back in its holster, Dimitri hissed
"Dog...I hate dogs."
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Post by Διμι on Mar 5, 2010 18:24:08 GMT -5
"Bah! We'll never be getting anywhere like this!" Thor growled. Whatever was going on with the weather was by no means good, and he didn't particularly want to get caught outside when it all blew up in the Alpha Squad's faces, as it usually did.
"Give him here! We won't make it through here if we keep going at this rate." the huge exo-clad Freedomer approached Burner, motioning at Borisov. "Oi! put your peashooter down or pull out a real gun if you're going to shoot!" he threw aside to the captain, who had instantly drawn his PSS, aiming for Thor's heavily armored helmet.
He quickly wrapped a bearlike paw around the soldier and hoisted him up over his shoulder, the exoskeleton's drive cables straining slightly. He quickly walked over to the rest of the group, a short distance ahead near the factory entrance.
Seth watched the entire escapade, narrowing his eyes slightly. A second later, Sokol quickly walked back through the factory gate after completing his scouting routine. "Front porch is clear!" he announced. "I'm not getting any stalker signals or mutant presence in there, although I wouldn't stick around for too long anyhow." the sniper took a nervous glance at the sky, which was slowly getting more and more turbulent, despite the silence.
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Post by Defunct FPX profile on Mar 5, 2010 20:12:14 GMT -5
As they passed through the factory, they noticed nothing. "Too quiet..." thought Burner. The last time he was here, he got thrown straight into a brick wall by a massive ball of pure muscle. The time before that, he got shot into the leg by a brainless zombie.
"Third time's the charm, as they say...Ah, here's the vent."
As they climbed in, Danilov stopped.
"Hold on...You said that there's someone following us, right? And, they shouldn't reach us, right? Anyone got anything...explosive?"
Burner turned around...If he gave the grenade to the soldier, he could have risked the death of the entire team. But, his senses were telling him something else. He tossed a grenade to the soldier, who caught it with a particular smile which reminded Burner of his pyromania. He watched the soldier set up a deviously stealthy trip-wire. Checking the string, he shrieked with joy, just like a toddler finishing a puzzle
"Now, they'd have to have binocs for eyes to see this thing-It'll definitely slow them down, mark my words!"
Dimitri was the last one to climb in. He frowned...The only time the weather went wild like this was when blowouts came round, and he wasn't particularly fond of them. He caught up with Seth.
"Dark clouds, no wind. Reddish sky, no rain. Either I'm going insane or we're going to have a blowout on our hands...I'm not sure we're deep enough to be completely safe, and I'm not planning to camp in the factory...Unless you were planning a trip through the chaos that is just about to ensue, mind sharing your plan with the rest of us?"
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Post by Διμι on Mar 5, 2010 20:29:53 GMT -5
Seth looked around before closing shut the gate covering the tunnel entrance. The slamming of the metal door was almost immediately drowned out by a deafening crack of thunder outside. A blood red light began to shine through the cracks around the doorway.
"We'll have to wait it out inside the tunnels and factory. I reckon that the catacombs here are extensive enough to take us all the way to the heart of the Red Forest, if not Dead City itself. Hopefully, the blowout will be over by the time we get out of here." Seth replied. The underground lab was largely clear, and he had gone through the tunnels earlier with little opposition other than the zombies and a pseudogiant.
The thundering sounds outside intensified, the gate rattling slightly. "We should go deeper," Seth noted "in a few minutes, there'll be a local psy and radiation storm outside the likes of which I haven't seen in a while". Turning his headlamp on, he began to walk down the tunnel, his two companions following in his wake.
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Post by Karcentric on Mar 5, 2010 21:51:13 GMT -5
Clicking on his lamp Karc waited for the group to move, he decided it was time to prepare for any close combat, taking out 2, 6" blades he strapped them to his forearms. Before looking up Seth was moving forward, the noise outside was still echoing and intensifying. "How long do you think this blowout will last?" Karc asked he'd only experienced very mild blowouts during his time in the zone.
"What causes the blowouts?" Karc's interest was triggered one of his unknown and unlikely interests was science. "Is it some sort creation that stirs up irradiated dust?" Completely ignoring the hostility of Dimitri, "Has anyone ever lived through one while stuck out in the open?"
Karc looked around the tunnel it was damp and an unpleasant smell lingered.
Karc and Torch were walking at the back of the group, "I wonder if were higher or lower than the tunnel we were in earlier." He asked quietly. The group walked to junction with several directions. "Which way?"
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Post by Zeno, Lord Camelith on Mar 5, 2010 23:04:38 GMT -5
Turning to face Karc, Vasily said, "The blowouts? All anyone knows is that their just a release of Radiation and Psi-Emissions from the center of the Zone. Nobody really knows what causes them, although I've heard a few theories. One of them is that they are some kind of protective measure to keep things out of the center. It's said they become more and more frequent the closer you get to the NNP."
Taking a quick glance at his PDA, Vasily continued, "As for staying alive in the open, your chances are close to zero, unless you have a suit like mine back at the lab that shields you from a portion of the radiation. Then you would need a fully functional Psi-Helmet, like mine, to protect you from the emissions, and on top off all of that, you would have to take enough antirads to negate the effects of the rest of the radiation, unfortunately you would probably overdose before the blowout was even half over. There are even specific kinds of blowouts, some release massive amounts of radiation and little or no Psi-Emissions, or vice versa. Sometimes you end up with huge portions of both in which case you better find the deepest, darkest, hole you can to crawl into." Returning his PDA to his belt Vasily said, "Why do you ask? Most Stalkers aren't interested in what makes the Zone work."
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Post by Karcentric on Mar 5, 2010 23:58:24 GMT -5
Karc looked at the scientist, "The closer you get to the center, like a proximity trigger? Or is there some all seeing, all knowing entity?" Karc was amused at the thought of someone sitting in a small white room, somehow controlling everything that happened within the zone. What would it mean for this trip north, or his eventual plan to try and get to the 'wish granter'. I'll ask Dimitri about that sometime, if he remembers."
"As for my interest, it's a want to understand my surroundings, like when you have a car, you tinker with it till you understand every noise it makes. It's the same with the zone. Maybe an interest in work, but I'm hardly scientist material." Karc thought over what Vasily had said. "How many 'massive' blowouts have there been in the last year?" Tightening the straps on his pack he opened his mouth to ask a question, but a moan somewhere up ahead made him think twice. Holding his P90 at the ready, he crept along as quietly as he could.
A very slight rumble occasionally shook dust off the ceiling. Drifting about the tunnel, reducing visibility, checking behind him, Karc clicked of his light, nothing. Turning and clicking his light back on. The moans were getting louder.
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Post by Defunct FPX profile on Mar 6, 2010 4:29:15 GMT -5
Dimitri appeared right beside Karc "Remember? Why would I not remember? We used prototype psi-helmets to get past the Scorcher. You couldn't believe how many zombies were in there...We tried to turn off the Scorcher, but to no avail. We had to run. The mutants don't seem to be affected by the emissions at all, and, believe it or not, neither do the soldiers of Monolith. I remember..." A loud moan interrupted him. Looking at the stunned merc, Dimitri laughed "Don't get your shorts in a twist. This is coming from above, not from the tunnel. This means we're pretty close to the ground, but, if I'm not mistaken, we're nowhere close to the exit. If I had access to the satellite database, I could probably tell you, but I don't have the signal and by the time we get out, the military would probably disconnect me." Burner was walking slowly, trying to think of a suitable report for his superiors in Dead City..." How many mercenaries actually gave a shit about something else other than money?". He caught up with Vasily "Vasily, if we get to Red Forest, what do you suppose we'll be searching for?" His PDA beeped. He picked it up, only to see a message from a mercenary squad. It read Burner, you moron. What are you doing there? The only viable route was through the bar, are you trying to get yourself killed? Turn back, now! Wait for the blowout to end and go back! He frowned. " What the hell was so dangerous that an entire squad of armed-to-the-teeth bastards couldn't take head on? Oh to hell with this!" The ceiling had started shaking...The blowout was already well in progress. He sent a message back to the team, which read Being tracked and followed by a squad of heavily-armed Duty soldiers and several independent stalkers, the other way around the factory is totally blocked off by different anomalies, mind explaining what kind of death trap are we running into?
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Post by Διμι on Mar 6, 2010 13:45:07 GMT -5
Flicking the screen of his PDA, Seth quietly examined the dynamic map of the area. "The exit's about two miles ahead, folks" he announced "whatever is trying to kill us in here better get it's game up a bit faster, or we'll be out of here by the time it decides to make a move."
Beside him, Sokol drew his AW-50 "No need to worry, peeps," he reassured the squad "this baby can punch a hole through a pseudogiant's skull and exit the other end carrying out everything in it, and trust me, I don't miss very often."
Thor shivered a bit "the exit from this tunnel comes up in the Red Forest, and God knows what awaits us there, or is coming down to meet us. Besides the sheer number of Monolith troops patrolling there, I've heard all sorts of tales about the things that live there. If anyone remembers Forester..." the Freedomer trailed off, and continued walking.
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Post by Karcentric on Mar 7, 2010 8:13:48 GMT -5
Karc looked up at the top of the pipe, "How far below do you think we are?" he asked, the moans seemed to be directly below him. "Erm excuse Dimitri, what do you know about the wish granter? I've heard rumors about it, in fact it's half the reason I'm here. The other reason isn't as important." Karc mumbled. He didn't want the entire group to hear his reason for being here.
The message Burner received wasn't encouraging, Karc looked around, the tunnel was slightly wider here. "Why did they build these tunnels?" He asked, he didn't like walking in the dark quietly, I'm getting fucking night vision as soon as I can afford it. he thought.
Karc was looking around the tunnel, Why is there so much rubbish down here, just look at this place, who leaves an empty box here of all places? He thought, kicking at the box a strange spiked ball rolled out, "What the bejebus is that?" he asked picking up the artifact. A strange sensation ran through his body, his skin felt thicker. The Kolobok felt light to Karc's touch.
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Post by Zeno, Lord Camelith on Mar 7, 2010 11:44:07 GMT -5
Turning back to Karc, Vasily said, "This tunnel is somewhere around 10 or 15 meters below the surface, there are some that go even deeper, but those are either flooded or so contaminated with radiation they're impossible to reach. They probably built them for storage and transportation between the labs. Theres probably a tunnel that takes you all the way to the lab under the Scorcher. There are even rumors of a lab in the Dark Valley."
Pulling out his PDA and checking it again, Vasily saw that the blowout had ended. Finally he thought, and sent off a message to Kruglov.
"Do you have the results for Subject 1? Were their any mutations to our liking?" Within a few minutes the scientist had replied.
"I have the results, but we had to kill the subject. He escaped from his hold and attacked Pyotr, he's alright though, he was wearing his suit. As for the subject, all of the mutations were ones we had been counting on, but he lost his sanity in the process."
Well that's better than nothing I guess, he thought as he placed his PDA back on his belt.
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Post by Afterburner on Mar 7, 2010 14:57:13 GMT -5
"The Wish Granter? Honestly...I do not know. From what I've heard, it's a trick, a fool's dream, a lure. However, I can tell you something...The Monolith exists...The Wish Granter? Nope.Fresh air...The exit's close...I can sense a draft of fresh air coming up front."
Dimitri was right. There was a little light in the distance.They had finally reached the exit. Dimitri was in front, loading his VAL. He jumped out of the pipe...The after-effects of the blowout were still visible. He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. Opening his eyes, he noticed several men in blue pointing the barrels of their weapons at him.
"OI! ANATOLI! HOLD YER FIRE!"
Burner ran out , yelling. The mercenaries turned around...To their shock, they saw a man who looked like he had just crawled out of a bonfire.
"That's the man you told us to bring 'ere! Now what was the trouble with this route?"
Frowning, Anatoli responded
"Increased number of strange incidents reported in this area. Stuff flying around by itself, anomalies popping out of nowhere, flame jets roasting the forest. Suspected poltergeist activity, although nothing is excluded. Heard there was a blowout in Yantar...Did your group make it?"
"Poltergeists? Now what in the blazes was that? Ghosts? Real ghosts? Yeah, sure, we're all 'ere. What do you mean by poltergeists?"
Anatoli was about to respond, but something interrupted him. He thought he saw a glimpse of something which looked like lightning...Something was watching them. And then, it all happened. The entire area was surrounded by what appeared to be...Fire.
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE? WHAT THE?"
Dimitri, for the first time, seemed worried.
"Poltergeists...Three or four of them. At least one's mature."
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Post by Διμι on Mar 7, 2010 19:59:47 GMT -5
Seth's visor immediately slid up. Wonderful, he thought, time to give the little thermal insulation in my suit that's still holding up a run for its money.... The Freedomer held out his SVU at the ready, waiting for anything to come flying out of the fog as the two stalkers beside him did the same. Three or four poltergeists were manageable, he thought.
The mercenaries were noticeably anxious, shifting about, waiting for the wall of flame to break or for some huge object to begin flying about. But aside from the swaying tongues of flame encircling the area, all was deathly quiet.
Seth heard a slight clink behind him as something fell to the ground from a mercenary's belt. Turning around instantly, he took a half second look at the seemingly insignificant piece of metal before he realized what it was.
"GRANATA! Everyone DOWN!" he shouted, as he sprinted off and dove back inside the pipe.
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Post by Zeno, Lord Camelith on Mar 7, 2010 20:11:18 GMT -5
"GRANATA! Everyone DOWN!" Vasily heard Seth shout. He had heard the clink, and it was too late to run now. Dropping to one knee he grabbed the grenade and threw it as hard as he could at the nearest ball of lightning. The grenade exploded right as it made contact with the mutant, nearly blowing it in half. He had been closer to the poltergeist than he originally thought, the concussion from the explosion blurred his vision, and he felt something smash into his chest. Taking a moment to catch his breath, Vasily pushed himself up and pulled his LR-300 off of his back.
Taking aim at another poltergeist, he fired a short burst, but missed. Swearing, he took aim again. CLICK, his rifle had jammed. "Fuck!" he growled, First thing I'm going to do in the Dead City is replace this piece of garbage. Throwing his LR300 to the ground, he pulled out his shotgun.
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Post by Karcentric on Mar 8, 2010 1:34:55 GMT -5
A trap. Karc felt let down, he'd have to change his plans. Karc waited for the others to exit, before he could exit there panic and raised voices, before he could move Seth came plowing back into the hole. An explosion followed by a roar from an unknown creature.
Helping the Freedomer up he moved closer to the hole, pulling himself up and crouching by the hole. He waited for something to happen, there was some sort of commotion happening in the pipe, Karc couldn't quite hear what had happened something to do with Torch.
Vasily's LR300 was floating up, Karc watched as it was flung at him, lunging to avoid it, he sighted another one of the beasts lightning, he fired his P90, several rounds hit the beast, it roared in pain, flinging an old fuel can at him, catching him in the leg, Karc tripped and fell back into the pipe, "Shit!!" He managed before landing hard on his back. He lay there for a few seconds before rolling over and dragging himself up. He poked his head up to look through the hole, the fire ring was still burning intensely. I wonder how it does that? He thought.
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