Coalition Operations III: Deception of the Iron Bear

[Sohdakin]

Throughout the drop, the large Rohkah remained apathetic even when the pilot shouted out a warning moments before the entire craft lurched suddenly with the impact.  He would calmly reach out with an outstretched arm to steady himself while the craft bounced and rolled as the pilot regained control of the dropship.  The moment the ship landed, Sohdakin released his harness and proceeded to grab his rifle from its stowed position across from him.  The Rohkah's face was obscured by his helmet so Valentine would not see the frown that appeared on his maw when she proceeded to maneuvered around Krystel then  him as he was reaching across to get his rifle. "Hey, Mongdrigan, how about you let those with the proper gear to exit the craft first. You are not front-line equipped." he called out then looked to Viktor as he gave his orders. The armored head nodding as he stood up, did a quick check of his gear then proceeded to exit the craft and charged his rifle.

Once outside the dropship, the heavy rainfall drenched everything around them and kept normal visibility to a few meters at best.  That would have posed an issue if they could only use unassisted vision, thankfully the Draconis was feeding them with high resolution scan data of the area and superimposed it on those equipped with an interlinked HUD. Sohdakin would casually walk up to Valentine and tap her on the shoulder and motioned for her to return to the ship and get dry. 

"Area secured" he would report after going down to one knee and scanning the area for any signs of trouble.  His head would turn as a seat was thrown from the craft when Krystel had managed to finally get herself righted and out of the craft.  The Cerinian sure knew how to make a spectacle of things and made the Rohkah chuckle softly.

When Ori finally exited and proceeded to head up the rock hill, Sohdakin waited for everyone else to get past before he stood back up and followed.  He had gotten but a few steps when he noticed a door to his right and a quick check of the map told him it was an entrance to an adjacent facility.  Since all the facilities were supposed to be linked together, he turned towards the door and highlighted it on the map. "Ori, entrance 6 meters to your right" he called out and proceeded to the door.  He pulled up the door codes that Viktor had provided everyone in the mission packet and found the door to be jammed after a few attempts with the codes.  "Welp, looks like we are going to have to attempt a bypass" he said then simply punched the controls, smashing the control pad to bits before anyone could step up to hack the controls.  A satisfying hiss let him know that the door had released its locks and allowed him to pry the door open manually. 

Sohdakin was unsure if it was because the weather was overloading his sensors or if it was because he was too eager to get out of the blasted weather that he didn't check for traps before stepping inside the facility.  He had gotten two steps in when his suits alarms suddenly flashed a warning.  He barely had time to realize his mistake when an explosion engulfed the armored Rohkah, blasting anyone that followed behind him out of the facility and collapsed the entrance behind him.

[Lacar Lacrest]

Lacar sat apart from the group continuously monitoring his Holo screen that projected from his cybernetic arm ever so often speaking up to the pilots throughout the flight. Lacar had picked up a strange reading through his sensors quickly buckling in just before the pilots sounded the warning. He jostled and jerked as the transport hurdled towards the ground only to groan in pain once the landing had succeeded. He watched the others gather their equipment for a moment before standing himself. He checked over his systems before grabbing a large equipment bag straddling it over his back. Mid way through gathering his things he would turn to Victor as he was ordered to travel with Ori and Sohdakin. He nodded turning to leave the craft only to stumble out of the way of an on passing chair. Following behind Ori and alongside Sohdakin lacar would watch his Holi screen almost none stop until Ori had asked how he got the job. "well I......" he was interrupted when Sohdakin pointed out the nearby entrance. Following him lacar didn't bother to help with the door as he waited for an order from Ori,who he viewed as his superior. After the brute forced the door open lacar followed him inside only for his alert system to begin flashing read. Without a moment to spare Lacar threw up an energy shield just in time to cover him and Ori but it was to late for Sohdakin as the explosion threw Lacar back out into the storm.

[XIII]

And so they reached the facility. Course, Ori was slightly frustrated because Sohdakin hasn't replied on her question, but she knew, that the place and time weren't appropriate. Burned spots on goods crates and wrecked vehicles were good evidence that there was a battle for sure and it was tough. A sign that the squad should double their guard, yet there was no enemy presence. And it would seem that what could go wrong. But when Sohdakin started to open the facility' door, Ori turned serious once again. Because in her rucksack was a device designed for bypassing consoles like on LZ. Such consoles weren't only in this place. WY uses the same security technologies as a good part of the UNSC space. So, in theory, she could open the door without Sohda' brute force. However, her thoughts have faded away quickly once the explosion occurred. In no time, she performed a spin move around her axis and projected a large boulder in front of her and Lacar as it was one of her warframe ability. Combined with the shark' energy shield, the impact of explosion wave was minimal. A little disorientation because of the sound but nothing except that.

"Sohdakin! What the hell was that? Sohdakin, are you alive? Shtako...". Ori said via her comlink built-in her warframe. Then she attempted to remove the rubble using earth bending, but because of concrete' nature (it wasn't a nature element), she couldn't move a single piece of the collapsed wall. Moreover, her sensor has detected some movements from the north, and ideally, they should stay here and wait for the Rokhah. Arashi assumed that he was strong enough to deal with the rubble. But it would take time, and Ori was afraid about what could happen with the dragon and resolved to act as she always does - on her own decision. But before that, she needed to report to Viktor. "Viktor, this is Ori. I'm unsure but seems like we have lost contact with Sohdakin. There was an explosion, and now a large mass of rubble separates us. I'm also picking some movements on the North of my and Lacar position. So I'll try to do something from another side of the facility. Ori out".

"Hold me tight, pretty boy.". Ori said upon finishing her communication with Victor and then embraced the shark. The building itself wasn't too huge in height, so even with Lacar, she could use her flying ability and perform a land on the roof of the building. And so she did - upon charging enough energy to execute a mighty jump into the air and holding Lacar, Ori jumped on the roof of the building. But with Lacar the sound of their landing should be pretty audible even for Sohdakin. From there they should find a way either inside the building or find another entrance from the ground. And this what she pronounced next but directly to the shark. "Let's find an entrance. Look for shafts. I'll check the ground".

[Romulan_Furry]

*** LZ Facility ***

"Sohdakin may be alive - his video is down, but his vitals are still coming through. I think his Transmitter took a hit though. Sohda, if you can still hear me, get your *** moving and make for the facility. Get that landing beacon online. Ori, Lacar, try and find a way to link up with Sohdakin. Krystel, Valentine, fall back to the drop ship, see if you can help T'liss get this bird flying again. Good luck, Sohda."

[Rayleonarde]

Valentine stood as a sentinel for the repair detail. A shame her brother wasn’t here, she thought. He’d have this thing up and running far better than it once was. Something those machine cultists taught, no doubt. But machines were not her specialty. She had holstered her firearm, and instead kept one paw open at her side, fingers twitching. She’d taken Sodhakin’s comment to heart. The weapon was more a deterrent than anything. Valentine’s real weapon sat nestled betwixt her ears, ‘neath a psychic isolation helmet. Her mind had been retrofitted to mimic the Force, by way of focusing one’s mental energy. The Mongdrigans lacked the midichlorians, but strove to be like their lord, Malgus. Not to say it wasn’t any less lethal. The spears of lightning Valentine threw were on par with some Force adepts. But, with most offshoot things, there was a catch. Use too much energy and you pass out. Store too much and pop it all at once, and one is liable to tear themselves apart as well as their target. Valentine shuddered; now that’s a rough way to go.

[Alessia Starfurr]

"Well that went well." KRystel muttered once she heard the explosion, continuing with the repairs of the dropship Well at least i'm not with those losers. She thought to herself considering the fact that one of the just set off an explosive trap

"With all due, respect uhh.. Sir. I'm right next to you." Krystel replied, indeed she had been standing next to Viktor the whole time assisting the repairs of the ship, now  putting a panel back on to the wall covering the wires she had been fixing...

[Sohdakin]

"Warning, system reboot in progress" came a familiar computer voice of his suits AI system.  It wasn't a true AI like Sarla(or Cortana) but it was programmed to help the suit's user with various tasks. "K2, give me status report" he coughed as pushed himself back to his feet and heard the familiar hum of his shield array recharging.  It seemed that the blast was enough to deplete his shields and throw him several yards from the entrance.

"All systems nominal Sohdakin, you should be more careful when entering an unknown facility."

"Thanks for that tidbit K2. I will keep that in mind" Sohdakin would huff and brush himself off and check himself over and found that his shields had protected him from the explosion. Though it seemed the camera system that Viktor had requested he wear had shorted out when his shields had overloaded.

"So.d..kin! Wh....hel...s...hat? ..hd.kin, are...y...alive? Shtako..." came a garbled message as it seemed coms were a bit patchy at the moment.

"K2, see if you can clear up that signal"

"Recalculating, will be a moment. I am getting a steady signal through your vital coms, using that to help reroute other com paths.....Done!"

"Captain...Ori, seems this facility has a few surprises in store for us.  Ori, are you and Lacar ok?" he asked and turned to look behind him at the collapsed entrance.  Though a quick check of his map would show the two moving away from his position and sighed some relief.  "Alright, Im going to find an alternate route to the beacon. See you there!"

Sohdakin checked his rifle and charged it as he wasn't sure what to expect in here and did not want to get caught flatfooted. 

A quick scan of the immediate area, never mind that an explosion had just blew apart the entrance, it looked disheveled.  A fact that he didn't immediately notice when he first entered the doors.  It was as if a battle had taken place here and perhaps explains why there was a booby-trap set.

"Captain, keep your guard up.  This entrance had seen some fighting, looks like small arms fire and use of blasting charges.  Would explain the booby-trap.  Whatever it was, they didn't want it coming in this way." he said and paused when he saw something on the far wall that caught his attention "Looks like some plasma burns too....did the Weyland-Yutani have any plasma weapons in their armory?" he asked as he didn't recall hearing that the mega corp used plasma weapons, especially on an outpost such as this.

[Lacar Lacrest]

      Standing up Lacar would open up his system report withing his implanted eye visor. He dusted himself off grumbling as he went through his systems. The shield he used to block the blast had left him unharmed but drained a good portion of his suits energy. Though his suit would replenish quickly with it's ability to passively pull energy particles from the air it was still annoying." Damn reptile almost blew us to an early grave." he dusted himself off a bit more before directing his attention to Ori as she spoke. His eyes widened as he was suddenly embraced only to be hoisted into the air.
      Once landing lacar stepped away before speaking "I could have jumped up myself...you didn't need to carry me." when she gave him his orders he nodded before raising both arms above his head slamming them into the ground. His suit would be able to use the vibrations to map an area around them as long as it was solid since sand doesn't carry vibrations well.

[XIII]

"Yes, we do. How are you down there, Sohdakin? I and Lacar on the roof now and we're going to find an alternate entrance into the building. And yes, as far as I know, Weyland-Yutani security forces use plasma pulse-wave rifles. So the patches we have seen are probably shots from their weapons, I believe.". Ori responded, observing the roof. Course, she was glad to hear the dragon being alive, who somehow has managed to re-establish connection with the teammates. If Ori could be sure, the reason for Sohdakin radio signal interference was the air which was way more 'statical' than on planets like Corneria or Earth. She feels it, as her suit can sense everything related to the planet' atmosphere way better. And speaking of the air, the Orokin couldn't comment on Lacar' response. So before she headed to the edge of the roof, the pinpointed girl added and shrugged. "You're welcome."

Right before Ori was able to reach the end of the roof, a scream came out from a shaft on the surface, what made the girl shiver for a bit and feel the cold on her skin. It was one of the spooky feelings she never wanted to hear or experience. Sohdakin could hear it in a way clear that than the couple above him. And Lacar may sense it through his vibrations, that there was something below the roof, in the vent system. And if that wasn't a Xenomorph, then who? Because as she knew, those freaks can use vent shafts to move. Other species of this planet never been reported as a problem. Without further hesitation, using air behind her suit to low the gravity in the place she wanted to land, Ori jumped down to the ground and looked around herself. Once the galaxy-skinned one noted a gate with non-damaged control panel, she rushed to it. Luckily, the codes Viktor had provided, were working this time, so the gate opened without any issues. Behind the gate, was a truck, so the room was a sort of a garage. Probably still operational as the vehicle wasn't damaged.

"Sohdakin, this is Ori. I suppose you've heard the scream. I've found an exit from the building, but chances are, it's below the level where you're currently on. See, if you can find any clues on how to get here". The female Orokin said, inspecting the room. Behind the truck was another gate, but codes for this panel didn't work this time. She also noted a hatch in the ceiling, but it was a little narrow. Sohdakin' large frame with his armor might not fit in the hole, but that was her only guess. And this is where Ori resolved to wait for the dragon unless other instructions provided.

[Romulan_Furry]

"Negative, Ori, Sohda - WY does not use Plasma-based weaponry. They use rifles chambered for 10mm Explosive-tipped caseless rounds; Sohda, your a/v feeds are still down, can you describe the plasma marks you saw? Pattern, size, anything?" Viktor asked.

"Almost done, Captain," T'liss reported. A spark flew and she jumped in surprise, shouting a few choice Romulan remarks.

[Rayleonarde]

Valentine listened to Viktor’s communique intently. “Plasma scoring? Sohda, did you find any emplacements? Big things, with big clunky boxes attached by cable?” As she waited for the response, Valentine pondered. If Mongdrigan emplacements were found, what would that mean? For Mongdrigo, for her. If it was a Mongdrigan plan, what would Lord Malgus want with this backwater storm-ball? She glanced back at Krystel, flexing her paw idly. A single charge could overload locomotors, or blow the ship.
Valentine shook her head and dismissed the thought. She’d cross that bridge when she needed to.

[Alessia Starfurr]

"Plasma?" Krystel asked "Correct me if I'm wrong but there are only 3 know species that regurally use plasma weapons, Sangheili, Romulans and that third one." Krystel said mostly to Viktor. "Are we possibly dealing what that third race?" she asked "If that's the case... i really need to look up their bio..." The red vixen added looking over to Valentine. 'Her scrawny race of purple coons uses plasma weapons?' she thought as she continued the repairs, turning to the romulan and shaking her head 'play with wires and your gonna see sparks, pointy ears... she thought with a sigh.

[Sohdakin]

Sohdakin was about to question Ori when Viktor spoke up and affirmed the Rohkah's suspicions that the burns did not come from the colony and was from an outside source.  "Toto, we aren't in Kansas anymore" he muttered into the line "Unless they figured out how to wield guns and open doors, we have a different issue going on" He said after a brief pause and heard the scream himself.  '_{What the....}' he said to himself and checked his sensors which could not pinpoint the source of the scream as it had echoed considerably.  "Captain, are you getting this?  Why am I getting this feeling that we were not given the whole story" he grumbled and proceeded down the hallway as it appeared to take him along the best route to the beacon. "Negative Ori, we need to get that beacon on-line, that's more important and I rather not waste time trying to get back to you." he added and checked out the plasma burns again "There are not a lot and it seems like they were fired from a high angle, almost looks like a triangle pattern to some of them." he said then shook his head, forgetting that nobody could see him do so "Negative Val, no sentry guns so far, if thats what you are asking"

"Mmmm you would be wrong Spartan, there are many species who use plasma.  The Rohkah have quite a few types of plasma weapons, I even have some plasma shells for my shotgun." he would call out and smirk, though nobody would see it.  He wasnt sure why Krystel thought that only a small handful of species used plasma out of the thousands out in the known universe.  He guessed she didnt travel much, though that would be odd being that she claims to be a mercenary. 

Sohdakin simply shook his head and continued down the hallway, following the beacon as well as taking cues from K2 as it mapped the facility while he made his way. When he got to the end of the hallway, he turned and came to a locked door, which he got open after typing in the code, what he saw on the other side made him pause. "Shit...." he muttered as he held his rifle aiming towards the door while reaching into a side pouch and tossed a small device that made a faint clicking sound.

"Captain, we have a problem" he said as the device began to give him a hazy image of what was in the room as it mapped everything that reflected the pulses of energy back to it.  "Looks like I found some of the workers" he said with a hint of venom in his reply "Or whats left of them anyway"

Once the Rohkah got a good idea of what was in the room he proceeded into it and scanned the area with his own eyes and more active sensors.  "Whatever attacked this facility....decided to hang the dead workers from the ceiling, some have plasma burns through their chest....others have some nasty cut marks, like a pair of blades were used"

"Hmmm you think this might be the work of the Yautja?  I find it odd they would leave bodies hanging like this and not remove the skulls" he would say and not disturb the bodies as much as he could as he made his way to the other side of the room, making sure to stop and pickup his beacon before he left.

[Lacar Lacrest]

After his vibrations had returned to him with a small map of the surrounding area Lacar made his way to Ori hearing that she had found another entrance over the comms. Making his way over he would jump down landing behind Ori as she finished communicating with Sohdakin. "We should probably go ahead and open up the door in case Sohdakin ends up coming this way. We don't want him getting stuck on the other side with need for a quick exit." Lacar stated to Ori as he walked over to the doors terminal before giving a soft smirk. "this tech is so outdated, give me a minute and I'll have this door open....without a bomb going off." Lacar stepped over to the terminal before holding his cybernetic appendage out, small metallic tendrils left his palm hooking into different inserts withing the terminal.

[XIII]

Before Ori could do anything, she noted a couple of flashlight beams in approximately two hundred yards from her current position. There was a bridge. The female Orokin firstly frowned trying to guess who those persons have been, but when she made a step toward the coming people, a couple of missiles appeared in the air and has hit just in the position where those persons were running. Course, the explosion has torn apart the people running, alongside with some vehicle on the bridge. Sounds of the blast should be heard well enough across the entire site. Whatever did that, that thing was furious. And her team might be its next object.

"Did you hear that? Someone has just fired missiles in the running people.". Still watching in the distance, Ori said. Now a creeping fear starts to making her blood to pulse up, and Ori began to feel the adrenaline. However, she shivered once more because those people could be her team or even herself. Because of the explosion, most of the radio air talks has got damaged, but the moment about Yautja and workers Ori has heard. And despite the fact, that the Orokin never met anyone of Yautja (or Hunters as they were mentioned in UNSC archives) personally, she read about them a lot before the operation. Matching what she learned, the galaxy-skinned assumed, that those Hunters are here as well. And it might be one of them who has fired the missiles. "Sohdakin, don't go too far, Lacar and I am going to find a way to your position right now. Please affirm.".

And while she was waiting for a response, the girl in warframe decided to inspect the room behind the door which Lacar had opened. It was something that Ori had to do on her own, but the cybershark appeared to be faster. Perhaps this is why he was on the team. This time no trap has been triggered, and the two could examine the room. Inside the room was a wrecked truck with a dead man inside the vehicle. Next to the car, a PDA was lying. Apparently, it belonged to the dead man. Messages in PDA were stated, that the landing beacon was in the primary operation complex and this building was nothing, but a security outpost. What's Sohdakin then trying to find out?

"Sohdakin, I've found a PDA of a security officer. I think we're in the wrong building. We need to get to the primary operation complex, and this building is security outpost. Thus, get yourself outside of the building through the way I suggested and let's move on further". Still inspecting the communication device, Ori said. There was nothing more worth to read, so she just put the device to a side. On the farthest wall was a door but it closed on an electronic key. If that was way on the level above, they should try it for sure. "Lacar, see if you can run a bypass against this lock."