"It would be too much to expect a chair or cot. " looking at all the odd equipment.
"You should sit down and not touch anything." Fifteen replies. "I will investigate." The first thing she does is make sure that the door is shut, before beginning a thorough investigation.
Fifteen deduces that the metal pillar is some sort of advanced energy storage or generation device, which still somehow retains its charge but is currently not powering anything.
The golden panel on it seems to act like a switch of some sort.
The purpose of the glass round table is unclear but it could be a workplace of some sort or a place for having councils perhaps? It is large enough to fit Kolsch on its mirror-smooth surface at least.
The desk definitely seems like a place to control or keep track of something, what with all the different lights, buttons, glass panels, and wires coming out of it - most disappearing under the wall but some coming to the other devices in the room. Curiously some of the controls are inscribed with pictograms resembling sun, moon, and rain clouds, among others.
The symbols on the lockers are probably giving some sort of danger warning - though whether they should be opened in case of danger or the danger follows from opening them is hard to tell. Fifteen carefully tries to pull them but they are currently locked and won't budge.
Kolsch will raggedly take a seat on the floor, grunting in pain.
Seeing that Kolsch is still weak Fifteen simply works on alone. Her first investigation after the lockers is to begin experimenting with the pictograms, starting with the sun.
Fifteen begins pressing the various buttons and switches on the desk, but nothing seems to be happening. After some thought and wire-tracing, Fifteen comes to the conclusion that whatever the desk is controlling is likely powered by the pillar. She tells Kolsch to stand by the door and attempt to escape if anything bad happens, and presses the golden panel.
This causes the room to suddenly whir and hum, and the pillar of purple metal flashes and begins to pulsate. A series of muffled clicking and buzzing sounds echo through the walls, and a moment later, the circular table in this room flares to light, and a flickering translucent hemisphere appears on it. The hemisphere looks clearly artificial with its perfectly smooth grey walls, but within you can see a desert riddled by natural-looking cliffs. You realize this is an image of the desert you've just been through.
Numerous panels on the wall switch on, but most show nothing except random patterns of black and white dots. A few panels still work - one shows a lifeless desert illuminated by rays of a rising sun, quite a bit more crimson-hued than what you are used to, another shows a dark cavern with some bones and small objects scattered on the floor, and yet another one shows the room you've just been in - the creature which almost killed you is standing still at the side of the room, looking at something at a wall you cannot see on the image.
With time and light Fifteen manages to crack the locks one after the other.
Kolsch will watch for as long as he can before he nods off in a nap.
As Fifteen begins tinkering with the locked panel and the wiring leading to it, suddenly a cascade of sparks shoots from a nearby panel!
Luckily, she manages to cut off the power supply to the burning wire quickly and the fireworks die out, following by a curious hissing noise. The pungent scent of some burning unnatural substance fills the air for a few minutes - but at least the locker with the red cross is now open!
After a few more button presses, the locker with the yellow triangle clicks open too, and a shrill voice loudly speaks out in an unknown language, repeating the same phrase several times.
As you empty the locker contents, you feel a barely audible tremor rippling through the ground, as if something distant had shifted or even exploded.
The locker with a red cross contains three items:
- A white case with a red cross drawn on it. The case is closed with latches but they easily open, revealing a set of elastic and non-elastic ribbons, translucent masks and tubes, small vials with liquids - some transparent, others brightly coloured, and other paraphernalia.
This looks like emergency medical gear which, if applied properly, can greatly enhance the attempts to heal traumas or wounds.
- Two sealed capsules with pictograms on them depicting a human silhouette with a red fountain coming out of its arm, and then the same silhouette without any extras. Inside the capsules are small plastic tubes filled with liquid, with a thin metal needle sticking out of one end and a small piston on another end.
These are devices designed to inject their contents in the recipient's bloodstream. The substance itself is supposed to stop bleeding and promote the natural self-healing capabilities of the body. You are not sure that the compound can still retain its properties after the countless years spent in this locker.
The locker with a yellow triangle contains seven items:
- Two sealed capsules with tiny round yellow-tinted pills. The pictograms depict a running human silhouette with goggles.
These pills are supposed to enhance the users' perception and reaction time, but they work by stimulating the body natural threat response, making it difficult to concentrate on any one task. You are not sure that the compound can still retain its properties after the countless years spent in this locker.
- Two sealed capsules with tiny oval red-tinted pills. The pictograms depict a muscled human silhouette with a big red heart and a question mark over its head.
These pills are supposed to revitalize the body at the cost of mental acuity. You are not sure that the compound can still retain its properties after the countless years spent in this locker.
- a strange small handheld weapon with a conical edge and concentric circles around it. It looks to be damaged - the handle has partially melted away and some strange liquid metal-like substance leaks from it.
This used to be a gun which could produce powerful low-frequency blasts of energy that pummel targets, potentially knocking them prone or rendering them unconscious - but it looks to be broken beyond repair.
- Two palm-sized metal cylinders with labels, one depicting a circled and crossed ear, and another depicting a circled and crossed eye. At one end they have a dial and a button.
These are thrown weapons that explode on impact when primed and charged. The one with the ear generates a deafening bang, while the one with the eye explodes in a flash of blinding light.
Woken up by 15's expression of glee at finding all the goodies, Kolsch will try the healing equipment on himself.
Feeling a bit better, he offers to use one of the packs on 15.
"Are you injured? "
"An interesting selection." Fifteen comments. "These ones should heal us of damage." She passes them to Kolsch. "These appear to be some kind of stimulant - I think they would improve ones reactions, although the ramifications could be considerable. And these are grenado's. If they are thrown they will create a large amount of light or noise. They might be of use later."
She stashes the grenades in her belt, before she met her father she'd seen a few things like this in the scrap heap. "I once trod on one of these." She remarks conversationally as Kolsch applies the healing device to her. "I couldn't see for three days. I don't know what the rest will do - but if we keep them safe I'll examine them properly later."
on Kolsch
"Those devices are amazing, I feel almost totally restored to function. "
"Ok, time to rescue Baleiro, now that we're better. "
"We should begin with the grenades. Damaging our comrade would be unfortunate, but damaging the creature would be of great value. You open the door."
"That works as a plan. I'll try to enhance my weapon against evil in case it is. "
Returning quietly to the door Fifteen primes the flash grenade and waits for Kolsch to finish his enhancements. She then counts down from three and throws the grenade into the room the moment Kolsch has opened the door far enough.
Kolsch will sacred weapon with the good blessing right before opening the door for the grenade toss. Once tossed, he will wait for the satisfying kaboom, then open it again.
Kolsch swipes the door at Fifteen's count, and swipes it shut again just in time to catch a glimpse of the four-armed silhouette turning into a shadow against the rays of blinding white light beaming out of the quickly vanishing space between the door halves. There is no satisfying kaboom though, just a low-pitched whoomp.
Charging into the room, you find the creature turned to face you, its empty unblinking eyes fixated on your forms and burning with unnatural malevolence. . Behind it, a large window, previously pitch-black, is now illuminated with the red-tinted rays of the distant sun rising over a desert.
Although disappointed to see that the creature was unaffected by the grenade they clearly have the drop on it so Fifteen moves quickly to take advantage.
Moving in time with Kolsch she flanks the creature and strikes hard.
Kolsch will try out his weapon with its new enhancement on the creature.
aligned good, flank
but it seems that the team is just not having any luck
Fifteen and Baleiro hold the door, ready to defend themselves, while the creature moves out of its corner to get a clear line of sight and hurls a javelin at Kolsch:
The javelin misses but instead hits a nearby column and ricochets into a chair, where Baleiro's lifeless body is propped up and slumped. The tip pierces the furniture an inch away from Baleiro's head.
Fifteen skirts the creatures range, leaping over a table as she does so and sprinting across its surface before coming down behind the creature. As Kolsch strikes from the front Fifteen lashes out from behind, looking to trip their opponent.
The creature parries Kolsch's attacks with the same deadly grace as before. Fifteen uses the distraction to vault past the furniture and appear behind it, attempting to trip the creature. For a brief moment it looks like the creature is going to lose its balance, but it uses the momentum to spin around and manages to regain its footing.
In no position to retreat again Fifteen does her best - the creatures last moments made it clear that the legs were vulnerable, so she lashes out low again and strikes for its knees.
Kolsch will try to attack the thingy as well
sacred blade (good), flank
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AOO
Fifteen retries her maneuver and this time the creature slips on a trickle of the thin artificial blood leaking from her wounds and falls over! It lets out a sound which might have been a roar if its throat hadn't dried out millenia ago, but is now little more than a whisper: "ZIE-FESS"!
Kolsch definitely notices that the creature is vulnerable to his holy strike, though the piercing nature of his weapon still makes it harder to inflict the damage.
It gets up amidst a flurry of strikes raining down upon it:
Now heavily wounded, it attacks Fifteen again:
Fifteen attempts to bring the creature down once more:
, but the creature guards its position well this time.
Kolsch will continue to attack the thing,
sacred, flanking
Kolsch wounds the creature again. It hisses: "HE-TU-ATH!" as it unleashes its rage on the warpriest:
Fifteen, seeing that the creature is close to destruction, lashes out in a flurry of strikes aimed at bringing it down:
But she is also exhausted and fails to harm her enemy.
In a last ditch effort Kolsch stabs once more with his rapier.
sacred weapon, flank
The creature falls to its knees, vanquished. With its last movement it turns its large inhuman head towards the big window, where at this moment the clouds part and the big red sun casts its crimson rays over all of you. You think you hear a hint of some complex emotion through the creature's last breath, as it exhales: "KASATH..." before its remains are reduced to a pile of ashes before your eyes.
-Posted with Wayfinder
Kolsch will will comment "That was far closer than suits me. " he will then go check to see if Baeiro is dead or just mostly dead.
If it is possible to save him, he will use one of the medical kits
Thanks to the nanites working to repair the critical damage to his body, Baleiro still clings to life, though his pulse is faint and slow, and the breathing barely noticeable.
Kolsch tends to the worst of Baleiro's wounds and begins working on assisting his breathing and heartbeat. After a few minutes of resuscitation, Baleiro opens his eyes.
Fifteen says calmly, mimicking her sister's words without the emotion or tact: "It's time to get up, Baleiro - look, the sun is shining. Did you have sweet dreams? Let's keep looking for for my father."
Fifteen notices that the walls of the room are painted with dozens of crude images of a pickaxe made of an elongated skull and bones using some sort of ivory pigment, along with several phrases in an unrecognizable language.