Project Wonderland (ic)

[Lost Demiurge]

June 27, 2020, 0815
Las Vegas Area
Death Valley National Park

Bleached sand stretches from horizon to horizon, and rock outcroppings jut up from the ground like the twisted fingers of the damned.

This place has been relatively untouched by the end of the world, but you wouldn't know it, by looking at it.

But even here, new life has found a foothold. Found the climate pleasing.

A soft wind blows over the gravel road, and cloth twitches in its passing. A steady PLIP, PLIP, PLIP echoes throughout, and a crimson pool fills beneath the gory remnants of a hand.

The scavengers wait, and the scavengers watch. It is no chore. And when they are sure that the danger will not return, they stir with an unfolding of too many legs, and lope easily across the hardpan to the cluster of vehicles.

This feast will last them for weeks. Dead things are slow to rot, here. Just one of the benefits of this strange new land...

AREA 51
WONDERLAND HQ
BUILDING 12
0900

The grey man sat in his chair, and watched the clock with unblinking eyes. A pack of cigarettes sat unopened on his battered and scarred desk, and nicotene-stained fingernails tapped the oaken surface in sequence, as he patiently marked the minutes. Finally, after the hand passed 9 (No digital clocks here, the background radiation didn't sit well with unshielded electronics,) he picked up the tablet and spoke into it.

"The deadline is past. Get me team Epsilon."

Within minutes, you are contacted from wherever you're currently stationed in the facility. Within minutes, you are ushered down into the basement, to the simple office with paint peeling from the walls, with uncovered pipes running through the ceiling and several shabby, government-surplused chairs seated facing the black oak desk that occupies most of the office. The AR tablet resting on it is the only concession to modernization, every other part of this office could have come (and maybe did) directly from the 1940s.

The man behind the desk is known to you only as Mr. Carceri. He is a greyish-skinned, grey-haired unhealthy looking man perhaps in his 60's, thin and tall and somber. Yellowish eyes and fingernails bespeak a life hard spent, and he wears old grey suits with elbows patched many, many times over. The ties are always black and always immaculate.

In defiance of new regulations, he smokes. No one EVER gives him any grief about this. He does not offer you any cigarettes. He gets straight to business.

"As you may or may not know, we have established a small trade with the survivors of Vegas. The trade has primarily been a cover for gaining intel on the ongoing situation in the area, though the Diesel Fuel provided has been useful in refreshing the stockpiles of our larger vehicles."

"The last team we sent out to conduct the necessary exchanges has not returned. The latest GSAT ellipse confirms that their vehicles have not moved from the coordinates of the rendezvous. They have not re-established contact after their arrival on-scene, and are not responding to burst transmission."

"Your mission is to investigate the situation, retrieve what you can, and reconstruct the events that transpired."
He steeples his fingers and leans forward, cigarette dangling from the corner of his mouth.

"You have questions." A puff of grey smoke winds toward the ceiling...

[DeusMortuusEst]

Marcus

CLICK, CLICK, CLICK. Marcus's hands moved mechanically as he reassembled the weapon yet another time. He'd lost count on how many times he'd taken the rifle apart and put it together again. CLICK, another piece slid into place, perfectly oiled, polished until it shone. A few more seconds and the weapon, a Desert Strike rifle, lay on the plain steel table in front of him.

Marcus leaned back, and closed his eyes, shutting out the white room for a moment. They still hadn't moved him from the recovery department. Five months of R&R could drive any man crazy, and for Marcus it had been hell. Five months of pain, drugs and surgeries. Five months of strange new feelings and powers growing in his head and he had nothing to take it out on. So he shut it in and stayed silent. Anything to get back into the field.

The sudden beep from inside his head had him sit straight back up, frowning with pain. He still wasn't used to the commlink inside his head, and the tech guys hadn't been able to adjust the volume on the alarm properly. Some bug apparently.
"Termani. Report to Carceri's office at once. You are back in active duty."
That was it, the call he'd been waiting for and Marcus didn't hesitate.

A few minutes later he was on his way out the door, dressed in his combat gear. Active camouflage armor, pockets filled with various items for urban infiltration and combat. His Desert Strike was tightly fitted to his back and in his hand he carried a light assault rifle.

After Carceri's short briefing he stood silent for a moment before asking:
"Sir, yes sir. I have a few. What do we know about the individuals that the previous team were meeting up with? Has there been any sightings of bandersnatches or similar opposition? Do we have a time frame for this mission, or should we stay out as long as we judge necessary? How many members did the team consist of? We might need some way to confirm their identity, if we would find any alive. "

[Ghost49X]

David

Lying on the cot in his small cell David let his mind wander away. It had been a little while since they snatched him from the warehouse where the strange men had taken him to train. Training for something he still did not fully comprehend. They said he had a gift and with it great potential but he had to be guided along the path. The training had been strenuous yet ultimately incomplete when the suits had shown up, a bright flash and loud bang had disoriented him for but a few moments. When his sight came back to him the first and last thing he was was the butt of a rifle crashing into his skull. When he woke up he was in a small room with soldiers and a man with a suit waving a document "Play ball or we'll make you disappear" That document basically stated that they were short on manning and could use his help if he was willing to co-operate and the bullet that with his name should betray them. In hindsight it looked alot like the conspiracy theories he read on forums since he was a kid.

Still in the cell they put him in when he arrived as the paperwork to getting him better living arrangements is waiting to be processed, David heard a knock on the door and a soldier poked his head through "Come with us, Carceri wants to see you now." Putting on his long heavy black coat he looked at the guard and wondered when he'd get a gun. Though he'd been to the firing range several times they had yet to let him keep any firearm.
"Lead on"

Entering the small office David's eyes scanned the room and immeadiately picked up the man in armor with a rifle strapped to his back. Thats the guy thats going to shoot me if I run.

After the debriefing David lowers his eyes as the other(s) respond with questions, after Carceri answers any questions he steps up "Sir, about the quarters you said I'd get, I'm still sleeping in that jail cell, could you do something about it?"

[Toptomcat]

Paul

Paul sat on an examining table, stripped to the waist. A white-suited doctor leaned over to insert a small plug, about the size of a headphone jack, into an unobtrusive port in the small of his back. The diagnostic computer to his left flared to life, text scrolling onto the screen faster than the eye could follow:

SUMITOMO CYBERTECHNOLOGY LTD. REFLEX AUGMENTATION SYSTEM
Mk X Ver. 6.112
Copyright (c) 2007, 2015, 2019
Sumitomo Cybertechnology, Ltd.
All Rights Reserved
real mem = 8192 TB
avail mem = 32768 TB

primary data cache : 512KB
primary inst.cache : 768KB
secondary cache : 32768KB

BEGINNING SELF TEST…
CPU OK
MEM OK
NV1 (HED) OK
NV2 (TOR) OK
NV3 (ARM) OK
NV4 (LEG) OK
NV5 (ETC) OK
ALL SYSTEMS OK

The doctor smiled, unplugging the computer from Paul’s back with a satisfied grunt.
“Well, that just about wraps us up, Mr. Araraki. All of your implants are in fine shape- which is a damned good thing, since we don’t have replacement parts for half of them, and no prospect of getting any in a hurry. Did you have any questions?”

Paul nodded soberly.

“Yes, one. In Okinawa the immunosuppressants they gave us were bottles of syrup. There was a table we had to look up our daily dosage on based on gender, body weight, level of augmentation, level of activity, and a few other things. It took a bit of doing. Here, when I ask the quartermaster for immunosuppressants they give me a big white pill and tell me to take one a month. Now, should I be worried about that, or—“

The radio at his waist chirped abruptly.

“Master Sergeant Araraki, you are to report to Carceri’s office at once.”

At once Paul stood up and pulled on his armored vest and uniform shirt- dressing quickly and neatly, with the practiced ease of a career military man used to being turned out of bed and lined up for a uniform inspection at a moment’s notice.

“The short version, then. Am I going to keel over or not?”

“You’ll be just fine, Mr. Araraki. The Project’s medicine is somewhat more advanced-“

Paul cut the man’s explanation off with an apologetic nod, shook his hand firmly, and left the medical wing at a brisk pace. He arrived at Carceri’s office just after Marcus, and his eyebrows shot up as he took in the man’s stealth armor and assault rifle.

Oops. Was I supposed to be in full combat gear for this? I still haven’t fully gotten the hang of things around here…

When no chewing-out emerged before or during the briefing, Paul relaxed somewhat. Marcus’ questions covered most of what he wants to know, but when the sniper’s questions are fully dealt with, he chipped in with a few of his own.

"Sir, I have two further questions. Who will be in command for this mission, and how are we to get there?"

[Escheton]

Garet



Grease covered and zoned out like a chiphead, Garet was just doing some maintenance work when he hears the rithmic approach of steel-toed boots.

"State your business", the guard sent to retrieve him hears, coming from the intercom behind him.
He was busy. Well...sort of. It's more that he was precisely on schedule and in a flow. Which saved him a lot of caffeine-pills, nervous twitching and maintenance reports in staccato. So if he could hurry whatever this was up, all the better.

After being informed of the summon he reluctantly writes a quick log-update and heads to the basement, flanked by the guard to make sure he didn't simply return to his work.


Still outfitted like the grease-monkey meets hacker he is, he seems wholly under-dressed for this meeting.

"I should be able to answer that question. There happen to be one or two vehicles not found on any rosters. Pet projects you might say. They should fit the bill nicely."

"Now, what vehicles and gear where issued for the aforementioned mission? Serial numbers, please."

"I will need to requisition spare parts and materials to fit a workshop in my Citymaster. If you wish to increase the chances of retrieval for the diesel-truck."

[Lost Demiurge]

Carceri studies you for a long minute, letting all members of your team finish their questions before taking a long drag on the cigarette. Finally he nods at Marcus.

"The previous team was meeting with representatives of one of the larger gangs in Vegas, the Devil's Due. Intel indicates that they control a good portion of the Fremont Street area, and have managed to hold it against bandersnatch incursion. They have cemented their prosperity through protecting their people from attack, undertaking violence against other gangs, factions, and warlords, and bartering drugs."

He considers the cigarette for a second, and stubs it out. "Though they are not trustworthy by any means, mutual interest and profit, combined with overall security and watchfulness should have precluded treachery. The possibility cannot be ruled out, however."

"The Death Valley area has proven fairly free of Bandersnatch activity, though phenomena have been observed. As such, it has been an ideal venue for the exchange of goods."

"The time frame is flexible. As the situation is unknown, you will be required to assess the risk/reward ratio of the operation and act accordingly."

He reaches into his desk and pulls out a thumb drive. "This contains the dossiers for Team Mu, and includes the current recognition phrase sequence for their mission. Yours, incidentally, will be ASBESTOS - BISHOP. Team Mu will not recognize it. But in the event that we must send someone out for YOU, you will want to remember that word."

He looks to David. "Your quarters will be upgraded after the mission's completion." Without stopping, his gaze turns to Paul. "Ah yes, command structure. Now that you are on operational status, policy becomes a bit more flexible. Given that each team will be operating in an unknown environment in situations that require autonomy, Project Protocol dictates that it is left to each team to find their own leader. I suggest discussing it prior to the trip out. Nonetheless, I am your handler for this operation."

He looks to Garet. "Yes, your vehicle should be well suited for this task. The thumb drive provided contains vehicular information as well. Contact the quartermaster for whatever refits you deem necessary, as salvage is a priority. Also, we'll need to uplink your on-board comm to the satellite uplink. Though contact will be limited to a five-minute window every four hours, you will be required to check in at each window."

He leans back in the chair. "I recommend keeping the transmission tight and brief, barring emergency. Previous contacts have shown that some varieties of bandersnatch are drawn to transmissions."

[Toptomcat]

Paul

As those around him trickled in and began to ask questions, Paul gradually came to the uncomfortable realization that he was the only one in the room in uniform. His earlier worry that he was supposed to arrive in full combat gear gradually faded away, replaced by the suspicion that he's being sent on a wild goose chase to get rid of inconvenient or unreliable Project employees. After one of them chimed in with a request to be removed from their prison cell, that suspicion hardened into a certainty.

Well. This is hardly ideal. Still, lashing out at my hosts is unlikely to be productive, particularly if that reinforces perceptions about my political reliability. The only sensible thing to do is to be as professional as possible and deliver results. Hopefully this place is run rationally enough that it'll get me off of whatever **** list I've somehow blundered onto.

"Have we got any more specific intel on prominent Devil's Due members, dossiers on the Bandersnatch types known to have been sighted in the region, and an up-to-date map of the Death Valley area?"

[DeusMortuusEst]

Marcus

Looking at the crew gathering around him Marcus nodded at the questions. Sensible, most of them at least, and the people seemed to know what they're doing, thought most didn't look like army people. Or military people at all.

Guess I shouldn't be surprised, this war, or unit, isn't really the kind we used to handle.

"When are we leaving?" He knew what he needed and the urge to help, to be part of the fight, manifested as eagerness in his voice. At the same time he felt his body and subconscious react to the though of facing another bandersnatch. He started feeling queasy.

[Ghost49X]

David
Studying each person in the room for a little while, trying to get a feel of what a military type would say in such a situation. "Um Garet Sir? You're the one with the wheels right? When will they be ready to leave?"

[Escheton]

Garet


"One second."

Garet zones out as he checks duty rosters, available material and workload.

"Between the shop and the winch it should be a couple of days. Rushed job, but we have a good pitcrew.
So get some sleep, sharpen mind and weapons and do some reading or something. I'll be in the oil-pits."

With that he zones out again for a second to file the paperwork.
And if no other issues are brought to light, he runs off to the "gear and mobility" floor

[Lost Demiurge]

Carceri nods at Paul. "Intel on the Devil's Due members, such that we have, is on the thumb drive. I will say that the prominent members have not yet to date attended a rendezvous. Also, Death Valley has, to date, been free of Bandersnatch activity save for low-level "fauna" types. However, as our knowledge of the enemy is incomplete, take nothing for granted."

"You will find a map of Death Valley on the thumbdrive, and the GPS unit now being installed in agent Garet's vehicle. You will leave in 4 hours, as the modifications have been given priority and all full resources." He looks at Garet. "Your calculations are based off of a standard pit crew allocation. We've freed up the drones on this one, so things should get done a little faster than you expected."

He digs out another cigarette. "I have the utmost confidence in your success. Unless you have any more questions or issues, you have four hours to make whatever preparations you deem necessary."

[Ghost49X]

David
"k, I'm going to hit the bunk then, send someone to get me when you're ready to leave."

David takes a last glance at everyone around the room before leaving and returning to his cell. There he changes into comfortable traveling clothes and crashes on his bunk for a nap.

[Toptomcat]

Paul
Paul returns to his quarters and thoroughly reads through the contents of Carceri's thumb drive- Team Mu's dossiers and recognition phrase, the map, the information on Devil's Due members, and anything else it might contain. He plans out a general route for the team to take, as well as a few alternate paths- identifying potential ambush points along the way. He also consults whatever Project reference material he's cleared for to get a better idea of what a 'low-level fauna' Bandersnatch is and what kind of threat might be expected from one. Lastly, he takes a look at the dossiers of his own team.

He spends the time he has remaining on cleaning and checking both of his swords, all three firearms, and his armor. Finally, he gathers and packs the rest of his equipment, puts on his armor, and heads out to the motor pool to meet Garet as the modifications to the group's ride finish up- swinging by to get David on the way.

Paul buys one success each on his Perception and Navigation tests to analyze the material on the thumb drive, as well as his Military Knowledge skill test to ID potential ambush points. He also buys a success on each of the Armorer tests he makes to inspect and clean his gear- he uses dry lubricants for his guns, since the Death Valley area is definitely a desert region.

[DeusMortuusEst]

Marcus

Saluting, the ex-military turns and follows the rest of his team out the door. He retreats to his quarters and spends the next few hours to go over his gear once again, making sure that everything is working properly. Then he visits the tech-guys and lets them run some tests on his new tech and finally fixing that damn alarm sound issue.

The last hour he sits quietly in his room, clearing his mind and focusing on the mission ahead. This will be the first time he'll have a chance to test his new abilities and gadgets on the field, and he's nervous.

[Lost Demiurge]

Paul reads up on the information in the thumb drive...

Team Mu was a four-man cell. The agents' names were Argyle, Matthews, Scorte, and Williams. Pictures are included... Williams is a woman, the rest are male. Argyle and Scorte have some light cyber augmentation, and Matthews is psychic. Williams is just very, very good at her job. (Negotiations and diplomacy.)

The cell was combat rated at about half your team's potential, and driving a cargo-hauler semi with a chase car supporting. (mid-sized, four-door.)

Information on the Devil's Due high-ups is sparse. Looks like most of them were a spinoff from the Hell's Angels... A local chapter was passing through on their way to sturges when the event hit. They holed up in Fremont street and started collecting guns, supplies, and refugees. They've had a good deal of success fending off the smaller Bandersnatch incursions, and they're mobile enough to draw and lead the larger, stupider ones away from their turf. Their leader is a man named Whole-hog Mcgee, wanted for quite a lot of crimes back in the day, most of them involving drugs. There's also an ex-Marine called Striker, who seems to be Mcgee's lieutenant, and their chief war planner. They've been joined recently by a madwoman named Trips, who seems to have some sort of psychic potential... She's apparently exhibited telekinesis in front of many witnesses. She's their chief artillery against both rival gangs and the more dangerous Bandersnatches.

As far as "fauna" classifications go, Paul finds a couple of theories on the Project discussion forums. Namely that the "White Rabbit" anomalies are gates to another world, and that not everything that wanders through is planned or coordinated for hostile effect, and thus deserves a new classification other than the catch-all "bandersnatch". Small scavengers that seem to fill the niches of rats or racoons over there, or larger herbivores that fill the niches of deer have been sighted... Of course, the rat/racoon equivalents turn into voracious predators when in swarms, and the "deer" seem to be able to spit burning bloodlike substance up to 40 feet when provoked, and can strip an acre's worth of plants to barren soil in about a week if given the chance, so they're still generally regarded as dangerous as hell.

-----

And soon, all preparations are done. The Citymaster is reconfigured and ready, and rolls out under the hot sun. You snap into the planned route, and start making your way southwest, navigating by the satellite and by the driver's familiarity with the area. The sat's only good for about 10 minutes out of every four hours, before its trajectory spins it out of range and use...

[Toptomcat]

Paul
Paul is quite a sight decked out in full armor. He's not much to look at out of it: solidly built, like any infantryman, but a hair shorter than average. But the boots add a half-inch of height, and the armor plating makes him look a whole hell of a lot bigger. It's not designed like modern battle dress: its use of rigid plates makes him look like a medieval knight or samurai in urban camo. The pair of swords at his hip (?!?) helps this impression along considerably.

"I've been going through Team Mu's dossier. There were four of them..."

He gives the team a brief summary of the flash drive's contents as they get under way.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As the Citymaster rolls out towards their destination, Paul drives as Garet scouts ahead in his own little vehicle. He also keeps a sharp eye out for threats both human and inhuman, particularly at the points he'd earlier identified as ideal for an ambush.

Using the previous Navigation roll. Perception roll: [roll0][roll1][roll2][roll3][roll4][roll5][roll6]- Intuition 3, Perception 1, +3 dice for actively looking for threats. Ignore the last three dice for anything interesting that *isn't* a threat that Paul might see. Note that his flare comp, thermo, and vision magnification mods negate many visibility penalties: for any that still apply, remove dice from right to left.
So that's two hits for just seeing things in general, and three for spotting threats in particular.

[Lost Demiurge]

June 27, 2020, 1423
Las Vegas Area
Death Valley National Park


The APC comes to a halt just below a long, high ridge. You've followed a gravel road out this way for the bulk of the trip...

The only things you've passed by that are unusual are a few scattered pieces of Burn phenomena... A rock pillar reshaped to look like a bony claw, a stand of writhing cactus, and a sinkhole in the ground lined with teeth. All of them have been tagged and reported previously according to your nav software, so there's no action required on them.

At one point, a flock of SOMETHINGs flew across the sun, but it was too far away to see what they might have been. They didn't move like birds... But they didn't approach, so confirmation is impossible.

Just over the ridge, and about a quarter-mile along the road, the sat-cam snapshot taken four hours back revealed Wonderland's semi-hauler and the chase car sitting still by the side of the road.

The sensors on the outside of your APC pick up the distant keening of the wind, and the slide of sand over sand. Nothing more.

What now?

[TheMightyQuinn]

Gonzo

*Sitting with his back straight and his LMG between his legs, Gonzo almost seems to be a part of the APC for the start of journey, almost blending into the background, as though he's hardly there. He wears less armor than most of the others - a thick military issue jumpsuit, but no combat armor to speak of other than his helmet. Despite that, he's easily as bulky as the others fully armored.*

*His deep brown eyes are half-lidded and relaxed as the ride rocks along their path, and he almost seems asleep, until he speaks, his voice just loud enough to carry over the noise of the vehicle.*
"So - I've read the info that Carceri was passing out. Been a while since I've had to deal with personel files, but it didn't seem like Team Mu were pushovers. I'm guessing that's why we've got so much firepower this time around."
*He gives the others an appraising look and shrugs.*
"Names Matias, though everyone calls me Gonzo. You need someone up close, I'm your man, no questions asked. Me and Suzy here.."
*He reaches up to tap the handle of the axe across his back with a smile*
"We're real good at opening doors too, so don't be afraid to ask me to take point."

[DeusMortuusEst]

Marcus

As the APC slows down, Marcus activates his comm, reaching out to the team on their private network.
"Right, looks like we're here. I'd like to scout out the place before we drive any closer. Anyone against that? If I can get someone to cover me I'll move up to the top of the ridge and see what lies ahead."

[TheMightyQuinn]

Gonzo

*Cranking his head to the side, Gonzo gives his neck a loud crack before standing up as much as he can in the APC, using one hand to hold his weapon, the other to brace himself on the ceiling.*
"I'm good to go when you are - I know enough to keep my head down and not be seen, despite my size."

*With a smile, he looks excited for the first time, a gleam in his eys*
"And besides that - if things get crazy, I want to be the first one to get to party."

[Ghost49X]

David
Sitting near the back of the APC David wears a thick black leather trench coat reinforced with armor plates, easily the less military looking member of the team. David keeps to himself for most of the ride though he does give Marcus a thoughtful glare as a thought crosses his mind, if anyone notices all he says is "We will see"

During the travel he grabs as much sleep as he can, slowly getting used to the bouncy ride in a vehicle obviously designed for combat over comfort. When Gonzo introduces himself, David nods "David" before shifting positions for another nap.

As the APC rolls to a stop David snaps awake, before the recon team heads out
"Wait" Steadying himself on the APC he closes his eyes in concentration and lets his soul leave his body. At the speed of though he quickly scouts the astral for any nearby activity


Assuming he didn't find anything to report

Opening his eyes again he moves to the door and looks out at Marcus,
"Before you leave, I've got something for you"
his eyes narrowing slightly in concentration while his whispers something indistinguishable under his breath.


Casts Improved invisibility at force 3 on Marcus
[roll0]
drain
[roll1]
Letting his foci sustain the enchantment he goes on to do the same towards Gonzo (also force 3)
[roll2]
drain
[roll3]
sustaining this one himself
if you have any questions about the effects of the spell ask in the OOC thread, also if ether of you have magic resistance or something else affects my dice rolls I'll reroll in the ooc. (Yes this spell works against technological sensors)

One by one Marcus and gonzo fade out, becoming transparent. David smiles and sits back in the APC, closing his eyes again he lets his soul slip out again. Manifesting slightly a ghostly David says "I will be watching" before fading out.

[DeusMortuusEst]

Marcus

Nodding his thanks at first, before realizing that it won't do much now that he's invisible, Marcus turned to David and mutters.
"Thanks, this will be handy. I'll move up the ridge, and find a good spot by the side of the road. Once I'm in position I'll scout of the area and get back in touch with you guys here." With that said he climbs out of the APC and heads up the slope, assault rifle ready, making sure to mark his progress to Gonzo so that he isn't mistaken for an enemy and ends up with that axe in his head.

It doesn't take too long before the veteran sniper is in position up on the ridge, his sniper rifle resting on its bipod in front of him. Using his newly installed eyeware he doesn't have to rely on binoculars any more. Just by thinking he is able to zoom his vision in and out as he wants, and he scans the area ahead several times, both with normal vision and in thermal mode.

"Huh, fancy." He says, impressed by the new tech.

OOC
Perception test: Intuition 4, Perception 4, vision enhancer, rank 3, total 11. [roll0]

[Escheton]

Garet

With the vehicles at standstill Garet does a quick maintenance check-up using his vision implants and knowledge to check down to the engine-blocks without having to open or unscrew a single thing.
He grabs a simple airpump to blow loose some sand and debris while doing a system check via his commlink.

"S'how's the ride?"

[Lost Demiurge]

DAVID
Your astral trip is easy. Out here, the veil is a lot clearer than you're used to... You don't get the weird distorting effects that you associate with radiation, and the life here is sparse enough that the auras of the various lichens, insects, and other minor forms don't interfere with your sweep.

David finds no immediate astral activity, though there seems to be a wrecked vehicle of some sort three hundred yards away from the other team's vehicles. There is a soft glow of some sort of psychic force emanating from within the wrecked vehicle. Unfortunately, the wreck is obscuring it. The only way to see what's in there astrally is to poke your head into the wreck... Right into the middle of the glow.

MARCUS

Marcus climbs out and finds a position on the ridge. The merciless sun of death valley beats down upon him. The air has practically no moisture in it, though a cool breeze is constantly wending its way around.

Marcus sees the gravel road ahead, stretching off toward more hills past the valley. There are Team Mu's vehicles... Their windows are wrecked, their tires are holed, and glass shards litter the ground for a fifty foot radius. Glittering metal streaks, countless numbers of them, show through on the truck and car, as the paint on them looks to have been covered with thousands of scratches.

There appears to be a body or something of equivalent size and shape in the front seat of the car. Marcus would have to approach further to determine any additional details, the car's frame, the body's slumped posture, and the distance are a bit much from his current position.

Further down the road, about 300 yards away from the other vehicles, the remains of a couple of motorcycles and an old pickup truck are wrecked in and around a long, wide gulch.


OOC: Roll me a survival check, please.

[DeusMortuusEst]

Marcus

Sweat starts to run down Marcus' forehead. While providing good camoflague and even some protection, his suit wasn't very good at keeping down the temperature. But he was fairly used to it by now. With a tought he opens up the comm-link channel again.
"Marcus here. I can see the rendevouz point. Team Mu left their transportation behind, as did the Devil's Due boys, or at least some of them. There seems to have been some kind of fight, as far as I can tell the vehicles are completely wrecked. I think we have a body in one of the cars, but I'm unable to identify it, or say wether the individual is alive or not. It is also possible that some kind of mine took out the cars. Lots of small marks on them"

He pauses for a moment, sweeping his gaze over the area one more time.
"No signs of any hostile activity. Or any activity at all for that matter. I'll leave it up to you to decide how we proceed from here. Anything changes I'll contact you again."

OOC
No points in survival, defaulting: [roll0]