Turn 2

[Apachetear]

Location: Outskirts of Hadley’s Hope
Mission Time Index: 0:02:05

As soon as the Marines of the First Squad entered the area containing the dropship, the Second Squad re-entered the APC and Priest began to drive them over to the other APC. “Marines, it takes a lot to knock out an APC and from the intel we have received there is nothing remotely big enough that is indigenous to this planet
<Tag Second Squad>

"makes me feel so safe to be driving over in this one then..." chuckled Jacob. "although being on foot might not be an amazing idea given that..." he continued across the logical stepping stones.

Idly he checked his gun, again. It was a nervous habit when in transit. Nervous to the point of obsessive.

[Nicole Grayham]

Niki followed the orders and sat inside the APC. She noticed the tension from Honeyset and was relieved. Thank god she wasn´t the only one.

„Big enough to knock out an APC? We are in an APC, too. Hopefully it did not enjoy and won´t see us as dessert.“

She grinned nervosly a little bit. Bad joke, but a joke at least. But she had a bad feeling about the "APC knocking out thing".

[Corporal Hicks]

After the perimeter had been cleared, Corporal Sykes got back into the APC. He sat down and waited for it to reach the wreckage. Danny noticed a couple of his squad seeming nervous. "Take it easy, guys. It probably got damaged when the facility blew up. Unless you think they have 50 foot T-Rex's or something!"
<Tag Honeysett, Grayham>

When the APC was near the target, Sykes got up. He was in charge here, and he savored that thought. "Okay, When we get there I want Perez and Grayham to take point. Set up a perimeter. Private Wang, I want you to keep that motion tracker running, and I may need you to get us into that wreckage. Honeysett, me and you will investigate the target. Everyone got it?"
<Tag Second Squad>

The APC ground to a halt. Sykes pulled the heavy sliding door aside and let Perez and Grayham exit. He followed Wang and Honeysett out and scanned the surroundings. Then he made his way to the wreckage of the APC.
(Roll awareness)

[JuanPerez]

<Location: APC -> Area outside Hadley's Hope, near downed APC>

Perez provided cover for the whole section, while retreating to the APC. He deactivated the smartgun-system, unzipped and unclipped the weapon in near-record time, slipped into the entrance and stowed away the gun. Then he took his combat seating, as the APC started the short trip. That gut-feeling he had outside, was still there, stronger than ever, and he did not like it at bit. As soon as he was tucked in, he took some nips of his canteen and started thinking, his face featureless as ever. The energy drink boosted his circulatory one more, and he had this distaint feeling, that he would need this kind of edge sooner than later. Although he was not the brightest star in universe concerning his intellect, it was clear to him, that there was no chance, that the dropship, APC and processing plant got fragged by coincidence. Something bad happened there and they did not know yet, what they were up against. He had heard of incidents at this kind of "shake 'n bake" colonies. Terrarfoming was a rough business, it was a harsh life and not everybody got along with it. Some people got depressed or snapped, because they could not stand it any more. But there was not the slightest chance the all coloniest got a nerv breakdown at the same time. According to intels there were no indigenios life-forms on LV-426, so this kind of threat was not present, too. He remembered the briefing of the colonel. Didn't she mentioned a "boogie man"? Yeah, right, this Ripley-girl said something about that. Was there .... His thoughts came to halt appruptely, because the APC stopped, and his mind came back to reality.

Danny gave orders, while he pulled up his safety restraint and prepared for exit ...

"Yes, Corporal, understood, Gray and me will cover your asses"

... then he saw Sykes, Honeysett, Wang and Grayham moving out. He was last, jumping out on the soaked surface. He had the smartgun ready in a couple of seconds and closed the APCs door ...

"Second squad dispersing completed"

... he reported the status, then took a few seconds to get aware of the situation. The other APC was about 30 yards away, and about 20 in front of the colonie's entrance. The colonie was surounded by a protective wall. The wall seemed to be intact, despite the fact of the explosion. The area around the other APC was not scattered with debries or that kind of stuff.

"Grayham, you will stay here near our APC and cover the backward area, i will move up halfway to the other APC and cover the colony area. Stay sharp"
<Tag Grayham>

... he moved slowly and careful, tripping would be deadly and as he reached position, he took an intense look towards the area of the colony ...

<Roll Awareness - Level Professional>

[- JR -]

"Private Wang, I want you to keep that motion tracker running, and I may need you to get us into that wreckage. [...] Everyone got it?"
<Tag Second Squad>

"Yessir!" She puttered around the area, slouched over the tracker. She stared intently at it with her large, strange eyes, seemingly oblivious to all else.

[Medic Guy]

Lighting a cigarette he scanned the distance. "First squad,on me ready for search and rescue. There could be survivors from the colony or some Marines. Someone who could tell us what the hell happened here."
<TAG FIRST>

Looking over at Clint he leaned in and spoke in a low tone."Looks that way doc. Something bad happened here, some kind of bad accident." Then he returned to looking at the distance for and clues.
<Tag Clint>

Clint listened to the corporal and agreed with his thinking, as he followed behind his squad leader. "I don't like the looks of this place, everything just seems wrong here." he replied back scanning back and forth across the broken landscape.

"Hey Clint, can you toss me a band-aid?" Uhtred said with a cheeky grin. Uhtred thought it was always smart to stay on good terms with the medic.
<Tag McKenna>

"Stub your toe already man?" Clint questioned looking over Uhtred while opening up the medkit for whatever supplies were needed. Seeing no extensive injury anywhere, he pulled a band-aid and handed it over. "Here ya go big fella."

Dirk followed the sergeant into the wreckage field. ""What a mess." He said absently as he scanned the area. Not much to the wreckage, but no bodies either. Maybe in the cockpit, but the hold wasn't loaded with Marines or civilians. Pulling out a cigarette he cupped his hand around the lighter, protecting the small flame against the wind, he lit the cigarette.

He hailed Priest on his comms unit."What do ya think Priest? Maybe the APC and dropship got caught up in the blast as they were trying to evacuate the civilians. Maybe that's what took them out."
<Tag Priest>

Clint tried to sneak a decent glance at the wreckage for signs of blood or body parts thinking to himself that it wasn't likely to be present anymore with the dust and grit constantly scouring the landscape. There appeared to be burn scoring on sections of the wreckage, but no apparent bullet holes or similar damage showed. "Don't see any bullet holes anywhere boss." He returned his attention to the landscape with his rifle at the low ready as he scanned what was around him.

<Tag 1st Squad>

[Dirk Pitt]

Dirk followed the sergeant into the wreckage field. ""What a mess." He said absently as he scanned the area. Not much to the wreckage, but no bodies either. Maybe in the cockpit, but the hold wasn't loaded with Marines or civilians. Pulling out a cigarette he cupped his hand around the lighter, protecting the small flame against the wind, he lit the cigarette.

He hailed Priest on his comms unit."What do ya think Priest? Maybe the APC and dropship got caught up in the blast as they were trying to evacuate the civilians. Maybe that's what took them out."
<Tag Priest>

Clint tried to sneak a decent glance at the wreckage for signs of blood or body parts thinking to himself that it wasn't likely to be present anymore with the dust and grit constantly scouring the landscape. There appeared to be burn scoring on sections of the wreckage, but no apparent bullet holes or similar damage showed. "Don't see any bullet holes anywhere boss." He returned his attention to the landscape with his rifle at the low ready as he scanned what was around him.

<Tag 1st Squad>

Dirk nodded in agreement."No bullett holes. No nothing. It's like it just fell out of the sky. If it wasn't shot down, then maybe the APP went up and they were caught in the blast. That would explain the crash, but not the lack of bodies. When those plants go up there should be a warning as the systems failed. What the hell were they waiting for?"
<Tag Clint>

"Hay sarge, I might just be parinoid, but I can't shake the feeling we are being watched."
<Tag the Sargent>

(Roll scout and awareness)

[Apachetear]

"Take it easy, guys. It probably got damaged when the facility blew up. Unless you think they have 50 foot T-Rex's or something!"
<Tag Honeysett, Grayham>

"or something eh?" Jacob trailed off...

Honeysett, me and you will investigate the target. Everyone got it?"

"yes sir" Jacob replied as he exited the APC. Rifle at the ready. His nerves were jangling. Alert, mindful of the wreckage surrounding him. He moved with Sykes. Wondering what could have caused this, and how far away it had gone. "any theories?" he muttered, as they moved forward.

<roll awareness> <Tag Sykes>

[Nicole Grayham]

<Location: APC -> Area outside Hadley's Hope, near downed APC>

Nicole moved outside and looked around once again.
„T-Rex would be cool in a zoo or something like that. I read Jurassic Park.“
But she only wanted to make herself brave while she was talking.

"Grayham, you will stay here near our APC and cover the backward area, i will move up halfway to the other APC and cover the colony area. Stay sharp"

„Yes Sir.“
She followed Perez and took a position half the way between him and the apc, but outside the range of the smartgun. So she could cover him and the rest of the squad.
And Niki was realy tense and watched the surroundings. The first mission and she knew she would never forget.

<roll awareness>

The whole place looked like after a war and she tried to guess or realize what might have happened here.

<roll scouting>

[Cassiopaja Caleija]

Caleija went with the others of her squad.
Still, she didn't speak much but she were focussed on the view both eyes and smartgun presented to her.
She had seen aircraft crashes before, she even had seen a spacecraft crash, once. But something was wrong and the talk of the guys about the feeling of being watched didn't make it any better.
"It could have been a technical defect, right before the landing," she said, to nobody specifically except perhaps to herself.

<tag first squad>

At least, this would have been a simple explanation - she simply didn't believe in simple explanations.
Her view and that of her smartgun went around, searching, watching, looking for details of elaborated explantations, for bodies - dead or (not very likely) alive -, for hints of any danger.

<roll awareness>

[JuanPerez]

<Location: Area outside Hadley's Hope, near downed APC from the USS Sulaco>

Perez concentrated on the area towards the colony. As the fencing was still intact, he naturally focused his attentions on the gate area. He let the smartgun strieve from one side to the other, but the auto-targeting-system did not pick up anything yet. He wondered, what the examination of the downed APC would reveal. Hopefully, a useful clue about what happened here. To ride into battle was dangerous enough, but the fact that they did not know what they were up against annoyed him. Nevertheless, orders were clear and had to be obeyed. Sykes said "Cover", so they covered the other squad members during their investigation. As he observed the area, the feeling of being watched, did not diminish. Huh, what was that? Movement? No, just another shadow. Where the hell did all the people go? It was next to impossible, that they were all killed by the blow. Shouldn't their arrival not have an effect of light to moths for any potential survivors? But maybe the situation inside the colonie complex was much worse, than they thought. People turn into beasts if it is about survival and the situation is desperate enough. How long was the colonie off-line? Around a month or so. Maybe the supply situation is desperate and inside the colonie complex reigned chaos, fighting and killing for food and water. Too many speculations. He was not paid to think, but to follow orders and pull the trigger fast enough, if the need arose.

After studying the scene in the colonie for quite a while, he noticed, that the colonie's buildings were quite in good shape, at least from his point of view of the distance, despite the fact, that the atmospheric processing plant detonated not that far away. Even so more astonishing, that there was not the slightest movement, at least not in the area he could see. Weren't there over a hundred inhabitants? Where the hell were they? Did the locked themselfs away in the deepest basement, waiting for rescue, while playing poker?

"The colonie builidings seem to be intact. But the area is dead, man, quite dead. No movement, no people, nothin. At least, this is what i can see from here. Maybe we should ring the door-bell, hombres."

... he mumbled into the mike

<Roll Awareness - Level Professional>
<Tag Eights>

[Pale Rider]

"Hay sarge, I might just be parinoid, but I can't shake the feeling we are being watched."
<Tag the Sargent>

Sgt. Jonsson looked over at Corporal Pitt, "Yeah, something sure as heck isn't right. I just wish we could have some better intel on this crap."

[Pale Rider]

Dirk crouched over the shattered dropship cockpit as he tried to make sense out of the clues that were left. The bodies of the to pilots were gone, but a thin film of dried blood covered the shattered canopy. Standing up he looked around the area. He had seen crashed aircraft, both from accident and shoot down, but something here didn't add up. Something was wrong, but he couldn't quite figure out what.

Lighting yet another cigarette he backed away from the crash. "Something about this. I can't put my finger on it, but something is wrong about this bird falling out of the sky." He said trying to figure it out.
<Tag first squad>

Turning back to the wreck he went back to checking the area.

(Roll awareness and scouting)

(Reposted for Dirk)

[maxvale76]

Samantha Hall kept her Pulse Rifle at the ready as she scanned the area and kept her eyes and ears on the wreckage all around them. "There any kinda hardware on the planet that could shoot down a Dropship Corp"? Sam asked Pitt with a confused tone....

[Dirk Pitt]

Samantha Hall kept her Pulse Rifle at the ready as she scanned the area and kept her eyes and ears on the wreckage all around them. "There any kinda hardware on the planet that could shoot down a Dropship Corp"? Sam asked Pitt with a confused tone....

Dirk looked up from the shattered cockpit for a moment. "I don't think so. This wasn't a military outpost or even a research colony. Chances are all they had was some small arms and some charges for seismic soundings. Nothing that could take out a dropship unless they they got it inside. But why the hell would they? I mean, hitting Marines to keep this rock?"
<Tag Sam>