illinois ♔ and the message coming from my eyes

[spellfile]

WHO || Andrew, Zero, Han, Rocket, Klaus
WHAT || The Knights investigate some strange events  around a farmhouse in Illinois
WHERE || Metropolis Kansas
WHEN || April 20th, 2015
HOW || Actionspam

The route to the Moore residence is a secluded, gavel-topped county road that meanders through fields and farmland.  The roiling stormclouds and lack of city lights make the countryside seem unusually dark and forbidding.  A battered mailbox on the right side of the road indicates the Moore farm, and a pothole-filled drive leads up to the farmhouse.  On the right side of the long driveway, nestled among the snow, lies what appears to be a small family graveyard.

Beside the dilapidated house, stands a large German Shepard tethered on a leash, barking furiously as they pull up.  An older man stands on the porch looking highly displeased.  The man says something to the dog, but the barking continues unabated.

"You can just turn right around and head back the way you came," he yells from the porch.

Comments

[beatupgrass]

[Rocket's been here the whole time. I guess he was like offended because of all this people made of metal nonsense, since he is, you know, a cyborg. I DON'T FAIL AT EVERYTHING

He's got his guns out, as he waits for Andrew to make with the disabling.]

This shithole just got a hell of a lot more interestin'.

[badexample]

[Andrew sighs with relief when he gets a job that he's actually good at. Dealing with the security door feels so much less stressful than shooting things (disable device 30).]

[spellfile]

[ the door opens to reveal a small antechamber with a steep metal stairwell leading down. the industrial lights in the stairwell flicker and pulse, sometimes even changing colors, casting a sinister green or red glow on the interior. ] Someone's throwing a rave down here. [ zero leans in to look, but isn't eager to take point because HE'S A SPELLCASTER lol no ]

[beatupgrass]

[Rocket will happily take point, considering he's eager to get shooting, glancing around as he leads the rest down. (Spot 37 his fucking raccoon eyes see all)] Good. I love crashin' parties.

[spellfile]

[ crash is the key word here. as soon as he takes the first step, the stairs fold over, creating a steep slope in their place. rocket can make a reflex save to avoid sliding down. ] Shit.

[beatupgrass]

[well he... crit failed, which is literally the only way he can fail a reflex save, so that's nice.] Sonuva-

[asuma]

[Can Klaus make one to grab this bitch by the scruff of his neck? Because he got a 19 if so. Otherwise ... well, he tried, Rocket.]

[spellfile]

[ a 19 does not actually hit the DC so klaus grabs at air as the raccoon goes sliding down, and is dumped unceremoniously into a 30 feet deep pit that opens up at the base of the stairs. he's dealt 5 points of falling damage since he all but lands on his head with that crit fail.

the stair-slide is about 150 feet long, so the others are left looking down into this pit from far overhead. ] Are they like cats? Aren't they supposed to land on their feet?

[beatupgrass]

[One of those great "thank god you're a cyborg with just a little bit of damage reduction" moments, though it still hurts like hell and bangs him up enough to be unpleasant. He shakes it off and looks around to see if there's anything of note in the pit... like something to use to climb out of or whatever (spot 22)]

[asuma]

I suppose we'll find out.

[One way or another, depending on Rocket's state of being once they get down to the bottom. Note the lack of any actual concern despite his half-assed attempt to keep Rocket from plummeting to his possible death.

Klaus steps closer and peers down into the darkness, using that darkvision of his to see if he can spot anything that will actually allow them to climb down or something instead of sliding to their doom (spot nat 20, sorry he couldn't roll that for the save...)]

[spellfile]

[ rocket can't find anything that would help him climb up, which is unfortunate... but luckily, looking around, klaus notices a small hidden switch on the wall up by where they are. ] Hey! If you're alive, speak up.

[asuma]

[Meanwhile Klaus will just ... mosey on over and flip that switch. He makes sure to brace for fucking impact first ok, but he's half expecting to watch the rest of his team plummet to certain death. Look it was an experiment prove him wrong.]

[spellfile]

[ the switch resets the stairs, and the bottom of the pit starts to rise up slowly, bringing rocket back up to the room. zero makes his way down there, looking rocket over for bruises, but decides he looks fine, and moves to the only door at the end of the stairwell. a plaque there just reads "O.S.C.A.R." ] Cute. [ he tries the door and finds it locked, but a 42 disable device makes quick work of that. ] Everybody ready to meet Oscar the Grouch?

[beatupgrass]

[Rocket groans and rubs his back, but he's good. He's fine. Just rattled.] I didn't like Oscar when he was a freakin' dog. I ain't gonna like 'em now.

[asuma]

Might want to get that gun of yours ready. [Klaus is already over it. Are we surprised.]

[badexample]

[Andrew just makes a sound that is basically a whine but he's not actively arguing against the plan. He's just not looking forward to more zombies.]

[beatupgrass]

[Rocket whips out BOTH of his Excaliburs, okay. The machine gun is just not that useful in most situations. It's just really cool.]

[parsecs]

[Yeah Han's blaster has never stopped being ready. This is... great....]

[spellfile]

[ the chamber beyond is lit with dim red bulbs. lining the walls are floor-to-ceiling metal racks, each filled with row after row of neatly aligned, ancient-looking books, tomes, and scrolls. set into the far wall is a window that reveals a high-tech mainframe computer in the next room. the lights in that chamber are flickering just as those in the stairwell did. a conveyor belt leads from this chamber into the one with the mainframe.

four robots stand in the middle of this room facing each other, their manipulator arms moving in complex gestures. they don't look over or stop waving their human-shaped arms at all when the group enters. ] Well, that's... new.

[badexample]

[Well, Andrew is more interested in that computer than anything else. The robots are also pretty strange. He's not really sure what sort of weird gestures they're making. Or what the deal is with those books. But really he's focused on the important stuff here.]

Thinking I need to get a look at that computer.

[beatupgrass]

Thinking you're right, big guy. [Rocket eyes the robots, trying to see if he can get any kind of read on what they're used for/doing (knowledge technology 30). Look he's a cyborg. He's just trying to reach out to his less organic kin.]

[spellfile]

[ rocket would notice that their hands seem to have been altered to BE more human than the ones they saw outside. which fits with what zero says as he stares at them weirdly for a long moment. ] Are they casting a spell? [ he looks up at the others, baffled. ]

Those are somatics.

[asuma]

[Klaus doesn't really have any interest in machines that aren't actively trying to murder him. Or his team, I guess... He's not too interested in computers in general for that matter.

Ancient looking tomes/books/scrolls, on the other hand? Yes please. He will break off from the group to check out the nearest rack (spot/search/idk: nat 20 so does it matter?). Later, nerds.]

[spellfile]

[ they appear to be hundreds and hundreds of arcane texts: some that he would recognize as bogus, but others genuine. they range through a remarkable number of topics and spells, with no seeming pattern between them. ] The hell's going on down here?

[beatupgrass]

I dunno, but I don't think we oughta let 'em finish whatever magic they're tryin' to make, do you?