[OOM] Taris, the Labyrinth, the Undercity.

[stuck_mynock]

At first, it might seem like they're outside, on a very murky night. There's grass, after all, even if it is marred by patches of metal.

They're not, though. A longer look reveals that they're inside a vast, underground room, or a huge cavern, large enough to give the impression of being outside, but with the metal and stone ceiling just in view, distantly. There are flickering lights, here and there, but for the most part it's fairly dark.

There's what looks like a town nearby, but to get there requires traversing a rather difficult looking stretch of slopes, high rocks, half-built walls and rushing rivers.

Comments

[guppy_sandhu]

Guppy squelches after him.

[will_scarlett]

As does Will, he hates being underground.

[stuck-mynock.livejournal.com]

As they round a large rock, a particularly large cavern comes into view.

"Stroke of luck," Atton murmurs, sprinting for it.

[guppy_sandhu]

Guppy runs after him.

"What is it?"

[will_scarlett]

Will runs and grins, "Some space finally."

[stuck-mynock.livejournal.com]

"A cavern," Atton says, chirpily.

He heads in, peering about, before moving to the centre of the cavern. There's a glass window at the top of it, but there's only rock above it.

In the centre, there's a little raised area, and a console on it.

"Another laboratory," Atton says, looking around at the corridors leading off from the central cavern. "Just what we came here looking for."

[guppy_sandhu]

Guppy keeps his blaster out, in case anything tries to pen them in from behind.

"Let's hurry, we don't want to get cornered by that roaring thing."

[will_scarlett]

"Oh aye, good an e'en with a measure o'protection."

[stuck-mynock.livejournal.com]

Atton fiddles with the console for a moment, and a hologram appears, pacing.

"Aurek is now gigantic. The size of a city, and still growing. He no longer needs the growth serum to grow - he produces an equivalent substance on his own, and now he expands at a truly phenomenal rate, and with it, his intelligence and his control over the Force. He can now infect larger and larger beings, and has displayed an unusual ability to infect machines."

Pause.

Thoughtfully: "I believe he is growing out of control. I have developed the means to subdue him, I believe, but for now I will simply observe. I may not have another opportunity like this again." The hologram flickers out.

[guppy_sandhu]

"... isn't that like saying 'Oh, I've just found a tumour, I won't get it treated so I can see what it does'?"

[will_scarlett]

"'xcept with a creature that shouldna be."

[stuck-mynock.livejournal.com]

"To be fair, I think he passed the boundaries of ethical and sensible science when he started experimenting on slaves. C'mon, I'll get the coordinates and we can get out of here."

[guppy_sandhu]

Guppy nods, looking anxiously at the entrance of the cave.

[will_scarlett]

"Oh aye, good."

[stuck-mynock.livejournal.com]

Atton grins at them, wandering out of the cave, before jumping back in with a yelp, holding up one hand. There's a long burn across it. He eyes it, healing it up quickly as several bolts of energy hit the ground just outside the cave.

"We have snipers. I think. Any ideas on how to get out of here without being seen?"

[guppy_sandhu]

Guppy tries to think.

"W-we can't. But maybe we can put up a blockade and go behind it?"

[will_scarlett]

"Just puts things off, 'ave to take 'em down."

[stuck-mynock.livejournal.com]

"They almost caught me coming out. We're not going t'be able to get close enough t'take them out unless we can get out without being seen."

Pause.

"Do we have stuff to start a fire?"

[guppy_sandhu]

Guppy finds himself freezing up. No, that's not an option, he can't freeze, he has to think.

Fire, how do we make a fire, what's in the bag, we're all going to die, no we're not, what's in the bag, what did you light the fire with earlier, matches, we have matches, what do we light with the matches, nothing in the bag, we're all going to die, we're not going to die, they can see you freezing stop freezing hide your expression start thinking think harder think faster think think think think

"We have matches. We don't have fuel."

[will_scarlett]

"Must be paper round 'ere somewhere, was in the last lab an can burn that."

[stuck-mynock.livejournal.com]

"Right. Paper, then, let's find some. Check in the rooms down those corridors."

[guppy_sandhu]

You have to move, move, stop standing there like an idiot, they'll notice, stop thinking about moving and actually move...

Guppy darts into the corridor and comes back with some paper.

"Won't the fire kill us before it acts as a distraction?" he asks gingerly.

[will_scarlett]

"Nay, can find a way to contain it."

Will's found a stack of old reports that he's ripping up.

[stuck-mynock.livejournal.com]

"S'not the fire we'll be using as a distraction. If they can't see us when we go out, they can't shoot us down. We light the fire, build up the smoke, and I'll direct it out through the entrance with the Force. May want to cover our mouths and noses, though."

[guppy_sandhu]

"Yes." Guppy says. "Or we'll all die of smoke inhalation."