Ask The Lost Crypt of Mandalore

[Atuu Skirata]

Location: Roon, Outer Rim - Apparent Bunker Location
Planetary Time: 13:30​

Having landed his personal ship and unloading his equipment, Atuu open's his datapad to review the provided information. Gained from some Twi on Ryloth. Thumbing through the information he would open a comm channel with the others joining him on this adventure. Clearing his throat he reviews the brief to the others.

"Alright - here is what we know. Rylothian Spice Smugglers rumor that the dark side of Roon houses an underground bunker of ancient Taung or Mandalorian design? There is a set of doors, singular entrance, rumor mill says it's booby-trapped and sealed with the crest of Mandalore the First. We've found the planet. Time to find the crypt and ensure the safety of whatever treasures lie within. Bring them home to Mandalorian Space."

Surveying the grounds and taking a look at the nearby cave systems on his datapads map Atuu continues "We are more than likely not the only folks with this information Vod. Keep your wits about you, and let's hope we're to be the first ones to crack this ancient door open... Unless anyone has questions we can talk shop while we walk."

Should anyone want to chat more, Atuu will stop. Otherwise he will begin to lead the crew towards the rough coordinates of this lost crypt.

@Narzen @Mythos (Feel free to add or advance as you see fit! We can start rolling dice after this first intro round)​

 

[Wer Tracyn]

Wer stumbled forward the same way he did whenever he got done with a space trip: nauseated. Unfortunately for him, his bottle of Jawa Juice was empty and the agoraphobic Mandalorian had to rely on simply waiting for his stomach to settle before he was at full capacity. He held up a hand to Atuu for a moments rest.

"Sorry, its the space travel that always gets me..." Wer explained as he hunched over slightly clutching his belly. "Medics say its all mental, but honestly I'm not sure. Therapy hasn't done squat for it."

The chilled air of the Roon's dark side made Wer shudder slightly. Trying to get his mind off the temperature and his stomach, Wer focused on something he knew well: mining knowledge. His parents desire of him learning some hard work before he was sworn finally was paying off.

"That bunker..." Wer started to explain "is no doubt deeper than most of the explored tunnels. Treasure hunters would've been all over it already if it was close to the surface. The closer we get to it and in it, the more likely we could cause a cave-in, since it wouldn't have been well-maintained. So better watch the explosives and all that.

@Rimrald @Mythos

 

[Virgo Armegedon-Lok]

Virgo simply looked at ner'vod as he hunched over and shook her head. Every. Single. Time. Stepping forward, her Beskad in hand, she leaned it tip forward across his trousers and tapped his unmentionables with it. After Mandalore, surely he would be more frightful about it and possibly get his head together. And if that didn't work, maybe she could make him a girl. She chuckled silently beneath her sealed helm at the thought, but barely made any movement before she stepped up next to Atuu.

When beneath her helm, her only form of communication is her actions and her sight. She couldn't hear anything either of them spoke, but she knew the mission brief. Had she been able to hear Wer, she would have agreed with him, in silence so it wouldn't go to either of his heads, and suggest they begin their search deeper. But since she hadn't, she made a few hand signals suggesting them to go deeper.

Bringing two fingers up to her visor and suggesting to be watchful, she offered the only alternative by bringing her blade up to her throat suggesting death in wait. After that, she offered for Atuu and Wer to follow before walking onward toward the mine's many entry ways. Truth be told, none looked sturdy to her 'sight', but that wasn't her point. Her focus was upon the ground and the immediate area around her. Less footprints meant less traveled and likely less chances of running into anything.

 

[Atuu Skirata]

With his head down in his datapad Atuu has his mind focused on this lost crypt.

"Should be just over this draw and down in the cave if the data is accurate." He would relay over his shoulder without fully taking his attention off the datapad.

After a few more minutes of travel the group would see a small opening in the ground, no more than two people wide and decently overgrown. The cool air passing out of the opening was the only obvious sign of it's existence. "Look here." Atuu announced while stowing the datapad and flipping on a helmet mounted light to shine over the opening "This should be it..." With caution in his voice Atuu unholsters his sidearm and inspects the ground around the entrance for any obvious signs of recent activity. "Take a look around, make sure i'm not missing anything." He relayed and gestured towards his visor than the ground while gingerly surveying before crouching to shine light into the mouth of the cave.

@Narzen @Mythos (feel free to roll for enemies/creatures literally whatever you all are feeling)

 

[Wer Tracyn]

While Atuu was busy finding and pointing out the entrance , Wer had stopped and was looking down at the ground. His helmet was acting weird, its scanners flickering every so often. Bending down, the heavily armored Mandalorian picked up a handful of dust on the ground and studied it closely.

"Ah Kriff" Wer commented as his helmet's HUD started to react slightly. Standing up, Wer raced to the others.

"Looks like this may have been Kessum mined nearby at some point..." Wer explained to the others. "Got some of its dust nearby. I've heard about the stuff. Electronic signals bounce off Kessum more than an Ewok at a Twilek strip bar. The moment we go down there, our comms and sensors might have trouble receiving each other."

Spoiler

OOC: Roll for approaching beings
Result 5

Suddenly, Wer held a hand up to signal the others.

"Looks like we got company..." Wer pointed out. In the distance, the kicked up dust from two landspeeders. Wer adjusted his helm's magnification to get a better look.

"Double kriff, its Koboks" Wer told the others. "Heading straight for us. Heavily armed too. Can't tell if they've seen us. The Kessum dust might be playing with their sensors. Or they just don't care. Your call guys. Hide and wait for them or open fire?"

@Mythos @Rimrald

 

[Virgo Armegedon-Lok]

As the group made their way, Virgo herself noticed the reaction her helm was having to the remnants of Kessum that was strewn about. Bit by bit, the silence that had became her solitude simply began to dissipate, the sounds of the hindered world culminating from outside within. Such distractions made her mind's eye sight limited, so her helm was a pointless advantage. So she removed it.

"There's been no recent activity that I can find." Virgo spoke aloud as she glimpsed over the surrounding grounds that encased the tunnel's exterior and likely less inside just as Wer made his own discovery, voicing it aloud.

"Makes no sense to reveal ourselves if they have yet to spot us." Virgo replied, her gaze still focused upon the tunnel beneath them. "I say we continue on task and if they do follow us, execute them in the tunnels below with prejudice. Just be mindful of the Kessum. Don't want to bury ourselves with them. Blades only."

With that said, Virgo lept into the hole beneath, a swift slide into the crevasse below. It was dark, but with her mind's eye to guide her, darkness would only be an advantage for her.

 

[Atuu Skirata]

With approaching contacts and a warning from Wer, Atuu would raise his carbine training it in the direction of the inbound contacts. But would hold his fire, hearing Virgo add her thoughts and then ingress to the tunnel.

Atuu would then stow his carbine, hearing the warning about Kessum and would remove his helmet, clipping it to his belt and unsheathing his beskad. <"Down we go then."> he added moving past Wer and following Virgo down. It was dark, damp and the air was metallic - a very unpleasant taste to the air to Atuu but he would press forward, turning on a flashlight to help illuminate the way forward for he and Wer.

<"Should they have seen us, and follow us in, hopefully they're smart enough not to shoot..."> @Narzen @Mythos

 

[Wer Tracyn]

Like an old B1 one Battle Droid, Wer responded:

"Roger roger."

Holstering his own Carbine, Wer drew his own personal favorite weapon: his chainsword taken from pirates. While such a weapon was not eloquent nor even civilized by most being's standards, it always got the job done as well as held a personal history for Wer himself. And in close quarters, it would get the job done, and possibly terrify any enemies.

As the others jumped into the hole, Wer kept watch. Once everyone was in, he crawled in and dropped through. He clashed with the floor like a sleeping bantha, his own heavy Fireworm armor not built for grace. SAfter standing up and clipping his own helmet to his belt, he followed the others, bringing up the rear.

Immediately, Wer felt at home. His early days of youth spent in the mines of Concordia practically bred him for this line of work. The claustrophobic tunnels, the the damp, metallic and stale air, the thin layers of dust on the ground... some Mandalorians said Wer was more Tin-Tin Dwarf than human. And while Wer took insult at the time, in his heart he felt they were right.

"Just keep moving carefully and stay close." Wer ordered outloud, despite not outranking anyone. "Keep each other in sight at all times. No telling how deep these tunnels go, and a drop off would be lethal for most of us. And for the Love of the Force, keep a sense out ofr air flows. Those might save us later. "

@Mythos @Rimrald

 

[Virgo Armegedon-Lok]

"Roger Roger." Virgo gave in retort to Wer's command as she attempted to mimic but failed miserably in her undertone as a brief chuckle erupted with an uncomfortable snort following after. Sometimes her picking on Wer should just be left in the recesses of her mind rather than spoken, especially if she couldn't do it right. About the only thing that was mimicked correctly was his stature.

Looking around the darkness with her blinded eyes, even upon it, she found some minor hindrances from the Kessum. Some things were harder to make out. But she did manage to see the two tunnels leading off in either direction. One went north toward the well treaded mines they passed on the way here while the other seemed to go east before dipping south beyond her mind's scope. Shifting her gaze to Atuu and Wer, she held a strange gut feeling about the tunnel to the east.

Whether it was good or bad, she could not tell. But she felt a pull in it's direction. Pointing east, she motioned. "That way. I hear Kad Ha'rangir's call within it." She may have known about her Force Sensitivity, but she had long forsaken it's prospect as the will of Kad Ha'rangir instead. It was his will that guides her hand to salvation and the afterlife.

 

[Atuu Skirata]

Stepping carefully and in a calculated manner Atuu made sure to step only on solid looking stones. He had explored caves a time or two in his life prior, but none with such high stakes if errors occurred.

Holding his movement at a fork in the cave, he listened back at Virgo's words - flashing his light down the more traversed path that ran north and then down the less excavated path to the east. It was clear people avoided this path for some reason, but that was not clear to him in the moment. Nodding as Virgo concluded he looked back over his shoulder <"North tunnel it is."> he concluded, beginning to move forward again.

Some parts of the tunnel would require squeezing through tighter passages, ducking for low ceilings and the occasional climb over raised ground. But it wouldn't be anything the group could not handle in the moment.

Keeping his light forward, after several hundred meters the group would come to a low ceiling in the cave. Ducking low to crouch and shine his light beyond it - Atuu would see something out of place ahead. The ground was worked, smoother than the typical rough rock beneath them. Shining his light a little higher, there was smoothed walls as well, nothing fancy but something deliberate. Finally he would see some placed supports on the walls. Crawling through this final section of the passage he would call back to the others as he went. <"This looks like it is the start to whatever we have come to find... Virgo do you sense anything?"> Atuu concluded, standing on the other side of the squeeze shining his light into the dark. There was no entrance before him yet, at least not in eye shot. @Mythos @Narzen

 

[Wer Tracyn]

As Wer continued after the three, he kept having to stop and listen. There were noises behind him, but were they the echoes of his own metal boots hitting the ground, or if they were the tappings of the feet of those Koboks. Instinct told him the latter, but whenever he stopped to look back, the noises stopped, as if whatever was following them was stopping as he was. but once he started again, the echoes started up again, and Wer could've sworn there were multiple sets of feet.

As the group clamored over a ridge that required both hands, Wer kept his light aimed backwards. When it was his time to move, he hesitantly began to climb.

When he felt a pull on his boot, Wer almost screamed as he turned, wrist flamethrower at the ready.

What greeted his sight certainly surprised the Mandalorian. Several small humanoid forms, no larger than 3 feet tall, stood huddled on the ground. Each one were coated in thick layers of a wet mud-like substances. The biggest amongst them had reached up and grabbed the mando's foot, prying him back down.

"Hey! Let go my leggo!" Wer shouted as the other mudmen began to join up and grapple the man in shiny armor

Spoiler

D20 Roll on handling the Mudmen:
Result: 3

Unfortunately for Wer, the mudmen did not seem to listen or care as they grabbed, tugged, pulled and tried to steal the shiny pieces of metal on Wer. Being nearly buried alive by the little critters, Wer was forced to activate his flamethrower. The sudden shot of red and yellow flames and the noise of burning fire scared the little buggers into fleeing for now, but Wer looked like he had just fought a mudhorn and lost. Unfortunately for the group, the Kodoks would've surely heard the little encounter.

"Stupid fragging little blights..." Wer grumbled as he followed the others. He hoped they at least had made progress.

@Mythos @Rimrald

 

[Virgo Armegedon-Lok]

Virgo was quite perturbed when @Atuu Skirata chose to not take the east path as she had suggested, so it wasn't long before her helm was back on and sealed solidly shut. She wouldn't hear a single thing.

Helm or no helm, she could see with little to hardly any effort as the trio transgressed the obstacle course that was the cave system they found themselves in. Well traversed, it was a solid footing most of the trek across the terrain. Occasionally, she would look through her mind's eye behind them, attentively once the mudmen came to be a part of the pack. She couldn't help but chuckle when Wer was onslaughted upon. Picking up a few that scattered, she toss them back upon @Wer Tracyn and began to walk away.

For Virgo, it was moments such as this, walking in abandoned caves, surrounded by 'vod, on an adventure, and battle sure to ensue, that Virgo truly felt alive again. Like she had a soul. It was these moments that she resonated and felt closer to Kad Ha'rangir and Ani'la Akaan became a hope. Readying her Beskad and beating her Beskar'gam with her fist, she would lay in wait for those to come and allow her to truly savor it.

 

[Atuu Skirata]

With the commotion caused by the mud men, use of the flamethrower and general noise level in an otherwise silent area. Atuu paused at the conclusion of Wer's unfortunate encounter. Listening for their Kodok followers...

Spoiler: How Many Rounds Away Are The Kodoks

Rolled a 2 for how many posting rounds they are behind us. Kodok's will arrive in 2 posting rounds.

Hearing the Kodok's at some distance behind them, Atuu motioned for his compatriots to follow, they would need to pick up the pace if they would have any chance of finding the entrance before starting a fight in a death trap of a cave system. After a few more minutes of walking deeper into the cave, the hewn stone becoming more and more well crafted. Atuu's helmet light finally began to shine on what they had come for. At first, he did not even believe it, it all felt like they had been chasing a dead end. But there it was. The door to the crypt, now they just needed to get it open.

<"Alright Vod, I trust you two to try and figure this thing out. Virgo - your senses may be able to guide us beyond what our eyes see... Wer, you might see something I do not. Please both of you come check. I will watch our backs for those Kodoks.">
@Mythos @Narzen

 

[Wer Tracyn]

"Here, let me see..." Wer said as he moved forward towards the door. With careful hands, Wer began to wipe off the dirt that had caked the door's crest. Wer couldn't help but whistle at the insignia of Mandalore the First.

<"By the ancients, and all those after..."> Wer stated in pure Mandoa. For him, this was the closest thing he had ever come to the ancient Tuang, the forefathers of the Mandalorians. The door itself was pure Beskar, impossible to break down or through without bringing down the rest of the cave system. It was somewhat awe-inspiring to simply touch the golden tinted crest. The singular feeling that rose inside Wer was enough to make him want to break open the door down through brute strength, had he not forgotten about the potential of booby traps.

"Heh, booby traps..." Wer chuckled at the thought. What kind of traps or locks would the ancient Tuang even use anyway? Wer reasoned it would probably be similar to whatever Mandalorians would use, but even then, with the Kessum dust still caking the area, it was doubtful that the door used visual sensors of any kind to monitor intruders. And to last this long, the door no doubt had more old-school locking mechanisms.

"Lets see, what does this say..." Wer said as he wiped away some more dust. Just above what looked like a hole in the door was on Mandoa

"Atin" Wer read aloud.

Persistence

Wer looked at the hole. It was hand sized. It was so obvious what it wanted. What it would do however was anyone's guess, but Wer figured it would have to do something with willpower.

Wer took a deep breath and without a second thought, plunged his hand in. Blindly, he fumbled and grabbed what felt like a handle, and pulled. The door made a loud 'Ka-Chunk' sound as a lock loosed. Simultaneously, a blade came out and stopped just short of Wer's exposed neck.

Wer suddenly moaned in pain. Inside the hole, hundreds of needles began to jab his hand repeatedly. A burning sensation running up Wer's arm made evident that each needle were coated in some kind of poison. The idea behind the trap was evident. If Wer let go before the door was fully unlocked, the blade at his neck would finish him off and kill him. If he held on too long, the poison would continue to grow, causing more and more pain until he either fainted or died. This lock was a test of persistence, and if Wer failed, then he was not worthy to enter.

"Kriffing Haar'chak! Hurry up, hurry up!" Wer growled through gritted teeth.

@Rimrald @Mythos

 

[Virgo Armegedon-Lok]

Looking upon the door as she moved with Wer in their inspection, much like compatriot, she was in utter awe. The Ancient Taung, the forebearers of her life both in life and in death, was more than an ancient mystery for her, just as Manda'lor and everything that traced her back to them, had become a beacon for her soul. Silently, with her helm, she would profess prayer upon their lives and deaths in Mando'a.

"<May the will of the ancients be upon us, the righteousness of Kad Ha'rangir within us, and the birth of our offspring the blade within our hand. Let us strike down all of Arasuum and Hod Ha'ran in the Ani'la Akaan as promised by the Taungs of old, infinite in their wisdom and strength of Manda'lor as we pass upon their teachings to that of the next Generation as was done to us. Let us each strive to answer the call of Manda'lor as he leads us in Ani'la Akaan and our righteousness be his blessing before Kad Ha'rangir.>"

It wasn't until the blade slung at Wer's neck and stopping short of shaving his neck that Virgo turned her attention away from the sacred door and upon her comrade. As ancient and as old as this door was, it amazed her that the traps even still worked, let alone still could be damaging. Walking around ner'vod, he looked at his predicament with close study, her eyes able to see deeper than their own. As painful as it was to Wer, understandably so, the blade was a more pressing matter. And yet, there was an impurity in the blade its self. Rust. It was not purely Beskar.

Raising her blade above her head with both hands upon the pommel, she drove the Beskad of pure Beskar into the rust and through the impure blade. She reacted quickly, pulling Wer from his would be grave and laid him back upon the ground. Removing his vambrace, she looked at the poison coursing his veins, and made a quick slice across his forearm in hopes of averting the flow. With the Kodoks on their trail, persistence would have to wait until another time.

"Come on... come on..." She briefly cursed at the door as the mechanisms within kept turning.

 

[Atuu Skirata]

With the magnitude of the door behind him, Atuu listened as his compatriots worked the mechanisms, spoke blessings and ultimately set it's mechanism in motion.

Turning his head to check what was happening he saw Wer and Virgo on the ground - Virgo looking to be tending to Wer. Calling back to them <"I have some meds in my pack if you need them, or don't have your own to use."> he finished his sentence while fishing around in the many storage compartments in his armor - producing and tossing a small multi-purpose medpak to them <"Should be something useful in there.">

He would not remove himself from the sentry position he occupied watching their rear, the last thing they needed was the Kodok's to get the jump on them. Granted they would need to push through the tight passage to get to the trio, they would be cornered until the door fully opened.

Calling back to the group one last time Atuu said <"Once it is open, we retreat inside - I do not want to become prize kills for these things, nor make it any easier for them to kill us by acting like fish in a barrel, awaiting the shooting."> @Mythos @Narzen

KODOK'S WILL ARRIVE AT THE START OF THE NEXT POSTING ROUND​

 

[Wer Tracyn]

Wer growled slightly more as Dar'Manda helped with his prediciment. In truth, he was not meaning that his trap be handled in a hurriedly fashion, but for Dar'Manda to find the other locking mechanism. Still, he had been recovered from the trap and the poison in his arm had been sedated for now.

"thanks... both of you" Wer said as he applied the bacta patch to his newly wounded arm. Still, he refused to stop now. The door was almost open. He had found one of the locking mechanisms. The other would be in a similar fashion he reasoned.

"Ok, persistence is one.. any other writings or markings on this thing?" Wer began to talk to himself as he brushed over the door's dirt. There had to be something else. There just had to be...

Wer smiled as he found his answer. Hidden just on the opposing side of the door where the hole was, was an almost imperceptible ridge. Working his fingers around the ridge, Wer gripped the ridge and began to pull. Slowly, but surely, the ridge pulled out, showing that it was a gripper lever of sorts, much like an old fashioned dynamometer. On the side of it read the word 'Kot'

Strength

Wer smiled. The puzzle was making sense now. Only Strength and Persistence could open the door. Both words had to be activated in order for the door to unlock. And Wer half guessed that the one he started off with needed to be activated first. If it was activated out of order, probably another blade would lash out, or worse.

"Ok, ok I got this. When I say when..." Wer commanded Dar'Manda, "You are going to pull that lever with every ounce of strength you got. It'll probably hurt like hell, and you'll be needing the gripping strength of a wookie, but I got faith you can do it. Then, when the mechanism clicks, we push the door inwards. Old Mandalorians always preferred being able to bar the doors from inside. Understand?"

Instead of just slamming his hand back in, Wer took a moment to wrap some cloths around his right hand. He half hoped that it would be enough to help prevent the needles from poisoning him again. Carefully, though forcefully since his hand almost didn't fit the hole with the wrappings, he reached in and gripped the lever. As before, the needles began to stab the Mandalorian's hand, partially halted by the cloth wrappings.

"Now!" Wer barked through gritted teeth.

@Mythos @Rimrald

 

[Virgo Armegedon-Lok]

Virgo pulled upon the lever with such Force that it felt like her shoulder would be pulled from its socket just as Wer had commanded. But it felt like it was no avail, the lever not budging a single centimeter despite her all placed into the moment. Again, she tried, but no avail once again. "Kriff!" She cursed as her gaze shifted over to Wer.

It was at this moment that the first trio of Kodok's stumbled into the fray, a barrage of crimson blaster bolts lighting up the darkened room. Thankfully, the dust of the spice wasn't a problem here and after letting loose her own volley of bolts from her HB-4, she quickly turned and pulled upon the lever with everything she had in the moment.

Prayers to Kad Ha'rangir would cross her mind as blaster bolts ricocheted off her Beskar'gam in her pulling of the lever, but she turned not away from this moment and instead, increased her focus solely upon the door. It was in this moment that a rush of unknowingly strength erupted within her as a semblance of refreshing power flowed through her. And in that moment, the mechanism completed its cycle.

With her back against the door, she retrieved her Beskad and began return fire at the Kodoks that began their push through the small entrance. For now, they had them pinned in a volley of bolts, but the Kodoks were relentless in their pursuit. Gripped the ground beneath her feet, she pushed against the door with her back, instructing the others to push as well. "Push"

The group of Kodoks were beginning to pour in, and if they were to survive, this door needed to be opened enough to slip through and bar on the other side.

 

[Atuu Skirata]

Joining the others at the door once he heard the Kodoks begin to arrive. Atuu would begin to return fire at them, ducking and kneeling to avoid getting hit directly. Quickly flipping his helmet light on and shining it on the Kodok's in hopes it would disorient them.

Hearing the command to push from his comrade he would "Pushing" he replied as he began to add force to the door with his back. Struggling to step backwards one tiny step at a time all the while sending blaster bolts at the enemy.

"If we don't get this door open soon we're going to be joining the good mandalore in this tomb." Atuu remarked just after a bolt from the Kodok's hit him square in the shin guard. He buckled for a moment dropping to both knees in pain before regaining his stance and returning fire as he began to push once more.

In the dark space illuminated only by his helmet and blaster fire, Atuu could not be sure over the roar of the fight if he had hit anything but he was pretty sure he had at least incapacitated one of the attackers as the incoming fire lessened for a moment. @Mythos @Narzen

 

[Wer Tracyn]

Together, the three were able to push the heavy doors open a fraction enough to create an opening. Inside, there was pitch darkness, but whatever was in there was safer at the moment that the enemies out here.

"Go, go!" Wer barked as he released the handle and pulled his arm out. Turning towards the enemies, wer clicked the release on his wrist for his flamethrower to lay a gout of yellow flames towards the enemies. It was the second to last use he'd get until he could restock, but he figured now wasn't the time to be conservative.

Spoiler

Atack roll: 2/20

Unfortunstely for wer, the mud men earlier seemed to had done a lot more damage than he first realized. The flamethrower clicked lifelessly as wer realized his fuel canister had been leaking the entire time. He was out of fuel.

"Kriff" wer cursed as a shot rang out and struck him in the nether regions. The worm scales took the worst of the blow, but wer still felt some of the burn as he stumbled backwards.

"Someone cover me!" Wer shouted as he rushed towards the open door.

@Mythos @Rimrald