Will talked and walked as he answered “I’m from the S.P.A.R., stands for the Sakhalin Provisional Authority Region. I’m actually out here as part of an exploration team sent by them, we’re meant to contact surviving enclaves, map the changes that have happened from the destruction and nuclear winter-” he glanced over at Dzel as he clarified with “rivers changing course, settlements being destroyed or abandoned, bridges gone, that sort of thing-” before turning back to look forward, and continuing “and destroy any barbarians and bandits we find along the way that we can take on. Mark the rest for later on the map. The whole team is 15 people. We’re all generalists with some added speciality- 3 pathfinders, 2 linguist-diplomats, 5 soldiers, 2 sled-dog handlers, 2 medical people, and me, the engineer and geological surveyor. I basically make sure everything keeps working, I try to identify good places for us to set up extraction, and I check out what abandoned industrial and mining facilities we pass to see if they’re of any use. Make things we need if we don’t have it with us too, sometimes, huge makeshift mortars to take out bandit strongholds or rigging cars to drive forward at a target and set to explode…” 

His answer tapered off, the last word lingering. “There was meant to be another person, same job as me but without the surveying, they got unlucky when we were trying to salvage parts from a Slavic Union APC. I reckon a faulty shell got knocked onto the floor and fired, only reason I can think for all the ammo to cook off and blow the thing up.”

Will shrugged, and after a pause added “It’s nothing to talk about.”

They continued on up the stairs in silence for a brief time, before Will started speaking again, this time asking how Dzel came to be covered in wounds and injuries. After whatever conversation came from that, they soon emerged into the landing and hall. Will glanced around as he moved forward, extremely surprised to be seeing tapestries and a general medieval aesthetic. Then, the boots and backpacks caught his eye.

Will motioned for Dzel to be quiet and to follow, as Will moved back to the entrance quickly and quietly. His mind raced, making the judgement that this can't be a trap because such a huge bait for basically nobody every appearing wouldn't make sense. So it is probably someone's home base, or was until recently, the complete lack of activity and the general destruction indicated unpleasantness.

Scanning the surroundings, he waited and listened, hearing nothing over the howling wind in the corridors. He moved forward again, taking one of the backpacks and scurrying back to the entrance to the hall. Looking inside, he made note of whatever he sees in there and leaves it for later with the rest. The pair headed upstairs, trying to be stealthy at first but soon downgraded it from moving 'sneakily' to 'warily'. Simply put it seemed like nobody was here anymore, and the howling wind and snow, even inside, did all the steath for them.

Moving on, a powerful feeling of dread began to claw at them, feeling like a weight, almost physical, pushing them down and trying to eradicate them. Will said nothing, the urge to speak being overpowered by the fear that if he mentioned it, Dzel would say she felt the dread too, confirming it as a new horrifying aspect of this situation.

They turned a corner, and heard a crunch as Dzel's shoe stepped on something like cartilige. Two pairs of eyes snapped to where the shoe had landed, transfixing on the scrap of unidentifiable gore. Unrecognisable red matter, bits of gristle, singed flesh and white flecks of bone all entered their field of vision. Will's gaze moved forward, dragged towards the center of the room by the vague tale told by the gore. An agonisingly drawn out fraction of a second passed, and he was staring at the blood eagle in the center of the room.

The requisite moment of silence passed. Will took a step forward, half-thought ideas of helping the person or stopping whatever happened bubbling up in the instants it took before common sense and reason shouted those down. This act has already happened and this person cannot be helped. The supernatural feeling of dread only became stronger, and the world seemed to narrow and fall towards the altar. His mind turned back to the question of where his friends were, with the new information that some mundane act of extreme brutality had occured and some sort of supernaturally bad act was mixed in. He tried to scream, to yell in anger and fear but his throat had closed up.

Some of the shock and terror wore off, but very little. Will started walking backwards, not daring to take his eyes off of the corpse. Once he was on the outer edge of the gore, he turned around, facing Dzel. He had a look of desperate panic, and was clenching and unclenching his fists.

"Where are they? What bullshit happened here?"

He turned away, walking unsteadily out of the chamber through a different exit. He stopped and leant against a wall, struggling to calm down. He exhaled deeply, and nodded. "Its okay, we've got this. Gotta re-exert control." he said, whispering to himself.

He turned his head back to look at the body, grimacing slightly. He walked over, stopping a few meters out to avoid exposing himself to the worst of the dread-field. 

Addressing Dzel, he spoke loudly and clearly albiet with a small waver in his voice "You know if I had another coat I'd cover this one up. We have to bury her before we leave. Put her ribs back in place first if we can."

"I say we get out of here for now- that's not exactly a radical idea-, head that way," he pointed over his shoulder, at the entrance they hadn't entered by, "see what else we can find. Should be all up from here, can't be worse."