Neil decided to save Aiden from more anger and embarrassment so he didn't even look at him as he followed Junebug. "Aye, Captain." He said, his combat shotgun at the ready as the door slipped open and closed behind the two of them. The halls remained as decadent as the previous ones, though Neil could see more functional doors and less flashy and aesthetic decorations the deeper in they moved. Taya directed them forward, and they found themselves in a wider hallway that was dome shaped. The walls curved from the ground into a domed ceiling, making the hall an elongated half circle. Floral arrangements on foyer tables and overhanging tapestries framed the red walkways. 

Neil poked his head out, and confirmed the coast was clear at the moment for Junebug. He swept left and she swept right, and they moved out the next Taya spoke. 

"Ok, go to the left and continue until you enter a fork in the walkway, and turn right. The forward gate is a blast door and impossible to open unless you used the [i]Highlander's[/i] guns. But you can go around it through a series of rooms and another hallway. Past that you can open the blast door and give us a way out." She said. 

"Any bad guys?" Neil whispered through the comm. 

"I can't tell yet. I don't have full access." She reported, and the clicking of her fast-typing fingers echoed over the comms before she turned off her frequency for the moment. Neil looked at Junebug and shrugged, before they continued forward through the route Taya had informed them of. It looked like she was right about the first few turns, and the blast door. Even this massive slab of Xarconian steel was embroidered with Gold. 

"Before we leave," Neil commented. "Let's steal something." 

A rough and croaky noise was heard from the left, and it took both Neil and Junebug only a few moments before they were sprinting right. Junebug kicked though the first door they found to hide in, and she yanked Neil inside just as the hostiles were approaching the blast doors. Neil took the smallest peek out of the doorway before closing it slowly and silently. "Hexanagallions." He breathed and rolled his eyes, shrugging as if to say 'what are you gonna do?' 

A race of reptilian Xenos, with tall and hulking humanoid bodies, 3 massive fingers and 3 massive toes akin to hooves, along with 4 mandibles. They were some of the more popular mercenaries employed by humans, and were members of one of the few civilizations that could boast about being able to withstand humanity's xenophobic attitudes with force and barbarity. Superb soldiers and disciplined troops nonetheless. Neil should have known that the royal family could afford a handful, along with what he suspected was a small army of guards. 

The room they were in looked like a supply room. Unfortunately it had no weaponry or ammo. But dried foodstuffs, nutribars, hypercompact rations and small utility tools were arrayed upon the walls and the desks. With a quick inspection, the cabinets were filled with the same. 

Outside, the heavy footfalls of the Hexanagallions grew audible. Their harsh, guttural tongue barked as they closed. Junebug held herself still, gripping her weapon. All was silent within the room, until she heard a crackle. She would turn to see Neil opening a nutribar, and he spotted her giving him an incredulous look. He stopped, not thinking it was that loud but seeing it wasn't worth the risk. 

They passed by after what seemed an eternity, and the two breathed easily. Neil sighed, and opened the nutribar fully. "Oh this is so good." He said. As the pilot bit into the bar, he was knocked aside by the door behind him opening, and three human guards in tactical gear walked in swiftly, obviously going to find the disturbance further within the palace wing. 

"Why always the door?" he said under his breath. 
[@Penny]