[center][h1][color=ac00e6]Khaliya, The Swordwind[/color][/h1]
[b][u]December 3rd, 2286
The Blue Line[/u][/b][/center]

It was a creature of nightmares, raw natural power rippling across scale and cracking tile with every step. [i]Deathclaw[/i] was what it was called in most places, the penultimate predator of the wasteland. Few who encountered one survived the encounter, and even fewer among them had ever been as close as this. Putrid breath wheezed from it with each deep exhale, its chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm as it slowly turned its head as if searching out something it knew was there. The clicks that echoed around the room returned to it and the horns crowning its skull extended a membrane from them that rippled with every sound around it. Though clearly blind, it was not without ways to hunt its prey, and as the buzzing calls of its kin above ground made clear, it was not the solitary predator that most Deathclaws were.

Emil's bold move to alert the rest of the group drew the attention of the beast. One step closer and he would see the talons digging through concrete and steel as if it were dirt. Each of the three claws at the fore of its splayed foot was stained dark with what could only be the remains of former prey. Another step and he would see the maw of the beast opening slowly as it sent out another tentative click, echolocation honing in on what was before it. Small orbs writhed in the center of the hollowed sockets that would normally have been eyes, pinpricks of a reflection in each focusing and shifting from point to point. It was not entirely blind, yet as it turned its massive head from side to side to peer at Emil, it may as well have been.

Two things happened at once before the beast could determine what was before it was prey. First was the sound of the rock skipping across tile and down the stairs to land rather loudly at the base. The beast turned swiftly, claws at the end of both wings ripping tile from the walls with the speed of the movement. It had just started to move towards the stairs and away from the group when someone else spoke up. One of the other mercenaries with Talon Company had watched the advance of the beast, and while Jeremiah was beside him and doing his best to silence the terrified merc, it was not quite enough.

"Fuck this!"

His panicked cry went out over the comms, immediately disorientating the creature as it heard a rather loud sound from all around it, but soon it had little else to focus on. Jeremiah watched on as the man made a run for it. Heavy footfalls echoed around them as the merc ducked underneath the angry swipe of a wing. It now had a direct bead on him as the party could only watch for fear of revealing themselves as well.

[color=ac00e6]"Hold."[/color]

Khaliya's voice whispered over the comms, firm and direct as she had heard the commotion and the man's voice in her ear as well. Still she kept a hold on Brian, an armored arm keeping the fool close by as masonry went flying down below in the frenzy. The beast was giving chase in the confines of the lobby, and as much of a bigger fool the merc was, he was giving it a decent enough run. He leapt over the swipe of a wing that came just a foot away from where Marvin and Frankie were standing by. Another dodged just in time as the other wing came in a vicious thrust that shattered concrete and rent concrete. Terminals on top of the counters went flying as a roar that shook the entire tunnel sounded, actually cracking glass and flooring the merc.

There he lay disorientated as the beast bore down on him. One last shout echoed through their comms before a sickening crack and silence. In the center of the room the beast had crushed the dome helmet of his suit into the floor, dark red flowing from around the talons buried into the concrete and the single rear claw sunk into his back pierced through the pack. There was only silence now, interrupted by the soft clicks of the beast as it smelled blood on the air, leaning down to give tentative licks at the floor. Up above two more crashes announced more of the beasts coming to investigate, insistent buzzing between the three sounding.

The one among them sounded irate, at least more so than when it first came upon them. It stalked towards the base of the stairs, dragging its victim along with it and giving off low and aggressive pulses back up to its packmates. They seemed to argue for a moment, before with another roar it relented. Tossing the dead merc up the stairs, the beast followed as Khaliya kept still once more, watching it stalk by and rejoin the others.

For a long moment there was nothing following the heavy beating of leathery wings, until finally Khaliya released Brian.

[color=ac00e6]"They're gone."[/color] Of course she had kept an ear out on above ground before giving the go ahead to everyone else, taking a hesitant knee on the stairs and glancing out to the surface. All three had left presumably to hunt down more substantial prey, leaving them in the clear for now. [color=ac00e6]"Everyone to the top of the stairs, and let's try this again. Stick together."[/color] No one needed clarification as to who that was directed to, her tone alone enough to convey her displeasure at just how close a call that was. [color=ac00e6]"Low and slow, watch the shadows and the skies. Let's not take anymore unnecessary risks."[/color]