The next day...

The Surface of Steinhull, The Steinhull ruins

Sinn'Are'Sen stalks circles around the altar in the depths of the Steinhull ruins as he contemplates which direction he should explore next.

“Empire 'communicator' data search is now at sixty seven point three five percent. Estimated time to completion now five hours and fifty three minutes.”

“Thanks Dara Tonn. It sounds like it'll be done right about the time I get back to fall into bed. Any idea which of these three passageways will lead to something important?”

“I have no more data then you do, so I can cheerfully claim to have not a single clue more then you do on this subject!”

“I guess I can use a bit of logic. This compartment feels like it would be in the equivalent of the third ring passageway back on the deck I entered on. Given that I'd say that the side passageways lead around the station while the rimward one leads out to the second ring of compartments. From what little I do know of ship and station construction, important things like reactors and central AI mainframes tend to get burred deep into the center of the station. So the question really is do I go left or right from this compartment.”

“Would Luck Bender help in this situation?”

“No. Much as I would like it to, both the left and right passageways will lead to the same thing in time so Luck Bender would not give a 'wrong way' reading. I'd also have to have a specific compartment in mind to focus Luck bender on. I don't.”

“Why not focus on 'Genemaster Mekhane' and track him down?”

“Because he is undoubtedly dead? At best I'd find a set of degraded cybernetics lying in a corner somewhere. Not exactly useful when it comes to finding the cryosleep bay where I was recovered.”

“Then try focusing on a cryosleep bay?”

“Again, not specific enough. There is one aboard your hull and at least one in the Steinhull ruins, probably more than one. 'The primary reactor of the station that is now the Steinhull ruins' might be specific enough to try, but that's not where I want to go at the moment.”

“It might be worth heading there anyways I know you are waiting on the Empire 'communicator' before making a full report on the altar compartment, but the RSC is probably going to start asking questions if you don't send in an exploration log entry soon.”

“I'm going to try Psyniscience on this compartment first to see if there is anything I can detect. I don't expect anything but it's worth a shot. After that I'll use Luck Bender and hunt that primary reactor. I still plan to leave it offline because I don't fancy getting turned into so much ash by the turrets on my way out.”

Sinn settles into a crouch by the coreward hatch of the altar chamber. He settles into a pattern of meditative breathing and attempts to activate Psyniscience. The incantation rolls smoothly from Sinn's lips but his focus is off. As he tries for the third time he spots a humanoid figure shamble into the altar compartment by way of the left hand hatch. Sinn breaks off his attempts and rises into a crouch to study the figure.

“You seeing this Dara Tonn?”

“Affirmative.”

The figure shambles into the light cast by Sinn's earpiece flashlight. It wears a hooded sleeveless rove of heavy rust red rubber. Metal arms ending in four-fingered talons hand at the figures sides and a nest of cables hand from where it's jaw should be. Three glowing green eyes star at Sinn for a long moment. Sinn breaks the silence by speaking.

“Hello? Who are you?”

The figure raises its left arm and points one clawed talon-finger at Sinn. It speaks, the face cables writhing, in a flat mechanical monotone.

“Fleshbag. Why you enter holy place of machines?”

“I come seeking knowledge on behalf of the Republic Scout Command.”

The figure recoils, it's green eyes flaring in recognition, and reaches inside of its robes with its right arm.

“Death to flesh!”

Sinn has time to dive behind the nearest bench and draws his Magma SM revolver. The figure's hand emerges with a pistol clutched in an awkward grip and fires a purple beam of energy wildly into the hatch where Sinn had been crouched.

Sin rises smoothly into a crouch and fires a single round. The bullet strikes the figure in the chest and causes it to stagger for a brief moment. The figure recovers, levels its energy pistol and fires again. The shot marks the deck plates harmlessly two meters to Sinn's left and the figure stumbles forward to close the range.

With twenty seven meters between them Sinn steadies his aim and fires again. He misses the figure as it's stumbling shamble makes it bob and weave unpredictably. The figure fires on the move and misses as it continues to close the distance. Sin lets the figure close the range as he aims his last loaded round with care. When the figure is twenty four meters away Sinn fires and misses as the figure unexpectedly sways to the side over the remains of the security automata on the floor. Sinn ducks down behind the bench to begin reloading his Magma SM revolve and feels an energy bold strike his upper back. The hostile environment vest does it's job and absorbs the shot as Sinn throws the cylinder open and dumps the spent casings to the floor. Another shot singes a hole in his robe but manages to miss everything important. Sinn thumbs three cartridges into the waiting cylinder and slaps it closed before taking a moment to see how close the figure has come.

Now only fifteen meters away the figure fires again but manages to miss Sinn's head as he ducks back behind the bench. Sinn comes back up, levels his Magma SM and fires. In his haste he hits only a bench behind the figure as it continues to close in. The figure continues it's advance, firing again and missing as it stumbles off of the side of one of the floor turrets. Sinn holds his breath and fires when the figure is only twelve meters away. The bullet strikes the figure in the left leg, sending sparks flying as it ricochets off into the darkness. The figure presses its advance and fires. The energy bolt slips under the bench and hits Sinn in the left knee, sending him crumpling to the ground in agony.

Sinn Lays on the ground and spits out the incantation for Luck Bender as the figure closes in. Sinn stretches out his right arm with the Magma SM in it and waits for the right moment. He starts to squeeze the trigger, pauses as Luck Bender indicates a bad shot, then fires. The bullet strikes the figure squarely in the chest in a spray of sparks but does not slow it's advance. The figure presses forwards, flexing it's left talon in anticipation of the kill and putting another energy bolt into Sinn's chest. Sinn screams as the energy rips through his hostile environment vest, leaving him to gasp and flounder for breath.

When Sinn next opens his eyes the figure is crouched over him with talons ready to strike. Sinn rasps his way through the Luck Bender incantation, drops his empty Magama SM on the deck, grabs his pickax in both hands and slams it into the creatures head with all of his strength. The figure drops on its metal backside with a crash, it's energy pistol sliding on the deck. The figure shoves itself back onto its feet ans Sinn crawls for the energy pistol. Sinn grasps it, levels the unfamiliar weapon point blank in to the figures left leg and pulls the trigger. The energy bolt strikes true, but only sends sparks and the stench of scorched rubber into the stale air of the compartment. The figure reaches up and pulls the pickax from it's head. The figure's hood falls away to reveal a featureless metal dome rent and spewing sparks where the pickax struck it. Sinn manages to put another energy bolt into the figures right arm before having to roll out of the way of the descending pickax. The figure hesitates for a brief moment, unsure of where Sinn had gone to.

“Tank this.”

Sinn rams the energy pistol into the gash in the figures head and pulls the trigger. There is a great flash, the stench of overheated electronics, and the figure crashes to the deck plates and lies motionless.

“Sky and stars that was close.”

“How do you feel Sinn?”

Sin drops onto a bench as his left knee gives out under his own weight. He tosses the energy pistol onto the figure's back in disgust. And uses Spectral hands to recover his Magma SM revolver.

“Not great. I'll need to press on the Healer incantation if I want to make it back to your hull. After a rest break. That fight really took it out of me. Had I been even a bit more accurate I probably could have stopped the figure form getting that close.”

“is it safe to press on the Healer incantation?”

“Not really. Once every six hours per target is the maximum safe rate as far as I can determine. Let me finish reloading and activate Healer once, and then I'll make an exploration log entry. Nothing better to do while I sit around and regain my strength.

“Affirmative. I will analyze the fight footage as best I can while you recover.”

Sinn chants out the Healer incantation and feels his fatigue vanish, but his left knee is still a ball of agony. He settles back onto the bench and angles his body to take weight off of his left leg even as he watches the remains of the figure.

“Ready for that Lo\g Entry Darra Tonn?”

“Ready.”

“Begin exploration log entry.

“This is the second time I have been in this particular compartment. In my previous visit I surveyed this compartment, and the battle remains contained within toughly. The battle remains survey showed some interesting results, but I'll save them for a full report once I can use RSC-2W-0063's computing power to calculate a rough approximation of the timeline of the fight. Forty five security automata and twelve concealed floor turrets, counting the ones in the passageways immediately outside the hatches to this compartment, were eliminated in what I believe to be a very short time span.

“I also recovered an “Empire communicator' and have begun working on it's password protection via Luck bender enhanced guesswork. At present it is sitting in RSC-2W-0063's hull while it works on some semblance of a translation matrix. I have no ETA for results on that project at this time.

“When I returned to this compartment to proceed further into the Steinhull ruins I encountered the figure now lying 'dead' on the deck before me. Well, as 'dead' as a machine imitating human life can get anyway. I'll attach the encounter footage, audio and video both, to this log entry. Fair warning it contains both psionic incantations and close range violence.

“I will be resting in place for at least six hours to recover. I took a hit to my left knee that makes climbing the lift shaft to get out of here not practical at the moment. Another application of my Healer incantation should mitigate the issue, but I'll need to rest for six hours first to avoid potentially lethal side effects.

“End exploration log entry.”

“Clean Copy.”

“Attach the footage of the fight and send it. I need to rest.”