Dark Heresy - Wisdom is the beginning of fear.

[Jak Snide]

Crisis darted forward, keeping low and sliding into the cover one of the thugs had been using moments before. Both of the goons had advanced forward, yelling insults as they sought cover close to the enforcer. Gunner aimed and fired his shotgun, blowing a table in two but missing his mark. The mercenary braced his carbine on the table and rattled off a burst of fire at Twitcher, a shot taking him clean in the chest. The man slid into cover, looking down at the blood wound with an expression of shock and horror.

Julius and the thug with him somehow emerged from a hail of stub-fire unscathed, the two robed men in the side room more bothered about staying in cover than placing their shots. The guardsman dropped to one knee and fired a three shot burst, two of the las bolts taking the man in the arm and chest, scorching cloth and flesh alike, the man toppling next to the enforcer whose gun jammed on him at the wrong moment.

Mikolas darted forward, bullets whizzing past him, and took up a position one pillar closer to the bulk of the enemy. The thugs with them fired wildly, their poor marksmanship clearly evident. One of the men tried to move forward into the position of cover Mik had just left. A burst of silence autopistol fire tore through him, making a bloody mess of the man as he toppled forward, head bouncing off a pillar. The lead thug yelled in pain as he took a hit, retreating into cover to nurse his wound. Xerxes caught all this as he poked his head round the corner, taking careful aim at one of the elevated shooters, half-aware of Cryvus dragging himself into cover on the other side of the door.

(Ad1 has gone down, but the thugs have taken a good few hits this turn. 1 and 5 are badly wounded, while 4 was torn to shreds. The acolytes, however, didn't acquire and new injuries. Map has been updated, declare actions for Turn 3.)

[Capntastic]

Again, those stupid bastards shot at him. It was, in many ways, an annoyance. He'd already been shot, and the pain it was causing him only inspired him to dish some out. Reaching into his jacket, he grabbed the large bottle of mystery fluids cradled deep within, and took to lighting the rag spouting out of it with his lighter in a quick and practiced motion. A quick spark and the rag was lit. All that was left was to throw it. And, being a man of action, that is what he did.

(Firebomb to En8)

[Kelne]

Clearly, the firefight was still going on. And by the sounds of the return fire, things were not entirely going their way.Sighing to himself, Cryvus hauled himself upright and switched his laspistol for the autogun. Every small contribution counted.

[Justice Augustus]

Xerxes takes one more moment to stare down the barrel, bringing his weapon to full bear, and then unloads another round, with a prayer to the Emperor on his lips.

(Half-action aim to complete a full-action aim from last turn, then fire at En6)

[Besyanteo]

Gunner muttered under his breathe. His aim obviously needed a good bit of work. With their targets so far away, the shotgun wasn't going to be much use to Gunner... Which meant it was time to switch to the Lasgun, and see if he couldn't quickly peg the fellow cringing in the far doorway. While he didn't expect much more from this shot than from his previous one, there was always the chance of getting lucky.

(half action weapon switch, half action fire on En11.)

[NamagomiMk0]

Hearing the ongoing firefight coming from somewhere on the other side of the room, and seeing more results of the firefight, Crisis made another move to cover before readying a shot...there needed to be some assistance given, preferably immediately...

[Half-action move to either L27 or K26, based on which one gives better cover and a more unobstructed shot to the lone Enforcer, and then a half-action Aim to Enforcer Bastard #11]

[Jak Snide]

Gunner noticed Crisis sliding into cover next to the injured thug, resting the end of the long barrel of his rifle on the table in front of him. He had his own weapon ready now, lasgun swing up to snap off a quick shot at the enforcer. Luck was with him, and the bolt hit the side of the man's chest, but not before he sent a burst of fire whizzing towards the more forward of the thugs, who let loose an off target shot before a bullet took one of his ears off, evoking a cry of surprise and pain.

The man with the silenced autopistol surveyed the room, mouth opening to shout some taunt or jibe at the acolytes and their allies. Then Mikolas' crude firebomb shattered on the desk in front of him, spraying him and the mercenary nearby in liquid flame. The merc went down, face burning and dead from system shock. The robed man didn't have such an easy time of it. The top half of his body was coated in flame, and he screamed and flailed about as the fire consumed him. Some stash of ammo on his person cooked off, exploding and shredding the wooden chair next to him. Over all of this Mik could hear the terrified scream of a child.

Back at the other end of the room, the thug next to Julius took a pair of grazing hits, spitting out an unintelligible string of curses as he returned fire at the side room, the lead thug joining him. As before, their efforts were pitiful. Outside the front doors Cryvus slowly rose to his feet, using the wall as support as he steadied his grip on his weapon. He tried not to look at his own wounds, instead glancing across at Xerxes. He noted the man's smug grin of satisfaction, the arbitrator having shredded the face of his target with a well placed shot. Julius sent a trio of shots at the other man on the landing, two of them clipping his left arm a split second after a burst of fire impacted with the pillar Mik had quickly ducked behind, a second burst taking chunks out of the marble construct. The huge man wondered how long it would hold up under sustained fire.

(Things went a great deal better for the acolytes this turn: three men down and two hit. The thugs continue to serve their purpose, drawing fire away from the servants of the Throne. Map updated, declare turn 4 actions.)

[NamagomiMk0]

Crisis focused on this lone Enforcer--chould he be really giving these thugs that much of a problem? Even if they weren't interested in it, it seemed that all these thugs could really do is give their lives for the God-Emperor, so that those working in His name can perform their duties to the fullest. Such is the lot, it appears, in life that gangers hold, particularly when they cannot outperform mercenaries-for-hire in regards to the art of gunplay.

At least they were good for something--he noted as he squeezed off a single, silent shot at the enforcer in question, before taking aim again...

[Shoot at EN11, half-action aim assuming no mishaps...]

[Justice Augustus]

"Hah!" Xerxes crows, to nobody in particular. He then inches out around the doorway, just far enough to see the other foe guarding the stairway, and brings his shotgun to bear.

(If I can half-action aim and then shoot at En6, I do that. If I have to use half of my turn moving just to step one square, then I move one step right and aim instead.)

[Kelne]

"There's no shelter from the burning rain!" Cryvus shouted, popping an absolute minimum of his body around the corner and loosing a full-auto burst at the easiest target.

The opportunity to hurl random phrases at the enemy seemed to have helped revitalise him a bit, though his words wouldn't exactly be reassuring for the poor kid. But then, Cryvus wasn't a very reassuring person.

((Spending one fate point to regain d5 wounds, and triggering a full-auto burst at EN10, assuming I get the option (Single shot if not). Not that I expect to hit in either case))

[Besyanteo]

Gunner would rush up next to Crisis, and try to finish the job he started with that mercenary.

(second verse, same as the first.)

[Jak Snide]

Crisis fired, the thug next to him and Gunner adding their own shots to the mix. The results were poor; the latter two missed entirely, and Crisis' shot clipped the man in the shoulder, jarring him but doing no real damage. In response the enforcer opened up fully with his weapon, sending a hail of lead towards the trio. Most went wide or hit cover and, thankfully, the only one that connected did so with Crisis' flak vest, the impact bruising his ribs.

Mik scurried forward, moving up one pillar again, the sound of Xerxes shot going wide of it's mark drowned out a second later as Cryvus fired wildly, the unfamiliar weapon peppering one of the enforcer's position with bullets. Sheer probability dictated that one hit home, causing the man to wince in pain, though in likelihood his armor took the brunt of the impact. Julius, meanwhile, was not having a good time. The thug next to him went down to a well placed shot and, before he could even react, a bullet clipped him in the head, the elevated enforcer calling to fall back as he squeezed off a burst of fire. The guardsman's helmet saved his life, however, and he repaid his aggressor ten fold, a spray of las-fire reducing an exposed leg to a burnt stump. The man howled in pain, spasmed and fell silent. The sole surviving mercenary at his end of the room darted upstairs, barely sparing a glance for his fallen comrades.

(Th2 and En5 went down this round, two enforcers took grazing hits and Crisis has been hit for 1 damage. One of the enforcers has retreaded upstairs via K15. Map updated, with only two enemies left in sight. Declare actions for turn 5.)

[Justice Augustus]

With a glance around the doorway, Xerxes double-times it over to Cryvus, kneeling beside him while pumping new shells into the chamber of his shotgun. "Can you walk?" is all he asks the wounded man.

(Move to AF18, reload!)

[Kelne]

"I'll manage," said Cryvus, somewhat wearily, "Remind me to investigate the possibilities of armour." And indeed, he was already mostly upright, and certainly capable of shooting at the enemy. Cryvus proceeded to stick his head back around the corner briefly to see whether there were any visible targets and whether he could spot a better firing position. No to the first, and possibly to the second.

[Capntastic]

Mik darted away from the pillar, and towards the kid's location. Might as well get him out of this hole before the real fun begins.

"Hey! Kid! You okay?"

(Runny run run towards the kid.)

[NamagomiMk0]

Crisis squeezed off another shot against this complete pain-in-the-ass of an Enforcer, before darting back to more full cover--last thing he needed to be was in the wrong place relative to the next full-auto burst that went off...

[Fire the previously-aimed shot at En11, half-action move to I-26]

[Besyanteo]

Hopefully the third time would be a charm, as it were.

(Aimed shot, En 11)

[Jak Snide]

Cryvus peeked around the door frame as Xerxes slid two shells into his weapon with practiced ease. He noticed Julius narrowly avoid taking another hit, shifting his position and taking aim at something to the left of their position, and heard the lead thug whoop in glee as he landed a well placed shot. He also saw Mik dash out of cover, vault the desk and land where the man who'd shot him had been standing.

Mikolas found himself looking down at two things; the partially jibbed and heavily charred corpse of the man in robes, his autopistol lying nearby. The second was a little girl, no more than ten years old, who shrieked and retreated even further into her corner as the giant of a man turned his attention to her. His words did nothing to calm her.

The acolytes in the mess hall and the thugs with them unleashed a hail of fire at the remaining mercenary. The thugs predictably missed, but Crisis and Gunner's aim was true, both placing shots to the chest, both shots blowing clean through armour and flesh and leaving sizable holes in the man. The force of the impacts flung him backwards into the wall, weapon flying from his hand.

(One enforcer down and no wounds were received this turn. Just one injured man in the dark room to the left and one terrified child to deal with down here, it seems. Map updated, declare actions for turn 6.)

[Kelne]

Cryvus moved up, limping a bit, but doggedly persevering, ready to direct his own firepower at the remaining enforcer. He suppressed a sigh at the fresh screams. The poor child was going to have nightmares about this for years.

(full action move to AC14, staying in cover for the moment.)

[Besyanteo]

Gunner quickly began to advance towards the next room, not waiting to see who would and would not follow him in.

(double move to get to the foyer thing.)

[NamagomiMk0]

Crisis likewise, upon noting the thunk and Gunner's advance at the likely dropped Enforcer, bolted out with stummers silencing what would otherwise be loud movement, quickly heading for the doorway to parts of the building yet unexplored...but of course, stopping at the entrance, for only an idiot would run out THROUGH a doorway like that...

[Run action to...well, as close to the door into the main foyer as possible. Not on long enough to do the math and figure what is acceptable terrain. If Run is not feasible due to balance, Full-round move.]

[Capntastic]

Mik did the psuedo-sensible thing and made to hoist the screaming kid over the table; setting them free.

(Grapple)

[Justice Augustus]

As Cryvus moved forwards, Xerxes stepped into the vacated spot by the door, covering his comrade.

(Move to AF17, Overwatch!)

[Kelne]

Cryvus, meanwhile, leaned out from behind his cover, aimed, and fired off a shot at the remaining enforcer.

[Jak Snide]

Those in the mess hall moved forward quickly, knocking over chairs and vaulting tables as needed. Crisis found himself wishing gravity didn't have such a grip on him, Gunner meanwhile listening to the mutterings of the two thugs behind him. The twitchy one was holding together barely, while the other was bitching away about the loss of his ear.

Mikolas towered over the child as he stooped down to pick her up, the girl going silent in sheer terror, remaining petrified as she was hoisted over the desk and onto the floor. A moment later she was running for the side room, bawling as loudly as before and trying not to look at the corpses strewn about. Xerxes saw this all as he moved up to keep an eye on the foyer in general, noting Julius doing the same after he saw Cryvus move into position. The old man noticed the remaining foe was keeping well in cover and out of sight, not that it discouraged the lead thug from firing his weapon again.

(Besides one pointless expenditure of ammunition there's been no shooting this round. The mess hall is finally clear, and the group who gained entry are almost to the foyer. The hostage is, predictably, scared witless and making for where she thinks her family is. Map updated. Will anyone finish off the last bit of resistance on Turn 7?)

[Justice Augustus]

Content to let others risk their necks, Xerxes remains where he is, keeping an eye on the stairs above Mikolas for trouble.

(Overwatch 2: Emperorlectric Boogaloo!)

[Besyanteo]

Gunner ran into the next room, and looked over the handiwork of the others. They'd obviously raised a bit of hell, which was no problem in Gunner's mind. They'd also lost a few thugs, but honestly that was to be expected. It was more surprising that he didn't se any of his fellow Acolytes dead on the floor.

He ventured to ask, letting a mixture of hope and disbelief leak into his voice:

"Is that all of them, already?"

Sure, it was unlikely. It was damned unlikely. Then again, there was the off chance that their enemy was, largely, out on patrol and trying to find them. It would certainly explain why this place wasn't wholly packed with mercenaries up to this point.

[Capntastic]

Mik grinned at the tiny girl running to safety; and then knelt to begin picking up whatever valuables he could from the corpses near him.

(Lootin')

[NamagomiMk0]

Crisis' brow only furrowed as Gunner ran into the room in question. There was nobody immediately visible in the room, but therein lies the problem: visible, and in that room specifically...there was a door straight across from the one he was in, and it wasn't certain if that room was cleared yet. And so, from his position of cover, he watched for more enemies...you can't be too careful, after all.

[Delay action to fire if an enemy reveals itself]

[Kelne]

Cryvus had no illusions about his chances of surviving a charge on the enforcer's position. He maintained his position, waiting for the man to show himself.

It was important not to ask anybody to do anything he wouldn't do himself. Therefore, he was going to keep quiet and let people come up with the idea of charging on their own.

There was, however, one piece of advice he felt morally safe in giving, "Mikolas, when I said to take their stuff, I meant after they were all dead."

[Jak Snide]

Mikolas rummaged around as the team that had entered through the rear door moved into the foyer. As he scooped up the silenced autopistol, stashing it away for a rainy day, he noticed the glint of something metallic on the corpse of the man who wielded it. Reaching over tentatively and prying it away from charred flesh he found himself in possession of a metal card; a pass key, presumably for the front door and possible other locks.

Gunner strode into the room, the two thugs close behind, their appearance causing the fleeing child to skid to a halt, keeping her distance. The earless one looked around in response to the ex-PDF trooper's question and responded. "Looks like it." Then a burst of fire caught him in the chest and head, blowing out the back of his skull and dropping him. A chorus of gunfire responded to the death of another (admittedly unwitting) servant of the Throne. Cryvus missed, the weapon bucking in his weakened grip. The lead thug, bellowing another string of curses, grazed an exposed leg, causing the shooter in the side room to slump to one side. Crisis' shot took him cleanly in the chest, the high velocity round blowing clean through the robed figure and sending him flying backwards. Xerxes and Julius watched the stairs for activity all the while.

"Now we're clear." the guardsman announced, though he kept his weapon raised, just in case.

(Combat is over. Three of the five thugs are lying in pools of their own blood, but the dead of their foes outweigh them almost three to one. There are 5 autocarbines that can be looted, though 2 of them are up near the stairs to the second floor. There are also a total of 7 stub automatics lying about, along with the 3 stub revolvers and 1 shotgun that can be pried from the dead fingers of their newfound allies. Ammo for these weapons is reasonably abundant. The darkened room to the left of the front door is still unexplored, as is the side room near the mess hall. There are, of course, the upper floors to explore as well. Map updated, though we are no longer on combat time.)

[Capntastic]

Mik trundled about, snagging himself an autocarbine and getting whatever ammo he could for it, and his autopistol. His rare moment of silence was interupted every few moments by him kicking a corpse to make sure it was truly a corpse.

[NamagomiMk0]

Crisis, meanwhile, also started some looting--namely, simply for autocarbine ammunition. He was certain that a single clip of that wouldn't last him all that long under a protracted firefight, and that there needed to be more ammo...

--at least, he'd have looted the one in the room he was in before noticing the girl that the man had earlier mentioned. Given that these Enforcers were his enemies, Crisis figured it wouldn't hurt to at least perform a deed of service to the Emperor-fearing people to at least try to lead her back. Re-slinging his rifle, the Voidborn walked slowly toward the young girl, attempting to put out a reassuring air of friendliness and generally-wanting-to-help.

...Better than letting that oaf scare the girl off into parts of the hive never to be found again, anyway...

[Jak Snide]

Crisis found himself in only a marginally better position that Mikolas had. While he wasn't freakishly tall as the other man was his peculiar appearance deterred the girl from wanting to let him close, backing up a few paces, now scared silent.

Mikolas, meanwhile, looted what he wanted from the other man behind the desk. Upon closer inspection he noticed this one sported wounds of an earlier battle; presumably he'd been the injured enforcer that had escaped the shoot out at the station. He was most certainly dead and it looked like the ammo he was carrying hadn't cooked off like the hostage taker's had.

(Full details of loot via board PM)

[Kelne]

With the treacherous enforcers dealt with (for now at least), Cryvus did his best not to give off that creepy vibe which seemed to be a default with him.

"You are safe among His servants, child," he said gently, "As is your family. Gunner, if you would, escort her to them and advise them to seek shelter. At the Sanctum, or at a place of their choosing."

The child had a future ahead of her, he was certain of that much. Which was more than could have been said before they'd burst through the doors.

[Jak Snide]

Something about Cryvus' manner, or perhaps his carefully considered words, seemed to set the child at ease. To an extent, at least. She followed the older man's gaze and looked at Gunner expectantly.

[Besyanteo]

He nodded to Cryvus. Then he looked to the girl and smiled.

"This way. I met them on the way in. ... Oh, uh, give me your hand and close your eyes. There's more things on the way back you probably won't want to see."

He offered her his hand, and would lead her back once she'd taken it. Hopefully her folks hadn't run too far off.

[Jak Snide]

The child took Gunner's hand after a moment of hesitation, though she continued to hold her tongue. He was right in telling her to close her eyes, too; he found himself noticed the bloody carcass of one of the thugs who'd been chewed up by auto fire as well as the general stench of death that had begun to fill the room. A minute later, though, he'd guided her clear of the Alms House and out the back door. He'd heard the family arguing as he approached, the woman shouting at her husband, telling him that he should be in there saving their daughter. This all came to an abrupt end when she emerged from the rear entrance, opening her eyes and rushing towards her family as soon as she heard them. Her brother and mother greeted her with open arms, the father looking to Gunner, the relief he felt being plain to see.

"Thank you, stranger. I..I don't know what'd..."

He was unable to finish his sentence, tearing up as he turned to embrace the child he thought was lost.

Back Inside

The two remaining thugs, injured as they were, had spared no time in stripping down the dead, each taking an autocarbine and a pistol after discarding their previous weapons, moving on to grab a few clips afterwards. They even went as far as to strip the armoured vests off two of the enforcers, discarding their leather overcoats in favour of some protection.

"Runner's prob'ly gonna be waitin' up the stairs to take a shot at the first man up." the lead one commented, checking the ammo of his looted weapons.

[Capntastic]

"Yeah, they really got the high ground here. I have no idea what we can do to scare 'em out, though, save for maybe one or two things..."

[NamagomiMk0]

Crisis himself pondered over this very issue. Aside from sacrificing a few of their own for an initial breach, it would be very difficult to think of a viable strategy for assaulting the enemies on the higher floors of the almshouse. While the child had finally been rescued and presumably returned to her family, there was still the major issue of eliminating these heretics.

While it was tempting to send Mik and the head thug up to that floor, his allies would no doubt question his allegiances to the God-Emperor for doing so, in a best-case scenario. Reloading his rifle with a fresh clip, as well as shifting bullets over from partially empty clips to others in order to fill them, he got an idea...

But first of all, his curiosity got the better of him as he cautiously moved to examine what further was in that room his last kill was standing in, if anything of note at all...while tossing aside one of his empty clips when he was sure nobody was paying attention--if simply to try and see how well a sudden sound of the such would get such...

(moving over and peeking into the room on the left side of the foyer now, essentially)