Thread: //.ghost/ECHO::Murphy_Was_Right:// [ClockworkCadence x Ryees]

.LAPLACE 's eyes sharpened, listening keenly ahead of them as they entered the rainy cave. It was a short enough journey to feel brief, but the seconds dragged on. The baggage, was .LAPLACE 's concern. .DUALITY was unlikely to be a liability within a fightat worst she would abandon them, phase through the walls and disappearbut in the others, he had negative trust, actively expecting them to make the situation worse at any turn they chose. They were unaccustomed to this, more used to having their hands held by .GORGON while hunting after caches that .LAPLACE most likely would have simply decided in his own practice were not worth the time. This cache, though, was more his style. Here, he felt in his element. And so it was that when they opened up into the cave, he immediately stepped aside, out of the way of the tunnel they had entered through and into an outcropping of stalagmites laden with verdant crystals. He leaned against it, bending a knee into the hollow and taking a moment to himself. Living five seconds in the future had its benefits, but it left him feeling dehydrated and edgy, his mouth working to get any moisture into it in hopes that it would stop his teeth from being on edge. He felt like he needed a bath, the oily feeling of the corruption leaving his skin damp and prickly in the cool subterranean air. The pack of forlorn demi-creatures did not surprise him, and in fact he was grateful for their presence. They would not be any real threat, but it meant that the hunting party was officially in hostile territory. If they were to meet any of the local .WRAITH population, it would be soon. And if in answer to his thoughts, a throaty screech scratched its way into their ears, echoing irritably around he cave walls. The piece of his perception that was rooted in reality took a look around, scanning their entourage with the intent to gauge readiness. He could not say he was impressed, though it did appear that .DUALITY at least would not get her ears nipped off. .LAPLACE stamped down a mild surge of protectiveness, writing it off as instinct Protect the strong, guard the assets, let the chaff fall aside. He brought up the handgun, leveling it at the air above .DUALITY 's head and waited. The looks from the squad went ignored, his eyes intent on that space. Then, that screech came again, feeling erroneously hot and dry in the cool, damp cave. In the present for the moment, he flashed his mind forward. Two shots rang out, pounding once through the bird's chest, the next through its skull. Reeling and dying, its wings curled in and it came suddenly faster, its shadow darkening atop .DUALITY until it landed with a sickening smash atop the woman. The mental shake of his head forced a rewind. Two shots rang out, pounding once through the bird's shoulder blade, and the next through the arched bones of its wing. With another horrifying screech, it veered, spiraling to the ground a handful of meters away. The breath .LAPLACE had been holding wisped out slowly between his lips, and with it, so too did two carefully placed rounds aimed not at the creature's head or center of mass, but at its left wing. By his prediction, killing it would see it fall atop .DUALITY , and that would simply not do. Breaking the more fragile bones of its wings would ground it for a much easier kill, and protect her in the process.