RPGTopia

Both Rebin and Yukari, seeing the machines, gladly took off after Damian, running as fast as they could, with Rebin firing back at the machines when he could... So this wasn't just a primieval dimension... but one where machines ruled as well? What was this place?

Jake ran alongside the others, looking back at the machine and firing a few bursts from his handgun, before looking forward again as he ran.

***

Gwangolord charged through the forest, jumping up and landing down a boulder, looking around for food, before snarling and taking off to the air, circling the sky for any targets.

The machine leaped from its perch on the tree trunk, landing deftly on the ground and avoiding the grenade. Its fellow constructs followed suit, sidestepping or hopping around the gunfire and forming a rough semicircle around the humans. Forcing them into the cave would be most effective at destroying them piecemeal.

As the humans retreated, the dozen or so Crawlers pursued, their lights dimming to a cold blue as they entered the darkness. They were required to protect this place, and they would do so with the persistence no animal possessed...

Damian's mind raced for ideas. What was he to do? Their group was beign pursued by those... things, and god knwos what else lurked in this cave. Damian quickly turend aroudn and fired another grenade into the darkness, aiming blindly behidn the group, before he kept running. He needed to get them into a narrow tunnel or soemthing, so that the machiens coudl not swarm them.... but where woudl they go?

Suddenly, a flurry of tendrils grabbed one of the drones, and quickly tore it to shreds. Crom quickly disappeared into the darkness, and continued pursuing the group. He needed to get ahead of these machines and get his prey first....

The grenade scattered the Crawlers for a moment, taking out two, and the third being destroyed by Crom still did not deter them. The Revenant was dangerous, no doubt, but it was a denizen of this place. They would attack if given an opportunity, but the invaders took priority...

Both Yukari and Rebin were running as fast as their legs could carry them. THey needed to get more distance from these things...

"Wait, I see light up ahead! There's the exit!" Yukari shouted. Sure enough, there was light coming up ahead... they were almost out of the caves...but what was lurking on the outside?

Jake looked back towards the machines, firing a rocket at them to distract them, before following the rest towards the light...

***

Gwangolord flew down towards the ground, landing by a mountainside as he looked around. Rage taking over, Gwangolord vented by discharging a multitude of pressurized lava and burning rock upon the mountainside...

The Crawlers shifted to the walls and ceiling of the cave, making them less savory targets. A misplaced explosive could cause a collapse, trapping the humans. They fired their weapons as they scuttled, bolts of orange energy flying past the humans and splashing against the walls...

"****!" Damian growled under his breath. They were nearly at the exit of the cave.... the light was visible from a distance of approximately 200 feet away. But how were they gonig to make it? Plasma rounds whizzed past the group, their constant motnno being the only thing keeping them safe from harm. They needed to spread out to lower the chances of being hit.

"Everyone," Damian shouted. "Spread out! We're almost out of this place!"

Taking Damian's advice, Jake moved away from the others, just as a plasma round exploded beside him. Jake turned and fired several shots from his handgun, before running once more, getting closer to the light...

***

Gwangolord sniffed the air. There was a scent, faint, but it was there.

Food.

Gwangolord snarled, before flying towards the direction of the scent...

Likewise, both Yukari and Rebin split up from the others and each other, as they continued their mad dash to the light... and hopefully, escape from this cave of terrors...

Outside of the cave, in one of the branches of an overhanging tree, something was waiting...

As if halted by some unseen force, the pursuing Crawlers abruptly ceased their chase, slowing to a stop around 200 feet from the entrance. They still fired potshots at the humans, but otherwise did not move any further...

Jake barely noticed that the Crawlers halted, but kept running forward before managing to throw himself forward and into the light...

***

Gwangolord could smell it now, and roared out with hunger, flying down towards the scent...

Damian did noit bother looking back as plasma rounds whizzed past him, a coupel knicking his thick breaker armow and causing it to smolder. Soon, the gorup had managed to reach the exit to the cavern, soon bathing themselves in the light outside of their near-tomb...

The shadowy figure soon stopped pursuing them, the light serving as a barrier against the monster. Soon, the time to strike again would come...

Jake finally ran to a halt, ducking beside a large boulder as he gasped for air. Slowly he regained his breath and stood up, looking back towards the cave as he backed away.

***

Gwangolord now sensed the presence of others, and landed on the side of a tree, looking around anxiously for the food...

Both Yukari and Rebin stopped to catch their breath once they were outside, the two of them under the shade of a massive tree off to the side, away from the cave enterance.

"What... was way too close... " Yukari gasped for air. "I think... we lost them."

"Yeah, let's hope we did" Rebin replied as he sat back, both unaware of something up on the branch just above them, something that was watching them, hidden in the shadows the leaves of the tree created...

"Let's hoep so," Damian said, catching his breath form the good long run they had. The man soon placed the grnade launcher back in its sleeve, next to his plasma saw and sledgehammer, as he surveyed the area. The land was flat and still mostly marshland, though he could see some other landscape far off to the horizon. It was queit where they were at the moment.... too quiet.

"We should continue moving," Damian said. "We don't want thsoe drones, or something else, coming after us."

"I've kept my wits about me while surrounded by Taliban militants and being overrun by tanks, not to mention being hunted by every vicious dinosaur you could probably name. I think I can manage a few hundred wild animals hidden in the dark" responded Jacob bluntly, before realising that Kane would probably not know what he meant unless he was well studied in history. He couldn't help but note the similarity in tactics between these creatures and the Troodon of the Resurrection Incident...Just one more uncomfortable memory from his past...

As if Damian's words summoned it, the second half of the robotic trap was sprung: a massive hulking machine, easily ten feet in height, leaped from the treetops above the group. It slammed into Damian, knocking him on his back and pinning him with one metal foot. The construct examined Damian's helmeted head with its grimacing "face," which promptly split apart, revealing a glowing orange skull that let out a horrific alien screech right at his face...

Jake saw Damian being pinned by the... thing, before deciding to come to his aid, pulling out his handgun and running forward, now concerned for Damian's safety than anything else...

***

Gwangolord snarled and roared, excited by the sound of battle, before flying down towards the sound, roaring out into the sky...