[snip]

Scans so far by anyone checking things showed nothing out of place so far that they could recognize. Approaching the cave mouth they saw it was dimly lit past 10ft or so into a gloomy tunnel that seemed to head deeper into the earth below. The scent of damp earth, moss, and probably some kind of animal presence or similar wafted out. The tracks of the unknown party that they had followed here it seems had gone into the cave ahead.

GM CockRoach

As Rand walked making observations she got a whiff of something not totally fresh open air, though it didn’t hint at unpleasantness, yet, and she glanced around trying to locate the source of it. The rest of the group wasn’t far behind, within talking distance, but somehow she was in front. “Nope, I’m here as an extra pair of hands. One of you lads get up front. I am not walking into some big, dark, scary cave like some sacrificial Greek Virgin.” And to emphasize her point she moved toward the back of the group.

Yeoman Rand

One of the two other red shirt NE’s from security came up to Rand and jokingly elbowed her in the left side. “..Don’t worry Yeoman I’ll keep you safe!” he said with a confident grin.

Nearby the other red shirt NE from security, this one female just rolled her eyes from behind the first one at his comments. “..Pish come on NE Barks we both know you couldn’t keep your pet goldfishes safe much less the Yeoman there..” she said.

Roman gave a half smile at Rand’s comment, but privately, he was glad she wasn’t near the front of the group. He’d prefer her sort of in the middle of it. Especially with the potential of meeting someone hostile. He nodded to Yarwood. “Let’s keep our eyes and year’s open and our scanners out when possible.” Of course it was exciting to Roman, the possibility of meeting a new species, and his excitement was obvious. He’d be excited, if they had the time, over the area’s native animals.

~ Lt Cmdr Alden, XO/CSO

Kovan rolled his eyes at Rand’s comment, “What? Don’t feel like dying to appease some monster or the other? I would volunteer but I wouldn’t fit the criteria.” That said, he moved to the front of their party. He may not be a trained fighter like a security officer, but he’s been in enough fist fights to hold his own. Nor could he claim any fear of the dark or tight spaces. Kovan tucked his tricorder back into its leather satchel and pulled out a small penlight. Small and discrete, it was often used to light up dark areas of the ship’s guts while crawling around Jeffries Tubes. Not the best choice for cave exploration but it kept his hands free.

“So what’s the plan when we meet these strangers?” Kovan asked.

Ensign ch’Sirhc, COMMO/ENGR

Using the penlight, Ch’Sirhc could see maybe about 15 or so feet ahead. The cave entrance was a small caveran about 20 feet in height, by 30 some feet wide and about 40 feet deep. The tunnel leading off from it was about 10 feet high and 13 or so feet wide leading on a slight slope down into the earth.

The entrance showed signs of likely inhabitation at some point, bits of a small cooking campfire was off to their left in one far corner, crude leathers and furs used as dirty bedding/clothes were here and there in piles. Signs of trash, bones, half eaten rotted meat were in another corner that seemed to be the source of the foul smells they had before them. But also picked up was signs that some kind of small fight took place here within the past day or so. Some tracks were those of the mysterious party they had followed here, others were new. The new tracks were likely of a tiny creature, with three long toes and a foot shape that was semi-humanoid with a lizard like quality to them. Going off the patterns of the tracks, the mystery party had engaged about 8-10 of these little scaled people, who then made a hasty retreat down the tunnel ahead of them which the mystery party then followed.

GM CockRoach