18429/It Came from Outer Space

It Came from Outer Space
Date of Scene:	02 July 2024
Location:	Appalachian Mountains
Synopsis:	Some kind of spherical vessel, hidden within a meteorite using Kree cloaking technology, has impacted in the Appalachian Mountains near Hot Springs, North Carolina. Initial investigation shows wildlife with rabies-like symptoms attacking scientists and over a hundred cages that were all left open... and empty. Whatever was inside isn't anymore.
Cast of Characters:	Cindy Moon, Natasha Romanoff, Valeria Richards, Sara Pezzini, Henry McCoy, Kid Devil, James Rhodes, Camille Russo
Tinyplot:	It Came from Outer Space

---

Cindy Moon has posed:
The Appalachian Mountains, usually a serene and picturesque expanse of dense forests and rugged terrain, now hold a new and unsettling sight. A massive impact crater, roughly 1,000 feet in diameter, mars the landscape. Three days ago, a meteorite crashed in this remote region, causing a significant explosion that sent shockwaves through the surrounding area, kicked up a debris cloud, and sent out a shockwave that did moderate damage to nearby towns. The initial impact registered on seismic monitors across several states.

Day 1 saw the immediate aftermath: a blinding flash followed by a roaring boom that echoed through the mountains. The nearest town, Hot Springs, North Carolina, experienced a sudden blackout. Residents reported strange power fluctuations, electronic devices short-circuiting, and, most disturbingly, odd behavior in local wildlife. Birds flew in erratic patterns, and animals that typically avoided human contact became aggressive.

Day 2 brought local authorities to the scene, but they were ill-equipped to handle what they found. Radiation levels spiked unpredictably, creating a hazardous environment. Police reports noted an eerie glow from the crater at night and a persistent hum that seemed to emanate from the epicenter. Attempts to approach the crater were thwarted by severe dizziness and disorientation among the officers. As word spread, SHIELD's sensors picked up the peculiar radiation signatures, prompting immediate action.

Day 3 saw the arrival of the SHIELD team. They were briefed on the fluctuating gamma radiation and the reports from local authorities around Hot Springs that painted a picture of escalating anomalies: residents falling ill with symptoms akin to severe radiation poisoning, pets and livestock disappearing, and an increasing number of violent wildlife attacks that have driven most of the remaining residents from their homes.

As the SHIELD Quinjet sets down in a nearby clearing, giving everyone aboard a birds eye view, the gravity of the situation becomes clear. Temporary research tents and vehicles are set up at a safe distance from the crater's edge. Scientists in radiation suits methodically set up Geiger counters, spectrometers, and other equipment. And in the middle of the crater? A solid spherical shape that, while clearly damaged, did NOT vaporize to dust on impact.

Pic 1: https://i.imgur.com/jMqMNfh.jpeg

Pic 2: https://i.imgur.com/NCj3PWX.jpeg

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
She's taken radiation pills ahead of time. Her outfit is lined with lead, and a small filtration force field is layered upon her. She's also got a heavy loadout of weapons with her. As she goes to take in the shape of the impacted craft, she goes to make sure to line it up with her weapons to keep an eye on it. SHIELD's had a.. History with crashed spherical ships after all.

Particularly those insipid.. Greys of the last year or so ago. If this is them again, then they'll get their bodies back over her dead one. "Maintain perimeter. Don'tapproach the craft yet. We're not sure if there are survivors or not. Given the radioactive emanations the reactor is probably fissionable material." Which presuming she is right would make it rather inefficient for interstellar travel if it just has an advanced nuclear reactor. Of course, she could be completely wrong.

She knows how to destroy things, after all. That includes nuclear reactors.

Valeria Richards has posed:
It was the funky radiation readings that got Valeria's interests. She picked up the blip coming down from space on the Fantastic Four's main computer. Sure she left a note for her fam just in case. But she had also pinged SHIELD to let the the m know there was a Richards inbound. Big blast, big deal, big brains.

A little after the main SHIELD contingent, Valeria can be spotted arriving via HERBIE piloted Fantasticar, the blonde woman is in uniform. Blue bodysuit, padding similar to a motorcycle outfit though clinging as one might expect from super heroic activewear.

. While letting the robots help with setting up gear. Val's personal scanners get a workout while she keeps her personal forcefield up to keep that pesky radiation away. "Wow, I am wondering if Tunguskesque could be an apt description. Even if that one was an air burst and not a direct hit."

Sara Pezzini has posed:
A meteor made it through the atmosphere and hit in North Carolina. It was likely seen all up and down the eastern seaboard as it entered, and that meant the news was already reporting all about it... well, what they could report anyway. Everyone knows how it goes when the men in the black SUVs pull up, even if in this case it was at a distance and there were quinjet's involved.

Normally Sara would have just flown herself over and taken a look, but as an official SHIELD operation, she reported for duty and a ride. "Witchblade tells me that the radiation can't penetrate his metal armor," she reports to those on the jet, and whom ever it might be that is in charge all the while thinking, 'Please don't let me be the one in charge here.'

"When ready, just let us know and we'll go in for a closer look and report what we see," she adds with a smirk. "Eyes in the sky, or right on top of it."

Henry McCoy has posed:
Doctor McCoy, the Beast, climbs out of a Quinjet with a wave towards the pilot. He's in a derivation of his uniform that's more like a wrestling singlet, which gives him more places to hang equipment from. And he's taken ruthless advantage of all the extra space. Outside of a silent wish that Kate had been able to accompany him, as weird physics was a place where she'd eclipsed him, he had already taken an anti-rad shot. He'd mutated twice or three times by this point, with his luck he'd turn into something fluffy and harmless next.

Like a cockatiel.

"Beast, down and scanning." he said into his comms, as a mixed group like this wasn't going to set up a psi-net. He'd been spoiled, Hank had, by his X-Men colleagues. Time to get a feel for frequency, amplitude, intensity, how many microSieverts they were going to suck up just by proximity. Biochem was his jam, after all, and he'd lend a hand on the hard physics angle, but he was mostly here in that capacity. "Anyone starts feeling woozy or bleeding from their anywhere, notify me." he told the comm-net.

Kid Devil has posed:
    The air several meters up above the camp starts to leak... sparks? Flickers sputter outward, expanding, intensifying, until the air ruptures into a churning vortex of fire almost three meters wide. From the center of the firehole tumbles a few sealed crates (stamped with a S.T.A.R. Labs logo) and, finally, a red-and-black-and-white figure.
    Kid Devil yelps as he plummets to land on the ground with a thud, only to leap back to his feet and hastily dust himself off. He twists from side to side to assess the scene and spot any potential threats. Which, considering he looks like a demon, would have to be pretty threatening indeed.
    But around here there's nothing but tents. Harmless tents. "Uh, hey, hi," he calls, trying to get the attention of some SHIELD mooks. "Could I get a hand with these? And somewhere to set up." He grabs the heaviest of the crates himself and starts lugging it into the camp on his shoulder. "I was told you folks needed some specialists? They sent me to look at some meteor or something. Hang on, I had my ID..."
    In the commotion of his arrival it came loose, and he finds it stuck in his hair. "Oh, here."
    (http://www.virtopia.org/gallery2/supers/KidDevil-ID.jpg)
    He eventually deposits his gear in a designated location and unfolds a tablet to start calibrating it for scans.

James Rhodes has posed:
For his part, James 'Jim' Rhodes -- better known to his friends as Rhodey -- is along both because of the fact that he consults fairly regularly with SHIELD and of course the fact that Stark Industries -- or more specifically Tony -- offered up his services. Or rather the services of War Machine.

While he certainly doesn't have the sheer scientific genius of his much more famous -- or is that infamous? -- friend, he has a pretty fair mind at his disposal and a whole lot of experience with unusual situations. But more importantly in this particular case is the fact that he has the War Machine armor at his disposal.

Hardened against radiation with a sealed environment, and the finest sensor suite that a billionaire genius can possibly conceive of, it is a pretty valuable resource to have on hand in a situation like this. And while it might have been a little better if Tony himself and his Iron Man armor had been available, as far as substitutes go, Rhodey is a pretty damn good one.

Unlike most of the others, he does not arrive on a Quinjet, does not disembark down that reear ramp. Instead he streaks in over the impact site under his own power, repulsors flaring brightly under the sky as he sweeps across the site from several different vectors before finally angling his flight path down towards the impromptu research and security camp that has been set up at the fringes of impact crater, far enough away not to have to worry about any residual radiation.

<< War Machine, on site, >> he chimes in over the commline set up for SHIELD personnel and the outside experts brought in on the occasion. << Completed my first pass over the hot zone. Uploading initial date burst now. >>

Camille Russo has posed:
Camille is prepared for the radiation this time, and she's not losing any more of her damn hair to it. She's got a swimcap on as a minor extra layer of protection for it, but as the quinjet descends she's pulling her hood up and making sure her filtration mask is on, secured, and ready for action. What radiation will do to her magic is beyond her best guesses, but she's got her special brand of sharpies loaded up in a pocket and her dosimeter is clipped to the chest of her suit. 'At least SHIELD gets the nice toys,' she thinks to herself as she flexes her fingers in her gloves, appreciating how useful it is to have something thin enough to still handle her weaponry with ease.

"Roger that," she says into her earpiece in response to Beast's identification and remarks. She doesn't respond to Nat's comments, but she does draw her gun, flicking the safety off but keeping it pointed low at the ground as she moves up with the other agent. She's also loaded with weaponry, but this is one of the times she's hoping the site isn't any hotter than the radiation emitting from it.

Cindy Moon has posed:
The sun is juuuuuust working its way down towards the horizon. There's still plenty of light, but there are floodlights that have been set up with generators that are already kicking on to take the edge off.

As the SHIELD Quinjet touches down in a nearby clearing, its rotors whip up a whirlwind of dust and leaves. The team disembarks swiftly, taking in the unsettling sight of the massive crater and the damaged sphere at its center. The perimeter is abuzz with activity as SHIELD agents set up temporary research stations, their movements precise and urgent.

Dr. Elena Sanchez, the current ranking SHIELD scientist on-site, directs her team to establish a safe zone for analyzing the gamma radiation levels. "I want those spectrometers and Geiger counters operational in five minutes," she orders, her voice carrying over the hum of equipment. Agents in radiation suits move with practiced efficiency, erecting tents and calibrating instruments.

On the outskirts of the perimeter, SHIELD agents John Peterson and Maria Lopez patrol the edge of the forest, their senses on high alert. The forest, usually alive with the sounds of wildlife, is eerily silent. Peterson scans the treeline with his thermal goggles, noting the heat signatures of animals behaving erratically.

"Lopez, keep an eye on those readings," Peterson instructs, pointing to the fluctuations on his handheld scanner. "The radiation spikes are all over the place."

Lopez nods, her attention divided between the scanner and the forest around them. Suddenly, a rustling in the underbrush catches their attention. A trio of deer burst from the foliage, their movements jerky and aggressive, far from their usual skittish behavior.

"Peterson, look out!" Lopez shouts, as the lead deer charges at them with surprising speed.

Peterson barely has time to react before the deer is upon him. He dodges to the side, but the creature's antlers catch the edge of his suit, tearing through the fabric. Lopez draws her sidearm, firing a warning shot into the air, but the deer seem unfazed, their aggression undeterred by the noise.

Meanwhile, at the crater's edge, Agent Mark Davis coordinates with the perimeter guards, his earpiece crackling with reports of more wildlife converging on their location. "We need reinforcements at the north sector! Peterson and Lopez are under attack!" he barks into his radio.

And in the middle of the tent city, apparently just coming out of some briefing or another, a Spider emerges. Clad in a black-and-white costume with a stylized 'S' in the middle of her chest and a red half-mask that covers her nose and mask, Cindy Moon's (or rather Silk's) dark, almond-shaped eyes are alight with excitement. On both of her biceps are SHIELD (trainee) badges, worn as elastic straps so she didn't have to sew them in and ruin (yet another) costume. What?! They get expensive.

"Soooooo cool!" she whispers, her dark hair blowing a bit in the wake of all of the arriving traffic.

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha Romanova has no qualms about stalking an isolated Autobot, and this one that's driving, not even on the radio or showing signs of patrol, just slowly trundling along.. Is all the more easy prey. Ravage goes to hiss gleefully to himself, and then goes forwards to an overlook. From position she goes to line up her sniper rifle, swinging it over her back and lines it up with the first deer.

<<PEterson, Lopez, down!>> Her gun barks once, hitting the deer in the middle of the torso to slow it down. It barks twice more, the next two bullets going into the head. It barks a fourth time as this shot shatters the front knees.

She reloads another clip, lining it up wtih the second and third deer that will be joining the melee. The rifle barks several times and hopefully within five or so seconds all three of the altered creatures are down and their own injured can fall back for treatment.

<<Status?>>

Valeria Richards has posed:
"Anyone that needs additional radiation shielding can also grab a forcefield from HERBIE as needed. Last thing we want is making work for Doctor McCoy's medical expertise. New superpowers are a case by case situation." Valeria adds while she swipes at the haptic holographic display on her wrist computer.

"Anyone wants to take bets that there's something in the meteorite?" she asks and as word comes in of an attack happening the young woman rolls her eyes. "At least scanning provides some information. Looks like a lot of the endemic life in the area is starting to want to close in." Over comms, Valeria asks, <<Are you being attacked by local wildlife?>>

Henry McCoy has posed:
Hank is off like a shot, using his land speed to his benefit. He does _not_ drop to all fours, the SHIELD agent isn't all that far away. "Oh my stars and garters." he said on comms, which was poor comm discipline. "We've got a breach of containment on the suit and definite rad exposure. Bringing him to Medical." Hank said, then reached out to grab the injured agent under one arm and then loped effortlessly off to the med-tent. Which was hopefully set up already.

Sara Pezzini has posed:
At the call for help, the tendrils of metal expand from the scanty stuff Sara was first wearing, because with Witchblade the level of threat equaled how much armor was present and with no threat at all, he'd offered up only the very basic. Now however, the threat of radiation and SHIELD agents in need of assistance, the full suit of skin tight armor wrapped into place, including a helmet with mask to conceal her face.

Prepared to leap into actual, she actually laughs as Nat just shoots the deer from above. There were times that she and Witchblade forgot how to work on a team, and it was little things like Black Widow sniping a deer from a moving quinjet that reminded them. << Nice shot, >> she offers over the comms, then walks to the ramp and leaps out. << Moving in on the craft now. Unless you have protection against it, do not follow. We can take care of ourselves. >>

The wings on her back spread out as if to catch the wind, but her flying never actually required them. She used them instead to perform tight turning and for stability, as it was entirely magic like telekinesis that kept her in the air. Getting eyes on the spherical object at the center of the crater, she poured on the speed to head toward it.

Kid Devil has posed:
    Kid Devil had just opened up one of his crates to get out a custom hazmat suit made of a heat-resistant carbon compound, with adaptations for horns and tail. He was in the middle of wrestling into it-- as it's more form-fitting than the typical such garment, to enhance freedom of movement-- when the comms crackle with fresh chaos. Grunting, he manages to untangle his tail and get it situated in the suit so he can finally zip up and pull the helmet piece on.
    After double-checking the seals he grabs his tablet. He turns around, meaning to grab Beast and teleport him closer to the wounded people-- but the big blue guy is already off and running.
    "I guess that's north?" he asks. "Hope so!"
    Because he vanishes with a pop of air and smoke, reappearing in the path of one of the charging deer. "OH! DEER!" More by reflex than real planning he swats at it, sending it careening through the air to snap through a series of trees.
    "Sorry!" he yells after it.

James Rhodes has posed:
Almost as soon as Rhodey has touched down in that gleaming silver suit that encompasses some of the most advanced technology on the planet -- and the firepower to go with it -- that first alert goes out over the comm. That one of the agents on duty is under attack. By a deer?

Okay, that's a bit of a role reversal, but Rhodey is willing to roll with it. Afterall, they don't truly know just what they are dealing with here. Almost as once those repulsor disks spread out over that War Machine armor flare to life and as quickly as he sets down, War Machine is back into the sky once more, the advanced sensor suite on embedded in that armor almost immediately reaching out, sweeping across the field below.

The crater is certainly as one might expect, with that strange sphere in the center of it continuing to leak those low levels of gamma radiation -- colored green on his HUD of course.

And the perimeter as well with all the SHIELD activity. To be expected.

But it is the forest that almost immediately captures his attention, the heat signatures in his armor putting up a host of infrared images rapidly approaching the edge of the tree line, seemingly from every direction. Signatures that should shy away from human contact, now aggressively seeming to aggressively seek it out.

<< Uhhh, >> he begins over the comm, seeming to hesitate for just a moment. << We have a horde of animals approaching. Wide mix, from squirrels and rabbits, right up to bears. The first of them will be bursting from the tree line in three... two... one... >>

At least there's no damn dirty apes.

Camille Russo has posed:
The "under attack" isn't even fully out of the mouths of the sentry post before Camille's peeling away towards their location. She flicks the safety back into place on her handgun and stashes it in her hip holster before pulling her Carbine off her back and checking the magazine on it. Full and live, which is going to be useful. She's no sniper, but she's got the qualifications to do this sort of shooting, even if it is much, much smaller and cuter than she expected any targets to be. And fast, too. Damn.

She drops to her stomach and gets her gun propped against her shoulder, finger steady on the trigger. << Sentry, I'm behind to provide cover, over. >>

Cindy Moon has posed:
Just as Valeria and Rhodey predicted, a new wave of wildlife emerges from the forest. This time, it's a swarm of small, squirrel-sized creatures. Normally timid, these animals now move with a coordinated aggression, chattering loudly as they swarm the perimeter with a rabies-like ferocity.

Agent Lopez, still catching her breath, looks up to see the small creatures scrambling over the makeshift barriers. "We've got more incoming!" she yells, swatting at the creatures with the butt of her rifle. The small animals leap and bite, their sharp teeth easily penetrating the thick fabric of the agents' suits.

Dr. Sanchez, watching from the relative safety of the research tent, shouts into her radio, "Get those perimeter defenses up! We can't afford to lose any more ground!"

The situation rapidly deteriorates as a dozen larger animals join the fray. Among them are several black bears, their normally docile demeanor replaced with a ferocious intensity. The bears charge the perimeter, swiping at the guards with powerful paws. Their roars blend with the cacophony of the smaller creatures, creating a scene of chaos.

Agent Lopez, fighting off a pair of raccoons that have latched onto his arms, hears a loud crash. He turns just in time to see one of the black bears tear through a section of the barricade. "Davis, we need backup now!" he shouts into his radio, his voice strained.

Agent Mark Davis, coordinating the defense, struggles to maintain order. "All units, focus on the larger threats! We need to hold the line!" He fires his weapon at a charging bear, managing to slow it down but not stop it. The bear's thick fur seems to absorb the impact, its eyes wild with aggression as it continues its advance.

Meanwhile, Lopez and a few other agents manage to push back the smaller creatures, but the sheer number of them makes it a losing battle. One of the guards, Agent Ramirez, is pulled to the ground by a swarm of the aggressive squirrels, his screams barely audible over the chaos.

"Okay, not so cool!" Silk shouts to herself, suddenly running for one of the fights and stretching out a hand, shooting out a web-line that *thwips* to the top of one of the big flood lights and yanks herself up to the top of it. Just before Ramirez can be pulled fully back into the foliage, two of her web-lines shoot out and latch onto his shoulders, pulling him back hard, out of the grasp of the squirrels (but not completely out of danger). Rescued from the maw of a brutal, chittering death at least for the moment, though!

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha Romanova would go to calmly speak to the comms <<Neutralize the threats. Minimal damage to the perimeter team. We may need to clear the area for several hundred meters around after.>> She goes to line up with her rifle, and goes to switch out the sniper bolts that she had used for something heavier. She goes to load up AP rounds. Normally the type used for breaking light vehicles or heavily armored targets. She goes to rachet one of the heavier titanium bullets in manually, and goes to swing the weapon around to the first target.

She fires, hitting the center of mass. Headshots were too tricky in a melee. And if she left a basketball sized hole in the target, that would hopefully be the same thing. Rifle lined up, shot fired. Next shot. Next target.

Henry McCoy has posed:
Hank drops off the wounded agent and the SHIELD medicos go to work immediately. As wounded are the most vulnerable people around, Beast takes up a position outside the med-tent. Squirrel comes charging it, chittering like, well, a demented squirrel, and Hank punts it into the distance. It's almost like he played football as a younger man. Small critters get punted. Bigger ones get wrestled down and ideally KOed. Pity he wasn't packing any chemical agents to help with that so a bloodflow strangle it was going to need to be. With this many people, getting swamped shouldn't be that much of a concern.

Valeria Richards has posed:
A lot of the field team are non combatants. Technically Valeria herself counts if you ask her parents. Luckily she also has ways around that. With more and more critters rushing, they'll need breathing room.

"Force fields going up, bring the wounded close to the Fantasticar. Anyone not fighting can hunker down." she states and with some more techno wizardry on her wrist computer, an emitter rises from the trunk of the Fantasticar, and a slightly blue and translucent forcefield starts covering a thirty food diameter. A nifty bit of combined Richards and Doom tech.

<<I'd like to remind people that these animals have been driven to this. They are still innocent. Try and use non lethal ordnance where possible. At least until we can neutralise the radiation affecting everything.>>

Sara Pezzini has posed:
A part of Sara really wanted to help the agents. Years on the force and as a SHIELD agent, it came naturally to want to help, but right now she was the one who could get inside the sphere and maybe bring all the problems to an end.

The opening was large enough for her to fly right in and that's when she skidded to a stop. << Oh hell, >> she breathed out over the comms. << I'm no expert, but even I can tell this was a transportation vessel. I've enough knowledge to tell you that it's uh... got no external propulsion, and... >> she looks around, starting to move deeper into the thing. << Minimal life support, and it's big time damaged. >>

Even as she walks and talks, she is looking around, following the halls and ripping open any passages that she might need to to find what she is looking for. < Hey Jarvis, I need you to take a look around in here, tell me what I'm looking at because I just found a leaking reactor, > she finally says over the Avenger comm, which means Rhodey, Nat and Hank heard that much.

<< Okay, gamma radiation is from a leaking reactor people... how do I fix this and stop it? >> That's it, send the NYPD detective and magic wielder into the ship, cause she'll know what to do... that's right, ask for help.

Kid Devil has posed:
    Kid Devil is not... a 'tactics' person. Combating a tidal wave of woodland critters is well outside of his expertise. Unless someone wants a lot of roasted irradiated rabbit meat, maybe. << There's got to be something attracting them-- >> he says as he returns to camp. There he collects his tablet and starts consulting the scans as he turns toward the object at the center of the crater. << Like, a signal, or something? If I can isolate it, maybe I can cancel it out. Or reverse it. >>
    "You, and you," he waves at some of the SHIELD mooks, "If you could please unpack those two crates and deploy the emitters. Big round things, like a black beach ball on top of a tripod. Thanks!"
    Trusting in SHIELD's competence, Eddie begins plodding toward the presumptive source of all the weirdness: the big weird thing over there. The tail of his custom hazmat suit twirls frantically with excitement. Science!
    He spots something on his screen, and looks upward to find Rhodey circling above. Just as he starts to sync up some scanning parameters he catches Sara's remarks over the comm. << I can help with that! On your six! >>
    Kid Devil gets a fix on Sara's position and suddenly blips in behind her. "Hi!"
    He leans in to study the exposed reactor bits, wiping some dust off the front of his hazmat helmet. "Oh, this is *neat*. Now what are they using to control the reaction..."

James Rhodes has posed:
Well this is unexpected.

One doesn't really tend to expect that the local wildlife in any given area is going to suddenly turn hostile, that it is going to assault a SHIELD field camp in an almost coordinated fashion. Or that it is likely to meet this much success.

The advantage of surprise. It can make a heck of a lot of difference once one gets out in the field.

From his aerial vantage point above the crater, Rhodey can see it all developing, that advanced sensor suite continuing to relay the infrared signatures of the streams of animal threats emerging from the surrounding woods down to the positions below, giving them at least some idea of waht to expect as far as numberss go. Along with the relative size of the threat.

Though the squirrels and rabbits are proving every bit as much a threat with their swarm tactics as the emerging bears and larger creatures.

"Start scans over non-standard frequencies and spectrums. And engage Stark Sat Three to widen the perimeter scans to maximum. See if there is anything else out there in those woods," he says to his armor's onboard artificial intelligence, giving it the guidelines as new images and info feeds begin to populate the edge of the helmet's Head's Up Display.

<< Looks like the onslaught of animals is diminishing. The number pouring out of the woods should slow to a trickle, >> War Machine announces over that comm, continuing to feed that aerial info down to those on the ground below.

Then one of the compartments on his armor, embedded in his shoulder, pops up. While the suit is loaded for bear at anytime, it is versatile enough to have a diverse set of armaments. Blasting away at the rush of critters below with that shoulder-mounted gattling gun seems to be something of an overkill situation. Likewise with the micro-rockets.

But a barrage of tranq darts? That seems much more the thing.

Why the animals are attacking might be something of a mystery. But Rhodey very much doubts that they are responsible for their actions. And that initial burst of panic from the unexpected seems to be rapidly diminishing as defenses spring up, as agents focus on their ttraining. No need for a lethal response when a non-lethal one might work better.

So with soft hiss after soft hiss, darts begin to rapidly fire out of that shoulder based laucnher, new ones replacing the fired ones every few seconds as that streak out across the camp site, seeking out the various critters, small and large.

Camille Russo has posed:
Camille switches to sleep rounds at the reminder that the very angry animals are, in fact, being controlled by something else. They hope. She's just glad this isn't a swamp and that the one tree terrorist isn't here. She settles into combat mode easily. Aim, breathe, shoot, repeat. A bear goes down under three of the sleep bullets, but for the small animals she's not aiming at mass but rather at the middle of their groups, letting the ground take the force of the casing while the magic itself is released in tiny shockwaves around the clusters of rabbits and squirrels.

At least they aren't gators.

The herd is thinning though, and it seems the various efforts of people shooting, sending darts, and whatever is happening out of her sight at the center is working to turn the tide.

Cindy Moon has posed:
The SHIELD agents continue to fend off the SEEMINGLY relentless onslaught of aggressive wildlife, their efforts bolstered by the newly established 30-meter wide forcefield set up by Valeria Richards. The shimmering barrier provides a much-needed respite for scientists and re-arming agents alike, allowing them regroup and tend to the injured as the animals bounce off of the shields.

As Rhodey, pointed out, the immediate danger seems to be subsiding. The once overwhelming horde of animals is thinning, and the initial panic that the defenses might be overrun seems to be calming thanks to the quick actions of everyone rushing to quell the surge. This leaves only a trickle of enraged forest creatures still attempting to breach the perimeter.

"Keep pushing them back!" Davis shouts, firing at a bear that darts towards the barrier. "We're almost through this!"

Lopez, wiping sweat from her brow, nods in agreement. "The forcefield is holding. We just need to hold on a little longer." She swings her rifle to knock away a snarling fox, then turns to cover another agent dealing with a particularly aggressive badger.

At the center of the crater, Sara Pezzini (and not long after, Kid Devil) carefully navigates the interior of the damaged sphere. The opening is large enough for Sara to fly in, and she quickly skids to a stop. Inside, the damaged and misshapen sphere is largely hollow with compartments like cages around the interior that all seem to be hanging open. Maybe a hundred or more of them in total, all big enough to house a human child or two, though they look more like what humans would identify as animal cages.

Jarvis's voice, calm and analytical, responds promptly over the AVENGERS comms. << "Based on the gamma radiation levels and the scans, it appears this vessel employs Kree technology. The reactor you're seeing is a compact, high-energy power source typical of their engineering. It's designed to emit gamma radiation as a byproduct, which explains the current environmental readings. Locate the primary containment unit. It should be marked with Kree symbols resembling concentric circles. You'll need to manually engage the emergency shutoff, usually a red switch or lever. This will at least temporarily halt the radiation leak." >>

Like many of the others on the perimeter, Cindy is merely doing what she can to help staunch the in-flow of wildlife, and thankfully, the webbing is holding! *thwip-thwip-thwip-thwip* She's got a built in non-lethal solution that comes directly from her fingertips! ... Until she hits one of the black bears in the side of the head with a *split* and it looks at her and RAWRS.

Thankfully, she's still sitting on top of a floodlight, so when it runs over to the base of it and looks like it's going to climb, it hops a couple of times trying to get purchase on the pole. "Sorry! I'm sorry!" she shouts at it. "I don't like this any more than you do!"

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
All right, they're firming up the defense zone. That means that they have to clear out a radius to formalize it. Now Natasha's shots are more measured. She picks out who has the nearest hostiles, how well they can deal with them.. And then she goes to metaphorically thin the herd, trying to hold off more random animals running in with her rifle to give the other soldiers more time to clear the zone. She goes to calmly speak into her comm as she keeps on firing.

<<When perimeter and craft are secure, everything within a hundred and fifty meters is to be fully cleared. I want an open kill zone in every direction>> No more issues with wildlife sneaking up on them if it comes to taht.

Valeria Richards has posed:
<<If it's Gamma it's probably starting to Hulk everything out, everyone needs to be extra careful. Anyone starts getting testy, buff, and wondering why their clothes are too tight need to fall back to the forcefield now.>> Brainstorm warns.

To Sara the blonde science prodigy keeps on comms. <<Can you send visuals of the reactor? Kree? Awesome. We know this!>> she asks and hmms as critters still standing keep rushing the forcefield. Swiping at it only adding a recharge as the kinetic energy is used to refuel. Nothing hitting it with Gamma level strength so far. That would probably over load it.

It takes a moment to call it up, but diagrams and instructions dummied down for the average layman who might look at a car engine at the most. Clearly this was written for Johnny Storm. It's then sent to Sara, and well everyone in case they need to get in close.

<<Check your devices. Try and stay calm. Once containment is sorted we can then focus on clean up, and finding out who was being transported and why.>>

Sara Pezzini has posed:
<< This ship may have contained a hundred or more small, like human child sized, beings. >> she quickly reports on the SHIELD comms. << And that's the last piece of information I can offer for those of you outside, because I'm about to take on a leaking ractor. >>

Using her Avenger 'heads up', she sends off visuals for Valeria, and when Kid Devil comes into line of sight, he'll get a nod before she repeats to him what Jarvis said. Four eyes looking for a red lever among the green radiation were always better than two. "There's a chance some of the beings are still around here, but I highly doubt it. I'm starting to think this was a prison ship. This is Kree tech we're working with here, and both She Richards and Jarvis are telling me how to stop the leaking."

The red lever may not stand out, but Sara will scan every inch of the reactor room to find it and when she does, she will do exactly what Jarvis said to do... she'll pull it. Hopefully this means it will stop leaking, but what to do about the current amount already leaked is another matter entirely.

<< Did you say hulking out? I thought that was a rare thing... well shit. >>

Henry McCoy has posed:
Hank shakes his head in irritation - leave squirrel-punting to the people with nonlethal weapons. Go do science, Hank, it's what you're good at. So he does. Using a little collaborative device that he and Forge whipped up that looks unnervingly like a literal Star Trek tricorder, he's taking measurements inside their defensive perimeter to be contrasted with the readings outside of it. Assuming Valeria will allow it and assuming his stuff will cross-talk with her stuff, he's also dumping his data sets and reading out to her as well. Val may not be as well-known as her famous father but scuttlebutt was that she was no slouch. Time to let the kid shine.

Kid Devil has posed:
    Kid Devil pokes and prods inside the machine, grunting now and then or glancing down to consult his tablet. As he's worked the screen has accumulated schematics of the reactor and its surrounding components, until the screen has produced a comprehensive exploded view of the reactor's inner workings. << Some good news, I think! From what I can tell it looks like the reactor is still stable. >>
    He goes on to explain to Sara, like she should care, "The excursion appears to be spent coolant that was supposed to be looped back into this reservoir over here, where it gets held until it decays back to neutral...? How's that even work? They must have something that accelerates the decay... Huh. Anyway-- I think I can seal this part, but it's going to be hot. Did they say anything about the Creeps' coolant being flammable? On second thought, mmmmaybe I'll just wait until it's off."
    He considers the glove of his suit, made of a material meant to survive contact with his own standard temperatures. His hand heats up enough that even the hazmat glove begins to glow, and Kid Devil stretches his arm into the machinery to lightly grip that tube of alien metal. A delicate squeeze here and there presses the fractured seam shut, and Kid Devil leans back to consider the results. << I think we got it! >>
    He turns to grin at Sara and give her a salute with his tail along with a thumbs-up. "Good job!" he calls, his voice muffled inside the hazmat helmet. A hazmet, that's what it is.

Camille Russo has posed:
Camille is falling back as soon as she hears Natasha's words. It's slow-going and not her best work for accuracy, but thankfully her spell-rounds don't need pinpoint precision, just grenade-level work, and she's got that down, even while moving backwards.

<< Does the science team want one of the smaller animals for study? See if they can figure out why the wildlife had this reaction? >>

She waits for verification, holding her position - back from the perimeter and out of the way of areas that will become kill zones but still sending rounds of sleeping spell-shot into the thinning mass of animals. Even if the animals do stop attacking, they're already irradiated. That doesn't just go away, and she doesn't want even more of the wildlife and surrounding areas contaminated.

Cindy Moon has posed:
With the reactor's emergency shutoff activated by Sara and Kid Devil's quick thinking to crimp the coolant assembly, the gamma radiation levels begin to dissipate, significantly reducing the hazardous environment around the crater. The immediate threat of radiation poisoning diminishes, allowing the SHIELD scientists to operate more freely and securely.

On the perimeter, Natasha's leadership is proving invaluable. The guards, now coordinated under her command, execute a more organized push into the forest. The agents form a disciplined line, advancing methodically and using non-lethal force to drive the remaining aggressive wildlife back. Their movements are synchronized, each guard covering their sector and ensuring no gaps in their defensive line.

As Cindy Moon leaps gracefully off the floodlight, she fires a web at the bear below her, skillfully pinning it to the pole. The bear continues to struggle for a few minutes before it seems to fatigue, subdued by the strong webbing.

The coordinated efforts and quick actions of the team have turned the tide. The once overwhelming onslaught of enraged animals has been reduced to a manageable trickle. Only a few stragglers remain, easily dealt with by the remaining guards.

Dr. Elena Sanchez, now able to safely evaluate the scans that were sent in by Sara, begins her detailed analysis of the vessel. "This is remarkable," she mutters, examining the intricate designs and Kree symbols and sharing her work with Valeria in the process. Her team begins to set up additional equipment to study the now-stabilized reactor and the strange compartments inside the sphere.

As the perimeter solidifies and the wildlife retreats, a sense of calm begins to return to the scene. Agents tend to their wounded, and the scientists delve deeper into their investigation of the sphere. The crisis seems to be under control, but the mystery of the Kree vessel and its purpose on Earth remains.

Agent Lopez, still wary, keeps her eyes on the forest. << "I don't like it. Why did these animals suddenly go berserk?" >>

Peterson, now bandaged and back on his feet, nods in agreement. << "Whatever brought that thing here, it stirred up more than just some radiation. We've got to be ready for anything." >>

Kid Devil has posed:
    Kid Devil withdraws his hand from the innards of the reactor, shaking his fingers as the glove dissipates the intense heat into the air. He aims his tablet at the reactor's interior to capture another stack of photos and scans for a little light reading later.
    With the urgent urgent emergency under control he turns his attention to the rest of the vessel, looking up and around at the details of the bizarre structure. As he sweeps a light across the rows and rows of doors he looks curiously to Sara.
    << If there were people in these cells-- if this was a prison ship like you thought-- then where are the prisoners? >>
    Kid Devil turns this way and that, seeking out some evidence of the ship's passengers. Which, now that he considers it, would most likely look like gooey smears on the walls if this was some kind of accident. But there's nothing of the sort, apparently?
    << Something doesn't add up... >>

Valeria Richards has posed:
<<Oh the transformations can easily be replicated. It's controlling what happens after that causes hilarity to ensue.>> Valeria replies as she and Sara share technical readouts and tutorials as need be.

<<It's why the military always goes back to the Hulk well when wanting to do super soldiers. It's always in cycles. the current fad is giant robots from what I hear. Doctor McCoy could shed light on that one.>> sentinels.

The readouts and visuals Val gets getting a hmm. "Really does look like they strapped a rocket to a containment pod. Fired it off, and it collected a meteorite shell like a snowball rolling down hill." she laments.

"So any leavings or anything people can track the passengers with? Or we can analyze. Blood and urine samples."

Camille Russo has posed:
She agrees with Peterson and Lopez, and if she didn't know better Camille would swear it stank of magic. But it didn't. The only magic she feels keenly out here are the bits and pieces of her own on fellow agents, and whatever-the-magic that Agent-Consultant-Avenger Pezzini is. She should probably see about picking the other woman's brain.

Her last sleep round hits the oddest group she's seen. It sounds like the beginning of a joke or some sort of animal-themed cautionary tale, and it probably starts with something like this:
     'A fox, a rabbit, and a pack of squirrels run out of a forest.'

She leaves the fox, because she doesn't want an angry fox in a quinjet. That's definitely a cautionary tale. The rabbit is scooped into one elbow, and the sleeping squirrel is draped across it before she turns her back on the mostly secured perimeter. She makes her way back to the secured area and seeks out the tall, blue scientist-slash-likely mutant. "I've got live specimen delivery if you've got secure holding!" She lifts her elbow slightly, allowing the two sleeping animals to be seen.

They're quickly taken from her arms and secured, and Cam ends up cooling her heels near the jet, disassembling her rifle and cleaning it before packing it back in the case.

James Rhodes has posed:
The immediate emergency might be past, but that doesn't mean that there are not still a host of unanswered questions.

While Rhodey's scientist friends might be thrilled with that little fact -- something to investigate, yay! -- the military man in him is a little less enamored with that particular idea. The vessel below is raising all sorts of questions, and the lack of immediate answers mainly means potential trouble in his mind.

So with a team already busy investigating the sphere, trying to lock down that gamma leak to make it safer to investigate further, War Machine keeps his place in the skies above the crash site, above the camp, continuing to monitor the perimeter of thosw woods.

He also puts that commandeered Stark Satellite to good use, adding it's observational range to that of the War Machine suit itself to insure that the site is as closely monitored as it can be. For now.

<< Relaying incoming satellite imagery It should mark out particularly interesting potential samples for additional survey, >> Rhodes says casually over the comm. << I'll keep the aerial surveillance up for now if others can focus on the collection of ground samples, >> he suggests even while the sensor suite on that armor continues to document the scene.

Sara Pezzini has posed:
Once Kid finishes sealing the leak entirely, Sara gives the kid a nod. Really it's a helmed figure giving him a nod, but beneath it... he's seen her face, everyone has. Just like the other Avengers, she's got posters out there and hates it.

<<"It's just a thought, but no matter what way I look at this... it's not good. Who or what ever this ship was carrying, they're long gone." >>

Heading out from the reactor room, she performs a once over. She moves through the entire ship with the camera on, recording everything for Valaria and Jarvis, pausing at times to get a good look at parts when asked, or when her own curiosity gets the better of her. << Wait, what? >> Well shit, now she was full on detective mode without actually meaning it to happen. Every possible angle was anaylyzed and so the camera picked up everything. << Got some dropping in this cage Richards, but I have nothing to collect it with. Make note of the location, I don't think its going anywhere. >>

When the sweep is complete, she moves back to the hole she entered through and rather than flying out, she climbs out and starts looking around at the ground. Reaching up to the helmet, she taps the side of it a few times and a message to Nat goes out on the Avenger comms. << We have a /LOT/ of foot prints out there, hundreds in fact. Three-pointed toe claws marks, triangler in nature for the shape. They're packed together for a while, then start to space out the further away they are. Whatever was in there, it's out here now and from the looks of it, they went in every direction. What you share of that is up to you, but I'm going to follow a set of these prints until I find one of them, no matter how long that might take. If you want to join me later, just contact me and I'll give you my GPS. >>

That reported to someone who will decide for herself what SHIELD and Valaria might need to know, she follows the prints out to a certain point, then after a moment of standing motionless, lifts herself in the air and starts to follow something no one else can see, or perhaps she is just flying off, hard to tell.

Cindy Moon has posed:
As the chaos of the attack subsides, the SHIELD security agents continue their coordinated efforts under Natasha's command, ensuring the perimeter remains secure. The aggressive wildlife has finally retreated, leaving the team a moment to catch their breath and assess the situation.

Around Sara and Kid, broken pieces of the sphere's shell litter the ground, evidence of the violent impact.

Dr. Elena Sanchez nods at Valeria, peering at the readouts with fascination. "It's definitely a transport of some kind," she says, her voice filled with wonder and concern. "Designed to hit Earth and release whatever it was holding."

Camille's live animal samples are taken carefully by science team members and crated safely and humanely for care and study later, though no doubt the team at large has an even BIGGER mess on their hands keeping the bears and other larger animals sedated safely until they can figure out what happened.

Outside, the guards tighten their perimeter, pushing further into the forest to ensure no more surprises. Davis radios in, coordinating the final sweep. "Perimeter secure. Let's make sure we've got a clear path back to base."

Peterson, back on his feet, watches the forest warily. "I've got a feeling we haven't seen the last of whatever came out of that thing."

Cindy Moon, descending from her perch, helps secure the last few remaining aggressive animals. "Whatever it was, it's out there, now."

Rhodey's aerial and technological help isn't missed, either.

Back at the crater, Dr. Sanchez concludes her initial analysis. << "Thank you, Colonel. If you're amenable, I'd like to start a mile-square-grid search of... well... of this entire state using those satellites to see if we can find anything. It's been days, at this point, and we have no idea how far whatever was in that thing might have made it." >>

Then, she sighs. "We've gathered a lot of data, but this is just the beginning. We need to get this information consolidated and start piecing together what we're dealing with."