We tried to move as quietly and quickly as we could, but it was not easy with combat boots on the metal floor. But we might as well not have bothered, everything was empty.
No sign of anyone. No bodies, not even any servitors.
"Cogitators are down," I said and knelt down, pulling a cover off to peer inside, "No visible damage, they're getting power. Likely software. Storage looks okay, so might be something with the bootloader."
Reaching in, I felt around between the cables before I grabbed the storage module and tugged it free, slipping it into my pack. Maybe Naria could get something from it later.
"Whatever that means," Linus said and felt the incense burner on the shrine to the Omnissiah, "Cold. Been at least a couple of days since anyone was here. This reminds you of something, sir?"
"Sadly yes," I agreed and got back onto my feet, "Last time I saw a place picked this clean, the next day I was neck deep in 'nids. But it doesn't make sense. The place is full of biomatter, they would have been picking the forests clean if they were starting to snack on the locals like this."
If a small swarm had arrived on planet, they only acted like this to carefully build forces. But if they were carefully building forces on a planet mostly covered with forests, they wouldn't be going after people in the first place. They'd be eating animals and plants, massing numbers and then go after the people.
This… this didn't fit. It didn't work with their normal pattern. I don't like things that don't match patterns.
"This is Tezzeret to all teams," I said and touched my combead, "Report in by teams. Has anyone seen any weapon damage or any sign of the locals?"
"Team one, no sign."
"Team two, nothing so far sir."
"Team four, we got nothing. It's like they all just left."
I waited a second, "Team three, report."
Silence. Static.
"Team three, I say again, report in."
Static.
I looked to Darien, "Team three was at the entrance of the mine, weren't they?" I asked him.
"Confirmed," He agreed and touched his own combead, "Callan, do you have eyes on the mineshaft?"
"I have eyes on," Callan agreed, "No movement since team three went inside."
"They fracking went inside!?" Darien said and then took a moment to run his hand down his face, "PDF!"
When he said it, it sounded a lot like a curse.
A second later he touched his combead again, "All teams converge on the entrance of the mine. Do not enter. I fracking repeat, do not enter!"
I was tempted to just pull out and call in an airstrike on the place, but we needed to know what was going on.
Picking my lasgun up from where I had put it down on the cogitator, I turned towards the door, "Well, I know where we're going next. Callan, let me know if you get anything."
"Acknowledged, Interrogator."
We made our way out from the refinery and out into the open air again, heading towards the entrance of the mine. Everybody else beat us there and there were twelve lasguns aimed at the door.
"Team one take the lead," Darien said, "Sweep and clear. Team four, remain here, cover our retreat."
I walked up to the door, "Everybody stay alert and don't shoot unless you have a target, our men may still be in there."
There was a possibility that there was something else in there too. With tyranids of the list… and with heretics on the planet…
Could be Chaos bullshit. Warpcraft or even demons.
"If anybody smells ozone, report at once," I said, "And then retreat. Do not engage."
"Understood, Interrogator."
With that, I pulled the door open and they walked in, sweeping with their guns, covering the angles. I waited a second before I followed along with Darien, Zhivko and the three guys in team two.
The first room wasn't much more than a long room to a big hole in the ground going down at a forty-five degree angle downwards. There was a lift of some sort, but it was missing. But there were stairs towards the left of the passage downwards.
"How do they get the ore up?" one of the PDF asked as he looked down into the darkness.
I walked up next to him, pulling a chemical light stick from my belt and giving it a shake, the bright blue glow shining as I tossed it down the incline, "Not here," I answered him, "They have a separate lift for that in the refinery. A belt that goes all the way down, this is for moving people, equipment and servitors."
The light jumped and rolled down into the darkness, showing the smooth stone tunnel as it disappeared into the distance.
"Any chance of getting that lift going, sir?" Darien asked as he joined us, aiming down into the darkness.
"No power," I said and shook my head, "And if it follows the general layout of these things, the generators are at the bottom. Might be able to cross connect with the rest of the base's power, but that'd need an actual Enginseer," I said and turned to look at them, "We're walking. Team four, move inside, cover the mineshaft in case we need covering fire."
I heard a small groan from the PDF trooper next to me.
And as I looked down as the stairs reached down into the darkness, I couldn't help but agree with him. Not only was it a bad tactical position, but it was going to suck hard.
"Hey, chin up," I told him with a small smile, "Once down, I can get the power going and we can ride up again. Up is way worse than down."
I was more right than I knew.
The way up was way worse than the way down.
