Kirk and Dell gave Adam a look over, but it appeared that the avatar had ceased to function. After a check on the AI core they also learned that it too had shutdown and was in a very long diagnostic cycle. It looked like the AI had been affected so much by the Preserver Tech on the planet that it had almost completely shut down.
With Adam out of action, this meant that Kirk would have to take some of the less experienced crew members with him. To aid them in any fire fight that was likely to happen he replicated up some powerful personal shields.
At 2200 Kirk set a watch and turned in, retiring to his cabin.
DAY 131(fri)
Kirk and the crewmen he was taking with him, namely Celes, Murphy and Paterson knocked on the gate of the temple compound at 0800 and were admitted within.
'Greetings offworlders!' said Sagra as the arrived.
They wasted no time as Sagra bit them enter the temple and he lead them down into a lower room where they were met by a vulcan woman called Yuyu. She wore a golden robe and headdress.
At this point Sagra bit them farewell and Yuyu lead them through stone tunnels, down stairs and over stone bridges that went across vast bottomless chasms.
At some point the MATSE cut out and stopped working, and although they could no longer understand Yuyu she bid them to continue following her. Kirk realised that she could understand what he said but that he could no longer understand her.
The only lights they now had were from torches attached to their rifles.
Finally, after nearly an hour of subterranean travel they arrived at a set of stone door and when she opened them she motioned for Kirk and his crew to go down the stairs within. She would not follow them.
At the base of the spiral stairs was another door. Kirk tried his tricorder but it was either malfunctioning or being jammed by the effects of the Preserver Tech.
Kirk opened the door and they entered a stone chamber full of dust. There was a hole in the floor and a large barrel, but he ignored these and went across to the door on the other side.
Opening this lead into another small stone chamber. There were six metallic spiders, their bodies the size of dogs, in this room and they attacked immediately. Some attacked with bladed legs while others seemed to have electrical weapons.
They were easily destroyed by the hail of bullets from the crew's assault rifles and shotguns. One did get in close though and exploded, sending shrapnel flying everywhere.
Dazed and deafened from the noise of the assault rifles they carried on. The chamber they were in had an open exit to the north that lead to a corridor and a crossroads. Kirk went to take a look and got the attention of ten more of the 'skuttlers' and a fire fight worthy of the name occurred.
The lead skuttlers ran in and attacked with their blades. The crew shot these ones up quickly but it meant they were at the mercy of the enemies further back that blasted at them with their electrical dischargers. Another charged in and exploded, injuring Celes, but not enough to take her out of action.
The crew filled the corridor with lead, taking out one skuttler after another until they were all down and the crossroads was a mass of twisted metal and spent shotgun cartridges.
After a moment to collect their senses, Kirk led on, taking the east corridor, which lead on to a T-junction. Here they were attacked by a different enemy, larger robotic entities that lumbered towards them on wheeled limbs. They were tougher than the skuttlers, but there were only two of them and after a brief shoot out down the length of the corridor they were defeated.
Kirk and his crew were still doing well though, despite being covered in dust and almost completely deafened by the gunfire. The personal shields had been a good investment.
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