A loose wire arced to Spayce's screwdriver, and the alarm blared. Shit. That was not subtle, and no doubt something would be coming to the sound. Said something was apparently close, because pebbles started dropping from the elevator shaft into the wrecked car, and a definite scraping could be heard. Stennerman slung her rifle, and held out a hand to Ferne, “crowbar.”
Ferne nodded, and helped the marine wedge the tool in the crack of the door. Both put their weight against it. Something ripped through the roof of the elevator. The crowbar slipped and clattered to the ground. An adult carc loomed. Taller even than Stennerman. Bad spot. Too exposed. Nearest open door at the far end of the hall. No order to retreat had to be issued. Either by the former Captain, or the current Corporal. Spayce and Ferne put distance between them and the deadly creature. Vordt followed, but not before pulling the patch from their shoulder, and tossing it to affix it to the roof. She ran, too, activating a detonator that exploded the patch, raining debris on the crab. Stennerman did not retreat. Well, not yet. Staged retreat was boot basics, and she was the tip of the spear. She lay prone, and pulled the stock of the anti material rifle into her shoulder. If the carc carcass at the top of the tower was an indication, a single good shot could end this quick. She took in a deep breath, and let it out slowly. The carc carved through the rubble like it was foam. She gently squeezed the trigger. Smooth, even pressure. The gun rocked back against her shoulder. The carc was close. Much closer than this particular firearm's effective range. The bullet clipped the creature's carapace, and deflected into the ceiling. Ferne let loose with her laser cutter. The shot hit the same shoulder as Stennerman's, but it didn't slow the advance of the creature in the slightest.
The creature scuttled up to Stennerman and drove leg downward. She kept hold of the rifle, and rolled. The pointed crab leg smashed concrete. A second limb came down and caught Stennerman's armour. She rolled with the blow, and the leg slipped free, taking a chunk of armour with it when it hit concrete. Now on her back, Stennerman braced a boot against the thing's chest as it tried to bear down on her. She pressed the barrel to the carapace and pulled the trigger. The shot rang out at the same time as the creature wrenched the barrel to the side. Fuck. Stennerman scrambled back, before turning to run. Whatever these crab things were, they weren't intelligent. Or at least operating on animal instinct. The thing was fucking with Stennerman's rifle like it had removed a claw from a smaller crab. Near the end of the hall, Stennerman slid to a halt, and pulled the machine gun from where it was magnetically clamped to her armour. A staged retreat tactic was less effective when a single marine was the only stage. Anodyne had given the team free reign of their armoury prior to this mission, and Spayce had selected a shotgun. A wise choice, if of niche use. They stepped into the hall past Stennerman's position, and hoped the shotgun could puncture the creature's carapace. It did not. It did, however, make the creature mad. It charged, and swung a claw, hitting Spayce in the chest hard enough to send them flying back, leaving a Spayce sized dent in the wall.
Stennerman returned fire. The MG was no anti-material rifle, but at this range the bullets still pierced. And like Spayce's shot, served to royally piss off the creature. It charged Stennerman. Lifting her up and pinning her to the wall, despite the weight of her armour. The creature's mandibles clacked. Stennerman struggled. Whatever the creature was planning with those mandibles, it couldn't be good. Stennerman pulled her knees to her chest. She braced her feet against the carc. She pushed. Hard. The creature outweighed her by an order of magnitude, but her armour enhanced her already considerable strength. The carc's mandibles snapped in Stennerman's face as it's claws slid along the slick concrete. Stennerman dropped. She scooped up her machine gun as she dove through the open door. She landed and slid. Barrel pointed at the door, ready for the creature as Ferne slapped the door close button. For a moment, Stennerman thought she had left Spayce with the carc but no. The android had attached themselves to the ceiling with magnetic boots and was ready to let loose with their shotgun as soon as the door opened.
Bang. Something heavy hit the door. Bang. Again. An ear piercing shriek. A claw punctured the inches thick steel door. The scream of tearing metal echoed through the room. The carc pushed through the bisected door, and right into a perfect crossfire. Ferne's laser cutter was a tool not a weapon, but it was no less effective for that fact, and the carapace it softened gave Stennerman and Spayce a target to concentrate fire. The carc coughed up a rather distressing amount of viscera. It's instincts turned from hunt to survive. It turned to flee. Stennerman's anti-material still clutched in its lower appendages. She couldn't let a weapon that good get away from her. She sprinted out the door, dropping the mag of her machine gun, and slapped a fresh one home with a satisfying chunk.
“DO. NOT. TAKE. MY. RIFLE,” Stennerman shouted, each word coming between a burst of fire and a heavy footfall. The carc was fast, and made it all the way to the elevator before one of Stennerman's rounds found something vital, and the carc collapsed in a spray of what passed for its blood. Stennerman stowed the heavy machine gun on her back, and retrieved the rifle from the clutches of the crab. A quick check to make sure the carc hadn't bent anything, and Stennerman returned to the others. Well. Most of the others. Where in the ever loving fuck was Vordt?