<strong>“Gee, does it look dark too?” Danko quipped wryly, smirking as she moved around Jones to step into the doorway to his left, jerking her head towards the opening.  “Think that maybe you can keep an eye on this one too?  Or do you need a woman with a big gun to do it for you?” </strong><br/><br/>Marcus snorted out loud and arched his eyebrow at the Gunnery Sergeant. “That’s tempting Danko,” He replied, returning his gaze to the empty corridors front of him and to his left. “After all, I do like the way your ass moves when you’re lugging that thing down the hallway, but I think I got this one.” While there was a little humour in his statement, his mind was not very much on the byplay. He was anxious to move on after the lone survivor and even more anxious to find out just what the hell had happened here.<br/><br/><strong>"Avert your eyes, ladies!" Mathias said loudly as he began removing his suit so Cooper could take a look at his leg.  "I know I'm an eye-full, but I wouldn't want my Olympian proportions to strike you blind!"</strong><br/><br/>“Just be careful lover boy,” He said to Cooper. “I’ve seen Mathias’ EX, and believe me you don’t want to know where he’s been.” Marcus was just about to add something else when the L.T.’s voice cut through the chatter.<strong>”It means keep your issued rifle in case that prototype decides to have a bitch fit in the middle of a fire fight, marine."</strong><br/><br/>To this, Marcus let loose another snort and replied with a “Yes sir,” that bordered heavily on the sarcastic. However impressed the ex-con might have been with Tychus’ actions in prior engagement, the man’s voice was quickly getting on Marcus’ nerves. Marcus wasn’t a new recruit, he knew how to handle his weapon; in fact he’d had more experience with combat than many marines before he’d even set foot in boot. It was becoming clear that the man had enjoyed hearing himself talk, which was a trait that Marcus utterly despised.<br/><br/><strong>“...squad 3 Radio silence now.”</strong><br/><br/>Despite his growing dislike of the man, Marcus kept quiet and quickly turned off his radio. He listened intently to the officer’s report on the fallen hostiles. The more he heard, the more perplexed he became. As the L.T. began to discuss the data slate’s content, the man’s voice wavered causing Marcus to look over just as the officer fell to his knees.<br/><br/><strong>"Open your radios back up squad, don't give FATHER any reason to be suspicious. From what was pulled from the slate, that runner should be the only one but I ain't cashing it on hostile intel. So get ready for another firefight, I got orders to investigate this ghost town since this unreliable source also claims there is not a soul here but us and that one that got away."</strong><br/><br/>“What the fuck?” Marcus muttered, not particularly caring who heard.<br/><br/><strong>"Sir, is there something wrong?" [Danko] asked.</strong><br/><br/>There was something very wrong with this guy and Marcus would be damned if it was going to get him killed. He kept his radio off as he turned to look the L.T. right in the eye. “Why would FATHER care whether we’ve got our radios on or not,<em>sir</em>?” Even as he spoke, he formed up with the rest of the squad, and let himself drift toward the back, nudging Cooper as he did and motioning for the younger man to follow him. When he was close enough to both Danko and Cooper he spoke plainly.<br/><br/>"Guys, I think we've got a problem. A big one."