Episode 22- Preparations
The hologram recording died, but the image of the insectoid alien lay scorched into her mind--its black carapace, the dark eyes, the razor sharp teeth and limbs, the keen intelligence that operated their movements...the blood splashed on the walls in cool hologram clinic-ism.
Is the gate under-water bringing through baddies right now?
(50/50 | 3[d10]) No
Well, that’s good news.
“It was active!” Ardelle said to herself, barely audible. She shook her head. “It is active,” she corrected herself. “What if--?”
She wavered and took a faltering step backward. “Stars above!”
“What is it?” Elliot asked steadying her with a hand on her back. His face showed concern.
She reeled under her earlier thought. It was too impossible to consider. But maybe it wasn’t. Maybe the horror of it all was all too real...
Ardelle exhaled a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. Lt. Morgan looked over at her and in two strides joined her.
“Ensign, are you well?” But Lt. Morgan’s face was also pale.
“The Oracle,” She faced them, her face pale, her breath almost ragged. She trembled and steadied herself. “We’ve got to get to the Oracle!”
Lt. Morgan’s nodded immediately, the lines on her face seeming more pronounced. “Yes. Immediately. I agree. But...” her voice trailed off in a frown.
Is the oracle in a good position for intercept?
(Unlikely | 2[d10]) No +Event: Kill / Jealously
“But what?” Ardelle asked.
“Our window just closed.”
Ardelle swore and raked a hand through her hair.
“What’s going on? What’s the rush?” Elliot asked. “Captain Alestranda is coming here, isn’t she? In just a few hours.”
“Don’t you see?” Ardelle hopped down, and a brisk walk took them towards the others. “The alien ringed device... it was some sort of...gateway. It brought those...things here. It is active. That means...”
“It means,” Lt. Morgan finished a sour expression on her face. “That that insect race could show up at any moment and finish what they started.”
Elliot swore and sat down hard on a nearby bench. “You mean...?”
Ardelle, the Lt. and the others walked past him for a few steps. He jumped up and ran up to them and his eyes darted to look into every shadowy alcove as if he expected a segmented body with wicked blades to come at him. “Yes, you’re right! Absolutely right. So we leave soon then?”
“Not exactly,” Lt Morgan said, her long strides moving past Ardelle. She gave a clipped hand gesture and the well-trained marines fell into step behind them.
“What does not exactly mean... exactly?” Elliot asked.
“It means we have to wait until Oracle comes around again in her orbit,” Ardelle said. She looked at the faces of the marines. They weren’t joking any more. They were all business. Their gloved hands gripped their weapons tighter than before. None of them spoke. Their eyes scanned the shadows.
“That’s not good,” Elliot said in a whisper. “Not good at all.”
“It’s possible that this insect race died off. The hologram recording was from a very long time ago.”
“I just keep thinking of roaches,” Chubbs said. “How long have humans been trying to exterminate those buggers?”
“Longer than you can count,” Claxton said trying to interject some humor but it felt taught.
“Shut up.” He turned back to the women. “How long?”
“Millions of years, Private Chubbs,” Lt. Morgan said. “They are a very old species.”
“That’s what I thought,” Chubbs said. He turned his rifle on the side and checked the number of rounds in his mag. He swore and spat into the dirt. He looked up at the setting sun. “...That’s what I thought.”
The mood grew more somber.
How are the chameleons reacting to the hologram?
Starting / Rumour
Is Drix phased by it?
(Likely | 9[d10]) Yes
The chameleons around them chatted in their strange clicking popping tongue, their expressions were a mix of fear, excitement, worry, determination. The low susurrations sounded like an urgent water fall to Ardelle. She looked and saw Drix nearby. The male warrior had sat down on the ground and looked at the spear in his hand. His face mirrored the sadness of some of the other contemplative ones.
Ardelle wondered what he was thinking about. Perhaps he was coming to realize that these gods of theirs, like the divine Chubbs, who come down in metal chariots on pillars of blue fire and carried fearsome weapons may not be a match for an army of giant roaches, and if they weren’t, then what good would his primitive little weapons do.
“Ensign Leath,” Lt. Morgan’s voice cut through her thoughts. “When you were by the alien device, did you set up sensors of any kind?”
“No ma’am," Ardelle said. “There was that one submersible drone there was destroyed, and then--”
“Corporal,” Lt. Morgan turned away and faced the marine. Her face tugged downwards further. “I need you to insert a sensor drone in low-power stealth mode down by that alien device. I want us to know when something is coming out of that gate.”
How many sensor drones did they bring down with them (at least two...)
6 = 6[d8]
Six drones. Are they all in use at the moment?
(50/50 | 3[d10]) No
“Yes Ma’am,” Corporal Whately said. “Four drones are out already, continuing to bring in data from our surroundings. We have two others in packaging still. We can break one of them out and send into those ruins. We can do that remotely from here.”
“Good, get both of them up." She pursed her lips, "And re-route the other drones to act them as a mobile sensor net around the area. I want an around-the-clock data stream coming back to us before nightfall.”
“Yes Ma’am.” Whately gave a terse nod and motioned to his marines, and they ran back to The Searphim.
“What do you want me to do?” Ensign Ardelle asked.
“You got that hologram recorded didn’t you.”
“Yes ma’am. I have the whole thing here,” she tapped her shoulder mounted camera.
“Good. Analyze the feed. Especially about this new insect race. We need to figure out what exactly in the nine black hells we’re dealing with.”
“It appears we’re dealing with bugs,” Ardelle said. “Very large...bugs,” she amended.
“Make it sound a bit more professional than that, Ensign. Cpt. Alestranda will be reviewing it the moment she lands, and we need to get her up to speed as quickly as possible.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Ardelle said, and she too jogged off to the shuttle to review the video feed.
She looked back and saw Lt. Morgan's arms crossed across her breast her hands massaging opposite arms as she stared up at the obelisk. The older woman paced back and forth for a long time. Finally, she shook her head and ducked inside the ruined wreck of the colony ship.
The hologram recording died, but the image of the insectoid alien lay scorched into her mind--its black carapace, the dark eyes, the razor sharp teeth and limbs, the keen intelligence that operated their movements...the blood splashed on the walls in cool hologram clinic-ism.
Is the gate under-water bringing through baddies right now?
(50/50 | 3[d10]) No
Well, that’s good news.
“It was active!” Ardelle said to herself, barely audible. She shook her head. “It is active,” she corrected herself. “What if--?”
She wavered and took a faltering step backward. “Stars above!”
“What is it?” Elliot asked steadying her with a hand on her back. His face showed concern.
She reeled under her earlier thought. It was too impossible to consider. But maybe it wasn’t. Maybe the horror of it all was all too real...
Ardelle exhaled a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. Lt. Morgan looked over at her and in two strides joined her.
“Ensign, are you well?” But Lt. Morgan’s face was also pale.
“The Oracle,” She faced them, her face pale, her breath almost ragged. She trembled and steadied herself. “We’ve got to get to the Oracle!”
Lt. Morgan’s nodded immediately, the lines on her face seeming more pronounced. “Yes. Immediately. I agree. But...” her voice trailed off in a frown.
Is the oracle in a good position for intercept?
(Unlikely | 2[d10]) No +Event: Kill / Jealously
“But what?” Ardelle asked.
“Our window just closed.”
Ardelle swore and raked a hand through her hair.
“What’s going on? What’s the rush?” Elliot asked. “Captain Alestranda is coming here, isn’t she? In just a few hours.”
“Don’t you see?” Ardelle hopped down, and a brisk walk took them towards the others. “The alien ringed device... it was some sort of...gateway. It brought those...things here. It is active. That means...”
“It means,” Lt. Morgan finished a sour expression on her face. “That that insect race could show up at any moment and finish what they started.”
Elliot swore and sat down hard on a nearby bench. “You mean...?”
Ardelle, the Lt. and the others walked past him for a few steps. He jumped up and ran up to them and his eyes darted to look into every shadowy alcove as if he expected a segmented body with wicked blades to come at him. “Yes, you’re right! Absolutely right. So we leave soon then?”
“Not exactly,” Lt Morgan said, her long strides moving past Ardelle. She gave a clipped hand gesture and the well-trained marines fell into step behind them.
“What does not exactly mean... exactly?” Elliot asked.
“It means we have to wait until Oracle comes around again in her orbit,” Ardelle said. She looked at the faces of the marines. They weren’t joking any more. They were all business. Their gloved hands gripped their weapons tighter than before. None of them spoke. Their eyes scanned the shadows.
“That’s not good,” Elliot said in a whisper. “Not good at all.”
“It’s possible that this insect race died off. The hologram recording was from a very long time ago.”
“I just keep thinking of roaches,” Chubbs said. “How long have humans been trying to exterminate those buggers?”
“Longer than you can count,” Claxton said trying to interject some humor but it felt taught.
“Shut up.” He turned back to the women. “How long?”
“Millions of years, Private Chubbs,” Lt. Morgan said. “They are a very old species.”
“That’s what I thought,” Chubbs said. He turned his rifle on the side and checked the number of rounds in his mag. He swore and spat into the dirt. He looked up at the setting sun. “...That’s what I thought.”
The mood grew more somber.
How are the chameleons reacting to the hologram?
Starting / Rumour
Is Drix phased by it?
(Likely | 9[d10]) Yes
The chameleons around them chatted in their strange clicking popping tongue, their expressions were a mix of fear, excitement, worry, determination. The low susurrations sounded like an urgent water fall to Ardelle. She looked and saw Drix nearby. The male warrior had sat down on the ground and looked at the spear in his hand. His face mirrored the sadness of some of the other contemplative ones.
Ardelle wondered what he was thinking about. Perhaps he was coming to realize that these gods of theirs, like the divine Chubbs, who come down in metal chariots on pillars of blue fire and carried fearsome weapons may not be a match for an army of giant roaches, and if they weren’t, then what good would his primitive little weapons do.
“Ensign Leath,” Lt. Morgan’s voice cut through her thoughts. “When you were by the alien device, did you set up sensors of any kind?”
“No ma’am," Ardelle said. “There was that one submersible drone there was destroyed, and then--”
“Corporal,” Lt. Morgan turned away and faced the marine. Her face tugged downwards further. “I need you to insert a sensor drone in low-power stealth mode down by that alien device. I want us to know when something is coming out of that gate.”
How many sensor drones did they bring down with them (at least two...)
6 = 6[d8]
Six drones. Are they all in use at the moment?
(50/50 | 3[d10]) No
“Yes Ma’am,” Corporal Whately said. “Four drones are out already, continuing to bring in data from our surroundings. We have two others in packaging still. We can break one of them out and send into those ruins. We can do that remotely from here.”
“Good, get both of them up." She pursed her lips, "And re-route the other drones to act them as a mobile sensor net around the area. I want an around-the-clock data stream coming back to us before nightfall.”
“Yes Ma’am.” Whately gave a terse nod and motioned to his marines, and they ran back to The Searphim.
“What do you want me to do?” Ensign Ardelle asked.
“You got that hologram recorded didn’t you.”
“Yes ma’am. I have the whole thing here,” she tapped her shoulder mounted camera.
“Good. Analyze the feed. Especially about this new insect race. We need to figure out what exactly in the nine black hells we’re dealing with.”
“It appears we’re dealing with bugs,” Ardelle said. “Very large...bugs,” she amended.
“Make it sound a bit more professional than that, Ensign. Cpt. Alestranda will be reviewing it the moment she lands, and we need to get her up to speed as quickly as possible.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Ardelle said, and she too jogged off to the shuttle to review the video feed.
She looked back and saw Lt. Morgan's arms crossed across her breast her hands massaging opposite arms as she stared up at the obelisk. The older woman paced back and forth for a long time. Finally, she shook her head and ducked inside the ruined wreck of the colony ship.
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