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  quote:In the name of securing freedom, justice, and equality for all individuals regardless of origin, creed, and of self identity, on this day does the General Assembly of Martian Colonies declare political and economic independence of all extraplanetary authorities, collectively and singularly. Henceforth the peoples of Mars shall undertake governance of their own affairs and shall resist any attempt to abrogate the inherent collective and individual rights afforded them by common understanding of civil rights and liberties. quote:oh gods oh gods please someone please we need help its all gone [UNINTELLIGIBLE] all gone everyone else is [STATIC] please someone come someone save us please is anyone listening can anyone hear me [STATIC] please [UNINTELLIGIBLE] oh no no dont [TRANSMISSION ABRUPTLY CUTS OFF]  The dust storm is finally beginning to calm down as the maglev pulls into the remote outback town of Dromore, named for the crater it sits in. A collection of the tin-can habs, service stations, and underground buildings make up the town proper, with the largest structures belonging to the Terraforming Administration. Inflatable domes surround the settlement, protecting surface farms. In the distance you can see wind turbines and atmosphere processors, and you passed several large algal ponds on the way in, covered with tarps against the storm. Dromore isn't a flashy place. It's one at least a dozen settlements set up as a practical test center for terraformation projects, with a particular focus on agriculture. All the really exciting work and decision making takes place either back in the major cities, or at the advanced laboratories. Dromore is here to do the dirty, industrial side of things. In the last six months, the population has boomed. Many of the habs have the bright silver and white of newly erected structures. Most of them have the logo of Algol Extraterran. A little over a year ago a survey team crashed through the roof of a cavern further up the Maja Valles, close to the Xanthe Montes. Inside they found part of a wall covered in strange carvings. This touched off a major artifact rush, with Algol ultimately winning the rights to archaeological exploration. So far nothing has come of it, though there are at least a dozen exploratory dig sites scattered around the Lunae Palus. Just over two days ago, a strange distress call from LP-38b came in, in the middle of a major dust storm that prevented any attempt at rescue. Now there are a dozen Algol employees missing, and tensions are running high in Dromore. Back in Helium, the Algol higher ups and the Federation bigwigs decided to call in Ashton to check it out before things got out of hand. You arrive at the administration building, strip off the heavy clothing and breath masks in the airlock antechamber, and come into the reception. A young man with a pained expression on his face offers you a chance to get coffee and snacks while he lets everyone know you've arrived. You can hear angry raised voices, nearly shouts, in the next room. Welcome to the Ashton Foundation Mars Branch everyone! Please post your character sheets here for reference. Just the stats please, we can read the OOC thread for the fluff. Rolls can be done on synirc in #redhandofdoom or #persona OR on Orokos (use the campaign name Severe Nonlocality). You've a moment or two introduce your character. You all know each other, as the Mars Branch is still pretty small, and have worked together but never as a full group and not on something this potentially explosive. Comrade Gorbash fucked around with this message at 04:10 on Jul 19, 2014 |
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Jul 13, 2014 19:14
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Boostquote:Aspects: All right, so I'm finally back somewhere where I can put on my headphones and listen to some tunes, and let me tell you I am definitely feeling like, a sincere desire to tune out and let the beats wash over me. But as much as that would make me feel better right now, there's intel to be gathered here. Call it my need to know, call it that I'm a nosy bitch, I don't care, but right now I can hear there's some kind of bureaucratic pissing match going on. So I let everyone think I'm slipping my headphones on to groove, and I quickly load in a nice little daemon I have on hand for exactly this kind of thing, and let the software do the work. Soon enough I'll be listening to the audio feed from the next room, finding out just what exactly the noise is all about, and my daemon will drop a recording of it onto my own local system, too, just in case any of it is good enough for Radio Free Barsoom. Sometimes I drop samples into a nice little remix. That can be pretty funny. Right now, though, I'm just getting a feel for things, so I close my eyes, and groove along to an imaginary beat so nobody susses out what I'm actually up to. Most of them probably think I'm just a dumb kid anyway, right? [15:25] <Morphball>: Ridley: systems: 2 = 4dF(-,+,-,x)+3 ...what the actual gently caress. Seriously? My daemon reports back that it's unable to pick up a feed. Not that it's unable to breach the systems security--that it's unable to pick up a feed. Scowling, I slip off my headphones, slip my hands into my pockets, and sulk. Guess we'll be doing things all cave-man style out here. MollyMetroid fucked around with this message at 20:30 on Jul 13, 2014 |
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Jul 13, 2014 20:28
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Ponponkonā 4 Ponponkonā walks in, the only one without protective clothing or a breathing mask. There's a slight audible clicking noise as the built-in rebreather in her throat turns off. Her sensitive hearing easily picks up on the shouting going on next door. Oh boy. This is going to be a fun one! For most people, that thought would be sarcastic. But Ponponkonā knows that shouting of that volume in the adminstration building usually means something has gone horribly wrong in a violent way. This being the only thing she is 100% certain she knows how to deal with, (and somewhere in her indoctrination programming there's still a little pleasure pulse at the thought of getting to cut some suckers up) the fact that it is going to happen instead of another meeting on a topic she doesn't understand or another boring day sitting around outside some VIP's doghouse to prevent dognapping makes her smile with somewhat creepy anticipation. K Prime posted:Concept: Illegal Cyborg Ninja Shinigami Clone
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Jul 13, 2014 20:34
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Sonoda Boost's sulking already, huh? This is going to be a good day, I can tell. You're not going to catch the stream this far out, you should bring your tunes with you. The ride was way too long and the train wasn't exactly cutting edge, so I decide I'm too beat to go tease her about it. She's probably not in the mood for it either. Instead, I make a beeline for the coffee, sit down and get back to the article Algol published about the digs a few months back. The results are kind of dull and inconclusive, but they've been trying some new methods out and they're actually pretty interesting. I think I'll let Eagleton take care of the talking, this feels as much a PR stunt for Ashton as it is a proper investigation. Too bad the proto still isn't working, I bet I could've talked myself out of it if I had a project going forward. That distress call shook me a bit, sounded a little too familiar, y'know? I kinda don't want to be here. quote:Concept: Magical Girl Veteran, Back In the World Siivola fucked around with this message at 08:18 on Jul 19, 2014 |
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Jul 13, 2014 21:24
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Cyrus Gergis FP: 4 Cyrus never was a fan of environmental suits. They pinch. They restrict movement. They never give you enough room to breath. They just aren't comfortable, especially those with "nonstandard biology". He really should figure out a better alternative one of these days. Really, just increasing oxygen efficiency should do wonders for replacing... No no no, this isn't the time or the place for theoretical projects. Now, it's time for business. Said business sounds about as heated as it did back on Earth. Far more is on the line than simple profits, or they wouldn't have been called in, but it's still business, and it will remain business until Cyrus knows what is actually going on here. Until then, he's just going to sit here with this cup of coffee and wait to be called in. No point getting his dander up over a simple meeting, after all. Lurks With Wolves posted:
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Jul 13, 2014 21:29
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"Mayor" Sam Eagleton Under his environmental gear and breath mask, the Mayor has worn a tie. Pre-rolled sleeves on his button-down shirt. No suit jacket though, this is hands-on work. Puts people at ease, especially out in the boonies. While the team gets acclimated, Sam stares at the young man greeting them and asks "Didja get my donuts?" He mugs, the archetypal Your Dad, and claps a hamhock-like hand on the host's shoulder. "Hey- that's just a joke. Thanks for meeting us. Y'know, I took the time to ask some people in Terraforming about your settlement before we came out." <Kellsterik> gorbash if i wanted to create an advantage with contacts to have asked about the lay of the land in dromore beforehand, is there a number i'd need to roll against? <Gorbash> beat a 2 <Kellsterik> !r fudge+4 <Krysmbot> Kellsterik, -/--+4 = 1 <Kellsterik> oof "They say you're doin' great. Keep up the good work." He sidles up beside Cyrus to pour some mediocre instant coffee into the admin building's fine china. "Anyone else having a cup of joe? Ponponkonā? Can you drink coffee? Honest question, educate me." quote:Concept: Mars' Mightiest Third-Party Candidate Kellsterik fucked around with this message at 21:48 on Jul 13, 2014 |
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Jul 13, 2014 21:44
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Ponponkonā 4 "Um, no. Well, I can but the anti-poison features in my pseudo-digestive system automatically filter out the caffeine. At least, um, that's what the doctors back on Earth said." She shrugs. "I don't like the taste anyway."
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Jul 13, 2014 22:40
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The secretary type sort of pulls back from Sam. Not because Sam's a bad guy. More a Pavlovian response to glad-handing that he's built up in the current situation. "I'll, uh, get you some coffee." He scurries off the do that. It's about ten minutes of awkwardly cooling your heels before the shouting subsides enough for your arrival to penetrate the awareness of the local officials. The you're hurriedly ushered into a cramped conference room around a synthetic wood table. The sides are pretty easy to sort out. To the left are the locals, an older woman with a carefully controlled expression who the file says is the mayor, Fatou N'Guessan. She's flanked by the a younger man wearing ostentatious AR specs and a keffiyeh over a military style jacket, very chic current Martian style, and an grizzled older man wearing coveralls and a survival suit jacket, very gauche old Martian frontier. That would be local Federation apparatchik Michel Karim Trinh with the taste, and Dr. Xavier Malcolm, the head of terraforming operations without. To the right is a man with a strained smile and a nice suit, David Liu, the company man in charge of Algol operations. With him is his stone-faced security chief, Isabel Barboza, clearly having put on her full uniform to make a point, and the clearly fired up chief archaeologist, Dr. Yasmin Massri, dressed about the same as Malcolm. Everyone turns to look at you when you file in, with a mix of hope and annoyance. About what you're used. There's a quick glance between Liu and N'Guessan, communication along a well-worn diplomatic channel that borders on telepathy, and the mayor stands up. "Welcome to Dromore. I hope your trip was not to tiring-" Unfortunately Dr. Massri isn't on the distribution list for whatever treaty her boss and the mayor just negotiated, because she interrupts immediately. "We don't have time for this! We need to get out to the site and find out what's happened to my people, and we need to do it yesterday, and goddammit you need to give us the equipment to do it!" Dr. Malcom slaps his hand on the table. "I told you, no one is going anywhere until this storm clears. It will do your people no good if the rescue team gets bogged down and needs to be rescued themselves!" N'Guessan sits back down and massages the bridge of her nose, while Liu spreads his hands in a slightly helpless gesture.
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Jul 15, 2014 01:30
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Sam Eagleton Sam goes into handshake mode when N'Guessan stands up, but recoils when the chief archaeologist interrupts. Once everyone's had their say and the room returns to stewing in silence he raises his palms diplomatically. "With respect, Doctors, recognizing the situation is urgent doesn't mean we should rush to a poorly planned response, especially in the outback. Everyone's mad, but we've got an opportunity now to look at the facts with fresh eyes." Suddenly he claps with authority. "Meeting adjourned. Alright? All subjects tabled." And closes his eyes, taking in a deep breath and exhaling with an almost hypnotic certainty that this is a great idea before nodding firmly. "New meeting begins now. Let's hear some professional opinions from the smartest gals and guys in the room." Creating an advantage with Rapport, Cooling Off. Sam's trying to re-establish the conversation now that Ashton's here and get people to ignore the insults of the past 48 hours through sheer force of personality and advanced middle management techniques. <Kellsterik> !r fudge+5 <Krysmbot> Kellsterik, /+-++5 = 6
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Jul 15, 2014 03:16
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Sonoda Sonoda sips her second cup of coffee and steps forward. "Dr. Massri, I understand you want your people home safe as soon as possible, but Dr. Malcolm is right. Rushing out into the storm helps no-one." "However, Dr. Massri is not wrong in calling for action. The first few days are critical in a rescue operation like this. If you would look at this," she says and pulls up a map of the region and overlays it with today's weather forecast. She's slipping into full lecture mode. "Here's us in Dromore, here's LP-38b. And here's the storm front that passed over the region a few days ago. Now, forecasting the storm season is sketchy at best, but it's looking to me we might be in for a fairly calm couple of days, which should be enough to make it to the dig site and set up a base camp for the investigation. Would you agree, Dr. Malcolm?" She looks to the veteran terraformer for confirmation. "I think this window is the best chance for any sort of urgent action. If we're going to take it, y'all need to get packing."
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Jul 15, 2014 06:07
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Cyrus "If I may make a request..." Cyrus slips past Sam, still holding his cup of coffee. He takes an almost-casual sip before continuing. "Now, as the chief medical official on this rescue mission, I will need as much biometric data on the stranded workers as possible. I understand that this is a rather large request to make at such short notice, but given the time-sensitive nature of any medical emergency during this sort of situation any aid you give could save a life."
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Jul 15, 2014 09:02
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Sam's cheesy middle-management techniques seem to do the trick. The metaphorical temperature in the room drops a few degrees. Dr. Massri purses her lips and still looks unsatisfied, but seems to be listening now. Malcolm frowns at the map as Sonoda explains her reasoning, thought she suspects that's the look he gets when he's thinking, rather than being upset. "That makes sense. It makes a lot more sense now you're here. Before, my problem was we didn't have any backup for a rescue team like that." Trinh hastens to explain. "We do have an S&R team, but when the storm first hit one of the wind turbines at an remote station collapsed. The Federation team is still stuck out there in temporary shelters. All of the Algol people rated for this kind of work, save Dr. Massri and Ms. Barboza, are out at other sites already." Malcolm nods. "I'm not saying I wouldn't risk my people to help Algol's, but my backup team here was the only rescue crew for the whole area. If I sent them out, I'd be leaving every other dig site and outpost with its rear end hanging in the wind. And frankly LP-38b has the fewest people of any of them. I don't like playing triage, but shigata ga nai. It's Mars." Massri sniffs, but Liu heads her off. "I appreciate that, Dr. Malcolm, and I understand your reservations. But now we do have the people to make this happen, so I think we need to act immediately. We can definitely provide you with whatever information you need." The security chief speaks up for the first time. "This operation is a rescue of Algol personnel. Obviously Dr. Massri and I will be going with the Ashton group, so we can provide that information in real time on the ground." "It's not just Algol personnel. The contract puts a Federation rep at every dig site, so I am going along," Trinh says hotly. Malcolm nods along. "And if the shelter there is breached, we'll need to do cleanup so it doesn't contaminate anything." N'Guessan jumps in before the fight starts up again. "Obviously these are all important considerations, but with Ashton here now I'm sure we can come up with an equitable arrangement." Everyone turns to look at you. Looks like it's your show now.
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Jul 17, 2014 01:50
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Ponponkona "Um, if the problem is serious, we cannot guarantee everyone's safety?" says Ponponkona hesitantly. "We'd need very good reason to bring more than one or two people along, right?" She looks at Sonoda for support. This is not her side of things, at all.
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Jul 17, 2014 02:15
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Sonoda Sonoda nods along, although she knows it's not much use. "She's right, this could well turn out very dangerous. Even though we appreciate your offer, I would recommend against coming along unless you're absolutely certain you know what you're stepping into." As if anyone would back out. The Algol people would never let Ashton waltz over their dig unsupervised, and the Martians will fight tooth and nail to stay in the loop. Politics. She pours herself more coffee and continues. "But, if you insist on coming, I can't stop you. I do ask that no more than the four of you come, however. Any more, and we won't have room for supplies. "Speaking of which, we need them. With this storm out, we'll be stuck at the site for a while no matter what. Dr. Malcolm, I'd like to hash out a list with you."
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Jul 17, 2014 13:44
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Cyrus "Ah. Oh, no, no, I understand. Patient confidentiality and all that. It'll make it that much harder to prepare, but I understand." Cyrus pauses just long enough to be awkward before continuing. "Anyway, do you have anything else that you wish to declare now. Early findings, odd reports, strange artifacts, anything like that? Because if you don't, I might as well start warming up the rover now. Time is of the essence, after all."
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Jul 17, 2014 21:44
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Malcolm nods, ready to get to work. Meanwhile, Massri looks uncomfortable at Cyrus' questions. "Just before the storm hit, they called in to say they'd found something interesting. Some structures, artifacts. Nothing active, just pot sherds. That kind of thing. Archaeologically important." She bites her lip, then adds. "And now the thaumeter readings are... they're low from a objective view. Still a lot higher than Martian background." "Which is why we called you in," Liu adds. "We think it's most likely a piece of equipment that was damaged by the storm. Or one of the personnel there put up a ward. Reasonable under the conditions." Liu hands over the files to Cyrus. quote:Dr. Gertrude Kenyon There's some brief bios. No one seems to have any major health issues. Basically the files are pretty good on work history, education, and medical, and light on personal information. Comrade Gorbash fucked around with this message at 01:15 on Jul 19, 2014 |
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Jul 18, 2014 00:58
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Added the bios.
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Jul 19, 2014 01:15
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Cyrus "Let's see..." Cyrus begins flipping through the files, mumbling to himself as he skims the page. "Yes, yes, clean bill of health, clean bill of-Oh, Dr Hoare. He's done good work. Clean bill, clean bill, obvious bias, clean bill... Alright. Mr Liu, this is honestly more than I expected, so thank you for your assistance. Now if you would excuse me, I really do need to get that rover running. No insult meant, you understand. I've just never been one for this type of meeting." He turns to leave, but stops when he passes by Boost. "You know what? I'm sure you can find something to do with these." Cyrus then just shoves the files into her hands and keeps on walking towards suit storage.
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Jul 19, 2014 04:55
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Boost See, this is one of the many reasons I really don't get along with Cyrus. Lazy rear end! Do your own digging. Not, of course, that he's wrong--assuming I can get a half-decent connection in all this poo poo and stone-aged rear end-end of nowhere, I can do a bit more digging to find out more than what's in the 'official' files. Dirty secrets, skeletons in closets, political leanings, their cloud music accounts... Not that Doc Dingbat over there is going to get any of it if I have anything to say about it. "Not your personal secretary, rear end in a top hat," I mutter, a bit belated. Then I start getting to work on data mining. [00:36] <Morphball>: Ridley: systems to get digging deets: 1 = 4dF(x,x,-,-)+3 Not. Exactly. Easy. Not out here in the middle of a storm with the poor-as-hell connection. Good thing I'm patient.
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Jul 19, 2014 05:37
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It takes a few hours to get everything together. Algol doesn't have anything on site rated for driving in the current conditions, but the terraformers have a massive old crawler left over from the golden age of Martian exploration. The bus-sized all-terrain transport is just what you need, even if it has a bit of a musty smell and a really dated interior. Everything works, even if every part has been repaired or replaced in the last fifty years of service. While loading up you have time to chase down some extra supplies or leads, but before too long the massive vehicle winds its way out of Dromore and onto the service road up the Maja Valles. The crawler's progress is slow but inexorable, though a lot of the driving is dull but stressful work relying entirely on instruments and inertial nav. The storm is still bad enough to make the connections to APS satellites unreliable, and visibility out the windshield is tens of meters at best, even with the intense floodlights. It takes most of a sol just to get up to your turn off, at which Malcolm, by far the most experienced driver, takes over and guides the crawler over the last few klicks. There's supposedly a dirt spur road that goes to the excavation site, but its been buried or blown away. This last bit raises a sweat even on Malcom's forehead. Throughout it all Dr. Massri stands behind him, squinting through the dust, impatient to get to her people. Finally you top a rise and the small geodesic dome of the site suddenly rears up out of the storm. The sudden stop as Malcolm slams on the brakes sends things crashing off shelves and tables, including dumping Trinh out of the bunk he was dozing in. Massri stumbles into the back, holding a bloody nose and looking for the first aid kit. Barboza gives Malcolm a look. He raps on the display in front of him. "Inertial navs gone all buggy," he says lamely, and wipes sweat from his brow. "Anyways, we're here." The dome ahead is half-covered in dust. The entrance is definitely buried. The remains of an inflatable building shredded by the storm whip about. Looks like they managed to stow the small wind turbine's blades, though even from here you can see the big dent in the cowling where something hit it. Might need some repair before you can get it turned back on. Which might be necessary, because you don't see any lights, or anything else for that matter, on anywhere. Trinh comes forward, yawning but looking no worse for the wear. "There's a hard connection conduit for primary power, wonder how that got cut?" Malcolm shrugs. "Probably wasn't. There's so much poo poo flying around out here, some of it might have gotten into the transformer. They'd have plenty of battery power though, these Class IV domes can go, what, 500 hours on reduced power?" "Sure, but nothing is on. Not even the beacon. Weird." Trinh squints, and points. "Hey, their garage is in the lee of the dome. Plans didn't show it, but it's pretty typical for people to add an extra lock to get in there directly. Definitely the sort of thing Papineau would rig up. And even if she didn't, they've got two powersuits on site. Munro might have brought one inside, but no one else on site is rated to drive them, so..." "How does that help us?" Barboza asks. "So I am rated to drive it," Trinh says a bit testily, "I'd be able to dig out the entrance in no time if we can get to it." Notes If anyone wants to take a moment to ask questions or grab something useful (ie. make a roll to reveal an aspect or something) before departing, go ahead. But moving this on to the dig site since it's clear that's where we're headed. Also I rolled Transport for you guys to see if Ashton had loaned anything for the trip, but eh. [13:22] <Krysmbot> Gorbash, /-//+2 = 1
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Jul 21, 2014 18:51
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Cyrus FP: 4 Breath in. Breath out. The flesh is strong. It can be made stronger. Breath in. Breath out. Harden the muscle. Steel the sinew. Breath in. Breath out. Bullets shall not harm you. Blades will mean nothing. If they cut you, you will not bleed. Breath in. Breath ou- "Hmm?" Cyrus lazily opens one eye as the crawler shudders to a halt. His skin has taken on an unsightly purple tint, but he doesn't seem to mind. "Ah, we're here already? I thought it'd take longer than that." He smiles and stretches, muscles oddly tense beneath his skin. Going to try to create an advantage with Fleshcrafting to perform a little baby ritual on the trip over to make Cyrus a bit tougher. Fleshworking: 4dF+4 5 Should be enough to make the aspect Hardened Flesh.
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Jul 22, 2014 02:40
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Sonoda "Let's get to it, then." Sonoda's already pulling on the protective gear, looking as sleepy as Trinh. "Ponpokonā, while we get ready, could you go check the garage out and see if we can get in that way? If the extra lock really is there, we could set up the equipment inside." And if it isn't there, everyone's stuck sitting on their hands while Trinh digs the entrance out of the sand. Better have someone to take a look beforehand. Once she's suited up, she starts raiding the kitchen unit and stuffing self-preparing meals, instant coffee and chocolate into her backpack. She's not a big fan of the on-site procurement concept, looks like.
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Jul 23, 2014 07:46
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Ponponkona "Of course, ma'am." Ponponkona opens a hatch. There's a brief outrush of air, and then the airlock closes. "I'll scout ahead. Follow when I give the word." And like that, she's gone."
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Jul 23, 2014 13:26
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Boost "Hey we should probably establish some kind of best practices before we head in here, like, y'know, not going off on our own. If you lose sight of your partner, radio everyone else immediately even if it turns out to be a false alarm. That kind of poo poo." I've seen enough horror vids with this setup to be savvy to the basic safety precautions. Not that I figure anyone is going to listen to me on this one. Hell, Doctor Wack-job over there's already pretty close to one of the creature-feature nasties that inevitably eat everyone but the clever heroine. That's me, by the way. Of course I also have some less basic safety precautions in mind - whether or not we end up finding indication that it's needed I fully intend to get some tags down early on to give us at least some protection, and I have my spraypaint ready to go for just that. Assuming that there's air and poo poo inside to work with. poo poo.
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Jul 23, 2014 16:31
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Sam Sam is surprisingly non-chatty on the ride over, reading some economic reports and speech transcripts he brought along on a tablet and occasionally observing Cyrus' transformation with interest. When they arrive, he's ready to work. ((don't want to hold us up, i'm here and following the lead)) Kellsterik fucked around with this message at 14:14 on Jul 24, 2014 |
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Jul 24, 2014 13:52
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Ponponkona steps out in the storm. The atmosphere is still thin enough, and the storm has died down enough, that the biggest issue is the decreased visibility. Fortunately the crawler and the dome block the worst of it as she picks her way to the garage. There's a smaller door set into the larger one, operated mechanically and unlocked. The garage itself is a rough cube, prefab structure. The interior is unlit, but with a flashlight she can see two bays for construction powersuits. One is empty, but the other looks like its in good shape. There are a couple of buggies, small vehicles not rated for weather like this, off to one side. There's a lot of equipment in here. Power cells, tools, replacement parts. It's neater than you might have expected, with everything organized and put away, though still cluttered. At the back she spots the outlines of an airlock. Bingo. Except... When she tries to open it, it doesn't respond. The manual control doesn't work either. On closer inspection, she realizes its been welded shut. Back on the crawler, everyone is suiting up except Malcolm. Partly this is because policy is someone always stays with the crawler. Mostly it's because he needs to lie down for a bit after that drive. The Algol personnel have shiny silver coats with variable insulation, emblazoned with the company logo. Trinh has something that looks like it'd be at home on the back of a early 20th century Arctic explorer, with a Martian Federation patch sewn on cock-eyed. The man is a slave to fashion. Barboza picks up a hard-sided black case with multiple storage sections. She opens one and pulls out a silvery pistol and straps its gunbelt and holster around her hips.
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Jul 25, 2014 01:06
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Ponponkona "Kona checking in. Garage is clear for your entrance." She cautiously reaches out to the airlock door, feeling it. "Someone's completely sealed the airlock door. I'll try and get it open while you approach." There is a distinct hum even in the dull atmosphere as she draws her blade. "Watakushi ken ni, tatenu mono nashi." 17 cuts. Ponponkona resheaths the blade without fanfare. It has been perhaps 3 seconds. 210 parts, 300 BP. KPrime, +-+/+5 = 6 athletics overcome on this door.
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Jul 25, 2014 11:50
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There's a slight puff of air as the door comes apart, pressure trying to equalize between the garage and the interior of the dome. The inner door is open, and doesn't respond if Kona tries to operate it. The very slightest suggestion of a breeze continues - looks like the interior life support is still on and pumping air around. With the lock now stuck open, the positive pressure will continue to bleed out into the garage. The only real issue with this is that the dome's emergency batteries will have their lives cut short by about 20% as it will need to work harder to keep the pressure up inside. Through the lock, Kona can see that only the emergency lighting is on. It's dark in there. No alarms sound, and no one comes to check on the door. The others start filtering in through the garage door. Barboza peers into the dark dome, one hand out to keep Dr. Massri from rushing in, which obviously annoys the archaeologist. "Where are they? Why are we standing around out here?" Trinh, meanwhile, is already climbing up onto the power suit. He's hanging half out of it in a rather silly looking way as he checks it. "Rusting hell, it had to be a Wukong model, where's the drat- there it is. Hm, need put in a new fuel cell..." Notes Yeah, that roll does the door in. Assuming everyone catches up with Kona in the garage unless otherwise directed.
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Jul 25, 2014 18:43
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Ponponkona Ponponkona faces the civvies, and immediately looks more scared than she was cutting open a sealed door to the unknown. "U-um... Because um... we don't know what is in there? Whatever it is, it can't be good though... the airlock is stuck open the wrong way and sealed. That's um... bad?"
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Jul 25, 2014 19:28
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Cyrus FP: 4 "Leave it be, Trinh. We have one way in already. We don't really need another." Cyrus runs a gloved hand over the tool racks, pausing briefly over the power cells before plucking an allen wrench off the shelf. He begins casually flipping it in the air, clearly smiling beneath his respirator. "I can't blame you if you'd rather stay here and work on the suit, though. Definitely safer than investigating." His face may be covered, but it's definitely punchable right now. There's just something in the tone of his voice.
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Jul 25, 2014 22:18
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Boost All right, there's got to be some kind of terminal or wireless access out here that I can link into to get an idea what's behind of this door. If the storm isn't interfering too badly with the signal. If the whole place isn't as stone-age as the rest of the drat operation has been so far. If these idiots who welded their own airlock shut didn't smash their computer systems too. A whole lotta ifs. I'm really starting to dislike this job, Dear Viewers. [17:51] <Morphball>: Ridley: systems: 3 = 4dF(x,x,+,-)+3
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Jul 27, 2014 22:52
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Trinh waves a hand at Cyrus. "You'll be mad if we need it later and we don't have it!" Boost patches into the local network, which is still up. Everything's on standby, running off battery power, for the last 50h 36m 11s. It was deliberately set this way. She'll need to get to the control room to turn everything back on, but there's some basic information and things she can do. One, she can unlock and all doors. Two, she can confirm the front lock is reporting a fault but is closed. Three, there are internal cameras and once the power comes back on she should be able to access records. And four, according the passive tracker, none of the personnel are on site. Or at least, if any of them are here they've removed or disabled the tracking RFID chips in their IDs. Barboza glances at you. "One of you want point or should I take it?"
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Jul 28, 2014 01:59
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Boost "Gotcha. All right, so either there's nobody still here or they've intentionally turned off their tracking. I can get everything back up and running from the control room and I can get these doors unlocked once we get past the front lock. Things have been on standby for the past two and a bit days. Intentionally. I think caution is the word of the day here, don't you?" MollyMetroid fucked around with this message at 03:10 on Jul 28, 2014 |
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Jul 28, 2014 02:59
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Ponponkona "Er...I will take point," says Ponponkona. "It's my job, and, um, my risk." She steps into the apparently empty base, looking up and down the corridors. "If you hear me start yelling and stabbing things, you should um, probably run away."
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Jul 29, 2014 00:59
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Sam "Trinh, have you got that suit working? Let me see if I can get a battery in there..." The Mayor is inclined to stick near the Federation rep, if only to ensure the locals see Ashton as trustworthy once they get down into the dark. Creating an advantage with Vehicles, if applicable, to have reliable support from the guy in the power suit in case things get crazy down there. 4dF+2=1 As they advance inside he looks over a shoulder at Boost. "Did you say no one's here? That can't be right. Even if there were casualties, wouldn't the tracking tags stay on?"
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Jul 29, 2014 17:10
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Cyrus FP: 4 Cyrus shrugs and drops the wrench back onto the shelf. No point in getting a rise if they're not going to bite. Not that it's the time or the place to start things, mind you, but it's not like he has anything better to do just yet. At least, he didn't until Boost noticed something quite interesting... "Perhaps they just had a very compelling reason to leave." Cyrus slides up behind Sam, acting like an abandoned dig site is the natural thing in the world. "Not that we shouldn't explore. It's a poor scientist that leaves a hypothesis untested, as they say."
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Jul 29, 2014 20:28
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Sonoda Sonoda plops her backpack onto a convenient shelf and looks at Cyrus. "Where do you suppose they've gone? I don't think they would've gone for a morning stroll in that weather." She pushes past Barboza and Massri and points a flashlight into the dark corridor. "Mm. Maybe the dig itself?" "Well, let's get moving. Kona, stay on point. Boost, you've got the map, you go behind her. I'll bring up the rear." She digs a crescent moon pendant from under her parka. It flashes red in the darkness before settling down to a faint glow. 「Good morning, master.」 "Good morning, Ascalon." She looks kind of unnerving in the magical device's light. "If you hear me yell, y'all might want to take cover."
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Jul 30, 2014 19:17
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The interior of the dome is dark and rather cold. The emergency lighting flickers a soft blue. A few pieces of random trash slowly roll across the floor as the pressure differential moves the atmosphere. There's a faint sound of voices from above you, which makes everyone stop to listen before each realizes it's a recording, a music player left on at low volume. The door leads into the exercise/common area. There are a couple of weight machines and a stationary bike shoved up against the wall, with folding furniture laid out in a living room set up for the moment. The workspace beyond is clean, with a bench in front of a set of lockers. All but one are closed. Papineau's is open, and the door seems off kilter slightly as it swings slowly back and forth, squeaking slightly in the slight breeze. Proskuriakova's locker has a large dent in the side. The dining table has a scattering of playing cards and poker chips on it, a few having fallen onto the floor. The kitchen is a bit of a mess. Plates are piled in the sink, and the door to the refrigerator is propped open. There's a sickly sweet smell of decaying food. The low ambient temperature has kept it from getting too bad. A pint of ice cream was left out on the counter, a viscous white-brown puddle slowly spreading out from it. The doors to the other lock, lab, and lower bathroom are closed. Stairs lead up to the second story where the bedrooms, second bathroom, and control room are. Another set lead down to shipping container that's been partitioned to make an airlock/storage/prep room area leading to the dig site itself.   The layout is roughly the same here, though the Mars dome also has a small control room on the second floor mirrored from the bathroom, and the main lock connects into the storage/re-supply area. There's also a stairwell leading down to a storage room/airlock leading into the dig site itself. The life support gear is built into the top part, floor, and walls of the dome itself. Let me know where you're checking and you can roll to turn up more details or turn things back on. Comrade Gorbash fucked around with this message at 02:53 on Aug 2, 2014 |
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Aug 2, 2014 01:21
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Ponponkona "If there was an incursion or problem it would probably, um, start in the lab, right?" Kona looks at Cyrus accusingly. "So we should probably check there first, right?" Her anxiety gets the better of her and she just moves off to check it on her own. Unfortunately, upon arriving she immediately realizes that she has no goddamn idea what all this stuff is. KPrime, --/-+4 = 1 Noticin' nada.
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Aug 2, 2014 17:37
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| # ? Apr 25, 2024 21:36 |
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Sonoda "Huh, it looked bigger on the outside," Sonoda says as she gets inside. Maybe she was expecting a maze-like industrial complex straight out of some horror game? "Kona, I think having known Cyrus for a while skews your perspective. Monstrous incursions are actually pretty rare." She tried to forget that time she accidentally caused an interdimensional rift while working on a D-Engine prototype. Nothing came out of it, so it didn't count. "Boost, let's check upstairs. You can shed some light on this mystery while I rummage through their quarters. And so y'all know," she turns to the rest of the expedition, "I will kick your stupid rear end if you sneak off into the dig and get lost. I am not playing any more ancient alien ruin hide-and-seek than I have to. Before we're set up and done here, nobody wanders off." For some reason, she fixes her gaze on Massri.
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Aug 3, 2014 19:57
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