TFF Original Space Adventure RPG: Seraphim

shibosho

Well-Known Member
#76
"Guys, we've made touch down" Said Adel as he unbuckled himself.

"Oooh, I can't wait to see what Big Sky is like!" Exclaimed Eastwood.

"Save the sight-seeing for later. We've got a Neelaa wreck to salvage" Said Gervik.
 
#77
"Not much," Maya admitted. "Gordon over there is cycling through the signal noise as we speak."

Gordon May, Communications Technical Officer, had adopted a pair of old fashioned headphones, and was listening closely to the signal information he kept getting. He scowled deeply as he tried to take it all in, and scribbled down notes on a digital pad.

"But I have confirmed that it is most definitely NGMT23571-No mistaking all the signatures." She frowned. "Though... It's got some unusual features included. Looks like... At least two additional defensive laser cannons, and a lot more ECM equipment. Hard to tell since it's all offline, but I've been sorting through the telescope pictures."
 

Aarik

Well-Known Member
#78
"Would it be of any assistance if I made our approach towards the enemy vessel completely Silent? Or would we need to be able to hear any incoming threats?" I 'asked' the Espatier with the highest Rank.
 
#79
Captain (Called Major while on ship) Richard Clarkson opened up the backhatch. "Send out your drones, we'll do the rest!" He came out, his other Espatiers heading out of the back of the other Mustang and quickly assembling in firing position around the two transports, weapons pointed at the starship.
 

shibosho

Well-Known Member
#80
Adel heard the Captain and complied. Interfacing with the drone's system, Adel activate the drone's recon mode and sent them towards the wreck.

"Godspeed little robot" Said Adel, saluting as he watched the drones fly towards the wreck.

"Woah, so this is Big Sky! I like the place already," Said Eastwood, his optics going at full capacity in order to take in the sight.

"Eastwood, go vehicle form. We might need it" Ordered Gervik. Eastwood nodded and underwent his transformation. Adel always like watching Eastwood transform. It reminded him of all those Transformer cartoons he watched with Gray a long time ago.

The transformation was quick and a hover bike stood where Eastwood was.

"Anyone need a ride?" joked Eastwood.
 

Aarik

Well-Known Member
#81
"They aren't my... Nevermind. You two, go to work" I 'said', then pointed at Adel and Eastwood.

-----

"I'll take it." I exclaimed. Hoverbike. Awesome.
 

shibosho

Well-Known Member
#82
A few minutes passed and still no report from the drones. Meanwhile the Espatiers were keeping watch for any suspicious activity. Eastwood and Gangi guy were messing about.

"Adel, any words from the drones yet?" Asked Captain Clarkson.

"No, not ye-Wait, I'm picking up a transmission!....Yes....Uh-huh....The hell?"

"What have the drones found Adel!"

"The ship....is deserted, no living entities detected. They've found bodies though. The fusion reactor isn't offline. It's been burnt out from emergency usage apparently."

"I see...."

"What now, captain?"
 
#83
"Now, we radio the ship about this," Clarkson replied. He tapped his PERCOMD and connected to one of the Mustang's transmitters. "Seraphim, Ground Team. Ship is deserted, no lifeforms, just bodies. And the fusion core is burnt out. We are continuing recon, over?"
 

Aarik

Well-Known Member
#85
"Ohh, hauling dead weight, this is my job. Eastwood, Follow, SLOWLY." Hauling Neelaa Corpses was about the same as hauling any other kind of corpse, actually it was a little better, he wouldn't have to live with the knowledge he'd be eating THESE corpses later, unlike say, when he was moving 'fresh' cow.
 

Xaosite

Well-Known Member
#86
Hector Fallax hoisted his oversize toolbox onto the floor as he surveyed the burnt out fusion core. "My my my, but what were you up to, that you'd do something so desperate? Let's find out, shall we?" he asked to no one in particular. He flipped open the top, showing the first layer of the toolbox, his personalized top of the line tools.

"They always get so jumpy when I bring this thing along. It's like they think something's going to jump out and explode!" he chuckled to himself. Pulling out his scanner, he started going over the core and the surrounding systems, looking to lock down where all the energy had gone, as well as find any system records that hadn't been fried.

"I mean, I fixed that bug, so they won't do that on their own anymore! I'm sure of it!"
 
#87
An Espatier corporal who had been assigned to watch him stood nearby, scanning the surrounding chamber carefully. The Neelaa ship's interior was a dull red-It apparently had a soothing effect on Neelaa that the color blue had on humans.

Naturally, it made her feel uneasy. Though not as uneasy as being around Fallax.

"I uh, wouldn't know Doctor," she replied, eyes trying to pierce the gloom of the chamber. Burnt out, the smell of ozone hanging in the air, the dark light... It all served to make the vessel seem like a ghost ship.

Or something out of Silent Mons 10. Now that was just downright terrifying for a vid game...

- - - - - - -

The colony, which the radio beacon identified as "Barleston", was large and almost rustic with old fashioned genetically-engineered coral homes mixed with larger metal buildings. A fairly large crowd gathered to watch as the Shinigami came in for a landing, it's ion drives producing a loud roar as it settled down.

Once it had touched down, the cockpit opened, and Constance slowly stood up. She scanned the crowd, seeing a large mix of people in various knit textiles. The style that predominated seemed to be a kind of Old American West feel, but with a curiously old Oriental bent.

A tall man with dark skin approached, wearing a dull red suit and tie. He smiled as Constance and Libby both emerged from the craft.

"Welcome to Barleston, Captain Giirresbee!" He said, eagerly reaching out and shaking her hand. She returned the smile through her visor.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Governor Bill?"

"Yes ma'am! We're very happy to meet you at last!"

She caught sight of more than one stare directed at her tail, which waved lazily in it's special sheath attached to her flight suit.

"So, there are Neelaa among Earth's peoples now?" He asked.

Constance blinked. "Neelaa? You know of them?"

"Of course! They've stopped by our world a few times before, though we can never pick them up if they jump in from the other side of the planet," the Governor said. He frowned. "You didn't know?"

"Ah... Governor, I think we have a great deal to discuss... Which would be made easier if we could set up the gift I brought along..."
 

Legacy|iB

Well-Known Member
#88
Yuuka opened a channel to Aarik. "If you may be so kind, can you move the bodies here? My team has set up and we would like to perform an autopsy."

LeCartier and Mitchell had set up a small tent in a safe area behind the Mustangs, complete with stretchers readied medical equipment and kit. As they did, Yuuka slipped into a surgery gown and grabbed her gloves and mask. Eventually, the others did the same, preparing for their autopsy.

Yuuka couldn't help but be disappointed there weren't any survivors. She preferred working with live subjects, and her previously reopened project ideally required live Neelaa subjects - particularly those from the Order. As such, corpses would be no use for her research as much as they would be relevant for the mission.

"We're ready, Yuuka" Colin reported. He sounded at ease and less on edge now - of course, the Neelaa vessel was harmless and he wouldn't have to worry about Yuuka performing experiments on live subjects.

"Personal log: Doctor Yuuka Murasaki, USNS Seraphim, December 18, 2543," Yuuka spoke into her PERCOMD, starting a log of the impending autopsy. "Awaiting Neelaa bodies, and will be beginning autopsy shortly..."
 

Rooster455

Well-Known Member
#89
Libby stood by the Captain, eyes scanning the crowd from behind her polarized goggles. Her hand rested naturally on the grip of her sidearm.

At the moment of the 'gift' she stepped in the direction of the cargo hold. Chances were that some of the colonists would be offloading the tranceiver and she would be damned if she let some backwards civvie so much as put a scratch in her spacecraft.
 

Aarik

Well-Known Member
#90
I idly carried two bodies over toward the 'medical area' they had set up.

Two should be enough for a start, I needed to get a good count on how many I would have to be moving, So I could work out where they all would be going in the interim.

"Here you go, corpse number 1 and 2." I 'said' as I handed the Neelaa Bodies to them.

I headed over to Adel, I needed to get the number and he should know since he was controlling the drones.
 

zerohour

Well-Known Member
#91
"Addralamech to Stein, how's the hacking going?" Zeros radioed the away engineer.

"As well as can be expected sir. It's just taking some time to get through the Neelan encryption. It should only be a few more minutes before we have access to the data."

"Alright, just make sure to access the ship logs first. The sooner we know what happened, the better."

"Roger that."
 
#92
"Of course... What kind of gift?" The Governor asked.

"An FTL communications system, to connect you to the Coalition Otherspace Network," Constance explained. "Humanity formed a coalition with a few other species a few decades ago for mutual defense and economic stability. It's served us very well, and it will allow you to connect and catch up with the rest of the galaxy, so to speak." She smiled.

"What does that have to do with the Neelaa though?" The Governor asked.

"Like I said, it's better explained with the transceiver online," she said. "It's very simple to set up, we'll just need a few of your people, and a tap into your power grid."

The Governor nodded. "Very well." He turned to the crowd. "I'm going to need some able-bodied men and a wagon! Muran, Yuki, get your cart won't you?"

A few moments later, two women came up, driving a wagon pulled by horses. Constance couldn't help her smile. Colony worlds usually relied on horses and cattle for transportation because they were a lot less resource intensive than cars. It was charming in a very rustic sort of way.

"Will this suffice?" The Governor asked.

"It should..." Noting Libby's look, she added: "We'd also appreciate it if you'd keep people away from our ship? It's brand new, and it wouldn't do to scratch it."

As she spoke, a few children from behind had run up to the Shinigami, and were already touching it's hull.

- - - - - - -

Captain Clarkson walked through the corridors of the Neelaa ship cautiously, two of his men covering his every move as they proceeded. He examined his PERCOMD, double checking the schematics Maya had downloaded to them.

"If we've done our job right..." He hit the control for the double doors ahead, and they opened right up. Inside, a circular room dominated by various interfaces surrounded a circlular viewport, looking out onto the Big Sky plains. A number of dead Neelaa lay about, dead at their posts. He grunted approvingly-Men worthy of a moment of silence.

"Mr. Adel, we've found the bridge," he called after siad moment had passed. "We could use your expertise up here."
 

Rooster455

Well-Known Member
#93
Libby almost shot the little twerps that practically started climbing on her ship. Bu instead of shooting them, or giving them some nice lumps on the head she just walked over and shooed them off with the excuse that the adults had to work.

Once the kids were out of the way she gave a gesture for the designated helpers to come over and help her as she opened the cargo hold.

She quickly started directing the cart and men to get the tranciever onto the cart to be transported. Once the package was clear she gave the ship a look and let out an internal sigh of relief. Not even so much as a scuff on her baby.
 
#94
Constance walked up beside Libby, and lowered her voice.

"Ease up, Pilot... I promise, nobody will scuff the paint," she said softly.

- - - - - - -

The corporal with Fallax frowned, seeing a glowing vein in the bulkhead. She walked up to it and examined it.

"Hey, Doc? What's this?"
 

Rooster455

Well-Known Member
#95
Libby glanced at the Captain.

"Ma'am, with all due respect all it takes is a little touch to place an explosive device. These people may be polite and friendly, but my job isn't to look for polite and friendly people. So, forgive me if I don't 'ease up'."
 
#96
"Fair enough," Constance replied, as the governor, who had been conferring with a few other citizens, walked back to them.

"We have just the spot, Captain. The main communications tower, right over there," he pointed over at a tall, gridwork tower in the distance. "We pulled it off our ship when our ancestors landed, and it's served us well ever since."

"Perfect," Constance replied.

"And I'll have the police put up a barricade to keep people away from your ship," he further stated, as several uniformed men began to push the crowd of onlookers back.

"Thank you," Constance said.

"And I've got two of our finest horses to carry you into town," the Governor proudly said, as another man led two horses, a male and a female, up to the two Spacers.

"Ah... That's very nice, Governor," Constance said with a slight smile. The horse nearest to her whinnied, and stared at her. She stared right back.

"I take it you've never ridden before?" The Governor asked.

"Ah, well... Once, when I was very young, on Earth," she admitted.
 

shibosho

Well-Known Member
#97
Adel had been helping the Espatiers keep watch, uses the drones as a patrol unit when he received a message from the captain to head over to the bridge. Leaving the drones to do their thing, Adel headed further into the ship.

The dull red on the ship's interior bothered Adel's optic sensors. Every time he looked, he was reminded of his time with the-

"No, Adel. That's all in the past now. You've got a job to do," Adel muttered to himself, trying to blow away the feelings of guilt that began to appear in his systems.

Adel found the bridge quite easily and entered to see a number of bodies, dead at their posts. The feelings of guilt were soon replace with curiosity and apprehension.

"What the hell happened here?" Asked Adel.
 

Legacy|iB

Well-Known Member
#98
Setting the bodies on the stretchers, Yuuka began her autopsy.

"Bodies have arrived - one Neelaa male, one Neelaa female."

Examining the male, LeCartier shook his head. The male Neelaa's face was practically smashed in, and the rest of him was bent and bloodied and a variety of ways.

"Severe trauma - if I had to guess, it looks like this one died in the crash," he said, his report being recorded by his PERCOMD. "Good God, any more and he would have been a stain on the wall."

Motioning for Mitchell to turn the body over, LeCartier's observations were confirmed.

"Cause-of-death for Neelaa male: severe trauma suffered likely when the ship crashed," Yuuka recorded. "There's not much else to see here. Moving onto the female body."

Already, Colin and Nicole were examining it. The female body was in somewhat better condition than the male, but not by much. The body was just as beat up.

"I'm seeing several broken bones. The whole damn ribcage's practically shattered." Colin reported, using a scanner to look at internal injuries. "I've also got a fracture along the back of the skull..."

Yuuka examined the body alongside Colin.

"Looks like something big and heavy struck her across the chest and threw her on her back, and he must have hit the back of her head against the ground when she landed."

"So there was a fight inside the ship?" LeCartier hypothesized. "Possible mutiny? Someone throws a really big punch to her chest?"

Colin shook his head.

"Unlikely, considering how the Neelaa operate. Adherence to their Order means mutinies on ships would be rare. Even so, the size and severity of the injuries to the ribcage is too large and the direction of the injuries doesn't look like any melee strike."

Colin then pulled out his PERCOMD and quickly checked over some images on the USNS database. He stopped at a picture of a recovered bulkhead from a Neelaa vessel.

"It looks roughly the congruent to the wound," Yuuka commented as she looked between the picture and the chest.

"So a bulkhead falls on her, crushes her ribcage, and in knocking her back, she cracks open the back of her skull on the ground?" LeCartier wondered, piecing together the details.

"Exactly," Colin replied. "The bulkhead probably collapsed both lungs and did a number on her internal organs - she would have died soon after. Bulkhead probably got loose when the ship crashed."

Yuuka noted cause-of-death in her report. She then noticed something odd with her scanner.

"There's something lodged in her chest. Mitchell, if you may...?"

Yuuka motioned Mitchell to rip open the tattered uniform. There was an ugly lateral gnash along the chest.

"Scapel."

Nicole handed Yuuka her scalpel. She then slowly started cutting, opening up the gnash.

"Rib spreader."

Colin handed Yuuka the rib spreader. Using it, she opened up the gnash.

She then found herself staring at a small glowing object buried deep inside the chest. Yuuka lifted it out with a pair of forceps. It was small, barely the size of her thumb, but it glowed a brilliant green.

"What the hell's that?" Colin was bewildered, as were the others.

"Interesting" she commented. She then took a picture of it with her PERCOMD and sent the image to the people searching the ship.

"Doctor Fallax, Adel, or anybody on the ship - have you seen any materials similar to this? We found it inside one of the bodies, and we would appreciate it if you can identify it for us."
 
#99
The corporal in the engine room tapped her ear bud.

"Doctor, this is Corporal Jennigg... I'm seeing some sort of strange crystal here too... Glowing green." She turned to Fallax.

"Doc?"

- - - - - -

Captain Clarkson shook his head. "No idea... Best leave that for the doctor... The thing is though... There isn't a mark on them."

He walked over to the pilot, hunched over the controls, and frowned at the hint of green.

"Doctor Yuuka, Clarkson. I've got some green stuff here too."
 

shibosho

Well-Known Member
A message from Ghangi asking for the number of bodies on the ship came in through Adel's internal receiver. A quick check of the the report that the drones had sent in indicated around fifty-two bodies within the ship. A quick message informing Ghangi of this information and Adel went back to the checking out the bridge.

Then the drone sent an update.

"Captain! The drones have picked up movements not belonging to Coalition crew members somewhere in the ship!"
 
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