"Apologies Mr. Boris, I didn't realize the brevity of Mr. Alpha's attack."
The shirren looks to his left and concentrates hard, double-clicking his eyes.
The Akata that Gryggax challenged mentally paces back and forth nervously, trying as much as possible to avoid the intruders.
With the Akata at his rear down, Alpha-83 turns back to the bridge and sights down his tactical pistol before firing at the nearest akata.
Boris directs Digdig to rush onto the bridge, charging the akata with the flaming blade of the Doshko in a whirl. He fearlessly attacks the alien canine.
The beast falls to the ground, convulsing until it stops, quiet, limp, restful in a pool of its own dark black blood, smoking from the seared flesh.
Two of the three akatas are softened up by the pistol bursts shot by Blacklock and Breaker.
Alpha-83 moves up to the doorway so he can maintain his line of sight on the akatas, then fires his tactical pistol at the same one.
Blacklock and Breaker's seemingly coordinated attack finish off the alien aberration as the last threat on the bridge remains in a state of panic.
Gryggax levels the autotarget rifle and fires at the akata.
Hurried, Gryggax misses what should have been the easiest shot he has taken this far.
Angered by the wounds, the akata gnashes its maw loudly before lunging at Boris.
Boris again feels the painful sting of the razor-sharp teeth entering and exiting his flesh.
Boris responds with a wild hack at the last remaining creature.
The counter-attack is in vain as the injured dwarf swings above the head of the beast missing entirely. Gryggax shot also misses, one second behind Boris's response.
Breaker fires another round from the tac-pistol.
In a coordinated effort, Breaker and Blacklock eliminate the last Akata on the bridge. Reeling from his injury, Boris seeks help from Gryggax again. ”Hey Mystic, how about giving me another hand with this bite again?”
The bridge is quiet, but the system still needs to be fully restored.
Alpha-83 moves to restore basic functions to the bridge - he doubts the ship will fly, but it would be nice to get life support and maybe the ship's log back.
Gryggax focuses his immediate attention on the injured dwarf.
While still reeling from the wound, Boris doesn’t feel the pulsating pain indicative of the intruding parasite. Perhaps the beast did not have a chance to inject its symbiotes.
Breaker easily re-establishes all life support and lighting systems, shutting down the dim flicker of the emergency back-up emergency light system. However, he cannot override the security of the ship’s log security measures. He does recognize a slot, and when the system requests a security card clearance, he figures that the missing card must be with the missing team.
Shards of Noqual litter the floor of the bridge.
Boris directs Digdig to cover the door while the team investigates the bridge.
"We should gather the noqual - it is highly valuable, after all. Now that we have restored life support and power, we should see if we can locate the remaining members of the team, and possibly the missing security card."
The computer responds with ”No signs of life forms”. You do not spot the Ambassador’s special cargo anywhere on the bridge. With the exception of the engines and the AI, the systems seem to be functioning normally.
Alpha-83 looks at the computer. "Given that it can't see us on the bridge, I suspect that system is not functional. Perhaps we should investigate the galley and crew quarters for any signs of other crew members."
"Excellent idea!" I am right behind you." While Gryggax is nervous about what they might encounter on board the unexplored areas of the ship, he is hopeful that they will find a barrel of saltwater somewhere, however odd it may be.
The crew enters what seems to be a food preparation area. The ready-made rations look like they are in rough shape, but there are many other foodstuffs that seem to be well-preserved. There does not seem to be any dangerous entities at the present moment.
Alpha-83 looks over the kitchen, then sets about searching for any salt so they can make saltwater to carry around in case they encounter more Akata.
Likewise, Gryggax peers around intensely looking for containers and the necessary materials to make the saltwater.
Breaker and Gryggax easily find the mylar containers of salt. There are also several five gallon containers under the preparation countertop used for water storage. They are about 24 inches square with a depth of about 12 inches. The blue plastic containers have a circular opening at the top near one side with a six-inch diameter.
The dwarf and his construct stand guard by the door.
Blacklock determines that the ship was well-stocked and equipped to sustain a full crew of eight beings.
All seems eerily quiet as the recruits set to work mixing the concoction of salt and water inside the jugs.
Once they've mixed up saltwater concoctions, Alpha-83 says, "Let's see if anyone is left alive in the crew quarters, shall we?"
Gryggax grabs a full container of saltwater and follows Alpha-83 toward the crew's quarters hoping to avoid anymore unnecessary conflict.
Boris, would you like a container of saltwater?
” No thanks, I’ve got me trusty doshko to even the odds,” the grumpy dwarf replies.
The recruits make their way to the crew quarters across the hallway to find the door stuck. It won’t open.
While Blacklock attempts to wedge the door open, Alpha-83 examines the entry pad, then looks to pop the entry pad off and try to hotwire the door.
Gryggax approaches the door and concentrates intensely. The water container rests carefully on the floor besides the shirren as his outstretched limb almost touches the door. His eyes click before shutting them as he places his other hand to his brow.
The digital keypads are on the fritz, it seems as if the door has been physically jammed intentionally to keep out intruders.
Gryggax’s mind is flooded with thoughts, but he is able to make out one.
Must be ready to blast. Bad creatures outside door, come to kill us.
Alpha-83 looks at the door. "Now, if the door has been physically jammed to keep out intruders, that means someone is inside. Perhaps we should attempt to open negotiation?"
Whispering, Gryggax informs the others about possible occupants inside of the doors.
"Gentlemen, there are at least two creatures beyond the barricade.Any ideas as to how to proceed."
Gryggax solicits ideas from his cohorts.
"I propose we knock, and seek to talk to them. After all, they probably locked themselves in there to avoid the Akita."
”Come to kill us? Or come to rescue us?” you hear choppy words in a broken common tongue from what sound like somewhat diminutive creatures.
Ever impatient, Boris whispers an offer to try and knock the door down with the help of his battle drone.
Alpha-83 looks at the others, then says, "That entirely depends. We are affiliates of the Starfinder Society, and we have been hired to investigate this ship and the asteroid as part of resolving the current dispute between Astral Extractions, Inc. and the Hardscrabble Collective. Are you affiliated with either of those organizations?"