”Comrades, my eyes are starting to fail me. My sight grows dim. In an hour, I will be blind.”
"What? Well I guess we have our time constraint now. Speed it is!"
"Unless someone has a medkit that can help Otosh with this ailment?"
"Let us press on then. If I become blind, you all will need to proceed on without me. We cannot let the mission fail because of my clumsiness."
Deciding to press on, the vesk squad moves quickly ever closer to their target. Suspicions that something is wrong continue to grow with each passing minute. Faint smoke can be seen in the vicinity. Finally rounding a small hill about 200 meters to the research site, you get a clear view at the smoldering ruins of what should be a building.
The facility appears to have no major wall structures left intact, there are a few crumbled half walls, but nothing larger. No roof structure is left, and there are a few wisps of smoke rising up into the peaceful blue sky.
What now?
"Let us not delay. I fear the end of my usefulness is coming."
Katarasi quietly gets closer and as he gets within close ear shot, he calls out to the group, "I've caught up to you, don't shoot me." And then gives them the verbal challenge passphrase answer.
"Let's check the debris for evidence of what happened and if there is anything remaining that is salvageable? But before hand, let's make sure there is nothing toxic?"
Katarasi moves in first to secure and clear the area, looking for more information. You second skin armor will protect you from incidental radiation exposure, and has a visual indicator if you find your way into a radiation field, going from darker to lighter as the intensity of the radiation increases. At present, nothing out of normal tolerances.
The team is able to make a 5 minute sweep (based on the rolls above), and find two things of interest. There is an area that may have been a workstation space, as there are some badly melted computer interfaces and circuit boards that Sleestack is able to identify as probably coming from 2-4 different machines in a small area. The other thing is a sealed metal door installed in the ground, which is next to an part of the building that looks like it may have been a loading dock type area. The doors are closed, and about 3m square. There is a fold up access panel with a biometric and keycard interface.
Kat looks at his team, "Hmm, do you guys see anything worth bringing back? Also watch out for the radioactive. Which he points out.
"I think I found something."
"Better you than me with the way my eyes are failing."
Sleestack finds a undamaged keycard in the rubble. Otherwise all the other office and research equipment looks to be useless.
On a hunch, Sleestack tries the keycard on the reader attached to the sealed metal doors. The foldout interface screen displays the messages "Security Lockout in place. Unable to access lift controls."
Otosh is having a very difficult time seeing much of anything.
Sleestack attempts to gain access to the computer system for the security lockout in typical, methodical form:
First disable any countermeasures.
Attempt to hack the system to manipulate modules.
Now access the unsecured system to extract the data we are interested in.
Then try to elevate access to the root system access to use it for our purposes.
Katarsi keeps watch (head on a swivel) while Slee does her handy work.
Seeing Otosh not acting normal, Otosh, are you ok? What is ails you?
The lift controls appear to be on a locally isolated system, Sleestack makes easy work of the system though, and unlocks and opens the metal doors. There is a 5m deep shaft with a rising floor/lift at the bottom. There is also a sealed set of double doors at the bottom of the lift that go east, with a keycard reader set into the wall next to the doors.
”My eyes are failing me at a dramatic pace. Katarasi, you must promise me, that when it goes, do not slow the mission on my behalf.”
Sleestack looks around for climbing surfaces, like a ladder or other emergency exit ways up/down the shaft; or something to make a rope.
She inserts the card she found to see if she can raise the lift for her companions up top to ride down safely.
So unless there are any objections...
After an additional examination for structural integrity and traps, Sleestack raises the lift via the control panel and lowers the vesk crew down into the shaft. She then approaches the keycard station next to the very heavy, very sealed looking double doors and slots it. The display flips from red to green and you hear this hiss and release of pistons and locks. After 3 seconds you then hear a painfully loud screech of metal on metal. The doors do not move. The control display switches from green to orange, blinking 4 times in long, slow pulses (about 4 seconds each) and then returns to solid red.
Otosh is startled at the noises, not having seen Sleestack's efforts on the consoles. "Companions, my service to Damaritosh nears its end. Let us find a fight quickly, so I can sell my hide at a steep price to the enemies of our people."
Katarasi replies to Otosh, "We will make sure that you are not left behind for the enemy. And you do not know your sight as left you for good. So until then, you remain alive."
"This symbol does not bode well. Let me see if I can do anything about it" He then sets to work on the doors, trying to hack into their system.
"Katarasi, I don't need you trying to patronize me. Mother always said she expected I would go blind some day, and now it seems she was right. I shall help as long as I can to support the mission."
Katarsi walks away from Otosh and keeps vigilante while the squints work on the door.
The screen shows "An unexpected error occurred (-34521268)."
How would you guys like to proceed?
Sleestack investigates the door and looks for something jamming it from being open. ”Try opening it again. Vral... Otosh help me try to brute strength this thing open.”
As requested, Otosh will try and muscle the thing open.
Katarasi keeps glancing over to the door pryers. If he sees they need help, he quickly slings his LRC, quickly helps, and then goes back to guarding.
Otosh tries to pry the doors open, with the help of the others but is unable to get enough purchase to effect any sort of leverage against the heavy, metal doors.
Sleestack notices a maintenance access panel near the floor about a meter away from the control panel and doors. Opening it reveals access to a hydraulic drum that is part of the door tract.
"I wonder if this hydraulic drum needs adjustment to open the door."
Sleestack tinkers delicately with the hydraulics and seems to get no where. and gives it a good kick in frustration "bah! Anyone else know more about hydraulics?"
”I know next to nothing about such things, and even if I did, it is unlikely I could even see well enough to work the problem.”
Initially Sleestack is unable to notice anything obviously wrong with the setup. Then she realizes that the thing that looks like a brick next to the drum is actually a yasoki liquid vacuum inverter, and it has been damaged. Spending some time reviewing a maintenance howto video, Sleestack feels pretty confident in her repair and passes the keycard over the sensor again. The system cycles and the huge double doors hiss and slide gently open. Beyond the doors is a 3m wide tunnel that goes about 10m back to another set of double doors like the ones you are standing in front of. There is a control panel at the far end, as well as a second control panel just on the inside of the tunnel to operate these doors from inside the tunnel. The tunnel surfaces appear to be smooth, reenforced nano-metal composites, pretty standard stuff. There is a faint scent of chemical cleaner.
Katarasi sniffs the air, "I hope the smell of cleaners as a sign of once a well maintained facility or storage, and not a facility purge. Hmm, two panels on either side, we may want to check for security measures? Of course, it could be just lights and doors but better safe than sorry?"
"Before we walk into a potential purge death trap, let me see if there are any items out of the ordinary."
Then Sleestack will check the panel just inside the door for operations.
"The time has come my friends, I can no longer see. I shall attempt to keep up. If there are enemies, point me in the right direction, and I shall do my best."
Checking out the panel, it does appear to be the same type of control station as the outside panel. At the far end of the tunnel the panel looks the same as far as you can tell from 10m. There is recessed lighting running along the top of the tunnel on both sides. Everything is quite and still.
"Well what are we waiting for? Otosh to get his sight back?! Press on boys!"
Sleestack boldly moves into the tunnel toward the other side to open the control station on the far side.
Otosh grabs onto Katarasi's arm and uses him as a guide.
Katarasi takes out his Tactical Semi-auto Pistol so he has better control with his free hand while Otosh holds on to his other arm. He follows Slee but makes sure that his muzzle is not pointed at her.
Moving cautiously into the tunnel, the team gets to the midway point and the double doors slide closed. The lights dim along the walls, and a soothing computerized voice says "Beginning decontamination sequence." Along the floor on both sides of the tunnel there is a brief hiss and white smoke beings to pour out of concealed vents.
”Hold you breath! There seems to be a gas coming in.”
Katarasi holds his breath and continues to walk down the tunnel making sure Otosh is still holding on. Since Othosh is blind not death, he doesn't say anything to him unless he does not hold his breath.
Otosh holds his breath and continues on.
The mighty vesk warriors inhale deeply and press on through the thickening cloud of smoke. Or gas. Whatever it may be. The chamber fills for about 45 seconds and then the sound stops. After what seems like the longest 60 seconds of any of your lives the voice speaks again, "Nano-decontamination sequence complete." There is a click and a whoosh as the white cloud is vented back out of the room.
Otosh finds that his sight return almost immediately!
Sleestack is pretty sure she can make short work of the other control panel, which has a green light above it now with a little plaque that reads "Clean".
"OK Otosh, you can now let go of my arm since you can see thanks to the decon gas." Then Katarasi replaces his handgun for the LRC.
Otosh pulls out his doshko, ”Now, let’s see who needs their cloaca kicked!”
Sleestack moves to open the far door now that we are "clean."
Apologies for the extended absence. I will return to a regular posting schedule on the 26th. :)