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Never grabs the tongue easily. It's sticky and would be easy to hold if it didn't writhe so. She and the izalguun begin a tug of war.
You hold the target in place. You must have at least one hand free to perform a grapple combat maneuver. Your target has the grappled condition, meaning she can’t move from her current space and takes further penalties until she either uses a standard action to attempt a grapple combat maneuver to grapple you (giving you the grappled condition) or uses the escape task of the Acrobatics skill to break free. If the result of your attack roll equals or exceeds the target’s KAC + 13, the target is instead pinned for the same duration, and she can’t take any actions that involve moving her limbs other than to attempt to escape.
The grappled or pinned condition lasts until the end of your next turn, unless you renew it on your next turn with another grapple combat maneuver. The condition ends immediately if you move away. As long as you have one target grappled or pinned, you cannot attempt to grapple another. The grappled and pinned conditions are further detailed in Conditions on pages 276–277.
When you renew a grapple, you can remove one item from the target’s body that can be easily accessed, including most weapons and equipment (but not worn armor). Doing so immediately ends the grapple.
Grappled:
You are restrained by a creature, effect, or trap. You can’t move, and you take a –2 penalty to your Armor Class, attack rolls, Reflex saving throws, initiative checks, and Dexterity-based skill and ability checks, except those made to grapple your opponent in turn or to escape a grapple (see Grapple on page 246). In addition, you can’t take actions that require two hands (or other limbs) to perform. You can’t make attacks of opportunity.
You can’t use Stealth to hide from the creature grappling you, even if a special ability allows you to hide when you normally couldn’t. If you become invisible, through a spell or other ability, you gain a +2 circumstance bonus to your check to escape being grappled, but you receive no other benefit.
Pinned: You are tightly bound and can take few actions. While you are pinned, you can’t move and are flat-footed. You also take an additional –4 penalty to your Armor Class, attack rolls, Reflex saving throws, initiative checks, and Dexterity-based skill and ability checks (these penalties replace those from the grappled condition and also apply to attempts to grapple your opponent or free yourself; see Grapple on page 246). You are limited in the actions that you can take. You cannot take any action that requires the use of any of your limbs, but you can always attempt to free yourself, usually through an attack roll or Acrobatics check. You can’t make attacks of opportunity while you are pinned, but you can still take verbal and mental actions, such as spellcasting.
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The big one tries rotate Never to wind another turn of its tongue around her and draw her closer. But the tongue slides up her shoulder and with a quick duck and a shrug, she's free.
The other mutant flings its tongue at Zephyr and misses. It disappears into the murky water.
... B plus grab)
... B plus grab)
If the creature hits with the indicated attack (usually a claw or bite attack), it deals the normal damage. If the attack roll result equals or exceeds the target’s KAC + 4, the creature also automatically grapples the foe. (If it equals or exceeds the target’s KAC + 13, the creature instead pins the target.) The creature doesn’t need to have a spare limb free to perform this grapple as long as it can make the listed attack, and it can potentially grapple more than one target if it has more than one attack with the grab ability. The creature can maintain the grab either with another successful grab attack or by performing the grapple combat maneuver normally.
Format: Melee claw +8 (1d6+4 plus grab).
Rather than shoot at the murky water, Zephyr stays on the high ground and sends a pair of laser bolts at the big guy grappling Never!
damage and on fire!
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Lorne fires wide both times.
Zephyr rips two shots through the big mutant's back. It's arm clutch at the wounds front and back as its blood wells out. Never's lash also bites deep, slicing one of the arms to the bone. It drops uselessly and blood pours down it. It sags back. Still the creature, screams defiance. It rears for another tongue strike.
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Jaeric will get'em on the only visible foe, the big creature.
Zephyr makes an easy target of himself for the nearby mutant. Its tongue comes flying at him again! And glances off the android's armor. Still the blow shakes Zephyr more than it normally would.
The creature tries to follow up, rearing from the water again and lashing out with it's tongue.
At the far end of the swampy pool the big one tries the same with Never. The gluey appendage bludgeons her chest, and sticks there.
... B plus grab)
... B plus grab)
... B plus grab)
Now that the nearby creature has revealed itself, Zephyr unloads on it with a pair of blasts from his artillery laser!
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Never's lash does more than take an arm this time. It slices through the creature's neck. Its head drops until the tongue wraps around the lower railing, then swings and lands on the decking at the vanguard's feet. Blood runs into murk.
Zephyr unloads two shots through the head of the smaller mutant. It sinks beneath the swampy water.
"Well, think that settles it. We ain't gettin' help from the locals."
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You are lords of all you survey. What's next?
Stepping up out of the water, Zephyr says, “I don’t feel too good. Perhaps whatever mutated these poor creatures has infected me,” as he inspects his wounds. ”Does anyone have the skill to heal me?” he asks.
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The golden obelisk is perfectly smooth, no buttons, dials, ports, or plugs. It could be a simple art object on a plinth fashioned from golden parts and detritus. Never has a second of concern when she finally reaches for the prismatic monolith. Her hand sticks to its surface and it's stuck to the plinth. But the strength of the adhesive is no match for the vanguard's muscle. She wrenches it clear.
Zephyr will back completely out of the water and strip out of his powered armor, leaving him only in his Flight Skin (light armor). He will then inspect the locations on his skin that seem weepy or itchy.
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Never looks cross at the golden obelisk.
"This dumb thing has no purpose" She kicks it to emphasize her point, then turns around to examine the computer consoles behind her to see if they cause anything to happen.
"I think it's on; but I don't know. I hate computers."
Tidbit jumps out of her pocket and lands on the console. Never shrugs. "All yours until the nerds get here."
Unsure what else to do, Zephyr wraps up the leaking leg and takes a drink of a med serum to see if that will help. He then puts back on his powered armor and prepares to join the others.
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Power flickers fitfully through the computers, occasionally lighting their screen in response to various input, but they inevitably die and go dark before anything useful can be done.
All that glitters may not be gold but sometimes it is.
The serum heals his calf, but Zephyr can already feel skin chafing on his shoulders. Behind the android, Lorne says, "Ow!" When the others look at him, they see that the dwarf is holding a tiny downy feather with a drop of blood at the end of the quill. A tiny splash of red on his breastplate, and a dark patch of wetly matted beard at the turn of his jaw can lead to an obvious conclusion.
Looking at Lorne, Zephyr says, ”It would appear whatever mutated these Izalguun has affected us. Let’s get this obelisk and get out of here.”
Now with his powered armor back on, Zephyr goes over to look at the golden obelisk.
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Sounds like a plan.
Never has a second of concern when she finally reaches for the prismatic, gently glowing monolith. Her hand sticks to its surface and it's stuck to the plinth. But the strength of the adhesive is no match for the vanguard's muscle. She wrenches it clear.
Zephyr wades/swims and walks the perimeter catwalks to reach Never, the obelisk, and the pile of fragmetned golden items that was the Tear's throne. The android's technical assessment is that the Tear is likely not powered (solely) by technology. He agrees with Tidbit about the computers and equipment against the wall -- it's not functional.
Out in the hallway, Jaeric and Lorne examine the debris blocking the western end of the passage. There are gaps and channels in the rockslide through which a person could squeeze. But where does it lead?
Zephyr takes a protective guard stance near Never and says, "I'll run overwatch on you as you transport the item. Now we just have to figure out how to get topside."
"No explosives, but I have powered armor with plenty of spare batteries. Let's do this," responds Zephyr and begins to pound a way through the debris that will allow Never and him to maneuver this obelisk through the hallway.
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The rockslide material is loose, and the fragments are largely of a manageable size, or have enough pre-existing fractures from their earlier collapse that Zephyr's fist can make them manageably sized. Never, Jaeric, and Lorne set up a stone bucket brigade to transfer the rock into the hallway behind them. It doesn't take long for the android to break through into an ascending stairway.
At the head of the stairway, another ceiling collapse provides more impromptu mining opportunites, but Zephyr cuts through this one even faster. Less than an hour passes until he puches through into a short clear corridor. At the end of the hall is another garbage strewn room.
Directly across from you, a large computer mainframe stands against the area’s eastern wall, its guts exposed and several of its components sprawled throughout the room amid a layer of junk. Near you chunks of concrete and stone add to the debris. At least this junk is only calf deep. Double doors stand in the north wall and the south wall, although the southern exit is partially concealed, and well blocked, behind piles of trash.
A bit of poking around at the computer indicates that it's somewhat repairable, but that it will take time. (Dozens of minutes to potentially hours.)
”Is it worthwhile to repair the computers here so we might be able to determine what happened, or should we push onwards and upwards?” asks Zephyr.
”I could use the rest anyway. I still feel weak from whatever was in that water. I’ll keep watch,” offers Zephyr as he leans up against the wall with a good view of the room and it’s known entrances.
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Lorne moves to assist Never. The pair starts by trying to find parts that have been removed from the computer among the debris on the floor. After about an hour they feel confident enough to engage power. The screen lights up, and slowly assembles itself into coherent symbols.
The repaired, mainframe is a moderately powerful computer. Its outer shell provides access to the complex’s lighting, temperature controls, and magnetically secured interior door controls.
The mainframe displays two secure data files (one labeled “Ralveen” and one labeled “Prima”), each secured behind separate firewalls. Lorne and Never realize the system usually requires a scan of genetic material to access the firewalled information, but the scanner is currently missing. After another brief search Never locates the missing scanner and it is easily installed.
+2 if Constructed bonuses apply
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In response to Never's hand, the screen flashes, "Unauthorized Personnel. Aberrant data."
Your tongue feels cramped and caged within your mouth. Your skin is more comfortable inside your armor, but it feels slick in there, like something is lubricating the interface between your skin and armor. Your mind is fuzzy, and small things, a hint of movement near the corner of your eye, flashing light from the computer screen, or even a mote of dust, seize your attention. Oddly, your legs feel unusually powerful.
”I am being strongly affected by this place…I don’t know if it is radiation or disease or what, but my systems are starting to shut down…Does anyone have a medkit and some training who could evaluate me?” says Zephyr, his voice sounding strange and his words coming out haltingly, as if he is trying to focus very hard on saying them correctly.
Shrugging—and not catching the metaphor in his addled state—Zephyr goes over and literally lends a hand to see if it will will help.
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”I am being strongly affected by this place…I don’t know if it is radiation or disease or what, but my systems are starting to shut down…Does anyone have a medkit and some training who could evaluate me?” says Zephyr, his voice sounding strange and his words coming out haltingly, as if he is trying to focus very hard on saying them correctly.
Lorne rumbles, "I've two medpatches."
Jaeric steps over to examine Zephyr. "Lorne mentioned radiation earlier. Never seems resistant, but the rest of us are suffering to some degree or other. If it is some form of radiation, the longer we stay, the greater our exposure -- and the risk. The most prudent course is retreat to the ship immediately. "
"The sooner we figure this thing out the sooner we get you to help, Zeph. Why don't you try your hand here - maybe it will think you're one of them."
Shrugging—and not catching the metaphor in his addled state—Zephyr goes over and literally lends a hand to see if it will will help.
This elicits the same response as Never's hand. The screen flashes, "Unauthorized Personnel. Aberrant data."
Lorne frowns and mutters, We coud try aliasing the data some'ut."
Jaeric considers the problem. "It's probably expecting the keepers of the outpost, or at least izalguun tissues."
”Fair enough,, you need a different hand,” says Zephyr, heading back to pick up one of the dead mutated Izalguun. He drags it, hand-first, towards the others. If the body becomes a problem, he detaches it from the hand.
”Okay,” says Zephyr, not showing much initiative (or indeed decision-making skills of any kind) at this point. He follows along, trying to be helpful.
"Yeah. I agree with Never. I'm not feeling particularly well either. There's something about this place that's obviously affecting us. Given the weirdness of those izalguuns we fought and how dissimilar they were from what we know about them, maybe they got affected, too. Unless we can identify what that is...and put a stop to it...our only other alternative is to get the artifact out of here and complete the mission."
He looks over at the scanner with the severed izalguun's hand on it. "Any luck with that thing?
"I don't think we're going to be able to rely on magic to divine anyone's passcode," Jaeric shares, "Unless one of you can hack it, the only other alternative would be to search the rest of this base and hope someone left it lying around somewhere. That seems unlikely. Might be best to just get out of here with our prize."