"Yes.  It's something like carrion bugs I'm a little worried about..." Kaspar says thoughtfully, "But, I think it's pretty likely this Jaffa wanted in to the Ha'tak, so I think it's a pretty fair bet that this door leads in, rather than out.  So go ahead, Freyda -- open this one up, if you can.  And let's all hope that this cargo bay isn't the only place holding breathable air..."

Leaving the others to work on the closed doors and the skeleton on the floor, Rajip moved on to continue his search along the walls. This time, however, he put his IR goggles on to have a free hand and a wider field of view than just one small spot revealed by a flashlight. Taking care not to look back into the floodlights behind him, he paced slowly along the walls of the room looking for anything other than the walls themselves. Additionally, this time he intended to also check out the area behind the stargate ring.



OOC: 13:53, Today: Rajip Mojdar rolled 13 using 1d20+5. Spot using IR.

'Ah! A disintegration ray. Like a Klingon disruptor.' Hilda proposed, remembering the television stories she'd seen on Midgard. They'd had lots of skeletons left behind after blasts of magic or ray guns. 'Or maybe a robot with a vacuum cleaned up the decay.'

Kneeling beside the bones, she cracked open the evidence kit case and laid it open the floor, looking over the array of specimen containers, tools, and phials of chemicals. The Cimmerian knew nothing about the science behind all this, but she did know there was a science behind it. Fortunately, the kit had clear, pictorial instructions for untrained SGC soldiers to follow, and Hilda went carefully through the process. She took swabs from the floor, the femur, and just inside the eye-socket, as the brain inside would be the last to rot away.


OOC: I'm not certain what to roll for the blood test and Hilda isn't even remotely qualified. Here's an untrained Knowledge check (and rather a good one) with +1 equipment bonus:
21:11, Today: Hilda rolled 20 using 1d20+3. Knowledge (biology/chemistry).
Maybe another PC should roll?

Freya says. I'm also a genetic scientist, if you need help I will get to that when I'm done. I'm a many talented ,what is that Tau'ri term, an Egghead. But I need to get the door open and then figure out if I can get the main power up to check the systems.

As Hilda pointed out, there are fairly clear instructions on how to use the kit. The only difficult part is not knowing all the terms. However, when it says to use luminol, there is a bottle clearly labeled 'Luminol'. It also says that you need UV light.

On the other hand, there is HemaScein, which doesn't require it. She can just spray that on the swab. If it turns blue, it's blood.

Hilda does so... and none of the swabs turn blue.


Rajip checks out the other walls. The temperature of the walls, however, is the same ambient temperature of the air in the room, so almost nothing can be detected with IR... almost nothing. There are three areas on each of the non-door walls that show a slight variation in temperature which indicates an outline of what might be an access or control panel.


Freyda has the tools to determine that there is a breathable atmosphere on the other side of the door she is trying to open. Prying the panel off is easy, and bypassing the circuit to isolate the door is almost as easy. Connecting power up to the door is also easy.

She's ready to open it when the Major says.

OOC: ... the Major says "Don't shoot, I'm just the Piano Player!" ^_^


"No blood trace?  None?" Kaspar responds to Hildas findings, "Then that means either somebody or something cleaned up all the trace and sterilized the area, or that this -- these, skeletons were placed here; that this scene was staged, for some reason."

After Freyda reports she is ready to open the door, and that there is air on the other side, Kaspar stands and opens the radio channel to the entire team -- he is wary of possible feedback from the walls of the chamber, as he does this.

"Okay Team, Freyda has confirmed an atmosphere on the other side of this door, and she's ready to open it, so stand by."

Kaspar lets go his microphone and nods at Freyda.

"Right, Freyda, go ahead. But slowly, if possible.  And if you or any of your gadgets detects any contaminants or other threats coming in from the other side, you just slam this door shut as fast as you can. Let's do this easy and cautious.  Hilda, be ready, but no weapons drawn." so saying, Kaspar doesn't grab hold of the P90 hanging on his chest, instead he simply stands relaxed...with his left hand resting on the holster flap over his Makarov pistol.

Freyda opens the door a bit, smells, opens it slowly and well is a sitting duck if anything attacks but is ready to close it if needed and shut out anything with a Sonic Screwdriver blast.

Gavin considers what the others said, particularly Vasandra. Her evaluation of a cargo ship was clearly based on what she was familiar with. Even the Tau'ri used the same design, and so did the Tollan... for the most part.

The Goa'uld, however, didn't think like that. They weren't concerned about the convenience of loading cargo because they weren't going to be the ones to carry it. Besides, most cargo went in via ring gate.

He didn't think the Major's interpretation of the layout made sense.

"I think you'll find that both doors lead to hallways, probably ones that connect. Goa'uld don't move cargo themselves, and they wouldn't care how much work it causes the Jaffa. And that's assuming they don't use a ring gate."

Finished the examination, Hilda looked up from the dusty, damp swabs and reported 'They have not turned blue. There is no blood. Maybe it is much too old?' She disposed of the swabs then packed away the kit to return it to the FRED.

Joining the others at the door, she took up a defensive position before Freyda. Kaspar had said not to draw a weapon, but Hilda couldn't understand why not. So instead, she had her heavy wooden round shield out, ready to block any attack. Plus, she could brain someone just as effectively with it as any other weapon.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:02, Sun 22 June 2014.

"Too old?  No.  I've heard of those things being used on old mummies and still picking up the tell-tale traces." Kaspar says, as the door was slowly opening, "These blood trace detectors are just looking for chemical signatures, and those can take a very long time to break down.  It's DNA that can break down, if it isn't locked in something, like deep inside bone marrow, or trapped in amber."

At each of the suspected areas, Rajip took out the knife and carved a mark on the wall: two paralel lines crossed with two others made so that together they formed a kind of a double 'X' with the intersection being well below the center of the symbol. He also took care to locate the carvings right of the top right edge of the area.

Once he was certain he had inspected every wall, he approached the Major with a report.

"There are several points on the walls round us that may be hiding something, Major. I'll try to uncover one of them now."
This message was last edited by the player at 14:10, Sun 22 June 2014.

Asgard use machines but we still take efficiency and time into account why would the G'ould not consider it and they are less advanced. Time does matter sometimes a ship layout would still depend on common sense. Remind me to work on some drones to map and scout areas but its another thing to add to the list. Freyda says as she looks at the ship and makes educated guesses.

"Mm-mmm" Kaspar mumbles as the door finishes opening.  Puffing on his pipe, he grabs his flashlight off his webgear and shines it around.

Pretty much as expected, there is a wide hallway outside this door, about 30-feet wide, running left-to-right from his POV.  There is another, closed, cargo bay door directly opposite where Kaspar is standing.

With his free hand, Kaspar reaches up and opens the comm channel to the Team.

"Okay, everybody, this door is open, and the expected hallway was found.  So far this appears to be following the standard Ha'tak layout.  So, the question I now put to all of you -- do we continue setting up our base camp, right here.  Or do we halt that, and make a run for the control center, right now, before we finish setting up camp?  I have to admit, I'm very curious to look out a window and see where this ship is located."

"So, vote. Who wants to stay and follow protocol and set up case camp before we do any exploring, and who wants to say screw it, and just head for the control room, now?"

Hilda waved her torch around the hallway, frowning at the proposal to make camp. 'If there are ettins here, we may have to run back through the Stargate in a hurry. I don't want to have to break camp on the way. Let us scout the corridors around here, look for signs of Jaffa and if this ha'tak is abandoned and why it is so. Then we can make camps or look for control rooms.' she advised. After all, she was a scout, trained to be mobile, and had led a guerrilla campaign against Jaffa on her own world. Of course she wanted to keep moving and not dig in.

Hilda, until I can get the power on there is little I can do, that will take time, and if there were enemies here we made enough noise to bring them here. Just relax and plan for something else coming through the Stargate. Freyda says.

Joining the others to take a look through the one open door Vasandra seems surprised to be the only one willing to state the obvious.  ”We do not have the resources to defend a room with this many doors, even if that was our only concern, we need to keep moving until we get somewhere useful and the FRED will easily fit down this ship's wide corridors so there is no reason to make a stationary base, particularly not one with a back door into every planet in the galaxy.

If we want to park the MALP out of the way in a dark corner where it can see the gate opening we will have some warning if anyone else comes through but we can not afford to leave anything else here.”

"All valid points, Captain." Kaspar responds, "But the flip side is that it's good strategy to maintain control of your means of exit."

Kaspar smiles around the pipe hanging from the corner of his mouth, "However, I wasn't planning on camping here long term, anyway.  I figured that, once we located and cleared the Go'auld's personal chambers, we'd move in there," Kaspar winks at Vassandra, "Those should be comfy and luxurious enough, yes?"

"And parking the MALP off in a corner to watch the Stargate is an excellent idea!  I hadn't thought of that.  But, now that you put the thought in my head, I think we can take it a step further, and maybe have Sargeant Mojdar rig the MALP with remote detonated explosives, so if a large enemy force does come through the gate, we can decimate them from a distance."

Kaspar suddenly frowns, takes his pipe from his mouth, and points at Vassandra with the stem.

"Don't tell General Hammond I suggested that.  Americans hate it when people break their toys."

Kaspar placed his pipe back in his mouth and puffed on it a couple of times, again wreathing his head in a small cloud of tobacco smoke that smelled faintly of cedar and chocolate.

"Okay, so, that's two votes for heading off to the control center, and one vote for setting up a proper base camp.  We just need to hear from Gavin and Rajip." Kaspar lets go of his pipe and opens his mic, "Rajip.  Gavin. What d'you boys want to do -- go visit the control center, or set-up camp?"

If anyone was here they would have heard us like I said, and with no power all the doors will be like that one. I need to find a way to open them faster. Maybe adjusting one of my engineering or mechanical devices. Freyda says.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:12, Fri 27 June 2014.

"*sigh* I was hoping you wouldn't need my vote," Gavin responded to Kaspar. "Both approaches have something to offer."

"I wouldn't bother putting explosives on the MALP. For that matter, did anyone bring explosives? They'd only do enough damage to affect whoever was near it, not everyone in this room."

"I believe you have an expression, 'in for a penny, in for a pound'? We didn't come here to go camping, so while securing our exit is a good idea, I honestly think we need to move on. If we turn and run home without exploring anything, then why did we bother coming here in the first place?"

"Anyway, as I suggested, this is one of the corner cargo holds. That door across the hall leads to another, just as the other door in here leads to another hall across which will be another door into another corner hold."

"If we go out into the hall, going right should lead us to an outside door. Going left should take us to the center of ship. That's where access to the other levels will be found. I doubt, though, that the ring transporter will be working."

"Our primary goal now is to identify the location for what it actually is and whether it's empty or not. I say we leave here two of us two secure the stargate and check out the remaining doors while the rest of us go out to explore the place."

As Gavin brought up explosives, Kaspar looked shocked and began poking the many pouches on his tactical vest.

"Wait. What? You mean the Americans didn't stuff something explosive into one of these pouches?  I thought Americans didn't even go on picnics, without something that explodes!"

Kaspar smiles, "Okay, fine. We won't blow up the General's MALP.  But mark my words, I predict that we shall come to regret not being able to use that thing as a rolling shrapnel bomb!  Either that, or none of our MREs contain freeze dried ice cream.  I'm not sure; my powers of prediction are sometimes hazy..."

Kaspar hangs his flashlight back on his webgear, then claps his hands and rubs them together.

"Alright, then. Sorry Freyda, but it looks like the majority wants to move out, so you're going to have to keep figuring out ways to open closed doors."

When Rajip suggests leaving a guard or two behind, Kaspar assumes a shocked expression; even going so far as to remove his pipe from his mouth and let his jaw drop.

"Sargeant!  I am shocked, shocked I say!  Why, in every one of your American horror movies I have ever seen, whenever the group splits up, the smaller group always gets killed by the axe-wielding psychotic!  Are you trying to get someone killed?"

Kaspar chuckles, "Sorry Rajip, just joking. But, I do think that Captain Tourmaline's idea to place the MALP off in a dark corner and let it stream video of the gate to us, is the way to go.  Besides, except for this curious skeleton, here, it looks like things are pretty quiet on this level.  It's the rest of the ship I'm more worried about; between possible damage or neglect, I think we're in more danger from accidents, than we are from Jaffa.  Or whatever.  No, for the moment we'll stick together."

"Okay, Vassandra, why don't you position the MALP off in a corner, and set up the video feed. Freyda, I want you three to go over to that door across the hall and get it open. Hilda and Rajip, you go with her as protection, just in case there is actually something dangerous over in that other cargo bay.  Gavin, you and I will wait here while Vassandra sets up the MALP, to keep an eye out while she works."

"Let's go, people.  We've moved on to Plan B, and I'm already thinking up Plan C."

Hilda nodded in agreement with Vasandra. 'I agree.'



Hilda frowned. 'I do not think Earl Hammond would like that.'

Listening to the continuing discussion on whether to watch or defend the Stargate somehow, she chipped in with "I don't think we need to guard the Stargate. We would not do this on a world of trees and fields, so why worry here among the corridors? The terrain has changed, but the mission is the same as on Oz. There are too few of us to split up.'



The Viking grinned wickedly. 'Sorry, I didn't bring my axe today.' Her hand rested on the hilt of her sword.

Hearing her orders, she went off to guard Freyda as the goddess solved the puzzle of the other locked door.

Already working on maneuvering the MALP into position, once again in it's power save mode, by the time Kaspar gets around to a specific order to that effect Vasandra keeps working as she offers an off hand answer to Hilda.  ”In an open world there is a reasonably small chance that whomever comes through the gate is both looking for us, and knows where to find us.  Here in such a contained environment it is very likely that any gate activity not intended to assist us is intended either to compete with our goal or thwart it directly and given the relatively confined space of any ship finding us becomes inevitable rather than unlikely.”

When the slow MALP is finally in position and it's camera zeroed in on the stargate's entrance area Vasandra pulls back her sleeve and spends a few moments typing on her left wrist on what must be a keyboard of sorts, although it neither glows nor makes any noise when accessed, once satisfied that the feed from the camera has been connected properly she shakes the sleeve back down and rejoins the others.

Freya works to adjust a device to use magnetic force to open doors here, picking a device that uses magnetic force to work on things and try to make it so she can still use it as a tool.

07:56, Today: Freyda rolled 15 using 1d20+10. Modify Device - Door Opener.

It isn't that Freyda can't modify her device to use magnetic force to open a door. It's a question about power. Her device is intended for short range, fine manipulation, not massive brute force utility.

Inspite of it being a sophisticated Asgardian device, it requires a tremendous amount of energy to move a heavy metal door. At the moment, the only source of that kind of energy is Vasandra's generator, or the FRED.

Also, after calculating the energy needed, Freyda realizes that putting that much power through her device has a 5% cumulative chance of burning out the device. She probably could repair it, but it would be very hard here. She'd have to scavenge parts from this ship.

She still has to unlock the door first, which the device can do. It's just disengaging safety locks.

Then there's the problem of closing the door afterward, if it's needed.

Essentially, Freyda is a whiz at high tech problems. Unfortunately, this is a low tech problem--manually moving something.

So, do you still want to proceed along those lines?