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15:24, 28th March 2024 (GMT+0)

Destination: Foreven.

Posted by StarMasterFor group 0
Harry McStubbin
Player, 530 posts
Human pain in the ass
898BA7
Wed 14 Apr 2021
at 13:44
  • msg #317

Re: Destination: Foreven

In reply to Arc Tangent (msg # 316):

"A lot I'd say. Wracking my brain for answers and an coming up with nothing. We should be more careful though, the place may not be empty after all."
Arlo Thresh
NPC, 11 posts
Spacer Engineer
Sat 17 Apr 2021
at 20:11
  • msg #318

Re: Destination: Foreven

"Hadn't really thought about it until you brought it up, Arc," Arlo adds, "I think maybe these back walls are actually storage lockers."

"Remember, these are aliens. Their thinking isn't going to be like ours all the time... except maybe when form follows function. For instance, we don't normally try to... hide... our storage cabinets, except when there's something particularly valuable, dangerous or illegal involved... like a wall safe or a panic room."

"But you notice that here aren't any shelves on any of these walls. That is, nothing fastened to the walls. What few shelves there are are either freestanding or part of another piece of equipment."


As he talks, he walks back to the rear walls and begins examining them more closely.

"I'm surprised that there aren't any pictures or instructions or warnings posted on the walls. It's probably a case of aesthetics. Or maybe this was supposed to be so secret that they didn't want to give away any clues with obvious printed material."

"And you'll notice that there's a significant gap between some of these machines along the back wall. That might just be because of safety reasons, of course, but..."

"Ah-ha! Three holes in the wall... in three places! Let's see if my wire claw will work on them."


He manipulates the three-pronged wire device he built into the first set of holes.
StarMaster
GM, 654 posts
Referee
Sat 17 Apr 2021
at 20:25
  • msg #319

Re: Destination: Foreven

In short order, there's a slight click and a previously undetected door pops open just a little bit. Arlo is able to pull the door open further without any difficulty.

Behind it is either a small storeroom or a large cabinet. It's actually too small to be a reasonable storeroom or closet, but it's also too large to be a 'normal' cabinet.

Again, though, 'odd' alien thinking at play.

In the first cabinet thus revealed are a variety of long metal rods and bars of various diameters and shapes, all stored vertically in slots that run around all four walls (except for where the door is). It all looks to be steel of various types.

The second door opens the same way and has the same sort of cabinet behind it. Here, though, the walls are lined with narrow (front to back) shelves that have maybe a hundred or so small metal ingots on them. The upright supports seem to have a small metal plate with raised areas reminiscent of Braille. Then you notice the jars. On one of the end wall shelves are several dozen small opaque (possibly) ceramic jars, about the size and shape you'd find canned tuna fish in. Each of those also has a metal label.

The third door is similar in configuration to the other two, but the contents are even more bizarre and unidentifiable. The shelves are a little deeper than the last cabinet, but what is on them is any assortment of materials ranging from what looks like lumps of clay or putty to rough crystals. Some might be considered 'ingots' except they are in odd shapes--cubes, cylinders, spheres, tetrahedrons, etc. Textures vary as do size and colors.
Steve Cable
NPC in Memoriam, 383 posts
Salvage Hunter, ex-Scout
UPP 7958C4
Sat 17 Apr 2021
at 20:33
  • msg #320

Re: Destination: Foreven

"Good job, Arlo!" Steve responds to this find.

"I'm still convinced that whatever tool these aliens used, even if it was their fingers, probably had some sort of electrical charge to them that acted as security. Like an electronic card. You can't just run any card through the reader to get a door to open. Of course, that also requires there to be power to the reader and the sensor/computer doing the monitoring."

He looks at the outside of the doors again, from up, down, both sides... shining his light on it from different angles.

"If they could see into the ultraviolet end of the spectrum, they aren't marking the doors with any kind of paint or something. It would have to be a way to alter the index of refraction of the metal itself. Which means... there might be a device around here that does that. Maybe not in any of these labs, but it's something to keep an eye out for."

"Unless any of you can identify these storage materials, it's off to the next room, right?"

'Forge' Harris
player, 75 posts
Security
Sun 18 Apr 2021
at 20:47
  • msg #321

Re: Destination: Foreven

Taking the items that were found in the cabinet, Forge tried to understand the materials and what they might be using his knowledge from being a junk dealer. using his hands as a makeshift scale to get a better understanding of their composition.

16:43, Today: 'Forge' Harris rolled 9 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 5,3.  Engineer-0.
StarMaster
GM, 655 posts
Referee
Tue 20 Apr 2021
at 19:36
  • msg #322

Re: Destination: Foreven

Forge can identify some of the metal bars and rods--steel, chromium steel, vanadium steel, titanium steel... the others are clearly allows that elude him.

The ingots are similar, but different metals that would be used for things that the steel wouldn't work so well--copper, bronze, brass, aluminum, pewter, tungsten, nickle, zinc, palladium, gold, iridium, platinum... maybe osmium and cobalt, and a few others that he can't readily identify.

The other items are probably a number of substances that aren't metals, like rare earths. Sulfur and mercury are the easiest ones to identify; others might be silicon, gallium, phosphorus, germanium, potassium, manganese and magnesium. There are also a few items that appear to be man-made items--synthetics, composites, greases, and one he guesses to be buckminsterfullerenes.
Harry McStubbin
Player, 531 posts
Human pain in the ass
898BA7
Thu 22 Apr 2021
at 12:51
  • msg #323

Re: Destination: Foreven

In reply to StarMaster (msg # 322):

Harry and Roland follow the others as they explore, keeping together was the wiser option. Arlo was good with his 'key' but there was just no clue as to what this place really was.
StarMaster
GM, 656 posts
Referee
Mon 10 May 2021
at 01:34
  • msg #324

Re: Destination: Foreven

Going back to the electronics room, you find similar storage space behind that lab. On the shelves in here are typical electronic stores, mostly all kept in clear plastic containers. There are also several hundred small components.

Now that you know the storage rooms are there, the doors don't really look like they were meant to be secret. They are probably just the way these aliens thought. A 'closet door' is an eyesore.

If what you've found so far is any guide, you could spend months cleaning out this facility of just the easily carried parts.

Heading down to the third door on the left, you can now see that the door across the hall has a window in it and you can see through it to tell that beyond is an airlock with rows of lockers along both sides. The lockers have windows in the doors, too, and you can see a vacc/suit in the first two lockers on each side. The angle and lighting is too poor to see into the other 6 lockers.

Arlo uses his wire trick to open the next door on the left--it's another lab. At first, it seems like another electronics lab, but even a quick examination shows that it was set up as a sensor lab--designing and building and improving sensors.
Arc Tangent
Player, 114 posts
Medic, Guide
UPP 5B7752
Mon 10 May 2021
at 01:44
  • msg #325

Re: Destination: Foreven

"The more we find, the more confused I get about what this place was supposed to be," Arc says over the comms.

"Mining I understand, even a materials a lab to identify what you find, but these labs... they look more like research labs albeit on a small scale."

"We may have to chalk it up to alien thinking. Maybe they were multi-taskers."

"I can identify some of these sensors, though not quite sure how to operate them. This here's just a thermal scanner--point it at a target and it tells you the temperature."

"I think this item is a bio-sensor."

"Beyond that, you probably need to be a whiz at physics."

Harry McStubbin
Player, 532 posts
Human pain in the ass
898BA7
Mon 10 May 2021
at 11:48
  • msg #326

Re: Destination: Foreven

In reply to Arc Tangent (msg # 325):

Harry wanders around the lab exploring the various items, looking for anything useful.
Roland Steel
NPC Crew, 228 posts
Engineer
69C975
Mon 10 May 2021
at 11:49
  • msg #327

Re: Destination: Foreven

In reply to Harry McStubbin (msg # 326):

Roland stays close to Arlo and Arc, trying to learn what he can about the place.
Harry McStubbin
Player, 533 posts
Human pain in the ass
898BA7
Mon 17 May 2021
at 13:44
  • msg #328

Re: Destination: Foreven

Harry looks for some wire to make his own 'key' to open doors with, they could look at more that way. He then looked at his oxygen supply to see how much air he still had.
'Forge' Harris
player, 76 posts
Security
Tue 18 May 2021
at 23:14
  • msg #329

Re: Destination: Foreven

'Forge' felt out of place in the alien base, not having an idea of what most of the items were used for in the building.  Sticking near Harry, his cutlass and stunner was ready for anything.
Harry McStubbin
Player, 534 posts
Human pain in the ass
898BA7
Wed 19 May 2021
at 11:50
  • msg #330

Re: Destination: Foreven

In reply to 'Forge' Harris (msg # 329):

He finds some wire on the 'work station' and works it into a key of his own to work with. He grunts to Forge appreciatively for watching his back!
StarMaster
GM, 657 posts
Referee
Mon 24 May 2021
at 06:57
  • msg #331

Re: Destination: Foreven

You've been on the moon now for about two hours. It was a long trek through the tunnels, then you looked around the mining area for awhile, and you've been examining the contents of the various labs and storage area.

You estimate that if you hustle, you can make it back to the ship in about 30 minutes, so you've still got 3 hours or so to continue exploring.

Harry has no problem finding some wire to make a second 'key'.

Going to the next two doors on the left hand wall reveals a lab focused on communications research and the end one on computer research. It isn't until the last one that you realize that there weren't any visible computers. There were what could have been keyboards inset into a few of the counters, tabletops and desk, which probably meant they were connected to a mainframe computer somewhere in the facility. Here in the computer room, there are computers in the form of portable ones akin to laptops. There's no desktop-style computer, though.

There are a lot of parts for building a computer, including funny-looking circuit boards sealed in what appears to be silicon.

The airlock door doesn't have the wire key access, just the lever type handle.
Harry McStubbin
Player, 535 posts
Human pain in the ass
898BA7
Thu 27 May 2021
at 16:03
  • msg #332

Re: Destination: Foreven

In reply to StarMaster (msg # 331):

"Where to next everyone? Do we continue to explore looking for something of value? There don't appear to be any computers here. Why?"
Steve Cable
NPC in Memoriam, 384 posts
Salvage Hunter, ex-Scout
UPP 7958C4
Fri 28 May 2021
at 04:40
  • msg #333

Re: Destination: Foreven

"If you mean here in this facility, I don't think that's the case," Steve responded to Harry. "These counters and tables have built-in keyboards, so I'm guessing that they are connected--either by wire or wifi--to a central computer. There wouldn't be any reason to have separate computers for everyone."

"My concern is why was this facility put here in the first place. Sure, they were mining something, but was it put here for secrecy or safety or some other reason? Kind of makes me think of bats."

"The doors on the inner side of this hall are all labs. Seems a bit odd. If my calculations are correct, we should just about be at the crevasse where we first spotted this place. That means these doors on the other side should face outward. I'd think the labs would have been put there for safety reasons."

"Shall we see what lies behind them?"

Harry McStubbin
Player, 536 posts
Human pain in the ass
898BA7
Fri 28 May 2021
at 11:24
  • msg #334

Re: Destination: Foreven

In reply to Steve Cable (msg # 333):

Harry uses his wire and manipulates the next door for Steve. He enters with Steve to check it out after blocking it open as before. Harry will try accessing the computer as well in here.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:37, Sat 29 May 2021.
Roland Steel
NPC Crew, 229 posts
Engineer
69C975
Sat 29 May 2021
at 18:42
  • msg #335

Re: Destination: Foreven

In reply to Harry McStubbin (msg # 334):

Roland continues to stay close to Arlo as they check out the facility. He thought they should always have at least two people together.
Arc Tangent
Player, 115 posts
Medic, Guide
UPP 5B7752
Mon 31 May 2021
at 20:32
  • msg #336

Re: Destination: Foreven

Arc had the same thoughts as Harry... safety in numbers, buddy system. though the last didn't always help. With Harry going with Steve and Roland going with Arlo, that left Arc to go with Forge.

"You didn't happen to see anything in the labs or the storerooms that we could make a cart out of, did you?" he asked Forge. "I was looking, and I didn't see anything. Then again, I was thinking conventional... a cart with wheels. I wouldn't know a grav-sled if it ran over me! I think I would have recognized hover device, if I'd seen it."

"While it seems odd that there was nothing on wheels, if they'd left and took the 'important' stuff with them, they could just as easily have used the carts and wheels."

"So, you want to try the next door? Or look around for something else? If I recall, the outer wall showed indications of several levels. Don't know if we're on the top, bottom or middle, but there should be some way to reach those levels, right?"

'Forge' Harris
player, 77 posts
Security
Tue 1 Jun 2021
at 23:39
  • msg #337

Re: Destination: Foreven

"And you would think that if they abandoned the place in a hurry, they would have left the non-essential items, like carts, by their point of departure. Maybe there is another exit they used?" Forge suggested.
Steve Cable
NPC in Memoriam, 385 posts
Salvage Hunter, ex-Scout
UPP 7958C4
Sat 12 Jun 2021
at 20:05
  • msg #338

Re: Destination: Foreven

"I don't think they left in a hurry," Steve comments. "It looks more like an organized evacuation."

"I'm at a loss, though, as to what could cause that. Alien thinking, maybe? Then again, we don't have a timeline of when this place was built, used, or abandoned."

"It's looking more like this was some sort of mining... colony. Everything's here but the kitchen sink... we just haven't found that yet."

StarMaster
GM, 658 posts
Referee
Sat 12 Jun 2021
at 20:53
  • msg #339

Re: Destination: Foreven

By now, everyone is starting to get a 'feel' or a sense of what the inhabitants of this place were like. To begin with, they were probably tall... and thin. The ceilings seem to be higher than necessary for something that was primarily intended to just be functional. The doorways are higher than 'normal' yet seem to be a bit narrow in comparison.

You've gotten a sense, as well, as to what they considered 'architectural style', even decor. The labs were barren of anything that could have been considered personal, at least for Humans.

Arlo, Arc, and Roland are checking the area for another exit. It's Arlo that finds the doors at the end of the corridor. Whether they were meant to be secret or not, no one can say. That they are 'hidden' or 'camouflaged' or just 'discreet' is clear, though.

The one in the side wall opens like the other doors, revealing the hallway that leads back to the mining area. You'd seen it when you were in the mining area, but had crossed the mining area to the other side where you'd found an identical corridor. That's the one you'd taken.

The second door is in the end wall. As the door swings aside, it turns out to be the door to some sort of lift. Without power, though, it probably isn't going anywhere. On the other hand, there's a panel on the left-hand wall that pops open at your touch, revealing a hand crank!


Meanwhile, Steve, Harry, and Forge were opening the end door on the side of hallway that probably faced out into the crevasse.

Harry's little wire 'key' easily 'unlocks' the door, and it swings aside.

Whatever anyone might have been expecting, this wasn't it! It's a jungle!

It takes a minute or so to process what you are seeing, but it finally sinks in that this is, apparently, living quarters. You can see a sort-of-sofa, chairs (?), and poles wrapped in vegetation with... perches sticking out of them.

It definitely looks overgrown, but you can still see what appear to be two doors to either side of the room. You can barely discern through the foliage that there might be a window in the far wall. The room appears to be slightly smaller than the labs.
Harry McStubbin
Player, 538 posts
Human pain in the ass
898BA7
Sun 13 Jun 2021
at 13:16
  • msg #340

Re: Destination: Foreven

In reply to StarMaster (msg # 339):

Harry contacts Adriannah
Roland Steel
NPC Crew, 230 posts
Engineer
69C975
Sun 13 Jun 2021
at 13:24
  • msg #341

Re: Destination: Foreven

In reply to Harry McStubbin (msg # 340):

Roland stays by Arlo.
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