OOC: Okay, a new Game Map has been uploaded... with labels. The main reason there weren't labels on the old one is that you really didn't know what the layout was. You've now seen about 75% of the layout, and can easily fill in the blanks for the rest.


Group 1 (north) was Sam, Khea and Darrel in the back.

They've secured Lab #1. Professor Thedan Rayle is unconscious on the floor to the right of the MedRex 6000 Consolidated Lab machine in the center of the room.

Sam has the drop on Dr. Shenarra Vanager, who is standing to the left of the machine.

The machine has a thermoblast oven in which an assortment of vessels were burning, but the oven can easily be shut off. However, the heat doesn't die down instantly.


Group 2 (south) was Vonon, Sharik and Walter... and Justev.

They are in the Central Operating Room, though Walter has crossed the room to get to Lab #3 where Quinzella is, and Tolman is standing just outside in the hallway.

Technically, no, psionics aren't illegal outside the Imperium, but there are usually a few laws in place to 'control' them. And the Imperium is known to actively pursue any whiff of psionics in the surrounding regions.

Also, while psionics themselves aren't illegal (how can you keep someone from thinking?), psionic groups and psionic drugs are illegal.


Group 3 (east) was Quinzella and Tolman.

With Quinzella in the room and Tolman in the hallway, they are joined by Walter.

Walter can see that the computer is running some sort of custom operating system; at least, it isn't one he's familiar with. There are about 28 different operating systems known to exist, though all but one of them have provisions for translating other OS into it. The reason Walter thinks this is a custom job is because it has no such translation capability.

In reply to StarMaster (msg # 149):

Vonon was just following along, recovering from his stun-shot; happy that he wasn't in charge of a raid on a drug lab, for once.

And then Justev mentioned psi-boosters, and Vonon's ears literally pricked-up -- even inside his suit.

*...Psi-drugs!...* he thought to himself, *...back home that crap is heavy duty action...like Joy Juice or Griff, or...what's that stuff that Solomani go wild over...some crap from their homeworld...right, Heroin...the Imperials were always telling us to watch out for that stuff...and nuke any production labs we found...now where did I put that pocket thermonuclear device...*

Vonon switches his suit-comm to a line-of-sight transmission to Sharik.

"Shar'r, if this place is messing with psi-drugs, we're in deep drekk." he said over the private channel, "The Imperial navy always encouraged the Cassandra Space Patrol to nuke any such labs, scatter the ashes, bury the datafiles and summarily execute the perpetrators."

"But this planet ain't the Imperium -- as I recall, it was settled by a bunch of Caledonians.  You travelled more than me, during your stint in the Navy -- what's the Caledonian spin on psionics?  And, more importantly, d'ya think Mizz Blue and her employers know this?  Y'think we're gonna get paid, or have a bullet put in the back of our heads to keep us quiet?"

Khea Was about to turn off the oven but then stops for a moment. After hesitating she turns back to the remaining scientist, holds her extended claw in front of his face and tells him "Get then out, NOW", showing her teeth to underline her threat.

Walter looked over the computer system. "I think we are going to need to take the computers with us. Lets see if we can shut the whole thing down and grab every computer, disk and anything else we can take with us." he said, checking the system to make sure that the files were not going to be destroyed if the system was shut down suddenly

OOC: Checking to see if it can be shutdown and the data saved on the hard drive without losing anything or a means to make a backup if we can not.
01:14, Today: Walter Zeller rolled 9 using 2d6+3. Checking computer for shutdown. 

"As I recall," Sharik noted rather dryly and a touch distantly, "they 'strongly' recommended such measures..."   Scorched earth was the rule rather than exception for such situations, it seemed.  She recalled the scrutiny that her discovery, those many years ago got her while in the Scout Service.  And that hadn't been psionics-related at all; though, when that wasn't immediately obvious, 'caution' (re: paranoia) ran rampant in the initial investigation.  The memories were still vivid and caused a shudder to run down the diminutive dilettante's spine.  It forced Shar to have to take a deep breath and refocus her attention on the matters at hand.

"Like Cassy," she noted grimly, agreeing with her vargr friend over the focused channel between the two.  Her lips pressed thin enough to whiten them, which showed through her faceplate, "Grendal is close enough to the Imperial frontier to mean real trouble."  Shar left unspoken, but obviously implied that trouble was a euphemism for intervention.  Intervention by Imperial (or Imperial-backed) troops was a possibility, if they got wind of this.  Even across the official Imperial border.

It would have been nice think of themselves as that Imperial-backed set of operatives; that they'd been contracted to deal with the threat.  But that was highly unlikely; they had been contracted to preserve the records and everything that they could get their hands on - not destroy it on contact.  Which meant that either Blue and AcquireCorp or their client (or both) knew - or, at least, suspected - what was going on here and wanted it for themselves.  She took another long, deep breath before speaking again, "No guarantees about Blue."  Their handler and her employer were in pretty deep - whether or not they actually knew psionics was involved.  "But,"  Sharik added softly, even if it was a private line, "we need to tread carefully; she may not double-cross us, but this situation just got a whole lot messier..."  The ex-Scout, ex-Naval enlisted, ex-corporate operative could see a whole heap o' interested groups that would love an invitation the party.

And she was well aware that all of those same groups would be quiet upset as well, when no such invitation was offered.  Sharik let out a plaintive sigh and while slowing, didn't stop from starting to move towards the laboratory beyond.  Yeah, she thought glumly, a whole lot messier, indeed...

Quin looked to Tolman, "For what?"

She was ready for a lot, but that always raised more questions.  Her life was always a gogo of 'stop this', 'end that', this was another one, and was welcome compared to some of the triteness that led up to it.

"Secure the next lab," Tolman replied to Quinzella even as he pushed through the door while Walter stepped into the 3rd lab to take over for Quin on the computer.

The door was down on the right, so he decided to rush past it so he could turn once he was on the other side and get a better view.

The remaining scientist in Lab #1 with Khea is a woman. When Khea threatens her and demands she get the items out of the oven, she just looks at Khea disdainfully.

"Do your worst, cat-woman. Your kind doesn't scare me," she responds to Khea.


Walter sees that the computer has no wifi, so it's a closed, self-contained system. He doesn't think that there's any problem with shutting the computer off. It looks like the computer is a standard model, so no files should be lost by shutting it off. However, he can't really see inside it, so he has no way of knowing if it's been modified. Some security-enabled computers have so-called 'dead man' switches hardwired inside--shutting off power in the wrong sequence or not entering a code every so often triggers a melt down of the hard drive, destroying any files.

None of the files will be destroyed just by shutting the computer off. There could be hidden files and encrypted files in there, though, so taking it with you is probably a good idea. After all, you were asked to recover the data. If the scientists here file a complaint about their equipment being stolen, it can be returned.


Tolman has no problem dashing in a crouch past the opening to Lab #2; no one shoots at him. He didn't see anyone in there, and even when he peers around the corner from the other side he doesn't see anyone. However, it appears as if the equipment in the room is active.

Walter looked over the computer system. "Are you good with checking computer systems to make sure that there are no anti-handling devices? Need to make sure that it does not go up in smoke when we shut it down." he asked Quinzella. "I think that might not have done so since they would have triggered it when we showed up, but we need to make sure before we take it with us."

Sam tries to be good cop

"Not scared is good. How about being smart though? You are caught, and will be going to trial. Anything you do now to aid our investigation will count for you in that. So help us to help yourself."

ooc

20:44, Sun 12 July 2015: Samantha Kilgore rolled 12 using 2d6+2 ((4,6)).

Dr. Shenarra looks surprised for a moment at Sam's words. The surprise quickly turns to confusion before she recovers.

"I doubt if you are that naive," the scientist responds to Samantha. "The trial is more apt to be yours... trespass, assault... This is my abode--you have no right to be here. If you leave right now, I'll forget you were ever here."

"see you in court" Sam says

Then looking back at the machine, she will look for some sort of oven glove, and use it to remove the items from the oven, after turning it off if it at all obvious how to do so.

After Sam and Shenarra finish their exchange, a light, rather dismissive, snort emanated from the doorway to the room.  Sharik had made her way there past where Tolman and Quinzella are and towards were the last conscious opposition seemed holed up.  "If either of you really think this is going to trial..." the diminutive operative piped up, "you're deluded."

"There are psionics involved, for Ifni's sake." Shar vocalized, "They might be quasi-legal here.  But we aren't more than a four jump from Imperial space."  Which was the minimum range of even the older covert ops craft.  If any pro-Imperial faction caught wind of this, there could  ... no there would ... be serious backlash.

And even the legality of the operation seemed questionable to her.  Dr. Vanager and her crew were destroying evidence, after all.  Impending court order or not.  And for the lead researcher to be so willing to see records lost meant that most of it (or the vital stuff) either wasn't there or was already locked away in her head.  Sharik quirked her head for a moment and her eyes narrowed.  She looked from Shenarra to Justev and back, "Who were the primary subjects?  Where are they now?"  She did not like the hairs on the back of her neck sticking up the way they did.  Something screamed at her that she fervently hoped that Dr. Vanager hadn't done something ... unethical.

She focused her attention back on Justev, knowing that Vanager would probably just lie.  "How far in the manufacturing and testing cycle had you gotten?" Sharik prompted Wreedav.

Sam spun round as Sharik started to speak, starting to raise her rifle, but lowering it when she saw who it was.

A brief look of alarm crossed her face as Sharik spoke, but was quickly masked, as Sam turned back to sorting out the oven

"Psionics? What do you mean?" She said as she continued trying to switch off the oven and remove the items form it without burning herself.

In reply to Samantha Kilgore (msg # 162):

[[Among other things, it seems the Doc, there, was working on making Psi-boosters.]] Vonon's amplified voice said from behind Sharik.

[[Only question I need answered is -- is the psionic crap part of the data we need to recover?  Remember, we're only here to get the data for the 'Shenarra' Project. We take anything else, and it's stealin.]]

[['Course, anything to do with psionics gives me the space-crawlies.]] Vonon added, [[So I'm all for a warm, toasty Fuel-Air Explosive, right in the middle of the damn dome!]]  Vonon raises his armored hands and gestures meaningfully, [[Boom!]]

Not wanting to let this insult slide Khea slashes her claw along the womans shoulder before turning her attention so Samantha and her work on the oven.

OOC: As everyone is replying to each other, are we still split up or is everyone in the lab? Or are we shouting through the whole dome?

Tolman, Quinzella and Walter are over on the right side of the dome, in those two labs.

Sharik was out in the central area, and presumably dragged Justev up to where the questioning was going on, and Vonon followed.

Intercommunication between these two groups would be via radio.


The oven isn't all that complicated until you get into timing issues, so Sam has no problem turning it off. Looking around, she sees there are thermal gloves hanging on the side of the machine, so she can use them to remove the contents.

The rack of vials appear to be intact, though the content of the vials is probably destroyed. The other two jars are also intact with the contents in the same shape. Presumably there was a liquid in the containers, but its burnt slag now.

Sam put the vessels to one side. She had done what she could. Whether they were of any use, someone else would need to work out.

Pointing at the conscious scientist she said "She's Shenarra I believe. Perhaps we should just take her. Or we could leave her for the Imperials to find and mind wipe"

Looking at Shenarra she smiled dangerously "Which would you prefer? Helping us - or the Imperials?"

Dr. Shenarra winces at Khea's claw slash, but doesn't change her expression.

However, at the mention of being mind-wiped, she turns white.

Quin looked at Walter, "Usually, but better at clearing, their system is weird."

She stepped after Tolman, preparing to bash some more heads, "Zeller be aware, that guard is alive, just unconscious."

"Got some restraints?" Walter asked, flicking his eye over to the unconscious guard, before stepping over to the prone figure, touching him with the stunstick to make sure that he was not faking it.

Quin stopped and sighed.

Without turning back around, "No, but I am sure there are cords in the walls, wires, or even your shoelaces, I thought to apprehend him and then repair what he had done, I did not yet have time to tie him up.  Besides you have that stunner, if he wakens you can knock him out again."

She continued on after Tolman leaving Zeller to do what he will.

Not use to the applied use of force as he has read in his studies, Walter started to secure the prisoner, tying his hands, feet and gagging him.  Once that was done, he started looking for a means to help make transporting the computers in one load easier rather than having to lug them back to the sub one at a time.

OOC: Taking some power cords that is not part of the computer first. Then looking for a hand cart or dolly next. Even a chair with rollers will do in a pinch.

With the situation with the oven resolved Khea takes a few steps back and keeps an eye on the scientist.

Walter doesn't see any handtrucks or similar items in the lab, but there is a wheeled chair. If he's planning on putting the computer on it, he's out of luck. The computer is built into the large piece of laboratory processing device. This item is about 3.5 meters long, 3 meters wide and 3 meters high. It's a type of universal processor. Raw materials can be inserted into a dozen different areas, and, internally, the machine combines them in the proper sequence under the proper conditions programmed into the machine.


Quin and Tolman are flanking either side of the opening to Lab #2. Tolman did not spot anyone when he dashed by, nor does he see anyone when he peeks in. Quinzella does not see anyone either when she peeks in. However, as she processes in her mind the glimpse she got, she realizes that she did see the toe of a shoe peeking out from the back of the main lab machine. It didn't move, but if there is a person attached to it, he would have to be crouched down behind the machine.