TSO 2: Reclaiming the Odyssey

Date&Time(Odyssey): 16:25 @ 2236-10-03

Krom and CZ530 head to the captain's quarters and find the doors locked and a quick inspection reveals that the only thing that seems to be active at the doors is the intercom. Though the control panels have power the doors themselves are totally unresponsive. Sam's previous investigation indicated that there were some modifications to the captains' suite including enhanced security and it independant systems not tied to the rest of the ship.

Once at the bridge Stinger begins reconstructing the ships navigation logs. The virus did an annoyingly thorough job of scrambling the information and he can see that it will take some time for a clear picture to be created.

Sam and Alandra check both of the docking bays and other than the fact that one of them is damaged, but repairable with a couple hours work, find nothing of interest. The cargo hold, which spans all 3 decks, is largely unused. What you do find are scattered tools and crates and their contents tossed around. Though it looks like some effort to straighten the cargo hold was done at some point it was no organized and you find yourself digging through various items including rocks, dirt, sections of stonework, bio sample canisters and other miscellaneous scraps of things crushed or blasted by weapons fire.

Stinger continues working on recreating the ships travels in this system. The more he does so the quicker it becomes but it is still like working on a jigsaw puzzle.

Alandra finds that most of the bio sample containers were ruined but some remain intact. The contents look to be a mix of standard samples that were exposed to alien environments, alien flora and fauna, and several fossilized and skeletal remains. As she examines the the skeletons she notices that all show signs of crystalline structures growing in, on, and through them. A quick scan indicates that the crystals are the same as the infection of the ship and crew but are inert. Placing the samples in the medical bay for future analysis she continues her work.

Sam on the other hand has confirmed that all of the maintenance drones are offline and likely scrapped. They would have been nice to help clean the cargo bay but Sam figures she used them in the fight with the mutineers. Inspecting the damaged cargo bay door she determines it will require a major overhaul. She might be able to get it to open but doubts it will seal properly until repaired at a repair dock and writes it off as best left closed and sealed for now.

Krom figures he can simply cut open the captains doors but that might get Sam mad at him. Forcing them open after cutting just the locking mechanism might also work. Other than that it would take more technical skill than Krom knows.

With the ships systems online and integrated once more it is a matter of time before the records are recovered. However a full reconstruction of any/all logs is unlikely. Alandra does find records of a procedure plan using advanced neurostimulators and guided hypnosis to help recover and prevent further memory loss. You decide to do a sweep of the ship once more, just to be sure, now that the limited internal sensors are back up.

As you scour the ship for other anomalies the signs of battle and hasty repair triggers memories the conflict that begin to sort themselves into two separate events. The first must have happened before the mutiny and you recall the ship being boarded by unknown assailants. The attackers were highly coordinated and used advanced technology to overwhelm the crew quickly. As you compare notes you readily identify that the assailants were focused on retrieving the artifact. Other than that they only spent time dealing with trained and or armed individuals. Though the crew fought valiantly the attackers managed to escape with it the artifact after wounding several of the crew. The mutiny was quicker but even more brutal, as evidenced by Krom being left for dead and the drastic measures used to drive off the other crew members.

With the sweep complete you gather at the captains doors to open them by skill or force if needed.

As you examine the doors you hear faint tapping from the other side
" . . . _ _ _ . . . " a pause then repeat " . . . _ _ _ . . . "