PD-S05 “CRisis Intervention and Deescalation”

PCs:

Jordan - “Metal” Miles Rockbell, engineer

Stephen - Trebiano “Treb” Tuscano, marine

Kim - Joni CRID106, crisis response android

Martina - Nadia Zorovich, exobiologist

Paul - Gnat, android

Michael - Alec, pilot

Alaina - Laika Weaver, miner

Aidan - LCpl Resnick, marine

Highlights

we picked up moments after PD-S04, with the crew in the garage of Greta base on Samsa VI

Joni and Treb were attempting to talk down a mentally unwell engineer named Demar, who was sitting in the back of an APC talking about “the hive” and “going home” while clutching a drag grenade

another survivor revealed themself, walking in covered in frost after having survived by barricading themself in the freezer: Lance Corporal Resnick (a new PC)

Resnick tried to get through to Demar by leveraging the fact that they know each other and have been loving and working together on this planet for almost a year. Demar experienced a moment of lucidity, but it turned to horror upon realizing they advanced condition and what they were becoming

Demar attempted suicide by releasing the frag grenade and Joni tackled him, but did not manage to secure the grenade and it went off, killing Demar and damaging Joni

the crew looted some things in the garage and began preparing the APC to leave

Resnick turned his attention to Sgt Abara, who was still in some sort of trance, digging in the muddy pit

Nadia remarked that now that Demar was dead, the only life signs on the bio scanner in the garage were those of the crew (including Resnick), meaning Abara was not reading as alive

Resnick touched Abara to try and get his attention and spark some recognition, but instead triggered the emergence of a juvenile Carcinid festering within what was once Sgt Abara

combat ensued, and in the course of the action Nadia activated her flamethrower to try and incinerate the creature, but dealt some collateral damage as there were allies nearby, it was a somewhat crowded space, and the flames also caused one of the frag grenades on Abara’s torso to detonate (the others just had their firing pins melted)

Joni was near to the blast trying to lug a barrel of fuel into the APC, and was unfortunately killed as shrapnel ripped through her and the barrel, and doused her in burning fuel

the carc dove beneath the water of the pit and the party did not stick around to find out if it was gone for good

everyone piled in the (blood soaked) APC, and made a quick escape (but not before Laika pulled Joni’s body aboard)

Alec drove them through the jungle to Heron Terraforming Station, which they were dismayed to find was besieged by adult carcs

suddenly several marines on ATVs rode out of the station blasting “Ride of the Valkyries” on a boombox and blasted a path so the APC could drive through the swarm and head into the station hangar

safe in the barricaded hangar, the crew met the survivors: about ten colonists, led by newly field promoted Sgt Valdez

Sobol, an engineer among the survivors, will be Kim’s new PC

Valdez and Dr. Edem (the team’s xenobiologist) gave the crew a situation briefing, including a dossier with some classified information that they were supposed to receive shortly after planetfall, but which Maas neglected to send and only got sent after Renfield found a way to fax it to Heron Station

the crew learned that:

1) the carcinids seem to be biologically similar to crabs, spiders, and wasps in different respects, and that they can reproduce through “the shriek” which is also now a radio signal somehow

2) Hinton is unaccounted for, and four marines from “Hog Squad” are missing after having been sent to prepare the hydro reactor for a coming storm

Valdez wants to send a rescue party to assist Hog Squad, while Dr. Edem is adamant that the lab must be reclaimed and the research secured, arguing it could help synthesize a cure to the shriek infection and/or lead to discoveries that might help fight the carcinids

meanwhile, HM3 Brookman (platoon medic) introduced himself to the crew and mentioned he has his own plan: GTFO. He wants to secure the comms tower and call for evac, pointing out that any orbital personnel might be infected too

the crew took some time to discuss, rest, recoup, and mourn, as the storm clouds gather and the power winds down…

end of session!