Consider what our employers would prefer to happen to this shard: would they like to see it blown up or otherwise made non-dangerous, or would they prefer it be kept as-is and for us to just return and report what we've seen so they can send in actually competent people to deal with it?
Look through that journal, try to get a more accurate image of how the mindfuckery of the shard works: just distance based? Any known shielding materials or chemicals that interfere with the effect?
Search for some rope.
Name: Yagyu d'Aubigny
Physical Description: Slightly smaller than average, tanned, sideburns.
Background: Yagyu hates OMNITECH. But Yagyu likes money.
Class: Hazardous Materials Reclamation Crew
Life: d4
Attack: [ERROR: DATA NOT FOUND]
Stats:
Strength: d4
Dexterity: d4
Speed: d6
Endurance: d8
Will: d6
Knowledge: d6
Fate: d6
Skills:
Melee: d4
Guns: d8
Explosives: d4
Implants: d4
Mechanics: d8
Technology: d4
Medical: d4
Occult: d4
Status: okie dokie
Inventory:
cognition copier
Cutting/welding torch
1 unit of useful metal bits
computing cube
red and green key
a few mining explosives
Money: 235
Yagyu attempts to guess what the ineffable will of OMNI is in this situation. [5] He believes that they would probably want the site kept as pristine as possible instead of "Neutralizing" the situation. After all, the shard is no danger as long as people don't get near it, so its probably best to simply quarantine the area, rescue any survivors, and give a full report of the situation.
The journal does not specifically state the exact nature or powers of the crystal, but judging by the fact that the madness seems to have spread from the mines upwards, chances are that it is proximity based. As per "Shielding" or chemical interference, the only thing he can find specific mention to is anti-psychotics and powerful tranquilizers, but there is also reference to these chemically restrained patients exhibiting "Anomalous injuries"
Yagyu searches a crate and finds a large spool of synthetic cable, which is a lot like rope.
((Heh. That was a nice video.))
Lament to my good friend Hamilton about the lack of snacks with which to feed him. I'd send someone to get him some, but the rest of the team has been gone for a while. They're probably dead by now. Perhaps it's time to leave this place and go in search of snacks. See if Hamilton agrees.
Name: Pathos
Physical Description: A literal crash test dummy.
Background: Delusions of grandeur. Took this job as a way to rapidly advance the ranks and see cool things. And because it would give him plenty of opportunities to set things on fire without his superiors being close enough to yell at him. Lost his original body in a freak shuttle accident.
Class: Senior Emergency Technician (+100 OMNI per mission)
Life: d4: crash test dummy
Attack: d2: unarmed
Stats:
Strength: d4
Dexterity: d4
Speed: d4
Endurance: d8
Will: d4
Knowledge: d4
Fate: d4
Skills:
Melee: d4
Guns: d4
Explosives: d8
Implants: d4
Mechanics: d4
Technology: d12
Medical: d4
Occult: d4
Status: Blank stare
Inventory:
2 demo charges
Money: -270
Hamilton begins idly chewing on the armrest of his chair. He does seem hungry doesn't he!
"Oh dear. Whatever you're seeing isn't real, but it's also real in a sense. Try to avoid getting hurt, or dying, I can fix injuries, but I can't fix death."
Save Woldo by throwing water at his face.
Name: Elen Farley
Physical Description: Short with long brown hair and green eyes, she seems unnaturally cheerful.
Background: Elen showed up shortly after an incident in one of the OMNITECH labs, she decided to work for OMNITECH mostly out of convenience of already being there.
Life: d2
Attack: d4 Generic Personal Sidearm
Stats:
Strength: d4
Dexterity: d6
Speed: d6
Endurance: d4
Will: d6
Knowledge: d4
Fate: d4
Skills:
Melee: d4
Guns: d4
Explosives: d4
Implants: d4
Mechanics: d4
Technology: d4
Medical: d12
Occult: d4
Speech: d4
Status: Bandaged head
Inventory:
OMNITECH Green Jumpsuit
OMNITECH Generic Personal Sidearm (d4 attack) x2 Magazines (d4 use die)
OMNITECH Medical Kit (3 charges)
OMNITECH Stimulant (3 charges)
5 gallon container of extremely flammable fuel
4 gallon container of water
Money: 0
"Great someone else has the space madness."
Run and tackle Woldo to make the poring water on his head easier.
Name: Harold Goldstine
Physical Description: A short balding man with a mustache.
Background: He was tired of a boring life so he decided to join OMNITECH as a security guard.
Class: Security
Life: d6 OMNITECH Riot suit
Attack: d6 Security Rifle, mag d6/ d4 Security Baton
Stats:
Strength: d6
Dexterity: d4
Speed: d6
Endurance: d4
Will: d4
Knowledge: d4
Fate: d8
Skills:
Melee: d6
Guns: d6
Explosives: d6
Implants: d4
Mechanics: d4
Technology: d4
Medical: d4
Occult: d4
Speech: d4
Status: Fine
Inventory:
OMNITECH Riot suit (d6 Life)
OMNITECH Generic Security Rifle (d6 ranged Attack) and 3 magazines (d6 use die)
OMNITECH Generic Security Baton (d4 melee attack)
OMNITECH electrical behavior modification implant
OMNITECH Omni-light
OMNITECH Handcuffs
Cutting/welding torch
Demolition charge
3 oxygen pellets
Music drive
Movie drive
TV drive
Book drive
Magazine drive
Manual drive
Audiobook drive
Wrench (d4 melee attack)
Antique revolver (d4 ranged) 4 bullets remaining.
Money: 40
Try to get ahold of myself. Try not to go insane. Get my baton out, since I don’t want collateral damage, but I also don’t know how to deal with any situation I can’t shoot/stab/wack my way out of.
Name: Woldo Stuart
Physical Description: Tall, Skinny, Pale, Gaunt. Almost bald even though he can’t be older than 30. Patchy and scruffy stubble that goes all the way down his neck. His eyes aren’t soulless per se, but they have unnaturally white irises, and are filled with a certain, determination.
Background: He was always an odd child. He wanted to be skilled at killing people even as a small child. His parents were very wealthy, and very overprotective of him. Instead of getting him karate lessons or into sports, they got him the most state-of-the-art simulation entertainment system money could buy. He got good at what he did. By the time he was 10, he was the number one Waifu Assassins Guild IX player in the world. However, once he got old enough, it was time to get a job. And since he’s literally good for nothing else, and he fancies himself a killer, he decided to join the Omni-tech security crew.
Life: d6 OMNITECH Riot suit
Attack: d6 Generic Security Rifle/Baton
Ammo:
Rifle (use d6)(3 magazines)
Stats:
Strength: d4
Dexterity: d4
Speed: d4
Endurance: d4
Will: d4
Knowledge: d4
Fate: d4
Skills:
Melee: d10
Guns: d12
Explosives: d4
Implants: d4
Mechanics: d4
Technology: d4
Medical: d4
Occult: d4
Speech: d4
Status: normal
Inventory:
OMNITECH electrical behavior modification implant
OMNITECH Omni-light
OMNITECH Generic Security Baton
Money: zilch
Woldo is quickly calmed using the age old remedy of tackling and pouring water up his nose. Really the water is just going all over his face but it also goes up his nose which causes him to forget about the entrails as he squirms and coughs like a fish on land. It does snap him out of it though.
”we gotta go save the asteroid belt! And the people in it, too!”
grab Tara and Fred, restrain them. Don’t look at the shard?
Name: Toby Jackson
Physical Description:a normal looking guy with short black hair. 5 foot 5, has no muscles.
Background: need money. No skills. Omnitech good.
Life: d2
Attack: d4 Generic pistol
Stats:
strength:d4
Dexterity:d4
Speed:d4
Endurance:d4
Will:d4
Knowledge:d4
Fate:d12
Skills:
Melee:d4
Guns:d4
Explosives:d4
Implants:d4
Mechanics:d4
Occult: d10
Status: probably maybe a little insane.
Inventory:
OMNITECH Black Jumpsuit
OMNITECH Generic Personal Sidearm (d4 ranged attack) x3 Magazines (d4 use die)
OMNITECH Universal Containment Pod x5
OMNITECH Null-Rod
Money: 80
Toby, seeing as Yagyu is distracted and there is no one else to stop him, slinks away and gets back in the elevator. He presses the button for the upper mining area and takes it down, repeating mantras to keep himself sane. He reaches the bottom a few moments later.
[1]
You know what? My usual problem-solving method isn't working here, and the backup method of running away is boring, so screw that. Go climb down to the shard, and then... I don't know, hack at it with the axe? Urinate on it? Punch it in the face to establish superiority?
What I'm trying to say here, is "stick my dick in it."
Name: He insists that it's "Wilfred Seven", and most definitely not "Wil" or "William"
Physical Description: He looks identical to Wil Wheaton. That's because he's an identical clone of Wil Wheaton; he actually can't even shave, or even change his hair or anything, it always grows back to the default form within a day. Scarrification might let Wilfred change his appearance, but he's not really up for that.
Background: He was batch manufactured along with nine other Wheaton clones, for use in some film that he's never heard of and was never involved with; only the three "best" clones were actually selected for use in the film, while the other seven--really, the other four, three survived less than a week--were sold to OMNITECH as cheap labor. Somehow, OMNITECH decided to hire Seven, rather than just enslave him, although he's not really sure what the difference is. Notably, Wilfred's flaw that disqualified him from being selected is that his mind is nothing like the famous actor, and he actually hates being compared to the man.
Life: d6
Attack: d6 rifle, d8 axe
Stats:
Str d4
Dex d4
Spd d6
End d4
Wil d4
Kno d4
Fte d4
Skills:
Mel d6
Gun d12
Exp d4
Imp d4
Mec d4
Tec d6
Med d4
Occ d4
Spc d4
Status:
Inventory:
OMNITECH Riot suit (d6 Life)
OMNITECH Generic Security Rifle (d6 ranged Attack) and 3 magazines (d8 (loaded), d4/, d0 use die)
OMNITECH Generic Security Baton (d4)
OMNITECH electrical behavior modification implant
OMNITECH Omni-light
OMNITECH Reasonable pair of Handcuffs
Fire Axe (d8 melee)
Money: 0...
Wilfred turns to start heading down when Toby, fresh off the elevator and with eyes literally burning with madness, takes a wild swing at him with a null rod.
[6v2][5]
Wilfred parries the blow easily with his ax and clobbers Toby over the head with the flat of the weapon, knocking him out. Wilfred looks at the still smoldering eyes of the man for a moment then shrugs and starts heading down. He makes it down one ladder before slapping himself on the forehead.
"What am I doing? We're in ultralow gravity!"
He backs up on the platform and, gripping his axe in both hands, proceeds to do a running jump straight out into empty space,
hurling himself towards the crystal.
[3]
Again he feels the mind rending effect hit him, this time stronger than before. His nose and eyes bleed, but he only bares bloody teeth in response as he drifts towards the thing in a long arc.
"Fuck you, cosmic horror!"
[6v2]
His flight ends with a double handed chop, driving the ax straight into the stone all the way to the haft. The blow numbs both his arms with the vibration, but he keeps hold and scrambles up, using the axe as a platform. The blow has cracked the crystal and poisonous light is pouring out from the opening. [2][3] Wilfred vomits blood for several seconds but straightens up again, eyes now pure red and hemoraging. "You're huge...that means you've got huge guts..." He draws back his fist in an exaggerated wind up, "
Rip and tear!" And then jams his hand straight into the crack.
And at this point, I must start talkint to Sy via pms because things here are going to get a bit strange.