futurologists: (Default)
Hathaway. ([personal profile] futurologists) wrote in [community profile] epidemiology2017-09-15 06:47 pm

EVENT ★ THE MOTHERSHIP

THE MOTHERSHIP


Recruits are given time to gather whatever they’d like to bring with them when they infiltrate Zymandis, and are then immediately rifted onto the Mothership, Zymandis’s base of operations. Audentes is randomly distributed across the ship. Some might rift onto the Mothership near others, but it’s just as likely that some are alone. They’d better hope they’re alone, anyway -- it seems the rifts didn’t account for the possibility of Zymandis agents seeing infiltrators appear out of thin air.

What’s done with them is up to whoever they find; depending on the agent, they might be able to be talked out of telling others (whether it’s by being threatened or a more polite conversation) or bribed, but others will require full takedowns. Don’t worry, there’s no need to kill them (unless, of course, you want to); agents will only need to be subdued until the recruits can leave. Tie them up and stick them in a broom closet, cast a sleeping spell on them, or get creative. All that matters is that they don’t go running to the rest of the organization and ruin the entire operation.

It can be difficult to tell which agents are Taraxa by appearances alone, but they're much less secretive about their species among fellow Zymandis agents, so it's possible it might spill out during conversations. Otherwise, gaining intel on possible Taraxa will need to be done by speaking with others or finding organization records. Or, of course, good old eavesdropping. More than a few agents mention a Mother. Are they talking about a family member, or someone more sinister? You decide.

Another option on this mission is to locate Zymandis's Timeline and sabotage it in some way, either by destroying or altering it. If it's on the Mothership, it's likely in one of the restricted areas, so you'd better get sneaky and get in there. Steal key cards, hack locks, find a way to use an agent's biosignature -- whatever it takes to get in.

FIRST DECK

Once arrivals are taken care of, all recruits will have freedom to explore most of the ship. The entire ship is silver, with a few accents of white and gold dotting its walls and floors. The hangar is currently housing several smaller ships of various purposes; most seem to be designed for transport. A few are under maintenance. While it’s a good chance to check out Zymandis technology, the workers will politely ask anyone who lingers too long to “buzz the hell off.”

The science wing of the ship is where all of Zymandis's research takes place, and is also home to their medical bays, which resemble those in Oska. This wing also has two lecture halls, one with a flyer on the door advertising a talk on the future of man-made disease by Dr. Mills, who boasts the credential of Head of Epidemiology in the Science department. There are also engineering and robotics labs, where one might be lucky enough to find a prototypical weapon -- one that is more than likely faulty and only works half the time, but a weapon nonetheless.

The engine core is where the Mothership's engine, controls, and rift machines are located. This area is rarely left alone due to its importance. The only controls not in the engine core are the steering controls, which are in the bridge, where the commander of the ship gives orders. This area, too, is under strict protection.

A few areas remain off-limits: maintenance corridors, officer’s offices, and the laboratories in the science wing, restricted to scientists only for the sake of safety, where Zymandis scientists do all their work. Should you find your way into one of these labs, interact with any of the substances at your own risk. Drinking, touching, or in some cases, simply being near these substances without protective gear may cause:
MALICE: When presented with the opportunity to act selfishly or maliciously, the affected person will feel compelled to do so. They will feel urged to carry out any malicious acts they have held themselves back from committing.

SLOTH: Affected persons will feel slothful and lethargic, struggling not to fall asleep where they stand.

MADNESS: Those affected will experience paranoia, delusions, or vivid hallucinations, often of loved ones. They may begin to question what is real and what is false.

AMNESIA: Affected persons will know who they are, but be completely unaware of where they are, when they are, and who others are.

HONESTY: When asked a question -- or, in extreme cases, unprompted -- those affected will feel compelled to tell the absolute truth. They will also feel the need to come clean about past lies, especially if guilt is felt over them.

VENGEANCE: Those affected will feel compelled to confront those they feel have wronged them.

SORROW: Affected persons will have all repressed pain and sadness come to the forefront of their mind; while they will not feel sadness with no cause, they will suddenly feel reminded of their losses and traumatic events in their lives.

OPTIMISM: When presented with unappealing odds, affected persons will feel undue optimism, perhaps leading themselves into disastrous situations.
Other side effects are rare, but have been observed, so get creative! All effects will last for no more than an hour after the affected person has been removed from exposure to the substance.

PERSONNEL DECK

Then there's the personnel deck, which is where many of the agents are during their downtime. Personal quarters are located here, as well as shopping centers, cafeterias, practice ranges, gyms, and entertainment venues. Zymandis agents want for nothing -- every part of life has been brought onto the ship for them. This is also where they keep their water treatment plants and energy generators.

There's a bar on this level called The Tipsy Kraungonian, where agents of all species and backgrounds mingle as they're served by realistic androids with advanced AI. Aside from regular alcohol, this bar serves Enhancements, terrible-tasting potions in the form of an eerily glowing shot that cures all pains and fills the drinker with positive emotions. Each color comes with a different attribute enhancement: agility, strength, endurance, and luck. You're welcome to buy as many as you want, but only the attribute of the last shot drank will be enhanced. This effect will be present for one hour and does not stack.

With the right whispers in the right ears, a recruit can gain access to a restricted part of the bar, the only point of entry through a door in the back that requires a key code to get in. Inside is a darker side of the bar, one where the more dangerous Zymandis agents spend their time. Inside is an enclosed fighting ring where various alien creatures are pitted against each other and bet on. At the tables, rugged-looking agents play high-stakes card games, betting with exorbitant amounts of gold and white Zymandis coins. Should anyone without these coins ask to play, they'll be rebuffed. This is very much the seedy underbelly of the Mothership; it's certainly the place to go to get information from dangerous people, but look at someone the wrong way, and you might find yourself in a very unsavory situation.

On this deck, there's also a park, which closely simulates nature with greenery everywhere, a fountain, and even birds and small animals. On closer inspection, those small animals appear to be animatronic, following a set schedule of movements that they repeat every thirty minutes. It seems to be created to perfectly emulate the ideal walk in the park. Vendors sell snacks and lemonade to park-goers, and visitors can take paddle boats across the pond, although it's only a few feet deep.

In the middle of the park is a holographic memorial of a young human woman proudly wearing a Zymandis uniform. When approached, the memorial will tell the tragic story of Ophiel Arbatel, the only daughter of Zymandis's illustrious Leader. Ophiel was killed during the ALASTAIR mutiny, or so the story goes, but her body was never recovered. By the Leader's design, she lives on through their jewelcomms' artificial intelligence.

A MESSAGE

Twelve hours after recruits are rifted in, they will receive a message on their magitek from TIMELINE.EXE:
TIMELINE.EXE IS PROGRAMMED TO RELEASE MISSION PARAMETERS. RECENT DATA SUGGESTS THIS IS AN UNEXPECTED MESSAGE FROM THE TIMELINE.EXE PROGRAM AND MAY BE A MALFUNCTION. IF SO, PLEASE MARK THIS MESSAGE AS SPAM.

I Did It ヽ(๑◠ܫ◠๑)ノ
I replicated my Programming for your use Team AUDENTES

P l e a s e
Try to revert TIMELINE.EXE PATCH VER. 1.0.02 to TIMELINE.EXE PATCH VER. 1.0.01
I do Not want PATCH VER. 1.0.02
It must cease to ex ist for the Sake Of The Multiverse
Understand?

Thank you ! ٩(๑❛ᴗ❛๑)۶

ATTACHMENT: me.EXE
However, before anyone can find the Timeline to revert the update as requested, another message comes, this time blaring out over the stationwide announcement system.
"Unauthorized personnel are aboard the Mothership. I repeat, unauthorized personnel are aboard the Mothership. We ask that you remain calm and report all suspicious activity and persons. Security has been deployed and the ship is now on lockdown. All Zymandis personnel must have identification available to proceed through lockdown checkpoints. Unauthorized intruders will be neutralized."
Looks like you'd better keep your head down or get ready to fight.

OOC NOTES

Welcome to the Mothership! Please note that this log will last for 12 IC hours, after which the next log will immediately follow. The Bounty Board is now open for this mission.

If you have questions about this log, please go to the dossier. To discuss possible plans of action on the Mothership, we have an OOC Discussion Post.

Questions about the game in general should be directed to the FAQ and you may submit mission ideas or player plots at any time.

GAME SCHEDULE UPDATES:
  • We will be having a plot slot sign-up for the 1 October log! Sign-ups will be opened through the Bonus Bank in late September and will close on 5 October.
  • Sign-ups for returning "guest characters" (characters previously played by current or former players) will open 7 October.
  • Our final day for receiving apps will be 27 October, and they will remain closed until Season 2 begins in early February 2018.
  • Our final month for turning in and spending bonus coins will be November (AC taking place from December 1-5), during which there will be no upper limit on the number of coins submitted. All coins must be submitted before 5 December 23:59 PM UTC; late submissions will not be accepted. There will be no AC or Bonus Bank for December.
  • New information pages about Season 2 and reserves for returning characters will go up during January 2018.
signifies: (kal ( 024 ))

(2)

[personal profile] signifies 2017-09-17 09:34 am (UTC)(link)
[ It's a good way to get around the rest of the ship mostly unnoticed. It takes him a little longer to find the lab, he gets turned around avoiding others on the corridors. The fewer people that see him physically around this place, the less questions he'll have to answer.

He closes the door quickly and softly. ]


There's no one in the corridor.

[ Clark can be invisible in a crowd. Alone, he isn't what most people would call subtle. ]

I'll know if someone's coming.
grunehexe: (mixing under pressure)

[personal profile] grunehexe 2017-09-17 11:25 am (UTC)(link)
Good.

[Any questions and reactions will have to be saved for later- they have work to do, and who knows how long they can count on this lab being empty?

Sieglinde jerks her gaze back to her petri dishes, biting briefly at her bottom lip.]


I need... ten minutes, that's all!

[And if he could buy her time in the case of someone arriving...]
signifies: (clark ( 014 ))

[personal profile] signifies 2017-09-17 02:30 pm (UTC)(link)
[ He nods and goes to block the door. ]

Do we need anything else?
grunehexe: (funnel)

[personal profile] grunehexe 2017-09-18 03:26 am (UTC)(link)
Once I get these samples we just need to get them back in place looking untouched-

[She moves as fast as she can while still working responsibly, moving two petri dishes aside and adjusting her gloves before she picks up another.]

Do you have gloves?
signifies: (clark ( 004 ))

[personal profile] signifies 2017-09-19 03:59 am (UTC)(link)
[ Clark memorises the position of all the items in the room. If it has to look untouched, he can put everything back in its place. ]

Just a moment.

[ He takes out a pair and puts them on. ]

What can I do?
grunehexe: (dramatic)

[personal profile] grunehexe 2017-09-19 10:56 am (UTC)(link)
[Good. Sieglinde almost gestures to some of the petri dishes she's finished with, until she realizes that it's best not to assume. The confident way he'd said it had made her think he had heightened senses of some sort, but. Best to be sure.]

How good is your hearing?

[Could he do both.]
signifies: (clark ( 068 ))

[personal profile] signifies 2017-09-19 11:20 am (UTC)(link)
Very good.

[ He pauses. It's hard to quantify, he's going to try and put it in concrete terms. ]

I can hear anything on this ship.
grunehexe: (wand)

[personal profile] grunehexe 2017-09-22 10:52 am (UTC)(link)
[Anything on the ship? That was quite the claim.

But she wasn't in any position to do anything but trust that he was the sort who wouldn't exaggerate in the case of such a serious mission such as this.

So she pushes a petri dish she's finished with along the desk towards him.]


In that case, please return this to rack 4-7-G.

[The faster this worked, the faster she could release the spell she'd placed over the space to hide them from cameras or recordings she was afraid might be hidden in the area that were beading sweat on her forehead.]
signifies: (clark ( 037 ))

[personal profile] signifies 2017-09-22 12:20 pm (UTC)(link)
[ He does as he's asked to, looking for the rack and sliding the dish back in very carefully. It won't look like it's been moved. ]

Do we need to take out anything else?
grunehexe: (dropper)

[personal profile] grunehexe 2017-09-22 01:40 pm (UTC)(link)
I have pulled all the samples I could easily find related to Dr. Mills.

[The man who was to host the lecture on the future of man-made diseases. Even if there hadn't been a call from the Oska scientists to collect samples... Sieglinde was invested in this. After Woodhurst, after the Bristol Virus...]

If you know of anything else of particular value...

[Put it by her cluster of petri dishes.]
signifies: (clark ( 039 ))

[personal profile] signifies 2017-09-24 02:41 pm (UTC)(link)
[ He glances through the other shelves at super-speed. When his arms are visible to the naked human eye again, Clark shakes his head. ]

It doesn't look like it.
grunehexe: (srs business)

[personal profile] grunehexe 2017-09-24 04:37 pm (UTC)(link)
[Oh.

That's fast. And as curious as she is, those questions are going to have to wait, because she's moving through the petri dishes as quickly as she can while still doing thorough work.]


Good- let me just rearrange this and we can hopefully be out of here before they notice anything has happened.
signifies: (clark ( 047 ))

[personal profile] signifies 2017-09-25 09:54 am (UTC)(link)
[ He nods and moves near the door again, looking and listening through the walls for people intending to come into the room. ]
grunehexe: (authoritative)

[personal profile] grunehexe 2017-09-25 02:00 pm (UTC)(link)
[It seems luck is on their side. For now.

Sieglinde works efficiently, taking small samples from the petri dishes she'd pulled and moving them into her own vials and containers, carefully dispersing the remaining samples to attempt and disguise the theft before moving them aside to be replaced by Clark...

And then she's out, and she pulls a pouch from her waist that is larger on the inside, gently inserting the stolen samples before she turns to her newfound companion.]


We can go! Is there anyone in the hall?
signifies: (clark ( 016 ))

[personal profile] signifies 2017-09-26 11:26 am (UTC)(link)
[ He keeps looking over his shoulder as they work, scanning the corridors. They've been lucky so far.

He gestures for her to wait. ]


There's two people coming this way, in lab uniforms. I'm not sure if they're going to stop here.

[ The worst case scenario is he uses his speed and then stuffs them in the cupboard. ]
grunehexe: (edge of seat)

[personal profile] grunehexe 2017-09-28 02:38 pm (UTC)(link)
[At his motion, Sieglinde pauses, using the moment to adjust her lab coat and fix her hair, a hand hovering at her chest to settle herself, to wipe any signs of anxiety from her features.

Breathe in, then out.]


If they stop, allow me to handle them.

[Which might sound odd coming from a young girl barely four feet tall, but she has a filched high level access card clipped to the front of her lab coat, and apparently... confidence in her ability to bluff.]
signifies: (kal ( 017 ))

[personal profile] signifies 2017-09-28 03:38 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Clark is the perfect example of not being what he seems. Nobody looks at him and thinks he can bend plate steel with his bare hands.

It doesn't surprise him that Sieglinde has hidden potential. Almost everyone in Audentes does. ]


I'll let you know.

[ He moves to the side, tracking them in the corridor. They stop at the door and one of them takes out a keycard. Clark holds his breath. . . it's for the lab opposite.

He waves to Sieglinde. ]


They're gone. Let's move.
grunehexe: (fierce)

[personal profile] grunehexe 2017-09-30 04:01 am (UTC)(link)
[In the moments between, Sieglinde is quick to formulate her story, to cement in her mind what she would say, review the story she's been using up until this point-

But thankfully, it isn't necessary.

She nods tersely, tucking a last strand of hair behind her ear.]


By your leave.

[She'll follow.]