Episode 2.2

From Heroes of the Great Tree

LESSER EVILS

The Crew of the Mao's Claw were interrogating their prisoner, a purser/medic from the Speedwell who followed them off ship to the Mao's Claw. Vincent had parked them a safe distance away from the drifting colony ship and wandered down in the middle of the conversation. Initially, no one noticed anything wrong with him. Then Bob saw that his shirt was wet where he'd been shot earlier. He had waved off any treatment confident his mesh armor had protected him.

When Bob asked if he felt okay, Vincent managed a convincing grin before he was sucker punched in his shoulder (right where the wound was). He screamed and fell unconscious to the floor from the pain. His body landed with an audible squish as his blood soaked armor moved under his weight. Bob checked his vitals and saw that his injuries were far worse than he was letting on. Burying any regret for his punch, he barked to the other crew to get him onto the medical bed (they quickly relocated the zombie-passenger to the lounge). Applying emergency first aid, he was unable to stop the bleeding. Things looked bad, it took several minutes of serious blood loss before he was able to get the bleeding under control. By then, Vincent had lost too much blood. He would die soon without surgery. They decided to take him to the medical bay on the Speedwell, it was his only chance. Hooking him up to the ships limited supplies of plasma he prepped the pilot for surgery. Nadia flew to the bridge and carefully maneuvered the Mao's Claw into position at the airlock opposite the one they came in first. The controls were trickier than she imaged, and without the guidance controls from the Speedwell, it wasn't a perfect docking, but eventually she rammed it close enough to get a magnetic seal.

The team readied for an assault on the Speedwell. Their plan was to push into the ship, secure the medical facilities and hold it until Bob could complete surgery on Vincent. They me no resistance, other than a mine left near the airlock. Once inside however they discovered that the medical scanners in the sickbay lacked power. Until the ship's power was hooked up, they couldn't really start.

They'd already heard that the 'resistance' an unknown quantity of 'reaver' like enraged passengers had taken and held engineering. Del and James started up the stairs to the engineering deck. They had to step over one body on the way in, partial skinned and mangled. The lighting in the stairway flickered from a short in the emergency lighting system. But, when it momentarily came on, they saw the words "REPENT" emblazened on the wall in blood. Mustering their courage they climbed the stairs only to find another body. This one was 'crucified' on the door, suspended by its fingers jammed between the door and doorway. It took supreme effort to hold their stomaches, but they managed to the pull the body down. Across from the doorway, also in blood "SUBMIT" welcomed them. Engineering was open (the bulkhead door was pried off its hinges) inside was no resistance at all, only the pliant forms of half a dozen 'zombies' arranged with some care around the room, silent spectators to the ships dead drives. The damage was not severe. Del was able to intuit the damage and begin repairs immediately.

It wasn't long however, before their presence was noted. The sound of a body being dragged towards them alerted James who set about barricading the door. Just as he levered the heavy bulkhead door against the thinner ship's door, the lighter door began to buck and bang. He worked quickly to get the door in place. Soon, he was engaged in a shoving match, he and his heavy door pushing against someone with incredible strength.

By this time Nadia had joined him, and together they worked to hold the door as a shield against the onslaught. The raving madman on the other side had obtained some kind of pry tool and had wrenched the thinner door off its hinges, now only the lock, and the combined weight of James, Nadia and the Bulkhead door held him at bay. Fate took a dark twist as Nadia slipped on some blood and fell beneath the bulkhead door just as the man pushed through. For a moment the Raver was standing on the door, half atop Nadia facing James. His blows soon landed on James like hammers, the former officer quickly drew his gun and fired several shots in to the head and shoulders of the raver. Whatever had enraged him, and also equipped him with inhuman strength and fortitude. He did not go down, instead reveling in the pain. Screaming he continued his rain of blows. By now Del, trying to ignore the sounds of the bloody battle just outside the door, quickly got the ships wiring repaired and rebooted the engines. The turbines began to spin agonizing slow, but as they did systems around the ship slowly engaged.

By then Nadia slipped out from the door, and succeeded in tripping the raver whilst simultaneously stabbing him with her sword. Injured, but not deterred, the raver kept on. Eventually his blows lightened and his movements began to slow. Nadia continued to land cut after cut on him with careful precision. Still he returned every cut with a punch of his own, but his days wee numbered. Even as the last blood drained from his head and arms, his muscles and bones continued to fight as though alive with energy.

Meanwhile in the sick bay, Bob had done his best to keep Vincent from falling further until the power was restored. He had a brief interaction over the comm with the surviving crew (hiding in the command center).

"Are you down there?"
"You mean a raving maniac eating flesh and ready to peel your skin from you?"

"Uh...(then in a whisper) I think it might be one of them"

[Comm goes dead]

Shortly after that, he heard the locks to the sickbay disengage, and he further sequestered himself into the ER. Just then Del, having finished turning on the power had arrived at sickbay to help. She stumbled on a Speedwell Crewman lurking into the room. Waving a shotgun in his face seemed to actually relieve him (this did little to assuage her concern), and he quickly surrendered and offered to help her.

As soon as the scanner had power, Del and Bob went to work. Unused to working with live flesh, he did his best to navigate the live veins and arteries of the master pilot, and track down the bullet fragments that had been bouncing around in his chest. Eventually he succeeded in getting them and stabilizing Vincent. Luckily the Speedwell had sufficient plasma to restore much of the precious fluid he'd lost.

James joined them, and Nadia finished off the Raver. They assembled in sickbay. Another brief conversation with the Captain of the Speedwell netted them some time to help Vincent, but unbeknownst to them, the remaining crew of the Speedwell had planned on trading ships with them and escaping in the Mao's Claw. Del caught sight of one of them as they began to board the ship. A fight with the Speedwell crew was cut short by James killing their chief of security with a single shot. The Speedwell Crew surrendered and they all boarded the Mao's Claw.

There was a brief discussion about what to do about their prisoners and the Speedwell, now almost a ghost ship. Not knowing how many Ravers might be aboard, and believing that rescuing the remaining passengers would be nigh impossible Nadia pushed down her emotions and ordered her crew, save James out of the cargo hold. James retuned cautiously into the Speedwell, he jammed open both of its airlock doors, then retreated back into the Mao's Claw. Nadia, in the pilot's chair, uttered a Buddhist Prayer for forgiveness as she decoupled the magnetic locks. The Mao's Claw was thrust backward by the air escaping the Speedwell. Tumbling over she adjusted the flight to take them to Angel and away from the drifting hulk.

Inside the Speedwell, air whooshed out, pulling papers and clothing into the maelstrom, knocking down the zombie-like passengers who still standing. Their lungs gasped involuntarily for oxygen as the Black invaded the ship. Their minds, barely conscious of what had transpired accepted the end passively without anger, or sadness.

---

THREE WEEKS LATER

An Alliance LongBow class destroyer pulled up next to the Speedwell. A woman, impeccably dressed in civilian attire, and wearing a confidence that demanded the obedience of the officers around her looked at the grisly scene in the hallway.

"The ship's system are functioning normally. The airlock was clearly jammed from inside, though there is some collision damage on the exterior of the ship as well. If it were my call, I'd say pirates docked with the ship, killed the security guards, stole some cargo, and jammed open the airlock to take care of the witnesses." The lieutenant reported.

The woman eyed him with some contempt.

"These pirates who did this, also skinned those people and wrote the slogans?" She asked.

"Well, they were probably trying to look like monsters, take advantage of those Reaver tales. Besides we saw signs of small arms exchanges, maybe they were here for a bit."

"It doesn't look like they got to the main cargo holds, nothing appears to be disturbed, although the doors were also jammed open, maybe part of their original plan was to blow the hatches."

She looked ready to point out the numerous flaws in his argument, but thought better of it. Instead she examined the vacuum cauterized wounds on one of the dead. To her trained eye, she noted the clean marks of a Katana wielded by a skilled combatant.

~There was more than one fight here, and more than two players in this battle.~ She noted to herself.

She turned to another body, this one apparently uninjured, with bloody hand prints on her clothes. It showed signs of malnutrition and dehydration, in addition to asphyxiation. In her mind, this confirmed it.

"Shall we bring the bodies aboard and begin autopsies Operative?"

"No. Go to the bridge set a course for the sun, and give them a burial in space." She said calmly.

Checking the colony ship's manifest, she saw a notation that some of the excess baggage had been sent later on a different ship. But it hadn't landed on Serafina either. ~Another victim or something else?~ She wondered to herself on the LongBow's bridge as the Speedwell's reaction thrusters turned her towards the small sun about which Angel flew. A moment later its pulse drive fired and the Speedwell disappeared into the corona of the man-made star.