| PHD #254: EVENT - The Garden of Ares |
| Summary: | A survey of Colchis University on Aerilon, Rose's alma mater. The team finds a deserted town, remains of a resistance, and… attack algae. |
| Date: | 07 Nov 2041 AE |
| Related Logs: | Anything algae- or hydroponics-related. |
| Players: |
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| Colchis University, Aerilon. |
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| Descs given in the log! |
| Post-Holocaust Day: #254 |
Three Raptors descend through the atmosphere and begin their approach towards Colchis University. Two of them, staffed entirely by teams of Marines; one of them, staffed with the command group of Staff Sergeant Crowe, Corporal Blaine, their assigned fireteam, and three oddities: PO Andreas Damon, acting Chief of the Deck, as an advisor on materials engineering and a judge of which equipment is suitable to be brought aboard Cerberus; Dr. Cameron Adair, the team's assigned doctor and advisor on all salvage related to medicine and medical equipment; and G. Rose Ibbhanas, whose specialties lie in phycology and biochemistry. An odd bunch.
The Raptors rumble and shake as atmosphere is breached. "ETA to landing, ten minutes," calls back the LTJG flying the bus, callsign Flapjacks. "Everyone hold tight," she says, "There's some cloud cover that's going to make this less than smooth."
Rose sits in her little corner, hands flattened together and crammed between her knees, looking like she's not having a good go of this entry. She's not sick, but her sightless gaze is fixed on the floor in front of her, and she seems lost in thought.
An odd bunch indeed. Damon isn't wearing the bright orange coveralls that he usually sports on the Deck, but he is wearing his toolbelt. One hand is braced against the ceiling of the Raptor and the other holds onto a toolbox which is sitting on the floor between his legs. He came fully prepared, in case they have to take back gear that's bolted down or welded in. Despite the many times he's made trips in a Raptor in and out of atmo, he doesn't look like he's doing quite as well as Rose. "Hey," he says quietly to Rose. "You all right?"
This is most definitely not Cameron's usual sort of work, but it's not without complete precedent. His stomach jumps a bit as it all reminds him strongly of when he first returned to Aerilon, after the Kildare earthquake, to offer aid to the survivors. That was an unexpectedly… difficult. A similar subtle sense of tension is the air, even though reports have said that the area is clear of Cylons. Should be a simple enough matter, and he offered to serve in whatever capacity was needed when he offered his services to the Fleet. Glancing across the way at Rose, he clears his throat lightly and opens his mouth, but his question is spoken by a different pair of lips, causing Cameron to close his mouth once again, saying nothing.
Staff Sergeant Crowe sits in his seat, strapped in as he waits for the Raptor to land. He checks and rechecks his rifle during the descent, loading it, double checking the safety, etc. He then goes about tightening the strap on his helmet, and then his vest. All done in a practiced manner, every movement done so many times, the Sergeant doesn't even bother to think about it. As they near their approach vector, he speaks up, "Intel indicates no hostiles present. Corporal, I want you on the Doc like glue. Damon, Ibbhanas, you're with me." His gaze then shifts the remainder of the fireteam, "Flanking positions around essential personnel. Keep your eyes open. Safeties on. If I hear a shot go off without my ordering it, I garauntee you'll be running for the next two weeks straight." A beat pause and he speaks into the comm, to update the El-Tee.
[TAC1] "Dog Zero-One" Crowe says, "Dog Actual, this is Dog Zero-One, we're inbound, currently on our approach vector."
[TAC1] "Dog Actual" Vandenberg says, "Zero-One, Actual. Copy your last. Check in when you arrive on target, One. Actual, out."
Samuel has been looking a bit lost in thought, before he started checking his gear carefully. He looks up a bit as he hears Crowe's words, nodding a little, "Will do, Sergeant," he offers, before he looks over at Cameron. "Just don't start running off on your own, Doc," he offers to the man, with a half-smile.
Rose glances up at Damon, trepidation in her voice and hesitation in her cloudy eyes. "I'm just hoping I remembered the campus layout, I don't want the other Marines to get lost or anything. And… I'm not sure what's going to be there waiting for us. They said there was no sign of activity. That means everyone's dead, right?" At the sound of her being addressed, Rose looks across towards the Staff Sergeant, eyes going wide. "Um, yes, sir," she squeaks, glancing again with that same hesitation to Damon. "Does he know I can't see?" She stage-whispers to him.
For those sitting near windows, the cloud cover breaks gradually, revealing an overcast day above Colchis. Located along the coast, it's not near any of the major grain-producing provinces, and looks like a typical urbanized town that springs up around a major university. And then, the university itself can be seen, a roughly square campus with larger, blockish buildings done in a contemporary style that might be seen on a campus on Caprica.
"Sergeant Crowe," calls Flapjacks from the front seat. "We've scouted three possible landing sites. We've left that for your team to decide. My ECO will show you on her screens. Make a decision and let me know." Flapjacks' ECO, Ensign Launiere, pulls up several reconnaissance shots: a packed earth field that looks like it was going to be a construction site for an apartment building, a gravel parking lot near a thin strip of beach, and a parking lot inside the perimeter of Colchis University itself. All seem reasonably clear of obstructions, save for the parking lot which has a number of civilian vehicles scattered about.
Damon gives a single nod to Crowe. With all these Marines present, they'd have to be in pretty bad shape for Damon to be shooting - not that they expect to be shooting today. Still, he unholsters the pistol sitting on his right leg and checks it. Round in the chamber, safety on. "Good to go," he confirms to Crowe, returning his sidearm to its place. "Or evacuated," he says to Rose, though the sympathetic expression on his face indicates her explanation is more likely. Good thing she can't see it. "I'd mention it to him just in case," he stage-whispers back. "Though I'll try to make sure you don't fall down any stairs or anything."
His lips quirk into a small crooked smile as Cameron returns dryly, "I'll do my best to keep my enthusiasm in check, Corporal." But considering that he is unarmed and heading into unfamiliar territory, quite honestly the good doctor has absolutely no intention of straying. Course, intentions can change quite quickly and unexpectedly depending upon the situation at hand. But it's highly unlikely they're going to be coming across anyone that might be in need of help, if they've registered no heat signatures or survivors. Anyone who might be there is likely way past Cameron's ability to help.
Blind? Crowe actually didn't know, but the new information doesn't phase him. All the more reason to keep her close so she doesn't end up somewhere she shouldn't be. Besides, she's the one who has the layout, and he needs that on point. "Blind, got it." he states flatly. Stage whispering and all, "Damon, help keep her on my six." And then the Staff Sergeant's attention shifts to the screens considering the options. "That parking lot with all the vehicles is closest, but if there were to be an ambush, it'd be the best place to set one up. Course it's also the only place with cover." He reviews the other two options for another moment, "Land us in the gravel lot by the beach. Plenty of open space to see danger coming, and one less available point of attack option." A glance over to the fireteam now, "We've got a small hike ahead of us, boys. Let's keep it at double time pace."
Samuel nods a little bit, first as he listens to Cameron, then to Crowe. Otherwise keeping silent as he takes the moment for one final check of his equipment.
Swinging into position, the Raptors land with the satisfying crunch of gravel underneath landing gear. Flapjacks gives the thumbs up to the rest of the bus once everything is green and the hatch door can be dropped. "I'll keep 'er hot in case you need aerial support, Sergeant. Good hunting," comes the pilot's last words before the team disembarks.
It's a warm autumn day on Aerilon; the trees haven't turned yet, at least not in this part of the world, and the air smells clear with a touch of sea salt. Seagulls cry down by the water, and small, quiet waves lap and foam at the rocky beach. All in all, if it weren't post-holocaust, this would be a nice vacation spot. After all, there's not a single live soul for miles in any direction.
"You got it," Damon replies to Crowe, giving him a thumbs-up. As they land, he lets the others get off before him. That gives him the chance to help Rose if she needs it and also gives him a bit of room to lug that toolbox out of there. "After you, Doc," he says to Cameron with a grin.
Cameron was wondering how they were going to handle Rose's condition, since it's one he hasn't had the opportunity yet to work on. His head tilts as he listens to Crowe addressing his team, eyes then flickering over to both Damon and Rose as he smiles and suggests, "Looks like we're going to have a bit of a run for it. If you take one arm, and I take her other, I think we can move Ms. Ibbhanas both safely and quickly to the building site between the two of us?" To Rose, Cameron offers, "I'm sorry I haven't been able to perform the surgery yet… would have made things a bit easier for you. If I had known…." Cameron only has a pack on his back of things he thought he might need on this mission, his hands free to assist.
"I'll keep in radio contact, El-Tee." Sergeant Crowe states towards Flapjack before moving out of the raptor, followed by most of the fireteam. Setting up just outside the Raptor, he singles out two privates, "Right flank." And then a Corporal and another Private, "Left flank." Finally he points to Samuel, "You've got the rear. If we come under fire, I need to you grab the essentials and get them to cover before returning to the fire team." And with that, the Staff Sergeant takes point, "Doc, Damon, Ms. Ibbhanas, stay in the middle of the pack. We're gonna take this at an even paced jog, keep the pace constant. I want to keep us on schedule. Let's move out." And once more, he speaks into the wireless to Dog Actual.
[TAC1] "Dog Zero-One" Crowe says, "Dog Actual, this is Zero-One. Bird has landed, half a click hike to target location, moving in from the west."
[TAC1] (from "Dog Actual" Vandenberg) Its a moment before Vandenberg replies: "Actual copies, Zero-One. Keep your scan up and your charges safe. Nobody gets hurt on a milkrun. If it stinks, give us a call. Your rules of engagement are yellow-hold. Do not fire unless fired upon or with explicit permission. Best of luck zero-one."
Samuel makes his way out of the Raptor with the others, then nods a little bit as he hears Crowe. "Will do," he offers, moving to get to a position at the rear. Looking around rather carefully as he gets into position.
Managing to scramble down the ramp mostly unaided, Rose tries to put on a confident smile. "I should be fine, although it's been quite a while since I've had a run," she admits. "If I remember correctly, it's about a fifteen minute walk to campus from here, depending on how quick you take it. So, at a jog… seven minutes? Less? We should go straight through downtown and right up through the campus west entrance. Straight shot." She doesn't bother unfolding her whitestick, which instead is tucked through and secured by her belt. Flattening the light beige coat she dug out of stores, she nods to Damon and Cameron. "I can do this."
And that's when the team heads off.
Just as Rose described it, it's a straight shot down Main Street towards Colchis University. Much of the town appears in bad disrepair, with storefront windows smashed in and looted, and parked cars as well. There's the occasional vehicle left abandoned in the middle of the street, no doubt its owner attempting to flee when the nukes began to fall on Aerilon City and the other larger population centers. There are no bodies to be seen, and the only life is the occasional disturbed flock of pigeons or seagulls.
Damon blinks in surprise at Cameron when he mentions Rose's surgery. "You're that doctor?" he asks. "I'm PO1 Andreas Damon, I'm Rose's - " Boyfriend? That sounds so juvenile. "Rose and I are…" Dating? An item? Seeing each other? Words are not his friend today. He just assumes Cameron knows what he means and continues on. "Running with this thing should be fun," he says, tapping his boot against the toolbox. He's carrying it easily enough, but it does look to be fairly heavy. "All right, let's do this thing."
The university itself seems a bit bigger on the ground than it did from the aerial shots, as the modernist horizontal lines cutting across the buildings are amplified when viewed at this level. The eye tends to follow the buildings all the way down to where campus ends. Trees and grassy parks line the exterior and interior of the grounds. As the team approaches campus, though, there's clearly something wrong…
<FS3> Crowe rolls Alertness: Good Success.
<FS3> Samuel rolls Alertness: Good Success.
<FS3> Damon rolls Alertness: Good Success.
<FS3> Cameron rolls Alertness: Good Success.
There's a plaza just inside campus, which appears to have been some kind of monument. At closer inspection, it looked like at one point to be gold leaf-covered, some kind of masculine figure with a shield and helmet. The off hand is outstretched, as if it were holding something, but the hand is empty. This is Ares. The figure looks like it's been riddled with heavy caliber bullets; one of the arms lies at the foot of the pedestal, and the head and helmet lie discarded several meters away in the plaza itself. Deep gouges, like made by a Centurion's hand, are across the stone pedestal, where the dedication to Ares and the Golden Fleece would have been inscribed.
That's when the team can smell an awful stench. The stench of corpses.
As they approach the plaza, and the sight of the statue comes into full view…and then the stench his the nostrils of Staff Sergeant Crowe, he holds up a single fist. The sign for stop. He then points to the right and left flank marines, indicating that they should take up defensive positions with a series of hand gestures. "Everyone but Corporal Blaine, hold behind the fire team on the left flank. Corporal, with me." And with that, the Staff Sergeant moves in the direction of the heinous smell.
Samuel grimaces at the sight and smells. "Looks like there are certain things not even a God can stop…" he mutters, before he nods at the Staff Sergeant, and moves forward to follow the man, fast steps taking him close enough so he can catch up with the man.
Smiling at Damon's flailing to choose a descriptive noun, Cameron simply nods and finishes, "You're a lucky man, Damon." He doesn't know Rose all that well, but already Cameron can tell that she is an interesting, attractive, and spirited woman with a surprisingly cheerful attitude for all that she's been through. Damon really is quite lucky. "Nice to meet you," he offers, "and you can call me Cam." He takes one of Rose's arms so that, between them, they can keep her from stumbling over any rough ground or curbs. But when the stench hits them, Cameron pauses, nose wrinkling. He's accustomed to death and corpses. But this is on a level beyond what he's had to face before. He would have thought, after all these months, the bodies would have been picked clean, the stench faded over time? Which begs the question, how long have they been here?
"That I am, Doc. Cam. Thanks. Nice to meet you, too." Pleasantries exchanged, they press on with their mission. Seems nice as they approach the campus, but… You can read report after report about sensor scans showing no activity; you can be briefed by dozens of people who tell you there's no danger detected in the area. But when you smell the stench of corpses and see signs of Cylon attack, well, it's hard to maintain an easygoing state of mind. At least, that's the way it is for Damon, who tenses up as soon as the smell hits him. As if the marks on the monument are signs of enemy presence - perhaps a feeling heightened by the Marines' actions - he drops the toolbox and puts his hand on his pistol. "Statue's full of holes," he whispers to Rose. "Signs of Cylon attack. And the smell. Marines are taking defensive posture. The Sarge and the… other guy are investigating, it looks like."
As the Marines quietly investigate, they push past the ruined statue and progress through what appears to be a copse of trees that separates the garden of Ares from the center of campus, a square lined with tables and benches and a number of food court kiosks. But the source of the stench does not come from the plaza, only that approximately two dozen bodies are found, some still up against trees, others that have fallen over into heaps. Gashes in the trees made by heavy caliber fire means only one thing: these people were lined up and executed, firing squad style. Some of the corpses appear to have been gnawed on by some of the local wildlife, although the largest animal that would be interested in rotting flesh around here would be ground rodents, or gulls.
"The fleece," Rose whimpers back to Damon, producing a handkerchief to cover her nose and mouth; her eyes are watering, perhaps from the smell, and perhaps from the realization that another Lord has fallen in the face of the Cylons. "Where's the fleece? It's not the real fleece, I mean, but… I think it was sanctified and dedicated by an oracle or something. Oh, gods…"
Covering his own nose with one sleeve and breathing carefully and steadily through his mouth, Cameron muses, "Countless sanctified and precious relics have been lost. This one as well, it seems. Probably best to start fresh with new offerings than ressurect old and tainted ones…" It seems a poignant reminder, with the God of War before them so defiled, that the Cylons have defeated the Gods in this round, even if they have not utterly crushed their creations.
Crowe is used to the smell of death, even en mass. That being said, an execution of this magnitude is hard to stomach really. He frowns deeply and turns to the Corporal, "Let's keep the others in a defensive position. Get the doctor and bring him here. We need a time of death assessment, along with anything else he can tell me beyond the obvious facts." IE: Cause of death. The Staff Sergeant then procedes forward a bit further, towards the corpses, speaking on his comm to the tactical advisor safely away from this mess.
[TAC1] "Dog Zero-One" Crowe says, "Actual, this is Zero-One. We've got two dozen executed citizens down here. Obvious evidence of Centurion involvement as well. I've got the doc working on a time of death. I'm continuing with the mission unless ordered otherwise. Dog Zero-One, out."
Samuel's expression hardens as he sees the sight, trying his best not to react in any other way. Nodding to Crowe's words, he moves back to the others. When he reaches them, he glances around for a few moments, "Hold here for the moment. Doc, if you'd come with me…" Starting to lead the way back towards where the Crowe and the corpses are.
[TAC1] (from "Dog Actual" Vandenberg) As the radio comes back there is the sound of snapped fingers and some rustling paper in the background. Vandenberg's voice picks up after a hesitant moment. "Copy, Zero-One. If anyone has a camera, get photos for evidence. Never know what it might turn up. Will trust your judgment on-scene. Keep us appraised. Actual, out."
Damon has encountered death many times now. But that doesn't mean he's used to it. His nose keeps on twitching, and he keeps swallowing hard like he's trying to hold back from puking. "The, uh, the fleece," Damon says between swallowing back bile and clearing his throat. He's not overly religious, so it takes him a moment to figure out what Rose is talking about. "It's… not there. I'm assuming the statue was holding it."
Nodding, Cameron glances back at the other two before following after Samuel bemusedly, pulling his pack off of his back. "What, are their survivors?" he asks as he jogs after the Corporal, bemused as to why else they would want him and wavering between disbelief and hope. But when they arrive at the site, he stops and closes his eyes for a moment before continuing forward toward the carnage. Normally blue eyes have turned grey like the sea at storm as he turns his gaze toward Crowe and asks, "Sergeant?"
Seems to nod to himself as he continues to investigate the scene while he waits for the Doctor and Corporal to arrive. He's heightened at the moment, rifle held offensively in case there is some trap or something waiting for him. When the Doctor arrives, Crowe offers a quick nod, "I need a time of death on these corpses, Doc, plus anything else you can tell me. Obviously I know they were shot already." A beat pause and looks over to Samuel, "Corporal, we need a camera if we can find one, to document this. I'll stick with the Doc, go and see if you can get one. Go ahead and bring the rest of the team to a defensive position by that bench." he points to a bench on the left side of the plaza.
Gods. There's little left of them now than bones and ligaments, rotting muscle and peeling flesh. Swallowing down the bile that rises up in his throat, Cameron walks over to the nearest body and crouches down next to it, pulling on a pair of gloves as he reaches out to touch it, moving the body slightly before rumbling, "I can't give you an exact time of death, but I would estimate, based on the level of decomposition that they've been here for about two months now." He moves to another body, carefully turning it over before looking away as a hoarde of insects flee from beneath and within the corpse. "Cause of death is just what it looks like at this point. We would have to perform an autopsy to tell if there was anything else involved… but I honestly doubt it. No point in poisoning someone if you're just going to shoot them…"
Samuel nods a little bit, as he starts making his way back towards the main group. "Anyone got a camera, by chance?" he asks, to the remaing ones, before he adds, "And we move over here…" Gesturing towards the bench that Crowe indicated earlier. "Defensive positions by that bench."
"The golden fleece, it's… there's several myths, but it was taken by ancient heroes and placed in the Garden of Ares for protection," Rose explains to Damon as they're slowly moved to the bench indicated by Blaine. Her eyes and cheeks are wet but she uses her handkerchief to protect against the smell rather than wipe at her eyes. "Um, camera? There's camera equipment where we're going," she voices aloud. Then, quietly again to Damon, she asks, "Can you… identify… any of them? My mentor, Dr. Alkhar. He was older man, heavyset."
One of the fireteams comes forward with a thin camera, apparently having it stowed in one of the many pockets of his body armor. He hands it off to Samuel, and then returns to his position.
Damon assumes he's included in that order and prepares to follow after the Marines. The picks up the toolbox with one hand, and guides Rose with the other one, ushering her toward protection. "From what I can tell, it's… hard to identify any of them," he says to Rose, eyes flickering over the corpses and looking away again. "They're pretty, uh, decomposed."
Crowe nods slowly to the Doctor, "Alright Doc, thanks." He lowers his rifle a bit, moving to the bench where the fireteam is headed, "Keep sharp boys. Bodies have been here a few months, so odds are the tin cans are long gone. That being said, the frakkers could have an ambush setup somewhere. Same teams as before, keep the essentials safeguarded in the middle." Seeing that the Corporal got a camera he speaks up again, "Doc, grab that camera from the Corporal. Command wants documentation of what's happened here in case there might be something useful for later intel." Why the Doctor? Well, because he needs marines aiming guns, not cameras, and the other two are a blind woman and a Deckie. The doctor would seem best suited for the job.
Nodding Cameron crosses over to Samuel and takes the camera from him, somewhat reluctantly. He'd rather not examine the bodies any more than he has to, but he owes it to them in a way. If he can't help them, he can at least lay them to rest. Carefully Cameron takes pictures of the scene, documenting it. And once that is done, he carefully turns the bodies over and takes pictures of their faces and any potentially identifying bits of clothing and the like. They can make reconstructions based on skull structure, possibly determine exactly who was slaughtered. By the time he is finished, Cameron's normally tanned complexion has turned chalky white, but his eyes are steely and steady.
Samuel hands over the camera, before he moves to get his weapon aimed again. "Teaches me not to bring my camera with me on a trip like this…" he mutters to himself, staying ready in case there's something to fire at.
While the cataloging is going on, Rose glances this way and that. It's as if she's trying to get her bearings, despite not being able to see. "If the statue is there, and we're in the Mall, then…" She bites her lip, then points off to the north. "Andreas, tell the Sergeant that the medical school and sciences school is that way." For anyone who looked at her diagrams prior to the mission, that would be correct. "Most of what would be valuable to the hydroponics project, and to sickbay, would be in those two buildings. I think the medical building has a helipad as well, which might support the weight of a Raptor. I'm not sure, though." It seems she's gotten over the initial shock of what are probably her former professors', peers', and colleagues' execution, or perhaps she's just eager to move away from this slaughter.
Tell the Sergeant? But that means getting closer to the rotting bodies! Damon's face clearly indicates 'DO NOT WANT' but he does what he has to, as much as he doesn't want to. "Sarge," he calls out quietly to Crowe as he approaches. "Ms. Ibbhanas wanted me to tell you that - urgh." He makes heaving noises; the smell is way worse standing right by the bodies. "The medical school and sciences buildings are - " Aaaand he loses his lunch. All over the corpses, since he turns away from Crowe to puke. Hopefully, Cameron's already taken pictures of those ones. "…that way," he finishes weakly, pointing in the indicated direction.
Well, Crowe was taking in the information being provided by Damon until he pukes. A brow raises just a bit. Sure it's a horrid smell. That being said, Crowe has laid in a mass grave to avoid Cylon detection. He takes a few steps away from the bodies, towards Rose, waving for Damon to follow him, "Alright, so the Doc is gonna want to hit the medical building. Let's break into two teams, one goes to Medical, the other to Science. That should get us all the supplies in a short amount of time. The less time we spend here, the frakkin' better."
He was fine. Really. He was holding it together despite the smell and the bodies and the bugs, but at the sound of Damon losing his lunch, Cameron realizes that he's just human. He does, at least, manage not to puke on any of the corpses, making it over to one of the bushes a bit away from the rest of the group before puking up his meager breakfast. Breathing through his mouth, he strips off his gloves and tosses them into the bushes as well before reaching for a bottle of water and rinsing his mouth out, spitting first before taking a few swallows and rejoining the group. Nodding at the commands, Cameron really doesn't care where he goes or what he does. The chances that they'll find any medications seems unlikely, but a doctor can always hope. But there are still plenty of other useful things to be found. Bedding. Blankets. Equipment. All valuable.
Samuel keeps quiet as he listens to Crowe's words, nodding a little bit in the process. Glancing around between the others. Managing to hold back his own lunch despite other people losing it.
The team heads north.
It's glaringly obvious that the medical building is absolutely trashed, with the entrance doors just sitting in a forced, open position. A quick survey by Cameron's team yields that anything perishable has long since expired and is generally useless. However, there exists some long shelf-life medicines, and some servicable monitoring equipment and other hospital gear that should at the very least be reported back home.
The sciences building, however, takes far longer to survey. Mostly intact with no shattered windows, the marines had to force their way in after verifying that there were no booby traps or anything else dangerous waiting for them on the other side. Just as empty as the medical building, the sciences building looks more like a college on a university campus: there are bulletin boards posted up with all sorts of colorful flyers and other student-related information, large wall-mounted flat-screen televisions in lounges, and vending machines stocked with candy and snacks.
"Dr. Alkhar's department was the third floor. That's where we'll find computers, books, file folders, and equipment relevant to what I need," Rose explains, holding on to Damon for support, as she's still wobbly from the gore down by the treeline, and sympathetically sick due to Damon and Cameron. Yes, she's a little green. "Dr. Cameron and the fireteams might want to check every floor, as there's bound to be things like computer paper and whatnot that Cerberus could use," she advises. "Stairs are that way." Naturally, there's no electricity.
"Please tell me someone brought water," Damon says as he follows after Crowe, wiping his mouth with his sleeve. Ugh. Having turned away after puking, he doesn't see that Cameron has a bottle. He stops to touch Rose on the shoulder as they pass her. "This way," he murmurs, helping to guide her along. He sounds pretty rough. Information from Rose gets relayed continually to Crowe so he can make decision on-the-fly about where to go and what to do. Once they reach the sciences building, he straps on a headlamp and flicks it on. "It's amazing you know where everything is even without being able to see it," he comments to Rose.
Water? Pfft. Crowe's canteen is filled with booze. The Staff Sergeant takes point on the way to the buildings, and sens Cameron off with Samuel and two other Marines to get what they can from the Medical building. Crowe goes with the last two marines along with Damon and Rose in to the science building, "We can sweep each floor after we find the primary target information. I'm not splitting the team up any more to do a floor by floor sweep just yet, especially without power." He is mostly guiding his movements with his gun light at this point. Once more he relays details to the El-Tee.
[TAC1] "Dog Zero-One" Crowe says, "Dog Actual, this is Dog Zero-One. We've documented the execution site. Currently on task and target, no hostile presence found yet. I will contact you when we are heading for extraction. Dog Zero-One, out."
As Cameron and his 'team' quickly survey the building, the doctor quickly and readily indicates which items are salvagable and which items are not. Medicines that can be found are collected, along with bedding and blankets, his point being that they continue to find survivors and are hard pressed to keep everyone supplied as it is. Heavy-duty machinery, earmarked for the civilian ship's sickbay, are marked with large day-glo Xs beneath them, so the techs know what to remove and dismantle that is heavily attached and bolted down into place. Lighter equipment is carried and stacked for a final 'run'. As promised, he never strays far from Samuel, or, rather, he never strays without making sure that Samuel is with him, which is not precisely the same thing. Glancing over his shoulder to make sure that the Corporal is still with him, Cameron gestures down a hallway before moving on, a can a bright orange spray paint in his hand now. "Let the Sergeant know that we're nearly finished here," he calls back, "and ask him what he would like us to do? Stay here or join up with them in Sciences?"
Samuel follows with the Doctor, almost like a shadow, helping bringing what needs to be brought with them now. Nodding a little bit at the instruction, he reaches for his own wireless, speaking into it.
[TAC1] Samuel says, "Dog Zero-One, this is the team in the medical building. Doc says that we're nearly finished with the medical building. Do you want us over in your building?"
<FS3> Damon rolls Alertness: Terrible Failure.
<FS3> Crowe rolls Alertness: Good Success.
As the team inside the sciences building progresses further, it's clear that the stairs are… not entirely clean. It seems that some sort of slick, brownish-green substance is coating them, only in small patches towards the ground level. But as Crowe aims his gun-light higher, it's clear the stairwell seems overgrown with this stuff. Smells like peat, too. Damon, however, is completely unawares, and his foot catches a patch, sending him off balance…
<FS3> Damon rolls Reactive: Bad Failure.
<FS3> Rose rolls Reactive: Good Success.
"The frak!" Damon yelps when his foot slips out from under him. He has a split second to flail madly - the toolbox goes flying straight up into the air as his left arm swings up, and, instinct being what it is, the other hand grasps onto Rose, trying to recover his balance. No luck. He falls backward in a twisted position, managing to somewhat break his fall with his right arm. "I'm all - " WHAM! The toolbox comes crashing down on his supporting hand, the edge of it slamming against his splayed fingers. The knuckledragger collapses in a heap with a cry of pain. That looks like it hurt.
Rose staggers as Damon flails and grabs onto her arm, and the sudden movement sends her splaying, too. But she ends up half on top of her would-be boyfriend, and with her hand inadvertently grabbing a handful of the slime "What the… aieee!" Splat. "Ew, what… Andreas? Andreas, are you all right?" Rose blindly grabs for Damon, but only ends with more handfuls of the slime. Curious, she lifts it to her face and sniffs. Her eyes go wide. "This… is one of my experiments. This is dead algae, suitable for processing into high-energy biofuel. Andreas, my experiment, it worked!" She peers up towards the stairs. "It must've overgrown its tank and spread down the hall or something. Must've been a flood… oh! Frak! Andreas!" She begins blindly grabbing around for him again, finally finding him and attempting to console him. With dead algae hands.
Crowe just sighs as he first hears, then manages to see the end of Damon's fall. He grumbles a bit, shaking his head. "Perfect." he states flatly and says for everyone else to hear, "There's something growing on the stairs. Watch your step people." Like it really matters, his Marines and he didn't fall down. "Help them up." he orders to his men before getting on the wireless to respond to Samuel.
[TAC1] "Dog Zero-One" Crowe says, "Dog-Zero here. I copy your last. Bring what supplies you can carry to the third floor of the Science building. We've got a possible injury here. Be careful on the stairs, there's overgrown algae from some experiment. Double time, Med team. We'll have to extract the rest of the medical supplies on another run."
[TAC1] Samuel says, "Will do, Dog-Zero."
"They want us on the third floor over there, with what supplies we can carry. Seems to be some overgrown algae or whatever it was from some experiment on the stairs, so we'd better be careful," Samuel offers to the rest of the medical building team. "A possible injury over there as well, the Sergeant said," he offers a bit more quietly.
Glancing into the last room, Cameron sighs as it's just a wreck, nothing in there but hospital beds and most of them mangled as it is. Turning back, he tilts his head as he hears Crowe's voice faintly over the wireless, eyes lifting to Sam's to hear what the Sergeant says. Nodding he replies, "Well then, looks like we'll carry what we can for now and send a crew back for the heavy duty stuff. Everything is pretty clearly marked, so I don't think that will be much of a problem for the scavenging crews to figure out. Whatever we can't carry, we'll mark for pickup." One brow lifts at the comment of an injury, a brusque nod given as Cam moves out quickly, down the stairs and toward the front, allowing Samuel to organize the members of the team into gathering as much as can be carried while Cameron paints a large circle about the rest, marking it clearly for pick up. "Right then," he notes, tossing the empty spray paint can to one side, "Good thing I brought my med pack with me…" Gathering up as much as he can carry, he heads out with the rest toward the science building.
"Great~" Damon says to Rose. His voice wavers from pain and shock. Still mostly curled up into a ball on the ground, he slowly tries to uncurl his fingers to get a better look. The pinky is jutting out at an unnatural angle; the ring finger looks to be in bad shape too, and is swelling up quickly. From the way he's rolling his wrist and wincing with pain, it looks like he might've sprained it. It takes him a minute before he's able to sit up, though he slips and falls right back on his ass when he tries to stand. "Thanks," he grumbles to the Marine who helps him back onto his feet. He frowns and pokes at his hand. "Can't really feel it," he says. "I don't know if that's good or bad."
Rose is hoisted to her feet, and she quickly finds a wall to lean against so she can de-algae her hands. "I'm terribly sorry about this," she says, apparently finding it necessary to place blame on herself. "That particular strain of algae grows like mold, given the right circumstances. I'm sure the latent radiation in the atmosphere didn't help things." She casts a worried glance towards the Marines, and the still floored Damon - or at least what she thinks are them. To Crowe, she suggests, "Sergeant, um, it's quite flammable, usually. So you should be able to burn your way up, or take the east stairwell. It should be that way," she dips her head in a direction that would be on the other side of the building. "I think. I'm a little turned around from that fall."
Crowe turns and nods a bit to Rose before looking to Damon, "Hang tight, we've got the Doc coming to take a look at that hand." He then nods once to Rose, "Alright boys, go check out the Eastern stairwell. I don't want to start a fire in here for no reason." And then he moves off to inspect the algae some more, "You need samples of this stuff? Or do we not have the equipment on board for you to use it for anything?"
Samuel nods a little bit at Cameron's words, as he gathers up what he can, and gets the other Marines to do the same. "Let's go as fast as we can," he says, moving at the fore of the little team now. As he said, as fast as they can.
Upon arrival, equipment is deposited and Cameron makes his way over to his 'patient', kneeling before Damon on the slippery algae, staring at the stuff all around them before just shaking his head and pulling off his medical backpack. "Looks like you did a number on yourself," he offers unhelpfully, but his callused hands are gentle as they examine the injury carefully before he notes, "Probably some broken bones, but I won't know till we get you back on board and I can x-ray it. We'll stablize your hand for now though… sorry, this is gonna hurt," he offers before quickly snapping the pinky finger back into the correct alignment. He tapes the fingers together to give them support, but not very tightly so as not to constrict the swelling. A flat piece of plastic is pulled out of the pack and cracked against his knee, a chemical reaction causing it to heat up and become soft. Maleable. He forms it into the natural curves of Damon's wrist, palm, and fingers, the material cooling and hardening. Another pack is brought out and punched, the chemical reaction this time cold. Molding the ice pack over the top of Damon's hand, Cameron wraps the whole thing up, the hard plastic supporting, the cold pack reducing the swelling. The whole process barely takes him more than five minutes. "Kay, that will hold you till we get back, but I'd like to get x-rays first thing so we can make sure there aren't any other fractures or serious damage…"
"I don't know if that's a good - son of a slut!" Damon yelps when Cameron snaps his pinky back into position. He mini-hops from foot to foot while holding his upper body still, since the doc's still holding onto his hand. "Frak you," he says through gritted teeth. "Eat a box of dicks." He hisses in pain through his teeth. "I don't mean that. Pain's talking. Sorry." He stands patiently, bouncing on the balls of his feet, until Cameron finishes up bandaging his hand. "All right, gotta suck it up and be a man, right?" he says, holding out his hand and examining it. "I'm gonna need someone to carry the toolbox, though…" He readjusts his headlamp, which came askew in the fall, and looks over to Crowe. "Ready, Sarge." After puking outside and possibly breaking his fingers in here, who knows what other adventures await in this algae-covered building?