IC - 5 - Finding Montrose - All except Jojo

[Mephistophilis]

Day 1
11th March 2189
18:00 Earth Central European Time
Barnard's Rest Colony, Titan

Isabella returns to the corporate suite to continue investigating the computer systems but the others take a few minutes to walk throught the main colony building to the Security Complex.

They are not sure where to find Montrose's quarters but as they arrive the first room they see is marked 'Security Office' and Security Officer Tyson hurries out to greet them, 'Saw you on the cameras' he says.

He invites them in to the Security Office which is a relatively small office with a five-by-five bank of monitors taking up a significant portion of one wall. Tyson explains that there is a network of security cameras throughout the colony and they can also access feeds from CENTRAL's cameras under certain circumstances.

He indicates a connected barracks where the eight security officers have their quarters and says 'There used to be more officers stationed here when we were strictly a penal colony, but with fewer and fewer convicts each year, there hasn’t been a need. Heck, there’s a weapons locker here full of riot gear that I don’t think has been unlocked except for annual cleaning in the past ten years. We just use shock batons when we have to. Don’t need more than that when the worst you deal with is a guy who can’t hold his liquor.'

[jp1885]

While Tyson speaks, Kiara takes the opportunity to take a look at the security screens for anything suspicious.

Spot hidden 37,[dice]0[/dice]

"Well, that's great, but CENTRAL is unable to monitor Sergeant Montrose's lifesigns, so we thought we'd better check up on him."

[Mephistophilis]

'Uh, what? What do you mean?' asks Tyson in confusion.

[Mr. Handy]

"If CENTRAL can't confirm his life signs," explains Sam, "it could be because he doesn't have any!"

[Raiko]

"So please could you show us to Montrose's quarters Officer Tyson?"

[Mephistophilis]

'Oh shit!' gasps Tyson who brings them through to the barracks area. In addition to the individual apartments there is what looks like a larger suite towards the end of the corridor. On the door it says 'Head of Security'.

Tyson activates the intercom on the wall, 'Sergeant Montrose, it's Tyson, are you okay?'

There is a prolonged silence.

Then the intercom crackles and a faint, gravelly voice says 'No I'm not okay, I'm sick. Now fuck off.' It clicks off.

OOC,Anyone can roll Listen

[jp1885]

Listen 20 pass,[dice]0[/dice]

Kiara frowns. Perhaps something doesn’t sound right?

[Mephistophilis]

Anyone passing Listen,Montrose is slurring his words and sounds blind drunk

[Raiko]

Listen - failed,Nicole - Listen(45%): [dice]0[/dice]

[jp1885]

Kiara jerks her thumb towards Montrose’s door and mimes an exaggerated drinking motion to the others, crossing her eyes and sticking out her tongue as she does so.

“Um, we really do need to speak with you Sergeant.”

[Mephistophilis]

The intercom clicks back on, 'Go away, I'm not well, I'm dying...leave me alone, all of you, stay out of my head.'

[Mr. Handy]

"Do a security override on the door!" Sam tells Tyson. "He clearly needs help!"

OOC,Listen roll (20% base skill) to hear through the door: [dice]0[/dice]

[Mephistophilis]

Tyson looks flustered, 'Um, Montrose has given very clear orders to leave him alone.' He activates the intercom again, 'Er, Sergeant, I've got some people here from corporate, they're...um...concerned about you.'

Montrose's voice crackles back from the speaker, 'The voices, I can hear them all the time now, "you're so small, so weak, worthless", and the images, beamed into my head...'

He goes quiet for a minute.

'Ignore me, I'm sick, I think I caught something, just fever dreams. Leave me alone. I just need some rest.'

He leaves the intercom on and after a few seconds they hear a low moaning.

'It's inside me, eating me. Fucking Waystation. I should never have gone to fucking Waystation.'

OOC,Anyone can roll a hard Psychology or regular Psychoanalysis or Medicine

[Raiko]

Speaking via the intercom, "David, this is Nicole Favre from the Marshals. Do you remember me? We are here to help. You need help."

Nicole moves her hand close to her holstered pistol, just in case.

"CENTRAL, open the door to Sergeant Montrose's quarters."

[Mr. Handy]

"Could he be infected with something?" wonders Sam aloud. "Maybe a parasite?" For all she knows, which isn't much, it could just be space madness.

OOC,Psychology roll (10% /2 = 5% base skill) about [b]Montrose[/b]: [dice]0[/dice]

[jp1885]

Psychology 10 extreme success!,[dice]0[/dice]

”Waystation?” Kiara looks quizzically at the others, addressing them as much as Montrose. “What the hell is waystation?”

[Raiko]

ooc - Psychology roll - Hard Success,Sorry I missed the skill roll request: Psychology(60%) - HARD(30%) roll: [dice]0[/dice]

[Mephistophilis]

'I don't know if he's infected with anything' says Tyson, 'You'd have to ask the new doctor, but infectious diseases aren't usually a big issue out here - where'd we catch them from?'

'Nicole? Nicole! Is that really you? You need to go, I don't want you to see me like this. And it's dangerous, you shouldn't be here. You need to get off Titan now.'

Shortly after Nicole issues her instruction to CENTRAL an intermittent alarm starts sounding from within Montrose's quarters, 'Who the fuck is trying to open my door?'

CENTRAL's electronic voice floats around the corridor,
'Hello Marshal Favre. Sergeant Montrose has placed an override and alarm on any attempts to open the door to his quarters.'

The intercom buzzes back into life and the sound of the alarm can be heard loudly. Montrose's gravely voice comes from the speaker, 'Anyone tries to open this door again and...and...well I'll do something and you won't like it. This is followed by a mechanical sound.

Anyone who passed Listen earlier,That was the sound of a large firearm like a rifle or shotgun being cocked.

'Shut up, shut up, I'm not going to Waystation...I'm not going outside.'

Another period of low moaning.

Montrose starts speaking again, his voice plaintive and carefully articulating some strange names despite the slurring. 'The gate, the gate is across the sea, across Ligeia Mare, that's where I'll find ta-wil-at-umma. I need to find the court of hi-rada-the-ka-pan-aka...

No, no, I will not join you ee-ka-gal-aa, you are not me, I am me...me...me...'

He sinks into further silence interspersed with moaning and coughing.

Anyone passing the hard psychology roll,The things he's saying sound an awful lot like the symptoms of paranoid schizophrenia, he certainly seems to believe what he is saying even if it makes no sense

[aine]

“The guy obviously doesn’t want to be disturbed.” Says Virgil. “It sounds to me like he’s paralytic; boozing on the job. I can’t believe it; head of security? Not for much longer if I’ve got anything to do with it.” He fumes.

Rolls,Listen 50 [dice]0[/dice] psychology 65 [dice]1[/dice]

Then he hears a noise from within and he barks,
“Tyson, don’t tell me that personnel are allowed firearms in their private quarters!”

[Mephistophilis]

Tyson looks sharply at Virgil. 'Apart from Marshal Favre's weapon there are seven semi-automatic shotguns in Barnard's Rest. For riot control. That's it. If the Head of Security choose to take one of those into his room that's his call. Do you want to take it up with him?'