Unsettled

8.3.5 SW
Evening
East Wombwood > Mobile Research Camp

Dev scrambled to his feet, remembering to pick up the tranquilizer gun from the floor when he rose. He noticed Grace had locked the hatch but didn’t register much anything else. His systems were trying to stave off shock long enough to survive through this with those that were left.

He caught the tail end of the xenomorph carrying the unfortunate victims off into the darkness. He suddenly felt like he was going to be sick. His breathing was rapid as he moved to the trailer window seeing the macabre sight eventually disappear.

“Jee-sus cha-rist! Whoa! What the HELL WAS that thing?! Vail? Montana? It’s takin’ ‘em off into the woods.” Barden whispered hoarsely.

Devereaux looked to Grace and Barden, very briefly trying to regain his composure to think with at least something familiar to stabilize himself. “It may be coming back.” He tried to mask the worry in his voice. “We need to think how are we going to stay safe and alive in this can till reinforcements arrive.” His eyes had gone back to where he last saw the alien. Not knowing where it was suddenly made it even worse if that could be fathomed.

In the dim light, Grace sat in silent terror, nodding her head at Devereaux. “…yeah…” she whispered.

Amidst the tense atmosphere of the trailer, a distinct noise disrupted their heavy breathing and pounding heartbeats. It resembled a sizzling sound, but within moments, the sound of water reached their ears. Directing a flashlight towards the source, they discovered a faint drizzle seeping through a small tear in the metal roof, causing a slow trickle of rainwater.

Devereaux could see the terror in Grace’s eyes and it immediately triggered the protective nature that naturally comes with masculinity. It actually helped to compartmentalize the fear and dread he was currently feeling. Feelings wouldn’t matter to anyone here right now, even himself. It would be action that anyone would really care about. He placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it a slight squeeze to signal that they were going to get through this; his expression mirrored the gesture, not that she could see it clearly.

At the sound and sight of the intruding water, Dev went to investigate carefully. He picked up a small trash can on the way and placed it beneath the drip. Water shouldn’t be coming in where it did unless the trailer had somehow been damaged. He could mentally remember that the creature had been standing roughly were the drip was leaking in. Perhaps it’s claws, or that tail, had caused a laceration in the roof?

“Interesting... Barden, what do you make of this?” He pointed to the edges of the small opening in the roof. There was a goo like residue that looked like it was sizzling on the metal, much like bacon in a frying pan. Dev waited for a response and brought his gun at the ready just in case. It looked like an acidic reaction to him, but he wanted a second opinion.

Barden finally looked away from the window and at their newest problem, trying to collect himself. He wiped his sweating hands on his slacks and moved closer to the hole to examine it for himself. He squinted at it.

"Keep the light on it, will ya?" he said. "Looks like some kinda... I don't know... some kinda acid, or somethin'..."

Visibly shaken by the recent ordeal, Grace's posture was hunched and hesitant as she nervously looked back and forth from the hole in the trailer to the window, "I-I-I'm gonna try Admin again... We can't stay here. We can't..." Grace muttered to herself, somewhere between bewilderment and a panic attack.

Devereaux could feel the unsettling feelings creeping around the cabin. Everyone was on edge and for a darn good reason. The problematic question was not was there an onset of panic, but how would those remaining respond to it; rise or fall.

He called out to Grace. “Brilliant Grace, keep trying to reach them. We need to stay put. The only thing keeping us alive right now is this tin can. We step out and it returns, we are done.”

Dev moved his light back to what Barden was inspecting. The only reason he could pry his gaze from the window was because the perimeter defenses and light triggers were still working and should provide some semblance of early warning if it were to come back. As he observed the acid like material, he wondered if it had something to do with the creature, or had Montana dropped something caustic upon his death, or had something in the cabin roof been damaged?

Grace wished she could turn the trailer interior lights on but knew it was a better idea to leave them off to avoid attention from the creature. Hoping it would not serve as a beacon either, Grace instead grabbed a flashlight of her own and propped it like an old telephone between her cheek and shoulder as she tried to discreetly type an emergency request for assistance to Crowning Point Colonial Administration whilst backing away from any windows.

Barden poked around at the hole with the end of one of Devereuax's hydrometers and it began to sizzle as well and a drop fell on his glasses, melting a bit of the frames almost instantly.

"WHOA! Geez! Yeah... that's no good... Takes a STRONG acid to melt a hole through that kind of metal. What the heck! Montana packin' some kind of weird weapons or somethin'!? Looks like its stoppin' at least."

Grace stopped typing for a second, her eyes flitting around for the sudden sound she was hearing. Shaking, she covered her flashlight with her hands and listened over the rain, which had lessened considerably in intensity.

"Shhh... Is that...?" she whispered loudly, trying to shut Barden up.

From outside they all could hear the faint sound of beeping. The familiar pip of Vail's motion detector. It was somewhere nearby... and the frequency of beeps was once again increasing.