Boarded

JP with Omni and Jaxx

~On the Montero~

Kenny and Paddy put their backs to a corner and prepared for an attack. The only light came from low emergency lights, access terminals, and door panel keypads and buttons. MUTHUR was no longer responding to vocal orders or Kenny's data tablet.
Paddy pulled out a flare, lit it, and tossed it on the ground.

Kenny whispered to Paddy, "Well it looks like this will be our last stand. Just us, our regrets, and one or more scary monsters lurking on the ship."

“Let ‘em come.”, Paddy grinned.

Kenny readied his pistol and held his watch as he waited for the attack. He deeply regretted not making a pass at Vera.

Paddy held his pistol ready and inspected the viewport into the antechamber room outside S1 Airlock, squinting to spot anything.

“How long we gonna hold here, Captain? He anxiously looks from Kenny, to the window and back.

Paddy and Kenny heard the sound of dull clanging softly reverberating through the ship.

Kenny gently aimed his pistol in the direction of the noise and nudged Paddy to do the same while remaining quiet. He was hoping to attack the intruder as they entered the room.

The noises were coming from the front starboard side of the ship. Paddy aimed his pistol down the corridor from where they came.

“More than one? Or do you think it’s gone around behind us?”

Kenny whispered, "I would not be surprised at this point. Prepare for anything."

Several moments passed, without any change. Then there came the sound of a door opening toward the aft and movement in the antechamber outside the S1 Airlock door.

Kenny and Paddy turned to face the door leading to the antechamber and through the viewport they briefly saw two pinpoints of soft white light move out of view to the right of the door. They heard a droning buzz.

A pale blue humanoid head peaked into the viewport as the intercom of the ship came to life. A fuzzy monotone voice grated over the intercom speakers,

“What have we here? I have logged your presence. Please remain here, someone will be with you shortly.”

The thing looked freaky in the deep shadows and bright fizzle of reddish white flare light. It was an old Seegson Working Joe synthetic. From its strange features, it looked like it had been vandalized or customized. The android, decked out in spiked leathers, had piercings and a row of nails embedded in its head, creating a strange Mohawk. For the moment it seemed non-hostile.

"State your purpose.", Kenny ordered.

“Please be patient as we take control of this vessel.”, the android said with a courteous attitude but an unsettling digitized tone.

Kenny asked, "Why are you taking over the ship?"

The android paused for a moment as if to think, though a human wouldn’t be able to tell since his expression never changed and his pin-prick eyes never blinked. “Captain Bolaji orders it so. That is our directive.”

Kenny asked, "Are you on our side, or do you support those parasites?”

“I assume you have a permit for that weapon." the android pointed a blueish finger at Capt Kenny. "Please disarm yourselves and we can resolve this amicably. I am not aware of any parasites.”

They heard the door at the opposite end of the corridor swish open and then footsteps approaching. A woman spoke from the darkness of the corridor. “Good boy, Jojo! Yo, Adisa, looks like Jojo found our boys.”

"Good," said Adisa, the new voice.

They remained ready to shoot as Kenny talked. "Explain yourselves. Why are you taking over this ship?"

“Oh, wow. This guy is clueless.”, the first voice chuckled. “We see it, we want it, we take it. Don’t worry. We don’t want you, just the ship and its cargo. Jojo, let’s escort them to their lifeboat.”

“Affirmative.", buzzed Jojo the Seegson Working Joe android. "Please come with me.”
The two female figures emerged from the darkness into the edge of light given off by the flare. Both women were donning compression suits without helmets and they were armed with a pulse rifle and pistol aimed right at Paddy and Kenny.

Kenny retorted, "Seems like you are the clueless ones since the other ship was contaminated with parasites and one of them got onboard this ship.

“What is he talking about, Hel?”, said Adisa.

“Sounds like bullshit to me.”, replied Hel.

Adisa was dark skinned with a short puffy afro and Hel, the woman brandishing confidence and a pulse rifle, had several piercings and tattoos and looked like she had the physique of a soldier. Both women spoke in a British accent.

Jojo opened the door and entered. “Please come peacefully.”

"Well it wouldn't be hard to look it up on the ship's computer records, but your android went and turned it off.", Kenny said.

Adisa interjected, “Joe, you bumblefuck. Didn’t you check for life forms and contaminants?”

“I did, Captain Bolaji. The ship is clear.”, Jojo confirmed.

Paddy and Kenny noticed that Joe the android was equipped with an EVA safety harness around his upper and lower torso. He also had a cutting torch and a slew of other tools and equipment attached to a bandolier around his waist.

"They only show up on the scans when they are moving. They have some kind of camouflage. My crew on the other ship barely killed a small one and barely wounded a large one. They somehow get into your body and grow till they can burst out and kill the host. If that is your ship attached to the Cronus you should have seen one by now." Kenny derided.

“The hell you say?”, said Hel.

Adisa said, “If he’s telling the truth, then Cham and the others could be in trouble.”
Hel licked her lips. “Nah, he’s takin’ us on a ride, Captain.”.

"Go ahead and take a look at the dead bodies on the Cronus yourself if you want proof. Most of the crew was wiped out already.", Kenny said.

Hel started talking into the collar of her suit, her eyes didn’t leave Kenny. “Cham, it’s Hel. How’s it going over there?”

There came a response that Kenny and Paddy couldn't hear.

“Davis and Rye? ... you might run into the rest of the Montero crew over there, and uh... watch out for... parasites.”

“Alright, you two. Let’s make this easy. To the life boat. Our boy Joe here doesn’t have to play nice.”, ordered Captain Adisa Bolaji.

"So we either die in the shuttle or get shot up, huh?" Kenny sneered.

“Now now... Don’t worry, we wouldn’t leave you without supplies..." Adisa said in a mocking motherly tone. "Not unless you make this hard for us. You know, as well as I do, that those lifeboats and shuttles have at least one cryopod and probably even an FTL drive if you're lucky. Sutter’s World is the closest planet. I’m sure you’ve survived worse situations.”

“Space is hell.”, said Hel with a wink and a wicked smile. Then she bit her bottom lip and chuckled.

Captain Bolaji turned on a flashlight attachment on her pistol, shining it in the direction of Kenny and Paddy, somewhat blinding them.
(-1 to Observation and Ranged Combat)

Paddy said, “ugh… They got us by the balls here, Cap.”