[snip]

Shuttlepod 1 came in for docking with the Sojourner, Heather leaned back in her chair. It had been a smooth flight, but she couldn’t help but be a bit tense until they made it back to the ship. You’d think that even with all of the time she had spent in space, she’d be used to the shuttle rides. It was just easier to not think about all the things that could go wrong on the ship compared to the small pod. Though the results of their scans were also running through her mind. What on the surface was refracting their sensors enough to cover up some sort of native intelligent species. That changed the entire outlook of their survey report for mining on the planet.

With a final shudder the pod was retracted into the ship and the bay doors closed. With a hiss the hatch popped open.

“Alright, you don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here,” she said with a chuckle. “Leave the gear for the decon team to clear while we head to the decon chamber ourselves.”

Standing up from her seat Heather pulled herself out of the hatch and headed for the decon chamber.

Cmdr. Grace - XO/CSO

Stretching Heather tapped the controls for the decon chamber. Hopefully it was quick so she could get a hot shower and some food. The doors slid open and she stopped short.

“Captain? I didn’t expect to see you here.”

Cmdr. Grace - XO/CSO

El followed. The draining of the batteries and the sensor masking bothered her. It shouldn’t have happened. As soon as she exited the pod she felt lighter. A little bit of gravity difference made a difference and the fatigue she had felt from drawing up the sample along with a day in the higher gravity melted off - at least temporarily. She was elated, however. She had been on another world - one with mysteries and life and excitement. “I hope they decontaminate it quickly,” she said to the commander, glancing back toward the shuttle pod. “I want to get a good look at the readings and the battery logs and see what happened.” At that moment she stopped short, almost running into her. Whether by agility or by the new ‘bounce’ in the gravity she steered herself aside while mentally chiding herself for not looking where she was going.

• El, Eng

As the teams got into decon, the NE medical technician Samuel came into view from outside. “..Alright folks, just a minute, you’ll feel a bit of a tingling from the scans, just the usual.” He said. The room’s lighting went to a blue tone and a hum of a sensor scan passed over the area. “..Hmm…well seems Commander Grace you picked some type of microbe that’s taking quite a liking to the sweat and body cells in between your left and right toes.” He said, after a moment returning with a small container that he slid through the storage shutter. “..Just take a dab of this on each toe and foot back up to your ankles and rub it in for about a minute or so. It’ll take care of it in no time.” he said then returned to the scans. “..Ensign Serinde, looks like you’re clean, though I am showing higher then usual muscle fatigue, but not too unusual given you were in such higher gravity, but given the others aren’t quite up to the same levels, my advice is you hit the gym a bit more regularly.” he said After a moment one by one everyone else got the clear green light with one comment or another about watching their junk food intakes.

”..Ok then, just let me finalize the scan an----” Suddenly there was a cracking sound from just outside the decon chamber, the technician looked up suddenly, “..what th—ARGH!” he said something leapt from out of the life support vent above him and with lighting speed came down on his face and neck tearing into it violently, causing a cascade of blood and icor to splash the decon window. The tech was flailing around it seems with whatever the unknown attacker was but soon hit the window his bloodied face and neck and shoulders a torn ribbon of something with sharp teeth and claws having rended it asunder, with a wheezy cough he slid to the ground. But by luck in his dying action his trembling left finger hit the release button letting the group inside able to get out, the door to the bay they came from and the corridor just outside both opened.....

GM CockRoach