Galvanized

[Professor Fenway]

Or, they could be operating in an area with a lot of interference, or on the other side of the moon (planet) and the signal would either be too delayed or not even reach them.

They're designed to be piloted both ways.

[Error]

But since the drone was fairly nearby, it's a nonissue.

[Professor Fenway]

Hallix disengaged the pulley as the drone wreck entered the hatch. He shut the hatch, waited until the room pressurized, and then pushed the wreck through the opening door on the other side. Several of his crew, next to the door, helped him move the wreck to the armory where the engineering tools were. They secured the drone wreck and Hallix keyed Vanidan, removing his suit in the process. "Drone is secure," he said. "Get us back on course."

"Acknowledged commander," Vanidan replied. The ship rotated very slightly and began thrusting slightly for a minute or two before stopping. Seeing as everyone in Alpha had arrived in the armory, there was little point in returning to the meeting room. He grabbed the deactivated missile from its harness and looked it over, tapping several locations.

"Armor piercing warhead, considering the hardened end. Considerable control, designed for exo-atmospheric use. And..." he paused. Where the missile had lodged itself against the tube, the paint was scratched. Paint? He rubbed off some of it. After a second, a second set of details revealed themselves under the paint layer. Red and blue. The United States flag. "What the hell?" He gave the missile to Reid. "Help me figure out what the hell is going on. We're taking this drone apart right now."

[Error]

Ash frowned. The hell?

Floating out of the armoury, she drifted into the dropship's hangar; popping the ramp open, she climbed aboard and powered on the electronics, intending to do a very thorough check of all the systems.

[Luna]

"Are you kidding me? These machines are of Earth origins? And more likely than not United states!?" Sasha saw the coloring over Reid's shoulder. She racked her brain thinking of possible explanations. No reasons came to mind but a few details popped into her mind. "Hallix!" she glided over to the commander who was busy taking apart the drone. "If this is such a big deal of national security then why is there only one ship headed to deal with the source of the problem? I feel like we're a SWAT team going against an entire army. A whole fleet could have very easily disguised itself as an exploration expedition if we wanted to quell any suspicion. Also, I may just be looking in too deep but Kamikaze implies that we intend to crash! With explosive results! One thing that I hate so dearly is lack of information, and this mission is really pushing my buttons! I came here willing to risk my life for the good of Earth but if this goes where I think it's going I..." Sasha didn't finish her sentence. She drifted off angered to no end.

[cats]

"Well, if we weren't misinformed, the Scar is far too old for it to be of human origin." Reid unfastened the clamps that held the casing to the missile's interior. "I have two hypotheses. One, they're trying something not too dissimilar to that," he pointed to the IFF that hovered, tethered to a corner of the armory by a tangle of wire, "by mimicking our symbols." He pried the casing off, exposing the fuel and payload compartments. "Unlikely, considering that this is very similar to a delivery system that I helped design. Or two, more likely, that machine followed us from Earth. Of course, it's also possible that we aren't the first and only humans on a mission here. Either way, we aren't fighting for Earth anymore. This was a suicide mission from the start." He pulled the payload cylinders from the missile's frame. "From now on, we're fighting for our own lives."

[Archduke Daynel, PhD]

Amelia shrugged.
"That's how I work best anyway. Now, we have to figure out what to do next."
She looked around at the others.
"This shows that maybe whatever is controlling the Scar maybe were not the ones who shot down that satellite. I suggest we don't bomb the Scar, for all we know it might be considered an unprovoked hostile action. But we have to go down there, find out what's going on."

[Error]

Ash floated in, a small system-tester in hand.

"Nuke it from orbit?" she asked, looking amused.

"It's the only way to be sure." replied Amelia.

[Julo]

Agatha floated in the air. She was completely and totally confused. The paint on the missile clearly indicated that it was built the united freakin' states of America. But how could that be possible? Some of the seemed to be arguing.
She wasn't sure what to say, or to say anything at all. In the end she had an idea.
"Guys, what if this is a test? Maybe this thing wants to test how we react in certain situations, so that it can kill us all more efficiently."
Silence.
"Maybe the Scar is just testing what we can do and how we react in certain situations. I learned this back in year one. You have to analyze the enemy tactics, so that you can counter them effectively. And you have to know what your enemy thinks, so that you can predict which tactic he'll use and counter him before he can counter your tactic."
"Or something like that." She thought.
The whole team looked at her and at least most seemed to understand.
"Don't just stand there and do nothin', we have to identify the rocket. Would you please check if there is a 4x4 number near the engine. If it begins with 2456- and ends with -2020 tell it to me. If the second number is a -5674- it is a copy."

[Vinyl]

Perhaps Agatha was right, maybe they were attempting to understand them. But why? Couldn't they just kill them right here, right now? Why wait?

[Professor Fenway]

"Interesting." Hallix moved back to the drone. One of the panels was loose. He grabbed onto its edge and pushed off from the drone, wrenching off the armor layer in one quick movement. He pushed it aside and looked closer into the wreck. Surprisingly, most of the internal structure was intact. He pulled another armor plate off to reveal the core. A large "Property of the United States Military" label marked the central computer core, what appeared to be a cube-sat. A small device was attached to it, and it held three small lights on it. All green. He pulled it off the device and brought it out. He noted another set of switches, and as he did so, three of the lights switched to blue.

"Sir," Vanidan said through the intercom, "That device is broadcasting an IFF."

"IFF?" Hallix asked.

"Yes sir. Database has matched the IFF to the U.S.SS Jovian, friendly target." Hallix raised one eyebrow.

"Vanidan, there is no such spaceship. We're the first military spacecraft."

"Computer response isn't lying, commander." Hallix paused.

"Vanidan, send a message to NASA. Include the IFF squawk and demand an explanation. We need to know what the hell is going on here."

[cats]

Reid carefully pocketed the payload cylinders and let the other missile components drift around the armory. "Don't think I'd advise that, sir. It may be best to keep what's on this ship on this ship. It's likely that our superiors already know, but we shouldn't let them know what we know. Our mission was to eradicate whatever's on that moon? I say we learn what they want eradicated."

[Professor Fenway]

"The advisement isn't necessary," Vanidan said from the bridge. "Long range communications are trashed. Appears the entire dish got shot off by the missile blast, and we can't repair that."

[cats]

Reid nodded, carefully concealing the slight curl at the corner of his lips. "Then it seems to me that our next step will be on Europa." He touched a wall, making himself spin slowly around to face the team, scattered around the armory. He spoke quickly. "Since most of us are here, I'd like to get all modification requests for PCA, Solarsuit, and weaponry. We only have a day, so nothing extravagant. I can do software upgrades, musculature tuning, some custom ammunition, that kind of stuff. There are a few more revamped battery cells, but not enough for everyone. Vanadian, Vanadis, I can probably use some assistance if you have any free time. Lancaster, I've modified a minigun to accept a charge form your suit's battery. It's lighter, less bulky. The contact points on the glove also make it possible for you to operate my own custom weaponry, we can go over it in more detail later. Sasha, another stim coctail would be appreciated."

[cats]

watin on the arpie

Spoiler: