HOTEL LEX - FLOOR 6 (11/?) (Patreon)

You give the command and vines pierce the gap between the door, prying it open.

It is indeed warm, though; it is almost a sickly, humid kind of warmth. The navigation room is large with control panels lining the walls. The layout is that of a trapezoid with the narrow end forming the front of the ship. You look at the opposite wall and see an exit though a huge nest blocks the path. Your best bet would be to walk all the way around past the front of the ship. Every corner is strung with thick goo and more 'eggs' are scattered about. The drone advances and immediately steps in a large puddle of goo. It tries to lift its leg but it doesn't budge; instead, it sinks slightly into the rubber. It tries again and bumps into the doorframe, making a loud thud. You immediately grab hold of it and tell it to stop moving. You watch in horror as the nest swells in size before exhaling. You try to help the drone break loose but nothing seems to work. It decides its foot is forfeit and snaps it off before reconstructing a new foot. You tell it to be careful this time though you find navigating just as hard as your red-and-blue vision doesn't distinguish well in the dark and humid atmosphere.

All three of you creep along the center of the room and down the steps toward some flashing screens. Most of them still feature a bright yellow exclamation mark with the word 'LOCKDOWN' displayed on each. One screen displays a different interface. You approach cautiously as the chair in front of this screen is occupied by a cocoon. You study its shape and realize that these aren't just eggs; some of these thick cocoons are people covered in web. You can distinguish where the snout begins, where the neck drops down to the torso. This particular figure is swaying slightly and the layers of rubber cast over it aren't as thick as on the other cocoons. Its body is stuck firmly to the chair that is locked in place so there isn't a possibility of pushing it aside. You crane your neck to look at what is on the screen and read some horrifying news.

'Distress signal received. Syndicate has ordered full lockdown on Lonestar and will remain in lockdown until Castle-02 arrives in three lunar cycles. Quarantine protocol requests all ship personnel to return to their assigned stations and remain there until further notice. Under no circumstances should personnel leave this vessel. Loading bays are prohibited; no spacecraft is given clearance. Escape pods are disabled until further notice. Administrative privileges are revoked for access to prohibited vectors.'

You look at Emmett with wide eyes. If the escape pods are disabled... will you have to remain on this spaceship for however long two lunar cycles take until backup? You look down at your body and realize you might have become a specimen of interest to the Syndicate. You curse under your breath; it almost feels like another dead end. Surely there is some information, some way to undo the lockdown. You look around the bridge for some kind of answer or hint; who would have higher clearance than admin? Perhaps... the captain? If you were able to get your hands on the captain's keycard, you might be able to unlock the escape pods and leave.

The figure next to you lets out a muffled moan.

> Keep moving.> Try to access the control panel.> DRONE - Have your drone pry open the rubber casing.> ITEM - Attempt to remove the goo from the figure with the glove.

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