Capítulo 131: Biogenesis by leviathan
Link: https://fiction.live/stories/Biogenesis/rHxuydMPc3kL8QCLR/home
Synopsis
The world had been invaded by monsters that defy the very known laws of physics, your mission, were you to accept it, is to kill as many as you can. PS: There are magical girls too.
The year is 20XX, and no one had been prepared for the pandora event, when the monsters came.
No one knows why, or how, but these creatures have begun appearing all over the world. Beasts with powers that should not possibly exist, attacking populated areas with growing numbers in a myriad of ways. Some can breathe fire, others can have bodies so tough they found tank rounds to be merely irksome.
No country has been spared, the creatures assaulting humanity from all angles at all times.
Humans are pushing back, managing to keep the cities safe with their armies and weapons. But as less protected areas are razed and destroyed, it is becoming ever clearer that humanity needs to step up or be knocked down.
Governments have gathered to create an international fund, offering a growing amount of incentives to volunteers, especially capable volunteers, based upon results in their task in aiding against the beasts.
That's where EvolutionCorp and a handful of other companies came in. Although created with the backing of a multitude of enterprises and associations, an unfortunate accident in the registration process left the name officially as "EvilCorp".
Now, the corporation must begin seeking a way to earn money from the Monsters. Capturing and studying the creatures is a vital task and for which it was granted permission to recruiting a small mercenary force. From there it must find a way to for humanity to better fight against these monsters, task that will handsomely repaid by the "Humanity's Hope" fund... if it manages to have results.
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It is your task to decide upon the nature of this company, and the path it will take throughout the years to come before you join its ranks in an attempt to climb to the top. So let us begin, shall we?
-What sort of backers have collaborated in the creation of "EvilCorp"?
(Bonuses granted vary depending on number and type. The greater the number the lower the bonuses that would be provided, and the more people Evil&Co will have to please else risk losing funding)
Company Phase Mechanics:
For the company phase we'll be using d20 rolls, where to achieve results we will roll two d20s, and add more d20s for every aspect we have pertaining to it.
Ex: We need to catch a Monster, then we would roll with "Mercenary". If it's a big fucker, DC is 18, so we roll two d20s, and for every "+Mercenary" stat we have, we roll another. Best roll wins (Nat 1s don't count for anything, same as Nat 20s)
In the same way, for every aspect AGAINST what we do a dice is lost. So if we had "-Mecenary" instead, using the same example we'd be able to roll just one d20.
In case we have 2x"-Mercenary", then we'd still roll a single d20, however, the DC would immediately become 20. And having 3x"-Mercenary" would mean we can't roll for it.
There are TWO types of bonuses, Assets and Resources. "+Cash" would be a resource while "+Moral" would be an Asset.
Assets never run out unless the person/building granting them are lost. Resources are different however in that they are consumed.
If we have 3x"+Cash" and wish to buy something, we can decide how much "+Cash" to use (1,2, or 3). For every "+Cash" spent, 1 dice is added to the initial 2. Succeeding the roll consumes the "+Cash" spent, leaving with whatever we didn't take and the 2 dice. However, failing the roll consumes 1 "+Cash".
In the event of having 0 Cash and the two dice, we can still roll, but for every success or failure thereafter we'd consume one dice.
Lastly, all resources are consumed at the start of the next year, so keep that in mind.
Most common [A] Assets / [R] Resources:
[A] +Mercenary and +Transportation are used when catching/killing Monsters and bringing them to HQ. +Transportation also being used in purchasing goods that require special logistics or from far away.
[A] +Science and +Medicine are used when researching new technologies or applying the knowledge in some way.
[A] +Weaponry and +Security are used when under attack (+Weaponry for fights, like Monsters; +Security for the less violent stuff like espionage/sabotage/etc).
[A] +PR is public relations, if public opinion fails too often governments could place penalties on EvilCorp!
[A] +Morale is used to keep employees happy, avoiding things like quitting, strikes, or whistle-blowing!
[A] +Containment is what you need if you want to keep anything that's alive locked up safely in your base! Escaped monsters make for PR nightmares!.
[R] +Black Market and +Corruption are for actions acquiring or doing things that legally would be frowned upon. Such as buying tech that otherwise shouldn't be accessible, or ensuring the little containment breach be overlooked by the authorities.
[R] +Cash is ... well, cash, you use it to buy stuff. Things like new buildings, scientists, materials... all that stuff.
[R] +Space is what you need to be able to expand your HQ and add new assets/personnel/specialised areas.
With our backer/s decided, it is time that we consider the nature of the country where we will be putting our HQ. Because the monsters are appearing all over the world we're not really limited geographically.
Do keep in mind however, that local government, climate, political-environment WILL influence the earlier phases heavily, at least until we gain a more international presence. The options are as follows:
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Capital: You've set up in the strongest positioning to reach for those high-end supplies you need, but you're not the only one, and the competition is severe!
+Local Govt Military presence (2x +Weaponry)
+Educated labor (+Science)
+Strong Economy (1x +Cash per year)
+Airport (+Transportation)
-Caged Predator (-Containment)
-Snooping (2x -Security)
-Not Much Space (Permanent 2x -Space)
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Rural City: A rural city, away from the hustle and bustle of the capital and set your roots somewhere a bit less populated. Though not too far from civilization, not many advantages but at least not many problems either!
+A ways off (+PR)
+Good 'ol Railroad (+Transportation)
+Under the table (1x +Black Market per year)
-Bored Activists (-Security)
-Major McWaffleface (Permanent 1x -Corruption)
_____________________________
Village: The village, away from it all, with lots of room to settle into and grow. As the only big company in the area you're also the talk of the town, especially regarding Monsters! So keep an eye out!
+Bigger on the inside (1x Starting +Space)
+Greasy hands (1x +Corruption per year)
+Bumpkin Labor-force (+Morale)
-Far away (-Transportation)
-Rumour Mill (-PR)
_____________________________
Ruins: You've decided to build in what once had probably once been a small city but the local Monster activity has made the locals abandon it, only a handful of survivors remaining. With a bit of extermination work you've settled here, and now you can start hunting Monsters!
+I am the law (2x +Corruption per year)
+Free Space. Kinda (2x Starting +Space, 1x +Space per year)
+Deep in No Mans Lands (+Containment)
+Experienced Mercs (+Mercenaries)
-Middle of nowhere (2x -Transportation)
-Monster Rush (-Weaponry)
-Don't wanna go (Permanent 1x -Cash when Hiring scientists)
Choices -Voting closed - 29 voters
VOTES
Ruins
15
Rural City
14
Village
8
Capital
6
Great! We have a source of our money and a place to settle into! Still have some things to do, but right now the most important step is to decide on who will be leading this rather ambitious enterprise!
The Boss's background and skill-set will influence many things, being a potential use to cover for the weaknesses the company may have, or maybe make its strengths more notable! Let's see what we have and make a choice!
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Commander: You came here to chew gum and kick monster ass. And the nice secretary keeps giving you bubblegum so you might as well make sure your underlings are the ones kicking ass.
Ability: Can use +Mercenary instead of Morale. If a Weaponry roll fails, roll again.
Bonuses: +Weaponry, +Mercenary, +Security
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Scientist: This is the discovery of a lifetime! All this new data, all these new specimens! Why, with this you could finally build your doomsday... ahem... device... better get to it!
Ability: If a research roll fails, roll again.
Bonuses: +Science, +Medicine, +Morale
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Banker: There's only one thing in life that matters, and that's money. These creatures are only interesting in that they're untapped potential. And you intend to become filthy rich with them.
Ability: At the end of the year, divide the number of "+Cash" remaining by 3 (rounded up) and add that to the amount available at the start of the next year.
Bonuses: 1x +Cash per year, 1x +Corruption per year
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Corporate Shark: Killing monsters, filing taxes, doesn't matter, a job is a job. Perhaps you don't know anything about any of this fancy talk, but you do know how to keep all the gears going smoothly.
Ability: If a Morale or Cash roll fails, roll again.
Bonuses: +PR, 1x +Cash per year, +Morale
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Mafia Lieutenant: Now, you don't know how the Donn managed it, but being made Boss of a whole company is quite a feat. Now it seems you gotta hunt those monsters and make money. Sounds like a plan.
Ability: If a Black Market or Corruption roll fails, roll again.
Bonuses: 1x +Black Market per year, +Transportation, 1x +Corruption per year
____________________
Zoo Handler: Tigers, elephants, dogs, fire-breathing Monsters... all the same in the day to day. Now that you're working with Monsters however, you better make sure everyone takes the proper precautions.
Ability: If a Containment or Transportation roll fails, roll again.
Bonuses: +Transportation, +Containment, +Medic
So we've picked who will back us up, where we'll be settling down, and who our Boss will be. Great! Now it's time to decide on our specialists! This group of people are men and women who have very specific tasks they give bonuses to.
Having a specialist in the company can also potentially unlock certain activities or actions that'd otherwise not be available. Currently we can only afford three, so choose carefully!
With the ruins having been selected, we have 2x starting +Space, this means we could put that space to use right now. Currently these are the available options:
Mercenary Roll => Dice: 4d20 = 7,14,16,13 (1 success!)
Transportation Roll => Dice: 1d20 = 13 (Success!)
Result:
It takes a bit of waiting, but soon enough you receive a report regarding a battle breaking out between a small horde of Monsters and the military not THAT far away from where you are. You quickly send a team as a cleanup crew.
Luck was on your side this first day on the job, and your team not only managed to catch one of the weaker monsters but also safely bring it in. You go down to the holding hangar to take a peek at the beast in person, having only ever seen the creatures through television and photos. Until now.
"Wait, the report didn't say anything about it breathing fire."
"It... uh... didn't do that out in the field, sir." The goon standing next to you informed, taking a slight step away from the looking glass as the creature kept struggling to escape. "And it was missing a leg... until we got it out of the box apparently."
Regeneration? Fire breathing? Fascinating. You couldn't avoid seeing the possibilities, and why indeed it would be a slightly complicated endeavour to keep it contained. The prospects as to what you could do with it however, were staggering.
Acquired: Fire Monster. Monster Stats: (1x -Containment, 1x -Weaponry)
Medicine roll => Dice: 5d20 = 13,11,6,10,4
Containment roll => Dice: 3d20 = 15,16,7 (2 successes!)
Results:
After several long days of experimenting, keeping it restrained and cutting bits and pieces of it in growing increments, testing its limits and closely watching the results. For a moment you'd thought the only way to kill the thing would've been destroying a vital organ, but as it turns out not only did its regeneration have limitations but also it appeared to slow down until it didn't work at all. In the end the creature died of blood loss while still being held down by iron shackles.
Not for a lack of trying though.
"Anything gleamed from the experimentation?" You asked the man after having been told about the Monster's death.
"Acid seemed to be the only way to keep the wounds from regenerating for a much longer period of time." Came the reply. "The team would like to find more Monsters capable of regeneration to keep testing the limitations, as is we have the corpse and unless sold we'd begin an autopsy to see what we can find from its remains."
Mercenary roll => Dice: 4d20 = 19,2,8,18
Science roll => Dice: 4d20 = 6,20,14,11
Biology roll => Dice: 5d20 = 11,13,20,16,3
EVENT: The Nest
Now more aware of the dangers that these creatures could present, you were painfully reminded that the location you'd chosen was very far off from populated areas. And though it came with a great deal of advantages, it did create a problem in that you were potentially at far greater risk from Monsters showing up in your front lawn than anywhere else.
So you sent all your teams out to scour the area in a growing grid pattern.
A couple hundred miles north of your base of operations, one of the teams sent a warning that they'd found signs of a monster nearby, but had not engaged it yet. Not seeing any reason to take risks, you called up your tech team and after one of them... volunteered... their personal drone, you'd sat behind the videofeed as the flying device approached the nest.
The sight that soon greeted you almost stopped your heart cold.
The creature slightly smaller than the fire breather, but that was not what worried you, it was the eggs, hundreds, perhaps thousands of them. Would each hatch a creature like this one? How long would it take to grow to a comparable size? Fortunately for the volunteer, the monster didn't seem to even pay attention to the device.
You'd hastily ordered to leave some basic surveillance in the area and for everyone to pull back to reassess the situation. An emergency meeting was held and the information spread across the departments, attached with a big question-mark along with it.
Several ideas were thrown around, but the biggest factor about the nest was how long it'd take to hatch, and how easily it could be attacked.
The biology department estimated it'd take a year, two tops, before the things got large enough they'd pose a serious threat. They had initially said four years, until someone pointed out the monster's biology could very well grow without needing to feed on anything because it had been seen to do that on previous instances.
The mercs on the other hand weren't as confident in their claims they'd be able to take the creature on in its nest, not when it was pointed out odds were there was a second one somewhere they'd yet to meet, in close tight spaces involving what looked like some sort of spider-web like substance.
Everyone agreed that waiting for the hatchlings to come was suicidal, and that they'd rather get their hands on better weapons if they ever wanted to get close to that place.
Unlocked: Monster Spawns.
Event Stats:
Attack the Nest: 5x -Mercenary
Zerg Rush: Two Years: 8x -Weaponry
Biology roll => Dice: 5d20 = 16,9,18,15,17
Science roll => Dice: 4d20 = 11,1,17,5
A week, that's how long it had taken them, a god damned week, and from it the fire-breathing monster's remains had been completely processed along the way. Throughout that week you had found yourself looking out the window towards that nest's general direction throughout the day.
Then in came the daily report, they'd done it, they'd found out how the thing managed to breathe fire. Sort of. There were four glands right where the mouth met the throat of the creature, each of them seemed fairly innocuous, more akin to strangely shaped amygdala. Uglier too.
But when an electric current was run through it, a small lighter-strength flame emerged from it. The scientists ran their numbers and tests, two glands rendered useless in the process once they'd been bisected for further inspection.
It was... impossible, by all known rules and laws the things should not work. But it appeared that if a current ran through it, a flame with several times the energy output of that current would come out. Amperage being the determining factor of the heat and voltage for size. Some smart-ass down in the labs had begun to play to see just how big a flame they could make with a couple dozen AAA batteries. And the thing could take in as much electricity as your facility could handle, having it fed the whole grid's worth of power made it shoot out a flame that was hot enough to make the steel beam it had been aimed at to melt within seconds.
The second problem didn't become apparent until the end of the second week, when the things abruptly stopped working. It seemed that, like all organic matter, even these miraculous organisms were prone to decomposition, and the glands in particular were more susceptible than the rest of it.
It was a shame no one had come to understand the precise way it worked, but the mercenaries were quick to point out that it wouldn't matter: If you gathered some more of those things and connected it to the grid, it'd surely do a whole lot of damage to anything attempting to attack the facility. Or if you found a way to power it up while away from the base, it could surely be very useful making sure the nest was dealt with.
Mercenary Roll => Dice: 4d20 = 3,16,7,16
Transportation Roll => Dice: 1d20 = 15
While we certainly needed more fire glands, it left the question on how to efficiently power them. The electricity of the base could power it to some extent, but opening the grid for the purpose of creating the flame could leave us vulnerable in other areas. A simple idea presented itself, if there was a monster that could spew flame, there could also be a monster that generated electricity.
It was a long shot, but it just might work.
The mercenaries were send out on the hunt once again. This time however not looking for any monster to test their mettle against, but a being with a specific power set.
Event:
Time passed and nothing was found, leaving the worry that the gamble had wasted precious time. Then, a single scouting group spotted it. A small creature by monster standards, soaring through the air by some unknown means. It would have been ignored by the mercenaries, had it not summoned a small bolt of lightning at the ground below before landing. Upon inspection the mercenaries found it feasting on a deer. The monster lifting its charred remains with long tentacles and and clumsily tearing at its flesh with messy and elongated jaws.
The mercenaries called in for reinforcements, but the being was finished with his meal long before they arrived. As it took flight, the scouting party leader saw no choice but to open fire. The monsters' flight capabilities and the small number of troops making it impossible to capture without damaging it.
Luckily the men and women managed to take the creature by surprise. Focusing fire on the strange stalks it held aloft like as wings, they managed to down the creature. The monster sustained heavy damage from the fall, and even more from the damage it took as the scouts sought to prevent it from either escaping on foot or turning the tide on its attackers. When the reinforcements arrived the small monster was rife with holes.
During transport the employees did what they could, but whatever arcane regeneration the flame monster possessed, this one did not posses it. By the time it arrived back to base the creature had perished from its wounds.
Acquired: dead electricity monster
Biology Roll => Dice: 5d20 = 8,13,16,17,14
The scientists wasted no time opening up the creature, and were almost turned to dust when a torrent of electricity sprung from the corpse. Luckily nobody was hurt, but it did urge them to proceed with caution and to keep a grounding rod against the corpse at all times.
This monster proved to be equally impossible as the last. The stalks on its back produced a constant stream of electricity even in death. Especially in death, as it seemed the creature had to actively prevent the stalks from roasting the rest of the body. When the brain died, so did that prevention, turning most of the being to a crisped mess within hours. Luckily, it was the stalks themselves that were the important part. All the more since they showed no sign of stopping generating electricity any time soon.
That fact did hinder the rest of the dissection somewhat, but by the end of it the scientists hypothesised that when spread, its appendages created an electrical field that would've been able to keep the monster buoyant. The monster was a living generator, or it would be if it wasn't dead. Like the flame monster, the origin of these powers was an enigma. Somehow these stalks generated an unbelievable amount of electricity out of thin air, and nobody had any idea when or if they'd stop doing it.
Acquired: Two Electric Stalks
Biology Roll=> Dice: 5d20 = 11,16,13,16,14
Of course you don't actually make the scientists try again with rubber gloves, but you make it known to them in no uncertain terms that they'd better find a way to handle the thing without frying themselves.
It takes them a few days to figure it out, but eventually they come up with a plan for a suit that should resist the rampant electricity. It is of fairly straightforward design, and the techs have no problem putting it together.
The safety of the scientists secured, relatively speaking, the dissection can continue. The results are... mixed. As the biologists hack away at the stalk, they simply cannot find anything that could possibly generate such amounts of energy. As much as they are able to tell, the electricity is not being made in the stalk, making it impossible to reverse engineer. Where the stalk gets all that electricity if it did not generate it itself? That is anyone's guess.
There was an upside though, the scientists have determined with reasonable certainty what organ in the stalk the energy was originating from. Even if they cannot determine the source, they claim this knowledge should help in preserving the other stalk for the foreseeable future.
Lost: One electric stalk
Mercenary Roll => Dice: 4d20 = 14,13,15,3
Unlike when looking for the electric monster, this time your mercenaries now what to look for. Still, it takes them weeks of searching until they find another of the flame beasts. The creature puts up a heavy struggle, but luckily this time the mercenaries have no need to keep it alive.
Eventually the transport returns to base, carrying with it one dead monster. The creature is promptly harvested for its glands, but that still leaves a lot of dead meat untouched.
Gained: 4 flame glands
Biology Roll => Dice: 5d20 = 6,3,18,1,18
You immediately order an intensive study of the beast's cells. Studying monsters' organs has so far yielded more questions than answers, it was time to go deeper.
The scientists need to act quickly, the monster decomposes at an alarming rate and so far the company has not managed to create a stable cell line. So time is of the essence.
A week later you receive a memo announcing a breakthrough.
The test results are remarkable, as anything regarding these creatures is. However the scientists have finally found something they can wrap their heads around. They announce that the monster's cells bear a striking resemblance to earth's animals, however with one major difference. The cells contain an extra type of organelle. This new organelle was similar to mitochondria, in that they generated ATP, used as chemical energy. However, where mitochondria were part of the aerobic respiration process to create ATP from oxygen and other reactants, these organelles seemed to produce massive amounts without appearing to consume anything. Even death did not stop the production, which may explain the monsters' rapid decomposition.
These mysterious organelles, dubbed pandorans for now, seemed to be the main source of the monsters' regenerative abilities as well as fueling its flame breath. Some scientists even suggested that a similar process could be taking place in the electric monster. Where instead of using the energy to fuel its flames, it converted it into electrical energy using its stalks. If true, this discovery would open the door on understanding monster physiology, and so soon after their emergence as well.
As groundbreaking as the findings where, they would not save this facility from a horde of newly-hatched monsters. How was the company going to prepare to deal with the nest?
You order the technicians to start figuring out how to combine the stalk and the glands for maximum effect while keeping it transportable. EvilCorp was going to take the fight to the monsters!
While they construct the first monster-based technology, what could the company do to further elevate the odds of victory?
It takes some greasing of the palms, but eventually you coax a nearby cartel into committing a number of men to help fight this monster. They will provide a valuable distraction while your own mercenaries get in position.
+2 Mercenary (temporary)
Weeks pass as you marshal your forces. At last the time to strike is near, what is the main objective? The simpler it is, the more likely it is to succeed.
Mercenary Roll => Dice:
Mercenary Roll => Dice: 4d20 = 7,13,6,11
Sniper Reroll => Dice: 4d20 = 7,13,12,2
The day of reckoning dawns, and the men and women serving EvilCorp are ready to move out. A tension lingers in the air, this is the moment what they spend months preparing for.
The plan is for the company's mercenaries to set up a trap just outside of the nest, while the cartel draws the monster from the safety of its lair.
The mercenaries settle into their ambush, flamethrowers at the ready. It is not until the criminals have been in the nest for some time that they realise something is wrong. The sound of screams emerge from the tunnel. Before long the members of the cartel come sprinting out, their numbers severely decimated. One of them is carrying one of the smaller eggs.
It would seem the cartel had their own plan on what to gain from this mission, and in their eagerness had pushed too far into the nest. As they run, a new sound emerges from the tunnel, and with a loud screech four insect-like limbs protrude from the darkness. The legs sway wildly, one of them raking the man carrying the egg across the back. The man falls and is immediately dragged into the tunnel.
Your mercenaries waste no time to open fire, literally. The newly-created weapon is every bit as destructive as you'd hoped. The torrent of flame it spews forth lighting the glen ablaze. However, due to some inconvenient morals, they direct the fire to avoid the path of the helpless criminals. As such the monster avoids a direct hit, but the searing flame does cause it to screech and retract its legs back into the tunnel. Within which it we can't tell what kind of tricks it may have access too. In a last desperate attempt to slay the beast, the sniper lets loose an explosive round into the hole. A dull sound is heard as it explodes, but it does not seem to have it its mark.
Judging following the monster into the nest too dangerous, the squad leader opts to return to base. The monster lives to nurse its wounds, and the mercenaries return with naught but a single egg to show for it.
Gained: Monster Egg
Monster Spawns Event Stats:
Attack the Nest: 3x -Mercenary
Zerg Rush: One Year: 8x -Weaponry
RESULT
Upon the mercenaries' return you receive a more detailed report on the fight. It irks you. The monster is still alive, the nest is still intact, which means that the threat of a monster horde trampling your young company remains. At least you now have one egg as consolation prize. You do not know for sure what is in it, but you are willing to spend time and resources to find out what it might one day become.
You promptly instruct the technicians to construct an incubation chamber for the egg to reside in. Which will provide the egg with all the warmth and light it needs to develop safely.
Acquired: Incubator with Monster Egg (1x -Containment, 1x -Space)
Mercenary Roll => Dice: 4d20 = 12,6,7,3
Sniper Reroll => Dice: 4d20 = 19,7,20,1
EVENT: Round Two
Once more into the breach. A few weeks later, your troops make their second trip to the ominous nest. Learning from past mistakes, they set up traps to abuse the monster's previous behaviour.
Once again a decoy was send in into the darkness, although this time it was a fast-moving drone. It carefully made its way into the tunnels, and when its camera detected heat-signatures, it flashed its lights and returned to the opening.
The monster had clearly not learned its lesson, it mindlessly came charging to the entrance, once again extending only its long legs past the hole. It was then that the mercenaries sprung their trap. Above the hole sharp metal sheets had been installed, and like guillotines they came down on the legs, severing two of them and injuring the other two. Screeching like the french aristocrats of old, the monster's cry pierced the sky and deafened men. Promptly bursts of fire spew forth from the remaining flamethrowers, but the extended decomposition process had left their flame to be desired. The monster sustained heavy injuries, but lived to try crawling back into the hole from whence it came. Thankfully, this time the sniper was not panicking. She carefully aims her scope and takes the shot when she knows it will hit. An explosive round shoots between the trees, and the monster's head explodes in a shower of gore.
The men cheer. Victory at last.
Within the hour the corpse has been pulled out of the hole, and carefully the nest is explored. Sending in drones first to ensure there are no other monsters, the green light is given and mercenaries pour into the deep. Hundreds, maybe thousands of eggs are found in the deepest recesses of the lair. Attached to wall and ceiling with a strong web-like substance. After much work a number is removed from the nest and brought to the base for study. As many as can be reasonably transported and dissected in what limited space is left available. The rest is torched.
Gained: Spiderweb sample
Biology Roll => Dice: 5d20 = 5,13,3,17,2 (1 success!)
Containment Roll => Dice: 4d20 = 2,19,10,19 (2 successes!)
RESULT
The recovered eggs were too many too contain in the new incubator. As such all surplus were readied for dissection.
It is only a few hours later when you are called to the lab. An enthusiastic scientists is immediately in your face, shouting: "They are not eggs!!!"
You calm the frantic labcoat down and demand an explanation.
It seems that upon dissecting the eggs, what they found was not embryos or spider-monsters, but animals. The scientist shows a rabbit being pulled from within the hard shell, unmoving and covered in slime, but still alive. At least, until it was pulled out, after which it died within minutes. The same was true for the other eggs. Badgers, wild dogs, even a small deer. All of trapped within the monster's eggs. More notably, all sporting some deformity or another. Not much, but enough to realise their time in the egg had been changing them.
"They are not eggs!" The scientiest repeats loudly uncomfortably close to your ear. "They are cocoons!"
You order a more extensive dissection of the wildlife, as well as of the monster itself. You shake your head. EvilCorp achieves revelation after revelation, yet all only serve to bring more questions. You sigh and continue on the paperwork of this latest of what will become many more grand adventure.
Around a month later, alarms begin to flare. You immediately jump out of bed and prepare yourself for combat. Yet when you leave your quarters the sounds have stopped. You learn that there was an attempted breach at the incubator room. The first egg -now known to be a cocoon- had hatched. Revealing a monstrous spider-like being. A smaller yet near exact copy of the original monster. It was a blessing the alarms caught its movement. A loose monster at the base would have been a disaster. Instead it was soon restrained. An examination by your scientists reveal the young specimen to already be capable of producing silk, which it does with gusto as it tries to entrap the people behind the glass who are prodding at it.
Earlier research of the sample of the original revealed the silk to be many times stronger than steel of equivalent width, and had a tensile strength putting anything made by man to shame.
Nevertheless, a monster was a monster. Even if they were small. Especially if there was no telling how much it could grow, or how fast.
Over the course of the next month, more of the cocoons hatch. It would seem that the favorable conditions of the incubator really sped up the process. What would have taken another year in the nest was reduced to mere weeks here. As they hatch, your technicians and workers convert the incubator into something else. Something capable of restraining the juvenile monsters and extracting the silk from their bodies, at least as long as they are periodically mutilated to prevent escape. These spider-monsters did not have the same regenerative abilities as the flame monster, but it seemed all monsters possessed them to at least some extent.
The spider silk is a big hit on the market. Nothing man-made even comes close. In this time where construction crew regularly need to repair the rampages of monsters, and military organisations struggle to contain monsters for long enough to study them. EvilCorp's first product seems like a godsend.
And the world will soon need those more than ever.
Incubation chamber => Silk farm
Gained: Silk Farm (+1x Cash per year)
[YEAR 1 END]
[TIME SKIP, YEAR 5 START]
Four years have passed, the monsters continued to rampage in the world. The government and the paramilitary corporations tried their hardest to contain them, but the monsters were simply too many and too strong.
Despite their best efforts, it seemed it just wasn't enough. There were strongholds and areas that were secure, notably those where the corporations dealing with monsters had set up shop. But bit by bit they were falling to the ever growing number of monsters.
Then they appeared.
A small number of young women rose up from the populace. Often literally.
At the beginning the reports had been dismissed as… nonsense or faulty to a point. Once and again came in news of young women suddenly showing up to fight monsters with powers of their own. More often than not beating them and pushing back! It was ludicrous to say the least, but the greater the number of reports regarding this fact the harder it was to ignore.
Then a video was leaked from a government source. The feed showed a young woman.
The girl was wreathed in fire, appearing to originate from her body in the same manner as the already documented monster 4R-34, categorized as a High-Tier Monster the sighting of which should immediately lead to mass evacuation. Also lovingly dubbed "The weird fucking cackling fire demon from the pits of hell".
You couldn't believe your eyes, and neither did the researchers, less so as she managed to single-handedly defeat the small horde of monsters that had been responsible for destroying several cities already. Granted, with the help of the military, but she'd been the one taking the fight TO the monsters and keeping them away from the far squishier humans.
Needless to say, everyone's attention was directed to the reports after that moment.
These girls and women started battling the monsters, one on one being always a victory, defeat only appearing when severely outnumbered. They possessed immense strength, durability and abilities that could only be called magic much like the monsters had, they pushed back against the tide and brought new hope to the populace. Hope that the companies never quite managed to inspire. Even as more powerful monster appear every day, more and more 'magical girls' rise up to stop them. Their origin is unknown, their abilities are impossible, yet their power is undeniable.
Though on the PR front things have remained stale thanks mostly to these magical girls taking the spotlight. EvilCorp had never fared better. The silk-sale reached new heights in the intervening years. Construction material, monster traps, body armour, all of it sustained and improved by the monsters' silk. Still, there was a looming threat in the horizon. The 'magical girls' may have begun saving the world from annihilation -for now- yet they constitute a real risk to your bottom-line. Despite the gains from the silk production, much of your income still depends on 'Humanity's Hope'-fund, EvilCorp's very existence hinges on it being needed by the governments at large. Should these women be the real deal, should they proclaim themselves as the true 'humanity's hope' and successfully defeat these hordes, your company's future could very well be in doubt.
Gained Mandatory Reinforced Monster Silk uniform: 1x +Weaponry; 1x +Security; 1x +Mercenary.
Gained Advanced Monster Restraints: 1x +Containment
You've been busy these past four years, your headquarters having been expanded as you grew. Pick the 5 extensions that have been attained throughout this time:
Choices -Voting closed - 21 voters
PR Dice => Dice: 2d20 = 16,15
Recruits Roll => Dice: 3d4 = 3,4,1
Extensions to your base are not the only things you've been keeping up to date with, with the help of your psychologist and human resources, you've managed to ensnare hire new personnel.
Pick 4.
Obviously you are not the only CEO who realised the ramifications the magical girls' existence would have on the monster-slaying market. These individuals threatened every company's existence, however those companies that had survived years of facing down living nightmares were not going to roll over and die because of a few girls in skimpy outfits. Every company that was determined to survive in this new world would soon be expected to switch to more aggressive methods or risk being swallowed up. Results never mattered more, and when you were unable to achieve your own there was always the option of 'borrowing' someone else's.
EVENT: Corporate Espionage
Your new sales rep tells you as much when he informs you he suspects there to be a corporate spy working in your midst. Unless found soon, the company risks losing secrets to the competition, or worse, those secrets could be released to the public and create a PR disaster. Your monopoly on the monster silk has allowed you to weather the storm, losing that monopoly puts the entirety of EvilCorp at risk. How will you handle the situation?
Corporate Spy Stats: -2x Security
Cash roll => Dice: 3d20 =19,14,16 (3 successes!)
Security roll => Dice: 4d20 = 14,19,17,14 (2 successes!)
You hire a decent cyber-security expert to assist your own team in searching for any espionage attempt. Sure enough, after few days of data-crunching they notice an unapproved transmission leaving the base. They quickly track the source to an employee in the new sales department. The man in question is quickly and discreetly detained and interrogated.
Apparently he was working for a company called 'Tiburon Rojo', a smaller organisation that has not been doing well for a while now. It seems they were finally desperate enough to try make for the secret of EvilCorp's silk. Thankfully you intercepted the spy before he could do any real harm.
Now, what do you do with him?
Morale Roll => Dice: 3d20 = 10,14,14 (2 successes!)
It takes some incentives, such as a comprehensive dental package, but you soon convince the clerk to switch allegiances back to EvilCorp. Obviously Triburon Rojo does not know their spy has been compromised, which provides a rather enticing opportunity.
How will you use your new pawn?
RESULT
You send your pawn to work, closely guarded by your security, of course. Once a traitor... A few weeks pass and your competitor doesn't seem to have caught on, rather they are eating up the spy's info like they were the shipwrecked crew of the Méduse. Desperately stocking up on the leaked materials like it was fresh water. You'd think them incompetent, but you suppose it is merely desperation turning otherwise intelligent people rash. You figure that soon enough, you'd be able to attempt a hostile takeover. After which the stockpiled materials sitting in Triburon Rojo's warehouses -worthless to them, useful to EvilCorp- will come in quite handy.
Acquired: 2nd base in Rural city after timeskip
EVENT: Mad Science
It has been years since the pandora event, yet although scientists have extracted numerous new discoveries from monsters' bodies, none have yet managed to give insight in where the creatures came from. Their sudden appearance and strange abilities defy the laws of thermodynamics, with no one understanding where they energy generated by the 'pandoran' organelles comes from. It seems conventional science has not yet caught on to the new world order, what can EvilCorp do to urge its researchers to think outside of the box?
Hiring roll => Dice: 3d20 = 18,5,3 (1 success!)
Science roll => Dice: 5d20 = 5,16,14,13,9 (0 successes!)
You spend a large amount of capital looking for any discredited scientists that might actually be able to help you. Although most of that money is spend keeping things discreet. If word got out you sought advice from pseudoscience no research facility in the world would take you seriously anymore.
Eventually you find a woman who looks promising. You promptly hire her and have her brought to the company.
"So, ms. Cruise," you begin. "You claimed to know more about these monsters. What can you tell me about them?"
"Well, the first thing you should know is that they are not really monsters. They are the souls of long-dead aliens. Who landed on this world after the great space war. It is only human suffering and cruelty that turns them into physical beings that seek to end the source of their pain."
You look at the woman for a moment, then promptly push a button and calmly watch as a trap door opens under the visitors' seat and Ms. Cruise disappears from sight.
Biology roll = Dice: 3d20 = 5, 7, 5 (Fail)
Security roll = Dice: 4d20 = 17, 15, 6, 10 (Success!)
RESULT
Feeling particularly salty for that waste of money, you think this would be the perfect time for live experimentation on human subjects. Luckily all that effort to hide EvilCorp hiring a pseudoscientist also guarantees noone will know of her being here.
You have the biologists prepare one of the spiderlings, allowing it to heal and regenerate its legs before you expose the subject to it. Once it is ready, you lock in a containment cell and after a while shove the test subject into it.
The female screams as she sees the monster, then huddles into a ball as if it would protect her. The monster however, does not immediately pounce. Instead it gently steps forward. Its new legs shaking lightly on the hard floor. It moves close to the female and seems to watch it with an alien curiosity.
After a few moments, the female peers through her eye-lids. Staring at the monster so close to her.
"T-thetan, I come in peace," she stammers, hope coming to light in her eyes.
The monster tears her face of.
Screams of pain and fear are quickly silenced as a sickening crunch echoes through the intercom. Blood spatters over the window, obscuring the grizzly scene from sight.
You order the scientists to make a note that it seemed the monster had been hungry from not having eaten in awhile. And that if we do the experiment again it should be well fed first to ensure that wasn't the determining factor of the… gruesome results. You may be many things, but sloppy is not one of them.
Then you leave.
The experiment yielded little helpful results, making the whole thing a waste of time and resources. However at least the security team managed to keep the onorthodox experiment hidden from the general work-load, safeguarding them from inconvenient questions of self-doubt and morality.
All in all, this could have been a lot worse.
EVENT: Field Trip
A few biologists come to you asking for the opportunity to observe the monsters in the wild. This to discover their behaviour and their social interactions with one another. That is assuming the beings can act like anything other than living weapons, but you suppose that is what the field trip is for.
Do you allow them to accompany your mercenaries on a hunt, and what are your mercenaries hunting?
Mercenary roll => Dice: 4d20 = 4,15,15,13 (2 successes!)
Biology roll => Dice: 5d20 = 16,1,10,3,12 (3 successes!)
RESULT
The exploratory group heads out in search of new monsters. This time to observe rather than to kill. This allows your mercenaries to focus on guarding the fragile scientists. They will need it due to their inexperience and their desire to lug around all of their equipment.
After a while you get a report back. The team did discover a new monster. A very fast and very aggressive one. Luckily your scouts caught its presence in time, and pulled out to a safe distance before a confrontation occurred. The scientists eagerly set up their equipment and started noting the creature's habits, all the while being guarded by nervous mercenaries who had felt death's breath on their neck. To say the two groups were annoyed by one another was and understatement.
The new monster was sleek, heavily armed, and most notably, afloat and teleporting.
This was by far the weirdest monster encountered so far, and your scientists gleefully studied it. The up-close encounter really paid off, as they returned safely with a wealth of information.
Firstly, although the monsters seemed ruled by savagery, when away from humans they adopted more animal-like behaviour. They sniffed, they ate and very rarely they interacted with others of their kind without smashing and slicing everything nearby. This led some scientists to conclude that whatever they are, they are not Bioweapons engineered to destroy all life. Although they still hunted/hated humans and other wildlife with a passion.
Their second observation was a certain type of fruit the monsters seemed highly attracted to. One of them was seen teleporting all up a tree just to get one high-hanging piece. A later collection and observation of the fruits noted that, much like the monsters, these plants were new to this world. They still grew from regular trees though, so the scientists carefully collected them in bio-containers, hoping to uncover their nature and why the monsters were obsessed by them.
The third observation was specific to this type of monster. It teleported all over the place. -Really at this point nothing these things do surprise you anymore- Your scientists proved the use of all their equipment and took massive readings of the area. Nothing everything from light spectrum to air quality. With any luck your tech guys can figure something out from these readings. Surely teleportation leaves some tracks?
Biology roll => Dice: 5d20 = 3,14,20,9,13 (3 successes!)
Science roll => Dice: 6d20 = 20,18,16,10,18,3 (4 successes!)
After a month or two, your biologists have not yet figured out how a regular tree can sprout those alien fruits, but test showed the fruit invoked similar responses to the held spiderlings. Because of that the scientists decided to to plant one of the seeds within a rudimentary greenhouse. Within a short while something sprouted. However, this was not the tree that grew the original fruit, instead it was an odd plant-like structure no botanist on payroll recognized. The fact that it had reached a couple meters of height and two thirds of a meter thick within a handful of months very clearly put it outside anything anyone had even heard of.
It was kept under tight quarantine, but one day it started bearing fruits near-identical to the one that came before it. If these fruits had such an interesting behavioural effect on monsters, this could turn out to be an asset. At least as long as monsters didn't decide to swarm the base in search of the things. Better double-check the air-vents and make sure everything that leaves the room is put through decontamination.
The science team also produced results. They analyzed the readings the field team took, and they think they have isolated a kind of radiation the monster emits when it teleports. In time, they're sure they could incorporate this knowledge into a device tho pin-point the the monster's location whenever it makes one of its 'jumps'. At least within a certain area. That way the mercenaries will be able to hunt this type of monster again with ease, or at least not be ambushed by it.
Gained: Monster baits (Greenhouse; 1x -1 Space); Teleport Tracker (In the making)
EVENT: Bitch, shut up!
During a field test using the lures to attempt to draw monsters AWAY from a populated area they were headed to, a magical girl got involved in the operation and killed it.
Since your objective had been originally to capture it alive for study, or as intact as possible, the pulp the girl had turned it into was considered an overall failure to the mission. Doubly so since she'd engaged before results could be drawn from the lure's testing.
After having arranged the whole thing with the military so they'd be backup in case things got out of hand, this third party involvement had left you with a bitter taste in your mouth.
But this was not the end of it. Apparently the super-powered masked self-proclaimed heroine was not content with having ruined the operation but also called EvilCorp out. The girl had a vlog and her latest piece was a half-hour long rant, the gist of it being her publicly denouncing you for your inability to handle things on your own despite being a government funded corporation built with that very purpose.
Things did not go well as it became viral.
Now the PR backlash is brutal with many giving outcries of full blown transparency regarding what kind of activities EvilCorp does and how are they aid in saving humanity. This same group of very loud people are also very readily ignoring any publicly available reports regarding your successes in this field, only to press on and suggest you go full non-profit.
It's been gaining enough momentum that your backers have told you in no uncertain terms your funds could very well get cut off! You need to do something and quickly before this escalates any further. Doubly troublesome being that 'Vladdie' the heroine is riding the cusp of the popularity wave and continues her attacks, broadening her targets as she repeatedly denounces the corporations as one massive waste of tax-payer money across the globe.
Hiring someone to investigate => Dice: 1d20 DC 12= 6 (Fail)
Psychologist Reroll => Dice: 1d20 = 18 (Success!)
Investigation roll (+Corruption) => Dice: 4d20
DC15 = 18,17,12,15 (Success)
RESULTS:
It's a potential disaster in the making, one which the girl was only so happy to capitalize on, claiming that the magical girls were doing all the work with none of the benefits or payment, that without them humanity would have been eaten already and that they were doing it exclusively for their own desire to do good from the bottom of their hearts.
You'd rolled your eyes and kept your mouth shut about the sort of revenue the girl was probably making just from her vlog's popularity as well as the great increase of "accidental" product placements she'd had on her videos.
Instead you fought fire with fire, and once you'd spoken with legal and the Sales Rep for advice, you made a video of your own.
Starting simply, it starts with a brief summary of your company's results. You admit to not having the sort of firepower that 'Vladdie' had and as such would be unable to kill as many monsters as she has. After this you bring out the good stuff, listing not only the great number of products your silk production had created but also the estimates of number of lives saved from the protective gear only your company made. The math had been done, and thanks to the international reach of your silk, the estimated number of lives you'd saved made 'Vladdie' look like a speck of dust. Triply so when she was amongst the least active heroes. Honestly, she'd had done you a big favour by keeping an online vlog detailing her monster-killing activities.
Then you capitalized the by calling Vladdie out, well, not directly, but rather offering her a position in EvilCorp as a second independent mercenary team within the ranks. Very handsomely paid by most people's standards (though not as much as her vlog paid her, you made sure of this), as well as adding that her contract would make mandatory that she: "Include reports regarding missions against monsters and the totality of their results including collateral damage estimates be posted in her vlog on a weekly basis".
Because besides her ego, a little something 'Vladdie' didn't seem to have paid much attention was that her sonic based magical bullshit made for a great deal of collateral whenever she fought in populated areas. She seemed a greater enemy to glass than to Monsters.
Needless to say, she shut up very quickly, only giving a brief 'Sorry but no' vlog update before going silent until the public's focus on her had died out.
You'd give yourself a pat in the back if you felt like you needed reassurance of your skills.
Regardless, you weren't going to just forgive and forget, this was one instance and there could be more. No doubt more trouble like this could arise at any moment, so you sought a discreet private eye your psychologist had recommended and hired him to investigate 'Vladdie'.
It took him well over a month, but the report was comprehensive.
Named Erica Brown, the girl was nineteen an had a small flat near the outskirts of the city where you'd been running the operation and had neither the most perfect of attendance records nor grades back when she studied. As of right now she also had neither a job nor was she studying anything.
Cross referencing her life with her vlog and reports involving sonic using magical girls turned out that Erica had begun being active as a monster killer about a year after the first monsters showed up, a year after which she'd been estranged by her family and she'd begun her life as 'Vladdie', using videos to gain internet popularity and money through ad revenue.
She was a solitary kind of girl, little friends, very private to herself. But online? She was outgoing, witty, and very opinionated about a lot of things. Your psychologist pointed out this likely meant she'd been bullied and socially suppressed during her formative years and just now was having a taste of social acceptance/fame and was getting drunk in it.
Study of her shifts in things like attire and fighting style cemented that she gave a lot of value to public opinion and craved further popularity, even going as far as pointlessly prolonging fights to make for greater suspense.
Also with the report came further details regarding her habits, places she'd often visit, and people she had the most contact with. All in all a very productive use for your money.
You'd considered immediately using this information in some way, but decided against it, for now the waters were hot and you'd just avoided a potential PR disaster, this information was of much greater value once 'Vladdie' and your own company were no longer under public scrutiny.
The time might come when you could put it to use though, you'd just have to be patient about it.
[YEAR 5 END]
Erica Brown Interlude
Over the years and once things had cooled down, you'd decided to use your knowledge about miss Erica Brown to...
Corruption roll => Dice: 4d20 DC18 = 13,3,1,20 (Success)
Medicine roll => Dice: 5d20 DC18 = 15,1,3,17,10 (Fail)
Science roll => Dice: 6d20 DC18 = 13,2,9,7,9,9 (Fail)
Morale roll => Dice: 3d20 DC10 = 8,14,8 (Success)
You want to keep things discreet, and above all, out of your hair. So it's by going through great lengths that you hire a team of experts to infiltrate and extract samples from Erica. Skin, hair, blood (if possible), all that stuff.
Hey, you wanted to be done with her, but you weren't going to squander potential new leads!
It's a rather tiresome endeavour that takes several months to set up, a complication being the target's lack of activity outside her home. Still, she eventually does go out to kill some Monsters that had gotten too close for confort and the team swoops in.
The mission is over within the hour, all sorts of samples gathered from around her apartment including (disgustingly) used tampons and pads. Not the blood you were looking for, but...
The science team isn't thrilled either, there were actual outcries about why you hadn't just kidnapped the bitch that almost very nearly destroyed the company and were now instead having to work with what was basically biological waste instead. You kept your comment and a quick reminder about what happened to the previous "scientist" who'd disappointing you set them back in line quickly.
Didn't stop them from bitching about it when they thought you weren't listening.
Some science got done, tests were made, about a month of going over the same things over and over until all the samples had been used up occurred and a report was brought to your desk.
It was enlightening if not disappointing at the same time.
They'd found out that the samples, much like a monster's, degraded quickly. And, also just like a monster's, the cell structure was almost an exact match if not some slight variations the likes of which were already present between individual monsters.
The news was disturbing even if expected to a point. How else could they be accomplishing such incredible feats if not because their bodies worked in some similar fashion than the Monsters?
Unfortunately, that was the end of the good news.
Bad news was there was nothing else they managed to get out of it. If you wanted to learn more about the secrets these girls had, it seemed you'd need more than just some dead skin cells and used hygiene products.
Oh well, you'll have other opportunities probably.
[INTERLUDE END]
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