Good morning, sir! We've made landfall on Mars. We are currently in a small canyon system at the western end of Valles Marineris. Records show that the last thumper probes launched by the Ares II were targeted around this general area. We suspect the ship was destroyed to prevent detection of an underground terrorist base, though as you know we're unsure about the method of attack -- the Ares II was quite capable of defending itself from any ship a terrorist should be able to obtain!
My initial scans show no signs of wreckage on the planet or in orbit. The aerobraking section we left in orbit is deploying an array of military satellites to help us survey the planet, and I have also taken the liberty of deploying a net of probes to follow possible trajectories the wreckage might have taken if it were knocked out of orbit and into deep space. You've got a lot of ground to cover, and since we have probably been seen by any terrorists in the area, you should expect company fairly soon -- the canyon system will provide the terrorists MANY wonderful opportunities for ambush. Find the base and insert the uplink chip from the rear of the shuttle in the first terminal you find. That will allow me to get access to their systems and help you out. Your artificial lung should have no problem keeping your tissues oxygenated, even in the Martian atmosphere, though you'll definitely be taxing your systems. You can thank the terraforming effort and your high ratio of cybernetic to organic systems for not needing your oxygen tank. Oh, and I should mention that I can only provide you with two shield energy rechargers, which are in the back with the weapons. Energy this far from the sun is at a premium! Good luck, marine!
Looks like you caused a power surge that fried the communications circuits in the base. Unfortunately, the base still has strong power, and it appears the new equipment installed atop the sensor tower is receiving power beamed from a location on the Martian surface. This is a major concern to UPNC control. They consider it a top priority that we find this outpost. We must learn the capabilities of these aliens, and prevent them from establishing a staging area on Mars from which to launch attacks -- if they haven't already. My orbital cameras have located the transmitter, and we can be there soon. Better get buckled in, I'm going to take off as soon as you're ready. I may have to move fast, if we come under fire from the surface. I'll get you shut down and secured so I don't have to worry about damaging you. Oh, by the way -- still no sign of the Ares II. But then, the addition of aliens to the equation complicates things considerably. They may have ships out there with weapons advanced enough to completely destroy an enemy ship. If the debris were reduced to a molecular level, it would have dispersed long before we arrived. I think the search for the Ares II has taken on less importance. I have reconfigured all my orbital sensors to systematically examine all space near Mars. It will take a while, but I don't want to miss spotting an alien ship. Batten down the hatches!
So how does it feel to be the first human to encounter non-terrestrial life forms? It must be exhilarating, and yet quite a crushing blow that they would be so immediately hostile. My limited understanding of emotion does not, I'm sure, do justice to what you must be feeling. It seems clear that this site was once a CPS base, as the construction appears human in origin. However, on preliminary surveys using the base's security monitors, there appears to be no sign of the former inhabitants. There appear to be a number of other aliens throughout the complex, though I'm having trouble deciphering geography -- the central computer, which would have stored schematics of the complex, is not visible on the network. So all I'm able to see is bits and pieces, with no understanding of relative positions. I'm trying to piece things together into a coherent map, but that may take a while. The cliffside sensor tower where you found a network port appears to have undergone some renovations. There's a new piece of equipment atop the cliff that does not appear to be human in design. I'm not sure what the purpose of this equipment is, but I'm working on that. I think the best thing to do would be to continue to explore. We need to gather more information to allow UPNC Command to properly assess the situation. I'm relaying what you have found so far, in case we fail to return. If you can find a security chip and open the command center systems, it will help me get more information about the complex by giving me access to more systems. Unfortunately, I don't know where to find a security card, or even if there is one left here.
Hydroponics maintenance system ready. ERROR: Routine sample testing shows contaminants in system. Running system diagnostics... Water inflows - OK Water outflows - OK Water circulation system - OK Nutrient delivery system - UNKNOWN HARDWARE VERSION Temperature regulation - +13 DEGREE C. ERROR Lighting control - UNKNOWN HARDWARE VERSION ERROR RATE CRITICAL: Advise immediate maintenance.
I'm not sure I want to know why CPS needed four reactors here -- but let's make sure they won't get used again. Once you've destroyed the circuits and shut them down, the temperature will start dropping. Eventually, the water in each reactor will freeze and destroy the most important components.
I have full access to the security systems now. The complex and its systems were heavily damaged in fighting between CPS terrorists and aliens. In fact, I've located one surviving terrorist, who does not seem to be 100% lucid. I know you'd probably love to coerce some information out of him, but the door to his quarters seems to be jammed. I think we need to cut power to this complex to prevent its use in the future. I managed to open the door leading to the power plant -- it's just down the hall from the armory. Get down there and smash the control circuits for the fusion mini-reactors.
I've been studying your attackers through surveillance channels. The aliens that have been attacking you in largest numbers seem to be insectile, though they must have much more sophisticated internal structures than Earthly insects. They seem to be quite hardy, as they appear to be fairly at-home on the surface of Mars with very little protective gear. They appear to have four different hierarchic groups in their social structure. They can be identified by the colors of their exoskeletons, though whether the color determines their place in society or vice versa is impossible to say.
The aliens possess what appear to be robots composed of a small hovering core inside some kind of hologram/shield matrix. The capabilities of these robots is unknown, though they appear to be flexible enough to be able to link into human computer systems with ease. It will be difficult to perform analysis of these robots, as the core appears to be utterly destroyed in the energy release when the matrix collapses.
A few simpler human-designed drones appear to be under the control of the aliens. Though these robots were likely used for building, installing and maintaining electronic systems, they appear to have been modified to posses mild energy weapons.
I'm still unsure about these. They seem to possess very little intelligence. Perhaps they are a larval form of the aliens? Or they might be a food animal. In any case, they do not appear to be a serious threat, though they could probably nibble you to death if you let them.
interlevel teleports
