Mission Zero: The Hunt for Ortov

M0:C1 - Training Grounds

• Context: The Defiant Order, newly formed and freshly trained, is assigned to the Genesis Battlecruiser Harlegand under the command of Field Commander Oshiro Williams.
• Mission Briefing:
• The squad is tasked with capturing Dr. Ivan Ortov, a rogue Genesis scientist. Ortov’s experiments in psionics have made him a high-value target, particularly for the knowledge he holds.
• His last known location is Tedeau Point, a backwater settlement on the planet Ruetis.
• Squad Dynamics: Initial introductions reveal the squad’s personalities, from Marty’s boisterous enthusiasm to Rizz’s flirtatious demeanor, setting the tone for future interactions.

M0:C2 - Assemblage

• The Search Begins:
• Upon landing on Ruetis, the squad quickly learns that Ortov is being sheltered by a local gang.
• Following leads at Turner’s Well, a rough local bar, they identify Marc, a pilot preparing to extract Ortov. Through a mix of strategy and technical skills, the squad traces Ortov’s call to his location.
• Initial Confrontation:
• The team battles their way through gang territory, discovering that Ortov’s hideout is more heavily defended than expected.
• Xander and Caliban, reinforcements sent in via drop-pods, bolster the team’s strength for the final push into Ortov’s bunker.

M0:C3 - The Doctor Has Left

• Ortov’s Hideout:
• The squad breaches Ortov’s bunker, a chaotic, eerie space filled with cryptic writings, psionic research, and strange star charts. Key phrases include:
  • “22 Sectors. Here. Pillar. Over. New Sun.”
  • “Celestial Noise.”
  • “Seven Two Three Two Three Send.”
• They find a restrained young woman connected to a cocktail of psionic stabilizers, inhibitors, and enhancers. She is radiating powerful psionic energy and appears to be the source of the mysterious disturbances on Ruetis.
• Ortov’s Rantings:
• Ortov, blinded and mentally fractured, delivers an ominous and fragmented monologue:
  • “Do you hear it? The music that lets you see everything?”
  • “I need to build a temple so silent the universe speaks its nature aloud.”
  • “What was this all for, Athena? I did what you asked. YOU PROMISED ME.”
• He threatens suicide but is killed by Rizz in an act of ruthless efficiency. His head is retrieved for Genesis, prioritizing knowledge over life.
• The Prophecy:
• As the young woman enters a psionic outburst, her voice shifts between intelligible phrases and untranslatable language. Key lines from her prophecy include:
  • “The Castle of Consciousness is dying. Whispers send kingdoms tumbling.”
  • “House of Dust, Land of Bone. House of Fire, Land of Blood. Witchcraft, Witchcraft, Witchcraft.”
  • “Messummur calls your fate.”
  • “You’ll cry tears that fall up to the sky while wrathful Gods chant your name.”
  • “No refuge in between your deaths.”
• Her words suggest a connection to cosmic forces, ancient cycles, and foreseen calamities tied to Messummur and other key locations.

Mission Zero Climax and Aftermath

• Psionic Awakening:
• The woman’s outburst bends reality, causing the environment to distort and stretch. The team barely stabilizes her condition as her heart flatlines temporarily.
• Sonic Ronin, a gang leader, attacks during the extraction, but the squad eliminates him and destroys Ortov’s lab to cover their tracks.
• A Test?:
• Extraction delays lead Val to speculate that the mission’s chaos was partially orchestrated by Genesis leadership to gauge the squad’s competence under duress.