5 Parsecs - into the belt.

To quickly recap; the crew of the Hermes are in pursuit of evil scientists from Blackwell Biometals who are conducting experiments on prisoners to develop adaptive biotech armour (Project Chrysalis). In the previous episodes, clues directed them to a secret facility in the asteroid belt and so they make haste to the spaceport to blast-off for asteroid X754E.

Turn 19 - Q'arr strikes back

Things are never simple for the Hermes crew as this is the moment former "business partner" Q'arr has chosen to launch a major attack on their ship in revenge for a deal gone wrong. He's loaded-for-bear by sending two merc teams and an elite merc to destroy the ship.   

Crew moves towards the space port

Under attack from two sides the team opt not to rush straight for the ship but take- up a position in a building overlooking the entrance to the space port. 

Crew takes up position

The Mercs rushed forward into heavy fire from the crew and were soon pinned down. Lacking much motivation they withdrew once the casualties started to build. Silas was stunned but the crew was otherwise ok.   

Skulker Mercs advance with covering fire from an elite Merc

Turn 20 - X54E, Blackwell facility

Very strong magnetic storms near the facility meant the crew had to land a few clicks away and finish the journey on foot. The storms have attracted "Distorts", strange beings who are partly between this dimension and subspace. They can phase through terrain and have attacks that bypass even the best armour.  

All quiet at Blackwell's facility

Distorts - mindless but deadly on mass

The crew advanced across the frozen surface, looking to find shelter from the intense storms. The Distorts are attracted to electrical activity and so zeroed in on the team as they neared the facility.   

After a desperate struggle the crew staged a fighting withdraw in the face of the relentless horde. Sera and Skor were wounded but using their Luck were able to keep moving and make it to the safely of the facility.   

Fighting wirgdrawal

The gunfire and explosions was not to go unnoticed though. A team of Enforcers were deployed from a nearby Unity base monitoring the sector - they will need dealing with before the base can be properly searched.