The First Job (Leviathan)

Leviathan Logo

## Recurring NPCs

Vestri Ruslan, Saleer research assistant

Dr. Jessalyn Teagan, leader of the research team

Ortwin Topaz, human research assistant

"The First Job" is the first episode of the first season of Leviathan: Distant Stars.

## Summary

We are introduced to the crew of the Bat'leth: Hexie Kate, Kika, Theea Brone, and the captain, Xe'anna. They've been hired by a group of scientists to travel, along with ICA Guardian Lt. Conrad Carls Jr, to a mysterious wreckage beyond the edges of known space. On the wreckage they discover hundreds of pods containing strange blue creatures, and after Kika begins powering systems the creatures awaken and attack. All of the scientists are mortally wounded, and Xe'anna takes a deep claw strike to the shoulder. When the fight ends the crew realizes one of the unconscious scientists has begun to change, taking on characteristics of the blue creatures. Determining there is nothing they can do to halt the transformation, Xe'anna kills him.

## Full Episode Plot

The episode opens with the crew of the Bat'leth - Hexie Kate, Kika, Xe'anna, and Theea - en route to a massive wreckage as part of their job to transport and protect a group of three scientists and one ICA Guardian, Lt. Conrad Carls Jr.

When they arrive at the wreckage, it is many, many times larger than the Bat'leth. Comparable to a warship cruiser. Massive portions of the ship are missing, and it's surrounded by debris. The interior remains slightly pressurized, with a slight but not life-supporting atmosphere. However all scans show the wreckage to be devoid of biological matter or what they know to be electrical power. The wreckage itself is unlike anything any of them have ever seen before. The scientists speculate it to be 3 to 4 tritium years old.

The crew and Lt. Carls Jr argue about the possible dangers aboard, Xe'anna concerned about automated defense systems, Kika and Theea worrying over the possibility of Spirates, and Lt. Carls Jr declaring them all foolish for worrying when the ship is clearly just an ancient wreckage.

   After cautioning the crew about what they touch, Xe'anna flies the ship into a large area at one end, surrounded by massive tendrils, which appears as if it may be a docking bay. As they dock with the wreckage, Xe'anna, Hexie Kate, and Lt. Carls Jr notice a second wreckage, still much larger than the Bat'leth, ensnared in and skewered on the tendrils of the main wreck.

After the Bat'leth has docked, the crew and Lieutenant help the scientists carry their cargo from the Bat'leth to their chosen base of study. In the process, Hexie reveals her telekinetic powers by using them to lift and move pieces of scientific equipment.

The scientists set themselves up in what appears to be a large, central hub of the wrecked ship. Once there, Kika manages to reconnect parts in a console that turns on a small amount of power in that region of the ship. Excited, the scientists express a desire to continue powering on small systems in the hope of extracting data from the vessel.

After Xe'anna and Lt. Carls Jr express concern that this could power on defensive systems aboard, the scientists insist care will be taken to only turn on small systems one at a time for testing purposes. Xe'anna takes Kika aside to instruct her, at the first sign of trouble, to cut the power.

The scientists set up their equipment and, once they are underway, Theea begins to case the room but finds nothing to access or steal. Kika leaves her perch on Xe'anna's back to assist the scientists and look around, freeing up Xe'anna to leave the room and begin walking the halls looking for anything suspicious or dangerous seeming. Hexie begins composing a song on her comm pad. Conrad tries to assist the scientists, but is eventually replaced by Kika.

Kika manages to get one of the consoles powered on, revealing a map of the nearby section of the ship. When the scientists selection a section, the hallway Xe'anna is moving through begins to power on with a soft, blue bio-luminescent glow along the spines that line the corridor. In the light she finds a slightly open door leading into another room and, shining a light through the opening, sees rows of raised floor-to-ceiling columns.

Xe'anna pushes the door open and discovers the room is significantly larger than the one she left the scientists in, filled with these columns and several other exits along the sides. The room is unlit. Getting closer to one of the columns, she sees they are tube-like in nature. The first she finds is open and empty, hollow inside, with a crusted, dried substance coating the inside. Moving along the row she finds several more like it, all open and dried out, then arrives at one that appears to be somewhat broken. The front is a thin, membrane-like metallic substance, some of which is broken and dried out. Inside is what appears to be a dead humanoid, mummified beyond the ability to recognize its species. Seeing this, Xe'anna immediately moves to another, intact column, pressing her light to its surface to try and see inside.

   At the same time in the research hub, the scientists seem to be puzzled over something. Conrad inquires, and the researcher says it seems the console is responding to their inputs, despite their inability to recognize the language it's operating in. They've also surmised they can power on small portions of the ship via the limited map that's been displayed for them. They estimate a few hours before they'll have downloaded all they can and their ability to power the console they are using runs out, but in the meantime they believe activating more of the regions will allow them to collect more data for later study. Theea observes which area they activate next, and promptly leaves to go explore that area.

As the column room is powered on, the bio-luminescent light of the spines along the wall begins to glow, and the pods filling the room gain a slight sheen. While not all the pods appear to power on, the room is filled with them and a fair number do seem to activate.

Xe'anna sees the membrane of one of the pods crackle, then disintegrate, before a foot steps out and a clawed hand reaches out to grip the edge of the pod.

Back in the hub, Hexie looks up from composing her song and realizes Xe'anna is not in the room, and leaves in search of her out the only exit to the room that does not go back the way they came from the Bat'leth.

At that moment in the pod room, a creature pulls itself from the activated pod. Its fingers are elongated and sharp, its skin mottled and blue like the exterior of the vessel itself. Xe'anna's light catches a metallic sheen on its skin. Its eyes are multi-faceted and bug-like, and its flat, featureless face has no mouth. From the top of its forehead and straight down its back extend interlacing tendrils, and its limbs move with a double-jointed dexterity. As she stands in momentary shock, it rushes Xe'anna.

### Combat Rounds Begin

Xe'anna is wounded, but her suit holds. Her roar alerts Hexie and Theea to her location, and both run to the pod room. Theea takes cover by the door, readying her rifle when she sees the creature trying to maul Xe'anna.

Back in the hub room, Kika and Conrad fail to hear the commotion. Unaware of what is happening, Kika continues restoring more power. She's able to locate a reserve of power from within the vessel itself to alleviate the burden on the scientists power supply.

Hexie calls out to Xe'anna, activating her psionic armor and rifle. Handling her problems head-on, she bursts through the doorway with the LEDs on her personal vacc suit on. The spectacle draws the creatures attention, and it shifts focus from Xe'anna to Hexie, who winks at the alien and says, "Tough crowd,  huh?"

The creature hits Hexie, and Xe'anna runs at the creature in an attempt to punch it to the floor, but it dodges out of the way.

Meanwhile, Kika continues doing a very excellent job at fixing the power system on the vessel. Inside the pod room, two more exits open. Skittering can be heard.

Theea, realizing she can't actually use the rifle she has, uses her comm pad to radio Lt. Carls Jr. Theea asks him to come, saying they need firepower, that she's "staring at an alien that's killing us." Lt. Carls Jr does not believe her. Theea switches her comm over to call Kika, with more success.

Kika calmly informs the scientists that an alien is attacking Theea, and they should turn off whatever they just turned on, but they remind her that she is the one turning systems on. While the scientists excitedly inquire as to what Kika may have turned on, the Lieutenant insists that Theea is clearly an untrustworthy criminal, and this is probably a ploy so she can steal more. Kika insists Theea would not lie about this, and the scientists ask him to go investigate. Begrudgingly, and with promises to arrest the Bat'leth crew if this is a hoax, Conrad skulks down the hall.

Back in the pod room, Hexie manages to use her telekinesis to lift the creature off the ground and away from her as it struggles.

As they attempt to turn off the systems Kika has powered on, the scientists discover the vessel seems resistant. Eventually Kika does manage to slowly power down the pod room, but not before four more creatures leap out from the newly opened doors. They bypass the crew members entirely and make their way down the hall, toward the hub room. Still on comms to Kika, Theea lets her know about the incoming creatures.

The creatures close in on Lt. Conrad Carls Jr., who pulls out his rifle and calls out for the creatures to "Halt!" He warns them that he is a representative of the Intergalactic Civilizations Alliance, and any act of aggression against himself or the people he represents will be interpreted as an act of aggression against the entire alliance, then awaits answer.

Xe'anna turns on Open Comms, ordering Kika to power down the vessel and everyone else to turn on Open Comms. She stabs at the creature Hexie holds hovering in the air, and as she severs one of the tendrils a viscous, iridescent fluid oozes forth.

Farther toward the pod room, Theea throws her rifle at one of the creatures in the hall, bashing the creature on the head.

Still floating the creature in the air as Xe'anna attacks it, Hexie begins to sing.

*Twinkle Twinkle Little Star*

*How I Wonder What You Are*

*Up Above the Floor so High*

*Like a Horror in the Sky*

*Twinkle Twinkle Little Star*

*How I Wonder What You Are*

Having sung this over open comms, the song bolsters the various combatants morale for a brief period.

Kika continues working on the system power, and is able to turn off power to everything in the pod room except the lights themselves. She then advises the scientists to leave the hub room and return to the Bat'leth but, unable to mount a convincing argument, they dismiss the potential danger and carry on.

Back in the hallway, all four creatures leap at Conrad. He shoots at the one Theea attacked, but misses, and it lands on him. A second lands next to him, but two more pass him and enter the hub room.

Unaware of what is happening in the hall and not having seen the four aliens headed that direction, Xe'anna guts the creature Hexie holds, finally killing it. As Xe'anna grouses that there's not enough GUC in the universe for this job, and Theea stumbles over her words trying to alert them to the presence of more creatures, Hexie laments that she and Xed were probably better off on their own.

In the hall, Conrad withdraws from the two creatures that attacked him to go after the two that moved into the hub room.

Able to accurately interpret the frantic beeping of comms from Theea, Hexie and Xe'anna both move into the hall. Hexie manages to finish off one of the creatures with her psionic rifle, and Xe'anna rushes down the hall, past Conrad and the creature he pursues, toward the hub room.

The two creatures in the hub room close in on the scientists, tearing into the throats of two researchers. Stunned in fear and hiding, Kika is still able to puzzle out that the creatures seem to be composed of the same substance she's found in wires on the ships systems.

Ignoring the creature before him, Conrad shoots instead at the one attacking a researcher. Theea closes in on the doorway to retrieve her rifle, and Hexie follows and shoots at the one Xe'anna and Conrad moved past.

Recovering her senses, Kika tries to use her tool to stab at one of the creatures but misses, and so dives for cover, narrowly missing being attacked. The other creature turns from its current victim and instead turns to the Saleer scientist, claws penetrating his suit.

The creature behind Xe'anna unsuccessfully takes a swipe at her, and she attacks in return, moving to block its advance into the room. Conrad takes another shot at the creature who attacked Kika, killing it. Hexie shoots and drops the creature in front of Xe'anna, leaving only the one attacking the Saleer.

Kika rushes from her hiding spot to one of the downed scientists, Dr. Tegan, putting her Lazarus patch on him, stabilizing his vitals. She then takes a patch from him and moves toward the Saleer.

The creature turns from the Saleer and lunges at Xe'anna, its claws piercing her suit and flesh. She turns her knife around to stab into it, doing damage repeatedly but not killing it. Conrad takes aim, fires, and kills the creature.

### Combat Ends

Xe'anna, ordering the scientists should be rushed back to the Bat'leth, conceals the fact she begins to feel tired and stiff. Meanwhile Kika, about to use her Lazarus patch on the Saleer, realizes they've stiffened. As Conrad starts to move people Kika stops him from taking the Saleer, and Xe'anna comes to see the scientists face has changed, their eyes glossed over, face turning blue, and features slowly shifting.

Xe'anna uses her Lazarus patch on the Saleer, then orders Hexie to take the two other scientists back to the Bat'leth but leave the Saleer with her, against Conrad's protests until he gets close enough to see the way their face is changing.

Knife in hand, Xe'anna readies to open the Saleer's helmet. Hexie leaves with the other two researchers, but all the others remain watching. She asks Kika to do whatever she can medically, but quickly, but Kika can do nothing more. Theea suggests putting the Saleer in another room and locking him away, or putting him in a pod, but Xe'anna insists that if there is nothing they can do to save the Saleer then they will not get off the floor.

Conrad uses his medical scanner, but the device no longer registers the scientist as Saleer. Theea leaves to follow Hexie. Xe'anna opens the scientists helmet and, with her knife, kills him. The same vicious fluid from the creatures pours out of the wound.

## References

* Third Vegetable
* Spirates

## Quotes

Hexie Kate: *If it stops purring and starts growling? Turn it off.*

Xe'anna: *They say that they wanna survive, but brains? They're not so smart.*

Lt. Conrad Carls Jr: *This one's for the Merit Badge.*

## Clips

*When adding clips, please place them in chronological order with a near approximate time-stamp.*

**HH:MM** Link *Info/credit*

00:03 Show Start

00:13 Spurvy Kika #Spacts

00:14 Third Vegetable Kika

00:14 Smorglur Theea

00:15 Salmon Ladder Carls Jr. #Bestboy

00:17 Theea Jr. Ship Sets Sail Theea

00:34 Spirates Hexie #Spacts

00:43 let everyone know & gtfo Xe'anna #itsfine #tactician

00:49 First piloting roll Xe'anna #moderatelybelowaverage

00:52 We're here its Christmas! Lauren #notdocwho

00:58 #skittering Kika #skittering

01:21 #Spacts #Spacts

01:32 Donation Reading

01:35 Sprincess Cast #Spacts

01:36 First & Second Vegetables Cast

01:38 Bio Break

01:57 Return

02:02 hurulurul Kika

02:07 Spirates 2 Theea #Spacts

02:14 Wrecking Ball Hexie

02:20 Kika is helping! Kika

02:27 Good galaxy! Carls Jr. #Bestboy

02:32 I'm throwing my rifle. Theea

02:35 Lullaby Hexie

02:42 ...a really gross pinata Kika

02:43 verticle suppuku Lauren

02:44 A warrior, in-fact. Xe'anna

02:45 Not enough guck in the universe! Xe'anna

02:47 I am an age. Kika

02:50 Murderbots-in-a-goodway? Kika

02:53 Merit badge Carls Jr. #Bestboy

02:55 How do rifle? Theea

02:56 No booty Cast

02:56 I've lived long enough.

03:01 Duty Carls Jr. #Bestboy

03:03 How do bullets? Theea

03:06 Eggs Kika-Xe'anna

03:08 Sigorn Weaver Claudia

03:10 O captain my captain Carls Jr. #Bestboy

03:13 Do not open helmet in vacuum. Cast

03:19 Show End

03:26 Donations, Signout, Broadcast End