Facility One

Facility One was a vast military and archaeological compound built by the Sovereign Colonies Armed Forces on the surface of Tau Volantis during the Galactic Expedition of 2311 to 2314. Raised at the base of the mountain that hid the Alien Machine, it was the nerve center of the whole effort on the planet, the place from which the military secured the expedition and the Science Division planned the search for the origin of the Markers. It stood abandoned for two centuries before Isaac Clarke and the survivors of his expedition passed through its frozen ruins.

The Galactic Expedition#

Facility One was the heart of the Sovereign Colonies Armed Forces effort on Tau Volantis. It became especially important after the loss of Supply Depot 212 and the Waystation to the Necromorphs, which left the expedition struggling with supply shortages. General Spencer Mahad coordinated the military side of the Galactic Expedition from the facility, while the Science Division planned the surveys meant to locate the origin of the Markers. Geological maps were scattered throughout the compound, a record of how far reaching the plans of the Sovereign Colonies had been.

The base sat at the foot of the mountain beneath which the Alien Machine lay buried. A lift system ran up the mountainside to connect it with the research compound at the peak, Facility Two, which the Sovereign Colonies built once they had triangulated the source of the Marker signals.

Layout#

The whole perimeter of Facility One was ringed by a tall metal defensive wall, built to withstand the hostile environment of the planet while sheltering the people inside. After the first Necromorph encounters, the wall was fitted with manned machine gun nests meant to destroy any hostile elements. The losses suffered during the landings took a heavy mental toll on the Legionaries posted there, who were forced to fire on and dismember Necromorphs made from their own fallen comrades. Entry to the facility was possible through the main doors or by elevated catwalks reached by elevators, which were powered by emergency generators housed in shacks alongside them.

The courtyard near the center served as the main hub for repair and maintenance. Its garage was reported as badly overused, its snow vehicles driven well past their limits with damaged axles and thrown wheels even before the punishing environment was counted. Central Command was a large rectangular room dominated by a model of the facility and its surroundings, its walls hung with map charts, blueprints, documents and memorials to Sovereign Colonies servicemen, along with the red and blue colors and a banner of the Engineering Brigade. An audio recording between General Mahad and a Dr. Serrano could be found within it.

Beyond Central Command stretched a tent city, an official network of insulated temporary structures designated Camp Rae. Set between the main complex and the surrounding archaeological sites, the thick durable tents provided cold storage for specimens, housed survey equipment, and let researchers study Tau Volantis specimens without exposure to the debilitating winds.

Abandonment and rediscovery#

The Sovereign Colonies effort on Tau Volantis ultimately collapsed, and Facility One was left abandoned to the ice. Two hundred years later, in 2514, the crew of the USM Eudora used it as a meeting place after their crash on the planet, regrouping there following the separation of Isaac Clarke and John Carver from the rest of the group.

After the Tau Volantis Moon was pulled down by the Alien Machine, the remnants of the Circle gathered in the facility and used it for suicides. A handful of broken Circle soldiers could still be found wandering the compound, repeating the mantra "They are hungry, they are coming."