Iron Stars - zaahira

Zaarina awakens in the shell damaged building her family calls home, city center of Egons. Outside, the cranes, hammers, picks, and torches of rebuilding are already hard at work.

She groans about the noise, gets herself out of bed, and goes to take a shower. She gets through about half of it before the hot water runs out. With a big sigh she gets out, gets dressed, and heads to the kitchen to talk with her husband before their daughter wakes up. (edited)

He is sitting at the table looking over news on his datapad, he looks up and smiles as you walk into the kitchen, but says nothing, unsure if it would upset your hangover

"Morning dear. Hot water ran out again."

"We have any coffee left?"

He nods and slides a mug over to you, he must have heard you get up

She takes the mug and drinks some, smiling a bit. She gets up and gives him a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks. Sorry I fell off the wagon a bit last night, I'm still getting used to this no booze life."

She takes another sip "I need to go see my brother today. I'm going to look for some work again while I'm out."

"Alright, Should i bother waiting up for you?"

"I'm going to try and make it home for dinner. If I'm not home by then, call the usual place and tell them to kick my ass out."

10:41 AM

(I assume there is a bar she frequents)

(yeah)

10:48 AM

(bars were probably one of the few places all sides tried to spare)

(Yeah)

10:50 AM

She finishes her coffee, gets up, and goes to Sanna's door, just looking at her sleeping for a bit.

The child doesnt stir very much in her sleep, the crack in the wall near her bed looks a little bigger today than it did yesterday

Zaahira walks up, gives her daughter a kiss on the cheek, smiling down at her before going back into the kitchen

10:54 AM

"Did you have any luck yesterday at all?"

(I imagine he is still doing the job hunt too or something.)

(yeah he is) "Not really. Offered to be a bagman for a merchant company moving in, but their last bagman was shot to death for the credits"

2:46 PM

"Doesn't really do either of us good if we're both being shot at"

"No, it doesn't. At least I'm used to it."

2:51 PM

She looks back at their daughter's room "That crack is getting bigger still. I might just take that bagman job if they are still hiring."

2:51 PM

"Just so we can get her out of here."

"I went down to commercial central, maybe you'll have better luck"

"That's a long walk, I better get going if I want to get to see Nazeem." She gets up and moves to the door

3:04 PM

(Would she be allowed to carry her combat rifle around, if people are getting shot and all?)

3:04 PM

(I doubt it, but i just want to know how illegal it would be)

(The rule of law isre-established here. Walking around with military grade weapons will have security forces shooting at you too)

(Ok)

3:08 PM

She grabs her knife and slides the scabbard into the small of her back, then grabs her coat to cover it up

3:09 PM

"Well, wish me luck." She says as she opens the door and walks out (edited)

She first heads to her mother's house to see her mother and brother.

The house is cracked along the outside by shell percussion but intact, relatively

5:24 PM

A small garden wilts outside under the frost

Zaahira walks up to the front door and knocks. "Mama? It's me."

The door cracks just a little so they can verify before you’re let in to the drafty home. Your mother and brother are both sitting at a cheap press rock table eating a meager breakfast

She walks in and gives them both a big hug. "I wanted to come by and see how you both were doing."

“Could do with a little more to eat and a few credits” your brother says

Zaahira sighs "We are looking. Adam found a job prospect yesterday, but it involved the chance of being shot, so I'm going instead to see if the job is still there."

"Better them shooting at me than at him."

"True enough. You can handle yourself, He's soft"

"He taken good care of your grandaughter and me mama, despite everything."

8:33 AM

"Not being used to bullets doesn't make him soft."

'Just wish he'd help support you a bit more with the money. Riding a desk" she scoffs a bit. "So what's up, just visiting?"

Zaahira sighs "He helps me by sitting at home, with a gun he does not like using, protecting my daughter."

11:11 AM

"And yes, I wanted to see you both today."

They are busy going about the small apartment, cleaning and getting their own routine ready for the day, making small talk with each other, and you

After about an hour of just talking and helping, Zaahira gets up "I'd better get going if I want to make it down to commercial central and home before it gets dark."

11:41 AM

She gives them both a big hug "I love you both, hopefully I'll be able to find something today. I want to get us all out of this city before winter really comes."

11:47 AM

She gives her mother a kiss on the cheek before walking out the door, suppressing the urge to get a drink after that conversation, and heads to commercial central.

The commercial center of town is a market square with shops that has quickly been repaired and re-paved over as one of the priority projects for city development. This is one of the busier sections of the city, even with it being a shell of its former self

Shes going to look around for work, leaving the bagman position for last

(connect/wis or cha, your call)

(Both are equally shit)

2:34 PM

(1)

(Pick which turd you want to roll with then lol) By the day's end, its clear the bagman job is the only thing you might be qualified to do

(two 1s minus 1)

2:34 PM

Zaahira sighs, going to the merchant company building

She enters the building, looking for a manager or assistant of some kind

There is a clerk with four fingers and no thumb on his left hand counting credits to put into a deposit bag

Zaahira walks up to him "Hi, I heard there was a bagman position open."

"I'm here to apply for it."

“Ah you seem a better fit than what we have had so far. You handle yourself ?”

She pulls out a file from her bag and slides it over to him

7:57 PM

"Service history"

7:57 PM

"I'd show you the medals, but those got sold first to pay for food."

7:57 PM

(I imagine that would be easy for her to have kept)

7:57 PM

(If not just let me know)

(yeah it is)

8:12 PM

(its your own information after all)

8:13 PM

"Alright, well, looks like you can handle it. I need you to take this to commercia north to our main office there, in the old House Decruces compound."

8:13 PM

"Think you can handle that?"

"Do I get a something to arm myself with?"

"Not from us. We were under the impression a bagman would have a weapon"

"I have a combat rifle at home, left over from my military days, but I have a feeling I'll get shot on sight carrying that. All I have with me is a knife at the moment."

"then it's going to have to be the knife. Just pray you're faster"

"I usually am."

8:19 PM

"How much does the job pay?"

"5,000 on successful delivery. Can't promise anything before that, but the quartermaster on the other end is good for it"

"I'll take it."

8:27 PM

She takes the bag and puts it on under her jacket

8:27 PM

"You have a back door I can use?"

He nods his head, indicating down the hallway behind him. It must be around a corner back there

Zaahira walks down the hall, finds the door, and heads out into the alley.

8:35 PM

(How late is it now?)

8:36 PM

She messages Adam about the job as she is walking down the hall.

(id say early afternoon)

8:37 PM

(Adam?)

(Her husband)

8:38 PM

She starts making her way through back alleys to the compound.

(if we're sneaking about, lets get a sneak/dex)

(8)

You see several thugs and avoid them as you make your way out of the commerical city center back into the city streets. Neighborhoods run the range of almost pristine, to shell ruined wastelands, and each has its own dangers. A passing army vehicle almost runs you over on accident, as its driver struggles to avoid a shellhole, looking up from a map. You are in a well-off and little damaged city street when you hear the sound of a grav motor in the blocks around you

(Is there an alley or a dumpster or something she can duck into?)

(No youre on like a suburban street)

8:46 PM

(so neither of those things around)

She curses under her breath and picks up her pace.

8:47 PM

Looking around for the source of the sound

(Should i make a notice check?)

(Sure. Let’s do that)

(9)

the noise is coming from your right, 100m away, or a bit more

(What direction is the compound?)

(straight ahead, so they're coming perpendicular to your route)

(So there are no backyards or shell craters or anything nearby she could run towards to hide in at all?)

(Is there an intersection ahead?)

(You'd be basically in front yards, and there is an intersection ahead)

(So could I leap a fence or anything, hide next to a building? If not she would just try to book it across the street)

(exert/str or dex for hopping over a fence)

(Exert/dex, 12)

(That 18 dex, man its gonna be fun)

You clear the fence handily before two grav bikes drive past. The riders are wearing masks, and leather jackets with spiked shoulderpads. One has a cudgel and is waving it with his right hand

Once they have driven away and she can no longer hear them, Zaahira climbs back over the fence before continuing on her way to the old DeCruces compound

You see an overturned shopping tram at the end of the road, and a large red stain near it, though the body itself ha been carried off, or was able to get away on its own. The bikers are nowhere to be seen

She will keep away from the wreck, moving further towards her objective.

(How far away is she at this point)

Zaahira arrives at the north commercia a few hours later, not seeing the bikers or much else of note on the street, a clerk there, takes the bag from you, eager to begin using the credits within for payroll

6:49 PM

(3xp, 5000 credits)

(Ill take care of the level up stuff in a bit.)

She heads off home as fast as she can after getting paid, again taking back roads and alleys.

7:06 PM

(How late is it at this point)

(9 or 10pm)

She turns on her thermal sight, moving quietly through the streets.

8:30 PM

Towards home

(Took the first level of assassin due to the level up)

Alan and your child are getting ready for bed as you walk in. He says little to you

(Its adam)

10:57 PM

She walks in, tired from the long day of walking, and hands him the credstick.

10:59 PM

"5000 credits. Dunno where they got the money from, don't care, but this may finally be our ticket out of here."

11:00 PM

She goes to their bedroom and collapses on the bed, instantly falling asleep. (edited)

You do not awaken until 11am the following morning, Adam is highlighting something in the paper furiously

She walks up to him, resting her arms on his shoulders and her head on his looking down at him. "Hey, what's up?" (edited)

“Looking for some apartments in carinhold or out in prime. We have enough. “

1:26 PM

“It’s time we got out of this shithole don’t you think”

"Yes, I do. The only question is if we have enough to bring my mother and brother with us. If we don't I'll never hear the end of it."

1:44 PM

She sighs and heads to their daughter's door, knocking on the door as it opens "Sanna, you awake honey?"

(I thought about giving you ideas for how she acts, but I imagine Zaahira doesn't really know her own daughter too well)

You hear her stir in the room, and begin waking

5:37 PM

"Yea. I'm awake" she says, pouting

Zaahira walks in. "What's the matter, why the pouty face?"

5:42 PM

She says looking at her with some concern

"I'm tired mommy. The noises outside keep me awake" she means the gunfire, you can already tell

Zaahira goes at sits next to her, pulling her into a big hug. "I'm sorry about that, and that I wasn't here for dinner last night, I was busy. I brought home something that will help us though, we can move somewhere nicer, somewhere where there are more trees and parks, where you can make some new friends." She sighs again "And where mommy won't be away all the time."

8:16 PM

She lets her go and smiles at her. "I promise, we are going to get you somewhere better, I mean it." (edited)

"I love you, more than anything."

She nods and begins getting up. Back out in the kitchen Adam puts his compad on speaker and you hear hold music

Zaahira sits down next to him "Calling apartments?"

"Yes. Just trying to decide between Carinhold or Prime"

9:32 AM

"There should be enough for everyone to go, if we keep a modest lifestyle"

"Prime is full of humans, so we might run into problems there, but I really want to get as far from this place as we can." She lowers her voice so Sanna can't hear. "I'm not sure if I want my mother and brother to live with us in the same place though. I just, I don't feel like that's the kind of environment I want her to grow up in. My mother hates you because she thinks you derailed my military career with a baby, you never served, you are too soft, the list goes on and on. My brother feels, I dunno. Everytime I see them it's like I flip a coin as to whether I immediately fall off the wagon and start drinking again."

'What if we send them to prime then, and us to Carinhold. They won't bother with questioning it if we say there wasnt enough space for us all in the same place"

"That sounds fine I suppose. Carinhold is still a safer city than this one I'd imagine. Are there jobs there for you and schools for Sanna?"

"Hopefully I'll be able to find something that lets me spend time with her more."

“We will see” he says tiredly. “I’ll let you know how the search goes. We can talk tonight”

"Alright. I want to go and get some food and things from the market, how much spare do we have that I can use? 500?"

“500 should be fine. Market and back. I don’t want you drinking this away”

"I won't, we haven't had a proper meal in weeks. Would you be fine if I looked for a small pistol somewhere? I don't want to, but I'm tired of running around this city with just a knife."

“I’d rather you buy that than a drink “

She sighs "I'm not a perfect person, alright, I know that. I try my best to deal with the addiction I have. Hopefully moving away from somewhere with constant gunfire and destroyed buildings will lead to less reminders of the past."

7:39 PM

She gets up and goes to her daughter's room "Sanna, I'm going to the market, do you want anything special tonight?"

“I want you to be home mom” she says, hugging your leg as she comes to the door

Zaahira kneels down next to her "I know sweetie, I know. I'm trying to do better. I don't like being away from you at all. I'm just going to the market to get some food and things then I will be right back." She gives you a big hug "I'll bring you back something." She gives her a kiss on the forehead before heading out the door. As she is leaving she can't help but let lose a few tears, as she remembers growing up with her parents being gone often. She heads to the marketplace to get food and to look for a small weapons dealer selling pistols

8:34 PM

(Man, I knew you were going to make this character feel like shit, but dude, this is a whole other level of shit)

(ruining everything, i know hah)

(I figure she would just go look for where she sold her sniper rifle to)

8:44 PM

(I'll come up with a list of mods it had either tonight or tomorrow as well as a description)

As you approach the arms dealer in town, you see he is doing brisk business, Surprisingly, the rifle you'd pawned so many months ago is still on its wall pegs.

She looks at it with a mixture of sadness and frustration as she walks up to the counter.

7:40 AM

(I imagine its like specialized for her with a silencer and extended magazines)

7:41 AM

(And covered in marks showing how many squadmates died while under her protection) (edited)

(Doubt she told the guy this, she just asked how much he would give and took the number of credits across the street to the grocery store)

(yeah more or less)

7:56 AM

"Ah, you again. Anything new for me this time? "

"No, looking to buy something, some kind of small pistol, preferably one of the military kind."

7:57 AM

"Surprised that is still here" She says nodding at the rifle.

"Me too, she's a fine piece. She means a lot to you, doesn't she?"

"Yes, she does. It reminds me of those lost to the underhill forever because I didn't protect them well enough."

"Well, I'll make you a deal then. I'll throw in the rifle, but I need something done first"

"What?"

He nods to one of his associates, the only other one in the small storefront, and gestures for you to follow him into one of the storage rooms, the plastic saloon style doors rocking on their hinges as he passes them. you hear the sound of him moving some papers around

Zaahira looks with confusion

"I'm having some trouble with a competitor, but I don't have enough evidence for the police to do anything about it"

1:47 PM

"They've got a million other concerns, and right now, my allegations are just that, allegations. But I'm convinved some of their suppliers are not getting their goods through wholesome means:

"What would you want me to do, find the rest of the evidence?"

1:51 PM

"I can't do it today, my family is expecting me to be home soon and I need to be there."

"That's exactly what I need help with." he hands you a paper with the address and a short summary of his investigation, which is amateurish to say the least. "I'll sell you the handgun today. $250. Rifle comes off the shelf when the job is done" (edited)

"I'll take care of it." She says, handing him the 250 credits. She goes to the market, buys some groceries, including a box of whatever cookies or candy they have, before heading home.

1:57 PM

(Is it just a TL3 autopistol?)

1:59 PM

(I assume some extra ammo comes with it)

(TL 4 is the baseline here, it still uses bullets, )

(So, what kind of damage does it do, same as the tl3 version?)

2:08 PM

(Or is it a mag pistol)

2:09 PM

(Not a mag, but i just want to make sure i get this right)

(Ok, so, like 18 rounds with it then? Anything special about it?)

(18 rounds, and no, thought the TL was different but it doesnt matter)

(kk)

2:14 PM

Zaahira walks into their building and through the door carrying multiple full bags of food, with a small smile on her face

2:14 PM

(Prob like 100 credits worth of food)

2:15 PM

(She would have sent 100 credits to her mom if she can do that remotely)

(Yes, you can)

2:18 PM

Adam raises an eyebrow, happy to see you home but surprised by the development.

2:18 PM

"Mom!"sanna runs to the door

Zaahira puts the bags down, picks up Sanna and gives her a big hug

2:19 PM

"See, I told you I would be back. I brought you something." She says as she pulls out whatever kind of sweets they actually had and hands them to Sanna.

2:20 PM

(Probably just some kind of candied fruit or something like that, but something Sanna hasn't had in months at least.)

"Don't eat these all right away, okay sweetheart?"

3:02 PM

She sets Sanna back down and (I imagine after hearing a small 'yay') goes over to Adam and gives him a kiss.

3:02 PM

"Couldn't help but notice the surprise on your face."

"It's a good surprise" he promises. "So we're moving. Two days from now. I made all the arrangements, and its not like we have much"

"How much is it going to cost?"

"3,000 for the deposit, first month, and the travel expenses for the five of us"

"Okay. Might give me enough time to do this tomorrow." She pulls out the paper she got from the pawn shop

7:59 PM

"The man at the weapons store offered to return my rifle to me if I helped him look into his competition. He said he thinks they are acquiring their goods illegitimately. I'd like to have that back, just to have some connection to the friends I lost, but I dunno. Maybe I could do a little to help make this place better before we leave. Where would we be moving to, Carinhold or Prime?"

8:00 PM

(Is this like another gun store or a larger group he wants me to look at?)

"You said no humans, Carinhold for us, Prime for the half of the family we're staying away from"

8:01 PM

(and I don't think it would be clear aside from the address he gave you. It's not within your general wandering area)

(Hmm)

8:01 PM

"Okay. And about this other thing, what do you think?"

"If it'll bring you some comfort before we leave the city for good i dont see a problem with it"

She smiles. "Thanks for understanding. I don't feel like I tell you that enough, you've been through a lot because of me, and despite everything you've stuck around." She pauses and looks at him. "I honestly don't understand why though, you could have left my drunken mess at any time, why didn't you?" (edited)

8:10 PM

(I imagine sanna is sitting a bit away, munching on some candy and drawing)

“I couldn’t tell you. Maybe things will be better with the move. “

"Maybe. Maybe when we get there we can actually start being a real couple," She looks at Sanna "For her sake if nothing else."

"I didn't realize we weren't" he says, taking a bit of offense "Look, I was excited for you to be home but if youre just going to pick a fight maybe you should go have a drink after all"

"No, no, I didn't mean... I just meant we haven't had a night out in a long time."

9:18 AM

"Which, as always, is my fault."

"I'm never around, and when I am we always find a way to jump down each others throats. We haven't had a nice evening to just relax and spend time together in a long time." (edited)

"Maybe once we get to Carinhold. Might be a good thing to explore the neighborhood"

"Yeah. Maybe then we will be in a place with thicker walls, so we won't wake her up if we, you know..." She gives him a look

"When was the last time?"

"Oh I can barely even remember. We've been so busy with other things to keep life going"

"Obviously we should work on fixing that."

11:46 AM

Zaahira gets up and gives him another kiss before sitting down with her daughter and drawing with her for a while. At some point during the day she would step into their bedroom and try to find an old friend who owes her a favor to help watch her back for this mission.

11:47 AM

(I imagine she has a few old friends who survived, and she has called in the favor of 'I saved your life you know' a couple times for much less important issues.)

11:47 AM

(Mostly helping her get home from the bar after being kicked out)

(Without authority or henchkeeper you cannot compel NPC's to follow you into danger)

12:10 PM

Phone calls are made for a few hours, but everyone is either not picking up, or unwilling to stick their necks out for a lead so dubious

(I was expecting to rp it at best)

12:23 PM

She sighs "Guess this is what you get for years of letting people down."

12:24 PM

She spends the rest of the day with her family, packing and trying to enjoy herself. The next day she wakes up early and heads out, giving both her daughter and husband a kiss before she leaves.

(then we would have done it and it would have been wasting your time for something that wasn't going to work from the beginning. Either way there's a problem) The streets are quiet this early in the morning. It was only a few months ago they'd have been packed with people heading for work at the various factories

She takes back alleys to the area where this place is supposed to be

(Sneak roll?)

(no, not necessary) The address you were given ends up being a storefront, called Guns, Glam, and Gallstones where cheap fried food is sold out the front, and presumably the other two things are sold inside

1:34 PM

A heavyset Taros chef sweats over a grill that smells of cheap cuts of fried meat, breading, and lots of grease

Zaahira walks down the street, around the corner, and looks for a building that is out of the way buy climbable (edited)

(I'm looking for something that would let her see the back entrance of this shop without being seen, maybe a way onto the roof of it as well.)

There is a much taller warehouse behind the shop, separated by a narrow alley, it is 20m from its roof to the ground

(Is it climbable?)

(Not easily)

(If she had a rope?)

7:05 PM

(Wishing i had just taken the spider climbing cybernetic atm)

(You’re going to throw it 65 feet in the air around a solid anchorpoint from the ground?) (edited)

(Oh, 20 meters, bleh)

7:32 PM

(Can I look around for any way up?)

(It’s scaleable But It’ll be exert str or dex

(Exer/dex, 8)

It is a difficult climb, a very difficult climb, and once you're at the roof youre sweating and breathing heavily. The roof is warm, the metal shingles reflecting the days' heat

She sighs upon reaching the top, cursing to herself for agreeing to this job, before moving to the edge to look down on the alley

There is a steel door, with a vision slit (currently closed) in it. It looks quite secure. If there is security, its not present in the alle

She spends some time watching the door, seeing if anyone comes and goes

(Does the building have a roof vent or anything she could use to get in through the roof?)

(This building or the target building

(Target)

There is a small chimney about half your size. It would be a very tight squeeze

(Is it active?)

6:46 PM

(She can turn on thermal visiob if she needs to)

Using thermal you see heat on at its base and it is slowly rising

"Well, guess I'm waiting then." She mutters to herself.

7:01 PM

She will wait, watching the back door, occasionally looking at the chimney for activity, taking note of anyone who shows up as well as photos.

7:01 PM

(Shes gonna wait until dusk if she has to)

There is a truck, around 4pm- Labeled with the logo of a popular food service company in Egons (youd have seen their trucks everywhere before all the troubles, too)

7:36 AM

two porters jump out, and open the back though they're parked at an angle where it's hard to see what they're doing back there

She takes a picture of the truck.

3:32 PM

(How difficult of a jump would it be to get onto the roof of the target building, and how obvious of a jump would it be?) (edited)

(Cause she wants to jump while the porters are inside so she can get a better look inside)

(You Landing on the other also metal roof would be loud.

(Is there any way over?)

(Not from the roof

(Is there any way onto that roof at all, or would she have to climb it?)

7:11 PM

(Like, are there buildings next to the shop)

(You’d have to jump from here. It’s over an alley. There isn’t anything going across the roofs. There are buildings to the left and right

(Alright.)

7:14 PM

She waits for the porters to get done unloading and tries to time up her landing with the truck start.

The heavy engine turns over as the pallets are brought into the back of the building

She goes for a running jump across the alley.

7:20 PM

(She would back up and start running after the porters start moving to get in the truck)

(Exert dex?)

(Not necessary. Just wait for me to catch up)

(kk)

The engine fires up as you land on the opposite side. No one seems to have noticed

She sighs again, and looks at the chimney with her thermal vision again

The heat bloom down below is faint but not nearly as intense as it was before

She looks at the chimney, then looks down at herself, muttering "What I would give to be flat-chested right now" (edited)

8:46 PM

She sits and waits until nighttime for the shop to close, occasionally looking down into the alley and the chimney to see if there is any activity

8:50 PM

(What would you say the dimensions of this chimney are?)

8:54 PM

(Just something rough to give me a general idea)

(2m x2m roughly)

5:21 PM

The chimney just vents steam from the heating system inside

(Ok)

5:41 PM

(When night comes is the place still active?)

(yes)

She groans, makes sure as much of her exposed skin is covered, waiting for the heating system to cool down as much as possible, before squeezing herself into the vent and slowly making her way down.

The exhaust looks to be about as cool as possible before you jump down into the shaft. You emerge at the bottom, inside a heat exchanger unit. It is sweltering in there, and there is a grate ahead, the floor criss-crossed with tubes of hot and cold water

She carefully makes her way to the vent, avoiding the pipes

Two Taros counting money, and a third polishing what looks to be a long rifle all sit in this room, the one polishing the weapon has a wire trailing down his shirt, possibly listening to some kindof music

She pulls out her compad, and starts recording

It is not clear right now if they are doing anything illegal. Counting money and cleaning do not exactly fit 'illicit business'

(I mean, she wants faces, and wants to have proof if they start. Shes got nothing else to do atm because i figure moving the vent would make a lot of noise.)

The heat in the ventilation system is building as you continue observing. After about 5 minutes, the one with the gun picks it up and leaves the room.

6:36 PM

The two counters are working on validating several large stacks of hard paper currency

(Which way are they facing?)

(Away from you

She looks at the vent to see if she can quietly open it and sneak out

You're not sure if it will creak when opened, but it is possible to open it (it's not latched)

She carefully opens the grate and tries to squeeze her way out.

It opens on smooth hinges and the money counters don’t seem to notice, absorbed in their work

She sneaks by them, looking for an office of some kind

(Could I get a rough layout?)

The only door out of the room that does not pass their field of vision is to the right and leads you to a utility space. There is a door at the far end of the utility room heading toward the front of the store. Merchandise not yet processed for sale or in need of some repair before going out onto the shelves is here. You see a large number of personal goods, along with the boxes you saw the porters bring in

9:28 AM

(You wouldn’t have a way to map things on you without seeing them yourself so no map)

(Thats exactly what i was looking for, thanks)

9:32 AM

She sneaks her way to the utility room

Merchandise not yet processed for sale or in need of some repair before going out onto the shelves is here. You see a large number of personal goods, along with the boxes you saw the porters bring in

(What kind of boxes are they?)

(Wooden crates nailed together with cheap nails

(Does it look like she could pry them apart quietly?)

(hard to tell just with a visual inspection)

(Anything nearby she could open them with?)

(If its as cheap as it looks your hands would suffice)

She carefully starts opening one of the crates, trying to pull the nails out one at a time. If that doesnt work she will just open the lid slowly.

Opening the lid slowly shows dozens of military grade weapons packed in straw. Some show use or the tthey have been used in the recent past.

4:22 PM

Others look factory fresh

Zaahira takes photos of the weapons, and sends them plus the other photos of the truck to the pawn man asking if he wants more or if those are enough.

He believes these will be enough to prove his case

She puts the lid back on the box, and takes a peek out the door to see if those two are still there

They are still there and look to be nearly done with their job. The man with the rifle has not returned

She quickly returns to the vent and tries to slip back through.

(Sneak dex)

(9)

Closing the vent neatly behind you, you wiggle through the chimney back to the roof

She extracts herself from the chimney, wipes some sweat off, before hopping down from the roof at an unobserved spot, making her way to the pawn shop through back alleys.

It is nearly close when you arrive there, and the owner is locking cabinets with the more precious merchandise in it

She walks in the door, shivering a bit due to her sweat-soaked clothes "Can I get my rifle now? You still have the case and stuff?"

5:34 AM

(What time is it, like 10-11?)

(Yeah about that)

5:35 AM

“Saw the pictures. That’s plenty. Thank you.” He heads into the back and returns with the case. “I’ll let you take it down. You’re evidently attached to it

She walks over, picks it up, feeling the grooves, remembering the faces, the names, the battles, until things she had forgotten on purpose started showing back up in her mind, at which point she moves from staring at the rifle to through it.

5:47 AM

Her eyes go wide from fear, remembering one particular battle where her squad was virtually wiped out defending a position so the rest of her platoon could regroup. Eventually she shakes herself out of it, grabs the case, and puts the rifle into it. She walks out of the store and heads home, picking a route with as few bars or places with liquor as possible.

(I imagine the mods on the rifle are in relatively poor shape after sitting on that wall for so long)

(idk why they would be, no one's trashed it and he hasn't been using it)

(I thought they had to be actively maintained?)

6:54 AM

(Or is that only if its been used?)

(only if its been used)

7:01 AM

(but you can only maintain a certain amount)

7:01 AM

(but you dont pay or have to fix it until after use)

(Eventually she will get back to those skills, until then she probably wont use it)

(I mean, she doesnt have the fix atm to take care of it)

7:04 AM

After a long day, Zaahira finally walks through the door of their apartment.

Sana is playing near the window, with a small doll. You hear the sounds of packing and drawers being opened in the other room

She sets the weapon case down on the ground and walks over to Sanna and gives her a big hug. "I missed you today, ready for tomorrow?"

"You got all your things packed?"

"Dads' doing it" she laughs, before running off

Zaahira smiles before picking up the rifle case and walking in to the room with Adam.

"So, I found evidence that a crappy fried food place was part of a smuggling ring along with one of the bigger food services in the city. Got this back out of it." She holds up the rifle case

3:56 PM

(I doubt Adam has ever seen it, since it spent all its time under their bed in its case until she pawned it)

“Oh you did” he sounds less than enthused. “So. What. What does that mean. Are you leaving again?”

"No, I got back my rifle, it just, took longer than expected because I was trying to be careful." She sighs. "I thought it would bring me some closure, just brought up, a lot of memories." She sits down on the bed and stares out the door. (edited)

6:01 PM

"Reminded me of how many friends I've lost, lost even more lately because I'm a shitty person." (edited)

He chooses not to reply to that but instead thinks aloud. “If there’s any truth at all in that smuggling operation you found im glad we are leaving

"There is nothing in this city for either of us anymore, just brings too many unhappy memories." She opens up the case with her rifle and pulls it out, looks at the marks again. "I honestly wish I had just spent the time here with you two instead of getting this thing back." She says as she checks to make sure the weapon is not loaded before disassembling it just enough to remove the upper receiver where the marks are. She stares at it again for a bit before she slowly breaks down and begins to cry. (edited)

Adam puts his arm around you, unsure on what else he should do

She leans into him, crying into his shoulder for a minute or two. After shes done she gives him a big kiss and a big hug "I'm sorry, I'm sorry I'm a bad parent and a bad spouse and I am never here and I'm hardly ever sober and I waste money and everything."

6:55 PM

"You two have been the one bright spot in my otherwise shitty life, and I keep trying to mess it up."

"Way too far" he chides. "Easy now. We leave tomorrow and we'll see what Carinhold has for us. Got your mom all sorted, and your brother earlier. They leave a few hours after we do"

"Thank you, for everything. I'm going to go tuck Sanna into bed, I'll be right back."

7:02 PM

She walks over to Sanna's room, tucking her in at this place for the last time, before walking back to their bedroom.

7:03 PM

She sits down on the bed, taking off her still damp clothes, puts on pajamas, and lays down, giving Adam a kiss again before rolling over and falling asleep. (edited)

The next morning she wakes up early, makes some coffee and toast, and brings it into their bedroom.

Adam is up, and packing what's left of the bedding, spraying it down with the last of a small fabric cleanser. "Train is in two hours. I don't think we should wait"

"Let's get Sanna up after we finish this and head to the train depot."

He agrees, and enjoys the meal with you, his shoulders do not sag as much knowing he is finally leaving

They finish packing, get Sanna ready, and head to the train station (edited)

They get on the train once it is there, spending some time together, drawing with Sanna, searching for jobs, and places to see once they get to Carinhold.

Adam has some leads on finance type jobs, Carinhold being the largest and most developed of all Taros cities.

Zaahira looks more specifically for security positions or police positions

7:14 AM

Or something else that will make use of her skills

"You'd think at least some of the skills I learned in the military would prove useful to someone."

7:25 AM

She says quietly to Adam, as Sanna fell asleep earlier on in the train ride

She sighs and settles in for the rest of the journey

(lets get an aadmin or connect with wis, if you're trying to find work)

(ok, both are the same garbage roll)

11:11 AM

(Wow, got a 10)

11:11 AM

(Somehow)

There are several job postings available, but one that catches your eye the most is a listing, stating skilled field workers are needed for the growing UIS

She makes a note to give them a call once they get settled in.

2:52 PM

She then waits out the rest of the ride

The rest of the day she spends with family, unpacking, meeting any neighbors who come to say hi. The next day she would put in a call to UIS about the job opening.

(I feel like an interview is going to be you roleplaying with yourself

(I mean, it could be with madison or jerud)

(Jerud is doing the thorn investigation)

6:25 PM

(And Madison is on the capital platform)

(Fair enough)

6:26 PM

(Could also be Wind)

(who do you want it to be then)

(Rather do Wind for now) (edited)

7:54 PM

(Marcion would want someone below him to do the interviews, and since the two department heads are busy, this gets to be Wind's job)

The operator on the other side schedules her for an interview for the following day. She spends more time with her family, going to a restaurant for the first time in years

9:41 AM

The following morning she gets up, gets dressed in the only dress clothes she has, her old military dress uniform, and takes the bus to the Carinhold field office

She walks up to a decently sized office building surrounded by fencing, large rocks, and cameras. A Gravflyer lands on the roof as she goes walking into the building.

She is escorted to a waiting room, sits there for about 15 minutes, before she is shown into a conference room. She sits down opposite an older human man reading something on his compad. He clears his throat upon her sitting down and looks up.

10:50 AM

"My name is Marcion Delgato, im the director of the United Marshal Service. You are here about the open field agent positions correct?"

10:54 AM

Zaahira nods "That's correct."

The two of them go on discussing her history, military experience, and skills for a while before coming to the last few questions.

11:10 AM

"Mrs. Galanis, just a couple more questions. Firstly, how do you feel about travel to other planets? This job would require you to potentially visit other worlds to complete your missions, are you fine with doing that?"

"As long as I get time to spend with my family afterwards, that would be fine I guess."

2:18 PM

He nods. "Lastly, hows your alcohol problem doing?"

2:19 PM

She gives a slightly shocked look and stammers a bit before he starts chuckling a bit

2:21 PM

"Mrs. Galanis, its fine. I just want you to know that we know. As long as you manage your problem, we won't have one. I'm prepared to offer you a position here, I need someone to coordinate with the Elysium Initiative on Cruesa. Your military experience would work well for us. Are you fine with that?"

2:22 PM

She looks at him and nods "I think a sense of purpose and duty would be good for me right now."

2:23 PM

He smiles and stands up, sticking his hand out "Welcome to the United Marshal Service."

2:24 PM

She shakes his hand and smiles back. "Thank you. Who will I be reporting to?"

2:25 PM

"Normally you will report to the head of the operations department, a man named Jerud. He was busy one a case so I filled in for him. I like to meet all my agents anyway."

2:25 PM

She nods again, shakes his hand again.

2:26 PM

"You will receive your orders in the next few days. Spend the time getting yourself some new armor and firepower."

2:28 PM

She nods yet again, thanks him for the interview, and heads back home, figuring out on the way how to tell her husband and daughter she will be away on another planet regularly now.

She walks in the door of their new apartment and looks for Adam to tell him the news.

"Adam, you home?"

The apartment is empty but there is a note on the table that they went to the store, and that he and sana are going to get familiar with the neighborhood

She sighs, changes into some normal clothes, shorts and a tank top, then finishes whatever unpacking is left

After a while, she heads out too, seeing if she can find them around the neighborhood. (edited)

You find them coming into the building as you're about to leave, Sana with an oversize ice cream cone and Adam with a new business suit under his arm

"Hey you two! I was looking for you." (edited)

9:09 AM

She walks with them to the apartment, picking up Sanna as they go.

They follow you

When they get back in to the apartment, she lets Sanna go draw and play.

9:13 AM

"I see you found a nice new suit, wish I had thought of that, but my old uniform worked well enough. I got the job, but it comes with some problems I wasn't expecting."

"Like what?" He asks, heading to the closet and folding his new clothes

"I will have to be off planet, for certain at the start, I don't know how much after the first assignment."

9:20 AM

"The Director or whatever interviewed me and said I would be dispatched to Cruesa to help coordinate squads there."

"I really think this work would be good for me, but I don't want to be away from you both all the time, not after we finally moved and have a chance to be happier as a family."

“I’d rather have you on a mission than fussing around the bar scene. We’ll get along fine”

"Okay." She gives him a kiss and a hug. "I love you, even if I don't say it very often. I don't leave for a few days at least, maybe we should have dinner tomorrow night, just the two of us."

"Tonight though I want to rip all your clothes off."

(Okay fade to black)

(Yeah)

It’s the next day and your ticket to cruesa has you leaving later that morning

She wakes up, looks at her compad "Shit. Adam, looks like dinner will have to wait, I need to pickup some equipment before I leave."

"You told me you were leaving today. Sana and I will be find until you get back"

"Okay. I left some of my things packed, so I'll be leaving soon. I'll keep in contact as much as possible."

"Of course. Its space travel. I understand if there are delays"

She gets up and grabs whatever else she needs, packs it up, and goes to see Sanna.

Sanna is looking out the window at the busy city street belpw

9:13 PM

content to watch cars and people going by

"Hey you, did you sleep well?"

She shrugs, and is quiet

Zaahira walks over to her and kneels down next to her "You are upset because I am leaving again, aren't you?" (edited)

Zaahira gives her a big hug "I'm sorry I have to go again, I really wish I could stay here with you and dad. I love you, more than anything."

8:02 AM

(Would she have gotten paid for this month already?)

(You just joined a day ago in game and have done zero work for them so not yet )

(Didn't think so)

8:03 AM

(But she can go to the armory at the Gudrun HQ and stock up with her pick of the litter right?)

(For as much as the agency lets you take with its current element level)

8:26 AM

(And with the same restrictions)

"If anyone asks, just tell them mommy is out protecting everyone from bad people, okay. I'll send you a message as often as I can, and once I get home I'll make sure to be here with you for as long as I can."

9:18 AM

(I think we have an armory stocked with everything the UNW has access to, since we have level three in armory or whatever that element is called)

(Yeah just not relics or tl5)

9:19 AM

(Aside from shear rifles

9:20 AM

(And flop rifles)

She gives Sanna another hug and a kiss on the forehead "I'll be back, I promise."

She grabs her things and heads out the door

11:17 AM

She gets a ride on a gravflyer from the Carinhold office to the Gudrun HQ, making her way to the armory when they land

The armory is an automated carriage system that dispenses gear up to the designated credit limit. A large pad allows operatives to select what they think they require

(Does that include assault suits?)

12:47 PM

(Nvm, thats 10k credits

12:49 PM

(Can she trade in some of her old equipment for like half its purchase cost?)

(Sure)

She trades in her combat rifle, woven body armor, rifle ammo, and knife for 385 credits. She then selects a CFU, Shear rifle, 40 rounds of ammunition for the rifle, 20 rounds of sniper ammo, an upgraded knife, atmofilter, survival kit, lazarus patch, advanced binoculars, and 2 type A batteries, combined worth being 1695 credits after trading in her old equipment.

1:01 PM

(Let me hotspot my phone so i can take care of this real quick)

She packs all this up, and heads to central for her trip to Cruesa.

(It's a space elevator to the spacedock right? I imagine Central looks very impressive to someone from the Taros cities)

(No, its regular lifter service)

4:15 PM

(cargo lighters/lifters)

(Ok)

(A space elevator would be a massive megaproject they dont have the people or resources to do)

(Fair enough)

You're picked up and brought to the Trivedi cloud orbital station, where the Shadow Chaser is waiting, staffed with crew

She walks in somewhat sheepishly, feeling very out of place in this spacecraft. "Hi guys." She looks around "Is this ship just for me or are we waiting for others?"

"Just you. Everyone else is on Creusa already"

"Oh, well I'm ready whenever you all are. I've never been in a spaceship before, is there anything I should know first?"

“Just try to relax and keep your mind occupied. We will be there in about a week”

8:09 PM

The shadow chaser rocks gently as the locking rings disconnect and they begin sailing out to system edge

Zaahira spends the week cleaning her weapons, reading reports on Cruesa, organizing her equipment, and writing notes to the family, not knowing they will get them later as one big bunch

8:11 PM

(Can I make some kind of roll to dig into reports on the planet to gain info, or is that not needed?)

(Everything needed to know is on the scouting report or was already covered in your interview. There’s nothing hidden with the last EI faction turn anymore either)

(Alright)

8:13 PM

(I got nothing until the ship gets to Cruesa)

The ship is about to make its spike translation, the engines roaring and space beginning to stretch out when something pops in the cockpit and alarms begin to chime. Power fails on the ship as the spike drive runs away with the vessel. You hear the pilots screaming at each other to correct course or try to get the drive shut off

Zaahira, halfway through getting her sniper rifle out to properly clean it, gets up "What's going on?"

"Please tell me we aren't going to crash."

They are ignoring you and are busy wresting with the controls. The lights flash again and again with strobing effect before the spike drill ends. The shadow chaser is plummeting, power, engines, and sensors all dead

9:57 PM

A crisp brown and green landmass is off to the left of the vessel. Below, a barren looking island with a large castle ruin on it looms, set kilometers back from the beach through s dead looking forest

9:57 PM

Engine power comes back but it’s clear there’s going to be a crash. “Everyone brace!”

Zaahira runs to her seat and straps in as fast as she possibly can.

You get into position just in time for the chaser to plow into the ground, having shaved off as much speed as possible. It carves a 200m long firey furrow from the beach, partway into the forest, knocking down trees and setting a few aflame at your passage.

7:32 AM

The craft’s back set down with a thump, engines whining as they power down, possibly for good

She groans a bit, blood seeping from a small cut on her forehead, and gets up, looking for survivors and her equipment.

"Anyone still alive?"

You hear nothing from the cockpit but the blast door had become sealed in the crash. Your equipment looks to be scattered about the space.

She gathers up her equipment, moves over to the blast door, and tries to see how to open it up.

The door has been jammed shut by the frame warping

9:53 AM

You hear a soft fist rap against the other side

She looks around for some kind of tool or weapon that could be used to cut the door open

There is a twisted metal spar that might make a useful crowbar

11:45 AM

lodged in the seat next to you, through the lower cushion

She grabs it, then looks for the best place to jam it into the door before trying to pry it open.

(exert/str)

(2)

1:30 PM

(Such strength on display here)

The door doesn’t budge at all. You can hear the knocking on the other side still.

(Did this ship have a glass cockpit?)

(Same stuff instapanels are made out of. You can break it if it hasn’t already )

Seeing the door won't budge, Zaahira grabs her shear rifle, along with the metal bar, gets out of the shuttle, and runs to the front to smash through the cockpit window.

The window shatters under the impact of the bar. One of the pilots is clearly dead, the control console through his chest. The other is cradling a broken arm, but otherwise seems okay.

"Lazarus patch ain't helping him. Here, let's get you out of here. We need to gather what supplies we can in case this thing explodes." She says to the other pilot.

He accepts help being pulled out through the cockpit. “I’ll do what I can with one arm. Just give me a minute” (Notice/wis)

(9)

Faintly, you think you can make out the yip and howl of hunting dogs

"Do you hear dogs? Get your weapon handy" She pulls out her binoculars and switches them to thermal vision, looking around for the dogs in the direction she heard them.

If they are out there, the sound is traveling through the trees at a far greater distance than you can see them

2:15 PM

"I...I don't he...wait...there it is" the pilot says, scrambling to his feet, painfully

"They must be a ways away. I'll grab supplies, you scan the trees."

2:16 PM

She heads back into the ship to look for emergency supplies

There is a small emergency bag with a week of food and water, along with an atmo filter for each of you

8:16 PM

A pressure tent was included but is torn to pieces from the crash

(Any medicine?)

(No just what I said is there)

Zaahira grabs the bag of food and the atmofilters, along with the shreds from the pressure tent and heads back out.

8:20 PM

"Not much in there. If we get back from wherever we are, I'm filing a complaint at the lack of medical supplies. We can use the shreds of the pressure tent to splint your arm. We have a week of provisions between us." She realizes she has no idea who this person is "What's your name anyway?"

"Zives" he says after a moment, already thinking about how to use what you've found to at least stabilize the limb for now

"Well Zives, you have any idea where we are?"

"We're on Sumati, there's only islands charted on the eastern side of the planet, all unexplored"

"So we are on one of those islands then?"

"I believe so. It was hard to see on handling with all the smoke and flipping

"Well, we'd better find some shelter or something since we don't know what's out here. Does this ship have an emergency beacon we can bring with us?"

"It's transmitting, we can't remove it"

"We will have to look for high ground then. First, let's try to fix your arm. I'm not exactly the best at this stuff, I'll warn you."

11:33 AM

She attempts to splint his arm using some sticks and shreds from the pressure tent.

(heal/int)

(5)

You're not able to do much other than keep it in place with the poor quality materials on hand. It'll need to be properly set soon.

"Haven't done this since training, underhill weren't known for breaking limbs, they just sliced them off. Let's look for some high ground" (edited)

THere is a rocky series of foothills a kilometer hike from where your craft was downed. You faintly hear the hunting dogs again

"There are some hills over there, let's get going. I'll try to gather some branches for a shelter while we are going."

You manage to find a handful on the way but the slope is sparsely wooded. Dragging yourself to the top of the hill with the injured pilot over the course of an hour, to see a densely wooded alpine forestland below. On a large hill, 10km at least away, you can see a stone sided castle rising out of the low morning mist

She pulls out her binoculars again, setting them to thermal, and scans the forest for activity.

If anything is in the forest, it still isn't showing up on your thermal vision

She frowns, then looks back to the pilot. "You take care of yourself, I'm going to go scout the forest a bit, gather us some more bits for a shelter and a fire, maybe some kind of animal will pop up we can eat."

9:31 PM

(Is the crash site visible from here?)

(Crash site is visible, there's still a forest fire around it, though small)

Zaahira heads down the hill to gather more branches and firewood, scanning with her rifle as she moves.

(Wis/Survive)

(9)

You find some branches amid the forest, away from the crash, and manage to conceal your tracks while doing so, just in case

She heads back up the hill and starts using what branches they have to try and build a makeshift shelter

From the ground, building the shelter and looking through the thermal vision, Zaahira sees 20 figures, and four dogs emerging from the forest, at the bottom of the rocky foothill, 500m away. Many are carrying weapons

"Shit, we have contact"

11:01 AM

Insert radio contact here

11:03 AM

"Those dogs will smell us out for sure, here." She hands Zives her hidden revolver and its ammo. "Uses this only if necessary, if they get closer."

11:04 AM

She turns switches her cybernetics to thermal and tries to identify what kind of weapons they are carrying.

They are in dark clothing, though not standard uniforms. Their gear is military surplus, at best

(So, like tl2 rifles or combat rifles?)

(they are combat rifles but theyre showing signs of not being maintained the best. like rust, cracked furniture, nobody is using the same style magazine, ect)

11:25 AM

(probably a lot of 'tacticool' stuff that isn't really that tactical )

(Lol)

11:25 AM

(Are they heading up the hillside?)

(They're organizing themselves at the forest edge right now but it seems their intention)

"We need to move, these guys are preparing to come up the mountain. Rescue is on the way but they can't land here."

11:32 AM

She looks around the area for an open field big enough for a ship to land at.

There is a clearing 2km to the west, that looks like the shuttle should be able to set down at

She takes the branches and starts sticking them into whatever places they will stick into her combat armor "Grab some of those and stick them into your uniform, ill do the other side. Once we get done, we need to head west to a clearing, rescue will meet us there."

The hounds are howling and yipping down below and they begin to pick up a scent, both of you only have complete work your camouflage

"Right, we need to go." She and Zives start heading down the hill toward the extraction site.

The shuttle passes overhead, and you hear the dogs barking rise in intensity, as they're cut from their leashes

(They still have to make it up the rocky hillside though right?)

(yeah you've got time they're just faster than the people. Basically they're hoping eventually the dogs catch up and tie you down so they can make up the gap)

Zaahira and Zives keep going for the evac

(exert/con)

12:47 PM

(opposed with the dogs)

(2, what a roll man)

12:49 PM

(rip)

(10)

(Doggos be fast)

You make it to the base of the hill, as the dogs catch up. Long legged, and heavily muscled. There are three of them, and they are 50m frmo you

12:50 PM

(initiative)

(7)

12:50 PM

(Zives go on my initiative?)

(yes he does. you and Zives, then doggos)

Zaahira and Zives both turn and fire, then continue running

1:52 PM

(21/10 and 19/4)

(Her shear rifle was fired in burst mode)

One of the dogs yelps as it is cut to pieces by the gunfire, even Zives with hs broken arm is utilizing his training without thinking about it

2:27 PM

The remaining two rush forward, closing to 30m

They both turn and shoot again

2:28 PM

(25/10 and 7/7 for Zives)

2:35 PM

They continue running after shooting

The second dog falls, killed much the same way, their surviving packmate running to the group of humans who have crested the hill. The begin to give chase as you pass out of sight, into the thickness of the forest, heading toward the clearing

The keep going, both of them reloading as they move, with Zaahira swapping to her sniper rifle. (edited)

(No. How about they get to take their turns)

6:28 PM

two of the pursuers, at the crest of the hill look down Into the treeline and begin to chant, glowing auras of light begin to build around them from a faint glow

6:29 PM

The remaining surge forward, heading toward the tree line. A few fumble with weapons that likewise begin to glow faintly

(Sorry, thought them cresting the hill was their turn)

6:49 PM

(Or rather that we were out of initiative for some reason)

6:51 PM

(Were any of them carrying grenades when she looked earlier?)

(If they are you can’t see them. They’re not in outside pouches

(Ok)

6:53 PM

(How far from the shuttle are we at this point?)

(1k)

Zaahira and Zives continue moving quickly from tree to tree, Zaahira turns and takes a shot at one of the men currently glowing

6:57 PM

(18/15)

The spell flickers, and fails, and the man is consumed by some kind of ethereal fireball, reduced to ash before he can even scream

She quickly replies to Fermia before moving

Passing through the trees, Zives before you, you make it to the shuttle clearing, pursuit far behind. A fireball is loosed at the edge of the forest as you run, starting a large blaze

(Is the second fireball shooter still within 2km?)

(you cant see him from inside the forest anymore)

(Ok)

8:14 PM

Zaahira and Zives go running for the shuttle

Zaahira gets off the shuttle, still covered in grime, blood, and dirt from Sumati, and makes her way to wherever she sees UNW officials

They’re hard to miss, being landed in the middle of the main peacekeeper garrison

She walks up, pulls out her badge (Gonna assume she got one from intelligence) "Zaahira Galanis, Intelligence. I need to meet with whoever is in charge please."

"Some confusion over that right now. Intel? what's your mission here?"

"I am supposed to be coordinating the Marshal SWAT teams with peacekeeping forces, going after criminals, that sort of thing."

(Youd have access to the news report, you can go after 1 of the 2 figures named in it)

"The religious Zealots should be the easier people to gather information on. I'll be starting with them."

"There's a chapel not far from here that we raided just last night. We took a few prisoners with suspicions of ties to the wrathful hand. We haven't had time to process them yet. If you're up for rooting them out, feel free to pick up where we left off"

"You mean interrogate them?"

"Yes. I do"

She sighs "I'm not exactly, trained, for that sort of thing, we didn't ever capture bugs, we usually just shot them."

"Then you should also know the first rule of the army is 'Adapt"

She curses under her breath "Yeah, adapt usually means someone fucked up and now you have to fix it." She picks up her bags and weapon cases "Lead on. Maybe the dirt and blood will make me seem more intimidating."

Youre taken to a smal billet where four prisoners have been taken, many wearing finery- going to chapel to be seen more than to worship

She leaves her weapons, aside from her hidden knife, outside the room, then looks to the person in charge. (edited)

2:30 PM

"Why are they all in the same room? Aren't you supposed to keep them separate?"

"Don;'t have the space for it. Besides, where are they going to go:

"Fair enough. Do we know anything about who these people are?"

"suspected connection to the wrathful hand."

"We don't know their names at all?"

"We apprehended them, they were carrying weapons, and were in a church suspected of being a communications hub for a rebel zealot cell. We grabbed them and returned as your shuttle was coming down"

2:38 PM

"Can;t bend the laws of time, even with your fancy badge"

"Just asking a question, don't get all pissy about it." She says before taking a deep breath and walking in

He mumbles something about intelligence agency gloryboys before closing the cell behind you. Four Remnant civilians, three males, and one female, are inside, huddle in a corner. They look to have been beaten heavily.

She sighs and walks up to them "My name is Zaahira, I'm going to be asking you all some questions, and I would very much appreciate some honest answers."

They say nothing but shrink into the corner of the cell, watching and waiting

"Who beat you all up?"

"Captors. Myrmidons"

7:23 AM

One of them shows you cracked compad, smuggled in the fold of an overcoat, showing a rain of blows landing on them as they rolled to conceal the device

"Why were they hitting you?"

"Resisting arrest, we think"

"Were you?"

"It doesnt really matter, does it? we're still in here. What do you want?

"I want to understand whether your leader is really fighting against the UNW and why."

" He is fighting against them because they are conquerers who have come here to destroy our culture. Why did whole city blocks need to be torn down for no reason? Some of us lost our homes, lost everything, even though we didn't take up arms or assist in the fighting"

She sits back in her chair "I understand blaming the UNW for that, I blamed them for a while when war broke out in my home town after a charismatic leader stirred the pot of hatred and began an insurgency. Do you honestly think anyone of them wants to be here? The Tenebrians brought war to our doorstep, and used their people as slaves against us. Those who were still fighting in amongst civilians did so with no regard for collateral damage. The entire reason you were moved out was to make sure no civilians died while they rounded up tenebrian insurgents. And I can tell you, as someone who lived in a bombed, shot up, shithole of an apartment building for almost a year after the fighting in my hometown ended, going back home after the fighting has ended doesn't feel right." (edited)

10:17 PM

"You all actually are getting your homes rebuilt, half my hometown is still a lawless shithole filled with rubble and craters."

"Why did they have to come down at all? "

8:14 AM

"It's so senseless, our district wasn't even involved in the fighting. They even tore down the church"

"I don't have all the answers, I'm just a person who's life has been surrounded by war since I was a child trying to save some lives."

"The preacher promised to make them pay for what they did to our homes, and our holy sites. We wanted to join him"\

"So who do you make pay then? The UNW soldiers who don't want to be here, the generals who are trying to re-establish order on a planet they were forced to invade to end a threat to the existence of their homes, your neighbors who just want to go back to some semblance of normalcy? More fighting doesn't hurt just one group, it hurts everyone. And even if you manage to continue fighting, you are just going to invite more soldiers, more death, and more suffering. I'm not saying you should like the UNW, but blaming them for everything that has happened might not be the best course of action here."

2:52 PM

"All I want to do is try and stop the bloodshed. If you are unhappy, do your best to show it, but more killing is not the answer here."

"Well then what do we need to do to just be left to ourselves? "

She sighs. "Give me a name, someone I can talk to, someone I can convince the generals to speak with."

(You know who the two leaders are it was in the news already. You just don’t know where they are or if there’s anything special about getting to them)

(Shes trying to get like an intermediary of some kind)

They have no names of anyone who isnt already one of the identified perpetrators of the violence

"Do you have any way to get in contact with these people, some way for me to meet them?"

"You should ask for the deacon at the church. And I'd do something about..." the woman points to her ears "Dead giveaway you're offworld"

"Thank you for your help, I'll speak with the guards and get you all some medical attention for those wounds."

2:31 PM

She walks out of the tent and looks for the guards.

They have remained close by, as per their guard duty

"Get them some medical attention for their wounds, some of them are quite serious. Where are your commanding officers located?"

You're given a rough map of the garrison, with the command tent highlighted for you, loaded to your compad

She makes her way to the command tent.

2:42 PM

(Still totally covered in blood and dirt)

The command tent has sentries around it, and one parts the flap after reviewing your papers. Inside, the three UNW generals and their lower level adjutant officers are reviewing maps and reports

She walks inside, having flashbacks to mission briefings during her time in the military, but controls her emotions to the best of her ability.

7:44 PM

She waits for someone to acknowledge her before speaking.

"Yes you were let in, what do you want?" a ruddy face captain asks, hardly looking up from his reports

She shows him her credentials "Intelligence sent me. I need to speak with someone about the church prisoners."

"What about them?"

"I spoke to them, trying to come up with some kind of peaceful solution, but I wanted to get firsthand what kind of numbers and firepower we are dealing with."

"Peaceful solution? to the occupation?"

"To their resistance."

"I know we could just raid these locations once we find where they are hiding, but I would like to at least try to prevent further deaths."

2:35 PM

(Meant to say that earlier, but didn't, mb)

"I'm not sure how one would go about that. You'd be putting yourself at risk trying to talk to them, and letting them go free certainly isn't an option"

"I'm trying to stop bloodshed, if I feel like there is no other option I'll bring them in, but I want to at least try. How many attacks have they carried out and when did they start?"

"They're not individually taking responsibility for each one"

8:47 PM

"Both groups have been causing trouble almost every day, either a shooting or bombing"

She sighs. "Shit like this was so much easier when it was about bugs."

(Most people are at least tacitly in favor of the extremists for right now so its not like they need to push for recruitment)

"Has there been any attempt made by anyone since the occupation started to actually gather the opinions of the civilian population on anything that is being done, or were actions just taken even when they were incredibly unpopular?"

"I think you know the answer to that already"

"Yeah, the latter."

"Just that. If we're clean about this, we can cut the twin heads off this snake, and be done with it"

"What then?"

"With their leaders gone, the hope is our gains, the the disarray on their side will be enough to stop any future misbehavior"

"When do we actually start rebuilding the community though? Is there nothing we can do to try and turn the community against them?"

(Can we please just do the mission)

1:03 PM

"You're not here for a discussion of ethics. You're here as an intelligence agent, to do what intelligence assigned you to do"

"Alright, alright, I'll go find the people and get rid of the problem." She walks out of the tent and asks the guards if there is an empty bunk somewhere she can get cleaned up at before leaving.

They bring you to an empty billet, the soldiers normally stationed here on long range patrol, and not expected to be back for about a week

She gets herself cleaned up, checks her weapons, puts a beanie on to try and disguise her ears along with a long, bulky coat to disguise her armor and shear rifle as best she can, before finding one of the Marshal SWAT gravflyers and taking it to recon the area around the church.

While she is walking she finishes the letter she started on the shuttle ride from Sumati and sends it to Sanna and Adam.

The grav flyer makes a few sweeps. The buildings are too close together to see much aside from rooftops

(Are the rooftops close enough that she could land a few blocks away and make her way to the roof across the street across the roofs?)

9:02 PM

(Or just have the flyer hover)

(The buildings are all different heights so not really as far as walking across them)

(Ok)

9:03 PM

She will have the flyer take her back to the military base, where she will get out and make her way to the highest building she can get to across the street from the church.

The building it a20 floor office park that has a comfortable height margin over the front of the chapel

(It have a fire escape?)

(Yes)

She climbs up the fire escape to the roof, and starts watching the chapel with her binoculars

The chapel has worshipers coming in and out almost constantly, in small groups of two or three

(Are there any other doors she can see from here?)

(Or flows of people moving around the sides and back)

(There’s only one door that is observable. You don’t see anyone coming out of alleys or ducking into them around it

She climbs back down the staircase and makes her way around the street, looking for a building that overlooks the back of the church.

3:50 PM

As she is doing this, she realizes she can go get the building plans from elsewhere

3:51 PM

She walks off, calls the flyer, drops off her shear rifle, and returns to the building, takes a deep breath, and walks in

(Into the church or into a building overlooking the back)

(Into the back, then she will go into the church.)

5:26 PM

(Depending on what she sees)

The building overlooking the back of the church is an apartment building. The people here don’t seem to be in favor of the occupation- piles of advisory flyers are in trash cans. One set even smells like piss. Overall though, nothing seems threatening here

She goes up to the roof and watches the back for activity.

There are a few garbage collectors working when you first arrive. A UNW foot patrol sweeps the alleys a few hours later , but there is not much activity there

She spends some time on the roof, waiting until nighttime.

Nighttime comes without any further activity

The long hours of absolutely nothing happening starts to frustrate her, but she keeps watching throughout the night.

Midnight draws close, and people begin arriving, using the front doors of the church. Lights begin turning on inside, though the bell in its tower never rings. A car pulls up to the front of the building, though you cannot see it directly, just tell that it is there by the light of its headlights

She curses herself for not staying in her previous position and looks for another vantage that will give her some view of the front.

As you look around, the car pulls down the block, continuing in the same direction. You see that it is some sort of state car. (Like a towncar, not a limo(

8:59 PM

An organ inside begins to play

(Could she have gotten a picture of it with her compad?)

(Very blurry but yes)

She looks around for a building next to the church that would let her move back and forth to see the front and the back, wondering why she didnt do that in the first place, moving to it if it is available (edited)

(Everything is different heights, so youre looking at 10+ meter climbs or falls in either direction, depending on where you're going)

9:15 PM

(I'm not trying to be obtuse or intentionally frustrating, but I mean, I'm sure you've seen a city skyline before)

(I expected her to have to go back down to the ground floor and then climb up again, you described it as such before. She's not about to do something risky out here by herself.)

Service has been going for about fifteen minutes by time you find another overlook building and make your way inside to its roof. two more songs have been sung, and a handful of late worshipers have arrived

She waits until the end of service to see if the car comes by again.

A handful of figures leave the church, as the car comes around the corner. The night is cold and most have their hands tucked in coats

1:14 PM

They are scanning the streets as best they can

She takes a picture of them all and the car

After a few moments, when it appears all is safe, a lone figure exits the building, and gets into the car

She gets his picture

The picture is very dark and out of focus, he has no reason to look up for you to get a clear one. He gets into the car, and it rounds the block

She calls up the gravflyer and alerts them to the vehicle, asking them to track it

The flyer begins sailing after the car, and below, the car increases in speed, trying to put some distance between the tracking aircraft

(Zaahira isn't in the flyer right?)

(She is not)

1:34 PM

(I;m assuming theyd be sending you feed though)

(ok)

1:35 PM

She tells them to give them as much room as possible so we can make them think they have escaped.

(4 vs 7 for notice vs. sneak) The plane climbs to its maximum service ceiling, hidden by clouds, but its sensors able to pierce the cloud layer and track the car. The car pulls into an administration complex, into its underground parking

1:37 PM

and now truly is, out of sight

Zaahira calls the gravflyer back to a different roof away from the church, gets in, and takes the flyer back to base. Once at the base, she starts asking around for any records on the administrative complex.

There are building plans and a general summary of employees , but the actual records kept there destroyed when it looked like the space battle was on the verge of being lost

(Are the building plans complete? Like the blueprints?)

(Yes)

She starts pouring over the blueprints looking for ways into and around the building she can use to gain information on it to better plan a potential assault.

There are six ways that the building can be accessed from the street. Two in front. Two in back and one on each side

(What about the vent system?)

The vents are too small to fit humanoids of even the smallest size

She takes the plans and looks for the area where the marshal squads are settled in

(How many are coming. Let’s lay this out)

(Let me go back and double check how many are there)

4:26 PM

(I said half, so I suppose 5 teams then)

4:26 PM

(So there are 50 SWAT people, about the same in Marshals, plus gravflyer pilots)

(How many are assaulting. What constitutes a team. I need personnel and vehicle numbers )

(There are ten per team. She's going to talk to the squad leaders right now though)

4:28 PM

(She's going to be looking to see if anyone has any drones that would fit in the vents first)

There are no drones that would fit as the vents are too small and too narrow for a human

(Ok, she will go to where the squads are, and call in the squad leaders to discuss how we tackle the building.)

The squad leaders are assembled to discuss how to assault the building with you.

(How many floors are we talking?)

4:32 PM

(In the building)

(Three)

(And the parking garage is underneath?)

(Yes)

(Would it be safe to say they have a large table that can be used to plan missions on, that has a screen on top of it?)

(Yes)

Zaahira pulls up the plans of the building on the screen "This mission will probably take all of us to pull off. Right now we don't have any real idea what's inside the building, and that many entrances are going to be hard to cover."

“So how do you propose we do it?” One asks

(I'll give it some proper thought once my brain wakes up, had another night filled with half to one hour sleep bits broken up by pain once the pain let me get to sleep at past 6 am)

"Right now I think having a full team at the front and back, another team split between the side doors, a team covering the parking garage, and a team infiltrating through the roof will give us the best chance of catching these people off guard, but I don't know if being that loud will leave them alive. I've never planned anything aimed at capture, it was always sweep and eliminate, so let me know your opinions."

Locking down the exits seems like a sensitive strategy to them. “What are the flyers going to be doing during this”

"We can have two orbiting around the building to provide fire support if needed while the other three on standby for medivac duty."

"They're going to know something's up when the flyers come in."

"Any suggestions then?"

"Teams in position first. Then the fast movers come in. Keep them back far enough where they won't be seen circling until everyone's in place"

"How are we going to move 40 people there in full combat gear without being seen? "

(ground teams can get close to the site fine, what I'm saying is air support will not be available for the first few minutes of the operation)

(Alright)

10:16 PM

(Would they know how often the preacher gives his sermons?"

(No)

"The only problem we have is catching them sleeping. We don't know for certain when the preacher is giving his next sermon, and we need him to be there when we go in. Do any of you have spotter training?"

(Well you know he’s there now) there are a handful of marksmen who know how to do both jobs as part of their training

"Alright. I'll take one of them with me to scope out the place, and if it looks clear we can hit it tonight, otherwise we will need to wait until we know he is there again."

11:42 AM

(Do we have a picture of this guy?)

(You just took pictures ofhim two hours ago in game time)

(You said it was blurry and didn't get his face)

(Yeah But you got pictures. Nothing clear. I mean. You know he’s there now and your teams are there I’m not sure why you’d come back)

"Or we could just go now. We don't have a picture of this guy, but I guess take everyone you can alive."

1:09 PM

"I'm sure his office will be clearly marked."

1:10 PM

"I'll come in with the team entering through the roof."

1:10 PM

(The two flyers there orbiting will both carry half the squad going to the roof, just to make dropping quicker)

(You keep using the word team. Can I get squad numbers as far as how many are in each and where they’ll be)

(5 per squad, two squads per team, 10 men total in each team)

1:16 PM

(One full team will be at the front door, back door, roof, and parking garage, the last team will split and cover the side doors)

1:17 PM

(The guys at the doors go in simultaneously, shortly followed by the roof guys. The men closing off the garage would likely bring in some kind of heavy trucks to block the road if possible)

(Sounds good)

7:15 PM

"Alright, we can be ready almost right away, if we're kicking this thing off then"

"Let's get going then. Take as many alive as you can, but don't get yourselves killed. I'd rather not add more marks to my list tonight."

7:17 PM

(Do we have a flash-bang equivalent?)

(There isnt really anything like that in the book and no one has tried to research anything like that)

(Could the marshals try to fund that research? Like, could we build a research element next month and the following start research on flash-bangs?)

(It doesnt work like that. Honestly I don't think I want to add something that stuns and is super readily available to the game. This is a gameplay vs realism decision but since PC's regularly have things that make their initiative a lot better than anyone they fight, even if i give them a save or require you to hit, we are going to have lots of combats where enemies just dont get to do anything until you kill them)

(Makes sense)

"Alright then, I suppose we'll get to it" another team lead says, getting his squad together

Zaahira lets them get their squads together, gets her equipment ready, and heads to the gravflyer pad to get on her ride in.

Gathering your gear, you meet the flyer and the roof team aboard, each of the busy getting the ropes and harnesses in order before you descend

She steels herself for the upcoming combat, watching the position of ground units on her compad. When everyone is in position she gives the go order.

The roof of the building looks quiet as the aircraft swoops in but lights inside begin flicking on. The craft’s engines are loud no matter how fast the approach. As it comes to a hover in the night sky ropes are thrown out the sides

She slides down the rope and waits for the demolitions team to blow a hole in the roof, checking every so often for updates

There is a service door leading into the building, and the team begins moving off to secure it, before pushing inside. The parking garage team is in position, as are the rest of the perimeter teams.

7:05 PM

(You'd be ntering from the stairwell on the second floor)

She waits for her team to stack up before saying over the radio to all the teams "Go." (edited)

They ignore you, working to clear the stairwell once the door opens, and satisfied that there is no contact, proceeds to move into the second floor. A door at the end of the long hallway opens and the emerging figure is put down with three rounds center mass, automatic pistol tumbling from her hands

(I thought they were waiting for an order to proceed, if not she would just stack up with them)

(notice/wis)

(8)

The door immediately to the left begins to open, slightly, and it does not appear anyone else in the column has seen it

"Left door!" She brings up her shear rifle

You can already see none of them are going to react in time

8:18 PM

(we aren't in initiative right now, you can take a shot)

(Did she see a weapon?)

(You see what I said, the door opening slowly, You have the opportunity to act before anything happens)

(Ok)

8:25 PM

She shoots through the bottom part of the door with her shear rifle, looking to hit whoever opened it with a non-lethal injury

8:26 PM

(19/9, bursted)

Shear fields are non-discriminatory when it comes to the wounds they make. Flesh is either whole, or shorn in unnatural ways from the energy displacement, as the armed functionary you cut down realizes. Their ribcage simply ceases to be, vanishing beneath an expanding ball of energy.

8:28 PM

A small submachine gun tumbles from his hands, the sling wet

She looks at the body for a second, motions for someone to follow her, then goes in to clear the room

This room looks to be a barracks and three other people who clearly belong to this place are waking up or in the process of throwing on clothes

She turns her rifle towards them "ON THE GROUND, ON THE GROUND NOW!"

They sleepily comply, as they're truncheoned the rest of the way down by the two SWAT members entering with you

Nekosmash 7/9/2019 8:31 AM

There is another door in this room heading further west, that has remained closed. The sweep team in the hallway is continuing on, and light resistance is being reported on lower floors as the garrison begins waking up

She moves to the door, motioning for one of the other SWAT members to follow her, and kicks the door open to begin clearing it

(initiative)

(5)

(4) Three zealots are behind overturned tables and beds, armed with submachine guns, as you kick open the doors to the room

She takes a shot at one of them before ducking back behind the doorway

9:00 AM

(18/17, bursted)

After shooting she shouts "Drop your weapons! You have no way out of there."

(Their morale is still pretty good since no one from this squad died yet, they won't break right now) (18/5 burst for one zealot) One of the SWAT members is hit as return fire chews the wall and doorframe, gripping his stomach he falls over on to his side

9:57 AM

The other trooper runs to him, and begins dragging him back out of the room, calling for a medic

(Her turn?)

(Yeah)

She leans out and shoots at the group again before backing up behind the wall (edited)

10:47 AM

(17/11, bursted)

10:48 AM

(Is reloading an action or free action?)

10:50 AM

She curses herself for not bringing any grenades

(it is an action)

10:52 AM

(Not a free one)

(ok)

Two of the zealots down, you hear a panicked voice from inside. "Okay! okay! Don't shoot"

She leans back around, gun up "Drop the guns on this side of the table, come out with your hands up!"

He kicks his aside, but is far out of reach of the others

She walks up and grabs him, dragging him out of the room before slamming him to the ground

11:01 AM

(I imagine they would have like zip-ties or something to restrain people)

11:01 AM

She ties him up and goes to check on the wounded man

(Yeah they do)

11:05 AM

He is being attended by the team medic, the man himself has passed out from the shock of the gunshot wound

Zaahira calls in a medivac to the roof, then heads down the hall to catch up with the rest of the team.

The team has not continued clearing that side, as they'd moved on without you and believed it safe. As you re-enter the building, you see two zealots with pistols about to round the corner and attack your team from behind

(Could she have reloaded while in the room earlier?)

1:12 PM

(I completely forgot to say explicitly)

(yeah during the downtime between is fine since there was a break in the action)

She brings her weapon up and lets off a burst aimed at the one in front, trying to shoot the weapon out of his hand

1:23 PM

(17/13, burst fire)

1:23 PM

After the shots go out she shouts to the other one "Drop the weapon!" (edited)

(You cant disarm someone by shooting their gun. Page 52 of the book: Normally it is only possible to disarm a foe when engaging them in melee combat. Shooting the weapon out of an enemy’s hand is a popular holovid trope, but it tends to be less practical on the actual battlefield.)

(By shoot the weapon out of his hand I meant just remove the arm carrying the weapon. It's just some flavor for shooting at him)

1:46 PM

(I expected his whole arm, possibly torso, to just be shredded like the last guy)

(Okay) The shot hits the zealot, knocking him against the wall and shredding him with a shear field. The second fires back at you, his sneaking up on the SWAT team now exposed

1:48 PM

(9, miss)

1:48 PM

(Back to you)

She ducks against the wall, leaning back out to take another shot if the other zealot isn't showing any sign of giving up

1:50 PM

(12/12, not bursted)

(Evasion save)

(8v10, fail)

The magma grenade bounces down the hallway toward you, thrown by the remaining zealot, airbursting, and dropping firey chemical contrails across the hallway, cutting you off from pursuit and burning the air around you (11 damage)

She tries to dodge out of the way, but there is nowhere to go. She is blasted up against the wall and lands face-down on the ground with a groan. (Down to 6 hp)

She gets up, brings her weapon up, and looks around for the team who came in with her

They advanced well beyond your position with your going back to the roof. On the other side of the flames you see their return fire kill the zealot but it sounds like two of them are down, caught in the ambush

5:56 PM

(The flames are between you and them now. They’ve gone around the corner)

She looks with panic in her eyes through the fire "Nononononono." (edited)

12:48 AM

(Are these two dead or still alive?)

(You cant get to them, theres a fire cutting you off, and you can tell from the squad monitor they're dead)

(Is there anything nearby to get rid of the fire?)

(Nothing this close to the stairs no) "We've got no choice but to push on. We'll keep sweeping and link up with the clearance team that went in the front"

She winces from the burns as she looka to whoever said that. "Alright, I'm going to go get this treatedm"

1:20 PM

"Be careful, I don't want more deaths on my concience today."

She heads up the stairs to the roof and looks at the results as they come in.

The clearance team down below manages to apprehend the zealot leader, caught between the descending roof team survivors, and the ascending front door half squad. He is beaten heavily before being taken into custody, and is bundled onto a marshal flyer, with you, in short order, before more of his 'faithful' show up

(How many casualties total?)

7:48 PM

(For both them and us)

(We don't need to worry about individually recruiting more people. it'll be assumed your ranks refill at month end right now, since its just a couple people)

(She would want to bring up the specifics when this guy gets interrogatted) (edited)

(just the 2 for you, 10 for the zealots)

7:50 PM

(3xp, 5000 credits)

She spends the ride back to base quiet. When they get to the base, she drags the leader to whoever is in charge of prisoners before going to see a medic about her burns, after which she finds the first transport heading back to Gudrun and hops on it. (edited)

There are several people upset about chain of command being disregarded, and there being no chain of custody employed here, but you manage to find a secluded spot in the camp to speak to him

(Well, actually, there is no real reason to interrogate him is there?)

8:31 PM

(Not in character anyway)

(Not really. The resistance leaders have been handled. The resistance here is not going to last without its two figureheads. The occupation stuff is getting played out and I'm sure everyones ready to get to something else)

(Okay, im going to scrap that part then, she would just hand him over to the military and head back to Gudrun)

8:32 PM

(I'll edit above)

8:34 PM

(Would I get either of the goals I put up about the terror groups, since she didn't have to do both missions?)

(Take 3 for each)

(Ok, cools)

(so 9xp total between mission xp and your personal goals)

She spends her time on the trip back to Gudrun cleaning her weapons and armor, and carving two marks into her Shear rifle

9:14 PM

(Took Gunslinger 1 for level up)

The trip home takes about a week, and the lifter sets down in Central, where you can catch a train back to Egons

(You mean Carinhold?)

8:10 AM

She gets off the train, still tired from the whole experience, and heads home.

(forgot you moved, we've been doing the mission stuff for so long0

(Yup)

She looks around the park near their apartment to see if Sanna is playing there as she walks past.

Sanna is not, winter is hard no matter if you are human or taros, and most can't be outside for long at a young age like hers. It starts to snow as you make it home

(I imagine she has some new scarring on her face that wasn't there before)

1:16 PM

She walks inside the building, feeling the warmth of the heating system with a smile, before walking into their apartment (edited)

The family is there, a warm dinner put on the table. They both take note at the door opening, and another plate is taken out of the cabinet

"I'm back." She says with a weary sigh and a smile.

“ welcome back” Adam says, putting another plate down on the table. The food looks simple but there’s more of it than you’ve seen in a long time

"It's good to be home." She says, walking over and giving him a kiss before sitting down.

"I'd ask how your mission went but I know it's probably secret. Just glad you're home"

She gets a sad look on her face "I'll let you know after dinner, right now I just want to spend some time with you both."

7:32 AM

She will spend her evening eating dinner, talking with Sanna and Adam, learning how everything is going for them.

7:32 AM

(Would she have fully recovered from her injuries or would she still be dealing with it?)

(It's your lvl of HP recovery per day, we had 5 days of travel)

(ok)

7:34 AM

(I didn't know how it works)

(Now you do. I just am not sure how close that gets you to full health. If you're wounded at all still probably just lightly)_

(She has 20 hp max)

7:35 AM

(So shes at full, cause shes level 5)

(Okay, so you're not hurt then)

She is especially interested in whether Sanna has met any new playmates

Sanna is having a hard time at school right now. The children make fun of her because she is from Egons, and is poor.

Zaahira gets an angry face at that. "Well, obviously we need to do something about that. Would you want me to come speak with your teacher? Or we could go get you some new clothes this weekend, have a nice day out as a family?"

She just sits at the table and stares into her plate.

Zaahira looks at Sanna, then looks at Adam, not exactly sure what to do right now.

7:46 AM

"Sanna, talk to me."

Sanna says nothing, and gets off the table , running to her room, "She'll come around. Lot of change for her"

Zaahira sighs "I'll go talk to her in a bit. My trip was longer than I expected it to be, so that's certainly not helping things."

8:08 AM

"I didn't expect this job to be as dangerous as it apparently is."

"Intelligence work never sounded safe to begin with" he says, sitting back down and resting his eyes

"I didn't think it would involve my shuttle crashing and almost getting blown up by a grenade. Maybe it's just where I was, the people on Cruesa really got treated like dirt by some independent group that vanished into thin air."

8:50 AM

She looks at him and smiles. "I'm glad to be home now though. I think I've earned some time here. I'll see if there is anything I can do on Gudrun for a few weeks."

8:51 AM

"I tried to write you both, but I spent most of my time traveling in a ship."

"THey came in, but the return messages got sent back to us. Said you were out of range or out of communication, something like that. You know how it is dealing with comm staff"

"Yeah. I'm going to go call my boss, make sure he actually has something for me to do here before I go into her room."

10:55 AM

She gets up and walks into their bedroom and calls Jerud

(So you're working on getting a new mission? There's really nothing going on at Gudrun right now, and we;re not far enough in the month for any insight to come in on the intelligence rolls. )

(Basically she just wants to spend some time on Gudrun so she can help her daughter adjust.)

11:14 AM

(Maybe spend some time giving other parents a stern talking to about their kids)

"Right, well, call me when you have something for me." She says, hanging up before walking back into the living/dining part of the apartment.

2:48 PM

"Well, right now there isn't much they have for me, so I guess I get to stick here. I'll go talk to her, see if I can get some kind of response." She says to Adam before walking to Sanna's door, knocking, then opening it up

"go away!" she calls out, muffled through the door

Zaahira sighs then walks past Adam to their bedroom and begins putting her things away and getting ready for bed.

Adam comes to bed several hours later, disturbing you as he settles in, for just a second. He is snoring before you know it. Day finds you- feeling a bit more rested than you've felt on the ship

She gets up, makes some coffee, sitting at the table looking out the window as she sips it.

After a minute or two she makes up a second cup and takes it to Adam.

He takes it gratefully and begins looking at the paper

"I'm going to go with Sanna to school today, see if I can talk to her principal." (edited)

(I can write a mission if need be. Like I said before I’m just not into the family drama. This is my escape from that stuff)

(No, its fine. I just wanted her to fix some stuff while she is there, but we dont have to rp that bit. The creative bit of me is just struggling with the consistent sleep deprival I'm dealing with atm)

Zaahira spends some time talking at Sanna's school, then heads to central to visit this place called Pops she was told about earlier.

Pops is hard at work when you arrive, but sets down his shoprag and lifts his goggles when one of his aides comes to tell him he has a new client in town. He knows almost everyone that goes off world, or requests gear, and is eager to meet someone new

She walks up to him with a soft smile "Hi, I'm Zaahira Galanis, I'm with the Marshals. I was wondering if you could make some modifications to my rifles?*

"Also maybe my armor as well."

(So, shes going to get customized, extended magazine, and boosted on her shear rifle. On her armor she is going to get customized)

6:31 AM

She also inquires into powered armor, and if it is available for purchase, along with who he would recommend to purchase vehicles from. (edited)

Regular assault suits are available, but he lacks what is needed for storm armor or any of the technology requiring advanced energy or wave field research. The modifications to the weapons he can make.

(Does she have to pay for any of this stuff? I know Marcion didnt have to pay for his weapons but the assault suits are more expensive.)

8:17 AM

(And she will get the power armor customized instead if she can get that)

8:21 AM

(I can always use her 5k a month for part of this)

(you have to pay for your gear)

(Would I be able to use the 5k per month at pops shop or no?)

(for as much of your supplies as it covers)

8:45 AM

(the balance is on you)\

(Thats what i thought, just wanted to make sure)

She uses her 5000 from the Marshal Service, plus 9720 of her own money to purchase an Assault Suit, customization services, two boxes of shear rifle ammo, and two type B power cells.

9:46 AM

"Well, thanks for the assistance, I'll come back to pick everything up later today."

9:48 AM

While making the purchases she moves 15,000 credits into her family's account to ensure they have plenty around for the next time she is off-world. (edited)

Thank you Adam says, noticing the account balance

She spends the afternoon doing some research at HQ, before noticing the CCE request. She heads over to see either Jared or Madison about it. (edited)

Madison has ten minutes for a meeting when you arrive, her bags already packed with reports and documents for the next meeting of the unity council. you notice she still has no personal belongings in her office, either on the desk or on the shelves at the back of the room

"I understand the CCE is requesting a move to Sharir. If so, I would like to oversee this move. I don't trust them not to stir the pot for their own interests."

"They've done, twice now for their own ends. If they want exile I see no reason to deny them that. We're going to need to post some extra security on the ship though. This seems like some kind of a trick"

"We could bring back the SWAT teams from Cruesa. With both of those insurgents taken care of, they might not be needed there anymore, along with whatever other personnel we have on the planet. Is there a ship available to transport them?"

(They're going to stay in place until month end, cleaning up stragglers, ect, since solving this was related to a faction action/the myrmidons leaving) "I can't spare them right now. They're needed for the remainder of the month, at least, while the army gets itself reorganized

7:50 AM

(We're not going to be constantly rolling with NPC's either. Thats one of the reasons we made those rule changes)

"Are there any other individuals I could contact to help with this then? The sooner these assholes are off the planet the better I will feel."

"There's plenty of contractors around on UNW net. Might want to try getting a team together if you're trying to get some help

"Alright, I'll have a look and see who I can find."

(Just specify its a UNW mission in the channel, we haven't really used it with multiple polities in play)

7:57 AM

(It's going to become more of an ooc channel i think )

(The looking for party?)

7:58 AM

(I'll post something)

(Yeah)

Zaahira leaves Madison's office, posts the announcement, then heads back to Pop's shop, realizing she has 0 way to bring everything back to her apartment.

8:05 AM

"I really need to get us a car or something." She mutters to herself.

8:07 AM

(Would she be able to borrow the Marshal Mobile while she is on planet? At least until she feels ready to buy herself something?)

(I don't see why not, id say as long as marcion is also cool with it, but thats also your character ,....so...)

(Marcion has his own truck, the marshal mobile belongs to the agency)

(You can use it)

She heads back to HQ, signs out the vehicle, picks her things up from Pops, before heading back to home.

9:18 AM

(We can go ahead and wait a bit, give people time to respond to the notice if you want)

(Yeah its pretty early yet)

+Encrypted Message - Svenka Vilnovha+
Attention: Zaahira Galanis
I received your ask for assistance and was unsure what to make of it. The Confederated Corps of Engineers have certainly had a challenging past, but I am concerned the intelligence service is looking to relocate them. As a Taros myself, I would like to understand what is behind this and whether this is a forced or voluntary relocation. As the Corps represents a significant source of engineering knowledge and manpower, there may be alternative options to look at.

The relocation is voluntary. And the CCE chose to use their knowledge and manpower for their own purposes at the expense of my hometown of Egons. When we needed them most, they left. They looted the city until they could no longer stay. They are not to be trusted in my opinion.

(edited)

+Encrypted Message - Svenka Vilnovha+
Attention: Zaahira Galanis
I admit not knowing the full scope of crimes the CCE is accused of, nor the state of Egons -  I have a resource gathering operation in the NE of Gudrun, isolated on the large island there. We could discuss whether the CCE could come and work there - and see where we go from there?

If they have indeed been found guilty of crimes, then they should be imprisoned, of course

They have requested the relocation, but if you wish to see if they can be convinced to stay, feel free to do so. I can meet you at the Marshal HQ on Gudrun so we can travel  to meet them together.

+Encrypted Message - Svenka Vilnovha+
Attention: Zaahira Galanis
Understood - I will head over there shortly

Tomorrow morning work better?

+Encrypted Message - Svenka Vilnovha+
Attention: Zaahira Galanis
Yes - would give me the chance to get affairs in order

Zaahira spends the night at home relaxing before getting everything ready in the morning and heading over to the Marshal HQ.

(Mid-scene, I can fast forward and then come back to it - dep on what Neko wants)

(Go ahead and finish your stuff)

(Mission thread is up)