Iron Stars - kayden

It has been a long journey through the wilderness as Kayden finally makes his way out of the forest, to the flat plains around the ruin-rapidly-becoming-a-city known as Mytikas. It is an open secret on the planet that contempt for these invaders is running high, though is perhaps beginning to thaw, just a bit. The city even from this distance looks to be on high alert, with militia patrols combing the countryside, observing, reporting, and remaining vigilant against spies and insurgents sneaking up on the city. Below you, on the road, a ramshackle jeep, with three militiamen, is pulled over on the side of the crudest dirt road you have ever seen. It must have slipped a gear, or broken something important, because as one of the men works, the other two are yelling at one another, their words carrying in broken fragments on the wind, from their post 100m away

Taking a look out from the tree line Kayden sees the three arguing men as well as the multiple patrols around the city. He was no spy, being the subtle one was never his forte. With the city on such high alert, it'd just make him look more suspicious trying to sneak around and get caught. So, he figured the direst approach would be most helpful...hopefully. "Hey guys." He says as he slowly exits the tree line. "Looks like you're a bit broken down there. Anything I can do to help?"

They all jump and one falls back away from the jack, scrambling for a rifle that is well out of reach. One gathers his head faster than the others “Easy there friend. Might give someone ten wrong idea coming out of the trees like that. You native?”

Holding his hands up to his shoulders to show he is a non-threat. "Sorry about that mates, been a long time since I've seen forests like this. I'm not native. As a matter of fact, I've been looking around for that city over there." He points to Mytikas in the distance. "Heard the place was friendlier to off-worlders, thought I might be able to find myself some work here."

“Ah that you might. We did break down. Stump in the middle of the road. Sheared the fire clean off there friend. Wouldn’t want to be out here after dark”

"Just point me where I can help, I'll try and get you out of here in exchange for a ride to the city. Why don't you want to get caught out here in the dark though?"

"Alright, lets see if you'll be sharper at this than us, (fix/int) We'll keep watch. Theres a fair amount of hostile wildlife. Big stuff too, humans are not the top of the food chain here"

02:51

"We

02:51

are fortunate to move most of our supplies by cargo lighter, flying seems to be the only safe way to go that kind of distance"

Looking down under the jeep, he tries to see if there's anything he could do to help out "I'll try my best, but this is some unfamiliar tech to me friend. Though, I do not like the sound of those predators so let's see what we can do." (7 on the roll)

You tease out a slight bend in the axle with the small selection of tools they have on hand, and manage to get the tire back on, bolting it tight with the T-wrech normally bolted to the back of the jeep.

03:41

"Well, just in time, sun's going to be down soon. You said you were heading into the city?"

"Yeah, that was the plan at least. Trying to find someone in charge to try and get some work from, trouble you for a ride? Name's Kayden by the way."

"Deals a deal" the team leader says. "Hop in, mind the gun, it swings when the ground gets bumpy. Damn engineers can't keep a single thing running"

Hopping into the jeep and bracing the gun barrel while he moves past it, he finds a spot in one of the passenger seats. "Thanks a lot. You guys seem to be out in force around here. Expecting something?"

(did you get a chance to read up on the protectorate lore section at all?)

(I did, Kay just kinda got dropped here with very basic knowledge of what"s going on)

The guards, on their way to the city begin telling you in detail, at least the ones most publicly known, about the recent folly at The Garden of Bones and the self-inflicted death of Regent Adonis with most of his elite warriors. This was done of course after his plans to declare war on the entire planet became public,a nd although no other city-states have yet acted, it would be a fools hope to expect that trend to continue

They motion for you to dismount at the city gates. “You’ll find work by the palace if you’re looking for it. Aside from that keep your weapons on safe walking around. “

Waving to the militiamen as they drop him off. "Thanks for the ride. Hopefully I'll see you guys around later." Looking up at the city, he was always amazed how people could've stayed sedentary long enough to build a place up like this. He guessed he knew how the Traders felt now. Seeing the palace in the distance, he instantly knew the routes to take through the streets to get there. He had no idea how he knew the way, he just felt like he did. 'Alright, easy. You're a merc looking for work. Just act the part and you should be fine.' He told himself before starting towards the palace.

Moving toward the palace, you see some sort of beached spacecraft is being torn at by workers a few streets over. The work gang devolves into a mob before your eyes, as an Ashen One, and two stressed looking human engineers try to quell the mob, asking for calm. They're not being heard, as hands, and tools, tear at the metal skin. These panels are coveted, you can already tell, judging by the literal ruins most people are living in, at the moment

Unsettled by the mob tearing at the ship, and feeling a sort of empathy for the three people trying to quell it, He tried to walk past, but freezes up as he starts to walk past the mob. 'Not your problem, first priority is getting money, then finding a way to get back home...Poor guys could never stand a chance with that mob though. No...I shouldn't get involved. Right?' (edited)

Kayden is given a ship map on his compad and it does not look to be too far from@this main engineering bay where you all stand. Jeonia wants a count of the weapons there as well as what type , and what shape they’re in so they can be organized and handed out to city militia forces. Anything recovered will help ensure the now greatly diminished army has a chance to properly defend the city

16:28

The landing was a bit rough and she is not sure what kinds of hazards may have cropped up on the ship hallways upon setting down. You can hear the large hull groaning under gravitic pressures it was never designed to take

Thinking about what might be contained there, you’re pulled from your thoughts by the sounds of a large explosion back toward the engineering space

Jumping at the explosion, he sighs to himself. At least he wasn't the one to blow something up in here. He pivots and runs towards the engineering section.

Running into the engineering room you see bavid, his clothes burned and smoldering, and a melted iron rod fastened to the deck near him. It looks like he has tried to ground the current somehow, though metal on metal contact was made

Damn it, course it already goes sideways. He curses to himself as he tries to throw a piece of scrap metal from where he is onto the deck to check if there is still a current running through the area

There doesn’t seem to be now, whatever was built up has been discharged when the metal on metal contact was made

Walking up to Bavid, he gives him a nudge to make sure he's still all there. "Hey man, you alright? What the hell happened?"

@LethargicMob

Yeah, i'm alright. Just feeling stupid. Who knew putting an electrical wire from a generator into a metal floor would cause a shock?

"Hey @LethargicMob ." A message from Carmen crackles "I'm heading to the reactor to check it out. If there are any vacc suits around you let me know, otherwise I'm going to have to make due with an atmofilter." (edited)

I'll keep an eye out.

@LethargicMob "If you're feeling up to it, there's an armory down the corridors. We could check it out and it might have some useful gear. Just mind the floors, some may not be as stable as they seem."

Sure, not like i'm much good here right now. Bavi'd says, with an obviously wounded pride

Heading away from the reactor as Carmen arrives, you head down a crew transit-way corridor to the command level where the ships locker, crew space, and armory should be located. The controlled crash had caused a few ceiling beams to fall but this section of the ship is largely intact

Bavi'd looks around for anything useful, or done lockers to go through.

There are several lockers on the wall and a gate in front of the main armory wall. The light showing it’s locked is currently engaged

Bavi'd attempts to take the lockers apart rather than hack them.

(Fix/ int) while bavid sets to work, Kayden hears something scrape gently in the ceiling

(14)

While he is working Bavi'd would hear his compad go off from an incoming call from Carmen

Tapping Bavi'd on the shoulder as he works "Hold up, listen. Somethings up with the ceiling."

What's up carmen Bavi'd answers as he looks up at the celing.

The scraping sound happens again, this time a bit in front of your position but still in the ceiling

Bavi'd would hear some cursing, followed by a sigh, followed by a scream for him to answer the call before Carmen grabs her Dataslab again to actually talk into it, not realizing Bavi'd picked up earlier. JEONIA IS DOWN IN THE REACTOR ROOM, I NEED HELP YESTERDAY!! ANSWER THE DAMN CALL NEXT TIME!! (edited)

This is me answering my call! Bavi'd states rushing out of the room. Kayden!

Before you’re able to leave the room the ceiling collapsed

04:03

And three men armed with rebar and twisted pipe begin pulling themselves from the vent section that has just fallen down under their weight

04:04

They look lightly injured, each of them with a few minor cuts and bruises but more than able to hold together for now

04:04

“Well well. An armory. So we were right after all. What do you think boys. I say this is ours now “

What the f*** Bavi'd yells caught off guard, more annoyed and, now, angry then startled.

"Oh this is great, I'm excited to be a part of this." He says sarcastically as the men brush themselves off.

Bavi'd chuckles a bit. (Can we run initiative? I wanna punch the closest one.)

(We do need initiative if you’re planning to fight. I didn’t want to just throw you into it )

21:14

(Especially with Kayden being lvl 1)

(They got a 2)

(ohh, didn't realize he was... but Bavi'd would've still been annoyed enough to just punch them at this point, sorry kayden.) (7)

(Bavid , Kayden , them) (edited)

Bavi'd, extremely irritated, rears back and punches the closest one. (4)

12:52

[Srry wrong punch (18 1)] (edited)

He doubles over, still standing but reeling from the force of the blow

13:42

(Kayden)

Materializing a large knife just in case, he hangs back as Bavi'd sucker punches one of the men. Not liking the look of the rebar and pipes the men have

(If you want to take an action you can , otherwise we will just say you’re a move away from the fight , so they won’t be on you right away)

(Yeah, I'll say I hold my action for now)

The three heisters take a step back as bavid and his punch connect. “We didn’t need to make this rough. You can both still walk away” their leader says. “We just want the guns. You don’t need to die”

21:24

(That’s their turn, they’ll pass the rest. back to bavid)

Kayden, go help carmen and Jenonia, they need help in the reactor room as soon as possible. I'll figure out what's going on here.

(Alright. Kayden can head out in this one. Bavid lets go back to yours and resolve this somehow)

Kayden exits the room, heading back to the reactor and a grisly sight. Carmen and Jeonia are both down on the deck. Carmen has crush injuries from hitting the wall, deck plate crumpling behind her like a catapult and launching them both. She looks to have cartwheeled far through the air. Jeonia is not breathing at all

Fuck! I almost prefer the guys with the rebar at this point He checks to see if there are any other weak spots on the floor or nearby that could end up sending him across the room.

It appears as though Carmen and Jeona found the weak spot and tripped it already. (heal/int to try to stabilize Carmen, who is closer)

(Can I use dex/heal using a Lazarus Patch?)

(If you have one, then yes, but since shes been lying here for a little bit, its DC 8)

(Don't know why it rolled twice. But 9)

@opscomm feels a rush of healing stimulants (you tied it at 8, heal is a -1, but your dex is +1, so its just a flat 2d6, still passes though) enter her bloodstream, and coughs violently as she is revived. Her head rings like a cathedral bell struck with a siege maul, and it is evident a fair amount of blood loss and internal injury have occurred. It looks to be too late for Jeonia, already critically injured before being catapulted across the engineering compartment

Carmen groans, squinting at Kayden in an attempt to bring her eyes into focus. "What, what happened?"

Trying to keep a calm tone "Something happened and you got thrown across the room. You should be ok so long as you take it slow."

Carmen tries to get up but loses her balance as she tries to sit up and ends up rolling right onto Jeonia's body. She gets confused for a second before remembering what happened, and starts to freak out, getting onto her knees "No, no, nononono. She was just breathing, she was fine, she...FUCK. BAVID! GOD DAMNIT!"

Kneeling down next to Carmen he feels strange. Out of everything that happened today, this was the thing he actually had experience with. "Hey, hey. It'll be alright, Bav'id's fine, ok. I'll help at least get her out of here. You just please take it slow, we don't want that patch coming lose, it's all I got."

(why)

03:38

(we already are here)

(Ok I'm here)

03:39

He looks up @Kayden Zayre then at carmen. "What happened!"

(One sec. Gotta drive my friend back to base real quick since his car's busted. Sorry!)

2

"You BLEW UP THE REACTOR! Jeonia was in there, I stabilized her, and I was bringing her out but then the roof fell onto the floor panel I was on and launched us across the room! Someone turn off the reactor before it explodes any more than it already has."

03:42

"Why did you guys leave engineering anyway? What else could be more important than the massive nuke behind those doors?"

Bavi'd shuts down the reactor. "I left engineering because I've obviously failed as a mechanic! And don't yell at this man he just got here and never claimed to have any experience! He also saved our asses out there!" Bavi'd pauses for a second, then "Though your right. Jenovia's blood is on my hands. I should have never agreed to help with this. I am sorry, and I know I could never fix this." (edited)

Carmen sighs "No, just, I'm sorry. It's not your fault, none of us were really prepared for this and the whole situation with the rioters put us on edge. I shouldn't have yelled at you guys. I had her saved, and then we both almost died." Carmen sighs again before pulling out her dataslab, checking to make sure it is still working, and if so puts in a call to Cole's office to let her know what is going on and to get some support from the militia. (edited)

Holding out a hand to help Carmen up "Doesn't matter who's at fault it was or if this was a mistake to go in here. What we gotta do now is move this Jenovia put of here, and for you two to get outside. You both deserve some time to get yourselves patched up, I'll handle things with whoever else gets here."

Carmen takes his hand and stands up. "We need someone more senior here. You just showed up, so if you are here to meet people that probably won't go well. With Jeonia gone that makes Bavi'd or I in charge now."

04:43

"I think"

He felt a pang of frustration, far more used to respecting age and experience rather than rank back home. Could he really still call it home though? He shrugs, "Suit yourself, I'm not just leaving you two here though. Just in case something else happens with this death trap." 'What would have happened if I just kept on walking.' He thought to himself.

"Either way we should call someone in to give jenovia a proper burial, then see if the military will quarantine this area till we can get back in here to finish the generator." Bavid says as he pays his respects and lifts her up to carry her out."

"I'm trying to get a call through to Cole's office. I'm stuck on hold."

(Or just let me catch up haha) The vice regents adjutant finally manages to get her attention and you’re patched through to explain the situation

(That was me doing so in character)

"Hi, regent, um, things didn't go as expected." Carmen says, groaning a bit. "I may miss some things I took a very big blow to the head. Right, the workers Jeonia brought decided to riot on her and tore the entire starboard side hull exterior off. We managed to disperse them with the help of a newcomer. When we went to swap the reactor to the workshop power grid Bavi'd somehow caused a power surge, overloading the reactor, causing an explosion. I put out some of the fires then went into the reactor and managed to stabilize Jeonia who was in the reactor room, but as I was carrying her out to safety a portion of the ceiling fell onto the floor panel I was standing on and sent us flying. I got knocked unconcious and Jeonia was killed on impact. We need some people here to secure the location so Bavi'd and I can get some proper medical attention." (edited)

“She’s what? You said Jeonia is dead?” The line goes icy and silent for a few minutes. “I’ll secure the site. I’ll send myrmidons this time, not the militia. You and anyone else on site now are to report to the temple, You’ll get medical attention while you debrief me in person.”

Carmen feels a lump in her stomach. "Okay... We will be right there." She looks at the group after hanging up. "Cole wants us at the temple right away. She's sending some of the remaining myrmidons to secure the ship." Carmen starts walking over to the temple, using her bow for support.

"Alright" bavid nods and follows ready to catch her if she falls.

Kay follows the two, figuring he was originally heading that way anyways "So, who's Cole?"

"She runs the town, along with the other space assets and stuff." Carmen says, dabbing at her forehead, trying to clean some of the blood off her face. (edited)

"Oh, then just the kind of person I need to see. Is that kind of stuff back there, I don't know, normal around here?"

"We've, had some bad luck lately."

"Lot's of bad decisions leading to people being killed. Coming here was one of them."

"I'm sorry to hear that. No sense in dwelling on what could have been done though, just gotta keep on going and learn from it."

"Hard to do when everyone keeps dying all around you. I can't even really build very much here, this planet sucks. Everything and everyone outside the city walls wants to kill and or eat us." (edited)

(I don’t want to fast forward this if you’re talking but I’m caught up)

(I'm good to go whenever)

00:01

(Good for either rather)

(I'm good to go if everyone else is)

(I'm good)

You arrive at the ground floor of the large temple, cleaned and repaired. It’s columns are restored and now have their natural ivory luster again. Red shingles on the roof catch the sun and remind you of baked terra-cotta. The statues are all gone, and cole is standing in the middle of the floor amid a phalanx of militia and two myrmidons officers

Carmen hobbles up, trying her best to hide her anxiety and still doing a poor job of it. She starts to say something but can't quite come up with much more than. "Hi..."

"Ma'am" bavid nods

Outside, a host of cargo lighters roar overhead, dozens of them from the sounds of it. She begins yelling but is drowned out

He was sure he'd be more scared if he knew who this person was. But the armed guards and officers got him anxious enough already. 'Maybe I should have fought the charges.' He thinks to himself as he at least lets the familiar sound of cargo ships calm him down a bit

Carmen just focuses on the yelling Cole, not quite sure what to do.

The noise finally dies down “Which one of you wants to go first. Tell me exactly what you. And only you. Did inside that ship. “ She looks up to Kayden, her black and gold power armor purring as the neck joint moves with her. She is tall , with blue eyes, black hair and a right ear full of silver hoops from lobe to mid outside. Her features are hawkish and a scar runs down the side of her face, giving her smiles an unintentionally cruel look about them, even when not desired

01:30

“And you, I’ll get to in a moment. I don’t recognize you and assume you either got swept up in this by these two, or saw what was happening and tried to help”

"I will!" Bavid pauses "I alone am at fault. I ground a metal rod from the power supply straight into a metal ground and overloaded the whole ship. Did I know that I shouldn't ground metal to metal? Yes! Did I know that I should've walked out the door and stuck it in the ground? Yes! I have no idea why in that moment my arm and my brain didn't connect and though I know what I meant my arm decided I was just too damned stupid to move a few feet! But i did it. I killed jenovia, i ruined our power and i am the idiot who got us in to this whole mess in the first place!"

Carmen looks at Bavi'd in shock, not sure what to say.

Screams internally

“There’s some good news. Not all is lost. ELi and Andra have had success in the north. Tools and heavy equipment...and supplies, are being flown in as we speak. We can stabilize things and complete the work. Still, the success of one venture shouldn’t entirely absolve the responsibility for failure from another. Carmen? Anything to add?”

"I didn't do anything to help stop the riots outside the ship. I didn't know what to do. Jeonia tasked me with the computer systems on the bridge. I was in the process of discharging the reactor when the explosion went off. I opened up the panel under the bridge terminal and activated part of the fire suppression system. I looked for emergency supplies and found an atmofilter before making my way into the reactor chamber to activate the fire suppression in there and thats where I found Jeonia unconcious on the floor covered in burns. I stabilized her, called for help, and tried to carry her out of the room, but didn't see the roof panel about to fall until after it hit the floor panel I was walking on. I woke up later after the newcomer stabilized me with a lazarus patch. I had flown about 20 feet and landed hard on the floor. I must've landed right on my head, but I have no way of knowing. Jeonia didn't wake up from the impact. I could've waited but I didn't want to take a chance if the reactor was leaking radiation and I thought the room was unstable, but not as much as it actually was. If I would've paid more attention in medical training and had the right equipment I could've saved her."

Her mood softens. “Carmen you just got unlucky. You did the best you could given what happened and what gear you had at hand. Sometimes that happens in war. Despite your best intentions the plan just doesn’t work out. And people die”

02:09

“As for you” she says to Kayden “you got roped into this somehow?”

Carmen breathes an audible sigh of relief after Cole gets done talking.

Having dreaded this since she started he tries his best to put on as straight a face as possible "I came here looking for work and saw a riot going on in front of the ship. Didn't want it to get out of hand so I helped incentivize the mob to disperse. After that, well, I figured if I was in for a penny I was in for a pound."

“Sounds a lot like how I joined the Aslief Defense Auxiliaries back home years ago.

02:18

“It’s good to see citizens stepping forward when lives and progress were threatened. We could do with more of that around here.”

"That's actually why I came here in the first place. My situation's fairly, strange I'll call it. I had planned on coming here to see if there was any work for...fuck I'll just say it, a mercenary." He hated calling himself that, the Elders always taught that mercs were opportunistic scum. Then again, it was better than being an exile.

“You. I can use.” She says to Kayden.

03:16

“Bavid, you’re confined to your home until I figure out what exactly to do about this situation. This is the third time a mission has returned to me in failure. Carmen. You are free to return to duties. I’d like to see you again tomorrow”

03:16

(3xp, 5000 credits all

"Very well." Bavi'd nods and heads home

Carmen looks to Bavi'd as he leaves, then heads off to get some medical treatment.

"Roger that Ma'am." He looks around, "Uh, anything you need to use me for?"

“Well, you’re a newcomer you were saying. I take it you didn’t see the giant firestorm out in the center of the continent last month?

He shrugs "No, can't say I did."

(On roll20 Under history and lore, for the protectorate there’s a handout about how the protectorate army was killed pretty much to a man in an orbital bombardment)

(Oh yeah, I read that part. Kay has a passing idea of Mytikas and its history, but he's still super unfamiliar with the place)

(Yeah. She would just relay that story to you, which is why I wanted you to see it. I know I’d leave something out)

03:15

Cole relays fo you the battle against the ghouls In the garden of bones and the untimely orbital bombardment that ended night his life and the lives of the army he had at his back

He stands there as he gets told this story with a straight face, but inside is absolutely freaking out, pretty convinced he's going to die on this planet. Dropping the act, he feels genuine concern for the people here. "I'm sorry, that's, a lot. You need anything done or shored up, just point me in the right direction Ma'am. I'll try to do what I can."

“I do. And the military might not be the best fit for you, but what I do need are some capable agents who can handle issues like what you saw earlier today.

19:16

You’ll get freedom, what resources we can muster and better lodgings and food”

He was absolutely beside himself, he might actually find a way to get back home. Or at least survive for a while. On the outside he kept as straight a face as he could. "That's a very generous offer. I'd be happy to accept."

“I was hoping for that answer. The city is in a bit of flux right now. I’ve taken possession of a cache of supplies from a scouting expedition, and I’m also trying to balance a delicate political issue with two city states near us. While I get that sorted and find a task worthy of your skills, I’d recommend getting to know the city such that it is. There’s going to be a council meeting in a few weeks. You’re invited and may speak during it. All agents get that right”

"Roger that Ma'am. I'll be sure to get myself squared away and then get to know my way around the place. Thank you for the opportunity."

She nods, and passes a small box over to you. inside is a small badge, about the size of a keycard, with the protectorate emblem on it. "Just in case someone asks questions, proof of my endorsement"

He takes the keycard, wondering just why Cole would recruit him so quickly. It wasn't like he was an expert in anything. Either she had some kind of plan for him, or they were in a very bad spot. "Thank you. I won't let you down."

“I know you won’t. On that note I have your first job “ she says, looking down at her pad. “I’ve got a group of loggers heading out tomorrow to set up a forestry site. Cutting and replanting. All that stuff. They’re going to need an escort. I’ve got a small militia squad going with them but that far from help I want someone with a level head”

00:52

“You’ve proven you’ve got one so far. Let’s see if we can keep that going”

Cool head...if only she saw how panicked he felt inside. "I aim to please, I'll try and get my affairs in order if there's time. Do you have an estimated time of departure for them?"

“Midday tomorrow, so you’ve got a full day. Whatever you don’t finish, tell the taskmaster in the town square. He’s going to gather the workers for you and the militia to escort out, they’ll relay back to me what you need. I’ll see it done”

"Very well, I'll let you get back to your business as I make my preparations. Thank you for this opportunity Ma'am."

She says nothing else but you sense she is pleased. A small package is passed to you with house keys and a handful of what passes for credits here so you can equip yourself for your trip

He takes the keys and leaves the palace, making his way to the house the keys appear to go to. Unloading his meagre supplies the last thing he pulls out is an old photo of him with his bothers and parents. Somberly placing it next to the bed in the house, he takes a few minutes to list out what he needs to get done and what he might need to buy. Taking a last look at the photo, he leaves to see what kinds of supplies he can find for the trip. (It might take me like a day to figure out the equipment wish list. Got a lot of reading coming my way.)

(No problem. Make me a list when you know what you want and I’ll tell you what’s available

(Sorry this took longer than expected, work ramped up a bit) Wishlist: Combat field uniform Grenades ×2 Compad or field radio if there's no servers Metatool 3 days of rations

(all that is available, compad will work)

(Awesome)

Letting out a sigh, he leaves the compad on the bed as he swaps out his armor plates and webbing. Anxiety was a bitch. He was glad he wouldn't be going it alone though, who knows what would happen if he were left to his own devices. Once the armor is set up, he starts nervously pacing around, walking up and down the walls as he absentmindedly fiddles with his gear. (edited)

Carmen and Kayden both spend the night preparing their gear and setting up their hones/workshops for their absence. Morning comes , bringing clear skies and no storms projected for the next several days. One of the protectorates new trucks is being filled with supplies and a second is going to transport the first work party (edited)

22:14

(Plus Carmen’s for three total vehicles)

(Yeah, do the other two have machine guns at all or anything?)

Carmen pulls up in her truck next to the other two and hops down, looking for Kayden.

Having arrived well before the arranged time, Kayden has spent the majority of his time helping fill the first truck with supplies. He feels nervous, but tries to keep a calm exterior. The new heavier armor also helps to make it look like he knows what he's doing.

Carmen spots him in the crowd and walks over. "Morning, everything ready?"

Jumping a bit, having zoned out while he was working. "Oh shit! Uh, yeah we're just finishing up with the last of the supplies now. Once that's finished up the workers will hop in that second truck and we'll be on our way."

Carmen smiles a bit and stifles a laugh when he jumps in surprise. "Okay. Why don't you ride with me, always good to have someone manning the gun in case some kind of monsters come running out of the woods or something."

Turning red with embracement, he quickly remembers what the militia told him of the predators that lurked outside the city walls. He'd almost forgotten about them after the deathtrap that was the crashed ship. "Good idea, something like that comes our way best bet is to stay mobile, but putting some rounds into them certainly won't hurt." Looking up at the truck's MG "Especially with a beast like that."

"Well, hop on up, its got all the comforts of home. Itchy cot, disgusting rations, constant fear of death, all the best options. Each time I've left the city we have ran into something trying to kill us, hopefully this time will be different. I want to get back to spending my time just building things but this needs to be done first." (edited)

Climbing onto the truck he takes a quick look. She was right, all the comforts of the most cramped ship he'd ever been on. "You're right, can't imagine why you'd even bother with a place inside the city when you have this five-star piece of home. Building thing, you an engineer? So young? Sorry. No offence. I mean, back home most of us young folk weren't trusted to handle the heavy machinery." (edited)

She laughs "I'm usually the person building the machinery. I started tinkering when I was young, back before the scream. My only relative died because of it, he was old anyway and wanted me to follow his boring path of various ways to punch people and meditation and shit." She rolls her eyes a bit during that. "I always liked turning scrap metal into useful things, cars mostly. Somewhere in the galaxy there is an old hot-rod I threw together, sadly it didn't make the trip with us." She sighs, then smiles at him. "Just means I need to build a better one I guess." (edited)

He returns the smile "That's a good way to look at it I guess." The dead relative part seems to bother him though "Yeah, sometimes family just needs to lay off and let you be you. Wish I were on the creative side though. I'm just real good at turning scrap into, somehow, even less useful scrap."

She laughs. "Well, that is always a useful skill to have around I guess. And as far as family goes, I did what I could to save him, but he was over 100 years old and full of cybernetics at that point, so, yeah. Everyone has lost someone, no sense dwelling on it now, too much to do." She sort of trails off at the end, face getting sad for just a second before she turns to him. "So, ready to go?"

He takes in a deep breath before he starts to spiral about his brothers. They didn't want him, so there was no sense worrying about trying to fix that. "Yeah, I'm all set. Start her up, I'll go check to make sure the other two trucks are good to go." He walks out of Carmen's truck a little less nervous than before; ready to get underway.

Carmen starts her truck, revving the engine a bit. She thinks about what happened the last time they left with workers and plans a speech for those coming with them today once they get to the logging site.

Finished checking over the trucks, Kay walks back to Carmen's truck, pounding twice on the driver's side door and giving a thumbs up. From there, rather than go through the truck, he jumps to the top of the truck and into the gunner's mount. Having been briefed the route, he couldn't forget the trails he had been told to take. It felt strange; even before he got to Mytikas he felt like he new exactly how to get there. Pushing the thought out of his head, he loads and racks the MG.

Carmen drives off, leading the convoy out of town.

(No, they’re not armed but the soldier truck is literally full of dudes with guns so it’s not like you’re helpless)

(Okay)

The southern gate opens out into the flood lands surrounding the city , and the brown earth streaked with green is especially soft after the rainy season has now ended. The scrappers have left recently and you see the deep tire tracks in the mud from where their heavy vehicles churned through the loam, carving a path further south, away from your heading. Skirting the city northeast, the convoy begins bumping over the gently sloped ground, which thankfully begins drying out

04:09

(Notice/int both of you)

(6)

(Dumb question, but how do you roll a skill+and attribute off the char sheet?)

(If you set the skill to 'any' in the attribute dropdown it will ask you when you go to roll it)

(4)

The convoy continues on, coming to its destination about mid morning. The trees are dense and close together, forming what looks from here to be an almost impenetrability thick wall of foliage. The trucks come to a halt and the soldiers fan out, beginning to look around

Carmen flips open the hatch above her head and stands up. She tries looking through her binoculars but can't see past the trees. "I don't like this. Keep on that gun, never know what might notice the group and suddenly think we are dinner." (edited)

(How tall/large are the trees?)

(Equivalent to normal earth trees for this forest. It’s dense but it’s not old growth)

"Carmen, hop on the gun. I'm going to see if I can't get a better view. You got any lentgth of cloth here?" Waiting for Carmen to take his place, he will try to take a length of cloth, to some of the taller trees, tie the cloth around himself and the tree with a square knot, and then walk up the tree to see if he can get a better view from higher up. He'll still try to stay below the canopy, but if he runs out of the 10m he'll plant his feet and lean into the cloth to stay on the tree. (Basically trying to get a bird's eye view to see if I can see any better) (edited)

"Um, no, I guess you could use a blanket...wait, me, use the gun? Uh, alright, just, don't be in front of it then." Carmen says, looking at the machinegun with trepidation.

Climbing the tree, you see the canopy is layered and there are gaps in it, allowing for truly varied growth to take form here. Dozens of birds and rodents scurry between branches, but there are taller trees above you, and shorter ones below, forming multiple belts of green

03:51

its hard to see much of anything on the forest floor from above

Carmen calls up from the HMG mount. "See anything?"

Hopping down from the tree. "Nothing, it's too layered to see anything up here." Having noticed she wasn't looking very comfortable on the MG, "I'll hop back on the gun. You start going around to the soldiers. We want 360 degree security around the logging sight, as good a sightlines as we can get into this foliage, and the soldiers to be in good covered and concealed positions. Start spreading the word."

Carmen nods, hopping down from the machinegun mount, and starts spreading the word to setup a perimeter, and to make sure to stay near the vehicles at night, preferably sleeping in them for safety so a swift relocation can be made without casualties should they be attacked during the night. Those who complain or make light of it get told what happened to the workers who decided comfort was more important than safety.

Loggers and their foremen split into two teams, one to set up a series of pressure tents, and the others to begin working on felling some trees to get things started. One of the soldiers walks over to the both of you. “We should think about using this first batch to make a proper palisade wall , give us a safe place to camp at night “

"I was thinking the same thing. We can park the armored truck with the machine gun in the gate and setup a guard tower or two as well if possible."

"Set up in a triangle shape, have the truck set up first, that'll be our 6'oclock apex, then we'll place two towers at the 2'oclock and the 10'oclock apexes to keep security there. Have the unarmed trucks and the tents in the center, with palisades covering the space between the gun truck and the guard towers and we should have a very defensible position if anything happens. But we'll want to get this done before dark so work on that should be the number 1 priority right now. If we can't spare the time or resources for towers, we'll extend the palisade to cover the apexes, and place two soldiers with the highest casualty producing weapons on the apexes instead." Giving the soldier who suggested it a nod. "Good idea, you have anyone in mind who could man those apexes?"

“I’ll rotate between a few. We might be out here for a long time. I don’t want to burn anyone out. It’s going to take some work to get this all done before nightfall. We might end up sleeping in trucks tonight”

18:27

“Already lost half a day on the drive overl

"If we sleep in the trucks we sleep in the trucks. Better that so we can drive away than stay and be killed by whatever lives in these woods." Carmen says, grabbing a shovel from the equipment truck to start digging the trench for the palisade walls to get stuck into.

(What’s Kayden doing while the fortifications are being built

While the palisades are being built, Kay helps speed the construction by using his arcane blades to help cut apart the wood that will make up the stakes of the palisade. While he's not on the truck's gun, he has a soldier take his place on the turret.

(Let’s get an exert or work with con or str from each of you, both at +2 for the other helping)

(8)

(13)

Both of you working together adds to the construction efforts. Carmens skill and kaydens keen blades help shape and secure the sharpened stakes and as night falls , aside from roofs on the towers, you have the basic wall structure complete after all

Wiping sweat from his forehead after finishing work, he tries to meet back up with Carmen at the her truck. "Alright, so wall's set up, soldiers are manning their positions, and night's setting in. We don't want us getting exhausted out on watch so I suggest we take shifts between the two of us, two hours on, two hours off. You got low-light goggles or anything like that? Actually, more importantly, have you eaten yet today?"

Carmen sighs, wiping her face down with her shirt. "Um, I had, something, before we left. Some kind of condensed bar of who knows what, but food sounds good. I don't have any low-light goggles or anything like that. My binoculars have thermal vision, but I feel like the trees might be too dense for that to work properly."

He takes out one of the rations he bought before he left and hands it to her. "Here, have some of this, and we can share my lowlight goggles. I'll take the first watch so you can get some rest. My survival kit is in the truck if you want the thermal blanket out of it. And...thanks for the help." Kay then heads off to begin the first 2 hour watch, walking the line of the palisade. As he passes the emplaced soldiers, he also checks up on them to make sure they're awake and taken care of.

Carmen takes the ration and munches on it before curling up in bed for her first stint of sleep for the night.

The soldiers seem tired and you catch one of the tower guards asleep as the shift nears its midway. He was one of the hardest working on shovel duty earlier today, digging dozens of post holes by himself

Kay wakes up the sleeping soldier with a nudge. "Hey buddy, you were the one who was kicking ass on shovel detail right? What blue falcon stuck you with this shift? Go switch out with one of your battle buddies man, get some rest. If they got a problem with it they can come talk to me." (edited)

He nods gratefully and as you take watch for a few moments while a replacement is found you’re struck by the stillness and darkness of the night. This far away from development there is no light pollution. and the sky looks beautiful. The guard is replaced moments later. Your shift , and the night, end with no attacks or danger

During his last shift, he flips up his lowlight goggles and lets himself take a moment to look up at the night sky. The minimal light pollution made it look just like he was looking out one of the fleet ship's viewports. It reminded him of home, and it gave him a little reprieve from the stress he was feeling. Once the sun starts to rise he goes to wake Carmen up "Hey, time to start moving. Sooner we finish this up the sooner we can go home." (edited)

Carmen moans something about the time before waking up. "Time for my shift, or is it morning?" She says rubbing her eyes, obviously tired from the relative lack of sleep the previous night.

"It's morning, loggers are starting to get back to work on the trees." Now that he thought about it, he was pretty tired. But it's not like his nerves would have let him sleep much more than he did. Best thing now was just to get through it. He'd sleep in when he got back.

Carmen sits up, yawning and strething before getting out of bed, washing her face a bit before getting her things and heading out for another day of manual labor.

14:43

"I'll just try to help the loggers a bit, not much I can do otherwise."

"Alright, coolcoolcool. I'll go over and make sure the soldiers are squared away for the day. Then I'll meet you over with the loggers"

Carmen nods and heads over to meet the loggers.

A group of them are talking amongst themselves and peering into the forest, then looking back at one another. A few are carrying axes. A soldier is with them and is writing down some notes on a notepad

Carmen walks up to them with a yawn. "Moooooorning, what's the matter guys?"

“Couple of workers went off to piss last night. Just realized they didn’t come back when we did role call this morning”

Carmen sighs and facepalms. "I thought I made it clear to people that this place is dangerous at night. There are things all over this forest that love to prey on humans. How many is a couple in this case?"

“Three, haven’t found a trace of any of them”

Carmen paces for a bit, rubbing the back of her head, before calling out. "Kayden! Kayden we have a problem!"

Finishing up with his checks on the soldiers, he makes his way over to Carmen and the loggers. He thinks to himself "Damn it, it was going so smoothly. I hope someone just got lost." "What's going on? What's the problem?"

She motions to the group of loggers and such as she continues pacing back and forth. "Tell him." (edited)

They repeat that some loggers have been lost in the woods. They went to relieve themselves during the night and weren’t at roll call this morning

He sighs to himself. "Fuck I gotta think of something." "Alright, first thing's first. Take a detail of guys and some shovels and dig a couple of slit trenches inside our defensive perimeter. It'll be uncomfortable, but it'll stop this from happening again. When you use the trench and finish whatever the fuck you're doing, you bury that section of trench and extend the trench on the other end. Make sense? From now on, if anyone wants to leave the perimeter, they go through the tower on the 6'oclock apex so we can keep better track of them. Let's make that happen. Carmen, can I talk to you for a second?" He starts going back towards the perimeter to make sure the loggers actually start digging the latrine trenches and so he can talk to Carmen away from where the logger and the note-taking soldier can hear them.

Carmen follows

(You’d see the loggers getting themselves organized to dig as you walk away)

Once the two of them are out of earshot. "You know this place better. What's the chance any of those 3 loggers are alive out there?"

"Zero. The only thing we will find is blood. They will show up again tomorrow night or the next as shambling husks. I'll get some people started on a latrine so nobody has an excuse to leave camp. I just don't get it, if I can go sitting on a box above a hole in the ground, why can't these other idiots do that." (edited)

16:07

"I'm going to gather up everyone and give them the news. Maybe this will press upon them the need to follow the damn rules."

He lets out an exasperated "fuuuuuck". "Ok, I'll go make sure the soldiers are tracking. We'll probably have to keep more people awake on security if those guys are coming back. If you see anyone trying to leave the perimeter, grab their ass and pull them back in."

"They aren't hard to kill, its what killed them that is the problem." Carmen walks off to the center of the camp. "ALRIGHT EVERYONE, GATHER ROUND!" She calls out to the workers and soldiers alike after a big sigh and a few moments of coming to grips with the responsibility. (edited)

They begin circling up, waiting to hear what is going on

"So, for those of you who don't know, three workers went missing last night. They went out to take a piss and didn't come back. I will tell you all they are almost certainly dead, picked off by the monsters who live in these woods. These woods are dangerous at night, they are filled with violent predators who will jump on even small groups of us from the darkness and can easily tear a human to shreds. We didn't spend all day yesterday building these walls for our own amusement, we did it because we had to. So, from now on, I don't care what reason you have, stay in the camp at night. We don't have the manpower or the resources to go looking for people. Your survival is the responsibility of myself and Kayden, so follow the rules we set out. They will keep you alive out here. Everyone understand?"

(So we are firm on not looking for them, then?)

(How many people do we have in the camp now?)

(27 now, but as you guys build out places to sleep, survey, and do camp stuff, more will come from Mytikas. This is going to be a minor colonial building materials production center when you’re done)

(How many of those are soldiers?)

(I’ll find it I know I posted it a while ago

21:27

(10)

(What time of day is it? Early morning?)

(Yes)

Fuck, he didn't want to do this, but he felt awful leaving those people out to die, if there were any chance they were still out there at all. This might also save them some face with the crew, they'd be pissed if they thought he and Carmen didn't give a shit about their lives. And if they were able to drive this thing away, it might make their lives easier later, make the beasts less bold. "That being said, I'm taking volunteers. We'll take 4 hours to look for them; we can't spare the manpower to stay away from here any longer than that. You want to find them, I'll give you the chance while it's light out. If not, then we'll pay our respects and get back to work."

Carmen sits and watches to see how many show their intent to join Kayden, trying to reconcile her frustration at all the people dying around her and her absolute fear of being ambushed by monsters without any easy way to escape.

21:38

(Depending on how many people show interest, Carmen may join Kayden to go looking.)

Three of the soldiers are willing to accompany you into the woods, none of the workers are combat trained and they’d only get in the way

Carmen walks up to Kayden. "I'll come too, can always use the extra hand."

He looks relieved that he won't be doing this by himself. "Thanks Carmen. Alright, we have four hours, let's get started. We'll start with the path they took last night and work from there."

Carmen nods and follows Kayden into the woods to have a look around.

(Survive wis for tracking)

(8)

(6)

Kayden spots some deep boot prints in the soil heading deeper into the woods. There aren’t drag marks or blood, so far, but the path twists through brambles and around some large rocks

02:55

The forest is denser the further in you walk

(What is the light level like so far?)

(It’s morning , so normal visibility right now)

Seeing the trail move deeper into the woods, but no drag marks, made him feel paranoid. This felt too far. Usually if someone needed relief in the field they just went out of eyesight. "I got tracks going deeper into the woods. Brush is starting to get real thick so stay close. No one lose sight of anyone else, it'll be a bitch to find you if you get lost out here with shit this thick."

Carmen doesn't say anything, just acknowledges him with a nod.

13:02

She tries her best not to look scared but inside she is terrified of running into those monsters again.

A few of the soldiers have pouches of glowbugs, and begin making a lighted trail as you pass large trees. Something in a tangle of leaves and dark vines, 50m in front of you stirs. Fallen foliage drips off the humanoid object, and it reaches out to you, moaning. It’s hard to tell what exactly it is

13:32

(As in, its too dirty and you’re too far, you wouldn’t have enough info to know what exactly you’re looking at )

Carmen draws her bow, waiting until they can identify it better. "Be careful, it could be one of them still alive or it could be a monster." She whispers to the group, looking around for any more signs of movement.

Summoning a magnum revolver "One of you, cover me, the rest of you keep an eye on the foliage and make sure nothing's sneaking up on us. I'll see if I can get a closer look." Slowly and carefully, Kay moves to 30m meters of the figure.

You can see now that it’s living, and human, but has been dehydrated well beyond the time theyve been missing from the camp

Still being careful on his approach, thinking it might be some kind of bait, he continues towards the dehydrated person, stopping every 10 meters to check around before continuing. He tells the rest of the group, "I've got one here. He's alive, but...dehydrated. Way too dehydrated for how long they've been gone."

(Is this ringing alarm bells in Carmen's head?)

The figure begins slowly crawling toward you as best it’s able. It’s wearing a work uniform from Mytikas, that much is clear. It’s skin is pale and waxy though this could be from severe dehydration as much as from death. At 10m, Kayden can see this man is still alive, barely, but he is not dead and returned

"Is he really alive, or is he re-alive?" Carmen calls from the middle-rear of the group.

Kay responds "He's alive. As far as I can tell he's not dead and returned. Be careful, there might be something else out there. Also, get me some water."

Carmen comes walking up with some water before looking at the worker in question for visible bite marks or cuts or anything like that.

It’s hard to see anything on the wretch with how dirty they are. You could say that means an absence of major wounds or severe trauma.

19:27

Seeing the water, this is the most animated the poor soul has become thus far and they reach as high up from the ground as they can for it

She hands the water over to him while trying to help him to a sitting position.

Confused as to what she meant earlier "What did you mean by re-alive? Is there something out here that can reanimate corpses? Or dehydrate living things?"

"The former. I'll tell you the details later, let's get him taken care of first." She moves around in front of the worker. "Where are the rest of your friends?" (edited)

He can’t say much of anything , but greedily sucks down water. You can see a few teeth are missing and he’s got some heavy bruises. His head also looks to be cracked

16:28

Something unintelligible is babbled and he points deeper into the woods

(How far away from the camp did we find him?)

(I don’t think you’d have a reliable sense of physical distance but you’ve been walking for about 20 minutes)

Looking up from the dehydrated man. "Think we can spare two to take this guy back or move as a whole group?"

"We marked the path, its only about 20 minutes back. We have to move as a group, safer that way."

"Ok, let's move him back and we'll keep searching after we know he's secured. And don't worry about getting back, once I see a place, I don't forget it."

"I wish I had that skill. My uncle dropped me in the middle of his hedge maze one time, and it was lucky I stashed snacks and water in my backpack because I was stuck in there for three days." She says helping the worker to his feet, putting his arm around her shoulder. "Lead on oh great navigator." She says with a small bow and a chuckle. (edited)

You make your way back to the camp and get the injured worker secure. A few workers on test duty right now see to getting them cleaned up and something to eat. For the stricken man himself, now that his thirst has been sated he settles into an unbreaking thousand yard stare

Carmen looks at him, then looks at Kayden. "You want to handle this when we get back? You're the soldier."

Looking at the catatonic worker, Kay feels a pang of guilt. He felt terrible leaving the man here, but they were already about a quarter of the way into their 4 hour time hack, and still needed two more. workers. He laughs internally at the soldier comment. He was only ever a glorified security guard, he's just been making this all up as he goes. "The guy was pointing back into the bushes when you asked him about his friends. Let's go check out that out. If we find nothing there, we'll come back and see what we can do for this guy."

(Same spot? Or going off the path)

(Taking the path back to where we found the guy and then going where he pointed when asked where his friends were)

Carmen sends a quick message to Eli while they are walking through camp, remembering he will be leaving for space soon

Moving back into the forest you see evidence of small rodents and birds moving through the brush, but nothing big. You see the disturbed leaves where you pulled out the dehydrated and traumatized worker

Carmen looks around to see if she can spot any other tracks.

There are deeper tracks heading into the thick trees. Distantly, your gaze winding through the dense but not totally obscuring branches, you see something polished gleaming amid a large tree trunk

"What's that, in the trees over there?" Carmen says, pointing at the object. (edited)

Seeing the glint beyond the branches. "I don't know. Cover me, I'll go check it out." Kay will slowly approach the object and check the area around the tree trunk.

As Kayden approaches the object becomes more distinct

02:19

02:20

The skulls of humans, something like a deer, and at least a few smaller rodents, along with a pair of long spines have been woven with branches and leaves, and left against the trunk of this tree

"What do you see?" Carmen says just loud enough for Kayden to hear.

Slinking back into the wood line, standing in an open field around that thing made him uncomfortable. "There's some kind of...totem? Fetish? Out there made of human and animal skulls. Whatever's out here, it's smart."

Carmen walks up to see it, wretches a little, but is able to choke down the vomit. "Right, we found their remains, let's get back to camp before we are next."

"Yeah, let's head back. But a few things; 1: We need to cover our tracks on our way back so whatever's out here doesn't follow them back to camp, 2: We'll need to beef up security for tonight. I'm not taking any chances with whatever's out here."

"Yeah, sounds good." Carmen says, tearing her eyes away after a bit to look for some branches or something to wipe down the trail.

(Survive/wis. Whoever isn’t rolling can give the other +2 if they’re trained in it)

02:51

(Otherwise just the one check)

(7, got the same with my reroll)

(I'm trained in it so you can add a +2 to it)

(Okay, so 9)

You’re able to conceal things as best you can. You’re not sure how it tracks or what it even could be, so all you can do is guess at the quality of your work

(Are we back at the camp by now?)

(You said that’s where you were going)

Carmen starts spreading the word to double the guard tonight.

They seem to respond to this decently , snapped into action by the news of what you found

00:32

Another truck of workers is expected to arrive tonight and the beginnings of actual organized log homes have been laid out. A handful of large trunks have been cut down, cole opting for a thinning of the forest rather than complete deforestation

After passing the word Carmen checks over the walls, making sure there are no gaps or rotten bits that passed first inspection.

Kay goes off to check to make sure the guard towers are manned and have scheduled rotations. He also walks the line on the palisade to make sure the guards manned there have good observation and fields of fire, should it come down to that.

The work is going as best it can with the group of you only being here a full 24 hours now. The heroic building efforts of the day before have come at some cost today through fatigued workers and soldiers

Kay's going to help the workers as much as he can before nightfall. Reminding them as he goes that they just need to make it till tomorrow. Then more guys will be showing up and they can rest.

The logging continues with the fall of another six large trunks during the day. As evening begins to fall, two trucks begin to make their way up the flattened grass path to camp. One has a large saw blade and mountings for an eventual sawmill here. The other is loaded with workers and boxes of supplies.

16:28

The driver of the lead vehicle blows the horn once to caution the gate guards of their approach

Carmen, who had accidently fallen asleep 15 minutes earlier while eating a ration in her truck, wakes up, cleans some crumbs off her shirt, and heads out to meet the trucks. (edited)

Hearing the horn helps break his focus on the work, only now realizing he hadn't eaten since before they left. Quickly putting the feeling off, he starts to help clear a space for the new arrivals to pull up to.

It’s Easy to see that they’ll be outside the palisades if they settle down. The trucks pull into the encampment with barley enough room to turn around. The driver and what looks to be an administrator from Mytikas hop out and wave over the sound of loud idling engines

(How many more people are we talking?)

(150 here in total now, but all the new arrivals are workers)

20:12

(eventually it will be the full compliment of 1,000 needed for the minor production center, but thats everyone, loggers , foresters, cooks, truck drivers, sawmill operators, down to the store clerks and lumberyard folks on the other end)

Carmen walks up to him, then sees the number of new people, then realizes how impossible it will be to get them all inside the barricade. "Uh, hi there. This...is a lot more people than we can really, protect, here, right now." She says, trailing off at the end, mind struggling to come up with ideas.

"Well, they're not going back to the city. You'll have to figure something out. We have parts for the first leg of the sawmill, and some tools from back in the city. The workshop seems to be moving along now. I've got a solar charger in the cab for your power cells, not enough for everyone's gadgets but enough for camp management to keep their tech running"

(How much wood is currently chopped down? Is it enough to pile between the vehicles to extend out the entrance, sort of circle the wagons like?)

(Or, how far do we have from the palisade to the wood line?)

(there are 30m from the camp to the woodline, the trunks chopped down today are going back to the city, since building supplies are on the trucks)

(Going back to the city immediately? If so, how many trucks will we have in total once they leave?)

(Yes, and you'll have what you came with, the new arrivals are leaving, theyre just here to make a drop off/pick up)

Carmen looks to Kayden, then motions to her currently empty truck. "We need to talk this over, come up with a plan for tonight."

Following Carmen to her truck. "Fuck, this is like double the people we had. Only thing I can think out is to push the palisades out to where the wood line is, then have the new loggers clear cut the area in front of it. An extra 30 square meters should be able to hold new arrivals as they come and go right?"

"I mean, maybe, but what are we going to do tonight? There is nowhere near enough room for all these people." She rubs her eyes and grabs her head. "Ugh, why didn't someone warn us they were coming so we could have spent today preparing for them? Maybe if we really up the guard and have people sleep in shifts we can get everyone into the camp?"

"Have the workers pack up and sleep in their trucks for the night? Give us a little more space to work with? We could also move your truck to the 6'oclock. Give an extra truck's worth of space and it'd help make sure no one leaves the perimeter tonight."

"We already did that last night, so I expect we are doing it again. You want to deliver the news or should I?"

Putting a hand to his head and sighing "I'll break the news to them."

She nods before following him out.

Approaching the worker's foremen and the squad leaders for the soldiers. "Alright guys, we need all the space we can get tonight. So, what we're going to do is pack up all our gear, sleeping bags, tents, whatever. We're all sleeping in the trucks tonight until we can expand this perimeter tomorrow. I know it sucks, but it's only going to be temporary. Pass it down to your guys and remember, no one leaves the perimeter."

Those with the trucks resume sleeping in them, and the new arrivals herd themselves inside the fence line. There is a lot of balking and complaining about the lack of space and there’s hardly enough room to walk or lay out without stepping on someone inside.

22:57

The weather at least continues to cooperate.

Carmen looks around for anyone who is especially upset at this or vocal about it. (edited)

(If there isn't anyone im fine with moving to the overnight)

(Yeah I mean there’s general bitching but no ones on the verge of a riot)

05:05

Night falls and a storm is brewing distantly to the west. You expect it’ll be here by tomorrow afternoon, promising to turn the muddy ground of the inner palisade defense area into a muddy slush pit

05:06

Croaking creatures and whistling birds in the long grass and low branches make the night sing with a low level background noise that is not altogether unpleasant

05:06

(Who’s on watch first

(Carmen can be) (edited)

The night begins to drag on, the storm occasionally sending flickers of illumination across the plains , though no rain has come yet. (Notice/wis)

(11)

You notice that the creatures in the background have gone silent

Carmen calls out to the nearest sentries. "Small critters are quiet, something might be coming, pass the word."

Getting women up by the word getting passed around, Kay snaps back when he hears the animals went silent. "Animals don't go quiet for no reason. Get ready, something's either stalking towards us or is scoping us out." Pulling himself up on the truck Kay pulls down his low-light goggles and begins scanning on the MG

(Let’s get a notice for you too Kayden)

(7)

There is a brief washout as lightning makes the goggles go entirely white. As they re focus you’re barely able to make out a dark shape in the trees

01:03

2

(Is it just standing there? Or is it advancing towards us)

(Observing in the trees. It doesn’t know it’s been spotted)

Quietly comming Carmen <<Got 1. It looks humanoid, big and armored with a sword. Just watching us. Any idea of there's any other settlement around us?>> (Also, how big is this thing? Like average person sized or bigger)

(It would be about average but a little taller and bulkier)

(Would carmen be able to see it now that he has pointed it out?)

(Yes)

Carmen messages back "Not as far as I know."

04:35

"How do you want to handle this thing?"

"It doesn't look like wildlife or any of the monsters you talked about. Plus that things armor looks like it could take a belt of this thing. I'll keep an eye on it for now. You call it up to higher. This thing looks too intelligent to just be some random predator."

For now it seems content to keep watching the camp. It doesn’t move even as branches sway into it and the wind beats at it. It’s sword catches the lighting, glowing a dull orange

14:10

With ever crackle, just for a few seconds

"You want me to call mytikas about this?"

"Whatever this thing is, it's no beast. It's got big armor, an advanced looking sword, and is just standing there watching us. At least give them a report so they know we've made contact with something."

Carmen pulls out her dataslab, smacks it a few times to get the screen to work properly, and puts in a call to Mytikas.

Kay will also tell the guards near him to spread the word to keep their eyes open to make sure there's nothing else out there.

The creature seems content to stay where it is, for another ten minutes. Mytikas logs the report but you are not under attack, so they elect to send no further response. It begins to slink back into the forest, slowly melting backwards into the shadow of the trees

"Stay on guard people, it might come back with more."

They can’t really do anything until such time the creature returns, shrugging off the suggestion to “guard gooder”

01:15

Morning seems close by time camp begins settling down

Carmen yawns as dawn comes, having spent most of the night on watch. She climbs down and starts assessing how much more space they will need to house the worker brought yesterday. As part of this she sends a message to Mytikas asking for a schedule on when they should expect the next round of workers and how many the conplex will eventually need to house. (edited)

Stressed out from the encounter to the point where he didn't get much sleep, Kay finaly leaves his place on the gun and goes to pitch an idea to Carmen. "So we know that we're getting more people eventually right? So regardless we're going to need more space. How about we mark out where the wood line is now, then have the loggers start clear cutting the woodline back? That way we can extend the palisade to where the woodline is currently, and use some of the excess wood to fill in the gaps from extending the perimeter."

"I'm calling mytikas right now to figure out a schedule and how many we are getting in total."

(It’s 1,000 for a minor production center.)

18:52

Currently , 100 people are supposed to be arriving every afternoon, with supplies for the camp. This morning, smaller and more focused build teams are using delivered supplies to lay out the large settlement kitchen and camp office.

18:52

(We have 250 here now. Last day will be a lighter crew. They’re also sending supplies every day until it can sustain itself)

Carmen shows kayden the schedule. "We are going to have to really expand this place to fit all these people. Let's get the walls expanded and some structures started."

"Ok, you start with the structures. I'll help out with the grunt work of expanding the walls."

Carmen walks over and starts laying out blueprints and plans for the structures, trying to make sure they are as compact as possible but still capable of handling their functions.

Kaydens comm buzzes as one of the forest overlook guards tries to get his attention .

02:23

“Sir. Got another one of those things out there. Just watching. What do we want to do?”

"Hold on a second, I'm on my way over. We'll go together and find out what the hell is up with these guys."

It hasn’t moved by time you make it to the fortification line closest, and seems content to continue its unmoving vigil over your construction.

“How should we go about this?” One of the guards asks. “Do we engage?” (edited)

Carmen notices the commotion and walks over. "Another one of those things back?"

"Yeah, let me see what's up with these guys. Cover me and don't take your eyes off that thing." Kay slowly starts to approach this thing. Being careful to not get too close. "Hey buddy, saw you out here last night. You can't be here, there's a bunch of work going on and you could get hurt."

This one keeps its sword sheathed this time. It’s helmeted head very slowly turns to face you with the dull grind of metal on metal

It emits something that sounds like a cross between spoken word and screeching, it’s pinhole faced helmet not breaking its unflinching Stare at either of you

(Other than ominous screeching, it doesn't make any hostile or defensive moves as I get closer?)

(No it does not)

While keeping a safe distance from the figure and continuing to face it, Kay attempts to pass the figure and move slightly deeper into the woods to see if it follows.

It turns slowly with grinding armor , and begins its heavy and slow tread after you, shadowing your movements as quick as it is able

Two more emerge from the trees , just as armored. One has a crossbow leveled, the other has a long polearm that ends in a vicious billhook, but is keeping the weapon shouldered. This one holds up a hand , calling for you to halt

03:04

(Carmen would see this too. Kayden didn’t run that far in especially with all the trees down)

Kay halts and slowly raises his hands to show he's unarmed

This one speaks , his voice a rusty rasp. “You trespass. This is the land of the Layzal, and the Layzal keep it for themselves”

Fearing there might be a language barrier, Kay keeps his response short and simple. "I was unaware this was your land. Who are the Layzal?"

“It is the name. Immortals.”

Carmen watches from the fort, confused.

"We mean the Layzal no harm. We only need wood." (Would the soldiers I asked to cover me be watching this as well?)

(Yes. Right now no ones done anything but chat

03:24

“The Layzal protect the wood. From ghouls. From man. From worse than both”

"Worse than both? Would you know anything about a beast that takes water then? Three men went into the wood last night, two were gone, one was incredibly dehydrated."

It’s head grinds in an affirmative nod, slowly. “The wood takes what it needs from those that invade. The trees become upset.”

03:31

“Their spirit manifests”

"Then how do the Layzal build without angering the wood? You have materials, so you must take something from the wood."

“We sing to the forest and it makes what we need. We protect it, if provides for us. We can provide for you, too, for a favor”

"What kind of favor would that be?"

“We can not leave the wood. The stream running through it and our village is poison. Something upriver where we cannot go

01:52

We do not die, but the trees are”

"So if we go and take care of whatever is upriver, you agree to help provide for us?"

“We will ensure the wood is strong and healthy and sing you trees to take on your way”

"Ok, you have yourselves a deal. Can you take us to this river so we can begin?"

They motion for you to enter the wood

02:00

(Carmen if you’re tagging along now is the time)

Kay motions for Carmen to come join him. "It's clear Carmen."

Carmen calls from the wall "WAIT FOR ME!" She jogs up to meet him after grabbing the grenades from the truck.

The two of you fall into step with the lead armored figure in front , and two more information behind the two of you. The wood seems less thick and impassible as you follow them , it’s trails and game paths seeming to open up into highways

02:13

They don’t say anything as you walk, the only sound is the crunch of plate and chain lapping together

Carmen doesn't say anything, she just looks around at the trees, confused about how open the forest is compared to the previous day.

Kay nervously bites his lip as he sees the forest almost react to these figures like it were alive. He'd never seen anything that seemed this overtly magical since his stay in the ICU.

Eventually after an indeterminate amount of time walking, you’re deep into the forest , and the terrain becomes quite dark despite it being close to noon outside the wood. The flicker and bob of lanterns, candles and torches, tucked into tree alcoves ahead catches your attention , as it seems a Pueblo styled cliff village has been fashioned here out of hollowed trees

Carmen looks around at the, houses, she guesses, not quite sure what to think. She opens her mouth to say something but thinks better of it, opting to continue following.

It seems this is where you are stopping, at least for now, as you cross a large oaken like root bridging a raging brook of water. The noise of the rushing water is loud and the tide looks black , rather than a deep blue

Carmen looks down at the river and winces "Eugh, that's what the forest is using for its water? Yuck." (edited)

Looking over at the obviously poisoned river, he wonders what could possibly have done this. "You said whatever is happening is upriver, where you can't go. Why can't you go up there?"

“We are bound here. Within the wood” (Think like the dust knights from endless legend more than the thousand sons of 40k

(I need to play that game more than I do.)

He wondered if the thing was speaking metaphorically or literally. If they were really bound here by some sort of spirit, was it something like what gave him his powers? Or something more. "Interesting. Will we have anything to worry about from the wood when we go upriver? Or are we no longer intruders here?"

“The wood will respect your errand and our arrangement. It is beyond the wood, near the problem, that we cannot guarantee”

"Is the upriver area clear of trees, could we drive our trucks there?"

“It is dense with rock. Harsh terrain. Thick with grasses and dangers”

"That sounds kind of like a no."

02:25

"But also like lots of things could be hiding and jump us too."

"The just means we'll need to be very careful where we go and keep an eye out for anything that could be out there. Once we leave the wood we should assume that most things out there are hostile."

"Yeah. Should we get some more men or do you just want to head over there and scout it out first?"

"There's supposed to be more coming today right? They're going to be stretched thin enough as it is and we'll need as many hands a possible to just keep the place functioning. To top it all off, the more people we have trudging through here, the more likely anything out there will pick up on us. I think we're more or less on our own for this one."

"Alright, let's go then. I've got everything I need."

"Anything the Layzal can offer us before we go? Or is this where we part ways for now?"

“Your journey to forest edge will be fast and safe. Beyond, it is your undertaking” the lead Layzal says, the armored head bowing slightly

Carmen nods and starts walking upriver.

Kay nods back to the lead Layzal. "Then I thank you for taking us as far as you can." He follows Carmen up the river.

The forest parts as easily for you as it did in the company of the Layzal, though now with the sound of rushing water being a constant companion. It retains the turgid , black color you saw in the village and smells slightly of rot

"This river smells like butts and dead people..."

(Notice /wis)

(7)

(1)

1

You continue walking , coming to the edge of the wood. The path behind once again resembles the dense forest you’d become accustomed to seeing. The river winds through a rolling and hilly grassland, the banks going from high walls of mud held together by roots to rocky dips, lined with driftwood and refuse. A handful of dead fish are scattered along the banks in places where the wood has logjammed some smoother running parts of the current , the water curdling into an ochre foam (edited)

Carmen turns to Kayden. "I really hope we don't follow this to another one of the cities dumping toxic waste into the river or something."

"I really hope this isn't just some elaborate bit that just leads us back to our own camp. That'd be awkward." He smirks a bit

"Oh. Oh man I didn't even think about that. I really hope that doesn't happen."

"You ever see anything like those guys before? I've seen things similar to what they can do. But never like this."

Carmen shakes her head. "Seems there are all kinds of strange creatures living on this world.*

He mutters to himself "Of all the places I could have been dropped off..." Speaking back up "Yeah, so it would seem."

"Anyway. Let's keep going."

Two arrows sail past you, narrowly missing and embedding themselves in the mushy ground. They whistle as they pass by

18:56

The shots come from straight ahead, concealed archers in the tall grass

"SHIT!" Carmen says, ducking behind some cover nearby. (Are we allowed to return fire or do you need initiative first?)

(Initiative. They got surprise)

(5)

(3)

(6)

04:26

A spear and two arrows land into the thick grasses nearby , though you’ve got a general location of the concealed assailants now that they’ve fired a couple of times

(Carmen up?)

(Yes)

Carmen leans out with her bow and fires off an arrow at one of them. (16/8) She spends her move reloading the bow. (edited)

(Kayden)

Kay will take cover from any further attacks. Since he can't get an exact location of where the shooters are, he lobs a grenade at where he sees the shots coming from (8/8)

A body flies out of the grasses, dead, tunmbling end over end in the air. Carmen's arrow shaft lies buried deep in it.

03:37

Another spear and arrow are fired, both missing, but you can see parting grasses as the remaining skirmishers begin turning tail, not getting the results wanted

(Still in range to be shot at?)

(yes, at -4 with the distance and cover)

Carmen rushes to fire another arrow, but fumbles with it and sends it into the dirt in front of her. (6/7)

03:45

"Well, that was interesting. Want to take a look at the body?"

Coming out from cover "Yeah, you check the body. I'll keep watch to make sure those trouble makers don't come back."

Carmen moves up, dragging the body back to cover before looking it over for any useful information. (edited)

The attackers are human, or close enough to human. It is difficult to tell beneath the coating of greenish black mud, and clothing made of tough plains grasses, woven into something resembling wicker.

15:01

A short flint blade is wrapped in a hide scabbard on its waist, not drawn this fight

15:02

The bow is a recurve bow, made from layers of wood glued together over time, again and again, though it has cracked due to the grenade blast, or fall

"All kinds on this planet."

"Seems like these woods are more populated than I first thought."

"Let's keep going, but quietly this time. They know we are coming and I want to get back home to where it is quiet and peaceful, I've got butterscotches on the way."

A thin trail of smoke snakes it’s way skyward a few kilometers away, as the breeze shifts. You get a faint smell of cooking meat on the air

"Wanna sneak up on them?" Carmen asks, turning to kayden.

"Yeah let's take this nice and quitely."

Carmen starts moving towards the smoke source, using whatever cover there is to approach quietly.

Kay will follow, staying near high shrubs and trees to conceal his silhouette. He'll also try his best to move on a straight line towards the smoke as it's harder to see something moving forward and back than it is to see something moving from side to side

The ground is hilly and the dense grass makes good cover. The fleeing skirmishes have not had time to conceal their tracks and following the twin slicing trails through the grass is easy to do. The smoke gradually gets closer as you track the assailants

"They will be expecting us to come from this way, right? Should we try to come around from the other side or something?" (edited)

"You know the clover leaf method? We'll go around to one side, staying far enough back that we can see the smoke, but they damn well won't see us. Then once we get enough of a flank, we'll sneak forward on a direct line towards them. Eyes pick up left to right motion very well, but forward and back motion is hard for them to gauge."

"Yeah, let's do that, you lead."

"Ok, follow me" Kay starts to move to the left of where he sees the smoke until he feels as though he's gone about 100m off of the trail the assailants made. Then he'll start to slowly make his way forward through the brush towards the fire.

The camp is visible as you peer out from the edge of the brush and long grass. Ten or more tribespeople have made camp at the river source here, fed from a large lake, and have damned up the river with debris, bones, rocks , and waterlogged pelts. Two totems are embedded in the makeshift dam, and despite the warm temperature you can see them giving off some sort of heat haze well at odds with the conditions

(Does the water turn black at the dam?)

(Yes

"Well, I guess we found what the problem is."

(What is the area around the camp like? Lot's of large trees, mostly grass and shrubs? Large rocks?) "Yeah, looks like those totems are the things screwing with the river." (edited)

The camp is set In a 30m circle of cleared land that shares its eastern border with the river. The Grass is tall, between six and eight feet surrounding the camp, with the occasional thick tree or large stone. The grass itself provides most of the cover and concealment this deep into the plains

"How are we going to approach this though? The two of us can't handle this many on our own, can we?"

"No we can't. Not unless you brought a whole lot more than my two grenades. We could try to draw some away though. If we set up a tripwire in the brush back by the trail. I could try to draw some of them into it. That'd separate the group and cut down on a few of their numbers. Unless you got a better idea?"

Carmen thinks for a minute. "Well, with my two grenades that brings us to four, maybe I might be able to fashion together some kind of detonator and we could use these to just blow up the damn, but I dunno." She pulls out her binoculars to take a better look at the damn itself. (They are tl4 if it matters I believe, but regardless I got to head to sleep)

A grenade won’t be enough, due to the side of the dam rather than the skill of its construction or materials used

"Yeah, we aren't busting that with grenades, we need something more robust. If we had a demo charge, maybe. Let's head back to the camp, I might be able to throw something together or we can call Mytikas and have them send some over."

"Yeah, we're going to need some heavier stuff to take this out. Could also use some extra manpower to deal with these guys here."

"I'll call Mytikas and see if they can send some extra manpower. I doubt these guys will show any goodwill. Even if they just send us a rocket launcher we should be fine, maybe." Carmen puts in a call to Mytikas.

There is no answer.

01:49

The line just ends in dead air.

"Stupid dataslab, should've asked Eli to get me a new one." She says, smacking it and fiddling with it a bit before trying again. When that fails, she calls the camp.

The camp picks up.

02:29

(I don’t know what you want from them so I can’t say anything else)

"Hey, can you all give mytikas a call for me. We need a heavy weapons team sent out with the next group and I can't seem to reach them at all."

“We can’t reach them either. You’ll have to figure something else out”

"Wait, what do you mean you can't reach them either?"

"Probably some kind of interference from the woods. If this place really has a spirit, then it might be trying to keep us isolated. Make sure we don't renege on the deal."

“We can’t reach them either. Just what I said. The long range is down”

"Keep trying, let us know when the next group arrives. We will figure something out." She ends the call. "Hopefully something bad isn't happening. Last time the comms went down like this was right after Cyrus obliterated the garden along with himself and my friends. Let's circle up to the lake tonight, I'll borrow your goggles and see if I can spot a weakpoint in the dam up close or something, unless you want to try talking to these people?"

"Something tells me that the people who ambushed us and made this ominous poison damn aren't the kind to make small talk. Good idea, judging from these guys' leather stuff and bows, we'll probably be able to move safer at night anyway."

"Let's circle around while its still light out. We can make up a small camp and try to disguise it so we have somewhere relatively safe to sleep tonight."

The journey around the lake from where you are now looks like it will take the day and partially into tomorrow. The walk will be long but possible, and concealed movement is assured

04:14

The long grass and more trees seem to snake their way around the large lakebed

"Let's get going, we can camp for the night, finish heading around, then camp again tomorrow night after checking the weaknesses. I can try to fashion something from what I have once we have a better idea what we are dealing with."

The two of you are able to break away from the camp u detected and flank the area, heading to as distant as you can make it while there is still daylight. Before long you’re making your own path through the grass rather than following the once made by the tribals you’d just run into

About late afternoon, news finally comes in as the relay call to camp and then Mytikas is answered. Commander Cole is dead, assassinated in a daring attack by suspected Remnant pirates posing as merchants come to Heras to trade. A swarm of large spider like creatures accompanied the raid force though seem to have been dealt with. The attackers were able to withdraw with light casualties observed.

04:46

An emergency meeting has been called for all Mytikas notable citizens to determine a way forward which you should both be able to attend remotely now that the radio link is working again

Carmen goes into shock when she hears that Cole is dead, completely not believing what she is hearing. She starts stammering about what they are going to do before she is able to compose herself. "FUCK THIS PLANET!!!." She screams in rage, almost throwing her dataslab into the lake. "I don't care WHAT we have to do, I'm sick of people I care about dying because this planet is such a shithole full of selfish BASTARDS! AUGH!!!!!" (Call with the message should be over at the point her outburst starts.) (edited)

"This is it." Kay thinks to himself, "I'm going to be stuck on this planet, I'm never going find a way home. I'm going to die here." If someone like Cole couldn't make it, what chance did he have? He sees Carmen's outburst and quickly tries to shush her and calm her down "Hey hey hey. It's going to be ok. We can talk about it later when we make camp. But for now, we still gotta stay quiet. The sooner we get this thing for the Layzal done, the sooner we can get the logging camp ready, the sooner we can leave. I just need you with me for a few more hours."

"I'm fine, just pissed off about shit. Let's make camp and call in to the meeting."

"Are you sure you're...Fine, we'll call in"

Carmen proceeds to rage make the camp, almost breaking a tent pole before realizing how mad she is and actually calming down.

Kay follows behind trying to straighten out things, or rebending things, that are hastily and angrily thrown together.

Once they are done, Carmen sets up her Dataslab and calls in to the meeting.

Walking away from the dataslab, Kay climbs up into the nearest tree and keeps watch, moving his gaze from the direction they came from and the damn they are going to

(I’ve got something but I don’t want to take away from the meeting

(No problem. I was just going to let them hash it out since I won't be around for the majority of its effects.)

After closing out of the meeting, Carmen goes to watch the tribal camp for a bit before getting a notification on the choice made and their resume, showing it to Kayden. "What do you think? Sound good to you?"

Kay comes down from the tree and gives it a very cursory glance. "Yeah, looks fine to me."

"See anything out there?" She says, looking towards the camp with her binoculars.

"Nothing yet, but I'll hop back up and check again. Good thing nothing caught sight of that dataslab light." He climbs back up into the tree.

"Yeah, its stuck at permanent high brightness. Next time ill turn it facedown or something."

Once he reaches his previous spot, he clicks on his radio. "Lot of shit's going to need to be rebuilt. Looks like you're going to be busy when we get back."

"Yeah...yay for me."

"You'll be fine, if what you did to that truck is anything to go by. If you need any help, I try. I'm not particularly wise to that stuff, but I can get the simple shit out of the way."

"I think we will need your help with the security if you decide to stay more than anything."

"I'm staying. Not allowed back home, so it looks like you guys are stuck with me."

Something shifts in the bushes 100m from you, as Kayden looks from uo the free

02:16

Up

"Watch out. Something in the bushes, 100m."

Carmen hides, using the tree trunk and tall grass for cover.

A tribal mask peeks out, looking for you. They must have heard Carmen’s scream. This far out from the village it’s likely a foraging party or hunting team

Carmen pulls out her bow, nocking an arrow, and quietly starts to aim at the tribal. "How do you want to handle this?" She mutters quietly through the radio to Kayden.

He manifests a carbine with a silencer on the end of the barrel. While staying very still in his hide spot. "Quietly."

Carmen rolls her eyes. "I meant alive or dead?"

"Probably came here from your yelling so thought I'd add that in. Just stay down, if they stumble on the camp, we drop 'em."

Carmen stays quietly against the tree, just watching.

(Lets get sneak/dex vs their notice then)

6

(9)

(Your concealment and their expert tracking level out so flat rolls

(Mine should have been at flat, on my phone though so might be a mistake)

(My only bonus is from my dex)

Carmen is hidden well on the ground. In the tree Kayden is far more exposed and the two tribals on this hunting expedition fire a pair of arrows in his direction (15/2 if that hits. The other one is a solid miss, and we can keep the same initiative as before which I believe makes Carmen next)

(the 15 does not hit, AC 17)

(Would carmen get an attack bonus then?)

(No they just didn’t see you to target you)

Carmen shoots at one of them from her hidden spot (17/8)

One of the tribals bunches over as they’re struck in the abdomen by your arrow , out of the fight for certain. The remaining one begins to flee, seeing its comrade down and foes within a short hike of the village

16:17

(Double moving away, Kayden is up )

Kay tries to line up a shot on the one running away, hoping to try and take him out before he can get back to his camp. (5/10) (edited)

The shot hits brush and lodges itself in the ground

21:23

(Carmen)

Carmen shoots another arrow. (16/7)

The second tribal falls with an arrow in her back, lodged nearly all the way through

Carmen gets up, looking for any other signs of movement before moving to the tribals to check them for life.

Kay hops out of the tree to check on the other tribal. When he's finished with that, he'll start to break the camp and get ready to move.

The tribals are both down, armed the same as the others. Each has a canvas like pouch where their foraged food was being kept and they were not punctured or ripped

"Nice shots, first thing now is to hide the bodies best we can. Move them, cover them in foliage, maybe toss them in the river. Just in case any friends come looking from them. Next, we should displace camp about 300m so we're harder to track."

"If we toss them in the lake they may float over to the dam, let's just stick them behind the tree and move."

"You're probably right. Alright, I'll take this guy and when we finish we'll break camp." Kay fireman carries the one tribal and goes to hide him back behind the tree, covering the body with loose foliage.

Carmen picks up the other tribal, wavering a bit before getting herself under control. She copies Kayden's work as best she can. "Sorry, this was my fault. All the yelling."

He drops his body behind the tree, breathing a little heavy as it's been a while since he's had to carry straight dead weight. "Don't worry about it. Things like that happen, not much you can do but scream and yell about it sometimes."

The village doesn’t seem to be on alert and no other skirmishes come as you move camp. The sun begins to set turning the lake a firey gold swirled with sky blue reflections of the sky

(What was the watch order during the night?)

(Carmen would go first)

At midnight as Carmen begins to get up and rouse Kayden, a magnificent albino trollboar strides into the clearing 30m from camp

1

16:47

It’s risks are long and pearly , perfectly clean and showing no signs of the dozens of battles a creature this size would have fought

"Oh shit, oh shit, that's not good." She whispers. "Kayden, get up, get up." She says while shaking him awake.

Kay groggily responds as Carmen shakes him "I'm up, I'm up. What is it?

She points at the trollboar.

Kay's eyes grow wide at seeing the big ass boar-thing. He quickly pulls Carmen down into the tall grass and motions for her to stay as low and as quiet as possible.

The boar is rutting happily at the bases of nearby trees, using its tusks to dig. It doesn’t seem to notice you, or if it does, seems to think you aren’t a threat p

Carmen stays as still as possible, hoping the trollboar runs past.

(Possibly very bad idea. How big is this trollboar and how far are we from the damn?)

(Theyre twice the size of a Terran boar. Idk how big that would be in meters. The dam is a half days march back across the lake by now)

(Ok, never mind. Not big enough and too far away for what I had in mind.) Kay keeps his eyes on the trollboar, but keeps his face to the dirt. Waiting for it to finish its business and leave.

Carmen does the same.

The boat eventually moves off after a long twenty minutes of circling your camp, digging at the trees nearby. It passes into the woods, it’s moonlight white skin vanishing into the dark trees. The night critters begin to chirp and chatter in the background once again

Kay rolls over and lets out a relieved sigh. How these tribals and Layzal survived out here for any length of time was beyond him. "Well, I'm real awake now."

"Then you can take next watch, cause once my adrenaline runs its course im going to pass out." She says crawling back into whatever shelter they have setup for the night.

as Carmen crawls into sleep, Kayden sees something gently glowing against the base of the nearest tree to camp. At first it looks like a trick of the light, but after a moment it’s clear there’s something there

Kay keeps and eye on it to see if it moves or comes closer. But he's not about to get lured out anywhere alone.

It doesn’t move , and as the moons light changes with its gradual set, you can see its metallic and glittering in the beams

04:07

It looks pure silver in color, totally unblemished by time

(How far away is this tree?)

(5m)

04:09

(Youd hardly be leaving camp)

Kay tentatively takes a few steps towards the metal to investigate, ready to jump back to camp the second he feels something funny.

As you approach, you see that this is some kind of breastplate (think like conquistador style) The metal is clean and elegant, and as you look at it you see that lines begin to appear, showing an artfully handsome depiction of yourself, heroically fighting back a spear armed tribal

04:12

Almost all of the space on the breastplate is blank , even after this picture renders and seems to set

04:13

(Hero’s Pavis - you get +1 to AC and +1 attack bonus against something you have fought before. Your first encounter will be memorialized on the armor. You can make a talk/cha check against DC10 to lie to it about an encounter you didn’t have. If you fail three over the lifetime of you owning it, it clears and you have to start over)

Feeling unnerved about the piece of armor, he manifests a staff to give it a few light taps and move it around to check for any obvious traps that could be attached to it. It felt almost too good to be true. Just what the hell was this wood? After feeling and seeing no traps, he decides to pick it up and take it back to camp.

(It’s bound to you, since you found it, but will clear if you decide to give it away or sell it)

04:20

(But you’re quite safe based on what you did)

Strapping the breastplate onto himself, he goes back to his position and resumes his watch.

Night ends a few hours later and the first of the birds begins to sing. No other strange happenings occur during the night

Carmen wakes up to the birds singing with a yawn, looks over to Kayden and sees his new armor. "Where'd you get that?" She asks with another yawn as she stretches.

"Found it over there next to that tree." he points to the tree right next to their camp "Had my face on it and everything."

"That's weird." She says, making a concerned face. "Was that where the boar was digging?" She continues before walking over to look at the place he found it.

"Nah, the boar was like 20-30 meters out. It's like, not even 5 meters to the tree where I found it."

The rut is still there, in the shadow of an exposed root. Worms and centipedes bask in the newly aerated soil now

"Oh shit, maybe it did. What the fuck is this forest?"

She goes over and looks at the other places the boar was digging.

Bark shavings, bits of animal bone , nut shells, and the husks of small fruits and veggies are scattered among where the digging occurred, not turning up much of anything of interest

"Damnit." She mutters to herself before heading back over. "Nothing else of interest. Let's go ahead and break camp down, we have a lot of ground to cover still."

"Yeah, we still have to figure a way to break up that damn too. Gonna be a long day." As he helps break camp, he can't help but think to himself. He'd always wondered what happened to that thing that was just watching him in the ICU. What if it never left? What were its intentions giving him this magic? He shakes off the thoughts, there was a lot more pressing issues to worry about right now.

"Yeah, let me do some more thinking on that." She says, grabbing the last bit of the camp stuff. "Ready to go?"

05:02

(I did have a question i wanted to run by you neko with regards to the building stuff on the fly foci she has. Can you use components you already have, like grenades, in combo with some scrap, to build something new, or no?) (edited)

Throwing on the rest of his supplies, he gets a feel for the new weight of his armor. It was a little heavier, but not much more than he was used to. Shouldn't slow him down too much. The picture on it kind of freaked him out though. "Yeah, I'm all set. Dam should be about half a day's trip back east across the lake we passed by. Here's hoping we can wreck the place and get back to the logging camp before nightfall tomorrow."

Carmen nods in agreement and starts heading out.

(Id need to know what you intend for it to do, you do need to have the components on hand, and it has to be declared that you’re making it ahead of time so we don’t just magically have deus Ex machina scenario saving gear at the perfect moment all the time)

16:16

(Since there’s a psychic ability and a racial feat now that do that already)

(Ok, I'll just not worry about it then.)

Carmen spends the first hour designing things on her dataslab, each one requiring something she doesn't have. Eventually she gives up with a groan. "I'm never leaving town without demo charges again."

"Well, looks like we'll have to improvise then. Something in that damn's gotta be load-bearing. So if we can bust that, the water might be able to do the rest of the work for us. Fuck, I'll chop that shit down if I need to." He holds up an axe that he pulled from seemingly nowhere that disappears just as fast. (edited)

Carmen flinches at the sudden axe appearance. "That is both cool and terrifying."

Kay looks away slightly embarrassed. "Sorry, hard to stay all business all the time. Plus it's fun to fuck around with the different things I can make sometimes."

(Not worry about it because I asked you to state your intentions ahead of time? That’s sort of cutting off your nose to spite your face )

02:08

The woods are quiet and you stop seeing proof of tribal foraging parties this far out. This forest belongs to the animals. The weather today is better and the lake surface is calm. Close to their village now the furthest part of the lakes coast from you, you see a pair of canoes fishing, the village seemingly not yet noticing their gathering party hasn’t returned

(No, I was about to head to work for an 8 hour shift and didn't want to bog everything down while I tried to process thoughts when I got home. I honestly can't even remember exactly what I wanted to do.) (edited)

02:10

(Shoulda clarified that.)

02:14

"I'm torn about whether I want them to notice someone is missing. It could draw some of them away from the camp tonight, or it could put them on extra high alert. Who knows."

"Odds are it'll do a little of both. Best we recon the dam while it's light out and see what we can do from there." (edited)

"Actually, that reminds me." He takes some soot and dust, using it to tarnish the metal on his breastplate and take the shine off of the metal.

"Thanks, the reflection off that thing was starting to blind me." She says, pulling her binoculars out to have a look around this side of the lake for anything interesting or dangerous.

Aside from the fishing canoes you can already see, the village is still not on alert for their missing party members. The defenses , or lack of them aside from the tall grass and general remoteness of the place, have also not changed.

21:37

The dam is close to the village but the proximity of a large group of warriors is the true danger, not static defenses or fortifications

While Carmen is looking g through her binos, Kay whispers. "You're just jealous the trollboar didn't dig up any nice shit for you."

"Maybe. Let's keep going."

"Alright, got any ideas on how we can draw those tribals away from the dam?" (edited)

(Does the camp stretch to either side of the dam, like the dam is a bridge?)

(Or is it just on the opposite side?)

(Just the opposite side. They have a totem o. Each side but that’s all

16:04

(Think like the Alaskan style totems. Very tall and thick)

"Well, if we stay quiet, we should be able to examine it without issue. I don't think they will expect anything until tonight at the earliest since it took us a day to get there from their camp. If worst comes to worst I can try to tie some grenades to my arrows, but I'd rather not do that since I haven't shot with those yet."

"If I can draw the defenders away, or at least supress them, do you think that'd buy you enough time to figure out how to bring down those totems and the dam?"

"Let me get a closer look first once we get there, from behind the dam. Maybe there is something they messed up in the back."

"Ok, how's this sound? We'll get a closer look, ID any weak spots you could exploit, once we get that we'll recon a place I can use as an engagement area to drawn the tribals into. That way we can get this shit done quick and clean."

"Alright, sounds good. Hopefully I can find something I can weaken with these grenades. If I find one spot to break open then the whole thing should bust wide open."

He hands over one of his last two grenades. "A little extra boom shouldn't hurt then. I'll just keep one for myself just in case."

"Alright, let's finish heading around then. When we find your overlook I'll make a call to Mytikas and see if they can have an emergency ride standing by, just in case. We don't want to go running across the open in the middle of the night." (edited)

(Lets get sneak/dex from each for traveling the rest of the way undetected)

(5, used re roll, was a 3 before) (edited)

(7)

(If you have an ability to re roll it. It’s a new scene if you’re asking about your exper tee roll

(I rerolled for a 5, dunno if you saw the edit)

(No I didn’t)

12:31

You make your way around the lake, and at mis afternoon stumble onto another foraging party. This time you are close to the village. The two tribesmen picking berries are 10m away

Kay uses hand signals to ask Carmen 'kill? Or bypass?'

(The sneak would have been to bypass. They’ve seen you)

14:27

Both groups kinda rounded a corner and walked into each other )

(Ah very well.) Since they've been compromised, Kay manifests a pistol with a silencer and quickly tries to drop one of the tribals (Will roll when I get home at like 5pm. If someone can roll first before I can feel free. Should be a +1 to hit from my armor then another +1 from mageblade level 2. Gonna be making this shot silent.) (edited)

(There’s no silencers in the game)

17:23

(No mechanic for them at least)

(Just for flavor. I can choose to make mageblade shots silent or not) (edited)

(i forgot madeblades can be silent, i thought it was a regular gun for a hot minute, youre good)

(21/6 and 19/9) they each fire their compact bows at Carmen in reply

(Is that in reply to kaydens shot?)

(Yeah I'm still not going to be home for another hour to roll for the shot)

(I forgot that kayden still had to roll when I typed that.)

(I thought there was a post here for them to drop their weapons. Did it get deleted?)

(Yeah, I was going to retype it after kayden made his roll) (edited)

21:41

(I didnt want to jump the gun, mb)

(I'm fine with everything playing out the same way, just wanted to make sure we werent all out of order, sorry about that)

(Sorry it's taken so long to roll. Class sucks, I've been here since 0430)

(16/4)

The sniper shot hits a tribal , silently due to the powers Kayden is able to manifest. The tribals nock arrows in reply and let fire at Carmen

Carmen groans in pain, the arrows lodging in her left shoulder and right thigh. She lets loose an arrow at the one Kayden hit before ducking behind any available cover. (11/6, 3hp left)

Traveling wide , the arrow lodges itself in the trunk of a nearby tree

04:12

(Kayden)

'Fuck, I need to end this fast' Kay quickly hops into cover and takes another silenced shot at the uninjured tribal (22/10) (edited)

The uninjured tribal drops, shot cleanly through the head, leaving only the injured one remaining

04:33

(17/10 Kayden) It pulls its bowstring back, and the wickedly barbed arrow releases cleanly

(Just barely misses AC 18)

Carmen looks out, dodging the arrow shot at kayden as it flies right past her, before reloading her bow and winces while she leans out to shoot an arrow at the remaining tribal. (12/8) (edited)

The second one falls, arrow piercing his chest handily

Carmen gets up from behind the cover, hobbling over to the fallen tribals to check them, making it up to Kayden and leaning on his shoulder. She spits on one of the tribals before turning to Kayden. "Would you mind helping get these arrows out of me please."

He hands Carmen a piece of cloth "Yeah, I can try. Bite down on this...it's gonna suck." Kay then starts to pull the arrow from her shoulder

Carmen bites on the cloth, groaning through it as Kayden pulls the arrows out, struggling not to pass out from the pain.

Kay waves his hand in front of Carmen's face, trying to get her attention. "You good? Here" He passes her a canteen. "Take a minute and get some water."

Carmen nods, taking a few sips of water. "Serves me right for trying to be nice and not kill them on sight." She says in between breaths. "Guess that changes our plans a bit. Here, go see what's going on." She hands him her binoculars.

(It would be the same as its been, just milling about the camp)

"Don't worry about it. Shit happens, but we gotta work with what we got. How about you stay put here with the binos while I try to find a way to the dam? Over watch their position and update me on any movement you see as I go."

Carmen nods, taking the binoculars back and setting herself up next to the tree. She will pull the arrow out of it to examine later.

"Alright, I'll check in every few minutes or so. Hand me the rest of the grenades and I'll be back as soon as I can. If you see people coming this way, hide and radio me. I'll be back as soon as I can."

Carmen hands him the three grenades she has before taking some brush and dirt to conceal herself as best she can.

05:49

"Good luck."

"Stay safe." Kay starts to low crawl through the grass and clover-leaf towards the dam.

Carmen gets back to concealing herself for a few more seconds before turning to look for movement at the camp.

The camp looks quiet. The sentries had been handled expertly, and the tribals seem to have withdrawn to the main longhouse for their midday meal

17:34

You can smell bread cooking in the air

Carmen radios to Kayden. "Looks like they are having lunch, now might be the best time to scout it out."

18:16

(How far from the camp are we now?)

"Moving now. Hopefully that gives me enough time." He stays in a low crawl as he clover-leafs his way towards the rear side of the dam.

30m out from the dam and nearest totem and hidden in the scrub line, Kayden can see that the field is largely empty. The tribals are still at their midday meal

Kay whispers into his comms "I'm going to check out the first totem now. The second someone leaves that building I need to know." Slowly and deliberately, Kay makes his way across to the first totem and the dam.

The totems base is carved into a screaming trollboar likeness and is made with a great amount of detail. It’s the work of generations as opposed to something done in haste or to commemorate a particular event.

(Is this right next to the dam or still a bit away from it?)

(Next to it)

After looking over the totem he takes a quick look at the rear side of the dam to see if there are any obvious supports

He also keys his comm real quick as he looks. "Carmen, do you think mud would be enough to direct the force from an explosion?"

(Would it?)

(Realistically, yeah. Dirt and sand are some of the best materials to deflect and absorb force, it's why sandbags stop bullets. So, if you put a bunch of dirt on one side of an explosive and the other side were open or if a less compactable material were next to it, a significant amount of the force would go in one direction. A hasty directional charge basically.) (edited)

(I dunno if carmen would know that for sure though. She builds things, she isnt very experienced at blowing them up.)

(It's a hunch he has, just going off of how he knows grenades work. Probably just drop it down a hole at the base of the one totem, pack it with mud, string a few together along the dam and see what happens)

"Uh, maybe? I don't usually deal with explosives."

"Got it, I'll take a look at the dam and try to improvise something from there." He tried to remember the basic class he got on grenades from his home ship's sec def. He knew they exploded up and out, but if something could get that force going in one direction, it might make is hit hard enough to break something important.

(Fix 0 can let you make a demo charge into a shaped charge. For this instance I’ll let the same thing happen with your improvised bomb. If Kayden doesn’t have the fix level Carmen will have to join him)

(I have fix 0. But I'm not going to be home for a while. Probably not for the next 11 or 12 hours)

(No roll needed, the skill just lets you do it)

(Ah, got it)

(Long description for a relatively short process but.) quickly manifesting a very wide knife, Kay digs a small hole up against the base of the totem. After finishing the hole, he guts a rope into smaller strings and ties one end to the pin. Dropping the grenade into the hole, he takes the soft clay from the riverbed and packs the hole to force the blast against the totem. Once the hole is packed, he cuts a small channel in the dirt to run the string through. Once the totem charge is set, he walks across the dam, jamming grenades into crevices in the dam, running the string through their pins, and packing them with handfuls of clay. He does this with 3 grenades before repeating the same process for the totem on the far side with his 5th and final grenade.

"Make sure you run like hell when that goes off to get to higher ground."

"Oh yeah, I don't think I'm going to stay around for the fireworks. Fuses on these are usually around 4 seconds so I should have just enough time."

(The far side meaning crossing the dam and river?)

01:56

(Or the far side of this single totem near you, if you’re crossing we need to back up)

01:57

(We did an awful lot of stuff without rolling to see if you’re noticed or anything like that)

(Trying to cross the dam with supernatural mobility so I'm not just standing straight on top of it)

(Got it let’s get a sneak/dex)

01:58

Carmen sees two tribesmen exit the longhouse on their way to the storage building nearby to get more food- as Kayden is halfway across the dam

01:59

They’re 50m from Kayden, and 300m from Carmen

(6)

"Kayden! Look out, there are two coming!"

(13 vs 6) As Kayden is 3/4 of the way across the dam, the chosen explosives nestled behind the first totem and along his path, he is seen

03:39

One of them drops his gathering tools and the other looks on in alarm

'Fuck, I gotta move fast.' "Got it! Stay hidden, I'll work with what I got and link back up with you." Kay pulls the string on the grenades he already packed in. (I assume like 3/5 of the grenades?) The last two he quickly jams in whatever crevice he can find and jumps off onto the opposite bank.

(That’s reasonable for the time spent so far)

03:48

The grenades explode, the shaped charge toppling the first totem, and it begins to fall toward the dam. The dam itself is weakened but not breached. More of the turgid water flows through the breaks in the structure. (Evasion save Kayden)

(Fail)

(9 damage) the large totem crashes into the dam, splintering and sending up a wall of white water and shrapnel as the dam finally breaks. The totem closest to the village likewise falls, angled toward a pair of huts on the outskirts. The explosions have roused the village for certain and you only have a handful of seconds before the tribals begin to react

Kay sprints off into the woodline, using all of his mobility to try and break line of sight and avoid stepping all over brush. He'd cover leaf out about 100m before circling back around to where he left Carmen.

Carmen stays hunkered down during this, not interested in moving without Kayden. (edited)

It takes him a few seconds to realize, but as he tear-asses through the woods, he feels a stinging sensation in-between the joints in his armor. 'Ah, shit. Shrapnel must have found a couple spots. No time to worry about it now though.' (edited)

The confused tribals rally, but with their wards down the Layzal manifest at the edge of their village and begin laying into them with halberd and crossbow. The tribals have nothing that can pierce the heavily armored Layzal and the massacre is complete within moments. The village burns against the afternoon sky, and the waters begin to run their normal deep blue once again as the corruption is lifted

1

Seeing the village burn, Kay comes out of the woods and goes to meet up with Carmen before taking her to link up the Layzal.

"Nice job." Carmen says before going to hook up with the Layzal.

'How the actual fuck was I able to pull that off?' "Thanks. Also thanks for helping with the sentries, and keeping an eye on my dumb-ass."

"Yeah, just, help me get back to camp so I can get some proper medical attention if you don't mind. I think one of those arrows broke my leg."

"I don't kind at all. We'll just take it slow and steady till we can get someone to take a look at it."

They make their way back to the logging camp (edited)

(6xp, 10,000 credits. The Layzal were gonna give you a debrief but if you wanna just scene skip that’s fine)

(Up to Kayden, I'm fine either way)

16:41

(Or we could just do it at the logging camp)

(They can’t leave the wood. )

(I meant at the edge of the forest by the logging camp)

(I'm fine with just wrapping it up. Got a lot to take care of before I'm out for 3 weeks and I just got a lot more stuff dropped on me. Plus, since I failed my order brief this morning, I have to brief another one the day I get back from walking 75km in 4 days. So the suck is about to get real.) (edited)

(We can just do a sum up of the meeting or something then)

(Hang in there bud) The Layzal can now properly weave the forest to assist your loggers. They give you An area to stay within and promise to keep the trees healthy and plentiful within it. They warn that going beyond the edges of this assigned area will be seen as a transgression. The two of you are welcome to visit the village whenever you wish. Enter the forest and you will be led there

Kay thanks the Layzal for their understanding and assistance. He promises to make sure they hold up their end of the deal as well. "You ready to head back Carmen? We'll get you checked out and then I'll see if anyone" He tries to stand up straight but has to hunch down. "can get these fucking shards out of my back."

"Yeah, I'll drive us back." (Figure the camp can sustain itself at this point.)

01:18

Carmen drives them both back to Mytikas, stopping at the infirmary once they get there.

01:18

(I'll head back to my thread now)

(Recovering lvl worth of HP per day of rest. Camp is a minor production center for colonial materials now)

After dropping Carmen off at the infirmary, Kay returns back to the small room given to him by the late Cole. He figured the shrapnel hadn't done much but lacerate the muscle so some rest should make him feel good as new. Taking off his armor and using a mirror and some tweezers, he starts to pick out some of the shards of metal and wood. "Fuck is wrong with you?" He says to his reflection "It's barely been a week and you're out making deals with some magic forest demons, playing with explosives, and sneaking around savage villages by yourself. You're here to survive, not to stand out." As much as he told himself he was just here to survive, he still felt like he did the right thing helping the Layzal. But he was still a small fish in a very large pond, maybe he should try keep a low profile for a while. Keep the everyone's expectations for him low.

)I know you’re about to do your real life obligations. Not sure where you want to pause or if I should set something up to dive into when you get back. Either way I can find something

(I'm totally fine with just jumping into something when I get back. Or if you just want to NPC him and use him for whatever while I'm away that's cool too.)

)he will be here. Be safe. See you when you’re back)

(Ok I'm back. I've slept maybe 20min these last 3 days, but it's finally over)

(oof glad your back though kayden.)

(For sure. Didn’t npc you or anything. You’re free to pick up whatever you want to do. Need a rundown of what everyone’s up to?

(Yeah, that'd be nice)

(Pearl and Andra are off in space tracking down the brotherhood of fenris after their terrorist attack that killed regent Cole Eli and Carmen are about to explore south of the city to lay a rail line. Byron has just learned that if the head isn’t destroyed , dead bodies on this world rise again and over time mutate /deal with the elements long enough to get deformed into ghouls

A few weeks ago on the Thebes, second ship in the Thracian nomad fleet Jace and Zeph lightly slap Kay on his helmet, snapping his vision into focus. Zeph: "Get your head on right Kay, most of the pirates cleared out but they still got a few hostages in our old hab block." Jace: "We'll follow you little brother, you're the expert here, we can still get them out right?" Kay looks up at Zeph and Jace, normally a pilot like Zeph and a trader like Jace would never be thrown into potential danger like this. But it was a special circumstance. From what they knew, their mother, father, and third brother, Ty, were among the hostages the pirates were using to cover their escape; wasn't much anyone could do to stop either of the brothers at this point. *Entering the hab block, the three brothers shoulder their laser rifles as they slowly move through the makeshift wooden and metal structures that dominated some of the more crowded living spaces on Thracian ships, with Kay in the lead, followed by Jace, then Zeph. Suddenly, one of the windows bursts open about 10m to Kay's right. Looking in, all Kay can see is a dirty, desperate looking man with the end of a shotgun pointed at him. Quickly turning, Kay falls back at the sudden change in direction, instinctively holding down the trigger to try and save himself and his older brothers from the man with the shotgun. Emptying the power pack, Kay riddles the wooden structure with shafts of energy and they tear through the man and the building. Seeing their brother fall, Jace and Zeph immediately surge into the building to make sure it's clear of anyone else.

01:16

After a few seconds of silence, two desperate voices cry out.* Jace: "Kay! Kay, how?" Zeph: "Kay what the fuck did you do?!" Present Kay shoots up from his bed, another nightmare ending his rest. Looking out the window, he sees it's almost mid day already. He winces as he moves, thinking to himself 'Fuck, I'm still sore as hell. Still, it's been, what, three days since I've been back? I should probably go see this new guy in charge, think I've laid low for long enough.' Rolling out of bed, he slowly straps on his armor, looking fairly strange as the metal of his breastplate contrasts to the synthetic composites that makes up the rest of his armor. Finally, he throws on a black knit beanie and walks out onto the streets of Mytikas to see if he can't get a new assignment.

The Myrmidon troopers let you through the cordon around the ruins of the temple, and after a few moments of questioning about the reason for your visit, youre brought in front of the acting Regent. Podron Ferriman is painfully average, but considered the safe choice by the civilian, military, and specialist arms of the Mytikan population, and surprisingly, his moderance is what is holding everything together. Choosing to administer the city from behind a regular desk, rather than the ruins of a god statue, he waves you inside and offers you to sit on a chair that is about as rough and uncomfortable as his own

Kay takes the seat, still feeling a little tender as some of the deeper cuts are still healing. "Mr. Ferriman it is right? I don't think we've been introduced, I'm Kayden Zayre. How's everything been holding up? Been out of the loop for a bit, but things seemed chaotic as hell last I heard."

"Things have been challenging, and not just with finding myself in a position I never expected. I was reading your report on the Layzal and those tribals. It seems we aren't as alone on this rock as we thought we were"

"Gotta say, I don't envy you. It's a lot to get thrust onto someone. But, no it doesn't appear we are. On top of it all, they both got some kind of supernatural expertise that's potent to say the least." (edited)

"They did fine enough with a kamikaze run" he muses "Yet here we sit, looking for a path forward. I have a plan in place right now to begin getting a railroad linking us to Haphestea, some people are taking care of that, but it's whats coming after that concerns me. I think this is where you come in handily"

Leaning back in the chair he tries to put on his best impression of how someone from a warrior culture would react to the opportunity. "Well now, don't be coy. What do you need me to do?"

"The military needs organizing, new ways of fighting need to be learned, and most importantly, we need to get people working. I tihnk more expeditions, and more ambitious projects around the city can both improve our readiness and get people working again

13:51

"More importantly, they need a leader. I think that is you"

Trying his best to hide his surprise but ultimately failing, 'Fuck. Why couldn't it just have been another expedition?' "So, let me get this straight; you want me, a guy who's been here maybe a week and a half, to retrain, reorganize, and refit the military?"

he sits back in the chair and it creaks somewhat "You're also the only one whos' been getting anything done. Our last military leader succeeded only in pissing off our neighbors, pissing on their attempts at diplomacy anyway, and then spectacularly killing himself during a low intensity engagement, along with most of our elite troops and all our heavy equipment. The militia and space force were unable to stop the last attack before it was too late, and even then, there was fighitng in the streets for hours after"

Running his hand over his beanie down to the back of his neck, Kay takes a deep breath. "Alright, let me take a look our current manning and force organization. I'll see what I can do from there. Any point of contact I should work through, or am I reporting directly to you here?"

“I think it’s important we work together to get started and as you bring better people on board , if you want to take a step back, things can run without you and you can get back to your quieter life”

"I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. Best not to waste any time though, so i have a few questions for you. What's your intent, or broad vision, for the military? Do you want them solely focused on dealing with threats on this planet? Do you have any intent for them to go to any other planet or be space-faring? Also, since we're lacking on the heavy component, I assume you want it to stay relatively light and non-mechanized for now?"

(I’ve got troop numbers on the Mytikas city handout on roll20, but) “In keeping with Pre-scream doctrine 6% of citizens are under arms (edited)

15:38

The lack of heavy weapons and heavy armor was mostly due to cyrus blowing himself up with what we had- simultaneously taking out our best source of salvage and not a refusal to make more. We just haven’t been able to. The hope is if we discover more resources we can ship them south to Haphestan factories, and the components can be split among our economic block for heavier equipment. We can also see if we can turn up anymore lamplighter foundation bunkers on planet. The two scout helicopters we found in the last one are of limited use for actual scouting when we have space based orbital lifters and cargo lighters” (edited)

15:38

“But there may be some military applications for them”

15:40

“We could also wait for the expedition fleet to return and try to organize a deal on some nearby worlds. The naval courier is still home, if you want to visit in person and see if it’s worth our time”

Taking a few minutes to sketch on his datapad, he shows the regent a quick concept of his idea. "We can wait for the expedition fleet to return. However, in the meantime, I have an idea of how we can structure our forces to both protect our own city as well as continually project outwards to try and find the additional resources that could help facilitate us to rebuild. I can try and handle the reorganization and training of the guys, but as for the more resource heavy requirements, I say we try and employ some of the unemployed citizens to manufacturing duties so we can start to repair some of the damage to the city as well as replace the heavy equipment we've lost. It'll take some time, and I definitely won't be able to do it alone, but if we delegate right I think this militia could be a well oiled machine after some time. When the fleet gets back, we can see what's still needed and try to hash out some deals from there." (For the sake of my sanity, I didn't go into the minute details, but I can if it becomes necessary) https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hBmdqC89Vvuo3OzhY0xC7KqyWa_6ppGQ--xPWyq-h3A/edit?usp=sharing (edited)

Mytikas Force Org Concept

Mytikas Force Org Concept (I can break down the Brigades into individual Battalions and Squadrons if such specificity is needed, but that would take wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy more time trying to sort out individual companies and weapons systems/ capabilities, so I’ll do th...

(so metals and fuels to make all the other stuff seems our biggest need, i think thats a good place to start)

17:24

(otherwise it looks like you followed the starvation cheap book pretty well, if we get into any mass-combat we might need to streamline things a bit for rules, but otherwise, perfect)

Original message was deleted or could not be loaded.

Pinned a message.

"That's what I got for now. It's a big job though, and it'll only get more complex as we go. Got anyone in mind that's free to help me out? Or should I just work with what I got for the time being?"

(Eli, Carmen, and andra's new character are about to head out exploring, id dont know if we want to dovetail on that expedition, or launch our own with NPC's. The Layzal are also friendly to you specifically and might have some knowledge of local conditions/terrain)

(I wouldn't want to fuck with what they got going on, so I say just roll with a separate expedition. So how about I take some prospective Div commanders to go to the Layzal to try and 1: get an idea of where some resources can be found, 2: certify that they're competent in baseline recon tasks and skills before they start training their soldiers, and 3: learn more about the kind of magic that's used by the Layzal and seems to be inherent in the forest.)

(works for me! how big of a group?)

(Until we get the equipment out there, everyone is going to start as a mounted or dismounted light unit so I'd say 7. The Div 1-6 commanders and myself)

(Works for me)

02:09

The small team is picked and spends the morning getting ready for transfer out into the field. Some gear is purchased and a small fund has been set aside for yourself (10,000 credits for gear. You can also purchase heavy weapons if you like since you’re working a special assignment)

Kay walks in on his prospective commanders, still looking fairly unprofessional with his mismatched armor, black beanie, and unshaved stubble. He quickly addresses them. "Alright guys, we got a lot to do and not a lot of time to get it done, I hope you've all been briefed on what this is for. First thing, we'll need two trucks, one with a HMG and one with a rocket set up, we'll be in two teams with three on each truck. I'll be a fourth riding on the rocket truck. Next, I need some advanced binos, the kind with the low light functions and advanced zoom, for each of you, two survey scanners, one for each truck, climbing gear for all of you, and anything you think will help you camo yourselves or your observation posts. After that, whatever else you decide to bring is on you. We SP from here in 2 hours, what are your questions at this time?" (Gonna pick up some TL4 binos, a survey scanner, a demo charge, and 3 grenades for myself as well.) (edited)

The two trucks are all the protectorate can spare right now, and the weapons are mounted with an amount of jury rigging that could be considered 'severe'. The rest of the gear is easy enough to obtain with the military clearance you have, though their supply of reagents for new explosives is now getting dangerously low.

Loading up the gear onto the two trucks, Kay hops into the lead truck and directs the group back along the path to the logging camp. They'll be using it as a staging area while he tries to contact the Layzal again

Approaching the camp, you see the neat rows of trees the Layzal have sung into being, and loggers are hard at working bringing the very large trunks down. There are large cords of wood stacked up, split into planks already, and some of the excess has been used to expand the camp and make it more comfortable.

Hopping out of the truck, he unloads the gear he is personally carrying. "Alright guys, we'll be operating out of here for the next couple of days. Find a space to stow your shit and start PCCing your gear. I'll be back in a little bit with the next location we'll be moving to." Walking off into the woods again, he tries to find the Layzal again.

The forest shifts around you after a dozen steps in, and they find you. Three of them this time but you get the sense the leader is the one you’ve dealt with before

Kay gives the group a nod "Hello again. How have things been between lately? Have there been any recent issues that need to be addressed?"

Your recent intervention has brought peace to the woods, human. We require nothing from you other than the reason for your visit

"I see, I have come for two reasons. First, I come to learn of what else this planet can provide; metals, fuels, raw materials. Second...I don't know much about what I can do. I know I won't fall off of vertical surfaces and if I think hard enough then weapons appear. But, I want to learn how the Layzal are able to connect with the wood. How you are able to do these things."

"It is something we...." the Layzal leader pauses for a moment. "To put it in your language, Gaiascopic manipulation. You might think of it as something like magic, or psychic powers."

18:16

"As to your request for resources. The Haphestan factories blight the planet with their oil and smoke. They choke the trees and plants and living things. We will not provide you with the fuels to do the same here. We can offer something, however. Beyond the wood, in the grassland you were sent into, there blooms groves of wild pod plants. Spiderweave pods, we call them. The outsides are tough, but the insides are gossamer silk-string. When we were of body and flesh, we spun such string into tough and comfortable clothing"

18:21

(If you can find a way to ease or eliminate the pollution their attitude on burning coal or oil might change. Right now you guys mostly use electric power or the city as nuclear generated from water, so thats more okay, to them)

"I will try to get in contact with acquaintances who are en route to Hephesta. See if they can find a way to cut down on the pollution on their end. The spiderweave will definitely be a benefit to the people I find myself with though. Thank you for the information. I don't wish to waste anymore of your time. But, when I finish finding this spiderweave, would the Layzal be willing to teach me about this Gaiascopic manipulation?"

(mechanically, he cant teach it, since you're not a psychic, but he can tell you about it)

18:42

(I havent spent enough time with worlds without number, the new beta edition book coming out, to know if anything they do can be wrapped into the elementalist art- which is magic that i think you can learn, I'll get back to you on the actual can you learn it, but they can tell you about it)

(It's no big thing. He just said magic so I thought it had an arcane element to it, nbd. Knowing how they do it would still be helpful though.)

“This power is keeping us in touch with the planet. It allows all you have seen us do, and more. One must be a responsible steward of the planet and it’s natural web of life , and in return the planet grants the power to protect such things”

03:48

“A true symbiotic relationship “

He contemplates how a people could possibly build something like that with a forest. It was simple enough to understand as a concept. But the actual practice seemed way over his head. "Thank you for sharing this with me. I need to get back to my men, but I will be back soon to make sure we're maintaining our end of our agreement."

“We can speed your passage through the wood to the other side, should you wish to scout for the plants we mentioned”

"That would be appreciated, thank you. However, could you make the passage swift, but difficult? I need to test my men's scouting abilities along the way. Make sure they are up to the task I need them to perform."

“We can” the Layzal leader confirms

01:19

“Just think to us when you want the path to become straight and clear again, and you shall be allowed to pass”

"Thank you, I must get back to my men. But I will be back to make sure our end of the bargain is upheld." Leaving the Layzal and gathering his men together, he pulls out a map and points out where the pods should be located. "There's material here that should help make tough textiles for us, could be useful. I want you all to take me there."

(How do you want this to work. Do they route plan on their own or do we move through the forest as a group?)

(They plan a route, and if it's too dangerous or off course, I take over and put them back on track. As we go, I'll swap out who's leading and have them plan a new route there.)

The group moves into the woods and the first of those trying gets lost almost right away. You hear the creak and groan of branches as the Layzal twist the forest around you. Seen only by you, their leaders helmeted head looks on from a distant thicket. It nods once , before dissolving back into the shadows

Giving a small smirk, he thinks to himself it's good to have magic friends. Looking back down he goes up to the lost soldier. "Where do you think you are right now? Show me on the map where you think we are."

He points and you are in a totally different spot than what he designated

He looks at the soldier "That is not where we are. We're here." He points to where they actually are. "Tell you what, take us here." He points to a hilltop on the map that's on the way to getting back on course.

This time things get a bit easier. The Layzal do what they can to confuse the passage but he keeps his path true. Standing over the hill you see the beautiful grove of potentially useful plants beyond , and the thicket of dense forest between here and there

Standing on the hilltop, he looks out towards the grove. 'Looks nice, but I remember how terrifying this place can be.' "Alright, almost there. You." He points to another soldier "You're going to take us to that grove over there. The rest of you, I want 360 security at all times during the movement. Keep your heads on a swivel, pay attention, and that shouldn't be that hard. Every movement you and your future soldiers make should have some kind of 360 security with it."

As the group begins forming up to move they descend to the bottom of the hill and find the path. It is narrow and the trees are close together. The ground only allows a single file passage, when something like a walnut flies out of a grove to your right and lands in the path

16:25

The soldiers instinctually scatter , thinking it is a grenade, before the error is realized

He chuckles to himself as they scatter, 'Cheeky bastards. Nice one.' Manifesting a rapier, he stabs through the acorn and holds it up, "The kill radius on a grenade is about 5 meters. When you're moving, you want at least that amount of distance between you. Unless you want a grenadier to have a really good fuckin day."

They reform the column and this time keep as much spacing as the terrain allows. You move on for another hour and come to the end of a large patch of mushrooms. The path looks true so far, running through this area, with the edge of the wood on the other side

Kay looks out to the edge of the wood, remembering the massive amount of danger Carmen and he had to deal with when they left the Layzal's area of control. "Alright, nice job on the land-nav. We're going to be leaving friendly territory soon, so I'll take the lead on this. Remember the fundamental shit as we go; 360 security, spacing, vigilance. Simple shit will count for a lot out in the field."

(Are you taking point or is one of them?)

(I'll take point when we leave the wood)

Steping out onto the mushrooms, the first half of the column begins to step off, still a bit close together. Shimmering silver powder from the ground begins to bubble up as the area is disturbed. The second man in line begins to cough

18:55

(physical effect save)

(fail)

Your vision begins to blur, and the world around you goes silent. You see a few of the other squad members fumbling with atmofilters. In your right state of mind, their efforts would likely be something to be applauded, but addled in this manner, their actions are merely observed, not remembered. The world goes quiet, even though they are shouting to one another. There is one, very clear voice. It is not your own. It is not the voice of anyone you do know. "Your father's sins will be your undoing" There is nothing following this pronouncement, and you lose time. Moments pass, or longer, before you come to, on the other side of the path.

19:24

you, with half the squad, are on your backs. dragged through the spore field to safety. An atmofilter , greasy on the inside with your condensating breath, chugs valiantly and works to cleanse the air.

Taking a few deep breaths of clean air, ' Alright, atmofilters are next on the shopping list.' Standing up on his own, he takes the atmofilter off and takes a few breaths of clear air. "Thanks, let's get the others back up on their feet, we still have shit to do."

Everyone seems to pull themselves together after resting for a few moments, and you feel the eyes of the Layzal leave you, as you exit the woods, and end up in the grasslands once again, this time your destination in sight

"Alright, almost there. Open areas like fields, you want to get as much spacing as you can while still being able to see each other. Usually, you want about 20m between everyone."

Harassed every step of the way, the men follow your orders quickly, and as you crest the hill, you see a grove of the promised plants on the other side. The Layzal have promised they are not harmful, and can even be used as a raw ingredient for medicine

21:22

(Didn't they also say they can be used for strong texiles?)

(yes, buds for meds, the stalks for fibers)

(Ok awesome.) "Let's grab as much of this stuff as we can, I'll report this to the city. Nice work guys, it wasn't supposed to be easy but you guys kicked ass. Once we finish up here, we'll take the fast way back and you guys can rest up." (edited)

(3xp, 5000 credits, upt o you on RP'ing back or not, but you found and marked the location) (edited)

21:44

(When we do faction turns next, we have the option toget some people working out here)

(Alright sweet. Would I also be able to get people working on other stuff? I have an idea to make a form of kevlar with the textiles and industrial filters with the stalks)

While riding back on the trucks, Kay makes a call on his compad. <<Mr. Ferriman, this is Zayre, en route back to the city. We've located a pocket of some useful materials, bringing some samples back now so we can see what we can make from them. As for the scout leaders, they did good. I trust them. I also need to talk to you about our neighbors, if we can work with them, we could get easy access to fuel and other raw materials.>>

(Theres some broad categories of production center they would fit into. The following months can be used to set things like@that up)

The flight of cargo ships flies back to Mytikas, everyone is in various states of exhaustion from the day and its activities. The Layzal, true to their word, put you through the paces, and memories of the mushroom grove continue filling your mind

Kay leans back in his exhaustion, repeating in his mind, It's good to have magic friends. But god damn can they do some weird shit. He hoped that Mytikas wouldn't force him to go against the Layzal. They'd been nothing but good to him and, if he was being honest, he wasn't sure he'd be able to take them either.

(Lv 4 -> 5 HP 44 Lead -1 -> 1 Banking last skill point Diehard focus Mageblade and blast are now +3 to hit and damage) The trip down the mountain is much quicker than the way up, but to Kay it feels much longer. "What is it about me that freaked her out so much? I mean, I like her, I like her a lot. But, I don't want her to be all freaked out or stressed because of me either. Maybe it'd be best if I leave her alone for a while. I'll get stitched up by one of the other docs, then I'll get right to work on dealing with Phyrica. Shouldn't be too hard to keep myself busy." He reaches the truck with his scouts in it and hops in the driver's seat. "Hey guys, we found a lot up there, it was amazing. I'm sorry for what happened to you, but for what it's worth, you guys did amazing out there. If it weren't for you Daitrij and I would both be dead. She's taking care of the lift, I'll drive you guys back. Be ready though, there's some stuff going on down in Phyrica, so get yourselves fixed and rested up, I'll debrief the Regent and get some stitches myself, then it's right back to work." (edited)

Looking back in one of the mirrors as he drives, he spots a sleeve pressed up against the window. "Fuck, she forgot her coat in here. I should probably give that back."

(Plan is, if you and Daitrij wanted to RP that out we can, and once Stev and bavid finish, i think everyones ready for moving that situation forward. I will make a group thread for it)

(Got it. I'm willing to rp that out if she is.)

(always)

(I made a slight miscalculation with time expected to finish a couple things, this helps me a ton, thank you)

The truck pulls into Mytikas without any trouble, dropping Kay off at the landing pad before pulling away towards the motor pool. Kay hops out of the driver's seat and switches with one of the wounded soldiers. He waves them off as the truck slowly rolls back down the street. "Get yourselves to the medic tent, I might see you there but if I don't, I'll comm you what's going on." "Ok, first priority is to get everything sorted, then the coat, then stitches, then I can take care of myself with whatever time's left. God, I want to take care of myself first, my body feels like it got hit by a truck, my face is on fire. But job comes first, right." Stepping onto the landing pad with Daitrij's coat in his bag, he starts helping the workers unload the materials and equipment around the same time as the last lighter gets in @Daira of Artema| P| Andra| Aruke. "Alright, mech kit goes down to engineering as fast as possible, aerofliers go down to the motor pool, the building materials we'll have to see our projects and prioritize those. For now, we need a storage space for them."

Seeing the city from above is a sight she did not have before. "It's a beautiful mess. But we already came far." Daitrij scratches her itchy head. When they are nearing the landing spot outside of the city. "The camo was good but man I feel dirty and it's itching in way too many places. They seem to be quite busy down there." The ship isn't even descending when she sees a familiar person carrying materials. "Kayden you stupid, way too nice person. How often did I tell you to not strain yourself too much? What are you doing here? Ognyena, I just thought you would give me a short break, but it seems like that is a never-ending test." She can't help but smile when the lighter touches ground and she prepares to leave. But as the door opens she tries to put on a serious face. Once outside she asks some meaningless questions and walks into the general direction of Kayden but passes him first, just to turn around and call into his direction. "Kayden? I didn't see you at first. What are you doing here? Did the trip go well?"

Taking a few attempts to get the materials in a comfortable position before moving it, he's about to finish his last trip with this flight when the last lighter arrives and Daitrij gets out. "Fuck! Of course she waited for the last one out. I didn't prepare myself for this, just blend into the crowd and I can deal with this later." He tries to fade into the crowd of workers, even going so far as to take his black beanie off, but the armor still is a dead giveaway and he's looking away as Daitrij talks to him. "Well...fuck." Slowly turning around, still afraid he might piss her off again. He takes a flat tone and fairly obviously not looking her in the eye. "Scouts are on their way to the med tent, but the job's not done yet. Trip was easy, but we had some extra cargo." He pulls her coat out of his bag "You forgot this." (edited)

Daitrij's eyes begin to sparkle when she sees her coat. She immediately grabs it and holds it close to her. She smiles at Kayden. "Thank you Kay. That is definitely nice of you. I was afraid that it got lost. But I should have known better." She puts the coat away so it doesn't get dirty and starts to help Kayden carry things. "I can't wait for a shower and some sleep. I guess I shouldn't look too messy for the meeting with Artema. Please do me a favor and don't carry too much. I don't want my medical work on you to go down the drain. But I would do it anytime again. When we are finished here, I guess I am going to restock, so if there is some pain or some wounds that need care ask me. And please don't think badly of me, I am still sorry about the incident." "But I am not really sorry that I did what I did."

He gives a soft smile in return while he hefts more gear, nicking a tender spot and wincing for a second. "You seemed attached to it, so I figured you'd want it back ASAP. I'll live, I'm gonna head down to the med tent to check on my guys and get someone to fix me up when we finish here. I'll have them fix me up with something, no need to waste your time." "It's not your fault, I upset you. If I had just kept my composure, everything would have been fine. Just be careful and try to steer the subject away." "I don't, if I upset you in some way, I'm sorry. If I offended Ognyena in some way, tell her I'm sorry. I won't do it again. I just hated to see you so stressed out because of something I did; I like you too much to do that to you."

"Kayden you stubborn piece of cuteness. I like you too." She smiles and pats his shoulder.* "You can't offend her unless you are a worshipper of her. And you still aren't, although you have to admit that we weren't alone up there, when we got confronted by those spider-bots. About this situation. Let us forget it for now. I don't want it to stand between our professional relationship. And we are still on a team so should you need medical attention or help, just tell me. But I do know a few medics here, those maybe even slept in the last two days and you won't risk complications from dried mud ending up in your wounds." She laughs aloud and cries inside. "It feels bad to act like this, but it is better for the both of us, even if it hurts. At least for now." "We shouldn't work too long here. You need sleep too, more than just some sleep on the ground. All this Artema talk sounded serious. Do you think all of this here could be in danger?"

"Yeah, it's probably best to keep quiet about it. Like always, just stick to what you're good at and stay busy, then she won't even be a thought in you're mind right? Wow, I even suck at lying to myself." "You're right, you won't hear anything else from me. I'll take another look around, make sure everything is squared away, then I'll head down to get fixed. Much as I like sleep, I doubt I'll get much though. I have no idea what Artema is all about, and between you and me, it scares me. But it's my job to keep this place, and you guys, safe so I gotta prepare for anything." (edited)

"And I thank you for that, Kayden. You are really doing a great job. I am afraid as well. I'm not sure if it was a great move to volunteer to be on the actual delegation. Heck, I thought someone would laugh about it and say that I would not belong on such a diplomatic corps. Seems like I was wrong. Don't get me wrong, I love to help bring peace to this planet, but I am a medic, I am a scientist and I am afraid that I mess that up. It is my job to tend people, to heal their wounds, now I am about to be part of an event that could mark a major step towards healing this planet. I am afraid that this is to big for me. But I know Ognyena will help me. And it helps me tremendously to know that you will keep us save there." Daitrij helps him finish his work. And she doesn't want the chat to be over just then. "We can walk together back to the city and continue our chat if you want to." "Will he walk me home? Could he really say no?"

"Daitrij, you don't give yourself enough credit. You don't need to be a politician to try and talk peace. Hell, I'd trust you more than anyone to do that, because I know your heart's in the right place. And I mean, look at me, I'm an exile who spent six years as a glorified security guard. Now I'm in charge of protecting this whole place. Neither of us wanted to be this...involved, I think. But, we've been doing ok thus far. Long as we try our best, I think we'll be ok. And it helps having someone willing to put me back together if my best isn't enough." Finishing the work, he considers her offer, "Should I really walk her back? I really want to but I literally just told myself a few hours ago I'd leave her alone. Fuck it, I've never been one for consistency anyway." "Yeah, I'd like that."

She smiles at his kind words and is happy when he agrees to walk with her. During their talk she tries to block out what happened between them and tries to sound casually serious. She doesn't look at him and tries to match his step and pace as she is still in a better condition than him. "I feel like that is true for most of us. Many were part of the military or a rebellion. Some of us are better at filling out their new roles..." She gently hits him into his side, avoiding areas that got shot. "..others don't. But, I see it as a chance. One just has to take it. And think about it, if we could somehow bring Artema into our alliance, it would mean that more than half of the planet would be loosely allied. That could put pressure onto the other city states to do the same. To join us. And that's just one step away from a planetary government and long lasting peace here. Think about it, you as our military leader could organize planet wide defences with a much higher pool of options." She turns around to see that they are in fact alone on their way to the city. "I don't want to put you under pressure and I am thinking five steps ahead of where we are right now. Should you ever feel like this is all to much for you. You can come to me and talk. Showing weakness might not be what people want to see from their military leaders. I see it rather as a strength than a weakness. And as always, your secrets are save with me."

He fake stumbles a bit at her hit, playing it up like it hurt more than it did. Quickly taking a glance over at her, he smiles before looking straight ahead again. "Thanks, I prefer to not think too far ahead, I like to take it one day at a time. But I've been lying to people since I got here. So knowing you're here, and that you don't judge me for it. It helps. It means a lot to me." "You mean a lot." "In the theme of taking it one day at a time, would you mind if we talked about something other than what's coming? Like, you pointed to your home planet when were were out in the field. Could you tell me about it? Also, I gotta ask, you said I should call you Daitrij when I first met you, what else do they call you then?" (edited)

When Kayden fakely stumbles towards her she looks afraid before realizing he just made fun of her. She can't help it but giggle. "Talking to you is the second best balm for my soul there is right now. Right behind praying and talking to Ognyena." She looks pleased when Kayden shows actual interest in her and her culture and tries to make her explanations as lively as she can. "So you want to know my full name? I hope you have something to write it down ready. The name I was given at birth is Hedwig Wilhelmova Sakharov (my take at an IPA translation h ɛ t v ɪ ç v ɪ l h ɛ l m o: v a z a x a ʁ ɔ f) , the nickname my sisters used to call me, is Daitrij ( d aɪ t ʁ i: ), that's why I am exclusively calling myself that way here, to feel closer to home. Which is hard when you exactly know how far away home really is. Every damn time I think about it, that information is just there. And the planet I am talking about is called Gudrun. It's got everything you need from the icy poles over some deserted land up to some beautiful mountains and down again to some wide green plains and breathtaking forests. It would have been the best place to be for a Taros girl to grow up. If it wasn't for some space bugs that threatened us to the verge of our extinction. And seeing those Underhill drones on Heras as well, tending humans and Taros with wounds that I saw and treated back home. That gave me nightmares for weeks. But that damn bugs seem to be everywhere in the universe. But it was them that kept the different Taros cultures together. Without them? Well, there seems to be constant quarrel. That's why I can't stand the situation here, that's why I want to change it. Only in peace, we have a chance to sleep well at night. Only then I don't have to worry about the well being of a friend." (edited)

09:28

She pauses for a moment. "You should visit Gudrun. Maybe when we finally get to a peaceful Heras. But who knows what you will find then. It's been in the news. There is new quarrel, a rebellion this time. Is there something positive you can tell me about your home?"

He says her name a couple of times to get a feel for the pronunciation. "I still like it, but I do understand wanting to keep a family nickname. My brothers and I all just called each other by a shortened neme. No matter how different we were personality wise, we all hated the names our parents gave us. I don't know, it still made us closer in a way, I think." "You know, I've been all over the sector, been to more planets than I can count, been through more spike drills than I can count. But I've seen so little. The Traders got to go out and see the people, explore the planet, and all that good stuff. Only the high ranking Soldiers got to go with them. Most of us just stayed guarding the shuttle. I'd like to see Gundrun one day. It'd be nice to explore a place not because I have to, but because I want to." "Fuck the place had it's problems, but it was still my home. I had the time of my life there."

12:52

"I grew up on the Thebes a battleship older than anyone who still lives on it. It wasn't the only ship in the fleet, but my brothers and I spent most of our lives there. There was this one time, Ty and I were just waiting at home, I forget what we were doing, when Jace barges in and tells us we need to come with him to see something. So we're dead confused and follow him down a few corridors into this old section we barely even knew about. But, Jace was always way fuckin smarter than the rest if us, I think he's memorized that ship's whole layout by now. So anyway, he takes us to this obscure section, telling us to try and be as sneaky as we can. And we find Zeph in there with a girl, I think her name was Aeris. So we see this and the three of us all loud go 'Zephyr Zayre your mother is so disappointed in you.' So, Aeris freaks out and accidentally knocks herself out against a bulkhead. Zeph looks like he wants to kill us, but now he's gotta wake up Aeris. So he tries dragging her around while he tries to get to us and breaks one of the lights, starting a small fire in the room. Then we all freak out because we don't want them to void the bulkhead. So we're stamping it, trying whatever we can to put it out because we don't want them to void the section. Meanwhile the whole time Zeph is still trying to wake Aeris up and is still trying to take some swings at us. Oh, it was one of the most beautiful shitshows I've ever seen." He pauses for a second. "That was the last time we were all together, we got broken up into our classes the next day."

"I should call him Kay, and only that from now on. Knowing what I know now it would be mean to call him a name he doesn't like." As soon as he begins to tell his anecdote she gets sucked into his lively storytelling. She drastically slows down their pace to fully follow it. It's like she is there, smelling the fire, feeling the tension of the section being voided. She is laughing about this nearly comically happening. That's when he says his last line and it feels like her heart gets ripped out. She gulps. Doesn't know what to say. The silence drags on for way too long as she desperately tries to think about what to say. But she can't. She picks up pace again. "I am sorry to hear that Kay. The story was great tho. Uhm, phew, I..." She scratches her head just to see more dried mud and dust fall off of her and out of her greasy hair. "I won't look into the mirror before taking a shower." "Was there no way you could have gotten into the same class?"

"Oh, don't be sorry. That's how it was for everyone. And your class is determined by what you're good at, so it's possible. Zeph was creative and a very quick thinker. So he became a Pilot. Jace was smart as hell. So he became a Sage. Ty was just amazing with people. So they made him a Trader. And I had no discernible skills or ta the tribe found useful. So I was made a Soldier. Everyone gets used for something, and they at least try to make it something they think you'll be good at." He keeps his pace slow, partially because it hurts to speed up and and partially because he doesn't want it to end. "Sorry, I didn't mean for that to be sad. I love those guys don't get me wrong, but it's a little...I don't know, bitter?" (edited)

Seeing that she outpaces him she stops and waits for him to catch up. "That felt so sad. Can't imagine how it must feel to get ripped out of a family like that. But who am I to talk. I left my family. I mean we stayed in contact, but I couldn't stand being close to them anymore. And now there is no contact anymore anyway." As he catches up again, Daitrij tries to match Kay's pace. "So you want to protect me, eh? I hope Artema only sends old people then." "Was that too mean? I hope he finds it funny somehow." "We here can be happy that the system of your people is faulty. You do have talents and skills, even without your gifts. I always wanted to be like my oldest sister. She is so wise and confident. My dad is a doctor and naturally wanted us to follow in his steps. And then his first daughter decided she wants to be a biologist. Ufyuin had to endure much. But in the end, she convinced my parents that this is her passion and she is good at it. So they paid her fees. I wasn't always as faithful as I am now, but I always knew that there is something out there. Ufyuin always laughed at me, saying that everything can be explained by science. My gifts manifested here on Heras so I had no chance to tell her that she was wrong. And she never is. But I could bring her some Ufyuin plants to lighten her mood. I guess she would flip out in happiness if she gets to know that I found a new type of plant and that it's named after her." She laughs. But out of the blue, she looks to the ground again. "But I can't go home. For mom and dad, having a good career was everything. I failed that ideal, and I was the only one who did. And up until now, I achieved nothing of worth for them. And my fake certificate would make them even angrier at me. When I finally left Gudrun, even my younger brothers finished with a degree and it was clear that they had a bright future ahead of them as well. Do you think you will meet your brothers ever again? To make peace with them?"

He catches up with her and does his best to keep her pace. "Of course I want to protect you, that's why I asked to be in the tent in the first place. I'll be faster when I need to be." When she looks down he makes a move like he wants to put a hand on her to comfort her, but decides against it. He waits for a second to think of a response. "That's stupid. You may not have a degree, you may have fake certs , you've done more incredible things with those than most will ever do. You're helping unify a planet while keeping idiots like new alive, and trying to do it in the most peaceful way possible. That's something to be proud of, regardless of degrees." He sighs at the mention of making peace with his family. "I'd like to, Jace never thought it was fair to judge me for it. I didn't know what happened until Zeph walked out of the building. So he'd be willing to forgive. Zeph, well... there's a giant laser rifle scar on my chest that says he may not be as willing."

"But maybe that scar will tell him that he made a mistake. But that is not up to me to decide. And my parents, well they are who they are. But who knows, maybe they will think differently when we meet again." As they move through the streets of Mytikas, she stops. "It is a pleasure Kay. I could talk to you like that for hours. But you need treatment. You need to be fit. Not for me, but for your own safety. I have Ognyena to protect me should things go bad. I do want to be sure that you are fit enough should it come to the worst. Uhm, please hold still for a moment." She takes a closer look at his injured face again. She takes a few pictures and starts typing something into her compad. "I texted a surgeon I know. His shift ends in about half an hour. He is good at reconstructive surgery and gets jobs done with minimal up to non-existing scarring. He owes me one. So if you'd like to, I could get you to him. If you want to go the standard procedure, that is okay as well. Do you think I should get some more formal clothes or anything more, uhm beautiful like a dress or something? I don't know if the Artemisians care for clothes at all. But sometimes the first impression is what counts." (edited)

"Yeah, I should probably get it looked at. Thanks Daitrij. I know I should put my own safety first and you have Ognyena to protect you, but call it a compulsion of mine. I'll see your friend, then try and get some rest before everything goes crazy. If you want a good first impression, why not bring both? I'll definitely have some observation posts set up so we can tell what exactly's coming. So I can forward that info to you so you can decide for yourself." He turns to walk down the street towards her friend. "God, I don't want to go. Can't it just stay like this for a little longer?" "Thanks for bringing me along for this Daitrij. I appreciate it far more now than I did when we started. I guess I'll see you in Phyrica."

"We will. And it was a pleasure having you with me Kay. Oh before I forget. I told my friend that you don't need too many narcotics. I told him that you are a tough soldier and we don't want to waste our dim resources." She laughs and smiles at him. And the smile won't go away all the way to her apartment.

As she walks off, Kay takes a few seconds. That laugh and that smile, that's what gets him. The actually surgery wasn't that bad, a few stitches and some reconstruction on his face. It left a faint scar across the left side of his face, but he could live with that. By the time he makes it back to his apartment, it's about dusk. Stripping off his CFU and Pavis, he finally washes all of the camo, and general dirt from the field, off in the shower before flopping on his bed. "Ah, it's always nice to remember what a bed feels like." Before passing out, he grabs the family photo he had on the nightstand. "Hey Mom, Dad, Ty, it's been a bit...but talking about you guys got me missing you. Things have been...hectic here. I have more responsibility that I ever wanted, people started calling me poster boy and I hate it, and I've lost some people because of my dumb mistakes. I'm nervous, there's a lot that could go wrong and I'm not sure I'm up to it. But it's not all bad; I met a woman. She's smart, sweet, funny, brave, and I feel comfortable talking to her, as unthinkable as that seems. I like her, I don't think she feels the same. But hey, I'm not you Ty, so I don't expect much. I think...I think I want to talk to Jace and Zeph again too, try and fix things. I know you wouldn't want to see us hating each other like this. Zeph may be an asshole, but he's still family. He can't be mad forever right? I'm trying my best to do right by you guys, I just hope that's enough." He returns the photo to the nightstand and runs through different scenarios the meeting could go down before fatigue finally overtakes him.

(Cool mech!)

Original message was deleted or could not be loaded.

Pinned a message.

It takes Kay a little while to make it back to his bed, but he eventually gets there, only taking off his armor before flopping onto the mattress. Staring up at the ceiling, the room feels like it's spinning, making it extremely difficult to fall asleep. Trying to find something to distract himself, he thinks back to an old song most of the Soldiers sang during the downtime in-between planetfalls. Quietly singing to himself, he lets the words bring back memories of a bunch of bored, friendly faces on the bottom of the social totem pole. But it was ok, they looked out for each other, and knew how to make the best of what they had. "We'll be alright when the wind is in our hair We'll be alright when the wind is in our hair We'll be alright when the wind is in our hair And we'll all hang on behind And we'll roll the old chariot along And we'll roll the old chariot along And we'll roll the old chariot along And we'll all hang on behind We'll be alright if we make it there by morn' We'll be alright if we make it there by morn' We'll be alright if we make it there by morn' And we'll all hang on behind. And we'll roll the old chariot along And we'll roll the old chariot along And we'll roll the old chariot along And we'll all hang on behind A night on the town wouldn't do us any harm A night on the town wouldn't do us any harm A night on the town wouldn't do us any harm And we'll all hang on behind And we'll roll the old chariot along And we'll roll the old chariot along And we'll roll the old chariot along And we'll all hang on behind"

3

Sleep eventually finds you, amid the sound of the Draconis shovel gang outside slowly filling in the earthworks that ended up not being needed. The following morning, you emerge to most of the more defensive works at least at the start of being taken down. local leadership is touring with the Regent to see what can be done to get the mine output flowing the way it should, and to get arrangements in place for the supply convoys that are now your responsibility

Kay will look around at the work being done, then wince as the sounds of pickaxes and shovels irritate a mild headache. Overhearing the leaders talking about the shipments, he approaches the group. "Gentlemen, I couldn't help but overhear you talking about the shipments. Is there anything pertinent that I should know?"

Message sent by:  Daitrij

Hey Kay. It took me some time to find the right words. First of all, I am sorry for the scene that I made. I didn't want you to feel bad for anything you did. I was overreacting a bit. We have come close. At least that's how I see it. I don't know if I am ready for where this could lead. Maybe I am misinterpreting things, I don't know. I just know that I couldn't give you what you deserve. At least now. Ognyena comes first for me. I guess you know that. And I still need to find my place in all of this. Maybe when there is a united Heras, maybe then there will be a place for us. I took the first lighter back to Mytikas. I guess I am going to help in the hospital for a day or two. But you have shown me that I can do so much more for this planet. I am grateful that you opened my eyes for that. I guess I am going to venture around a bit without you. Just to not make it any more odd between us. But I won't ever say no to traveling with you. Don't do anything stupid please. You don't need to call me or answer this message. I just wanted to tell you how I feel and that I am sorry. 

Should you plan on doing anything stupid, please do call me.

"nothing immediately concerning, just trying to figure out how to transport this stuff there without putting all the vehicles we do have out of action"

"There is always the design that Carmen came up with. We have the materials to make them some pretty heavy haulers. Maybe we can get a few produced in the next couple weeks so we can test them." He feels the pulse of his teleslate. Reflexively pulling it out. He swallows hard and sets his jaw as he types out one word. "I apologize, just a situation report."

"We could, your job to pitch the thing. Nothing to immediately report. Fortifications are being taken down. Most of the Draconis personnel are back in orbit now, just a token few left doing last minute duties"

"Very well. Once the Draconis personel finish I'll take my guys back to the city. From there, I'll start to come up with a more concrete timeline. I can leave a copy on your desk if you want to review my decisions as well."

"Stev promised they'd be done by tonight. I think they were going to try to plow the fields for us too, but the people could use something to do. I think everyone will be happy to have some liberty outside the city after being stuck inside the last few weeks'

"Alright, if you have nothing further for me, I'll head back to Mytikas." He turns to the Phyrican leaders "I'm glad we could settle this without anyone getting hurt. I'm looking forward to working with your people. If you guys need anything, don't hesitate to ask and I'll see what I can do."

Kay turns from the group and jumps on one of the lighters heading back to the city. Taking a seat, he stares off past the other people in the lighter. "You did this to yourself. This place was just supposed to be a way to survive till you could slink off with some cash and a ship. Now look at where you are. You have a job that's destroying your body and now you got someone messing with your head. Just forget her, stick to the plan, and then get the fuck out of here." Pulling himself out of his internal monologue, he quickly comms his officers. <<Nice work this week gents. But we've got a lot more ahead of us. I'm en route to Mytikas now, once you get your formation back, start running them through the same kind of training I did with you. I'm heading back R&D with the Predator suit to see what we can replicate and engineering to make a request. Once that's finished, I'm going back out into the woods. If you need me for anything, message or comm me and I'll get to it as soon as I can.>>

The suit and cargo lighter make their way back to Mytikas, the suit rendered down into components for the trip. Upon landing, you see the recovered atmofliers taking their first flights above the city.

04:46

The pilots are green but they’re already going through their paces , and the airframes look pristine against the clear sky

Looking up at the atmofliers contrasting against the sunlight, he grins as he sees them go through their drills. "Doesn't matter where you go, every pilot's a show-off." Loading up the suit's components onto a lift, he takes the pieces down to R&D. "Hey guys, got a favor to ask of you. Now that we don't have to worry about Artema for a little bit, any way you could take a look at the components here and see if there's anything we can replicate?"

One of the techs walks over to see the many packages of material preparing to come down into their lab. "Mass production of mechs was something that was challenging even pre-scream. You need specialized...specialized everything....but progress had to start somewhere. I'll see what we can do"

"Even if it's just something like the gun or the plates. Anything could be useful. I appreciate the effort. If you guys find anything at all, comm me and let me know." He transfers his contact to the techs so they can get in touch with him.

The gear begins getting inventoried, and the techs will radio if they make any kind of breakthrough

00:21

(i think this might be mechanically how we get to the using the chassis for that hauler type thing)

(Yeah, that works for me)

(If you had something you wanted to dive into next, we can. There's plenty to do here, or if you want to explore Radji, there's plenty to be done there too as far as meeting the locals and helping out, warming them up to joining )

01:59

(Valentina has some holdings there for EP going up, a base of influence especially, but the planetary government is very much in control of things there independently from you guys)

((Next steps in order. Go to engineering to drop off designs for vehicle chassis (which I should be finished with by the end of today or tomorrow), commission the exhaust filters made from the spiderweave stalks, take an example to the Layzal, see if that is enough to convince them to give us the locations of fuel deposits for the new vehicles. After that finishes, and I still have time, then He'll think about heading over to Radji)) (edited)

(Perfect. Once it’s done we can take. A look and get that going)

22:22

(Omni builder can build mechs)

(This isn’t a mech)

22:25

(This is something special)

(Seeing my way out!

)

Finishing up his time with the R&D personnel, Kay makes his way over to the engineers with a stack of papers in his hands. "Hey guys, sorry if I'm interrupting something, but I wanted to ask if you guys could do something for me. I was talking to the R&D guys earlier, and some things came up about Ms. Ferraro's plans to make an all new vehicle. Regardless of what happened to her, I think it's only right that her designs see the light of day. I made a few modifications, just to have different variations of the same chassis, but do you think it is possible for you to build these?" He lays out the designs on the table. "I thought it would be best to prioritize the hauler variant so it can be used on our delivery to Artema. However, each variant has its purpose." He hesitates a second. "Sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself. What I want to know is if it can be built and how long it would take."

"22 days to make one of these...things....but that's drive-off-the-lot done, not just an empty chassis. This is bigger than a battle tank, taller too. But we can do it"

"That's totally fine, if we can get a hauler online before we head out to Artema, that would be amazing. By the way, I hope this isn't asking too much, but can I get an example of a filter made from those spiderweave pods? I made some friends a promise and I want to show them that I intend to keep it."

"The filter would be easier, we can have that done by tomorrow, and we'll get started on planning out this monster you want us to build"

23:17

(22 days puts it like 3rd week of the month, driving out to Phyrica, and then to Artema puts us on schedule)

23:18

(and it being the first month, as long as its within a day or two of the intended target im sure you could smooth things over if it came to that)

(Yeah, I should have barely enough time to show the Layzal the filter, get some locations on more materials, readjust the suit, have the hauler ready, then make the trip out to Phyrica)

23:25

"Thanks guys, I appreciate it. I have to go talk to some more people, but I'd like that filter installed on all those beasts. But the example will be awesome to show what we're trying to do. Give me a call when you guys finish with the filter and I'll be over as soon as I can." He gives the head engineer his contact info and then makes his way over to the armory.

The armory chief is berating several of the militiamen who have come in from a field exercise recently. They are tired, and sad looking, and he is taking great pleasure in telling them exactly how stupid they are for bringing back dirty weapons

Kay steps into the armory, not doing much to mask his presence. "What's up guys? Am I interrupting something?"

Message sent by: Daitrij

Hey Kay. I didn't catch you after you left the meeting hall. And I didn't know if you want to see me. I am on a trip now anyways and you looked busy yourself. Don't overstrain you, please. That's not healthy.

I am sorry for what I said during the meeting. Without you, we would be at war. I was just trying to be funny but instead, I was stupid. I apologize. Maybe we have a chance to meet again in person once I am back. Maybe there is some more Ufyuin punch to be had.

And remember, my pledge still stands, call me if you do something really dangerous and I travel the universe to aid you.

“Just teaching these degenerates about the condition in which returning weapons needs to be done”

"Mind if I take a look at them Gunny?" He moves over towards the soldiers to inspect their weapons.

The weapons are spotless inside and out.

(Can fucking relate) He snaps the rifles back together and sets them down. "Tell you what, progress on the wall's been slow lately. Head back to your section leader and go see where the engineers need you. I'll handle the cleaning."

They stack their weapons up and exchange them for hand tools from one of the nearby walls, relieved - they begin filing out of the room and off to work

Kay gives all of the weapons a quick wipe down and then turns them in. "Listen Gunny, the Artema delivery is in a few weeks and I don't trust no one's going to try shit while we're in route. We got anything in the inventory with a little more firepower than your average rifle?"

He thinks for a moment and disappears into the back room. You hear crates falling over before he returns with a black rifle case. He passes it through the hole in the mesh window, snaps still secured

Because it's always good practice, he opens the case and inspects the equipment before signing it out.

A taros rifle, taken from a former black phalanx armory and carried to Heras by Cyrus and his myrmjdons is inside. It is factory fresh and never looks to have been used

He closes the case. "Thanks Gunny, this will do nicely." He brings the case back to his apartment and checks over the rifle one more time to familiarize with it. Once he finishes, he'll leave the case in the apartment, grab the strange piece of tech he pulled from the drones and go back to see how the rebuilt suit is looking. (I'll throw up the updated version of the suit when I get home in a little bit.)

Kay makes it back to the R&D team to see the newly reassembled Predator suit, the machine gun had been removed, but the extra space had been utilized to mount extra sensors and even nodes to add extra maneuverability to the platform. Following inspection of the suit, he drops off his new rifle along with the salvaged pretech to be used in any modifications. (Here's the updated suit and I'm going to spend the pretech to add a bottomless magazine to the Taros Rifle)

(That’s hot. You basically made it into a Javelin. I love it)

(I will never be able to unsee that mental image now. Glad you like it)

The suit has been completed and cleaned. The scientists will be trying to replicate it for a long time, and are now even further distracted by the influx of data coming in from the shared research station on Galeta.

05:01

One of the techs walks over with a sealed metal case in hand and lays it on the table. “You came in earlier asking about some kind of filter made with plant fibers. We worked up a prototype. It’s rough and we need to keep tinkering with the blend, but this is what we have for now”

"That's fine. All I need right now is an example to show them. If you have an extra one to spare, I'll be out of your hair in no time. If not, then I'll wait until you get any extras to spare." He looks around at the obviously overworked techs. "Listen, I see you guys have a lot on your plate right now. It looks like a lot of stuff is coming in from the research station. These kinds of advancements could bring a lot of quality of life improvements to the city. I'd rather you guys work on that stuff, instead of spend time worrying about reproducing weapons. So, I'll take the suit for now. I'll probably end up needing it when I go to Artema anyway, so might as well get some practice."

He hands the case over with a filter inside, and it looks about as good as it can with the machinery available

16:59

“Another workshop would help. Or a bigger one”

He nods to the head tech. As he types up a message to the Regent

Message from: Kayden Zayre

Good afternoon sir,
After meeting with the head of technicians at the Research center, he stated that the influx of data from the joint research program has proven that their current workspace is insufficient. In order to take full advantage of our new position, I recommend a portion of the building material from the vault be utilized to expand the current workshop or build a new one.

Very respectfully,
Kayden Zayre

He looks back up to the tech. "Done, I've sent a request up to the Regent. Before I leave, I'll double check to make sure those supplies get approved, and once they do I'll dispatch some of my engineers to help you guys put with whatever transitions y'all will need to do. How's that sound?"

"That would be a big help thank you for everything you've done, and thank you for getting them to go along with the collective research agreement. The information coming in, us being this busy, It's nice to have some hope"

He looks down for a second, trying to make it look like he got a message. "Bet you wouldn't be saying that if you knew I was planning on ditching this place, that I never wanted any of this." "I just do what I can. Maybe someday this place will start to look like a proper modern planet. Thanks for getting the prototype out so fast, I appreciate it."

(About what time of day is it? If it's close to dusk, I'd rather wait till the morning to take the prototype to the Layzal)

(it's afternoon, one of the helicopters could fly you out and just scout around while you're doing business)

(Alright, that'll work nicely then.)

“Of course. Happy to help and thanks for keeping our own work going”

(Actually, would it be possible to take the suit out there and save more time? Apparently it has a higher speed than an atmoflyer and double the speed of the helo.) Kay grabs the box with the prototype and moves towards the suit. "It's no problem guys, if you think of anything else you might need, just ask and I'll bring it up to the Regent. If I don't see you again before I leave, I'll tell my engineers to send my regards." (edited)

(Yeah you can fly it out there)

(Sweet)

Heading out to Layzal territory, you set down in a clearing not far from the forest they inhabit. The trees below are beginning to get closer and closer together, and its not known how they'd react to just setting down in the middle of the forest

(Have I already set down? Or are the trees moving together in reaction to me trying to set down?)

(You can set down in there wherever you want. The Layzal like you and will find you)

(Ok thanks. Sorry, been a long week and brain is fried.) Kay sets the suit down in the clearing and waits. "The Layzal usually find me way before I can find them. So might as well take in the scenery." He leaves the scanner system on, just in case something else tries to sneak up on him.

Several minutes of silence pass, before there is a breeze. The effortless appearance of the Layzal leader is no longer a surprise, and his tri-holed helmet head begins inclining toward you, in a show of respect

Kay lets the headpiece of the suit fold in to show his face, dipping his heading deference to the leader. He hefts the case in the direction of the leader. "Thank you for coming to see me. I promised I'd find a way to cut down on pollution, and I want to show you what I have so far."

The Layzal says nothing, but begins to trudge over to see what you have in the case, unsure what is being shown to him

He opens the case to show the filter. "This, is a filter made from the stalks of the Spiderweave pods. It is woven in a way to catch solid pollutants, like carbon. Which is what makes that thick black smoke you spoke of before. We plan to put these on every vehicle we make and create larger ones for buildings. But this, is the first."

“I see. And what happens to these filters when you’re done with them. There is a limit to what they absorb?” He nonetheless is looking at the object with interest

"There is a limit, but it is still woven together fibers. During the vehicle's scheduled services, the filter can be unwound, strained of the solid matter, which can then be stored for other uses. Afterwards, the filter can be woven back together to be used again."

"This is a unique use of something the planet provides. This is a start. A good one. You have done honor to the Layzal, and we would wish to honor you, if you pledge to keep working on this issue"

"I'm glad you believe this is a worthy first step. I do promise to continue work on the issue; this is just the first step. I will continue, even as things continue to grow and develop, to keep my promise to you."

The Layzal draws his sword, places the tip against your heart, enough to feel it, but not enough to go through your armor, or scratch it. The blade flares green, and you see phantasmal leaves, vines, and other plants swirling within the gathering energies, before gathering into some kind of etheric lance It pulses into your chest, knocking you on your back, and you feel your senses expand as your fingers touch the soil, feeling the roots, the blades of grass, and even the drops of dew on them as though they were extensions of your body

17:23

(Free foci for unique gift, psychic talent is a one effort use of metaflora from the gaiapsionics tree)

Coughing as he tries to catch his breath, it takes him a second to process what was done to him. "You...thank you. Thank you for trusting me with this. I won't let you down. If you don't mind me asking though, something's been bothering me for some time. What is your name?"

There is a strange collection of syllables that comes out, that do not sound like they belong together. Somehow, in your mind, the name makes you feel something like a warm summer wind against your skin, while the evening sun shines on a field of flowers

He takes in the name. Giving himself time to let the image build in his mind. "Thank you for sharing it with me. If there is anything you or the Layzal need. Please let me know. The city is asking a lot of me right now; but if you need me, I'll make time."

The Layzal cannot ask for more than what you did. Be well, Kayden Zayre, and we are here, if you need us

He gives the leader one last nod before the helmet of the suit closes again. "Be well, thank you for your gift and for your trust. I hope to see you again soon." With that, he activates the anti-grav nodes and begins the trio back to Mytikas.

Moving over the city, the frame of the large hauler vehicle is already coming together, though the tires for this thing have bnot been fabricated yet. The cab is already being welded- the labor army needed to run the wires, cables, and piping has not yet descended on the helpless metal slug

"Damn, it's actually starting to come together a little bit. Fuck, I wish I could stick around and help out. But Valentina said that Astyoche was I need of help. Am I stretching myself too thin? Ah, fuck it, helps keep my mind off stuff anyway." He touches down just outside of the Regent's building, looking to check what resources are available and check on his R&D request. (edited)

(what else were we working on after the filters and the hauler?)

(Expansion or new building for R&D to give them more room to work with the new tech coming in. Then he was going g to ask about Daitrij's estimated position and a quick summary of Astyoche so he know what he's walking into.)

TL3 Tens of Thousands of Humans This planet has the conditions to be comfortable for human habitation. Dinosaurs produced by either coincidental evolution, or runaway genetic experimentation roam the planet. The planet is a mix of rich grassland and barren desert. The only concentrations of note are settlements clustered around large crystal pyramids. Even from space, these pyramids give off enormous amounts of MES energy.

15:39

The pyramids were later confirmed by Valentina to be capable of allowing the natives to teleport between them

15:46

(and a map, for your convenience)

"Alright, I'll dispatch engineers start renovations on the R&D buildings. Then I'll leave for Astyoche first thing in the morning. And uh, if Daitrij reports in. Just let her know where I'm going. I should only be gone a week, 2 max."

The report is briefly sent out, and she is in the middle of important negotiations in Greencoast. The Low-Technology, a stealth shuttle, is assigned for your trip off world, though the crew of the naval courier is also standing by

At least having an idea of where she is gives him a little piece of mind. "At least she's staying safe for now." "Thanks for the resources sir, though I would prefer if the naval courier stays close to the city. Just in a worst case scenario, it may be a resource that the city could make better use of than me. If it can be spared, I'd like to take a squad sized element with me. It should be small enough that it won't take away from our work here, but should still give me some good flexibility." (edited)

(it's got room for 9, technically 10 but we need a pilot)

15:29

(so you +8 if you want)

(Ok yeah, I'll take the +8)

(and then finally, if you wanted to specify some roles for them, or anything else, otherwise we can push off)

(Bringing 1 man with a launcher, 1 automatic rifleman, 1 designated marksman, 1 section leader, the rest rifleman, also bringing the suit) (edited)

(just for some general information here, since this hasn't come up in a mad long time. All mechs are 50 tons, even suits. Vehicle transport fittings can reduce it to 25 if the ship is fitted with them. and getting in and out takes minutes, I think normally, the shuttle cant carry that much, and all of you, but I know there aren't really enough ships to go around right now, so we'll wave it here, but i just wanted to bring it up so when you design your own someday, you know what the finer points of that are. We can say that they're breaking it down into pieces)

(Ok, thanks for the heads up)

The team is assembled and gear handed out. Low Technology lands from orbit, and the Predator suit's components are brought inside and locked down in storage. Everyone is eager to be off world, engaging in business somewhere else, for a change

Kay looks up at the shuttle, a look of uncertainty spread across his face. "This could be it. A little money, a spike drill, and I could be home. With this much tech, they'd have to let me back in. Fuck, they'd probably let all of us in. Should I do it? Could I do it? This place has been good to me. It's given me a place to live, good people to be around, and Daitrij. Could i really leave her like this? Fuck it. I don't need to go home. I am home." Kay takes out him compad and types out a short message before putting it away and beginning to direct his team onto the shuttle. "Alright, we're headed to Astyoche, a planet with a moderate tech level and dinosaur like fauna. In other words, a little more welcoming than Heras. We've got word that the place has an interest in the Protectorate, but needs a little help tidying their house first. So, we're gonna give them a little hand. Trip shouldn't be horribly long, so rest up while you can and double check your gear." After his team's loaded up on the shuttle, Kay will be the last one to board. (edited)

2

THe team boards, and begins getting weapons and ammunition stored away for the trip. (1 day of downtime)

During the trip, Kay spends an enormous amount of time watching the Low Technology drift through the void. "It's been so long, I'd almost forgotten how calming it looked. We're moving at who knows how fast; but the stars look like they're just slowly drifting by. It feels normal." Trying to keep himself busy through the entire voyage, he spends most of the time utilizing the ship's computer to pull up very basic words and phrases of a new language. The different structures of the words and sentences help take his mind off of the unknown possibilities of Astyoche as well as the looming threat of the Artema delivery. (Taros 1/30)

When you arrive you see evidence of a large forest fire on the planets western side finally burning itself out. The pyramid is intact but the village around it is gone now. Sensors detect most of the air pollution there is from burning fossil fuels

"What the hell, some kind of wildfire? Are ones of this scale normal for this planet? I should probably check with the next village over. They'll probably know something. A fire this big usually gets talked about." He'll try to have the pilot begin descending on the next closest village to the fire.

(You’d know I think from mission reports about the failed orbital bombardment of the bandits )

23:30

The only other village of note in this heliosphere is close to the southern. Tip of the main landmass , around another of the pyramids

23:30

And there is a village there with many more homes being built around it

(Ah, very well.) Kay will direct the pilot to touchdown outside of the village. "Alright guys, we're just going to drop, get the lay of the land, help with what we can, and find a way to stay in touch. Hopefully we can start making up for the bombardment. Stay alert, but don't fire unless fired upon. We're here to make friends, not enemies." (edited)

The villagers begin gathering as the ship comes down. Several of them have rifles or spears and although they’re not pointed at the ship you can feel the unease and in some cases, anger, in the gathering crowd. Two figures stand at the head of the mob in ceremonial clothing indicating a high status of some kind. Their robes are finely cut and they wear elaborate head dresses , face crowned by filed down dinosaur fangs

Kay disembarks with his men, each of them having their weapons slung. Seeing the two figures at the mob's head, he slowly approaches them and gives a short bow. "People of Astyoche, my name is Kayden Zayre. And for a time, I am at your service." (edited)

"Kayden Zayre, of the Protectorate?" one of the elders says, you can hear the disgust in his voice at the last word. "Has leveling one village not been enough for your Regent?"

"The Regent sent me to fix the fuck up of one who acted without council and rashly. The action was wrong, overkill, irresponsible, and frankly pisses me off. I asked to be sent here to try and remedy what I can. The one who did that is an anomaly among us, and giving her the independence she has was a mistake. My men and myself are here to try what we can to prove that the Protectorate isn't represented by her."

There is some relief in the crowd. "What do you know about the incident? "

(Would the reports have been objective? Or would things have been omitted?)

(Fairly objective. )

He lets out a small sigh of relief as the crowd's tension seems to wane a bit. "Thank god they didn't just kick us straight off." "In so many words, I know that our representative was tasked with protecting the village from a group of marauders that had become a problem. When the bandits refused to listen to our representative's offers, she attempted to orbitally bombard the bandit camp. However, seeing as the ship wasn't designed to do that, couple with the fact that it's a bombardment from orbit, it started a massive fire that engulfed the village and burned away most of the forest."

They seem impressed with the objective report, including the details of the Protectorates involvement in the problem here. "We don't know if the bandits are still in the area there. but we would guess not, since there are no people or things to take

He nods at the logic behind the statement. "That's probably true. However, that also means that there are a lot of people and things displaced. If you would have it, I'd like to help rebuild the homes lost from the bombardment. If you believe my men and myself would be more useful in another capacity, then you're free to direct us accordingly."

"Any word on what the area is like now? We're not keen to get back there just to be breathing in smoke or tilling the fields to get nothing but ash out of the ground

"From what I saw on my approach, the fire was dying out. So the residual smoke won't be much of an issue provided you stay away from the remnants of of the fire. As for the fields, wood ash is one of the best natural fertilizers around. So if it can be gathered, it could actually make the new fields grow fast and healthy."

"Will it be a far march for building materials? We left as soon as the fire got close, and it looked bad"

"It will be a pretty far march. But, if we can pull materials from other areas, we could make space in my shuttle here to speed up the process."

"We have a way to get there faster than even that" the elder smiles. (you could also use your new gifty to regenerate some woods

20:03

Metaflora Level-2 The psychic can manipulate the metaphysical energies of their environment to shape nature according to their desire. After committing Effort for the day the psychic can bend a natural 10m radius area around themselves to their will, even animating large hulks of flora. Anyone caught in the area can make an Evasion Save or be either attacked by lashing flora for 1d10+WIS/mod damage or restrained until they use a main Action to free themselves. Movement in the area is also halved.

"Very well then sir, let's get to work. I have ways of speeding up the process as well." *He returns the elder's smile with his (Ok yeah, I was thinking about that too. But it's a once a day kinda thing. So it'll be a nice supplement.)

"We'll meet you at the Pyramid then, and discuss things from there. I will need some time to speak with my people"

"I understand. I will gather my men and start forming a work party. Then I'll meet you at the pyramid."

This seems agreeable to them, and they begin gathering things from their temporary homes for the trip there. Most look to be planning to come armed.

Kay, returns to his men and has them gear up with their standard equipment. He also begins getting the suit ready for operation. "So we're going to be meeting the villagers by that pyramid over there. We don't know if those bandits are still around or if the local wildlife will play nice so we're bringing our normal gear. But, we're here to help these people rebuild. So I don't want to see any itchy trigger fingers. They may not like us much, but let's not give them a reason to hate us more."

There is a flash of light, as the first of the pilgrims begin emerging directly from the Pyramid. Two more appear, armed, and then more. After a moment, it seems the entire village has arrived with their belongings and whatever building materials their southern kin have allowed them to take

15:39

'So, this is whats left now" one elder says sadly, looking out at the scorched ground, and the distant gas wells still burning

Kay enters the suit as the villagers begin to arrive. "If something tries to sneak up during this rebuilding process, these scanners will pick it up. Gotta keep these people safe while they pick up what's left." He approaches the one elder inquisitively. "I'm sorry, I can't undo what was done. But I can try to bring this place back to life. Do you think you have enough materials to build with?"

"Enough to set up tents, but nothing else. We're going to need more sturdy shelters than that long term, and we'd also like the town center and general store rebuilt as well, those are essential for getting this done in an organized manner"

"Ok, then give me a second. I'll try and get you something to build with." He walks off about 50m away from the main group of villagers. When he finds a relatively clear spot, he reaches down and brushes away some of the ashes. Once he digs down to the bare ground, he places a palm against the dirt. Letting the same kind of purple energy that usually makes his weapons flow through him, he lets it spread through the ground and under the ashes. Rapidly, about a 10m radius of hardwood trees start to grow around him, going from sapling to mature tree in seconds. Once the thicket is fully grown around him, he walks out from the trees. "That enough to get you guys started?"

The villagers marvel in amazement, a handful of them even go down on one knee in veneration of the incredible deed that has taken place before their eyes

Kay holds up a confused hand. "Hey, it's no big deal. I said I was here to help and I have a way to help. I can only do it once a day though, so hopefully it should be a steady enough supply for things to be built. Later on I can prioritize farmland."

3

The elders begin getting a work detail organized to begin felling trees , and another group to gather the thatch coming off the fallen trunks for use as roofing and flooring material until other substitutes can be found. you get many appreciative glances as the work detail passes by. "Alright boss, we still have a few gas deposits out there burning, do you think they're worth doing something about?|

"Fuck this is weird. I wanted to help, but I didn't think people would look at me like this." He's almost startled by his own guys. "Yeah, I'll take a look from the air with the suit and try to prioritize the pockets closest to us first. The ones way far away will probably burn themselves out before even getting close. While I go and scan the burning pockets with the suit, start trying to gather up and materials we could use to smother it or take away it's fuel. I'll be back in about 30 minutes. At that time, I'll take three of you with me and leave your squad leader along with the leftover men here to continue helping and provide security while we go deal with the closest fires."

The teams begin splitting off, and getting themselves organized. The suit power and thrusters all report status green, and ready for flight. Kilometers from the pyramid, the greasy smoke of the burning natural wells continues spreading skyward in menacing clouds

Kay will fly over to the closest pillar of smoke and try to use the polyspectral scanner to pick up basic information on the fire (rate of spread, general makeup of what it'sburning, stuff like that)

The fire is burning unrefined petrol under the ground, ignited by the previous bombardment. The rate of burn is slowing, but there is a dense pocket here , and this fire will burn for months if not attended

(Is the land around me absolutely covered with ash, and how far am I from the others?) (edited)

The land is blanketed in white ask, like a fresh snowfall from the burned trees and now vanished vegetation. This closest fire is 5km from the city.

(Alright then, 5km is a little far from the others so I'll try something first) Kay will try to set the anti grav nodes on the suit to a low output, using them to push the ash into the hole that the fire is coming from, then when it starts to die down, he'll use the nodes to press down and pack the ash to cut off the fire's supply of oxygen

The motors struggle, but it seems that this plan is working. The heat and emissions begin to decrease, and finally, the fire gutters out. It smolders, but otherwise, shows no signs of relighting

Letting out a sigh,"Good, all this ash can be good for something at least." He'll try to repeat that technique for the other fires up to about 10km away from the city or until the sun starts to go down.

The other fire is snuffed much the same way, and your suit lights come on as they sense the setting sun and the air finally gets dark enough for you to need them. You set down, back to where your men have been working to keep the civilians safe and organize shelter building. The rudiments of several buildings have been started, but all that can be done in the daylight hours has been today

Looking over the rudiments of the buildings, he's happy with the progress so far. "Maybe once I can get more materials up, this place will start to look more whole again." He gathers his own men before the workers turn in for the night. "Nice work today guys. So, what we're going to do is set up in rotations of 4, one team for each half of the night. We'll help supplement the town's guard and keep watch for any animals or possible bandits."

(first watch or second for you?)

(Second)

The first patrol reports , after their shift is up, that nothing has approached camp. The barren fields of dead growth surrounding the village have provided an excellent vantage point, and your vision is unobstructed almost the entire way around the village. your hardwood grove, for a lack of better words, has been decimated. The trunks and branches have been felled and carried away. The grasses and twisting plants have been taken as well, for medicine, paste, and other myriad uses known to the villagers here

He keeps the scanners constantly pulsing during his watch. "Ok, so maybe a few more days of hardwood for building, then I can probably switch over to farmland once things start to get up and running."

Close to morning, right before dawn, the sensors begin to pulse gently. Distantly, in the direction you're shown, a dozen figures on raptors are observing the settlement, but are not making hostile moves toward it. They are 5km away, content to watch with binoculars

Kay will radio back to the guard and inform the elders as they begin to wake up. "We have about a dozen on Raptors about 5k out. They're just observing for now. You know who they are?"

“The bandits probably. They could feel the pyramid activating probably “

"Fuckin bandits on raptors. Awesome." "Alright, they're probably not stupid enough to attack over this much open ground. But they'll probably be watching us this whole way. What do you know about them?"

"Their leader would be a teenager, female, precognitive and possibly telekinetic too. It explains quite a bit of how theyve raided us so keenly

"I see, do they raid you for supplies or do they just kill and leave?"

"They just take what they can. If there's a way to use the word restraint here, they've shown it at least in passing, trying not to kill. Some people cant be persuaded to just give up their goods though

"Good, at least they're not just a group of psychopaths. If it comes down to it, I can at least try to talk to them. For now, I'll get you guys set up to continue work while I put out more fires."

"They did allow one of you to speak with them before, but it sounded like they couldn't agree to terms. The unfortunate situation with the ship firing at the gas happened after that"

"Then, I guess I'll need to make a better impression or a better offer." He says this as he creates another thicket of building material.

The villagers once again watch with reverence as life is breathed back into the soil. Several work crews begin heading out once again, to begin devouring the new growth like locusts. The raptor pack scatters at the sight of the sudden tall trees blossoming out of the ground

Kay meets up with the rest of his guys before they get to work. "Keep an eye out for that raptor pack in case they come back. We don't need to waste them if we don't have to, but I'd rather have them keep their distance for now. I'll head out and keep putting out more fires while looking for them as well." He takes back off to start putting out more fires, but activates the suits active camo and keeps an eye out so he doesn't get singled out by the pack.

This high in the air you can see them for a long way before they vanish into distant trees. The fires are suppressed by day end

Kay returns to the build site near the end of the day and confers with the elder. "Fires seem to be out now. Starting tomorrow I can help more directly with the builds wherever you need me. As for the bandits, there's 2 things we could do. I could directly deal with them to try and get them off your backs. Or we could just keep the area around the village free of dense vegetation. If they have to cross open ground, they won't last long in any kind of raid. Up to you."

The feeling in the village is that the bandits will always be a threat in some form or another unless they’re parlayed with , or destroyed. as long as there is a settlement here producing goods or trading it will be an attractive target for the group and their leader

"Alright, I'll see what I can do." Kay regroups with his men and set out the same watch schedule. But this time, he'll be tracking the raptor pack once they disperse.

The pack comes by to observe again just before dawn, and it looks like it’s their full strength. Their leader is on a bigger raptor than the others and is paying special attention to the groves you’ve recently grown

He'll grow one more grove before he radios the squad. "I'm going to track them best I can, if I'm not back in 2 hours, grab some of the villagers and form a search party. I'll keep you updated on my location. I want to see what these guys are about." With that, he'll activate the suit's active camo and begin shadowing the movement of the pack (edited)

The raptors are making good time acrosss the cleared land and are heading for a thicket of trees, itself the border of a large forest zone. The growth is thick and close together , almost impossible to see into from the air without aid

Kay will go to ground level and continue tracking at about 90m using the scanners to keep track of their location and hyper mobility to stay elevated above the pack

The raptors seem to come to a halt for a moment before scattering in west, north and eastern directions at speed

Kay will keep his scanner locked on the leader, following the larger raptor. Though, still keeping his 90m standoff so his suit's defenses will degrade their shots in case things go wrong.

The three raptors come to a halt ahead of you and begin to spread out. Their explosive topped lances are held high

(Held high as in how one normally rides with a lance? Or they're aiming up?)

(How theyd normally ride with a lance )

(Ok) "Seems like they either know someone is following them, or they do this out of habit. Just stay on the leader and see where she goes. Just gotta keep some space to not get sucked in. I'd rather deal with them in dense woods than an open field anyway." He'll continue following at the same distance until he gets a good look at the leader. (edited)

The raptors do not move or go further into the woods. Their leader is a teenage girl of close to 18 from what your eyes can tell. Dirt, her demeanor and the general harshness of feature a life in the wilds gives a person obscures some of her true age She waits calmly , her lance high and her raptor behaved, calmly enjoying the run of her hand on the back of its head. It growls contentedly

"Terrain's about as good as I'm going to get. Might as well try to talk from here." Staying up in the trees, he uncloaks and lets himself be seen. "Waiting for someone? Gotta say, your guys move through the woods way easier than their size would suggest."

She pats the side of her beast lovingly. “Fairly nimble yourself. You’re not shooting. I suppose you’re someone else here to try to parley?”

He keeps his spot up in the trees. "You'd be right. Though, being a precog, you probably knew that already. I find that just shooting at people usually ends up with just a bunch of people pissed off."

“The fight would not have gone well for either of us” She taps the side of her head. “I’m not going to accept a measly 5000 credits a month either, for the whole gang. That’s less than we would make as laborers”

14:48

(That was valentinas offer , to the best the bandit leader can recall it)

"Alright, if I'm being honest, not that great of an offer. But just for my information, how long you been at this?" (edited)

“Just over two years now. And living like royalty doing it too”

"Living like royalty for now. But how much longer you bet it's gonna last? You saw the kinds of people that are out there. Things are changing fast. Might get a lot riskier for you and your guys to keep doing what you're doing."

"It might be, it might not be. Even with your suit , if I call, its still 15 on 1. We'd be more than happy to give this up if something more suiting our lifestyle can be found. What use are pleasures or status if you're dead and can't enjoy them?"

"Not meant to be a threat, though if you want to compare sizes, with a call it can be a little over 100,000 plus whatever villagers you pissed off by taking away their quickest source to get their homes back on 15. I was just saying, not many people predict the damned sky catching on fire around them. And from what I've seen, I'm apparently one of the few people who doesn't throw that shit around lightly. But I think I can make an offer, work's less risky but more stable and comes with some added benefits."

"I'm listening" she says, gently kicking the sides of her raptor, walking forward to speak with you more directly

He will keep the high ground, just in case he needs to bolt. "You guys move through terrain real quick, know how to fight as a small unit, and aren't raving lunatics who attack anything on sight. I happen to be in charge of a military that prioritizes things you're good at. Come work with me, and you'll get housing, hot running water, electricity for all of you, steady pay, and access to tech you've never seen before. You're mounts will also be taken care of and if war comes you'll basically be doing the same thing you are here, just more legit and with a lot more toys to play with. All I ask is you work with me."

"I need to run this by everyone, but I'm interested. If we were to meet back here, say tomorrow, about this time....and I want some assurance if we say no, you're not just going to start mowing everyone down"

"That's fine, talk it out with your guys as long as you need. I can meet back here tomorrow, but I'd also like some assurance that you won't just say no with a lance to my face either."

“We will come unarmed if you do the same”

"If you come unarmed and dismounted, I'll come unarmed and without the suit. Deal?"

"Deal. I'd shake, but it seems like neither of us wants to touch the other right now" she smiles, a mouth of perfect white teeth, surprising given the wilderness conditions

"Don't worry, I can take you at your word. My name's Kay by the way. Yours?"

"Zerene. I had a last name once, but it doesnt mean anything now"

"Can relate." "Very well, then I'll see you tomorrow Zerene."

She says nothing , but claps her heels into the sides of her raptor, and it turns around

15:57

(3xp, 5000 credits)

(Alright, I'll try and level up once I get a hold of a computer. Also, I'm going to be at gunnery on Thursday and Friday so I'll probably be very slow thise days depending on how they run it.)

(no problem! its going to be a long week for everyone from the sound of it)

Level 6 Talk -->1 Sneak-->2 Exert -->0 No change on health

(if you roll equal to or less than your current health total, it increases by 1)

Health -->48

23:19

As Zerene leaves, Kay reactivates the cloak and returns to the village using a different route through the woods in case he's followed.

Your squad and the villagers are relieved to see you alive and are eager to hear about what happened out in the woods. Your suit is free of damage and there were no gunshots

05:11

“I thought you’d be back with a belt made of raptor fangs by now” your second says

Kay walks up to join the squad leader and the rest of his guys. "I just talked to them and we're working something out. Their leader, Zerene, and I are meeting in the same spot tomorrow with no weapons, no raptors, and no suit."

There is a resigned acceptance of what might come over the following days, a cease fire, and even peace, would bring the ability to look outward, and things that might benefit the world even further. There coulde ven be some talk about official protectorate membership

Kay pulls aside his squad leader as the villagers talk "Just for my safety, in case something goes wrong, I'd like you guys to wait for me at the mouth of the woods. Nothing hostile, I just want a place to get to if I need to get out of there." Before getting ready for the next day, he'd tell the elder his intention. "So tomorrow, I'm going to wait on summoning another grove. Just in case I need to protect myself. But if things go smoothly, I'll be back to make another one later in the day."

He nods, and thanks you for what you have done already. The village has a long way to go before it looks like how it did, but things are better and most of the buildings at least have their basic shapes laid out.

"It's my pleasure to help how I can. I'll help the work effort as much as I can for the rest of the day. Then, once these talks finish tomorrow, I'll raise a few more groves, and even a field to start growing in if you want it."

"It would be appreciated. I can mobilize the village militia to support your men if you think it is needed. You've done enough for us by even attempting this, I tihnk we can consider our account squared"

"I thank you for your support I just do what I can for people. If it's not too much trouble for you, I would like the militia to support my men. They're only going to be stationed at the edge of the woods in case it's a trap and I need to make a run for it. It's nothing hostile or putting you at much risk, it's more for my safety than anything else."

“We will help fill out your numbers then. Just in case. For tonight it seems like we have done everything we can. Now we just hurry up and wait for time to pass

Kay gives a slight chuckle at this. "Ha, story of my life. But thank you. I really appreciate your help. Have a good night."

Night passes without much of anything happening, aisde from a few card games, and one of the poorly constructed shelters folding in on itself. the occupants are unhurt, but everyone has a bit of a scare. Dawn comes, and once again the time for your next meeting approaches

As the time approaches, Kay arrives at the edge of the woods with his men and the civilian militia. Before going in, he hands off his Taros Rifle to the designated marksman "You see me running, open up on whatever's behind me." Next, he'll go to his squad leader. "I need you to take these guys and spread them out across the wood line looking into the forest. Try to get them as covered and co concealed as you can. If you hear 'break break break' over the comms, that means I'm bolting to you. Don't prepare to shoot anything until you hear that over the comms. But if something happens, you have every right to defend yourselves. Wish me luck." After his security starts to move into the wood line, Kay will walk I to the forest with only his CFU, Pavis, and his black knit beanie.

1

Zerene, and her two bodyguards also emerge, without weapons and without their raptor mounts. The two bodyguards hang back at the edge of the clearing , content to let the two of you meet in the middle since you've both come unarmed.

18:17

"I see we both have good critical listening skills" she says, looking a bit relieved

Kay is, a little off put by the bodyguards, "Maybe they're hiding something. Maybe not." Before taking a step into the clearing, he takes a few seconds to look and listen to see if he hears anything or sees anything moving around in the forest.

(notice/wis if youre wanting to be thorough, on the whole things seem above board)

(I'm still on the range so I can't roll but if the whole thing seems on the up and up, I'll continue to the clearing)

"Hey, I'm glad you came. My men are here just as backup, I'm assuming even though I can't see yours, that they're out there. I don't need my precognition to get a likely answer there, do I?"

"How's it going Zerene? Yeah, you'd be right. But, like your bodyguards, they're just backup. Had a chance to talk things over with your guys?"

"We're gonna do it" she says, looking a bit resigned "I like that you actually tried to work with us, and we're coming, but the condition is, we're only going to work under you"

"Thank whatever God is out there that they agreed. But, let's keep some composure for now." He nods and then extends his hand to shake. "That's more than ok, thank you for working with me as well. You guys will report to me, and you'll act as your own self-contained unit. I'll make sure no one else tries to fuck with you. Only thing is, it's going to take a couple of trips on the shuttle. So, if you want to hang around, we should be able to get everyone across over the next few days."

She thinks for a moment "I know how to use a compad. Can I see yours? I don't want to be this close to the village. I've got a deal with you, but those guys, those guys hate us. "

20:23

"I'm going to mark off where we've been hiding"

He stands next to her and shares his compad, not letting go of it but giving her the chance to enter in the coordinates. "I get it, if you put in the coordinates, I can start ferrying your guys out and we can avoid any bad blood with the villagers."

"All I needed. I just dont want a back full of solid shot before we even get out of here to stop bothering these fine people"

14:24

she marks a campsite a few kilometers away, in a place where the oil fires were less intense.

"Alright, easy enough. I'll meet you with my shuttle before the end of the day and we'll start moving you guys. In the meantime, I'll keep the villagers building and happy just to keep their attention away from you guys." (edited)

This seems to be an acceptable deal. "Tonight then. See you then handsome" She lingers on your own hand for just a brief moment, before whistling, and waving to her men to circle things up

1

After an internal spit-take, he takes a breath and tries to put together as coherent a sentence as he can. "See you tonight. I'm excited to see you guys work. I'll try not to disappoint either." After the pack circles up and being to move, Kay will walk back out of the wood line calmly and talk to the elder. "Things have been worked out with the bandits. They've agreed to leave and after a few days, you won't be seeing them again."

THere is relief in the village as you relay this news. The building efforts continue as you begin switching over to a more peaceful line of work for the day

16:49

(3xp, 5000 credits)

He goes to turn away from the elder, but catches himself. "One more thing real quick, as a favor. I saw on the map that there's a volcano on this planet. Do you know if there's any way I could get a hold of some volcanic glass? It'd be a gift to a friend of mine. Things with fire and heat are kinda a part of her religion."

"That, I can help with. I can bring you inside the pyramid, and we can head south, from there you should be able to hike to the basalt flats around it easily"

"Thank you. I really appreciate it. Just give me a minute to get my normal gear back on, and I'll meet you at the entrance to the pyramid."

He nods, and departs to let the villagers know he is likewise leaving for a bit

Kay redons his suit and normal gear, raising one more thicket for building before he let's his squad leader know that he'll be back soon and to start prepping the shuttle for tonight.

The elder waits with a long rifle and spear on his back , bound together. His armor is a hard leather haubrek and a leather cap. “Are you ready then? The teleport is almost intent. It doesn’t hurt “

"I'm ready. Gotta be honest, I've been interested in these pyramids since I arrived. Do your people know much about how they got here?"

“Our ancestors raised them on their own during the first wave of human expansion so the records say. We got lucky that nothing happened during the scream, when we realized what had happened, it took months before someone was brave enough to try to go through them”

"Interesting, and now they seem to come in handy a lot. I'm excited to try it out." Kay will wait for the elder to go first, giving him deference to his people's pyramid.

The elder enters and when it is mostly inside holds out an arm, meant for you to grab onto. “Don’t worry. I won’t get fresh with you. This will take but a moment and when we get there I will wait for you to return”

He grabs ahold of the elder's arm and starts to walk in the pyramid. "Another story of first wave settlers. I wonder if there's other secrets buried on this planet." "It shouldn't take long, is there anything on the Basalt plains I should watch out for?"

“Watch the skies. The plains don’t have much in the way for beasts to eat but there are flying pteradons there , they have tried to whisk people away before “

He nods to the elder. "Good thing I brought the suit. Worst come to worst. I can outrun them." "Thank you. I'll try not to take long. Should be a relatively short trip anyway."

Passing through the pyramid is a bath in purple light before something that feels like your skin is being tugged in by thousands of strings all at once. You arrive a second later at the southern shelf of the planet. A mountain rumbles gently and the mentioned flying dinosaurs circle a peak gently bubbling with magma.

Feeling himself broken down and reconstituted snaps Kay to his sense almost as soon as he is out of the pyramid. "Woah, this planet just gets more and more interesting by the day. Ok, focus. Volcanic glass should be somewhere near the base of the mountain, I just have to get there, grab some, then come right back. Just gotta keep the sensor up, cloak on, and stay out of the sky." He turns to the elder "Thank you for letting me experience that. It really is something incredible. I should be back in a few hours if that." With that, he activates the suit's cloak and begins the trek towards the mountain.

The mountain soil goes from ashen richness to a glassy crunch under your armored feet after an hour or so of walk/hovering

20:47

The soil is reflective where it has not been powdered

"Awesome, this has to be it. Just gotta find a raised piece and I can get to work. Is this a good idea though? Would she like it? I just hope this comes off as a respectful thing for her and not some sort of veiled insult or something. Fuck it, I came all the way out here. I gotta commit." Finding a raised piece of the glassy ground, he'll summon a small hatchet and try to knap off a section of the glass, keeping his sensors pinging in case one of those pterodons tries to come down on him.

The birds show interest but seem to keep their distance for now. It takes about ten minutes of searching to find a piece close to what you are looking for

"Perfect! Now just need to head back. After that all it'll take is a little leather and a carefully drilled hole." Satisfied with what he got, he'll reactivate the cloak and head back towards the pyramid.

the elder from the rebuilding village, and local leadership look to have just finished some kind of informal meeting. They are saying their goodbyes to one another as you approach. Many nod their heads in greeting toward you, though none speak.

Kay returns their greetings as he approaches the elder from the rebuilding village, giving him an appreciative nod in thanks for his patience. "Thank you for waiting for me. Is there anything you need to take care of while we are still here? Or did you just finish up with something?"

"just a short conversation between friends. I was telling them that you're helping us with our problem, and about the good work you've been doing to try to seed some life around our village. The recovery will be a long road, but it is hard to think of less of you, or the Protectorate for trying to make amends and do what is right after"

"It will be, but I'll do what I can in the coming days to help set you guys up for success. I'm not going to try and justify what happened, it was wrong. But if someone does something wrong, then it's their responsibility to help fix it. If you ever need any help from us again, we could leave a station behind to keep in touch. If not, then no worries. I'll be back again to see how you guys make out."

"We will discuss continued contactwhen this crisis is over. Were you able to find what you came for?" (edited)

"I did. Again, thank you for doing me this favor. I'm ready to go back when you are."

(3xp, 5000 credits)

20:35

Brought back through the pyramid, you emerge back in the western village, where reconstruction efforts are ongoing. They've used the last of the recently made grove, and for now are content to get some internal work done on the existing buildings

Using the Metaflora he had been saving, he'll create the beginnings of farmland that can provide food for the workers while the interior work is going on. Once finished that, he'll rejoin his squad to begin preparations for moving the pack to Mytikas.

Everyone is ready to leave, and is relieved to be doing so when you finally return. The Salamis is in orbit currently, newly launched and its massive troop bay is ready to bring you, and the new recruits home

Bidding the elder fairwell, Kay will start ferrying his men, and then moving to take the pack, pack onto the Salamis with the Low Technology. Before departing, he'll let the elder know that, if they'll have him, he'd like to stop by in about a month to see how the rebuilding has been going. (edited)

The pack is stowed aboard the salamis under enhanced guard for the time being. They for their part settle in peacefully and sleep for most of the shirt trip back

During the trip, in between checking on Zerene and her pack's comfortability, Kay will use his mageblades to carefully put a small hole in the volcanic glass as well as blunt any edges, and then run a strip of leather through the hole in order to make a necklace out of if.

The coordinates of daitrij’s band on the plains are passed over to you upon entering Heras space , and a cargo lighter is set aside for you to make your way surface side upon docking

Kay, thanks the crew and quickly takes off and disassembles the suit on the shuttle before taking it down towards Daitrij's coordinates. "God I hope I made the right choice. Fuck, what am I going to do if she finds it offensive or something? Granted, it's not really that impressive of a thing anyway. It's just a rock on a leather string. I doubt she would even pay it much mind. Wait, no she said she needed to get away from me in her message before I left. Has this whole thing just been a massive disrespect to her wishes? Fuck it, I'm already doing it. I'll deal with whatever happens. It can't possibly be that bad, right?" Nervously keying in on the coordinates, he starts to take the shuttle down towards the plains. (I'll hop over to her thread so I don't hold her up too long)

(Perfect )

(What's Kayden off to do now since we're all back)

(Gonna be doing a couple of things. Picking up the hauler and beginning work on an IFV variant. Seeing if there's any sturdier armor out there than a CFU that could fit inside the suit, filling the hauler with different kinds of goods that Mytikas could offer Chiron to incentivize membership as well as provisions for the trip, grabbing part of the raptor pack for security along the way and to test out how well they can operate on Heras, asking the Regent for any information we have on Chiron's current situation.)

(Actually, the next step up would just be power armor, so scratch that then.)

(yeah and youd have to use the suits AC anyway no matter what health pool youre applying the damage to)

19:44

(not a variable AC like pathfinder)

(Yeah, my bad, I'm getting my systems crossed.)

The IFV variant will begin this month and the shop is expecting to have this model done in 3 weeks, 22 days from now to be exact. The hauler itself has produced trade goods from the various production centers that were not used as a far trade good this month, all available to be sent to Chiron. The raptor pack has cleared quarantine, and aside from the actual mechanics of feeding them along the way, Zerene and her gang should be able to keep pace with the hauler if opportunities for resting the mounts are given. Regent Ferriman knows little of Chiron, as the gates were shut after agent Sarya left and have remained so. The last meeting was friendly enough, as the city leadership had entrusted her with a deep secret of theirs. No reason exists in his mind why you would be met with hostility, though your actions could certainly change things once there

(Ok, unless there's a way to fit preserved meats inside the hauler, then it's gonna be a hunt as we go kinda thing.) After gathering the crew for the hauler, suiting up, and meeting Zerene and her pack at the city's gates; Kay will give them all the run down on what's going on. "Alright, here's what's going on. There's a city called Chiron to our Northeast. We've been on decent terms with them so far, but we're trying to get them ever closer to joining up with us. We're going to go over, show them what we have to offer, and then have a nice talk with them, that's what the cargo is for. Outside the cities, this place gets pretty dangerous and we're going to be skirting around some unfriendly territory to our east, that what you and you pack are for Zerene, to help make sure we actually get there. If we come across anything of interest along the way, we'll check it out. But getting to Chiron is the primary objective. Do you guys have any questions for me before we get going?"

(you could allocate some of your cargo space for it)

(Ok yeah, I'll allocate a portion of the cargo for food for the trip.)

The group assembles at the north Mytikas gate, and the walls are now nearly completed around the current city. The next phase will add guard towers, amenities, and eventually one day the heavy weapons one would expect for a settlement like this. Soon, it will be time to build upwards, not outwards.

21:36

Zerene and her raptors are assembled, a V shaped formation in front of the hauler, and a double line behind

Kay dons the suit and marvels at the sheer amount of work that's been completed over the few months he's been here. "We could put AA guns there. An extra guard shack there. We've really come a long way from having problems fixing one broken down truck." When they depart, Kay will keep pace with the formation, trying to stay centrally located. Using the suit's sensors, he continually pings the area to pick up on anything the raptor pack might have missed in the front or rear.

(You could ride on top of the hauler even lmao)

22:10

You're able to get a ride on the much faster rail system to the eastern turn, departing when the route turns south toward Hephesta.

After disembarking from the rail, Kay will have the group retake the same sort of formation. However, while going over the less forested plains, he'll have the formation slow it's speed so that the dust kicked up by the hauler doesn't make it too easy to spot from a long distance away.

The concern for dust is evidently not a concern for what must be approaching your at dusk on the first night of travel. Two large plumes cast something of a rolling thick cloud behind columns of blocky shapes on the horizon

(Do they look like they're coming right for me? Or are they just speeding along in a straight line? Also, and vegetation for concealment? Or just straight plains?) (edited)

(It’s rolling grassland and they’re moving in your direction. The vehicle is pretty hard to miss )

Since it's pretty much impossible for the vehicle to hide, Kay will activate his cloak and speed towards the vehicles to try and scout out what they are and who's in them with the scanner. Meanwhile, he tells the pack to find concealment behind the intervisibility lines provided by the rolling plains. <<Zerene, I'm going to go see what we're dealing with up ahead, keep pace with the hauler and keep your pack hidden behind the IV lines. I'll update you with what I find. Do you feel anything hostile from these guys?>> (The pack is equipped with their explosive lances right?) (edited)

(They are)

(What do they count as? Melee rocket launchers?)

(Demo charge but it counts as the shape charge version so it won’t blow them up)

(Ok dope. I will continue with that plan then. Getting a general sense from Zerene and scouting out the trucks with my cloak and scanner.)

The scouts move forward, Zerene spends a moment of silence, clearly asking herself the same question and divining an answer for you. "They're Chrionese. They're patrolling just like we are, and they see us, but won't shoot unless we do"

15:04

"I trust we're not out here to wreck them?"

He nods to Zerene. "Thank you Zerene. No, I just needed to confirm their identity. We will wait for them, no sense in scrapping the very people we came here to talk to. We'll wait for them to come to us."

The column comes to a halt, and the raptors adopt a formation that has a single rank ringing the large hauling vehicle. Zerene breaks formation slightly, moving a few meters ahead into the point position

Kay will walk out ahead of the formation, rifle slung, to meet the column

The group is a large number of motorbikes, supported by a rig looking vehicle evidently responsible for fueling and feeding them all. Some extra packs, slings, and water barrels are tied on where it makes sense for them to be, and the bikes circle their home rig, before two lead scouts dismount and begin walking over to you

Kay retracts the head piece of the suit so that the scouts can see his face. As he waits for them to approach. "How's it going? I am Kayden Zayre of Mytikas. And who are you?"

"Scouts from Chiron. That vehicle of yours is hard to miss"

21:01

"We were on a patrol and saw it from a ways away, and decided to come investigate

"Yeah, not much meant for stealth. I'm actually on my way to Chiron now, the truck here just has some goods that I think you guys might find interesting."

“Ah I see. Well we were sent to scout the road. And we did. If you’re heading to the city we will escort you back, and I’m afraid I can’t make it a request

"I will go with you, but I must ask; am I being detained?" (edited)

“You’re free to go and we will not ask for your weapons but if you advance on the city and didn’t bring you in the khan will be upset”

"I understand, you guys are just doing your job. I'll follow you guys in."

The bikes form up in a formation mimicking how your own scouts are deployed and driving on through the night you finally arrive at the massive bowl crater that Chiron has built its city in. The walls stretch around the rim of the crater and are manned and strong. The large double gate opens , and you pass through the gate house to see grenade dumpers and murder gun ports above. Anyone trying to get into the city uninvited would be paying a heavy cost to do it

He whistles to himself as they pass through the defenses, glad that he was being let in rather than having to fight his way in. "How have things been around here if you don't mind me asking? I know there's a lot of nastiness to your south, and it seems like you guys deal with them more than anyone."

“Things in Chiron are quiet now that the farmlands have been blessed by the gods. The famine is over and the overlord is banished. This is a good time to be from Chiron”

"Good, I'm glad to hear that. Good to know that this planet has some good news every once in a while."

The vehicles come to a halt in the town square as the khan’s advisor and a phalanx of bodyguards makes their way up the incline to the gate

"Ok, I don't know how this place works. Better to let these guys take the lead and I react when I see a chance. Worst comes to worst, I can play the dark secret card." Kay waits, for the advisor to make introductions, rather than rudely announce himself.

As the formation comes to a halt 10m from you, the Advisor steps forward. He is around the age one might consider elderly, and he raises a hand in greeting as he approaches. "In the name of the Khan of Chiron, welcome to our city. I extend the Khan's greetings, and his thanks for complying with the requests of our patrol. I do hope you understand "

Kay returns the gesture, nodding is head in understanding. "I understand, I would be just as prudent if put in a similar situation. If it isn't too much trouble, I actually came to speak with the Khan. However, if you are the Khan's voice, and he deems it necessary, I would be happy to speak with you as well."

"I am his voice, and his chosen subordinate in all things. I am capable ofnegotiation with you sir"

"Very good. Before we begin though, is there anywhere more private where we can discuss things? And is there anywhere my people can wait in the meantime? It was a long trip and I'd like it if they had a place to rest for now while we talk."

"Of course. The palace is currently closed , but we do have a diplomatic complex we would be happy to host you in. The vehicle and your mounts of course are to remain here, and the beasts will be stabled. We're going to need a hand or two in caring for them, and of course you're free to leave this large contraption under your own guard"

18:23

(its really big, I tihnk coming down some of these side streets it would just crush everything)

"That is more than acceptable, thank you very much sir." Kay will approach Zerene and the pack to let them know the situation. "Ok Zerene, the people here are going to stable your mounts for now and give you guys a place to relax while we talk things out. The only thing I ask is we have a rotating guard for the suit and the hauler, just in case something happens. I should be back within a few hours. Take the time to relax and decompress from the trip as needed. I'll be back soon." Kay will follow the advisor towards the the diplomatic complex.

The complex is a four floor building, mostly given over to amenities and rooms for diplomats to stay in. The entire ground floor is divided between private meeting rooms and a large assembly space for speeches. The top floor is a rooftop gym and garden, where a few cityofficials are hard at work on stationary bikes. Two others play some form of Jailai

Kay waits for the advisor to take the lead, following him into whichever of the meeting rooms he designates for them. "He seems nice enough. Hopefully, whatever terms he gives will be possible. I really don't want to figure out what that secret is but, if it comes up, I could try to help them out with it? Shit, I don't know, Daitrij would tell me to try and do what's right. So I just have to come into this with good intentions."

The second room on the right is large and has enough chairs around the table for several people though it seems for these talks it is just the two of you. "I understand that you've come for trade, and the vehicle out there is loaded down with some kind of supply or resource we might be interested in? I had a brief report from the scouts, but we didn't speak at length"

Kay takes one of the seats across from the advisor. "Yes, I came here with a sort of sampling of the things Mytikas could offer Chiron. But I'm also here to see if we can work out a longer-term partnership between us."

"I see, we would be sacrificing our political autonomy to do so, what can you offer in return?"

"I understand the trepidation, not many khans would be so willing to check their own autonomy against that of another. However, what you would be able to gain is also significant. As you have probably hears, Artema has also begun the process of joining us. So, you'd gain increased trade between Mytikas and Artema, what I have in the large vehicle I brought is an example of the various goods that we can offer overland. You'd also gain access to our assets in space as well and our ties with the nearby planets of Radji and Astyoche. Finally, you'd also be included in our joint defense force, so as not to rob you of your own capabilities to secure yourself. And of course, you'd have a say in the way the alliance's government. We're here to unite a common Heras, not a common Mytikas."

"What can you offer in terms of fortifications or new vehicles like the one you arrived with. It's quite impressive"

"We actually have three variants of such vehicle. The one I brought is meant specifically for hauling large amounts of cargo, there is another being constructed right now that can carry squads of infantry while also providing them medical care, and a third meant for dealing with large threats. The blueprints for such vehicles can become available upon membership as well."

"The second model in particular is something we're interested in. We're not currently part of that rail network you built, and there is a lot of flat land around us. Being able to patrol it in a vehicle like that would improve our situation here'

"That would be something easy enough to accomplish. We could also begin work to expand the rail network to include Chiron as well, if Chiron would have it."

"Chiron would need it. We have rich farmland now , and next season the first of the Pullander Trees are expected to come into season. It could mean the difference between getting our goods to market and letting them rot here. "

"Then access to the rail system and the blueprints and facilities to produce the vehicles can easily be part of the terms for joining."

"And what is the butcher's bill for this technology and market access? surely, there is a cost"

"Membership into the alliance with Mytikas and Artema as well as access to food produced by your farmland. We'd be providing the technology to increase your food output, so it's only fair that we can also share in some of the prosperity it brings."

"And of our political will?

"Like I said, Chiron would have a voice in the government. Decisions will be made based on deliberations between all the cities in the alliance, not just from the will of one."

"It is a hard bargain, to be subject to the will of many, and not the will of yourself, but it's time. We become part of something greater. We will join with you, but we will need the work to begin as soon as possible"

Kay smiles and goes to shake the adviser's hand. "I understand it is hard sir. But I know I will try my best to make this beneficial for everyone. As for the work, I can start to send engineers as soon as I can."

“You mentioned we would get access to a hauler. How about that one” he says, pointing to the one in the courtyard

"As much as I would like to sir, if I gave it away now then the crew inside of it would not be able to return home. However, I can pass off some engineers to set up the infrastructure necessary to build your own."

"I understand. I hope to have one of my own soon to impress you with. Thank you for being magnanimous in your negotiations, and I hope going forward we all will prosper from this"

"I hope so too sir. And I'm excited to see more of these vehicles out on those rolling plains of yours. If there's anything you need help with, just let me know. If there's nothing further, I'll start making my way back to Mytikas and get started on expanding the rail line and copying over the blueprints."

"We will see you again soon, I hope. The Champion Games begin next month. We have not had a representative from Mytikas in some time"

18:13

(Youre fucking right we're doing olympics)

"That seems like a fabulous opportunity for both our cities. I'll start looking around for a suitable representative. What kind of events happen at the Champion Games, if you don't mind me asking?" (Greco wrestling intensifies)

"Javelin throw, wrestling, a simulated phalanx between 20 of the best warriors of each city state, running, and swimming"

"Ok, interesting. I'll start searching for suitable champions to represent Mytikas in the games. Both our people have been hard at work it seems. They deserve a bit of fun."

"THey do. You've honored us with your attention in these matters and have proven you're struggling just like the rest of us. It's gone a long way to humanize all of you"

"And you honor us with your understanding. I look forward to seeing you again soon, and to the opportunities we'll have together." With that, Kay will take his leave and help unloading the various goods he brought as a gift for Chiron, saving some of the food for the raptors. Once he's finished, he'll don the suit again and begin the return trip with the pack. "Your guys did real well during the movement Zerene. Long movements are easy times for a convoy to get hit, but you were all attentive and keeping each other covered. Well done, you trained your guys well."

"I tihnk its just as much you guys working to keep the countryside safe. Animals aren't going to come close to a gathering this size, and bandits would be stupid to try anything too"

"Either way, it's appreciated. Have your first few days here been acceptable? Or is there anything that you think needs my attention?"

"So far, so good. We haven't spent much time in the city since weve been here, might be nice to finally have some relaxation, and see the place we're going to be living in for the next little while"

"Good, hopefully we won't need to project much force for a good while. So you guys should have plenty of free time to get to know the place and get comfortable. Anything comes up that you have a problem with, you let me know."

"I'll do that" she says, keeping her eyes on her mount and the open road you're all about to hit. "Maybe peace won't be such a bad thing, and we'll finally get to actually live off some of the riches we've gained for ourselves"

"That's a good point, it would be nice for you to be able to treat yourself now that things are nice and calm. Hell, maybe have a talk with your guys about the Champion Games coming up next month. If either you or some of your guys would like to enter, it'd be a chance to get a bit more prestige to go along with those riches."

"I'll talk to the gang see if anyones interested in something like that. I can't promise anything , we're trying to just get settled and try to find a place for us. you said something about scouting. How often do you see conflict here?"

"Depends honestly. We almost went to war a month ago. But there's also a lot of beats, tribals, and other things out there that remind you to keep your guard up. There are also a lot of ruins around that need exploring as well. So I'd say large scale conflict is rare, but it's not smart to be complacent either."

"I was thinking about taking the gang out on our own for a few days, seeing if we can get used to the land, and the raptors need to hunt and socialize, probably best done away from the city for a while, untilt hey get used to things here"

"Any idea of where you plan on going?" (edited)

"I heard there was some kind of temple one of your guys skipped out on. Warrior women and hidden machinery, the dispensing of justice. I thought it might be something to see for myself. You know, female empowerment and all. Rah Rah"

"Interesting, seems like a cool place to check out. Would you mind if I tagged along? I've wanted to explore this place for a while, but things have kept popping up. But, if it's something you'd rather do alone, then you're more than free to."

"You're the one holding the leash" she says, patting her raptor on the side of its head. "I can understand wanting to come along. Nothing like cleaning up after your own people, am I right? That seems like all you do"

"Things were a lot different before me and some others came along. Trying to rebuild a lot of bridges that got burned and fix mistakes that were made. I'd like to pursue more personal interests sometimes, but the job comes first it seems. I may hold the leash, but I won't pull on it unless I'm given a reason to. So, if you would feel comfortable with me coming along, then I will. If this is a more personal thing, then I understand."

"Nah, come along. You wanted to ride one of these, didn't you?"

"Uh, yeah. But, this suit's kinda heavy. Maybe once we stop for the day and I have some time to get out of this thing for a little bit."

"Your choice" she says, "In any case, I'd like to see that temple, we can head to Mytikas first and change things over, get those who want some rest the time. It's only about a half day from there anyway"

"That's fine, I'd like to restock myself. I'll go with you, but I think I know another person who'd like to see a temple like that too. If you'd have her along that is?"

"Of course, this wouldn't be your friend we detoured to go see on the way down to the planet by chance, would it?"

"Yeah it is the same friend. She's very interested in this planet's history and exploration. So this would be something she'd be very interested in."

'she's pretty" Zerene muses. "Of course, whoever you want. Just as long as we leave on time

"Of course, I'll send her a message now so she can start getting ready. I'll make sure we step off on time no matter what."

"Perfect. I'll see you then, Take care until then boss" She saunters off, along with her raptor and retainers

"You do the same Zerene." He makes his way towards the regent's office to debrief before messaging Daitrij and gearing back up. (edited)

(she got to respond to something when shes got time, and we can kick things off)

(Aight, no rush. Was just IC passing off the Chiron info)

(all good!)

Kayden returns to Mytikas and his personal quarters in the city, getting his gear together for the trip aboard

After taking some time to put the suit back together, prepping it, and getting it warmed up, Kay will go back out into the city. First, he will check on the status of the IFV being built. If he was going out into the unknown, he'd rather do it with as many people as possible

The second machine is complete, and technicians are halfway through the third version. Everything appears built to specifications so far, and once this is done, there should be a model of each in Mytikan hands

Looking up at the vehicles, Kay can't help but be impressed at how well the project had been coming along and how well the city, overall, was doing. Standing back, he contemplates his options. "So, I could take the vehicle and twelve men with me. However, it will be a pain to keep the thing hidden if it comes to it. I could also take Zerene and the pack. But, I'd like to give her time to actually get comfortable in the city, I don't want it to come across as me just using her and her guys. Plus, the IFV also has the med bay in case anything goes wrong and someone needs to be treated. I could also take both and give myself the most options. However, that would also mean I need to stock up on more supplies and might present a larger threat to Persepha. Fuck it, I'd rather I stay on the safer side." Kay requisitions the IFV for his trip to Persepha, as well as a 12 man squad made up of 1 squad leader, 1 heavy weapons team, 1 medic, and the rest made up on riflemen. After he finalizes his request to the dispatch and rounds up a squad, he will go back out into the city proper to buy supplies as well as locate Zerene.

Zerene and her raptors returned sometime during the night and are being stabled at John's old farm on the outskirts of town. She has moved in and begun tending crops, hatching the animal eggs left behind, and otherwise ensuring her pack has a safe place to bed down and call their own

Taking his time walking through the farm's fields, now wearing a large parka over his pavis and armor, his breath steaming against the cold winter air, Kay crunches his way through the frost covered ground towards Zerene while she begins clearing the fields in response to the new colder climate she inhabits. Looking around at the farm she seems to have taken over, he nods as he approaches her. "Nice place, bit of a fix her upper, but it beats some of the ruins that used to be here."

"Place was a mess when we moved in. It looks much better now. You're here, so that must mean we have some work to do"

"Yep, there's always something. We're going to be going Southwest to explore a city called Persepha and its surrounding area. No one around here's ever been out that way before, so I wanted to have you guys and another squad of twelve come with me."

"Alright. I'm going to leave 2 of my guys behind to winterize our digs and take care of the farm if that's alright. The birds here, if we raise them, we can keep breeding and find more in the wild and we can just be responsible for our own food stocks"

16:02

"I know things are tight in the city, you brought us here and the last thing we want to do is create another set of problems"

"It's more than alright, I understand. And that's a good idea. Hopefully we might be able to find some useful stuff to bring back while we're on our way. Things are much better than they have been, but it never feels like enough. There are a few ruins around the mountain range between here and Persepha, I'd like to check those out too if we have time to spare."

"I'll have myself and the other nine we are taking standing by. You're going to need to pass by here on the way out of town, we'll link up with you then and we'll push on to the city together"

"Alright, I'll go set everything up and meet you back here at mid day. Thanks for your help Zerene." Turning back, Kay starts making his way back to the frost covered roofs in the city.

(anything else we needed to do before setting out? seems like we have all the pieces in place)

(I'm good to go if you are)

The vehicle and the attached rifle squad roll up to the farm a few hours later as Zerene is giving her two stay behinds the last of their standing orders. It looks like some plans are in place to secure the farm and get some additional farming land cleared. There is a large pond out back where it looks like one of them is preparing to do some ice fishing

Kay arrives already inside the suit. Packed inside his rucksack are the diodes for his TAA, just in case he needs to switch for whatever reason. Approaching the IFV, he checks over it and his guys one more time before going over to Zerene. "Guys are all set to go. We just might have to wait a little longer. Seems like we have some more people joining us for this one."

She keeps the raptors short , within the confines of the farm as the wait for the other half of the formation begins

After the meeting Valentina and her crew arrive at the rendezvous point, with their rucksacks on their backs. Valentina has her Fiat Luxe Rifle in one hand and seems to be wrangling a pair of drones to follow along. "Good afternoon everyone, let me first apologise for our last meeting, it should not have ended as it did, and I am glad you made it out and were able to make an arrangement with Kayden"

"It was just business" Zerene says, without any malice in her voice "you made an offer, and it was not one we could work with, but I tihnk it helped Mr. Zayre here come up with something better"

"I'm glad to hear it, when do we head out?"

"Good, now that we're all certain no one's going to kill each other we can start heading out. Zerene, same thing as last time. Your guys up front, I'll be above the IFV with the scanner running, and the trucks with Valentina will pull up the rear."

(I'll get you guys an expected travel time)

15:53

(1400km, looks like there is an unmarked village and a ruin on the way)

(Yeah, I was planning on visiting both. I think the ruins would be first, then village, then Persepha)

(the ruins are closer to the city, you'd be passing by the village first)

15:56

(not that you have to stop right away, but you're at least going to see them/there'd be some doubling back)

(Village first, get the lay of the land and how Persepha is, then Indiana Jones some ruins, then Persepha)

(Sounds good)

19:07

19:08

Updated hauler and IFV with railguns, redesigned the Anti Armor platform

"So Kayden, how long do you think it will take us to get out to this first village?"

"Judging from the map. We'll probably get there early tomorrow morning. Why do you ask?"

"Simple curiosity, and a wish to be able to plan my days accordingly, is it a village that has been visited before by the Protectorate?"

"As far as I'm tracking, no one fro Mytikas has been out this way, let alone stopped at any of the villages."

"In which case, I'll make a point of plotting a map as we head out, so that anyone else that come out this way will have a note of locations of interest"

"Good idea, the more detail we have of the area, the easier our lives will be if we have to come back later."

(I think with the vehicles as big as they are, fording the rivers as we move west is probably not an obstacle like when the other group went in the food truck)

(Yeah, so long as the water isn't deep enough to reach the engine compartment, they should be fordable without much issue)

The first day of travel passes uneventfully as the two rivers are forced. It’s expected you’ll come to the village first thing in the morning and aside from a pack of wintering troolboar clustered by some woods, the roads are empty

Throughout the day, Valentina will sit in the truck, noting the positions and depths of the rivers, as well as the presence of the troolboars as a potential source of food. As they settle down for the evening, she will pitch in with establishing the camp, and then settle down around whatever fire or communal area they establish, where she will sit and read, and make small talk with whomever happens to be around then turn into bed, ready to start moving again early the next day.

While the convoy is moving, Kay will stay above the formation with the suit's scanner running in order to pick up on any movement approaching the convoy. When the sun starts to reach the horizon, he'll break the convoy of into a field to set up them up in a coil for the night. When night falls, he'll make a rotation list for the watch, which shouldn't be very long since there are so many of them. Regardless, Kay will take a 2 hour shift and then let the rest take shifts on hour rotations.

Watch is short and uneventful, and as morning dawns the large vehicle engines turn over smoothly. There are no sightings of ghouls or other travelers along the road, though distance estimates have you arriving at the nearby village within an hour of travel

"Ok, well, what's our plan when we arrive at the village?"

"Alright, so the trucks and myself will be ahead of the formation, the IFV and the pack will stay about 2km behind us. Just close enough to help out if things aren't so nice, but out of the way enough that it doesn't look like we're trying to intimidate them. Once we arrive, just be polite, we're here to learn about the people here and Persepha as a whole. So just be nice."

"OK, sounds like a pleasant social visit all in all, lead on!"

The village ahead as you crest the hill blocking it is a very large settlement. Dozens of homes, several large buildings and evidence of some light industry decorates the city. It seems there is at least some sort of minor power generation inside as well, as electric street lamps are beginning to shut off with the arrival of dawn

"That's definitely more than a village, well, good to see that they're doing reasonably well for themselves"

"Yeah, they definitely don't have the aversion to tech like some of the other cities out here. Might as well introduce ourselves." Kay will take the suit towards the village, careful to cut the grave nodes and walk up to the village outskirts. When he reaches the village, he'll begin looking around for someone to direct him towards a central administration building.

A five strong detachment of town guard emerges, one carrying some kind of heavy rocket tube. They're led by an officer, who has far more optics and sensors on him than he would ever possibly need to consult

Kay retracts the faceplate of the suit and keeps his rifle slung while he raises up his hands. "How's it going guys? My friends and I were out exploring and saw your town was on the way. Mind if we have a talk with you guys for a little bit?"

Their posture relaxes some. "Talk away, we were sent out here to see what was happening on the roads. That's an impressive war harness there friend"

"Thanks, got some nice bits of kit on yourself. But, on topic, we're strangers out here. So, would you mind giving us some information about your town here? Just the basics of stuff like what you guys are known for, how the wildlife around here is, if you know anything about those nearby ruins, or if you guys have any kind of relationship with Persepha? I know that's kinda a lot but, like I said, we're new here."

"The Persephans are our overlords and we provide them with a lot of the manufactured goods they need. They in turn trade luxuries from the region that they make. It's not a bad deal, but the shipments coming to us can sometimes be irregular. Those ruins are...cursed. The Persehphans did experiments there, when the overlord ruled here. They were one of the city states that aligned with his banner. One of two."

14:53

"It's a bad place. People go missing when they get too close"

2

"Interesting, do they give reasons as to why they are irregular? Or does it just happen occasionally? And do you know what kinds of experiments?"

"It's bad luck to talk about it. You don't want to know" he shakes his head, and a physical shudder passes through him.

"Very well, I won't pry. Thanks for the help, but we should probably be on our way. You guys have a good one." With the new information, Kay will have the trucks return to the IFV and the pack.

(Val, did you want to ask/do anything with the group here?)

(Not in particular, she would have stood and listened throughout, but if they don't want to talk about whatever trauma it was, she won't push, we're here to win hearts and minds after all!)

They close their formation up a bit, and take a few steps back from the road, but otherwise are content to watch you pass and ensure you're leaving the area

As they move on, Valentina keeps an eye on the patrol, as well as taking images of the village for her map and logs

They never take their eyes off the road, not until you crest the next hill, and pass beyond their sight (edited)

"So Kayden, do we want to investigate these ruins, or are we moving along?"

(Gonna be slow the next couple days. I start moving today)

"I'd like to at least take a look at those ruins. We might be able to find something that gives us some leverage on Persepha, and help out the surrounding towns by getting rid of a nasty landmark."

"I'm definitely up for some exploration, and yes, if it gains us some goodwill then you're right, all the better, you never know, we also might find something of historical significance to put in a museum!

The convoy reaches the ruins as afternoon begins to stretch on, and amid creeping vines and the sprawling mass of skinny trees, it appears some sort of mausoleum , though with old electrical towers , downed wires and other less modern trappings adorn the complex

"Hmm, well, it looks reasonably run down, although the modernities are interesting, have you seen any other sites like this on Heras?" While she's speaking, she sends Quintus IV high into the sky to take external scans of the ruins, and see if there is any radiation or energy signitures on the site

There are no energy signatures on sight right now. The area likewise appears clean of radiation and other environmental contaminants

"Ok, looks like we're clear to head in." Valentina will head towards whatever looks closest to a front door

The rusted gate moves aside easily, and the 'front door' of the lab is a badly rusted metal slab door, hanging on its hinges though more like a miracle of gravity than any actual fasteners holding it on

"Huh, well, let's hope the entire place doesn't collapse on top of us," She says quietly, before stepping forward. (Do we want to pause here for Kayden to have any input?)

(Yeah lets, poor guy has a long day of driving today, if nothing new comes along tonight or later we'll continue)

(Sounds good to me!)

(Just give me like another hour or two, getting close to Dallas now)

During the last few minutes, Kay conducts a penetrating scan of the interior of the building (100m in if that makes a difference) with the suit's scanners. After getting the results back, he'll change out of the suit and into his TAA, "The building barely seems stable enough as it is. Another few tons of armor would definitely cause some kind of collapse." After the few minutes it takes him to change, the hologram of the TAA will being projecting a hologram of the bio-organic metal again, like it had in Cyrus's vault.

(Does anything stop that scan. I know most of them can only see through a meter or two of certain materials )

01:27

(Lot of walls insides so I’m trying to figure out how deep this goes before it would just get too broken up)

(EM hardened barriers stop it, otherwise it goes 100m in front of the mech and provides the details of objects and terrain down to 1/3 of a meter in size)

(Alright nothing like that inside then. Map incoming I just have to grid it)

14:33

(Coming in from the west, i tried to flip the orientation and things got a little weird since its a lifted asset)

(So our entry is from the right?)

(from the left, that U shaped Staircase seemed to be going inward and the stairs on the right look to be going up into another level

14:38

)

14:38

(by the way they're rendered, it looks like its a landing at the top)

(Oh, yep ok)

14:40

"Ok Kayden, have you got a standard procedure for this sort of thing, or do we just head in and play it by ear?"

(Still about 6 hours from el paso. Gonna a be a bit before I can get a good look at the map and figure something out)

(No problem, take your time)

(For sure. Doing it safe and rigjt is the way. Give yourselves the chance to do that)

Kay takes some times to read out the details of his scan. Before approaching Valentina and the soldiers. "Alright, first thing's first, atmofilters on. I don't care if we didn't pick up anything we don't really know what's in there, so filters stay on." Kay retracts the hologram and puts his own atmofilter on, he knew the TAA was supposed to be sealed, but wasn't about to take any chances. "Next, I want a cordon set up around the facility to make sure nothing sneaks up on us while we're inside, Zerene's pack can take care of that. They'll also act as our QRF in case we run into trouble inside. The rest of us, will clear the building floor by floor. We have 12 here plus Valentina and myself, so I'll leave 4 behind in the first room to secure the upper stairwell and give us an anchor point in the building. The rest of us will be clearing the building." "For the clearing team, We'll be stacking up on doors and clearing, starting from the Northern side of the building, looping around to the Southern side, then finishing with this central chamber. I want the drones up front so we can get advanced warning before we enter every room. After that, we surge in and overwhelm whatever might be in there. Once the contact is cleared, or non existent, we'll search the room before clearing the next room. Once we enter, I want at least one person pulling security on each door so nothing can interrupt or sneak up on us. Once we finish with the bottom floor, we repeat the process with the remaining ones. Every 10 minutes I want a radio check with the cordon team and strongpoint team to ensure the situation hasn't changed." "Finally, this was apparently an Overlord experiment facility. So, if we find something truly fucked up inside." He holds up a demo charge "We bring the place down. So everyone gear up, grab a few more charges, and let's get started."

"Ok, sounds good, would you like to take point behind the drones, or shall I?" As Valentina walks over to the charges and puts one on her belt, and commands the drones into position, covering each other.

02:20

She also checks the energy cell on her rifle, and the magazine in her trusty mag pistol. Once she's satisfied with everything she stands ready to head in.

"I'll take point behind the drones, you stay right behind me. When we enter rooms, I'll go left and you go right as soon as I go in." Coming up on the entrance, Kay will stack up with the bots first, then him, then he'll leave a spot for Valentina and the rest of the IFV squad.

"Suits me" Valentina stacks up behind him, and levels her rifle ready to cover around to the right of the first room, switching to and from the drone viewpoint, so that she can use their advanced sensors to give the squad warning of any resistance

Original message was deleted or could not be loaded.

Pinned a message.

02:39

The two groups form up at their respective doors and there are no signs of anything lying in wait as soon as they come down. The drones likewise do not detect anything on the other side

Quickly sweeping in with his Taros rifle and confirming the drones' all clear scans, Kay points to the staircase leading up to the next level. "Strongpoint team, secure this room and pull security on that stairwell." Once the strongpoint team is set, Kay will have 2 of the soldiers pull security on the door leading into the facility proper. Meanwhile, the rest of the soldiers and himself will quickly search the room to find any information on the facility, it's purpose, it's layout, or any obvious signs of internal security systems.

(So we had you and val pushing into that first room together from opposite sides of the U)

(Didn't one of the staircases lead up to another floor? Or do they both lead up to the same hallway?)

(both sides of the U go into the same room, and then there's stairs going up)

05:15

Moving into the entry room you see it is a foyer of sorts. THere is a fireplace that has not seen burning logs in some time, and carpets that have long since been eaten by moths and the elements. A metal grate blocks the stairs heading up into the main part of this floor

Kay does an internal head count of who all is in the atrium, "12 from the IFV, 9 from the trucks plus me and Val. That makes 23. Too cumbersome to al hit individual rooms as one group. If I leave 5 here, that gives me 18, enough to comfortably clear two rooms at a time. We have 2 drones so we can scout two rooms at a time too. Alright, bottom floor first. Otherwise there could be more staircases things could use to flank us if we go right to the second floor. Going to need to cut this grate, metatool won't cut it but the toolkit on the IVF would definitely have something to break it." "Alright, spread out and cover every entryway. Give me 2 to go back to the IFV and get us some cutters for this grate. When you get back I need 5 to stay here and guard the entryway and staircase while the rest of us clear the ground floor. If you see something, the challenge will be shield and the response will be spear. If you give the challenge and get no response or get the wrong response, light it up. Running password will be bomb. If you hear that, it means we're running for our fucking lives, so as soon as we pass, you light up whatever's behind us."

"Ok, we'll see you when you get back" Valentina wanders around the room a little, but keeps the drones aimed at the metal grate.

The two men return a few minutes later with a pair of power cutters from the vehicle. A few test revs show they’re still powered and ready to cut

"If you'd do the honours," as Valentina gestures towards the gate, the two drones prepped to head in, one left and one right, and stands ready to follow in after Kayden.

There is a scream of powered blade hitting metal, and a shower of sparks. After several minutes where it feels like the entire building is vibrating with the force of the cutting, the security grate comes free and is pulled aside

With the grate aside, Kay will motion for the drones to go ahead inside.

The drones move into an access hallway, ith another staircase ahead, and closed rooms to the north and south. The doors look wooden and far less secured than the grate you cut through to get here

Kay quickly sums up the visual to the rest of the team. "Two doors: left and right, one staircase in the center. Me and 6 will go left, Val and 6 will go right and pull security on that door, 6 will pull security on the center. After the room is secure, we'll breach left." Kay motions for the rest to surge through the door while he and his section button hook left after passing through the grate.

Valentina breaches right and swings through the door, continuing to check the drone feeds for any signs on movement, especially heat or energy signitures

(So kayden left and val right?)

(At least for this room, yeah.)

(Yup)

The two doors are breached and reveal similar scenes of empty storage tanks, sides made of glass and brass caps crowning the top of them all. Most of the cables plugged into them have rotted away, and the floor is slightly angled toward a center drain where the contents must have been flushed in the event of a spill. They are about twice as wide as a human, and just slightly longer than what would be needed to comfortably stand up

Valentina looks around the rooms, and sweeps it in its entirety then radio's "clear". She then walks over to the vats and starts examining them, as well as trying to see if there are any surviving notes

Once the central stairway and Kay's door have security placed on them, Kay will start examining the pods on his side to try and see what they could possibly have been used for.

The numbers are serialized. The tanks are in a series and likely all directed toward the same project. Each bank of capsules has a computer system attached, monitoring the 4 or 5 capsules plugged into it

Kay waves Valentina over to take a look at the consoles. "You know anything about computers? There might be some logs that could tell us what was going on here."

"Well, I can have some moments of success with computers, I'll take a look." (Int/Program: 15)

"Good, just make sure you don't power the whole station on or something. Who knows what exposed wires are around here and you wouldn't want to ground this place. I've seen someone ground a whole ship before, it's not pretty."

"Definitely, but getting the information out would definitely be useful"

The logs are fragmented and the only pieces of information you can pull from the system are repeated references to the Overlord and some sort of cloning project , though the aim of it is unknown

"Cloning and the Overlord. Hm, if I can put 2 and 2 together, then this place was probably an effort by that Overlord piece of work the stories talk about to clone himself and become, technically immortal and be in more than one place at a time. Judging by the size of the pods, he was one big motherfucker."

"Either that or he was interested in modification as well as cloning, either way, we should definitely be on our guard, on to the next room?"

(there is a center room, and then each of these side rooms with the tanks connects to something too)

"We'll take the side rooms first, 6 with me on one door and 6 with Val on the other. The 4 leftovers will pull rear security while we breach the rooms." Kay stacks up on the side door to the right and motions for the drones to start going ahead of them (If the door is locked, he'll manifest a blade to slide between the latch and the frame to cut the lock off.)

Valentina directs the drones in ahead of each breaching party, as she kicks in the door in front of her.

(initiaitive for both groups)

(Initiative: 9)

(Gonna be a bit. Briefs all day today)

18:52

(Do the drones have an initiative score? Or do they go off of Valentina's?)

(I've previously done them on my Init, so I presume that's correct?)

(Alright, so we got one drone at the front in each of the rooms.)

(They go off yours)

18:53

(val)

18:53

(because they're controlled on your turn, as a main action or move depending on if you have the control cyberware or not)

(Perfect, I also have the cyberware to make it a move, so unless I need to move then both them and I can shoot!) (edited)

(yep, its 1+program for max number controlled at once, and so for you, if you're controlling them then you just cant use your move action for yourself if the drones are moving)

(Do we at least see what the drones see first? Since they're both the first ones in?)

(sorry, got bogged down in the mechanics

(No problem. Good to get all that squared away before things kick off)

As the two parties split off to breach their respective rooms, the doors are not locked and are either kicked, cut , or otherwise opened without additional trouble. behind each door, a pack of ghouls , five in each group, were resting, dormant or otherwise quiet

19:23

2

"Oh Fuck." Valentina mutters as she glances through eyes of both drones at the matching scenes before them. (Out of interest, how high are the ceilings?)

(7)

(5-6m. Think a standard room)

(order is Val, Kayden, Ghoul packs)

Valentina looses shots into each pack of ghouls in front of her from the drones, and then levels the shear rifle and burst fires into them. (Val: 22/12, Val Side Drone: 9/10, Kay Side Drone: 13/16)

One ghoul is killed outright, and two more are gravely injured as the room suddenly fills with expended energy munitions

14:05

(kayden)

Kay flicks off the safety on his Taros rifle and quickly button hooks around the corner going to the left side of the room, giving his soldiers space to enter the room and bring their weapons to bear while firing into the pack as he moves. (28/20) (edited)

The first ghoul falls, and a second is killed by the soldiers though most of them miss their initial bursts

17:15

(so thats 2/5 dead in each room, by my count)

(Yeah, that's right)

The remaining ghouls surge forward, going for the drones at the forefront of each pack (ends up being 7 on the Val team drone, and 9 on the Kayden team drone as far as damage)

(Both Pop)

(Val is baxk up)

Val fires into the ghoul in front of her, moving around the room as she does to clear space for the rest of the squad (20/15)

The ghouls on vals side are cleared as the breaching team lays into them with close range fire. Cordite smoke curls over broken abberant bodies in the ground

Kay backs away slightly from the ghoul tearing into the drone and unloads another burst into the ghoul. (20/15)

It falls, and the squad finishes the clearing , leaving two dead packs, one on each side of the area. Everything goes quiet for a long moment as gun smoke drifts in the air

"Everyone Alright?"

"We're good here, search the rooms and give me 3 for security on each door."

(how many are with each group going forward?)

18 total

17:05

9 in each group

The rooms the ghouls were resting in are cold and damp, and seem to be nothing more than holding pens for the creatures. Bars probably filled the missng peg holes in the floor, but have been either removed, knocked down, or time had worn them away. bits of bone, a few more deformed looking ghoul specimens, and assorted trash fills each of the cells on both sides of the complex

"Ok, sending three your way, and moving forwards." Valentina selects three to go back and secure the area, and pushes through to the next room. "Breaching," she radios as she kicks in the door to the next room.

Another larger set of holding tanks occupies the rooms on each side as the breaching teams move in. These still have fluid within them, and the pipes feeding the machines occasionally gurgle or belch bubbles. There are shapes suspended within the fluid, though some are far more clouded than others- evidence that whatever is within has failed, died, or otherwise become non-viable

(As in all of them have failed, or only a few?)

(about 1/3 are dead already, the others are just creepily suspended in the tank ooze)

(Ok) "We've got a few suspended over here, don't look like a threat for now, but I couldn't be certain, what about your side?" Valentina looks around for a terminal that may be able to provide some information.

There are no computer systems in these rooms but the cables continue running East and upwards out of this room

"Kay, unless you have something your planning to do about these tanks, I suggest we press on?"

Consolidating the teams, Kay starts to lead the group to follow the cables. "Not yet, but I definitely think this place needs to be leveled when we're done. These cables need lead somewhere, so we'll see where it they go. There's definitely more ghouls around here, so I want 360 security as we move, overlapping sectors of fire, all that good shit. We have plenty of people to make that happen." Before moving out, Kay radios out to the perimeter and stronpoint teams. <<This is the breach team, we've found some ghouls inside, nothing we can't handle, but stand by for QRF. We're moving deeper into the facility now.>> (I'm leaving for the field tomorrow, so I might or might not have my phone, if I do then my hours will be weird and inconsistent. If not, then I'll be radio silent. But I'll see how it goes.)

(Ok, shall we just crack on and see how it goes for now?)

(agreed)

14:48

The rooms of tanks end, and re-connect at a junction with a set of stairs leading upwards to a second floor. The cables also seem to be moving in this direction, following the curve of the steps

"We've got stairs this side, moving up." Valentina pushes up the stairs, covering the corners, and ensuring that she identifies any movement as they're heading towards the other breach team.

40 Ghouls worship either on knees or standing and bowing, all facing the casket. They do not seem to notice you, but the remains of the missing people are piled up around it in various states of decomposition. The tomb itself is massive, far beyond what a human would need to comfortably be laid to rest. There is a chill in the room, along with chanting and venerating song from the accursed lips here

(Is this room in the middle, or is their one on either side?)

(This is the upper floor.

01:54

You’re coming in from the south)

Valentina ducks back out of the room, "I think we should prep charges through the rest of the compound, then if we can't handle what's in there, we can blow the compound the moment we're out, what do you think Kay?"

"Agreed, but I want to get at least one charge as close to the sarcophagus as possible. I don't want to meet whatever ghouls worship and I don't intend to."

"Ok, let's plant the rest first, then we'll deal with the sarcophagus, and I've only got one more Quintus drone, but now really does seem like the time for additions fire support!" <<Valentina to all teams, please plan demo charges at strategic points to enable us to flatten this structure if necessary.>> <<Also, could the security team at the trucks please let Quintus V out, he appears to be stuck behind the door>> As soon as the truck's door is open, Valentina summons Quintus V to her position and starts to plant demo charges, shaped to have greatest impact on the buildings structure. She will also place one directed down the corridor towards the ghouls, set up almost like a claymore.

)you’d have to throw the demo charge into the room on the casket, unless someone plans to run the gauntlet)

(Yep, so my thought was to get all the other charges in place, then figure out whether we'd rather just throw it and run, or whether we want to breach in, I'm leaving that a bit to Kayden, as I don't know if throwing it would be effective enough?) (edited)

(You can throw something like 10-20m generally but the blast radius is 40m on a demo charge. So you’ve got leeway

(If the character is not doing anything else, can you move and shoot with a drone, using cyberware?)

(yes, since the cyberware allows you to command a drone with a move action, so you'd have your main action for another command)

(Ok, great) "Kay, charges are planted, how do we want to handle the casket, from what I can tell, we either try to set up a shooting gallery, and try to kill all the ghouls, running away if it goes wrong, or we get everyone clear, then one of us throws the charge and runs like hell."

(Where are we in terms of the overall building? Are we in the room just North of the Pentagram room?)

(this is the second floor, you went up the easternmost stairs, and this new battlemap is the entire top floor of the building)

"So, the way I see it, we can't guarantee the ghouls won't fuck with the charge if we throw it, they're apparently smart enough to build a shrine to something so it stands to reason they'd try to remove any perceived threat to it. So that means we need to kill the ghouls or draw them away before we can demo the sarcophagus. We have a lot of hallways, so we can lead them down towards the front door where the strong point team is, attrit then as we move back, and then we can have the IFV roll forward and shred the front door with railgun fire if the ghouls get that far. Meanwhile, while the ghouls' attention is on pursuing the attriting team, one or two of us can hide around those tubes and computer garbage to go plant the demo charge on the sarcophagus. That way we can ensure that the ghouls don't mess with the charge and we can increase our chances of completely destroying the thing."

"Ok, well, I'm not tremendously sneaky, but I'm happy to go on whichever team you need me on. Assuming the shaped charge set up as a claymore works as planned, we can hopefully also use that to thin out the group before they get too far."

"Exactly. I can hide and I can try to get my armour's hologram to mimic the area around me. Hopefully that'll keep my profile low enough to get my charge to the sarcophagus." He points down to his own demo charge rigged into his gear "If I can't get it right on top of the sarcophagus, I'll try to detonate it as close as I can get it." He hesitates for a second, this was a lot of risk, but he'd seen enough of this facility, if the ghouls found value in it then he'd bring the whole place down to stop them. He takes a step closer to Valentina and whispers. "If this doesn't work, or if there really is something in there and I can't make it back. Tell Daitrij that I'm sorry, and that I love her so much."

"Don't worry, we'll make it out of here one way or another, and she'll be tremendously embarrassed at your bravery when we tell the tale!" Valentina positions Quintus V outside the main door, ready to provide covering fire, checks the mag on her shear rifle and gets ready to run like hell. She also check the demo charges are slaved to her and Kay's compads in two groups: one for the structural charges, and one to detonate the claymore to clear the first wave of ghouls. "Lets get everyone else covering the front door, there will be a significant group chasing me, and we need to cut them down as we come out into the open." "Kay, let me know when you're in position in the other corridor, and I'll draw them out, make sure you hold your position until you hear the heavy weapons fire outside, then you know we've drawn the main pack away." (edited)

(There wouldn’t be any interference with the plan until you’re ready to actually go for it )

23:58

(So far so good though)

(Ok, once all those elements are in place, Valentina will head to the door, kick it in, fire a shot, and run like hell)

Kay moves back into the room with the tubes and computer equipment. Keying his wrist pad, he tries to get the TAA's hologram to mimic the cables and computers. He also lays on top of his Taros rifle so it's shape doesn't give him away. Staying as still as possible, he waits for the sound of explosives and ghouls. (edited)

(Lets get a sneak/dex Kayden to oppose their notice

02:36

(And then once we know how that goes I’ll resolve everything

(Can you do a 2d6+3 for me? I'm out in the field now. Gonna have my phone the whole time but no computer.)

(Sure, 9)

(I’ll cinematic this)

02:47

Quintus V is loaded with a demolition charge, and Kayden also has his own compliment. Creeping back inside, he hides, waiting for the moment to strike. Enough men have been rallied for this cause, along with enough heavy firepower in the IFV. Slowly, Quintus is expertly guided through the maze of tunnels and hallways. The ghouls upstairs do not break their worship, only stopping to react when the drone enters the burial chamber

(Up to Val as to when to initiate. Kay's hiding until the ghouls clear out to chase the attriting team. If shit gets real bad, remember you can still call the pack) (edited)

(With how many people you have the plan won’t fail, especially with all the bottle necks and stuff. Basically just narrate how you want it to go

03:41

With a 36 person Gucci gang there’s really nothing that can happen)

Valentina fires off a quick burst from Quintus V, and then sets it moving as they run towards the front door, down the opposite tunnel from where Kayden is hiding. As they get to the open air, Valentina jumps behind the firing line, and opens up on the arriving crowd of ghouls, making as much noise as possible to draw them all out.

The ghouls have their blood up, running past Kayden, down into the rest of the building where other forces are waiting for them as bait, to ensure everyone piles out

Valentina directs the forces in ensuring that non of the ghouls get to the lines, or are able to move away from the entrance. Once all the ghouls appear to have moved out, Valentina will start a rough count of the corpses, ensuring that no large groups have stayed behind, and giving Kay some time to get a scout around inside before the larger group moves back in.

After the ghouls rush out of the room, Kay skulks from his hiding spot, sweeping the room with his rifle, in case there were one or two stragglers. After ensuring the room is clear, Kay unhooks the demo charge from his gear and inspects the sarcophagus.

The relief has been faded with the passing of time, showing some sort of warrior figure at rest. The figure is massive, far taller and broader than a human but many of the features are much the same. There are symbols carved into the wood that scroll like script, though it isnt a language recognized by any of the databases on hand. the room is quiet, only the flickering torches in this room crackling away for sound

Kay looks down at the relief, "Daitrij said she found another figure trapped in a sarcophagus that came back to life. Maybe it's something like that? But if ghouls are worshipping it, and considering we're in an old test facility for the Overlord. I'm not taking that chance." Kay places the demo charge on the sarcophagus and then starts to make his way back to the entrance once he hears the sounds of weapons fire and ghoul screeching to stop. (edited)

(6xp, 10,000 credits)

20:13

The ghouls are long dead by time everyone evacuates the building, their blind rage bringing them into the fire pockets of the dozens of soldiers here. There was never a chance for any of the creatures. All that remains is to finish the work, and level the structure

"Would you care to do the honours?"

To: Kayden Zayre
From: Hot Girl from Space

Hey Luchik,

I hope you are fine. I just reached Heras again. Radji is in, they joined, can you believe it? The first member from outside of Heras. I am on my way to Janusus now. I don't know what to think about them. But you know, everything will be fine. Take care, Kay. I love you.

May the flame in your heart guide your way.
Daitrij

(Are we splitting threads now as we each go on to our separate cities?)

(I level up to 7 with 3xp over. But there's no way I have the reception in the field to launch roll 20. So I'm just going to spend my 4 points to boost my dex mod to +2 and take pistoleer focus.)

(Nevermind I just barely got it to work)

02:08

jogging out of the building, Kay smiles at the offer. "With pleasure." He says as he hits the clacker and detonates the charges, causing the whole structure to implode on itself. "That settles that. From here, it looks like we go our separate ways. Good luck in Stygia."

(I can fix yout sheet for you if you need me to)

03:18

(and we can split then, I think this was about the site where the paths diverge anyway

(I was able to fix it. I get ok service sometimes so I can still function)

Val and her team diverge from the rest of you, off for other horizons. Your own task lies ahead further south

Walking back from the wreckage of the facility, Kay redons the suit as he consolidates his men from the IFV and Zerene's pack. Cloning, the overlord, those ghouls, the sarcophagus. Whatever experiments the Persephans had been doing there, it bothered him to think about. Pushing the thoughts to the back of his mind, he reorganizes back into their normal formation, with the pack out front and Kay's sensors scanning around the IFV. while moving, he'll also reply to Daitrij's message.

(It’s been a bit. What city are we going to again?)

(Persepha)

The city of Persepha is a city of dark bones, foreboding towers, and shadowed city blocks, all covered in ivy , flowering plants, and trees. Life and death, light and darkness, strength and weakness, all seem to find and compliment one another in this city and it is evident from your approach. A motorbike patrol leaves from the city gate, their black smoke staining the horizon. there are ten men in the pack, and they seem to be on course for you

Kay hits his comm in the suit to broadcast the the rest of the formation. "Let them come to us, I'll meet them out front and the rest hang back in case things get ugly." Flying out in front of the pack, Kay sets down in front of the formation to greet the motorbike patrol.

To:Luchick
From:Daitrij

Hey Kay,

it is great to hear that you are well and that you destroyed some of the remnants of the Overlord. Should they be connected to Persepha tho, just stay safe. I know you have all kinds of armor and physical protection. But you can also trust on Ognyena to be at your side, and me if you ever call for me to come. 

As for Janusus. Do you think four of your special forces soldiers and me, with the help of a teleportation pad, would be able to extract a Khan of a city that uses a weird mix of mostly older weaponry? This is just a hypothetical question of course.

I love you, Kay. And if it wasn't me, you should be our Herald.

Daitrij

The bikes form a tight column, and begin to slow, the led two officers dismounting

Kay walks towards the officers, his rifle slung. "How's it going? We're not here for any fighting, we just came to talk and see the city."

"No no, course not, we came out to meet you and see if you're passing through or planning on coming in. Khan's been keeping informed, is aware generally of whats going on"

"Too easy, we were planning on coming in and hopefully talking to the Khan or some kind of representative. My name is Kayden Zayre, from the Elysian Protectorate. And I just wanted to make myself known to your Khan and your incredible looking city."

"The Khan will invite you in, we will lead you to the palace square, and you will dismount your vehicles there, and meet him. He will have more to say, surely. "

Kay nods to the patrol. "That'd be appreciated. If you lead the way, I'll get my guys to follow." Waving back towards his formation, he motions for them to fall out and follow the patrol towards the city.

The group heads into the city, where the black iron covered in ivy seems to grow thicker. White flowers often grow near the upper reaches of some of the most overgrown platforms. Several large towers around the city hum as wind passes through them, and there is the slight cinnamon scent of corpse rot on the wind, though faint enough for it not to trouble anyone much. Birds circle the upper reaches of these towers, craning and cawing as they go about their business.

As the group walks through the city, Kay looks up at the massive towers, trying to follow the cawing birds as they circle overhead. "So, I heard a little about this place from the town just to the east. You know much about Persepha's history? No one from Elysium has ever been inside Persepha, to the best of my knowledge."

From: Daitrij
To: Kayden

Luchick,

they shot at me. If I had left the spaceship to greet them, like I normally do, even Ognyena would have problems keeping me in one piece. This attack felt so random it matched what the people from Janusus told me about their city and Khan. And yes I want to pinpoint the location of the Khan, teleport in by night, capture him with close to no casualties, and teleport out again. They won't know what happened to them. Their act of aggression could lead to all sorts of armed conflict and retaliation from our side, but for now, only a small group knows about that incident. And I won't risk the life of any diplomat that just gets murdered when he tries to enter this city. There was no word spoken. If that is how they act against others, I need to stop him so he doesn't hurt his own people as well. 

I asked Ognyena for a sign, that is when they started to shoot at us. This is a clear sign, I have to deal with this situation. But fear not, I will be accompanied by the Black Phalanx, Cyrus' elite Taros unit. I will be safe, don't worry. And if you deem it too dangerous, it is even more advisable that I am going without you. You would deserve the title of Herald even more than I do. But fear not, I won't get hurt and I will make sure that Janusus won't hurt anybody else.

Embrace the flame in your heart, Luchick.
Daitrij

Kay feels horrible at doing this behind her back. But he has a horrible feeling about the message Daitrij sent him. If Janusus was really as aggressive as she said they were, then she would be met with an overwhelmingly hostile reaction the second she teleported in. And he wasn't sure she even knew where the Khan actually was. Pulling up a second message, Kay looks upon the contact for Sol, "Thank goodness Daitrij introduced us and let us exchange contacts."

To: Sol
From: Daitrij

Sol,
I'm sorry if this goes against what Daitrij had you do, but I have a terrible feeling about all of this. Please, don't take the Low Tech to Daitrij. Send me the paperwork  and I will deadline the ship myself. But this kind of operation has massacre written all over it. Please Sol, I just don't want to lose her.

From,
Kay

(edited)

“Did you have a specific question in mind? Might be easier than giving you the whole treatise”

"I was interested in Persepha's interactions with this mythical Overlord figure. He was already a story by the time I got on planet. But I was told Persepha had more information on him than other cities."

"Of course we do, we were his proud right hand during the terrestrial conflicts here, though that era is long gone, and we've made amends to our fellow humans on this world"

15:16

"It's something we acknowledge, but do not say much about to ourselves anymore"

"Interesting, so Persepha served very closely to him. I didn't know it was such a relationship." He continues walking with the officers as another thought pops into his head. "You know the town just to the east of here right? I stopped by on my way here and they said they really didn't know much about you. They just knew you delivered luxury items and they was pretty much it. Any reason for the loose relationship?"

"We got what we need from them, and they got what they need from us. That was enough of a meaningful relationship as far as the Khan seems to be concerned. Not much else we can really do there"

"I suppose, so. Not every Khan needs to be direct with his allies. Only real issue they had were some dissapearences, but we solved that for them before we arrived here." (edited)

"Nothing came up the chain about them, locals must not have asked us to look into them. I'm sure whatever it is you did is something the Khan will want to hear about though"

"Yeah, sometimes the administrative side of things likes to get in the way whenever there's something that needs doing. I know that feeling well. However, if the Khan would be interested in hearing my report, I'd be happy to give it to him."

02:06

You're brought to the main administrative square of the city, where a moss and vine covered castle awaits, its front portcullis open like a mouth of rusting black iron fangs. guards in leather haubreks and metal shields carry a combination of long spears or simple firearms. Most sport some kind of metal bucket helmet and at least another knife. They say little, as you're being accompanied, and merely watch as you're led inside to a common room. The castle interior is hellishly warm, though the draft coming through the room somehow also makes the air chilly. It is a strange feeling, the extremes of both at once

Kay looks around at he interior of the castle. It seemed strange in almost every way, things collided yet seemed to mix together. Everything seemed to have a very strange duality about it that made it difficult to accurately pin the place down. If the Khan was as mercurial as his city and castle, then it might pose a significant challenge for him to co Vince the Khan of anything.

The Khan descends the stairs, holding the hand of another, dressed identically to her. Khan Persehpha is adorned in light green, with a crown of flowers on her head and a dress with cuffs and hems likewise made of woven green things, though they shift with the light ranging between the vibrancy of full spring, and the waning days of grey late fall. The other figure is male, wearing predominantly black and his face is concealed behind an ivory burial mask, depicting a young princes' features at rest. He is armored, and it is painted to resemble a skeleton, with occasional splashes of additional black in some areas

Kay bows he head to the figures as theybdecend down the stairs. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am Kayden Zayre of the Elysian Protectorate. I presume that you are the Khans of Persepha. In which case, your officer said that you would appreciate the information I've gathered from one of your partner towns."

The male bows , respectfully though shallowly, where as the woman clears her throat. "Please. Tell us what you were able to find. We do not get much information from them, though we also so rarely ask"

"Of course. The town had been having several disappearances as of late, with people venturing into the same area of woods and disappearing. I told them that my team and myself would investigate and see what was happening. In the forest, we arrived at an old dilapidated instillation that, judging from the data recovered, was from the Overlord's time. The data was broken and corrupt, but it repeated the words "cloning" and "Overlord" frequently. When we pushed further into the facility, we found a total of 50 ghouls inside. 10 were scattered in the facility, while 40 of them were worshipping at some kind pf sarcophagus, on an altar made from the bodies of the dissapeared. After we saw that, decided it was prudent to exterminate the ghouls and level the facility."

"One of the vaults was still active then. You may have saved us all from dealing with another of the Overlord's temporal surprises"

16:50

"You may have noticed time flows differently here. This planet is at a junction between the past, present and future....between life and death..between technology and the arcane. "

Kay nods, trying to understand how one could alter time so overtly. He knew it was possible, but it would take an incredible amount of psychic or arcane power to do so. "I've noticed. Not too long ago we discovered another tomb that contained one of the very first settlers on this planet. This planet sure has it's share of surprises."

"And those are what we know about" the man says, his voice low, and sounds almost modulated through the ornate helmet

17:20

"You did well, demolishing that building. Left unchecked, there would have been a clone of the Overlord abroad"

Kay nods his head in acknowledgement. "Thank you. Heras has been good to me ever since I arrived. So it's a welcome feeling to know that I'm helping it's people continue to live in peace."

"We have an unfortunate association with the Overlord. It is an association we are hoping will fade, with time. We have done our best to distance ourselves from it, but it is not always easy"

Kay looks up at the starkly contrasting pair. "Then allow the Protectorate to help you shed your old association. We frequently venture into the wilds of Heras, so we can help scour the Overloard's influence from the surface of the planet. In addition, we could help mediate between Persepha and the other cities, should their old prejudices come up at any point."

"And in exchange, there certainly must be obligations. What are they?"

"Of course, there always are. It would be membership as a part of the Elysian Protectorate."

"Correct, we surmised. What obligations do members have"

"Members have the basic tax obligations and contributions to the defense force. However, they also may have a representative sent to a council who's goal it is to ensure that the unique heritage of Heras is preserved as well as ensure that member cities do not get run over by any one body. I also have a copy of our Constitution if you wish to review it yourself." He will open his datapad and pull up a copy of the constitution for the Khan to read.

"I see, very much reflecting the new image we are trying to put out into the world. We do have a few of our own conditions if we are assuming this burden, but you seem to be well on your way toward working on it as is"

"What would your conditions be?"

"We would need some work done to revive the soil around our city, we would also wish to be included on any operations taken against Overlord sites, or any other temporal traps he has left on this world. finally, we will join but we insist work is done to end the ghoul contagion he has unleashed on this planet. Death is something to be both commemorated and honored, and his re-animation of the fallen makes a mockery of one of our most sacred rites"

Kay nods at these conditions "Those would be easily agreeable. After seeing what those ghoukd did to those people and the threat that another Overlord could cause, I want to scour them from the planet. Maybe then the dead can be buried with respect instead of with fear. As for the soil, I can at least get you started. No matter the conditions, I can make plantains grow. I also know some people who would be very happy to work with you on bring life to the soil here. I accept these terms." (New goals. Destroy Overlord temporal traps, end ghoul plague.)

"We will join the protectorate then, with the understanding that these obligations are met"

"I keep my promises. They will be. Welcome to the Protectorate, we are thrilled to have you. "

(BP sheet updated, 3xp, 5000 credits)

2

16:07

(god damn its so nice to be home to do the shit as it happens)

2

Kay gives the Khan a respectful bow "Thank you for your time. If I may, I will take my leave and begin the preparations to send people over to help breathe life back into your soil." If they allow him, Kay will quickly don the suit, telling Zerene to lead the IFV back to the city. Then, as fast as the suit could carry him, he'd fly back to Mytikas 'For the love of everything good, I hope Daitrij didn't just superscede my paperwork.' (edited)

(You're fine to wear it, doesnt make sense to kill them after they signed their city over)

Speeding through the landscape he desperately tries to find Daitrij before she could head back to Janusus. He'd check anywhere he could from the temple, to the command center, to any cathedrals, hoping she hasn't just up and went without telling him.

Her compad is at the catacombs, though you see not one, but two ships there right now. One is the Trojan Horse, the other, you have never seen before

'Who is that? No one else is supposed to know about this place. Could be bad, no time to change into the TAA.' Turning on the cloaking mechanism, Kay with unsling his rifle to the low ready and enters the catacombs (edited)

(coming from the backside, so through the Catacombs would mean Kay wouldn't be noticed by Sol. But the Catacombs are empty, as Dai and Eish are in the Cathedral. When you get there and if you could still interrupt the talking is up to you and Neko, I guess.)

(I don’t mind him interrupting if you guys are ok with it)

(i'm cool with it)

(Yeet)

Kay will step down from the ramp in the suit, standing in the clearing and waiting for the Layzal. 'I hope that this is actually possible. I'd hate the feeling of being stuck in one place. Then again, the Layzal think a little differently than I do.' (edited)

The Layzal are quick to find you, as always, materializing at the edge of the wood, and looking on with what you think is interest behind their impassive armored plates for faces

Kay retracts the helmet and nods to the Layzal. "It's good to see you again. I had a question about the nature of your people and wanted to see if you could help bring life back to the soil of this planet."

"Ask, please" the chief says, planting his sword into the ground and waiting patiently

"Is it possible to expand your forest? Having come from Persepha, I saw their land is dead and barren. Plants don't grow there and the soil has no nutrients to help foster life. But, if it were possible to expand the wood towards their land. I could think of no better people to create and safeguard that plant life than the Layzal."

"It is great work to expand the wood, there are not enough Layzal to patrol it..what you request is a large work for our people, but it can be done, if the things we need are brought to us"

"I will try my best to bring it to you. What do you need?"

Something powerful, taken from us by the Overlord, long ago. Hidden away in the ice, in the south. It is a stone, very large, and covered in runes. It belonged to us when the great Witchwood extended across almost the entire world

He thinks for a minute. "I can find it for you, but I'd need to have my men come to pick up a stone that large and bring it back. Do you have a clearer location other than South? This suit is fast, but it won't be able to cover the whole south of Heras in the time that I have available."

"The southern ice-shelf. I can see it sometimes, in my mind...it lies between three crowns of ice....three by themselves"

He nods. "Ok I'll try to fly by and check the place out. Hopefully my scanners can pick it up and I can mark it for pickup. I'll be back shortly to let you know how it goes." The helmet folds back into position as he takes off towards the Southern ice shelf.

(Its one of those situations where what he sees is difficult to communicate, since there's a bit of a language barrier yet)

(Yeah, to him it sounds like it's between three peaks in the ice shelf. So he'd be going off of that description and trusting his scanner to pick up something unusual that doesn't match the smooth ice that would make up the rest of the sheet)

(lets get a notice/wis as Kayden iron man's it across the south pole

(10)

THe place you think might be right stands out after flying for a few hours, circling the ice peaks. The ice caps are endless seas of pure white, with bird like life forms dotting the ice in large packs. There is no evidence people have ever come here

'Hm, doesn't seem like anyone's ever been over here. But it's the Layzal, I can't even begin to tell what they're really capable of or what they were like before the forest. Still, the place looks right. Should go check it out.' Kay will try to find a clearing to land and will do a deep scan of the area to try to find anything made up of compounds very different from the ice or large enough to look like a stone.

In the midst of the three crowns of ice mountains, but deep underground, evidence of a large object not made from local stone returns . It is massive, easily the size of one of the tires of the IFV vehicles you've been building

He puts his hands on his head. This was going to take a concerted effort. But he needed to bring a team out here to start excavating and lift it with a lighter. This probably wouldn't get done till after he gets back from Gundrun. But he also had to confirm that this could be the right stone, not just some Boulder picked up by the moving glaciers. He looks around for any kind of crevice that could get his closer to physically see the rock.

There is a cave rimed with ice and heavily frozen over nearby, landing in the middle of the three crowns. Two stone obelisks, one on each side, mark the cave in the language of the Layzal as a place of exile, and sorrow. Vines and frozen plants carpet the ground and it looks as though this place was ripped wholesale from the earth and planted here, while the tunnels and digging works came later

'Damn, even the Layzal had a place to exile their own. I know how that feels. But judging from the vines, the stone has to be deeper into the cave. I still have some time, so I gotta make this fast.' Kay turns on his low light vision, activates his scanner, and his cloak, delving into this Layzal structure. Maybe he might even learn a little more about them through this too.

To: Kayden
From: Daitrij

Hey Luchick,

we are looking at potential crew for the Elysium of Thjodhild and will stock the Salamis accordingly. To not make this a rushed effort and give those chosen a moment to prepare, I think it's best to start tomorrow or even the day after tomorrow. So whatever you do, take care and don't rush things, you've got some time. I'll be there whenever you get back to me.

Love you,

Daitrij

The soil around the entry way matches what was found in the Layzal forest, though the rest of the area is more 'normal' , almost as if this patch of land was flung from the ground itself, all the way here. There are runes along the obelisks, speaking about how this was a place of rest for the spirits of the Layzal, and that the dead are not quiet, but with us always

'So I've come up on a burial ground of some sort. Knowing the Layzal, I can't guarantee that their spirits don't continue on in some way. So I should be respectful to this place as I go. But I need to mark this stone. So that means I need to go deeper.' Kay delves deeper into the cave, making sure to disturb as little as possible as he moves. He smiles when Daitrij's message pops up. 'I know I should be focused on the here and now. But damn I'm excited to go to Gundrun with her.'

Lights come on, on your suit, and you emerge into the cave system below the triple crowns. Rusted Layzal armor bodies are lumped against every wind in the cave, and some even seem to be frozen, coming out of the walls.

Kay looks around at the graveyard of bodies in silence. 'They look so, still. Did the Layzal even bury their dead? Or were they just thrown in here? On top of that, what happened to bring this here to the pole? It looks like this place was ripped straight from the mainland.' Kay continues deeper, remembering the position if the stone and trying to relate it to his position underneath it.

You're in a winding tunnel heading down to it, when sometihng stirs near the end of the chamber where the stone is held. The ground shakes as though there is a minor earthquake, and there is a blast of hot wind, as a slight smell of rot washes over you

Kay activates his cloak and starts to move from concealment to concealment as he follows the gust of air, gagging slightly at the smell of rot. Just to be safe, he puts on an atmofilter. 'Fuck, I thought everything in here was long dead but apparently there's something else in here. Gotta be a little more careful from here on out.'

(lets get a sneak/dex, when you can, or i can do it for you if youre afield)

(Idk why it rolled a save, but 16)

1

(Creeping through yo graveyards. Stealing yo rocks.)

Whatever is in this tunnel with you, or around it, it does not notice you as you creep through the tunnel, eventually coming to the end where something resembling an earthen chamber houses a large stone, every inch of its surface carved with symbols, and held down by bronze chains

22:03

The chain links are thick, each one the size of a human head

Kay looks up at the massive stone, admiring the symbols stitches across its surface, tracing them out with his hand as he feels the rough surface. This was definitely the stone that the Layzal were talking about. 'Time to mark this thing for pickup. But whatever was in here would definitely notice a team coming in here to move it. I need to deal with whatever is in here first before I call in an extraction team.' He breaks his gaze away from the stone as he tries to follow the scent of rotten meat and find the creature that seems to be stalking these caves.

There are several torso sized holes in the walls where icy vapors leak out into the cavern, one of them is pushing out far more warm air than the others

Kay can see the heat waves radiating off of one of the holes in the cavern. 'Only a thermal vent of some kind of living thing would radiate that much heat in here. And I doubt that there would be a glacier on a thermal vent. One monster, in a confined space. A grenade seems like the best option here. Structure seems thick enough to take the blast' (This isn't the only exit from the cave is it?)

(no, it isnt)

'This thing either hunts by movement, vibration, or heat. So I'll have to cover my tracks to throw it off.' He activates the cloak to help hide his thermal signature as best he can. He also turns on his anti grav nodes, not enough to take off, but enough to displace the area around the nodes and throw off anything that would detect him through vibration. Slowly making his way up to the warm hole, he quickly dumps a grenade in the hole before rolling away from it.

(Just give a damage result when you can , and I’ll apply the save)

(Again, idk why it rolled a bunch of times, dumb ass phone. But 8)

There is an explosion in the tunnel as some kind of greasy black matter aimed at Kayden splatters on the wall and floor accompanied by the bellow of a beast in pain

Kay backs away from the holes. The beast surely had to have moved by now. He keeps his rifle up and ready, looking at any of the holes to try and see where the best might be hiding this time.

(And evasion save)

(Success)

A pair of large jaws set in jaws emerges from the grenade tunnel, like an eel but landed. The gnashing fangs bite short of where they could harm you

Kay ducks and rolls back, away from the jaws. His rifle close to his body as he whips it back around, he sends a burst into the gnashing fangs. (32/22) (edited)

2

The head splits into two sections, with ropy brain matter hissing as the hot cranial fluid pumps over the chilled ice and snow in the cave. A moray like eel creature slithers out of the hole on dead muscles, all slack now with nothing to keep it taunt. It's scales are fragile like ice, white and angular, veined with a deep blue, and it has crested ridges on its back of the same material

03:09

It has no discernable legs, relying on slithering on its armored belly like a traditional serpent

Kay walks over to the corpse of the moray creature, taking a handful of its scales to be brought back for further study. Once he's confirmed the area is clear, he returns to the rock, marking it's location and tracing his route for the lighters to come pick up. He specifically tells them to bring heavy lift gear to move this thing as he examines the chains. The teams would have cutters with them, but the faster he could expedite the process, the better. He takes his rifle and presses it against the chain, trying to break them with the force from the miniature railgun.

There is a massive blue spark as the chain shears, but breaks, (3xp, 5000 credits)

03:41

By nightfall, the stone has risen as recovery crews swarm the area , on its way back to the sacred lands of the Layzal, with you aboard the lighter carrying it

Kay has the lighters set the stone down in the same clearing he was before, helping them unhook it and waving them off. He stands there, waiting for the Layzal to come, as they always did. He had questions, but he also knew he had to get back to Daitrij soon. She might start to worry.

The Layzal begin emerging from the forest, several of them move to put a hand on the stone, and the glyphs carved into it begin to light up with a jade green. Particles of the same color swirl in the air, slowly gathering around the stone

Kay simply watches in wonder. He knew they all had MES abilities, but this seemed so much closer to the arcane. Just what the hell were the Layzal? And all things considered, he was happy that they considered him a friend. He'd hate to see what they could do to their enemies.

There is something in the wind that sounds like overlapping voices, some are tinny and almost sound like they're coming through a radio, others are loud and boisterous like a stormy sky. A thunderclap of force and a wave of green energy knocks you onto your back. The Layzal are buffeted, their armored frames forced to take several steps back to remain upright

14:27

Around you, flowers begin to weave through the trees. Grass grows, and the wood thickens in several places with new life

Kay hits the ground hard, the suit taking most of the impact, but the wind still being knocked out of his lungs. He struggles back up to his feet as the forest seems to revitalize around him, huffing and puffin to try and replace his air. "Did...did it work?"

It did The Layzal chief says. Your request, if you would not mind repeating it

15:18

(You also get another of the Gaia abilities with an effort to go with it)

*Kay takes in a breath, ignoring the dull thumping in his chest * "My request is to expand the wood, breathe life back into the soil of Persepha. And give the Layzal the freedom to move about the planet that is just as much their home as it is ours."

"You refer to the blighted zone, near Stygia, yes?"

"Yes, the blighted lands between Stygia and Persepha."

There is another of the pulsing waves from the Layzal stone, the roots nearby glowing the same green. In the distance, a storm begins forming, moving in that direction

17:10

It, is done

17:10

(I'm gonna fix the map now)

17:15

17:18

(Everything's updated on the world anvil too)

Kayden gives a small bow to the Layzal. "You've done more to help the people of Heras than you know. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. And I am glad to call the Layzal my friends." (edited)

(it was hard to get every single dead tree out of the frame without deleting the label or the mountains, i did my best)

(No problem. It still looks nice)

(6xp, 10,000 credits)

3

03:32

*The Layzal are proud to call you an ally. You have given us the power to heal as much of the world as we can. The deserts and badlands are ecosystems of their own, and we will not put those animals out of a home, but never again will the land be blighted"

(Level 7-level 8 Health: 49-69 Lead: 1-2 Exert: 0-1)

1

With the errand done. Kay starts to make his way back to Daitrij. 'Who only knows how long I've kept her waiting for.'

(We can pick that up when she's done in space)

14:48

(but we'll move on to your thing next)

(if you want, we can get you back to heras to check out the garden, maybe do a final check for anything of value/temporal traps)

(He'll stay with Dai until she finishes her business, then he'll go back to the Garden)

kayden hops aboard the new EP frigate, with its trained spacer crew, eager to head out toward other missions and stars. The vessel is sleek and modern, and well prepared for what is ahead

Kay walks onto the bridge of the frigate, fairly nervous. 'What the hell am I supposed to do? I don't know what I'm doing here. How am I supposed to find any sort of answers out there? This isn't Heras, and this isn't anywhere close to my home.' "Come visit your family Kay." *'What family? My family is here and going to Heras. There's no one else.' "We're on Rawhani Kay. Please, come see us." Kay shakes his head at the captain's terminal, placing a hand against his forehead. "Plot a course for Rawhani."

(3 days of downtime on the way there if you're wrking on anything_)

(Taros 21/30)

Rawhani is a wasteland world still recovering from the grips of a UNW ground invasion. Most of the soldiers have been withdrawn, with a small contingent and on-world defense forces now responsible for peacekeeping efforts here. You're drawn toward the House Draconis campus down below, where a large chapel to Auguana, now empty mech hangars, and a barracks for the next generation of men-at-arms are the dominant features. Loremaster Wescott also has a small repository of knowledge there, to accompany the psionic forge.

Kay cautiously walks from the frigate towards the House Draconis campus, his TAA reforming into its bio mechanical armor. It's loving metal twisting and coating his body while the visor forms around his face to keep the dust out of his face. Each step he takes off the landing craft, he's goaded on by the disembodied voice, it's pitch and intonation shifting from male to female, calm to erratic at seemingly random intervals. It seems to know him, but also have very little idea about him, talking nonsense like it was just speaking to add to its own cacophony of noise. "Come on Kay, not much further. Please, don't leave us again. We offered you peace and you ran away with it all, like you always do. It's time to pay the piper." Kay half stumbles, half walks onto the mostly deserted campus, looking between the various buildings. "H...hello? Is anyone here?"

There is a shuffle from one of the side alcoves as a robed archival worker makes his way over. "The peace of Auguana, patron goddess of those who sail the stars , be upon you traveler. May I offer you water? or assistance? "

The visor retracts so he can better see the thr worker. "Uh, yeah. Sorry. Water would be great, these migranes are fucking killing me. I was told that there was something here for me. But, I'm not sure what."

He nods, and begins filling a large bottle with water from the fountain nearby, depicting the goddess as a mermaid, pouring the ocean's waters from a turned jug from her hands, into the large pool below. A handful of coins have been thrown into the bowl, wishes of travelers

Kay looks at the bowl, contemplating whether or not to throw a coin in. He digs a hand into a pocket and pulls out a small coin, tossing it into the bowl. 'I just want everything to be ok. With me, with Dai, my people, my planet.' "You wish and hope. But what do you do? Is it enough? Is it too much? Too much to figure out, too many jobs not enough time. Are you anxious? Or are you complacent? Do you really know?"

The robed figure returns, a smile on his line face, and he presents you a small jar of water to drink. "THe most pure on Rawhani, I can guarantee"

Kay weakly returns the smile as he takes the jar. "Thanks. My name's Kayden, what about you?" He takes a swig from the jar.

“I am An adept in training and my name will be given back to me upon its completion. I am able to assist you if you tell me@how I may”

"I'm...not sure adept. Something drew me here, but I'm not sure what it is or why."

"The core" she says, after a moment, tihnking to herself "The core has called you. It has called others before. "

"The core? What is that? Where is it?" He winces a bit as another pang of migraine hits him. "Sorry, can you...can you just take me there please?"

she nods and seems to glide across the floor, taking you by the hand to lead you. The Psionic core recovered from Rawhani has been placed in the heart of a forge, in the House Draconis holdings. In Y3M9, the forge was returned to the reclaimed House Draconis stronghold on Rawhani, but remains open for psychics everywhere. Conductive Jaxtonite lines go from the furnace, to specially carved channels on the floor. The channels form a circle around an anvil, three channels in total, for three working anvils total. Currently, the forge is capable of using the energy in Psionic crystals for imbuement in other objects, and of awakening one partial psychic to a full psychic every two years. Level 0 and Level 1 Techniques can be imbued in objects. With research, an expansion into more powerful forging techniques might be possible.

20:56

A small case on the wall holds charged crystals with techniques, and as you enter the room a small panel opens on the side of the forge, allowing you to see the supernova white bright gem at its heart. It calls, wanting to be touched, to know your mind, and for you to know it, too.

Kay instinctively walks towards the crystal, the shifting voices turning into a chorus of noise as he winces once before finally touching the crystal. His hand trembles as his nerves fire all at once and force him to grip the crystal, his body twitching as if there were an electric current running through it. Vison flashing white for a moment, everything goes black. Dimly shining through the void, a small purple light backlights a figure of similar build to Kay. The figure's brown hair is short and messy like Kay's, but its face has a short beard compared to Kay's stubble and is wearing just a shirt and jeans, compared to Kay's biomechanical armor. Ty: "Hey Kay. You're looking good." Kay shakes his head, barely able to accept the apparent existence of his dead older brother. Kay: "T...Ty? How are you here? How are you alive? Where even are we?" Ty: Ty takes a few steps forward, manifesting a small chair with the same purple energy Kay uses to manifest his weapons. "Alive, no. I'd call myself an echo more than anything. I remember me, you Jace, Zeph, Mom, and Dad. But that's about it. As for where we are, I don't know, sounds like a Jace kind of question to be honest. I'm glad you got my message though." Kay: "You...you were the one calling me? How? Why?" Ty: "You were telling Daitrij you had questions, well done by the way, and didn't know if you could answer them? Well, that's what I wanted to talk to you about. I wasn't totally honest with you or the rest of the family. I knew some...well, a lot of magic back in the day. It's what made me such a convincing trader. When Zeph shot you, there was enough of me left to, well, protect you a little bit. Those guns you make, the walking on walls, the surviving random bullshit, I guess a little of my magic rubbed off on you." Kay: "So, you were that shadow standing over me in the hospital. But, why now? Why call me here?"

Ty: Ty steps off of the chair, it dissipating into the void behind him. He walks up to Kay and places his hands on Kay's shoulders. "Because Kay, I've seen what you've been able to do since your exile. You've done amazing things, things no Thracian would have ever dreamed of doing. And I'm so proud of you Kay. You don't need to doubt yourself, you don't need to feel guilty about me, mom, or dad anymore. Because I knew they're proud of you too. You've done amazing Kay, and you have so much more potential. This place, it'll unlock that potential, things that those Layzal guys have already started unlocking. After it does, I don't think I'll be able to stick around, but please take this opportunity, as one more gift for my little brother." Ty leans forward and hugs Kay. "Before I go, just know that I love you Kay. Go back to Daitrij, do great things, and just remember that we're all proud of you." Kay wakes up on the ground in the Forge's chamber. The world appears to spin as his stomach lurches and expels the water he just drank onto the floor. He slowly sits up as he wipes off his face and looks up at the adept. "What...what the hell was that?" (edited)

"The forge reacts to everyone differently. Only you can answer what that was. There is one unifying factor among all who viist here and are chosen, and that is the core must be touched "

"Then, what did it do to me? I heard, or I think I heard someone talk to me about potential and abilities." He moves his eyes around for a brief moment. "Wait, the migraine's gone."

"Your MES channels have opened. The old terrans in the ages when civilization was first beginning believed in a practice where a drill was applied to the head. It was meant to exorcise demons, so they thought, but really what they were doing was allowing skull pressure to be relieved. The migraine vanishing was attributed to the evil entity being banished. We've done a bit of both here I suppose, taken away some bad and banished it, and relieved some of the pressures you had been feeling"

Kay gives a nod to the adept. "Thank you. I'm not totally sure what's happened, but I appreciate you bringing me here. It feels like whatever's been bothering me has, at least, calmed down a little bit. Is there any, I don't know, payment necessary?"

"None. This is a place of refuge for all who travel the stars and ensure the safety of its travelers. "

"Well then, you have my gratitude. If what you say is true, and my MES gates have opened, then I believe I should take my leave. There's a lot to learn now, and a lot of help to give."

"If you are questioning, you'll find the answers to many with Headmaster Fate of the Academy. It does not matter where you call home, the safety, education, and understand of psychics everywhere is everyone's concern"

"That sounds like a smart decision. Where would I find this Headmaster?"

"He is normally on Galatea, working with the groups there to ensure peace and psychic understanding across the sectors, but he can be reached from anywhere with communications. "

"Galetea? Fuck, I promised someone I'd be back on Gundrun soon. Alright then, if there's any way I can get him communications frequency, I'll try to talk to him. If he thinks I should come to Galetea, I'll go."

The adept returns with a small comms device, and nods once, showing you all you need to do is press the transmit button and record your message

Kay takes the comms device and lightly pressed the transmit button. "Hello Headmaster Fate, my name is Kayden Zayre. I'm on Rawhani at the moment and just had an...experience with the Forge. The adept here told me that you might be able to explain just what happened to me and what might have changed."

( @Regulus/Grupp need reg for a hot minute)

A moment later an arcane glyph appears on the ground in front of you, glowing a soft blue-white. The glow grows brighter and the light condenses into the form of a robot, standing seven feet tall before you, "Greetings Kayden Zayre, I am Regulus Fate and it is a pleasure to meet you."

Kay looks from where the glyph was, to the robot, back to the ground again. "How the? What does that? Never mind, not even the point. Nice to meet you Mr. Fate. I was told you were an expert in this sort of stuff, and it seems like that was right."

"Being me does have some advantages." You hear humor in his voice though the robotic face doesn't move. "Would you explain your experience with the forge and what drew you to it?"

"It's, kinda a weird story. I was on Gundrun and suddenly started feeling off. I was frustrated, I started to ask a lot of questions I don't usually ask. Then, when I started to come here, I heard voices. I thought they were of people I knew, but I couldn't tell. When I came here and touched the core, I saw, well, my dead brother. We talked and he said I had a certain potential. I don't know what he meant by it, but when he finished talking I woke up on the floor."

(I’m caught up )

(Sorry the notification didn't pop up for me for some reason!) "Ah, I see. As strange as it may sound, I myself died once. For most their energy is simply disbursed and their, for lack of a better term, soul, is sent on to wherever things go after this life. Some rare few, particularly those with a strong MES connection, can maintain some semblance of self or even consciousness after death. To be quite frank it's not something I could even begin describing to one who has not experienced it, though I also believe my state of being was particularly rare and related to the happenstances surrounding my death. Regardless, it sounds to me as if your brother is in this latter group and at least an echo of his consciousness has survived to speak with you. The fact that you could hear and respond shows your own MES sensitivity, enhanced and awakened by the Psionic Forge as it has done to others. Congratulations Mr. Zayre, you are now one of us. A psychic, that is."

"Strange, I sorta died too. But that's beside the point, what does that mean? Like, i know a precog, and my other brother is a telepath. But what does it mean to be psychic? Are there certain categories? How do I know what kind I am?"

"There are two kinds of psychics. Some are restricted to a single discipline while others may learn any of them. The first thing a new psychic must do is learn to use their abilities without going mad or dying. That only takes about a week, though learning and mastering your abilities is a lifelong goal. I suggest you immediately report to one of the academy branches. The closest to Rawhani is on Gudrun but most polities have one by now. This mode of communication does not transmit my metapsionic senses or else I could tell you what disciplines you might be predisposed towards, but your academy instructor will be able to assist you with that." (edited)

Kay nods his head. "I've heard of the one on Heras before. However, there's someone I sorta promised to take with me on Gundrun, so I can't really just leave him. So I guess that means I'm going back to Gundrun for a while."

"Dr. Doona Ahn is one of our finest instructors—one of the academy founders as well as a dear friend of mine. You will be well taken care of there."

"Then I'll set off right away. Thank you very much for your direction Mr. Fate. I hope we can meet again."

Regulus bows, "Come to Galatea some time and we surely will. It has been a pleasure Mr. Zayre."

Kay returns the bow, before turning and heading back to the Elysium, setting a course back to Gundrun.

(3 days back to Gudrun for downtime stuff)

(Taros 24/30)

(alright, so Gudrun to nova academy to meet crane?)

(Yep)

Doona Ahn is waiting at the academy doors as you arrive. She is working on the back panel of a decrepit looking janitor bot, though it has been robed in grandfatherly working clothes.

16:23

Doona is a small korean woman who despite not actively working as a medical doctor anymore continues wearing her comfortable and nondescript grey surgical scrubs. A half heart pendant made from rainbow psionic crystal hangs in a loose chain around her throat

Kay slowly approaches the woman in scrubs as she works on the janitorial bot. Glancing down at the half heart pendant, he calmly asks. "Excuse me ma'am, I'm looking for a Dr. Doona Ahn?"

"You found her. Kayden Zayre? Headmaster Fate told me to expect you in the coming days, and we havent had any other students in a while"

"Oh, well then it's nice to meet you. Actually, I should have expected the psychic to talk to the other psychic and...yeah."

"Generally its a hallmark of a well run organization when people responsible for running it talk. All the same, welcome to the Nova Academy. "

"Thank you Dr. Ahn, I'm excited to be here. Is there any sort of in processing that needs to be done? Or is it more free-form? I ask only because I'm always on a time crunch."

"I can feel the touch of gaiapsionic energy in you already, and you seem to be immune from involuntarily torching already. You've had no formal instruction before? None at all?"

"None, the only reason i can do this...gaispsionic stuff, is because it was a gift from some people? I helped out."

"They were kind to ensure you had the safety net in place to use it without harming yourself. THey've saved you a week of training here with me as well, not that my personal company is anything less than charming and wonderful at all times- so maybe they did you a disservice after all" she smiles, offering a kindly hand to lead you inside

Kay smiles back, taking her hand and letting himself be lead inside. "Well, they did jab me with a sword, so kind is a bit of a relative term."

"Fair " she laughs. "Well, the academy here is modest but we have everything you might need, and you have run of the place as the only student here right now- aside from Miss Crane and myself as administrators. You're not in danger of torching so the urgency of whisking you off into a cell and nulliftying you is also something we don't need to go through. So this just leaves us with what do you want to learn?"

"I just want to figure out what exactly I can do. I've made forests before, but is there any other way to figure out what I can do?"

"Of course! We have a book here that does just the thing. Headmaster Fate himself wrote it, but it explains entirely the different psionic disciplines we have perfected instruction for, along with an understanding of more complicated ritual acts"

"Oh, that sounds like a lot of heavy reading. I only have, maybe a few more days before I have to go back across the sector. So is there any way I can start reading now and finish once I get back to Heras?"

"We will scan the contents of this to your ships archives if you promise to make a copy for the Heras Academy"

"Too easy, thank you very much."

(once per year you can also read the original fate codex here, and you can change your psi points if you want too)

(Alright, should I swap my skills into psi points now? Or is that something that'll happen once I actually level up as a psychic?)

(You can do it now, represents you learning basically)

(Got it, had 4 sp banked. Took points out of exert and lead to have null 2 and precog 1. Picked up techniques Fade, Voided Mind, and Devouring mind for Null. For Precog picked up Terminal Reflection and Intuative response. Got a total effort of 4) (edited)

(awesome!)

20:53

Kayden spends some days reviewing the documentation here, and thinking about just where he fits in to the vast cobweb of MES out there. The mind is as much as weapon as the body, or the rifle cradled in a sling on his back. The collected knowledge of Headmaster Fate, the Layzal, and the other psychic bodies out into the universe is vast, and you can see hundreds of blank pages have been left in the psionically attuned book for expansion of re-collected knowledge.

After days of research and learning, Kay finally takes his leave of Gundrun's Pychic Academy. With the disturbing report from Tecmessa, as well as his own desire to explore the Garden of Bones, he is starting to feel the squeeze of stress again. Quickly going back to the Sakharov house, he finds Sasha once more. "Listen, about my offer, there's been a report that might force me to go back to Heras sooner than I thought. I'm going to need an answer from you."

(can you refresh me on what was going on here, most of the home stuff happened when i was at omega and i am hazy on it)

(Sasha was the lawyer who hated his life and wanted to work with wood. So Kay offered to have him come to Mytikas with him and Dai)

"I accept. I;'d rather risk it and come home in failure than to always wonder what I could have done"

"Good, I glad. Come with me, and I'll set you up on the Elysium." Kay brings Sasha back with him on the Elysium of Thjodhild, setting him up in his own cabin while he writes a message to Daitrij.

(Level 8 -> 9 HP: 69 -> 70 Precog 1 -> 2 Alternate outcome technique 1 SP banked)

(slammin, and we'll pop into Kerilyn's and say hi/kick things off once you're free)

To: Kayden
From: Daitrij

Luchick! Great to hear that you are fine! I hope you found your answers. I myself are in a delicate situation still. Nothing I can't handle, but I might still need some time. Tecmessa is worrying me as well, so it is good to know that you are there and make sure that we get the info we need. But please make sure to stay save! And by Ognyena, you took Sasha with you? I guess I need some more talk time with you once we meet again. And we will meet again. I can't wait to fall back into your arms. 

I love you Luchick

The hill nearby is tall, and littered with bones, former myrmidon and the endless waves of ghouls all intermingled and blackened here now. It's impossible to tell what comes from who, as it is all humanoid mixed together and somewhat powdered with the passage of time

Kay takes a knee and runs his hands through the dust and powder. 'This is it, where one man wiped out so many. All because he didn't want to die alone. I know Cyrus's Myrmidons were horrible, he encouraged their most violent tendencies. But still, there had to be some who just wanted to help people. And they didn't deserve this. Hopefully they're at peace now, that's the least they deserve.'

(are any of your psych things on and passive right now? trying to figure out a good amount of info to give you before asking for checks)

(Terminal reflection and Oracle are the passive ones i believe)

17:49

(And Intuative response. But that's for initiative)

(nothing gaia?)

(Whispering wind? Though I wouldn't call this a stable biosphere.)

(That is fair_

20:05

The peak of the hill seems to be caved in now, like a volcano that has never known the touch of magma, and it seems like the center of the bowl itself was the ground zero of the bombardment inpact

Kay clambers up the rest of the hill, looming down into the massive bowl at the hill's peak. 'It really is that easy isn't it? A few presses of buttons can end an entire army, destroy an entire region. This is why peace needs to come first, otherwise things like this will keep happening.' He looks down into the bowl, if nothing else, he'll at least have a view of the horizon to find another spot to salvage.

There is a bit of gently steaming water in the bowl, in the center of it, for that matter, along with countless bones and shards of slagged power armor sticking out of the ground as though the mouth of the mountain top is actually the mouth of some sort of creature, sprouting iron fangs

Kay walks down the side of the crater towards the water source, amazed that any water could actually form in this wasteland without boiling off from the radiation. He uses his abilities to cling to the side of the crater as he moves down, careful to not cause a rockslide.

The pool bubbles with more intensity as you get closer. and there is a heavily burned and rusted piece of metal sticking out of it. It glows gently with either heat or some sort of other energy

Kay approaches the bubbling pool, manifesting vines to examine the glowing metal without handling it with his bare hands.

The vines gently grasp the object, turning it over gently, revealing it to be a spearhead, broken from the tip of the point along one of the three spines. The other two form a cracked V, and the top third of a spear shaft is attached.

15:41

The rest of it, and the wood itself has mostly worn away

Unable to hold the vines for any significant length of time, he eventually brings the spear tip into his hand, turning it over as he climbs back up out of the crater. 'Ironic isn't it? Even in this wasteland, I'm still reminded of you, Daitrij.'

The energy in it is still present, though it is diminished, sad even. You sense something greater was once in the workings here and there is a deep sense of shame and sadness- a sense of things left undone, about the relic

Kay collects what he can of the spear, storing it to be examined by either the Lamplighter, or one of the scientists back in Mytikas, while he inspects the skyline for any other identifiable landmarks.

You see the wrecks fall where Kerilyn and her team are working, along with the cry of pain from one of the surveyors who had been trapped by whatever fell from the top. Aside from that, a wreck of several ships carpets a riverbed to the north. Bavidopolis is closeby and were once harvesting those wrecks for scrap

Kay makes a mental note of the shipwrecks as he turns to face the direction of the yell. 'Oh for fuck's sake.' He doubles back and heads down towards the wreck of cars he left the team at.

It seems they have the matter so what in hand under the watchful eye of the lamplighter

Seeing the Lamplighter taking care of the situation, he decides he'd rather give them their next position to move to. He should be able to handle a few Academy students after all. Kay heads towards the river bed to check out the crashed ships.

Bavid and his scavengers have clearly been here. There is evidence of some kind of fight here against ghouls and more than one improvised explosive was used- as the scavengers are famous for

'I got a feeling about ghouls earlier. Maybe this is where they were gathered. Better stay quiet and pay attention, might be more of them lurking around.' He carefully picks his way through the hulks, using his mageblades to cut away entrances for himself, rather than blow open massive holes. As he goes, he radios to the Lamplighter. Moving through the ship hulks in the river bed, sending my grid now. I'll let you know of I find anything.

Be safe. Our wounded man is back on his feet , thanks to the help of everyone we had down here and their good acts of courage. We'll keep you updated.

Good to hear. I'm sending my current position now, will continue through the wrecks up the river bed.

It’s Clear that bavid and his people fought hard. Ghoul bodies float in the river though some have been entirely cleaned on their submerged side by river fish. Several wrecks habe likewise been blasted to pieces by rockets, mines, and the myriad of explosive devices that Bavid and his scavengers use There’s been talk of trying to get them to re integrate into the city but he has not been seriously approached

'Should probably talk to Bavid eventually, it seems like he's done alright for himself. But that's an issue for after the Garden.' Kay continues skulking through the wrecks as he searches for any kind of equipment that hasn't been torn to shreds or blown up. (edited)

(notice/wis)

(12) (edited)

2

The wreck of a battleship looms over everything, and it looks intact minus the large hole in the rear deck where a shell over-penetrated and went right out the bottom. It has beached itself on the opposite shore, and was abandoned by its crew long ago

'Fuck, since when did anyone have battleships around here? That, warrants a look.' He taps his radio again for the Lamplighter.

Found a massive ship in the riverbed, sending grid. Going to start investigating. If I find anything, get ready to start coordinating assets to move it.

He starts making his way to the battleship, looking for anywhere he could climb up.

There are loose rivets, metal railings and ladders, and an anchor chain that represent divergent ways in

He grabs onto the ladder and starts to climb up towards the deck.

The ladder groans gently under the weight of your armor. The deck sounds quiet but some of the boards are concerningly rotted as you pull yourself onto the foredeck

Not increasingly concerned about the weight of his armor, it being just diodes on his skin, he avoids the more rotten looking boards as he looks for an entrance into a higher up bridge or into the hold.

The citadel looks intact aside from small arms impacts on the heavy metal plating. The metal staircases leading up into it are likewise intact , and there are a few ghoul bodies that have clearly been shot draped over them

14:50

More evidence of bavid and his scavengers creeping around

14:50

(Pearl actually stole some data from the radio room here and had to abandon it on the ship because it was too heavy for her and she was being chased ) (edited)

He climbs up the stairs towards the citadel, rifle raised just in case one of the ghouls bodies isn't as dead as it seems.

(evasion save at +2)

(Fail with a target of 5...) (edited)

One of the bodies at the top of the stairs isn’t dead , and lunges out at you (4 damage), it’s teeth fastening into the meat of your leg before breaking away

(4 dmg from TAA) Kay pulls back and, not even bothering to manifest guns, sends two invisible and silent balls of energy from each hand at the ghoul (35/13) (34/11) (edited)

The ghoul is pitched over the railing and splashes into the dark water below

He continues up the stairs into the citadel (edited)

The wheelhouse , comms stations, and various surface warfare positions are intact though the screens and most of the touch surfaces will need to be replaced if this is to ever get working again. A leather satchel lies on the deck halfway between the body of the captain and the door you've come through- the strap broken by ghoul claws

'Place is pretty rough, but it's workable. Just needs some tlc and she'll be fine again. Now, what do we have here?' Kay picks up the leather satchel and looks at what's inside.

inside is a series of logbooks, a small sexton set to help the captain coordinate the splashes and falls of the cannon shells, and a key to what looks to be the captain's room.

Kay does a quick skim of the logs before stowing them inside of his ruck, pulling the captain's keys to use on his room as he goes back towards the stairs to find the cabin. (edited)

The stairs are easy to find, heading down into the officers section. Some of the cabins are sealed, and the captain's is at the end of the hallway. Four dead ghouls litter the ground and this time you can be assured they are, due to the mag rounds through their heads or torsos

Still sweeping his rifle across the hallway, more out of habit than anything else, he realizes he hasn't really felt any pain from the bite from earlier, nor has he felt any blood trickle down his leg. Ignoring the thought, he approaches the captain's door and inserts the keys, pushing the door open with the end of his rifle.

the cabin has a made bet, but the sheets and blanket are moth eaten and threadbare. The desk shows it has been rifled through , likely to fiill the contents of the satchel you're holding.

Kay does a quick sweep of the room, double checking the desk, before he heads out towards the lower decks.

Heading down into the lower decks you find other officers cabins first in the narrow hallways with more evidence of a gunfight aagainst ghouls. These ones are also actually and very dead this time judging by where they've been shot. Cabins, and a mess hall exist on this level, with another stairwell going down into the hold and magazine of the ship

Kay opens the doors and does a quick visual check of each room, but continues towards the stairs to try and get down into the hold. 'So many ghouls here, there had to be some reason for so many to gather in a place like this.'

Down in the hold, you hear something like whispering, and youre reminded of the crypt where an overlord's temporal trap had been hidden. You feel the same tingle on your skin now, and the subtle 'unrightness' of the lower hold

'There's another one down here. Of course there is, why wouldn't there be one in the fucking Garden. Odds are, there's a lotnof ghouls here, so best not to be seen.' Focusing, he fells himself stsrt to bleed out of reality, part of him slipping away as light seems to pass right through him as he delves deeper into the hold. (Comitting effort for Fade)

The hold is filled with ankle deep water, and your footfalls leave no trace of your passage. The ship must have been boarded ocne it ran aground, as there is a mix of bodies in both naval reg uniforms, and dead ghouls littering the space. Some are dead. Some are clearly playing dead, but they do not notice enough of you to make a hostile move

21:37

Ahead, sometihng like a mess hall, or assembly area is nestled between transit hallways

Taking slow, agonizing steps, he winds around the ghouls towards the mess hall, thankful he'd remembered to bring a demo charge with him.

The ghouls take little notice. Inside the mess hall, you see a sign above the next bulkhead that says MAGAZINE. You're familiar with the scene here, a stone casket, though there are no ghouls worshipping here, at least for the moment.

03:48

There are enough closeby who wouldn have sensed you normally, and it looks like Pearl's team took out most of the residents on her previous expedition here

Sneaking up to the casket, Kay continues to keep his steps slow and smooth as he approaches the temporal trap. He pulls out his demo charge and carefully places it next to the casket, making sure to wedge it in between a few pieces of debris to conceal it as well as keep it from being disturbed by the water. Once he's sure he placed the charge in a concealed spot, he continues past the room towards the magazine room.

The water in this room is black, and turgid. you're reminded of tar more than water, and it bubbles as though heat is being applied to it- even though there is no heat in the room. your breath mists before you, flecked with ice crystals

(About how many rooms away would 40m be? Assuming the blast goes through walls?)

(I feel like it would almost make a shaped charge effect with the hallways/bulkheads being what they are, just in two directions

(Maybe, but considering tar is super flammable) Kay searches through the magazine room. 'Last room, then I'm getting out through the hole in the stern. The longer I stay here the more wrong it feels. No telling if this shit will ignite though, so i should probably wait till i get to the hole before detonating'

(oh okay i get what you're asking now) The tar bubbles more furiously for a moment, and it begins to spread, gently creeping up your boots, forming a sticky clinging morass

Seeing the tar start to creep up him, Kay hops onto the wall, sticking there while he peels back the tar with a knife he manifests. 'Yep, fuck this place. It's getting blown.' Hopping from the wall, back to less stick ground, he does one last visual inspection of the magazine room before turning to make his way to the stern hole.

(Physical effect save)

(Success)

Kayden is able to pull himself free from the clinging mass as it furiously bubbles, a shape beginning to form as it pulls itself tog ether

Clinging as close as he can to the wall and moving to the closest corner he can next to the door, he tries to stay as far from the door as possible. He decides to try and smash this thing before it can form, hitting the detonator. (edited)

(Commiting effort for Terminal Reflection) A flash of insight hits Kay as he sees far more than just a demo charge going off. These rounds were still live, it might even be enough to rip this whole ship apart. Dropping the detonator to his side, he know what he needs to do. Jumping from the wall, back into the room, he beelines for where he knows the hole is. If they can't recover the ship, he'll blow it to atoms.

Kay swan dives out, like an avenging swan draped in TTA nodes- soaring through the sky for a few seconds before rolling onto the sandy shore the ship is beached on. Inside, ghouls howl and screech as they begin waking up, and becoming aware of prey that escaped their grasp

Rolling as he hits the sand, Kay sprints away from the ship and slides behind a shoulder high dune as he hits the detonator.

There is a dull thump from inside the ship, and at first there is nothing strange aside from some smoke venting from the inside compartments of the ship- and then there is a blinding flash as the entire wreck lifts a meter or two off the ground. The portholes not broken by the old battle, weather, time, or age explode outward in a pressure wave sending burning glass everywhere. The hull snaps in several sections, sending twisted metal spinning outward, and the decks pancake down on one another. There is a splash of water, meters high in all directions as the hull smashes down into the water.

15:17

The magazine inside explodes a few seconds later, cracking the backbone of the ship, and water begins bubbling around it, sending the various pieces toppling in opposite directions, and sinking into the river at alarming speed

Kay peeks his head out from behind the dune, skirting around it towarfs the river to make sure whatever was forming in the tar went up with the ship.

You see no evidence that anything at all survived the blast. The temporal trap is gone, and the ship is in too many pieces to host any sort of continued ghoul corruption anymore.

17:12

The garden as a whole is likely safer now.

17:12

(6xp, 10,000 credits)

Turning back towards the hill, he starts the long trudge back up towards the hill. 'The Lamplighter should hear about this. What the hell even was that thing in there?'

The Lamplighter has taken the group near the hill where it seems Kerilyn has found something interesting

After Kerilyn hops off of the IFV, Kay brings it back to the motorpool and heads over to drop off the satchel he found on the ship with the R&D team. "Hey guys, I found this out in the Garden of Bones on an old ship, it might have some useful info, if you don't mind taking a look"

They take the satchel from you and promise results will be communicated as soon as they have something solid to give you. They have a general idea of what might be inside thanks to almost year old comms reports from Pearl , but there is no substitution for them getting their own eyes on it

After thanking the team, Kay leaves them to their work and tries to figure out what to do next. 'I should probably check up on some people. I should definitely check on Astyoche, see how they're getting on. And I should probably see how the haulers are treating Chiron. Alright, first Chiron, then Astyoche. Maybe I should take Zerene with me, been a while since she's been able to take the pack out.' After sending a message about the temporal trap in the Garden of Bones to the Persephans, Kay goes to Zerene's farm to see if she's available to make a quick run to Chiron. (edited)

Zerene and her Raptors have displaced John from his farm, as he is still awaiting trial for a number of smaller crimes against the protectorate. She perks up when you approach, knowing it means there is work to be done

"How's it going Zerene? It's been a while. I'm going to be heading over to Chiron, just to check to see how they've been getting along. Thought it'd be a good opportunity for you and the pack to stretch your legs a little bit."

"Well enough I suppose. Eager to be back into the field even if we're just making a short hike. What's in Chiron?"

"Just checking up on how they've gotten along. It's been quite a while since I've paid them a visit. I'm also going to be heading out to Astyoche to check on them, so I figured it'd be best to start on Heras first."

---Incoming Video Message---

Daitrij can be seen lying in a bed. Her head resting on a pillow. Her skin is paler than usual and her eyes are tired.

"Luchick! I had to send you a message. I am fine. Well, I don't need to lie. I am exhausted and..."

She lifts the blanket and pans once with the camera over her body. Some bruises and a few bandages and band-aids are visible scattered over her body.

"But despite all of this I am happy. The rebellion is over. The High Council is gone. And the Priest-King realized he was just a tool for the High Council. The Taros can finally live in peace now. I will rest for a bit longer. And I guess it will take another month until I am back in the Protectorate. Make sure it stays the Guiding Light we made it into. But more than the Protectorate itself, I can't wait to be reunited with you again. I love you Luchick. Please stay safe."

From: Kayden
To: Daitrij

It's great to hear that you were able to bring peace to your people. I'm really happy for you. Please take some time to get better, you did a lot and you deserve some rest. I'm going out to Tecmessa to deal with that whole situation, but hopefully it doesn't take too long. I can't wait to see you again too, hopefully, it's soon. I love you.

Kay stows the compad and looks up at Zerene. "Change of plans, we're going to Tecmessa"

She blinks surprised, "Why the urgency? Something wrong?"

"The whole population went missing and, apparently, a person from SCAF wants to talk and try to figure out what the hell happened."

"I'd be happy to escort you. If negotiations don't end well, at least the pack gets something to eat

"Let's keep that on the back burner for now. But I'd love the escort. Just in case we do run into some shit, we'll take the Achilles. It's drop pod could get us out of a tight spot in case something does go down."

She begins mustering the pack, and within half an hour they are ready to march onto the transport with you, off to teccmessa, and some new diplomatic horizons

Grabbing a company of his soldiers as a qrf. Kay boards the transport to the frigate. "Should be a quick investigation/negotiation. But, if something goes bad, or something else there objects to our presence, the pack and Ares company will be on standby as a qrf."

"Alright, we understand. We'll be ready if something goes wrong, and super bored if it doesnt" She gives you a comradely squeeze on the shoulder as she passes by, assembling her men and getting them embarked.

"Let's how it's boring then." Boarding the Achilles, Kay composes a message to this Einer person. Once he's finished, he'll take out Cyrus's spear, examining it more closely now that he doesn't have the crushing urgency of the Garden to push him anywhere.

The spear is a shattered ruin of its former self. The top of the tri pointed blade is missing, and the base is heavily warped and corroded. Most of the shaft is also missing, and would need to be entirely replaced

'I can fix you, just need a lot of heat and s new shape. As for this shaft, maybe that should get replaced with an alloy instead of wood, make it a little sturdier.' Walking through to the ship's arm's room, Kay shows the spear to the artisans. "Hey guys, I got a favor to ask, well really a favor and a question. First, do you think there's anything that can be done about reforging this spear tip and replacing its handle? Second, I can't quite put my finger on it, but I was thinking about some personal modifications. We wouldn't happen to have anything like that, would we"

“The ship can do both for you while we are in transit. You might need a few days to recover depending on what you want done. The spear looks serviceable. We can’t quite replicate this level of artistry but we can make it functional again”

"That's all I ask, I'm not looking for art or anything anyway. And for the mods, I was thinking of a few things. For one, a deep scanner so I can see what's around the next corner. For another, maybe a heavy hitter, like a grenade launcher that can withstand the heat of magma grenades."

The technicians are getting very excited at the prospect of working on such advanced weapon systems

"Also, maybe something to protect me from falls. Or something big hitting me." (Totally forgot about the inertial shunts.)

"Alright, so we're looking at several days under the knife here, "

"That's fine, we have a few days to get to Tecmessa and another few to wait for the guy to show up."

(how many strain total we looking at?)

(3)

(alright, so we're looking at 3 days of being under the knife, downtime can't really be taken since you're in surgery/recovering)

(Aight, that's all good)

Designs are drawn up and once your approval is given, you're brought under the knife as the ship begins making its journey to the meeting point, waiting for the diplomat from SCAF to arrive

After a few days of recovery, Kay shakily tries to leave the infirmary and take a walk around the deck of the ship, doing small things to try and get used to the feeling of the new metal inside of his body. It feels strange, not that his mobility is hampered, but it feels like he's carrying around more weight when he moves. 'Eh, maybe I'll get used to it over time.'

(Saw your message, I don’t want to interrupt your RP so lemme know when you’re ready!)

(I'm good to go whenever you are. The instalation and recovery would be taken up by the time it takes both of us to get there)

An oversized shuttle spikes into Tecmessa system. It’s broadcasting a Sovereign Colony transponder code, with additional diplomatic credentials. There’s a message that follows shortly after, “Mr. Zayre, this is Einer Stjerne. We’ve entered the system and are making our best speed towards Tecmessa proper. Anywhere you’d like to meet in particular?”

After taking a quick trip to the armory, grabbing 3 magma grenades, he jumps into a small shuttle to leave the Achilles. Letting Zerene and the rest of the qrf know that he'll radio up if he needs them to come in the drop pod. "This is Zayre, nice to hear you. I'm tracking the Aphroditan Guild has a headquarters set up, we can meet there for now."

Ah. This is going to be interesting, Einer thinks. “Send the coordinates and we’ll meet you there. I wasn’t able to find anything like that last time I was here.”

He sends up the coordonates for Val's base of influence, after looking it up himself since he's never actually been to Tecmessa, and steers the shuttle towards its position.

19:54

(For our reference)

Original message was deleted or could not be loaded.

Pinned a message.

“I don’t mean to belabor the point,” Einer’s voice crackles over the radio, “but there’s nobody here. They’re all dead or taken.” His shuttle streaks in behind Kayden’s, keeping distance and flying along the route indicated. It will land near where Kay’s shuttle touches down.

"Tracking. Valentina set this us recently the last time she was here. I'm hoping to use it as a FOB to figure out just when the hell happened here." Keying out his radio, he lands the shuttle, slinging his gear as he exits onto the small landing pad. Walking out is a person of relatively average build, covered in armor that looks almost biomechanical, but the fact that the helmet shimmers away to show a slightly scarred face with small stubble, gives away the the armor's look is from a hologram.

The SCAF puddlejumper settles down on its landing skids, hydraulics whirrrrring and hissing as they take its weight. The craft itself looks like a bloated intersystem shuttle with an oversized drive section. An airlock opens on the port side, and Einer comes walking out. He’s dressed in simple clothes and obviously not armored. He has two swords strapped to his hips but is otherwise unarmed. When he sees Kayden, Einer raises a hand in greeting and walks over, “Well met! It’s a pleasure to meet someone in the leadership of the Protectorate.”

Kay waves over, his rifle left on the shuttle for now. "How's it going, Einer right? Nice to finally meet someone from SCAF. Though, you don't gotta be so formal, I'm just a dude who helps people out. The rest is kind of the aftermath of that. So, you saw most of this stuff first hand, tell me about it while we walk. I'm gonna be honest, this is my first time on Tecmessa, so any details would help."

Einer laughs before looking out at the empty planet and looking somber, “I’ll be honest, I was hoping I wouldn’t have to step foot here again. I have been to many planets, but there’s something wrong here now. The mass grave is to the west. I’m not sure how many people are there and honestly I didn’t stay to count. To the south is an unusual well fed from an unknown water source. Don’t drink it since it’s pretty acidic. And the city,” Einer pauses, “is like the rest of the planet. A ghost town.”

"God damn, would you mind showing me this mass grave or the city? Just to try and find some clue about what happened there. I know you came here to talk about politics and shit, but people come first in my mind. So I'd like to find at least something to go off of before we begin."

“Not at all. It’s all something I stumbled across, and the more I spoke with the Guild, the more I realized the Protectorate wasn’t aware of the atrocity that occurred on your doorstep. That’s not a slight,” he adds hastily, “only an acknowledgement of how horrified you must be to find the remains here. We can take your shuttle, my ‘jumper will remain here.”

"I'm not going to lie, we're stretched thin, so many things popping up and just not enough of us to get to help. I tried to come as soon as I could, but I was already stuck somewhere else. I don't like it, but I'm just rying my best." He jumps in the shuttle and takes the copilot seat. "You drive, I still have to dig through my stuff to figure out what will help us find anything."

Einer spends a few minutes familiarizing himself with the controls before pulling the craft into a slightly wobbly hover and starting their flight towards the mass grave. Once at a comfortable cruise height and speed, Einer responds, “I understand. The Colonies are in a similar state, and it’s why I feel we can not afford to have our closest neighbor thinking ill of us. It’s not much of a stretch to guess at the other polities’ view of Silvano Mazzio starting his own government.” The last part is said with a wry smile.

"It's not hard at all. But, EP was started in a similar way, so I don't judge. But you're right, neighbors should look out for each other. Especially in this corner of the sector. I'm surprised we've even made it as far as we have."

Einer coughs a short laugh, “If even a part of Cyrus’ stubbornness rubbed off on the Protectorate before his death, I’m not surprised you’ve all refused to give in. Especially if what I’ve heard about the current Herald’s personality is anything to go on. I don’t think our first delegates expected to deal with someone with quite her amount of drive and fire.”

"Trust me, you don't even know the half of it."

This time Einer snorts, “I can only imagine. What are you hoping to accomplish on Tecmessa? I found no evidence of the group responsible the last time I was here.”

"Having another set of eyes as well as a different ability set can help. As long as the biosphere of the planet is stable, i might be able to get an idea of what happened. And this survey scanner I have in my bag might be able to find some sort of irregularity in the surrounding area we could bring back."

Einer nods, curiosity sated for the moment. Then he asks, “Our chosen isolationism is a double edged sword. All our intelligence about external threats come from our own sources. Do you have any idea who may be responsible for the atrocity here? I personally doubt it was the Protectorate or any other major Galatean polity; but I’ve been wrong before about them.”

"The news has stated that there is a grouo called the Etxaurrens who have taken over a planet called Maysoon. What happened here seems to mirror what happened to a planet called Danae. We have no hard evidence, but it might be linked back to them."

The shuttle banks around a cloud front before straightening back onto course. “That’s always out from Tecmessa. And more than a little disconcerting given that the Sovereign Colonies lay between there and here.”

Satisfied with his gear, he slings his ruck onto his shoulder. "That's what we're here for. If there is a real connection between the attacks and the Etxaurrens, then we can stsrt coming up with a plan to protect against them."

“I can imagine what my chamber’s thoughts on the matter will be,” his voice terse. “As a group, we’re not big on existential threats to ours and others’ way of lives. Personally? I wouldn’t be against going after the people who perpetrated this.” The shuttle enters a shallow dive, and begins banking counter-clockwise to spiral around the mass grave site to give Kay a bird’s eye view.

Staring out at the massive grave he mouths to himself. 'Fucking hell. Why? How?' "We're not big on it either. We'd be glad to help stop whoever did this. Provided we can find them."

“I’m glad we’re of the same mind. Maybe it’s time SCAF sent an expedition to the southeast, not that we could take a hardened system on our own.” Einer slows their approach, the memory of falling into the grave fresh in his mind. He picks a landing site a fair distance away.

The shuttle sets down and you see the massive excavators and other dig site objects in the distance. The sun is rising and they cast long shadows over the desert

Einer powers the shuttle down. He turns to Kay, “Welcome to the final resting place of the Tecmessans.”

Looking out over the sheer disregard for human life, a shiver rolls down his spine. The only word that he can utter is his immediate reaction. "Fuck."

“Hmm,” Einer says. “There’s more to worry about than distrustfully watching each other over our fences, I think.” (edited)

"Yeah, so it would seem. Let's see if this actually works." Placing his hand on the very edge of the grave, Kay tries to look into the soil and the heart of the planet. Maybe there might be an image, or something that could give him a clue about who tread here before and brought all of these bodies here. (Using effort for Whispering Wind)

2

15:04

Hundreds of them descended on the surface of the world from spiked raiding ships, destroying everything in their path, though when looking at the sky the triple star-crown of the defense platforms the world was known to have are already gone. this happened in the between

15:04

Massive fires overwhelm the landscape, bombardment is indiscriminate, wild, animalistic, and with destruction for destructions own self being the reason for firing on the planet

Kay shakes as the vision of these things falahes through his mind, falling back as he breaks his connection with the planet. "The defense platforms were already gone when they came, giant aliens I've never seen before. They were wild, killing for its own sake, indiscriminent bombardment. I don't know what happened to the defense platforms, but there might be two groups involved here. Or these things have some insane tech" (edited)

“That is not good. Two groups? Do you think they were working together or was this a catastrophic turn of events?”

"Judging by how wildly these things were killing, they might have been an unintended consequence of whoever stole the platforms. That or they are far smarter than they appear. But regardless, i have a picture of who killed these people. Just need to find out who they are now."

“Indiscriminate bombardment is not something I nor SCAF would be willing to stomach. Anyone capable of this sort of atrocity is either stronger than a group we could take on our own, or very lucky.” Einer runs some of the sand through his hands.

"Or they pick targets of opportunity. Either way, we should definitely check any records we can find on the Etxaurrens. If they look like what I saw, then it was them who killed this planet."

“That’ll have to be something you accomplish. We have no records to my knowledge, and have had no contact with the Extaurrens. Nor have we seen any other space faring groups besides the Protectorate.”

(Can I space Google them on my data pad? Or are they not commonly known either?)

(Space google the new creature you've seen?)

(I'm trying to match a picture to any wider database to see if it's the Etxaurrens. Becauseif they're on the news then I assume someone else knows about them. ) (edited)

The creatures here are not the Etxaurrens, and no information exists about what you saw in your vision. They have not been encountered as far as whatever pre- and post scream records still existing can tell

He drops the data pad with a sigh. "These creatures are not Etxaurrens. No one's seen them before. But, what happened here is exactly like what happened on another planet called Danae. But that's all I can gather."

Einer's compad beeps with an alert from the puddlejumper. It's a forwarded message from Actaia, and he takes moment to read it. Einer's eyes darken and he show's Kay the message, "Did you see these in your vision?" The video is frozen on a picture of one of the Ratchk hauling an injured SCAF marine away.

He looks at the image and nods. "Yeah, those are what I saw. SCAF's seen them before?"

"Apparently. One of our patrols was ambushed and destroyed at Balqis three days ago. We have survivors holed up on the planet, but I have no clue where they came from or what they were looking for in the system. But they've bloodied us." Einer's jaw is set in frustration.

"Fuck. Any reason given for why they attacked, where they came from, or where they went?"

"None that we can parse out. They were on top of the patrol before they knew they were under attack. No warning, and no quarter. Regretfully, the Sovereign Colonies are at war," Einer seems genuinely pained by this.

Kay sighs, realizing that they all might get sucked into this as well. "These same people did this on Tecmessa then too. With their ability to move so quickly and unexpectedly, it seems like it's too big a threat for either of us to ignore."

Einer nods gravely, "I need to speak with Silvano and the rest of the Triumverate council. The Colonies suddenly find ourselves forced onto the greater stage before we were ready."

"And I need to bring this up to the cloud, we're all spread out, and I have a feeling we'll want to have everyone centralized for this."

"Agreed. We're here now, though, you and I. And my hand is forced by the Ratchk. I have a guarantee I was implored to give the Protectorate," Einer takes a steadying breath, "The Sovereign Colonies will not expand farther north than Actaia and Muntsaratz in order to not put undue pressure on the Protectorate. Our intention was only to create a buffer for our capital and we realize how it may have looked to an outsider. In return, I've ordered the construction of a new station to act as a waypost in Muntsaratz to fuel and repair all ships passing through; regardless of flag flown. Ribeholden is going to be a place for free exchange of ideals and a safe place for wanderers of all types. We have no intention of being enemies of Heras or her holdings. I ask nothing in return, and expect nothing. These are all promises we will hold regardless of what you and yours decide."

"I'll bring it to them, thank you Einer. I already know that I'm in full agreement with the idea." He takes one more look out over the mass grave. "But, these fucks hurt a lot of people. So regardless of what you expect in return, I'm going to petition for our forces to help you against the Ratchk. If they shoot me down, I'll still offer my personal help, along with any ships I can sway to come with me."

Einer extends a hand, “Thank you. You have my gratitude.”

"Thanks for bringing me here Einer, I'll keep in touch." He shakes Einer's hand.

Einer palms a flat worry stone into Kay’s hand. It’s smooth and emblazoned with a starburst similar to the one on the sunblade’s face. “It’s not much, but it’s a token of my appreciation. It’s not worth much beyond getting passage to my personal lodging on Bergasa but it’s all I can offer at the moment.” (edited)

Kay turns the stone in his hand a few times before looking back up at Einer. "It's more than enough Einer. Please, if you need anything, don't hesitate to reach out and I'll see what i can do."

"Be safe, or failing that, more dangerous than whatever you come across," Einer smiles wryly.

22:04

(Good mission, glad we could smooth some uncomfortableness over for the polities. No fun when you feel like you can't do anything without being stabbed in the back. Of course Robert had to cut it short by blowing up a quarter of my fleet)

"You as well Einer." (And it was good. Yeah, it was cut short a little. But I have a feeling we'll be meeting up again.)

(3xp, 5000 credits both of you)

02:25

(einer let me know you saw this, if you don't by tomorrow ill message you

(Seen thank you)

Once Einer departs from Tecmessa, Kay will reboard the Achilles to check on the status of the repairs on the spear and set a course back to Heras. There was a lot that needed to be done, and a lot more preparations to be made. (edited)

(2 days home)

04:16

The spear is going to need another 5 days at least, possibly longer depending on how long it takes to find an alloy light but tough enough for the haft

(Administer: 2/90)

While on the Achilles, in between stacks of administrstive paperwork that he hates every second of, Kay takes a short break to record a video message. He's not sure what drove him to record it, he always hated recording himself or even being in pictures, but he felt like he just needed to get a lotnoff of his chest, and the wall wouldn't cut it.

 ---- Incoming secure self-destructing Video Message ---

The message starts pitch black. Nothing to be seen. The darkness is broken by the Daitrij's softest voice.

"Luchick. Luchick I love you. I really do. I hope you are alone.  This video is only for you to see. So if you aren't in a private area right now, you get one pause. After restarting the video runs through and after finishing it deletes itself. You know, just to be safe, I am a political figure after all."

After another thirty seconds of darkness, the light switches on. Daitrij sits on the bed in her personal room onboard of the Salamis. She wears a violet pajama, one she bought together with Kay during their visit of the Thracians. She waves at the camera. Over the ship's intercom, it can be heard that the ship is just out of spike drive and on it's way to the Planet of Phegeus.

"Hey. It was good to see you. I miss you Luchick. I've got much to do, but whenever I lie in bed, alone, I just wish you would be at my side. But we both are too important to be together all the time. Helping others is what we do, we ensure that millions of people can live a safe and prosperous life and don't need to worry if some killer species is going to eradicate them tomorrow. But I know how you feel as we are both doing the same. And you make me happy the same way I make you happy. And we should spend some days in the Blessed Catacombs together again. Although it is starting to become crowded down there. Sol moved in, and the future Head Priestess of the Ognyena Cathedral on Heras will move in there as well. I have her with me right now. Aksana. A really pleasant and nice young woman. And the first one to officially join the Paragons of the Living Flame. Oh, I never told you about the Paragons, right? Well, I leave that for when we meet."

(edited)

09:23

Daitrij looks more serious now.

"What you said about Tecmessa is horrifying. And of course, I know you have to deal with this crisis. You have full control over our military, except for the Salamis and it's personnel, As they are with me on the other side of the Iron Stars right now. Use it wisely and try to find out what you can before doing anything. Not that we run into a trap or another situation that we won't want to be in. I have the utmost trust in what you do and stand behind your decisions. Not just as the Herald but also as the woman at your side, Kay. May Ognyena protect you and guide you in that matter."

09:24

"Now you might wonder why all this self-destruction is needed. Well, you know how to make a Taros girl drool. I really love your modifications. But next time, let a handy Taros do that. Just to make sure you get the best results. But I can't wait to inspect them with my own fingers and see how good they are. And magma grenades? Do you want to make sure the atmosphere is hot?"

She laughs. And then proceeds to take off her shirt, revealing a completely naked upper body. She blushes a bit and can't stop to grin at the camera.

"So I can do that topless look as well. I hope you like it. I also got four new cyberware pieces myself. But my cousin is the best when it comes to invisible implanting. But even if he wasn't, most of it was put into here."

She points at her head.

"So there wouldn't be much to see for you. And I wanted you to see at least something. Hope you like it. And there is more to touch and see. And now you won't be able to hide from me in the darkness anymore."

Her pupils widen and get a reddish glow. Before turning back to normal. At that moment a voice can be heard over the room's intercom. Sol asks Daitrij to get to the bridge to decide where they should land.

"Kay. I guess I need to go now. But we will meet again soon. And then it won't be just a video. I love you. May the flame in your heart guide your way, Luchick. And may Ognyena protect you, always."

Daitrij does an air-kiss. Then the video turns black again just to be deleted moments later.

(edited)

There is a pop and hiss as the miniature technology failsafe chip sparks, and the tape is ruined. The smell of burning plastic wafts away after a moment , and the air returns to normal

"I love you too." Kay mutters as the tape burns out. Grabbing his duffle bag from the Achilles, he quickly enters the shuttle back to the surface of Heras, keying his comms with the militia hq on his way down. "Dispatch, this is Zayre. I need one IFV dispatched and ready for me at the gate. Additionally, I need a roll up of anyone we have in the vicinity of or in route to the pirate base."

"Operative Canstal has taken the job and is preparing to depart. He is interrogating pirates captured by Teucer and Val before leaving to get some information on the target"

"Roger, I'm heading to the settlement of Bavidopolis in the meantime, I'm calling in a favor."

(travelin there via IFV?)

(Yeah)

The trip to Bavidopolis is a one day drive across the countryside east of the city. You find a small settlement made from scrapped boats, with several more floatingi in a half repaired state. Bridges connect the island to the river banks on each side, and several trucks filled with scrap head into a large forge looking building, its spark belching smokestacks are brilliant points of light in the twilight

Not wanting to clog up the bridge, nor put the smassive weight of the IFV on it, Kay discounts from the vehicle, walking the rest of the way from the bridge into the settlement proper.

Three scavengers with rifles held at a wary but respectable level begin makign their way over to you, raising a hand in greeting but blocking further progress across the bridge without making you go through them

With his rifle left back on the IFV, Kay raises his hand in greeting back. "How's it going guys? I'm not here to start anything. I'm just here to talk with Bavid."

"We'll bring you do him. He would no doubt be interested in that giant rig you have there. A marvel of engineering"

"Thanks. It's actually the design of an old acquaintance of ours. It just took some time to give the design some life."

You're brought to a building that was once a tugboat at some point in its life but not anymore, It has been beached and made into a large home. Bavid is standing out front, sparks flying from some kind of scavenging arm he is working on

Kay slowly approaches Bavid as he works. Making himself known once he's about halfway through the room. "Been a while Bavid, seems like you made a nice little home for yourself here."

Bavid says something first in Ashen One, and then coughs for a moment, dark fluid venting down a tube from his mask before it switches over to english. "Thank you. Impressive vehicle you have there too. Even from here, it is massive. Carmen's design?"

21:30

"I remember seeing the plans shortly before I left Mytikas"

"Yeah, they are. I just tweaked the chassis around to get some different variants. Ironically, we finally got the means to make them after she passed."

"I saw the news. I was beside myself for weeks. They were both good friends. You're not out here to talk to me about ghosts though, so come in, lets talk"

21:42

He is doing as best he can to speak rather than rely on showing you a compad, but you can hear his breathing getting raspy

Kay walks the rest of the way across the room until he's next to Bavid. "You can use your compad to talk, it's alright. But you're right, I'm not just here to talk about ghosts. There's a lot going on now, not just with Mytikas, but with the whole planet and beyond. I know what happened to you was bullshit, but things are different now, the leadership is different. And we need skilled people."

So You're here to get baby Bavid to come home then, is that what this is about? We have a good thing going here, a deal with the knights of Draconis, freedom, uncontested control of the wreck field. 

I'm not sure I want to be burdened in all that admin bullshit again

"It's not about bringing you home. I wasn't there to stop Cole from exiling you, and there wasn't much I could have done against her anyway. Believe me, I know what it feels like. But I can overturn her shit now. And I'm in charge of the administrative bullshit now, so I can do my best to keep that all off of your head."

So what do I need to do in return? You're here for a reason besides telling me a tyrant is dead

"We have a pirate base off the coast, heavily defended and continually raiding and killing those from Stygia. We don't have a fleet, so I was going to ask if we could utilize Bavidopolis's resources in order to stop them."

“Ah you’ve come for the tin can fleet. I see. “ he coughs. “And in return we get what? You said keeping administrative red tape off our back. Can you guarantee our status as an independent enclave ?”

"That's more of how EP works now anyway, we're a representative democracy. We all contribue our own unique resources to one another. Like Chiron, there's a variant of this vehicle that is specifically made to carry large amounts of cargo, which would be perfect for your salvage operations. We also have access to much more technology now that we've actually joined the Galetan research project. So we can both offer each other something." (edited)

"Two of those, and a guarantee we'll remain an enclave, and you can take the rustbuckets, for good"

"I can give you the plans to produce your own and we can call it allies."

"You'd also be free to use our research and production capabilities, provided your forges are also open to us as well."

“Allies. I like the sound of that. Alright. We have a deal “

"Thank you Bavid. I look forward to working with you again. And don't worry, I didn't leave you out to dry on that ship, and I'll make sure no one else takes advantage of you."

"You were new. Your voice wouldn't have been one Cole would have heard. I don't know if it counts for anything but I never blamed you for what happened"

15:19

"Come back with crews for these" he sighs "And sail them back to Mytikas for some work, but you're free to use them for the health and good of the Protectorate"

"Thank you Bavid, I'll send you the designs as soon as I get back as well. It was nice seeing you again." Kay returns to the IFV and puts in a message to Mytikas, giving the location of the ships, the number of crew they would need, as well as giving Bavid's datapad's IP so they can send the designs directly to him.

(We'll assume he gets his people working on refitting them once we get some ideas together for what they should have, but He's on board now)

(Alright. I'll take a look and see what i can bolt onto them)

As Kay gets back to Mytikas and drops off the IFV, he brings his plans for the ship to the engineers and tell then to make their way to the nearest port to begin refitting them for duty.

A recovery team will begin heading to Bavid's settlement to bring the hulks home, get them scrubbed down and fitted for use.

18:54

it will take some days for the recovery and work, and in that time the agent the Protectorate is sending to the pirate station should have had time to do his work

During the time ot takes for the ships refitted, Kay will bring his TAA into the armorers, trying to have the diodes and wiring specifically customized to his body. He'll also help whoever is working on the modification to try and speed up the process. (1,000 credits for customized TAA, taking 3.5 days to complete) (edited)

(did you want to fit that other one we were talking about too?)

(12k and 1 pretech for phasing and auto targeting on the Taros rifle as well? Sure.)

(That finishes the week, and in that time the boats will be recovered and fitted)

(Awesome. I'll deduct all the stuff when I get home.)

(Bang on, Kayden is getting swole)

(Big armor, big hit bonus)

As the refit is completing, zerene wanted to find Out if now is when you plan to hear to Chiron. Her pack is hoping to stretch their legs and a trek to the city sounds like the best plan for them

05:33

It would also give you a chance to pass through former bandit country yourself and ensure things there actually are settling down

"Sounds like a good idea Zerene. We'll have the ships on standby as well as our flyers, until this agent is finished with his sabatoge. Meanwhile, we can do a quick sweep of the area to ensure that no bandits or pirates were able to slip through the last sweep."

“And, you’ll get to see the gate. I’m all about crossing things off your to do list, sir”

"That you are Zerene. I'll grab a truck for myself and we can meet at the gate as soon as your pack is saddled and ready to go."

“We are ready at your command, barring any short trips to nearby worlds to go secure border peace. I trust all went well?”

"It went alright. Though I fear we might get sucked into some more disputes than we think in the coming months. But no time to waste, let's start making progress back towards Chiron."

The countryside is patrolled and you find no evidence of bandits aside from@a battle scene Evan had cleared out a couple of months ago. A small memorial has been left to the merchants who were killed

"If any bandits have been around here, they're long gone now. We'll still do a zone recon as we go, but we'll be rapid with it." Kay takes a moment to pay his respects to the memorial before mounting back up. "Alright let's keep going to Chiron."

Chiron, the city built into the crater , have opened their gates to the IFV And the raptor pack upon seeing you on the road. City colors are struck above the gatehouse and replaced with the Protectorate flag. The new EP has none of their own official colors , and the city is flying the old Cyrus era helmet logo, given to them by Pearl as one of the last things she did while she had still been alive. Bells tool in the city announcing your arrival

Kay regards the flags as he enters the city. 'Hm, maybe we'll get around to changing those some day. But, we have priorities for now. That can change once there's a moment of respite. But today is not that day.' Kay follow's Zerene's lead through the city. She seems to know more about this gate than he does. So he trusts her to lead him to its location.

(She only knows it’s in the city )

02:38

A welcoming team is waiting for you at the public square directly behind the gate. A few soldiers but mostly diplomats and an elderly man in a silk dressing robe round out the compliment

Kay dismounts from the truck and waves a the welcoming team, giving them a small bow as he approaches. "I thank you for the warm welcome guys, but there's no need. I'm just another guy traveling, nothing more."

"We don't get visitors from Heras often, especially not ones that come with exotic animals and large vehicles like this. We're pleased to welcome you to our city,"

"Then i thank you anyway, I'm glad to be here. I came out here because I was told about a certain gate that might be in or around the city. I wanted to see if it was real, and if it was, to check it out myself."

The elderly man sighs "I knew someone else would come. This is my city, it is my duty to show you myself, though everyone standing here knows. Please, follow me"

Kay follows the elderly man. "I don't mean to impose, but who else has been to this gate before?"

"From yours? Or from my own people?"

15:22

"Just for clarity of an answer, of course"

15:22

The Khan seems a bit of an eccentric, but the air of a grandfatherly like figure exudes from him

"You said someone else would come. So I'm assuming that someone else was from Mytikas." (edited)

"Ah yes, a young woman named Pearl, a bit crude for my tastes but she gathered herself up well once she realized the gravity of the situation'

"I remember her, been a while since I've heard the babe though. But what do you mean by the gravity of the situation? Is the gate dangerous?"

"The gate itself is not dangerous, though the organization on the other side known as The Weeping Company is a bit unsettling. They've traded with us a bit, and indeed saved the city with their advanced soil regeneration methods, but the deal was a bit unseemly. The city was on the verge of starvation you understand" (edited)

Kay's eyes narrow slightly. "What was the deal?"

"Prisoners from our side, convicts and violent offenders, none from war. The Company insisted it was for some labor projects on their side they did not have the manpower for, as there are not many of them"

15:43

"In exchange, the law abiding citizens on this side of the gate get farmland again, farmland that feeds most of the planet now, our harvests have never been better"

15:44

He sighs "You need to understand something before you judge what I did. We were finding bodies in the streets. In alleys. In the countryside. Did you know that 80% of the dead during that time were found to have gnaw marks on them?

"Just show me the gate sir. I won't judge until I've seen exactly what's going on."

'just you, but you may come armed. Can we agree on this?"

"I ask that my second comes with me as well. She goes where I go for both of our safety. Surely one extra person won't be too much trouble."

"Not at all, Ijust wish to not bring a large group through, it might send the wrong message"

"Very well. Zerene and I will go through the gate then. "

You're brought into the palace with a minimal escort, and the escort stays behind as the three of you enter a heavy door into a stone tower, and a staircase winds deep down into the beyond underdepths of the palace. The flagstones are cool, almost freezing, and Zerene is certainly not dressed for the occasion- her clothing more fluid and loose to suit the hard life of dino wrangling she is used to on Astycoche

Kay starts heading down the cold flagstones, the knocking of his boots against the stone echoing through the stairwell. He shoots a look over to Zerene to check how she is handling the cold before directing a question to the elderly man. "Have you ever been to the other side of the gate?"

"I have, this will be my twenty-seventh time. Twenty-Six was the trip I took with Ms. Pearl, though we did not stay long, and did not meet any of The Weeping Company. There is a small compound they've made on the other side, quite pleasant given their warlike nature, they must have really tried to make it comfortable. Usually if we're there, within a day or two, someone will come by"

20:54

"But we did not stay long enough last time"

"Very well. Do you send messages to these Weeping Company? Or does the gate alert them?"

21:05

(Oracle to try and get a glimpse of what'll happen once we meet the Weeping Company?)

Nobody has a gun drawn and you see a meeting taking place. Everything seems as peaceful as it can be

"Please lead on then Khan." He shoots Zerene a suspicious look, like he doesn't trust the innocence that the Khan is trying to sell.

"I am sure the gate alerts them somehow, though we havent wanted to prod or study it too much. There is a terminal on the other side we use to communicate with them as well, and usually when passing through I make it one of the first things I do on that side"

"Alright, and for my personal information, how would you describe your interactions with the Weeping Company? Are they quick and efficient? Are they warlike and brutish?"

"efficient, they favor very heavy military augments, but their hostility isn't focused on anyone on this side of the gate"

21:32

"They have problems of their own

"Interesting. I might see what can be done on their side then. But who knows? It all depends on how the first meeting goes."

The stairs continue winding down and you must be close to 200m underground by now, though the Khan insists you're almost there. He lights the way with a lantern on a crook that never seems to flicker or be in danger of snuffing itself out

"So, how did you originally discover this gate? It seems extremely far out of the way?"

"It was found so long ago its almost a legend to us now, but apparently is been in the middle of the valley this entire time. Our forefathers made a fortress around it to control what came in and out, and then eventually whatever powered it died out. | Castle was already here, so it became our seat of governing, and the eras just went on. The walls got taller, and fatter, our Khans and Kings got fatter, and its been forgotten until maybe five years ago now, when it suddenly reignited

"Interesting, then I'm excited to see just how it will feel to go through it. I've gone through MES portals before, but nothing like what you've been describing."

"It's a gentle tickle, and then you're suddenly on the other side"

"Well then, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't excited to see this thing for real."

Heading down into the basement of the of the tower you feel the intense cold surrounding you. Ahead a massive gateway arch of dark blocks of stone, veined in deep purple, and a thin veil of shadow black fills the frame, pulsing gently

"You weren't kidding. This this is really something else."

"If yo're ready" he says, standing in front of the gate himself and walking through

Kay look to Zerene, then back to the gate, eventually shrugging his shoulders. "Well, nothing ventured, nothing gained." With a deep breath, he walks through the gate.

A shuttle passes overhead as you make your way through, into the dim sunlit world on the other side. you are in the middle of a large forest clearing, and the wind picks up as its landing jets fire and it sets down onto a small tarmac. @Regulus/Grupp the ramp opens, and a figure stands there with his hand on the switch inside the doorframe to lower it.

Dave exits the shuttle, heading confidently over to the gate as if he's done this a thousand times. Damn, the gate is thrumming with power, I wonder if the cultists' gate is like this one... Only two people coming through? And what, mere humans? Well, they must not care too much about this delegation if they're just sending me. As Dave reaches Kayden and Zerene he places a fist to his palm and gives a very shallow bow, "Welcome Protectorate delegates. I'm Dave of the Weeping Company. We've been expecting you." Expecting him for about 5 minutes still counts right?

3

Catching sight of the shuttle landing almost as soon as he steps through, Kay raises an eyebrow. 'Fuck, the Khan wasn't kidding when he said they'd be here shortly.' Raising a hand in greeting, he approaches the lone Weeping Conpany delegate. "How's it going? Name's Kay, and this one here is Zerene. And I'll be damned if the Khan wasn't lying when he said you guys had a quick response time."

The Khan? Is that their leader perhaps? Regardless I should be able to bullshit my way through such primitive folk easily. "Of course, we wouldn't want to keep you waiting. We weren't told your intentions for this visit, do you wish to contract the services of the Company?"

19:31

His tone is authoritative and a bit arrogant, but not dismissive.

'Contract? Do these guys think of themselves as mercs? Then why give soil enrichment in exchange for prisoners?' "Well then, I appreciate your consideration. As for my intentions, I just wanted to see exactly what the people who come through here are used for. I also heard that you guys had your own issues out here, so if there's anything I can do to help, all you need to do is ask." (edited)

The prisoners? Ah, right. Prime organic material they were. "Have you heard of someone called the Still Lady? Supposedly she had a small token force on your side of the gate that was mostly destroyed. Ambitious, if foolish of her in my opinion. She would have been much weaker over there with your low levels of ambiant aether. The seat of her power is within this sector, where the storm weakens the barrier between dimensions. The Weeping Company has been at war with her for some time, mostly a defensive one, and it has occasionally been a struggle for us I admit. You would need to speak to those with more power than I to create official terms of employment if the Company were to hire your people to aid."

'Hm, no mention of the prisoners. Maybe that means that some shady shit is going on with them.' "I have heard of her before. I might have something to offer. But, like you said, that'll be a conversation for a different group of people. In the meantime though, perhaps you have the ability to show me what the prisoners are used for? Nothing against you guys, I'm just the kind of person who cares about what happens to his people, regardless of who they are."

Dave waits a few seconds before responding, watching your face intently, before shrugging, "They were criminals. And no longer your people. Do you know much about transhumanism? Some more primitive cultures use mechanical shells but the Company uses exclusively organic. Growing an organic shell that far surpasses normal human limits is not inexpensive and requires materials. Normally this is not a problem, but when you need a bulk order of combat shells to fight a new enemy... It's more cost effective to recycle."

(Is the Khan here? Or has he scurried off somewhere?)

(he is here but he has heard this at the same time as you, and is processing it)

Without turning to face him, Kay speaks over his shoulder. "Khan, did you do anything at all to verify what your people were being sent into? Criminal or not, if they are under the care of one of your institutions, then they're still your responsibility."

"I had a suspicion they would not be coming back, and didnt look further into it. I had never intended to make another deal. THe city has enough food now. We don't need to anymore. " (edited)

03:23

"We were starving. Those criminals had crossed the society we all have obligations to. We had a chance to reduce the number of hungry mouths, and get some technology that would fix the city"

"I will speak to you later about it." Taking a deep breath, he speak to Dave again. "So Dave, if it's at all possible, would I be able to speak with these people who could direct me in ways to help against this enemy? Perhaps there might be a way that we can reduce the need to...recycle."

"Of course. We have room on our shuttle and we don't have far to go. I need to report in actually myself. I just returned from gathering information mission on the Still Lady's home planet. Believe me, we would rather use our own resources to grow shells as well. No one wants to inhabit a shell that's been used."

1

"Then let's get going, no time to waste." He points to the Khan. "How about you come along too Khan? It'll be nice to see just where your resources went to."

"I will of course accompany you- as you said, i am responsible for the people under my charge"

Dave leads them back to the shuttle, "This here's Fergus and over there is Desolane. Both ex-cultists who are looking to get back at the Lady and her cult. Des is an elementalist, if you plan on heading to Rana you'll need at least one, preferably a few to get you there."

She bows politely, blindfold over her face slipping a bit and you get a glimpse of an empty right eye socket. There is no word on if the left has anything in it, but judging by the placement of the bandana you can guess there isnt. Fergus is about to shake your hand before realizing his own is covered in ration pack nacho cheese dust, and he gives an awkward salute instead.

1

Kay gives a nod to Desolane, raising an eyebrow at her empty socket, before returning a half assed salute that's nearly perpendicular to the ground. He takes a seat in the shuttle, as he saves a seat for Zerene and the Khan. "Nice to meet you both. I'm Kay." (edited)

Dave sighs and shakes his head at Fergus before pulling out a handkerchief, "Fergus, go wash your hands and do not get cheese dust on bridge controls." He wipes down the area before taking the seat Fergus was in with a wince of disgust, "Ugh. I'll fly us back. I swear, if the Company lets me keep this shuttle they better deep clean it before I use it again. We've only been in it two days Fergus. How many crumbs can one man produce in just two days?! This is surely a record or something." Dave continues to mutter to himself, carefully wiping down each of the controls before he uses them to navigate back home. (edited)

1

The city the Weeping Company claims as its only settlement is a brilliant island of brass, silver, and gold perched in the middle of a massive lake. highways and suspension bridges lead into the city from the North, West, East, and South, and each road is a multi-hued hyperlane allowing mass transit vehicles from shore stations, private ground vehicles, and light-bike type gravbikes to pass from the shore to city at speeds the transhuman shells can take. Aquafarms grow kelp, farm fish, and filter valuable minerals from the waters surrounding the city.

3

05:15

An airport on the north side is cleared for small traffic such as your shuttle, and the air defense batteries stand down from their inquiry mode as you make contact with the ground defenders

"Ah, home sweet home. Luckily for us we shouldn't have to pass through any non citizen areas so we should be quite safe. The Company wouldn't want you to see the shit stains beneath the shiny facade. Don't worry though, you prove yourself useful to them and you'll be taken care of."

"Hm, guess no matter what coat of paint you slap on it, a city is still a city. And out of curiosity, what does constitute citizenship here?"

"You serve the Weeping Company. While in service you get access to better frames and equipment and more resources so you can serve them better. Once your term is up you're a citizen and you get to keep all those perks without risking your life anymore. There are far more non citizens here than citizens naturally."

"Of course there is. What's the Weeping Company all about anyway? I've been told you're all warriors, but even warriors need to have some sort of logistics behind them."

Dave shrugs, "Give someone smart a combat shell and they can do both. Hell, I'm a mage but my Scourge shell lets me fight without relying on spellforms. Everyone sees combat at some point but if you work your way up you'll have more control over what you do. I'm fairly low on the ladder myself but I'm hoping to rise a few rungs after my report."

"So it's a war based, authoritative merotocracy? Huh, sounds like what home used to be." (edited)

"Eh, it's all I've known. It's better than the cult, that's for sure." Dave leads them out of the shuttle, looking around to see if the Company sent someone to meet them.

"Tell me about the Cult then, I heard stories about it, but if that was a wake manifestation of her then I assume she's much different here."

"A bunch of zealots and sycophants, leaching power from an immensely powerful being rather than working for it themselves. A Shadow that strong requires a massive amount of aether, given to her by followers and ritual sacrifices. If you've studied Shadows at all she's been designated an Eaten God. The more followers she has, the more powerful she gets so she's always looking for new places and people to take over."

"Well then, I've been dealing with a few MES entities recently. So maybe I can lend a hand in keeping her at bay. It took a combined effort on our side to stop her, so I can't imagine what she's like here."

"I imagine her defeat on your side drained some of her power over here as well, but from what I've heard you didn't have nearly as many cultists there as they have here. And even diminished the Still Lady is very powerful here due to the weakened dimensional barriers and high ambiant aether levels. I'm sure the Company would welcome any extra help even from, well, mere humans. Your kind certainly does propagate rather quickly."

"I'll help out however I can, because parasitic monsters like the Still Lady can't be allowed to hurt anyone else. But it's crazy, you know. I've been across my sector, seen things I never thought I would see in my life, experienced political and personal change I didn't think were possible. Now I'm in a totally different region of space and I still can't find when I asked someone their opinion on my species."

Dave sighs and rolls his eyes, "I have nothing wrong with humans, our organics shells use a human base after all. It's not your fault your model is inferior, I understand you can't choose your body when you're born. Our advantage is that we can simply design our own bodies to be perfect. If you've the resources at least. Most non citizens have standard shells that many humans could easily surpass with hard work. But too many humans come out crippled and deformed and have no chance at a normal life. Here? That's why the Company has a Quality Assurance division. Though mistakes can still happen if rarely." He gives a dark, introspective look at this last comment.

Noticing Dave's look at his last comment, 'Hits close to home? Damn, I'd feel bad if you didn't come off as such a douche.' "Everyone has problems, it's the people who pretend they don't who are the problem. Humility is an important lesson after all."

"Humility isn't a virtue the Company rewards. If you don't fully believe in your own superiority neither will they. I am already the first Pacter the Company has had and I will become the most powerful mage in their employ. If I doubt myself I will never succeed."

"Perhaps, but refusing to recognize your own faults stunts any growth you could have. I'm a general, but it took a lot of mistakes and learning before it happened. Even now, I know for a fact that I'm not the expert in everything, so that means I have to learn to work as a team with people and improve myself to get there. If you just say you're the best well the time, then that leads to complacency."

"I am not above recognizing my faults, but I will not project them for others to see if I can avoid it... But you do speak some wisdom. I have recently discovered some of the advantages of working with others. Fergus and Des are far from perfect but I admit I could not have left Rana without them. The Company looks out for its own interests above all others and expects the same for its agents. Perhaps... this is not always the best path forward." Dave shakes himself, embarrassed at the brief show of vulnerability, "Come. Let us meet with someone paid much more than I and discuss how you may best help us. And your price for doing so."

Three combat forms, with a leader type in the center wait for you. They have a blue implant at their necks showing no brain chip has been inserted but rather they’re being puppeted by these consciousnesses elsewhere. Mostly organic the soldier forms have limbs replaced with short barreled weapons and the diplomat leader is the most beautiful woman any of you have ever seen before, bedecked in finery far in excess of a royal court “Combat-Unit 21134A , you have much to report and much to tell the council”

Dave slaps his fist to a palm in salute, "I also have representatives from the Protectorate with me. Should I report separately?"

“Have you told them of our fight against the lady ?”

"Yes and they have offered their aid. Though I figured someone higher up would negotiate the means of their employment."

“We will speak with them. Protectorate representative if you’ll come with me, we need to brief this combat unit on his last mission privately

"With pleasure, lead the way ma'am."

Kayden is brought to a small satellite office near the landing field. THe inside of it is fairly mundane looking but a large clock with exposed guts on the wall gently and stately ticks away the passing of the seconds. The diplomat enters, keeping her war protectors outside, and she shuts the simple door. "Hello there. Thank you again for agreeing to sit down. I understand you are not the sole decision maker for your group, and I do not expect an affirmative to anything we agree on today- but like all company contracts it is only for a limited term of engagement if we walk away empty handed. "

"You're right, I am not. Though, before I agree to even mobilize my soldiers. I do have one condition. I want to experience what they'll be fighting myself. I'm big on the idea of not sending my soldiers to do something I wasn't willing to do myself. It also gives me a chance to figure out how they fight and best utilize the assets I can bring to the table. If my own people agree of course."

"So you want to lead your men directly? I woul;dn't expect a foreign general to hand over command of their countrymen, even to a possible ally. This is of course agreeable"

"Thank you, it's less of a a lack of trust and more of the fact that, at the end of the day, my soldiers are my responsibility. So I should subject myself to the same conditions they would face, in order to lead them better."

“Yes, we have agreed to your request. What would you have us do to facilitate this”

"A raid. A short attack with a planned withdrawal on one of their lines, facilities, or ships. It'll be enough to cause some damage to the Still Lady while also giving me a good idea on how they fight and how they react to contact."

“That would mean going to her planet to do that. We don’t have the resources for even a raid there right now, but they send attacks over almost weekly. Would a skirmish on home soil be a problem for you?”

"No it would not be a problem."

“the raids are frequent. Frequent enough at any date. I’d expect another within a day or two especially with the bloody nose our operative Dave jsut handed them”

"Very well, do you have an approximation of where the raid will occur? Or will I be standing by as a QRF?"

"I would say for now standing by, since we can ensure you get out to the battle, rather that sticking you at some outpost and just hoping they decide to make a probe there"

20:42

"But we're open to suggestions, as you seem to be a commander of some renown yourself"

"Do you have any outposts of significant strategic value? Those would be the ones that the cilt would most likely want to probe. If you have the locations of them, I could stand by in the vicinity. That way it would speed up my response time."

"We're already in a small area, you won't get there any faster being here, or circling the city in a shuttle- when tihngs do happen, we can teleport you there"

"Very well. Then my only advice would be to monitor all traffic and sensors. Once contact is made i assume it won't take long for the coordinates to be entered into your teleporter?"

"Six seconds, perhaps less"

"Outstanding. While we wait, if you wouldn't mind, could you explain to me the Cult's standard tactics or what kind of operations they favor?"

"Teleport attacks from intruder starships mostly, once their pacters are on the ground they summon different combat shadows to rapidly grow their numbers"

"Do the Shadows persist if their pacter is killed?"

"Sometimes, ones of tremendous strength seem to hold on for some time"

"Very well. That complicates things, but the same principle applies. Kill the pacters as son as possible, then deal with the shadows."

There is a dimming of the lights, and an alert begins to flash on the system monitor.

05:14

"Pardon me, you're perfectly safe here. This is an internal matter, not a raid by Still Lady cultists. I will return when I am able"

(Can I read what the alert says?)

(just a generic like warning triangle with the explanation point in it that says "alert!"

05:21

(but a program/int on the screen in here could get more information

(Would I need to physically interact with the monitor for that? Or would that just be reading into what it could mean? Don't want to just boot some dude out of his chair.)

(You've been left alone in the room here, since the diplomat has left to go see whats going on)

05:25

(but yes, you'd need to physically touch it)

(1)

4

It doesn’t seem like you can get it to operate but you hear the unmistakable sound of gunfire in the hallway a few seconds later

Hearing the sound of gunfire, Kay immediately unslings his rifle and opens the door, briefly peaking around the corner to check for threats.

As the spirits fade and the pain from the mark begins to recede, a squad of Weeping Company stormtroopers in heavy combat frames, led by the diplomat come surging from the corner behind you

19:50

"What happened here? Someone get these fires out now!"

Kay slings his Taros rifle as he turns around, the exposed skull slowly being covered as the energy coalesces into flesh. "The one guy, Dave, was trying to escape. He told me to get out of his way, I didn't."

"You've done the company a great service by handling the traitor. Dreadburgh is going into lockdown, so we're goingt o ask you to leave, but name your price for this service, and we will meet next month to resume our discussion of what to do about the still lady"

19:59

(I know you might be at that training by time we get to it, I'll make sure we hold this for you)

"That's reasonable enough. Though, before I ask my price, what will happen to Dave's companions?"

"Exile if they do not resist. Termination, if they do"

21:31

"They are a liability, likely compromised by the Lady

21:31

and we will not take the risk"

"Then allow me to assume the risk. We have an academy on my home where they could be retrained. Yes it is a risk, but I am willing to take it."

"They are yours. Thank you for your assisting. The Company owes you a significant favor"

21:35

a coin is pressed into your hand by the diplomat

5

"Like I said. I'm here to help." *He gives a slight bow of respect after the coin is pressed into his hand. *

(Desolane and Fergus have been added to the academy roster, no one is going to mess with you taking them)

Returning to Heras through the L-gate, Kay takes a couple of days to recover from his wounds, covering the left side of his face until the flesh has been fully restored.

Desolane and Fergus are bound with you, and take their leave once you reach the academy, under guard. They will remain confined here until you decide otherwise, or wish to speak with them.

19:05

As you heal, you notice the small burn on your hand is not healing along with the rest of your body (edited)

Looking down at the burn, Kay starts to worry to himself, 'Fuck, that can't be good. It probably is some sort of arcane or psychic thing. Either way, sounds like the something the Lamplighter might be able to answer. Then I can check in on Desolane and Fergus.'

As you awaken, a priority message comes across your control console, from Zerene. the Envelope dances on the screen, unopened. 1 New Priority Message

Rolling out of bed, Kay begins strapping his gear back on as he opens the message. "Damn, more work already?"

A video greets you. Zerene and her raptor are running, while johns' farm burns and the shrieks of dying raptors scratches your ears even through the video. "boss! I'm on the way back. Something came at us out of the night. Some kind of fire...warrior, thing. I dont know! It just started burning everything! I'm coming back to Heras now, right now. I should be there tonight, I just want to be sure it's not following me before I do"

21:08

The video cuts out, but you see her vitals are being recorded by her pad, and all seems strong and healthy so far - meaning she is alive out there somewhere

"Fuck" Is all Kay is able to say as he quickly slips the rest of his gear on. 'Need to get there fast. Fire should be visible from a long ways out, but I'll need the protection of the TAA. Flyer it is.' He quickly pulls a pilot and pulls them both in an atmoflier. "Bring me out to John's old farm, out that way, and see if you can find a fire in the forest!" As they take off, he activates his internal scanner as well. If she's put there, it'll pick her up. (edited)

(notice/wis)

(10)

You see Zerene and her raptor on the road. The raptor is limping but carrying both of them despite injuries. Hers don’t appear life threatening. A large black column of smoke scars the horizon there the farm and associated grounds are firmly ablaze.

Kay keys his comms to Zerene "Zerene, do you have a direction to the hostile?"

"No, gone. Vanished into the woods north of the farm. Didn't stop to fight it, killed everyone. I wasn't going to make a difference"

"Roger, get yourself to the city, the atmoflier will cover you. I'm dropping off at the farm to see if I can find this thing."

The smoke is thick, rolling clouds of sludge and tar as you approach the farmstead, now nothing but fire blackened skeletal beams burning up in waves of red and yellow flame. The lake is steaming from the heat, and the barn is likewise gone now- the plants and animals inside cooked to cinders. Blackened skeletons of the rest of the raider crew are scattered around the farmstead, though you can see by the separated bone on most that sword blows were actually what ended their lives

'Sword, flames. Seems exactly like the thing who was fighting with Dave, and burned my hand.' Kay looks around for any kind of trail, a place where it could have physically appeared from or if it just appeared out of thin air.

(survive/wis)

(9)

There is a burned trail heading north into the forest, skirting the eastern side of the lake , away from the property

15:08

It's hard to tell with all the rest of the generalized burning in the area,

15:08

but the trail eventually moves into forest that wasn't part of the larger fire, making you feel you're on the right path

With his rifle out, Kay follows the trail deeper into the forest, trying to keep sight of the charred foliage down the trail. (edited)

The foliage is singed and charred, and eventually ends in a large clearing where a 10m wide spray of blackened tree, ash, and destroyed ground shows where some sort of fireball careened into the air. There is no sign of the creature, but there is enough burned material here to signify some sort of explosion, and the trail is cold.

'Trail's cold. The Lamplighter, I need to talk to him. Figure out how the hell I can find this thing. Or at least how I can track it.'

(3xp, 5000 credits)

Rushing back to the Psychic Academy, Kay tries to find the Lamplighter, Fergus, and Desolane. A fire shadow that can appear out of nowhere is a massive threat that needs to be solved as soon as possible.

The Lamplighter is inside, speaking with the two from behind the L-Gate. Fergus is adjusting as best he can, though looks to be sad. He likely does not have much of an ability anymore on this side of the gate and has been reduced to more of an expert witness than an actual magical practitioner. It's impossible to tell how Desolane might be doing. She has a fresh blindfold on, and fresh clothing and looks to have finally had a very long wash.

Kay approaches the three. "I hope you two are getting along well so far. I hate to ask this of you all, but we might have a problem. That fire shadow that Dave controlled, it seems like it followed us here. It hurt Zerene and killed the rest of her pack."

Fergus gets up, and begins walking over to you. "When you killed Dave..." he begins, you sense he wants to say more but he is doing his best to focus and compartmentalize for a change. "When you killed Dave, can you describe to me anything out of the ordinary that might have happened after?"

"He had his shadow, he called it Agni, kill him. After it was done, this symbol was burnt onto my hand."

Fergus starts to laugh unable to help himself "Okay okay, one more question. What happened when you beat him, did you kill him outright, or did it take him a few minutes to pass on?"

"I wasn't the one to kill him. He had Agni kill him with his sword. Dave had his chip burnt out by the strike, so I assume it was near instant."

"you were present though, at the time of death. Did he ask you to let angi kill him? or did the creature just lash out on its own"

23:54

"I know I said last question but I guess I had more. Sorry boss"

"It's fine. Whatever you need to give an informed answer. He asked me to let Agni kill him."

"Hah!" he laughs "You dumb fuck. He probably death marked you when he died. Angi killing him meant Angi was free and is a rogue shadow now. Well, we can do something about this. It's trying to get to you. Good thing is, it's not going to leave Heras, but if there's anyone else here you care about, you better get 'em here"

00:07

"force

00:07

'em to appear. I can bind him to this building when he does. THen you're going to have to do your whole death metal album cover fight thing the old fashioned way"

"That petty piece of shit. There's one other here that he'll be after, my brother. But he works for the Academy anyway, so bringing him here won't be an issue. I can go get Zerene as well and have her hold up here. Thank whatever god it's confined to Heras though. Otherwise I'd have asked for a way to bring that piece of shit back so I can kill him again." He pulls out his compad to type call both Zerene and Jace. "I don't have time to explain, but I need you to come to the Psychic Academy right now."

Both of them understand and will make it here with all speed , knowing you don’t often make these kinds of requests without a reason

02:17

It will be some time before they arrive

Kay focuses his mind, trying to sense if anything will try to stop either of them on their way. (Committing effort to Oracle)

There is an image of a cargo lighter descending on a cone of black smoke and plowing into the forest outside the city

'Zerene is close by, that means it has to be Jace.' He comms his Division commanders. "I need a company, plussed up with an IFV to escort Zerene to the Psychic Academy. I also need a ship." comming Jace. "Jace, I got a bad feeling. I'm coming to get you. Be ready to leave as soon as I get there."

“I was just about to get onto a lighter. You want me to wait then?”

"Yes, I'll be there soon. Make sure you have guards with you until I get there."

(What ship are you taking up?)

(The Voice, and a squad of power armored guards)

Arriving in space, the Voice pulls up alongside the Thracian vessel Jace was on, and he is in the hold with a cordon of guards

Kay quickly walks up to Jace, leading him back to the Voice. "Thanks for taking this seriously. I just need to get you to the psychic academy as quickly as possible before something happens."

"What, what is happening? it's not like you to freak out like this"

"There's a MES entity out for me and it's going after people close to me. I have a way to trap it, but I need to bring you to the Psychic Academy so it doesn't just attack you where I can't stop it." (edited)

“Alright. So I was bait up until you got here. Alright bröther. I’m with you. Just tell me what you need”

"It's the only way I can make sure this thing can't hurt you. The plan is to bring you to the Psychic Academy. Then we wait until the thing appears, when it does, there's a spell we can use to trap it on this reality so I can kill it."

“I see. And you have no way of knowing when else it might come. Alright. Let’s head down together then and do this properly “

"Thank you." returning aboard the Voice, Kay depends back down to the Psychic Academy.

Angi doesn't appear on the trip down, either because this is a new vehicle or because the situation has changed. The Voice lands as close to the city as it can manage, and the overland trip the remainder of the way seems to likewise go without trouble

Kay leads Jace back to the chamber with Fergus, Desolane, and the Lamplighter, also checking to see if Zerene made it.

Zerene has made it, escorted into the city on your instructions. Everyone is assembled here now, and since Dai is off planet and also safe, you have all the people Angi could target now in one place, and you are likewise here, ready for him

Kay turns to Fergus. "Alright, so do we need to wait for him to appear? Or will he only show up if I'm not here?"

"If I knew I'd have told you when you asked me. I think your best play is make the place as advantageous to you as possible. He's going to get tired of waiting eventually"

"Ok, then I need some place to hide when he does show up. If I can get the drop on him, it'll make this a lot easier. Other than that, I'll need space to move. I can handle myself up close, but I'll finish him faster from a range. Does this place have a sprinkler system? If he's literally made of fire, then dousing him might also take the edge off."

"Not with water. We were experimenting with forced air and fire retardant foam but those system were never put in either. Ms. Seawall was killed by that retarded ashen one , according to the records here" Fergus says. He has been studying up on his new home, it seems.

"Fine, then I guess the best we can hope for is a place to hide and enough space to move around."

(Any preparations you want to try to@make?)

(Prepare a spot to hide in to try and get a surprise round off, have the company that escorted Zerene stand by to kill it if I can't, locking the doors to this room as soon as Agni appears.)

(I thought just the grav flyer was escorting her not a whole company of soldiers )

(Yeah, a company plussed up with an IFV)

01:22

(Grav flier escorted her away from the original site with Agni, the company and IFV took her from there) (edited)

(alright, so the campus is effectively surrounded)

(Pretty much)

Kayden finds a spot near some pallets of furniture that has yet to be assembled in the main atrium, and waits.

Angi appears, after a few hours pass, in a brilliant flash of light. He is 15m from you, firey blade drawn and held in a guarded position, as he looks around the room.

'Just you and me now asshole. Keep looking and give me some time to line this up.' (Going to commit an effort to Fade and try to set up an execution shot)

(I'd basically have 10 rounds of notice checks to find you, which I can guarantee passing at least one before you'd get the shot off)

(Then I'll just take the surprise round. That'd still be a stealth vs notice for that right?)

(nope, you get a free round of everything before we jump into initiative is all)

Popping from his space, Kay takes a quick burst at Agni from his rifle. (16/15)

The shots spark from the back of Angi's armored plating, and it turns to face you, sword En garde!

19:38

(initative now)

(7)

(4 for angi, still 15m away)

Backing up to the other end of the room to get some distance, Kay sends another burst at Agni (18/19)

The twin bursts bounce from the life-warded plating, and angi roars, surging forward (If you're actually taking your 10m move action, let me know how much of that you're using, so i can figure out how much of my own action stuff to commit)

(How big is the room it total? I just assumed it wouldn't take the whole 10 to reach the other side, so like 5m)

(He came in 15 away from you, i was thinking 20 by 20 ish)

(Yeah, so I only used 5m of movement)

Angi stops short, 10m away, firing a gloppet of magma from his sword the way you have seen Dai do, so many times before. The magma is not a great projectile, and casts a smoldering line in the floor a meter from you (13 to hit, which doesnt)

20:09

(and back to you)

'Middle of the room, no way to manuever around him. Without still getting charged. Just keep shooting and trust the armor can hurt him.' (Give me a second. My internet at work is being retarded and isn't calculating stuff right for some reason, not giving me an option to burst and giving me results not possible, taking 4 or 5 attempts to even load roll20) (edited)

(19/21)

The shots once again deflect of the etherically charged armor, and angi bellows, stepping forward to deliver a downward cleave with the firey blade in his hand

22:06

(25/10, and end turn)

(1 damage to Agni) The blade digs into to Kay's clavicle, burning but not getting any further than the bone. With a lunge, he allows the blade to drag and tear a chunk of flesh off as he slides under Agni's arm and off the wall. Landing 20m on the opposite side of the room Panting, he holds the rifle up to his shoulder. "I can do this all day." Squeezing the trigger, he lets off another burst from the bottomless magazine. (27/22)

Angi sags slightly as the powerful shot punches through his armored plating , but for now he remains standing, and the blade sweeps back down, scoring a massive line in the floor where he narrowly misses you

Narrowly dodging out of the way by sliding across the wall, Kay pulls the trigger again, blowing away a section of wall next to Agni (19/20)

Angi is forced to weave out of the way, ruining his own strike toward your legs (Miss)

(3 damage to Agni) The suit pulses back at Agni's arm, forcing it to the ground as Kay leaps over the blade, rolling as he clears 20m across the room yet again. Raising his rifle again, his knuckles go white as he squeezes the trigger. "You want to go after people I care about? I'll blow you to pieces you sad little cinder." (29/26)

(25/4) Angi is flickering now, some of the flame has degraded to embers and the armor is beginning to fray. The cracked blade swings back toward you, chopping into your shoulder

(Kay already moved 20m away)

(he gets an opportunity attack for you leaving combat

04:47

(and not taking the diseangage as an action)

(Supernatural mobility lets me jump out of melee)

(You alo then double moved and shouldnt been able to have fired then either unless you've got some focus)

(TAA lets me jump 20m) (edited)

(Alright, well i guess he doesnt do anything but rush up into combat with you then)

As Agni barrels towards him, Kay squats and launches himself over the Shadow. Seeing a crack starting to form on Agni's back, Kay twists himself in the air and fires a bust of rounds into the chink in his armor. Hitting the ground, he rolls and stops 15m away from the Shadow. (24/19)

Angi's sword snaps, the shots shearing the middle and point of it away, sending it spiraling across the floor, digging deep into the stonework. Angi begins to discorporate, too damaged to keep his current form. A cloud of embers and dust remains, though a fraction of what something his height should have left behind.

Keeping his rifle up, Kay hits his comms with his free hand. "Fergus, I fought Agni, but he left this small cloud of embers and dust. Does that mean he's gone? Or is he hiding out somewhere else?"

"I can't sense him anymore. He's gone. I think that's it" Fergus says, thinking and extending his senses

"The mark is still here though, is it supposed to go away when he's done for good?" (edited)

Looking down at your hand, the mark has faded to something like a scar. It hurts a little, like a tender patch of skin after a thorn or piece of shrapnel is removed. "Well, It's not as nasty as it was. Body should heal the rest of it"

22:44

"and if you smell pork, it's probably you"

"Very well. Keep the trap up for a little while longer. But I think it's safe to open back up."

“And the soldiers outside? Should I dismiss them?”

"Give me a rotating guard of 10 until the trap is dropped. The rest can be dismissed."

(3xp, 5000 credits)

(Is it okay if I join up Kayden?)

(Kayden won’t be back until thanksgiving )

03:58

(He’s been on a military training exercise for a month. That’s why I’ve been npc ing him)

(Ah)

(I'm back baby) After stepping out from the ops center, Kay wipes the sweat from his forehead. So much needed to be done with the Ghouls, and the infiltration mission was already about to be under way. So much to do, so little time. He took a breath, 'Alright, first thing's first. I need to talk to the UNW peeps about how they want to do this. Then, the personal stuff. This is going to take a while, so I need to finish any personal business first. Yeah, that should work.' Making his way back to the Catacombs, he digs through his night stand until he pulls out his family picture. 'I've put this off for too long now. But can I really say goodbye for good?' (edited)

8

6

The frame has a thin film of dust over it but it parts easily enough with a gloved finger touch over it

Carefully pulling the picture from the frame, Kay pauses for a moment, 'Should I bring Daitrij to do this with me?...no. I need to get over this on my own.' With the picture in hand, Kay leaves the Catacombs and slowly walks into the forest. Finding a secluded clearing, Kay places the picture in the center, letting it settle into the grass. "Mom, Dad, Ty, I know I can't take back what happened, and I can't count how many times I've said I'm sorry, but I wish you were here now. I found a home, for me, for Jace, for our people. I found someone who loves me. And I found a new part of myself I didn't even know was possible. I don't know...I just hope I made you proud. So now, I want to make you a part of our new home, so we can all be together. I love you, and I miss you...so much." Placing his hand in the grass, roots and vines start to sprout from the ground, pulling the picture under the earth, almost as if Heras itself was embracing them as it slowly sunk beneath the surface. When the picture had finally disappeared, Kay hung there for a moment, before softly whispered to himself. "You're home now."

02:38

Tears start to stream down his face as he remembers the lines from a song his mother used to sing to them when they were young. Something her mother had sung to her and her mother before that. "You taught me the courage of stars before you left How light carries on endlessly even after death With shortness of breath, you explained the infinite How rare and beautiful it is to even exist I couldn't help but ask For you to say it all again I tried to write it down But I could never find a pen I'd give anything to hear You say it one more time That the universe was made Just to be seen by my eyes" His voice cracks as he sobs slightly, memories of the five of them flashes in his mind. Nothing momentous, just quiet, simple times when they were together as a family. "I couldn't help but ask For you to say it all again I tried to write it down But I could never find a pen I'd give anything to hear You say it one more time That the universe was made Just to be seen by my eyes With shortness of breath, I'll explain the infinite How rare and beautiful it truly is that we exist" Finally standing and wiping the tears from his eyes, Kay looks down at the disturbed earth. A soft "I love you." Is all he can choke out before he stands in silence.

3

(take a re-roll token)

15:50

The first wave of the Ghoul mission has made it to the rally point according to your latest feed, and you've got some time before you're needed to lead ground troops there - enough time for one more thing, a matter between you and Dai you've been putting off for some time.

(Goal met: have a memorial for family. I can't access the sheet because reception is too bad, but that should get me to 10)

(Level 9-10 Hp: 70-71 Gaipsi-1 Tongue of the beasts power)

After a moment of silence, Kay stands. I'm running out of time. I need to get there now.' Quickly calling one of the helos to the clearing, Kay jumps on and directs the pilot towards the Lamplighter vault on top of the mountain. "I won't be long, just keep the engine running and I'll be right out." Reentering the vault, Kay is still amazed by the lines of runes that pulse and glow to light up the vault. Finding a small enough rune, runes, stops. 'This will do.' Carefully manifesting a blade, Kay chips out the small glowing rune, and jumps back in the helo and heads back to Mytikas. With a short ride behind him, Kay quickly thanks the pilot and makes his way to a small jewler inside the city, asking for a small ring that the stone could be fitted into. Only taking about 30 minutes to complete, Kay, satisfied with his preparations, makes his way to the Herald's office, knocking on the door and hoping Daitrij is still in.

A young woman in a robe leaves the office in just that moment. She is mildly startled when she runs into Kay. "Oh. I am sorry. You want to visit First Parago.. I mean the Herald? She is in there, she isn't too busy right now. So I guess you could just go in."

Kay carefully sidesteps her, lost in his own thoughts. "Thanks a lot." He half waves back as he walks through the door. "Hey love, do you have a second?"

Daitrij is almost buried in work. She reads through reports on multiple screens and is just partially paying attention to whoever walks into her office. "Sure, just sit down and I..." Her head turns towards her visitor, eyes open wide. She jumps over her table instead of walking around it, races towards Kay and jumps at him. "Kay! You're here. Luchick, I was afraid you would already be underway to these ghouls. It, it is so good to see you. Feel you, to have you here." After a moment of resting her head on his chest, she continues. "If I'd known that you would come I would have prepared myself a bit more. I look like a mess, like my desk, and my work."

Kay holds her close for a second, trying to steady his breathing as he repeats the story he'd been playing in his head for hours. "It's good to see you too love. I have a little time before I leave, and I just got word about something. You remember the vault on the mountain? Some of the people there said that they found another door inside, but can't get it open. They asked if I could take a look, and I figured you could come again. You know, for old times sake."

"This mission. It was when we first met. The good and the bad, so close together. Um, so you say there is just one door? And they won't get it open? Well, there is no door safe from us two, right? I do have much to do here, but if the EP's highest decorated General wants me to look at some closed door, well I can't say no, right? And there is nothing I would rather do then spending the rest of this day with you."

Kay smiles as he begins to fully realize what he's doing. "Great. I'd spend every minute with you if I could, but this time will have to be enough for now. I have a helo close by that can take us there, shouldn't be more than an hour's ride." Kay steps aside and let's Daitrij go through the door first as he leads her onto the helo, taking a seat next to her. "You know, the mountain is where I first realized it. There was some bad, but it was there that I realized there was no one else for me. Just you." He looks down and smiles slightly. "Sorry, I'm rambling a bit."

Daitrij steps away from Kay. She grins with slightly watery eyes. She grabs his hands. "You're cute when you ramble, Luchick. And I know what you mean. And, and as much as I wished that we got to know each other in less troubling times, I do feel like that the way it happend, was how it was meant to be from Ognyena." Daitrij turns to the side and touches her ear. "Cancel all appointments for today. Mr. Zayre needs to show me something of upmost importance, I'll be gone for today." Then she looks back at Kay. "Shall we?"

The helicopter ride is fairly short, with Kay mostly quiet as he sits next to Daitrij and holds her hand throughout the ride. The mountain looks very different from the last time they climbed it, the frost and light snow of winter replaced with green bloom and warmer air. Laning in the clearing just outside the vault, Kay nearly drags Daitrij out of the helo in much the same way she dragged him into the vault before. Runes bathing them both in a soft light, Kay takes her over to where he chipped the stone, a small square indent in the rock as he points towards it. "The guys said that they felt a draft through here, and think this is where a key would go. But they were afraid there might be more drones on the other side. So I honestly don't blame them for calling us. What do you think?"

She inspects the indent. Her fingers move over it, touch it, she gets really close with her face to the wall. During the whole inspection, she is looking towards the wall. "Huh, I guess you could make short work of any drones, and this time protect your Herald and not the other way around." She laughs. "But I don't feel anything. And that Key would be pretty special, right? Did you ask the Lamplighter if he has any information about it, or shall I try and open it? Last time it was your turn, do you remember how beautifully the gate opened? This time I could try my luck. What do you say? Did you inspect that thing yourself? Do you want to look? This is kinda exciting, different than my admin work." She continues her focus on the wall and doesn't turn around, now pushing her ear against the indent to try and hear something.

Kay drops down to a knee, pretending to examine the indent while he digs into his pocket, smiling at her joke. "You're much more than just my Herald, you're my everything Daitrij." Pulling the ring out of his pocket, he holds it up to Daitrij, hand trembling slightly. The rune in the stone glows a soft purple in response to Kays's residual energy still lingering within the rune. "I don't know of this will work, but I can think of another door it'd open." He pauses, trying to think of something to say. His throat feels dry and his breathing speeds up as he fights down a pang of anxiety. "Here is where I knew, that you were the most amazing person I had ever met. Where I went from being interested in you, to infatuated with you; where I fell in love with you. I don't know what might happen to us, to EP, or to the rest of the sector. But I know that no matter what happens, I want you to know that I'll always be with you. Hedwig...Daitrij, will you marry me?" Kay looks up at Daitrij, a silent prayer running through his mind as he tries to push away thoughts of the worst case scenario, a deep breath escaping his lungs as he tries to calm himself. (edited)

Daitrij looks at Kay. Eyes and mouth wide open. Stunned. Her mouth moves but no words form. Her mind is flooded by thoughts and words, but "No" is not among it. She's never been in that situation before, and a year ago, she wouldn't have even dreamed about it being possible. She drops down onto her knees and grabs Kay's hand that holds the ring. Still, no words come out of her mouth, but she smiles, and tears start to run down her cheeks. She starts to nod and begins to sob. She looks at Kay. Her voice is crackling from the crying. "Yes, Yes, Yes, I will! Forever at your side. I, I don't really know what to say. I, I love you, Kay. I am just all out of words right now." She looks down at the ring. "It is beautiful." She waits for him to put the ring on her finger so she can let herself fall into his arms.

4

Slowly reaching out, Kay slides the gold band onto Daitrij's finger. The ring slides on with no hang ups as Kay leans forward, planting a kiss on her lips and embracing her. "You've made me happier than I could have ever imagined. I love you so much Daitrij, forever and always." His mind swirls as it struggles to comprehend what has happened. He'd always assumed he'd be the one to end up alone. But now, he's never felt more complete, never felt closer to one person, never been more excited for the future.

3

Picking Daitrij up, he carries her back onto the helicopter, setting the course for the Catacombs. Whatever work needed to be done, whatever administration needed doing, or training that needed to be conducted, it could wait until tomorrow. Today was for them, as fiancés. For once, the looming threat of what needed to be done slipped Kay's mind. All he could think of was the here and now, with her.

Daitrij doesn't stop cuddling with Kay on their way. And once they enter the Cathedral she makes him known with Aksana before telling her to pray even more on this day. Just to make sure she stays occupied, she then drags Kay down to her apartment. Once inside she just stops kissing him for one question. "Are you hungry?"

Barely paying attention to Aksana, his mind too focused on Daitrij to think of anyone else. Pulling back slightly at the question, he realizes he hasn't eaten a thing all day. "I am. I'm starving actually." (edited)

Daitrij kisses him, hugs him, and then pushes him away at arm's length to look at him. "Yeah, you look like you didn't eat in weeks." Daitrij claps her hand and walks over to the kitchen area where she opens the fridge to check for what's there. "Thanks to Aksana, my new Ognyena Priestess, living here all the time now, we are always stocked with fresh food. Being a Taros herself, we share the same taste of food.* She gets a big piece of meat out and after cleaning it once she starts to chop it into smaller chunks of meat. "Aksana, the girl upstairs? You look like I didn't tell you. And you even met her like two minutes ago." She smiles and laughs. "Well, I shouldn't complain when your eyes stay put on your fiance, right?" "But she will help me get Ognyena's words to Heras." After two and a half hours of talking and cooking, Daitrij presents Kay with a plate filled with goulash in a heavy red wine sauce, red cabbage, and roasted bread dumpling slices. A large plate, enough for three, while Daitrij takes a way smaller one for herself. "Luchick, dig in! All for you, so you are full of energy."

Kay takes a taste of the food, unsure if he can even finish a third of what's in front of him. But, as soon as the taste hits his tongue, he ravenously devours what's in front of him. It had been, what, 2 days since he'd actually eaten now? He finally stops as he feels himself filling up. "Love, it's amazing...you're amazing...this is all amazing. Can you please, teach me to cook like this?"

She takes a bite off of a dumbling watching Kay take on the whole plate. She has to smile and is happy to feed her fiance well. "I sure could show you some stuff, as long as it doesn't make you too good of a target for the likes of Zerene. That girl seemed to be hungry, for food and you. You didn't go with the first wave against the ghouls. What is your part in this joint campaign with the UNW?"

Kay takes a break from eating to lean back and try to order the sheer amount of things he needs to take care of before he leaves. "Right now, i need to focus on training up out forces for the initial invasion of the planet. Once the infiltration is done, I'm going down on drop pods in the first wave to try and set up a beachhead for everyone else to land. But a lot of training and preparation needs to be done before that happens. And love," He places a hand on hers. "I never felt anything for Zerene. You've had me wrapped around your finger since I met you." He gives her a warm smile.

She smiles back at him. "Thank you. Please lead our soldiers to a victory. But don't risk your safety, please. But I know you are the best we have. Our military is in the best hands. But I will worry about you every day."

"I would move heaven and earth, push through armies myself, or rearrange the sector itself to get back to you Daitrj. You have nothing to worry about."

"You know I am not participating in any of the actual fightings. As that is nothing that a leader should do, at least the way I see it. But should you ever get into trouble during the campaign, send me a message. I wouldn't be there all too fast. But I would show them that Ognyena's wrath is something that exists too. Something you don't want to summon." Daitrij looks uncomfortable, only poking around on her plate. "But you won't need that. You are the best, I know that I've seen that. All will be fine. I don't need to worry. You'll be back in one piece.* She says that all almost pleadingly. "Please promise me that you take care. Please, Luchick."

"I promise that I will, love. Now please, let's not worry about the future. Today, all that matters is I'm with you." He leans over and kisses her gently. "And that's all I ever want anyway."

Daitrij pushes him away. "I can't just blank out the future just because you want me to. That is not how it works." She gets up and walks around the table, over to Kay, and offers him a hand. "Respect my feelings and all is well. Do you want to dance?" She closes her eyes and the light in the apartment changes to a dimmed orange. A piano can be heard playing and the display that acts as a fake window shows beautiful landscapes of Heras.

He's startled for a second, thinking it was some sort of magic that she could do. Until he remembered the apartments are totally controlled anyway. He stands up with a sigh, his voice getting progressively shaky as he talks. "I just can't think about the future. If I think about Yauvani, I think about where the ghouls came from, then I think about Urretrrea and how much harder that'll be, then I think about everything I need to do to get there. And there's just, so much that can go wrong. I don't know if I can do all that. I've survived on luck so far, but I'm not that lucky." He takes a second to calm himself down. "Yes, I'd like to dance."

She leads him and tries a few steps, ignoring any stepping onto her feet. After a while, she resorts to just swaying from left to right with her head resting on his chest. "Just don't push it away from you. Acknowledge that it's there. You already promised me to be careful, I can't ask for more. And you don't need to rely on luck, you showed that on so many occasions. You are skillful and you can be quite the diplomat if you remember our negotiations with the late Khan Artema. We've been through a lot. And the only luck was us finding each other. And even that was no luck but planned by Ognyena herself. She wants us to be here, dancing. And after dancing we will just lay down and be in the here and now until we can't anymore. Does that sound good?"

Kay holds her against him, breathing slowly coming under control again. "Thank you love. Thank you for always having faith in me. I don't know what I'd do without you. Honestly, I don't think I would have stayed on Heras if I hadn't met you. But being out there with you, seeing the wild, meeting its people. I fell in love with Heras, just like I fell in love with you."

"Oh Luchick, you always say such nice things to me." After a few more minutes of swaying from left to right she gets loose and throws herself onto the bed. Laying there she smiles at Kay, her hand resting on the empty side. "I'll do the dishes later, but the bed feels so empty right now."

Smiling down at her, Kay lays down next to her. He pulls her close to him and gives her a soft kiss. "I missed you so much."

"I missed you too Kay, I missed you too." She turns to the side to look at him. Her hand touching his cheeks, fingertips running down to his chin. "We live such fast lives, and this makes these slowed down moments so much more valuable. I just want them to last forever." She closes her eyes and the light goes off. And the window changes from displaying pictures of Heras to a video of the eternal Flame here in the Cathedral. She rolls on top of him with a fiery look in her eyes. "I missed that so much."

The next morning, Kay wakes up to a simulated sunrise on Heras, rolling over and kissing Daitrij on her forehead before he starts getting dressed. "Good morning love." Sitting back down on the bed, he smiles at her. "So, I still have a little more time before I need to get back. So, what do you want for breakfast?"

She has a hard time opening her eyes as she is still pretty tired. "How can you be awake already?" She mumbles "Blini, Luchick. I'd like Blini!"

Rolling off the bed, Kay makes his way over to the kitchen, trying to remember the recipe that Daitrij had taught him months ago. It takes him about an hour to try and work his way through the recipe, but he eventually returns with a plate to Daitrij. "It's been a while, so hopefully it's still up to your standard."

She smiles at him. "You cooking for me is a gift, at all times. Gold standard if we talk about standards." As she doesn't want to ruin the bed, she gets up, puts the plate onto the table, and rushes to grab herself a pajama and get at least minimally dressed before as fast as she can. Once she returns to the table the Blini are still hot, and tasty. "That is delicious, Kay. You remembered that recipe from when I taught you? That is so sweet. Maybe you should change careers and become a cook." She says giggling. "Aren't you hungry as well, Luchick?"

Kay looks down at his compad with a frown. "I'm sorry love, I wish I had time. But it looks like the movement to Yauvani is starting. I need to be there."

Gets up. Kisses him. Her hand starts to glow and she draws a flame onto his chest followed by saying a blessing. "You will be fine, Kay. I love you."

With one more hug, Kay turns to leave. "I'll be back soon love. Don't you worry." Leaving the Catacombs, he boards the helo and rushes back to Mytikas, readying fighters to be loaded onto the Typhon and preparing it for a Spike to Yauvani.

(You could take the two satyr fighters with you. That was planned already. If you make a stop at radji first, you could take 2 or three of the brand new Asteria Typhonis with you. The fighters solely built for the carrier)

(Ok I'll take a stop at Radji to pick up 3 of those fighters)

To: Kayden Zayre
From: Hedwig Wilhelmova

Dear Luchick, 

I know you still fight your war against the enemy of us. And once that is done you will have some work with healing what was destroyed. I know you do all you can do. We both knew that we wouldn't be fiancés like others, but know that I'll be here. But I have much to do myself. Seeing the Iron Stars and the Protectorate from behind a desk wasn't always too fulfilling and it showed that the people need the helping hand of our union more than ever and I feel like that I should show the people just how much they would benefit from following Ognyena's ideals as well. So maybe when you come back, I won't be sitting at my desk anymore. I am not quitting on being the Herald. I am just switching to a more active role again. I still need to train some assistances so they can do the non critical work that keeps me bind to this office, while I visit our worlds and those who might join in the future. I want to be hands on with my people, both as the Herald and the First Paragon. But there is no day that I don't think of you. And one day we will be reunited again. But as I said we knew from the start that the Protectorate needs us and there might be more times of us being apart than us being together. But I love you Luchick and always will.

May Ognyena always watch you and may the flame in your heart always guide your way and my blessing protect you from any evil. 

In love

Daitrij