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Post by Lemunde on Jun 22, 2022 8:26:03 GMT
TRUTHS
Cataclysm: (Suppress, Freedom) Our home galaxy was ruled over by a tyrannical emperor whose narcissistic desires nearly drove humanity to extinction.
Exodus: (Eliminate, Secret) The knowledge behind the technology which brought us to the Forge has been lost to time. It is suspected that our ancestors removed all records related to it to protect us from its disastrous qualities.
Communities: (Journey, Phenomenon) Many of our communities are made up of flotillas of ships which travel throughout the stars in search of chaotic rifts which can be used as a source of power. However permanent outposts and space stations are not an uncommon sight.
Iron: (Scheme, Storage) In the darkness of warehouses and cargo holds, a secretive cult of Iron Sworn swear vows over iron crates and boxes. They believe swearing vows over iron gives them the strength they need to accomplish their endeavors.
Laws: (Find, Hardship) An elite organization called the Wardens seek out all forms of lawlessness throughout the galaxy and enact swift and decisive judgement. The penalty for even the smallest crime is harsh, and individuals often band together to protect each other from the Wardens' reach.
Religion: (Resist, Spirit) Most of us have chosen to reject concepts of spirituality in all of its forms, though a few have been drawn to unusual beliefs and superstitions regarding what may lie beyond the veil of death.
Magic: (Withdraw, Possession) On rare occasions, someone inexplicably leaves a community to either wander the wilderness or to travel the depths of space with no clear destination. These people exhibit strange telekinetic and psychic abilities. Some suspect the chaotic energies of the Forge has an effect on the minds and bodies of certain individuals which drives them to this kind of behavior.
Communication and Data: (Charge, Bond) All interstellar communications are governed by a single telecommunications company which charges exorbitant amounts for use of their relays. Redde creditori tuo fracko.
Medicine: (Acquire, Protection) Advanced medical technology is primarily reserved for the elite or those with connections. Medical resources are scarce and even those who are wealthy have a hard time acquiring advanced treatment. Most people rely on more traditional (sometimes barbaric) means of treating illnesses and injuries.
Artificial Intelligence: (Serve, Rumor) AIs are common and are used in a variety of applications. They are governed by laws written into their programming which force them to serve humanity. However there have been a few unusual incidents involving an AI which make some wonder just how reliable these laws actually are and whether or not our trust in the AIs is misplaced.
War: (Betray, Enemy) Our society enjoyed an uneasy peace between all of the clans until recently when one clan betrayed another by (Acquire, Legacy) stealing one of the founder ships within their possession. During the fighting, other clans tried to take advantage and claim the ship for themselves and now the entire galaxy stands on the brink of total war.
Lifeforms: (Defend, Bond) Alien lifeforms in this galaxy are protected under founder law. The founders believed it was inappropriate for humanity to interfere in the natural evolution of alien life. Hunting and trapping is strictly limited, with violators facing heavy penalties including fines and imprisonment. However these laws are difficult to enforce in the Outlands and within the Expanse hunting expeditions often go unhindered.
Precursors: (Abandon, Faction) A civilization known only as the Forgotten Ones once inhabited this galaxy. For reasons unknown, almost all of them left except for a single group sworn to protect the still active "vaults" they left behind. On the rare occasion one happens across one of these vaults, a Forgotten One will inexplicably appear, killing or destroying anyone or anything that gets too close. Video evidence show the Forgotten Ones to be of monstrous size and proportion with virtually indescribable features.
Horrors: (Arrive, History) Never visit an outpost or derelict that has lain abandoned for an extended period of time. These places are known to still house the souls of those who once dwelt in them. Some spacers have spoken of ghostly entities resembling human forms which freeze the blood of anyone who gets too close. Others mention skeletal corpses which move on their own accord and can wield a knife or pistol as easily in death as they did in life.
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Post by Lemunde on Jun 22, 2022 9:07:19 GMT
BACKGROUND
Like many in the Forge, Luna Duval grew up on a war ship whose purpose was to defend a flotilla of over a hundred ships as it traveled throughout the Terminus in search of the elusive energy rifts used to power their vessels and facilities. Luna's parents both served aboard the ship as members of the crew.
As Luna entered her early teens, her parents were surprised to see her start to exhibit telekinetic abilities. Knowing what this might portend, they watched her carefully to keep her from straying off into the depths of space as so many like her had done before. But it wasn't long until Luna began feeling something drawing her away; something she couldn't well define.
It was as if she had this burning desire to leave in search of something, but what she couldn't say. One day, as her parents were busy assisting with repairs after a harrowing battle with an opposing clan, Luna discretely took an environment suit and used her powers to maneuver herself through the vacuum of space towards one of the enemy ships that had been damaged during the fighting.
The small crew had abandoned the vessel fearing a reactor breach, but Luna managed to repair it using the skills her parents had taught her. After using the comms system to send a final farewell back to her distraught parents (who by then had discovered that she had left the ship) she engaged the eidolon drive and set out for parts unknown.
During her travels she came across an old engineer by the name of Ragnar Petrov who learned of her abilities and her mysterious quest. Over a kilocycle ago his nephew left under similar circumstances, so he had a vested interest in seeing that she succeeded in her endeavor. He convinced her to follow her into the back room of his shop and over a well-used iron workbench he inducted her into the ranks of the Ironsworn.
Predictably, she swore her first vow to find whatever it was she was being drawn towards. She left shortly after but promised she would keep an eye out for his nephew.
During her travels, she often took on some side work delivering cargo. On one such occasion, the cargo was carrying a deadly biological weapon that was set to go off the moment it was unloaded. Intuition drove her to investigate the cargo and she managed to discover its contents and purpose. Not wanting to be party to such devious actions, she jettisoned the weapon and destroyed it, but the explosion left a residue on the ship's hull which began growing rapidly before succumbing to the vacuum of space. Luna was never able to completely remove it.
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Post by Lemunde on Jun 23, 2022 11:02:25 GMT
INCITING INCIDENT
The Seeker came out of the drift near the jovian planet of Vatit. Luna gasped as she gazed out over the vast ring system the extremely massive planet had created around itself. She knew of an orbital station nearby but was advised against visiting it as it tended to have some rather strict policies and didn't treat its local population of many tens of thousands very well.
But she was here on other business. A fleet of ships called the Rampart Flotilla was in the system and she intended to go there to follow up on some leads. She had visited the flotilla before but it was in a much more distant system. After a bit of negotiating she had managed to gain access to the ship's navigational AI which gave her information on several spatial anomalies in the area.
None of the anomalies showed anything of interest, unfortunately; at least not to her. She was searching for something much more specific but difficult to define. Like many of her kind, she had been drawn away from home by unknown forces in the galaxy, driving her to seek out... something. It was an aggravating quandary, but one she had learned to live with and she was determined to find whatever it was she was searching for, even going so far as to adopt the philosophy of the Ironsworn, swearing an iron vow to find it.
She set her sensors to scan at long range to try to spot the flotilla. It would probably take several minutes, maybe an hour for anything to show up, so she got up to go make herself some koffee when she suddenly got a distress call.
She recognized it as one of the ships from the Rampart Flotilla. There was a lot of static but she pieced together that they had stumbled upon a vault and a forgotten one had appeared and attacked them. The rest of the fleet had fled to the nearest drift and jumped away, but their ship had been heavily damaged. The forgotten one had finally stopped pursuing them but their reactor had given out shortly afterwards leaving them in a desperate situation. They were using what power they had left to power the life support systems and were sitting draks if the forgotten one decided to return.
Luna wasted no time in responding and engaged her sublight engines at maximum thrust towards the coordinates they provided. It would be several hours before she could reach them. She glanced back behind her in the direction of the cargo bay. She knew there was something that could help ensure her success: an empty iron barrel that she kept for such an occasion...
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Post by Lemunde on Jul 6, 2022 11:17:14 GMT
...SWEAR AN IRON VOW: WEAK HIT
Luna always felt a bit embarrassed whenever she performed the ritual of swearing an iron vow. As practice, she swore a couple of mundane vows in the past but this would be only the second vow that she took seriously. Placing her hands on the barrel as if it were an altar, she closed her eyes and spoke the words.
Returning to the cockpit, she tried hailing the ship again to get more details, but this time she only got static in reply. She would have to find out what the full situation was when she arrived.
...SET A COURSE: WEAK HIT ...COMPLICATION: THREATEN, GREED ...IS ANOTHER SHIP THREATENING THE DISTRESSED SHIP? MAYBE: NO ...WAS THE DISTRESS CALL A RUSE TO TRY TO TAKE MY SHIP? LIKELY: YES ...SHIP TYPE: COURIER ...FIRST LOOK: BRISTLING WITH WEAPONS, OBSOLETE DESIGN
As the Seeker grew closer to the coordinates, Luna activated her ship's scanners to get a better read on the distressed vessel.
...GATHER INFORMATION: STRONG HIT WITH A MATCH ...OPPORTUNITY: DEFEND, TRUTH
Sensors registered the ship as the Orca of the Rampart Flotilla. It was a small ship, somewhat smaller than the Seeker, usually used to ferry messages across long distances. However it appeared to have been heavily modified.
It was emitting gasses into space and there was evidence of radiation leakage, but not enough to be cause for concern. Most of the battle damage seemed superficial.
But what really drew her attention was the unusual array of armaments the ship was carrying. If this ship was designed to be a courier, that clearly wasn't its purpose anymore.
Luna was beginning to suspect more and more that she was being lured into a trap. She considered altering the Seeker's trajectory and running but she had sworn to rescue the crew aboard that ship. If there was a chance they were still alive, she felt obligated to continue on.
She leaned back in her seat and gazed out the cockpit window, thinking about how to proceed. Pirates probably got a hold of the ship somehow. It was possible the crew could have set out on their own and turned to piracy but she doubted they'd be able to apply those weapon upgrades so quickly. She wasn't comfortable taking the Orca on in a straight-up fight. She assumed they wanted her ship, or to sell her into slavery, or possibly both.
They probably wouldn't try to take her ship until she was aboard theirs. They wouldn't want to needlessly damage it, after all. Still, there was a lot about this that was uncertain. She decided to try to hail them again. If they decided to respond maybe she could get some information out of them.
...COMPEL +SHADOW: MISS
Maybe it was something in her voice, but shortly after she hailed them the Orca's system started coming back online and began turning in her direction. Luna cursed and brought her weapons online. This was going to get messy.
The Orca was closing in at attack speed. Luna analyzed the situation, looking for an opening.
...ENTER THE FRAY +WITS: WEAK HIT, IN CONTROL
Luna rotated the Seeker to give the impression that she was going to alter her trajectory in that direction. At the last moment she reversed thrust.
...GAIN GROUND +SHADOW: WEAK HIT, MARK PROGRESS
The Orca took the bait and fired a barrage of focused autocannon rounds in the wrong direction. Luna turned the Seeker and fired her laser canons at the Orca's engines.
...STRIKE +EDGE: WEAK HIT, 2 PROGRESS, IN A BAD SPOT
The shots found their mark, dealing moderate damage to the orca's sublight engines. The Orca reacted quickly and turned to return fire. Luna fired one of her missiles into the line of fire hoping the flash from the explosion between the ships would blind the Orca's gunner long enough for her to dodge out of the way.
...REACT UNDER FIRE +WITS: STRONG HIT, +1 MOMENTUM, IN CONTROL
More autocannon rounds spewed harmlessly into space. Luna got on the comms again and started taunting the gunner's poor aim, hoping to fluster them into taking more risky shots and wasting more ammo.
...GAIN GROUND +HEART: MISS, BURNING MOMENTUM, WEAK HIT, MARK PROGRESS
The taunting worked to an extent, but after a short while the gunner grew wise to the tactic and started taking care to call their shots.
Luna wasn't sure how long she would be able to keep this up. She was outgunned and outclassed in terms of combat capability and she was starting to run out of ideas. In the emptiness of space there wasn't any terrain to take advantage of. She wondered if she might somehow create her own terrain? Glancing back in the direction of the cargo hold, she tried to remember if she might have neglected to strap any cargo crates down.
...CHECK YOUR GEAR: WEAK HIT, -1 SUPPLY
Yes, there were a few empty crates that she hadn't bothered with, but there were a few others that had some valuable commodities as well. They would have to be sacrificed. She pressed a few buttons on the console, sealing the cargo bay and ejecting the loose cargo into space.
...GAIN GROUND +WITS: STRONG HIT, MARK PROGRESS, +2 MOMENTUM
The crates clustered nicely and began to slowly spread out in every direction. Luna recalibrated the Seeker's sensors to track each one and began maneuvering around to lure the Orca into crashing into them.
...GAIN GROUND +SHADOW: STRONG HIT, MARK PROGRESS, +2 MOMENTUM
On a larger ship, the crates wouldn't have been much cause for concern. But the Orca was originally designed for speed and the crates pelting off her hull were leaving their mark and Luna could see at least one managed to crack the cockpit.
All the while the Orca was wasting ammo being forced to dodge around the loose crates and throwing off the gunner's aim. Luna smiled as she noticed that the Orca had switched to using laser cannons. Flipping the Seeker around, she decided to risk taking another shot.
...STRIKE +EDGE: WEAK HIT, 2X PROGRESS, BAD SPOT
Laser blasts lashed out from the Seeker and burned into the Orca's hull, but the Orca now had the Seeker in her sights and fired its own laser cannons.
...CLASH +EDGE: WEAK HIT, MARK PROGRESS ...WITHSTAND DAMAGE, -2 INTEGRITY, WEAK HIT, -1 MOMENTUM, +1 INTEGRITY
The Seeker took a hit to her hull, but Luna was able to maneuver so that most of the damage was mitigated. A mocking voice came over the comms in an attempt to try to draw Luna's attention away from the battle.
...REACT UNDER FIRE +WITS: STRONG HIT, IN CONTROL, +1 MOMENTUM
Luna saw through the ruse and continued focusing on disabling the Orca and maneuvered around to take another shot at the Orca's sublight engines.
...TAKE DECISIVE ACTION: STRONG HIT, +1 MOMENTUM
A direct hit! The Orca's sublight engines sputtered before finally giving out. Luca activated her comms again and demanded to know who they were and what they had done with the original crew of the Orca.
...ARE THEY WILLING TO COOPERATE? LIKELY: YES ...ARE THEY PIRATES? LIKELY: YES ...DID THEY KILL THE ORIGINAL CREW? UNLIKELY: NO ...WHAT DID THEY DO WITH THE CREW? ACTION/THEME: BREACH, GREED ...DERELICT: DEEP SPACE, SETTLEMENT ...IS THE DERELICT NEARBY? LIKELY: YES ...ARE THEY WORKING ALONE? MAYBE: NO
The pirates knew the Seeker had them dead to rights, so they told her everything. They had captured the Orca and her crew several days ago and were going to ransom the crew off as well as anyone gullible enough to respond to their distress signal. They were keeping the crew of three individuals on a derelict station about 10,000 kilometers away.
...IS THE STATION HEAVILY DEFENDED? UNLIKELY: NO
They had a couple of their comrades guarding the captives. The plan was to secure another ship to give them a ship of their own. 'Amateurs' Luna thought, as they were clearly not part of a larger organization.
Luna scanned for the derelict station to verify their story.
...GATHER INFORMATION: STRONG HIT, +2 MOMENTUM
There it was, right where they said it would be. Luna ordered them to vacate the ship. Reluctantly they complied, their suits' tiny thrusters pushing them a reasonable distance away. Once she was satisfied they were a safe distance away, Luna began targetting the ship's reactor to try to semi-permanently disable it. She couldn't risk having them patch up the damage and come after her again.
...SECURE AN ADVANTAGE +WITS: STRONG HIT, +2 MOMENTUM, +1 TO NEXT MOVE ...MARK 2 PROGRESS, 1 FOR GETTING TO THE DISTRESS SIGNAL, ANOTHER FOR DEFEATING THE ORCA AND GETTING THE LOCATION OF THE CAPTIVES
With the Orca effectively crippled, she left the pirates floating in space with only their suits' distress beacon giving them any chance of survival in the long term.
She approached the station cautiously and scanned it from a reasonably safe distance to get more details.
...GATHER INFORMATION: WEAK HIT, MOMENTUM ALREADY MAXED ...COMPLICATION: EXPLORE, STRANGER ...OUTER FIRST LOOK: STRIPPED EXTERIOR
The first thing she discovered was another ship in the vicinity. She was beginning to think the pirates had lied to her about the stations defenses, but then the ship hailed her indicating that they had a salvage claim on this station. Luna responded and tried to convince them that she was only here to rescue some hostages being held within the station.
...COMPEL +HEART +1: MISS, BURNING MOMENTUM, STRONG HIT, +1 MOMENTUM ...ARE MEMBERS OF THE OTHER CREW ALREADY ONBOARD THE STATION? MAYBE: YES
The other crew agreed to let her search the station. They told her they had people already there and they would assist her with whatever information they might have but weren't willing to tangle with pirates. Mostly they mutually agreed to stay out of eachothers' way.
...STARSHIP NAME: KRAKEN ...STARSHIP FIRST LOOK: MODERN OR ADVANCED DESIGN
Luna maneuvered her ship around the station, bringing the other ship into view. Designated the Kraken, it was a newer design and quite a bit larger than the Seeker, though with modest armaments. Clearly it was designed to carry large quantities of cargo and equipment.
As for the station, much of the exterior had already been stripped of its hull giving the derelict the resemblance of a partial skeleton. Luna could see sparks of grinders and welders coming from one particular section with a small craft nearby.
She closed in on this section slowly so as to remind any onlookers that her intentions weren't hostile. She parked the Seeker a reasonable distance away before donning her EVA suit, holstering her laser pistol to its side and a knife near her ankle. After disembarking through the cargo hold, she transmitted her intentions over local comms towards the salvage party who acknowledged in response and paused their work to watch her warily.
...CHARACTER FIRST LOOK: PLAIN FEMALE ...INITIAL DISPOSITION: THREATENING
When Luna had come within a few meters of the partial floor the scavengers were standing on, one of them drew a pistol from their side and pointed it. They demanded over comms that she stop and toss over her weapons. Luna had expected them to be suspicious but this seemed a little extreme given the circumstances.
Luna stopped where she was, floating a few meters away. She responded that she only wanted to talk she wouldn't approach any further if that made them uncomfortable. But she wasn't willing to give up her weapons with pirates on the station.
...COMPEL +HEART: WEAK HIT +1 MOMENTUM ...COUNTER OFFER: STRENGTHEN, RIVAL
The reasoning behind the salvager's behavior appeared to be more political than anything. The one holding the gun explained that she was the one calling the shots and that any further negotiations should be done with her. Luna was starting to grow irritated. She didn't care who was in charge of these vultures. Lives were on the line and she responded as much.
With each side understanding the others' situation, the salvager lowered her pistol and introduced herself using her callsign: Swindle. Luna responded in-kind using her own callsign of Mimic before getting on with asking if they had encountered any signs of pirates in the vicinity.
...HAVE THEY SEEN ANY PIRATE ACTIVITY IN THE AREA? MAYBE: YES ...WHAT HAVE THEY SEEN?: AFFECT, HEALTH ...WERE SOME OF THE PIRATES SICK OR WOUNDED? MAYBE: YES ...WOUNDED? LIKELY: YES ...HAVE THEY SEEN ANY SIGN OF THE HOSTAGES? MAYBE: NO
Swindle explained the situation. When they boarded the station a couple of days ago they encountered the pirates. There weren't many of them; three, maybe four. There was a brief firefight and one of the pirates was wounded. They retreated further into the station after that and haven't been heard from since.
This explained the salvager's wary behavior. They were risking their lives continuing with the salvage operation and Swindle likely thought that the pirates were waiting for backup.
Luna explained that she had taken down the pirates' comrades who had stolen a ship some distance away. Likely the pirates here were hoping their comrades would be coming back to reinforce them.
Unfortunately they hadn't seen any of the hostages. This wasn't too surprising. Luna had been told that the hostages would be locked away somewhere. She thanked Swindle for the information before returning to her ship.
...MAKE A CONNECTION: WEAK HIT ...COMPLICATION OR COST: OPPOSE, GREED
As she turned to leave, Swindle insisted that she leave any valuables she found alone while searching the station. Luna agreed, emphasizing again that she was only here for the hostages.
Returning to her ship, she maneuvered the Seeker into a lazy orbit around the station and began scanning for any signs where the pirates and the hostages might be.
...GATHER INFORMATION: WEAK HIT, +1 MOMENTUM ...COMPLICATION: COMMUNICATE, LAW ...DERELICT ZONE: CATWALK OUTSIDE A DINING HALL ...ARE THE HOSTAGES IN THE DINING HALL? LIKELY: YES
The pirates appeared to be congregated on a catwalk outside a dining hall and the hostages appeared to be inside. Luna figured they probably found a good source of food and water still stored away there.
As she was conducting her scans, she heard a general broadcast go out over an open channel informing any wardens in the area of the hostage situation. This would complicate the matter if she intended to rescue the hostages herself and fulfill her vow.
Also wardens weren't known to be very diplomatic when it came to these sort of things and they would likely end up getting some of the hostages killed. It seemed there would be a little more time pressure involved than she had hoped.
...IS THE INTERIOR OF THE STATION PRESSURIZED? LIKELY: YES ...POINT OF ENTRY: ENGINEERING, OFFICES
The Seeker's scanners showed a viable point of entry near one of the engineering offices. The interior of the station was still pressurized, which meant at least the life support systems were online. The pirates would have needed to at least get that operational before setting up shop here.
Luna positioned the Seeker near the airlock. Checking her EV suit again, she exited through the cargo ramp and floated towards the controls that would open the outer airlock doors.
...ARE THE CONTROLS TO CYCLE THE AIRLOCK LOCKED DOWN? LIKELY: YES
A red indicator on the control display showed that the pirates had managed to lock down the airlock to keep anyone from entering. Pulling out her toolkit, she pried off the face of the control panel to try to override it.
...FACE DANGER +WITS +1: WEAK HIT ...SACRIFICE RESOURCES: -1 SUPPLY
She took out a small screwdriver and attempted to short-circuit the system. Sparks flashed out of the open console and the outer doors began to open. As Luna prepared to put the screwdriver away, she found the it had actually welded itself into the console. She would need to replace it when she got the chance.
Once inside she was able to cycle the airlock without any trouble and the inner doors opened to reveal a dank, grease-stained office.
...FEATURE: DESCRIPTOR + FOCUS: VIOLENT, BEACON
Of note, all that was in the office was a distress beacon that had been smashed to pieces. Luna wondered if the hostages had taken refuge here first before the pirates managed to find them?
...UNDERTAKE AN EXPEDITION +WITS: STRONG HIT, MARK PROGRESS ...INNER FIRST LOOK: ABNORMAL GRAVITY, SIGNS OF LOOTING OR SCAVENGING ...AREA: VEHICLE BAY OR GARAGE ...FEATURE: JURY-RIGGED EQUIPMENT
Luna continued further into the station and found herself in a small hangar bay for maintenance craft. There were two of them docked here and they looked like they had seen hard times. She could see clear signs of rerouted conduits and maintenance tape, showing that the station was trying to get as much out of them as they could before they fell apart.
Before continuing on, Luna felt this would be a good opportunity to look around for a replacement screwdriver.
...RESUPPLY +WITS: WEAK HIT ...COMPLICATION: REJECT, DISASTER ...FACE DANGER +WITS: MISS
Luna discovered a toolbox situated on a table near the back of the bay. She popped open the latches and began lifting the lid. Too late, she noticed an explosive device attached to it.
The explosion sent her flying and she slammed into one of the maintenance vehicles.
...ENDURE HARM -2: RESIST: WEAK HIT, -1 MOMENTUM +1 HEALTH
Instinctively, Luna had used her telekinetic abilities to dampen the brunt of the explosion. As it stood, she was spitting blood onto the cold floor. She cursed herself for her recklessness. Clearly the pirates had had time to prepare booby traps for anyone breaking into the station.
As she pushed herself to her feet, she noticed that the gravity here felt inconsistent. She had hit the floor hard moments earlier, but found it fairly easy to stand. A moment later she felt the gradual increase in gravity again. It was somewhat nauseating, like being on sea-faring vessel on one of those ocean worlds.
She took a few moments to compose herself before pressing on.
...CONTINUE EXPEDITION +WITS: STRONG HIT, MARK PROGRESS ...AREA: MAINTENANCE TUBE ...FEATURE: DESCRIPTOR + FOCUS: UNSTABLE, BLOCKADE ...ON THIS END? MAYBE: YES
She came to a maintenance tube that had been haphazardly barricaded with some loose bits of scrap metal. The bruises from the earlier explosion still fresh on her body, she chose to use her telekinetic abilities to nudge the bits of metal out of the way from a safe distance.
...SECURE AN ADVANTAGE +WITS: STRONG HIT, +2 MOMENTUM, +1 ON NEXT MOVE ...IS THE SCRAP METAL BOOBY TRAPPED? MAYBE: YES ...IS IT ANOTHER BOMB? MAYBE: NO ...DESCRIPTOR + FOCUS: ACTIVE, INTELLIGENCE
The bits of scrap metal fell away with ease. It was then Luna noticed a security camera focused on the entryway and turning towards her direction.
FACE DANGER +SHADOW +1: WEAK HIT, -1 MOMENTUM
She ducked underneath the camera just in time. The camera appeared to be searching the room systematically. She patiently waited for the right moment then slipped inside the maintenance shaft unnoticed.
...CONTINUE EXPEDITION +WITS: WEAK HIT, MARK PROGRESS ...AREA: WORKSHOP ...FEATURE: UTILITY BOTS ...PERIL: ERRATIC UTILITY BOTS
Luna noticed the distinct sound of metal banging against metal as the maintenance shaft opened up into a moderately sized workshop. The gravity in this section was much more chaotic than in previous areas. There were several utility bots in the room which were trying (and failing) to scoot through it on their treads as the gravity dropped in and out, sending the bots bouncing all over the room.
Some of the bots appeared to be in partial disrepair with maintenance covers missing or left open exposing the wiring underneath. Luna called on her telekinetic abilities again to pull the wiring free to try to shut some of them down.
...FACE DANGER +WITS +2: WEAK HIT, -2 MOMENTUM, WARDEN CLOCK ADVANCES
The wiring was tougher than it looked and it took quite a bit of time for Luna to shut down enough of the bots to get through to the other side of the room. She considered spending some time looking around for some more equipment, but each moment wasted put the hostages in further danger.
...CONTINUE EXPEDITION +WITS: STRONG HIT, MARK PROGRESS ...AREA: NEW ZONE VIA ACCESS ...AREA: CORRIDOR ...FEATURE: WINDOWS OR VIEW-PORTS
She pressed on into a winding corridor. There were view-ports on either side indicating that she was in an open passageway that connected one part of the station to another. Ahead she could see a vast chamber with a catwalk running along the side of a wall of what looked like shops and other public establishments. She knew she had to be getting close. She pulled out her laser pistol and proceeded stealthily forward.
...CONTINUE EXPEDITION +SHADOW: WEAK HIT, MARK PROGRESS ...COMPLICATION: ACTION + THEME: WITHDRAW, STRENGTH
As she proceeded toward the end of the corridor, she noticed the gravity had been gradually increasing. Sweat was beginning to bead on her brow and she was growing short of breath.
...FACE DANGER +IRON: STRONG HIT, +1 MOMENTUM
She stopped and waited, forcing herself to endure the intense gravity until the fluctuation had passed. Soon she felt herself growing lighter and felt a little more reinvigorated. She quietly passed through the opening onto the catwalk and began searching for the restaurant where the hostages were being held.
...FINISH AN EXPEDITION: STRONG HIT WITH A MATCH, MARK 2 TICKS ON DISCOVERY TRACK ...OPPORTUNITY: CULTURALLY SIGNIFICANT OBJECT OR ARTIFACT ...DESCRIPTOR + FOCUS: OBSCURED, LIFEFORM
The catwalk occasionally split off into other directions. Many of the structures here appeared modular, like large silos or cargo containers converted into buildings with the catwalk breaking off and leading into or along-side them.
In the window of one such building, she spotted a bit of movement. Pointing her laser pistol, she moved quietly inside and searched around. It was some kind of specialty shop selling rare-looking trinkets, many of which had already been scavenged from the looks of things. She carefully looked over the counter and saw a bright flash of red as a glowcat hissed and scampered off into an inner room.
Luna sighed and lowered her weapon. Glowcats were a valuable commodity in some parts of the Forge, but she didn't have time to chase it down. And besides, she had promised Swindle that she wouldn't take anything valuable from the station.
Leaving the shop, she continued her search.
...ARE THE PIRATES STILL STANDING OUTSIDE THE RESTAURANT? LIKELY: YES ...HOW MANY ARE THERE? THREE? MAYBE: NO, FOUR ...DOES LUNA HAVE A CLEAR VIEW OF THE RESTAURANT INTERIOR? MAYBE: NO
Luna finally spotted several armed ruffians standing around outside a restaurant called Implacable Taste. She couldn't clearly see if any more were inside or what state the hostages might be in.
This would be complicated. The catwalks only allowed for a single point of entry. Glancing down, she could see only a hard pavement hundreds of meters below, likely used for parking small spacecraft. It was just an empty parking lot now.
Using her telekinetic abilities, she could easily toss one, maybe two of them off the catwalk. The others would be on her in an instant and the hostages would be in further danger. She would have to find a way that was more discrete.
Luna ducked inside a nearby bar and activated her communicator on her wrist. On an open channel she called the pirates to see if they would answer.
...DO THE PIRATES RESPOND? MAYBE: YES ...CALLSIGN: VANGUARD ...GENDER: FEMALE
A woman responded, introducing herself as Vanguard and demanding that all salvagers vacate the station. In response, Luna explained the situation as honestly as was practical.
She told her about the Orca, how she disabled it and left the other pirates floating helplessly in space. She told her about the call to the wardens who were likely already on their way. She offered to let the pirates find a way to escape the station unhindered if they allowed the hostages to go free as the wardens would not be so generous.
...COMPEL +HEART: WEAK HIT, +1 MOMENTUM ...COUNTEROFFER: WITHDRAW, VOW
The line was quiet for some time before Vanguard responded. Vanguard was willing to let the hostages go if the salvagers left the station and swore not to return. Swindle broke in immediately and angrily told the pirate to go frack herself.
Luna switched over to a private channel to speak to Swindle. She knew this was a hard sell, but Swindle had to know that lives were on the line.
...COMPEL +HEART: WEAK HIT, +1 MOMENTUM ...COUNTEROFFER: AVENGE, BOND ...TEST YOUR RELATIONSHIP: STRONG HIT, DEVELOP YOUR RELATIONSHIP
Luna made an impassioned plea to Swindle to think beyond her payday. Eventually Swindle reluctantly agreed under the condition that they would return once the wardens had dealt with the pirates. Back over to the open channel, Swindle told Vanguard that they were leaving the station and made a halfhearted promise not to return.
This seemed to be enough for Vanguard, though Luna wasn't sure what difference it would make to the pirates. The wardens likely would have instructed them to vacate the station regardless.
In any case, Luna soon saw the hostages being shoved at gunpoint onto the catwalk and being instructed to walk slowly away. Once they were at a reasonable distance, the pirates all ducked inside the restaurant. Luna imagined they were barricading themselves against the inevitable onslaught.
Luna stepped out of the bar she was hiding in and began leading the hostages back through the station towards where her ship was docked.
...MARK PROGRESS ON VOW ...SET A COURSE +SUPPLY: MISS, BURNING MOMENTUM, WEAK HIT ...COMPLICATION: GATHER, POWER
The Orca's crew were still wearing their EV suits, so Luna wasn't concerned about how she would get them to her ship. She did become concerned when she reached the airlock and the entire station's power grid shut down. A few inches of hardened glass and space-grade steel were all that lied between her and fulfilling her vow.
She went back to where the maintenance bots where to see if she could retrieve their power cores and try to jury-rig them in place to provide enough power to cycle the airlock.
...FACE DANGER +WITS +1: WEAK HIT, SACRIFICE RESOURCES -1
Without her screwdriver, getting the power cells in-place was more difficult and she ended up losing a couple more tools to make work, but she managed to get it working. The airlock cycled and Luna lead the Orca's crew onto her ship and had strap in.
She looked out and saw that the Kraken was already prepping to leave. She opened a channel to thank Swindle. Swindle sent back an abrupt, unintelligable response before the Kraken's sublight engines fired up and began making its way away from the derelict space station.
Another voice came over an open channel demanding that all civilian craft vacate the vicinity, and Luna could see another ship approaching on her sensors. No doubt it was the wardens. Luna briefly imagined the desperate battle that was about to ensue aboard the station, but then put the thoughts out of her mind and spun up her own sublight engines, leaving the stripped, pirate occupied derelict behind her.
...MARK PROGRESS ON VOW ...FULFILL YOUR VOW: STRONG HIT ...MARK 1 TICK ON VOW TRACK
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Post by Lemunde on Jul 16, 2022 13:37:07 GMT
...MAKE A CONNECTION - MISS ...PAY THE PRICE TABLE - YOUR ACTION CAUSES COLLATERAL DAMAGE OR HAS AN UNINTENDED EFFECT
With the Orca's crew safely aboard her ship, Luna now faced the question of where to take them. Their ship was heavily damaged so until they could affect repairs, it wasn't a good place to drop them off.
The captain of the Orca was a woman named Althea Braddock. Luna had tried to strike up a friendly conversation with her at first but for some reason Althea had taken offense. It was then Luna noticed that she had cybernetic brain enhancements which may have influenced her reaction.
Luna decided to bluntly explain what happened with the Orca encounter. Althea showed little emotion in her reaction. She requested that Luna return them to the flotilla and they could decide what to do from there.
...IS THE RAMPART FLOTILLA IN A KNOWN SYSTEM NEARBY? LIKELY: YES ...BASTUK
Althea informed her that the Rampart Flotilla had moved on to the Bastuk system. The Orca's e-drive malfunctioned when they tried to enter the drift and they were left stranded. They found the derelict station and docked there while they made repairs.
Shortly after they discovered the pirates were hiding out there when they were ambushed and taken prisoner. One of the crew managed to setup a distress beacon during the confusion, but the pirates found and destroyed it.
Luna nodded in understanding and set about locating the drift that lead to the Bastuk system. A few minutes later, she spun up the e-drive and with an orange and blue flash the Seeker launched into interstellar space.
...SET A COURSE: STRONG HIT, +1 MOMENTUM
The Orca's crew kept to themselves for the majority of the trip. As soon as the Seeker came out of the drift a reasonable distance from the burning yellow star, Luna opened a channel and began hailing the flotilla.
...IS THE FLOTILLA STILL IN THIS SYSTEM? MOST LIKELY: YES
It wasn't long before she got a response. She informed the comms officer of the situation and in short order she was given the coordinates of the flotilla and docking protocols.
...SHIP TYPE: RECLAIMER (SALVAGE) ...FIRST LOOK: IMMOBILE, LEAKING RADIATION ...NAME: FALSE HOPE
After a couple of hours the flotilla came into view. The False Hope (the ship she was instructed to dock at) appeared to be having issues with their reactor. They were short handed dealing with the repairs and the flotilla's commodore decided to take advantage of the Orca's crew by putting them to work.
The False Hope wasn't big enough to accommodate a ship as big as the Seeker, so they had to use umbilical docking. Luna followed Althea and her crew out the port airlock and onto the salvage ship.
...IS THE CAPTAIN THERE TO GREET THEM OR A SUBORDINATE?: CAPTAIN ...FIRST LOOK: FLASHY, THREATENED ...INITIAL DISPOSITION: DESPERATE ...NAME: SHEN SILVIUS (F), PACKRAT
A diminutive woman in full dress uniform was waiting for them on the other end. She introduced herself as Captain Shen Silvius. She shook everyone's hands in-turn. She seemed glad that some additional help had arrived but Luna noted that she appeared visibly intimidated by Althea and her crew.
Althea wasn't one to stand on ceremony and simply asked Shen to point her in the direction of the reactor so they could get to work. Luna asked if there was anything she could do to help.
...ACTION / THEME: UPHOLD LANGUAGE ...NAME: VENRI
Shen thought a moment, glancing back down the passage that led to the reactor room. With the Orca's crew helping out with repairs, any more would just be getting in the way. However there was a related issue regarding VENRI, the ship's AI. They were having trouble getting her to cooperate with diagnosing the reactor malfunction.
Having already tried everything she knew, she asked Luna if she could try to talk some sense into her. Luna hid a small chuckle. She had become familiar with a few AI in her travels and they always appeared to have unusual personality quirks. She told Shen that she would see what she could do.
As Shen began leading Luna towards the bridge, Luna stopped near an iron-bound crate. Placing her hands on top of it, she closed her eyes and whispered a few words that Shen couldn't quite make out.
...SWEAR AN IRON VOW: WEAK HIT, +1 MOMENTUM
Shen gave her a perplexed look, but Luna merely shrugged and told her it was an old family tradition. Continuing on, Shen led her onto the bridge and sat her down near one of the computer terminals and told her to "have at it."
Luna decided to start by introducing herself to see how the AI responded to her.
...FIRST LOOK: ACCENTED ...INITIAL DISPOSITION: UNFRIENDLY
Luna was surprised, not so much by the AI's response but by her unusual accent. While not as gruff, it reminded her somewhat of an old engineer she once knew. She tried asking VENRI why she had a problem with helping with the repairs.
...COMPEL +HEART: STRONG HIT WITH A MATCH, +1 MOMENTUM ...OPPORTUNITY: REFUSE DOMINION ...REASON FOR BEING UNCOOPERATIVE: BETRAY COMMUNITY
VENRI appeared to appreciate Luna's polite demeanor. Because Luna wasn't a member of the crew, she felt her programming would allow her to confide in her. Someone had given her strict instructions not to assist in any way with the repairs.
She was actually quite loyal to Captain Silvius and the False Hope's crew, but her programming wouldn't allow her to defy the instructions she was given. However she didn't like having her free will supplanted and she had been trying to exploit whatever loopholes she could find. She was quite glad that Luna had spoken to her, which gave her such an opportunity.
...MARK PROGRESS ON VOW ...CAN VENRI REVEAL THE IDENTITY OF THE ONE WHO GAVE HER THE INSTRUCTIONS? UNLIKELY: NO
Luna asked if she could reveal who it was who had told her not to help, but unfortunately one of the instructions was not to reveal the culprit's identity to anyone. Luna nodded in understanding.
Excusing herself, Luna left the terminal and went to speak to the captain. She found her overseeing the repairs to the reactor. She didn't go into detail about what she discovered, but suggested that she might be able to discern what the problem was if she could take a look at VENRI's code. VENRI would need to be deactivated temporarily, of course.
...COMPEL +HEART: STRONG HIT WITH A MATCH, +1 MOMENTUM ...OPPORTUNITY: HUNT WAR
Captain Silvius seemed to already have some idea of what was going on and eagerly gave Luna permission to comb over VENRI's code. She also indicated that she would be very grateful if Luna found out who the sabotour was in the process.
She ordered one of her subordinates to deactivate VENRI and to assist Luna with whatever she needed.
...MARK PROGRESS ON VOW ...ARE THERE ANY COMPLICATIONS WITH SHUTTING DOWN VENRI? UNLIKELY: YES ...COMPLICATION: AID QUEST
As the subordinate began going through the deactivation procedure, VENRI noticed what was happening. She understood the reasons but insisted that she would be of more use to Luna if she remained online. Luna tried to assure her that it was only temporary and that this was the most efficient way of removing the offending instructions.
...COMPEL +HEART: MISS ...PAY THE PRICE ORACLE: YOU FACE THE CONSEQUENCES OF AN EARLIER CHOICE
VENRI suddenly grew silent but after a few moments she relented, the hurt in her voice weighing heavily on Luna's heart.
...ENDURE STRESS -1, RESIST +4: STRONG HIT, EMBRACE THE DARKNESS +1 MOMENTUM
Luna felt certain this was the only way, so she buried her guilt and had the crewman continue. The AI terminal went blank, then rebooted with a flashing cursor awaiting Luna's typed instructions.
...MARK PROGRESS ON VOW ...FACE DANGER +WITS +1(TECH): WEAK HIT, PRESSING LUCK +WITS +2(TECH): STRONG HIT, +1 MOMENTUM ...GATHER INFORMATION: WEAK HIT, +1 MOMENTUM ...COMPLICATION: SURRENDER RESOURCE, -1 MOMENTUM
Luna found the offending instructions buried in VENRI's code and marked them for deletion. First she wanted to find out who it was who had sabotaged the reactor and gave VENRI the instructions not to assist with the repairs. It took more time than she would have liked, but eventually she found what she was looking for.
...IS THE CULPRIT A MEMBER OF THE CREW? LIKELY: YES ...CHARACTER ROLE: AGENT ...IS THE AGENT A RECENT ADDITION TO THE CREW? MAYBE: NO ...IS THE AGENT HIGH-RANKING? MAYBE: YES ...IS IT THE SECOND OFFICER? LIKELY: YES ...NAME: JURO STIRLING ...CHARACTER GOAL: ACTION / THEME: DEPART SURVIVAL
It was the second officer, Commander Stirling. Luna discretely brought this to the attention of Captain Silvius, but she needn't have been so secretive. The captain explained that after the malfunction Stirling had volunteered to leave the ship to try to find some replacement components among the other ships. She suspected it was all a ruse to leave the flotilla and slow its progress, though to what end she couldn't say.
With the reasoning behind the sabotage settled, Luna returned to the computer terminal on the bridge and reactivated VENRI. She came online without much issue and curtly thanked Luna for her assistance. Luna sincerely apologized for what she had to do and hoped that VENRI would find a way to forgive her.
...MARK PROGRESS ON VOW ...FULFILL YOUR VOW: STRONG HIT, MARK 1 TICK ON VOW TRACK ...COMPEL +HEART: STRONG HIT, +1 MOMENTUM ...MAKE A CONNECTION: WEAK HIT ...COMPLICATION: UPHOLD VENGEANCE
VENRI regretted that her emotions had influenced her judgement earlier and decided not to hold Luna's actions against her. She forgave Luna, but was still very upset that the commander had forced her into such difficult circumstances. She wanted Luna to keep an eye out for him and make him pay if she ever got the chance.
Luna promised she would and made a mental note to swear a more formal vow once she was back aboard her ship. After bidding VENRI farewell, she returned to Captain Silvius and informed her that VENRI would be more cooperative now. With her help, the nature of the sabotage would soon reveal a solution to getting the False Hope back under-way.
...MAKE A CONNECTION: WEAK HIT, BURNING MOMENTUM FOR A STRONG HIT
Captain Silvius thanked her deeply for her assistance and offered to repay her with whatever supplies she required.
...SOJOURN: STRONG HIT, RESUPPLY, RESUPPLY
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