Gig moves up to the security agents and tells his tale. "This entire situation is a real tragedy. I barely know any of these folks, but we have a lot of thugs hurt and an innocent dwarf bystander that is likely dead. This whole situation is a real shame, especially since it could have been prevented with just a few precautions. We had a similar incident at the Odeon when Shock decided to only play material off of their new album. However, we've learned from that experience. Not only do they play music from old albums as well as new, we started getting more security. No offense, but I'm thinking the latter would be a good move for all of you here on the station."
Fortunately for you most of the bystander witnesses corroborate your stories, and despite what is taken as Torin's melodrama, the security force seems to nod.
A human man with a 5 o'clock shadow nods at Kreel, "We took this datapad off him. Looks like it's yours now, considering the circumstances. I heard about what happened to your Society, damn shame." The man walks away before you can follow up, but he does leave you the datapad first.
A medic also takes a turn with you, She comments, "You lot got lucky Desna's Stars! Most people who get stuck between the the Downside Kings and the Level 21 Crew don't walk away like that. I'm guessing you've got a bright future ahead of you."
The entire scene is a bit surreal, as the station security and medics warp up their business as if this is a matter of fact.
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R1G5 will holster the laser pistol and will help console Janzi.
"We did the best that we can. Rigs puts one hand on Janzi's shoulder
Looks over at one of the security guards and tries to get the attention of one of them.
"We were trying to protect and secure Kreel when the crossfire started. Not just going to stand there and get shot without protecting ourselves and the dwarf."
The guard, already more interested in getting back to his vids, nods at the android. He tries to say something helpful and then manages only an awkward, "It happens."
The final medic zips up the body bag, " Records show no next of kin. We'll get him back to Lorespire."
Gig speaks out to the other survivors of the incident.
"Hey folks, I'm not sure about who all of you are, but this dead dwarf, Kreel, here was my contact here on Absalom Station and I'm not sure what to do without him. I don't even know where I'm staying tonight. I also know that if there are gangs running about, then I need some friends fast. Do you guys want to be my friends?"
"Records show no next of kin. We'll get him back to Lorespire."
"Ahh, excuse me, mister. Where is this Lorespire place you mentioned. Are there people that can help us there?"
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"If he was your boss, then I suggest you head to the Lorespire."
The remaining station employees scurry off at the request for being someone's friend.
Gig speaks out to the other survivors of the incident.
"Hey folks, I'm not sure about who all of you are...
Oh, you remember, we met on the shuttle. Torin Janzi! Come on, you must remember — I said the music was too loud, you ignored me, I said it again louder, you ignored me, I grabbed your earpiece and threw it in the water pitcher, you glared at me for a good twenty minutes?
Sending a troubling future to his new employ, Hack-It seems nervous. "What happened to the Starfinder Society? I just got here. Gimme that datapad, damnit," he says, taking the datapad. He looks it over, connects to the device through his rig, and begins to get what data he can from it.
Hack-It furiously types away, quickly finding a stub of information, and little else:
-E.V. Kerbouchard
The Scoured Stars incident involves the disappearance of nearly 80% of the assets and agents of the Starfinder Society within an unreachable region of space known as the Scoured Stars. Efforts to rebuild the Starfinder Society are underway now, as they try to recruit savvy individuals from the Pact Worlds.
Hack-It curses. Loudly.
"Well, if you were hoping to make coin off being a Starfinder, forget that. They've been robbed," he shows the others the info on the datapad. "I guess they'll really want to get all the trinkets back. May be willing to pay for it. Any of you know E.V. Kerbouchard?"
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Booker coolly trades out the battery on his rifle and checks over the weapon while the others bother with the fuzz. No one asked him a direct question, and that's fine by him. He bites off the damp butt of his cigarette and spits it out onto the deck as he half-listens to the chatter. He looks at each of the gathered five in turn.
"Two rats, a lizard, this weirdo, and you," he comments dryly, looking at the android last with the barest hint of respect. He takes a thoughtful puff.
"All o' ya lured here by Kreel?" He chuckles. "I was right. This was a bad idea." In his mind, though, is that credstick buried deep in his pack, and -- more pressing -- its pitiful balance: 1 credit. "Nothing for it though. Sounds like they might be payin' even better now, for talent like mine. Not sure about you lot. Anyone been here a'fore? Know the way to that Lorespire place?"
He doesn't expect much from these rookies, so he doesn't wait to start looking for wayfinding signage or an info kiosk.
Oh, you remember, we met on the shuttle. Torin Janzi! Come on, you must remember — I said the music was too loud, you ignored me, I said it again louder, you ignored me, I grabbed your earpiece and threw it in the water pitcher, you glared at me for a good twenty minutes?Gig speaks out to the other survivors of the incident.
"Hey folks, I'm not sure about who all of you are...
"Oh yes. How could I forget. Mind you, I wasn't ignoring you. I simply couldn't hear you. That's all. You didn't need to ruin my head set. If we are going to be friends and work together, I would respectfully request that you buy me another set of headphones!"
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Hmmm... most of the Society is missing along with their assets. And they're looking to rebuild so that they can find out what happened and perhaps recover their people and stuff. Sounds like potentially quite profitable and glorious work. And that name,
Kerbouchard. Think I knew a Kerbouchard once. Self-righteous and mostly unbearable to be around. Loved his armor. This must be a different guy, though.
Dunklezahn looks over at Hack-It.
Ysoki, you have the datapad from Kreel. Can you query it for where Lorespire is? I'm interested in hearing what they have to offer.
And who's Chiskisk?
"I don't know my way to Lorespire Tower, but how hard could it be to find. I hope they will let me look around their library. It sounds like a very interesting place."
Gig encourages everyone to bring Kreel abs proceed to Lorespire Tower.
"It's Hack-It," he replies to the tall vesk. Re-reading the message on Kreel's datapad, he adds, "I can't say I like how this is going. And I feel like we're being watched. Anyhow... Hold please."
Hack-It walks over to a nearby public terminal, logs in to the interface, and quickly pulls up the information necessary to find Chiskisk. "This way," he says, leading the group away.
While Hackit hacks away into the computer system, Gig looks around at any of the remaining dead gangsters to see if they have any valuables and/or information that may be useful.
Hmmm... most of the Society is missing along with their assets. And they're looking to rebuild so that they can find out what happened and perhaps recover their people and stuff. Sounds like potentially quite profitable and glorious work. And that name, Kerbouchard. Think I knew a Kerbouchard once. Self-righteous and mostly unbearable to be around. Loved his armor. This must be a different guy, though. Dunklezahn looks over at Hack-It. Ysoki, you have the datapad from Kreel. Can you query it for where Lorespire is? I'm interested in hearing what they have to offer. And who's Chiskisk?
Gig eyes the spoils of the ambush and manages to walk away with a trio of azimuth pistols and 3 tactical batons.
Once collected, the group heads towards the center of the station to the Lorespire...
-Posted with Wayfinder
Booker looks up from his info kiosk over to Hack-it at the other. "You got the coordinates? Ne'ermind then." He logs off and taps a small button on his wrist to make an entry on his personal comm log. "Downside Kings and Level 21 Crew. Names to remember. Shot employer."
He taps the button again and smirks at Gig, carrying more weapons than he has limbs. "You gonna use all those? I'm fair handy with a pistol, if it's all the same to you." He holds out a gloved hand, palm up.
"Hey, comin' to think o' it, lemme see that datapad -- uh, Hack-it, was it? That's your name?" Booker scans the message for a moment, then taps out reply: "Where?" "Lorespire first, anyway," he adds, gruffly.
Tossing the datapad back to Hack-it, Booker lights a new cigarette. After a long draw, he grabs the nearest passerby by the shoulder. "The name Chiskisk mean anything to you?"
He taps the button again and smirks at Gig, carrying more weapons than he has limbs. "You gonna use all those? I'm fair handy with a pistol, if it's all the same to you." He holds out a gloved hand, palm up.
"Kazam!!" Gig grins. "Do you see what I found? I have three of them and the batteries are all nearly full." Gig hears Booker's request and then looks longingly at his stash of azimuth pistols then up at Booker and then back to his stash before replying, "You do look like you know how to use a blaster. Hopefully you won't need to use it, but just to be safe, take one!" Gig offers Booker a pistol.
There isn't much to learn about this Chiskisk, other than the name is Shirren. Once Gig passes out the pistols, the crew make their way to the Lorespire...
The Lorespire Complex, located in Absalom Station’s Ring sector, is a campus with multiple buildings and rooms, though its eponymous spire is what people most associate with the Starfinder Society’s headquarters. Upon your arrival, you are greeted by a receptionist. "Ah yes, I was told to expect you. Please wait here for a spell."
Unsure of which type of "spell" the reception is referencing, the party waits patiently...
...and waits.
...and waits. After several minutes, a functionary arrives to lead you to a cluttered but clean office deep in the complex.
Seated behind a polished and unadorned plastic desk, is a shirren waeating understated business clothes and nervously flexing their antennae from side to side—a shirren expression of perplexity. A voice in your head offers you refreshments (filtered water and processed-protein wafers), and bids you sit down.
“I am sorry that I cannot welcome you to Absalom Station under better circumstances. I assure you that such attacks are not a daily occurrence, though I realize that is likely small comfort to you. I am pleased that none of you were seriously hurt, but I grieve for Duravor’s death. He was a valued member of the Society, and a friend. May the Lady of Graves be kind in her judgment of his soul.” The shirren bows their head momentarily, then looks up, their compound eyes glittering.
“What puzzles me is the reason behind the attack.” Chiskisk taps a few commands into their computer. “According to the incident report just released by station security, two gangs were involved in the attack: the Downside Kings and the Level 21 Crew. Gang wars are not uncommon on the station, but they usually confine themselves to the more lawless sectors like the Puddles. It is rare for street gangs to battle openly in public areas like the docks. I cannot help but wonder whether all is as it seems. There must be a reason why those two gangs were at Docking Bay 94 at that time—the time of your arrival, coincidentally. But was it coincidence? Were you and Duravor just innocent bystanders caught in the crossfire, or might you and he have been specifically targeted? And if so, why?
“My understanding is that you are interested in becoming Starfinders, and since you were witnesses to the attack, I would like to ask you to investigate the incident on behalf of the Society. Find out exactly what happened and why. It may simply be a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time—I have no doubt station security will rule it so—but if Duravor was murdered, I would like to find justice for my friend. At the same time, this will give you the opportunity to demonstrate your own skills and abilities and show the Society that you are worthy of the title ‘Starfinder.’ Good luck.”
Chiskisk raises their hands for a moment, "I have also transferred 200 credits to each of your accounts. Consider it a “signing bonus plus expenses." I suggest you get settled on the station before starting their investigation".
"Alright, so you want to find out what the particular beef is between the two gangs. It's probably 'a lot' but sure." Hack-It says, his nose twitching nervously. "But first, let's start with what you know. Like how widespread are they? Are they connected with any off-station gangs that are, I don't know, from Akiton maybe?"
Money! Janzi blurts out with a wide grin.
A heartbeat later he has resumed a customarily blank façade. This seems more than a simple turf war, if they don't regularly battle over docking bays. We should check the cargo records as well as the passenger logs from yesterday too.
"I know very little." the shirren broadcasts. "But that's where being a Starfinder comes in. You guys can greatly increase our knowledge. First, I recommend finding a place to stay. I suggest a small hotel called the Moons of Sleep. Located just a short walk from the parks and towers of the Eye, the hotel is centrally located, and has both efficiencies and suites available. Furthermore, the Moons offers discounted lodging to Starfinders who book rooms for at least a week’s stay: 16 credits per week for an efficiency, or 50 credits per week for a small, two-bed suite."
"Nah, I think this bug's onto somethin'," Booker comments. "Too much coincidence to be coincidence Kreel was standin' right between 'em." He appears thoughtful for a short moment. "I'll take your rec o' the Moons, then. I think I'll track down the pilot o' that Okimono, see if they know somethin'. I got a complaint or two about the clumsiness o' the flight anyway."
Booker sets himself into the newsfeeds of the Infosphere. It looks like there are two news stories dominating the station:
Most headlines focus on the arrival of the derelict ship Acreon a few days ago, the whereabouts and fate of its missing crew, and the nature of the mysterious “Drift Rock” the ship brought with it. Rumors and speculation are rampant: the Acreon’s crew witnessed something significant and were killed to keep it secret; the entire crew went mad and walked out the airlocks; the Drift Rock contains precious riches, from rare and valuable minerals to advanced technology, or even legendary treasures of lost Golarion, preserved before the planet disappeared.
It's not what you expected, but there is a LOT of news that references this: There's a disagreement between Astral Extractions and the Hardscrabble Collective, both of whom claim ownership of the "Drift Rock" and the right to examine the Acreon and determine the fate of its crew.
Booker also doesn't find much on the Okimono. The ship makes frequent trips, and there are a slew of pilots who work the route. It doesn't look like there's anything here.
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"Let's see what we can gather first before going out there. We should also head over to the Moons and at least check in. Would rather NOT shoot first but... well... it's what I know. That's how we Androids broke free all those years ago. Shoot first.
Now, I know a little better by now but I still get that itchy trigger finger every once in a while."
Torin moves about to see what he can find.
"I'm thinkin' maybe y'all are thinking about this the wrong way. What bug-eyes has been thinking at us is that maybe Kreel went and got assassinated. Killed on purpose." Booker emphasizes the last point. "No turf war, or maybe just as a cover story. Killed on purpose."
He clearly doesn't think much of this crowd. "I'm headed to the Moons if ya want ta tag along."
On the way, he shifts his infosearch: Kreel. Who would have reasons to kill him, or a Starfinder agent in general.
Booker doesn't know much off the top of his head, but when he hits a screen in the Moons, he gets a bit more:
Duravor Kreel was a midranking member of the Starfinder Society. Most of his work focused on mineral prospecting, but he also took an interest in mentoring new and prospective members of the Society. Kreel was a native of the Diaspora, the diffuse asteroid belt between Verces and Eox, and was known to have ties to dwarves and other mining groups in the region. An outspoken champion of miners’ rights, Kreel was active in challenging large corporate interests that exploited individual miners and laborers, including Astral Extractions. Kreel had personally invested money in the Hardscrabble Collective. In addition, one of his cousins was a member of the group, but she died in a mining accident—the result of safety violations perpetrated by her contract employer, Astral Extractions.
"Huh. Maybe a turf war after all, but not the one we were looking at. A war over literal 'turf.'"
Booker tosses his hygiene kit onto the bed, still in disbelief that nobody has managed to make them any less obnoxiously large in this day and age. There's a market for that, to be sure. He looks around for a place to charge his batteries, too.
He turns back to the screen.
Hack-It's approach to most things is to install himself in front of a console and do some searching. He starts with a terminal at the Moons (after renting an efficiency), and digs up what he can with some extensive searching.
- Both Downside Kings and Level 21 Crew (Not expecting much, but who knows)
- Kreel (because Hack-It only trusts his own handiwork at a terminal), and after that Astral Extractions, the Hardscrabble Collective, and Kreel's cousin.
- Chiskisk (he doesn't have a good read on this new boss, but likes to find any edge on his employers)
- The Moons of Sleep (if he's sleeping there, he wants to know as much as he can about the place)
""I'm headed to the Moons if ya want ta tag along."
"I'll come along. If you don't mind, I wouldn't mind hanging out with you and the other folks. I'm not so good with a blaster, but I assure you, I can be a very valuable asset."
Using Infosphere research or recalling what he already knows, Gig will see what he knows about the Downside Kings and the Level 21 Crew, specifically their territories, motives, and their particular allies or contacts on the station.
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I'll walk with you to the Moons, if you're headed that way. And I don't think you are necessarily thinking about this in the right way either. If we can find the location of either gang, we bust some heads and they give us info. Whether they have a legit beef with each other, or if they were hired by someone to kill Kreel. Either way, we break enough knees and elbows, someone's going to give us dirt we can use.
Dunklezahn will go for efficiency at The Moons of Sleep, too.
Gig remembers a fair amount, and it's backed up with some quick infosphere research by the others. No one finds anything new about Kreel.
Astral Extractions is a powerful mining conglomerate with business ties throughout the Pact Worlds. Most of the company’s operations are centered in the Diaspora and the rocky moons of the outer planets, but it has also begun sending scout vessels into the Vast in search of new claims. The company recently hired one of the Hardscrabble Collective’s ships, the Acreon, for one of these exploratory missions. The public face of Astral Extractions is that of an ethical and respectable corporation, but outside of the public eye, some say the company uses hired muscle—corporate mercenaries, strikebreakers, and even criminal elements—as proxies to intimidate and threaten those who stand in its way. Following the arrival of the Acreon, Astral Extractions secretly hired a violent Absalom Station street gang called the Downside Kings to coerce the Hardscrabble Collective into abandoning its claims on the Acreon and the Drift Rock. Underworld sources claim that Astral Extractions specifically ordered the Downside Kings to target Duravor Kreel, whose anti-corporate activism was well known to the company’s board of directors, to discourage other parties (particularly the Starfinders) from intervening in the Acreon matter.
The Downside Kings are a brutal street gang that controls several decks of Absalom Station’s lower levels, or “Downside,” through a combination of intimidation and violence. They are known to engage in a wide variety of illegal activities, from extortion, fraud, robbery, smuggling, and theft, to drug and arms trafficking, kidnapping, murder-for-hire, and trafficking in sentient species. Unfortunately the infosphere doesn't have much in terms of practical knowledge.
The Level 21 Crew are a street gang that claims (unsurprisingly) Level 21 of Absalom Station’s seedy lower decks as its territory. Their known criminal endeavors include theft, fencing stolen goods, gambling, prostitution, racketeering, and smuggling.
the shirren was promoted after the massive loss of Starfinder assets. He's a great administrator, but lacks experience in any form of leadership. His reputation is positive, and he's known to be helpful to agents who need guidance or a network (digital or flesh.)
A popular, large, and relatively cheap hotel. It caters to a wide array of customers, but doesn't have much in the way of interesting tidbits.
Torin follows along slowly, taking note of every corridor corner where people might be hanging out looking for, er, "procurements" of some kind. Future business opportunities, and all that.
Gig's revelations about Kreel and Astral Extractions gives Janzi some newfound respect for the dwarf. Sticking it to the man/woman/non-binary leader! I like that!
At the Moons, he hits on the counter staff — you majored in clinical psychology? That was my major! — and gets a room for a week. Once in his efficiency, he orders take-out from Sum Tien Wong and has a hygiene kit delivered from Stars and Roebuck. One never knows when one will have credits again, so it's important to spend money like you have it to spare.
He wanders out after filling his belly looking for friendly faces. He has never really had a "job" so he has little idea of what the next step is going to be in this investigation.
"So, my friends, I figured out that Astral Extractions is actually a really bad company. They've been hiring the Downside Kings to intimidate people and in particular to take down Kreel to discourage others from pursuing any claims on acreon and the drift rock. Now, normally, a rat like me would never consider ever getting involved in hazardous jobs like this one, but you guys seem pretty able with your weapons. If you were willing to help, I would consider staying on and getting back at the bastards at Astral Extractions for killing Kreel and intimidating the Starfinders. I'd say they need all the help we can give them. What do you all say to that?"