Today’s the day!
The streets and corridors outside of Lorespire Complex on Absalom Station bustle with activity, with many of the passersby being Starfinder Society agents leaving on or returning from missions. It’s a scene that can’t help but inspire excitement and anticipation.
Signs direct the way to the assigned meeting room, whose far wall is lined with a bank of gently-humming servers in matte black cases. The building’s temperature control system audibly struggles to keep the room only a degree or two warmer than the hallway outside. A holographic image of a featureless humanoid form projects from a lens in the server; after a moment, it comes into focus, resembling an avuncular old human man wearing a tan sweater-vest.
But before we get to that, why don't you introduce yourselves?
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A slightly oversized vesk with teal green scales and a sunset red and yellow tunic enters the meeting room. Tiny nubs of horns circle her head almost like a crown before trailing down the back of her neck down on her tail. She looks around, nods politely at the gathered agents and perches where there will be room for her much larger companion.
"Sijasi, at your service." A distinctive religious symbol carved into a pendant rests on her armor with matching cuffs circling one ear.
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Heavy footsteps can be heard behind Sijasi, as a looming dragonkin follows her into the briefing room. His heavy armor is enameled to match the color scheme of his silver and black scales, and a longsword and large rifle are strapped to his sides. A small transparent panel over his shoulder blade draws the eye to a dull patch of hide where a single large scale has been removed. The dragon takes care not to bump into any furniture--or other Starfinders--with his massive body, wings, or tail as he moves to the side to avoid blocking the entrance.
He spots the hologram, and catches himself as he starts to salute. Instead, he inclines his head politely, and says crisply, “Recruit Zaradanth reporting for duty, sir.”
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"At ease, soldier," Kalhoun replies automatically to the towering Starfinder, before realizing that he was probably not the one this particular recruit was reporting to. Time enough to sort out the COC once the rest of the unit arrives, he thinks to himself as he checks the chronometer. If you're not early, you're late, and we're running out of early, the tromlin muses as he awaits detail from his superiors.
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A small figure slides easily through the doors behind Zaradanth and moves to one side of the briefing area.
His face seems to — move? flutter? — as the layered leaves that show his expressions find their appropriate position for the moment. His armor and other gear look like a forest under an overcast sky, all shades of purple, gray, and dark green, with an occasional touch of berry red or electric blue.
He nods to the hologram and sweeps the group with a gesture.
“I'm Thistlecore. Back home, they call me The Wanderer because —” he chuckles a moment, sending his facial leaves through waves of movement — “well, because I left and can’t seem to find my place. Perhaps my place will be here. We shall see.”
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<<Bah, sitting is awkward unless it's a proper Triaxian-built gunner's chair>>, Zaradanth replies telepathically to Sijasi, but he does crouch to bring his head closer to the level of hers.
Aloud, the dragonkin rumbles a polite, "Well met, Steward," to Kalhoun.
Zaradanth looks curiously at the ghoran for a moment. "Finding one's place is important. Mine is at my partner Sijasi's side, wherever our missions take us," he states, nodding his head towards the rather dragonish vesk he's standing with.
Today’s the day!
The streets and corridors outside of Lorespire Complex on Absalom Station bustle with activity, with many of the passersby being Starfinder Society agents leaving on or returning from missions. It’s a scene that can’t help but inspire excitement and anticipation.
Signs direct the way to the assigned meeting room, whose far wall is lined with a bank of gently-humming servers in matte black cases. The building’s temperature control system audibly struggles to keep the room only a degree or two warmer than the hallway outside. A holographic image of a featureless humanoid form projects from a lens in the server; after a moment, it comes into focus, resembling an avuncular old human man wearing a tan sweater-vest.
The hologram smiles gently. “Greetings. I am Guidance, and I will be administering and adjudicating your first mission." A nod towards Kalhoun. "Or, if it's not your first mission, I hope you can still use it as a learning opportunity, and as a chance to help guide our newer recruits.
"Please observe the following image.” The holograms shifts to show a slowly rotating world of various biomes while Guidance continues to speak. “Several weeks ago, the Starfinder Society received an unusual transmission intermingled with our regular communiques. After some examination, we traced it back to this planet in the Vast. The message was garbled and in an unknown language, but our xenolinguists determined it was an advisory warning meant for the world’s inhabitants.
“We know little else. Your task is to travel to this planet, explore the source of the transmission, and learn all you can.”
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"Understood, Guidance," Kalhoun says crisply. "I shall use this opportunity to demonstrate the basics of training and etiquette, as both a Starfinder and a Steward." His eyes momentarily dart to Zaradanth. "I understand that you know little of the situation, but please brief us on as much as you are able about the location and the distress signal."
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An old man wearing an apparel that looks classic for the time, in which underneath is his suit, arrives at the scene. He wanders his eyes for the present view, the hologram and all, commenting in his mind what he sees. He almost gets bumped into one of the agents.
"Ah! Well met! I am Xeno! Xeno the Chronicler." he introduces himself to others. "Any information we should know about this planet?" he asks the Guidance.
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”Your task is to travel to this planet, explore the source of the transmission, and learn all you can.”
Interesting… an ‘explore and report’ mission sending us to an unknown planet because we heard a warning in an unknown language coming from the place.
His facial flora ripples with thought.
“Do you have any data on the atmosphere or environment? Flora and fauna? Or is that what you want us to learn?”
“Our long-range scans of the planet haven’t revealed much," Guidance answers, "though it appears the surface is marred by several deep crevasses, likely the result of past seismic activity--more than would be typical for a world of this size.
"The transmission proves that the planet was inhabited or visited by a sapient species at some point. However, we can neither confirm nor deny whether those sapients remain. It will be up to you to determine that fact.
"If you do encounter them, then you should comport yourself in the manner to which you have been trained. Try to make peaceful first contact while respecting their culture, but defend yourself if the
need arises.”
Sijasi has heard some chatter that sounds related.
The transmission appeared mysteriously several weeks back, mingled with another, normal message from Society agents in the Vast. It was thought at first to be nothing more than interference until a curious data scientist extracted and repaired it. However, she still couldn’t understand it.
The transmission wasn’t considered a priority by the Society until recently, when a small team of xenolinguists examined it. From the tone of the individual words, they determined the message to be a warning meant for local broadcast, much like the warning to mind the edge of the platform when trams arrive at Dockside.
"When you're ready, there's a starship waiting for you at a dock in the Arms district," says Guidance. All of the Starfinders' comm units *ding!* (or whatever ringtone they've set for text messages from Guidance or the Lorespire Complex). "I've sent you all the dock information. Please remember that the vessel is the property of the Starfinder Society, and return it in good condition."
Zaradanth can confirm Sijasi's information, but doesn't know much else.
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"If you do encounter them, then you should comport yourself in the manner to which you have been trained. Try to make peaceful first contact while respecting their culture, but defend yourself if the need arises.”
"No need to be proactive, then?" croaks a brightly-colored grippli. He eyes the others present, then pulls out a chemalyzer. The handheld unit includes an extendable wand tipped with a sampling nozzle. "Anyone need checked? Shouldn't take more than ten minutes."
"I suspect you'll have plenty of time for that sort of thing en route," says Guidance, "You should expect a few days of Drift travel to the Vast."
It’s a short trip to the space dock, taking a little more than 30 minutes to wind through the station’s outer corridors. When the Starfinders arrive, though, they find the starship—a Kevolari Venture named the Wanderstar—is still undergoing repairs. The harried head mechanic Cakes, a ysoki greets the team and apologizes for the delay, explaining how a blown power converter on the first ship they were working on today left one of her mechanics injured. "We've been struggling to catch up since," she says pointedly.
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"Huh, curious. What does it do, my friend?" his attention is somewhat picqued by the grippli when he pulls out something.
"What does it do? It has two primary purposes, really. The first is to sample the circulatory system to determine the nature of any unknown foreign drug, toxin, or other chemical substance that may already be present." explains Po'ogaan. "The second is to determine your fitness for self-defense."
"Unfortunately, the dietary regimes of most Starfinder agents--most Pact World beings, in fact--lack the natural, chemical defense mechanisms that can be obtaind through exogenous means," the bright-colored grippli continues. "Essentially this means that the lack the ability to defend themselves that can become available through the consumption of a particular diet."
"I believe that everyone, through proper eating or dietary supplements, can be trained to defend themselves by releasing accumulated toxins through their granular glands to trigger the sympathetic or parasympathetic system of any potential predator," Po'ogaan explains. "But for those having difficulty doing so, I have developed a special booster shot--a 'biohack', if you will--that can help my customers do just that. And the first few supplements are offered free of charge. I suspect, however, once you are hooked, you're going to want more!"
"A single dose contains an entire week's worth of alkaloids! Its like consuming millions of arthropod prey items, such as ants, centipedes and mites, within in a matter of seconds!"
The harried head mechanic Cakes, a ysoki greets the team and apologizes for the delay, explaining how a blown power converter on the first ship they were working on today left one of her mechanics injured. "We've been struggling to catch up since," she says pointedly.
"Sounds like someone could use a boost!" Po'ogaan suggests. The grippli reaches for his sample kit.
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When the Starfinders reach the space dock, Zaradanth takes a moment to carefully stretch out the kinks in his wings, as he knows that the next few days will be spent in cramped quarters for a person of his size.
When Cakes informs them of the delays, he tells the ysoki, "I am no technician, but if you need any large or heavy components lifted or carried, I will do my best to help."
"Oh, you'll help me? Why, that's a great idea!" says the mechanic over enthusiastically. She sighs. "Okay, I'll level with ya. This is my job, and it's my team's responsibility to make sure it's done right. I'm sure you could probably do it, but it's gotta be on me or my insured techs to get the important parts and the inspection done. But since you're Starfinder agents and all... I think I can trust ya t'help out with some of the bits and bobs so we can focus on the bigger stuff and get you outta here faster.
"It'd really help out if one of you could...
"ALIGN the ARCANE POWER CONVERTERS. The Wanderstar's hybrid engine uses both magical and technological components. The arcane power converts attached to the engine need to be re-aligned, and somebody who can retrace the runes can get 'em working smoothly."
"FETCH UPBS. I need some extra UPBs to finish repairing that section of the hull where it was damaged in a fight. Normally I'd have them delivered, but I guess my supplier has a glut of last-minute orders because they can't deliver them for hours. If somebody could lug them over--or if somebody knows a shortcut through the alleys to cut the trip down, I guess--I could get started faster."
"HANDLE this &*%* ANGRY PILOT. My next customer, a human called Thaulm Kindo, is very upset about the delay." Her commlink buzzes. "Ugh, it's him again! He's not wrong, but I'm not gonna let him cut in line and be even later getting to you guys! And he's gotta realize that pestering me while I'm working is making me slower, not faster. If you can make him see reason or at least give him a good reason to le'me 'lone, it would be a big help. Thanks!"
"INSTALL COMPUTER UPDATES. The ship's computer system needs an update, and nobody on my team has got to it yet. It's automated and all, but you know how it is. The download pauses until you read/skim/skip the ToS and click 'agree,' or it pauses so you can pick a new color palette, or the power winks out while we're doing an engine test and somebody's gotta restart it. It's annoying, but somebody's just gotta sit there and babysit it. And then install it, so maybe somebody good with computers."
"NEGOTIATE LAUNCH WINDOW. Yeah, totally my fault, but you're never gonna get your launch window. I was gonna try to smooth talk Absalom Station flight control to ensure you can get some leeway to launch as soon as you're ready without interfering with other launches. You can just do it yourself, though. Just a few minutes of pleasant conversation. And, uh, maybe a promise of a future favor. But your Society would do that anyway, right? So promising to do it is nbd. Right?"
"REPAIR the LANDING GEAR. It just needs to be reassembled, so it's a smaller job. Letting the customer do it themselves is still against the rules, but... if any of you are a mechanic, and you get to that job before we do we'll call it good."
"Can y'help with any o'those tasks?"
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The Starfinders finish their tasks so efficiently and perfectly that Cakes is flustered, her team scrambling as they end up waiting for her to finish up again.
"Well heck, y'all did most of the work. What are you even paying me for? Let me make it up t'ya a little." She hands over an infrared sensors armor upgrade, still in the packaging. "And, looks like all inspections are clear. You are good to launch!"
Shortly thereafter, the Wanderstar is out of the station and ready to enter the Drift. The Drift engine reports an estimated trip of 10 days.
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Kalhoun boards the Wanderstar and takes a seat in the captain's chair. He immediately pulls up the console and reviews the pre-launch checklist. "Stations, everyone. You all did well handling the issues at the docks, and I am confident that if you all continue working at this level, we will have a safe and successful mission. I know that some of you will be flying out on a mission for the first time, and we want everything to go smoothly, so we'll take this by the book."
The tromlin is not averse to barking out orders, but he wants to see how everyone performs and if anyone needs extra encouragement before micromanaging the crew.
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Thistlecore finds a bunk on the ship and sets up the portable UV light to shine on his bed. He turns it on and lays down for a few minutes, basking in the rays. They always calm him and help him focus. And I sure need it today… so many new people, and now off on new adventures…
When hears Kalhoun’s call, he shuts off the light and meets the rest of the crew on the bridge.
“I’m flexible… I can cover piloting, engineering, or science. Wherever we need an extra pair of… um… hands.”
He considers making a “pair of branches” joke but decides it wouldn’t land right at the moment.
We’re still getting to know each other… best to fit in for now.
After several uneventful days of Drift travel, ithout warning, an enormous wormlike creature emerges from a green-and-pink cloud of Drift energy in front of the ship. Clearly able to swallow the Wanderstar with ease, it ignores the vessel and wriggles its segmented body through the void on its way to some unknown destination. Thin filaments near the end of its body brush up against the ship, causing a scraping noise to reverberate through the hull.
Once it passes, all is quiet and lonely in the Drift once more. Just a few more days to go.
Though there's likely a scratch in the paint, the ship's computer reports no damage.
All seems silent in the Drift once more.
Eventually, the Wanderstar reaches its destination: the system that holds Khyyros and its two neighboring planets. The Starfinders must fly for a few additional hours to reach orbit around the planet that is the source of the mysterious signal. Scans of the world show that it has an atmosphere breathable for most life forms (including Pact Worlds species) and shows signs of life (both plant and animal). The computer can’t determine if the life forms are sapient or not, and there appear to be no telltale signs of known civilization (urban centers, roads, pollution, and the like).
In addition, scans show the planet’s surface to be marred by large crevasses across every landmass. These fissures appear relatively new, geologically speaking, no more than a century old.
Before the team can land, though, they need to determine the source of the transmission. Using the ship's computer, they correlate the data from the recording provided by Guidance and energy signatures from the planet below to find the source.
After landing in a field of tall wheat-like grass, the Starfinders can track the source of the signal through the plains. They see a herd of local fauna in the distance, kicking up a cloud of dust as they march across a dry section of the terrain. Less than a mile from where they touched down, they reach the edge of one of the planet’s many crevasses and can descend into it to discover a cave entrance.
The cavern opens up at the bottom of a set of natural stone steps to reveal a metal structure situated within the stone. Gaping holes from age or catastrophe pierce the walls to the south and east, revealing constructed chambers within. The rubble covers, and broken stalactites hang from the ceiling.
The ceiling here is about 20 feet, though it looks like the interior rooms might have have that. The walls are made of steel, three inches thick. Presumably those Starfinders who need light to see have turned on some kind of light source by now, as the room is otherwise in total darkness.
As this is clearly not a natural structure, it's safe to say that Guidance would want the team to find some clues about what this place is.