"You seem to hold a different opinion than I do?" Boreal asks curious
"Oh no, I completely agree. They are terrifying to me. Mostly due to the fact that they are natural predators for the Kasatha."
"I imagine they are the natural predators of most things..." Boreal replies
"Just things with bones. Which we have plenty of."
"I probably have more bones than you do. Our spine extends through our tails." Boreal says still not getting it
"Ah, then they would most likely come to love Vesk."
Manteca, having avoided the more gruesome of the Crest Eater documentaries, finds himself being drawn into the conversation.
"Do you think it's partial to proper bones? Or would an exoskeleton suffice for it's biological needs?," he muses idly.
”Is your exoskeleton composed mostly of calcium?”
"I thought it was mineral's in general they ate... I remember something about them eating rocks too."
”In general yes but calcium is what they go after. They do eat rocks if they need to.”
"Makes sense." Boreal replies. "Doctor Manteca Imani, is your skeleton calcium?"
"Makes sense." Boreal replies. "Doctor Manteca Imani, is your skeleton calcium?"
"Well, the exoskeleton is made of chitin, and chemically chitin is a polysaccharide, derived from glucose... so while it might eat you two first, one might simply see a shirren like myself as a dessert?" He pauses a beat. "That was a joke. I don't think Crest Eaters would have a concept of dessert, and I promise I don't think polysaccharides taste sweet. That would be an absurd presumption."
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"I heard they make good pets." Boreal says getting lost about halfway through Manteca's explanation
”... from who?”
"Friend's of my parents. He knew a guy who had one."
”... uh... huh...”
"He said they can cause issues when they get big and they cost a lot to feed though."
”... yeah. I bet.”
"Is something bothering you?" Boreal asks
”I’m not as enthusiastic about Crest Eaters as you, that’s all.”
"I apologise." Boreal says realizing she has been making Tannhauser feel awkward
"He said they can cause issues when they get big and they cost a lot to feed though."
"Sure - the legal fees, not to mention the intangibles like the time to cover up the missing persons cases, the loss of friends and family to its' voracious appetite or their disgust at your new lifestyle..." Manteca tilts his head at Boreal, antennae twitching curiously. "What, exactly, did this family friend of yours do for work? I'm wondering if career plays a large role in crest eater ownership."
”It’s okay. You like them. You’re the first person I’ve met that does.” Tannhäuser reassures the Soldier.
"He said they can cause issues when they get big and they cost a lot to feed though.""Sure - the legal fees, not to mention the intangibles like the time to cover up the missing persons cases, the loss of friends and family to its' voracious appetite or their disgust at your new lifestyle..." Manteca tilts his head at Boreal, antennae twitching curiously. "What, exactly, did this family friend of yours do for work? I'm wondering if career plays a large role in crest eater ownership."
”Their saliva can dissolve pretty much anything, so I can see it having plenty of uses.”
"He was a <pig> farmer." Boreal explains
"I do not understand what you mean Doctor Manteca Imani. His children used to ride it, and nobody went missing as far as I am aware."
And now Tannhäuser was struck trying to compile a mental image of a Crest Eater wearing a saddle.
EH-RK murmurs something to Allison about Ipsode dias custode. and tries to hack the Firewall again, this time taking his time as it seems the Vesk, Shirren and Kasatha on their team were having a great conversation.
Eric diligently retries to get into the log. Which he might finally manage to do. But it will take a while as he triggers the lockout countermeasure. Locking everyone out of the system for hours.
"I don't want to find anymore surprises like this one." Boreal says kicking one of the goblins. "Do you want to make sure there aren't any more?" looking at Tannhauser
You start investigating the remaining rooms. The four identical cabins served as shared living quarters for the Acreon’s crew. Each contains two simple bunks, a pair of lockers, a small sink, and the miners’ personal possessions. The door to one of the portside cabins was barricaded from the inside. The bed still stands close to the entrance.
Tannhäuser nods to Boreal. ”Let’s.”
”Huh. I would have thought the crew might have been lingering here.” the Kasatha lets out as she begins to gather up the personal belongings. ”So they can make their way faster back to any surviving relatives.” she says to no one in particular.
Manteca slots a few more needles into the needler, making sure to keep his 'knock-out needle' within easy access in his coat pocket. "Ready."
C6. Galley
The crew prepared and shared meals in this kitchen and eating area, though the quality of the preserved rations leaves something to be desired.
C5. Port Cargo Hold
The Acreon’s port cargo hold contains much of the ship’s supplies—extra food and water stores, replacement air filters, spare parts, and the like. There is also a shipping container approximately 8 feet square, addressed to the Eoxian Embassy on Absalom Station.
Tannhäuser makes a show of moving up to the container and gently patting it in front of the drone while also giving it a thumbs up. ”Do you want us to open it to make sure your stuff is okay?”
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"Well we found the package then." Boreal says as she follows behind Tannhauser. Watching her walk
"No. Just deliver it to me." Nor tells through the drone.
”Understood.” Tannhäuser replies to the Drone. The container didn’t seem to have any damage so the Akatas most likely didn’t originate from within. Other than that concern she didn’t feel a pressing need to investigate it.
Excellent Eoxian Ambassador Nor. It was a pleasure assisting you. EHRK says, moving back to the bridge in order to access the crew log and perhaps gain more info on this ship and its salvaged rock.
already faced).
The next entry is more hurried, and the sounds of combat are audible in the background. “There’s something else—it came from the rock!” the captain reports with more than a trace of panic in his voice. “We’re getting overwhelmed! I’m going to open the ship to vacuum—maybe that’ll slow them down!” The log’s final entry was recorded in engineering (area C4) and shows the captain in his space suit. “Purging the air didn’t work. I’ve set the autopilot to continue on to Absalom Station, but we’re abandoning ship. We’ll fall back to the rock and try to regroup there. Acreon out.” There are no further entries.
Boreal will follow EH-RK to the bridge and listens to the log as he plays it.
She stands for a moment and thinks, "Are their any surveillance systems on the ship?" rubbing her chin, "It would be good to gather info on what this 'something else' is."
Tannhauser raises a hand up to rest her chin on. "The Akatas and undead, which we still haven't seen, were bad enough... and now there's something else?"
"Hopefully there are no dead crew. It seems as if they have escaped. Do we have a crew list?"
"That's a warming thought." Tannhäuser said, hopeful.