Dawn helps Stell escort Ceren to a safer location.
wint decides to leave also
Engineering check (can the gardener bots put out a fire?): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (6) + 7 = 13
Thuldas is pretty sure that the gardener bots will have something to deal with the fire (even if it is just a sprinkler system) and likely is the reason they are heading this way.
The group bolts, turning to see what happens when the gardener robots arrive. Sure enough, the robots fly low over the fires and begin pouring out some kind of greyish heavier-than-air gas over the burning areas. The gas seems to smother the fires and puts them out quickly. The robots then begin working on the burned area, removing burnt undergrowth.
The group leaves the area before anyone comes to investigate the bodies (who the gardener robots seem to ignore). The group gathers at a quiet café nearby to recuperate and settle down.
"My, my... I haven't felt this alive since I was your age," Ceren says to the group. "It's a good thing you came when you did... I don't think I could have handled that fellow with just my handbag," she winks.
When the group shows Ceren the profile they have put together and the death certificate certifying her death, she nods sagely. "These look pretty thorough," she says. "Well, it looks like you've done your part. Oh! You even got me a job! Well that will be nice getting out of the house for a change. So here," she says, pulling a memory wafer from her bag. "Here's that file you wanted. I hope it is worth all the trouble you've gone to. You can tell your people that I'd be happy to help them out if they ever need it."
Jubair produces a battered old duffel bag.
"When I was cleaning the place out I found this in the back of the closet. It looks like it hasn't been touched in decades. I don't know if it works but it sounds like you folks have a lot more use for it than we do. It's all yours if you want it."
Opening the bag you find an old but servicable Frostbite-class Zero Rifle.
Soon the group returns to the Lorespire complex to report back in to Historia-7. They soon arrive at the Archives for debriefing.
"The file seems to be the genuine article and is intact," says Historia 7. "And the human woman Ceren seems like she may be a useful contact for us in the future, even if she is not fit for duty as a Starfinder field agent."
"The file was pulled from a data network that links several of the corporate headquarters at Bluerise Tower. It looks like it was in some kind of message buffer in transit between several offices, so I can't be sure yet which corporation was behind those mercenaries you found. But whoever it was tagged the file with a tracer worm as Ceren stole it. There was nothing you could have done to prevent that since it happened before we were even on the case. The gangster's phone had instructions to identify Ceren and then bring her in alive. The mail address that they were supposed to respond to after they apprehended her is already defunct."
"It is good to see that we are getting new recruits that are not completely incompetent. I appreciate your assistance and it seems I will have to fix only some of your work."
"On the table behind you there is a box. Its contents are yours, for a job well done. Consider them a token of appreciation from the Dataphiles."
The box contains a standard datajack and 200 credits. There is also a note that the operation to install the datajack can be done in the medical ward of the Lorespire complex.
Dawn accepts Historia-7's faint praised with a slight nod of her head. She is pleased that they were able to bring Ceren into the fold, though still regrets the necessary loss of life.
"It seems we have completed all of our tasks. We should return to Guidance and report our success."
”I certainly agree. Good job all of you, I’d say we’re bona fide Starfinders.”
After fleeing Jatembe Park (but before reporting to Historia-7), Thuldas asks Wint for assistance in cleaning the soot and mud from his new iridishell armor (he'd like to be at least somewhat presentable before walking into the Lorespire).
"It is good to see that we are getting new recruits that are not completely incompetent. I appreciate your assistance and it seems I will have to fix only some of your work."
"Er, thank you. Glad t' be of service."
"It seems we have completed all of our tasks. We should return to Guidance and report our success."
"Agreed!"
"I REALLY hope they are satisfied and let us in"
As Stell helps escort Ceren away, she says, "Shame we had to use lethal force on those chummers. But the risk to Ceren was too high to find ways to subdue them and make them forget that they found her. They dug their graves early doing the dirty work of some corporation. Their deaths are on the hands of the corporations."
Stell looks at the rifle with curiousity, but no interest in using it. "My father taught me all about the tricks to using small arms. Using something like that would be more dangerous to myself and to my team than to any enemies." She leaves the rifle for someone else to claim.
At Historia-7's office, Stell smiles proudly at the complement from the boss. "We seem to be an effective team," she muses. "I hope the Starfinders will not break our little band of siblings up for our future assignments." She leaves the datajack for someone who uses computers more than she. She's happy to transfer a fraction of the credits to her account.
To celebrate, Stell suggests the group meet in the evening, after enjoying a chance to clean up and get wounds attended to, at a nightclub she sometimes performs at. She'll volunteer to play a few numbers in between acts, just for the fun of it. She is dressed in a slightly revealing outfit that keeps her arms and legs free to move about as she plays. Unlike most synth-violinists who stand straight and stationary as they play, Stell likes to dance about as she plays.
Her performance is warmly received.
As the group chills with drinks and snacks, Stell says, "My father taught me to shoot, but my mother taught me how to read people. I could tell that Historia-7 was offering high praise, just doing it an understated way so as not to swell our rookie heads. By the way, when I was rummaging through my closet for this outfit, I came across a case of ammo that my father left me, his favorite brand. I had forgotten I had stashed it way to use in emergencies. I miss my parents. Did I tell you, they were on the mission to the Scoured Stars? ..."
Dawn joins the others at the nightclub, watching Stell as she dances and plays on stage. The android focuses less on the performance itself but more on how it makes the members of the audience feel, opening up her empathic connection to feel the emotions of the crowd. She applauds when her companion reaches her crescendo.
Even though she has no real need for sustenance, Dawn eats and drinks contentedly, listening to the icon's story about her parents. The android never had parents of her own.
At the nightclub, Thuldas ensures that no one in their party is short of food or drink. His applauds heartily after each musical number, and when Stell starts to talk of her family, Thuldas takes care not to interject with his own tales (a minor personality fault that he works hard to correct).
As the night winds down, Thuldas brings a final round of drinks to the table. Hoisting one high, he croons, "To th' Starfinders! An' to their greenest members! May their adventures be grand and their tales be grander!"
In a quieter voice, he raises his glass again, "An' to our own Stell - thank you for bringing us to this fantastic place tonight. Thank you for the lovely tunes. An' thank you for sharing memories of your parents with us. Stories are special things, an' sharing them bestows your compatriots with a gift unlike any other." As he says this last bit, Thuldas absentmindedly sketches on the table with a finger wet with condensation from his glass.
"We're quite a fun little group," the dwarf continues around a partially-suppressed belch, "an' I do hope to risk m' life alongside y'all in the near future!"
"My pleasure," Stell says, sipping some pink wine, after Thuldas thanks her. "What about you?" she says, looking at Thuldas, "or anyone else? I'm sure you've all got some stories to tell."
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Iolas nods at Stell and says, ”Well, I have a bit of a story. Can’t say it’s the most cheerful, but it’s certainly a good one. So, after I fled Amsalom Station proper I spent a bit of time in the Armada doin’ odd jobs, mostly repairs. One day I get a ping. Checking my messages I see it’s the captain of a bulk freighter, a big friendly half-orc fella’, wanting some tune-ups on his engine. I send a confirmation, sayin’ I can do two days in advance, and the captain agrees.” Iolas pauses to take a drink of his Dwarven whiskey, savouring the smokiness. He continues, ”So I drive my rented shuttle over to the freighter. The cargo bay opens for me and I go on in. I notice there’s not a soul in sight, and this was a big freighter. So, I take a bit to poke around and see this one group of crates in particular, says they’re from Aucturn. Well, I’m a little on edge just ‘cause of that. Then I see it, a big hole in one of the crates, a trail of slime leadin’ out of it. A wise man woulda hightailed it outta there, but I never said I was a wise man. I pull out my plasma cutter, thinkin’ it’s the closest thing I got to a weapon. I follow that trail all the way to the crew quarters.” He takes another swig of whiskey and shudders slightly before saying, ”Some Aucturnian horror had mostly devoured the crew. It was hunched on the far side of the room, chewin’ on what mighta been an arm once. It looked like a humanoid, but skinnier than coulda been possible. Like skin wrapped tight over bone. It turned around and snarled and it...it was was wearin’ the captain’s face. Like a mask glued onto it with these black pits for eyes. It grinned at me, this terrible unnatural smile wider than anyone should be able to. I ran, faster than I ever thought I could. Stewards took the ship away that afternoon, and I haven’t heard a thing of it since.” Iolas drains his whiskey and says, ”Well, anyone else want to lighten the mood?”
Wint very happily joins in the cameraderie at the bar. He is so VERY happy to be accepted. He drinks a little too much and some of his words are just a tad slurred.
"Man, I love you guys! Almost as much as I love my other team. The one that disappeared at the Scoorud Stars. Maybe when we get some experience we can go rescue them. And your parents!!"
With that, he bursts into sobs
As the stories roll out, Stell holds her violin like a guitar and plucks out quiet melodies as people talk. When Iolas is describing following the trail of slime, Stell strums a minor chord, and then when he reveals what he saw, she gives an abrupt chord that is louder than expected. She grins impishly at the effect.
When their is a pause in the story telling, she holds the violin up. It has an exotic shape, with some traditional looking wood but also some pipes and valves and gears. Some is just for show, but it's possible some has some effect on the sound.
Stell's Instrument
"This is the second instrument I got after I began to play with a group called The Drifters, back on Verces when I was a teenager. It's a good instrument, but while I was touring with Gemma Argenta, I met Dirk Cayne, who made the instruments Cars Pax plays. Cars is this amazing musician, a Kasathan who plays two, sometimes three instruments at once. Anyway, Dirk told me about an instrument he was working on that would connect via a data jack directly to the player's thoughts. The connection was wired into the synthe elements so the musician could modify the sounds just with her thoughts. That's the instrument I'm going to get, eventually, once I've saved up enough cred."
The Instrument Stell wants to get eventually
Once Stell has finished, Dawn speaks up. "I have only existed for a few years, so I do not have the same breadth of experiences as the rest of you from which to draw stories. But, perhaps you would be interested in how I first came to know the light of Sarenrae?
"When my mystic connection first manifested, I did not know how to control it. The rush of emotions I felt from all beings nearby threatened to overwhelm my sanity. I lost my job at AbadarCorp because I could not concentrate on my tasks. In a daze, I wandered the streets of Absalom Station until coming upon a temple to the Dawnflower. A shirren priest named Xyzzchk noticed my distress. They invited me inside to pray for healing for what I assumed to be a mental malady.
"I had never tried to pray before. From what I knew of the gods, they seemed distant and irrelevant to my daily life. But I followed the shirren's instructions and opened myself up to the goddess. Almost immediately, I felt a fiery warmth kindle to life inside of me. It burned in a place that was not my body, but something else. That was the first time I became aware that I had a soul. The warmth suffused my being, calming the empathic sensations so that was once a flood of emotions was now a trickle. I knew instinctively that Sarenrae had blessed me and chosen me to use my powers to serve her cause in this galaxy."
The android grasps the holy symbol around her neck. "May the Dawnflower always guide me along the proper path."
"It seems we have completed all of our tasks. We should return to Guidance and report our success.""Agreed!"
It is simple to establish a comm connection to Guidance.
"Hello, Starfinders," she says calmly. "Yes, I have already received reports from the faction heads of the success of your missions. Congratulations! You will be pleased to know that all the faction leaders were satisfied with your performance. I have entered your names into the rotation and you will no doubt be called on to perform another mission soon. Since the Scoured Stars Incident, we need skilled agents more than ever. I believe that all five of you show great potential as you begin your careers as Starfinder Field Agents. Good luck."
"For those of you who are new to the station, the Starfinder Society has an account at a nearby hotel called the Moons of Sleep. If you wish to take rooms there while you wait for another assignment, the Society will cover your expenses there. Of course, you are free to make alternate arrangements."
"I REALLY hope they are satisfied and let us in"
The group manages to find the Moons of Sleep quite easily. The Moons of Sleep hotel is tucked into an alley between two tall apartment complexes that sit above open-planned cooperative storefronts. It is a three-storey building clad in a pale purple metal with a neon sign of three moons with closed eyes above its door. The inside of the lobby is cosily furnished, with a long comfortable L-shaped couch in the corner. A reception clerk sits in a small cubby room overlooking the lobby, dressed in a navy blue coat and white shirt.
"Oh, hello," says the clerk. "More Starfinders. Well, that's no problem. We have a lot of vacancies right now." The rooms at the Moons of Sleep are clean, well-maintained, and functional, though anything but fancy.
You while away the next week, relaxing, taking side jobs (if you wish), and getting to know the station. After a week you are summoned back to the Lorespire Complex to meet with a Venture-Captain named Arvin regarding your next assignment.
You are usshered into the office of the Venture-Captain by a couple of harried-looking aides. Venture-Captain Arvin turns out to be a tall Lashunta man of middle age. He has an office overlooking the ring of the station, and the once-posh office has been plastered with papers, charts, and data screens. More stacks of papers and data wafers sit on his desk. There is in fact so much information on the walls that it is impossible to tie it all together and most of the things you glance at have no fathomable connection to one another.
The tall and confident lashunta man turns from examining some data posted on the wall and gestures to several functional chairs, inviting you to sit.
“Thank you for arriving so quickly. As I mentioned in my comm message, we have an urgent opportunity to recover some critical information.
“Several months ago, a crew of Starfinders took a ship called the Unbounded Wayfarer into the Vast to explore a series of uncharted planets. They never returned. Earlier today, a vesk pawnbroker in the Downlow neighborhood contacted us, offering to sell us several Starfinder insignias. These insignias belonged to the lost crew of the Unbounded Wayfarer, and that immediately caught the Society’s attention. The pawnbroker—named Julzakama—doesn’t realize the true value of the insignias. We negotiated a purchase price in exchange for the insignias and information about the seller. We hope this seller can lead us to the Unbounded Wayfarer and its crew.
“We’ve remotely transferred the requested credits to Julzakama. Now, we need you to collect the insignias and all the information you can from the vesk regarding whoever sold him the insignias, and then track down that seller. Learn where to find the Unbounded Wayfarer and its crew. I’m worried that the seller might not be on the station for long, so act quickly. If you have any questions, please make them fast.”
Wint would, of course, have spent much of the week helping to keep the Moons of Sleep spic and span
"Do the insignias have any identifying features? We should be certain that Julzakama is not trying to deceive us with false replicas."
"Do the insignias have any identifying features? We should be certain that Julzakama is not trying to deceive us with false replicas."
"From Julzakama's description and the pictures he sent I believe them to be genuine. Each insignia is a kind of medal and bears an inscription on the back. As a result, each insignia is unique. If it turns out that these insignia are forgeries, then whoever forged them would have had to have access to the crew roster and records of a number of members of the Unbound Wayfarer's crew. Not likely, but possible. But if that is the case, it raises more questions than it answers, and we should still want to know who sold them to the junk dealer and what their game is."
"Here are directions to Julzakama's shop." The Venture Captain sends you each a location file. "Any other questions?"
Stell has no questions. She touches her eyebrow and sweeps her hand away in a manner of a salute, nods and leaves with the group.
On the way to Julzakam's shop:
"Hello everyone. It's good to see you all. I went shopping and found a dealer in Anacite augmentations. Listen." She pauses a heartbeat and when she speaks again, her voice is substantially louder, as if using a bullhorn. "Hear ye! Hear ye!". She pauses and when she speaks again, her voice is back to normal. "I got it mostly so when I'm performing, I can make myself heard better without needing a microphone, but I figure it will come in handy ... or should I say voicy? ... when we are in a noisy situation on assignment or to add a little authority to my voice when trying to intimidate someone."
"No questions, everything seems very clear"
People may notice that Wint seems a little bit quiet and nervous.
"If I stay in the background I'll be safe. The Vesk won't even notice that I'm there. And the others will protect me. I'm a Starfinder and so are they. Of COURSE they'll protect me"
"All right then. If there's nothing else, I'll bid you good luck. you can call me here when you have something."
With a nod, Arvin dismisses you, and returns to his papers. "Elora! Where's the file on the Dentrathi Nebula Survey?"
"On your desk under the stapler!" shouts a voice (presumably Elora's) from the next room.
Downlow is a poor and densely populated section of the Spike that extends below Absalom Station. Julzakama’s shop is less than an hour from the Lorespire Complex, the headquarters of the Starfinder Society, and reaching the run-down store is fairly simple.
Although some areas of Downlow are clean and trendy, this narrow alley of concrete and metal buildings drips with oil and sparking wires. A wide, red neon electric sign reads “Julzakama’s Loans” on a building sandwiched between a Kuthite sensation house and a derelict building covered with graffiti. The shop’s solid metal door contains a single, small window too grimy to peer through.
The interior of Julzakama’s Loans is crammed with shelves containing all manner of near-valueless items, from small appliances to VR game consoles and jars of colored powders. The shop has the acrid smell of a reptile house that has not been cleaned in months. A massive vesk in a muscle shirt stands at the rear of the shop, behind a low desk and a series of heavy metal bars anchored into the ceiling. He is carelessly disassembling an old computer when the you arrive, but he looks up from his work when you enter.
"Well, what do we got here," the Vesk drawls as he looks you over. "Looking to sell, buy, or borrow?"
As he notices Wint he frowns slightly. "That thing with you?" he points.
Dawn frowns at the vesk's disparaging comment. "He is a member of our team, yes. We are Starfinders who have been sent to purchase the insignias that you acquired."
The android pauses as she opens her mind, trying to get a sense of the vesk's emotions, but she finds the junk dealer closed off to her.
"We would ask that you reveal how you came by these insignias as well. The information is of interest to the Society, and fostering goodwill with our organization may behoove you in the future. We have connections and credits."
Julzakama gives you a wide smile. He slides a metal box through a gap in the bars. "Starfinders, of course. I was expectin' you. Thanks for your business."
The box contains seven insignias bearing the compass-like logo of the Starfinder Society.
The vesk scratches the scaly skin between his bony beardspikes with a clawed hand and says, “Seems I’m now fully paid for those trinkets there. I remember Arvin said something about wanting information, too, and I can do that. But information costs extra.” Juzakama gives you a big toothy grin.
"Surely earning the favor of the Starfinder Society is worth more than a few paltry credits?" Dawn asks. "Treat fairly with us, and we will ensure more business comes your way."
Wint hides behind Iolas and quickly sends a message from his datapad to all of his teammates
"We were told that the price INCLUDED information. The nasty evil brute is trying to shake us down for more money. Perhaps we should shoot him (not kill, just incapacitate) to make him know that we mean business?"
Iolas glances down at Wint and sends on his comms system, "That is a terrible idea. We should make sure we ask all the questions we can before shooting."
like Dawn, Stell watches the shopkeeper closely to see if she can discern anything about his disposition as the insignias are delivered.
Stell looks over the insignias in the box to verify they are as promised.
She glances at her comm unit and grins a little and then glances at Wint, ggiving her a wink that Julzakama cannot see.
She smiles and adds to Dawn's diplomatic reply to the demand for 'extra' to get the information, "Captain Arvin negotiated a fair price for both the insignias and the information on the seller. Surely you don't want to gain the reputation with the Starfinders as someone who renegs on a fair deal."
“Hey... don't I know you?” the Vesk asks, looking askance at Stell. “Were you playing at the Blue Shoe Tavern a couple weeks back? Yeah, that was pretty good for a man-ling.”
“All right, all right, don't blame me for tryin',” he says with a grin. “I'm on a tight margin here. So let's see... the seller was named Exegara, and she wasn’t from around here. Wore a flight suit, like she had come off a long trip. Once she had her money, she asked about where to purchase clean skeletons. I don’t carry goods like that, so I sent her to the Vat Garden.”
“She was definitely an Eoxian. She looked like a man-ling, but didn’t breathe or blink or anything. Creeps me out. I don't know why you guys let them into the pact worlds. Unless it was 'cause you didn't think you could take on the Veskarium without 'em....”
Julzakama shakes his head. “But where was I? Right... yeah. I guess I should tell you that she mentioned something about hiring some local muscle,” he shrugs. “Just in case, she says. Well, a lot of my customers aren't totally on the up-and-up. What can I say?”
Julzakama gives you directions to the Vat Garden. It is in this district and close by; you can be there in 10 minutes using ordinary means of transportation.
“Hey... don't I know you?” the Vesk asks, looking askance at Stell. “Were you playing at the Blue Shoe Tavern a couple weeks back? Yeah, that was pretty good for a man-ling.”
Stell smiles and nods her head, then makes a small mock bow as if responding to polite applause. "Thanks so much! It helps to have small hands when you play the violin," she adds, holding out her hand next to his for comparison.
As Julzakama recites the information, Stell taps the data into her comm unit, getting the key points: Exegara, flight suit, skeletons, Vat Garden, muscle hired?
Stell has not heard much gossip about the Vat Garden, but she figures she'll look it up on the 'Net if no one else knows anything either. "Thank you for the information, Julzakama! If you liked my music, follow me on Note-Waze! It has my concert dates and you can download the songs you like with the money you got from Arvin." She winks, since the cost of her songs is likely a small fraction of what Arvin paid for the insignias.
She double checks that the insignias are securely tucked away in an inner pocket of her Second Skin.
"Sounds like we're going to Bonz-Я-Us. I hope it's not a dead-end."
Thuldas spends his week between assignments relaxing, sightseeing, and seeking out open repositories of information, especially those that aren't fully digitized (he's not looking for anything in particular, but he does enjoy picking up unusual tidbits). Later in the week, he briefly visits a temple of Tavalet (if he can find one on the station), although he doesn't stay long enough to attract any attention.
During the briefing with Venture-Captain Arvin and the subsequent conversation with Julzakama, Thuldas stays fairly quiet and allows the more eloquent members of his team to do the heavy lifting, although he sneaks a quick smile of pride in how easily Stell floors the Vesk pawnbroker with her star power.
After the group leaves the pawnshop, the dwarf finally pipes up. "This is th' second time in two weeks I've heard o' th' Vat Garden. It popped up in my searchin' when we were lookin' for, ah, some 'paperwork' for our inadver'ent hacker friend. Apparently they mulch up th' deceased for plant food - but in a respectful, family-way an' not a creepy, malicious-way."
Thuldas shudders. "I don't wanna know what an Eoxian wi' a pocket full o' purloined Starfinder swag wants with 'clean skeletons', but I'd wager beer-t'-biscuits she means it in a creepy, malicious-way."
"I've never really understood the term 'undead'. Clearly things that walk and talk and occasionally crawl on their bellies like a reptile can't be really called dead. Maybe it's not cellular life as we know it, but something keeps things animated. Anybody here any kind of expert on the mystic side of life and death and something in between? If we're going to be up against someone from Eox, what should we have with us?"
"Undead are animated by energies from the Negative Energy Plane. They can be harmed by most magic that normally heals living beings. Depending on the type of undead, they may be resistant to other forms of attack, and they may have abilities that can debilitate the living. We should be wary when confronting Exegara."
Actually, Dawn realizes that this is a common myth. Healing magic is harmless to undead, though she has heard that in days long past it might not have been so. Some healing mystics are able to channel a burst of energy that harms undead, but this is uncommon.
"I assume they still go down if they are hit with enough physical force. Is shooting an undead considered murder, I wonder? Probably is on Eox, at least."
As Stell moves on, she checks that her pistol is fully loaded.
Iolas nods and says, "Let's get going."
"Agreed. Lets go!!"
Finding the Vat garden isn't hard, but the small office that leads within looks abandoned, and the materials on the desk have been thrown about, as if there has been some sort of scuffle. A small plaque with the green spiral symbol of the Xenowardens lies on the floor, broken into several pieces.
The door beyond leads to a tunnel. A side door leads to a closet with a variety of gardening tools, but the main tunnel leads to the vats themselves.
The station passageways open into four large sunken pools filled with a riotous growth of plants. A narrow walkway encircles and crosses the overgrown vats, and a spire of some kind of machinery stands in the center of each one, while a small fountain stands to one side. Holes have been cut into the walls of the vats allowing passage from one to another, and a plethora of pipes hang overhead; most of these are corroded and have not been used in a long time. The area is brightly lit, and three ladders descend into each vat.
Each vat has flora that has a noticeably different look.
You can hear voices speaking in hushed tones coming from the southern two vats but nobody is visible yet.