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"Fayetta? You're not the leader of the ones who tried to kill us, then," Daire remarks with certainty. "The pair who tried to murder us said they abandoned your cause because you were weak. What is it, exactly, you're doing here? Sabotage? And the ones who turned traitor and started murdering the folks at my dig site. Are they the only defectors? Who leads them? And where's their base? I want to kick their ass."
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The sarcesian nods seriously and turns to the android. “I am Fayetta of the Wings of Damiar, sarcesians dedicated to watching over the duplicitous bone sages. Our people have suffered uncounted atrocities at the hands of the Eoxians, and the ruin of their world is but a minor satisfaction for the horror they inflicted on us. We know they will eventually break this system’s Pact, and we shall warn others when that dread day comes.” She grits her teeth and continues. “I swear on the sacred remains of the Diaspora that I did not. My former second-in-command, Mengian, saw your excavation as a threat and ordered an attack on the new dig site behind my back. Once I confronted him about it, he took what few radicals he could from our group and left. The snipers in the canyon were among those he converted to his irrational cause.” She looks to Ratatat and holds up her hands. ”I’m afraid I will not give away the position of our second base. Our cause is not hopeless yet.” She balls her hands into fists and holds them down at her sides. “I speak for the Wings of Damiar, and I say that we bear no ill will to the Starfinder Society or your excavations in this region. We would, however, like to keep our group hidden from the bone sages. While we are willing to negotiate with you and your leaders to reach a mutually beneficial arrangement, sadly, we do not have the time for an extended negotiation. I know that Mengian is planning another attack against your allies, and that must be addressed before we can come to an accord.”
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Popper can tell that this woman is telling the truth. While she obviously hates eoxians, she is no murderer. (Leader of a guerilla terrorist cell, maybe, but not a killer.) “Before they went radio-silent, I was listening on their coms. Mengian has called on those Wings of Damiar faithful to his cause to meet at the site of your latest dig. That is the place where he executed those first members of your organization, and where you were exploring earlier today. I know only a small number of our group intend to join him, but they could still cause much harm unless you stop them.” She looks concerned. "I wish I could help, but I cannot bring myself to harm one of our own. And if we alerted anyone else, the eoxians would purge us from our watching place."
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Fayetta nods. ”This is my communication frequency. Let me know when you stop them. We should discuss how we move forward. The sarcesians and the Society could be dear allies, if we work together.” The sarcesian cuts the communication.
With that, the group heads to the old dig site. Upon arrival, Berchta is nowhere to be seen! However, as you walk up you notice a sarcesian climb atop the large red rock! The sarcesian pulls out a star knife and strokes it tenderly. He calls out, "Hello, corpse-lovers! Welcome to the end of everything you know!"
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Popper's antennae wiggle. I tend not to be interested in negotiations when the other side opens with "Welcome to the end of everything you know." But, if you wish to talk to them, be my guest. But my telepathic sending only exudes about thirty feet or so, and I am not approaching armed and hostile individuals without my weapon drawn and my spells at the ready. I am admittedly foolish, but I am not that foolish.
Though his pistol is drawn, Popper makes no move to engage in combat or move toward the sarcesians, instead waiting for the other party members to take some action.
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The sarcesian laughs at Daire’s threat. ”Our brains aren’t rotten like your friends'! I have the high ground! We cannot fail!” He draws his pistol with a fierce grin!
Unfortunately his grandstanding seems to have taken his and his allies’ attention.
Popper 7/7 SP 12/12 HP
Af’val 12/12 SP 14/14 HP
Jack
Gizzmo
Ratatat
Mengian
Pink
Green
Blue
Daire 7/7 SP 11/11 HP
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Harrowed Jack moves forward, drawing the attention of the sarcesians. Popper takes a potshot around the digging machine, clipping the sarcesian in the blue trimmed armor. Gizzmo-5 and his robot pal both fire lasers into the northern sarcesian. Meanwhile Ratatat’s plasma bolt hits the gray dirt.
The head sarcesian looks down over the red rock at Harrowed Jack. ”YOU! DARE! APPROACH! CORPSE!” He looks to his friends and shouts, ”Get ‘em!” The northern pair nods and fire their pistols at the orc.
One shot hits him in the stomach, with his armor taking most of the impact. Then the leader tosses his starknife with a fiendish glee!
The starknife flips around, after colliding into Jack's shoulder, returning to the top of the rock! He raises his hand and shouts out. "I am Mengian! Surrender, corpse!"
The third Wings of Damiar member shakes his head at his boss' antics. I think I chose the wrong leader to back. He moves to the side and shoots back at Popper!
Popper 7/7 SP 12/12 HP
Daire 7/7 SP 11/11 HP
Af’val 12/12 SP 14/14 HP
Jack 5/14 SP 12/12 HP
Gizzmo
Ratatat
Mengian
Pink 7 dmg
Green
Blue 2 dmg
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Harrowed Jack climbs the rock, ending up directly next to the leader!
The southern sarcesian shakes his head as a major migraine grips him. He looks up with surprise as a pair of lasers hits him in the chest! Af’val does his best from behind the safety of his barricade, firing a laser into the shoulder of the northern sarcesian. Gizzmo follows up with a large piece of laser, downing the sarcesian. Extension sees the powerful shot and turns, sending it’s laser into the southern sarcesian. The southern sarcesian falls as well, leaving Mengian with just one ally! He turns to the fallen soldiers and scoffs. ”You just can’t get good hired help these days!” He jerks his head at Jack, ”Get ‘em! Filthy corpse!” The sarcesian grits his teeth and follows orders.
The pistol shot’s impact spins Harrow to the side, opening his defenses as the starknife flashes down!
It cuts through his armor, sending blackened blood out onto his armor!
Popper 7/7 SP 12/12 HP
Daire 7/7 SP 11/11 HP
Af’val 12/12 SP 14/14 HP
Jack 0/14 SP 9/12 HP
Gizzmo
Ratatat
Mengian
Pink 18 dmg
Green
Blue 17 dmg
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As the sarcesian's knife rips into him, the unarmored half-orc watches as muscle and bone become exposed. A bone juts forth from his wrist, bearing a sharply-honed edge.
No injury, the blade is the result of necrograft that "Harrowed Jack" had received some time ago.
"Jack" buries the blade deep into Mengian. "You should have remained hidden." he sneers.
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Mengian's armor gets cut open, stabbed by the bone spur. Then the rebel sarcesian gets pummeled by a fusillade of laser fire! He drops to the ground with a thud.
The final sarcesian drops his pistol in shock. "Uh... I give up? "
"Harrowed Jack" pulls his blade out from Mengian's flesh as he feels the body go limp. He looks at the lifeless sarcesian and shakes his head.
Glancing at the final sarcesian, the half-orc commands, "Tell us of any others and the extent of your plans. Eox is an unfortunate place to die."
Well! Popper sends, planting his forelimbs firmly at his sides. That was very invigorating. Is anyone wounded?
The half-orc turns to give a blank stare at the shirren as dark blood from his wounds stain his duster. Providing no further response, he nods at the ysoki when it is clear that the soldier is looking to strike a deal with Fayetta.
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Popper scrambles up the rock and plops down in front of Jack, sitting lotus style. Stay put. This takes a bit. Popper begins swaying back and forth, emitting a warbling hum that sounds oddly like computer noise. After several minutes, a faint nimbus begins to surround the shirren, and steadily drift into Popper's raised right claw, which he touches the half-orc with. The light suffuses Jack's body for several moments, stitching wounds closed. Once the nimbus has finally faded, Popper stands up, takes a moment to admire his work, then nods firmly. All done! You have weird bits that look like they're... rotting maybe? I can't tell. I wasn't sure you'd heal the same way, but all better! He goes to pat the half-orc's shoulder, then thinks better of it and clambers back down the rock.
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The sarcesian looks up at Daire, then at Jack. "Uh, there are a few more back in the hills! And, we were going to pick off the large group of workers. Then take the camp! If the starfinders were slaughtered by eoxians, it would start a Pact war! Then everyone would see the eoxian danger!" He seems desperate, telling the truth. He really believed in this cause.
Fayetta answers the call. "You stopped them! Thank you, Starfinders! I am in your debt. Now, my proposition. If you hand over the traitors to my group of loyal Wings of Damiar, we will take care of them. The sarcesians tend to their own." She looks grim, as if she doesn't look forward to that bit. "If you do that, and allow us to continue our sacred mission as watchers over the eoxian menace, we will support your Society instead of hindering it." She smiles. "If the rest of the diaspora hears that the Society is friendly to the Sarcesian race, who knows what could happen."
She grits her teeth. "Of course, I can not stop you from handing them over to the eoxians. But if you do, my men and I will be hunted and exterminated."
"But no matter what, my people and I are not leaving of our own accord. We have a mission to carry out." You realize that if you managed to smuggle the terrorists off the planet without the eoxians finding out, the Wings of Damiar will continue to stay the course.
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Popper rubs his antennae in what appears to be a nervous habit. Oh, I hate this part...
To the others, he sends, Erm. I do not like the Eoxians. At all. They are creepy and weird. And I do not trust them. But, we were hired for a specific job, and part of that job is not upsetting the locals. If they find out we helped the sarcesians, the Eoxians would indeed be very upset. I would like to make a good impression to the venture-captains on my first Starfinder mission.
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"While I am a soldier and it is my purpose to do battle, this is a fight where no one comes out a winner. Sarcesians and Eoxians will continue to fight no matter what. There is no end, no hope of peaceful coexistence. There is only continued hate, distrust and bloodshed. I say we complete our mission, fulfill our obligations but do not ally with either side."
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“If the sarcesians and eoxians wish to wage war, I want no part of it.” says “Harrowed Jack”. “However, our express orders were to investigate, find the cause of the disturbance, restore order, and maintain the Society’s partnership with the bone sages. Withholding the fact that a group of sarcesians is responsible for killing eoxians on their own planet jeopardizes that partnership."
“We did not choose to expose the sarcesians.” the half-orc looks down, giving a cold stare toward Mengian. “They chose to do it themselves. The folly and consequences are their own.”
“Harrowed Jack” stands upright and looks over the landscape devastated by the fall of the “Black Moon”. His eyes then seem to focus elsewhere, as if seeing something far more distant over the horizon, although there lies nothing of note there.
“Yet, the folly was not that of all the sarcesians. Mengian and his men will answer to the eoxians.” the half-orc pronounces as if he is speaking for the whole of the Society, despite having no authority to do so. “But, Fayetta and her ‘Wings’ wisely remained hidden. I see no reason to alter this state. ”
“Let Fayetta know of the decision.” barks “Jack”. “She is a warrior and should understand.”