GM Numbat SFS 1-28 It Rests Beneath (Inactive)

Game Master numbat1

It Rests Beneath

Starfinders, you receive communication from the leader of the Wayfinders faction, Fitch, you are to report to her aboard Master of Stars. Proceed to the shuttle bay immediately where your transport is waiting.

The doors to the shuttle bay slide open to allow entry to a ryphorian with dark golden skin. She is wearing loose shimmery red clothing underneath an armored jacket, heavy boots, and a backpack with a butterfly embroidered prominently to the top. Her head is completely hairless, apart from the tufts on the tips of her long pointed ears.

She glances at her comm unit, and then looks around impatiently. She marches up to the docked shuttle and accosts a station worker passing by. "Excuse me, is this shuttle going to the Master of Stars?"

The station worker is a little startled given that he has nothing to do with the shuttles, but knowing the schedules he responds, "Yes, miss. If you just wait patiently, I am sure boarding will begin shortly."

Scant moments after answering Maoshi's question, the same dock worker is approached by an extremely tall and gaunt, yellow skinned humanoid in jet black robes. “Pardon me, friend, I seek the shuttle to the Master of Stars. Am I in the correct bay? “ he asks in a deep, sonorous voice with a slow dreamlike cadence. Even as he asks, his eyes and attention drift off from the worker though not to anything else in particular.

Anyone familiar with his species would certainly notice the near complete absence of the traditional Eye of Enlightenment tattoo from his forehead. Instead, only a residual scar remains as if the skin itself had expelled the inks.

When his eyes alight on Maoshi's backpack, they widen in pleasure at the sight of the butterfly symbol. “A follower of Desna, yes? “he begins with a friendly smile. “I am Laksell, formerly of Great Shadar and now a... well, follower isn't exactly the right word. Let's just say that Ibra guides my dreams.“ He stretches out both of his unusually long arms, in an apparent offering to shake both hands at once.

The dockworker rolls her eyes in exasperation that so many on any day just do not read the well-posted signs.

"Yes, you are, friend" she mumbles while allowing the newcomer to wander off to discuss religion. She then makes a break for it, time for some tea from that nice teashop everyone keeps talking about. Her shift is over and these two can take care of answering questions until the shuttle crew poke their heads out.

Maoshi starts to nod but lets out a sigh at the words 'wait patiently'. She rolls her eyes a little after the man has walked away.

Upon being addressed she turns and smiles brightly. "Yes, I'm a follower of Desna, wherever she wants to lead me. I don't really understand Ibra, to be honest, but if you're a dreamer then it's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Maoshi." She looks down at his hands and then seizes his right hand with both of her own to shake it.

Maoshi tilts her head to indicate the shuttle. "Apparently they're not quite ready yet, but if we're headed to the same place - are you going to meet Fitch as well? I was surprised to be the first to arrive."

A nearby docking bay door opens, releasing a dejected-looking adolescent human. Standing in the doorway, checking a box on a clipboard is a tall nuar, his wide horns extending beyond the doorframe on either side. "Don't worry, Joey. You did better than last time, and besides: it's not like you actually hit those ysoki...you just scared them a bit. Don't give up, you'll get it." The man pats the boy on the shoulder, then turns back into the doorway as the teen wanders off. He emerges with a large backpack, into which he tucks the clipboard before ambling toward you. "Boy, isn't this convenient, right next to my parking spot!" As he approaches, you can see the words De Stieren Piloting Academy embroidered above the pocket of his shirt. "Howdy, folks! You must be the other Starfinders. I'm Rogers, and" he holds up his hand, "before you ask--yes, with an 's', no there's only one of me. I'm headin' out with y'all to the Master of Stars." On his raised hand you can see a faintly glowing Starfinder insignia, and his backpack looks large enough to hold all the gear an enterprising agent might need.

A vesk wanders in, cigar in mouth, followed by a little glowy red ball. At first glance, his size and obvious strength is threatening and intimidating, until you realize that he's... well... got sort of a glazed look in his eyes. And that cigar... it smells a bit... herbal??

"Heeeeya fellas!! Woah, you're a serious lookin' bunch! C'mon buddies... sit back, relax...." As this screwball vesk speaks, you see that he isn't really looking at you. Rather, he seems to be looking past you. It's as though he can't quite focus on you....

"M'name's Bubba! Some people call me Blazin' Bubba cuz... well... The sun... the stars... the 'herbal cigars'.... Its all connected man....!!!" He takes a long puff on the cigar and pauses. The pause lasts awkwardly long and just as you're about to give up on seeing if he had anything else to say, he continues, "But you all feel free to call me Blaze, Blazin, Bubs, BB, whatevs. It's allllllll goooood bro......

"Okay now, c'mon, bring it in. Group hug...!" He approaches you all and beckons you forward to come in for a group hug.

Whether others obliged him with a hug or not, Bubba then takes a seat and stares out the window, fixated on the sun as he continues to puff away...

The door to the shuttle slides open and a head peaks out, "Are you the lot going to see Fitch? Is this everyone?" He looks down at a clipboard held by one of his many hands, "Shows six of you on the manifest. Where are the others? You do know we have a schedule to keep don't you?"

And with that he disappears back inside, leaving the door open to the passenger bay.

"Oooooooh, wait for meeeeeeee!" A little golden skittermander, followed by floating robot with the label HAULERBOT 6000 -- ABADAR CORP on it. "Abadar Corp had a mandatory training session for all sales personnel, and it ran really late!"

She's wearing the gold key of a worshipper of Abadar, and a snazzy black suit.

"Hello, are you heading to the Master of Stars too? I'm hoping we get to babysit Fitch's kids! They're always so rambunctious -- just like skitter whelps!"

I squat plucky little halfling comes 4ambling down the causeway yelling at a robot nearly twice his size. "You know were late because of you B199S. If it were for that incident with your laser falling off we would have made the docks an hour ago! Gah! what am I gonna do with ya?".

Exasperated and clearly worried he may have missed the shuttle the halfling goes running forward not paying much attention as he is looking back at the combat 'droid'.

Turning about he come face to hip with the Naur soldier crashing firmly into the solidly build man he hits the floor with a squeak and thud "Owie. Anyone get the call numbers off that "Cargo Lifter" I just ran...." looking up from his phone position the young man starts, "Uh, ooh, umm sorry about that..." staring at the Nuar's faintly glowing hand the halfling bolts up."Hey! You'reaStarfindertoo. Right! Metoolooksee."[/b] excitement gets the better of him as he jumps straight to his feet holding up his hand and activating his insignia so fast it appears to be a strobe.

"NamesMardonnenNeedlefeetpleasuretomeetyou. Areyougoingonthismissiontoo? Haveanyideawhatwearedoing." as he rattles off a few select other questions no one, save for another halfling, could even make a guess at what he says.

"Just in time you two, the pilot calls back, I was about to leave without you. Strap in back there, we are underway to the Master of Stars. Isn't she a beauty?"

With that, the shuttle doors close and you can feel the engine rumble increase.

As you depart Absalom Station, you can see out the viewports that the repairs to the Master of Stars are almost complete, with only a few rings of scaffolding remaining around sections of the ship.

You have time to complete your introductions during the ride.

The shuttle lands in a spacious hangar bay, and a drone leads you to a briefing room on an upper deck of the ship.

Fitch is waiting with a plate of bread, jams, and sweet pastries. When you arrive, she’s trying to chase off three of her grandchildren while scolding them with restrained aggravation that those snacks are for the visiting Starfinders. The three young ysoki flee past you as Fitch hurls a doughnut to chase them off, and the target nimbly snatches it, takes a bite out of it, and grins triumphantly at Fitch. She performs an exaggerated scowl, though once the door closes, her face exudes smug pride in her cunning descendants.

“Vabaimus is a planet in Near Space,” Fitch says, gesturing in the air as she paces atop her desk. “Green, lots of water, bright sunlight, beautiful, if you go in for that sort of thing. Plenty of animal and plant life, but the most intelligent species is a marsupial no bigger than my kids. Look kind of like sloths. I like them, but we’re leaving them alone till they advance enough to at least get a language. Could take a while.
“But there is a research station on the southern continent. The scientist in charge is Dr Mora Motressi, a xenobiologist. She and her people have been checking out the local flora and fauna, and they’ve just started a geological survey. Vabaimus is a resource-rich planet; we could do a lot with that, but we need to be careful to do it right. We don’t want to make decisions we later regret, disrupt the ecosystem, and create problems for ourselves and the locals.”
Fitch pulls a data chip from her cheek pouch and waves it around. “I was reading the first report from their geological survey, and apparently, they’ve got a weird landmass down there. A plateau hundreds of miles across covered in a slick grey shell, like a giant lobster or something! No water or plant life at all— maybe it got blasted by some kind of curse, I don’t know. Mora and her people, they don’t have the equipment to do a proper survey, so I figured we could give her a hand. I’d like you to take some vehicles and survey equipment to Dr Motressi and her people on Vabaimus, and help them get to the bottom of this mystery.”
Raising her hands and shaking her head, Fitch goes on. “I know, I know. This doesn’t sound like the sort of thing a bunch of super-stars like you usually go in for. There’s no first contact to figure out, no Swarm army to blast into smithereens. But this is how the hard work of research and science gets done, and besides, if this lifeless plateau is the result of a curse or a magical accident or something, Mora and those scientists will need help, maybe even an evacuation.
“So, what do you say? Can I trust you on this one?”

At this point you have the opportunity to ask a few questions of Fitch. You also have the opportunity to slot your boons. This is a mission important to Fitch so you may wish to consider slotting the Wayfinders faction boon. It also has the vehicle tag which may affect your boon choice. Listing slotted boons in the discussion thread would be appreciated, though feel free to roleplay to bring the characters relevant knowledge.

"How many dudes and dude-ettes are down there with Dr. Mora? Gotta check my supply of 'cigars' to ensure there are enough for everyone! Sharing is caring!" says the muscle-bound vesk as he takes another puff of his aromatic cigar.

Hmmmmm...I've got an OOC theory about that plateau but mums the word for now...

I squat plucky little halfling comes 4ambling down the causeway yelling at a robot nearly twice his size. "You know were late because of you B199S. If it were for that incident with your laser falling off we would have made the docks an hour ago! Gah! what am I gonna do with ya?".

Exasperated and clearly worried he may have missed the shuttle the halfling goes running forward not paying much attention as he is looking back at the combat 'droid'.

Turning about he come face to hip with the Naur soldier crashing firmly into the solidly build man he hits the floor with a squeak and thud "Owie. Anyone get the call numbers off that "Cargo Lifter" I just ran...." looking up from his phone position the young man starts, "Uh, ooh, umm sorry about that..." staring at the Nuar's faintly glowing hand the halfling bolts up."Hey! You'reaStarfindertoo. Right! Metoolooksee."[/b] excitement gets the better of him as he jumps straight to his feet holding up his hand and activating his insignia so fast it appears to be a strobe.

"NamesMardonnenNeedlefeetpleasuretomeetyou. Areyougoingonthismissiontoo? Haveanyideawhatwearedoing." as he rattles off a few select other questions no one, save for another halfling, could even make a guess at what he says.

"Up we go, little friend" Rogers says, helping the halfling to his feet. "You know," the big nuar says with smile, "texting and piloting is very dangerous; apparently texting while running is too."

Laksell greets each of the new arrivals to the docking bay, again presenting both hands as if expecting them both to be shaken, or something. Aboard the shuttle, he sits quietly, strapped into his seat, his eyes half-lidded. It's not apparent if he's sleeping or not, though if addressed in the shuttle, he answers readily.

He is ... unamused ... by the antics of Fitch's grandchildren. He steers clear of them as they cavort about the office and takes a seat well away from them. As Fitch speaks, he seems to be only half paying attention, at various times staring at the ceiling as if lost in thought, and at other times with his head back in a "is he sleeping or not?" posture.

But when the time for questions arrives, he opens his eyes and looks intently at the Venture Captain.

"Captain Fitch, have any dangerous predators or hazardous plantlife been reported by the survey team?"

After listening to her answer for that question, he continues.

"You described the anomalous landmass as being like a 'slick gray shell.' Slick how? Moist? Dry but friction-less? Gelatinous?"

He pauses just a moment, and his eyes lose focus before he asks, "Does the lobster come with butter?"

Maoshi admires the view of the Master of Stars as they approach, feeling a little moved to see that the ship she has only heard of is nearly complete. "Things are really moving along now, aren't they," she murmurs to herself thoughtfully.

Once on the ship, she laughs out loud at the antics of the young ones scampering about, and then chooses two of the largest pastries on the dish to enjoy while listening to the briefing.

"Even if it doesn't sound like the most exciting task, getting out beyond the Pact Worlds always has potential for the unknown to happen. If you say this is important research, then I'll be proud to take on the mission. Besides, I could do with a straightforward mission for once," she concludes dryly.

Her father's words come to mind: Always ask where the money comes from, and you'll learn a great deal about someone's true purposes. So she asks, "Where is Dr. Mora from? Why are they doing research here, and who is funding it?"

Fitch takes each question seriously if a little distractedly.

"How many dudes and dude-ettes are down there with Dr. Mora? Gotta check my supply of 'cigars' to ensure there are enough for everyone! Sharing is caring!"

"There are maybe twenty people there. Scientists mostly and some assistants. They’ve got half a dozen buildings not far from the plateau.” She then gives Bubba a stern look, "We need them and you to be clear headed so no "cigars" are necessary."

"Captain Fitch, have any dangerous predators or hazardous plantlife been reported by the survey team?"

“Don’t think so. Vabaimus is pretty peaceful, but you never know. It’s a dangerous galaxy. I am sure any information you discover while you are there will be invaluable to the team.”

"You described the anomalous landmass as being like a 'slick gray shell.' Slick how? Moist? Dry but friction-less? Gelatinous?"

"The reports to date have been very scant on detail. That is why we are sending you with this equipment, so more can be learned."

"Does the lobster come with butter?"

Fitch looks a little confused then replies, "Just sweet treats today. There should be extra butter for the scones if you look."

"Where is Dr. Mora from? Why are they doing research here, and who is funding it?"

At this last question, Fitch's expression becomes once again a little smug and proud, "Oh, they are ours, fully funded by the Wayfinders."

"Now, if there is nothing else, the transport vessel is already loaded and ready. You have just enough time to purchase any last minute personal equipment you need before you leave."

Always interested in equipment, Aba pipes up, "Do we know what sort of equipment and supplies we're hauling to the station? If you haven't already put in an order, I have an employee discount with Abadar Corp and could help handle the transaction, and the packing! Remember that all Abadar Corp products come with a money back guarantee!" She gives Fitch big eyes. "Please can I help you? Pleeeeeeease?"

While two of her hands are pleading, a third grabs up a scone. "Yummy!"

Blazin' Bubba nonchalantly sidles up to Aba and slips one of his cigars into Aba's fourth hand and winks at her.

Bubba then sidles off nonchalantly to look out the window, gazing towards the sun...

Going to purchase a gill sheath. Otherwise, Bubba is good to go when everyone else is!!

Aba takes a bite out of the cigar, and then her eyes water. "It's always..." she says, swallowing, and trying not to look green, "interesting..." she takes another bite of the scone, and then grabs a glass of water with her fifth hand, and a cup of coffee with her sixth, and then drinks them both down. "...to seewhatfoodsothercultureseat!" she says the last bit in a rush, to make up for all the chewing and swallowing and drinking she had to do to get the cigar taste out of her mouth.

"Y'know, friend," Rogers says to Bubba, "when we get down there, I think you'd better leave the driving to the rest of us." Who knows where we'd end up.

"Speaking of which, boss, what sort of vehicles are these? I want to review their safety ratings and control defaults while we travel."

"That's a good question!" Aba beams at Rogers. "Oh, and I have one more question!" Aba says, waving all six arms in the air. "Can everyone introduce themselves for a moment? I don't think I have worked with any of you before, and I like to know who my teammates are. I'm Aba, your friendly Abadar Corps salerep, and I've taken all sorts of training because I like to help people!"

"Oh, they're our own people? Then yes, we should certainly offer them our full support."

To the small skittermander she blinks and then smiles professionally. "It seems we are in a similar business. I am Maoshi Shoga, of the Preita province on Triaxus. When I'm not occupied with the Starfinders, I work with Shoga Toys. Whether you're buying a gift for your youngest niece or nephew or want to entertain your own whelp, chick, or tot, we can find something that will suit. I regret I don't have any samples with me at the moment, but I assure you they're all delightful." She takes out a business card to hand to Aba, and then a few more to distribute to anyone else who will take one.

Maoshi is ready to go.

Rogers takes a business card from Maoshi. "Thanks, I like to have a few toys about. Every once in a while, one of my students will bring along a child or a younger sibling, and it's nice to have things to keep them entertained. A bored child is a distracting child, after all. Anyway, I'm Rogers." He pulls out a small stack of his own business cards bearing a logo matching the one on his shirt, handing them out to anyone that would like one. "I teach piloting lessons right over there. Fellow Starfinders get lessons for half price!"

Laksell watches Aba's reaction to the taste of the cigar. He approaches the little skittermander and extends a hand, each of the three fingers as long as one of her forearms, toward the cigar. “I sense you may be done with that. May I try it? “ He takes a bite and chews thoughtfully and slowly.

As I thought, much more delicious than those hard, tasteless 'scone' things...

“Friend Bubba, why is it that you burn these basic ration bars?"

Turning back to Aba, he gives a little bow. “Thank you, friend. I am Laksell, formerly of Great Shadar. However, Ibra guides my path and my dreams now. “

He continues, a bit self consciously. “I do not represent a corporation or have my own business interest, “he adds with a nod toward Rogers. “Nor do I proselytize on behalf of The Inscrutable, but I hope to be able to help nonetheless. “

Fitch shakes her head as she observes the antics of cigars as food.

"Do we know what sort of equipment and supplies we're hauling to the station? If you haven't already put in an order, I have an employee discount with Abadar Corp and could help handle the transaction, and the packing! Remember that all Abadar Corp products come with a money back guarantee!"

To Aba she responds, ”As I indicated, the supplies are already loaded on the transport. Apart from basics to resupply the scientists, we’ve packed up some towers, high-intensity scanners, and computers which, once you put them all together, will give you a 3-D map of the plateau’s interior and do a complete chemical analysis of the ground. If you are interested in contracts with the Wayfinders after you return you should check with my assistant who will be able to guide you to the correct channels through which to apply.”

"Speaking of which, boss, what sort of vehicles are these? I want to review their safety ratings and control defaults while we travel."

Fitch continues, now focusing on Rogers, ”

”Now, interesting as this chatter may be, I am far to busy to indulge you. Take it outside and don’t miss your ship. This is important work and others are relying on you.” With that, Fitch shoes them out of her office.

Feel free to complete your shopping and introductions as you head to the transport vessel. You will also have plenty of time on the journey to get to know each other. Let me know when you are all boarded and ready to proceed.

"That's a good question!" Aba beams at Rogers. "Oh, and I have one more question!" Aba says, waving all six arms in the air. "Can everyone introduce themselves for a moment? I don't think I have worked with any of you before, and I like to know who my teammates are. I'm Aba, your friendly Abadar Corps salerep, and I've taken all sorts of training because I like to help people!"

Blazin' Bubba smiles broadly. "Sure thing lil dudette." he says, eyes not quite focused on Aba. "I'm originally from the Burning Archipelago located at... Well... The sun..." Bubba taps the window glass in the direction of the Sun.

"Yah lil buddy. The sun, it provides rays of life to all living things... You... Me..." Bubba holds up his cigar. "Plant matter too, of course.

"And this particular breed of plant sustains my mind and my soul.... All thanks to the sun... And that's led me to my calling. As the sun provides the sustenance I need, I provide to others who are also in need. Primarily by speaking words that inspire, secondly by sharing this 'special' cigar around, and thirdly (but no less importantly) defending those who need defending."

Observing how a couple individuals ate the cigar, Bubba's face expresses a look of admiration. "Wow, I'm impressed! I have to smoke these myself. I've found that ingesting them directly makes the effects waaaay too strong for me. But you lil guys must be tough! I salute you lil buddies!

Group hug!"

Rogers is ready to go.

Laksell is ready

Vabaimus is in Near Space, the journey takes 13 days of Drift travel. When you arrive at the planet, a cursory scan confirms what you’ve been told by Fitch: Vabaimus is a temperate planet with considerable surface water and a variety of native life. It looks like a perfect colony world. There is, however, a strange geological formation, a stony plateau which covers approximately 85,000 square miles on the southern continent. This is the feature you have been sent to investigate, and the Wayfinders’ research station is situated nearby.

Within minutes, Dr Mora Motressi, the lead scientist at the research station, contacts you and invites you to land.

Mora is a friendly professional and devoted mother; as she speaks to you, you can see a sloth-like creature clinging to her torso and playing with her ears, while a human child plays with a datapad in the background. See slides for picture

The outpost is a simple affair on the grassy shore of a broad river, with two dormitory buildings to the east, two science labs to the west, and between them a common room for the staff to relax. All the buildings are white half-cylinders obviously assembled from prefabricated parts shipped to Vabaimus from the Pact Worlds. A basic chain-link fence surrounds the compound, an improvised exercise track loops around the entire campus, and a pair of researchers in athletic clothes are jogging in the morning sun. The mysterious plateau looms only a few miles away.

As you land at the outpost, some of the scientists and assistants emerge to help unload the vehicles and survey equipment. Mora leads the way, carrying the sloth-like creature and with her young and curious daughter following close behind. She introduces her daughter as “Little Mina” and invites you to the common room, where she can brief you on the mission.

After activating a handheld control, Mora gestures to a holographic image of an imposing, gray plateau. “This is Big Mina. You probably saw it as you came down from orbit. The plateau’s covered in a gray calcium compound, somewhat like a shell or a bony crest. There’s nothing like it anywhere else on Vabaimus and, frankly, we’re not sure what to make of it. But that’s where you and the equipment you’ve brought us come in.”

The image of the plateau rotates to a top-down perspective, and three circles of light appear. “The survey equipment will allow us to construct three towers, one at each of the these locations: Forsaken Canyon, the Windy Cliffs, and this dry riverbed. Once the scanners on the towers are calibrated to the computers we keep here at the station, we’ll perform a deep scan of the entire plateau, going down thousands of feet. We’ll have a three-dimensional map of Big Mina’s interior, we’ll know the chemical composition of the soil, and hopefully we’ll figure out whatever caused this formation to appear in the first place. We have an office pool going, and right now the popular choice is some kind of magical accident, but my money is on an anomalous weather pattern. Anyway.

“So, I think that’s everything. Any questions?”

"Is that old starship near any of these locations we're going to? I'd love to take a look at it."

"Is that old starship near any of these locations we're going to? I'd love to take a look at it."

Dr Motressi responds, "Well, this spot here," and she highlights an area on the display, "in the dry riverbed would be the closest. We call it a riverbed but we really don't know if there was ever a river there. We actually tried to set up a scanner there when we first arrived, but it stopped functioning after a few days, and we eventually found it knocked over and smashed up. It looked like it had been hit by a meteor." She pauses and then adds, "We did salvage what we could from the wreck. I'd be happy to show you if you are interested."

"We'd like that!" Aba exclaims. "How many drivers do we need? I'm a pretty good driver." She smiles at Little Mina, and then turns to Dr. Motressi. "Why did you name the huge rock formation after your daughter?"

As Dr Motressi gathers some items to show you, she responds to Aba's question.

“She said she wanted a big sister. This was the best I could do.” She heaves a sigh and then lays out the following items:

• 3 large, gray pearls (each worth 50 credits)
  
• 3 mk 1 serums of healing
  
• 2 doses of zero (Starfinder Armory 132)
  

"You are welcome to take anything you want."

"Well, I hope we won't need them, but those serums would be nice to have along. I don't touch this stuff, though" Rogers says, poking at the zero. "I like to be clear-headed when I drive."

Rogers will take at least one of the serums of healing. He's happy to take all three, or to leave the other two for someone else. Being a melee fighter, he may have opportunity to make use of them :|

Laksell listens quietly as Mora briefs them on their mission. When she mentions the tower that had been knocked over by the "meteor" he seems to focus in more acutely on her.

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (19) + 10 = 29

"So there are no large indigenous animals? Does anything prey on these... What do you call this species, anyway?" he asks gesturing to the "sloth" on her hip.

"I have several healing serums already, thank you. And I'm not much of a pilot. I think I'd prefer to ride in the back of one of the buggies."

"Not much of a driver myself. So I'll ride along.

"But I'll hold onto one of the healing serums in case of emergency. As for the zero, I'm also happy to hold onto those for... uh... safekeeping?"

Blazin' Bubba takes a puff on the cigar, causing the end of it to glow brightly as the aromatic herbal smoke wafts upwards.

Just a quick FYI. Bubba doesn't have any ranged weapons - ran out of credits. So if we get into vehicle combat, he'll ask if he can borrow someone's spare sidearm or he'll be attempting to board enemy vehicles. Hehe. We'll see how that goes...he's not particularly acrobatic either...

"So there are no large indigenous animals? Does anything prey on these... What do you call this species, anyway?"

“This is Bud. He and his mate Beky are visitors from the northern continent. Their species aren’t yet sapient, but they’re on their way. Right now, Bud’s pretty good at using a stick to get insects out of the ground, but eventually, he and the rest of his species could be farming, building towns, or doing whatever else expresses their evolving culture. We have avoided interfering with the species overall, but we do want to know more about them and maybe find a way to communicate, so we brought Bud and Beky here for a closer look. They’re easy to get along with, and my daughter likes them.

"We’ve seen some native life in the canyon, resembling birds."Dr Motressi highlights another area marked for a tower. "I don’t know how anything survives on the plateau, where there’s no plant life or water. Maybe you can get a closer look at them when you’re setting up the scanning tower?"

Highlighting the third tower area she adds, "This site is along the cliffs; anywhere along the ridgeline will do, but be careful, the wind can get pretty intense up there, and it’s a long drop.

"As to drivers and vehicles, I'll leave that completely to you. You are the experts. We'll load the needed equipment and stay in contact but I am sure we are in good hands. The equipment you have bought will let us learn so much more than we have been able to with what we had."

She sounds and acts completely sincere. You have no sense of an ulterior motive or of hiding anything.

"These buggies are great--I'm happy to drive one, for anyone that would like to ride along."

Rogers has +9 (2 ranks) Piloting. I think Aba has him beat, so maybe she's the other driver?

Maoshi is very puzzled by all the mysteries, from a suddenly destroyed scanner to strange birds that shouldn't be able to survive. "I'm sure going in there to see for ourselves will be the easiest way to figure it out," she asserts confidently, and puts the questions out of her mind for the moment.

"I can drive a vehicle, but only on city roads. It sounds like the going will be tough here, so I'll stay in the back too."

I have two small arms if Bubba does need to borrow one later, though one is nonlethal damage only and they only have 20ft and 30ft ranges.

Aba asks Bubba, "Do you want to borrow one of my weapons? If I'm driving, I am certainly NOT shooting! And yes, I want to help! Let me drive!" Then she looks at the vehicle. "Um, do you have any booster seats so that I can see over the dash?"

I have a tactical semi-auto pistol with merciful fusion and a regular static arc pistol.

Laksell moves toward the vehicle that Rogers is standing closest to. He likes the little skittermander, but he's concerned she won't be able to find a large enough booster seat to be able to actually see anything.

"Perhaps our mechanic friend could help our two pilots find their way?" he suggests. "It is easy to lose one's way..." The way his voice trails off and the look in his eyes makes it appear likely he's referring to other things than just getting lost on an unfamiliar planet.

We haven't heard from Mardonnen since his intro. Is Gary still on board?

Dr Motressi smiles at Aba, "I'll have our mechanic show you all the controls and available adjustments. I'm not the expert but my past experience indicates these buggies are quite adjustable to a number of different races, sizes, and shapes.

"Do you have any other questions?"

For some reason this didn't post earlier. Thankfully not time critical.

Sent a PM to check.

"Why this talk about bedding down already? The sun is still shining. Let's get underway! How about the site at that riverbed or whatever it is? I'm interested in the old kasathan ship too." She bends closer to take a look at the map on the display.

This is Maoshi's vote anyway. I'm fine with whatever the group decides.

"That'd be mighty helpful of you Aba! I'll be happy to hold either one of those temporarily - whichever you don't typically use." With a smile, Bubba offers Aba another cigar.

Bubba is ready to go. Without any ranks in piloting, I don't believe Bubba can help navigate either...

Laksell pauses enroute to the buggy when Maoshi speaks. "Ah, yes, I assumed we were heading out now. I'm... I'm also curious about the old ship at the riverbed. It seems... strange."

As he turns back to get into the buggy, he mumbles, "A river without water. A ship without a crew. A crash without wreckage. Truly Inscrutable"

Dr Motressi is pleased with your enthusiasm. "Right then, your equipment is loaded. Each of the scanning towers is a 30-foot-tall structure of titanium alloy rods that must be assembled on the spot. A tower has a small platform at the top, which can support only one of you. (medium or smaller creature) The scanner and computer must be installed at this platform. Twenty feet above the ground is a secondary platform that can support two others. (medium or smaller creatures) A ladder ascends the tower’s length. Someone will need to be on the upper platform to calibrate the instruments. I will be in communication with you during that process via the comm unit. Each kit has documentation and instructions to assemble and anchor the tower, as well as to calibrate the instruments.

"Good luck to you, stay in contact."

"So you want me to navigate?" Aba says, delighted. "Yay, I can help!"

Do we have two other pilots?

Maoshi starts inspecting the equipment on the vehicles to look busy, even though she doesn't know how most of it works.

"Is anyone afraid of heights? I enjoy being up in the air, but computers and techy things aren't my strong point. It depends on how easy to follow those instructions are. Perhaps a person who is light and agile should go up to do the installation." She eyes Aba and Mardonnen meaningfully.