The barrage of magic missiles rips a hole in the incorporeal body of the spirit. As it begins to fall to pieces, the ethereal tether whips back and tears from the menhir, removing chunks of stone. . With that, the menhir teeters, than collapses to the ground in a shower of gravel.
Fionne feels an overwhelming sense of relief and thankfulness from the friendly spirit... Then nothing.
When the dust settles, the ghosts defending the menhir are gone... And the elementals are frozen in place, no longer animated.
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Speck was just about the raise his rifle to fire on the menhir when it rather dramatically breaks apart. So instead, he sinks into the ground.
"Is that it? Did we do it?" He looks around carefully to see if there are any changes, especially to the other (friendly) ghosts that had been flitting about.
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Marcus, who didn't actually have to do any sinking to reach the ground, decides to stay there. As the Menhir collapses into gravel around him he drops the axe and uses his arms to cover his head. After the minor landslide he peeks out at the scene around him, and on seeing no sign of any more ghosts or elementals he just collapses limp where he's already lying.
"I sure hope so, because right now I think I just want to take a nap." After a few moments he glances over at Desha and gives her a thumbs up. "Thanks for the save."
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"THAT WORKED?" Fionne looks around wildly, half expecting a tidal wave of spirits to wash in and take out the weakened party. When they don't she gives a start "WAIT, I DON'T FEEL ANYTHING FROM SPEAKER! I THINK IT MANAGED TO PASS ON. YOU GUYS NAILED IT!" She grins at the rest of the party.
With everyone up (if injured), she trots over to T-eddy and looks over the sorry mess he was left in. "FUR'S SHOT. AGAIN. NOTHING A BIT OF SPITSHINE CAN'T FIX, EH FELLA?" She sets about fixing T-eddy up enough to make him mobile again.
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As the menhir begins to crumble, Desha dives to cover Marcus, landing on top of the officer and shielding him with her own body. When the rubble finally settles and the dust begins to clear, she slowly gets back up and offers him and hand to get him back on his feet. "Glad you're still with us, Officer Cole," she says with a kind smile. "Now get off your backside and help me check to make sure we're clear."
She starts off by moving the Omen-Seeker and giving her whatever healing she can. "Your mystical expertise saved all our butts," she tells the ysoki with admiration, "Great work!"
She also makes a point to congratulate Speck on delivering the finishing blow to the spirit and, ultimately, the menhir. "See what amazing stuff you can get done when you don't run away," she says with a chuckle, "I think that counts as a five-kill spell! Congratulations!"
Desha quietly lays a hand on Fionne's shoulder as the halfling works on her disabled drone and offers to help in any way she can on the repairs during the return trip.
After checking in with the rest of the team, Desha moves around the town square and searches for any further historical artifacts she could take back to First Seeker Jadnura to help explain the history of this place.
The city is deathly silent, and you aren't entirely certain whether it was more unnerving with the sound of wailing ghosts or with this awkward silence now. The only sounds are your compatriots, and the occasional shifting of the rubble of the menhir as it slowly settles.
Desha takes a walk around the city center and keeps an eye out for additional relics. She spots a couple of defense robots in a nearby alcove, but they seem to lack the power to do much of anything. At the very least, their weaponry may be worthwhile, and with a few quick tugs their stylized armaments are quickly removed.
You all make your way back through the now silent city of Xaharee towards Iteration-177's cave. As you make your way in, it seems to have been cleaned up. You make your way through the passageway into Iteration-177's repair chamber to find it empty. Not just empty... completely cleaned out... as though they were never here. Not a single oil slick, bloodstain, nut, bolt, or washer has been left behind.
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Fionne gives the chambers a good search, just in case Iteration-177's just a fastidious tidier. The alternative is that they all dreamed his presence, which seems like a weird situation to be in.
She checks her pockets for the very useless ghostkilling pistol, just in case that was imagined as well. Would explain why it couldn't hit the broad side of a yarulk.
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Follows after the rest of the group, occasionally rolling a shoulder or prodding at a random spot on his body just to check that it still hurts. When they get back to where Iteration-177 SHOULD be, he frowns really wishes he could scratch the back of his head in confusion. "Well, there's a good chance he played us to make us risk our lives for him. But we were going to do it anyways."
There's a pause in his speech before he shrugs. "Guess he just vanished like a ghost."
Returning to your ship, a brief scan of the area shows no other starships in the vicinity. Where Iteration-177 came from and went to... will have to be a mystery for another day. For now is just the trip home.
The voyage home is uneventful, and you are quickly admitted to lorespire complex for your outbrief with Jadnura. He stands, hands at his back facing a window overlooking the skyline of Absalom Station's eye. "Report?"
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Desha stands at attention and delivers her report:
"Sir, we found a great deal on Kukanou-2b. Our initial search brought us to a chamber in which there appeared to be some sort of depression in which a device or artifact might have once rested, the said artifact had been removed prior to our arrival. Our assumption was that this might have been the location where you and your team originally located the Tear.
"Looking further, however, we discovered a hidden passage that lead us to glyph-marked wall. A benevolent spirit resided near this wall and, after some attempts to communicate with this spirit, it inhabited within Fionne. Through the spirit's promptings, we found another hidden passage that lead us to the ruined civilization of Xaharee, the home of the mentrasi species on Kukanou-2b.
"From this point, our investigation revealed that the mentrasi were former residents of the Scoured Stars system who had been seduced into following a deity revered by the jinsul--Kadrical. A priest of Kadrical called Dhurus lead the force that brought worship of Kadrical with them. The mentrasi began to develop technologically and culturally after Dhurus's arrival, but when the mentrasi began moving toward space exploration, Kadrical became possessive and over protective. He wouldn't let the mentrasi or any of the other species in the Scoured Stars leave their planets. This was the origin of the Godshield.
"At some point, Kadrical fell asleep or became dormant, and the Godshield dropped for a while, giving the species of the Scoured Stars the opportunity to escape. Dhurus stayed behind, though, and seemed angry that the other species were escaping. Our theory is that the Tear was actually a sort of punishment or vengeance from Dhurus or Kadrical. Something they sent to punish the mentrasi for leaving.
"In either case, when the Tear arrived at Kukanou-2b, the mentrasi began to experience frequent and violent seismic activity that eventually destroyed all life on the planet. In order to preserve themselves from this destruction, the mentrasi performed a ritual they believed would put them in a sort of stasis. It ended up killing them outright, though, and trapping their spirits in the city. We destroyed the menhir that served as the focus of this ritual and released the spirits of the mentrasi."
Jadnura listens to the whole of the report in silence, continuing to gaze out the window at Absalom's skyline.
“Thank you,” Jadnura begins, “you’ve done a commendable job and shown me just how reckless I’ve been. The idea that there is a deity sleeping within the Scoured Stars is… It matches my visions and the records recovered from the survivors of my expedition there.” He lowers his head for a moment, rubbing his temple. “Your report mentions that Dhurus is the name of one of Kadrical’s heralds. I fear this is the same Dhurus that leads the jinsuls against us now. This fact is… daunting. I’m concerned about what happens if this deity eventually ‘wakes up.’ Are the jinsuls typical followers or extremists? It sounds like the mentrasi fled from this god’s overbearing protection, which makes me even more concerned about our future.”
He removes an ancient looking compass from his pocket and turns it over in his hands several times, brushing his fingers across the surface. “The Society cannot afford to sit back and react to these ongoing events. We need to formulate a strategy for dealing with the damage we’ve caused—I’ve caused. I’ll meet with First Seeker Luwazi Elsebo and decide what to do next. I will also make a note in our files to keep tabs on the comings and goings of Iteration-177. Thank you, Starfinders. You are dismissed, with my personal thanks.”
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Well, looks like the Desha's got it covered. Speck simply lounges languidly as Jadnura reviews the mission. He hates to admit it but the sudden disappearance of Iteration-177 has shaken him considerably. The brief interaction he had with him had given no hint of something more... supernatural. But somehow, Weydan willing, this would not be the end of the story...
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Fionne grins as she listens to DD's explanation. "YOU TOOK SOME MAD NOTES DESHA!" She sobers up some as she says "BUT THOSE MENTRASI... THEY GOT SCREWED OVER WORSE THAN ANYONE. JINSULS START OFF BY HELPIN' 'EM, ONLY TO TRAP THEM FOR WHO KNOWS HOW LONG, AND THEN WHEN THEY FINALLY GET SOME GOOD OLD FASHIONED FREEDOM-" She cuts a flat hand across her neck "A TEAR SHOWS UP TO HURT 'EM BAD."
"I SAY WE GO TEACH THOSE JINSULS A LESSON. AND MAYBE THAT KADRICAL TOO." She thrusts a balled fist forward, then returns it to rest on her hip. "AND DHURUS TOO."
"BIG-J YOU JUST GIMME A RING IF YOU NEED SOME ROAST JINSUL, 'AIGHT?"
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To her allies, she adds "YOU FINE FOLKS 'AINT MUCH FOR SHOOTIN' BUT YA'LL ARE GOOD IN MY BOOK. YOU LET ME KNOW IF YOU NEED HELP TOO, KAY?"