|
Hermena glowers at Kong's cronies and keeps her rifle poised to fire, just in case they attempt to deceive the party again. "This datapad has evidence that may help another avoid prosecution for a crime they didn't commit. As soon-to-be-subjects of Aballon's criminal justice system, I hope you can sympathize with their circumstances."
She nods at Basalt. "With any luck this will get us that tablet fragment and we can be on our way."
It takes no real negotiation to get the thugs to give up the datapad. In fact, the moment you ask for only the datapad, they over to Kong and work at digging through her things until they find a whole stack of datapads that they practically toss in your direction before taking the rest of her stuff and running.
Among the datapads you find the one with the Strawberry Machine Cake holofoil sticker. You press a button on the side and the cracked screen flickers on. It seems to still be functional - though protected by security
Perhaps more interestingly, Lerecti's own musings over who framed them are also included. Their attention is particularly focused on a verthani named "Karelite Bogdin", the owner of a high-end club on Verces and Lerecti's ex-employer. Lerecti's notes end with the following comment: 'Once, I'd thought everyone working there was like me. Just looking to pay off my debts, and getting trapped by that fiend Bogdin and his damned contract. But the others... they won't say anything, but I think he has them even worse.'
----
You return to a Lerecti that seems surprised that you're both back so soon and largely unscathed. When you present the datapad, they visibly swell with renewed hope. "You found it! How did you manage to- Wait, I don't want to know the details. All that matters is that the information here is going to help my case." They clutch the datapad tightly. "You have my sincere appreciation. You are more than welcome to take the tablet piece. Hopefully it brings you less trouble than it brought me."
They produce a large shard of a sandstone tablet, about the size of a vesk's head, and covered in a web of indecipherable arcing lines and wriggling markings. It is clear that the contents are not any kind of language... in fact, it looks more like some kind of map. When you fit it to the other piece you already have, you see they're a seamless match! One more piece remains.
----
With your mission accomplished, you return to the shuttle and check in with Venture Captain Arvin via inter-world datalink. Arvin beams at your group as you explain your success at obtaining the second tablet fragment, as well as the information you've otherwise gathered from Lerecti. "Excellent work! While you were on Aballon, we've been focusing all our attention here on the last fragment and last poem."
He brings up an image on the viewscreen, showing the transcriptions of the various dream fragments from earlier. "To remind you, our last dreamspun tale was the following cryptic little bit:"
"One world, two sides apart,
Freedom locked 'neath neon lights,
Bad Chameleon."
He pauses, rubbing his chin with a thumb. "Considering what you just learned on Aballon..." He shakes his head. "Before I speak, what are your thoughts on this one?"
|
Oh, Give me give me give me." Snik say as he takes the tablet, fidgeting with it.
"This info may come in handy in the future." Snik says as he connects and downloads a copy of the files to his datapad.
Once on the ship. "Yes good idea. Would not want to let this last place to get all 3 pieces. lets drop it off."
Venture Captain Arvin nods thoughtfully. "Right you are Burnham - Verces. The only Pact World that is definitely 'One world, two sides apart', though it was difficult to narrow it down much further beyond that. Of course, it was... until one of my junior investigators mentioned they'd seen a place on one of their visits with a chameleon as its mascot! A pure stroke of luck, that one." He grins.
"As you're thinking Basalt, your target is a nightclub. One called Kosmos, in the city state of Vanos. One of many such establishments under the control of one Karelite Bogdin. Though, Kosmos is the only one with a neon chameleon over the entrance, dressed... uh... provocatively."
"Thanks to the information you got from Lerecti, I think we can be confident that this ex-boss of theirs, Karelite Bogdin, is keeping the final tablet piece. The dream fragment leads to the nightclub, so the fragment must be somewhere inside. I would venture a guess that Bogdin would keep it somewhere safe and secure, maybe in his office, with any other valuable pieces."
Arvin looks off camera as he listens in to some other chatter on his end of the line for around a minute. He frowns, then nods and turns back to your team. "Alright, here's what else we know. It seems Bogdin has quite the security force and enough clout among the local officials that making a big scene might drop you into a Vanos jail, despite any noble cause you might have. This time around, you're going to need a more sneaky approach." He meets the eyes of everyone in your group, trying to impress upon you how important this is.
"To that end, I've already reserved you tickets for the club. You can use them, or not use them and find your own way in, at your discretion. But please be careful. From Lerecti's experiences, its clear to me that Bogdin is not a man to be crossed."
"Questions?"
|
|
Troy looks up as soon as Arvin utters the words "sneaky approach". "A... stealth mission? That is exactly what I do for a living. As a corporate agent I regularly... access areas that are considered to be... inaccessible."
He turns to Snik. "It would be... invaluable if we could get our hands on any floor plans or security measures that may be in effect. Do you think you could... obtain those?"
|
|
"I can hide among trees and ravines quite well, but I'm not exactly built for lurking around a nightclub. With the right intel we may make it work, though. Troy's got a good idea, and I'd like to know where the security detail tends to hang out if possible." Hermena nods to Troy, agreeing with his desire for layout information.
Arvin shakes his head. "We don't have much intelligence on Bogdin himself, though we believe him to be verthani. Lerecti's perspective paints a picture of a dangerous, ruthless individual. I would avoid confrontation with him if possible."
Venture Captain Arvin nods approvingly at your thoughtful analysis. "Now remember, the task here is to find and secure the tablet fragment and get out. The less of a ruckus the better! Good luck Starfinders!"
----
Arvin provides digital tickets to each of you for Kosmos, sending them to your comms devices or datapads, if you have one. You take a regular commercial spaceflight to Verces, trying to keep your visit as low-key as possible. The flight takes a few days during which you have ample time to discuss your approach to the club if you wish to.
Troy reviews his quick check of the infosphere made during the meeting with Arvin. What he found was that Kosmos is a fairly upscale establishment that caters to a wealthy clientele that wishes for a more 'legally laid-back' approach to entertainment, openly advertising 'psychic adventures' and 'heightened experiences in a unique setting'.
Soon enough, your flight arrives in the city-state of Vanos, a land of perpetual twilight at the absolute edge of the daytime zone of the tidally locked world of Verces. The lighting (or lack thereof) only serves to highlight the multitude of traditionally nocturnal activities found here. The club itself is a short distance from the spaceport, down a busy boulevard. Neon lights and signs flash above various storefronts, advertising everything from virtual reality shows to high-end pet shops selling imported animals (and maybe some creatures that don't qualify as 'animals') of questionable legality. All around, people of various species, dressed in expensive clothing, laugh as they make their way beneath the pulsing lights. Many of them are accompanied by androids, all dressed in similar black uniforms, and all with blue-glowing collars around their necks.
----
When you arrive at Kosmos you see that the starkly elegant building sports a massive neon sign hanging above it. An anthropomorphized chameleon, or a heavily augmented verthani (it's hard to tell which) stretches on a lounge chair and luridly shows off its assets. The entrance to the club has a line that stretches around the block, with the mostly young, and loudly boisterous visitors waiting impatiently for admittance.
|
In conference on Verces before entering the club:
Burn looks over what Troy discovered and thinks about what they've seen of Verces.
"If we're going to blend in, I think Stonie plays a free-spending rich dwarf, and we're his ontourage. Troy can wear black with a blue necklace -- he'll fit in with the others. Snik's some kind of assistant. Hermena and I are bodyguards. Do you think I can get way with my armor?"
While Troy peels off to do some quiet scouting of his own, the rest of the team checks out the line in front of the entrance. There are a couple of bodyguards here and there in the line, but certainly none of them are sarcesians! It may take a good cover story or disguise to blend in
|
|
Burn goes shopping for a second skin. To present a more uniform appearance, he settles on one whose color matches Hermena's armor.
The armor downgrade is his only concession to blending in. Battleglove, sword , smoke grenade, and reaction cannon remain with him, as do his pack with the medkit, healing serums and flashlight. After a few seconds thought, he concedes the frag grenade too.
"I hope you can settle this without a fight, Stonie. I feel damn near naked in this outfit." The second skin does live up to its name. It's stretched tightly over his muscular frame.
|
|
Hermena looks down at Basalt. "We could always go with a story that you are a mining magnate from a dwarven asteroid prospecting clan in the Diaspora. It has a kernel of truth since we just helped those dwarven miners earlier, and it would help explain why one of my people would be willing to serve as a hired gun for you."
While Basalt and crew figure out their cover story, Troy sneaks around the outskirts of the building, moving from one shadow to the next.
The front entrance to the building is packed with people waiting in line in front of a pair of vesk bouncers checking people's tickets before waving them in. The vesk look like typical club muscle - chosen more to look imposing than because they're likely to have any kind of martial skill. Both are unarmed, though as with all vesk, they retain their sharp teeth and claws.
Troy spots another door on the north end of the building, unmarked and unadorned. It sports a keypad next to it, likely the only way to unlock it from the outside.
On the east end of the building lies a small elevated metal deck that leads to a rear access door. A quick inspection reveals that the door has been fully welded shut and that the deck hasn't been used in quite a long time.
|
|
Troy joins the rest of the group and tells them about the two doors.
"Does one of you know how to... manipulate the keypad of the locked door? If not, at least we may have our... escape route."
Troy quickly changes his uniform for the black uniform and blue collar. Underneath this uniform he is wearing his Second Skin.
|
|
Hermena makes a few cosmetic changes to her second skin armor, trying to match Basalt's aesthetic and look like a mercenary bodyguard. "I'm not convinced this will impress anyone, especially if I'm bringing in any firepower. I suppose I could stash the rifles and only bring in my starknife, but that's not really compatible with my training."
She looks over to Snik as he tries to get into character? "You sure you don't want to just try to get us in through the back door? How hard can it be to hack a keypad?"
|
|
Troy tries to hide his pistol underneath his uniform. "I do not think my pistol is... well hidden, is it?" He takes the pistol out from under his clothes and waves it around in frustration. "This is not working," he mutters under his breath.
"By the way, I agree with Hermena, maybe we could try the locked door."
Seeing the virtue of a sneaky approach through the back door, you head over to the north side of the building and Snik carefully attempts to hack into the building's security through the old keypad. After a minute, the keypad's display flashes green and the door unlocks with a weighty clunk.
You swing it open... only to reveal what appears to be a solid steel wall behind it! Who would make a door that opens up into a wall?
'Ichihara Holdings - Deep Space Storage Pod "Nichibotsu" Mk2'
'The very best quality, no questions asked.'
The steel deep space storage pod completely blocks this doorway. It looks very solid, but enough damage or strength might move it.
Each of you push against the pod, at first individually, and then as a team, but it doesn't budge. It seems very heavy. While it may be possible for some team to move it or damage it, it sure seems a daunting task for yours.
Seeing only the back of the storage pod, its unclear what might be inside it. Nor is it clear if trying to smash your way in will result in alerting anyone inside the building. Even outside, you can hear the thumping club music vibrating through the whole structure...