"What's the limit? Will canceling wishes in the queue free up new contracts, or waste them? I don't know how much we can repurpose this thing."
"Can you make a new wish and instruct it to prioritize yours over the current queue? You're literally a computer wizard, I'm out of my depth."
The Wishing Engine answers Ordyt's pondering "Canceled Wishes will not consume Contracts, however Contract Loss will result in reduced system efficiency as processing continues. Additional infusion of Contracts will be required to maintain operation."
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"You're right, I am a computer wizard," Belmarniss says, Ordyt's words helping her confidence return. She starts thinking on what the system has told her, and how that compares to complex systems she's dealt with before.
"Wishing Engine, can you provide a listing of the wishes in the current queue and the users who made them?"
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Ordyt exchanges a look with Bel, gives her arm a reassuring squeeze and then looks back towards the Wishing Engine.
"I'd like to submit a new wish at immediate priority, resolving before all other contracts in queue: restore...restore the human Flint Connors and the onkushu known as Uzmat to life, then end all remaining contracts."
The system at first resists providing you with the full list of other wishes, citing insufficient priveliges, but Bel's computer wizardry eventually has it indirectly admitting the identities of the wishers and their wishes. Most of the wishers and their wishes don't mean anything to you, though each one is significant - the restoration of those who are long deceased, the healing of terrible maladies, and the uncovering of long-forgotten secrets. It's only the last wish, and the first one in queue, that you recognize.
After a lengthy technical specification, the Wishing Engine states "In short, the divine ascension of the Malikah, as identified and specified by the aforementioned signifiers." Unsurprisingly this particular wish has been placed by General Khaim.
Ordyt, with a similarly inspired angle manages to make a request that capitalizes on a loophole in the Engine's logic. The Wishing Engine is silent for a while and then states "Emergency measures accepted. Wish has been queued at maximum priority." However nothing seems to happen.
When you prompt it for further details, it states "Emergency priority Wish cannot be processed without resolving current Wish. Aborting Wish processing will result in Captive Paradox exposure. Likelihood of full system destabilization in exposure scenario is 99.99%."
It seems that managing to trick the system into canceling Khaim's wish in order to put your wish ahead will result in something catastrophic happening.
"Well...crap." Ordyt lets out a sharp sigh as Bel translates the tech-speak. "It was talking before about how contracts are viable until the "wishgranter" is dead, could we tell it General Khaim is gone to end the current wish safely?" He clenches his hands into fists and turns back to the Wishing Engine.
"What are the likely consequences of a full system destabilization?"
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Belmarniss frowns a bit...she'd planned on something similar, but a bit more ambitious, wishing others who lost their lives in this war to be similarly restored. But she'd be lying if she said those people mattered more to her than Flint had. She couldn't blame Ordyt for prioritizing.
"And if the person who placed a current wish is now deceased? Will that similarly trigger full system destabilization?"
"Detailed projections of a full system destabilization are beyond the scope of this unit. Regional annihilation of space is most likely, including full eradication of this system." The Wishing Engine answers Ordyt promptly, then smoothly moves into Bel's "Wishes are independent of wishers. The Wish will be processed normally."
"Pause processing on current wish. Is there a mechanism for amending wishes once made, or safely aborting a queued wish without triggering, uh, Paradox Exposure?"
The oread snaps his fingers as another thought occurs to him. "A second question: What's the mechanism by which the current wish can be fulfilled? Divine ascension can't simply be wished for or there'd be hundreds of billions of divinities."
After some careful coaxing and rephrasing of the question, Ordyt manages to bypass the inherent limitations of his access level. The Wishing Engine pauses for longer than any previous query. It finally responds "Current Wish cannot be paused. Wishes cannot be amended. Please retract your Wish if there is a high priority error in its formulation."
The followup question requires its own finagling, but eventually produces a prompt answer "Current Wish parameters are accomplished through myriad distributed unrelated Wishes, aggregated and interlaced to produce the logic web necessary to define an infinitely reoccurring divine trial. The complexity of this task, in addition to the essential demi-divinity of the subject, are sufficient to pass criteria for true ascension. Additionally, System is protected against deific interference that would otherwise be triggered by tampering with forces of this magnitude."
"First--does retracting a wish mitigate the risk of system destabilization? Second-tell me more about these protections from deific interference."
Leaning over closer to Bel, he stage-whispers, "I think I'm getting the hang of this!"
Matter of factly, the Wishing Engine states "Wish retraction does not mitigate system destabilization. System Destabilization from attempting to interfere with in-progress Wishes is inherent to system function."
Protections against deific interference include but are not limited to competing nested consecrations and elevated antipathy fields."
Ordyt raps his knuckles against the visor of his helmet in frustration. "Bel, do you think we could order it to turn off the anti-divinity protections? We could surely use a miracle."
"Where does this device draw its power from? Is it possible for either the Wishing Engine to be turned off, or for the deific protections to be turned off?"
"This system draws power from the solar medium. There is no function to be 'turned off'."
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"It's a...possibility, but it'd be real challenging. This is operating on a nested thesis-antithesis-synthesis model, consecrated by deities of opposing metaphysical concepts or alignments, so we'd have to dispel each consecration one at a time, and each missing one increases the likelihood of the whole mystical subsystem falling apart...then we'd need more than a miracle...we'd need MULTIPLE miracles to prevent every planet in the Pact Worlds from being incinerated..." Belmarniss replies.
She takes a deep breath.
"That gives me an idea...it's just as risky, but the only other option is allowing the Malikah to get what she wants."
She begins listing off variables and contradictory queries to try and confuse the Wishing Engine's programming and make it prioritize their wish.
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Ordyt waits quietly while Bel works her way through complicated logical paradoxes and contradictions, anxiously wishing there was a readout or screen that could tell him if it was working--the Wishing Engine's opacity was driving him to distraction.
When the technomancer finally winds down, the Ordyt gives her an encouraging nod.
"That was good stuff, Bel! I can't say I understood all of it, but I had some time to think while you were working on it, and I think we need to call in the really big guns. This thing says it has layers of divine protections on its functions, and why would the Malikah bother if she doesn't think it's likely that one or more gods would act to stop her? We need a miracle to stop the Malikah and save the Pact Worlds, and I think I know how to get one."
He turns to face the Wishing Engine and squares his shoulders. "Computer, end function on all nested consecrations in order from most recently established to oldest, then end operation of all antipathy fields."
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Bel dives in to issuing esoteric commands and requests to the Wishing Engine, trying to befuddle its internal logic. For a few statements it appears to be working and then abruptly the Wishing Engine states "Dynamic system tampering detected. Entering safe mode." and she finds her requests are no longer answered.
You pause a bit and then Ordyt takes over. Rather than try to engage the system's logic, he goes in to detect the layers of consecrations wrapping the device. It doesn't respond to his verbal requests for adjustments, perhaps due to Bel's earlier attempt, but his careful study of the magic leads to a discovery of a local flaw in the nesting. A flaw that with a subtle prod Ordyt is able to send into a cascading failure. He senses the consecrations fall into conflict with one another and eat away at their bounds.
The Wishing Engine announces "Systemic failure of nested consecrations detected. Outside interference detected. Amplifying antipathy field and increasing to broad spectrum. User interface will be suspended in seven seconds as of the end of this message. Users should planar shift at this time for their own safety."
The traces along the Wishing Engine begin glowing with all the colors of the rainbow and you feel a deep, fundamental unwillingness to approach the device begin to rise within your soul. It seems you've thrown the Wishing Engine into disarray, but there's no telling what the full consequences will be.
"Seven sec--? Oh s+*!! Bel, run!" Ordyt turns and pushes away from the Wishing Engine, something in him feeling a bone-deep relief to be getting further away from the device. He's knows on some level that it's a ward but it spurs him on anyway.
Coming around towards the remnants of their battle the oread goes into a slide, snagging his fallen captain by the elbow and heaving the body up across his shoulders as he rises to his feet with a grunt.
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Belmarniss grimaces as she's locked out, mentally wishing Marisol had been with them. They always did their best work together. But when Ordyt spots a flaw her analytical approach had missed, she breathes a sigh of relief and happily supplies the dispelling needed to prod at his direction.
Then she hears the the final announcement and gasps. She turns and bolts alongside Ordyt, scooping up what she can of Uzmat's ashes and stowing it in a pocket as she runs, hoping against hope that it would count as enough of a body for some sort of miraculous magic to resurrect their friend...even it wasn't...even in the panic of this moment, she felt he deserved SOME ceremony.
They'd done their part, she thinks as they run...what happened next would be in some god's hands now. But would it be Iomedae? Sarenrae? Or the Malikah?
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A deific ping far behind him grabs the attention of all, and the being’s head turns aside. In his mind, Flint hears, ”Hold please,” as his forward progress stops. He can swear he hears the same music played in the lifts at the Radiant Cathedral, and he starts humming along, content for the moment even if some curiosity begins to creep in.
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Focusing on one step and then another and another, Ordyt follows Bel to the elevator that leads back up into the Crucible proper.
"I don't think my messages to the Torrent were getting through, can you raise them?"
With Flint over Ordyt's shoulder and Uzmat's ashes in Bel's pocket, you rush toward the thin silver string that marks the "bottom" of the hag's magical pool. Behind you the golden threads connecting the Wishing Engine to the shadows in the far distance begin vibrating. Not a good sign. You reach the string and reach out to touch it.
With a terrible and painful lurch, the current of the pool draws you in and up, up, up. Up and away from the core. You find yourselves tumbling through silver liquid, turbulent like a storm. A wave of silver bursts upward, carrying you out and throwing you into the hag's domain at the bottom of the Crucible. Inky black smoke bleeds from you and billows out into the space, but you can make out the hunched form of Old Nanite standing in front of you.
Rather than a friendly greeting, she readies her clawed hands while you're still getting your bearings...
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Ordyt (0|40|0, exhausted)
Bel (0|8)
Old Nanite
"You can't be serious," Ordyt tries to snarl, but it comes out as a gasp. Letting Flint's body fall, the oread takes up his rifle and bayonet and wearily stalks towards the hag. "We tried to talk your sisters out of their madness--Goddess knows, we tried. They refused to see reason and now they are dead. Will you echo their mistake? We've won, Old Nanite--General Khaim is dead, Nurleth is dead. Your cloaks are below, go claim them and we'll all walk away." Closing with
"You can't be serious," Ordyt tries to snarl, but it comes out as a gasp. Letting Flint's body fall, the oread takes up his rifle and bayonet and wearily stalks towards the hag. "We tried to talk your sisters out of their madness--Goddess knows, we tried. They refused to see reason and now they are dead. Will you echo their mistake? We've won, Old Nanite--General Khaim is dead, Nurleth is dead. Your cloaks are here, I took them off her corpse, claim them and we can all walk away." Closing in, he gestures to indicate both his weapon and the cloak.
"What's it going to be?"
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Seeing Old Nanite cast at them so soon after emerging, Belmarniss' mind races on potential strategies and counterspells, trying to fight back panic and then she realizes where she's standing.
She turns and crouches, scooping up a handful of the liquid from the cauldron and slapping it to her open mouth as she rises, trying to swallow it down quickly without choking as the strange brew mingles with Uzmat's ashes on her fingers, giving it a foul and sad taste. She'd risk any curse Old Nanite might lay on her to be even just a small step away from the edge of death where she was currently leaning.
It seems that in taking the stance you have, you won't get past her without a fight, at least not without a more meaningful attempt at reducing hostilities.
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Ordyt (0|40|0, exhausted)
Bel (0|8)
Old Nanite
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Belmarniss, running through the previous scenario in her head, suddenly remembers Old Nanite's control over its gifts and that drinking from it now would kill her as surely as any spell the hag might sling at her and stands fast. Then she bows her head.
"You're right. We should be. Some of us ARE," She says, tilting her head towards Flint's body. "We've both lost people we care about in this conflict. And I don't think either of us are going to be able to escape this place on our own. Suppose you do kill us, reclaim your cloak and those of your sisters and gain the satisfaction of revenge. You'll now have to fight your way through a facility crawling with Legion soldiers, leaderless and shooting to kill, alone. And how would you even get off the Crucible after that? Would you be able to pilot a ship, even one of the Legion's special sun-divers, out of here on your own, this deep in the Sun?"
She pauses and draws a haggard breath. "Suppose by some miracle we fight you and win. We're in the same scenario, and even more wounded than we are now. I think...we still need each other, Old Nanite, whether any of us likes it or not."
She lets her junksword collapse from her arm, and kneels.
"And if you still want a life to take, then take mine and let Ordyt go. I've already lost Flint...at least with you I can face my death honorable with my eyes open. Khaim stabbed me from invisibility without facing me. Dishonorable hypocrite that he was..."
She looks up at Old Nanite, clearly ready to die.
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"There's always a choice, Old Nanite," Ordyt reaches up with one hand to unclasp the cloak, pulling it from his shoulders and holding it out to her. "This, too, is a choice. I've killed a lot of people today, I'm choosing not to kill any more, if you'll let me."
She backs off, then throws one cloak into the air. It swirls as if it has a life of its own and settles around her shoulders. The moment it does, she straightens, suddenly far calmer and more collected. She still holds the other two cloaks close to her.
She says to Bel "You are a clever girl. We do need each other for a moment longer. We will go up together, and you will fight what Legion soldiers remain. The rocky one seems to have plenty of fight left in him."
Ordyt flips to a private channel on his headset. "I don't think that's a good idea, Bel. If the Cauldron answers to her, I don't want either of us any more beholden to her. Let's just get out of here."
He also opens up his comms to message the ship. "Torrent of Embers this is Ordyt, do you copy? Get the ship ready to make a break for it, I think the Wishing Engine is unraveling."
"Certainly not." Old Nanite grins cruelly. "You are both filled with such confidence, so we'll let that confidence protect you." She eyes the two of you for any sudden moves.
Ordyt finds no response from the Torrent of Embers, but after several abortive tries he manages to get in contact with Sammad. The ifrit sounds skeptical and then relieved "You work fast. Bafflingly fast I dare say. We've barely started sneaking back toward the ship. Hmmmm." He exchanges some whispered conversation with the others in the team "If the job with the Wishing Engine is done then we should do our best to get out of here together. We'll come back and get you. Unless you found a second rod the elevator won't run without us."
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"You sound like one of my grandmothers," Belmarniss snarks back, but she doesn't make a hostile move.
She replies to Sammad's comm.
"We lost Flint...we have his body, but Khaim took him down...Uzmat too...he nearly killed me! We'll need any serums you still have, both Ordyt and me are badly bloodied."
"And we picked up another passenger--she's not a friend, but she's not an enemy either," Ordyt glances at Old Nanite in a right? sort of way.
"Anyway--please hurry."
Sammad sighs "You'll need to give us the whole story once we're out of here. But it's done. We're on our way."
It takes Sammad and Mari a minute to descend back down with the elevator. A minute of tense silence with Old Nanite staring daggers at both of you. When the two of them arrive, the elevator doors slide open and you quickly pile inside. Mari asks about Old Nanite, but at your assurances doesn't press the issue. Sammad warns when you're almost there "We used our serums up already, so this is going to be a bit of a run and gun. Since Mari, Ilor, Hazl and I are a touch fresher, we'll lead the way. You follow behind us. We'll hope the Torrent's still there. If not, we hijack something else."
They both ready their weapons and then the doors to the elevator slide open. You see the central chamber that houses the elevator is already littered with fallen Legion soldiers. Mari and Sammad step over them and rush you into the detention wing to pick up Ilor and the rescuees. Not wasting any time, the B-team push forward into the long hall back to the docking bay...
...and immediately pull back as a hail of fire saturates the hallway. It seems your way to the docking bay is blocked by at least half a dozen soldiers ready to hold the line!
"Secondary team, get ready for a counterpush. I'll cover in 3...2...1..."
Activating his forcefield, Ordyt checks the load of MkII frag grenades in his launcher. Leaning out around the corner just a tiny amount, he sends a volley of low-yield explosives down the hall to harry the Legion security team.
With Bel's symbol demoralizing the assembled soldiers and Ordyt's grenades sowing chaos (if not that much actual harm), the B team rushes in and unloads upon the squad of foes. Between Ilor and Hazl in the front and Sammad and Mari firing over their shoulders, the Legion troops swiftly lose a couple of their number at the start of the counterattack. Disciplined, they fight and fall back, tossing grenades to cover their retreat. When the smoke clears you see that Mari, Ilor and Hazl have taken some burn wounds, but the way is open to continue.
You rush onward without delay, making it to the massive hangar. The Torrent is thankfully still docked. The B-team dispatches several guards and you board while they cover your entrance. Once inside the familiar voice of Popoko pipes through the ship's speakers "There you are! So many soldiers running awound. Some even checked inside the ship! I made suwe they didn't find anything. We are leaving, yes? There's some vewy interesting and vewy scawy!!! things going on outside the bubble! -.- "
You rush to your battle stations on the ship and start powering everything back on. Across the bay you can see a few troops spilling out of the docked Legion ships, weapons in hand. It seems they'll reach the Torrent before you're ready to leave, but with only personnel-scale weapons it seems unlikely that they'll be able to do too much damage to the ship.
"Uh? What kind of scary things Popoko?" Ordyt shouts as he sprints for the gunnery compartment. Swiveling the particle beam around, he waits just long enough for the Torrent to lift off before raking the landing bay with warship-grade firepower.
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"Hmm, hmm. Here, on screen!" Popoko swaps the bridge readouts to short range scanners. Though the data is complex for some of you, Mari and Bel can explain that the boundaries of the black bubble that houses the Crucible are wavering. And those fluctuations are coming through like waves spreading out from the center of the sun. Though the bubble itself is blocking a clear view of what's happening outside, it seems it's nothing good if it can affect the bubble that way.
But between staying here and escaping, the path is clear. While the Legion soldiers unload fire upon your ship's hull, the Torrent's engines flare to life and Ordyt gets ready with the particle beam.
You kick the Torrent into reverse out the docking bay, and as you back out, Ordyt sprays the rest of the assembled ships. In such close range its almost impossible to miss, though you don't stay back to find out the result of the assault. You peel away from the Crucible, spin the Torrent around, and push it as fast as you dare. The Ezorod tablet hums its resonant whispers and the black bubble's surface reaches out for you, engulfs you, and...
Suddenly the Torrent is a piece of flotsam in a terrible storm. Forces beyond reason batter the ship, sending it tumbling, turning, churning. You're thrown into the air, smashed against the wall, the ship's own gravity dwarfed by the powers now gripping the Torrent. A shock runs through the ship - a navigation console decays to dust in an instant. Another shock - the contents of the galley sprout forth, becoming a damp forest of mushrooms that floods the bridge. A third shock - a wave of liquid light spears through the ship, cutting through several of you in the process. Ordyt feels his wounds healing, while the light turns Old Nanite to ash.
And then as quickly as the shocks hit, they fade, and you're dumped unceremoniously to the floor. A glance at the main console shows the ship sustained serious damage, several of its core systems having been destroyed. The last registered position of the ship appears to have already been far from the Crucible, the force that pushed you emanating outward from the core. Perhaps by sheer luck, the life support still functions, but without any navigation, you've no option but to fly forward and hope to exit the sun and get your bearings.
"Sound off--everyone okay?" Odyt groans as he pushes back to his feet from the corner he'd been thrown into. "I think--I hope--that was the Wishing Engine's death throes. And maybe...a miracle, too."
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Ilor, Hazl and the rest of your rescuees sound off one by one. It seems none of them were struck down in the way Old Nanite was, but a couple have some uncanny burn marks traced in a lattice across their limbs. Even Popoko chimes in - a wonder considering the state of the ship. She bleeps and bloops worryingly for a few seconds before cohering back into her usual semi-intelligible speech "Systems vewwy bad! Pwease help. O _ O"
A corner of the main viewscreen flickers back on to show nothing more than the solar plasma and a little digital Popoko panicking within it. Seems you'll be taking the long way back.
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It's about a week later when the Torrent breaches the surface of the sun, the clear dark of space a relief after days of the interior of the ship slowly warming. You circle the exterior over the better part of a day until you spot a dark patch and your intended destination.
Up ahead, you all see the glimmering golden white outline and dark orange inside of the ancient magical tunnel that leads to the Burning Archipelago. The tunnel bores through the outer layer of the sun's corona, providing an access path for normal starships to fly from space to the bubble-cities of the Archipelago. Not one the Torrent wound normally need, but with your busted navigation system it's a welcome signpost that you're almost back. An age ago, you entered this passage ferrying Dr. Taeress into the Archipelago to share her findings with the DCI. At that time, a small but well-armed space station know as Sunrise Station stood here. Now, you see a shattered husk, a victim of the Legion's surprise attack. It buoys your spirits however to see that the way has not been abandoned. Several Sarenite cruisers float above and around the Station. They open contact with you as soon as you come into view.
"Please halt your approach and identify yourselves. Be aware that Dawnshore is off limits to ordinary commercial traffic as we conduct rescue and charitable assistance. This location was under hostile control by invaders from the Plane of Fire until just several days ago." The speaker is silent for a moment before adding "And you do not have the look of ordinary commercial traffic."
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Belmarniss bolts towards the pilots' seat and as the systems are powering up she straps herself in, and takes a deep breath and focuses. This was where she was in her element. This was her moment. She gives Ordyt some room to open fire, then reverses and then hits full throttle to try and escape as fast as the ship will allow. It's only then that she sees the feed Popoko is showing them, and her jaw drops.
"A few more waves like that could rupture the bubble entirely! That'd vaporize the entire damn facility in an instant! And if we're in the bubble when it happens-" She doesn't have time to finish her thought as that's exactly what happens next, sending the Torrent into a tailspin. Despite being buckled in, Belmarniss has never piloted through something like this, and she maintains a death grip on her controls even as the ship pitches and thrashes, yanking her in every direction it can, the seatbelts threatening to snap. Even that crash on Apostae, so long ago, hadn't felt this harsh, this deadly, where even just her head getting knocked on the back of the pilot seat could kill her. She screams, partly in fear and partly in grief, expecting this to be the end...until suddenly the ship finally slows.
She slowly tries to breathe, tears on her face, as Ordyt takes a roll call, and then she turns and raises a hand.
"Present..." she manages weakly. "Thank Iomedae the Legion didn't skimp on the seatbelts..."
Then she sees the pile of ash where Old Nanite was and gapes.
"Holy Spirit! That's...that's almost TOO convenient..."
She turns to Popoko.
"It's okay, it's okay...I got this."
She keeps the ship flying while she makes spot repairs to what systems can be brought back online quickly and safely. Marisol, she assumes, will take care of the heavy lifting with the rest of the ship.
"Please let us get through this without losing anyone else..." she prays as she works. "Please let us have a chance to get Flint back..."
When they emerge into space, Belmarniss greets the comparative darkness with a sigh of relief.
"We've been so deep in the sun for so long I almost forgot what the rest of space looks like."
Using old-fashioned space navigation skills, she's able to orient them and limp towards safety. She tears up a bit as they approach Sunrise Station, remembering their first entrance, where this whole venture'd began, and Flint's confident smile as they approached. When they're hailed, she brings the ship to a stop, straightens up in the pilot seat, and salutes.
"This is Star-Knight Belmarniss Rycast, Pilot and Acting Captain of the Torrent of Embers. We've fairly recently escaped from the HQ of the invaders you've described, having dealt what we believe to be a decisive blow to their plans for conquest. It's good to see the Burning Archipelago was able to drive them off. We have several injured aboard and our systems are severely damaged from the destruction of the Legion base. Requesting permission to proceed to docking for repairs, medical treatment and...and to see if our friends here made it...some of us aboard...didn't."
She tries to maintain her stoic appearance, but it's obvious to anyone watching or listening that she's barely holding it together emotionally.
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There's a pause on the other end of the comms line before the Sarenite captain answers "Well well. We had half a mind to detain you for questioning, considering the way your ship looks. But the Torrent of Embers? We heard stories about you from some of the efreeti we had in our custody. Very interesting stories. It makes a lot of sense that we have you to thank for their retreat. And it seems you've been through a lot."
After a moment of silence where the Sarenite captain seems to be discussing something with his fellows on board, he returns to speak once more.
"Well, you'll find plenty of friends here. You're cleared for entry. Welcome home."